#TuesdayTease #TeaserTuesday #teasemetuesday
Because RETRIBUTION releases in just 14 days, I figured today would be appropriate for another little snippet from the book.
Brainstorming is the best way for the SPCD team to come to a meeting of the minds about who the killer might be. Here’s a quick little scene after they find the most recent dead girl.
“The cause of death in all the victims, including Brittany Chasen, was massive blood loss from surgical trauma, namely the removal of the girls’ reproductive organs. From the preliminary drug result data, no systemic anesthetics were used, and I couldn’t locate any topical applications either.”
Anna inhaled sharply.
“This sick creep opened these girls without providing any kind of pain relief. I can only hope they were unconscious, or already half dead when he did it.”
“Any physical findings?” Tucker asked.
“There was substantial muscle decay, indicating they were starved for the length of their captivity. You know about the ritual cutting of the arms and legs. Nothing that was deep enough to kill, but some of the open wounds were topically infected. Each girl had evidence of sodomy, vaginal rape, and swollen pharynx indicative of oral rape. Microscopic investigations showed no fibers, no DNA, no blood, nothing. Their bodies were scrubbed clean inside and out with bleach, probably postmortem, before they were dumped.”
Tucker nodded. “Anna?”
Referring to the device at her fingertips, she said, “Interviews with the parents of each victim have proved fruitless so far. All were somewhere other than they were supposed to be when they disappeared. Brittany was thought to be at soccer practice and instead was seen at a music store. Emily Johannson was due at school play practice but was last seen going into a CVS. Margaret Pearl had a piano lesson she skipped and went to a local mall instead. Erin Heuser missed a guitar lesson to go to a Quick-Mart. Paula Killarney dodged basketball practice for a coffee shop. And Magdala Profinsky was due to babysit for her cousin and wasn’t seen anywhere after her last class of the day. There’s no common link between them. All six attended different schools, lived in very different neighborhoods and came from widespread financial and social backgrounds. They didn’t know each other and there are no friends that link them. They were, for all intents and purposes, total strangers.”
“What’s the common thread?” Tucker asked, removing his glasses and cleaning them with a handkerchief.
“Physically, they resembled one another in basic makeup,” she said. “Each was approximately five feet three to five feet five inches tall. Each was a blonde with shoulder-length or longer hair, blue eyes, and trim physiques. White. None of them weighed more than a hundred and ten pounds. Two were vegans. Four played a sport, and two played instruments. Nothing stands out.”
