Now Say You're Sorry

by Barbara Fournier

  There was still yellow tape around Kei Lien’s house and a forensic team onsite as she and Daniel cautiously approached his home. Daniel let himself in and was met by a very upset father.

  “Where the hell have you been and why are you bloody? I’ve been waiting for hours for you to return.”

  Kei Lien didn’t know what to do. Was this man going to hurt Daniel? Will he hurt me? I can’t run away again. She spoke up, which surprised both Daniel and his dad.

  “It’s because he was trying to help me and I wouldn’t listen. I had seen where we were before, but I don’t know when. It brought back such bad visions in my head. I thought he was going to hurt me, so I punched him in the mouth and ran.”

  “Kei Lien, what is it you remember? We are both trying to help you. The police have been trying to figure out if you are alive or if were you murdered like your father. No one wanted to scare you. Honest.”

  Daniel shot a look at his father, the kind of look that said shut up.

  “Dad, stop. We need to call the police and get them here before we say anything else about all of this.”

  Kei Lien was confused and afraid to ask. Was her father really dead? She watched as Mr. Nyung dialed a number into the phone.

  “Cromwell Police. Officer Manning. How can we help you?” said the voice on the other end.

  “Could you connect me with Detectives Lake and Clayton please?” asked Nyung.

  “May I ask who is calling?”

  “Nyung,” is all he said.

  “One of them will be right with you, Mr. Nyung.”

  Clayton and Lake were on two separate phones, both listening to what Mr. Nyung had to say.

  “What can we do for you?” Lake asked.

  “You can start by calling me Minh, Detective Lake. The name Nyung is too hard to pronounce. My son is here. With a visitor. I thought you might like to speak with her. Her name is Kei Lien Chandler.”

  “We are on our way,” said Lake. “But please do not let any reporters near Daniel and certainly not the girl. Got it? This is already a circus; we do not need the hounds out and about, if you know what I’m saying.”

  “I hear you. Thank you.”

  They arrived at 211 Braxton fifteen minutes later.

  “I think we should park away from the house,” Clayton said. “So no one will catch on to where we are. There is enough commotion on this street. No need to draw more attention than necessary.”

  “You’re right,” Lake said.

  “I’m right about a lot of things,” Reese replied in a low condescending voice.

  Emerson pretended he didn’t hear her remark.

  Once inside, Daniel told the detectives how frail Kei Lien was in her mind and body, but also how fear could change her in a flash.

  Reese wanted to ask, which one was it when she knocked out your tooth? Mind or body? But she held it in along with her urge to laugh. She was still wavering on whether to believe this guy or not.

  Daniel had been too frightened to even notice the missing tooth. Besides, his nose was still sore from hitting that rock when he fell into the hole.

  “Kei Lien, I’m Detective Reese Clayton and this gentleman is Detective Emerson Lake. Do you feel well enough to speak to us about what happened before you ran away from home?”

  “Is my father really dead?”

  “Kei Lien, I’m very sorry, but yes he is. Did you see what happened to him? Or see anyone else before you ran?”

  “I’m glad he’s dead and I will never say I’m sorry again to him or any of his gifts. Never, never, never!”

  “Dad, do you think Kei Lien needs an attorney present?” Daniel asked.

  “No! No more presents! He’s dead. He can’t bring me gifts anymore!”

  Daniel jumped in immediately. “She was raped repeatedly by her father and others he brought into the house. He told her they were gifts from Santa.”

  “How do you know this?” his father asked.

  “Because I saw one of the so-called gifts go in the house and leave again. I was listening under her bedroom window when this man raped her and told her it was her fault because she asked for this in her letter to Santa.”

  “Daniel! Why didn’t you stop him or call for help? What the hell were you thinking? You allowed a girl to be raped while you listened?”

  “No, you don’t understand, Dad. I was walking back to our house after speaking to Kei Lien for a minute. She said she couldn’t talk. Said she had to make dinner for her father. When she first saw me, she asked if I was a gift from Santa. I didn’t know what to say to that. It was such a weird question. When I was walking away, I turned around and saw a man at her door. I heard him say gift from Santa. I was curious, so I snuck through the bushes to find out why this man was there and why he made that statement to her. I heard them under an open window in the back of the house. Her bedroom. He was really hurting her, but I didn’t know what was happening or why.”

  “So, you allowed this young lady to be raped without even calling the police?” Lake sneered.

  “No! Wait a minute. I couldn’t call the police. I was afraid of what would happen to her and afraid of being arrested myself,” Daniel pleaded.

  “Why didn’t you come to me at least? I’m your father.”

  “I know, but this was different. I’m smart enough to know right from wrong for heaven’s sake. I’m not stupid.”

  Reese jumped in. “Then why?”

  “The one raping her was Sergeant Martin Kelsey. How do you call the police on the police? I knocked on her window when the Sergeant left. She was hysterical. I asked if her father was doing the same thing to her and she said yes. I wanted to take her away then, but she said she would meet me later after her father went to sleep. We agreed on an abandoned barn on the edge of town. She never showed up.”

  “We’re going to need you to come down to the station…both of you. We’ll need your statements.”

  Reese was angry. Daniel had allowed this girl (in a woman’s body) to be abused. She knew when they were interviewing Minh the first time that something didn’t add up.

  “Wait! There’s more. A lot more,” Daniel interjected.

  Reese glared at Emerson and back at the young man. “I’ll bet there is.”

  “Let him talk.” Lake jumped in.

  He was already pissed that Reese was lashing out at this kid, when he knew it was really him that she was angry with since seeing this morning’s news broadcast.

  Daniel explained how they had gone back to the woods, to an abandoned cabin. But as they were walking back, Kei Lien got scared and ran away.

  “I started chasing after her but fell into a hole and hit my nose on a rock. But it wasn’t just a hole. It was a grave and there were six of them! I was so scared I ran to find Kei Lien and get the hell out of there. She was huddled under a tree near the road. That’s when we came here. I really was trying to help her. Please, Dad. I really was. You have to believe me.”

  “How do you know those holes were graves?” asked Detective Lake.

  “I don’t, but it sure looked like a cemetery to me. Especially when I saw the remains of a human foot in front of me.”

  “Mr. Nyung,” Clayton stepped in, “sorry Minh, I would like to get this young lady to the hospital to be checked out. Have a rape kit done. We will need a statement from you, Daniel.”

  “I want to go with Kei Lien to the hospital,” Daniel replied. “She is too frightened to go alone and she has no idea what you are saying, Detective”

  Reese reluctantly agreed with Daniel, she could see the fear on this young lady’s face.

  Emerson asked Minh to come with them. He knew this was going to get ugly. Daniel had already said enough to get him in deep water. Kei Lien was just thankful her father was dead. Emerson believed that Kei Lien went through hell in that house and would need a
lot of help sorting through all of it. He believed Minh would be the best person to be at her side, along with Daniel, whom she was beginning to trust.

  Chapter 36

  “I heard that there were two victims that were the product of a little brain tampering so to speak. Is this true? Did you think that I wouldn’t find out about the second one? I know everything going on in this town and this stab at being some sort of surgeon upsets me. You know I don’t like being upset! You know if I give an order, I want that order followed correctly, right?”

  “Yes, boss I know, but it was a mistake. Let me explain.”

  “Mistake? How in the hell do you make that kind of mistake?” Taking a deep breath, “Why don’t you tell me what happened?”

  “I did what you wanted me to do with Chandler. When I got to his house, the Sergeant was leaving. I thought, well, now would be the time to take care of business. I waited for a while to go in. The door was open a little bit. I figured the Sergeant left it open. I could hear Chandler yelling at his daughter. He was telling her it was her fault and to say she was sorry. Boss, I remember him saying that to her before. When I was in the house another time. No one saw me then either.”

  The Boss almost interrupted him to ask why the hell he was in the house before but didn’t. “Go on.”

  “I was going to ring the bell, but...”

  “But what, you moron?”

  He began to twitch. “I don’t like that word.”

  “Okay, then what?”

  “I just gave the door a little push. When I went in, Chandler was on the floor with a knife stuck in him. I swear I could hear the gurgling in his chest. I figured my partner had been waiting for him and now I could finish the job. I heard noise coming from the back part of the house and realized I wasn’t alone. I was careful, Boss. I swear, but just as I got to one of the back bedrooms, I saw the girl trying to climb out the window. She was scared, for sure. I told her I would not hurt her, Boss. I kept telling her I was her friend. That’s when she jumped out the window and ran. Boss, she was hurt. I could see blood, but I swear I didn’t touch her. Boss, do you think….”

  His partner interjected, “Did you know that fucked-up Chandler told all the men that had sex with his daughter that they were a gift to her from Santa? Sick bastard. Even the Sergeant didn’t give a shit that she was just a young girl. Is that why you hired us? To protect the girl from being hurt again? Is that why you gave us the dog tag?”

  The Boss ignored the question and turned back to the moron. “What happened next? I mean, after the girl ran?”

  “I wrapped him up in the paper and glued his eyes shut like you said. I did add a little extra. I tied a ribbon around his thing. Then I high-tailed it out of there. I got to the Sergeant’s house and saw he was already on the floor, too. His head was split open from the back. I started to put the dog tag in his brain. I guess I was nervous, but then thought this is the wrong guy. So, I stitched him up, stuck the knife in him a little bit more and went back to the Chandler house and put the dog tag in his brain. No one saw me because I went in through the girl’s bedroom window this time. Did I do it right? The way you wanted me to?”

  He was cut off by his partner, “Where should we go from here? Do you think we did enough to make them look in other directions for the killer of Martin and that Adam guy?”

  “I don’t think we have to worry for now,” the Boss assured. “They have their hands full trying to figure out who the dead family is, how they got there and who killed them.”

  “So, what’s next?” the moron snorted back a loogie, but held back the urge to spit when the Boss glared at him in disgust. He swallowed hard and smiled wide showing his rotting, green teeth.

  “Let’s just stay away from each other for a while so we won’t be connected to anything going on in this city. I’ll set you up in a motel across the state line. You can go about your business. Maybe find a job somewhere. You know, look like you fit in the community. I will contact you when everything calms down here.”

  “What about this guy?” he said motioning. “Does he get to stay in town?”

  “No. I found another spot for him,” the Boss replied, trying to be as convincing as possible. “Now get your stuff together. Quickly. A cab will pick you up in an hour at Rosie’s Bar.”

  The Boss turned to the moron’s partner.

  “You, on the other hand, will be picked up next to the Trixie Market. Don’t be late or they will leave without you. I have already paid the cab drivers. We will talk soon, but I have a lot of work to do here.”

  Moron? The Boss really shouldn’t call me that. I don’t like that to be called names he thought clenching his jaw as he headed for the door. Am I going to be the one to take the blame for all of this, he wondered? Is my so-called helper being sent away so it looks like he had no part in all of this if things take a bad turn? I know one thing for sure, he thought, I won’t let them get away with it. Even if I am blamed. He left to pack everything he owned in a brown shopping bag with frayed handles and waited at Rosie’s Bar.

  Chapter 37

  “Detective Lake, there’s a call for you. She says it’s important.”

  Lake picked up the phone.

  “This is Detective Lake. How may I help you?”

  “Wow, Emerson, why so proper? How have you been?”

  Emerson Lake’s stomach dropped. It was her. The sound of her voice filled him with excitement, but also anger. Broken hearts cause a lot of different emotions. He had them all just from the sound of her voice.

  “Brenda Charles, as I live and breathe, what could I possibly do for you after all this time? How are you?”

  “I’m fine, Emerson. And you?”

  “I heard you on the news talking about the murders in Cromwell. I’m guessing you’re searching for a little inside info on what is happening in our beautiful city. The city you grew up in and left for bigger and better things.”

  “Emerson, I’m sorry for what happened between us. You also know we could not be happy as a couple in careers that were not meant for either one of us. You blame me, but I know you would not have been happy here in D.C. just as I was not happy in Cromwell.”

  Emerson couldn’t think of a smart come back, because he knew for the first time since they parted, she was right.

  “What can I do for you?” he asked. “If you are looking for the story of a possible serial killer among us, a little inside information perhaps, you can just....”

  She stopped him. “Emerson I was simply hoping you could do an old friend a favor by giving me a shot at this story. As a courtesy.”

  “Could this be your award-winning story? Well, Miss Brenda Charles, I am also sorry about what happened between us, but I can’t help you. This is an ongoing investigation.”

  “Don’t be like that. It’s just a story.”

  “The only thing I can say at this time Ms. Charles is, no comment!”

  With that, he slammed down the phone. To his surprise the entire station started to applaud. He wasn’t even aware they were listening. The only one not there at the time was Reese.

  Chapter 38

  Daniel told the detectives where he and Kei Lien had been when all of this happened. He didn’t know exactly how far from the road the graves were, but at least knew the direction. Police, local and state with K9’s would be out there looking for the shallow graves. And no doubt, they would find the place he wanted to call his own someday. It didn’t take long to find the location. Daniel’s directions were pretty accurate. He was also accurate about the six holes he saw. One contained the remnants of a foot, as well as a stone with blood spatter - later determined to be from Daniel’s nose.

  “They’re shallow graves, all right.” said a member of the search team. “Dug recently.”

  “This is a morbid burial site.” another replied. “I wonder who was buried here?”

 
; “I’d like to know what sicko dug them up.”

  The area was secured and forensic teams went to work collecting samples of the soil, bloody rock and the decaying foot. All would be delivered to the lab and to Medical Examiner Sara Hunter to review.

  Officer Manning and the K9 officer still searching the wooded area with his dog came across the run-down, animal-infested cabin. Daniel’s dream of a rustic home with a fireplace mantel to hang Christmas stockings were about to end. The cabin and surrounding area were cordoned off.

  “We’re going to need a much bigger search team.” commented the K9 handler.

  “How long do you suppose it has been empty?” Manning asked.

  “No idea, but must be for a while. The walls are literally rotted out.”

  “I didn’t think building permits were allowed in the Park Preserve. I’m going to head back to town and pay a visit to the County Assessor’s office. See if I can find who owns this eyesore. I’ll meet up with you back at the station.” Manning gave the well-trained German Shepherd a pat on the head and a nod to his handler.

  When Allen arrived at City Hall, he asked the clerk for a map of the Park Preserve so he could pinpoint the property lines. Once he identified the parcel and tax number, he searched for the deed. Turned out, that parcel was never purchased by the state of South Dakota. It had been grandfathered to remain as private buildable property and it was owned by John Francis Delamater. The same John Delamater that suffered the heart attack at the Bradford Theater. Allen quickly had the clerk print out copies of the records and headed back to the station. How is this possible? No one knew there was a cabin in the woods all these years? Sometimes talking to himself in the car helped him work through a case. He was hoping for answers. Not this time though.

  Clayton and Lake were waiting for him when he strode into the station.

  “Look, before you say anything, I know I took it upon myself to head to the Assessor’s office, but you’re not going to believe what I found.”

  Lake snatched the papers out of Allen’s hands and Clayton peered at them over his shoulder.