NightScream Read online

  “Special Agent, the VICAP search found a similar MO in several murders across a few other states, so I want you on this case. Your vacation has been suspended until this investigation is wrapped. Call Special Agent Lang to get the details,” SAC Frank Simpson said.

  “Yes, sir. I’ll get right on it.” Cody handed the phone back to the sheriff.

  “Looks like I’m stuck with you,” Bud grumbled.

  “Yes, sir,” Cody replied.

  The sheriff turned to Jilly. “That was Special Agent in Charge, Frank Simpson. It seems our killer has crossed state lines, so the FBI is in on this. But let me make this perfectly clear.” He stared at Cody, but pointed to Jilly. “Reid here takes the lead. Got that?”

  “Not a problem, sir. I’m just here to assist,” Cody assured him.

  “Right,” he said sarcastically. “The shit’s really gonna hit the fan. We’ve had only one homicide in the last few years, now this.” He scrubbed his hands down his face. “I’m going to have to visit the mayor. This is not the type of news to break over the phone.”

  He looked at Cody. “So, what’s your estimate about how long those bodies have been down there?” he said, the bluster now absent from his demeanor.

  “It’s hard to say, sir. The amount of decomp is different with each victim and being in the water, well, of course the bodies were bloated and unrecognizable. It could be anywhere from a few months to a few years.”

  “Great. So we’ve had a serial killer in our midst for some time and no one was the wiser. Can’t wait ’til the press gets a hold of this.” The Sheriff sighed.

  “Have you spoken to the ME yet?” Cody asked.

  “He hasn’t called, if that’s what you’re asking. I’m sure he has his hands full at the moment. I’ll call him myself. You’re both dismissed.”

  Cody couldn’t help but feel sorry for the guy. He knew what kind of bad press this was going to be for the city. He also knew most people on the mountain made their living from tourism. It was April and the weather was just warming up.

  The summer people started arriving in May. He looked at his watch. It was after ten p.m. His car had been towed earlier in the day to the garage.

  “Can I bum a ride from you?” he asked Jilly as they walked out of the station into the cool night air.

  She slid him a look. “I guess it’s the least I can do.”

  “Gee, thanks.” They were quiet until they got on the road.

  “My SAC says there have been other crimes matching the same MO, so I’m going to call Robin and have her bring me up to date. I’ll fill you in tomorrow,” Cody said.

  “Is Robin your girlfriend?”

  “No. I think we’ve covered the fact that I don’t have a girlfriend.”

  “No, we covered the fact that you hadn’t found any suitable candidates to wed. That doesn’t mean you’re not in a relationship now.”

  Cody smiled. “Special Agent Robin Lang is a friend from the L.A. field office. No romantic ties.”

  “I see.”

  “So what time do you arrive at the station?” Cody asked.

  “I get in about seven, but that doesn’t mean you have to come in at the same time. I thought you were on vacation.”

  “Were being the operative word. My vacation has been suspended until this case is closed.”

  “Lucky me.”

  “So I’ll see you at seven.”

  “I suppose you expect me to pick you up?”

  “Nope. I have a Toyota FJ cruiser. I keep it in the garage at the cabin. It’s better suited than my Mustang for the conditions up here.”

  “Wow, two cars.” She rolled her eyes at him. “You must be rich.”

  “No, but since I’m not supporting a wife and family, I can afford it. I bought the cruiser when I lived in Montana. It has all-wheel drive and was practical for the weather there.

  “I’ve had it for years. And it’s paid off, if you must know. I bought the Mustang when I moved to LA.” That shut her up. Cody could never understand why women had to know each and every detail of a man’s life.

  They pulled up in front of his family’s cabin.

  “So, you’re lead on this case. That must make you happy,” Cody said.

  “Woo hoo.” She twirled her finger.

  “I thought you’d be thrilled.”

  “Thrilled? Are you kidding me? One of the reasons I left the CHU and moved back up the mountain was to get away from death. Then the most heinous case I’ve ever seen is dropped in my lap. So no, I am not thrilled, to say the least.”

  “Sorry,” Cody said quietly. “What are the other reasons?”

  “Huh?”

  “You said one of the reasons, which usually means there’s more.”

  She shook her head and looked at the ceiling before she focused on him. “You caught that, huh?”

  He smiled and nodded.

  “Me and my big mouth. Well, crap, you’ll probably find out anyway. It’s a small town and people talk. My ex-husband is also a homicide detective in the same unit.”

  “What happened between you two?”

  “You just don’t let up, do you?”

  “I happen to remember you grilling me pretty good about Delilah. Turnabout is fair play.”

  “Fine. John is a lying, cheating sack of shit. Which is bad enough, but he had to dip his quill in the company ink well.”

  “He slept with someone at work?”

  “Oh, yeah. Sandy, the department slut. Funny thing is we always made fun of her in her uber-tight sweaters that emphasized her large attributes. Then I find out he’d been banging her behind my back the entire time.”

  “Ouch.”

  “Yeah. I couldn’t stay. It’s bad enough to have your husband cheat and move in with the bimbo. But to see them both at work every day was just too much.”

  Cody opened the door, then looked back. “For the record, the guy’s an idiot.”

  Her expression softened. “Thanks.”

  “See you in the morning.”

  “Yeah.”

  He slammed the door and walked up the steps to the darkened house. He entered quietly and went straight to the kitchen, where he snagged a beer before heading to his grandfather’s office on the first floor. He sat behind the large mahogany desk and called Robin.

  “Hey, how’s that vacation going?” She’d obviously seen his name on the screen of her cell phone before she picked up.

  “Ha ha, very funny.”

  “You’re the only guy I know who takes his work with him when he goes on holiday.”

  “What can I say, I love my job,” Cody said sarcastically.

  “I emailed the info to you, so I’ll just give you the highlights. This unknown subject has been busy over the years, but dumping the bodies in water is a new development as far as we can tell.

  “What the victims all have in common is the fact that every bone in the body has been methodically broken. The consensus is by a hammer. These women were tortured. Only two had enough tissue left to tell he’d burned them with cigarettes. And the condition of the pelvic bone suggests mutilated genitalia.”

  “Why hasn’t this UNSUB been on our radar before this?”

  “The bodies were found in different states. He dumps them in the woods in shallow graves. Animals destroyed the evidence in most cases.”

  “How many are we talking about?”

  “Ten in as many years, so far.”

  “Damn, this UNSUB’s been active that long before anyone caught on?”

  “Yup. And he’d still have gone unnoticed if you guys hadn’t uncovered that mass grave up there.”

  Cody swiped a hand down his face. “Son of a bitch.”

  “Yes he is.”

  “Thanks, Robin. I’ll read the files you’ve sent and get back to you if I have any questions.”

  Cody pulled up his email and started perusing the files. A lot of the pictures were not much better than the bodies he’d seen that day. The scavengers had absconded with bo
dy parts, some never found.

  Two of the ten women, ranging in age from early twenties, to early thirties, had yet to be identified. He scanned the photos first, then went back to read the reports. Suddenly a name popped out. Mary Ellen O’Reilly.

  “God, no.”

  His first love, his only love.

  They’d met in college and lived together while he worked at PCPD. She had been the reason he stayed in the area. In fact, it wasn’t until he’d left for the FBI academy that they split up. She wanted to get married and start a family. He wasn’t ready. He was embarking on a new chapter in his life and wanted to focus on his career.

  He’d figured she was married with a bunch of rugrats running around. He’d tried calling her once, but the number had been disconnected. He’d assumed she’d had it changed because she never wanted to hear from him again.

  He’d been crushed. Now he knew the truth. She was dead. Not just dead, but murdered by a psychopath. He went through the pictures in her file again to see why he hadn’t recognized her.

  It must have been her senior picture in high school. Her red hair was long with bangs, her face fuller. She still carried some baby fat. She looked like such a child compared to the confident woman he knew.

  By the time he’d met her, she’d had a slim athletic body and wore her hair in a chin length bob. Her facial features were more pronounced, but the same intelligent green eyes stared back at him. He felt dampness on his cheeks and realized he was crying. He swatted at the tears.

  He’d kept all of her snapshots hidden in a box in his closet. He’d often thought of her and hoped she was happy. Many times he’d wondered if he’d made a mistake by leaving her. His older brother, Jesse, had chosen love over a career in the bureau.

  At the time, Cody thought it was the dumbest decision he could make. But through the years, he’d begun to question his own choice. His grandfather had a successful career in the FBI and a happy marriage with the same woman.

  He’d made it work.

  Cody should have at least tried. He’d dated many women since Mary Ellen, but never had a relationship that stuck.

  In fact, he’d finally given up on love completely when he realized he was comparing all women to her.

  So he’d settled on finding female companionship in whatever town he was in at the time. He’d been lamenting so long that it took him awhile to see the obvious. The UNSUB who’d killed his first love was dumping bodies in his hometown.

  What were the odds?

  SEVEN

  Meagan was dead to the world until her cell phone woke her by dancing across the nightstand. Thank God she’d set it to vibrate before going to bed. She snagged it in a tight grip and it quieted.

  She glanced back at Thomas, who hadn’t stirred, then stared at the screen. It was Jason and it was three-fifteen in the morning. It couldn’t be good.

  “Just a second,” she whispered. She covered her naked body with a robe and tiptoed out of the bedroom, shutting the door quietly behind her. Then she bounded down the stairs to the living room and curled up on the sofa with her legs tucked beside her.

  “What is it? Is everyone okay?” Meagan’s heart threatened to jump out of her chest.

  “Bridget’s run off with another man!” Jason shouted into the phone.

  “Have you spoken to her?”

  “No.”

  “Then how do you know this?” Was it just a calculated guess on his part?

  “His wife called me. We’ve been on the phone for hours. Oh God, Meggie, we have to save her. This man’s a lunatic. He’s violent. She’s not safe. He’s done this before.”

  “Whoa there, Nellie. Slow down. His ex-wife called you?”

  “They aren’t divorced. Wait, you knew? You knew she’d run away with another man and didn’t tell me? I’ve been pulling my hair out over here. How could you do this to me, to the girls?”

  “Calm down, Jason, and think. Although I love you like a brother, she is my sister. I’m not about to break a confidence.”

  “But you lied to me. You said you hadn’t spoken to her. That you didn’t know where she was.”

  Meagan held the phone away from her ear, his shouting was giving her a headache. “I did not lie.” She pulled the afghan off the back of the sofa and covered her bare feet.

  “When I told you that, it was the truth. But since then I have talked to her. Now go back to the beginning and tell me everything this woman told you. Start with how she got your phone number.”

  “When her husband stopped returning her calls, she knew it had happened again. So she requested copies of the cell phone bills from their provider. He’s the one who normally pays the bills. She found a number that had been on there repeatedly for the last year.”

  “Jason, you have to calm down and quit shouting. You know the amplification on cell phones. You’re making my ear hurt.”

  “Sorry. Anyway, Lorraine got Bridget’s information and called the house looking for her. When I told her she was out of town, she told me Bridget had run away with her husband. Meggie, you have to warn her. He’s done this before and it never ends well.

  “The man’s name is Samuel, not Sam, but Samuel. He’s very adamant that people call him by his full name. He beat Lorraine. He runs that household like Hitler. He has total control over everyone and everything, including their finances.

  “She has no food, nor does she have any money to get some. She doesn’t work because he won’t let her. She’s completely reliant on him and now he’s gone. He won’t return her calls. What kind of man does that?

  “He has four growing boys who eat a lot. He’s made each one sign up for a sport, whether they want to or not. Her eldest son needs a uniform for soccer and he’s scared to death to quit because of repercussions from his father.

  “Even the mortgage is past due and she’s getting eviction notices. The man was even kicked out of his own church! There were charges of sexual abuse brought on by the families of a few young female parishioners.

  “Meggie, the guy’s a pedophile. He makes his wife shave down there and wear children’s clothing. He married her when she was only fourteen. She says she was a late bloomer and always looked young for her age.

  “Listen to me. He’s not interested in Bridget, he’s after the girls. Please, you have to stop this. I told Lorraine I’d send her money tomorrow for groceries–”

  “Wait. You’re going to send some strange woman you don’t know, who called you out of the blue with some fantastic tale, money? Jason, you can’t do that. For all we know this is some sort of scam.

  “You have nothing to back this up, just her say so. From what I understand, this woman is not the best source of information. Come on. You’re not thinking clearly. If Lorraine’s husband is so god awful, then why does she want him back?”

  “She doesn’t.”

  “Then why the hell did she call you?”

  “To warn me.”

  Meagan took a deep breath and blew it out. “Right. And to get you to send her money with her tales of woe. Look, I’ve met people like this before. People who don’t know you from Adam, yet tell you the most intimate details of their life. All of it bad just to gain sympathy.

  “Hell, I even worked with this girl who told me after I’d just met her that her father had sexually abused her as a little girl, but that he didn’t consider it abuse because he only pleasured her.

  “Don’t be so naive. These narcissists prey on innocent people to get what they want. First, they get you to feel sorry for them, then they start asking for favors. Trust me, you can’t believe a word this woman says.”

  “I’ve got proof.”

  Meagan shook her head. “What kind of proof?”

  “Before he left, he took all the jewelry she had with any monetary value, including her wedding ring.”

  “Jason, why did she hand over all her jewelry? Didn’t she find that suspicious?” Meagan asked carefully.

  “He told her he was going to buy insurance and ne
eded them to show the agent so that he could take pictures and assess the value.”

  “Does she have photos of this jewelry?”

  “I don’t know, maybe.”

  “What about her wedding photos? Surely she has a picture of her ring in one of those. Most people have that one shot of their hands.”

  “I’ll ask. Does this mean you believe me?”

  “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. You have to admit, this story is a bit far-fetched. It sounds like something that only happens in the movies.”

  “Said the woman who dated a serial killer.”

  “Touché. Look, send any and all photos she has to my phone and I’ll look into it.”

  “You got it. I’ll call Lorraine right now,” Jason said.

  “Wait. It’s after four in the morning. Call her tomorrow. Get some rest. You have to take care of yourself for the girls’ sake. They should be your number one priority right now.”

  “I can’t sleep. I haven’t slept for more than a few hours in days.”

  “Then take something, dammit. I know this is hard, but those girls need you right now. You can’t fall apart. You have to put on a brave face for them.”

  “You’re right. I’m sorry. Just call me the minute you know something.”

  “It may take a little while, but I will. Good night.”

  Meagan ended the call. This was a nightmare. His accusations couldn’t be true. She gazed out the window at a picturesque view. The moon was almost full and hung low in the sky, its light reflected on the lake. Movement out of the corner of her eye made her turn her head in time to see a bird with a large wingspan fly from the top of one pine tree to another. It had to be an owl. “How cool is that?” she whispered.

  As idyllic as it was, she couldn’t just sit there. She had to do something. It was too early to wake Thomas, and she needed answers now. Then Meagan remembered the downstairs office and the computer she’d noticed there earlier.

  She slipped her cell phone into her robe pocket, tossed off the afghan and padded down the hall in her bare feet. When she neared the room, the door was closed and light showed underneath. Who the hell was up at this time of night?

  She all but slapped her forehead. Duh, it’s probably Cody.