Chapter 28
She was just working away. Dani had gotten to the lab early that morning. Something had been tickling her brain late the night before, and it had been bothering her while she’d been showering, too.
Everything was far too practiced. People very rarely managed to do anything so perfectly the first time.
Yes, Miranda and Knight had already asked her to search for priors—they suspected it was not the guy’s first go-around, too—but…
she wanted to dig even deeper today. There was something there. There just had to be.
She’d dialed Miranda first thing.
"I pulled home invasions from Kentucky and Illinois going back twenty-five years before the Gibson murders," Dani said.
"Filtered for anything with similar entry points, victim profiles, or attack patterns.
Going on by what Dr. Knight said about the unsub most likely being a mature man…
I decided to up my search by ten years."
"How many hits?" Miranda asked.
"Hundreds, initially. Most of them were obvious non-matches. Random violence with no pattern. I narrowed it down to about forty that were worth a second look. Which I have sent you—but I had three that really stood out to me."
"And?" Knight asked, leaning down behind Miranda to see her screen.
That was Knight—always impatient. But…damn, did he look good in the mornings.
So pretty, that one. He was one of her favorites at PAVAD, even if Dani would never tell him that.
She half suspected their fearless boy leader might be shy under that scaly exterior. Not quite sure where he fit in.
He and Miranda were so good together. She couldn’t wait to watch them figure it out.
"Three stood out. All within driving distance of Washington.
The dates range from eight months before the Gibsons to four years after.
There are another five that are could-bes—going back a decade before.
I'm still waiting on details from Illinois, but the preliminary information is enough that I wanted to loop you in now rather than wait. "
"Walk us through them," Knight said. Of course—Dani knew what was coming. He just liked to give orders.
"Brandenburg, Kentucky. Eight months before the Gibson murders. Home invasion, middle of the night. A teenage boy, fifteen, and his nine-year-old sister were home alone. Parents were out of town visiting relatives, held up on the highway because of a wreck."
"How'd he get in?" Knight asked.
"Back door. Lock was old, easy to force. No alarm system."
"What happened to the kids?" Miranda asked, in a tight tone.
"The boy was doing homework in the living room. The intruder hit him with something and knocked him out. The sister heard her brother yelling at her to run. She hid in a closet in her parents' bedroom."
"He didn't find her?" Miranda asked.
"He found her. Pulled her out. But then headlights came up the driveway. A neighbor was on her way home from a shift at the gas station. She’d spoken with the parents at the gas station earlier that night, and they’d told her they would be out late.
She’d kept an eye on the kids before. She saw the man fleeing when he saw her headlights.
She saw the back door standing open and called the police from her car.
But…dark out, adrenaline. You know how witness statements are. "
"He ran when there was a threat,” Knight said. “Against his plan?”
"Case went cold within six months. No forensic evidence worth anything. No witnesses other than the two kids, and the neighbor, and their descriptions were too vague to work with. On the surface—just a random home invasion. I just included it because of location, really."
"What made you flag this one?" Miranda asked. “You have that creepy look in your eyes that says there is a reason.”
"Mostly what the boy said. The guy just knocked the kid out of the way, asking ‘where is your mom?’ And the mom physically resembled Aimee Gibson. Enough that it really stood out.”
"What else?" Knight asked.
"Owensboro. Six years before the Gibsons. Different victim profile on this one. Elderly man, seventy-eight years old. Lived alone except for his dog."
"How'd the intruder get in?" Knight asked.
"Front door. The old man answered it. Late afternoon. Around five. Neighbors said the victim was the type to open his door to anyone. Trusting. Old-fashioned about it. The kind of man who still believed people were generally good. Damn it, he deserved better."
"What happened to him?” Miranda asked.
"Single gunshot wound to the forehead. It’s listed as robbery/homicide.
He was found just inside the entryway, by the daughter who sometimes spent the night there when she was in the area.
Hadn't even made it out of the foyer. But the photos—to me, it looks very, very posed.
And a lot like how Derek and Cruz were found.
Hands…folded…almost. Now, you know profiling is not my thing, but I wanted you both to see it. "
"Why a robbery? What was taken?” Miranda asked, swatting at the man taking over her space. They were so cute together, always squabbling like a little old married couple. Dani was in charge of the betting pool. Those two would get together eventually, she was counting on it.
"Over six thousand dollars taken from a lockbox in the bedroom closet.
The victim's daughter said he didn't trust banks and kept his cash at home. Everybody in his social circle knew about it. What got me about it is the dog…the killer shot the dog, too. Shot once, same as the owner. A cattle dog mix, around forty pounds. The dog was found in his owner’s arms. Like he was cradling him.
Combined with how…posed…yeah, anyway, not a profiler and I know it, but—"
“Trust your instincts,” Knight said. “I’ll take a look at it.”
"What's the third case?" Miranda asked.
"Lawrenceville, Illinois. Eleven years ago. But the preliminary report was enough to get my attention. Woman, thirty-six years old. She lived with her elderly parents and her young daughter. All survived—her parents were out for the day, and the kid was at her dad’s.
They found the victim beaten and shot—bullet lodged between her skull and skin.
Supposition is the killer thought she was dead.
But…she couldn’t identify him—TBI. No recollection of the attack. I’m still waiting on more details.”
"What's the geographic spread?" Miranda asked.
"Brandenburg is about ninety minutes south of Washington. Owensboro is maybe two hours southwest. Lawrenceville is an hour northwest, just across the Illinois border. All are really within two hours or so of your epicenter Washington, Indiana."
"Send us what you have and we’ll get started comparing to knowns in our file,” Miranda said. Anything else?"
"Not yet. But I'm still looking. If there are more cases out there, I'll find them."