Page 43 of Dark Visions

“That’s a great question, and I guess that’s the better question to ask, isn’t it?” said Adam. “Spook? Can you see if the club ever had any complaints against her? Are there any type of records?”

“There are always records, brother. It’s just getting into them. Let me do my magic.” Spook pecked away at the computer as the waitress came back with steaming bowls of food.

“Got it! She was a member for almost three years. During that time, she was placed on probation twice for misuse of power while in the dominatrix role. It says here the last incident prior to the intoxication charges involved a middle-aged man and his wife. She tied the wife so tight she nearly died from asphyxiation. The husband’s cuts were so deep, they required stitches.”

“Fuck! Remind me not to date her,” said Flip.

“She likes to inflict pain, but she likes to receive it as well. She thinks she deserves it,” whispered Aislinn.

“What makes you say that?” asked Kane.

“How did you know that?” asked Spook suspiciously. “It’s right here. It’s all here, but I haven’t said anything yet. How did you know that?”

Aislinn shrugged her shoulders and took a bite of her salad. The others stilled and watched as Spook eyed each of them.

“What the fuck is going on here?” he asked.

“I promise we’ll tell you everything, Spook,” said Adam. “But not here.” He looked around the table, taking in each of his friends, and nodded.

“Aislinn is right. She likes to inflict pain, but she likes to receive it as well, telling all of her ‘daddies’ that she deserves the pain and asks for more pain. One of the incidences where she was placed on probation was because she struck a man in the face who refused to use a cat-o-nine-tails on her. She claimed he wasn’t whipping her hard enough, despite the fact that he had drawn blood.”

“Christ!” said Adam under his breath. “She needs the pain, both giving and receiving. But that still doesn’t tell us about Krauss.”

“Ah,” said Spook with a mouthful of food, “the good Dr. Krauss. Let me see. He, uhhh, that’s odd. I have that he’s at two different hospitals.”

“Two? Well, that’s not unusual, but I’m not sure how that would work,” said Adam. “He’d have to be authorized at both.”

“Something is wrong. This has him working at both hospitals the night of the murders… at the same time.”

“That’s not possible,” said Adam.

“I’m looking at it, dude. Dr. M.C. Krauss at General and Dr. M.C. Krauss at Memorial.”

“It’s not possible for him to be in two places at one time,” said Adam.

“Yes, it is,” said Aislinn, looking toward the door. Her face was pale, her eyes filled with moisture and fear. Kane reached for her hand, her fingers trembling. Flip followed her eyes toward the door.

“Holy fuck! He’s a twin!”

CHAPTER THIRTY

“I’m really glad you came out tonight, Michael,” said Christopher.

“Me too. I’m sorry I’ve been so different,” he said, looking down at his drink. “It’s just been so hard… so…”

“You don’t have to explain it to me. You’re my brother. I love you. You know that. I’d do anything for you, Michael.” He leaned forward in the booth, closer to his brother. “What’s going on, Michael? Was I arrested because of… was I arrested because of something you did?”

Michael looked up at his brother, the face so familiar to him. It was his face. Michael Charles and Matthew Christopher Krauss born six minutes apart. Identical in every way, his brother possessed his face, his body, his voice, everything. They had been inseparable as children. One another’s playmate, best friend, and confidante.

They attended college together and followed the same path, medicine. Both had chosen emergency medicine with an emphasis on trauma. When it came time to choose a hospital, they decided it was best to separate and not confuse staff and patients. He missed his brother every day, but never more than the night his wife and son were killed.

In their urgency to get care for the victims, the paramedics chose a hospital closer to the scene, but one that was woefully prepared for trauma. If they had only taken them to his brother’s hospital, both might be here, safe, unharmed, and alive today.

Instead, the agony of their loss consumed his every waking moment. The only relief had come when the young woman, Deborah, had proposed a little fun and, in the process, perhaps find the couple responsible for the deaths of his wife and son. He never meant for it to get so far out of control. The visit to the club had been out of curiosity, in the hopes that he would see someone, find someone with guilt written across their forehead. As if they would just jump out from the crowd.

Instead, Deborah had approached him.

At first, it was easy, a little rough play between the two of them. Something that allowed him to release his anger. She liked it. She liked it a lot. It was never enough for her, though. She wanted more. More violence, more violation, more everything.

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