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Jake pulled over to the curb between a gas station and a fast food joint. I gave him the picture."This is not good. Acer, did she tell you her name?""No, but the other guys in the bar recognized her all at the same time. At first we didn't know what she was on the news for, so there was lots of hootin and hollerin for a celeb we all knew. Then Julio told us to shut up and listen.""What was the name she gave at Julio's?""Sweet Baby.""Alright, that doesn't prove it's the same woman. But it does mean we have to interview everyone at Julio's."He turned toward Acer, there was no lopsided grin, no easy going laid back feel to Jake now."Tell us everything you know and heard. Don't leave out a thing.""Well, first time I saw her was bout three months ago. She was working on Julio behind the bar at the time. She..""We don't need sexual references or descriptions, Ace, just facts." I said."Yeah, Okay. She stood up and I had to admit I was impressed with Julio. She's a real looker. He handed her a twenty and told her to head to the back table. He also told her she was hired.""Hired?""Yeah, that's what he said. So I asked him if she was a new waitress, cause there hasn't been one a Julio's for six months or more. He laughed at me. Said, 'Waitress? Hell no boy! For $20 a pop she's gonna take care of all my customers. Make um real happy."Jake and I gave each other a knowing look. This could be very bad."I asked him how he got such a fine looking gal to take care of him. He said he has his ways and that just maybe she owed him big.""Tell me Ace, did you get taken care of by her?"I glared at Jake. My look told him what I thought of his question. He shrugged his shoulders."Yeah, once or twice.""Anything else to add?""No. That's about it.""Get out of here. Call me if you hear anything else. We'll give you a few minutes to get away from here, then we're heading back to Julio's."We entered the bar. The smell of stale beer, greasy food and old urine combined to make its own disgusting cologne. The bar itself was made of plywood, how nice, painted black. The stools were the nicest accessory. There was a large mirrior behind the bar, its edges blackened. Bottles of low budget booze lined the back shelf. Spot covered glasses on the lower shelf.Julio himself stood behind the bar with a large toothy grin as he spoke to one of his regulars.Jake flashed his badge.Julio reached behind him and turned the music down."Who you looking for?""Is your name Julio?""Yeah.""Then you're the one we're looking for. Can you turn the music off for now?"Though the music is off, my ears still ring and my head still pounds. I let Jake do the talking."What cha want?""We heard through the talk on the street that you may have had our victim working your bar.""Who?""Miranda Blake." "'Don't know the name.""She was 5', slim, blond shoulder length hair, blue eyes. And please don't try to tell me you have so many of these ladies partonizing your ….establishment on a regular basis."Julio laughed."No, officer, I don't."Jake nodded."I didn't think so. So tell us about her.""She come in here bout three or four months ago. Says she wants to do me a favor.So I say, okay. She come behind the bar and does me a real nice favor."Julio winked at me as he smirked. Sickening."That was it?""No. She give me her card, told me to think about hiring her and left. I called her the next day and said come back. I ask for another favor, so I can be sure. She does. I tell her she's hired.""Do you still have her card?" I asked."Yeah."He pulls a small business card from his old cash register.Jake takes the card and we both check it out. It's black with a garish shade of pink full lips. In the center of the bottom lip is a phone number. At the bottom right the name Sweet Baby."We need to keep this card.""Go head. I can't use it no more."Jake slips the card into a small pocket of his note book."Did she say anything, any conversation at all?" I inquire."You kiddin?""No. We are looking for any thing she might have said that would give us a clue as to why she selected your…ah….place of business.""No. She didn't say.""If it's the same to you, we would like to ask your customers the same question.""Go head."I turned to look around the dark room. Several people are seated at tables against the back wall. As we head in their direction, I detect the distinct scent of weed.There are five people seated, staring up at us as though we are a figment of their imaginations.I look at the nearest male, long filthy dreadlocks, huge black circles under his lifeless dark brown eyes. His skin is ruddy, acne scared and scaley. The cigarette held in his yellowed fingers is burning his long fingernails, warping them into sick art. The clothes he has on are torn, dirty and too big for his small frame. His jeans are worn thin in spots, with grease and oil stains. His feet are unwashed, laced into tattered sandals. As he moves his feet the odor wafts into our personal space."Do you know 'Sweet Baby'?"His smile reveals missing front teeth. The remainder of his teeth are black and broken into ragged edges."Sweet Baby? No."I move back about three steps to get away from his aroma.Jake moves in for the kill.Grabbing the man's shirt, popping what few buttons he had, pulls him to his feet.The sound of thin material ripping can be heard in the silent bar."We know she worked this bar. We know someone like you would have taken full advantage of that situation. We are not here to arrest anybody. We want information."Jake let go, pulled his hand back to his side.The customer smoothed his shirt which hung open, revealing a wafer thin hairless chest, prominent rib cage. I could even see his heart beating."Why didn't the lady cop just say that? Yeah, we all know 'Sweet Baby'.""Did she mention a reason or a pimp, anything as to why she was here?""Nobody sat around and talk wit her. Specially me. I never say a word to her and I never let her touch me. I didn't want to catch nothin." He chuckled and winked at me.We let the guy sit back down while we both took out our note books. Jake started with the left of the table, I took the right."We want names and addresses. Give us the truth and we will leave you alone. Lie to us, and we will find you and arrest you.""What cha gonna arrest us for?"I looked to mr.dreadlocks and winked as I answered."We'll think of something and make it stick."We have each name and address, including cell phone numbers. Why these people need to have cell phones stumps me. Who could they possibly call?As we pass the bar on our way to the exit, Jake stops briefly."Do you have any connection with Ms Drake other than what you have told us?""No, man.""I don't believe you, Julio. So let me tell you this. If I find out that you did have another connection with our victim, you will be in a world of hurt. I will not stop until I have you locked up along side of our killer. I will spread the word through out the prison system that you abuse children. How long do you think you will survive in general population?"I watched Julio's olive skin drain of color. His eyes were huge as he nodded his head in understanding.As I slipped into the passenger seat, the music began once more. Julio recovered quickly.
As we entered the station we could see members of the team already present. FBI agents were standing with Captain Bayonne by our doorway. I looked at the only female agent. She was average height, athletic build with a long thick braid of gold hair. Her face appeared tanned, naturally or from a bottle, I couldn't tell. As we neared, she turned to look directly at us. I could feel her eyes assessing me an well as my partner. Her brown eyes, fathomless and unreadable."Lt. Forrest. This is Special Agent in Charge, Abigail Clover from the BAU out of Quantico." Captain Bayonne introduced the lead agent."Special Agent Clover." I said as I held out my hand. I then introduced my partner.After introductions with the agents with her, we entered the task force room.The team sat in their same seats as our first meeting."The FBI is here with our profile. Special Agent Clover?""Good evening. I know that most of you have been assigned to task force units in the past, but I feel it important to begin at the beginning.In order for the FBI to become involved in any form the murders have to be declared the work of one perpetrator, present with the same MO, have at least three to four victims with a cooling off period between.The guidelines for this determination, as well as profiling, are simply that, guidelines. Each perp develops his own method for his own reasons. They are psychopaths who are charming and charismatic. Usually portraying authoritative figures for control of the victim. But not all. Ted Bundy portrayed vulnerability, seeking 'aid' from his victims. A helplessness that invoked sympathy. Serial killers are void of emotions and they simply emulate empathy or compassion from watching others, they are like actors on a stage, playing their roles with precision.The Serial Killer who has claimed San Francisco as his new killing ground, has most certainly struck before in other states. To this date we only know of ten victims. Three here in the bay area, three in Arizona and four in New Mexico. But these were not his first.My BAU team has put together a profile like no other we have done in the past."Special Agent Clover nodded to her teammates to step forward."I am Special Agent Marcus Sanchez."My eyes are drawn to Special Agent Sanchez as he now stands before us.He's a tall man, dressed comfortably in fitted bluejeans and red t-shirt. His black hair, straight and rather long is tucked behind his ears. A silver loop shows in his right earlobe. His skin is ruddy, lips small and thin, high cheekbones with wide deep set black eyes. Though he is not handsome, his presence in the room is duly noted."The man you are looking for is between the ages of 30 and 40, white, married with above average intelligence. He is highly educated, would have been in the top ten of his college graduating class. This is where he strays from our usual suspects. He is not a loner. Actually he is the complete opposite. He would be considered the life ot the party and has many friends. He is not interested in the media, he does not care if he is understood. And most of all, he does not want to be caught, nor does he intend to stop. This is not a cry for help.""I am Special Agent Sean O'Malley. This man has been killing since his early teens. He is either clever enough to space his killings with enough time for the murders to go cold, or this is simply based on his own needs. Either way, this means he is beginning to unravel. Three murders inside of three months is not his usual MO. The stressor for him would have happened approximately six to eight months ago."O'Malley, though shorter than Sanchez, still commanded notice. Very handsome in a rugged way. The scar at the corner of his right eye showed strength rather than flaw. His green eyes, filled with a seriousness at the moment, still appeared at the verge of erupting into laughter. His dark hair,wavy with gray peppered throughout, but still thick and long. He,too, looked comfortable in bluejeans and dark green t-shirt.I let the words of the Agents swirl around in my mind.We have no idea where this perp originated from, nor how many victims he can lay claim to. This is my first task force for a serial killer."Lt. Forrest? The first thing we need to do here is to assign a liaison. Do you have anyone in mind?" asked Clover."Yes, I do. Sergeant Rod Timmeron, from Northern Station."Rod stood for a moment giving a brief nod of acknowledgement."You will head the team members who will remain here to man the computers and phones. Other than data management, you will set up a meeting with the M.E. as well as the D.A. I also want a list of forensic experts compiled and waiting. "Rod nodded to me that he understood what I wanted."Special Agent Sanchez? Is there any idea of his origin?" I asked."We have reason to believe he began on the East coast. There are similar reports from small town agencies. Two of our team are there right now talking with the agencies and going over the reports. You will know the moment we know."I nodded okay. What else could I do?" Special Agent Clover?How long will the FBI remain here?" This came from Q4 officer Serena Rodriguez from the Mission Station."We will have a presence here until the killer is apprehended. Lt. Forrest remains in charge of this task force, and she is the one you answer to. However, if we give an order you will obey, we will accept full responsibility for the outcome. We may not always have time to discuss procedure with Lt. Forrest before issuing an order. We will do our utmost to comply with the chain of command, bu when necessity prevails, we will improvise.""When will your agents report their findings from the East Coast?""We should hear from them momentarily." Agent Clover answered as she glanced at her watch. "They just arrived at Manchester, New Hampshire airport less than six hours ago.""How many victims are you thinking are in New Hampshire?"Special Agent Clover pulled her cell phone from her jacket pocket. It beeped once more as she flipped it open to answer.Special Agent O'Malley stepped up to reply to the question. '"We think we may be looking at as many as six, but at least three."I watched Clover as she sat at the long table, phone held at her shoulder while she wrote furiously.Now she snapped her phone shut but remained seated while she tapped her pen on the notebook."That was Special Agent Wallace. We have more victims in New England that first thought. The earliest was in Gorham, N.H. in January, 1994. No arrest. We believe this is the same perp, and this is his first kill. The victim, Rebecca Turner, 16, second year student at Gorham High. Found in a clearing by a small brook by two campers. She was fully clothed, no sexual assault. Her throat was slashed with a serrated blade no more that four inches long. She bled out, and by the amount of blood it was determined she was found at the crime scene."She glanced at her notes as she stood."Agents Wallace and Penngal will remain in New Hampshire to speak with authorities as well as family members, beginning with Rebecca Turner's.I have here a list of seven females, mid to late teens, various descriptions. These appeared to be random killings, not the work of one. We know now through experience that random killings are most often the work of a serial killer.There are two in the small town of Gorham. The second is Kathy Wakefield, age 17 a third year student at Gorham High. Her body was found on a wide path by the Androscoggin River just outside of Gorham in March of 1995. She was nude from the waist up, her throat slashed with the same type blade as Rebecca Turner.The third victim is Sandra Walker, 15, first year student at Errol High. Her nude body was found on a large rock also by the Androscoggin River January 1996.There was very little blood at that location, therefore it's believed she was murdered elsewhere and then brought to the river.
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Smiling now, Jake kept his eyes on the road ahead, but continued to tell me his story."My wife was a real bitch.""I'm sure she was." I answer dryly.Out of the corner of my eye, I see his huge smile. I smile in return. I truly like my new partner.Now I hear a phone beeping out to the tune of "God Bless America' coming from his pants pocket.I look at him as he lifts his hip to pull out the I-phone. I can't control the laugh."My daughter sent me the ring-tone.""Em Hmm."I listen to a brief one sided conversation."Hey Ace, I was just thinking about you. Haven't heard from you in a while. Where you been buddy? Sure, where are you? Un huh. Okay, I'll see you at Julio's in twenty."Jake tosses the phone onto the dash without a word."Well? Was that personal or can you share?""Sorry. Was just thinking. That was my snitch. Name is Acer. For a bad guy, he is pretty good."I laugh outright."If you say so. Does he know anything?""Says he does. We'll soon find out." I turn to look out the window as Jake drives through the traffic. Soon we hit the off ramp and head down town to Broadway St. Jake parks the car in front of a small club. The facade was peeling in places giving the building a checker board look. The door stood open and loud music broke the sound barrier. The faded sign over the open space read "Julio's Place" which made it sound more inviting than it truly was."Real nice place.""Yeah, well, it's a real nice neighborhood."We just sit there."Okay, are we getting out?""Not yet. We're early and I would actually like to be able to hear your answers to my questions."I push the button to raise my window so to block out the music."We're still with the Q&A?""Yup. So why is your marriage complicated.""Who's isn't?" "Mine wasn't. I no longer loved my wife, she no longer loved me. But we both loved our daughter. We divorced five years ago and she remarried three months later. She may have been having an affair."I glanced at him to see his mood. The wide grin told me he was over any residual hurt."Ya think?" I asked with a wink.We both chuckled. I had to admit to myself that I really responded well to his calm, laid back attitude. I liked the grin too. I decided to trust him."Sam and I started out perfect. Same desires, same dream. We both wanted kids but now he says 'no way' because since I'm never home, he would have to do the child rearing.It's true, I guess. I have been concentrating on my own career so much that I don't even know what's been happening in his. If he got a promotion or a raise, I don't know about it. We haven't talked much in the last six years.""Sorry to hear that but it seems to be the popular story. Any affairs?""Who, him?""Either of you." He said with a smile that could melt a glacier.I turned away to watch a small group of people as they passed by our car. I wonder where they are heading and if they are happy with the direction. I don't want to talk anymore.A scruffy man jumped from nowhere to the front of my vision. He smirked at the surprise on my face.I lower my window and his odor reached my nose and made my eyes water."Acer, I presume?""At your service pretty lady." He had to scream to be heard over the music.He had beautiful teeth which belied his appearance.He bent low to look across the seat to Jake."Hey, man.""Hop in, Ace."Oh great, Now we'll have to drive around the rest of the day with that sour unwashed smell.We pulled out into the line of cars, but this one moved at a higher speed."So what have you got, Ace?""Well, I heard some whispers about your dead lady. The one from Nob Hill.""Miranda Drake." I interject."Yeah, that's the one.""What about her, Ace? Man, this is like pulling teeth. Out with it!""Easy boy, easy. I like riding in your car for awhile. I saw on the news that the lady worked in that restaurant.""Yes.""Well she also worked at Julio's."Jake and I looked at each other in shock. I turned around in my seat as much as the seat belt allowed."She what?""She worked at Julio's. She was quite a piece. Did most of her work in the back alley or in the men's room if the weather was bad.""I don't believe this for one minute. Why would she do that when she had a good paying job. She certainly wouldn't be making much cash at Julio's.""I agree, Sally. Okay, Ace. Do you have any proof? Anything to verify what you said?""Sure. I have this."He handed a picture to the front seat between us. I took the photo.I couldn't believe it. It showed a very different Miranda in a compromising position"It sure does look like her, Jake."
PROLOGUEWhat a beautiful place I have chosen for Sierra to die.I take a deep breath and look around carefully. I check every bush, every leaf. The forest is dense and the thick trees surrounding this clearing seem to stand like sentinels. The colors of the tree tops are breathtakingly vivid. My senses are so honed that the reds, greens and yellows are so sharp they hurt my eyes.I remove my backpack and sit beside her. "Isn't this nice? Here." I hand her a can of beer. I pop the lid and encourage her to drink. I pull one out for myself. This could be the one.Chapter 1."The nude body of Camile Waters was at first thought to be tossed from the cliff above the Devil's Slide beach. But on closer inspection, it was determined the killer had carried her down the long staircase to the sand below and placed her remains on the rocks. Why? Not a clue. Though Devil's Slide employs peace officers to enforce the law, the Montara Police Department was called in to aid the investigation. They had an unsolved murder on their hands before the season began for the state park.Six months later there would be four bodies found in my jurisdiction. It would be months before these deaths were connected to earlier homicides like the one at Devil's Slide.My name is Sally Forest; I am a Lieutenant with the San Francisco Police Department Goldengate Division. With my recent promotion I left the Richmond Station and as of this morning, I am now attached to the Bayview Station on Williams Ave. My orders are to form a task force to capture a serial killer in the Bay area.Day One:I looked over the files of every eligible investigator from the surrounding stations. I selected the best of the best and they were seated before me now. Out of the fourteen I chose Sergeant Jake Bauer to partner up with me. I felt it was the best match based on rank and experience in homicide. I made similar choices for the team.I look around this rather large room which will house this unit until our killer is caught. There are three large desks situated in strategic corners which let the persons seated observe the entire room. I lay claim to the one behind me. Jake will man the one to my right.The light in here comes from the wall of windows on the right. The overhead lights not on at the moment. There are two long tables with thirty some odd chairs. The walls free of all posters, framed art and notices, and are now a clean canvas for us to build our case.All eyes turn toward me at the front of the room."Good morning. I am Lt. Forrest."I smiled at the murmured greetings from the team."You all know why we are here. Four bodies found in the last fourteen weeks, three with the same M.O. Each one of us will be expected to work double shifts, pounding the streets, interrogating every civilian until we find the son of a bitch. We have a preliminary profile sent to us from the FBI. Our killer is a narcissist, in his early thirties, possibly married. Works a white collar job, his M.O. reveals clear thinking, he's methodical and most likely obsessive compulsive, and these are not his first kills. Quantico is garnering the information to complete the profile and will arrive here by 6pm. Ours is not the only profile being worked out.I was given this preliminary profile for us to begin our interviews. We will go over the first two murders again. It was not clear until the second victim was found that we could possibly be dealing with a serial killer."I turn their attention to the six by five foot board attached to the wall on the left, its location unseen from the open doorway.I have tacked four 8" x 10" photos.I began." Victim #1: Miranda Drake, 32, single mother of a 10 year old daughter. Worked as a hostess at the Daily Bread restaurant on Kearny Street in Union Square and lived in lower Nob Hill.August 10th. She left the restaurant with two co-workers, Bob Holstein and Chad Burke. Both were interviewed the next morning at Northern station. Each had the same story. Miranda sat in her car on her cell phone; she waved to each as they drove off. Neither one saw anyone suspicious or another vehicle nearby. Miranda's nude body was found on North Beach, Sunday, August 11th."Now I tore my eyes away from that beautiful happy smile in the photo, to replace it with another."Victim #2: Clarissa Whitaker, age 33, married with two small children. Her husband reported her missing when she did not return from the grocery store Saturday, Sept. 17th. Her nude body was found at Point Reyes Sept 18th.""Victim #3: Rhonda Shield; 33, single. Owned a shop, The Freedom Wear at Embarcadero Center and lived in Haight Ashbury. Reported missing by an employee on Wednesday October 21st when she did not show up to open the boutique. Her nude body was found on Muir Beach, Sunday the 25th.Victim #4: Also found on October 25th. Suzie Wang, 32, single. Worked at Montgomery Drake Equities in the Financial District and lived in Chinatown. Her body was found in Muir Woods. This one does not have the precise same M.O.At this time we are not certain this is the work of our serial killer. Suzie was raped, the other three were not. Suzie was partially clothed, the other three were nude. Suzie was left where she was murdered. The other three were moved. All but Miss Wang were left in places sure to be found. We found her body in the woods during our crime scene search after the body of Rhonda Shield was discovered. I don't believe she was meant to be found this quickly. We will keep Suzie's murder included with the other three for now. After we meet with the FBI tonight, we will make the determination of her case. You each have a file before you. Inside are the photos and pertinent information you will need to complete your interviews. We will start at square one, though you do have copies of the original interviews, we will cover the same neighborhoods, family and co-workers. Attached to your file you each will see the name of your partner along with the area you are to canvas. Any questions before we head out? Then let's move."*As we head out to the parking garage, I toss the keys to Jake. He catches them in mid air."Since we will start out in your area near Northern, you can drive.""No problem."As we merge into traffic, Jake glances at me, then back to the large Rent-a-Center truck bearing down on us. Without missing a beat he slips in front of the truck to get behind an old blue sedan driven by an older woman with the same shade hair."So, are you married?""What?" I ask incredulously. I wonder if he even saw the truck!"Not a hard question really. Are you married?""It's complicated and personal. Just drive."To calm myself in the awkward silence I took a glance at his profile. He really is a handsome man. Dark brown hair, cut short in the back but left a touch longer on top, not like any current style I've noticed, but it suits him. His eyes are light gold or topaz. I see his lashes are fairly long and rather thick for a man. His skin is clear, clean shaven, with a light golden tan from being outside most of the time. His smile is a little lop-sided. I noticed his height, at least 6'3" with a good solid build. Yes, he is handsome."It's because I'm a vegetarian.""Excuse me?""Well, you were checking me out like most women do and the first question they ask is about my skin. The answer is because I'm a vegetarian."I am completely embarrassed now."Oh. I didn't know I was being that obvious." What else could I do but own up to it? We merged into the slow moving traffic on Market St. I wanted to change the subject back to our original topic. Anything to take away the spotlight of embarrassment."In answer to your question, both are complicated.""How so?""You certainly are persistent."There is that grin again."All part of the job.""Can we just drive and skip the Q&A?""I'm divorced.""I didn't ask."
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