Experiment in Terror (Koehler Brothers Book 1)

by Anderson, Alene

  Obviously the killer liked blondes. Matt’s heart stuttered as he thought once again of the blond biker. Did their height have anything to do with how tall the killer was? Maybe he liked them shorter because they would be easier for him to attack if he was grabbing them from behind.

  He would be relieved when Karen’s current assignment was over and she arrived to act as a decoy. Hopefully that would keep another university student from being attacked. The night passed slowly and he was grateful when morning came.

  His schedule was to stay awake until the early hours of the morning when he was certain no one would be out on a weeknight. He tried to sleep from three until eight and then make his way to the stone bench. After lunch, he always grabbed a few hours of sleep on the grass, either in the park or in front of the library.

  He had tried asking the group of homeless men their opinion of who the Boulder Creek Killer might be, but none of them appeared to have a clue. He was sure it wasn’t any of them because they all went up to the North Broadway Shelter in the evening. He was glad none of them had offered to stay with him during the night.

  As he headed toward the meeting place at the stone bench, he glanced at his watch. It would be a couple of hours before he could expect to see the woman on the bike. He hoped he hadn’t startled her so much the previous night she would decide to take the bus or drive to work.

  What was he going to do after he caught the killer?

  He would have to go back to Denver and then he wouldn’t be seeing her again. He didn’t like that thought. He would have to find a way to see her after this job was finished. Making the decision to face the problem when the time came, he reached that conclusion and the stone bench at the same time.

  He couldn’t help but wish he had asked her for her name the previous night when it was only the two of them. But he was sure she would have wondered why a homeless man would want to know her name. Maybe it would have frightened her and she would quit riding her bike on the Creek Path.

  When he saw the group of homeless men approaching the bench, he realized something must have happened. They were talking in excited voices.

  “Did you hear the latest?” one of them asked.

  He shook his head.

  “They found another girl raped and murdered.”

  Matt’s heart sank. “Where?”

  “According to the news, her body was found under a bridge down by 30th Street.”

  That was not far from where he had seen the blond biker the previous night.

  Icy fear wrapped around his heart. He had to talk to Heller, but it would be another hour before the library opened and he could call him. He should get a cell phone. He had noticed some of the men had them.

  He was at the library when they opened the doors and he hurried inside to call the chief.

  “Glad you called,” Heller said. “I guess you’ve heard the news.”

  Matt told him he had. “Has the body been identified?” The words almost stuck in his throat as he asked the question.

  “Another University student,” the chief said, and Matt breathed a sigh of relief, and then immediately felt guilty because he had been glad that it wasn’t the blond biker.

  “He appears to be deviating from his usual MO,” Matt said.

  “Unfortunately, this is going to make it harder to catch him. Not only has he changed the place, but it has only been a few days since the last one.”

  A tense silence fell between the two men.

  “Did you talk to Karen again?” Matt asked. “When is she going to be able to get up here?”

  “I did, but she is just finishing an assignment and it’s going to be a few more days before she can get up here.”

  “Can you talk to her boss and see if someone else can take over for her? I’m more sure than ever that we need a decoy.”

  “I’ll see what I can do.”

  “Can someone get a cell phone for me? I was mistaken when I thought a homeless man wouldn’t have a cell phone. Most of them do. It’s wasting time when I have to come to the library every time I want to talk to you. Not that I have all that much to do, but I would like to be able to talk to you at any time I feel I need to.”

  “Now that I can do. How shall I get it to you?”

  They made arrangements for someone to bring the cell phone to him and he went back to the stone bench to join the group of homeless men, who were still talking about the rape and murder of the previous night.

  Matt had almost given up hope of seeing the blond biker when she came into view. He stood up from where he sat on the grass and stretched his arms above his head in a casual movement that immediately caught her attention.

  He was disappointed when she only gave him a quick glance as she called out her usual good morning to the group. She didn’t slow her speed, and as she reached the signal light, which was green, she shot across the street and out of sight.

  He sighed. Had her attraction for him already faded? He knew the first few times they had seen each other there had been a strong fascination on each of their parts. Now it appeared as though it had become one-sided, and unfortunately, he was on the one side.

  Amanda had made up her mind to ignore the tall homeless man until Gary Kaufmann had investigated him. Maybe there was some hope the man might not remain homeless. She couldn’t help wondering what the odds were for that happening. It probably had to do with how bad a man hated being homeless and how much he wanted to get his life back on track. But how would he ever find a job, looking the way he did?

  Her appointment with Gary was in the afternoon and she was anxious to meet with him. Sloan had maintained he was one of the best in the business and she was looking forward to meeting with the detective. She hoped he would be able to find answers to her questions.

  She put her bike in the back room and went to her office, waving at Jenessa as she walked through the store. It was Friday and as she saw the ad on the wall behind the register, announcing the female vocalist who would be performing on the mall, she was aware the store had a busy day ahead.

  Every Friday during the summer and into the warm fall months, the city set up a platform on the mall in front of the store and various musicians performed. Some of them were very good, while others were mediocre, but it always drew a crowd to that part of the mall, which brought browsers into the store. This in turn meant revenue for her business.

  Amanda liked to get through her morning chores so she could go out on the mall and mingle with the listening crowd. Sometimes the better artists had CD’s for sale and if she really liked them, she would purchase one or two after the concert.

  Jenessa stopped by her office to visit before the store opened. Amanda greeted her with a smile but it immediately faded when Jenessa said, “Another University student was found raped and murdered down by the 30th Street Bridge last night.”

  Amanda stared at her in horror. “That’s not far from where I live.” That was close to where she had seen the homeless man. A warning voice whispered in her head. Was it possible he was the Boulder Creek Killer? She shuddered inwardly at the thought as ice seemed to spread throughout her body.

  “Amanda, you’ve got to quit riding your bike. There’s no reason you can’t take the bus.”

  “You’re right,” she said slowly. “At least when I leave work. I don’t think I need to worry about riding it to work in the morning. I can always put it on the bike rack on the bus when I go home.”

  “Well, I wish you would quit riding your bike, altogether.”

  “How’s it going with the new artist, Dennis Hamilton, in the way of sales?” Amanda asked, wanting to forget about the fourth murder and the suspicion that the homeless man might be the killer.

  “Really great,” Jenessa said. “I had to call him and ask him to bring in more art. His greeting cards
are selling like hotcakes. We’re almost out of them, even though he left us twenty boxes. By the way, he will be coming in on Sunday morning to restock.”

  “Good scheduling.” Amanda smiled. “Since I won’t be here.”

  “Why not?” Jenessa asked.

  “You know I never work on Sunday.”

  “Oh, that’s right.”

  “My mom and I are going to Denver to do some shopping and stop at a museum to see the work of an artist I might like to bring into the store.”

  “What kind of art?”

  “Oil paintings.”

  “That might be good since we have no oils in here.”

  “I thought so,” Amanda said. “Of course, they will be much more expensive than the photography we have on display, but we do have a certain amount of demand from people for oil paintings, especially from the tourists.”

  Jenessa turned from the doorway and glanced out the front window. “Looks like they’re setting up for the concert.”

  “I hope this Lisa Bell is good,” Amanda commented. “I need a new CD. I’m getting tired of playing the same ones over and over again.”

  “I know what you mean. Well, I had better get back out in the store before it starts getting busy.”

  “Did you schedule an extra clerk?”

  “Yeah, Marie and Justin are working.”

  “I’ll be out in a minute,” Amanda told Jenessa.

  She hurried to finish her paperwork and left her office to walk through the front door of the store. As soon as she heard Lisa’s voice and the band, Amanda made up her mind to buy one of her CD’s if there were any available.

  She had stood in the crowd for a few minutes when she became aware of a disturbance. Then she saw him. He was a head taller than the other homeless men with him. People hurried to move out of their way, a look of disgust on most of their faces. The men stopped in front of the stage to listen, not far from where Amanda stood, not appearing to notice the reaction of the crowd. The performers didn’t appear to be concerned by the ragged men, but smiled at them in a friendly manner.

  When Lisa announced her next song was entitled “Dancing on the Moon,” and began to sing the words in her mellow voice, Amanda felt her eyes drawn like a magnet to the tall man in front of the stage. As though the same magnet was pulling him around, he turned.

  They stared at each other until the song finished and the men began to move away from the stage. The crowd split to allow them to pass.

  “Wow,” Amanda heard someone whisper in her ear and turned to see Charlie beside her. “Was that tall one your homeless man?”

  “Yes, but he’s not my ‘homeless man,’” Amanda protested.

  “I can see why you were attracted to him. Those eyes are incredible. Did you see the way he looked at you?”

  The last song was announced, and Charlie asked if she wanted to have lunch with her.

  “Let me buy one of Lisa’s CD’s and then I’ll have time for a quick bite,” Amanda said, sure Charlie wanted to pump her for more information. “I have an appointment later this afternoon.”

  Amanda made her purchase and then they strolled down the mall to one of their favorite restaurants, Illegal Pete’s. While they stood in line, waiting to have the food of their choice served, they chatted about the latest happenings in their lives.

  Charlie told her about the trip she and Sloan and their friends planned to take to Lake Powell over the Fourth of July.

  “Six of us are flying over to the lake. Sloan and me, his mom and dad, and the Avedon’s.”

  “Sloan’s mom and dad?” Amanda questioned. “I thought his mother was single.”

  “You must not have talked to Sloan recently,” Charlie said.

  “I talked to him a couple of days ago, but both of us were in a hurry.”

  They paid for their lunch and went to sit at a table.

  “His mother got married?” Amanda asked. “How does Sloan like his new stepdad?”

  “It’s not his stepdad,” Charlie corrected her. “It’s his real dad.”

  “What do you mean, real dad? I thought he was dead.”

  “You’ll love this story.” Charlie smiled. “Samantha, Sloan’s mother, became pregnant with him when she was in college and due to a misunderstanding, she never told the father. Not long ago, she ran into Devlin and he soon found out Sloan was his son. He asked her to marry him and she accepted.”

  “What an amazing story,” Amanda said, as Charlie finished her narration.

  “It is, isn’t it? To think they found each other after all those years. We’re so happy for them. Needless, to say Sloan and his dad are crazy about each other. Samantha and Devlin are commuting back and forth between Boulder and Chicago until Samantha’s boss can find someone to take over her job.”

  Charlie ate in silence for a few minutes. “Now tell me about your homeless man. Since it’s been a few days since you first saw him, has the attraction disappeared? Obviously, not on his part, judging by the way he was looking at you.”

  “I’m afraid it hasn’t on my part, either,” Amanda admitted. “In fact, you’re probably going to kill me when you find out what I’m doing this afternoon.”

  “Amanda, what are you up to now? You’re not meeting him someplace, are you?”

  “I wouldn’t do that,” Amanda assured her friend. “When I told you I had spoken to Sloan a couple of days ago, it was because I was wanting the name of the detective he uses sometimes.”

  “Whatever for?”

  “I want to hire him so I can get some information about that man. I want to know what his background is. Why he’s homeless. If he’s lost his business or something. If he’s looking for another job. Whatever he can find out about him.”

  “Do you think that’s a good idea?” Charlie asked, a concerned look on her face. “What if he’s the Boulder Creek Killer? You know another girl was killed last night? Not far from where you live.”

  “I know, but I can’t believe he’s the killer. I’m hoping whatever Gary finds out about him will help me get over this obsession. I can hardly bear the thought of him leaving Boulder, which I’m sure he will do eventually. I’ve got to find out something to make me lose interest.”

  “One way to do that would be to quit riding your bike to work where you see him every day. How about taking the bus to work? Use that free pass of yours.”

  Amanda didn’t immediately reply. She took a drink of her Coke and then said, “I’m sure that would be the smart thing to do, but I can’t be smart about this man.”

  “Didn’t he show up about the time of those rapes and murders? You have to accept the possibility that he might be the Boulder Creek Killer.”

  “Charlie, can you look into those eyes and really believe he’s the killer?”

  “I don’t know if that has anything to do with it. Take Ted Bundy. He was good looking and charming. No one suspected him of being a serial killer. Look at all the girls he was able to pick up and they never suspected a thing.”

  “I know. But why has he warned me twice now, about riding my bike after dark? You would think if he was the killer, he would want me to ride after dark.”

  Amanda wasn’t going to tell Charlie how he had stepped out from behind a tree the previous night and frightened her. She justified it by telling herself, if he was going to harm her, he would have done it then, when they were alone.

  Charlie put her hand on Amanda’s where it lay on the table. “Just be careful. I would absolutely die if something happened to you and I had promised to keep everything you have told me a secret.”

  Amanda turned her hand over and gave Charlie’s a warm squeeze. “I promise I’ll be careful. But right now, it’s time to keep my appointment with Gary Kaufmann.”

  Chapter 6

 
When Amanda arrived back at her store Gary Kaufmann was waiting for her. The investigator was slender and of medium height. He wore a baseball cap and didn’t remove it when she motioned him to a chair after shaking hands with him.

  “What can I do for you, Miss Barton?” he asked.

  “Oh, please, call me Amanda,” she said, sitting down at her desk.