Chapter Ten
Mariska
I’m reading over the profile, and I’m confident in what we have created. In the room are the team, Anthony, all of homicide, a few commanders from patrol, and the mayor, Dan Holland.
“Alright, everyone,” Kevin says. “How I run my team is that new detectives run their first case. With this, we just so happened to be lucky enough to have one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever met join my team.
Ms. Mariska Rowan came from parole in the county to being a sex crimes detective with us.
She holds a master’s in criminal psychology and is highly trained in what she does.
She is crazy smart, a little sassy to the media, but the best person to lead this.
With her is Dr. Dawson Thompson. He is a mentor of Mariska’s and a criminal psychologist as well.
Together, they have created a criminal profile for this perpetrator.
I want everyone to let her speak before any questions are asked. ”
“Hello, everyone,” I say warmly. Dawson and I stand and move to the front of the room.
We have the boards covered because there are some things we need to keep to ourselves for now.
“First, I want to thank Detective Carter Reyes for being here. I am so very sorry for your loss. And Mayor Dan Holland, I am also very sorry for your loss. I know you each were in different places in your relationship to the victims, but I promise, we are doing everything we can to find him.”
“I appreciate that,” Carter says, holding back tears. “Monica was an amazing woman.”
“It’s incredible how much you notice,” Dan Holland says warmly. “Juliette was like that, too.”
“Now, we are still not releasing any specific details of the murders, but I will cover what we can,” I say. “We are looking for a male in his thirties. He will be reclusive, shy, and even standoffish. He will not want to be the center of attention, and by putting him there, he will spiral…”
“This investigation getting so much airtime on the news is absolutely going to have him slipping up and making mistakes. Those mistakes will be what help us catch him,” Dawson adds.
“Absolutely. He is killing because he has spent his life feeling held down by dominant women. He likely grew up with absent parents. Whoever was caring for him was likely his abuser. The rape that these women go through is wild compared to the rest. In fact, he likely will only rape them in a way where the women cannot see him. He’s used to criticism, so he is likely lean, under six feet, and conventionally unattractive.
Maybe he doesn’t shower often, so women he finds interesting are put off by him. ”
“He spends a little time stalking them so he can execute the perfect kidnapping, so he blends in very well and does not look threatening," Dawson says.
“His IQ is low, and he might have one or more learning disabilities, but make no mistake, he is compulsively organized and thorough. He left absolutely no trace of himself until the most recent victim.”
“It is rare for perpetrators to cross into multiple races, but a few things remain consistent," I say. “He is sitting in the middle of their age range, and he is targeting curly-haired and curvy women. They have jobs that make him feel inferior or less dominant. He doesn’t hate these women, but he feels like he has to fix them. If he strips them of these qualities, they are fixed. He shaves their hair, cuts them up so you can’t make out their curves… But he also cleans their bodies, leaves no marks of his torture, and neatly wraps them. He reassembles them to be found, but remaining in separate pieces.”
“Now, the first body was found eight months ago, but that was not his first victim. He likely has a criminal history of crimes like peeping, forcible touching, exposing himself, and maybe even sexual assault. These crimes are going to be mostly hands-off, but he is definitely going to have the history,” Dawson explains.
“Exactly. It could be a situation where he was caught masturbating on someone on public transit, or touching someone in their sleep. If he has raped anyone before, it would always be non-violent. He would drug them or wait for them to be extremely intoxicated. It would never be a physical struggle; one, because he is not going to be very strong, but also because he’s overall a coward.
He’s not going to face these dominant women and wrestle them to the ground to rape them.
No, he will go on a date with her, and then drug her while he’s bombing the date.
By the time it’s over, he’s raped her, and he’s gone,” I explain.
“But don’t count someone out just because they have a clean record.
Everyone has a clean record until they get caught. ”
“What job field would he be in?” Parker asks me.
“Based on evidence so far and the profile, he is working on something that involves wood. He will have unlimited access to woodworking tools, like a band saw,” I explain. “Whatever it is, he’s not flashy, and he keeps to himself.”
Caleb suddenly runs into the room panting. “Results. I got a hit. Who…”
“Go show Mariska first,” Kevin says. He walks over to me and hands me his tablet. I read over it and look at Dawson.
“That’s him,” I say. “It fits perfectly… But…”
“But what?” Kevin asks.
“It’s Harper Sloane’s brother,” I say. “His name is Adam Sloane. He is thirty-seven and owns Sloane Restoration and Woodworking. His DNA is on file for a string of date rapes when he was in college. He is on the registry for life as a result and was kicked out of the college. He then took over his uncle’s business, so his dad’s brother’s business. ”
“Do we have enough for a warrant?” the Mayor asks.
“I’d say so,” I say. “His semen was found inside of her. Only one way to get your spunk in your sister who is dating a hockey player twice your size.”
“Ew. Who are you?” Zeke asks with his face curled up at me. I can’t help but laugh at his reaction.
“Alright. Take Zeke and bring him in for questioning,” Kevin says. “Geno and Parker, I want you to work on getting warrants to tear his world apart, electronics included. I will talk to the boyfriend to see what he thinks.”
“Is this being released?” a man asks.
“Not yet,” Kevin says. “When we have someone in custody and charged, yes. We can update and say that we have a few suspects we are looking into, though.”
“Alright. Get to it and report back here. Once he is in custody, stick him in holding until morning,” Kevin says.
We pull into the driveway of Adam Sloane and stay aware of our surroundings as we get out of the car. I lead so Zeke can stay back a bit. I knock on the door, and seconds pass before it opens.
“Can I help you?” the man asks hesitantly.
“I am Detective Mariska Rowan, and this is my partner, Detective Zeke Jacobs. Are you Adam Sloane?” I ask.
“I am. What can I do for you?” he asks, slipping out and shutting his door.
“You are under arrest. Please turn around for me,” I say. He appears to be confused, but complies as I grab his wrist, and he places them both behind his back. Zeke hands me the cuffs, and I lock them in place.
“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to have an attorney present. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed for you,” Zeke recites as he steps him down from the porch.
We get him into the back seat of the patrol car we brought before shutting the door.
“I find it interesting that he isn’t asking why he is under arrest,” Zeke says.
“He doesn’t ask because he knows why,” I say. “This is too easy.”
Adam is eerily quiet on the way to the station. He gets all the way through booking and into a cell without saying more than a few words. He is weirdly calm, even once locked in a cell. He refused a lawyer, though, so that is odd.
When we get done there, we go to the conference room and find the others.
“Hey. How’d it go?” Kevin asks.
“Shockingly well,” I say. “He didn’t ask why he was being arrested and didn’t want a lawyer.”
“Yeah, that’s odd. You can interview him in the morning, though,” Kevin says.
“Where do we go from here?” I ask.
“She hasn’t slept in thirty-six hours,” Zeke says.
“Tattletale,” I say.
“You and Zeke, go home and rest. Be back in the morning. Geno and Parker, check on the family, but bunk up here and be on call. I’ll hang out for a while before I go home to check on the Mrs. and the kids,” Kevin says.
“Dawson, if you want to come back tomorrow, we could continue to use your expertise.”
“Of course,” Dawson says. “It was wonderful meeting everyone.”
“Come on,” Zeke says.
“I am pretty exhausted,” I sigh. “Alright. Let’s go.”
Zeke puts me in my car before giving the address to Dawson. I don’t even make it until he gets into the car before I fall asleep. I wake to a warm hand on my face.
“Mariska, honey,” Dawson says softly. I groan as I force my eyes open. We are in my driveway, and Dawson pulls me out of the car so Zeke can scoop me into his arms. I don’t protest because I am so tired that it hurts.
When I am set on my feet, Zeke and Dawson start removing my clothes. “I want to sleep,” I complain when I am pulled to the bathroom.
“You’ll sleep better if you shower first,” Zeke says.
They also get undressed, and we all step into my shower.
They work together and wash me as I practically fall asleep standing up.
I feel sluggish and weak by the time they get me out.
When we are dry, they put me in bed instead of dressing me.
I am thankful for having a king bed, even though I absolutely didn’t need one when I was single and alone.
Now I am able to snuggle between both men comfortably.
Zeke has my back against his chest so that I can bury my face in Dawson’s chest. They have their arms wrapped around me, and I sigh as I relax.
“Comfortable?” Zeke asks humorously.
“This is so nice,” I mutter. “I feel safe.”
“Good,” Dawson says, kissing my head. “Sleep, Mariska. We aren’t going anywhere.”
“I love y’all,” I sigh.
“We love you, too,” Zeke says, kissing my back.