All The Devil's Creatures: A Jack McDermott Serial Killer Thriller, page 19
Near the air conditioner was a doorway into a bedroom with an unmade queen-size bed piled high with quilts.
There was a kitchen on the far end of the cabin, with a full stove, cabinets, and a brushed steel refrigerator. The eating area had a linoleum floor and a small table just big enough for two people.
A uniformed policeman in a beige shirt and olive pants sat at the table in a wooden chair. He was balding but wore a buzz cut so it wasn’t as noticeable. The officer stood up, slightly alarmed, as Andrea went from window to window closing the curtains.
“I thought you said I was safe?” Cassie said fearfully.
“You are,” Andrea reassured her as she pulled the last curtain in place. “We’re just exercising an abundance of caution.”
“You’re FBI?” the officer asked.
“Special Agent Andrea Valenti. And you are…?”
“Dale Jones, Scottsboro PD.” Jack wondered if the guy would ask to see Andrea’s ID, but he didn’t. Instead his eyes lit on Jack and his face brightened. “You’re that writer guy!”
Jack extended his hand and they shook. “Jack McDermott. We appreciate you coming over and keeping Cassie safe till we got here.”
“Aaaah, just doin’ my job.” Dale’s aw-shucks expression quickly gave way to concern. “What’s goin’ on? Cassie said you folks think a serial killer might be after her?”
“We don’t know that for sure,” Andrea said. “But we are investigating two murders committed by the same man. One was the college student in Athens – did you hear about her?”
“Yes ma’am.”
“The other was Donald King, my teaching assistant at Georgia State University,” Jack said.
“Oh my GOD!” Cassie cried out, and her hands flew to her mouth.
“You knew him?”
“Yes,” she said, starting to tear up. “Elias introduced me… he was really nice…”
“Yeah, he was,” Jack agreed solemnly.
“You think her ex is workin’ with this serial killer guy?” Dale asked.
“Maybe, maybe not,” Jack answered. “We talked to Elias yesterday in the Adairsville police station, and he seemed terrified. We think he might have had contact with the killer, but I doubt he’s working with him.”
Cassie wiped away her tears. “Elias was messed up, but he wasn’t that messed up. I can’t believe he would do something like that.”
“Neither can I, but we need to make absolutely sure you’re safe. Did you talk to your parents?”
Cassie nodded. “They were freaked out, but they promised they’d get out of town. They both left their jobs early and said it was a family emergency.”
“Good.”
“What should I do?”
“Pick a place on a map at least a day’s drive away, someplace you’ve never been before and that you have no connection with. Go there and hole up in a hotel room until you hear from us.”
Cassie winced. “I don’t exactly have the money for that.”
Jack pulled out his wallet. “I’ve got about $300 – that should hold you for a couple of days.”
“I can’t take your money!”
“Cassie, I would have given up a hell of a lot more if it would’ve saved Donald’s life. Please.”
She reluctantly took the money. “…thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Just don’t take any chances, and don’t tell anybody where you’re going – not even your folks, okay?”
“Okay.” She suddenly looked worried. “I’m supposed to work tomorrow – ”
“Call in sick tonight after you get to the hotel. Tell ‘em you came down with the flu – that’ll give you several days at least.”
“Okay.”
“I could go with you,” Dale offered, then blushed. “I mean – I could escort you part of the way, anyhow. Maybe to Huntsville.”
“How far away is that?” Andrea asked.
“‘Bout 45 minutes.”
“That’s great,” Andrea said, then switched her gaze to Cassie. “But keep driving at least another four or five hours after that. More would be better.”
“I think I’m almost out of gas, though – I’ve got to get some.”
“We could stop at the Shell station over on Summerville,” Dale suggested.
“When she gets gas, Officer, you get out and keep your eyes on her the entire time,” Andrea said. “And then I want you both to go straight on through to Huntsville.”
“Beggin’ your pardon, ma’am, but what exactly should I be on the outlook for?”
“We don’t know,” Jack said. “That’s the problem. It’s a guy, but we don’t have a picture or description of him.”
“That’s kind of a problem.”
“Yes, it is – which is why we need you to drive as far away as you can,” Jack said to Cassie.
“Okay.”
Right at that second, Jack’s stomach grumbled again.
Cassie laughed. “You need a snack for the road?”
“No, I’m fine – we’ll get something to eat as soon as you’re on your way.”
“You can drop by the diner where I work – Merle’s, over on Highway 17. When we go out to the main road, just turn left and drive about ten minutes, you’ll see it. Rachel should be working. You can tell her I sent you.”
“Will do. You got your bag?”
“Yeah, hold on,” she said and went into the bedroom to retrieve it.
Dale lowered his voice as he asked, “Just between us… how much danger is she in?”
“We don’t really know,” Jack answered. “The killer’s never said anything about her – ”
“You’ve talked to him?” Dale asked in astonishment.
“…yeah,” Jack said, wishing he hadn’t brought it up. “And he’s left some clues that led us to her ex. But there hasn’t been anything that specifically mentioned Cassie. Still… keep sharp.”
Dale nodded sternly. “You can bet on it.”
39
Cassie hugged Jack, thanked Andrea, and then got in her truck. Everyone followed her down the gravel lane through the woods – Dale in his cruiser and Jack and Andrea in her Honda.
When they reached the main road, Cassie beeped her horn once in farewell and turned right. Dale followed close behind her.
“Do you think we should follow her?” Jack asked as they watched the two cars disappear down the lonesome country road.
“The one thing we know for certain is that the killer’s focused on you,” Andrea said. “If Cassie’s not on his radar, then we’d be endangering her by following her. Plus she has a policeman with her. She’ll be fine.”
“Do you think this was all a wild goose chase?”
“I prefer a wild goose chase and her being safe to the alternative. Do you want to go to that diner for breakfast?”
Jack’s stomach growled before he could answer.
“I’ll take that as a yes,” Andrea said with a smile.
“Hey, it is three hours back to Atlanta.”
“I’m not arguing,” Andrea said as she turned left.
The diner was a greasy spoon on an isolated stretch of highway with nothing around it for half a mile. There were only two other cars in the lot, and both were parked behind the painted cinderblock building.
When Jack and Andrea got inside, they saw why: the place was deserted except for a bored-looking waitress leaning up against the lunch counter.
“Hi, y’all – welcome to Merle’s,” she said as they entered. She looked to be in her early 20s, with long dark hair and a tattoo peeking out from the neck of her light blue uniform.
“Are you Rachel?” Jack asked.
“I am,” the waitress answered, a little puzzled about how they knew her without a nametag.
“Cassie said to say ‘hello.’”
“Oh, cool! Y’all local?”
“No, visiting from Atlanta.”
“Nice. Have a seat anywhere you like. We’re not exactly bustlin’ at the moment.”
They chose a booth by the window. Andrea took the side that looked out at the road, which left her back to the door.
“Let me know if somebody comes in,” she told Jack.
“What, no sitting next to each other and snuggling?” he joked as he took the seat opposite her.
“Very forward of you after only one night,” she replied playfully.
“That’s me, super forward. You think it’s a good idea to let Li and Harper know what we just did, sending Cassie off like that?”
“Let me decide once I have a full stomach.”
“Sounds good to me.”
40
Cassie pulled into the Shell station on Summerville like Dale had suggested at the cabin. It was small, with only four pumps and a tiny convenience store. No other cars were there, and only the occasional vehicle drove past.
Dale pulled in behind her and got out of his cruiser as Cassie put her credit card in the machine.
“I sure am sorry I can’t go with you wherever you wind up,” he said.
She smiled. “It’s okay – I just appreciate you coming out to the cabin and keeping me company. I know I must’ve sounded crazy when I called the station.”
“Well, it was unusual, I’ll give you that.”
“Thank you again.”
“More’n happy to do it.”
Cassie was selecting which grade of gasoline to use when a black Cadillac Escalade with tinted windows turned into the station.
Dale watched the vehicle carefully as it pulled up on the opposite side of the gas pumps.
“Get in your truck,” he said quietly to Cassie.
Her eyes went wide as she slipped inside the cab.
Dale rested his hand on his gun and edged around the gas pumps for a look.
A woman with platinum blonde hair down to her shoulders got out of the SUV. She wore sweatpants and a dumpy sweatshirt that completely hid any curves. A KN95 mask and sunglasses covered her face as she walked across the station towards the mini-mart, completely oblivious to Dale or Cassie.
When the woman went through the door, a bell on it tinkled.
As soon as she was inside, Dale motioned with his head and Cassie got back out.
“Can’t be too careful,” Dale said.
“I guess so,” Cassie agreed and went over to get the handle and put it in her tank.
“Y’know… I could tell Chief what’s goin’ on and go with you wherever you’re headed,” Dale suggested.
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I don’t mind. I mean, I don’t know if he’d even say yes, but I could ask. If it’d make you feel better.”
“I don’t know… they did say I was supposed to go alone…”
“C’mon, now… you really think I’m the serial killer?” Dale teased.
“Well, I don’t know – you are awful mysterious,” Cassie said with a playful grin.
“Me, mysterious?” Dale laughed. He was liking this part of the conversation.
“Yeah, you’re always – ”
The bell on the door tinkled. Dale glanced around to see the woman walking out, staring down at her phone.
Dale turned back to Cassie and said, “I’m always – ”
He didn’t finish the sentence because there was a clap sound like a heavy book hitting the ground, then his forehead exploded.
Bits of blood and gore sprayed Cassie, the gas pump, and the truck.
She stood there in uncomprehending horror, unable to scream.
Dale fell face-first onto the concrete slab of the gas station with a hard THUD.
Behind him stood the woman, except she had a pistol with a suppressor attached to the barrel – and it was pointed at Cassie.
“Get down on your knees NOW or YOU’RE NEXT,” a man’s voice came from behind the mask.
41
Jack and Andrea were halfway through their breakfast when the waitress came over to refresh their coffees.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Great,” Jack said.
“Y’all need anything else for the next couple minutes?”
“I think we’re good.”
“Okay, I’m gonna go take a quick smoke break out back then.”
“Sure thing.”
The waitress smiled, then disappeared behind the counter and into the back.
“What do we do when we get back to Atlanta?” Jack asked.
Andrea raised one eyebrow seductively as she sipped from her cup of coffee.
Jack chuckled. “I like your thinking – but I meant about everything else. The case, the FBI… for instance, what’s going to happen to you and your job?”
“Well… there’ll be an initial review, probably by somebody other than Harper, since he’s the one who lodged the initial complaint. The OPR – the Office of Professional Responsibility – will probably do an investigation, but that’s not going to take very long since I’m not going to contest any of the facts. I’m sure they’ll find me in violation, in which case they’ll either terminate me or keep me on, but in a severely diminished capacity. Either way, my career with the FBI is over.”
Jack frowned. “What do you mean, ‘over’? If they don’t fire you – ”
“A career with the Bureau is all about ascending the ladder through promotions. If you screw up as badly as I just did, there are no more promotions. I’ll be stuck behind a desk doing paperwork for the next however many years. I didn’t sign up for that.”
“So you’ll quit?”
“Probably.” She gave an ironic smile. “I could always ask Li for a job.”
“How long have you been with the Bureau?”
“Four years.”
“Four years doesn’t buy you any sort of a pass?”
“No. There are rules. I broke them, and there are consequences.”
Jack was silent for a second. Then he asked, “If you had to do it all over again… would you?”
“If we end up catching the guy? Yes. Absolutely.”
“And if we don’t?”
“Let’s not even consider that right now. What about you? I assume you can’t exactly go back to teaching if there’s a psychopath out there who could walk into your classroom at any moment.”
“I’ll probably take some time off. I’m sure the university will be lenient about it, given the circumstances.”
“What’ll you do?”
“…play golf? I don’t know.”
“You don’t strike me as a golfer.”
“I’m not, so I guess I’ll have to learn.”
“You could always write another book,” she said playfully. “You’ve got a ready-made case ripped from the headlines.”
“Nah. My first two books almost ruined this thing I’ve got going with a hot FBI agent.”
“Mm,” she said with a grin.
Jack looked past her and suddenly tensed. “Heads up, we’ve got a guy coming in.”
“Car?”
“I didn’t see one drive up.”
Andrea swung one leg up onto the padded bench and twisted her body so that she was sideways in the bench and facing the lunch counter. It looked like she was kicking back in a relaxed pose… except for her hand drawing her gun beneath the top of the booth, out of sight of anyone but Jack.
The White male who walked in was around 40 years old – very thin, almost gaunt, with short brown hair. He wore a polo shirt, jeans, sneakers, and a black overcoat. He looked around the diner and saw Jack and Andrea looking at him.
“Hello,” he said in a friendly voice.
“Hi,” Jack said.
Andrea gave a half-smile, but kept her gun just two inches beneath the top edge of the booth.
The man looked around, then turned back to Jack. “I guess it’s just ‘seat yourself’?”
“The waitress is out back having a smoke.”
“Oh, okay,” the man said and walked over to the lunch counter. He sat slightly behind and to the right of Andrea.
She kept her gun exactly where it was.
The guy took one of the laminated menus from the counter and looked at it for a few seconds. Then he turned around slowly on the spinning stool.
Jack tensed.
Andrea watched the man carefully – but both his hands were empty and fully visible.
The guy looked sideways at Jack. “I’m sorry… don’t I know you from somewhere?”
Jack sighed inwardly. He knew where this was going.
“No, I don’t think so.”
“I mean – are you an actor or something? You look really familiar.”
Jack gave the man a polite smile. “I’ve written some books.”
“Wait – oh my God – you’re that serial killer guy!” the guy said with an explosive laugh.
“…yeah.”
“J…John McDonald?” the guy guessed.
“Jack McDermott.”
“Oh my God – wow, this is crazy! Do you live around here?”
“No.”
Jack’s clipped manner finally clued the man in.
“I’m sorry – I’m intruding,” he said, realizing how awkward the conversation was. “I’ll let you get back to your breakfast.”
“It’s just been a rough couple of days.”
The man’s eyes went wide. “Are you investigating something?” he whispered loudly.
“No.”
“Oh…” The man looked at Andrea, who stared back at him. “…okay… well, it was nice talking to you.”
“You too.”
The guy smiled, then turned back to the counter and started looking at his menu again.
Jack and Andrea looked at the man for another 20 seconds, then gradually relaxed… although Andrea still kept her gun at the top edge of the booth.
“Maybe we should take off,” Jack suggested.
“We’ve got to pay first.”
“We could just leave her 30 bucks and go. That would more than cover it, plus a nice tip.”
“Okay.”
“You got any cash? Seeing as I kind of gave all mine away?”
“I think I’ve got some.”
“Mind me buying me breakfast? I’ll pay you back.”
“You don’t have to pay me back,” she said with an amused smile as she put her purse on the table and unzipped it with her free hand.
