Suffer II (15 page)

There wasn’t much to Greg Jones, but he was predictable. His grades landed him in Boudreaux Community College after graduating high school. Most of his friends were attending larger schools as far away from the sleepy town as possible. His only aspiration was to take over his father’s boat repair business when the old man retired.

From his bank records, the team knew he’d be at his local bar on Friday night. From his text messages, they knew he’d be meeting Bo and Alex with the sole intent of picking up women. With tourist season kicking off over the weekend, they were confident the odds would be in their favor.

Bellied up to the horseshoe-shaped bar, the three young men ordered a round of shots to start the evening’s festivities. Most of the faces inside were familiar and had been coming to the local bar for years. The older patrons who had arrived hours earlier were making way for the younger crowd. With the lights dimming and the band setting up, an unfamiliar face in a tight skirt walked by. All three stared as she took a seat across from them.

After ordering a beer, she answered an incoming call. She spoke loud enough for Greg and his friends to hear. It was obvious she was angry at whomever was on the other side of the call. It ended with her cursing and slamming the phone on the bar. A shot of tequila followed.

“You looked like you could use that,” said Bo, raising his shot.

“You have no idea,” she said, knocking it back. “Thank you.”

“My name is Bo and this is Alex and Greg.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Crystal.”

“Well, Crystal,” said Bo. “Sounds like your friend isn’t showing up. Come join us.”

“I’m sorry,” said Crystal, standing. “I didn’t mean to be so loud.”

“Aw, don’t worry about that,” said Bo. “He’s gotta be an idiot to stand you up.”

She smiled as she picked up her purse and came around the bar. She was tall and striking, but it was difficult for them to maintain eye contact with her low-cut blouse. She was one small button away from giving them all heart attacks. She brushed against Greg’s arm as she took the open seat beside him.

“Wait a second,” said Bo. “I buy you a drink and you sit by him?”

“He’s the best looking,” said Crystal, winking at Bo. “I’m just kidding. You’re all cute. This round is on me.”

She kept them guessing about which one was going to win. When she asked them to play pool, the answer was becoming clearer. She was driving them all crazy while leaning over the table when it was her turn, but most of her attention was given to Greg. When Bo and Alex went to the bar for another pitcher of beer, he crossed the finish line.

“Would your friends be mad if I kidnapped you?” asked Crystal, pressing herself into Greg.

“I don’t give a shit,” said Greg. “You wanna get outta here?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” said Crystal. “Yes. I’m staying at my aunt’s place while she’s out of town. It’s not far. Her liquor cabinet is full.”

“Let’s go,” said Greg, putting his stick on the table.

They walked out without saying goodbye to Bo and Alex. Greg followed her car the short distance to her aunt’s house. Crystal wasted no time going inside and left the front door open for him. She was already pouring a drink in the kitchen as he rounded the corner. Everything went dark when he reached out for it. The last thing he remembered was hearing Crystal scream.

His head was pounding as he regained consciousness after being choked. His arms and legs were bound to a chair. Greg turned his head to see Crystal still unconscious beside him. Blood was dripping from her mouth.

Fear overtook his confusion when a man wearing a black mask stepped in front of him. Another man in the same mask stepped in front of Crystal and grabbed a handful of her hair. He pushed her head back and then let it fall forward again as he laughed.

“She put up a better fight than you did, turd,” said second mask. “You should be embarrassed.”

“Who the f-fuck are you?” asked Greg, tripping over his words. “What the fuck are you doing?”

He was answered with a hard punch to the stomach. His reaction to double over from the pain was prevented by the strap pinning him to the back of the chair. When he lifted his head, he saw a gun pointed at his face. He understood the message.

“She asks the questions,” said first mask, taking a step back, revealing a woman standing in the corner.

“My name is Kate. We followed you and your girlfriend from the bar. She has a nice place.”

“She doesn’t live here and I just met her tonight,” said Greg. “She’s not my girlfriend. Whatever you want with her, I don’t know anything about it.”

“My problem isn’t with her,” said Kate. “It’s with you.”

“With me? I don’t even know you.”

“No, you don’t. But I promise that you’ll never forget me.”

“What do you want from me?” asked Greg, hearing Crystal moan.

“The truth,” said Kate. “It’s as easy as that. You tell me the truth and you’ll walk out of here tonight. If you lie, we’ll kill you both. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” said Greg. “I-I’ll tell you the truth with whatever you wanna know. I won’t lie to you.”

“Tell me, what did you do to Emily?” asked Kate.

“Emily? I don’t know anyone named Emily.”

“You forgot the name of the girl you raped in high school?” asked Kate. “Were there so many that you lost track?”

“No,” said Greg. “I never raped anybody. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Does your girlfriend know?” asked Kate, stepping over to Crystal. “I bet she does.”

“I told you. She’s not my girlfriend.”

“I don’t believe you,” said Kate, picking up a large hunting knife from a table. “I think she knows.”

“What’s happening?” asked Crystal, lifting her head.

“Your boyfriend was just going to tell us how he drugged a friend of mine and then raped her,” said Kate, stepping behind Crystal.

“I just met him,” said Crystal, crying. “I don’t know anything about that.”

“Of course you don’t,” said Kate, leaning down to her ear. “He’s going to tell us or I’m going to cut your throat.”

“Cut my throat?” said Crystal, fighting against her restraints. “I had nothing to do with it! Tell her, Greg!”

“She doesn’t know anything!” said Greg. “I swear to God!”

“You can save her life by telling the truth now,” said Kate, waving the knife in front of Crystal’s face. “Or you can lie to us and watch her bleed to death.”

“I didn’t rape anyone,” said Greg. “I swear.”

Crystal screamed in pain as Kate dragged the blade down the side of her face. Blood poured out of the wound. Greg tried to jump out of his chair, but it was bolted to the ground. He slumped over as Crystal begged Kate to stop.

“I didn’t rape her; Mark did,” said Greg. “I swear to God, that’s the truth. It was Brittany’s plan. She drugged her with the shit Mark brought. We were just supposed to take pictures of her. He’s the one that really raped her. I didn’t!”

“I saw the photos, Greg,” said Kate, grabbing Crystal’s hair and exposing her throat. “You had your hand on her head and you were forcing her to go down on you. You didn’t think your face was in the picture, but it was.”

“Yeah, I did that, but that’s not rape. They told me to do it.”

“They told you,” said Kate. “Are you that weak?”

“We were just going to embarrass her,” said Greg, starting to cry.

“Emily is dead,” said Kate. “I think you did a little more than embarrass her.”

“Oh my God!” said Crystal. “You killed someone!”

“Yes, he did,” said Kate. “And I’m truly sorry, Crystal. But we have to kill you because he’s lying.”

“Wait! Wait! I didn’t kill her!” said Greg. “Mark told me Bullet and his brothers did it! He said she was talking to some FBI agent, and they had to shut her up! I didn’t kill her!”

Kate released her grip on Crystal’s hair. She walked around and stood in front of Greg. He lowered his head and sobbed. Kate put her finger under his chin and raised it.

“You’re right, Greg,” said Kate. “You didn’t rape her; Mark did. You didn’t drug her; Brittany did. There’s no reason for us to kill you because of that. You told me the truth. You’re going to walk out of here tonight.”

“Okay,” said Greg, trying to force a smile. “So you’ll let us go now?”

“I’ll let you go on one condition,” said Kate. “You leave here and you go straight to the sheriff. He’s working late tonight. You go there and you tell him what you just told us. You tell him Brittany drugged her and that Mark raped her. You tell him you were there and made a mistake. He won’t arrest you for that. He’ll understand that they made you do it.”

“I can’t,” said Greg, resuming the tears. “Mark’s mom is a judge. She said she’d have me thrown in jail for the rest of my life if I ever said anything.”

“The rest of your life?” asked Kate. “How long do you think that is?”

“What?”

“How long do you think you’ll be alive?”

“I’m only twenty-one,” said Greg. “A long time, I guess.”

“How long do you think she has to live?” asked Kate, pointing the knife at Crystal.

“I-I don’t know.”

Kate walked behind Crystal and stood for a moment staring at Greg. Instead of grabbing her hair, she stroked it. She whispered in her ear before pulling the knife across her throat. Greg sat catatonically as blood sprayed across the room. When his brain caught up with what he saw, he began to scream and shake violently.

“About that long,” said Kate, walking behind Greg.

“You killed her!”

“Shut up and listen to me,” said Kate, leaning over him. “Are you listening?”

“Yes, yes,” said Greg, hyperventilating. “Please don’t kill me. Please, I’ll go. I’ll go.”

“That’s better,” said Kate.

He was still trembling when first mask cut through the straps holding him to the chair. Greg was too terrified to move. He flinched when Kate grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to his feet. First and second mask stepped in closer to him.

“What are you going to do now?” asked Kate, making him repeat his instructions.

“I’m going to the sheriff and tell him what we did to Emily,” said Greg, feeling the hot breath of the two men standing inches away from him. “I’ll tell him everything I know, I promise.”

“Good boy,” said Kate. “I hope you understand that, if you don’t, we’ll find you. We know where you live and where you work. This isn’t the first time we’ve done this. We will find you, Greg. And I’ll cut your throat just like I did hers.”

“Why are you still here?” asked first mask. “You should be running up those stairs.”

Greg looked at each of them and then over at Crystal’s limp body. Blood was still oozing from her neck. He took a few steps backwards and then turned for the stairs.

“Drive safe,” said second mask.

When they heard Greg’s truck accelerate up the long driveway, they removed their masks. Grey and Chief walked over to Kate who was standing over the body. They waited in silence until Evan came down the stairs.

“All clear,” said Evan. “He just turned down the road heading into town.”

“Are you sure this isn’t going to stain my shirt?” asked Abby, lifting her head. “It’s one of my favorites.”

“Mine too,” said Chief, taking a knee in front of her.

“Yep,” said Evan. “It’s just light maple syrup with some food coloring.”

“How did I do?” asked Abby, watching Chief cut through her restraints.

“I’m pretty sure he shit his pants.”

Abby removed the plastic tubing from the inside of her favorite blouse. It was connected to a bladder filled with red syrup. When she squeezed the pump concealed in her hand, it produced the effect of arterial spray coming from her neck. The hollow rubber knife filled with the same syrup completed the illusion. As Kate pulled it across Abby’s neck, she depressed the plunger on the handle which pushed the liquid through a hole in the blade.

“What if he doesn’t confess to the sheriff?” asked Abby, washing her shirt in the sink.

“That really doesn’t matter,” said Kate. “It does matter that Cassandra will find out what happened and worry that he did. I want her blindsided and confused. We just put her on her heels again, but now we’re going to keep her there.”

“Greg just arrived at the sheriff’s office,” said Evan. “He made several phone calls along the way. One of those calls being to his buddy Mark Hall. I’m tracking Mark now. It looks like he’s heading to his mother’s house.”

“Perfect,” said Kate. “Were you able to hear the call?”

“I was,” said Evan, grinning. “You two were very convincing. Greg said he witnessed a murder. Mark had to shut him up before he said anything incriminating. He told Greg to go to the sheriff, but not to talk about what happened to Emily. He said his mother would take care of everything.”

“Do you think she’ll go after Brittany and Greg?” asked Abby.

“I don’t think she will,” said Kate, “but it’s a risk I’m willing to take. No, she’s more likely to reach out to them with threats to keep them quiet at this point.”

“If she hasn’t already,” said Grey, walking into the kitchen after changing his clothes. “She’s evil, but she’s smart. I’d bet the farm she has a contingency plan if any one of them ended up talking to the police.”

“She at least has ears on the inside,” said Chief, joining the team. “She knows there’s something going on here in Boudreaux, so she’ll be circling the wagons around her son until she figures things out.”

“Greg and the sheriff are on the move,” said Evan. “Looks like they’re heading this way.”

“Okay, guys,” said Grey, “shut down the console and let’s get moving.”

They left Kate and Abby alone in the house while the rest of the team drove into town. Evan had wired the rooms with microphones so they could listen to the conversations that would take place inside. Grey ordered a pitcher of beer, and the men settled in and waited for the show to start. As the pitcher arrived at the table, Sheriff Lewis, Greg, and a deputy arrived at Kate’s door. They heard the knock through their earpieces.

“Can I help you?” asked Kate, opening the door.

“That’s her!” said Greg, pointing at Kate and stepping behind the deputy.

“Calm down, son,” said Lewis.

“Is something wrong?” asked Kate.

“That’s what we’re here to figure out, ma’am. I’m Sheriff Lewis, and this young man is confident a crime took place here tonight. Would you mind if we came inside and took a look around?”

“You need to arrest her,” said Greg. “There’s a dead girl in her basement!”

“Excuse me,” said Kate. “A what?”

“I’m sorry about that, ma’am,” said Lewis. “He seems to be a little jumpy tonight.”

“I assure you there’s no dead body in my basement,” said Kate, grinning. “But feel free to come inside and check for yourself.”

“Is there anyone else in the house?” asked Lewis, stepping through the doorway.

“Yes,” said Kate. “My sister is upstairs. We wanted to get away from the city, so we rented this house for the week.”

“Could you ask her to come down, please?”

“What’s he doing here?” said Abby, standing at the top of the stairs as Greg and the deputy came into the living room.

“Wait,” said Greg, looking up at Abby. “That’s her! That’s Crystal. The girl she…”

“She what?” asked Lewis

Greg stared at Abby as she made her way down the stairs. Kate stared at Greg and smiled. He couldn’t process what was happening around him.

“This is the girl that was murdered in the basement?” asked Lewis, turning around to face Greg. “How much have you had to drink tonight, son?”

“I saw her get her throat cut by this lady,” said Greg.

“This is the guy I told you about,” said Abby, walking up beside Kate.

“The pervert from the bar?” asked Kate.

“Yes,” said Abby. “This creep must have followed me home. Oh my God! Was he outside?”

“Obviously, there’s been a misunderstanding here tonight,” said Lewis.

“No,” said Abby. “There’s no misunderstanding. This guy kept staring at me at the bar and wouldn’t leave me alone. He grabbed me when I tried to leave and said he wasn’t finished with me.”

“Really,” said Lewis, glaring at Greg. “And you used me to bring you to her door.”

“No!” said Greg. “That’s not what happened! She was hitting on me and –”

“I think you’ve said enough, boy,” said Lewis.

“This is crazy!” said Greg. “I know what I saw. Maybe it wasn’t this girl, but there’s one in the basement, I swear to God! There’s blood everywhere down there. Go look.”

“Humor me, Deputy,” said Lewis.

“Sure, boss,” said the deputy, making his way down to the basement.

Sheriff Lewis walked into the kitchen as if he were looking for evidence of a crime. He left Kate and Abby alone with Greg. They both took a step closer to him as he took one back.

“You didn’t keep your promise,” said Kate.

“What?” said Greg, breathing heavily.

“You promised us you’d tell the sheriff what you did to Emily,” said Abby.

They took a step closer. He couldn’t take another one back as his heel hit the wall. Greg’s eyes darted around the room looking for the sheriff.

“You broke your promise to me,” said Kate. “I won’t break mine to you.”

“Sheriff!”

“What?” asked Lewis, coming out of the kitchen.

“They’re gonna kill me! They just said they’re gonna kill me!”

“All right,” said Lewis, “I’ve had enough of your crap, kid.”

“All clear, boss,” said the deputy, coming up from the basement. “There’s nothing down there.”

“That’s impossible!” said Greg. “It was everywhere!”

“Take him outside,” said Lewis. “I need to apologize to these ladies for bringing this idiot into their home.”

Lewis watched as the door closed behind Greg. He stood for a moment before taking a deep breath. He turned and made his way to the couch.

An hour earlier, he was in his office watching a computer screen. It was a live video feed from the basement. The link was sent in an email from Kate letting him know that the murder would be staged, but the confession would be real.

“I can’t help but feel responsible for this,” said Lewis, deflating. “If I would’ve listened to Emily instead of everyone else, she’d be alive today. She’d be at school right now enjoying her life and dreaming about a very bright future.”

“I’m sorry we had to do it that way,” said Kate, taking a seat across from him. “But absolute fear brings out absolute truth.”

“That was very creative,” said Lewis. “Very convincing. I know that video will never make it to court, but I wish it could.”

“We have to be surer than the courts,” said Kate. “This is just the beginning of everything that’s about to become unraveled. We’ve already made arrangements to get your family somewhere safe and out of Boudreaux. You can go with them, Sheriff.”

“No,” said Lewis, shaking his head. “I’m seeing this thing through to the end. I need to see this through. I owe it to that family.”

“This isn’t your fault, Sheriff,” said Kate. “Don’t beat yourself up. You were a pawn being used by a powerful and manipulative federal judge.”

“No, I was a jackass who was more concerned about self-preservation than justice. That ends today. What do you need me to do?”

“For the moment, nothing,” said Kate. “The less involved and the less you know, the better. Eventually we’ll be gone. You and your family will still be here.”

“Me doing nothing is what caused this,” said Lewis.

“I said for the moment, Sheriff. Judge Hall is going to come to you and demand that you at least run us out of town. When that doesn’t happen, you’re no longer an asset to her.”

“Is that why you’re moving my family?” asked Lewis. “You think she’ll go after them to get me to play ball?”

“I don’t know that for sure, but we’re not going to take that chance,” said Kate. “I won’t go into detail, but that’s how the man who tried to kill me got so close. He would take someone that you love and force you to do his bidding. My doctor was seconds away from killing me while I was in a coma because his wife was kidnapped. My guys stopped him, but it was too late to help his wife.”

“He killed her?”

“Yes,” said Kate. “That’s why we’re eliminating that as a possibility here as much as we can.”

“What’s Judge Hall’s next move?”

“She’ll be in your office bright and early tomorrow morning, if not sooner. When you don’t respond to her threats, she may try to go over your head. But more than likely she’ll turn to her other assets. The same assets she used to terrorize and kill Emily.”

“Do you know who they are?”

“We have a very good idea, but we need to be sure. We have some of them under surveillance now. If there’s any indication that they’re coming after you, we’ll take care of it.”

“You’re not going to tell me who they are,” said Lewis.

“Correct.”

“I’m okay with that. It looks like you guys have everything under control.”

“We’ve learned from our mistakes,” said Kate.

“I plan on doing the same,” said Lewis, handing Kate a USB key. “These are the photos from the party that Brittany Greene sent me. I’m sure there’s more out there, but this is all I have that wasn’t destroyed. I hope it helps.”

“It will,” said Kate. “We’ll find the others.”

“Okay, then,” said Lewis, standing. “If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“I want you to take those,” said Kate, pointing at copies of the journals on the coffee table. “They’re Emily’s words.”

A few minutes after the sheriff left, the men returned to the house. Kate and Abby were sitting at the console looking at the photos. They turned the screen when the men came inside.

“Is Dawson with you?” asked Abby.

“No,” said Grey. “He knows not to come here until we call him.”

“Good,” said Kate. “Seeing these would kill him.”

They walked to the console and stood over Kate and Abby’s shoulders. They were all uncomfortable looking at the moment Emily’s fate was sealed. Anger followed.

“That sick asshole is smiling,” said Evan.

“I hate to admit it,” said Chief, “but I’d be hard pressed to file charges based on that photo as well. It doesn’t look like she’s being assaulted.”

“No, it doesn’t,” said Grey. “Brittany knew what she was doing.”

“We need to get our hands on all of the photos that were taken that night,” said Kate.

“I haven’t found anything on their laptops or phones yet,” said Evan. “They probably have them stored on a separate drive, but I’ll keep looking.”

“Nice work with the sheriff, Kate,” said Grey. “We’re going to need his help down the road, but right now we just need him to look the other way.”

“He looked so sad,” said Abby.

“I know how he feels,” said Chief, putting his hand on Abby’s shoulder. “I’ve had that same look on my face many, many times. You feel like you let everyone down because you couldn’t put it all together in time. When you do figure it out, sometimes it’s just too late. The harder part is pushing it all to the side and focusing on the next case. It’s the reason why I love my new job with you guys.”

“Why’s that, Chief?” asked Evan.

“Because we don’t push things to the side and move on,” said Chief. “Those turds are out there thinking they got away with rape and murder. They think the only person who cares about what happened to Emily is her mother. Ms. Karla isn’t much of a thorn in their sides. We will be.”