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AS FAR AS MURDER VICTIMS go, Dan Gifford, on the surface didn’t seem a likely candidate to be on that list. By all accounts, he appeared to be a happily married man with a nice house and car, successful job, and no criminal record. He led what some considered to be a charmed life.
That was on the surface, but when he dug deeper, Landry found a secret life the victim managed to keep hidden.
After reviewing the file on Ben Ledet’s murder, Landry had a gut feeling that the same killer murdered Dan Gifford. Landry suspected that the perpetrator was a female. Both crime scenes were exactly the same. It looked as if their unsub had chosen the local hotels as her killing ground. And her victims appear to be men who cheat on their wives.
Ben Ledet was from Shriver, Louisiana. He came to town for a convention being held at BestStay. As with Mr. Gifford, Ben Ledet appeared to be a happily married man also killed in a compromising situation. Either their unsub made sure to clean both men thoroughly, or she never had sexual relations with either man before killing them. Ben Ledet’s body had not been found until over twenty-four hours after his death. The housekeeper found him when she went in to clean his room. The manager had figured he forgot to turn in his key when he left.
Landry needed to ascertain how the unsub managed to get them subdued to inject them with a poison. How long did she wait before she killed the men?
Benoit asked, “Have we heard back from Forensics on the trace evidence they found at the crime scenes? All we know is that there is possibly a woman who killed two married men visiting our fine city.”
Landry pulled out his tablet and reviewed his case notes. “The only similarities are that both men were married, and more than likely picked up a pro or escort. After talking to the front desk clerks at both hotels, I am beginning to suspect that they called an escort service. Neither man was seen leaving the hotel that night, which was confirmed by the security tapes. I have someone comparing the security tapes to find out if we have the same woman entering both hotels on the nights of the murders. Both men also checked into the hotels alone. Neither man asked for two keys.”
Benoit agreed, “They more than likely each contacted an escort service.”
“I am still waiting to hear back from the VICAP search, but it has been twenty-four hours since I put in the request. I bet that there are no recent matches since there weren’t any immediate hits.”
Landry suspected that a female serial killer was on the loose here in Stewart, one that killed her lovers. Did this weaker, gentler sex have a dark side to her? Women were usually such docile creatures, but when scorned, they could be deadly. What drove her to kill these men? She had to be angry enough to kill, but still calm enough to stage the crime scenes.