Finding Scarlet

by Holly C. Webb

  I was completely mortified. I wished the ground would just open up and swallow me whole. I quickly dropped my eyes from him.

  “Scarlet,” he said, taking hold of my chin and turning my face back to look at his. “Make no mistake. There is nothing I would like more than to lose myself in you. You have no idea how hard this is for me right now.”

  “But…” I said knowing there was one coming.

  “But,” he said with a smile. “When I do make love to you finally, I want it to be special. I want it to be perfect.”

  “Oh,” I said unable to keep the big smile from my face.

  “A few more days, you will be out of here and…” he smiled, suddenly appearing to be shy.

  “And?” I asked slowly reaching up and touching his face.

  “And I am going to show you exactly what you mean to me,” he said as he softly brushed his lips to mine.

  “Okay,” I replied still smiling at him.

  “Now turn over,” he told me in his now familiar bossy tone. “You need your sleep and so do I.”

  “Okay,” I said as I leaned up and kissed him one more time. I turned back over in the bed as Oliver snuggled closer to me, wrapping me in his arms and pulled me closer to him.

  “For the record,” he said, as we both settled down to try and get some sleep. “I deserve a medal because I am very horny right now. And you are kind of hot.”

  I laughed out loud at his words. He always knew how to make me smile. I closed my eyes and listened to his breathing. Slowly it became shallow and I knew he was falling asleep. I snuggled closer to him and drifted to sleep.

  I was in a dark place and I felt cold. I was running and I was scared. I could hear breathing, but I knew it’s not mine. My heart was racing as I heard footsteps. I fell down and the ground beneath me was cold and wet.

  “Everything is going to be okay,” I heard Oliver whisper. I lifted my head and tried to speak to him, but it was no use, my body didn’t work.

  I heard the breathing again but this time it was closer.

  “It’s almost over now,” I heard a voice whisper. I didn’t recognise it, but I knew it wasn’t a kind voice. It scared me.

  Suddenly there was a loud bang and blinding pain.

  “OLIVER!” I screamed out as I jumped up in the bed.

  “Scarlet.” Oliver said sitting up next to me and pulling me into his embrace. “It’s okay. I have you. It’s just a dream.”

  I closed my eyes and buried my face into his chest, relieved it was just a bad dream.

  “You’re safe Scarlet,” he whispered as he softly brushed the top on my head with his lips. “I will never let anyone hurt you again.”

  I tried to recall my dream, but it just came back to me in bits and pieces, like an old scratchy movie. The images were dark and jumpy, and they made no sense.

  Suddenly I remembered the voice and I instantly felt afraid. I was not sure if it was a memory or if it was just my mind conjuring up an image from my fear, either way, I felt unsettled by it.

  I wondered if I should say something to Oliver, but I decided not to, I don’t know if what I dreamt was real, so I didn’t want to give him false hope.

  I closed my eyes and allowed Oliver to wrap me in his arms again, but this time I didn’t fall asleep.

  Instead, I lay awake long after Oliver drifted back to sleep, listening to his breathing.

  I thought about what would happen if my memory did come back. I would remember who I was, and all my deep dark secrets. However, if it came back, so would the memories of that night.

  Every sound, every smell. His face. Did I really want to remember that? Did I want to remember the fear I must have felt as he held the gun to my head and pulled the trigger? Right there and then I wasn’t so sure.

  I turned and looked up at a sleeping Oliver. I wondered how, during the worst moment of my life, not that I remember any other moments, how I got to meet this kind, caring man.

  It was beyond crazy. I wondered if maybe I had a guardian angel that sat beside me as I lay there fighting to live? Did I have someone giving me the strength to not give up?

  Then it hit me. Oliver was my angel. He was the reason I didn’t let the darkness win. He was the reason I fought to come back.

  It was all him. I closed my eyes and finally drifted back to sleep.

  Chapter 10

  Oliver

  I woke up and smiled. For the first time, I woke up before Scarlet. She was still nestled into my chest, fast asleep. I lay there and watched her sleeping for a while, taking in every inch of her face. She was beautiful. My eyes went to the fading bruise just above her left eye. The scratch marks that had been down the side of her face had all but vanished. My eyes followed the yellowish bruising up towards the bandages on her head.

  It still amazed me that she had survived the unthinkable. She was possibly one of the most determined and strong-minded people I had ever met.

  “Mmmmm,” she sighed as she rolled over to face me completely. Her eyes slowly opened, and a big smile spread across her face. “Good morning.”

  “Good Morning,” I replied, giving her a big smile in turn. “How did you sleep?”

  “Very well, thank you,” she replied with a yawn. “What time is it?”

  “Just after eight,” I sighed knowing the time meant I would have to leave soon. “I should get home and showered before work.”

  “Okay,” she smiled, still staring up at me. I leaned forward and softly kissed her lips.

  “I will be back this evening,” I whispered as I slowly parted my lips from hers. “But I really wish I didn’t have to go.”

  “But you do,” she smiled. “You need to go catch the bad guy.”

  “Damn,” I said with a laugh. “You sure are a slave driver.”

  I climbed up from the bed and straightened my clothes. Then reaching for my jacket on the chair, I slipped it on before I walked back towards Scarlet. Bending down over her, I looked into her eyes and I smiled.

  “Would you like me to bring you back anything?” I asked, already knowing the answer. I had created a Cheetos monster. I brought her in a bag one night about a week before. When I handed them to her, she looked at them blankly.

  “They’re Cheetos,” I told her, but still she looked at me blankly.

  “Do I like Cheetos?” She asked as she picked them up and examined them.

  “Well we won’t know till you try them,” I laughed. I opened the bag and held them out to her. That was it, she was hooked.

  “Can I have some Cheetos?” She asked, giving me those puppy dog eyes I could not say no to. “Please.”

  “Don’t you want to try something new?” I asked, as I raised my eyebrows.

  “I like Cheetos,” she said with a big smile.

  I laughed before I kissed her again. “Cheetos it is.”

  I stood up and walked to the door. I stopped when I reached the door and looked back at Scarlet. I hated leaving her. I needed to know she was safe, and the only way I could be sure was when I was with her.

  Maybe I would feel better when she was with my folks, but in my heart, I knew I wouldn’t be happy until I got the dirt bag that hurt her, off the streets. I gave her one last smile before I walked out the door.

  “Olly,” a familiar voice sounded as I stepped out the door. I turned and was surprised to see Dean Harris, Seth’s partner sitting on the chair outside Scarlet’s room.

  “Dean,” I said as I closed Scarlet’s door tightly. “What are you doing here?”

  “I signed up for extra shifts and I was assigned babysitting duty,” he replied with a half laugh. “But I needed the money. My Mom is sick, and her medical bills are building up.”

  “I am sorry to hear about your mom,” I said genuinely. However, I was not happy about the babysitting remark. “I know things are tough, but this is no bullshit detail. There is some psycho asshole out there, and Scarlet is the only one who has seen him. He has got to be uneasy about that, even if she can’t remem
ber a damn thing. I want you to take this seriously.”

  “I do Olly, I swear,” he assured me, looking embarrassed I called him out. “So, she really still doesn’t remember anything?”

  “No,” I sighed, and I checked the time. “I need to go.”

  I turned to walk away but stopped when I was a few feet away from Dean.

  “I am trusting you to look after her, Dean,” I said looking him straight in the eye. “Don’t let me down.”

  “I’ve got this,” he replied with a smile and a nod.

  I gave him a nod before I turned and headed for the exit.

  It was a little before ten when I reached the station, just in time for the briefing. When I walked into the conference room, I spotted the photos of all the girls, including Scarlet, though her photo is separate from the rest of the pictures because she was still the only survivor. The usual sickly feeling in the pit of my stomach appeared.

  Then my eyes fell to the newest photo. It was the girl from the night before. The name below it was Morgan Delaney. I walked to the board and started to read through her personal details. She was twenty-four, a kindergarten teacher. The only daughter of Shane and Molly Delaney. That bit of information just made it all a tiny bit worse.

  I started to read back over the other cards, and it struck me. All these girls had no brothers or sister. That was the connection. I needed to make a note of it. I was angry no one had noticed before now, including me.

  “Olly,” a voice from behind me said, and I knew it was Seth, without even turning around.

  “Hey,” I said as I turned to the table to write something down in my notebook. “I thought you were off today, I was talking to Dean at the hospital, he said he was picking up an extra shift.”

  “I had some paperwork to finish up,” Seth explained as I finally turned to greet him. He moved further into the room. His eyes went to the photographs pinned to the board. “How’s it going? I heard there was another murder. What’s that now, five or six?”

  “Yeah,” I replied as I too turned to look at the board once again. “Morgan Delaney was number six and we are no closer to catching the son of a bitch.”

  “What about her?” He asked as he walked over to Scarlet’s picture and took it from the board. “Hasn’t she remembered anything yet?”

  “Scarlet,” I said as I took the photo from him and pinned it back to the board. “No, her memory is still gone.”

  “But it will come back,” he replied.

  “The doctors said it may,” I explained. “But the longer it’s gone, the more likely the brain damage is permanent.”

  “Is she doing okay?” He asked as he sat down on the edge of the table and looked up at me, his eye full of concern.

  “She’s doing okay,” I replied and sighed.

  “And what about you?” He asked.

  “Seth, I know where you are going with this,” I answered, feeling a little defensive. “Yes, I like Scarlet, but it has nothing to do with Clea.”

  “Doesn’t it?” He asked. “The fact the Clea was shot dead has no bearing on anything?”

  “No, it doesn’t,” I snapped.

  “Did you tell Scarlet about Clea?” he asked giving me a knowing look.

  “Look, Seth,” I replied, feeling really pissed off. “I have work to do. If you just came in here to give me a hard time, I would rather get back to it.”

  “I’m sorry, Olly,” he said as he reached out and patted my arm. “I just wanted to make sure my friend is okay.”

  “I’m okay,” I sighed. “You don’t need to worry about me.”

  “Good,” he said, and he pushed his hands through his hair and for the first time I noticed how stressed out and tired looking my friend was.

  “What about you?” I asked as I sat down next to him on the desk. “Is everything okay with you?”

  “Yeah,” he shrugged. “Karen is going through a bad patch.”

  Karen was Seth’s wife. A little over a year earlier, she lost a baby and there were some complications. She ended up having a hysterectomy. She has suffered from depression since. It was hard for Seth and I knew he struggled. I felt guilty for snapping at him when I knew in my heart, he was just trying to help me.

  “Is there anything I can do?” I asked looking up at him, but he just shook his head. I spotted scratch marks down his neck. “What happened to your neck?”

  He reached up and touched the marks on his neck and sighed.

  “Karen had a meltdown yesterday,” he replied without looking up at me. “She just gets so upset sometimes.”

  “Seth,” I said, turning to him completely. “You can’t do this alone, let me help you.”

  “I will be okay,” he replied with a sad smile. Before I could say anything else, Lieutenant Parker walked into the conference room, followed closely by several members of the task force. Seth looked at me and smiled before he stood up and headed for the door.

  “Right,” Lieutenant Parker said as he walked to the front of the room. “As you can all probably see, the latest victim was identified as Morgan Delaney. We got a hit on her fingerprints. They were in the system from a school demonstration from about five months ago in Tacoma. Her folks are driving down from Tacoma as we speak.”

  I looked at the photo of the girl on the board and I felt anger course through me. She looked sweet and so happy in the picture. What has she done to deserve such a death? My eyes then found Scarlet and I reminded myself that I needed to stay focused and not allow anger to cloud my mind.

  “The ME said, he believed she may have scratched him,” Lieutenant Parker continued. “Her nails were broken just like the others, with the exception of Scarlet Doe, but unlike the others, there was no dirt beneath them. The ME said her nails were clean, possibly post-mortem. So, there was something beneath them that needed to be removed. If she scratched her attacker, his DNA would have been beneath her nails. He knew enough to remove that evidence.”

  “Lieutenant,” I said leaning forward in my chair. “I was going through the files. None of the girls have any siblings. How have we not talked about this before?”

  “What has that got to do with anything?” One of the other detectives asked.

  “Until now, there was no connection between these girls,” I explained. “This is the one piece of the tread that links these girls together.”

  “It’s not much,” the detective replied.

  “Actually,” I said as I stood up and walked to the board. “It’s more than you think. Look at these girls, there were two blonde girls, two brunettes, a red head, and this last girl had black hair. There is no physical connection between them, they come from very different walks of life. Yet at some point they all crossed paths with this one man and there was something about them that made him choose them.”

  “They were murders of opportunity,” Lieutenant Parker said giving me a look to say where are you going with this?

  “Maybe,” I nodded before I continued. “But he just happened to stumble upon six girls, who were only children? That is some coincidence.”

  “So, what are you saying?” He asked me, and I could see he was buying into my thinking.

  “He knew they all had no brothers and sisters,” I continued. “And most of these girls weren’t local, so how did he know?”

  “He talked to them before he abducted them,” he replied.

  “Exactly!” I exclaimed. “This guy is not some misfit or loner. He is Joe public. He was charming enough to draw these girls into conversation. Charming enough to get these girls to reveal personal things about themselves.”

  “But how do we stop him?” Another detective asked.

  “I could put a call into my friend in the Behavioural Unit in Quantico. Give him this latest information and get some kind of profile. It could help us.”

  “Get on that,” Lieutenant Parker replied. “The rest of you go back to all the service stations, truck stops and bars within a twenty-five-mile radius of the interstate. Someone out th
ere has seen something.”

  I hurried out to my desk and grabbed the phone. I punched in the number for SSA Greg Sennett, an old friend of mine from college.

  “Oliver Caldwell,” he said the minute he picked up the phone. “I was wondering when I might get a call from you.”

  “Hi Greg,” I said with a laugh. “Good to hear your voice, just wish it was under better circumstances.”

  I told Greg all the information I had to hand and promised to forward a full copy of all the files related to the case once I got off the phone.

  “You certainly are in a pickle over there,” he said. “I will look through what you send me and get back to you right away.”

  “I am very grateful for this, Greg,” I said feeling a sense of relief.

  “Olly, there is one thing,” he said, and the tone of his voice instantly alarmed me. “I will need to go through what you said in more detail, but from what you have told me…”

  He hesitated and I knew whatever he said was not going to be good.

  “Oliver,” he said. “I think your UNSUB is in the force.”

  “He is a cop?” I asked, as my eyes darted around the squad room. My breath caught when my eyes fell on Seth. I remembered the scratch marks on his neck and my stomach heaved.

  Was my old partner and one of my best friends, a killer?

  Chapter 11

  Scarlet

  I held my breath as Doctor Bellamy took a seat next to my bed. He looked at me and gave me a reassuring smile, but the look in his eyes said all the news wasn’t good.

  “So, Scarlet,” he said as he slipped his glasses on and looked at my test results. “Well, as you know we ran several tests this morning to try and find out what is going on inside your head. The good news is, there is no more bleeding on the brain, and the area around the impact is healing beautifully.”

  “Okay,” I said, still holding my breath. “That’s good, right?”

  “Yes,” he replied with a smile. “However, the tests did indicate that, due to the trauma that you received to the head, it appears you have developed epilepsy.”