Free to Kill

by Julie Mellon

  “Now, otherwise down at ‘All Claude’s Children’ ranch -” Andy paused and took a little bow at the shocked expressions from Lucy and Katie. “Okay, I made that name up, but it works, right?” The women just shook their heads and groaned, trying not to encourage him. “Anyway, the other mini-Claudes aren’t much better. The whole family is known for their tempers and their drinking. Police are involved in nearly every trip the Lewises make to town. Apparently a trip to the grocery store is cause for a good family fight. But I have to say, I don’t see any of them for this spree. None of the offenses are in line with what we see from this guy. The Lewises are pretty happy to keep their conflict in-house. With the one exception in the bar with Claudette, nothing else appears to involve others.”

  Katie chewed her thumbnail as she thought over the findings on Claudette Lewis. “I think you’re right. Michael and I thought she was still in the church when Jenny left so we had pretty much ruled her out. But Betsy thought she left about the same time as Jenny, so I was curious about what you found. Let’s not completely eliminate her, but we can move her down to the bottom of the list. What can you pull on Jack Downing? He’s the husband of the current missing woman, Jenny Downing. From what I gather, they’re separated and he isn’t the friendliest of guys. When he was brought here last night, he was already at the point of passing out drunk. I’m not sure I see him for it, but we have to look at him as the spouse of a missing person.”

  As Katie talked, Lucy’s hands flew over the keyboard. “Well, well, what have we got here?” Lucy said. Her shirt was stuck to her back and sweat poured down her face. “Other than the pending vehicular manslaughter charges from a drunk driving accident a year ago, there isn’t too much. Seems Jack likes to get rough. There are several reports of domestic violence, a lot of drunk driving arrests, and several drunk and disorderly charges. Seems he didn’t just start with Jenny, either. Jack is about ten years older than Jenny and was married twice before her. Both previous wives pressed charges against him and have restraining orders in place. They both have custody of the children he fathered. Seems Jack pays most of his check in child support to the other two women. Six children with three different women; first wife has one child, second wife has three and then two with Jenny. It would make sense that he wouldn’t want a third divorce. Hell, he couldn’t afford to live and pay support for that many kids. His life would be easier if his wife just disappeared.”

  “Well,” Katie said, “I don’t know if that’s the case. I didn’t get the feeling that he liked his kids much. Can you see if he actually pays the support, or if it’s just in the divorce agreement?”

  “I can answer that.” The three agents looked up at a blond-haired woman. Katie had to look twice; she looked so much like Jenny that they could have been twins. “I’m Tiffany, Jack’s first wife. And yes, we all look alike. He has a type. Jack doesn’t pay me or Melissa a dime, but we don’t complain. See, if we pushed him for the money, he would insist on visitation. The kids are afraid of him and he really doesn’t like them. He would only force the visitation if we forced the money issue. So instead, we just let it go. When I heard Jenny was missing, I had to come see if it was Jack’s doing. Do you think she was taken by the same guy who got Elaine and Barbie?”

  Andy and Lucy both bent their heads over the computer leaving Katie to answer the questions and deal with Tiffany. “Do you know Elaine and Barbie?” Katie didn’t want to give too much away, but she thought Tiffany could provide helpful insight into Jack Downing’s personality.

  “Of course, this is a small town. I go to church here, but my work schedule doesn’t allow me to join the Wednesday night group. My son is in the same school as Elaine’s children. We see each other at sporting events mostly, especially soccer. Barbie and I went to school together, along with Jack, though he was a few years older. Barbie helps out with my son on nights when I need a babysitter. She’s really great with kids. Such a shame what happened to both of them.”

  “Tiffany, I’m going to ask a very personal question. I hope you’ll answer, but if this is too difficult, I can get an answer another way.” At Tiffany’s nod, Katie asked, “Can you give me details about when Jack assaulted you? What set him off? Were the assaults usually the same? What did they entail?”

  Taking a deep breath, Tiffany began divulging what life was like with Jack. “Well, it didn’t take much to set him off. Dinner wasn’t good, we were out of beer, I was late getting home - you name it and it set Jack off. He liked to hit with an open hand. He said he liked the sound of it and how it made my skin turn red. He also said it took longer, whereas when he punched, the punishment ended too soon. It always ended with us naked and him forcing himself on me. Do you need details about that?” Tiffany was looking at her hands in embarrassment.

  “No, I don’t need those details. Thank you for answering.” Katie reached over and laid a hand on Tiffany’s knee. “I think that’s all I need to know for now. Thank you again for coming and talking to me.”

  “I know Jack is bad news, but if this is the same person who took Elaine and Barbie, I just don’t see Jack doing it. There are rumors that Elaine was pretty messed up when she was found. That isn’t Jack’s style. He likes the thrill of a woman submitting to him, but he wouldn’t tie her up, that would take the fun out of it for him.” With that, Tiffany walked over to the food table to help set out lunch and serve it to the returning searchers.

  Michael and his search team returned to the church at two that afternoon. They were tired, sweaty and hungry, but had found no sign of Jenny Downing. Michael grabbed a bottle of water from the table and downed it in one long drink. Tossing it in the trash, he grabbed another bottle and then made his way through the food line. Once he had loaded a plate with a pulled pork barbecue sandwich, potato salad, pasta salad, and several vegetables, he sat down between Lucy and Katie to catch up on what he had missed.

  Katie ran through all the research they had done on the various people of interest and also the interviews she had conducted, ending with, “Every time something looks promising, we end up right back where we started. The only good thing I can see right now is that I don’t think Jenny is in danger until the end of the day today.” When her comment was met with blank stares and confused looks from the other three agents, she explained, “I think this guy is a productive member of society. I think he holds a regular nine-to-five job. If he didn’t, people here would be pointing fingers. That means that whomever he is, he is at work right now, so Jenny is somewhere secure in his lair.”

  “That’s an interesting theory,” a deep voice said from behind Katie. “Care to enlighten us as to how you came to be of that opinion?” Turning, Katie came face-to-face with SAC Nelson and ASAC Perry.

  Never blinking, Katie explained, “Well, we have suspects with questionable pasts. However, even their previous assault victims come to their defense. These people have jobs, families, lives; for all intents and purposes, their past behavior should have the people of this town throwing them under the bus. Instead, as long as these people are interacting with the community, they are considered innocent. The only person they were willing to offer up was David Williams, and he really was innocent. But because he keeps to himself, everyone was suspicious. So, this guy has to be involved in the town somehow. From my experience, I think this is someone who likely grew up here. Someone everybody knows and they probably know his family. I think he will work a blue-collar job, something in skilled labor. I don’t think he holds an office job, or is educated past high school. But again, that is just a guess based on past experience.”

  Nelson and Perry had pulled chairs up to the table. As Katie finished speaking, they both just looked at her, offering neither support nor criticism. Katie just returned their looks, refusing to back down from her position. Finally, Nelson nodded. “We’ve had a request for you to return to Louisiana. It appears they have a serial killer in Baton Rouge. Doesn’t look like your former partner can keep the same closure rate, now that you’
re not there.”

  Katie worked hard not to squirm in her seat or to let the smile she was holding back show. Her former partner was a prick who loved nothing better than talking up his success. Because Katie was quiet and didn’t challenge him, everyone assumed she was riding his coattails. It had never mattered to Katie who received credit, as long as the bad guy was off the street. Knowing now that her former office had requested her transfer, it made her want to dance that they were seeing what they had tossed away. Only the thought that there was a serial killer on the loose sobered her mood.

  “It seems you’re in the middle of an important case here, though. I don’t know that we can spare you,” Nelson continued.

  “You’re damn right, we can’t spare her,” Michael chimed in. “She’s going to solve this case here soon. Her mind sees things that mine doesn’t. I mean,” Michael paused, trying to organize his thought to get his point across correctly, “our investigative styles oppose each other and we are resolving issues much faster than I used to with Stan.” Michael’s face turned red as he bumbled through his explanation. He was glad to be working with Katie, their styles just meshed. Their strong and weak points complemented each other. But voicing that out loud was awkward.

  “Hmm…” was all Nelson said as he rose from his chair. “Well, we hadn’t seen you two in the office in days. Thought we’d come out to where the action was and see if you needed anything more than Boggs and Dillon.” He nodded to Lucy and Andy as Perry followed him to his feet. “I look forward to reading your reports and seeing you back in the office at some point. Bring that lady home.” With that, he and Perry returned to their car and drove off.

  The next round of searchers headed out at four. This time Katie and Lucy joined two separate parties. They searched until sundown before returning but none of the parties had anything to report. Sending everyone home with a request for volunteers to start over at first light, Katie and Michael made their way back to Smyrna.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Dinner was a quiet affair at the B&B. Katie and Michael were absorbed in thoughts of the case. The kids tried several times to draw them into conversation, but finally they just turned to their parents and each other to talk. Caroline jolted Katie out of her thoughts when she said, “Oh, Katie, you received a letter today.”

  Katie’s head snapped up. “I did?” she said with confusion. Katie hadn’t received a letter from anyone since she’d left Phoenix. To be fair, she hadn’t provided an address to anyone back home since she graduated from the FBI Academy, either. She knew that Patty would have continued writing to her. But Katie didn’t want to add to her stress, and the words Patty used in her letters showed that there was enough strain already. So she continued writing without providing a means for them to write back. When Katie had sent the letter last week, she had included a return address on the envelope. She didn’t know why, just that something about this place seemed like home, so adding the address had just felt right.

  Caroline got up and went to the office at the back of the house. She returned a few minutes later with an envelope in her hand. Katie looked down to see Patty’s familiar handwriting. At first she felt happy, knowing that Patty still cared enough to write. Then a feeling of sadness came over her as she realized her mother had still not forgiven her. She wondered if her mother even loved her anymore. She had never doubted it growing up. Her mother had always played with her and they had spent endless hours laughing as they explored the ranch and planted or harvested the garden. Her favorite memories were of standing in the kitchen, first watching - and as she grew up - helping to can the vegetables.

  But as Katie had reached adolescence and began asking questions that her mother didn’t want to answer, the distance between them grew. Katie had never understood why her mother didn’t want her to know certain things. She also never understood why her mother never left the ranch. When Katie turned sixteen, she dreamed of walking through those gates and never coming back. Katie saw those gates as her prison. It wasn’t until she was in a psychology class her first year at Arizona State that she realized her mother saw the gates as her security. Katie just wished she knew what her mother feared outside those gates.

  Reaching up, Katie took the envelope from Caroline, excused herself and left the room.

  “Who was that from?” Michael asked.

  “I don’t know, but the return address was in Phoenix.”

  Michael just nodded as he looked to the stairway. He knew Katie was from Phoenix, but she hadn’t seemed happy to have a letter from home. And who sent letters through the mail nowadays? He always emailed or texted his parents, even though they were in the same city. He would just have to find a way to get those answers. Katie was behind on telling him a daily fact about herself, anyway.

  Walking up to her room, Katie closed the door behind her and made her way over to the window seat. She stared at the envelope for a good five minutes before turning her attention to look out the window. She was afraid to open the letter, but excited at the same time. She wanted desperately to know what was going on back home, but was scared that Patty would finally tell her to stop writing. Twenty minutes of internal arguments later, Katie picked up the letter and opened it.

  My dearest Katie,

  I am so glad to finally hear from you after all this time. You haven’t written home in months. Your mother and I were beginning to worry about you. I could see it in your mother’s face every time I returned from the mailbox. While she won’t admit so out loud, she misses you terribly and is so proud of all you have accomplished.

  We have a house full of residents at the moment. Domestic violence never ends. I suppose I don’t need to tell you that, what with your line of work. Your mother has finally allowed women with sons to come onto the property, but only if the boys are younger than ten. I think that is progress. After all these years she still won’t open up and tell me what happened to her. I can only imagine that it must have been too horrible to ever speak of. Though I do think counseling would help her, I can never get her to leave the ranch to go.

  Enough of that nonsense. The willow tree outside your old bedroom window blew down over this past winter. It makes me sad every time I go in to dust your room. I remember the hours you used to sit at that window and daydream of better places. More importantly, I remember catching you climbing out your window to sit in the branches of that tree. You always said you could dream bigger in the great outdoors. Your room is still exactly as you left it when you left home. Here I am getting misty eyed over you and you’ve been gone for eight years.

  We could really use your room for the guests we have right now, but your mother won’t hear of it. I keep telling her she’s wasting her time hoping you will come back. That the only way you will ever do that is if she writes to you and invites you. Seems your mother is very stubborn and prideful. But I suppose you already know that, seeing as you are so much like her.

  I don’t want to worry you, but I do think you should know that your mother isn’t looking well lately. She is tired a lot and has lost weight that she really can’t afford to lose. I have the doctor coming next week to check up on her. I do think that she should go to the hospital and have more tests run than can be done here. She won’t hear of it. She says she bought this land to live her life in peace and she won’t leave it ever again. She wants me to petition the county to allow her to be buried here. She says she doesn’t even want to leave in death. I just don’t understand her sometimes. Now, don’t you worry about all this. I will write to you as soon as we see the doctor. I probably shouldn’t have mentioned anything in this letter anyway. It’s just that you haven’t given me a place to write back to in so long.

  Well, now I should confess. I have looked you up on the internet when I’m in town at the library. I just needed to know where you were. It’s so much easier to keep track of the headlines when I know what city to look in. I was so proud when I read the headlines about your cases in Louisiana. You seemed to be doing so well. I have
to say I didn’t like that partner of yours. He seemed arrogant. Why you never spoke up about your cases is beyond me. He hogged all the spotlight. However you ended up in Tennessee, I’m glad you’re not with that guy anymore.

  Tell me more about your new partner. Is he better than the prick? I keep hoping one day you will meet a hunk and fall in love. Perhaps your new partner... Oh, you know how I am. I always read romance into everything. HA! But I suppose it never hurts to escape reality. I just hope your new partner isn’t an old, portly man. That really ruins the image of romance.

  Now, one more thing before I stop rambling. When your mother saw your letter, she turned white as a sheet. She said, “You tell her to get out of there. That is no place for a young lady.” She trembled for two days. I am still not sure she’s over it. Every few days she asks if I have heard from you and if you have moved yet. She knows better than to think I hide letters from her. I don’t know why she is opposed to that place, but from her accent, I know she’s from the south. Maybe she came from there? Do you think she is afraid that the same thing that happened to her will happen to you? Please be careful. I can’t think of anything bad happening to you without crying.