Branded for Murder (Scott Tucker Series)

by Dick Waters

  She was so hot, the sweat was pouring down her face and the middle of her back. She waited a minute or so, and then peeked out over the window sill. He wasn’t at the window any longer but was lying on the bed. She hesitated for an instant, and then trained the binoculars on the man.

  His legs and torso were plainly visible, but his face was hidden by a magazine. It must be one of those Men’s Magazines, judging from his obvious excitement. She had only seen Scott’s body in this condition, but as much as she wanted not to look she couldn’t stop herself.

  The man was very muscular, as she could see by the muscles in his thighs and stomach area. The binoculars were fogging up and she had to adjust them to her eyes. The man reached for himself as she watched. She flopped down on the floor away from the window as the binoculars were too fogged to see through. She had seen enough. Her breathing was rapid and she was soaking wet. Does he do that if he watches me?

  Her back was against the wall below the window. She could tell the wall was wet from her leaning against it. Finally, she took a deep breath and peeked over the window sill and could finally see his face, or could have if she was looking through the binoculars. He was still occupied. Doesn’t he care if people, no not people—coeds, can see him and what he’s doing?

  She had never seen anything like this before. Should she tell Judy what she saw, or should she tell Scott. Could she? Why is she doing this? How would she ever tell anyone? She had an urge to look at the man’s face to see if she could recognize him, but knew the consequences of that action. She couldn’t bring herself to repeat the process. She soon discovered she was almost arguing with herself, aren’t you just getting even? Isn’t he doing this to me? She felt confused and trapped, with tears now running down her cheeks. Oh Scott I love you so, please help me!

  Chapter 69

  It was now early evening. I had tried to reach Lisa unsuccessfully. The person who answered the phone could not locate her, saying she must have stepped out. I left a message for her to call me.

  My mind drifted to Jimmy Ballou and where he could be. I went to the box of stuff I carried away from the task force office, pulling out my copy of the yearbook page with Jimmy Ballou. I studied his picture again, trying to age his features. I wasn’t having any luck. In the picture, he was handsome with light colored hair, a square jaw, a cleft in his chin and dimples. He didn’t look at all like a killer. Now that I think of it, what does a killer really look like?

  I studied the picture for several minutes, starting to recognize the features. I looked so long he was starting to look familiar. I couldn’t tell the color of his eyes, but they looked like they were sending a message, which was almost like he was hurting inside. That’s when I noticed something that I hadn’t noticed earlier.

  All of his activities stopped after his sophomore year. He had been active in sports up until the end of that year. This guy loved sports; it even mentions his love of sports. I read the quote again, ‘Sure to fight for our rights….’ Well that might indicate what he’s doing with seeking revenge. Maybe if the girls had branded him, he refrained from anything which would have shown what happened to him. What about gym class, wouldn’t that have involved showers and being undressed in front of other boys? It must have been hard for him to hide what happened. That would mean he didn’t go in the military either. How did he ever avoid that being in the ‘Class of ’43?’

  I said out loud, “Jimmy, Jimmy talk to me. Where are you and what are you doing?”

  Assuming Lisa is a target, what would I do if I were you?

  *.*.*

  I looked at the paper I was doodling on, while thinking about that. There were a lot of things on the sheet of paper, but I had been thinking about that question for almost an hour now. As I scanned my scribbling, something popped out at me. His address is a ‘vacant lot, but close to Lisa’s dorm.’ He would be close enough to see her coming and going. It didn’t take too long before I thought about the guard that seemed to be focused on Lisa, and who also made her uncomfortable.

  I tried Lisa again.

  “Hello.” A soft voice answered the phone in what seemed to me record time.

  “Hello,” I acknowledged, “this is Scott Tucker calling again. Has Lisa Anderson returned?”

  “Hello Scott this is Judy. How have you been?”

  “I’m doing fine. Have you seen Lisa?”

  “You know Scott, someone asked about her earlier. I really don’t know where she has disappeared to. Her favorite coat is still hung up in the room, but I haven’t seen her. I’m expecting a call from Neil. How about when I see her I have her call you right away?”

  “That’s fine. How is Neil doing?”

  “He’s doing okay. By any chance did Lisa mention us to you?”

  “I’m not sure, in what regards?”

  “That’s fine, it can wait.”

  “Judy, one more question.” I paused to phrase the question correctly. “Now that the holidays are over and the strangler has been apprehended, is there still a guard on duty?”

  “Yes he is. That’s a weird question. Why do you ask?”

  “I think Lisa has been uncomfortable with a particular guard. I was just curious.”

  “I’m aware that the guard named Andy gives her the creeps. He’s not on duty right now though.”

  “I’m sorry I’m keeping you from talking to Neil. I better go. Do you happen to know his last name?”

  “It’s Lincoln. I think that’s the name on his badge, Andy Lincoln.”

  “Thanks Judy and I hope you see Lisa soon. Please say hello to Neil for me. Bye.”

  I stared at the phone. Now that I knew his name, now what?

  Chapter 70

  He would often look out the back bedroom window at the building behind his. During the summer months there was total emptiness to this view, but now it was as if there were all of these cubbyholes with lights.

  He was still amazed that it was half way through the school season, and most coeds didn’t have any shades or curtains. They must be country girls, he imagined, definitely not city girls. City girls wouldn’t take the chance of being seen, as they knew that a city is just filled with weirdoes. Looking out back, he could see several rooms lit up currently with more to follow.

  In his mid-thirties and in good shape for his age, he exercised daily, which is what he thought it would take to keep him looking like a Greek god. He had no stomach to speak of and the muscles in this area seemed to be the same as when he was in his teenage years.

  As he reclined on his bed, he looked down at his naked body. He never wore anything to bed, loving this feeling of freedom, and the chill of the cold room.

  He no longer cared what the world held in store for him. There was a time when this was important, but that was over twenty years ago. Now, he was determined to complete his revenge for what the girls had done to him. He reached down and felt the scars they left and remembered the pain he felt when they branded him. He returned that favor twice now. There are two more to go.

  Phyllis and Karen had paid the price. All of them would pay for how they had changed the outcome of his life. His mind drifted, and his body reacted to the image of Phyllis lying on the bed, tied up, blindfolded and gagged. She was a delightful sight, totally naked and oiled from head to toe. He could feel his body reacting to the memory.

  His work as a live-in security guard for the preparatory school provided him with a makeshift room, which consisted of a bedroom and adjoining bath. Since the building was designed as a school, this room must have been some kind of large utility closet with a window, which was just like the rest of the school. These windows ran from almost floor level to at least seven feet high. It was like a window on the world, and it provided in return anyone looking—with a world of a view.

  He knew the coeds would sometimes purposely catch him sleeping in the nude, shaving or getting cleaned up. This was the third year. No one had ever complained about what they saw. He was sure that some of them must have enj
oyed the sight of his torso and other parts.

  His thoughts were interrupted when he spotted another light come on in the floor above his own across the alley. He could see the young attractive girl with long-blonde hair wave with emphatic “come over here” impatience. Within seconds, two heads and torsos in their skimpy nightclothes were fixed in the window staring down at him. He knew if he gave any continued look in their direction that they would disappear out of view.

  It was show time and he always obliged. He started doing his exercises, which he would follow up with reading a magazine and then let nature take its course. He thought of what the girls at camp had done with him prior to the branding. He just smiled at the memory. They had been so inquisitive. He was incapable of doing anything to redirect them.

  Despite the coldness of his room, he was now sweating from his exercises and sticking to the sheet. He picked up the magazine. Within minutes his body reacted to the pictures. He wondered what the two girls were imagining at this moment. It always added to his excitement what some country girls, who had never seen a naked man, would remember years from now.

  At some point he couldn’t control his actions any longer, feeling the scars before relieving himself. The reactions of the Coeds were always the same. At first they were embarrassed by what they had witnessed, and then they would laugh. This was his routine at night and most mornings. That’s when he wasn’t doing his own eyeballing.

  His routine would give him something to think about all day long at his other job. That job was filled to the brim with beautiful distractions. He often tried to determine who had witnessed his display.

  Leaving the light on now, he thought about his next target. He was a good soldier and now had to carry it through. He could feel the excitement building once more just thinking about how surprised she’s going to be when they meet again—two down and two more to go.

  Chapter 71

  She could hear herself breathing and was trying to control it. She had never done anything like this before, wondering if she could ever bring herself to repeat this process. It was killing her that she couldn’t see his face, but she wasn’t going to look again. Not tonight anyway. She had been here longer than expected. Her hair was soaking wet. She was soaking wet.

  She crept low to the bed, sitting down to remove her sweater. It weighed a ton. She ducked down, moved to the door, and opened it. There were no lights on in the hall, but she looked in both directions anyway. She felt for the keyhole, locking the door. Her breathing was still heavy as she stood with her back to the door. The door was cool against her wet back, but when she tried to pull away, her skin stuck to it. As she pushed herself away, she heard a loud noise.

  Trying the flashlight, there was just a weak yellow glow. Shaking the flashlight, it brightened enough to see the end of the hall and staircase. She shut it off because she knew she was going to need it before she exited the annex. I wonder if Judy is missing me…maybe Scott called. She covered the distance to the staircase quickly, almost falling at the top of the stairs. She steadied herself, feeling along the wall as she descended the stairs.

  She heard noises similar to what she heard before, but she resisted turning on the flashlight. She used the wall and banister to guide her. Her sweater was so heavy it was like it had been immersed in the sink. At each floor she could feel the air change, welcoming the cooler air. It was still hot, but not like the stairway and upstairs. That’s when she saw someone else’s flashlight lighting up the end of the hall on the third floor, or was it the fourth.

  She quickly turned the corner, descending the staircase trying not to make any noise, but the flashlight fell out of her hand, bouncing on the stairs. She bent quickly to stop it, but she heard a woman’s voice call out, “Who’s there?” She held her breath, freezing in position. “I said who’s there?” A pause for a few seconds, then, “Is someone there? Answer me.” She couldn’t hear any footsteps. She hoped the guard would think it was one of the rats. She could see the reflection of the light on the wall. Then it was gone.

  She resumed her descent, finally reaching the second floor. She had tried the flashlight, but must have broken the bulb or the batteries were fully drained. Opening the door to the second floor where the connection was to the regular dormitory, she peeked to see if anyone would see her. No one was there. She put her sweater on, peeked again and entered the hall. Three steps later, she heard someone coming up the stairs.

  She hurried to the top of the stairs and started down them. The girl looked at her like she had two heads.

  “What happened to you Lisa?” The girl was standing directly in front of her. “You look like you forgot to take your clothes off when you took a shower.” The girl finally moved over, letting her pass. “Scott called you earlier…you might want to clean up first,” she said, with a laugh.

  “Thanks, I was just doing some exercises. I guess I overdid it.” She answered, moving quickly down the stairs, needing to return the keys to the cabinet. She went over to the guard’s desk, left a fake message, and when no one was looking, hung the two keys back up. Her heart was beating so fast she could hear it in her ears. She hurried through the reception area and back up the stairs to her room.

  *.*.*

  She flew into her room, scaring Judy by her quick entrance.

  “What the hell happened to you, and where have you been?” Judy studied her from head to toe. “What did you need a flashlight for?”

  She looked at the flashlight, then back at Judy. “I have to tell you what I just did.”

  “Well, you didn’t shower here because I’ve been here for a little while. Before I forget to tell you, Scott called a little while ago. So, what have you been up to?”

  Lisa went over to the window, looking up to the room where she saw the lights earlier. The light was still on, but the man was not standing there any longer. She moved quickly away, going into the bathroom. She removed her sweater, slacks, and underwear. She came out with a towel wrapped around her hair and another around her. She sat down on her bed, looking over at Judy who was still waiting for an answer.

  “Judy, I went up to the fifth floor to our future room, looking to see who that man is across the way.” As soon as the words left her mouth she realized something—she had forgotten to take the binoculars, leaving them in the room. “Judy, I wanted to see who he was, but I couldn’t see his face.” Is she going to be able to tell the rest? She studied Judy, who didn’t look that shocked. “He was on his bed and was…well he didn’t have any clothes on.”

  Judy smiled at her. “So is that why you couldn’t see his face?”

  The comment took her by surprise. “No, silly. He was reading a magazine. It was blocking my view.”

  “It was, huh?”

  “Judy, stop! I wanted to know who has been looking at me in our room and the bathroom.”

  “So he was naked, reading a magazine,” Judy said, watching Lisa drying her hair. “You were there for quite some time, noticing how wet you were. Was it worth the trip?”

  “I’m sorry I mentioned this to you now. It wasn’t my objective to watch him do that…I mean it wasn’t what I went there to do. I wanted to see who he was. I even brought binoculars,” she blurted out.

  “So you never got to see his face. You were there for quite some time judging from how soaked you are, and you brought binoculars. So what did you see him doing…all that time? Judy slid over to Lisa’s bed.

  She looked again at Judy, but she had gone this far. “Well he was…you know…excited and touching himself. I don’t want to talk about it any longer. I realized I wasn’t going to see his face, and couldn’t watch what he was doing any longer. Besides the binoculars were fogging up.”

  Judy laughed, and covered her mouth. “I’m sorry. I can picture the whole scene now.”

  “Judy I left the binoculars in the room. What should I do?”

  Judy started to get up off the bed. “Well I know what I’m going to do.”

  “Judy, No! Bes
ides, the guard is over there right now. She almost caught me.”

  “I was just kidding, wanting to see your reaction.” She smiled, sitting back down. “So tell me, would you recognize him if you saw him again?”

  She punched Judy in the arm. “Judy you can’t tell anyone. I might tell Scott, but I don’t think he would understand either.” She thought about what she did. “I have only been with Scott. I have never seen anyone do what he was doing before.”

  Judy studied Lisa for a few seconds. “I hope you don’t have nightmares,” she said, with a smile. “If it’s any consolation to you, I’ve heard some of the other girls talking about the display across the alley. It happens all the time. I’ve also heard he has quite the body.”

  She looked at Judy, feeling a little relieved. “He was quite muscular.”

  “That’s not what they were talking about sweetie.”

  *.*.*

  “Hello Scott, I heard you called me a couple of times, she announced.

  “Hi Lisa, yes I tried you a couple of times, but nobody knew where you were. Did you go out?”

  “Kind of, I’ll tell you all about it later. Did you want to see me? I really want to see you.”

  “Yes I do. Can I come pick you up now? It’s kind of late, but I do want to see you.”

  “I’ll be downstairs waiting for you. Don’t bother to come in; I’ll look for your white monster.”

  “I’m on my way. Bye.”

  *.*.*

  Less than a half hour later, I pulled up out front and Lisa came out immediately. I started to get out of the car to go open the door, but she beat me to it.