by Cass Sellars
“Anyway, one night he held a knife up from the kitchen and asked me if I knew what he could do to me with it. The next morning after he went to work, I found a note on my car. It said that if I talked to KC again, he would kill her. I started to believe that he was really dangerous. Then when I got to work, there were flowers and candy on my desk like it was our anniversary or something. I didn’t know what to think.” Her voice became weak and strained.
“That night he, um, forced himself on me and told me that a dyke couldn’t give me what I needed.” Leanne stopped to catch her breath while KC openly fumed.
“He said he would show me all the ways he could…um…satisfy me that she couldn’t. It went on for hours and hours.” Her voice faded. She fought a sob and leaned back into KC.
KC tucked Leanne’s face against her before she managed to find her voice. “He raped her. I don’t care whether they were living together or not; he raped her.” KC practically spat the words.
Mack nodded. “Any nonconsensual sex is considered an assault. Did you report it?”
Leanne nodded before regaining her composure. “But I knew no one would believe me. The sheriff was his daddy’s best friend. So then, I just wanted out. When my mom’s boyfriend lived with us, I tried to tell her about things happening with him, and she didn’t believe me either. I knew what was right and wrong. I just got used to men, y’know, doing what they wanted, I guess.”
Syd walked to the window, fighting the rage she felt on the woman’s behalf. She could only imagine what KC must have felt at the time.
“Anyway, I waited until he was out on a job, and I called KC. I told her what happened and that I needed to get out. I didn’t have a car anymore. He sold it and told me it was a waste of money since we worked and lived in the same place. I told the other lady in the office that I was going out for a walk, so KC picked me up around the corner. I went home, and we packed all my stuff in trash bags and pillowcases, whatever we could find. I didn’t take any furniture or other things, just my clothes and personal stuff. I didn’t really have much to start with. I was so scared the whole time we were there, I couldn’t breathe, you know? I knew if I left him, I was going to have to give up my job, so I would have no money. Everything had just changed, but I knew I wanted to be with her.” KC leaned up and wrapped her hands over Leanne’s thin arms. She was trembling from the memories of the story she had just told.
“I didn’t care what she had. I was in love with her, and I just wanted her away from that maniac. I wanted to take care of her. And I wanted to kill him; I fantasized about it. When he found out that she had moved out, he started calling her. He called a hundred times a day. Literally, a hundred times.” KC was obviously furious, and Leanne tipped her face against KC’s in an apparent effort to calm her.
“I asked him to stop, and it just made it worse if I talked to him. His mom called me once and begged me to come to my senses. I told her what happened, and she said that no son of hers would ever do anything like that.
“He bought me gifts and left them on our porch. Really creepy gifts like a framed picture of me and him together, except it was at different times in the past, and he just taped them together in the frame. He followed me to the store or anyplace he could, and I would have to wait until someone could walk out with me to the car. Once, he um…”
KC kissed her cheek and took over the conversation. “He freakin’ watched through our window one night while we were on the couch together, y’know, together.”
Mack turned as Sydney shifted closer to the sofa, knowing the similarities had just cemented their suspicions. She found a side chair and perched on it, staring at the couple and trying to imagine what that kind of hell it must have felt like.
A tiny version of Leanne ran into the living room and threw herself into KC’s arms.
“Georgie, it’s not time for your nap to be over,” KC whispered to her.
“Mama, I need water.” KC rolled her eyes toward Leanne, who whispered something in her daughter’s ear. “Yes, Mommy.” KC scooped the child into her arms and headed for the kitchen.
Leanne continued when KC left the room. She spoke more quietly. “It was really scary. He called me the next day and said he saw my dyke lover’s hands on me, and that he would make her pay. He said he would make me watch as punishment for being a whore.” It was obvious that she had recounted the words many times. “I called the police before KC got home because I was so scared of him. The police said they couldn’t help me because he hadn’t made any specific threats, so there was nothing they could do. We tried to get a restraining order on him, but his family has money and friends in high places. His lawyer would fight it every time, and the judge listened to them instead of us. KC says it was because we were together, but I just think justice is only blind when she isn’t wearing expensive glasses, if you know what I mean. I think I cried for three weeks straight, but she still stayed with me.” She took a deep breath and gave them a small smile when Georgie could be heard laughing from the kitchen. Her hands were wrapped tightly in a blanket as she continued her story.
“Then KC said we should move again, out of Fairfax, and then she asked me to marry her. Of course, I said yes.” Leanne stared down at a simple silver band nestled against a small diamond on her left hand. “The first thing I did was go to the court to get my name changed. I figured maybe he wouldn’t be able to find me as easily. I thought maybe he would just give up, but he didn’t. It got worse. He followed me home from the grocery store to our new place without me knowing. The next day, he drove behind me when I was picking up a prescription. He got out of the car next to me and started yelling. Then he saw my engagement ring, and he went ballistic. Some people walking by called the police because he was acting so crazy, but the police just told him to go home. I waited in the drugstore for two hours until I was sure he was gone.”
KC returned to the living room and settled behind her wife again. “She’s back down. She really wanted water, go figure.”
KC continued where she heard Leanne leave off. “He started harassing us again, leaving notes and flowers and candy until we felt like prisoners in our own home. Somehow, we never caught him doing it, but we knew it was him. We both always wanted a baby, and we wanted to start our lives together. We couldn’t let him control everything.
“We found a volunteer donor, and she got pregnant right away.” KC absently rubbed over her wife’s now flat stomach before she continued. “We decided to go to the fair with some of my old friends. We were just wandering around, eating junk food and enjoying being together before Georgie was born, y’know? All of a sudden, he was there. I don’t know if he followed us or if it was an accident, but he saw us together and then he saw her belly. Anyway, he went crazy again and started yelling that it was his baby and that he was going to take it away before we corrupted it. Bizarre shit like that.”
Syd looked at the couple and took the chance of asking a question for the first time, “Did he really think he was the father?”
Leanne answered quickly. “He would have to have known, logically, that he couldn’t have been. The last time was a year and a half by then. I think he just wanted any part of ‘us’ he could get or the fantasy he had made up of us. At that point, we were afraid to be anywhere near him. As soon as the baby was born, we moved again. We had DNA tests done to prove once and for all she wasn’t his, but he wouldn’t let it go.” Leanne scraped her fingers under her eyes when she started to cry quietly. KC turned on Mack.
“You need to go. We just got to the point that we feel safe, and you come here and bring it all up again. You have no idea what we went through.”
“I’m sure we don’t, Ms. Mason, but if we can stop this from happening to someone else, then we’ll have taken him off the streets for a while. Does Steve know what your new name is?” Mack asked, trying to manage the tension in the room.
“Who’s Steve?” Leanne looked confused.
“That man we’re talking about isn’t Steve
Akeroyd?” Mack shot a look to Syd.
“No, it’s Ben Barrett.” Leanne looked as if she couldn’t make sense of the past conversation possibly being a misunderstanding.
Syd rocked forward and stared at them. “I’m sorry, we thought Steve was your ex-boyfriend. Ben works at the same company. He says he has a fiancée named Lillian.”
“That’s me. Lillian Zimmer. At least it used to be. I changed it to Leanne Mason when we moved the last time.”
“Were you ever engaged to Ben?” Mack asked.
Syd stood quietly, hoping that they wouldn’t be thrown out at this critical juncture.
“No. We never even talked about it. Although I guess he talked about it with other people like we already were. He told KC that when she started coming to the office. Apparently, he knew before we did that she and I had feelings for each other.”
“Wait, so Barrett isn’t doing this?” KC looked incredulous.
“No, he is. We just had two names, and we assumed the wrong one. It’s a long story. Sorry for the confusion,” Mack said.
Syd started to walk back and forth again in front of the window. She briefly fantasized about what her hands around his neck might feel like. To punish him for everything he had done to her life. To Parker’s. She refocused on the information Mack was continuing to gather.
“You mentioned he sent you flowers and gifts. When he sent you flowers, were they lilies?” Mack asked.
“Yeah, for my name, I guess. They just became the flowers he always sent. They aren’t even my favorite.” She rubbed her hands over the skin on her upper arms.
“Do you have any of the notes he would write to you?” Syd held her breath for the answer.
“Most of them I threw away, but that lady from the company he started working for when he followed us to Maclean gave me the ones they found in his desk. I don’t know if she was supposed to or not, but I kept them in case.”
“Would you let us see them?” Syd was cautious and checked Mack’s reaction out of the corner of her eye.
KC abruptly stood and walked to a chest sitting under the window and retrieved a white plastic shopping bag that was taped closed. As soon as she removed the contents, Sydney’s heart clutched. The same white parchment stationery was tucked into numerous white envelopes. The handwriting was unmistakable.
Mack walked over and took the bag. “Would you let me have those for a while? I promise you can have them back; it will just help our case if we can compare the two sets of them.”
“You can have ’em.” Leanne suddenly spoke from where she was now curled up on the couch. “I’m sick of living with his ghost and the memories. Just take them, please.” She looked pleadingly at KC, who handed them over.
KC stared intently at Mack and then Syd, suddenly less anger and more concern in her voice. “Listen to me. If it is him, he won’t get the message. He still doesn’t get it. He’s dangerous. He is crazy, and I don’t want him anywhere near our family. How do we know this whole thing isn’t going to bite us because you were here?” KC demanded.
“It won’t because I say it won’t.” Mack rewrapped the package and tucked the bag under her arm.
“Look, I appreciate what you’re doing.” Leanne suddenly sounded strong and a little pissed. “KC is just scared he’ll come after us again. Now we have Georgie, we can’t risk it.”
“I understand. My wife and I have a daughter a little younger than Georgie. I would feel the same way.” Mack held out her hand to KC, and she shook it before turning to Sydney.
KC’s voice softened. “I really hope you can stop him before he hurts her.”
Syd bristled. “I won’t let him touch her. You’ve really helped, and I appreciate it more than you know.” She wanted to get back, make sure Parker was safe, and let Mack deal with Barrett.
Once they were out of the house, Syd watched Leanne offer a sad wave. Mack jammed the car in reverse and headed for Silver Lake.
Syd texted Parker. Don’t leave the house, please. It’s Ben, not Steve.
Mack dialed Jenny’s office line from the speakerphone as she drove. Syd knew she was offering silent prayers until she answered.
“Jenny Foster, may I help you?” She sounded official and busy.
“Sweetheart, it’s me. Are you alone?”
“Yes, did you want to talk dirty to me?” Jenny laughed, and Mack was visibly relieved that all was okay for the moment.
“No, but I’ll hold you to that later. Listen, it’s not Steve. It’s Ben Barrett. Can you steer clear of him until I can get warrants sorted?”
“That’ll be easy; he called in sick today.” Jenny sounded uneasy. “I just can’t believe it’s him. He seems so quiet and normal.”
“Well, trust me, he’s not. Hopefully, I can pull him in before the weekend is over, but you still need to be watching for him, okay?”
“Sure, sweetie. I’m cutting out fairly soon anyway. So much for Friday being a work-at-home day.” Jenny still sounded distracted.
“Okay, I’ll see you as soon as I can. Maybe I can take you out for dinner tonight if I’m not tied up on this? Syd and Park could probably survive without us.”
“Richard and Allen are picking up Olivia for his niece’s birthday party at four, so it would be a great night, as it turns out.”
“I love you, Mrs. Foster.” Mack smiled.
“Love you, Lieutenant. Be good.” They heard Jenny hang up the phone.
Sydney looked at Mack. “Was that a setup so Park and I can deal with our stuff?”
“I thought you already dealt with your stuff. Besides, I just thought it would be more comfortable than your car, Casanova.”
Syd punched her arm as they pulled past the Silver Lake city limits sign.
“I hope you know that’s battery, Hyatt.”
“Why don’t you find the real criminal, and I’ll let you cite me later.”
Mack became serious. “It was all there, you know? When I was talking to Ben, and he got all bent about the kid thing. I should have pushed harder. He said his kid. It was a red flag, and I ignored it.”
“You didn’t ignore it; it just didn’t jump out. It didn’t flag for me, either. I just need to get to Parker until you can move him to a very tiny cell.” Sydney read through the notes that the Masons had provided. “The wording is even the same on these. It’s like he just made Parker the stand-in for Leanne even though they’re nothing alike.”
“I know. He needs some serious help. I’ll spend the next six hours of this shift doing everything I can to put him where we can watch him. Trust me, my next interview will be very different.”
Syd thought of nothing but getting to Parker. She could breathe then. She could imagine the relief she would feel to tell her that Ben Barrett was in custody. A few more hours that felt like a millennium was all it would take.
Chapter Seventeen
Richard and Allen waved to Sydney as she passed them on the little residential street leading to Mack and Jenny’s home. Sydney could see Olivia perched in the car seat behind them, her black hair pulled into a waterfall of a ponytail on top of her head.
Jenny’s car was already next to the Audi in the drive, and Syd felt relieved that Parker wasn’t waiting alone. Parker was still hard at work on the sofa when she walked in and locked the door behind her.
“Hey.” Syd leaned over the back of her seat and kissed her neck.
“Hi, my love.” She reached up and skimmed her fingers absently through Syd’s hair as she saved her work with the other hand. “I guess it was fairly productive in Maclean?”
“If you call scary as shit productive, then yes. Ben Barrett is a psychopath and an abuser, Park.” Syd moved around to sit next to her and looked into her eyes. “Until he is away for good, you can’t take any chances, promise me.”
“I’ll promise if you will.” She kissed Syd’s cheek as if to reassure her. “At least we know who’s behind it now. It’s almost over.”
Jenny tapped into the kitchen in a pale
-green-print halter dress and tall wedged sandals. Her hair tumbled loosely around her shoulders, and she was applying fresh lipstick.
Syd whistled at her from the living room. “Aw, you don’t have to dress up just for me, Jen, but I do appreciate the gesture. You look gorgeous.”
“Don’t get excited, Hyatt. I like to look nice for Parker. After all, I need to keep our secret affair fresh and sexy before she leaves me for someone tall, dark, and brooding.” She beamed at Sydney over a small mirror and applied mascara around her blue eyes.
Parker laughed loudly. “Don’t let Randy Miller hear you joke about that; from what I understand, he’s already picturing it anyway.”
“I always knew I should keep an eye on you two.” Syd winked at Parker and skimmed a kiss behind her ear.
“Ah, who am I kidding? Park’s too frilly for me. I like ’em armed and dangerous. Which is why I am meeting a certain lieutenant for a picnic in Summers Park.” She sounded thrilled by the prospect.
“She must have delegated the Ben Barrett case as soon as she walked in. A picnic, huh? Look who’s trying for romance points. Remind me to tease her about that.” Syd chuckled.
“Don’t you dare; this is serious progress. She even left me a note tucked in my door on one of her business cards like she used to when we she was trying to win me over. At this rate, we’ll be home very late and may do very bad things in a public place.” Jenny beamed at them.
“I’m impressed. Barrett’s investigation is a big deal. I suppose there’s progress when Mack can turn it all over for a night with her wife. Just remind her of the citation she threatened me with the other day.” Syd was delighted Mack could put such a smile on Jenny’s face after the month they had all had been through. Happier still, it meant that warrants had dropped quickly, and Ben might already be in custody. Jenny blew a kiss from the back door and stepped out only to return in seconds.
“Crap. Park, can I drive yours? I just remembered I’m out of gas, and I don’t want to be late.”