Chapter Twenty


 

“Shaw, you’re back on the case, this nut job wants you and Levi. I wouldn’t allow this but he held up his end of the threat by cutting up a couple in the park,” the Captain all but bellowed over the phone.

Kissney looked at Levi then almost laughed. This killer had pushed the Captain into putting them back on as partners.

“Get in here and get that man in here too.”

Kissney didn’t get a chance to say anything because he hung up the phone. She looked at Levi then to the door. They needed to head into work but she didn’t want to deal with a pissed off Captain. It didn’t make much sense why this killer wanted them back on the case.

“Guess we have to head into work.”

“So it would seem. Do you think you can find me to go into work?”

Kissney laughed and kissed him as she rolled off him. When she looked into his eyes, the love reflecting back in them scared her.

“We have work to do.”

“Yes we do.”

They showered and headed out the door ten minutes later. The summer heat had broken, welcoming the fall breeze. Kissney had always loved the way the trees changed colors. As a little girl she used to believe the fairies would come out and paint the leaves. Now she knew better and thoughts like that had no place in her mind. She pulled into her parking spot looking up at the building. Why did she want to be a cop again?

“You look lost in thought,” Levi said.

“Just wondering why I wanted to be a cop in the first place.”

“To catch the bad guy?”

“I don’t think that’s why. I wanted to be the one to help the grieving families to find closure. To tell them the person who wronged them had been caught and put behind bars. I never really wanted to catch the bad guy, it’s the one thing that almost kept me from being a cop actually. I would rather see most of them dead.”

Levi looked at her shocked when she told him that. Cops didn’t talk about killing the suspects. That kind of talk would get your ass canned and put in a padded room. Levi wondered if he should worry about Kissney. She seemed to be alright most of the time but this killer was wearing her down.

“Time to work.”

“Let’s face the Captain who was dumb enough to listen to 1PP.”

Levi couldn’t argue with her about that one. They moved up the stone steps to the double doors, but Kissney didn’t see any of it. It was like she was in a haze the moment she entered the building. This guy had killed three more people in three days. It would be a while before he showed his face again.

“SHAW, get in here.”

She rolled her eyes at the way the Captain bellowed out her name but not Levi’s. He was a cop as well and good at his job. When she entered the office, Levi followed. He took the wall leaning against it, his t-shirt hugging his chest. Kissney looked at her Captain and tried to smile.

“Captain?”

“You know this guy has killed three more people.”

“Yes I know he killed again, but I’m not on the case, sir, you suspended me.”

“Stop being a pain in my ass, Kissney. You’re reinstated.”

He handed the gun and badge over to her, waiting on Kissney to take it. She waited a few moments before she finally took the weapon and shield. Kissney sat in the leather chair that faced his desk.

“The woman in the park was like the others. He did a number on her. You’ll need to catch up on the case. The couple in the park will also go with this case. A few people swore they witnessed a man walking close to them, but none of them could give a good description.”

Kissney watched as he paced behind his desk. This case was a career killer or maker. Right now they had a killer they couldn’t read, or predict.

“The woman in the park, did he change anything?” Kissney asked when it looked like the Captain had stopped talking.

“No, looks like he did the same as the others. Picked a hooker and killed her. The manner of death was a little different though. He used a needle. No useable prints however.”

“That doesn’t shock me at all; he doesn’t have a set MO. I’d be more worried if he just started to hack people up. And the couple, did he do anything like he does with the girls?” Kissney knew Levi had some of the answers but she wanted to press Captain Parnese for the details about the case.

“He posed them in a manner of speaking. They were making out on the bench and when he killed them, they stayed that way. The star was carved into the cheeks. If you take them apart you will only see half of the star.”

Kissney looked at him then down to the floor. This man was a true psycho. The door to the office opened without a knock, Captain Parnese glared at the young beat cop.

“There’s been another murder, a young couple in the park. The cops on the scene say they have a star carved into their legs or something. I couldn’t make it all out over the screaming in the background.”

“Get out to the scene you two.” Kissney watched as the Captain rubbed his temples. They needed to catch this guy and soon.

“You driving?” Levi asked as they hurried out to the jeep.

“It is my car. You have the address?”

“Yes, it isn’t far from the other scenes. He seems to like that park area.”

They drove the twenty minutes in silence. They arrived to see news vans all over the place. A small group of kids, with moms holding them close, huddled by one of the ambulances. Kissney looked to Levi and knew this wasn’t going to be good.

“Detective Shaw, Officer Krumm, is this The Ripper again?

“No comment.”

The questions kept coming, but they ignored them all. When they crossed the yellow tape Kissney spoke to the officer in charge. She wanted them to move the news crews another five feet away. The officer told her the group of parents had found the couple. Kissney asked if the kids had seen anything. The cop told her he wasn’t sure, but most of the moms didn’t want the kids to go close to the park. Kissney walked to the group of parents and kids. She hated when children were involved, they didn’t normally understand.

“Officer, can we please go home? The kids have been standing here for hours,” asked one of the parents

“I’m sorry for the trouble. I just need to talk to you about what you found.”

“You can talk to my lawyer; I won’t stay here any longer. Grace needs to eat and use the bathroom.”

Kissney looked at the young blonde with her little girl. They looked shaken but not enough to have seen a body. The ones who usually wanted to talk, Kissney knew didn’t normally see much. When they got to the last mom with her young son, Kissney knew she had seen something.

“Ma’am?”

When Kissney touched her arm the woman jumped away pulling her son with her. Kissney motioned to Levi to check on the boy.

“Hey, slugger, do you have a favorite baseball team?”

“Yes!”

The two started to talk, Kissney noticed the mom let the little boy go with Levi with little fight. Kissney finally got the woman to open up about what she found. Tracy had found the young couple under the trees. She was crying about how she didn’t want her son to see the people. Blood was all over the place and all she could do was scream. The other mothers had kept their children away from the scene. They called the cops soon after, but she couldn’t recall seeing anyone close by. The park had been pretty full at the time.

“Thank you for your time, Tracy. If you think of anything just give me a call. Do you have anyone that can stay with you?”

“My sister will come by to check on us when I call. I know not to talk about this. I will keep your card by the phone.”

Tracy walked over to pick up her son. They left the park in a hurry. Kissney didn’t think they would come back there, ever.