Page 44 of Criminology of a Character

“We were coming from the property’s entrance, though,” Bel said, pulling up a map. “Our killer entered from that back road, and the barn is here.” She pointed to the spot in the nothingness. “When we left the barn, we returned to the main roads, but what if he took a different route home? He enters from the rear of the property at the pull-off and then exits somewhere else to avoid creating a pattern. Walker’s land is extensive. Just because we only found one pull-off doesn’t mean there aren’t other access points. When transporting the girls, he would’ve gone the long way. The back roads avoid town, but once his vehicle was empty, what would it matter?”

“I don’t know if it’s drivable, but what about this area?” Olivia pointed to a section of the map. “That’s in the opposite direction of the farmhouse. If you drive from the barn to here, you’re driving as the crow flies, and you could reach almost anywhere in Bajka from this point.”

“We should check it out,” Bel said.

“Can we take your car? I’m so tired, I might drive us right off the road.”

“No problem. I’ll mention it to Griffin, and then we’ll go.”

Twenty minutes later, the women parked at the edge of Walker’s property, Olivia’s proposed exit more than ideal. The trees offered ample protection, but they were spaced out far enough to allow an exiting truck to pass without issue.

“I think you found his exit,” Bel said as they stood in the shade. The ground held no clues, but Lina had guessed he killed an average of three women a year. Three one-way trips below these trees wouldn’t leave anything worth finding.

“Coming from this area, he could pull onto the dirt road that leads to a trailer park. It’s a large community, so a car passing through wouldn’t raise eyebrows,” Olivia said. “Then from there, his trip could be anywhere from five to fifteen minutes long. If he lived in the trailer park, he would’ve been home in seconds.”

“He doesn’t live here,” Bel said.

“What makes you say that?” Olivia asked. “The expensive security camera?”

“Because The Matchstick Girls aren’t his first murders.”

“Oh god.” Olivia whirled around to face her. “Please don’t say that.”

“I don’t want to, but these murders were expertly planned and executed.” Bel absentmindedly picked at a bush. “Look how much effort went into obtaining this property. He killed Walker and assumed control of his life. He installed that freezer—alone, I expect, since hiring a crew would create witnesses—then he tapped into the power grid and mapped out every entrance and exit. He knew exactly why he needed this land and how he wanted to kill those girls. He left nothing of himself behind. No evidence, no mistakes, no witnesses. He’s not an amateur. He’s killed before, and I think often until he learned what he liked.”

“We need to find this guy because, if that’s true, our discovery won’t stop him. He’ll just start over,” Olivia said. “But as horrifying as that is, why does that mean he doesn’t live in the trailer park?”

“I’ve seen Bajka’s cold case files,” Bel said. “There aren’t many, so the Matchstick Killer wasn’t hunting in Bajka. It would’ve raised too many questions. I think he left town, learned how he liked to kill in other cities, and then left the bodies to return home. He either has money or a job that allows him to travel, and neither of those points to living in a trailer park.”

“He travels a lot…” Olivia stared at the sky as she thought. “We’ve only identified one Jane Doe because of Lina, but they’reall different ages, races, and body types. He doesn’t have a preference, so he looks for opportunity instead. Girls that people wouldn’t miss from other locations to keep Bajka safe for him.”

“My guess is he’s middle-aged but nice enough looking,” Bel added. “He has a face that wouldn’t scare his targets. They’d be comfortable having a drink with him or letting him sit at their table. They would feel safe opening up to him, and he probably targeted girls with family issues. He would lull them into safety by playing the father figure, and they would wake up in a freezer before they realized something was wrong.”

“Okay, so we’re looking for a handsome middle-aged man with enough money to travel who also has technology skills,” Olivia said.

“Who works a job the public doesn’t notice,” Bel added. “He drugs the girls and then watches via video stream. Walker was hit over the head, but that could’ve been an accident. Even if it was premeditated, I still believe violence makes him uncomfortable. He doesn’t enjoy the physicality of harming people, so he prefers living behind the scenes. He’s someone with a low profile that we wouldn’t bat an eye at. He hates being the center of attention and prefers to watch the action happen to others.”

“Like a movie,” Olivia said. “I was wondering if he was ex-military, but now I think that’s wrong. A soldier deployed overseas would be well acquainted with violence, and I’d wondered if returning to civilian life drove him to feed the beast in other ways, but that doesn’t fit the profile.” She started pacing the dirt road as she gathered her thoughts.

“He transports the women to the barn after he kidnaps them, and he’s someone people are accustomed to seeing,” she finally said. “You know who drives large trucks and would never raise suspicions, even if they’re in odd locations? Electricians whowork at the power company like the men who found Walker’s body.”

“I wish I could help,but that’s impossible,” Elias Hudson said. He managed Bajka’s electric company and was a friend of Griffin’s, so when the detectives brought their theory about the Matchstick Killer’s profession to their boss, he’d dialed Hudson immediately.

“None of our technicians take the vans home after hours,” Hudson continued. “I inherited the company from my father, and this has been our policy since an employee’s teenage son stole a van for a joyride and totaled it, destroying thousands of dollars of equipment. We also have a detailed system for scheduling jobs, so if one of our techs left town overnight without authorization, we’d know. We monitor gas and thespeedometers, and while someone could refill the tank, the miles would reflect an unauthorized trip.”

“We do that with our squad cars,” Griffin said. “Only we don’t have a schedule, so it’s harder to track our officer’s every move.”

“Trust me, none of my vans were involved in this crime,” Hudson said. “I’d like to believe my employees aren’t capable of murder, but you never know, do you? We all grew up with Abel Reus, just for him to kidnap both of your detectives.”

“Yes, you never know.” Griffin threw the women an apologetic look, but Bel just shrugged. Bajka wasn’t the smallest town, but its size ensured gossip galloped through the streets. She was shocked that news of her relationship hadn’t spread beyond her immediate friend group, but then again, people barely paid attention to the mysterious man who lived in the ruins of the Reale Mansion. Although, she’d have to stop calling them ruins soon. Eamon was restoring it himself, but he’d made unnatural progress over the past few months. The plus side to being an ancient power.

“If I notice anything, I’ll call you, though,” Hudson said. “I have daughters, so if someone in my company is guilty, I’ll march them down to the station myself. I can’t imagine that happening to all those women. Makes me want to go home and see my girls.”

“This case has us all wanting to hug the women in our lives,” Griffin agreed. “And thank you. I hated having to ask, but we need to find this guy. Call me if you think of anything.”

“Will do, Sheriff.” Hudson hung up, and the detectives sank further into the couch.

“We just can’t catch a break, can we?” Olivia moaned. “I keep thinking I have good ideas, but nothing pans out. I’m too tired.”

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