CHAPTER ELEVEN
A bell chimed upon Ella’s entry to PetPatrol, announcing her arrival into a world that seemed far removed from the reality of a homicide investigation.
Ripley came in beside her, hands on hips, and joined Ella in scanning the store for Ken Myers.
The store was a cacophony of animal sounds and smells, and a vibrant array of creatures and pet supplies.
It was a small outfit, but every inch of it buzzed with life.
Cages of chirping birds hung from the ceiling, while tanks of colorful fish lined the walkways.
Ella knew better than anyone that normalcy was deceptive, and evil often hid behind the most mundane facades.
‘Any idea what this guy looks like?’ Ripley asked as she ducked under a bird cage.
‘No, but I can spot a psycho a mile off.’ Ella turned a corner and found a young man stacking dog food. She clocked his nametag. Jake. ‘Excuse me. Is Ken here today?’
The young man paused and wiped his hands on his apron. ‘Ken? The manager?’
‘If that’s his title, sure.’
The young man looked up and down the aisle. ‘Ken was supposed to be here at two this afternoon, but he never showed.’
Ella's instincts, already on high alert, tingled with the new information. ‘He didn't show up for work?’
‘Yeah, it's not like him. Ken’s usually pretty reliable. Is something wrong?’
‘We just need to speak with him,’ Ella replied, not wanting to reveal too much. She exchanged a quick glance with Ripley, transmitting her unease.
‘I could try and call him,’ the young man said.
Ella held up a palm. ‘No, it’s okay, thank you. We’ll try again later.’ She nudged Ripley to take their leave, but then she turned back to the store worker. ‘One last question. Do you sell rats here?’
The question seemed to catch Jake off guard. ‘Yeah, we do sell rats. Mostly as feeders, you know, for snakes and stuff, but someone bought all four we had in stock a couple of days ago.’
‘Oh really? Do you remember who bought them?’
‘I don't,’ Jake admitted. ‘Ken handles most of the sales.’
Ella turned to Ripley. She motioned for them to leave and Ella agreed. If she couldn’t catch Ken here, she’d make the trip to his home address.
‘Thank you, Jake,’ Ella said. ‘You’ve been a great help.’
The detectives made their way out of PetPatrol, accompanied by the shrill jingle above the door. Ella took in the fresh air as she scanned the parking lot, and there she saw a weary gentleman leaning against his car, lost in his smartphone.
The man seemed agitated, drained, lost in a state of despair. He wore grey trousers, a baggy white shirt, and a thin tie that resembled a rattlesnake hanging from his neck. It was a look that seemed desperately managerial, but somehow missed the necessary elements by a wide margin.
Instinct kicked in. The man matched the mental image Ella had of Ken Myers; correct age, a certain boyish charm that could attract someone but not keep them. His demeanor, the weary, agitated look, suggested a man carrying a heavy burden or caught in a web of stress.
‘Ripley,’ Ella whispered. She nodded subtly towards the man. ‘Over there.’
Ripley followed her gaze. ‘You think that’s Ken?’
‘My head says yes.’
‘Only one way to find out.’
Ella led the way across the parking lot, preparing herself for the encounter, running through the questions she needed to ask. And of course, preparing for a runner.
As they drew closer, the man seemed to sense their approach and looked up. His eyes, tired and wary, met Ella's. In that instant, Ella saw a spark of recognition followed by a guarded wariness.
‘Ken Myers?’ Ella flashed her badge.
The man straightened up and fiddled with his tie. A cautious alertness took center stage. ‘Yes?’
'I'm Agent Dark, and this is Agent Ripley. Is there somewhere we could talk to you?'
Ken’s idle stare flickered between the two detectives. ‘About what? I’m really late for work.’
Ella eyed the man from head to toe, trying to picture him abducting someone, driving them to a cabin, leaving them for dead. ‘How come so late?’
‘Exhaustion. College work. Real work. I overslept.’
Ella scrutinized him for any signs of deception. She saw nothing that suggested he wasn’t telling the truth. No facial ticks, no sudden movements of the hands. But of course, psychopaths made the best actors. She decided to go for the kill shot. ‘We need to speak to you about Julia Dawson.’
Ken's reaction was subtle, but Ella caught it. There was a slight tensing of his jaw and a brief darting of his eyes. 'Julia? What about her?'
Ella decided to play it close to the vest. ‘Were you close with her?’
‘Not really. I saw her in lectures a few times. We chatted online. Nothing more.’
‘When did you last see her?’
Ken glanced up and to the left, a sign of visual recollection. Another truth-telling sign. ‘About two weeks ago. I was into her, but she wasn’t into me. Story of my life.’
Ella and Ripley exchanged a glance. The EduCase messages, the proximity to the cabin, his absence from work the morning after Julia’s death – and now a slice of rejection for good measure.
‘Mr. Myers, Julia Dawson was discovered dead this morning,’ Ella said, not mincing her words.
The revelation hit Ken Myers hard. His face drained of color, and his posture, already weary, seemed to crumple further under the weight of the news.
‘Dead?’ he echoed, his voice barely above a whisper.
The shock in his eyes appeared genuine, the kind of raw, unfiltered reaction that was difficult to fake.
Ella watched his reactions closely, searching for any hint of trickery. ‘Yes, Mr. Myers. We're investigating her death, and we need your full cooperation.’
Ken seemed to struggle to process the information. ‘I... I can't believe it. Julia's dead?’ He looked genuinely distressed, his hands trembling slightly as he ran them through his hair.
Ella maintained her composure, despite the empathy she felt for the man's apparent shock. ‘We understand this is difficult news. Can you tell us about the last time you communicated with Julia? We know you were in contact with her recently.’
Ken vigorously rubbed his face and took a deep breath. ‘We... talked online a couple of weeks ago. But it was nothing serious. Just casual chat about college stuff.’
'You mentioned earlier that you were into Julia, but she wasn't into you. Can you elaborate on that?'
‘Yeah, I liked her. Thought she was really smart and pretty. But she didn't feel the same. I guess I was just another classmate to her.’
‘And what made you think she wasn't interested in you?’ Ella probed.
Ken pointed towards PetPatrol. ‘Something about this place put her off. As soon as I mentioned the pet store, she distanced herself, like she couldn’t even be around someone who’d been near creatures. It was... kinda weird.’
Ella paused, processing Ken's words. This new insight into Julia's behavior intrigued her. A sudden idea exploded into Ella’s head, but she discarded it, refocusing on her conversation. ‘Are you sure that’s why?’
‘Yeah. It was just the way she reacted when I mentioned working here. Everything changed. She became distant, like anxious. She couldn't get away fast enough.’
Ella nodded, taking mental notes. She turned to Ripley and signaled her to take over.
‘Your whereabouts last night?’ Ripley asked.
Ken's posture tensed slightly at the question. ‘I was at a Packers game until late.’
‘Can anyone confirm that?’
'Yes, I went alone, but I saw a few people there. When I got back, I was talking to my professor on EduCase until the early hours. Is that enough?'
‘Got timestamps?’
Ken nodded. ‘Yes, they're all on EduCase. I was discussing my thesis with Professor Hendrick. I can show you on the store computer, if you'd like.’
Ella studied Ken Myers one more time, and if she was being honest with herself, couldn’t see him being their unsub.
He seemed too disheveled and too meek to pull off a violent homicide.
She was certain their perp had incredible upper body strength, and Ken Myers seemed to be lacking in that area.
Furthermore, he drove a beat-up old Ford, not a van or four-wheeler as the tire marks at the scene suggested.
‘We’ll get some officers down here to check it,’ Ella said. She nodded at Ripley, signaling her to stay with Ken until more tech-savvy officers got there. ‘Officer Ripley will accompany you until then, alright?’
Ken wearily nodded. ‘Okay. Anything to help.’
Ella pulled out her phone to dial in assistance, but before she did, she had one more question. ‘Mr. Myers, one final thing. Your colleague said you sold four rats recently. Do you remember who bought them?’
Ken paused for a moment. ‘Yes. A tall man, short brown hair, wore a suit. It was unusual because we rarely sell more than one rat at a time.’
This was it. ‘Think, Ken. Be specific. How tall?’
‘Uh, taller than me. Six-one?’
‘What about the suit? Expensive? Designer? Off-the-rack?’
Ken squinted, clearly trying to picture it. ‘It looked… nice. Not flashy, but well-made. Dark grey, I think. He wore it like he was used to it, you know? Not like some kid going to a job interview.’
‘Anything else? Scars? Tattoos? Accent? What did he smell like?’
Ken blinked hard at the rapid fire questions, then said, ‘I don’t know. I don’t want to say too much in case I’m wrong, you know? Clean-shaven. No scars or tats, and I didn’t get close enough to smell him.’
‘Any CCTV? Maybe his credit card details?’
The store manager clenched his teeth and said, ‘Sorry, he paid in cash. And the CCTV cameras in store are… just for show. I’ve never seen the guy before and haven’t seen him since.’
Ella took every detail on board. She hadn’t given up on her rat theory, and she was going to stick with it until something significant changed her mind. She nodded at her partner and said, ‘I’m going back to the precinct to dig deeper. Check Ken out. Don’t let him out of your sight.’
‘Trust me,’ Ripley said and began accompanying Ken towards the store.
Ella headed towards her car, unlocked it, and sat in silence in the driver's seat. Ken could very well be their unsub because nothing confirmed his innocence, but her gut instinct told her he was a bit-player in this mystery. He didn't have the strength, the motive, or even the psychopath's smile.
The road ahead could be long, Ella concluded, but she was determined to unravel this mystery, piece by piece.