Page 63 of The Murder Between Us
“Four girls lost their lives because he was obsessed with Monica.” Cole rose and headed for the whiteboard. “Each was a prelude, a preview of his fantasy with her.”
“Did he want to murder her, or did he want to be with her?” Officer Estrada frowned.
“He wanted to capture her and make her his. In his mind, capturing her meant being together forever. I’m sure he had fantasies that they would be blissfully happy and in love for all time. She represented a vision of a life he could never have. He may have tried to bring that fantasy into reality one night, and she wasn’t having it. To him, Monica was everything. To her, he was a stranger, a creep, a threat appearing in the middle of the night.”
“We always wondered why the first five murders were like clockwork. Almost every four months, another killing. Then Monica, then within a week Stacy Shepherd, and Kyle and Shelly Carter that same night. A triple event. We thought it was something about Stacy. Thought there was something that had drawn him to her, that he had been so fixated on her he couldn’tnotbreak his own pattern.” Noah’s gaze flicked between the timeline of the crimes and the timeline they’d reconstructed out of the wreckage of Garrett’s life. He’d enlisted in the Marines right after Kyle and Shelly’s murders.
“Stacy Shepherd isn’t the key to the killer’s psychology. It’s Monica Venneslund. Garrett came apart after Monica rebuffed him and he was forced to kill her—in his own twisted reasoning. Stacy was in the wrong place at the wrong time when she intersected with Garrett.” Cole stopped at the second whiteboard. He tapped Jessie Olson’s photo. “Jessie Olson had to have meant the same thing to him today as Monica did back then. These two are incredibly similar.”
Same midwestern look, same blonde, blue-eyed, sun-dappled features. Same spirit, same will. Same strength bursting from the photos. Both young college girls with bright futures and everything to live for, until Garrett had taken that away.
“And, after Jessie’s murder, there was another multiple homicide almost immediately. Another disintegration,” Cole said.
Noah turned to Sheriff Clarke. “Sheriff, did your guys get out to Bart’s fields? Did they find anything to back up what Andy claimed?”
Sheriff Clarke grimaced. “They did. And, tell you the truth, not sure what to make of his stories. We found the clearing he mentioned. Looks like someplace a tractor might have been parked once, and cleared out the crops for a few cycles. We didn’t find any evidence it was a secret love nest for the two of them. No sign Jessie Olson had ever been out there. We did find a few discarded condoms. We brought them to the lab to be tested.”
“Love nest for one?” Jacob asked.
“That’s what I’m thinking,” Sheriff Clarke rumbled.
“We still need to connect Andy to the rest of the girls. Four were Iowa State students, like him. What was the overlap? Did he see them on the quad? See them walking to class? What about the other two? And what happened the night Monica died?” Noah moved to Cole’s side. “What happened now, six years later, that made him kill again? Was Jessie his new obsession? What was Kimberly Foster to Garrett?” Noah braced himself against the back of a chair, squeezing the stuffed leather. “We’re booking Garrett in the morning. Let’s build this case right and find the answers that will bring these girls justice.” Exhaustion throbbed in his bones. His eyeballs felt like they were unmoored in his skull. “Good work today. We’ll call it an evening, and I’ll see everyone bright and early tomorrow.”
Nods all around, and the soft chatter of the group breaking up, going their separate ways. Jacob lingered, still reading through files, but even he was starting to fade. Sheriff Clarke and Officer Estrada talked about the South Dakota records and how Garrett could have evaded the authorities there. Their voices penetrated Noah’s mind as he stared at the two whiteboards.
Why didn’t I see you six years ago?
Garrett’s Iowa State ID stared back at him.
He was the perfect predator. Unobtrusive, forgettable. He had next to no connection to these girls. No complaints against him by anyone at Iowa State. He’d learned to hide whatever had driven him through childhood and his teen years. Now he was a deputy, respected by the community, looked at as a man everyone could trust.
How did I work with you for two years and never know?
“It’s how they operate.” Cole, as if he’d read Noah’s mind, slipped in behind him. His voice was soft, pitched for Noah’s ears alone. “Predators. Sociopaths. Garrett stalked Monica Venneslund for almost two years, and the only one who knew was him. Now here he is, inside the sheriff’s department, the same one investigating his own crimes… and again, no one knew but him.”
* * *
He ditchedCole and Jacob in the conference room and hid in his office, staring at his phone as he leaned against his desk. Was this smart? He didn’t know.
Hey K-Bear, he texted.How’s practice?
Good. We’re done for today, she texted back almost instantly.We still on for dinner?
Absolutely. Do you know where you want to go?
She picked one of her old favorites, a place he and Lilly used to take her when she was still in pigtails. She used to eat chicken nuggets and mac and cheese there. Now it was steak and salmon and summer salad. Where had the time gone?
K-Bear, I have a question for you. Tell me the truth, okay?
Kay…
Do you want Cole to come to dinner with us tonight? I was thinking you and he could talk. Get to know each other, like you asked? But if you don’t want to, that’s fine. I want to spend time with YOU, K-Bear. I’m not trying to change that, or replace you, or push you away. I just thought maybe you’d want to get to know him…
God, he sounded desperate, even over text. Sighing, he crossed his arms and stared out the window, watching the sun start to lower over the suburbs bleeding away from West Des Moines.
Yeah, Dad. Bring him.
Are you sure?Doubt roared in. His chest, his lungs, ached. His stomach flipped over.
