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LANDRY GRASPED HIS razor and shaving cream, attempting to make himself presentable for this morning’s meeting with Sheriff Williams. He still couldn’t believe that a month ago, he gave into temptation and took Chloe Matthews to bed.
It has also been two weeks since Sheriff Williams told him they might have to rethink surveillance. Landry suspected that the sheriff would end up pulling the undercover officers doing the surveillance, but at least leave the cameras. Those didn’t cost the department additional money. The problem was, that with no other leads he could not afford for anything to be cut. His killer was out there waiting to strike. If only he knew when she would kill again.
Exhaling a deep breath, he dragged the razor across his face.
Landry poured himself a cup of coffee before going into to Sheriff Williams’s office. Benoit met him at the coffee pot. “Mon ami, are you ready for this fight?”
Landry gave him a smirk, “I plan on fighting tooth and nail to keep the surveillance in place.”
Benoit and Landry each settled into a chair in the sheriff’s office and waited patiently to begin their battle. Landry spoke first, a desperate tone in his voice. “We can’t pull the undercover surveillance.”
“I’m sorry, mon ami. The decision has already been made. It came from up high. The mayor has been breathing down my neck about the costs of surveillance in this case. I want this bitch apprehended just as bad as you, but we need a new plan. We can’t keep throwing money out of the window for a plan that may never work.”
Landry knew Sheriff Williams was right. He had to come up with a more cost effective plan. “I’m working with vice on arranging a sting operation, but even that seems to be expensive. The escort services aren’t cheap, and they want their money in advance. Plus, they are smart. They must have someone on the inside because if they smell a cop, they don’t show.”
“It’s a good plan. Try working other angles. We know she picks up men sometimes at bars.”
“I’ve thought of that, but how do we know it’s not just an overpriced prostitute that we are picking up. No, the best way is to call the escort services. Hopefully, we will get a lead soon. Something has to give, because we don’t have squat.”
Sheriff Williams asked, “What about the press? That didn’t pan out either?”
“No. Instead, the press began to hound me for more information. We have no suspects to question and for all we know she is hunting for another victim as we speak.”
Landry walked back to his desk to rethink this case. He recalled what he had learned from the FBI in the past that serial killers almost always follow the same pattern and kill the same type of people. There were times when a killer didn’t fit that mold, though, the ones that have no pattern and kill randomly. That thought alone sent a chill through his body. He hoped he never ran into that brand of evil face to face.
Once again, Landry sent what information he had to the NCIC, National Crime Information Center. This would put the information out there to other police departments across the states in hopes another case matched the profile of his case. He also puts the information through VICAP, Violent Criminal Apprehension Program. All of this was a long shot since he had no hits in the past.
It had been almost a month since the last body was found and Landry feared that there was a chance this case would go unsolved. It was sad to say, but unless this killer struck again, they stood little chance of catching her.