Experiment in Terror (Koehler Brothers Book 1) (8 page)

From his vantage point, he could see anyone on the path from either direction. Shortly after eleven, he saw Karen approaching the library. He watched carefully as she strolled past the bridge and on up the path.

Nothing happened. He knew it had been too much to hope that it might occur on the first night Karen worked as a decoy. He was beginning to feel a little discouraged. Who knew? Maybe the killer had already left the area. He wondered how long they would have to work the Boulder Creek Path before the Chief of Police called it off.

The next day, Matt called the chief on the cell phone Karen had brought him.

“Glad you called,” Heller said. “I was going to call you a little later.”

“Good news, I hope,” Matt replied.

“I found out who’s been asking about you.”

“I’m listening.”

“His name is Gary Kaufmann. He’s a private detective here in Boulder. His biggest client is an attorney, Sloan Harrison.”

“Why would he be checking me out?”

“He’s not doing it for Sloan. According to him, he saw you talking to a young woman and became suspicious. Thought you might be the Boulder Creek Killer.”

“Did you tell him who I was?”

“No way. Do you think I want to blow your cover?”

“What did you tell him?”

“I told him I would check you out. Then I’m going to make up some story and call him back.”

Matt laughed. “Mind telling me what your story is going to be?”

“I’ll keep it simple. He knew your name was Matt, so I made up a last name for you. Lowry. How does that sound? I’ll say you had a business failure in Nebraska and you heard the people of Boulder were sympathetic to the homeless.”

“That should work.”

“I’ll call him this afternoon. That will look like I’ve taken the time to have one of my men check you out.”

“Now that you have that little mystery solved, I want to talk to you about something else. How long do you think you’ll want Karen and me to work the Boulder Creek Path?”

“Well,” the chief said thoughtfully. “We’re coming up on three weeks. Let’s give it a few more days. After that, I’ll get in touch with you and we can decide what we want to do. I’m in constant contact with the President of the University, so of course, I’ll have to take his opinion into consideration.”

After telling the chief he would wait to hear from him, Matt disconnected. He was glad the police chief had discovered who had been asking questions about him. The detective had either seen him talking to the blond lady with the bike or with Karen. More likely, he had seen him that day in the park talking to the blond after she had taken the spill on her bike. As he recalled there had been a lot of people not only in the park, but walking through the park. Gary must have been one of them.

Chapter 8

Amanda glanced at her watch. Almost time to leave for home. Her phone rang, and when she glanced at the caller ID, she saw it was Gary Kaufmann. Even though she had sent him a check for his time, she hoped he might have found out something more on Matt.

“Amanda,” he said, “I know you weren’t anxious for me to talk to the police, but all things considered, I really felt I should.”

Her heart sank. She hoped this wasn’t going to be bad news.

“Did you find out anything?”

“Not a lot, but it’s what the other homeless men thought. He’s from Nebraska. His business failed and he lost everything, trying to get himself out of debt. He came to Boulder because he heard the people here were pretty liberal as far as the homeless are concerned.”

“Do you still think he might be the Boulder Creek Killer?”

“The jury’s still out on that as far as I’m concerned. But the Chief of Police called me and he’s totally convinced he’s not. Just a coincidence that he happened to show up about the same time the University girls were attacked.”

“I appreciate you letting me know. Do I owe you anymore for your time?”

“No.” He laughed. “This one’s on the house.”

Before she could hang up, Gary said, “By the way, the chief did give me his last name.”

“And what was that?”

“Lowry.”

“Thanks again for the information.”

After she rang off, she leaned back in her desk chair and thought about what Gary had told her. She was relieved Matt was what she had hoped he might be. A businessman, struggling after a business failure. Hopefully, he would get back on his feet. But he certainly needed better clothes along with a shave and a haircut.

“What’s that smug look on your face?” Jenessa asked as she stuck her head in the door.

“Am I looking smug?”

“I don’t know what else you would call it.”

“Just found out some information that confirmed my opinion about something,” Amanda said.

Jenessa waited for Amanda to say more, but when she didn’t, she said, “I wanted to let you know that Dennis Hamilton is coming in tomorrow morning to restock.”

“What time?”

“I told him he would need to make it early, since later in the day we get too busy.”

“Can you open the store for me so I don’t have to come in until ten? You’ll be done with him by then, won’t you?”

“Yes, he’s coming in at nine, so I’ll make sure he’s out of here before you arrive.”

“Thanks, Jen, I appreciate it. I’m glad his photos are selling so well.”

Jenessa smiled as she turned to walk back out into the store.

Matt and Karen met on the bridge after the sun had set and darkness was settling over the area. “If something doesn’t happen in the next couple of days, I want us to meet with the chief and make a decision as to how much longer they want us to do this. For all we know, the killer could have left the area.”

“I’ve thought about that,” Karen said. “But the University campus with all its female students is such a prime target for someone like this killer. As long as he knows the police have no clues as to his identity, why would he leave?”

“You’ve got a point,” Matt agreed.

“What’s the matter, Matt?” she teased. “Are you tired of being homeless?”

He smiled down at her. “I have to admit, it’s starting to get a bit old. But I do want to catch this guy, so I’ll stick as long as I have to.”

“I sympathize with you. It must get pretty boring. I’m lucky to get to spend the night in a hotel after the traffic on the creek path has cleared.”

Matt made no comment. He had to admit the only time he wasn’t bored was when he was waiting for the blonde to ride by on her bike. When he did see her, it made his whole day.

He told himself once again, when this assignment was finished, he was going to find her, even if he had to hire that detective, Gary Kaufmann. The thought made him smile.

“Well, I had better get up to the University,” Karen told him.

“Did you see anyone up there last night that you considered the least bit suspicious?” he asked.

“Dozens,” she said with a laugh.

“I have to agree. There’s some real weirdoes. Can’t believe from the looks of some of them, they’re smart enough to be in college.”

“I hope for your sake, this is the night,” Karen told him as she picked up her backpack from off the bridge and slung it over her shoulder.

Matt turned and headed in the other direction. He would have a couple hours of waiting under the bridge. He decided he would walk around the library a few times before he settled down.

As he approached the front of the library, a man came out and bumped into him. He ducked his head and apologized. But not before Matt had seen a completely bald head, shaved eyebrows, and thick glasses that distorted the man’s pale blue eyes out of all proportion.

Matt did a double-take. The police chief had suggested the killer must shave his body, since they hadn’t been able to find one hair or any kind of DNA on the bodies of the victims.

He quickly stepped inside the entryway of the library in order to watch the man as he strode down the sidewalk toward the Boulder Creek Path.

Was he really the killer? Or was he just hoping he was?

Should he call Karen? He watched as the man turned right on the Boulder Creek Path. He glanced at his watch. It was going on nine and Karen wouldn’t be coming down the path for another two hours.

He punched the number that would ring the policewoman’s phone. She answered immediately.

“What you got, Matt?”

“A feeling. Would you trust it enough to head down to the Boulder Creek Path as quick as you can?”

“You bet. What am I looking for? Or should I say, who am I looking for?”

“A bald-headed man in jeans and a blue knit shirt, wearing a pair of plastic framed glasses with lenses as thick as the bottom of an old-fashioned Coke bottle.”

“He should be easy to spot. Where exactly did you see him?”

“He bumped into me coming out of the library. I stepped inside and watched him until he turned right on the Creek Path.”

“I’m walking down one of the pathways from the University now. Hope I don’t miss him.”

“I’ve been following him from the library. If I run into you and you haven’t seen him, we’ll know you missed him.”

Matt broke the connection and picked up his pace. He didn’t want to fall too far behind the man. He strode through the park and through the tunnel under Arapahoe and stopped at the stone bench as he heard voices. He recognized one of them as Karen’s. He sat down on the bench in the shadow of a tall bush.

His heart beat accelerated when he saw who her companion was. The bald headed man with the glasses. Karen was laughing and flirting with him.
Did she see him in the shadows
? She hadn’t so much as glanced his way, so possibly not.

After they had passed, he stood up to follow, staying far enough behind that he hoped he wouldn’t be noticed. At least, not by the man. He followed them through the park, under the Broadway Bridge, and toward the library.

The couple approached the bridge by the library and Karen kept going up the path. Matt waited for the man to make his move. He was disappointed when the man turned to cross over the bridge instead of continuing up the path with Karen. Matt stepped behind a large tree when the man suddenly stopped on the bridge. He looked in every direction and then he turned back and followed Karen.

This is it,
Matt thought as shivers of anticipation ran down his back.

He watched as Karen continued up the path without turning around, even though she must have realized the man was now following her. As the distance between the man and Karen shortened, Matt didn’t dare step out from the tree for fear the man would see him and be spooked.

Suddenly, an arm shot out and around Karen’s neck. Before Matt could make a move, Karen had flipped the man onto his back. Matt started running. The man grabbed Karen around one ankle and in a moment she was flat on the ground and he was on top of her, holding a knife to her throat.

Evidently the man had been so surprised at being thrown to the ground, he didn’t see Matt approaching.

“That was a stupid move,” the man said to Karen. “I guess you know what’s next.”

“I don’t think so,” Matt said quietly, pressing his gun to the back of the man’s head. “Drop the knife unless you want me to blow your brains out.”

The man dropped the knife and with one arm, Matt jerked him off of Karen.

“Cuff him,” he ordered Karen. “And read him his rights.”

Angrily, Karen shot to her feet. With her right fist, she hit the man in the face, knocking his glasses to the ground. She jerked his arms behind him and fastened his wrists with a pair of handcuffs. Leaning over, Matt picked up the killer’s glasses and stuck them back on his face. He could just imagine how angry Karen must be. It was probably the first time a suspect had gotten the jump on her.

“Let’s go,” Matt said, giving the man’s arm a jerk.

By the time Karen had reached Heller on the phone, the trio had almost reached the police station.

“Chief said to take him in and he’ll be right down to book him. He said he would like the privilege of doing it himself.”

“Are you okay?” Matt asked Karen.

“Just angry and embarrassed. I shouldn’t have allowed him to take me down like that, but I was so sure I had him.”

“We wouldn’t have caught the Boulder Creek Killer without you acting as a decoy.”

“If you think I’m the one who raped and killed those girls, you’re mistaken.” The man spoke for the first time. “You’ll never pin anything on me.”

“We’ll let a jury decide that,” Matt told him calmly as he pushed him through the door of the police station.

The chief arrived shortly after Matt and Karen did with their prisoner. It didn’t take him long to do the paperwork. When he had finished, he ordered a car with a couple of policemen to take him to the jail on the outskirts of Boulder.

“Heller, if you don’t mind, I’ll take my car keys and wallet out of your safe,” Matt said. “After three weeks, I’m dying to hit the shower.”

The Chief laughed and motioned Matt to follow him into his office. It took him only a few seconds to spin the dial on the safe, open it, and hand Matt his things.

“Great job, Matt,” Heller said.

“I couldn’t have done it without Karen.”

“Both of you have certainly taken the pressure off this department, and I appreciate it. And it goes without saying that the people of Boulder will be grateful. I called President Gunderson at the University on my way down and he said to extend his thanks.”

Matt nodded and followed the chief out of his office. He saw Karen waiting in the hall and he asked her if she needed a ride. She told him her car was in the police parking garage, as his was, and she would walk down with him.

The chief thanked them both again and they went to the elevator, which would take them to the level below the offices to get their cars.

Matt gave Karen a wave as he got into his car. His first thought when he hit the street was,
I’m not going to be able to see the blond biker in the morning.

He mulled over in his mind what he could do in order to meet the woman. One—he could walk on the Boulder Creek Path at the time she usually rode her bike to work. Two—he could go into all the stores on the mall, looking for her. Three—he could hire the private investigator, Gary Kaufman, to find her.

The third one made him smile as it had the first time he had thought of it. That one would certainly be his last resort. After all, he wasn’t a detective for nothing. He should be able to find her himself.

But first he had to call his cousin and get out of this disguise and then it was home for a shower. He stopped at a grocery store parking lot and punched the number that would dial Ryan.

“Sorry, I’m calling so late,” Matt told Ryan when he answered the phone. “But we arrested the Boulder Creek Killer tonight and I’ve got to get out of this disguise so I can go home and shower. I can’t stand myself another night.”

Ryan laughed, told him it was no problem, since he was a night owl. Happily, Matt broke the connection and headed for Evergreen. It was going to be such a relief to have his real identity back. He knew he smelled to high heaven. He didn’t know how Karen had stood to be near him the few times they had conferred about their plan for catching the killer.

He hadn’t been near the blond biker for days. Had only seen her at a distance or some days not at all. It was a good thing or he would have lost all attraction for her.

When he arrived at his cousin’s house, Ryan confirmed his opinion about his odor.

“Whew, did all the homeless men smell as bad as you do?” he asked.

“No, they always spent the night at the Shelter and I’m sure most of them showered a couple of times during the week.”

“As soon as I remove the wig and beard, why don’t you get those clothes off, throw them in the washer, and then you can jump into the shower?”

“Sounds terrific,” Matt said. “But I don’t have any clothes with me.”

“We’re about the same size. I’ll loan you some of mine.”

With the liquid glue remover Ryan used, it didn’t take long before Matt was free of the wig and beard. His own whiskers had grown in the past two weeks and felt itchy.