by C. M. Sutter
“So, it’s pretty obvious that Reanne was snatched right in Grand Forks. Her car was left behind, and she disappeared in broad daylight. You’d think somebody at the park would have seen or heard something.” I pressed my temples, hoping that would flip a switch—it didn’t.
“Sounds like the flat tire could have been a deliberate act to keep her from leaving. Mrs. Orth said the car was parked in the last open spot, and the flat tire was on the passenger side. Reanne wouldn’t have noticed it. Somebody could have punctured the tire then lay in wait and watched for her to return to her car. The friendly, concerned stranger could have pointed it out as a distraction,” Jack said.
“That certainly makes sense, but he must have seen her arrive to choose her as his victim. I mean, he wouldn’t have picked a car with a family in it.” I shrugged and took a gulp of coffee. “The guy saw her early on then waited for her to return to her car. That’s when he pointed out the flat tire. She probably looked down at the tire, and he clubbed her from behind. No—that would be too noticeable, but he had to do something to disorient her enough to get her in his vehicle without attracting attention. Shit!” I looked around, hoping nobody other than Jack had heard my exuberance.
“What?” Jack leaned across the booth, his eyebrows raised so high they almost touched his hairline.
I whispered, “I know how he did it—the Xylazine. The guy pointed out the flat tire, Reanne walked around the car to check it out, and he jabbed her in the neck. All he needed to use was enough to throw her for a loop. She’d be too messed up to yell for help. Chances are, he parked right next to her. Grab and go—he’d be out of there in seconds.”
I jerked my head toward the approaching waitress. Our conversation would be silenced until she came and went.
“Here you go, folks. Can I get you more coffee?”
“No, thanks, we still have plenty in the carafe,” I said.
“Okay, well, enjoy your meal. Just give me a holler if you need anything else.”
Jack smiled. “Will do.”
I whispered again, “I’m calling Jason back to ask him if he’s noticed a needle puncture in her neck or anywhere else yet. So, a small amount of Xylazine was likely used to incapacitate her, then he used it again when he killed her. If it went down the way I think, the flat-tire scenario is the ruse, then she got nailed in the carotid artery. My question is, if she was picked up in Grand Forks and dumped in Washburn County, did our killer pick up more women on the way? And why come to our area at all?”
“Valid questions, Jade. Knowing the method isn’t going to give us the killer, but it might be a way to figure out what locations are easy grab-and-go spots where plenty of women hang out. The killer obviously took Reanne from a park. Popular swimming areas and parks would be a good place to start. Mall parking lots would be primo, but there are cameras. He’d have to be more careful there.” Jack leaned across the table. “Wouldn’t you think there’s a nationwide database of pharmacies and veterinarians that have had dangerous drugs stolen?”
“I’m not sure, but call Billy and Todd. If anyone knows, they will. Jason thought it would be hard to track, but see what they say. I’ll give Jason a call.”
We ate, paid the bill, and left. We had to start making our way to the airport to return the rental car. I called Jason as Jack drove and told him to be extra thorough when checking for needle marks. Chances were, she could have evidence of more.
Chapter 13
“What do you think, Gina? Should we head out?” Carley checked the time on her cell phone.
“Yeah, I suppose. This has been fun, guys, but if we don’t get going, we’ll be too drunk to drive.” Gina laughed. “I think we’ve both had too much beer already, and I’m the only one that’s legal to drink. I guess I’m driving.”
“How far do you live from here? We could give you a ride home, and you could pick up your car tomorrow,” Jeremy said, trying to encourage the women to agree.
“Nah, we’re good—too much of a hassle. We’d have to get a ride back tomorrow, plus it isn’t far,” Carley said. A hiccup popped out of her mouth as she spoke. She chuckled.
“Hang on. Don’t leave yet. I’m going to put Cage in the van, then we’ll help you ladies carry your things to your car,” Matt said.
Jeremy gave him the go-ahead look and nodded.
“What a gentleman,” Gina said. “I guess chivalry isn’t dead after all.”
Jeremy grinned. But you might be if you don’t sell quickly.
He watched as his brother left with Cage. Jeremy took in the surroundings. The number of people on the beach had thinned. Matt shouldn’t have any trouble puncturing the tire without being noticed. He had become quick and efficient at it.
Matt returned in less than ten minutes. Jeremy watched his brother’s face for a sign. Matt tipped his head. All was good.
He whispered to Jeremy as the girls gathered their belongings. “There was an empty parking spot in front of their car. I pulled the van in there. It’s going to make loading them much easier.”
“Perfect. This should be a piece of cake.”
Matt handed Jeremy one of the syringes he had pulled out of the glove box when he returned Cage to the van. Jeremy dropped it into the front pocket of his cargo shorts.
“Let us give you a hand,” Jeremy said. He reached for the ladies’ cooler and picked it up with their own.
Matt helped Carley shake the sand out of the blankets and fold them. He wedged them under his arm, and the four took the path back to the road.
“We’re right up here,” Carley said as she pointed at a green Toyota. She clicked the key fob and popped the trunk.
Jeremy sat his cooler down on the curb and put the ladies’ cooler in their trunk. Matt dropped his blanket next to the cooler. The flat tire would be hidden from view with those items until it was time for the women to see it.
Jeremy scanned the street and the beach to make sure nobody was in their immediate area. The limbs of the large tree Carley had parked under kept the car somewhat hidden. Jeremy nodded at Matt. The coast was clear.
Gina leaned back against the trunk and twirled the key ring around her index finger. “This was really fun.” She openly flirted with Jeremy as she talked. “Maybe we can do it again sometime.”
“Maybe. That’s weird. The car is leaning toward the curb.”
“What?” Gina turned her head to where Jeremy had pointed.
“Looks like a problem with that back tire,” he said.
Jeremy had already popped the protective cover off the syringe in his pocket. Matt nodded, indicating that he had too.
Gina walked around the car. “Damn it, Carley. Your back tire is flat.”
Carley came around the car to take a look. The ladies knelt cautiously at the back tire, apparently to avoid scraping their bare knees on the curb. With his head on a swivel, Jeremy did a final check in every direction. A second was all they needed. The brothers crowded behind the girls and sank the needles into each of their necks.
Short yelps of pain—mixed with surprise—came from Gina and Carley. That was the typical response. They slapped at their necks and wobbled. The Xylazine took effect quickly and rendered them unresponsive. They were dumbstruck, gurgling, and nearing unconsciousness.
“Hurry, open the back of the van,” Jeremy instructed, jerking his head toward the vehicle.
Matt ran ahead, opened the back doors, and put Cage in the front seat. He came back around the car and lifted Carley. She was deadweight and limp. He threw her arm around his shoulder and nearly dragged her to the van. He did the same with Gina, shoving them both in and slamming the van doors behind them.
Jeremy was already wiping down everything he touched at the car. With their coolers and blankets tossed in the backseat of the van, and after a final check of the surroundings, he nodded. “Let’s go. Get in the back and tie them up.” Jeremy climbed in behind the wheel, and they took off.
The quarter dose of Xylazine the ladies got was enoug
h to knock them out for a few hours. There would be plenty of time to get back to the farm and introduce both of them to their new home. A dark, musty basement and a three-foot-by-four-foot chain-link dog cage would be their new digs until they were sold. At least they’d have roommates.
An hour later, Jeremy pulled into the secluded driveway. Gravel crunched under the tires as he backed the van against the outer cellar doors. That entrance came in handy and was the easiest route in and out of the basement of the old farmhouse. A few moans sounded from the girls as they were pulled out of the van. Their arms were tied behind their backs, and their ankles were tied together. Duct tape covered their mouths, almost to their ears.
“Get the cages ready,” Jeremy said as he flung Gina over his shoulder.
Matt unlocked the cellar door, flipped the wall switch to light the steps, and ran down before Jeremy to ready two vacant cages. “Go ahead,” he said as he came back up the steps to grab Carley.
Both brothers were strong and capable. Matt flung Carley over his shoulder and followed Jeremy downstairs. The three caged women cried out when they saw two more women being carried to the empty enclosures.
“Shut the hell up over there,” Matt said with a threatening glare. “You should be happy to have new roommates. There’s so much to talk about, and you better do it while you can, Mel. You’re out of here tomorrow.”
The brothers smirked as they shoved Gina and Carley into their individual cages and secured the padlocks. They took the cellar steps out and slammed the heavy double doors behind them.
Jeremy headed toward the barn.
“Where are you going?”
“We have work to do, and there’s only a few hours of daylight left. Come on. Give me a hand.”
The faded, warped barn doors weren’t opened often, but Jeremy knew what he needed would be inside. He grabbed the old iron handles and pulled. The doors resisted but spread open with a creak.
“What are we looking for?”
“I know there are a couple of shovels in here. I saw them when old man Miller’s son showed us the place. Push those doors open wider so we can see.”
Matt entered the barn and turned to face the doors. With a strong kick from his work boot, he got them to spread farther apart. “How’s that?”
“Better. Here we go. There’s plenty of tools back here.” Jeremy walked halfway through the barn and found the rakes, sledgehammers, and hoes propped against a sidewall. Several shovels were mixed in with the rest of the tools. “Here, take one and come with me.”
Matt never wandered around the property as Jeremy did. He wasn’t one for the country life and wide-open spaces. He’d thought Jeremy was crazy when he said he wanted to rent the farm. Old man Miller owned a hundred acres that were part of the farmstead the brothers rented from him several months back. The house had stood empty for nearly a year until Jeremy saw an ad in the newspaper and called. The description of the secluded location was too good to pass up—it was perfect for their needs. Crops thrived on the farmland years ago, but these days, only broken remnants of dried-out cornstalks stood in the fields. A rickety house in need of updating and a barn that had seen better days were all that remained of the hundred-acre spread. For six hundred dollars a month, it was a steal, and Matt reluctantly went along with it.
Each brother carried a shovel, and Jeremy led the way. They stepped over the fieldstone rock wall behind the barn and entered the woods, where they continued on for five minutes more. Jeremy stopped, jammed the end of the shovel into the ground, and took in his surroundings.
“This should do it. Start digging.”
“Is this for Beth?”
“Yes, it’s for Beth.”
Chapter 14
We sat at our gate and waited. Boarding to Milwaukee would begin shortly. Jason called me back, saying he did see several nearly faded puncture wounds on Reanne’s neck and one other that looked more recent. Once he had confirmed that, and with his theory that Reanne had been caged, we knew there might be a dangerous individual roaming freely and possibly looking for more women in our area.
The flight to Milwaukee wouldn’t land until after nine o’clock, and then we’d have another forty-five-minute drive to North Bend.
I glanced at Jack, sitting to my right. He looked tired. “Let’s call it a night when we get back and start fresh in the morning,” I suggested.
He agreed. “Sounds like a good idea to me.”
It didn’t take long to settle in once we boarded the airplane. We taxied out to the tarmac and waited our turn. The pilot announced we were third in line. Once the engines revved and the plane thrust forward, it was a little over a two-hour flight back to Milwaukee. The first hour was spent with coffee as we went over everything we had learned from Reanne’s family, workplace, and friends. We rewrote the day’s events in an orderly fashion, listing the most important notes from the interviews we conducted. That information had been scribbled in our notepads. Tomorrow, we’d sit in the bull pen and have a powwow with our team. I put the legal pad back in my briefcase and slid it under my seat.
I looked at my watch—seven fifteen. The flight attendant collected the Styrofoam cups and pretzel wrappers from the complimentary beverage and snack service. Jack and I folded up the tray tables, reclined our seats, turned off the overhead lights, and closed our eyes for the duration of the flight.
The aircraft wheels were lowered, and the sound woke me. The flight attendants were already walking the aisle, picking up last-minute garbage. We were reminded to stow anything we had taken out of the overhead compartments, raise our seat backs, and close our tray tables. Everyone should remain seated with their seat belts fastened for the rest of the flight. I chuckled and thought how easily I could have been a flight attendant. I had their spiel memorized verbatim.
I gave Jack’s shoulder a nudge. “Hey, wake up. We’re in Milwaukee.”
Two slits opened slightly, and a frown furrowed his forehead. “Man, I can’t open my eyes. It’s like they’re superglued together.” He fisted his hands and ground them into his eyeballs.
I smiled. “Better?”
“No.”
“Poor baby. Good thing I’m driving.”
“Yeah, no kidding. I’m beat.”
The plane hit the runway, and the wheels screeched. We taxied to the gate, then the lights came on. I looked at the other passengers, who groaned and had puffy, tired red eyes.
“What’s with everyone anyway?” I asked, whispering to Jack.
“What?”
“Well, it isn’t like we just flew twenty hours from Tasmania. It was a two-and-a-half-hour flight, for Pete’s sake. Come on. Let’s go.”
We stood and waited our turn to exit, Jack hunched over so he wouldn’t crack his head on the storage compartment above him. The process always reminded me of the way people took turns to go to the front of our church for communion when I was a kid. One row would empty before the next could step out. On airplanes, I always insisted on an aisle seat so I could charge to the front before anyone had a chance to stand up. After years of dirty looks from other passengers, I’d mellowed slightly and learned to wait my turn.
We walked through the near-empty terminal, down the escalator, and out the door to the park-and-ride shuttle stand. The green-and-black van approached, and we stepped aboard. I dug the green row reminder card out of my purse and handed it to the driver. Jack pulled a few dollars out of his wallet and gave them to the driver when he dropped us off at row A, slot 17, right where my car was parked.
“Are you hungry? I can find a quick drive-through, and we can eat on our way home. To be honest, I could use another cup of coffee,” I said.
“Yeah, sure. It’s on me, though—you choose. I’m cool with anywhere that’s convenient for you,” Jack said.
“How’s this?” I asked as we came up on a fast-food restaurant a block from the freeway entrance.
“It works for me.”
We ate in silence as I drove. We each chose a chicken
wrap—easy to manage and not too messy. The coffee was hot and strong—just the way I liked it. It perked me up a little too.
“Jack?”
“Yep.”
“We have no idea if the perp just passed through and dumped Reanne along the road or if he’s made himself at home in our area.”
“I’m leaning toward the latter.”
“Okay, I’m listening.”
“I could see a dump as he’s passing through if Reanne was found just off Highway 60, but she was three miles up a narrow farm road. He’d have to get off the interstate, go to Highway 60, and then find a backwoods secluded farm road somewhere. It seems like too much work if he was just passing through.”
“That’s true, but the tarp and tape? Isn’t that telling us he stopped and shopped somewhere, unless he just carries those supplies in his vehicle? Maybe he’s an opportunist and doesn’t plan who his victims are, or when he’s going to grab them. That would tell us he does carry those supplies with him.” I turned to check Jack’s temperature on my theory. “What if he’s a cross-country killer and the marks on Reanne’s elbows and knees are from cages inside his vehicle? Maybe it’s just what the women are transported in once he snatches them.”
Jack nodded. “Good point, but what about the bleach and the scald marks on the body? Wouldn’t he need a private place like a house with a bathtub to do that? He certainly couldn’t take a risk like that in a hotel room.”
“Yeah, those are all valid concerns to run past everyone in the morning. I think I’ll let it go until then. The gerbil on the wheel needs a rest.”
“We’re almost home, partner. So when are you and Amber going to invite me to dinner? You do have a party-sized deck, you know. I sort of recall helping you carry your lawn furniture out there.”
“You’re right. How about after this case is solved? I’ll have Amber give me her work schedule, and we’ll make a definite plan. Now that I think of it, I did just buy a new grill. You guys can break it in with brats and burgers while I supervise and set the table. When we plan a date, have your folks come too, and I’ll invite Mom and Bruce. I’ll get my first party out of the way, hopefully sooner rather than later.”