Page 13 of So Savage

“So where do we go from here?”Marcus asked.

“From here, we brainstorm,” Faith said.“First, what can you tell me about the first crime scene?”

"It was almost a shot-for-shot remake of the second one.Or the second one is a shot-for-shot remake of the first.Master Sergeant Reeves was sedated in an open field, as was his K-9.He was murdered by having his throat cut with a sharp implement with a non-serrated blade, most likely a knife.The K-9 took about a day to fully recover and was then released to the Marine Corps.Substances used were the same, with doses tailored to the individuals involved.You know about the boot prints already, but nothing else distinguishing was found."

“I suppose it would be a waste of time to look for people who wear size twelve army boots in your system,” Faith said.

“Oh yes.That would leave us with thousands of leads to work through.Also, it’s not unheard of for killers to shove their feet into shoes two sizes too small for them or even one size too large.We can’t know from the shoe size who our killer is.”

“Not without more information,” Faith conceded.

She sipped her coffee and thought about something Dr.Parker had said.“Did Reeves’ dog suffer any aftereffects of cold exposure?”

Marcus shook his head.“Not that I’m aware of, no.I have to imagine not since it was turned over to the Marine Corps swiftly.If there were any injuries, it couldn’t be anything serious.I assume the tranquilizer had the same metabolic effect as it had on Rooster and protected Shadow.That’s Reeves’ dog’s name.”

“I’m wondering if the killer chose that cocktail of drugs on purpose.”

Marcus raised an eyebrow.“Well, I assume so.You don’t want your enemy conscious and trying to escape or kill you for several minutes after being shot.”

“Yes, but I also wonder if the fact that it protected the dogs against the cold was a factor.”

Marcus got the point.“You think he was going out of his way to make sure the dogs survived.”

“I think so.He sedated both dog and handler but left the dogs alive.That’s a pretty clear sign that his beef is with the people.”

"So he created a sedative that would protect dogs from cold, give him enough time to work, and work fast enough that they couldn't call for help or attack him."

“That’s my hypothesis.I want to look into this a little more.I want to figure out what the two victims might have done to convince someone that they didn’t deserve to have their dogs.”

“Let’s go back to the station,” Marcus suggested.“I’ll call the Marine Corps and the Army on the way and see if they can send us both of their files.”

“Perfect.This killer is acting based on a personal motive, a very deeply held belief that this is what the victims deserve.Possibly he feels that this is what he deserves, and he’s projecting his self-loathing onto them.”

“Hell of a way to project.”

“There’s never a positive way to make your problems someone else’s,” Faith remarked.She finished the last of her coffee and got to her feet.“Come on, Turk.Let’s go put in some legwork.”

Marcus chuckled.“Does it count as legwork if we’re sitting in front of a computer and reading?”

“I like to think positively,” Faith said.“Maybe we’ll find something that will give us another lead.Then we’ll be using our legs.”

“So headwork first, then legwork.”

She grimaced.“I guess so, but headwork sounds weird.”

He laughed again.“Fair enough.”

***

The Duluth Police Department was located near the city center.Here, Faith saw some of the traffic and larger buildings of a real city.It still didn’t hold a candle to Philadelphia, but she wouldn’t use the word cozy to describe it.

When they parked, Marcus warned Faith, "This is the part where I have to give you the disclaimer that I can't commit to hiding your involvement in the case.There are a lot of employees here, from officers to dispatch to internal affairs to janitorial staff to corrections officers.I can't promise that they'll all keep a secret.We'll try not to parade you all over the station, but one of them might recognize you and think nothing of putting the word out there.I'll tell everyone to keep their mouths shut, but you know how that goes."

“Like waving a chew toy in front of a dog,” Faith replied.Turk gave her a hurt look, and she scratched his chin, “Except for you, boy.”

He snorted and hopped out of the car.Faith smiled and followed her sensitive puppy into the building.Marcus led them to an office on the third floor that was both more spacious and more well-equipped than the offices of Lieutenant Torres and Dr.Parker.Police detective was a good gig.Maybe Faith would compromise and take a detective gig at a local police department somewhere.Lots of agents did that when they started slowing down and didn’t want the stress of an FBI job anymore.

“You want Reeves or Walsh?”Marcus asked.

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