Wednesday afternoon, June 20th
Dan greeted a detective who was walking down the hallway outside his office. “Hey, Tom. Congrats on winning the softball game last night. I heard you hit a homer. How’s your knee holding up?” Dan knew Tom Hinks was one of the police department’s star softball players. The team had come in second place last year at the national level after winning the state finals. Tom had injured his knee sliding into third base during the fourth game of the national finals, but had managed to get the all-important run before being rushed to the hospital for surgery. He’d been unable to play the remaining championship games, which was still a sore spot with him. They had lost in the last game by one run.
“It’s holding up all right. The doc says I should be able to play fine this year. I hope so, because I wanna kick some ass!”
“Good luck. I’ll try to make it to some of the games this season. Is the schedule posted on the board?”
“Yep. You should come to at least one game. You might get laid. Lots of single women come to watch us play,” he teased.
Bob Jeffords walked up and said, “Hey, Tom. We picked up the guy who blasted the hardware store on Fourth Street. High as a kite. I don’t see how he’s still alive, he’s got so much shit running through his veins, or how he hit a target three times.”
“What hardware store?” Dan asked, although he suspected which one Bob was going to name.
“Sands Hardware. Some cracker came in and trashed the place. Probably looking for money or dope. Killed the two men working there with an automatic pistol. Luckily there weren’t any customers inside. We picked up the dumb ass this morning, still carrying the gun and covered in blood. He didn’t even know what his name was. Why’d you ask?”
“I was there yesterday afternoon, talking to a John Priester. Do you remember if he was one of the men killed?”
“Yep. What’s this guy to you?” Bob asked.
“He was the alibi for one of the men who was charged with rape and then killed last week. Those two cases the media is going crazy over. Captain, too. Guess we’ll never know what the true story is with that one.”
“I heard you and Mory got that case. A tough one. Personally, I’d like to shake the Avenger’s hand, so I can’t say I’d be able to work it right. Makes a man hope he gets away with it.”
“If he does, we’ll have a lot more vigilantes out there, seeking their own brand of justice, and we’d be arresting people right and left.”
“I know, Dan, but it just pisses me off when we get the prick who did it and the courts let him go because of some stupid technicality. Everybody knows he did it, but our hands get tied with all these stupid laws. ‘Yeah, we know he confessed he did it and we have evidence linking him to the scene, but he wasn’t read his rights before he said all that, so we can’t use it in court.’ Then the jerk walks right out there and does it again and everybody looks to us to do something about it. We’re not the bad guys; it’s those damn defense lawyers: they keep messing with the law and trying to find loopholes that will let their guilty clients go free. They get our legal system screwed up.”
“I say we have a bonfire and throw all of them in it,” Tom joked to lighten the mood.
“Then we’d have a problem controlling all the people who came to cheer it on. The Masters Golf traffic would be nothing compared to that swarm!” Dan laughed as the others groaned. “See you guys later.”
––––––––
Thursday, April 21st
“Afternoon, Henri. Tell me you got those lab tests back. I really need to find this maniac before anyone else decides to join up with him. Captain Bolton is on my case to get it solved before James Starr slams the department with another inflammatory article. He’s ten times worse than any TV reporter we’ve had to deal with,” Dan told her. He was as angry as Bolton was about the last piece on Karen’s suicide and Lisa’s flight. The Richmond County Commission Chairman had called the Sheriff, who had called Chief Deputy Carnes, who had called Captain Bolton, who had called Dan and Mory. This killer had to be caught soon. But where to look? Frank Phillips had an alibi for the first murder and had talked to his fiancée before the second. Dan didn’t think Phillips was involved, and now John Priester was dead. Hopefully, there wouldn’t be any more deaths, but Dan had a bad feeling about this Avenger who had tasted torture and publicity, and was probably addicted to both.
“You’d better watch out for that reporter, Dan. He’s out for blood and he doesn’t care whose he has to spill to make it big. Have you checked James out?” Henrietta asked. She remembered what it was like to work a high profile case and to have the media and the Sheriff on your back. She wouldn’t wish that on anyone, especially friends.
“Mory is looking into his background today. He didn’t pass on anything vital before he left.”
“Where is Mory?”
“Janie’s on his case again, so I told him to take the afternoon off and spend it with her. But I promised to call him if you had anything big for us. Do you?” Dan’s voice lifted in hopeful anticipation.
“Well, I know what killed David Crouch and it wasn’t his heart. Remember the injection site on the inner part of his elbow? That clued me to check for something that shouldn’t have been in his system. Routine blood tests showed everything was normal. So I sent tissue samples from his liver, brain and skin to the lab in Atlanta. They showed an abnormally high level of potassium chloride. Potassium chloride is found in smaller amounts in the body; it dissipates rapidly in a live human. So it doesn’t show up in routine blood tests and isn’t noticeable unless you’re looking specifically for it. But in larger doses, potassium chloride causes a quick death from cardiac depression, arrhythmias or cardiac arrest. Whoever raped David Crouch gave him a dose of serum large enough to drop a dog, which surprisingly enough isn’t much. It takes more to kill a lab rat than a human or small animal. That’s why it can’t be used to fake death in a suicide. You don’t have time to get rid of the needle before you die.”
“What about Ted Silverman? Was he given potassium chloride, too?”
“I don’t know. As I said, it doesn’t show up in routine tests. Silverman had needle marks on his arms and legs according to the flimsy autopsy Ed performed. There was a low level of cocaine hydrochloride in his blood stream; not enough to be a factor in his death. But good ole Ed didn’t look past that. Silverman’s C-O-D was reported as cardiac arrest, which would be consistent with Crouch’s. With so many scars on his arms and legs, Ed probably didn’t take special note of any fresh needle marks.”
“What if we exhume and test Silverman?”
“It’s too late after an autopsy and embalming.”
“The Captain would never go for that anyway. Not with all the publicity already stirred up by the paper and TV stations. They’d have a field day, definitely linking the crimes. Let’s assume they were both injected with this potassium chloride. Who would know about it? Is it common knowledge or would someone have to have some kind of medical training?”
“I’d say someone would have to possess pretty good knowledge of the human system and chemistry. Maybe he didn’t intend for us to find out how he killed them. As I said, unless you’re specifically looking for it, KCL doesn’t show up in routine tests.”
Dan sat in the high-backed chair, thoughtful for a moment. “Where would someone get this potassium chloride? From medications?”
“Some prescription drugs contain it, but not in this high or pure dosage. The killer would need a prescription for it, or have some place where he could steal it. Medical dosages usually range from ten to thirty milliliters, but Crouch received a larger injection of concentrated KCL. I’d suggest looking into local medical research labs or a chemical supply company or physicians with samples in their offices. See if they’ve had any break-ins or if they’re missing any inventory, because this stuff isn’t found on the streets in its pure form.”
“Looks as if Mory and I have a lot of work to do.”
––––––––
Friday night, June 22nd
“Good, you’re coming around, Ben. I was afraid I’d given you too much Valium and you’d be asleep forever. We’ve got some partying to do before the night is over and I wanted you to be awake to enjoy it with me. How are you feeling?”
Through the fog, Ben Truman heard the stranger’s voice whispering behind him. He must have drunk too much and passed out or something. He tried to bring his hand to his face, but couldn’t. Who was holding him down? He struggled to get up and realized he wasn’t able to move.
“That’s right, Ben, fight against me. Just like Susan fought you. But you taught her a lesson when she tried to make you stop.” A deep sigh. “I guess I’ll have to teach you that same lesson. You didn’t really think you’d get away with it, did you, Ben? Yeah, I guess you did, since the courts turned you loose. But thwarted Justice has a friend on her side: Me.”
Ben Truman tried to scream as his leg was set on fire, but the only sound that escaped through his gag was a muffled groan. He smelled his flesh burning as he arched his back against the pain. What was this man going to do to—Oh, shit! He was naked. When had this pervert taken off his clothes? He didn’t remember—
“What’s the matter, Ben? Did that smart? I’m teaching you a lesson. You should never let a stranger in your home. That’s dangerous. You don’t know what that person is capable of. That’s the warning you gave Susan when she let the repairman into her mother’s home to fix the refrigerator. She didn’t think to check your identification, just as you didn’t think to check mine. She messed up bad. Then again, so did you.”
With that last statement, the tormentor placed the hot curling iron onto Ben’s inner thigh and left it there as the flesh singed and burned. When it was taken away, blood and fluid oozed down his legs toward the sheets. Blisters were already forming. “You really shouldn’t have let me in, Ben. You must learn not to let strangers in your house. You must be taught what’s right and what’s wrong.” Again, the curling iron was placed against Ben’s thigh until the smell was nearly sickening, even to the Avenger.
Ben struggled against the ropes that bound him to the bed. His head was clear now that the pain had driven away the fuzziness. He remembered those same threats he had uttered nearly eight months ago to a young girl who had let him in her house. He had been watching sixteen year old Susan for nearly three months when he heard her mother remind her before taking her to school of the repairman coming that afternoon. He was nervous all day as he planned what he would do. He didn’t want anything to happen to Susan, his girl. At least, she woulda been his on her eighteenth birthday, but he had needed to teach her a lesson about safety first. The same one his mom had taught him. When Susan had moaned and pleaded beneath him, he had been unable to restrain himself from taking her. He remembered how angry he’d been with her and had punished her severely for making him lose control, soiling her and spoiling his plans for them. In fact, she was rarely home anymore. He had been compelled to find himself another innocent angel to replace his fallen one. Amy was only fourteen, so four years to wait to taste her—
“Oh, Ben! You’re driving me crazy, moaning and carrying on like that! I can’t help myself. You’ve made me rock hard. I have to stop this pain. I gotta have you!” the Avenger exclaimed.
Ben, snatched from his dreamy fantasy, realized too late what was happening. He felt the hands pull his rear cheeks apart and press something large and hard against the opening. Noooooo! This can’t be happening, he tried to reassure himself. I’m just having a nightmare. But he knew it was real. He tried to inch up the bed to get away from the stranger behind him, but the ropes held him tight. Agony nearly caused him to pass out as the torture continued.
“Ooooh, Ben, you’re so snug. One day we’ll do this the right way, but now I just can’t hold out for you. This is so good. Better than I thought it would be. Oh, yes!” the Avenger cried out before squirting semen into Ben.
Ben chilled as he heard the next words, words that he had spoken to Susan that afternoon months ago after she had enticed him to make love to her. He vowed he was going to have to teach her another lesson for siccing this ferocious dog on him. Susan shouldn’t have told what happened between the two of them, just like she refused to tell the Grand Jury anything! Yes, Amy was the better one for him, but he was going to have to punish Susan first.
“Damnit, Ben, why did you make me do that? I was trying to teach you a lesson about strangers, and you kept tempting me until I couldn’t take it any more. Damn you, Ben!” With that last curse, the killer placed the hot iron on Ben’s testicles and sent him into darkness, following spasmodic jerks, guttural groans, and a flood of salty tears.
––––––––
Ben didn’t want to wake up, but the voice was talking to him and slapping him in the face. He couldn’t make out the words, but he knew he didn’t want to hear what this asshole had to say. The only thing on his mind right now was finding Susan and teaching her a last lesson. He was going to fix her good for this violation and pain.
“Wake up, Ben. It’s time for me to go before someone finds me. I want you to tell me how sorry you are for what you’ve done and promise me to never, never do it again.”
Ben would promise him anything if the attacker would just leave him alone. He thought about calling the police, but quickly changed his mind. He didn’t want anyone to know about this. His mother would probably say he deserved it anyway. After all, he had let a stranger into their home, a filthy beast who had raped and beaten him. He had been careful to stay clear of Susan, but now he would take care of this bastard after he finished with her, after he forced the man’s identity from her lips, and those lips and cunt gave him the last pleasure she would ever give any man. Yep, as soon as he was free and healed, Susan and her revenger would be dead meat! Amy would need to be brought into line right from the beginning so this didn’t happen with her. He’d start her training soon.
“Well, Ben, I’m waiting. Say it.”
“I pwomith,” he managed to get out around the gag in his mouth.
“Now, there’s one last thing you need to do, Ben, look at me. You’d better look, Ben, because my face is the last thing you’re going to see before you look into Satan’s arms. You won’t be harassing any more young girls ever again. Ben, look at me.”
Ben didn’t want to look at him. But if he didn’t do what he was told to do, the stranger would probably burn him some more. Or fuck him again. He looked up into the face of his attacker and felt the prick on his inner elbow. Ben flinched at the hatred blazing in those fiery green eyes as they bore into his soul. It was the last thing he saw as he passed into darkness and the Hell beyond.
“I know Susan will sleep better with you dead and buried. At least Karen has eternal peace, and Lisa is beyond the media’s reach. I’m sure the police will protect Susan from them. Things are proceeding as planned, Tippi. Soon, you’ll have your peace and revenge. It’s all necessary evil and justice has been served. I’m sure James will be thrilled by this scoop with a special message.”
––––––––
Sunday night, June 24th
“Looks like our Avenger struck again,” Henrietta said, motioning toward the body bound to the bed. “I’ve already checked his inner elbow, and he was recently injected with something. I’ll run the tests, but I have a feeling we’ll find elevated levels of potassium chloride in his system, too.”
“I called the precinct on the way over here, and I’d agree this was our Avenger. Ben Truman was arrested last year for raping and torturing a sixteen-year-old girl. He was released after the teenager laid eyes on him, fell apart and couldn’t testify. You know that law about a person’s right to face his accuser in court? She broke down on the stand and couldn’t give her testimony. He was released that afternoon,” Mory stated.
“What was the T-O-D?” Dan asked her.
“Sometime Friday night, probably around midnight or one. I’ll let you know for sure after I run more tests. He was burned severely on his legs, buttocks and...” Henrietta hesitated before stating, “his personal region.”
Dan and Mory grimaced at the same time. Subconsciously, both men’s hands brushed their own genitals, and Mory rearranged his for comfort. They could smell the lingering stench of burnt skin and their minds recoiled from the realization of where Ben’s flesh was mutilated.
“It was done with something long, straight and thin.” At the two men’s quick glances, she clarified, “The burns were inflicted by something portable, probably a woman’s curling iron. I bet your file says he used one on his victim.”
Dan walked to the body and examined the ropes. They were snugly tied, just as the last ones were. He looked more closely at the knot. “I’d say our villain is left-handed.”
“What makes you think that?” Mory questioned.
“The way the ropes are tied. If he is right handed, the rope would have gone over to the right, not the left. Look at the burn marks, Henri. Do you think they were inflicted by someone right or left handed?”
Henrietta stood over the body once more. She pulled out her measuring tape she always carried. She held her hands up and positioned them several ways before answering. “I’d say you’re right, Dan. It appears by the slant of the blisters that whoever did this was using his left hand. He probably stood here and placed the iron here, like this.” She mimicked the killer’s position and put her gloved hands close to the victim’s body. “But our perp might be trying to mislead us. For certain, he’s smart and he’s careful, a real challenge to expose and capture.”
“What about fingerprints, Henri? Has Harold come up with any yet?” Dan asked.
“This room is as clean as a whistle, as far as incriminating evidence goes. Plugs were wiped clean. None on the light switches, nightstand, or bedposts. Harold is checking the other areas of the house to see if we can find any strange prints. I’ll check the rope for epithelial, fibers, and our perp’s blood, but doubt I’ll find any, just like the other times.”
Mory added, “I think it’s the same as the others he used, but I’ll make sure. Those were a common brand sold in most hardware stores and just about every Wal-Mart, Lowe’s or Home Depot. It’d be near impossible to trace where it was purchased or stolen.”
Dan urged, “Let me know when the reports come in, Henri. I’m going on the assumption that this is the same person. Now, we just need to find out who and why. Yeah, I know, that’s our job. Think you’ll have the reports in by Thursday?”
Henrietta nodded. “I’ll put a rush on it and call you as soon as I get them. Good luck, Dan, Mory. You’re going to need it on this one.”
“Don’t I know it,” Dan exclaimed as he peered out the window and saw James Starr leaning against his car. Starr saw him and waved, then snapped Dan’s picture through the glass. He noticed the TV media hadn’t arrived yet.
“Looks like our friend is back on the scene. I wonder how he knew about this one. Truman’s mother just called the station thirty minutes ago. Luckily, we were just down the road at the driving range when the call came in. Neighbors haven’t even realized something’s happened over here. He must be listening to the police radio. I think we should issue a code word to be used if we have another similar murder. That way, Starr won’t know what’s happened. If he shows up again, we’ll know he’s closer to this case than we believed, or we have a serious leak.”
Henrietta reasoned, “There are sympathizers all over the city, Dan. Anyone could be giving Starr information. People are scared and they see this Avenger as correcting some of what’s wrong with the justice system. You know and I know what could happen if this guy goes really nuts, but he’s been very methodical to date. He’s made sure the victims were alone and hasn’t left any tell tale clue so far. No fingerprints or hair or fibers of any kind. The only thing we have is the DNA from his semen. It’ll prove he did it, if we can find him. He must believe we can’t since he’s leaving that type of evidence behind after being so careful with everything else. Maybe it’s a taunt or challenge. Maybe he knows he’s not in the system, or he’s in a position to delete or alter his data. He must be stupid, cocky or psychotic. Somehow, I don’t think the first one describes him.”
“We have to get to him before Starr evokes some partners or copycats. The justice system is supposed to take care of these rapists, not the common citizen. Murdering someone does not correct the original wrong or make it right for him to do it.”
“I know, Dan,” Henrietta paused. “But people are thinking with their hearts and not their heads when it comes to something like this. The statistics say that one in eight women is attacked. And that’s just the reported cases. I’d venture to say that in every American family, a woman has suffered at the hands of some beast. This brings the issue home and not out in left field somewhere. The female victims have been young, attractive, and very brutally tortured before and after their rapes. They look like anyone’s sister, mother, aunt, cousin, or girlfriend. This type of crime is too close for people to see clearly. To lots of people and certainly to victims who didn’t get their justice, this must seem like necessary evil, pure and simple.”
Dan grimaced and replied, “We need to catch this guy before they vote him in as President.”
“Well, let’s get busy and unmask him. I just need a few more minutes here.”
Dan nodded at Henrietta, then glanced out the window at Starr. He didn’t mind someone reporting the news, but he didn’t want the lives of these women, already torn apart, to be publicly displayed for anyone’s macabre sense of curiosity. Dan hoped one of the women’s family members didn’t try to take it upon themselves to stop Starr from publishing the details of the women’s stories. That would be a lesson Starr wouldn’t want to write about, Dan thought. At least TV news showed restraints with the details. But they had restrictions on what they could say and show on air.
“What are you thinking?” Mory asked.
“How the Avenger might stop Starr from printing another article about him,” Dan replied. “Although, I think, right now our perp is probably enjoying the attention and admiration he’s receiving. Could be feeding his crazy ego. Could be encouraging him to commit more crimes than he first intended.”
“Well, he’s certainly read the articles,” Henrietta spoke behind them.
“How do you know that?” Dan asked as he turned to face her.
Henrietta was holding a Ziploc bag by the edge as she motioned to the paper inside and held it out for Dan. “He left you a note.”
Dan carefully took the item from Henrietta. She’d already sealed the bag for testing once it was at the lab. He knew Harold would be checking for fingerprints and any evidence that might have been left behind. Dan prayed they would find something, anything, but knew in his gut there wasn’t much luck of that. The note read:
“The Bible says, “If men strive, and hurt a woman...
He shall be punished. Thou shalt give life for life.
Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand,
Foot for foot, Burning for burning,
Wound for wound, stripe for stripe.”
I say, “Heaven and victims raged
As another beast was set free.
Taking an eye for an eye was left up to me.
If Justice is blind or her hands are bound,
Rejoice, Good Citizens, for I am around.”
It was signed The Avenger in typed print. Clearly the attacker had gotten the idea from the reporter and his sensational news stories. Or was it the other way around? Was the reporter capitalizing on his articles and supplying the crimes?
––––––––
Monday morning, June 25th
Dan still hadn’t made it home for a shower and shave and he was feeling the worse for it. Except for a couple of catnaps at his desk, he had been up most of the night reviewing Susan Ames’s file. Only sixteen at the time of the vicious rape, so no surprise she had been unable to testify to the Grand Jury and help them put away that animal on trial and in prison. No choice but to release Truman after his lawyer used the precedent a defendant must be able to face his accuser in court. Poor girl just couldn’t do her part, so the judge was compelled to dismiss the charges against Truman. Dan knew Susan had been burned on her buttocks and legs with a hot curling iron even before he’d pulled the file to study it. There was no doubt now, the killer had set a serial pattern: punish unconvicted and violent rapists using their own MO against them.
Who was this vigilante? Why was he doing this? What had set him off like a bomb? Was he one of the female victim’s loved ones? Was he insane? Did he have a warped sense of wanting justice? Was it for publicity? How and where did he get the KCL? How did he meet and disable his victims? How did he select them? How did he know the details of the men’s cases, as some evidence wasn’t revealed to the general public or in court? Where and how did he gather his facts and accusations?
There were no signs of Breaking and Entering, so how did the attacker get inside the victim’s homes? What trick, lie or disguise was used, because he couldn’t know all of them? How did he overpower mostly strong men? The Avenger had to be strong, smart, cunning, daring and dangerous. And heartless or crazy to torture and murder anybody. Not to mention the sexual assault. Was it an inside job, someone with access to police or court files on all cases? Could it be a cop, a detective, a lawyer, a judge, a nosey reporter, a female victim’s loved one, someone in the police or crime labs, someone in the District Attorney’s office? Who had motive, means, opportunity and that much hatred? How could he be unmasked and trapped? When would he make a costly mistake?
Those questions and others ricocheted through Dan’s head as he tried to figure out his next step. Even if the Avenger’s motives were misguided, he was as much of a criminal as his victims were. He and Mory needed to check out everybody connected to the original cases with the female rape victims, no matter which side of the law they were on. Of course, if there was a certain target among the male victims, maybe he hadn’t been killed yet. Or maybe he had and the other vics were covers. Perhaps it was someone who was tired of justice failing and had started his vigilante spree with violent abusers of women. Or it could be a religious nut who was trying to dole out Biblical punishment as the note hinted. Whoever was to blame, he had to make an eventual slip, and Dan intended to be there to catch him.
Sixteen. That number kept coming back to his mind. He had been eighteen when he’d been drafted into the army to fight in Vietnam. Dan still remembered fifteen-year-old Stevie Rooks, the blond-haired, blue-eyed boy who’d lied about his age so he could fight the “bad guys”. The image of young Stevie lying on the ground—his shirt and pants burnt into the charred flesh on his arms and legs, his blue eyes shrieking their pain and terror, blood oozing down the side of his head, and the continuous high-pitched scream which escaped his lungs—caused Dan’s throat to constrict with barely leashed emotions. Stevie had swallowed a bullet in the makeshift ambulance that was transporting him to the hospital. It shouldn’t be this way, Dan thought. They were practically children, for God’s sake! What kind of beast could commit such evil acts, even upon men accused and probably guilty of the same vile deeds?
Mory walked into their joint office to find Dan sitting at his desk, hands on his forehead and staring at sheets of paper before him. “You been here all night?” he asked.
Dan flinched at the sudden sound, pulled his attention back to the pages before him, scratched his stubbled chin and mumbled wearily, “Yeah. Been studying these files. I’m trying to find something to tie all of this together, one common thread.”
“By the look on your face, I’d say you haven’t found it.”
“Nope, but I will. Each murder almost matches the torture of its female victim’s. How does he get these details? If this isn’t an inside job, then he’s stealing or reading the files from somewhere. I don’t want to think it could be one of our guys, but I’m not going to ignore that possibility either. I want to go to the District Attorney’s office this afternoon and check their trial files. Maybe there’s something in them that our case files lack. At the time of our vic’s arrests and trials, they had no reason to try to connect these crimes or perps. They did a lot of investigating while prepping for trials, so maybe there’s a clue in their notes. Maybe a matching person of interest. So far, none of the original crimes were our cases, and two were BMT, so I’m unfamiliar with them. We didn’t have Silverman’s case, and it was chalked up wrong. Our boys did their work, but Ed failed to do his. Thank God, we have Henri in charge now and she’s promoted Harold.”
Mory added, “Since Susan’s case wasn’t a homicide, we didn’t get it either. We need to see Ray’s file on her case since it never went to trial.”
“The Captain said he would give Raymond a call and let him know I’m coming over. But first, we’ve got to talk to Susan Ames. Sorry, Mory, I just wasn’t up to it last night. Re-opening these cases is hard on the women and after Karen Starnes...Well, I just wasn’t up to facing a seventeen-year-old girl. I called her mother last night and told her we wanted to talk to them and why. She promised to shield the girl from the morning papers and television news and any phone calls or visits before we got there. Anything new on the ropes? It’s too soon for news about the note.”
“Ropes are standard, available in plenty of stores, same as the first two. I bet the same’s true with the typing paper. Harold told me no strange fingerprints anywhere. The lab’s got sperm samples, but we don’t have enough evidence to justify demanding a sample from anybody right now. So, I guess we don’t have shit! This Avenger is damn smart and careful.”
“You’re right, Mory, and it riles my gut.”
“Tell you what, Dan, why don’t I make some calls about the potassium chloride and do some follow-ups on the ones I made yesterday about James Starr while you go home and take a hot shower. Ms. Ames’s parents might think you’re the crazy man if you show up looking like that.”
“I guess I do look pretty rough. Thanks, Mory. I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Make it two. Eat before you come back. I don’t want you passing out on me if that Avenger comes up behind us.”