Dead River (17 page)

“I saw you coming up the driveway,” a voice said.

Goldman looked up and saw a hazy image. He pulled his sunglasses down to the tip of his nose and peered over the top of them. It was Adam Riley.

“I don’t know how you stand this humidity,” Goldman snarled.

“You get used to it.”

They settled on the couch in the family room, and Annie Roo brought a pitcher of iced tea and two glasses filled with plenty of ice and large lemon wedges.

Goldman sipped the chilled brew. “I need to explain a few things, Mr. Riley.”

“Okay.”

“It’s not unusual that you are still receiving calls from this man. I’ve run across his type several times before. I don’t want to go into the deep psychological reasons why he’s doing this, but I’ll give you the bottom line.”

“What’s that?”

“He has to.”

Adam appeared puzzled. “I don’t understand.”

“As long as this type of serial killer doesn’t have another potential victim he’ll go back to the most recent victim’s family and inflict more torment.”

“Wait, you said serial killer. He’s killed others?”

“I don’t know that for sure, but I’d say he has. He fits the profile.”

“If you knew all of this, why did you have Detective Carillo take the wiretap off my phone line? Jesus Christ, you knew he’d call again!”

“I didn’t have the wiretap removed. It was a mistake.”

“A big one.”

“Detective Carillo will be over here later this evening.” Goldman’s voice softened. “Look, I want this man to call so we can trace it. In fact, I want to entice him to call.”

“How can you do that?”

Now I can lay it on him. “I have a plan, but you need to hear me out.”

“Go ahead.”

“Remember the riddle you were given?”

“Yes.”

“Let me tell you what it means—”

“I know what it means.”

Goldman’s face wore a surprised look. “Okay.”

“He’s after Dawn now.”

“That’s right.”

“So what’s the plan?”

“First of all it necessitates cooperation from you, your wife, and especially Dawn.”

“What kind of cooperation?”

“I want to use Dawn to bait this guy.”

“What?” Adam blurted out. He stood up and glared down at Goldman.

“Wait a minute, Mr. Riley, just wait a minute. Give me a chance to explain, then tell me what you think.”

Adam slowly eased back down. “I’m listening, but so far I don’t like it.”

“Dawn’s well-being may be in jeopardy here, but we can use that to our advantage. My plan is have the media show up here at your house for a press conference with the Riley family. Dawn will be the one that makes a plea to the community for their help in capturing Sara Ann’s killer. We’ll hold the press conference outside, in front of your house.”

Adam ran his fingers through his hair as he listened to the plan.

Goldman continued. “Look, there’s obviously a striking resemblance between Dawn and Sara Ann. So we’d have Dawn made up like her, the same hairstyle, even have her wear some of her clothes. We’ll have her hold a personal item of Sara Ann’s, like one of her teddy bears.”

Adam knew where this was going. “And this guy will just happen to be watching this on TV.”

“I’d bet money on it. He’s probably watching everything on television relating to the case. The killer is what we refer to as an organized offender. They like to follow crime in the media. Especially the crimes they’ve committed. So as he watches Dawn talk, I believe this will arouse his desire for Sara Ann, and—”

Adam popped up from the couch again. “Enough! I get the picture, but I can’t go along with this. This is crazy.”

“Maybe, but drastic times call for drastic measures. I can assure you that every effort will be made to ensure Dawn’s safety. But the fact is, she’s already a target. Please, just think about it.”

“Goddamn it, I won’t jeopardize my daughter’s life.”

Both Adam and Goldman heard feet shuffling on the tile floor outside the family room. They turned to see Dawn leaning against the entrance.

“Daddy, I want to help,” Dawn pleaded.

“Help do what?” Adam asked.

“I heard Mr. Goldman’s plan. I want to help catch Sara Ann’s killer. I have to do something, and this is perfect. I’m not afraid.”

Adam looked at Goldman then lowered his head. “I want to talk to my daughter. Alone.”

“Sure.” Goldman took his glass of iced tea and joined Annie Roo in the kitchen.

Adam and Dawn settled on the couch. “I can’t ask you to put yourself in harm’s way. You’re all I have now,” Adam said. “Sara Ann’s gone.”

“I know, and I promise nothing will happen to me. I have to do something for her. I miss her so much.”

“I miss her too.”

“Then you should understand why I have to do this.” Dawn reached for her father’s hands. “I think Mr. Goldman’s plan will work. I agree this psycho has turned his attention to me, so why not take advantage of it and use it against him, just like Mr. Goldman said?”

“He can’t guarantee your safety.”

“He said every effort would be made to ensure my safety, and that’s good enough for me.”

“I don’t know.”

“Look, Daddy, I love you and Mom so much. I’ve never done anything to endanger myself, and I wouldn’t do this if I thought something bad would happen. I have a good feeling about this. Besides, I’m nineteen.”

She is an adult. “I’m leaving this up to you. It’s your decision.”

“Daddy, I’m telling you right now I want to go through with this.”

“Okay, but I’m going to emphasize to Agent Goldman that I want around-the-clock protection for you.”

“Sure. What about Mom? Should we discuss this with her?”

“No. I think it’s better she doesn’t know about this right now. I’ll tell her later.”

Dawn leaned toward her father and kissed his cheek. “When’s the press conference?”

“I don’t know. Let’s talk to Agent Goldman.”

The two walked toward the kitchen. “I’d like to do it Monday. That will give me time to practice my lines.”

Adam frowned. “This isn’t one of your parts in a play.”

“Sure it is,” Dawn replied with confidence. “There’s no difference at all. I have experience.”

 35

ANNIE ROO RETIRED to the guest bedroom upstairs, leaving the three of them to talk at the kitchen table. Monday would be Annie Roo’s last day at the house. She had a non-stop Delta flight at noon out of Orlando to Birmingham.

Goldman went over the details of what he wanted Dawn to say during the press conference. When they finished, Adam walked him to his car. The evening air was humid, and a light breeze occasionally swept across the driveway carrying a hint of night-blooming jasmine.

“I have a question,” Adam said.

“What’s that?” Goldman asked as he pulled out his car keys.

“What happens to someone that makes them want to kill?”

“That’s difficult to answer. There can be several factors. Someone that commits sexual homicide could have had a traumatic experience as a child, such as sexual abuse coupled with mental abuse. Some studies conducted over the years have shown this to be the most common contributor.”

“But not all sexually-abused children grow up to be killers.”

“That’s correct, but some do. And studies have shown that unconscious childhood conflicts can give rise to abnormal behavior. For example, someone with low self-esteem could resort to sexual homicide, compensating for their inadequacies.”

“Did you do these studies?”

“I’ve contributed to them. Many of the interviews I’ve conducted with subjects who have committed sexual homicides have been part of studies at Harvard, Yale, Columbia, and George Mason. I have also given lectures around the country on how these study results have helped mold the FBI’s profiling techniques over the years.”

“I have another question. Do you have time?”

Goldman checked his watch. “I have a few more minutes.”

“Why is it that some killers will go out of their way to get caught, like intentionally leaving evidence at the crime scene, and others are careful to leave no clues?”

“Again, there’s no simple answer. But many times a killer that wants to be caught is probably someone who is so guilt-ridden he’s left with no choice but to be captured and punished for what he’s done.”

“And the others?”

“They can’t stand the thought of being caught, because then they couldn’t continue to appease their desires to sexually assault and kill. I’ll say that sexual killers who perform premeditated murder, as opposed to impulsive killers, are the most difficult to apprehend, because they’re usually the ones that don’t want to be caught.”

“That makes sense,” Adam said.

“They’ll carefully plan the sexual homicide, from the victim selection to disposing of the body. The victims are usually targeted strangers, individuals with desirable characteristics for that sexual killer. This is one of the characteristics of the organized offender class. And if you recall, that’s the class where I placed the person who murdered Sara Ann.”

“Does his interest in Dawn indicate he goes after girls that are young and attractive?”

“Probably. However, that may not be the entire picture for this guy. What you described may be the basis for his selection, but whenever and for whatever reason, he gets an urge to rape and kill, who knows who the victim might be? It’s not an exact science, but profiling has helped solve many crimes.”

“When you interviewed all those killers, like Manson and Berkowitz, what reasons did they give for their actions?”

“Oh boy. They ranged from satanic beliefs or achieving sexual pleasure, to certified schizophrenics that claim they’re responding to hallucinations and delusions. Some claim they hear voices that command them to kill.”

“That’s sick.”

“Of course it is.” Goldman was now becoming animated with his hand gestures. “One researcher came up with three categories for homicidal behavior. The first one is called ego-syntonic homicide. This is behavior that’s compatible with the offender’s thinking and fulfills a consciously acceptable wish for the killer. The second one is referred to as ego-dystonic homicide. This behavior type is incompatible with the killer’s way of thinking and occurs contrary to the conscious wishes of the perpetrator. This person would be in an altered state of consciousness during the time the crime is being committed. And the third category is called psychotic homicide. If someone commits a psychotic homicide, they are in a delusional state of mind.”

“Which category do you think this killer belongs to?” Adam asked.

“From what I’ve seen so far, I would say he’s ego-dystonic. But only after he’s captured and we’re able to talk to him at great length can we make that determination.”

“It sounds like you believe this guy’s killing against his own will.”

“Probably.” Goldman again checked his watch. “Sorry, Mr. Riley, I’ve got to go.”

Peter Carillo showed up an hour after Goldman left. He immediately went to work setting up the equipment in the living room.

“I understand you had another phone call today,” Carillo said as he snapped open his notebook computer.

“Yes. Agent Goldman’s trying to entice the guy to call again. He’s going to arrange a press conference with Dawn late Monday morning.”

“I heard about it but didn’t know when.” Carillo looked up. “Okay, looks like I’m set here.”

Adam stretched his arms over his head. “I’m beat. I’m going to try and sleep some. Have everything you need?”

“I believe so. If I don’t, I think I know my way around here by now.”

“Just make yourself at home.”

 36

A THUMPING SOUND woke Dawn from a deep sleep. She slowly sat up in bed and glared out her bedroom window through blurry eyes. Large oak-tree branches whipped around like dancer’s arms in a ballet, the full moon casting large shadows on the bedroom wall.