by Scott Bonn
It is apparent, notes Dr. Sampson, that the unknown perpetrator possesses great physical strength in his hands because the girl’s neck is broken in two places and the contusions are very large and deep. Dr. Sampson comments that the injuries on this corpse appear virtually identical to the ones found on the other girls.
The chief medical examiner and an assistant remove the ligatures wrapped around the torso of the deceased. This action leads to a shocking discovery by Dr. Sampson. It elicits a loud murmur from those present in the autopsy room.
Carved neatly into the flesh of the corpse on her lower abdomen, just above the pubic region, is “Psalm 34:7.”
After a moment of reflection, Dr. Sampson asks, “Is that a biblical reference? A Bible verse?”
Captain Pritchard quickly replies, “Yes, Doctor, I think it is a reference to the book of Psalm, verse thirty-four, line seven.”
As soon as he sees the carving on the girl’s body, the police captain issues a verbal order to everyone in the room.
He says, “If you have an Internet connection, look up this Bible passage now and read it out loud.”
A few seconds later, one of the medical students sitting in the gallery says, “Here it is. I found it. Psalm 34:7 reads, ‘The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them’.”
Dr. Sampson shakes her head in disbelief. She turns and looks at Captain Pritchard who is staring directly at the corpse and grimacing. Chatter erupts once again in the autopsy room. The loud and stern voice of Pritchard quickly interrupts the noise and silences it.
Pritchard yells above the crowd, “Stop. Settle down. This is clearly a message from the goddamn freak that calls himself the guardian. We need to focus here.”
He asks, “Dr. Sampson, can we please proceed with the identification of the deceased?”
“Yes, of course, Captain,” replies the chief medical examiner.
The identification of the body does not take long because Dr. Sampson is fully prepared with medical information about Melissa Stein provided by her family when she went missing. The records reveal that she has a distinctive heart-shaped birthmark on the inside of her right thigh. That exact birthmark is quickly located on the corpse by Dr. Sampson despite significant decomposition of the skin from so much time in the river.
Dr. Sampson announces her intention to confirm the identity of the corpse through verification of dental records. Melissa Stein’s parents provided the police with their daughter’s most recent dental x-rays immediately after the bodies of the two girls were discovered last week in the East River.
No one in the autopsy room is surprised at all when Dr. Sampson states that Melissa’s dental X-rays are a perfect match with the teeth of the corpse. It is quite clear to everyone present in the room that the dead girl is Melissa Stein.
The chief medical examiner suggests to Pritchard that he telephone Mr. Stein immediately and ask him to come in and officially identify the body. Everyone in attendance is aware that it is standard police procedure to have a family member identify the deceased. Pritchard nods and leaves the room to make the call.
As he walks into the hallway, the police captain is dreading the conversation he must have with Melissa’s father. He has to clear his throat before speaking when Mr. Stein answers the call on his cell phone. With an ache in his heart, Pritchard tells him the terrible news. The police captain expresses his deepest regrets to Melissa’s father, who sobs uncontrollably upon hearing the news.
Pritchard asks Stein to come down to the medical examiner’s office to provide an official confirmation of his daughter’s identity and sign some papers. Stein agrees and says goodbye. Deeply moved, Pritchard hangs up the phone and walks back into the autopsy room.
As the group of professionals in the autopsy room wait for Stein to arrive, Dr. Sampson proclaims that Melissa was definitely dead before her body was dumped into the Hudson River. The medical examiner is certain of this because she discovers no water in either of Melissa’s lungs, although the body has been lying at the bottom of the river for many days.
Dr. Sampson finds extensive trauma and tissue damage inside the vagina of Melissa Stein that are consistent with violent sexual penetration. She quickly announces that the sexual assault to Melissa Stein occurred post mortem. She bases her conclusion on the absence of internal hemorrhaging in the vagina, despite the extreme violence of the attack.
A thorough and meticulous examination by Dr. Sampson and her assistants fail to locate any trace of DNA on the corpse from any person other than the victim herself.
Dr. Sampson states that the forensic findings in this autopsy are remarkably consistent with the autopsy results of the first two girls. She concludes the autopsy and dismisses her team at 11:00am.
Chapter Nineteen
Just before 11:30am, Melissa Stein’s father, Robert, arrives at the medical examiner’s office. Captain Pritchard greets him in the hallway and escorts him into the autopsy room. Pritchard asks Stein if he can identify the body lying on the table in front of him.
The heartbroken and whimpering father nods and says, “God, help me. It is my Melissa.”
Pritchard consoles the grieving man and escorts him out of the autopsy room. Once in the hallway, Pritchard again extends his deepest regrets to Stein. The homicide captain promises Stein that the NYPD will not rest until it captures his daughter’s killer. Pritchard offers Stein a ride home with one of his detectives, but he declines.
Pritchard returns to the autopsy room. He thanks Dr. Sampson for her prompt attention to the autopsy and superior work. He says goodbye to her. As he reaches the exit, he remembers that he must call Commissioner Bratton to let him know that the autopsy is completed and the identity of the body has been confirmed.
Pritchard quickly reaches Bratton on his private line. Upon hearing that the dead body is officially Melissa Stein, Bratton tells Pritchard to immediately head back to One Police Plaza so that they can hold a press conference to announce the discovery of the guardian’s third victim.
By 12:25pm, Pritchard is sitting and talking with Bill Bratton in the commissioner’s office. Pritchard is briefing his boss on the findings of Melissa Stein’s autopsy. They are preparing for the press conference that will begin in thirty-five minutes.
Bratton asks, “Jimmy, are you sure that this murder is the work of the same freak that killed the two girls on the upper east side?”
Pritchard nods and says, “No doubt about it, sir. All of the characteristics and details of this murder are identical to the first two murders, including the signature of the guardian. There was a cross made from cast iron tied around Melissa Stein’s neck, just like we found on the other girls. It’s the same son of a bitch, all right.”
Pritchard informs Bratton that they have found something different from the others on Melissa Stein’s body—that is, something that the killer did not do to his first two victims.
He says, “Sir, a Bible reference, actually, a Bible verse, was carved into the girl’s lower abdomen. It has to be a message of some sort from the killer.”
Bratton listens intently as the homicide captain explains exactly what was found carved into the flesh of the dead girl.
Pritchard says, “In my opinion, the guardian is using this Bible verse to tell us that we are powerless to stop him. He is telling us that he is in charge. At least, that is what I get from it, sir. He definitely is an arrogant prick. Also, I am convinced that he either believes, or wants us to think he believes, that his so-called mission has been given to him by God.”
The commissioner stares directly at Pritchard. He is simultaneously captivated and agitated by the homicide captain’s report and his conclusions.
Before Bratton can respond to him, Pritchard adds, “Commissioner, I want to talk to the FBI about all of the biblical reference and religious symbols that this killer is using. The FBI has behavioral psychologists and profilers who have dealt with dozens of sick bastards like the guardian—you know, serial
killers like Bundy, Gacy and Dahmer. They might be able to shed some light on exactly how religion is connected to these murders. I have worked with the FBI before, and I am certain that they can help us catch him.”
The police commissioner nods in agreement with Pritchard and says, “Makes sense to me, Jimmy.”
The homicide captain continues, “I took the liberty of calling the FBI on my way over here and asked them for their assistance. They are sending a team of experts from Quantico today. Their people should be here by this evening.”
As Pritchard finishes, Bratton responds, “Good thinking. We should get the FBI involved.”
He continues, “I need to be completely candid and direct with you, Jimmy. I want you to find this guardian son of a bitch. I want you to stop him, kill him if necessary, and I want you to do it quickly! This whole thing is like a brush fire burning out of control. I have seen a lot of crazy things in my time, but this guardian case is the craziest damn thing I have ever been involved in.”
After a brief hesitation, the commissioner adds, “Now, you and I need to go meet with the press and try to contain this inferno before we all get burned alive.”
Pritchard nods in agreement, and the two men walk together out of Bratton’s office and toward the briefing room where the news media are waiting.
Chapter Twenty
As Bratton and Pritchard enter into the press briefing room at 1:00pm, they find that it is jam packed with reporters and television cameras from every imaginable local and national news outlet. There are even journalists from Canada and South America in attendance. The crowd of reporters is more than twice the size of the group that attended the press conference conducted by Bratton just seven days earlier.
The room becomes quiet as the police commissioner steps behind the podium and prepares to speak. Bratton begins his remarks to the press by thanking everyone for attending the briefing. He informs them that police scuba divers have discovered the dead body of an adolescent girl in the Hudson River. He tells them that the girl was murdered.
Rather than briefing the press on the details of the discovery himself, Bratton asks Pritchard to do it.
He says, “The investigation is ongoing and dynamic, so I’d like to have Captain James Pritchard, who is spearheading our serial killer task force, to come up to the microphone and tell you what we have so far.”
Pritchard complies with the request of his boss and steps behind the podium.
After clearing his throat, he says, “I regret to inform you that our scuba divers discovered the body of fifteen-year-old Melissa Stein at 7:15am today at the bottom of the Hudson River. As you know, she has been missing for the last seventeen days. Her autopsy tells us that she was strangled to death in a manner similar to both Emily Foster and Jenny Keiser whose bodies were dropped into the East River after they were murdered. The material evidence discovered on Melissa Stein’s body has convinced us that she is the third victim of a serial killer that you have been referring to as the evil guardian. The divers discovered her body close to shore, lying at the bottom of the river and bound in blue nylon cord with a religious cross made of metal tied to her neck. This has become a pattern in these murders.”
The briefing room suddenly explodes with the clamoring voices of the many journalists in attendance. Rather than raise their hands and waiting for Captain Pritchard to call on them, the reporters try to preempt one another by shouting their questions directly to him. Unaccustomed to such a chaotic scene, Pritchard looks over to Bratton for some guidance on how to proceed.
The police commissioner takes the microphone from Pritchard and asks the reporters to be quiet.
Bratton says, “Please settle down. We are not going to take any of your questions right now. We will provide more information on our discovery to you very soon. In the meantime, I want to assure you that we are working around the clock and employing every resource at our disposal, both locally and nationally, to find this deranged killer and stop him before he can strike again. We will catch this monster, I assure you of that.”
Captain Pritchard nods to Commissioner Bratton and takes the microphone back from the hand of his boss.
In a clear and forceful voice, Pritchard says, “One more thing before we go. I have something that I want to say directly to the killer who is no doubt listening to us right now. To the so-called guardian, I say this: Surrender now, you coward, because you cannot and will not escape justice. Listen very closely. The sound you hear outside your door is the footsteps of the detectives who will soon take you down. Surrender while you can.”
Chapter Twenty One
It is 8:45pm and approximately thirteen hours have passed since the body of Melissa Stein was discovered in the Hudson River. Charles Lundquist has gotten home from his shift at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility. He is sitting on the sofa in his living room with a glass of Diet Coke and watching NY1 cable television news. The TV reporter is discussing the discovery earlier today of Melissa Stein’s murdered body at the bottom of the Hudson River. Lundquist’s normal resting pulse dramatically increases upon hearing the news.
The news report includes a sound bite recorded earlier today at a press conference in which Captain James Pritchard calls the serial killer responsible for Stein’s murder a coward and advises him to surrender to authorities. Lundquist is very perturbed by the detective’s denigration of his alter ego. He says to himself, “The guardian is going to be angered by your words, Captain. I am certain that he will soon have a special message for you, too.”
As Lundquist sits and watches the news program in his Manhattan apartment, he suddenly has the distinct feeling that he is not alone. What he is correctly sensing is the unmistakable presence of the guardian.
Lundquist’s alter ego has returned after a temporary absence. Ever since taking the life of Melissa Stein seventeen days ago, the guardian has been in seclusion. He has been in what criminologists and forensic psychologists refer to as a “cooling off period” between serial murders. The cooling off period constitutes a time-out from murder for a serial killer.
Incredibly, the outward life of a serial killer, particularly a psychopathic one like the guardian, will appear quite normal to an unsuspecting observer during the cooling off period. A serial killer’s public persona or alter ego goes about his normal daily life and routine during the cooling off period. Accordingly, Charles Lundquist returned to his seemingly normal life following the murder of Melissa Stein, and the guardian disappeared.
The cooling off period is to the guardian what coming down from a narcotic high is to a drug addict. It is a time of rest and recomposing. The cooling off period is only a temporary time-out, however. Soon enough the guardian will need another victim, just as the heroin addict will eventually need another fix or the alcoholic will need another drink to calm their cravings.
The length of the cooling off period between murders varies from one serial killer to another. For the guardian, it typically lasts from two to three weeks—sometimes, a bit longer.
At some point during a cooling off period, the guardian begins to have obsessive, reoccurring thoughts of murder combined with powerful feelings of lust and sexual desire. He starts to fantasize about his next young victim and what she will be like. He visualizes abducting her, and fantasizes about what he will do to her once they are alone, together, and she is under his control.
Lundquist is very familiar with the powerful cravings of the guardian because they coexist inside him with his own feelings. It has been more than two weeks since the murder of Melissa Stein, and Lundquist can already feel the guardian’s desire for a new victim growing within him. Lundquist knows that the terrible hunger for a new victim will steadily increase and get stronger.
In a very short time, the homicidal needs of the guardian will surpass and supersede Lundquist’s own needs for food, sleep, or even air to breathe. The guardian’s insatiable desire for a new victim will demand to be satisfied, just as it has on three previous occasions over the
last few months. In just a matter of days, or even hours from now, Lundquist will become powerless over the guardian’s unquenchable thirst for blood and his undeniable hunger for the body of another young girl.
Lundquist knows that it is impossible for him to resist the guardian’s desires when they arise within him. He has come to accept his powerlessness over the needs of his alter ego. Why try to resist the inevitable, he thinks to himself. From experience, Lundquist knows that trying to fight the cravings of the guardian is futile and pointless.
He stares blankly at the TV screen in front of him. As he sits alone in his living room, he says to himself, “The guardian’s cravings are returning. I can feel his hunger growing stronger and more powerful inside me. It won’t be long before the guardian returns to continue his mission.”
Chapter Twenty Two
While Charles Lundquist watches the evening news in his downtown Manhattan apartment, an unmarked federal aircraft is landing at LaGuardia Airport in Queens, New York. It is 7:05pm and the air outside is clear and crisp when the small Gulfstream jet coming from Washington, DC, touches down in New York.
Aboard the aircraft is a team of six special agents sent by the director of the FBI to assist the NYPD in the manhunt for an unknown serial killer labeled the evil guardian by the TV news media.
Captain James Pritchard is on the tarmac waiting to greet the team of FBI special agents. The homicide captain has come to LaGuardia Airport to escort them back to One Police Plaza for dinner and a preliminary briefing session with Police Commissioner Bratton. It will be a no-frills working dinner meeting at the insistence of Bratton.
“There is no time to waste on pleasantries with a homicidal maniac on the loose in New York,” said the police commissioner to Pritchard as the captain was leaving for the airport.