Experiment in Terror (Koehler Brothers Book 1) (5 page)

“Still on her honeymoon. Both she and Josh are absolutely crazy about Sloan.”

“As they should be.”

Her mother passed on a few tidbits of family news, then asked, “Would you like to have dinner with your father and me this evening?”

“Thanks for the invitation, Mom, but I’m a little tired. Since I had a big lunch, I thought I would eat a light dinner and have an early night.”

“If you’re sure. But you know we would love to have you.”

“Ordinarily, I would love to come.”

“All right, dear. Another time. You know you don’t need an invite. Just come any night. Of course, call first and make sure we’ll be here. You know your father and I like to eat out on a regular basis.”

Amanda hung up the telephone and went back to her vacuuming. She couldn’t help wondering what her mother would have said if she had told her about the homeless man and how attracted she had been to him.

There was only one answer. Her mother would have been absolutely horrified. It was fortunate that Charlie had taken it so calmly. At least if there were any more developments, she had someone to share them with. Regrettably, she couldn’t imagine having anything further to discuss with Charlie.

In fact, she had definitely made up her mind to ride the bus the next day. It was the only way she had the remotest chance of forgetting about the homeless man and her attraction to him. With that plan decided, she put away the vacuum and headed for the kitchen.

The evening passed as slowly as the afternoon at work had done. She picked up a book by one of her favorite authors, but try as she would, she couldn’t concentrate. She turned on the television and surfed the channels in an attempt to find a program that would hold her interest.

There was no point in going to bed early. In spite of what she had told her mother, she wasn’t tired, and if she went to bed, she would only toss and turn. She should get herself a dog. It would be good company for her. She could put it in the backyard during the day. Now that she was rid of Eric, there was no reason not to have a dog. He had never wanted one. Said he didn’t want its hair showing up on his trousers.

She stretched out on the couch. She was tired of trying to control her thoughts. Closing her eyes, she decided to give herself up to the luxury of thinking about the homeless man. She was able to immediately bring his face to mind and it gave her pleasure to remember those gray eyes and the way he had looked at her, as though he was as attracted to her as she was to him.
She wondered if he was looking for a job. But who would hire him with those ragged clothes, shaggy hair, and beard?

She really should quit riding her bike to work and take the bus. But then she wouldn’t be able to see him. She was tired of debating with herself, as to whether to ride her bike or take the bus. She wondered how much longer he would be hanging out with the other homeless men. Eventually, he would be heading off to some other town, which would cause her to lose all hope of finding anything out about him.

She wished she would have had the courage to question him when she had almost run into him on her way home. Asked him what his name was, where he was from, what had happened to him that he was homeless. It would have been an ideal time to do so, since he had been alone.

She could save herself the cost of hiring Gary Kaufmann, the detective. But perhaps it would be better if the man didn’t know she was interested enough in him to want answers to her questions. It might cause problems for her.

She wouldn’t want him to become a stalker. All he would have to do some morning would be to follow her over to the Mall and see where she worked. And tonight, he hadn’t been that far from where she turned off to her house. He could follow her and find out where she lived.

No, the wisest thing would be to pursue her plan to hire Gary Kaufmann to investigate him and find the answers for her.

With that decision made, she decided to retire and as she climbed into bed, she was suddenly buoyant. Tomorrow she would see the homeless man.

Chapter 5

Matt stared after Amanda until she turned a corner on the bike path and disappeared from sight. A minute later, he heard her bike tires hitting the wooden slats of a nearby bridge.

Why would I want to take orders from the likes of you?
Her words played over and over in his head.
Likes of you. Likes of you.

He wished he could let her know who he really was. He would like to tell her they should explore the idea of dinner together. But he knew that wasn’t possible without blowing his cover. There was something more important here. Lives were at stake. He should forget about the blond biker until the Boulder Creek Killer had been apprehended.

He shook his head to clear his mind then headed down the path toward the library, but he kept remembering her flashing blue eyes as she had asked why she should take orders from him. He couldn’t help but admire the way she had stood up to him. But why wouldn’t she? After all, she thought he was nothing but a homeless man. There had been defiance in her voice as well as some sort of challenge.

He needed to pick up his sleeping bag from its hiding place and move to the bridge by the library. It would soon be dark and he wanted to be settled for the night. He hoped this would be the night he would catch the Boulder Creek Killer.

As he shook out his sleeping bag high up under the bridge in front of the library, a couple of hundred feet from where the murdered girls bodies had been found, he knew he would be passing the time, as he had the previous night, thinking about the beautiful blonde on the bike.

Tonight, he had made her angry and he wondered why. Usually the expression on her face when she saw him made him feel she was glad to see him. Maybe he had frightened her by stepping out onto the bike path. Perhaps she had used anger to cover her fright.

For all she knew, he might be the Boulder Creek Killer. He hoped she didn’t think he was and stop riding her bike. He was aware she could either take the bus or drive to the Mall. But if she did either one of those things, he wouldn’t be able to see her again and that was the one bright spot in the hours that dragged by for him.

Matt had been uncover for almost a week and he was anxious for something to happen. He was sure if the killer accosted a girl near the library, he would hear something. Even a muffled scream. With all the foot traffic at night, he found it hard to believe the killer could attack someone on the path without being seen.

He wondered if he was smart by hiding out under the bridge. What if the killer approached a would-be victim in another location? Just thinking of it made a knot of fear in his stomach. What if the killer had accosted the blonde on the bike last night, instead of him? Panic like he had never known swelled up in his throat. If anything happened to her while he was working this case, he would never get over the guilt.

He couldn’t help but wish he had one or two clues about the killer. Unfortunately, the police chief hadn’t been able to give him a single one. Only information on the victims. And they all fit the same type—blond, slender, slightly over five feet tall.

Obviously the killer liked blondes. Matt’s heart stuttered as he thought once again of the blond biker. Did their height have anything to do with how tall the killer was? Maybe he liked them shorter because they would be easier for him to attack if he was grabbing them from behind.

He would be relieved when Karen’s current assignment was over and she arrived to act as a decoy. Hopefully that would keep another university student from being attacked. The night passed slowly and he was grateful when morning came.

His schedule was to stay awake until the early hours of the morning when he was certain no one would be out on a weeknight. He tried to sleep from three until eight and then make his way to the stone bench. After lunch, he always grabbed a few hours of sleep on the grass, either in the park or in front of the library.

He had tried asking the group of homeless men their opinion of who the Boulder Creek Killer might be, but none of them appeared to have a clue. He was sure it wasn’t any of them because they all went up to the North Broadway Shelter in the evening. He was glad none of them had offered to stay with him during the night.

As he headed toward the meeting place at the stone bench, he glanced at his watch. It would be a couple of hours before he could expect to see the woman on the bike. He hoped he hadn’t startled her so much the previous night she would decide to take the bus or drive to work.

What was he going to do after he caught the killer?

He would have to go back to Denver and then he wouldn’t be seeing her again. He didn’t like that thought. He would have to find a way to see her after this job was finished. Making the decision to face the problem when the time came, he reached that conclusion and the stone bench at the same time.

He couldn’t help but wish he had asked her for her name the previous night when it was only the two of them. But he was sure she would have wondered why a homeless man would want to know her name. Maybe it would have frightened her and she would quit riding her bike on the Creek Path.

When he saw the group of homeless men approaching the bench, he realized something must have happened. They were talking in excited voices.

“Did you hear the latest?” one of them asked.

He shook his head.

“They found another girl raped and murdered.”

Matt’s heart sank. “Where?”

“According to the news, her body was found under a bridge down by 30
th
Street.”

That was not far from where he had seen the blond biker the previous night.

Icy fear wrapped around his heart. He had to talk to Heller, but it would be another hour before the library opened and he could call him. He should get a cell phone. He had noticed some of the men had them.

He was at the library when they opened the doors and he hurried inside to call the chief.

“Glad you called,” Heller said. “I guess you’ve heard the news.”

Matt told him he had. “Has the body been identified?” The words almost stuck in his throat as he asked the question.

“Another University student,” the chief said, and Matt breathed a sigh of relief, and then immediately felt guilty because he had been glad that it wasn’t the blond biker.

“He appears to be deviating from his usual MO,” Matt said.

“Unfortunately, this is going to make it harder to catch him. Not only has he changed the place, but it has only been a few days since the last one.”

A tense silence fell between the two men.

“Did you talk to Karen again?” Matt asked. “When is she going to be able to get up here?”

“I did, but she is just finishing an assignment and it’s going to be a few more days before she can get up here.”

“Can you talk to her boss and see if someone else can take over for her? I’m more sure than ever that we need a decoy.”

“I’ll see what I can do.”

“Can someone get a cell phone for me? I was mistaken when I thought a homeless man wouldn’t have a cell phone. Most of them do. It’s wasting time when I have to come to the library every time I want to talk to you. Not that I have all that much to do, but I would like to be able to talk to you at any time I feel I need to.”

“Now
that
I can do. How shall I get it to you?”

They made arrangements for someone to bring the cell phone to him and he went back to the stone bench to join the group of homeless men, who were still talking about the rape and murder of the previous night.

Matt had almost given up hope of seeing the blond biker when she came into view. He stood up from where he sat on the grass and stretched his arms above his head in a casual movement that immediately caught her attention.

He was disappointed when she only gave him a quick glance as she called out her usual good morning to the group. She didn’t slow her speed, and as she reached the signal light, which was green, she shot across the street and out of sight.

He sighed. Had her attraction for him already faded? He knew the first few times they had seen each other there had been a strong fascination on each of their parts. Now it appeared as though it had become one-sided, and unfortunately, he was on the one side.

Amanda had made up her mind to ignore the tall homeless man until Gary Kaufmann had investigated him. Maybe there was some hope the man might not remain homeless. She couldn’t help wondering what the odds were for that happening. It probably had to do with how bad a man hated being homeless and how much he wanted to get his life back on track. But how would he ever find a job, looking the way he did?

Her appointment with Gary was in the afternoon and she was anxious to meet with him. Sloan had maintained he was one of the best in the business and she was looking forward to meeting with the detective. She hoped he would be able to find answers to her questions.

She put her bike in the back room and went to her office, waving at Jenessa as she walked through the store. It was Friday and as she saw the ad on the wall behind the register, announcing the female vocalist who would be performing on the mall, she was aware the store had a busy day ahead.

Every Friday during the summer and into the warm fall months, the city set up a platform on the mall in front of the store and various musicians performed. Some of them were very good, while others were mediocre, but it always drew a crowd to that part of the mall, which brought browsers into the store. This in turn meant revenue for her business.

Amanda liked to get through her morning chores so she could go out on the mall and mingle with the listening crowd. Sometimes the better artists had CD’s for sale and if she really liked them, she would purchase one or two after the concert.

Jenessa stopped by her office to visit before the store opened. Amanda greeted her with a smile but it immediately faded when Jenessa said, “Another University student was found raped and murdered down by the 30
th
Street Bridge last night.”

Amanda stared at her in horror. “That’s not far from where I live.” That was close to where she had seen the homeless man. A warning voice whispered in her head.
Was it possible he was the Boulder Creek Killer
? She shuddered inwardly at the thought as ice seemed to spread throughout her body.

“Amanda, you’ve got to quit riding your bike. There’s no reason you can’t take the bus.”

“You’re right,” she said slowly. “At least when I leave work. I don’t think I need to worry about riding it to work in the morning. I can always put it on the bike rack on the bus when I go home.”

“Well, I wish you would quit riding your bike, altogether.”

“How’s it going with the new artist, Dennis Hamilton, in the way of sales?” Amanda asked, wanting to forget about the fourth murder and the suspicion that the homeless man might be the killer.

“Really great,” Jenessa said. “I had to call him and ask him to bring in more art. His greeting cards are selling like hotcakes. We’re almost out of them, even though he left us twenty boxes. By the way, he will be coming in on Sunday morning to restock.”

“Good scheduling.” Amanda smiled. “Since I won’t be here.”

“Why not?” Jenessa asked.

“You know I never work on Sunday.”

“Oh, that’s right.”

“My mom and I are going to Denver to do some shopping and stop at a museum to see the work of an artist I might like to bring into the store.”

“What kind of art?”

“Oil paintings.”

“That might be good since we have no oils in here.”

“I thought so,” Amanda said. “Of course, they will be much more expensive than the photography we have on display, but we do have a certain amount of demand from people for oil paintings, especially from the tourists.”

Jenessa turned from the doorway and glanced out the front window. “Looks like they’re setting up for the concert.”

“I hope this Lisa Bell is good,” Amanda commented. “I need a new CD. I’m getting tired of playing the same ones over and over again.”

“I know what you mean. Well, I had better get back out in the store before it starts getting busy.”

“Did you schedule an extra clerk?”

“Yeah, Marie and Justin are working.”

“I’ll be out in a minute,” Amanda told Jenessa.

She hurried to finish her paperwork and left her office to walk through the front door of the store. As soon as she heard Lisa’s voice and the band, Amanda made up her mind to buy one of her CD’s if there were any available.

She had stood in the crowd for a few minutes when she became aware of a disturbance. Then she saw him. He was a head taller than the other homeless men with him. People hurried to move out of their way, a look of disgust on most of their faces. The men stopped in front of the stage to listen, not far from where Amanda stood, not appearing to notice the reaction of the crowd. The performers didn’t appear to be concerned by the ragged men, but smiled at them in a friendly manner.

When Lisa announced her next song was entitled “Dancing on the Moon,” and began to sing the words in her mellow voice, Amanda felt her eyes drawn like a magnet to the tall man in front of the stage. As though the same magnet was pulling him around, he turned.

They stared at each other until the song finished and the men began to move away from the stage. The crowd split to allow them to pass.

“Wow,” Amanda heard someone whisper in her ear and turned to see Charlie beside her. “Was that tall one your homeless man?”

“Yes, but he’s not
my
‘homeless man,’” Amanda protested.