The Sanguinarian

The Sanguinarian

Monday 12 May 2014

The Face-Off Killer #5











Detective Ansen Cole was sitting in his car parked near the sidewalk on Wilson Street. The corner alley where the latest victim of the Face-Off Killer had been found was only a few steps away. Try as he might, Ansen couldn't dismiss this detail from his mind as he looked out of the window, waiting for his girlfriend Miranda to get back from the bakery with a giant cake order for a friend's birthday.
Ansen suddenly had an urge to revisit the crime scene again. The murders were fresh on everyone's mind lately, and Ansen, being the first responding officer to the first murder, was caught up in the frenzy too. He wanted badly to catch the bastard who was killing and defacing innocent women. He was spending a lot of time thinking about it...this was a perfect opportunity to try and get some insight in the case.
Ansen got out of the car, locked it, and first looked in at the glass-fronted bakery. Miranda was busy deciding the kid of cake she wanted. Knowing her, Ansen figured he had about 10-15 minutes to kill before they could go on home. So he walked up to the alley again, and stood at its entrance. He scrutinized his immediate surroundings, trying to notice anything which stood out while shielding his eyes from the hot sun.
Suddenly he noticed it. Right across the street, from where he was standing. Why hadn't he noticed it before? It was there, all the time- the possible opening that may help the Boston police crack the case, even if it helps a little.
Right across the street was an ATM. Outside the ATM, a little above the huge neon signboard for the ATM, was a CCTV camera. It was, of course, kept there for security reasons. Ansen knew that the CCTV camera had a range where it could sweep a 180 degree area, including the front and both flanks of the street outside the ATM, every few seconds. Which meant that the camera's range included the sidewalk on the opposite side of the road. Couldn't the camera have captured the killer the previous evening? If they could get the footage...
Excitement flooded Ansen's body, sent a tingling sensation down his spine and made his breathing quicker- finally a breakthrough. He immediately proceeded to call Lance Carter and tell him the good news. Of course, it would mean ditching the 'day out' with his girlfriend and going back to the police station, but Ansen knew Miranda would understand.
                                           *********
Lieutenant Will Masters of the Boston PD Homicide sat in his office, feeling a mixture of empathy and chagrin. The cause of his state was Mrs. Lizzie McBride, the mother of Danna McBride, the latest murder victim of what was increasingly being known as the 'Face-Off Killings'. He had called Lizzie to the station to talk about her daughter's death- the part of his job that Will both hated and dreaded. He always felt so helpless before the grieving kin of the victims- he wished he could do something to alleviate their pain.
"Are you okay, Mrs. McBride?" he asked the stately woman seated in front of him.
"I'm ok, Lieutenant. It's just that...you don't get called everyday to the police station to answer questions about your daughter's death," she replied, her voice even.
Masters felt another stab of pain at this statement. He and Lizzie both were trying to make sense of Danna's wanton murder...but Masters wondered if murder of innocents had any sense to be made at all.
"I just wanna ask some questions about Danna that might help me catch her killer, Mrs. McBride," Will said, kindly.
"Please go on, Lieutenant," Lizzie replied, not showing any external signs of grief.
"Was Danna acting differently in the days before her death? Anything you might have noticed?" Will asked.
"No, Lieutenant. Danna was fine. We were very close, Danna and me. She would tell me everything- parties, girls, boyfriends, clothes, her academic experiences- everything. I would've known if something was wrong. In fact, Danna was pretty excited about an upcoming function where she was going to be felicitated for her research papers. That's why she went to the sale at the mall, hoping to get some branded clothes to wear for the occasion at a cheap price. The same evening when she..." Lizzie stopped speaking.
"So you don't suspect anyone in Danna's murder?"
"No. Danna was well-liked among friends and peers. She wasn't popular, but people adored her for her simple, earthy nature and good character. Enemies? I don't think so. I can't fathom why anyone would wanna kill my daughter," Lizzie replied.
Will felt his phone buzz in his pocket.
"Will you excuse me a second, Mrs. McBride?" he asked her, kindly.
She nodded in reply.
He fished out his phone, and accepted the call seeing that the caller was Ansen Cole.
"Yes, Detective Cole," he spoke, in a low and somber voice.
"Oh really? What is it?"
"That's great. Come to the station ASAP ans we'll chart our future course of action," Will replied, and hung up.
His favorite cop, Ansen Cole, had made a possible break in the case. Will could feel his hair stand on end- he was so excited. He wished he cold share the news with Danna's mother, but he knew he couldn't talk about the case to her; plus it was too early to say anything concrete about the new lead.
Will couldn't wait to see the surveillance videos, and if they had the bastard killer on tape.

1 comment:

  1. Neither can I wait to see what happens next...:) Loved it! Excited.

    ReplyDelete