“Someone’s out there killing young men and mutilating the bodies. We’ve got two bodies identified right now and suspect there’s more. The latest victim was Elliot Washington, a friend of the mayor’s daughter. His body was found this morning floating in the pool over at the Hartford Hotel. Both men were in their mid to late twenties. Both had been stabbed and castrated.”
Ouch! Reed swallowed, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. This was definitely an interesting case. He could only imagine the motivation behind someone taking the time to murder and castrate someone.
The captain studied him, looking for a sign of weakness. “Still think you can do this task force deal?”
Reed nodded. “Yes, sir. I’m ready to roll on it. Just give me the names and I’ll pull the files.”
“No need for that.” The captain handed him two folders. The one on top had Washington’s name on it. “You can do a search on the system to see if you can come up with the others.”
“Thank you.” Reed accepted the files and rose.
“One other thing, Crawford. Since Farrell is still in the hospital, you can use his office as the task force office for now. I had Betty put away his things.”
Thanking him again, Reed got out of his office. He was excited at the prospect of putting a face to whoever killed Washington and the other guy, and catching the killer before he could kill again. The only potential bug on his butt was the FBI agent he’d have to work with. He’d heard enough stories to make his hands curl into fists.
On the way back to his desk Reed tried to relax. If the FBI sent a snot-nosed, tight-assed wonder boy, he’d just have to make him see the light. He could do that, couldn’t he? He’d show him that the C.P.D. was truly a world-class team.
CHAPTER 2
Marina drove over to the Twenty-fourth District Town Hall Station on Halstead and sweet-talked the guard into letting her park in the police lot. She could have gone inside first, shown her badge and gotten a permit, but there was nowhere close to park and she wasn’t taking any chances with someone trying to steal her sports car. That was her baby.
Inside the station, she straightened her shoulders, flashed her badge at the officer on the desk and informed him that she had arrived for the task force.
He stared at her, obviously having a hard time lifting his gaze above her breasts. Marina’s breasts were 38Ds, so she got that a lot, but it didn’t mean she had to like the extra attention. “Officer, is there a problem?” she asked, hardening her tone.
He immediately lifted his gaze to make eye contact. “No. No, ma’am, no problem.” Then he checked a list and directed her to a room around the corner and across the hall.
Deeper into what she’d jokingly named the Den of Testosterone, Marina peered into the small, smoked-glass window on the office where she’d been directed. With his back to her, a caramel-skinned man with a head full of thick dark hair sat at a desk, his head bent over a file. She guessed that he was her new partner on the task force, already hard at work. She fleetingly thought those wide muscular shoulders and well-shaped head looked familiar. She opened the door and stepped in, dragging her laptop in the rolling case behind her. “Good morning, I’m Marina Santos and I’ve been assigned to the task force.”
At the sound of her voice he lifted his head and turned around, recognizing her instantly. “Marina?”
“Reed?” Forcing air through her lungs, Marina felt like she’d stepped through a time warp. She gazed into those golden-brown eyes, aware that Reed Crawford was as surprised but not particularly as happy to see her. She knew him, had gone to college with him, even kissed that full mouth a time or two. She’d also been accepted at the FBI academy along with him, but he’d had to opt out due to his mother’s illness.
Other than deciding not to make him a boyfriend last year, what had she done to deserve that look? If she hadn’t known better, she’d have said it hurt her feelings. She still saw him every other month at a gathering of friends and he always seemed as friendly as ever.
“So you’re the violent crime expert the FBI’s assigned to the task force?” he asked, as if he still wasn’t quite ready to believe it.
“That’s what I just said,” she confirmed a bit too brightly as she pulled out the chair at the desk next to his.
“So, how’ve you been?” he asked, recovering quickly.
“I’m fine.” She turned to confront him. “But you look…disappointed. Why?”
Golden-brown eyes made serious contact with hers. She experienced a physical jolt that she felt all over, almost as if she’d been pushed by all the energy in that gaze. Reed had depths she’d never taken the time to explore.
“To be frank, I’m not disappointed,” he began with a glint of amusement in his eyes, “but I was sort of expecting one of the guys, an up-and-coming special agent?”
Marina wasn’t going to drop the subject. “You already know I got promoted recently, but I’ve still got a ways to go. You got everything right except the guy part,” she pressed.
His gaze assessed her, taking her in as a whole. Then he nodded. “Yeah, right. If you’re wondering if I have a problem with you working on this task force because you’re female or because we’re friends, forget it. Just don’t expect me to kiss your ass. Okay?”
“Okay, but don’t be surprised if you piss me off and I tell you to kiss my ass anyway.” Marina grinned.
Reed chuckled, shaking his head.
She’d made her point, he’d put her in her place and she’d managed a good comeback. “How’s Trudy?” Marina asked, her tone softening.
Something in his posture eased. “Ma’s doing a lot better. She’s fine as long as we keep taking care of her. Ron and I take turns fixing her meals, testing her blood sugar and giving her the medication and shots. She goes to an activity center during the day where she’s taking a couple of classes.” Reed rocked his chair back and forth. “You know, she asks about you all the time.”
“Really? What do you tell her?” Her question hung on the air for several moments while she imagined several nasty explanations he could have used.
His expression was calm, but there was a darkness in his eyes that made her cringe and feel guilty. Reed answered in an easy tone did not match what she saw in his eyes. “I’ve told her that you’ve moved on, and that you’ve been busy with your career. She wants to see you, so she can congratulate you on your promotion.”
Marina was almost certain that he was still angry with her about the way she’d ended things. She shouldn’t care, but she did. Whether she and Reed ever got together as a couple or not, she genuinely liked him as a person. He could be provocative and mysterious, and irritating, but he was still a genuinely nice guy that she liked to be around.
“I’ll have to drop by to see her sometime,” she mumbled.
He was silent when he shot her a look of disbelief. “And what’s Javier up to?” he asked, referring to her dad.
“Javier is Javier.” She sighed dramatically, not wanting go into the details of how her amorous father was inexplicably without a love interest for the first time in years. He had been driving Marina crazy with his determination to spend more time with her. She abruptly changed the subject. “Where’s the rest of the team hiding out?”
“I am the rest of the team.” He watched her take the computer out of her case and set it on the desk. Then he showed her the socket to plug in her power cord. “You know I work the Homicide Unit and I’m good. I have access to their resources and anything the C.P.D. has to offer. Where’s the rest of your FBI team?”
This time she smiled. “You’re looking at it. I’ve got access to the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime database and the VICAP and anything else we’ll need from the FBI.”
“We’ve got everything we need to bring down the killer.” Reed returned the smile and this time it was close to the charming, earnest one she was used to seeing. “If we really push it, maybe we can chase the killer down before the trail grows cold. We need to leave in about thi
rty minutes. Jade Dansinger was too upset to talk to homicide detectives early this morning. I’ve been calling the mayor’s mansion to set up another interview. The okay came just a few minutes ago. We need to talk to her and her friends about last night and anything they may have seen or heard. I’ve already lined up interviews with several of her and Washington’s friends.”
Marina nodded. “How about the staff at the hotel?” she asked.
“Third-shift detectives on the scene this morning interviewed them.”
Hope surged within Marina that they would have another piece of the puzzle. “Did anyone see anything?”
“Not really. They knew that Washington was out at the pool with someone, but no one bothered to look. Apparently, Jade and Elliot often took late-night skinny-dips and paid the staff to give them their privacy. There’s actually a room at the back of the hotel with its own private pool.”
Marina expelled a puff of air. “So do they at least know if Washington was out there with a woman?”
Reed shook his head. “No. No one saw or heard a thing. Washington must not have cried out or struggled enough to draw attention.”
Marina considered his statement. “Maybe he couldn’t. Maybe the first blow incapacitated him or he was already pretty much out of it. I hope they took samples of his blood.”
Spearing her with a glance, Reed said, “Bring that nose down a bit. Our crew is one of the best. They got the blood samples, some DNA from the scene and prints from the chair he’d been sitting in and the ones next to it. The forensic team is doing their thing. We should have all of the results in a few days.”
Marina nodded. “I don’t suppose anyone found the murder weapon?”
“You dream big, don’t you?” Reed remarked.
“It was worth a try,” she murmured, settling into her chair. “I’ll just take a quick look at the files.”
While Reed checked on the database search he’d initiated earlier, Marina set up her computer and opened a new spreadsheet. Then she got her first look at the files.
One file was that of Elliot Washington, the guy she’d heard about on the morning news. The other file was for the young man identified as twenty-five-year-old elementary school teacher, Colton Edwards. His body had been found in the middle of an empty stall at Union Station.
Working violent crime with Talbot, she’d learned the hard way that murder was never pretty. Mentally bracing herself, Marina went through the crime scene photos. Her stomach quivered.
Someone had stabbed Washington repeatedly and unmanned him with butcher-block precision. She hadn’t heard that part on the news. Had Washington still been alive when his killer had done that? Marina hoped not because it seemed that the killer’s need to punish and degrade had been strong. Her stomach threatened to heave.
Momentarily looking away, she found Reed watching her.
“Pretty graphic, huh?”
Marina nodded. “I’ve seen worse, but looking at this stuff never gets easier.”
Reed’s gaze dropped back to the screen. “No, it doesn’t.”
She pointed to the stack of pictures. “Just examining the way the bodies were maimed, it appears that we’re dealing with a serial killer who’s also a sexual predator. There are several famous serial killer cases where men and young boys were abducted, assaulted and brutalized, maimed and killed. Leaving the severed organs near the victim’s body appears to be our killer’s signature, as in actions he does above and beyond his mode of operation. If this is the case, then our killer will do this to all of the victims.”
Reed secured Edwards’ file and paged through to the selection of pictures. The wounds to his body and the gruesome removal and placement of the organs was similar to what had been done to Washington. His girlfriend, his mother and his fifth-grade class had been devastated. They’d written the heart-wrenching letters in the file to the detective handling the case.
Forcing herself to swallow against the dryness in her throat, Marina moved on.
In Washington’s file she noted that he’d gone to her and Reed’s alma mater, Merriwhether University of Chicago. He’d obtained a degree in business administration. On impulse she checked Edwards’ file. Same college, only his degree was in education. Typing the information onto the new spreadsheet, she wondered if she’d already found the most important link. If so, did that mean that Reed qualified as a potential victim? At twenty-nine, he was a few years older than both men. Only time would tell if he, too, was in danger.
Reed checked his watch and stood. “We’ve got to get going.”
Opting to leave her laptop locked in the task force office, because it could be intimidating to some witnesses and a chore to keep up with, Marina grabbed her purse and followed him out.
“Did you notice that both victims went to Merriwhether?” she asked as they got into an unmarked blue Crown Victoria.
“Yeah,” Reed answered grudgingly as he backed out of the parking space and took off. “What’s your point?”
“I know that you and a lot of people went to Merriwhether, but until we get more facts about this killer and how he’s picking his victims, you should be careful.”
“So you think I’m in danger?”
She didn’t like the trace of amusement that crept into his voice. “Reed, this could be serious,” she insisted, feeling like a teacher cautioning a child bent on ignoring reason. “You’re only a couple of years older than Washington and Edwards.”
“Fact, but what else do I have in common with them?”
Marina’s teeth kneaded her bottom lip. “That’s the ten-million-dollar question.”
With a slight shrug, he accelerated and entered the freeway. “I don’t remember seeing them on campus and I never met either of them.”
He appeared to be dismissing her arguments. Folding her arms in front of her, she threw him annoyed glance.
Those impossibly long lashes of his were still as he concentrated on the road.
Marina turned to stare out the window at the Chicago countryside. Were all men so arrogant or just the ones she knew?
“Of course I plan to watch myself and stay on guard,” he said, breaking the sudden silence.
Turning from the window, she met his amused glance.
“Don’t take yourself so seriously,” he said. “The work we do can be depressing enough.”
“Don’t you try to diminish the importance of what’s going on here,” she replied without a trace of amusement. “I’d hate to lose you as a member of this task force.”
“Is that all?” he asked softly.
Of course it wasn’t all. He was still her friend and she didn’t want to lose him. “Well, you’ve been my friend for how long?” she asked, making eye contact and letting her voice trail off. “I’d hate to lose you period.”
Something in his rapt gaze made her swallow reflexively. Was he trying to make her say that she still had feelings for him? She did, but they were tangled in a maze of emotions, thoughts and feelings resulting from the choice she’d made. Being alone with him for the first time in ages forced her to see him in a new light and it made her uncomfortable.
She was relieved when he turned his attention back to the road. Opening some of the files they’d brought along, she immersed herself in the notes the third shift detectives had made while interviewing the hotel staff.
At the mayor’s home, they flashed their badges and were shown to a library filled with couches and chairs, a large cherry desk and antique shelves of leather-bound books. Marina and Reed took seats in the flower-patterned armchairs in front of the bay window. Sunlight filtered in, warming the air-conditioned room.
The staff informed them that the mayor was away on business, but due back soon, and that Mrs. Dansinger and Jade would be in momentarily. Then they offered tea. Translating that to mean that Jade would be a while, Marina accepted a cup.
Ten minutes later, Jade Dansinger and her mother, Laura, entered the library. Poor Jade’s eyes were red and swollen, her aquiline
nose pinched and flushed. She hadn’t bothered with makeup. The black silk pantsuit did nothing for her white complexion and slim frame. Her eyes were pale blue. A fall of baby-fine, platinum-blond hair covered her face when she took a seat on the couch next to her mother. Her collagen-filled lips quivered as she answered their questions.
Elliot Washington had taken a call on his cell phone and left the party on the North End at about midnight to meet a friend. He’d told Jade that it was part of the big surprise he was planning for her and had insisted on going alone. He’d driven himself in his Jag. Marina made a note to look at the cell phone records C.P.D. had undoubtedly subpoenaed.
“Did Elliot seem upset or worried?” Reed asked, scribbling in his notebook.
“No, he was happy,” Jade answered in a voice clogged with tears.
A Serial Affair Page 2