The Warriors Series Boxset I

by Ty Patterson

  Beth caught Meghan’s wink and kept her grimace from showing. Bet he’ll start off on his smarts now. Cleary didn’t, surprising her again.

  ‘And where’re you ladies from? That twang says West.’

  ‘Jackson, Wyoming. Best little town in the country.’ Beth replied proudly.

  Cleary didn’t answer and when she looked at him, he was staring at her.

  ‘Oh, you’re her. The name was familiar, but I didn’t look the two of you up, just him.’ He chinned in Zeb’s direction.

  The university shooting that had led to her loss of memory and their father’s death had made the front pages of the media across the country. Their winsome looks, their being twins, their father a SWAT, all these had made their story front page and prime TV. Television crews had hung outside the hospital and relayed hourly updates of her recovery and along with the spotlight had come book and movie offers. They had turned all of them down and when a persistent agent barged through the hospital, Meghan had punched him.

  Once Beth’s operations were out of the way, they had sold their family home in Jackson and moved to Boston to start a new life. The media caught up with them there too and Time had run a feature on them, calling Beth, The Come Back Kid.

  Beth crossed her fingers. Once, just once, let him drop the subject.

  He did, surprising her again. ‘Didn’t find much on your boss. His army record and medals, but not much more than that. What does he do? That security consulting business is just bull. I can tell, I have a nose for things that stink. How come he’s got so much juice?’

  Beth caught Zeb’s eyes in the mirror and grinned wickedly. ‘Why don’t you ask him?’

  Cleary gazed at the back of Zeb’s head and snorted. ‘I would, if he knew what conversation was. Does he know the full extent of the alphabet and how the letters are used to make words?’

  Beth couldn’t help it. Laughter bubbled from her and rang in the confines of the SUV. Maybe he isn’t such an a’hole.

  The cops had not only sealed Sandoval’s apartment, but also the stairs two floors above and below it. Zeb ducked under the tape and held it up for the sisters. The criminologist followed them lugging his equipment. They’d offered to carry it, but had been rebuffed.

  His ‘you’re likely to drop it,’ had shoved him to the top of Beth’s ‘a’hole scale’ again.

  They slipped on booties and gloves, while Cleary donned his suit, mask, and viewing goggles. The going was slow since Cleary stopped frequently on the stairs and examined various smudges on the walls, on the handrails.

  ‘You’re sure he used the stairs?’ Cleary asked without looking in Zeb’s direction. ‘Seems stupid that he’d risk the exposure.’

  ‘He didn’t have a choice. Elevator bank was down. He could fly, but I don’t think he’s good at it,’ came the laconic answer.

  Beth hid a smile as Cleary’s head jerked back in surprise. Humor from Zeb. He wasn’t expecting that.

  The walls were smudged and in places had graffiti and crude comments. There were holes where the concrete had fallen off, some old, some new. Cleary ignored them, went to the top and walked down briskly, turned around and repeated the motion several times. He ignored their looks and on his fifth pass, he stopped, unpacked a SLR camera, attached a transparent tube to it and photographed the holes and smudges on the wall. He turned the camera to the handrail and fired it several times, the clicks sounding loud in the silence.

  ‘Latent prints.’

  Yeah, we know. We aren’t dumb. Beth bit her lip from voicing her retort.

  He stopped them from stepping onto the hallway leading to Sandoval’s apartment, assembled a portable ALS, Alternative Light Source, and started scanning the hallway leading to the crime site.

  ‘This emits blue light, and when that’s passed over some substances, they fluoresce.’ He looked up at them. ‘Y’all know what fluorescence is?’

  Beth thought for a moment. If he’s gonna be working with us, why not? She gave him the finger. Cleary’s eyes sparked behind his orange goggles.

  ‘I’ll ignore that. These substances emit a different light when blue light is passed over them. Makes it ideal for us forensic guys to detect them. Saliva, urine, semen, bone, teeth, crack, all these show up glowing. We can use them for detecting latent prints too. I use cyanoacrylate to fume the latent prints and then treat them with a liquid dye and then view them with an ALS, else the prints will be invisible on a light background.’ He tapped his goggles. ‘Different substances fluoresce in differing strengths. The goggles block out the visible light and make it easier to detect even weak fluorescence.’

  ‘What about blood?’ Meghan demanded.

  ‘Blood doesn’t fluoresce but will show up as dark spots. But I use chemicals like Luminol or Flouroscein, and with those, blood will fluoresce.’

  He nodded at the stairs. ‘I will treat those smudges and photograph them again using the ALS. It’s possible that Sandoval injured our perp and he bled.’

  It was several hours before he ventured inside the apartment and when he did, he stood to the side and observed the site, letting it wash over him.

  Beth looked at Zeb. He’s good. She mouthed. He’s also a prick.

  A rare grin crossed Zeb’s face. That’s why I wanted him. He’ll push the boundaries.

  The killer didn’t get his chance in the elevator.

  One second to puncture the first woman, another to puncture the second, my coat thrown over the two and I would’ve escaped in the confusion.

  The thing spoke for the first time in a long while. You’re lucky people came in at the second floor. An elevator in a hospital is not a kill site.

  You’re getting careless. And carried away. The thing added. You bled at Sandoval’s apartment.

  I left a hole in the wall. That’s why I carry detergents, spray cans, hammers, stuff. Nothing’s left on the wall, and even if there is, it’ll take the cops nowhere.

  There are other victims.

  None that will free me from this weakness.

  ‘Yeah, I get what you mean. There should be trace evidence here.’ Cleary struggled with his camera and bag and thrust the second item at Zeb. ‘Here, hold this. Make yourself useful.’ He snapped away with his camera from several angles, using several filters. He directed Beth to hold the ALS, frowning in irritation when the light wavered initially.

  Sweat beaded his face and neck, he ignored it. When the drops came perilously close to falling off, he wiped his face with a tissue in short, angry bursts, crumpled it, and stuffed it in a disposal bag. He ignored Beth’s offer of water, snorted when she thrust an orange at him.

  He finally bent down and studied the thick, dark layer on the floor. Blood. He studied the writing. Frowned at it, beckoned at Zeb impatiently, ripped open the bag and compared the writing on the floor to various photographs.

  ‘They said it’s the same style, didn’t they?’

  Zeb nodded.

  A mocking grin crossed his face. ‘Cleary one, forensics zero. See that spine.’ His gloved finger pointed at the first B. ‘Look at those first two spines and then at K. Now look at these photos.’

  Beth and Meghan peered over his shoulder. ‘They look the same to me,’ Beth said dubiously.

  ‘You got it didn’t you, that’s why you brought me here.’ Understanding dawned through Cleary’s voice as he looked once at Zeb.

  ‘Got what? Could Sherlock and Watson share their hypotheses with us dumb babes?’ Beth hissed.

  Zeb turned to explain, but Cleary cut him off. ‘The stems of the first two letters are thinner than the last one. Look closer. Don’t look at the letters. Look at a spot by their side. Your peripheral vision will kick in and tell you.’ Beth squinted for a moment and nodded slowly.

  ‘It’s still iffy.’ Meghan stared at the floor and the photographs. ‘We’re talking of fractions of an inch here. Maybe he used his pinky to write.’

  ‘Nope.’ Cleary shook his head categorically. ‘We’re all creatures of habi
t. He didn’t switch fingers.’

  ‘Sandoval wrote those first two letters and the killer wrote the third? Why would Sandoval do that?’ Meghan asked incredulously.

  ‘Dude, you tell them.’ Cleary turned back to the floor and ignored them. Explaining to lesser mortals wasn’t his thing.

  ‘Sandoval wrote something. Maybe a message for us. Way I see it he scrawled two letters, but the killer spotted those and wrote over them. The killer used gloves and so his lettering is thicker.’

  Cleary kept quiet for the next few hours as he went about gathering samples, labeling them and arranging them neatly in his bag. Darkness had set in by the time he finished, and when he looked up finally, his face was bathed in the glow of the ALS.

  ‘Now the stairs. It’s dark enough for some fluorescence.’

  ‘As you command, Master.’ Beth followed him dutifully and when his back was turned, silently snarled at him.

  ‘He’s about my height.’ Cleary spoke to himself as he stood at the head of the stairs, eyed the smudges he’d marked. He ran down the steps, climbed back again, repeated the motion again, this time swaying closer to the wall.

  He went back to the head, waved them away, pulled out liquid bottles and a spray can, mounted the camera on a tripod and a full hour later, sprayed the smudges on the walls, followed by a second spray. ‘Flouroscein and Hydrogen Peroxide.’

  He adjusted the ALS and after a few minutes, he turned to them, a triumphant grin on his face.

  There was a glow around the hole where concrete had fallen off.

  ‘How did you know?’ Beth asked Zeb as they were driving back. They’d dropped Cleary off and were heading to the hospital. The city’s lights ran down Zeb’s face in wavy streaks as he slowed down and stopped at a signal, waiting for the light to flip. A billboard’s flashing neon, bathed his face on and off in red and blue.

  He gunned the SUV when the light turned. ‘I didn’t, but I had an inkling that hole in the wall was new. It was white, as in freshly white, the dust on the steps was undisturbed. If the hole was old, the dust would’ve been trampled on. It probably wouldn’t exist.’

  ‘How come NYPD didn’t spot that?’ Anger laced Meghan’s voice.

  Zeb shrugged. ‘I pointed it out to Pizaka. I’ve no idea if he relayed it to the forensics guys. The apartment was their main focus.’ He lapsed into silence as he navigated through the night traffic back to the hospital.

  ‘Let’s cut them some slack. This cop killer has the entire department ragged. They’re running on fumes and coffee.’

  ‘You’re too easy on them. You should rip them a new one,’ Beth burst out.

  Meghan patted her arm. ‘Whoa, babe. Language. Zeb gets upset by that.’ She grinned to take the sting out of her words. ‘Ripping a new one in Pizaka is tempting, but let our dude, Cleary, come up with the goods first.’

  ‘That might take a few days. Cleary was saying there’s a whole lotta backlog at the crime lab.’

  ‘Zeb’s good at jumping ahead of the line.’ Meghan punched his arm affectionately, watched him as he drove. Minimal movements, no wastage, no impatience, almost lazy in his appearance. Yet she’d seen that same body uncoil into action in less than a second.

  ‘You blame yourself, don’t you?’

  Zeb didn’t answer. He knew she was referring to the attack on Broker.

  ‘Broker doesn’t see it that way. We don’t feel endangered because we’re with you. It might seem surprising to you, but we like being with you, working with you. There must be something wrong with us!’

  Zeb’s eyes were warm when they turned on the twins, though he didn’t reply.

  Dare I? Beth thought.

  ‘Zeb, Broker said you never dated, after.’ She stumbled. ‘After your wife I mean.’

  Flashing lights filled their mirror and Zeb slowed to let the cruiser pass. After a couple of miles, he swung into the hospital’s drive and when he’d parked, he finally answered.

  ‘No.’ Two pairs of eyes sparkled in his mind. A child’s laugh burst. He grabbed the memories and shut the lid on them.

  ‘No,’ he said again, with finality.

  The sisters knew what he meant. Never again.

  They followed him inside and bumped into him as he stopped abruptly and swung around. He ignored the muttered curses of other people as they stepped around him.

  ‘What?’ Beth saw his gaze and scanned the drive. Ambulances, cabs, cop cruisers filled it. Patients were wheeled in, people moved in and out, most of them with concern in their faces.

  ‘What?’ She repeated.

  ‘Dunno. I thought I felt something.’

  I felt it earlier too, but didn’t pay attention. Lack of sleep.

  He scanned the drive in sections, saw nothing out of the ordinary, shrugged and headed inside.

  Cold sweat broke out on the killer’s forehead as he moved deeper in a gaggle of men around the food truck.

  Shouldn’t have looked at him directly.

  Told you. Warned you. You’re getting careless. Drop your obsession with the twins. There are other people for you to kill.

  I NEED to kill them. They’re ripping my life apart.

  He’ll get you. He’s relentless.

  I’ll kill him too.

  You? Kill him?

  Rage swept through the killer as he shouldered away from the crowd.

  ‘Hey, watch your step, dude. Prick.’ A burly man shouted after him.

  The killer ignored him and in the shadow of a silent ambulance, hugged himself.

  Have to finish this soon. Grab those two. Finish them. Stop killing.

  Stop killing? The words came out of nowhere. He chewed them, tasted them, threw them away.

  Nope. He liked this killing business.

  I’m in charge. I’m in control.

  I decide.

  I kill.

  Chapter 15

  Rolando was outside Broker’s room when they reached it and his face became stony as Meghan briefed him. His fists closed once, a gesture Zeb spotted. He laid a hand on Rolando’s shoulder and calmed him.

  ‘We got something, that’s what matters. Now let’s see what Cleary comes up with.’

  He changed the subject. ‘He really punched his boss?’

  A reluctant grin crossed Rolando’s face. ‘Yeah, but that guy had it coming. I’ve suspended him too. If Cleary comes up with the goods here, I’ll reinstate him. He’s the best criminologist we’ve got, but he’s not a team player.’

  His grin broadened. ‘Our friend is getting itchy feet. He wants to go home. He’s become cranky and says the investigation needs him.’

  Rolando read the question in Zeb’s eyes. ‘Yeah, he’s alright; rather, he will be soon. He’s coming along nicely and I think in a week’s time, he should be good to go.’ He laughed. ‘All those with you have thick heads. Mere blows to the head will not send you guys to The Maker.’

  Meghan caught Zeb’s small smile as he was driving them back in the night. ‘What?’

  ‘We’re lucky the hospital hasn’t slapped a harassment suit on Broker. The last time he was laid up, he ended up pestering one of the surgeons for a date. She removed herself as his doctor and got a guy to replace her. Broker discharged himself the next day.’

  Beth yawned from behind. ‘It’ll be good to get him back. I miss him, but don’t tell him that.’

  Zeb shook his head. ‘We’re not getting him back anytime soon. He’s safe there; Rolando’s got his best close protection guys on him.’

  He started to speak when his phone rang.

  Meghan looked at the number and jabbed a button on the SUV’s central console.

  ‘Yeah.’

  ‘We’ve got a hit.’ Cleary’s exultant voice filled the inside.

  Cleary was less exultant the next day when they met him.

  ‘What gives, hotshot? A dead rat has more life in it than you. You were on cloud nine yesterday, who took away your cheese?’ Beth challenged him.

  Cleary’s red-rimmed
eyes slid away from hers and he held a thick file in front of him, as if hiding from them.

  Zeb studied him for a moment, took in his disheveled appearance and his unshaven face. ‘You’ve been up all night?’

  Cleary nodded.

  ‘Problems?’

  The spots on Cleary’s pale face reddened. ‘You might say that.’

  Beth’s palm slammed the table. ‘Oh for Chris sakes, Jase. Cut to the chase will you.’

  ‘Ivan Rausch.’

  ‘That’s him? That’s our killer?’

  Cleary licked his lips. ‘He can’t be.’

  His stammer became more pronounced under their collective gaze.

  ‘Ivan Rausch died eighteen years back.’

  The stunned silence that followed was broken by Meghan’s curse. ‘Are you sure? You didn’t test the wrong sample by any chance?’

  The criminologist flared. ‘Yeah, I did just that. I was like, why don’t I waste everyone’s time. I’ve nothing better to do.’

  Meghan returned his glare and started to lash out when Zeb raised his hand.

  ‘Talk us through it, Jase.’

  The stammer lessened as he walked them through the tests he ran, the results he got. Zeb’s call to Rolando, the previous night, had ensured that Cleary’s samples jumped to the head of the line at the criminology lab.

  ‘I got the results soon enough, these new machines we have now spits out results in less than three hours. I ran the tests twice, to be doubly sure. Cross checked the results against those of the residents of the apartment block.’ He swallowed. ‘I then queried CODIS, and it came back with Rausch.’

  CODIS, the Combined DNA Index System, was a DNA database maintained by the FBI. It was the largest forensic DNA database in the world with over eleven million profiles and was accessed by federal and state authorities.

  His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed again. ‘Rausch is no longer alive. Our perp is a ghost.’

  Apartment. That’s where I’ll grab them, when they’ve stepped out on the street.

  The killer pushed back the sliding door of the black van he’d procured for the purpose.

  Knife. Knife against one white throat will subdue both of them. A blade is more terrifying than a gun. Never liked guns in any case. Too easy.