Page 31 of Nothing Left

As she and Wyatt headed to the corner apartment on the top floor, she imagined the possible scenarios that could unfold. Would they find the man inside? Would he be aggressive, or would he be cooperative? She had no way of knowing, but she needed to be ready for any outcome. From denial to slamming the door in their faces to physical aggression – they could expect anything.

Walking quietly beside her, she sensed that Wyatt was preparing himself in just the same way.

When they reached the door, Juliette gave a loud, authoritative knock.

“Let’s see if he’s in – or if he is, whether he’s telling us so,” she murmured.

They waited and listened. Juliette was listening out, in particular, for any sounds that might indicate this man was hurriedly leaving his apartment via the fire escape.

With that in mind, she'd stationed Sierra as a lookout in the courtyard down below and told her to call them immediately if she saw anyone coming out of that exit door.

But she didn't hear any movement from inside. And there was no phone call from Sierra to warn them about anyone. Juliette checked her phone carefully, not wanting to miss that warning.

So, this man, whose name they still did not know, was not answering the door, and he was not trying to escape. Either he was inside, hiding away quietly, or else he wasn't here at all.

"It's a corner apartment. Are there any other windows?" Juliette wondered aloud.

"Good question." Wyatt strode around the corner, ready to check, as Juliette tried knocking yet again. Still no reply. And a moment later, she heard him shout, "Juliette! Come look!"

She hustled around the corner to see what he'd found.

Wyatt had discovered an open window. Well, to be accurate, not so much open as unlatched. But her proactive partner was not wasting the opportunity. He'd eased it half open, and now, he was sticking his head in, pulling the curtain back to have a look.

Juliette waited, hearing Wyatt let out an astonished gasp.

"Geez, Juliette, if you take a look at what's in here - this guy. This guy! This is serious. We've got to get him in."

"What is it?" She felt her own adrenaline pulsing now at his reaction.

"He's got a wall of photos. I think it includes photos of women in this building. I’m pretty sure I’m seeing Heather there and Samantha, too." Wyatt quickly activated his phone’s flashlight and shone it inside. “Yes. I see Samantha, for definite. She’s at her bedroom window. So he took this from outside. Maybe even from the fire escape.”

"What?" she said incredulously.

"Yes. Take a look. It's unreal."

He moved out of the way, and Juliette slid her shoulders through the gap and peered inside, taking a moment to let her eyes adjust to the darker room.

"So he does. Wyatt, this guy's a stalker, for sure. He was photographing Samantha and so many others. We need to take a closer look at this. Right now."

Without a doubt, this evidence gave them sufficient cause to go in and search. Juliette pulled the window up all the way, and then she climbed carefully over the sill, stepping down and standing inside.

While Wyatt clambered in, Juliette took in the look and feel of the place.

The air smelled thick with cigarette smoke, and there was a brimming ashtray on the coffee table. They were standing in the living room, and the couch was positioned in such a way that it faced the photo wall. That was what he did, she realized with a chill. He came home and sat down, and he feasted his eyes on all the photos he'd taken. And, with another unwelcome jolt, Juliette realized that not all of the women were fully clothed.

Where he could take bedroom photos of the women naked, he had done. There was even one of a woman stepping out of the shower.

Juliette felt a wave of disgust wash over her as she looked at the photos. She had seen enough. This was clear evidence of criminal intentions, and they needed to act fast before he had a chance to harm any of the other women on his wall.

"Let's search the place, Wyatt," she said, now feeling a sense of urgency. "We need to find any other evidence we can before he comes back."

They started searching the apartment systematically, looking for any other photos or clues that might be useful. Juliette photographed that incriminating wall first of all. Then she started looking for anything that might confirm the intent to kill. There was a diary on the desk that had some scribbles in it, but she couldn't make out exactly what they were. His handwriting was atrocious. She looked through it carefully, though, paying particular attention to the fact that the night of the murder was an empty page. So there wasn’t anywhere else he’d needed to be.

From an old ID card in the drawer, whose photo matched up with the description they had of him, Juliette deduced that the man’s name was Julio Fernando, and he was twenty-eight years old.

Feeling a premonition that she might see an even darker side to him, she headed into the bedroom. There was only one large bedroom in this apartment, but like the living room, the walls were lined with photos.

In fact, this was where the more intimate pictures were displayed. There were more nudes here. She looked carefully at some of the photos, and from the backgrounds, she was pretty sure that Julio had accessed private properties, taking photos from the gardens, from the porches, and in one case it looked as if he’d walked right inside and photographed a woman through the shower door. That caused her to shiver in horror, but it also intensified her certainty that they were on the right track here.

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