Page 41 of Shattered Sanctuary

There was a knock on his door, and he called out, “Come in.”

Lonzine stepped into his office. He introduced her to Erin and Kaely before saying, “Was there a spare tire in Chloe Banner’s car when you found it?”

“No, boss. I looked because I wondered why she didn’t change her tire. Most women know how to do it. Especially single women.”

“Thanks, Lonzine.”

After she closed the door, Adrian nodded at Erin. “Tell me why you asked that question, but I think I know.”

“Why didn’t she change the tire?” Erin said. “Or, why didn’t the person who pulled off the road help her change the tire? Because there wasn’t a spare. I think the man who stopped to supposedly help her knew that. He could have told her he knew someone who could assist her. Either he could bring a tire that would fit her car, or else they could have her car towed to a garage where she could get her tire changed the next morning. If that happened, it would explain why they went for a drink. She was waiting for something.”

“And that’s also why there wasn’t any food in her stomach,” Kaely said. “She was still planning to go to the festival.”

Adrian stared at her for a moment before saying, “That makes sense. So we need to find someplace nearby where shecould get a drink, and close enough so she could get back to her car when help arrived.”

“Help that never came,” Erin said softly. “He lied to her. He didn’t want to go to that festival. Too many eyes. Too much of a chance they would be noticed. So he roofied her drink, and then when she couldn’t fight back, he took her back out to his car and completed his plan to kill her.”

He picked up the phone again and asked Lisa to limit her search to bars or restaurants close to the place where they’d discovered Chloe’s car. He could only pray that they would find a place where someone would remember Chloe... and the man who took her life.

TWENTY-NINE

“So, have you had time to read the profile I sent you? Do you have any questions?” Kaely asked. She wanted to go over it with him, but at the same time, she didn’t want him to think she didn’t respect his acumen as a law enforcement officer. She did. Adrian was sharp. Smarter and more intuitive than most police officers she’d worked with in the past.

“No. It makes sense. I realize it’s an educated guess, but it feels right to me. He’s in his late twenties or thirties. Fairly attractive. Probably has a respectable job.” He frowned. “It looks like he picked her up, so wouldn’t you say he had a nice car?”

“I think so,” Kaely said. “That goes with his persona. He wouldn’t be seen in something that didn’t make him feel important.”

“Can you tell by the tracks what kind of car or truck he drives?” Erin asked.

“Not really. We can narrow down the kind of tires and then check to see what vehicles use them, but to be honest, there are a lot of cars and trucks out there that use a variety of different tires. Now if there’s something wrong with atire, that could help us match it to a specific vehicle. We’re working on that now. If we get anything that helps, we’ll add it to our search.” Adrian frowned. “He’s not a tourist, is he?”

Kaely shook her head. “I’d say no for two reasons. Number one, he would have to come in and out of town to hunt. Usually, killers like this guy like to scout things out ahead of time. And they stay in areas they know. The other reason? Whatever their trigger is, it probably happened here. In Sanctuary. He’s trying to strike back at whatever it was—or whoever it was—that hurt him.”

“You believe there’s a spiritual side to this?” Adrian asked.

“Yes. The angels are important. Like we said, he’s angry at God, but he’s taking vengeance out specifically on angels. I’d look for someone brought up in a dysfunctional religious home. Maybe with parents or guardians who blamed angels for everything bad that happened to them. Or to him. These people wouldn’t be well versed in the Bible since he’s using the figurine of a female angel, although male figurines might be hard to find.”

Adrian nodded. “So, I’m looking for an attractive man in his twenties or thirties who probably grew up here, in a dysfunctional family. Who has a nice car and probably a good job. So, forget eighty-year-old hillbillies with skin conditions?”

Kaely couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, I think you can ignore them... for now.”

“Shouldn’t the police look for the angel figurines?” Erin asked. “Even the material the dresses are made from... and the blue ribbon?”

“Sure,” Kaely said to Adrian. “You have to try to track those things down, but I don’t think you’ll be able to. Thedress looks homemade, but not well-made. I think he sewed it, by hand, himself. It’s not hemmed, and it’s not cut correctly. My guess is that he’s already made several of them. And it’s almost impossible to trace blue ribbon. Too much of it out there. The figurines? Maybe. But again, they’re plain. I believe he bought them online.” Kaely leaned down and reached into her bag. She took out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Adrian. “I found those on Amazon last night. As you can see, there are hundreds of reviews. My guess is they sold thousands of them. And not just through this site. I’m sure they’re available from a lot of different online stores, as well as in brick-and-mortar retailers. Tracking down our killer that way is nearly impossible.”

“That looks like the figurine,” Adrian said. “Amazon works with law enforcement, but I’d need a subpoena or a court order for them to open up customer records. And I can’t fish. I’d need someone’s name. So, until I have a suspect, this won’t help me. And like you said, Amazon is probably not the only seller.” He frowned. “Wouldn’t hurt to look around town, just in case. I’ll have one of my officers check it out.”

“Even if they were,” Erin said, “this guy would have covered his tracks. He’s smart.” She shrugged. “Too smart to be caught this way. But he’s also crazy, so that should help.”

Kaely smiled at her. “We try not to call UNSUBscrazy,but you have a good point. If you understand the killer’s psychopathy, it will help you narrow down your search.”

“Can you define that a little more for me?” Adrian asked.

“Normally, I’d tell you to look for someone with a lack of empathy and remorse. A man with a grandiose sense of self-worth. He’s manipulative and deceitful. Impulsive andreckless. He has poor impulse control. He seems callous and unemotional. He had early behavioral problems. Poor relationships. He may also have exhibited some early criminal behavior. The thing to understand, though, is that he’s hiding. Psychopaths can learn to copy others. Pretend to have empathy. Make you think he’s humble and caring. It’s harder for him to hide his childhood, but the adults in his life may have already done that for him.” Kaely paused a moment. “If I were searching for this guy, I’d look first for someone who helps others. Like I said, he’s hiding. But many times, these men will go too far in trying to make you think they would never take a life.”

“Let me get this straight,” Adrian said. “You want me to look for someone who couldn’t possibly be our killer? Seriously?”

Kaely laughed. “I know, it sounds ridiculous, but there were several times when I was with the FBI, that we found our UNSUB by looking for the person it couldn’t be.”

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