Serial Separation (26 page)

Chapter 67

Paddy received
the phone call they were waiting for, alerting Mike. The New Hampshire State
Police located Jeremy and Dottie. The young couple decided not to make the long
drive to northern New Hampshire and stayed at a Salem, New Hampshire, motel for
the weekend instead.

“Paddy, do you
think Jeremy would be more comfortable with Dottie present during our
questioning?”

Paddy didn’t
immediately answer. “Mike, I think there are some aspects of his ordeal that he
might not want to talk about in her presence. Let’s see how it goes without
her.”

“Mike, have you
had any luck reaching Mercedes?”

“No. I’ve tried
several times, and there’s still no answer. She doesn’t have the phone off the
hook, since it’s not ringing busy. However, she could have disconnected the
phone, since she wasn’t feeling well.”

Mike thought of
Scott checking out those remaining properties himself and wondered if he should
have sent Paul with him. The task force was still waiting for a full listing of
properties from another source to identify the missing two properties.

Scott said he
still wanted to check out the other remaining properties just in case he was
wrong. Scott’s words echoed in Mike’s memory—Jason’s life might depend on it.

Mike had also
considered sending a patrol car by Mercedes’ apartment building to see if her
car was there. He still had the balance of the afternoon and this evening to
reach her or take some other action.

Mike pictured
the mutilated bodies of the men. He tried to picture women, but he kept trying
to put Mercedes’ image into the picture. No matter how many times he tried to
force her into this process, he could not really believe she could do it.

Could she be that
good, to give the impression of being a good girl while really being a vicious
woman?

* * *

The New
Hampshire State Police told Jeremy the task force needed to talk with him
regarding his being kidnapped. Jeremy and Dottie were not under arrest, so it was
a strong suggestion on the police’s part to have them drive to the task force
office.

They were
offered a cruiser, either to take them or escort them. However, Jeremy decided
to drive his car to the office rather than deal with having to get his car later.

Jeremy
considered how embarrassing it would be for Dottie to ride in a police car. He
wanted to avoid upsetting her or make her more nervous than she already was. It
was bad enough their weekend lovemaking had been interrupted.

The New
Hampshire State Police were considerate, but it still created a scene at the
motel. He wanted to explain the situation to the many observers, but it was
impossible. The sooner they were away from the motel the better.

As he drove across
the state line, he could tell an unmarked police car was following them at a
distance, but he didn’t mention it to Dottie.

He was holding
Dottie’s hand. “Hon, I’m sorry our plans for the weekend were interrupted. We
did have a few minutes together . . . I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

“JJ, I
understand what the police want to talk with you about. If you can help save
your cousin, that’s more important. We have our lives ahead of us—he might not.
It would be great if you could recall something that aids the police.”

She licked his
ear, which made him uncomfortable, knowing a police car wasn’t far behind.
However, he wasn’t about to stop her.

“Why are you
driving so slowly?”

“I don’t want to
get stopped on the way to the task force office. I might be able to explain
rushing, but it could get confusing. Besides, the longer it takes us, the more
time you have doing what you’re doing.”

She obviously
liked his answer, judging from her focused attention.

“Jeremy, I’m so
happy you’re safe. It would have killed me if you had been murdered. I found your
scars interesting
.
I could have spent the entire weekend making sure
they were not bothering you.” She blew in his ear, and he adjusted himself.
“You’re not getting excited again, are you?”

He knew she
could tell it was a rhetorical question.

Chapter 68

Mike hung up the
phone.

“Paddy, that was
the Mass State Police; Jeremy’s car is within a block of the office.”

“Thanks Mike.
Colleen is due any minute to be with Dottie while we question Jeremy.”

Mike was
hopeful; Jeremy might be able to shed some light on the building where he was
held.

The door to the
office opened, and they both expected to see Jeremy and Dottie enter.

Paddy
acknowledged Colleen. “Colleen, thanks for coming in on such short notice. Jeremy
and Dottie are about to arrive. As I mentioned on the phone, please try to make
Dottie comfortable about Jeremy talking with us.”

He continued,
pointing upstairs. “You can use my office, which should prevent any problems.
However, if you feel you need me, please don’t hesitate to get me. We’ll be in
the conference room.”

“Paddy, I’m glad
you called me.”

The door opened
slowly, which was very out of the ordinary.

He read the task
force sign on the building. “I’m Jeremy Johnston.” He stepped into the small
reception area. “This is my fiancée, Dottie Copeland.”

Paddy walked
over to them. “Hello, Jeremy, Dottie.” He shook both of their hands. “I’m
Patrick O’Brien, and this is Colleen Evans.”

Colleen came
over and greeted both of them.

Paddy then
added, “Jeremy, Dottie, this is Mike Miller and Paul Brosque. They will be
joining us while you, hopefully, help us with our investigation.”

Mike noticed
Dottie looked very nervous. However, before he could say anything, Paddy
continued, “Colleen, if you wouldn’t mind making Dottie comfortable in my
office upstairs, we’re going to be with Jeremy in the conference room.” Paddy
motioned toward the end of the hall.

Paddy took a
position at the head of the table and indicated to Jeremy to take a seat to his
left. Mike and Paul were on the other side of the table, facing Jeremy.

“Jeremy, I want
to thank you for coming in to talk with us. I want to apologize for ruining
part of your weekend with your fiancée. Congratulations, by the way.”

* * *

“Thank you, Mr.
O’Brien.”

“Jeremy, please
call me Paddy. I want to start by making you feel more comfortable. This is a
voluntary discussion, although locating you might have been a little
intimidating.”

Jeremy quickly
responded. “Well, Mr.—I mean Paddy—we were kind of engaged at the time. I
thought they were going to kick the door in. Dottie almost fainted when they
announced they were the State Police looking for Jeremy Johnston.”

Paddy continued.
“Jeremy, here’s the deal. I would like this to be a conversation about your
early November ordeal. You were kidnapped by women we believe are behind these
recent killings. Last night, they kidnapped your cousin Jason.”

Paddy stopped,
realizing Jeremy’s reaction to that news. “You weren’t aware of his
kidnapping?”

“No. Not at all.
I might have expected it, but I didn’t know anything about it.”

“Well, he was
kidnapped by what we believe to be the same gang who kidnapped you, and we’re
trying to locate where they took him. That’s what this session is about.”

He continued,
“We’re hoping you can shed some light on either the women who held you, or the
location. This could take some time, but the more you talk about it, the more
things might come to the surface. Would you like anything to drink?”

“No, thanks, not
at this time.”

“Please let us
know if you need anything, or need to take a break. Dottie is upstairs in my
office with Colleen. I thought some of what you might tell us could be
disturbing to her.”

“Mike and Paul
are both detectives with the Boston P.D. assigned to our task force. Scott,
Scott Tucker, who you know, is also helping with our investigation.”

He continued. “In
fact, he is out right now trying to identify available waterfront properties
which could be used by the women. Please tell us what you can about what
happened.”

Jeremy did not
immediately respond to Paddy’s request.

Paddy continued.
“Perhaps what we have on the board could help provide some guide for what
happened to you.” Paddy pointed to the board behind Jeremy.

Jeremy turned
and looked at what was written on the board. He was reading but remained
silent. Paddy gave him a couple of additional minutes.

Mike felt like
he needed to calm Jeremy. “Jeremy, you haven’t done anything wrong. You’re not
going to be accused of anything. It would have obviously been better if you had
informed the police about what happened to you. However, you are lucky to be
alive, and we can appreciate your situation.”

Jeremy finally
spoke. “You have some things written that are right on target. Please give me a
few seconds to fill in some details.”

He studied the
board.

It was Jeremy’s
turn to do the talking.

“I was kidnapped
by a black gang. They were on me before I even noticed them. They knocked me
out. When I woke up, I was hanging upside down. I was extremely cold. I had no
clothes on and my hands were tied behind my back.”

He tried to talk
with less emotion. “You’re right about it being women—there were three of them
for most of the weekend. Then another one joined them late Sunday afternoon. They
had me blindfolded. They talked about rapes. I painfully realized they thought
I had committed them. They had me in this shower area . . . in fact that was
the first thing I remember.”

Mike encouraged
him. “Please continue.”

“I was in this
shower area being sprayed with ice-cold water when I came to. I must have been
covered with something, because they were washing me, not just rinsing my
body.”

Paddy asked, “Do
you want a coffee or something else to drink?”

“No, I’m on a
roll. Thanks. During the washing, I got glimpses of their lower legs and feet.
They were in the shower with me. I think they were also naked, but I couldn’t
be sure.”

He stopped and
looked at the board. “When I told them I didn’t rape anyone, they hit me . . . they
all hit me. It was like my body hanging there increased their rage. They
weren’t trying to be kind either, based on the focus of their paddles.”

Mike interrupted.
“Jeremy, this is helpful. Can you remember any other senses as you recall what
happened?”

“It was so cold.
The water was cold. They rolled what I was hanging from into what I would call
a freezer. They didn’t leave me in there long. It was long enough for me to
welcome them bringing the feeling back into my body.”

He looked again
at the board. “The building was either on the water or very near the water. I
could hear fog horns in the background. The building smelled of old wood, wood
preservative, and rope. The rope smell was very strong, and there was a smell
of fish.”

Mike again
prompted him. “Can you remember anything that struck you odd about your ordeal?”

“To this day, I
don’t know how I survived it. They had me hanging upside down for most of the
weekend. When they got tired of hitting me and punishing my body, I think they
went to rest. Anyway, that break may have saved me.”

Jeremy put his
head on the table in his hands and after a few moments resumed. “Up until that
point, I didn’t care anymore. I wanted them to kill me. I was so cold, my head
hurt, and I could feel blood on my body. I didn’t care anymore, and I yelled
for them to kill me.”

Paddy called for
a break when Jeremy started to cry.

* * *

A few minutes
later, Jeremy continued. “I thought they had come to the point of killing me. It
was late Sunday afternoon. They had me laid out on my back on this platform. My
hands and feet were stretched out, like that da Vinci drawing of that naked
man.”

He took a deep
breath. “A voice I hadn’t heard before surprised me. She had yelled out, ‘Wait
Red, wait.’ They all went quiet. I thought they were going to kill me up until
that point. They left, and left me there for an hour or more.”

Paddy asked,
“Was there anything you remember about when they came back?”

“Well, they
untied my hands and feet and sat me up. Wait—I remember seeing one of them
wearing combat boots. I think it was the one who was new. She didn’t say much,
but I get the impression, now, she realized I was not my cousin. They must have
been deciding what they were going to do with me.”

Paddy remarked,
“This is extremely helpful; please continue.”

“They retied my
hands behind me, left me blindfolded and naked, but took me to a car.”

Mike asked, “Do
you remember anything about the car, or the drive?”

“Yeah. It was a
station wagon. They had me lying down on the floor in the back. There was
something else I remember about leaving that place. We were on the road just a
couple of minutes, when we climbed a hill. I think it was a bridge from the
sound it made, but we were climbing up an incline. It took a minute or so
before we came back down on the other side.”

Mike noticed
Paddy was leaning toward Jeremy. “Jeremy, these are the kinds of details which
might make a difference in our investigation. The name ‘Red’, combat boots, the
hill or bridge could be really helpful. Is there anything else?”

Jeremy looked at
the board again. “It took us a long time before they dropped me off. I would
say at least a half hour.”

Mike responded,
“That’s very helpful as well.”

“Oh, I forgot to
mention they took pictures. I could see the flash of light, and I heard the
sound of a camera. They were taken at different times back in the building. They
took pictures every time they put me through some other painful process. I
didn’t have sex with Dottie for weeks because of the scars I had.”

Paul asked him,
“Could you hear the sound of waves when you were in the building?”

Jeremy thought
for a few seconds. “The only time I heard any ocean sound was when they had me
on that platform. I think they had an access to the water there. I could smell
something like seaweed, but not as strong anywhere else.”

Mike added, “We
believe they had to do this process with direct water access.”

Jeremy excitedly
remarked, “Something else I recall, when I was coming to at the start of this
ordeal—they were washing me. I heard one of them say something about getting
the coal dust off me.”

Paddy asked, “That’s
also helpful. What about where they dropped you?”

“I was still
tied up and blindfolded when they dumped me in the snow in the Medford woods. I managed to get myself untied and made it to the road.”

“Some college
kids saw me and picked me up. They thought it was a hazing, but when they saw
my condition, they found some clothes and drove me to Kenmore Square.”

He hesitated. “One
other thing—I can’t remember if it was real, a dream, or a nightmare, but I
think I saw three of their reflections in a glass display area on the second
floor of that building.”

Jeremy pushed
his finger into the conference room table. “One had blonde hair, another
brunette—and the third was a tall redhead. I’ve racked my brain to try to
remember if it was real or my mind playing tricks on me.”

Paddy and Mike
looked at each other. “Jeremy, you have been a huge help. We all want to thank
you for spending this time with us. If you remember anything else, please call
any one of us at the number on this card. We’re doing our best to locate your
cousin. We also tried to prevent his kidnapping, but that was not possible.”