"I need to speak with Thomas Dareson," she said, "or, should I say, Sam Darquesied."
It had taken Tommy a few seconds to get ever his apprehension of seeing the police car in the gate monitor. He finally pushed the intercom button as Alyssa dashed upstairs to get some clothes on, but even then, it took him a minute to ask the police woman if he could help her.
"May I ask what this is about?" said Tommy.
She said, "My name is Corporal Lindsey Stapleton, of the Provincial Police, Novamercado division; and it is important that I speak to you."
Just then, there was a knock on the door and Kendall walked in, "It's okay, Sammy, It's Lindsey. With all that was going on this morning, I forgot to tell you she was coming."
"Your friend Lindsey? You never mentioned that she was a cop!?" he said.
Still a little concerned he pushed the intercom at the same time as the gate lock and said, "Okay, just drive straight up to the house."
Kendall went out to meet her as Alyssa came back downstairs, wearing a black and white, floral print dress. As they started out the door he noticed that Alyssa had forgotten to remove the collar. He quickly undid the buckle, shoved the collar in his pocket, and went outside.
Corporal Stapleton was standing by her cruiser and talking with Kendall as Tommy approached. She was quite attractive, with long, dark hair done up in a French braid. Even though the uniform was not particularly flattering, it was clear the she was well built; muscular, but not muscle bound. She greeted Tommy with a firm handshake and a sincere smile.
"I'm sorry to surprise you like this; Kendall was supposed to let you know I was coming," she said.
Kendall just shrugged her shoulders and Tommy said, "Yes, well Kendall seems to be holding back all kinds of information...like the fact that her best friend Lindsey is a police officer!"
Corporal Stapleton said, "Do you have a problem with that?"
Tommy said, "You tell me."
"I assure you that I am not here to cause you any grief," she said, "I've come to ask for your help."
"My help...?" he said, "Okay...how be we go in the house and talk over coffee."
Kendall apologized again and went to tend the horses, while the others went into the house. The police woman and Tommy sat at the small kitchen table as Alyssa got coffee for all, and then joined them.
Tommy said, "Well, Corporal Stapleton, how can we help you?"
"Please, call me Lindsey," she said, "I only use 'Corporal Stapleton' for official business."
He said, "Okay, Lindsey, how can we help you?"
She said, "First of all, I should tell you...I know what goes on here. Kendall and I have been best friends since before high school and we tell each other pretty much everything."
"Should I be worried?" he said.
"Not at all," she said, "I don't see anything illegal here; in fact, near as I can tell, everybody who comes and goes here, appears to be pretty...happy.
"As I said, I'm here to ask your help...You may have seen in the news that two young women have been killed around here over the past four months."
Tommy said, "I read about one, a couple of weeks ago. They found her body just south of Carillon."
"Yes, that's one of them," said Lindsey, "and another was found about three months before that, around two miles from there."
Tommy suddenly said, "Oh wait! You think I had something to do with that!?"
"No, NO!" she said, "You are not a suspect, I assure you...please, let me finish."
He relaxed a bit and Lindsey continued, "There are several police forces working on this, round the clock. Last week, a forensic pathologist came up with something that has pointed us to, what we feel, is a good lead.
"At first, we thought the girls had simply been beaten to death, but the autopsies showed evidence of torture...whipping and more."
Skeptically, Tommy said, "Oh...so, naturally you thought of me!"
Lindsey, speaking with authority, said, "Please, Mr. Dareson, let me finish!
"Now...the post mortems showed that there were some injuries that had healed somewhat. They also showed that some were less severe than others, indicating, we think, that the torture may have started relatively light then progressed over the next few days."
Tommy said, "So, you think the girls were tortured to death?"
"At first, but the autopsies showed that both girls died from dehydration and malnutrition...they starved to death."
He said, "How long would that take?"
"They must have been given some water, but not a lot; probably just enough to keep them alive...barely. We estimate they lasted about a week; maybe a bit longer." she answered.
Alyssa broke in, "I still don't see how we can help."
Lindsey continued, "Well...long story short; our investigation has led us to believe that the killer is trolling for victims by using personal ads in local papers and the Internet. We have psychologists, profilers, and several other investigators who are experts in this sort of thing; and they have come up with about sixty personal ads; one of which may have been placed by the killer.
"What I was hoping, was that you might come to the station and have a look at the ads, and possibly narrow it down a bit."
"I'd really like to help," he said, "but what makes you think I can do better than your psychologists?"
She said, "It's a shot in the dark, Mr. Dareson, but what has us very concerned is that the ads are mostly current. This bastard may be hunting for a new victim—"
Just then, the phone rang, and Alyssa excused herself and went to the office to answer the call.
Tommy said, "Call me Sam please."
"Oh...okay," she said, "Kendall explained the name thing, but I still find it kind of strange."
Alyssa returned, "I'm sorry to interrupt, but it's Sadie's lawyer, from Chicago...He said it was important."
Tommy said, "Okay, I should take this...can you excuse me for a minute?"
He headed for the office while Alyssa topped off the coffees and took her seat. Sensing that Lindsey was curious, she said, "Sadie's a client; she's elderly and apparently she's not well."
Lindsey said, "Elderly? You have elderly clients here? How old is she?"
Alyssa said, "Sadie is seventy four, I think. She's special...it's a long story."
Tommy returned, and, with tears in his eyes, said, "Sadie passed away late last night."
"Aww...no..." said Alyssa as she too began to cry. She got up and hugged him for a couple of minutes while Lindsey just sat quietly watching.
As they returned to their seats, Lindsey said, "I'm sorry for your loss. She must have been very close."
"She was very special," said Tommy, "The lawyer said something odd though; he asked if I would inform Nicolette. She was supposed to be coming here soon but...damn, I was so flustered I should have asked him what he meant...I'm sorry, but you'll have to excuse me again. I have to call them back."
He went back to the office and Lindsey asked, "Who's Nicolette?"
Alyssa said, "She's Sadie's granddaughter. Apparently she gets into trouble...she's kind of a 'Paris Hilton', you know, rich, spoiled; parents never around. Sam met with Sadie a couple of days ago—"
"Okay," said Tommy, returning from the office, "I'll help you in any way I can, but could you do something for me? According to the lawyer, Nicolette left Chicago just after me; and he says she was coming here. Can you check to see if she arrived okay? She should have come in the night before last."
Lindsey said, "Okay, I'll see what I can do...I realize that you've just received some bad news, but can you come in with me now?"
He said, "Oh...well...yeah, I guess. We'll follow you in the Yukon."
The women went outside while Tommy went upstairs for his wallet. When he came out, he could see Alyssa was curiously asking the police woman about her cruiser. She started to follow him to the garage, but she seemed a little reluctant. Laughing out loud, he said, "You want to go for a ride in the cop car, don't you?
"Would you mind? I've always wanted to...since I was a kid!"
"Go ahead," he said, "It's only a fifteen minute ride, but...don't ask her to put the cuffs on!"
Mocking disappointment, she said, "Aww..." and ran back to the cruiser.
"Can I sit in the front?" she asked.
Lindsey said, "Only police personnel are allowed...yeah, go ahead. Next, you're going to want to drive!"
As Alyssa started to speak, the exasperated police woman said, "Just get in!"
Like an exited little girl, Alyssa kept turning and waving to Tommy, following in the Yukon. Finally, Lindsey asked her to sit and fasten her seat belt.
Tommy laughed out loud when he saw the lights come on and heard the siren; knowing that Alyssa had badgered the poor corporal until she finally gave in. He shook his head and chuckled some more, saying to himself, "She's a hard girl to say no to!"
Lindsey killed the lights as they turned on to the main road, "So, tell me about Sadie. I am having trouble picturing a seventy four year old woman in bondage, and all the other stuff."
Allysa said, "She's been coming almost since we started...Sadie is...was...a very powerful, and wealthy, woman in Chicago. Her family has been involved in real estate since the city was a clearing in the trees. She has lots of friends and contacts and she heard about us through one of them. She contacted Sammy and arranged to come for a meeting...
