Difficult Run (7 page)

“Was either of them dating anyone?” Jake asked.

“Patrick had been dating the same girl since Middle School,” Kate Hager said, turning to look at Jean Marsten. “Jean, hadn’t Steve just started dating someone new about a month ago?” she asked.

“That’s right,” Jean Marsten replied.
 
“A nice girl.
 
I’ll give you her name if you like,” she said, turning toward Jake.

“We’ll actually need both girls’ names,” Jake said.
 
“We may want to talk to them.”

Jean Marsten took a pen and paper from the coffee table, wrote down the girls’ names and handed it to Jake.
 
“They both go to Langley High School, same as the boys,” she said.

“When are the boys’ funerals?” M.J. asked.

“This Friday. There’s going to be one service for both of them and they’ll be buried next to each other . . . We thought they’d want it that way,” Phil Hager replied, his voice cracking and tears forming in his eyes.

“We want to thank all of you and offer our deepest condolences,” M.J. said, rising from her chair and handing each of the parents one of her cards.
 
“If you think of anything that might help us, please call me.
 
My cell phone is on the card and I’m available 24/7.”

“Thank you Detective, and please let us know if you find out who murdered our boys,” David Marsten said. They all shook hands and he lead them to the door.

Jake and M.J. drove to a deli in McLean to grab something to eat before their next appointment.

“That wasn’t very helpful,” Jake said.

“No, it wasn’t, but I didn’t expect it to be,” M.J. replied.
 
“Frankly, I don’t think we’ll get much usable information at the school either, but we still have to try.”

They ordered sandwiches and drinks.
 
While they were eating, M.J. told Jake about her conversation with Doc.

“Well, that physical description seems to fit with what we know,” Jake said.

“Yeah, and someone out in a thunderstorm creeping through the woods at night sounds pretty psychopathic too,” M.J. offered.

“Still not much to go on,” Jake added as they finished eating and headed to the car.

“You’ve got that right,” M.J. said.
 
“Let’s see what we can find out at the school.”

Langley High School is a sprawling complex on the outskirts of McLean.
 
When M.J. and Jake arrived they immediately noticed a large black ribbon that had been carefully tied around a giant boulder at the entrance to the parking lot.
 
The base of the rock was piled high with bouquets of flowers.
 
Hundreds of notes and cards had been taped to the stone face.

Jake parked the car and they entered the school through its front entrance.
 
They checked in at the front desk and were escorted to the principal’s office.

Students were milling about in the corridor, removing books from lockers and talking quietly to friends before going to their next class.
 
M.J. noticed the somber expressions on most of their faces and the black armbands that many of them were wearing.
 
She remembered how she had felt in high school when two of her friends had died in an automobile accident and the collective grief that had consumed student life for weeks thereafter.
 
This, she thought, has to be much worse because the boys were murdered.

They entered the office and were met by a man in a polo shirt and slacks.
 
“I’m Paul Chambers, the principal. We’ll be meeting in here,” he said, motioning to a conference room.

There were two other men standing next to the table when they entered.

“This is Randy Keating, my assistant principal and Tony Lambert, who coaches our lacrosse team,” Principal Chambers said.

They all shook hands, introduced themselves and sat down.
 
M.J. started the conversation.

“As you know, we are investigating the murders of Steven Marsten and Patrick Hager.
 
We wanted to ask you a few questions and would be interested in anything you might know that would help us,” she said.

“We all knew the boys,” Principal Chambers began.
 
“They were both good students and never got in any trouble here at school.”

“They were both first string on the varsity team from day one,” Coach Lambert added.
 
“Really good players.
 
We won the Virginia State Championship twice with them on the team.
 
Frankly, I don’t know how we’ll be able to replace them for this season.”

“Ever any fights between either of the boys and other students?” Jake asked.

“None,” Assistant Principal Keating said.
 
“If there had been, I would have known about it.
 
School discipline is part of my responsibility.
 
Coach, anything ever happen between them and the other players?”

“Oh, hell no,” Coach Lambert replied.
 
“They were very popular with the other guys.
 
They were co-captains of the team this year and last.
 
The only time I ever saw them get rough with anybody was against opposing players during a game, and that’s just part of the sport.”

“Any drug problems that you’re aware of?” M.J. asked.

“None,” said Keating.
 
“Of course we have drug problems here; most every school does.
 
But these boys didn’t run with that crowd.”

“The parents gave us the names of the boys’ girl friends,” Jake said, sliding the piece of paper across the table.
 
“We’re thinking about interviewing them to see if they might know anything.”

“I thought you might. I already checked and neither of them is here today,” said Keating.
 
“They’re upset, I’m sure.
 
A lot of the kids are.
 
We’ve had to bring in grief counselors from several other schools to help deal with this.
 
I doubt the girls will come back to school until after spring break, which is next week.
 
I can send you their home addresses and phone numbers if you want to reach them there.”

“We’d appreciate that,” M.J. said.
 
“Is there anything else any of you can think of that might help us?”

The three men looked at each other and shook their heads.

“I guess we’d like some information from you, if possible, Detective,” said Principal Chambers.
 
“Can you tell us anything about how the boys were murdered?
 
There hasn’t been much in the papers.”

“That’s intentional,” M.J. replied.
 
“We’re holding back a lot of information while we conduct our investigation.
 
The only thing I’m able to tell you right now is that the boys suffered trauma to their necks and I’d appreciate it if that went no further.”

“Of course,” Principal Chambers replied.
 
“We’ll certainly get in touch with you if we hear anything that might be useful.”

M.J. and Jake shook the men’s hands and M.J. gave them her card.
 
Principal Chambers walked them back to the front entrance.
 
“Thanks for all you’re doing,” he said when they reached the doors.

Jake drove M.J. back to her car in Great Falls Park.
 
As she was getting out, she asked, “Got any plans tonight?”

“None.
 
What did you have in mind? A movie and dinner?” he asked with a smile on his face.

“A late dinner, but instead of a movie I’d like to go for a nice walk,” she replied.

“A walk? Where?” he asked.

CHAPTER TEN

M
.J. PICKED JAKE UP AT EIGHT, as promised.
 
They were both wearing casual clothes and windbreakers to hide their gun belts.
 
It was an unusually warm night for early April; so warm that under other circumstances they might have skipped the windbreakers.

The parking lot for Difficult Run was filled with cars.
 
At first, M.J. wondered about this until she remembered that it was spring break for a lot of the colleges in the area.
 
She suspected that Difficult Run was a popular place to gather and party.

Her suspicions were confirmed when they entered the trail and could hear music and voices.
 
When they rounded the first curve, they saw a large gathering of college-age kids around a bonfire that had been built in a hollow surrounded by high rock walls.
 
To the right, they could hear the sounds of splashing water and uncontrolled laughter and giggling.

“Well, Detective,” Jake said as they walked past the area, “we seem to have several violations of the law going on here.
 
An open fire and the consumption of alcoholic beverages in a national park . . . and I wonder just what is going on down in the stream.
 
I think I should investigate.”

“Bullshit, Jake.
 
You
know
what’s going on down there.
 
You’re just looking for the chance to see some naked college girls,” M.J. said.

“You know, there are probably naked college
boys
too,” Jake replied.

“Hmmm . . . tempting, but we’re here for other things.
 
If you feel really strongly about it though, we can call it into Fairfax County on our way out.
 
Let them be the party poopers,” M.J. said.

“You’re no fun,” Jake said.
 
“By the way, just what
are
we here for?”

“Just keep walking and let me think,” M.J. replied.

Jake knew M.J. well enough to know that meant to shut up.
 
They kept walking, using the small flashlights from their gun belts to illuminate the trail in front of them.
 
There was a quarter moon that provided some illumination in the areas without overhanging trees, but it was generally dark enough to require close attention to the path in front of them.
 
M.J. had been down the trail several times in daylight but not at night.
 
Jake had not been back since the murder investigation started.

After several hundred yards, the sounds from the party died out and the only thing that could be heard was the rushing water in the stream below.
 
A bird with a wingspan of several feet swooped out of a tree and came gliding down the trail just above head level.
 
Jake started when the bird flew over, ducking and instinctively reaching for his gun.

 
“What the hell was that?” Jake exclaimed.

“Just an owl looking for food,” M.J. replied nonchalantly, continuing on the trail in silence.

They reached the point where the murders had occurred and M.J. stopped, shining her flashlight around the surrounding rocks.
 
She stood there for several minutes, lost in thought.

“Let’s go back to the car,” she said.

A few yards up the trail, she turned to Jake and said, “There was only one killer.”

“How do you know that?” he asked.

“Think about it,” she said, “he would have come here at night.
 
Probably parked in the lot where we did.
 
He was looking to murder someone, anyone.
 
There were probably people up at the head of the trail, just like there are tonight.
 
That seems to be a very popular place.
 
If there had been more than one killer, they would likely have murdered someone there.
 
Maybe waited until a lot of the people had left, then killed the stragglers.
 
One of them could have blocked the escape route while the other committed the murders.

“I also have a hard time believing that two psychopaths would join up for an evening stroll on this trail in search of victims.
 
For one thing, it doesn’t fit the pattern for that type of killer.
 
They usually work alone.
 
That’s part of the thrill for them.
 
Also, there’s the way the boys were killed.
 
If it was more than one person, the method of choice would have been guns so they could do more damage.”

“Maybe one liked to do the actual killing while the other just liked to watch,” Jake replied.

“Can’t rule that out,” M.J. said.
 
“We’re dealing with some really dark corners of the human mind.
 
But if there was more than one killer, the gathering place up there would still have been more attractive. After all, they couldn’t be sure there was anyone else on the trail that night.

“A lone killer would have bypassed the party. Too little opportunity; too many witnesses.
 
He would have walked on down the trail, maybe looking for a better victim, maybe just out of frustration.
 
When the boys’ helmet lights appeared at the top of the Ridge Trail, it presented the perfect opportunity.
 
The killer would have had plenty of time to hide.
 
He would figure out that if he killed the first boy and kept the second from riding back up the trail, there would be no witnesses.
 
After that, he could just walk back to the parking lot and leave the way he came.”

“Wouldn’t somebody at the party have seen him arriving
 
or leaving?” Jake asked.

“Maybe, but we just walked by there and no one saw us.
 
I’ll bet they don’t see us when we leave either,” M.J. said.

As predicted, they walked past the hollow without being noticed.
 
When they got back to the car M.J. said, “It just occurred to me that if there were people partying there that night, the boys may have known some of them.
 
Hard to say if they would have stopped to say hello.
 
If there was drinking going on, they probably wouldn’t have.
 
It’s probably worth putting up some posters at Langley and the other schools in the area asking if anyone has any information, though.
 
We can put the TipLine number on the posters and see if anything shakes out.”

“I’ll take care of that tomorrow,” Jake said.

They stopped on the way to Jake’s apartment and picked up some Chinese take-out and a bottle of wine.
 
Jake opened the wine and poured each of them a glass, raising his in a toast.

“Here’s to a great date.
 
Let’s do that again real soon,” he said sarcastically.
 
“By the way, why didn’t you spook when that owl flew over?”

“You’re such a city boy, Jake,” she replied.
 
“I grew up in the hills of West Virginia.
 
We had owls fly over our heads all the time.”

They finished eating and while they were rinsing off their plates, Jake asked, “How about spending the night?”

M.J. turned toward him, gave him a kiss, and said, “Yes, I think I’d like that very much.”