Serial Separation (29 page)

Chapter 77

Lisa could feel
Judy watching her as she got hotter and hotter. Lisa had dressed nicely for her
date with Scott.

“Lisa, he’ll be
here. He probably was delayed by something at the task force office.”

She looked at
her watch for about the twentieth time. “I really thought he would be here on
time. I can’t believe he’s an hour and a half late. Gee, I hope he’s okay.
Maybe I better call him. No, if he was going to be late . . . he should have called
me.”

Lisa could sense
Judy was trying to find a way to calm her down. “Lisa, you could call him at
his apartment. If there’s no answer, it would eliminate him just running late,
or oversleeping. Then you could call the office, and if he’s there you could
find out when he will be here.”

Lisa looked at
Judy for a moment. “I know you’re trying to help, but he promised me his
running late days were over. I’m worried. I feel something has happened to him.
This was a big date, and he wouldn’t be this late. Not without calling me.”

“Then you need
to call him at home, and at the office.” She hesitated before adding, “You
can’t wait any longer. You’ll be a wreck when he shows up.”

She felt like
crying, but all of her efforts to look exceptional would be wasted. “You’re
right.” She dashed out of the room.

When she arrived
at the phone, there was someone on it. She paced for what seemed like ten
minutes and then exploded. “Would you please tell him you love him and get off
the phone? I have an emergency!”

“Get a grip, you
street walker.”

“If you’re not
off that phone in a minute, you’re going to be walking with it up your butt . .
. blondeee.”

The girl mumbled
something in the phone and then slammed down the receiver. She was going to say
something but turned away and flipped her middle finger.

Lisa was amazed
at her new found authority. She quickly dialed Scott’s phone and, after many
rings, realized he would have answered by now. She dialed the task force office.
She had prepared a punishing verbal scenario if Scott was there.

“Hello Task force
office, Mike Miller.”

“Mike, I’m glad
you answered the phone. Is Scott there? He’s late for a date.”

“No, Lisa, he
hasn’t returned. He’s still checking properties. He was expected hours ago.”

Mike asked,
“What time was he due there?”

“Seven. Mike,
I’m worried. Scott promised he wouldn’t be late again without calling me. He
planned to take me to a nice restaurant, and knew I would have dressed for the
occasion. What can we do?”

“Lisa, a lot has
happened today. One of the women, we believe connected with the killings, was
killed. However, I promise you I will find Scott. I will call you, or he will. Thank
you for alerting me that you were also expecting him.”

Mike didn’t
hesitate. He rushed up to Paddy’s office. “We’ve got a serious problem. Lisa
called a minute ago. Scott was supposed to take her out to dinner almost two
hours ago. He hasn’t called, and I think she has a reason to worry.”

Mike noticed
Paddy’s worried expression and added, “As you know, he was going to check out
the other two property listings. That should not have taken all day and part of
the night.”

Paddy considered
Mike’s concern. “As we speculated earlier, Carole was expecting us. The police
scanner must have tipped her off. If she called one or more of her associates .
. . well, Scott could have walked into a trap.”

“We’ve got to
find where he was going. Do you have those addresses?”

“No, but I have
an idea.”

Mike left at a
run. Paddy followed, saying a silent prayer Scott was okay. He found Mike at
Scott’s work area.

“I have the
addresses.” Mike held up a sheet of paper. Paddy smiled, noticing the pencil
rubbing on it. “I would say this second address is where we need to head. Scott
would have checked out the closest address first.”

Mike headed to
the map to pinpoint where they needed to go. “This last address is way out on Long Island. There’s a long bridge connecting it with the mainland. That’s got to be the
building.”

They both went
running for their coats. “Paul, you need to follow us in your car. You’ll
understand where we’re headed when we call into dispatch, but Scott is way
overdue checking out those properties.”

Chapter 78

Mike and Paddy
were quiet, deep in their own thoughts as they headed out.

Jason had not
been found and was most likely another victim. Carole Daniels had either been
killed or took her own life when confronted. Scott was missing, but hopefully
still alive. Mercedes was considered a suspect and could be involved in Scott’s
disappearance. If there were other women, the task force had no idea who or
where they were. They had a potential building where Scott could be located.

Summarizing it
all, Mike thought,
if we had a ten pound bag, we have twenty pounds of shit
at this time.
“Paddy, do you think tonight is going to be a good night or
something we will want to forget?”

“I’ve already
said my prayers for Scott. I have a feeling Carole called the other women
involved. One or more of them have Scott.”

Chapter 79

I could feel her
breath on me. She was so close, lowering me down. What was next? I know this is
Mercedes, but she is acting totally out of character. I had loved the fragrance
of gardenia but was beginning to hate it.

I felt the rough
floor against my naked body and could feel the blood rushing back into my feet.
I couldn’t possibly stand, let alone walk or run. Her breathing was labored. It
was time to plead.

“Mercedes, you
can’t do this to me. You wanted to be friends. I care about you. Don’t you care
about me?”

Of course, I
could not see her response coming. I felt her well-placed kick and it turned my
stomach. I tried to move to prevent another low blow. The next one landed under
my chin. Thank God she was barefoot.

She was not
responding the way I had hoped. My hope was that she would eventually come to
her senses. She liked me. She told me so. She was untying my feet. I thought,
maybe
I could run, but to where? Not a chance blindfolded.

When my feet
were untied, she stood with her feet between my legs. Neither of us moved, and
I didn’t like what came to my mind.

I heard the
water splash as she walked around behind me. She grabbed me under my armpits.
With more strength than I could have imagined, she had me on my feet. In the
process of lifting me, I could tell she was naked also. She held the rope
binding my hands and pushed me forward.

I was surprised
my legs could move, but they were all pins and needles. We moved at a slow pace
and the next thing I knew, we were rising up slowly in what felt like an elevator.

She turned me to
face her, and our bodies touched. The warmth of her body was a welcome contrast
to the cold I had been subjected to. My body reacted to the contact. The
elevator stopped, but she didn’t move.

“Mercedes, we
can still be friends.”

Her repeated
slaps shocked me, and I tried to withdraw from them. I almost went over the low
horizontal rail. She pulled me by my ear, and I followed her blindly.

It was only a
few steps before we stopped. She let go of my ear and just stood there. I
learned not to say anything. She was behind me now, and I wondered if she was
going to push me off a second floor balcony or something.

My nightmare
came back to me. It was so similar, but so different. It was not crows hovering
over me—it was her. I had wondered if crows would eat a live body, but I know now
crows were nothing compared to this viper. I was defenseless, doomed, and I
knew she knew it.

* * *

I heard the
sound of a light switch. She pushed me flat against cold glass. It was ice cold.
She held me there for about a minute, then jabbed her foot behind my knees.

I crumpled to
the floor. She held my head against the glass. Her next action surprised the
hell out of me, if that was possible.

She pulled up my
blindfold. It took a second to focus. It was obviously a freezer display
window. What I saw turned my stomach, and I gagged. When I closed my eyes, she
smashed my face into the glass. I got the point and reopened them.

What I saw were
the partial remains of one of the men—his head, hands, feet, and precious
parts. They were arranged like trophies. I tried to look at the reflection to
see her, but all I could tell was she was a tall redhead.

It had to be
Mercedes, but I wasn’t going to talk to her. She turned the display case light
off. She pushed me on my knees a few feet across the rough floor. By the time
we reached the last display, I saw Jason, or what was left of him.

I knew what she
had planned for me. I couldn’t believe it, but that was why she showed me what
was left of these men.

I couldn’t help
my feelings for these poor hockey players. I still didn’t understand why they
were killed, or why I was going to be next. I could feel the blood running down
across my lips. My knees hurt, and I couldn’t hold back the tears. Not really
for these men, or my fate, but for what Lisa and I were going to miss.

She must have
seen my reaction and replaced the blindfold. She lifted my body slowly, almost
like it was something sexual. My hands were in the wrong place, or maybe they
were perfect for her. I focused on trying to formulate a plan, but, before
anything could develop, we were moving.

We were in the
elevator for the slow descent. She was licking the blood from my face. I
realized then that this person, if Mercedes, had a side I had never seen before.
And never wanted to see again.

She knew she had
me right where she wanted me. The elevator had stopped minutes ago; she hadn’t.

Then, with a
form of rage, she pushed me out of the elevator onto the floor. I crashed in a
lump, and slid across the rough wood floorboards. I stayed right where I was,
but I could hear her moving ropes.

I could smell
them. She came over, dragging me this time until I bumped into a wall. She
lifted me again, turned me around, and pushed me backward. I thought I was
going to fall from a balcony, but it was a short fall to a rough wood platform.

She quickly tied
each of my ankles and then sat me up and untied my hands. However, with a
practiced move, she had new ropes on each hand, and she pushed me flat again. She
stretched each of the ropes so I could not move.

I could feel my
head hanging over the side of the platform and the edge cut into my neck, wrists,
and ankles. This was the apparatus they used to dismember the men. I was sure.
I thought the only time I had left was the time between that moment and when
she became bored with me.
What else could she want?

I wanted to know
before I died if Mercedes would really do this to me? She jumped on me and
kissed me. It was unlike any kiss I’ve ever had. The fragrance was gardenia. I
remembered Mercedes and my kiss, and this had more passion.

Please,
Mercedes, don’t do this, I thought. Please, God, don’t let this happen to me.

This must be
male rape.

I was at her
mercy. There was nothing I could do.
Should I beg for my life?
My body was
reacting to her advances.

I considered my
fate.
If I extend her interest, would I benefit, and possibly live longer?
This, after all, is Mercedes.

She acted
swiftly.

Chapter 80

She was kneeling
on the platform with her lower body against mine. She lifted the blindfold quickly.

I blinked
several times and her image came into view. She was a redhead. I could see that
clearly. I smelled the sweet smell of gardenia. I blinked some more and saw her
smiling face. It was Mercedes.

* * *

My heart was
beating wildly; I could hear it in my ears. I blinked again in disbelief,
staring at her face—and stared some more.

It
wasn’t
Mercedes.

I hesitated
acknowledging it but felt that was what she was looking for.

“You’re not
Mercedes.”

She shifted her
body, waving the long knife blade in front of my eyes running the back of the
blade down my body, stopping dangerously close to vital parts. She moved the
knife and replaced it with her hand. “I saw your name in your wallet—you’re
Scott Tucker, and, I might add, a very fine specimen.” I felt her strong grasp.

We were nose to
nose. “I’m not Mercedes. I find that very interesting, because my younger
sister’s name is Mercedes. She’s the smart one in the family. I’m Melanie . . .
but we’re both named ‘Strong.’” She tightened her grip, and my stomach turned
again.

“Appropriately
named, but you know that at the moment, don’t you?”

She removed her
hand and fondled me with the knife. “Scott you saw those trophies upstairs.
Well, I’m about to cut these parts off. We do that before we kill the men.
That’s when they really learn to regret what they’ve done.”

I saw my chance.
“I haven’t raped anyone. I don’t deserve to die this way. I’m in love with a
woman, and I want to marry her,” I said, thinking I might be able to stall her.

“Tell me some
more, Mr. Tucker, but don’t you lie, or you will regret it.”

I was quick to
get it out. “I love Lisa Anderson, whom I met the day President Kennedy was
killed. It didn’t take us long to fall in love. I even saved her life.”

“That’s very
heroic. Do you like what I’m doing to you now?”

Her hand was on
my body. I remembered what she said about lying. “Yes, your hand reminds me of
your sister.” It wasn’t a lie, but I didn’t know how she would react.

“That’s very
good, Mr. Tucker. There may be hope for the male race yet. How do you know my
sister?”

“We both work on
the task force, trying to find who’s killing those men.”

“Did you rape
her?”

“No.”

“Did you make
love to her? Remember what I said about lying.”

“No, but we
spent the night together. We were very close, but we didn’t make love. I
thought you were her.”

Her hand was
back. “We both love the same perfume, Gardenia Mania, which is why you thought
I was her. You must be wondering why we killed those men. I’m going to tell you
the details before I cut you but then I must kill you. I’m sure the longer you
listen, the longer you’ll live, and the more I can enjoy these moments. I have
the power, you know.”

It didn’t take
much to remind me that she had more than my life in her hands. I was silently
praying for a way out, but I knew I only had a few minutes left.

* * *

I noticed she
resembled Mercedes, but the years had not been kind to her. Her features were
rougher.

“I’m going to
tell you our stories. Each of the men was told why they were being tried and
punished. We didn’t consider it killing. We thought of it as revenge for what
they had done. We were their day in court; unfortunately, we were their jury,
and their executioners.”

My mind was on
Lisa while Melanie continued to entertain herself.

“Jean Jensen had
been raped continually by her stepbrother Paul Maloney. He and his dad lived
with them. He used something Jean and her girlfriends did with him to blackmail
her into having sex with him. He was the first to be tried by our court and
found guilty without question. His was the first display, or trophy, you saw
upstairs.”

I was glad she
was talking, but she was now hurting me.

Her voice seemed
far away. “Sandra Sangello was raped by her cousin, Tony Sangello. It seems, during
one of Sandra’s more frisky moments, she posed for some explicit pictures. He
used the pictures against her, threatening to go to his parents if she didn’t
have sex with him. Since their dads were related, it would have gotten back to
her parents. He was also tried and convicted . . . and separated. He bawled
like a baby just before she cut him here.”

She stopped
talking to pay more attention to what she was doing to me. Then she moved back
to my face and kissed me passionately. I tried to give her the impression that
I was interested, but she could tell, I’m sure.

She resumed
talking to me, but more softly now. “The younger sister of Carole Daniels, who
called me earlier to alert me that her apartment building was the target of a
police visit, was about fifteen when Jason’s gang caught her and raped her for
a whole weekend.”

I thought I
heard something in the distance.

“Her parents
didn’t want the publicity of a trial, so nothing was ever done. Jason painfully
recounted so many rapes, we lost count. He was a no-brainer. Carole’s rage was
real scary stuff. I shutter every time I remember what she did to him. Carole
worked her knife in slow motion.”

She stopped
talking and went back to her diversion.

Shortly, she
resumed talking. “My own situation brings it close to Mercedes. She was
threatened by Bob Sullivan. That was his biggest mistake. However, he and I
were lovers earlier for a period of time.”

Her touch became
much gentler.

“My parents and
Mercedes would go away weekends, and he would visit. Bob was a jock. One
weekend, he had a party at his house, and he came to visit. I got carried away
and allowed him to tie me up.”

The emotion was
now coming out in her touch.

“His friends
joined him and enjoyed me the entire weekend. The rape was bad enough, but
their taunts at school afterward were unbearable. Bob just laughed when I asked
whether he cared about me. I enjoyed making him regret he was a man.”

I was getting more
uncomfortable with what she was doing. I had to do something to break her
attention. “Would that killing have been the end?”

“It’s funny you
asked that question. We talked about whether we would continue to wield our
form of justice, or call it a day. We never answered the question before all of
this happened. You know I can’t let you live. You said Mercedes and you wanted
to be friends? How does that stand? Not that it matters now?”

“I love Lisa and
explained that to Mercedes. She asked if we could be friends.”

“You said you
saved Lisa’s life. Tell me that story; remember, I’m the jury here.”

I thought I was
doing a good, if not an uncomfortable job of extending my execution. “She was
going to be killed by Jimmy Ballou, who had killed some camp counselors. It was
what he considered a revenge for a branding they did to him, when they were all
younger with raging hormones.”

“Jimmy got Lisa
because her mother owned the camp. I helped to rescue her.”

* * *

There was a loud
crash, and I had to check to see if I was still alive. I was.

The next thing I
knew, someone charged across the room and took Melanie off me down to the floor
with a flying leap.

It was Mercedes.
Somehow, she found me and was fighting for me. I strained to see them rolling
on the floor. Melanie lost the knife when she was knocked down.

Mercedes was
having a hard time holding Melanie since she only had her by her long red hair,
but Mercedes had a firm grip and was striking Melanie with her fist.

However, Melanie
was able to escape Mercedes’ grasp and pushed her back against one of the
columns. It took her breath away, and she slid down the column. Melanie knocked
her head with the handle of the knife. I could tell Mercedes was out cold.
Melanie rubbed her own neck, assessing the damage.

She got up
quickly and grabbed some rope. She stood Mercedes against the column and tied
her to it. It took her a few minutes to make all of the ties. Mercedes was
alive, but not going anywhere.

Melanie came
over to me. “Well, Scott, is this the first time women were fighting over you?
I have to admit, Mercedes and Lisa know how to pick them. You’re as fine as any
of the trophies upstairs.”

She picked up
where she left off like nothing had happened.

“Scott, I’m
really sorry I don’t have days to entertain you, but I have a lot of work to do.
I have to dispose of the body parts upstairs, and then take care of you and
Mercedes.”

“We were never
that close after I was committed. Trying to burn Bob’s parents’ house down next
door was the final straw, they said.”

I looked at
Mercedes, who was coming to.

“My ‘other’ got
me out of the institution—she knew how to talk to people. She fortunately
doesn’t pop out much anymore. I can’t stand her; she’s too good.”

I could see
Mercedes was observing my situation and listening to Melanie. I wondered if she
remembered my naked dream . . . here it was, with just some minor changes.

“Scott, here’s what
happens next. She grabbed me again, taking my breath away. I cut these off
first, which makes you not care about the next part.”

I couldn’t hold
the gasp back.

“Up over your
head is what we call the ‘Guillotine.’ It takes care of the other parts. Do you
see that thing hanging near the ceiling?”

I didn’t answer.
She made me regret that. I choked out an answer. “Yes.”

“Well, I throw
some switches and the weight that lifts the elevator does its magic, and the
body parts go flying. Very bloody and messy; that is mostly why we don’t wear
any clothes. That hole in the floor over there is very convenient. The ocean is
right there, which makes it handy to roll the remaining torso right into the
blue sea.”

Mercedes was
struggling against her restraints. I felt the pressure of Melanie’s hand and
knew what must be coming next. I closed my eyes and braced for the pain.

There was a loud
crash. I was confused about what was happening. When I opened my eyes, I saw
Melanie run to the open hole in the floor and jump in.

Mike and Paddy
rushed over to me and Mercedes. Mike took off his coat and covered me while he
untied my ropes. Paddy untied Mercedes. The other officers were pointing their
guns down where Melanie had gone, but they were shaking their heads.