“I shouldn’t have shown up without calling. I’ll come back another time,” Andrea replied and turned to leave.
“No!” Dan responded quickly and reached out his hand in invitation. “That wasn’t what I meant. Come on in. Just watch where you step and sit. I was going to call you in a little bit, but I just got home and was unwinding. It’s been a crazy day and a long week. I didn’t think I’d be much for talking or company until I improved my mood.”
Andrea closed the door behind her and leaned against it. The room was messy, but not dirty. It looked like the bachelor quarters of a man who came and went in a rush and who had more important and pressing things to do than straighten his apartment every day. “Why don’t you take a long, hot shower while I have a drink and prop up my feet? Then we’ll see what we can eat. We can talk after you get out. I remember how my father hated being pounced upon by his eager family the minute he walked in the door from a hard day. Get moving, Mallory. I’ll be here when you finish.”
“You don’t mind waiting?” Dan asked as he grabbed up discarded clothes, papers, and other items.
“Nope. I need time to settle down, too. Been a busy week. You really don’t mind my coming here without calling?”
“I’m glad you did. I tried to call you yesterday, even went by your place a few times. I should have checked with you Monday or Tuesday to see if you had plans. And tell you I had a great weekend. Like I said, I’m rusty in this area, so bear with me.”
“So am I, Dan, and I don’t usually go to a man’s residence alone. I went to the lake yesterday with Cindi and some friends. Today I had lunch with Brian. He wanted me to help him pick out an anniversary present; they’ve been living together for three years. I tried to call you a few times this afternoon, but you were out. I didn’t leave my name or a message; I know how guys tease each other about such things. I didn’t call on your cell phone because I didn’t want to interrupt a meeting or interrogation. I know you’re knee-deep in that vigilante case and following up on all your leads. I’m sure Monday and Tuesday were busy catch-up days and exhausted nights. We’re busy keeping up with all the reports from everybody. Ray wants to be ready to charge and indict the Avenger as soon as you all arrest him. I think my boss is as weary of news conferences and media phone calls as your boss is. I’m sure you and Mory, as the lead detectives, will be overjoyed to close this case and see justice done.”
“More than you can imagine. Just wish we had some worthwhile leads to follow. I have to admit, Andi, this is one of the smartest criminals I’ve ever pursued. When victims are chosen randomly, we have no links to connect.”
“Is any crime truly random, Dan? Ray told me long ago ‘a victim and a perpetrator are in the same place at the same time for a reason. Find the reason their paths intersect at that specific time and place, and you can solve the mystery.”
“Ray’s right in this instance. These victims are being carefully selected and methodically dispatched. No random slayings involved. I just need to find the who and why.”
“Don’t worry, you will. Now, no more shop talk, Mallory. Get your shower so we can eat. I’m famished.”
“Me, too. You have any plans for the weekend?” What the hell, he wasn’t going to make the same mistake of waiting too late to get her commitment.
“None yet.”
“Good. X out those days for me, will you?”
Andrea grinned at him. “I kept them open in case you asked. Get your shower, Mallory; you look a wreck. Do you have any wine? If not, I can go get some.”
“There’s some Chablis in the bottom door shelf of the fridge. I don’t know how long it’s been there, so test it first. The opener is in the drawer next to the stove. Here, let me do it for you.”
“No need, Dan. I can do it. You just get cleaned up. Yours will be chilled and ready when you get out. Unless you prefer something else?”
“I’m not much of a wine drinker. A few fingers of Chivas on the rocks will do the trick nicely.”
“It’ll be waiting for you when you’re done.”
“Thanks, Andi. If you like, we can go out to eat after I get cleaned up.”
“How about we order a pizza? I’m not in the mood for noisy crowds tonight.”
Dan smiled. “That’s what I was planning on doing. I didn’t feel like a run to the grocery store. I like anything on mine, so whatever you order will be fine. The phone is in the kitchen and the number is on the fridge.”
“Order pizzas a lot, do you?” Andrea teased with a smile.
“Occasionally,” Dan lied with a telltale grin and walked to the bathroom.
While Dan showered, Andrea quickly tidied up the kitchen and breakfast area, then called to have a supreme pizza delivered. Afterward, she checked the refrigerator to find it almost empty. She poured her glass of wine and his Chivas.
“The pizza should be here in ten minutes,” Andrea told him upon his return. He was dressed in jeans and a blue golf shirt that brought out the color of his blue eyes. He was more than a handsome hunk with a great physique. He was captivating and fun, and she was utterly willing and eager to enjoy him to the fullest.
Dan was aroused by her titillating gaze and aura. His voice was husky with animal heat as he said, “I hope that’s okay with you. I’m not much of a grocery shopper or cook. I promise to treat you to a nice meal soon.”
They talked while Dan got out plates and napkins. Within minutes, the pizza arrived and they were eating, chatting and laughing.
Soon the conversation drifted toward the Avenger case and clues, or the lack of them. Dan told her more of what he knew, what he’d been doing, and what he was planning to do. It was good to have a woman whose job was similar to his, so they understood each other’s work. Talking aloud with her helped clarify things in his head. She knew all about the cases, so he wasn’t worried about keeping secrets. It felt good to relax, to open up, to say anything he thought or felt without having to watch his words.
“If it was a law enforcer’s wife, sister, mother, daughter or lover who was raped, but it wasn’t reported,” Andrea speculated, “who knows better than a cop or lawyer how difficult it is to get a conviction on a rape charge? They know the woman is made to look and sound more like the criminal than her attacker. We’ve both been involved with these types of cases, Dan, and seen the victim’s lives torn apart while they seek justice. Their families’ lives, too. For what, to watch their assailant walk on a stupid, minor technicality? Half of the ones who escape justice do the same thing again. It’s frustrating as hell. The intentions behind the court’s decisions are there for a reason—to protect the innocent who’ve been wrongly charged or possibly framed. But sometimes it helps the guilty to go free. How can you check out so many men?”
“We have a blood type and DNA from the sperm samples, but I need hard evidence or strong suspicions before I can begin an intense look in those directions. I can’t demand hundreds of blood tests for comparison, not without probable cause. That’s too bad because it would rule out a lot of maybes. I made enough enemies and rivals on my last job doing things like that. Cops don’t take to being doubted or accused, especially if they’re dirty. And most cops don’t like what they consider traitors to their hallowed ranks. It’s frustrating as hell, but that’s the way it is.”
“What about that obnoxious, overzealous, ambitious reporter? You said he’s around more than he should be. What if he’s creating his own story? If this Avenger strikes on Friday nights, why not have him tailed tomorrow night? At least you might learn who’s tipping him off. His source could be the killer, or he could be working under Starr’s orders. It would be good to shut down that leak.”
“I’ve thought about that. I want this case solved, so I think I’ll shadow him myself tomorrow night. We can get together on Saturday and Sunday, if that’s okay with you?”
“Sounds great to me. I realize a lot of time is needed to work this case. What you do makes our community a safer place to live, so how could I begrud
ge you that?”
“You’d be amazed how many wives and girlfriends resent the crazy hours and the overtime that goes with the job. I’m thinking you might just be an early Christmas present from Santa because an understanding woman is hard to come by these days.”
“I have my own life, Dan. I enjoy spending time with you, but I’ll be understanding when you have something else to do. The same goes for you.”
“I’m in heaven, I know it now,” Dan murmured with sparkling eyes. “I also know this Avenger is left handed, besides being very strong.”
“Left handed? How did you determine that?”
“The way those victims were bound, the knots and marks indicate a left handed killer. And he has to be strong to overpower them. But how he selects and disables them has me stumped. If I can figure that out, I’ll be closer to unraveling this case.”
“You’re amazing, Mallory. You notice important details. From what you’ve told me and what I’ve read in the paper, I don’t think he’s crazy or after media attention. I think he’s after vengeance and justice. By the way his victims are disfigured, it sounds like a personal vendetta. Maybe he’s acting out of anger, hatred, and frustration because he can’t get to his real target for some reason or doesn’t know that man’s identity. One thing you haven’t mentioned, what if the real target killed his female victim after raping her? In all of the cases you’ve investigated, the female victims survived their assaults. Why did he kill those men afterwards? Why not just torture, humiliate and rape them? Let them live in misery and shame like their victims were forced to do? If he’s masked or since he blindfolded them, they couldn’t have identified him.”
“You’ll make a damn good lawyer, Andi. You’re quick and smart. Mory and I hadn’t thought of some of those angles, but we’ll follow up on them. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. I work in criminal justice, Mallory, so I should hope a lot of it has rubbed off on me. Ray is such a good teacher and super smart DA.. If we miss details, criminals find loopholes to use. I sometimes catch discrepancies or clues when I’m typing up notes or talking to him. Ray is the one who said I have a keen eye and alert mind and should be a lawyer. He lets me do footwork for him on occasion and I love it.”
“I could tell you’re more than a legal secretary, no matter what you told me that first day. It’s obvious Ray depends on you and trusts you, which doesn’t happen often in our professions. That makes him a smart man.”
“He’ll be glad to hear that. Do you like him?”
“Lawmen and lawyers often clash. We catch scum, they let it go. They say they have a great case, but if they lose it, they claim some policeman messed it up on a technicality or error. What’s Raymond Harris really like? I noticed he handled all the original cases involving those women.”
“Surely you aren’t suspicious of Ray? He’s intelligent and determined, and he’s a kind and gentle man. He gets pretty upset over failures and the miscarriage of justice, but he could never be the Avenger. I know him, Dan, so forget him as a suspect.”
“Sometimes we think we know somebody close to us, but we don’t. That’s why it shocks us so much when we discover we’re wrong,” Dan said in a frigid tone as he recalled Kristi and Rick’s cruel betrayal.
“Does that mean we’ll clash when I’m a lawyer, Mister Lawman?”
Dan grinned and jested, “Not if we never work on the same case.”
“But we’re working on this one together, in a small way.”
“Yep, and that’s the only part of this investigation I like. When this case is solved, I hope we can spend more time together.”
“Maybe the Avenger has made his last strike or moved elsewhere. Nothing happened last Friday night. Are you attending the victim’s funerals to see who comes? I saw that on TV. There’s an old cliché about the criminal returning to the scene of the crime or watching his success lowered into the earth. You know, it isn’t such a wild idea to attend the funerals, if there are any more. If you get a photographer to take pictures, the same person might show up in them. He could have a morbid urge to see his victims put away.”
“I wonder if the Avenger is a writer.”
“What do you mean?”
“That poem he left beneath his victim last time. He used Bible quotes, then added his own words. He didn’t make it sound as if he was finished yet. I know that damned reporter gave him the idea for his name.”
“Or the reporter penned the note. He’s a writer, a very good one. You said he was at the scene. What if he arrived before you did and left the note? What if it’s from him, not the Avenger? Sensationalism, Dan.”
“Damn, he’s even got me calling the bastard the Avenger.”
Andrea smiled, caressed his clenched jawline, and enticed, “Why don’t you call me instead, say into the bedroom?”
Dan leapt to his feet and scooped her into his arms. He laughed as he said, “I don’t have any neon colors. We’ll have to call Cindi and find out where she got them.”
“Don’t you dare, Dan. Clear is just fine with me.”
Dan laughed before he said, “Forget clearing the table; I’ll take care of that later. Right now, another chore is more appealing.”
“So, I’m a ‘chore’ now, am I?” she teased as she nibbled on his cleft chin before he deposited her on his bed.
“It’s never a chore to make love to you, Andi, only the best thing I’ve done since we were together last time.”
“In that case, Mister Lawman, hush talking and get busy. You have lots of work to do before midnight when I turn into a wicked witch.”
“Let’s pray our Avenger doesn’t change his schedule, because I’d surely hate to be interrupted before I have my dessert.”
“Well, since I’m a witch, I’ll grant your wish. Strip me and take me, Lieutenant Mallory. I’m all yours for now.”
Chapter Nine
Friday night, July 6th
“Hey, baby, wake up. It’s your party and you don’t want to miss a single minute of it. Wake up, honey, or I’m gonna have to punish you even more. You didn’t really think you’d get away with your crimes, did you? Yeah, I guess you did, since the courts turned you loose. But thwarted Justice has a friend on her side: Me.”
Sam heard the intimidating voice behind him and knew it was the Avenger. He was lying across the bed with his arms and legs tied securely. He was naked, blindfolded and gagged. Oh, shit, fuck! Why the hell hadn’t he left town until this maniac went away or was captured? Why was the bastard after him anyway? He read the papers and watched the news. Just like his blasted grandmother had forced him to do with her every fucking day for years. Every fucking day after his slutty mother had dumped him on the old lady to be her slave, until death had freed him. He knew the other men had attacked young and pretty girls, not crazy, wrinkled, should be dead old women. The lady he’d played with had been old, seventy-something at least. She wasn’t no young bitty the Avenger should concern himself with. If she hadn’t fought him so hard, he wouldn’t have had to punish her like that. The senile bitch had struggled and clawed like a crazed cat, so she had forced him to do what he did. Maybe the Avenger wouldn’t kill him since he only screwed useless old ladies. This must be a mistake, Sam fretted.
“How’re you doing, Sam? Do you know who I am?” After the helpless man nodded and made guttural sounds, the Avenger chuckled. “I thought we should play a little bit tonight, since you like games, don’t you, Sam? What game would you like to play? Oh, me too, Sam. That sounds like fun.”
What the hell is this sicko talking about? He hadn’t said shit. Hellfire, the brute was crazy! Something was tied around his head, so he couldn’t see. Something furry was lodged in his mouth, so he couldn’t talk or yell for help. He found himself trying to swallow the bile that fear eased up into his throat. This couldn’t be happening. He should’ve killed the old bitch when he had the chance. Then, the police would’ve never come looking for him. Good thing they didn’t have a search warrant when they came. The aci
d that overeager cop had found in his garage had been thrown out as inadmissible, because it hadn’t been in plain sight and no provable probable cause to search his place and confiscate anything. Dumb ass pigs! Since the old bat’s eyes were damaged by the stuff he’d thrown on her, she’d been unable to identify him. Fucking bitch!
“What shall we play first? Sam, why are you fighting against those ropes? I put them there for a reason and I want you to stop right now. Sam, you’re not listening.” As those words were spoken, calm fingers squeezed the dropper’s bulb to release driblets of sulfuric acid onto Sam’s back, neck and arms—being careful not to place the caustic agent on any location to be touched later, as such a burn would be an identity giveaway. Sam arched against the pain and tried again to loosen the ropes. “I told you to lie still. Now I’m going to have to punish you. You know what the rules are. You tried to teach them to Dorothy, even though she wouldn’t listen. I hope you remember the lessons you taught her, because it seems I’m going to have to teach you the same ones. Now, lie still.”
Sam heard the command at the same time that he felt the trickle on the back of his head. He screamed as much as the gag would allow. He knew it wasn’t enough to summon help, only to further excite the bastard who was torturing him. Well, he wasn’t going to give this sicko the satisfaction. Or that’s what his thoughts were when the sock was yanked from his mouth, his head jerked backwards by his hair which forced his mouth to open before a large object was thrust into it. He tried to back away from whatever was choking him, but escape from the horror was impossible.
“Suck me off, Sam, and don’t bite, or I’ll pour this acid down your throat. I haven’t tried that yet, but I’m sure it would be fascinating to see your throat melt from the inside. It would be like watching the Alien burst out of someone’s stomach. Do your best, Sam, and let me know how much you want it.”
Sam wanted to bite the head off of this guy’s dick, but he knew he would suffer more for it later. Better to let the guy get his rocks off. Then, maybe he could talk some sense into this asshole and get himself free. Later he’d kill him and that Dorothy bitch. He gagged as seminal fluid poured into his mouth. He tried to recoil, thinking for a terrifying moment it might be acid. Before he could speak, the sock was crammed into his mouth again. Where the hell was Cheryl? He needed a rescuer.
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