The Dark Places

by R. S. Whitfield

  Surin smiled but said nothing.

  Parker noticed her hand was gripping the door handle so hard that her knuckles were white. He was about to ask her if she was OK when his phone rang. “Shit,” he said and pulled the car over to the kerb. “Rhodes,” he answered after fumbling to get the mobile out of his back pocket. Surin smiled and shook her head. “Her phone must be on silent, but she is here, sir,” he continued.

  She looked over at him. It must be the chief.

  “Doesn’t sound like our guy, but I’ll head back as soon as we’re done here to check it out anyway.”

  Surin’s heart immediately started pounding. Has he struck again? Another girl?

  “Thanks for the heads up,” Parker added and hung up the phone.

  “Well?” Surin asked immediately. “Has he done it again?” she added, not masking the anger in her voice.

  Parker shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

  She waited for details.

  “A girl that fits our victim profile was found dumped and strangled, but there’s no sign of rape, and no necklace has been found as yet.”

  Surin sat back in the seat as relief washed over her, then she was engulfed by guilt as she realised that whoever this poor girl was, she deserved justice as well.

  “The chief thought we still might want to check it out,” Parker said and pulled back out onto the road.

  “You should go,” Surin continued, and Parker looked over at her quickly. Surin saw his questioning glance and added, “If I don’t at least stay for dinner, my mother will never forgive me. Dad can drive me up first thing tomorrow.”

  Parker drove into the driveway of her parents’ home. “I’ll come in and say goodbye to your parents and apologise for leaving,” he said.

  Surin rolled her eyes. “They will understand, Parker, relax,” she said. “Plus, it will give my mother a chance to ask me fifty questions about you once you’re gone.”

  He laughed loudly, a sound she didn’t realise she had needed to hear. He got out of the car, and they walked to the front door together.

  “I guess if this girl is one of ours, the tenuous connection all this might have had to me will be void,” Surin said, talking aloud but to herself.

  Parker looked over at her. “I’ll call you as soon as I get the details.”

  She nodded. “Do we have an ID yet?” she asked.

  Parker flipped open his notebook. “Lucy,” he said soberly. “Lucy Mead.”

  ***

  Surin balanced three large plates in one hand as she carried them into the kitchen to help her mother clean up, from dinner. “You have outdone yourself as usual,” she said, planting a kiss on her cheek.

  “Sury, it was a roast lamb for goodness sake,” her mum said, shaking her head as she rinsed off the knives and forks in the sink.

  “Well, it was the best roast lamb I have had in quite a while,” Surin replied. “Actually,” she added, perching on the barstool and leaning forward on her elbows, “it’s probably the first time I’ve had a roast since I was here last.”

  Erin laughed. “So I won’t ask if you’re looking after yourself then,” she said with a twinkle in her eye.

  “I am perfectly fine,” Surin retorted, “there’s just not a lot of time to whip up a roast when you’re hunting killers,” she said.

  “So dramatic,” Erin replied, rolling her eyes, “just like your father.”

  Surin smiled as her mother bustled around the kitchen, fixing coffee. She took a moment to let the comforting sounds of her childhood home saturate her senses. Her father was mumbling incoherently at the television from the adjoining room, and pipes creaked as water trickled into the cistern. She smiled and listened to her mother hum an unnamed song under her breath. Surprisingly, she felt herself start to relax and realised, in that moment, that she was actually enjoying being there. Maybe the ghosts of North East had finally departed.

  “Did Detective Rhodes say he would be back at all?” Erin casually dropped into their conversation.

  “No, Ma,” Surin answered with a smile. “The lead we were chasing ended up being a dead-end, and we got another dead body back home.” She shifted her gaze down to her hands.

  “Well, can’t say I’m not happy about that,” Erin replied, wiping down the bench. She nudged Surin’s arms out of the way. “No killer would be living in North East,” she added with a huff. “I knew you must have had your wires crossed.”

  “Oh, really?” Surin started. “Next time I have a lead, I’ll run it by you first to see what you think.”

  Erin nodded. “Wouldn’t be the first time. Your father used to ask me all the time for my opinion on his cases.” Surin laughed quietly, and as her mother walked past, she wrapped her arms around her waist.

  “I do miss you,” she whispered and buried her face deep into her mother’s neck. There is no other scent in the world that was as comforting or calming as her mother’s delicate perfume mixed with the fragrance of lavender soap.

  “I know,” Erin whispered back. “Let’s do this more.” She smiled and kissed Surin on the forehead. As she turned to leave, Surin immediately recalled a question she had wanted to ask her parents ever since she got back home that afternoon.

  “Why didn’t you tell me about Eamon Sutherland?” she blurted.

  Erin held her out at arm’s length and smiled sadly. “We didn’t lie to you,” she began cautiously. “We thought it would be for the best at the time.” Surin sat back and crossed her arms like a sullen teen. “Sury, you have to understand, you were so different after you broke up with Eamon, distant and sad.” Erin shook her head. “We were worried about how you would take the news of his passing, especially after the drama with the necklace— ”

  Surin cut her off instantly. “Necklace?” she said, not recognising the tone of alarm in her own voice.

  Erin hesitated before she said, “Yes. Wendy didn’t mention it when you stopped in there today?”

  Surin shook her head, unable to find words.

  “When they found Eamon, a necklace was found on the passenger seat.”

  “So?” Surin asked, ignoring the gnawing feeling that was blossoming in the pit of her stomach.

  “Wendy identified it as being the one he had given to you, senior year.” Surin froze as Erin went on. “The police rang me, of course, and I confirmed that you were safe and sound on campus.” She bent down to switch on the dishwasher.

  “I-I gave it back to him,” Surin stuttered. “When we broke up, I returned it.”

  Erin stood up and nodded. “That’s what the police concluded, but Wendy continued to swear black-and-blue that someone else must have been in the car.” Erin tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. “So sad, to lose a child like that.” She placed her hand over her heart. “I can’t even begin to imagine what they both went through.”

  Surin stood up and felt her legs teeter for a split second. “I read the report,” she said, to reiterate it, mainly to herself. “It was ruled a single-vehicle accident; his blood alcohol was through the roof.” She started to brush imaginary dirt off her pants, hoping to give the impression of disinterest.

  “Yes, we heard that too,” said Erin sadly. “It’s just the blood on the necklace—”

  Surin had had enough. “It was a terrible accident, Ma. There was bound to be lots of blood everywhere.”

  “I know that too,” Erin added gently. “It’s just that the blood they found on the necklace wasn’t Eamon’s.”

  33

  Parker felt Surin’s absence more than he had anticipated. The drive back to Baltimore was quick but quiet, and as he pulled up to the station, he regretted leaving without her. As if on cue, his mobile phone started ringing.

  “Rhodes,” he answered quickly, hoping to hear Surin’s voice.

  “Detective Rhodes, this is Detective Potts.”

  Parker swallowed his disappointment. “Yes, Potts?” he replied.

  “I’m told to expect you at the morgue before t
he ME starts on Lucy Mead,” the officer stated, not masking the impatience in his voice.

  “Yes, sorry, I’ve just arrived back from North East this very minute.” Parker turned back towards his car and slid back in. “I’m on my way right now, sorry to hold you up,” he added and hung up.

  As he navigated his way to the ME’s office, he couldn’t help but again think of Surin. I should call her, he thought, and pressed her speed dial. He waited as her phone rang and rang.

  “Elliott, leave a message.” He tapped it off, annoyed. The parking lot came into his sight, and he swerved off to the left, parking right beside the entrance. Debating with himself before he got out, he tried her phone again. After four rings, it clicked over.

  “Hello, Surin’s phone,” came a hesitant reply.

  “Erin?” he asked.

  “Oh, Parker!” she said with a cackle. “Don’t tell her I answered this. She doesn’t like it when I do that,” she said cheekily.

  Parker smiled. “I won’t. Is she around?” he asked, not quite sure what he was actually going to say to her.

  “No, actually dear, she isn’t. Said she had to go and check up on something.”

  Parker frowned. “OK, any ideas what it was about?” he said, scratching his head.

  “No, sorry. She walked out the front door and said she would be back in a few hours.” Erin sighed. “She does her own thing that one.”

  Parker nodded, even though she couldn’t see. “That is true,” he added with a grin. “I’ll try her later then.”

  “OK, it was lovely meeting you. I hope you’ll visit again real soon, even if it’s just to drag Surin down here,” she said and hung up.

  Parker sat quietly for a moment longer. Surin would have taken her phone if she was looking into something related to the case, he thought. She’s probably just going to visit an old school friend. With that, he got out of the car and jogged inside to meet up with the irritated Detective Potts. He’d catch up with Surin later on.

  ***

  Madison had heard on the grapevine that Surin and Parker had taken a little road trip back to Surin’s hometown of North East. She tried not to let the little green monster rear its ugly head, but imaging Parker meeting Surin’s parents made her feel decidedly lonely. She dropped her bag to the floor inside the front door, slipped off her unbearable heels and instantly decided on a liquid dinner.

  Flicking on the kitchen light, she reached above the oven and pulled down a nice bottle of pinot. Work today had been boring. Madison didn’t do boring. Her boss was refusing to put her back on crime watch due to his ongoing dislike of her resulting from her one-nighter with a cop’s partner and instead had her following some fucking flower festival that was coming to town. She shook her head and sighed. This agreement with Surin better come through, she thought. Pouring herself a generous glass, she ran through what she had learnt today, talking out loud always made her feel more productive.

  “Lucy Mead, latest body found, no signs of rape, doesn’t seem to fit the victim profile, probably not our guy.” She smiled at herself, imaging what someone would think if they ever heard how much she talked to herself. “Crazy lady,” she said out loud and took a long sip of the ruby wine. The tepid liquid hit the back of her throat, and as expected, she instantly felt the muscles in her neck relax. “Fucking flower festival,” she mumbled to herself. “You have to be kidding me,” she added, referring to her boss, an overweight, weak man that wouldn’t know a story if it slapped him in the face. She walked over to her desk, feeling the fluffy carpet squish between her toes and logged onto her work email.

  She quickly reviewed the five-hundred-word piece and sent it in hours before the deadline. “What a joke,” she added and swigged what was left in her glass. She considered putting her shoes back on and going out to find some relief that only a man could provide, but decided against it. Instead, she logged onto her personal email and started scrolling through the spam. Midway through the three hundred unread items, the hairs on her neck began to rise. “Tobiasestate@pacer.com,” she said quickly. Tobias was Toby’s full given name, one he disliked and never, ever referred to. She held her breath and quickly clicked on the link.

  Maddy, needle in haystack does not begin to encapsulate the request you have made. Three results that may or may not yield anything are listed below. I trust I will not hear from you again, ever. Do not reply to this email — it no longer exists.

  Madison read the three listings Toby had found, sat back in her chair and pondered. This was, without a doubt, a case breaker, she thought to herself, coming to grips with the information she had been provided. “Where do I go from here?”

  ***

  Parker shook Detective Potts’s hand. “I appreciate you letting me sit in on that.” Potts nodded. “Not our guy but the victimology matched, so it was flagged.” Parker continued, “Have you spoken to her family yet?”

  Potts nodded, and they walked out to the parking lot together. “Yeah, they couldn’t help much.”

  Parker stopped and leaned against his car. Potts was a nice bloke, not as irritating as he had first thought.

  “Mystery boyfriend, on the down-low.”

  Parker nodded.

  “Apparently, she was in love, but no one had ever seen him. Some of her friends weren’t even entirely convinced he even existed.”

  Something in Parker’s mind started clicking. “No one,” he repeated, “no one saw her with a man?”

  Potts nodded slowly. “No one that’s come forward so far. Weird,” he said more to himself. “Clever,” Potts added, and Parker looked up at him.

  “Talk,” he said, interested.

  Potts shrugged. “Convince a lonely girl that what you have is so special it has to be a secret, no one ever knows you even exist.”

  Parker ran his hand through his hair.

  “She thinks it’s romantic and exciting; he gets the anonymity he needs,” Potts added.

  Parker squinted at the setting sun. “Checked her apartment?” he asked. Potts smiled, and Parker added quickly, “I’m not questioning your ability, Detective.”

  Potts laughed quietly. “Never thought you were, Rhodes, it’s good to talk it through sometimes. The answer is yes, we dusted for prints, and nothing came up.”

  “Hmm,” Parker responded quietly.

  “No, Parker, I mean nothing.” Parker looked at him intently. “Not even hers,” he added.

  Parker stood immediately, putting his hands on his hips. Every cop sense he had was tingling and on high alert. “He wiped it down,” he said.

  Potts looked at him. “That’s what I’m thinking. That means he had planned on killing this poor girl from the very moment he met her.”

  Parker shook his head. Something was bothering him about this. “Something’s amiss here,” he said and began to pace. The day finally surrendered and night seemed to envelop them in that moment. “Premeditation,” he started, “why go to the trouble? Why risk being seen with her if the intention was to kill her all along?”

  Potts nodded in agreement. “Her friends said this imaginary boyfriend had been on the scene at least three months.” Parker said.

  Parker stopped moving. “Three months!” He shook his head. “This is an incredibly controlled individual,” he added, “and one with no remorse. There was no emotional investment in this.” Parker continued, feeling the rush that always accompanied a breaking profile. “He knew he was going to kill her and yet he toyed with her for three months, even going to the extent of wiping down any evidence that he existed.”

  Potts took out his notebook. Parker smiled and thought of how much that would have annoyed Surin.

  “I like to write things down,” Potts said, noticing Parker’s glance.

  “So do I.” He smiled in response and continued. “Lucy Mead was nothing but a distraction to this killer, someone to fill the time. This guy has a bigger agenda and purpose.” He stopped in that instant and could actually feel the blood running through his veins. “
Potts,” he said quickly, “I have to go, but you need to keep me informed on this case.”

  Potts nodded and smacked Parker on the back gently. “I will.”

  They said their goodbyes and Parker got into the car hitting Surin’s number immediately.

  “Hello?” came the response.

  “Erin,” Parker said, disappointment colouring his tone. “I need to speak with her, it’s kind of important,” he added.

  “Parker, she isn’t home yet,” Erin answered, worry lacing her every word.

  “It’s been over two hours,” Parker responded.

  “I know,” she replied. “Look, I don’t overreact easily, but this doesn’t feel right,” she said.

  Parker started up the car and backed out. “I’m on my way.”

  ***

  Madison had made her decision. She would not withhold this information, but she was damn certain that she was not going to be left out of the loop either. She pondered who to call first and decided on Parker. As she punched the number into her cell, she told herself that her choice had nothing to do with the fact that she was ridiculously attracted to him, but that he was the most likely out of the two to answer her call and actually listen.

  It only rang once before he answered. “Rhodes,” he said abruptly.

  She could hear the roar of traffic in the background. “Detective, it’s Madison,” she replied, trying to sound casual.

  “What do you want, Madison? This isn’t a good time,” he said gruffly.

  She could hear the tension in his voice. “I have information that you and Surin are going to want to hear.” She waited for his response.

  “Speak then,” he said.

  She crinkled her nose. Parker wasn’t usually this abrupt. “No,” she said and clasped her hand over her mouth. What are you thinking, Maddy?

  “No?” he replied, curiosity piquing. “Look, I have somewhere to be, and it’s urgent. I’m not interested in playing games with you, Madison,” he said, his tone turning dangerous.