Double usage

by Christine Bols

  ‘What then?’

  ‘I can’t imagine she had her handbag with her on her jog. It should be here somewhere.’

  ‘Maybe in the hall. I saw some coat hooks with a shelf above it.’

  ‘Found it’, Jude shouted a minute later. She was standing in the hall and was holding a large red handbag in her hands. She was startled when the doorbell rang. When she opened the door she saw two men from the Animal Center.

  ‘Someone called us to remove a dead cat’, the oldest of the two said.

  ‘Yeah, that was me. I’m Jude McCool, Corvallis police’. She showed them her badge and pointed to the living room. Their faces didn’t move a muscle when they saw the body, or what was left of it. The remains were put in a blue plastic bag. They didn’t ask questions.

  ‘How long do you think it has been dead?’ Jude asked.

  ‘Hard to say’, the oldest one said, clearly the one in charge. ‘By the state of the cadaver I would say at least ten days.’

  ‘How long can a cat survive without food or water?’

  ‘It depends on the age of the animal. A grown one can do without for at least a few weeks, although she would look emaciated. But a young one like this would die after eight to ten days. Their resistance is much lower.’

  ‘Thank you very much’, she said. ‘You can send the bill to the department.’

  ‘Will do ma’am.’

  Jude closed the door behind them and went into the bedroom with the red handbag.

  ‘I’m done here’, Douglas called from the living room. ‘Can I do the bedroom now?’

  ‘No problem. We’re done in here’, Tim replied. To Jude he said: ‘We’ll have a look at the handbag in the living room.’

  At the spot where the cat had been, only a few gray plucks of hair were left. The fluid from the decomposed body had left a dark, damp spot on the carpet. Tim pulled out a light brown wallet from the handbag and opened it. ‘Credit card, ID, membership card for Corvallis theater and her swipe card for the library.’ One by one he laid the cards on the table. ‘Four five dollar notes, one twenty and some change. And look here, her subscription for Amtrak, train Albany-Eugene-Albany.’ They both looked at each other.

  ‘Could be coincidence of course’, Jude said. ‘We know they both took a train home every weekend.’

  ‘Two women living in Corvallis during the week and taking a train home every weekend from Albany… How much of a coincidence can that be?’

  ‘There’s a slight difference though. Bodini was taken from her home, Fitzpatrick while jogging in Corvallis.’

  ‘True, but don’t forget Fitzpatrick went to her parent’s home. She would hardly arrive in an empty house. That would make it more difficult for him.’

  ‘So we can assume he followed their routine for a while before striking.’

  He checked the handbag again and took out a small hairbrush and some make up things. ‘Come on, I think we’re done here. Let’s go back to the office.’ Tim glanced in the bedroom to see if Douglas had finished there.

  ‘The bathroom too?’ Douglas asked when he looked up.

  ‘Yes please, but I want to take a look at the laundry basket first.’ A minute later he pulled a tracksuit out of the basket and two white sweatshirts. The lack of tracksuits in the wardrobe was solved.

  ‘Mail me your report as soon as it’s ready Douglas. Have a nice weekend and I’ll see you Monday. And Jude, bring the handbag. I want to talk to the neighbors.’

  ‘Only one more name on the mailboxes’, she said while closing the door behind her. Tim was surprised she had noticed that but didn’t say anything. There wasn’t a lot she missed. Tim knocked at the door opposite flat D. There was no noise inside. Downstairs he first knocked on the right-hand door. Nothing. Flat A was opened by a woman in her forties. Tim and Jude showed her their badges. She looked at him with big questioning eyes.

  ‘Something wrong?’ she asked. ‘Is it about Lilly?’

  ‘Why would you assume that, Mrs…?’He looked at the identification plate next to the door. ‘Why would you think so Mrs. Sanders?’

  ‘It’s Miss Sanders’, she clarified. ‘Because I haven’t seen here since I came back. I spent three weeks with my mother. She has been very sick you know. I came back Sunday evening and Monday evening I went knocking on her door because she had asked me to keep her informed about my mother’s health. But there was no answer.’

  ‘And you were worried.’ Tim said.

  ‘Not really no. Only Tuesday I did started worrying. She still wasn’t home. Then I called the library and one of her colleagues said Lilly went on holiday to Florida, but I didn’t believe that at all. She would have told me, and she would never leave her cat for that amount of time.’

  ‘Miss Sanders’, Tim said quietly, ‘we have every reason to assume Miss Fitzpatrick is dead.’

  The woman put her hands over her mouth and shrieked. ‘Oh no, that’s not possible’, she said almost hysterically. ‘She was never sick.’

  Tim was surprised about her answer. When you had the police on your doorstep telling you a friend had died, a disease wouldn’t be the first thing on your mind. ‘Yesterday her body was found in the bushes on the crossing of the Mary and Willamette Miss Sanders. I’m sorry.’

  ‘Murdered!’ she shouted. By now she had started sobbing and screaming. Jude pulled a paper handkerchief out of her jacket and handed it over to the poor woman, while putting an arm around her shoulders.

  ‘Miss Sanders,’ Jude said, ‘we have no idea who murdered her, that’s why we are gathering as much information as we can. I know you haven’t been around for a few weeks, but maybe you saw something odd the weeks before, someone suspicious?’

  ‘Someone suspicious?’ she sobbed. ‘No, not that I can recall. She had a boyfriend for a while, but I haven’t seen him around for a few months now. She dumped him. But more than that…no, I don’t think so.’

  ‘Are you home all day?' Tim asked.

  She nodded. ‘I used to work in the U.S. Bank here in Corvallis, but after the reorganizations they fired me.’ Bitterness filled her voice.

  ‘And are you sure you never saw any cars that didn’t belong here, or seemed odd?’

  ‘Well, over the last months there were a few cars I didn’t know, but I guess they were possible tenants for the other flats. The landlord always accompanied them.’ Her words came out broken and stumbling.

  ‘One more question Miss Sanders and then we leave you. Do you know the route she normally took on her jogging?’

  The woman thought about it for a few minutes. ‘She once told me she ran along the Willamette and most of the time she would pick up a sandwich from a snack bar on Monroe. I take it she returned through the Park opposite the library, but I’m not sure.’

  ‘Thank you Miss Sanders, that will be all for now. If you think of something else, however trivial it may seem, here is my card. I’m available day and night.’

  The woman looked at the card and nodded. She hesitated for a moment. ‘Maybe there is something, but that could just be my imagination of course. Nothing important really,’ she added.

  ‘Let us be the judge of that ma’am. What are you thinking about?’

  ‘Well, I’m a member of the bridge club a bit further down the road to the river and a few times I saw a van parked around the corner. I thought it odd because the man in it lowered the sunshade every time I passed. And it can’t have been because of the sun, because it is at the back of the block in the evening.’

  ‘Which corner are you talking about Miss Sanders?’ Tim asked.

  She pointed to a corner a hundred yards away from the apartment. Tim glanced at Jude meaningfully.

  ‘And around what time would that have been?’

  ‘The club starts at seven, so it must have been ten to or something like that. But every time I came back it was gone.’

  ‘Do you remember the color of that van?’

  ‘I’m not sure, white or beige, light colored anyway. And don’t as
k me for the make because I really don’t know. I know nothing about cars’, she added. She wiped her tears with the tissue Jude had given her.

  ‘Was there a sticker on the side, or something else you noticed?’

  ‘No, of that I’m sure, because at first I thought it was a technician or something but there was nothing on it.’

  ‘Any idea of the age of the driver?’

  ‘I only saw his silhouette and I think he was rather skinny. But his age, I don’t have a clue.’

  ‘Good Miss Sanders, you helped us out a lot. If there is anything else, remember my card?’

  ‘She was really upset,’ Jude said when they returned to the car. Tim popped a peppermint in his mouth and fired up the car, looking straight ahead.

  ‘To me it’s obvious that white van has something to do with it’, he said. He drove down the street in the direction of the river. After a few hundred yards he turned left on SW 1st street and drove slowly along the riverside. On the right hand side was a strip of grass that went down to the river. It had a few benches on it and two volleyball nets. On the left hand side were a few factories and a bit further down the road a few pubs and restaurants. Right behind the Cloud 9 Bistro, the road curved to a little parking spot with red tiles, partially covered by a high tree and bushes, and right behind it the tow path.

  ‘He could have parked here without being noticed’, Jude said. ‘There will be more cars there in the evenings for the restaurants and pubs.’

  ‘If he pulled her into his van, this would have been the best spot to do it. I think he sedated her first because she would have shouted and screamed otherwise and someone would have heard.’ Tim looked around for surveillance cameras. The parking gave out on Monroe. She should have left the tow path here to return to her flat, crossing the parking. ‘I’ll have Susan pick up the surveillance tapes from Cloud 9 and Downward Dog. It’s our best chance of finding anything.’

  Tim started the motor again and turned towards Monroe Avenue. ‘She probably turned into the park here’, Tim said when they had the library on their right hand side, ‘and home from here on.’

  ‘She could have been abducted from this park too’, Jude said.

  ‘I don’t think so. The trees are too far apart and too many open spaces. And it’s difficult getting in with a van.’

  ‘She must have been in good condition to jog that far every evening.’

  ‘Well, I should do that too’, Tim laughed, rubbing his belly. He popped another peppermint in his mouth.

  It was just gone five when they turned into the office parking lot. Jude went straight to her own flashy car. ‘I can’t come in. I promised my sister I would spend the weekend with her.’

  ‘In Springfield?’

  ‘No, Crescent City. She is a biologist in the Ocean Center.’

  ‘California’, Tim said surprised. ‘That’s still a long drive.’

  ‘Two hundred and fifty miles on the Interstate is not that bad. If I leave now I’ll be there between nine and ten.’

  ‘All right, have a nice weekend’.

  ‘Same to you.’ Tim watched her car as it left the parking lot and turned onto the street.

  He parks his van in between two bushes on the side of the road, so he has a good view of her house but is not visible himself. There are only a few bungalows. Right in front of hers is a lantern that throws a very soft yellow light on the pavement. That’s why he had hesitated at first, but he feels more determined than ever now. He pulls his cap over his eyes and looks at his watch. Ten more minutes. It will be quarter to eleven when she will run past him in her dark blue tracksuit. She had looked prettier on the picture and at first he was a bit disappointed. But she was well muscled and had dark hair, the most important thing. He waits for exactly seven minutes, then turns off the engine, opens the door and steps out. In the distance he sees the twinkling lights of Lebanon like a jungle of stars. There are no more cars at this end of the street. All other bungalows are dark. He softly opens the backdoor and pulls it up.

  She turns into Montgomery Drive and wipes the sweat from her forehead. It’s only two miles from the club to the bungalow but she is always exhausted, certainly after a heavy session. She smiles. Colin had again managed to get the tread mill next to hers. He hadn’t asked directly, but he had dropped unmistakable hints. He would never understand she didn’t fancy him at all, that he wasn’t her type. Not only did she not want him, but for now she hated all men. She hadn’t reported the rape. She had been too ashamed. She hadn’t told anybody, not even her colleagues, but the first weeks after, she had been so afraid that she had jumped at every sound she heard. She hadn’t gone to the fitness club for a while, but then she had collected herself again. She wouldn’t be intimidated, but she kept her guard up every time she left the club. She’s nearly home and speeds up. She only sees the van when she is level with it. From then on everything happens like a roller coaster ride. She sees the man with the baseball cap spring out at her, tries to get away, screams. All of a sudden she feels the pressure on her mouth and smells the nauseating scent of ether. Her arms claw in the air. Everything is misty and surreal. She sinks.

  CHAPTER 12

  With a sigh of contentment, Tim shuffled to the other side of the bed when he suddenly realized Cammy was gone. The other side was cold and empty. Saturday mornings used to be their quality time, not because of the endless lovemaking itself but because they could talk and relax without having to keep an eye on the clock. He missed her. Or didn’t he? Did he only miss her warm body? Thoughts tumbled through his head. Would she be in bed with someone else? Would she be making love to another man? Did she even think about him? Questions he didn’t have an answer to. Answers he didn’t really want to hear. He threw off the duvet and sat on the edge of the bed, head in his hands. After a few minutes he started to shiver. He put on his dressing gown and went to the kitchen, barefoot, turned on the coffee maker, threw some cornflakes in a bowl and added ice-cold milk. The tiles felt freezing cold under his feet and he hurried to the shower. The hot water beams massaged his body and slowly he relaxed. The tension from the last days took its toll and he feared the difficult days or even weeks ahead. Two bodies, no clues. Nothing. The headline in the paper appeared before his eyes: is there a serial killer in Corvallis? Jude seemed to think so and if he was honest, he did too. He got out of the shower and pulled on his bathrobe. Cammy had bought it for him. How could he feel sad and relieved at the same time?

  The cornflakes in the milk had become a squelchy mass. He threw them in the bin and settled for a cup of coffee instead. Even the mice in the pantries would soon be dead from lack of food.

  Good Samaritan Hospital is situated in the north of the city and is known as Good Sam in the area. It is a rather large regional hospital, bordered by a park and walking trails, on the side of a light slope. The lawns are well maintained and always look impeccable. The building is in light colored stones, with brown parts in some areas. It looks contemporary, even has a heliport on the roof, of which the inhabitants are very proud. On Saturday morning the visitors parking in front of the main building had ample parking spots. Since yesterday, David had been moved from intensive care to an ordinary room. Normally visits were not allowed in the mornings, but there were exceptions for single rooms.

  Behind the reception desk were two women. One was typing rapidly on her keyboard, the other dealt with the waiting queue. Tim waited patiently. The entrance hall was very bright with a lot of natural daylight, a few paintings in soft colors on the walls, two waiting areas sheltered by big plants. In the center of the hall was a big stone fish spitting water into a small pond. Everything was geared to calm and reassure people. When it was his turn he asked the room number for David Halloway. The woman looked at her screen and said: ‘Third floor, room 3115.’

  Almost inaudible the lift carried him up. Except for a woman with two crying children it was empty. They got out on the first floor. Tim wondered about the state he would find David in. Would he have
been told about Frank already?

  The door of 3115 was ajar. He knocked very lightly and stepped in the room. David was crying softly. He had been told. He lay in his bed with a naked upper body. Plastic tubes came out of the bandaged parts. His right leg hung in traction in some kind of pulley fixed to the end of the bed. Next to the bed was a stand with four bags hanging from it. Tim pulled up a chair and looked at his colleague.

  ‘Hi Halloway,’ he said in a light voice. ‘How are you?’

  David looked at him with empty eyes. ‘As you can see, I’m fine,’ he mumbled. Because of the tube in his nose his voice sounded nasal and raspy.

  ‘We miss you at the office. I know I am.’

  ‘I can imagine’.

  ‘Sorry I didn’t bring a present, but I completely forgot.’

  ‘Never mind.’

  Here his friend was, in a hospital bed, nothing he could do to help. He felt powerless.

  ‘Foster came by yesterday at ICU’, David said all of sudden. ‘He told me the good news.’

  Tim supposed this was about Frank. ‘I’m sorry it had to be like this David. According to Foster he died instantly, he didn’t suffer.’

  Tears welled up in David’s eyes and slowly made their way down his cheeks. He left them there, didn’t do a thing to hide them. The silence was overwhelming.

  Trying to lighten things up Tim said: ‘Foster assigned me a new partner till you’re back on your feet. A woman. Can you imagine?’

  ‘Till I’m back. Yeah, that will be next week at the latest I think.’

  ‘I know you’re down, but before you know it you will be at your desk criticizing me about my fags.’

  ‘If you say so.’

  ‘In fact,’ Tim said hesitating slightly, ‘no, better leave it.’

  ‘What is it?’

  ‘Well, I kind of hoped, but only when you’re feeling better of course, that I could talk over the Bodini and Fitzpatrick’s cases. You know, different approach, brainstorming like we used to do.’