Kiss the Witch Goodbye Read online

  “Dawn was a student at UCLA, majoring in economics. Same deal, crap motel, found nude, this time on the bed. Purse there, but no cash on hand this time. The locals thought the cleaning lady that found her might’ve had something to do with that, but couldn’t make it stick. The initial investigation didn’t turn up much, but later it was found that she frequented a bar known to be a favorite watering hole for, you guessed it, Jax May.” He tapped the picture again.

  “Did they pick up May for questioning?” Quinn asked and Nick shook his head.

  “No, not yet. The first two deaths were ruled a suicide. The locals didn’t start to see a pattern until the third death of Julie Wilson.” He saw Natalie stiffen slightly, but plunged on. “They found GHB in her system and this was the turning point for the case. The Bureau became involved then. Would you like to take over, Natalie?”

  “No, you’re doing fine,” she replied, her voice sounding almost hoarse, and Nick could imagine it was still difficult to talk about her cousin’s death.

  He gave a brief rundown on Julie, her background, where she was found. “The investigation expanded and the first two victims were identified as possible homicides. Lab tests confirmed that the first two had also been dosed with GHB and the connection with the tattoos was noted. It was also later confirmed by her mother that Dawn was left handed, and the cuts were also on the left wrist, which substantially increased the doubt that they were self inflicted.”

  “How did they miss that in the first place?” Park asked.

  Nick shrugged. “People don’t like to talk too much about suicide. It was a closed casket, the mother had no idea which wrist had been slashed.”

  “Sexual assault?” Captain Quinn’s gaze was fixed on the board, as if he could learn something just by looking at the victims’ faces.

  “Negative. No signs of an assault or signs of recent consensual sexual activity. No prints were found on the razor blades, not even the victims’, and forensics didn’t turn up anything significant. Subsequent interviews determined that all three victims were the ones to rent the rooms and paid in cash.”

  “Did they all pay with a hundred dollar bill?” Brady wondered aloud, and Nick looked to Natalie.

  “Ah… I don’t know. Nat?”

  “I’d have to check into it, my files just say paid in cash.”

  Quinn’s brows drew together. “Is that significant?”

  “It is if we find out they all paid the same way,” Brady replied. “We pulled the bill from the manager as evidence, but besides the vic’s and the manager’s prints, the best we got were partials. Banks keep records of serial numbers though, maybe we can find out where it originated from?”

  “It’s doubtful.” Quinn shook his head. “Banks can be stingy sons of bitches when it comes to releasing info, but check it out.”

  Natalie cleared her throat. “I may be able to help with that. I have contacts in the banking industry.”

  Quinn nodded his approval, his gaze returning to the white board. “What’s the third vic’s link to May?”

  “I was just getting to that,” Nick moistened his lips and forged on, refusing to look at Natalie. “From what they were able to piece together from her roommate and social media, victim number three worked part time at The Songbird, which regularly hosted an open mic night. The night before she was killed, Forsaken showed up unannounced and played an impromptu show there. There were multiple accounts of her getting very cozy with Jax May, including some pictures of the two of them that turned up on her Instagram account that same night. The bartender said that May had been in there before and the two of them had been very friendly with each other in the past.”

  “So she may or may not have been doing the horizontal mambo with him before the night she was killed,” Brady observed. “Did anyone see them leave together?”

  “No, but she did text her roommate not to wait up for her because she was going to attend her own private show that night.”

  “What did May say about it?” Quinn asked.

  “When braced, May admitted to hooking up with her in the past, but that she didn’t show to the after party. He figured she’d decided to skip it and go home instead and he’d see her later.”

  “Did he have an alibi for the time of death?”

  “Negative, not for any of them, unless we count his sleeping sister as an alibi.”

  “What else have you got?”

  “All three are fans of Forsaken, enough to get permanent tattoos of the band’s symbol. All three were cut with razor blades, which I personally confirmed that May has in his possession. And there is the fact that we’ve got an identical murder the same week he comes to town.”

  Captain Quinn nodded slowly, processing. “It’s thin. Not enough to charge him yet.” Leaning close, he lowered his voice for Nick’s ears only. “Keep on it and keep me updated. Remember, you still report to me, not the Feds.”

  “You got it, Cap’n,” he agreed with a half salute before turning to Natalie. “Did I leave anything out?”

  “No, you covered the basics. Everything else will be in the reports.”

  They’d all have to study them at length now. “So, any questions? Concerns? Brilliant bouts of insight? Park?”

  “Not without reviewing the case files, sir.” She shook her head, and Brady put up his hands.

  “I’m not saying it was aliens, but…” he quipped, and Nick returned his silly grin. His cell phone chirped and Brady fished it out of his pocket. “Looks like May is here.”

  Natalie immediately started to get up, but Nick laid a hand on her arm. “Let him sit. It’ll do him some good to sweat it out for a while before we get to him. We need to come up with our game plan.” To his great relief, she didn’t fight him on it, and Nick turned to the board to sketch out a brief floor plan of the motel room.

  “Okay, let’s step through this,” he said as he finished. “The killer gets the vic to rent a room. They go inside, can’t watch TV, but they don’t care, ’cause that’s not what they’re there for.”

  “He spikes her drink with GHB,” Natalie added, only to be interrupted by Brady.

  “If we find it in her bloodstream.”

  “I’m almost a hundred percent sure we will,” Nick said, giving Natalie a supportive wink. “So, he micks her. This leaves her pliable, up for anything. There’s a bit of slap and tickle on the bed, nothing too vigorous, but the clothes come off.”

  “Why wouldn’t he nail her?” Brady asked and Natalie took up the narrative.

  “Because that’s not his M.O. For whatever reason he gets his jollies off of the kill, not the nudie parts. Or maybe they’re all wrapped up together. Maybe he gets her naked and willing but can’t get it up and ends up killing her in a rage?”

  “There’s not much in the way of rage here,” Park observed, paging through the other crime scene photos. “There’s no arc of blood to indicate extreme violence. There’s no sign that he lashed out in any way beyond the cuts. The cuts themselves are precisely done. Look here… they’re all in almost the exact same location on the wrist. The M.E.’s report here says the cuts are deep, rather than slashing, severing not only the arteries but the tendons as well.”

  “That sounds like violence to me,” Natalie snorted.

  “Violence yes, and strength, but not rage,” Park insisted. “In fact, the entire method of killing screams of pre-meditation. He would’ve had to bring the razor blades with him, in something he could transport them safely in. Most murders involving sudden rage or extreme violence involve a sudden blow with the nearest available object or strangulation. Instead, three of our victims were calmly carried to the bathtub, the cuts made with an economy of movement. No prints have been found, that means he’s either brought gloves with him or has meticulously wiped down every single surface he’s touched. That suggests a tightly wound personality, able to stay calm under pressure and see to the most minute of details.”

  “Spare me the psychobabble, detective,” Natalie snif
fed. “I’ve forgotten more on profiling than you’ve ever read.”

  “Hey, we’re talking all possibilities at this stage of the game,” Nick interceded before it turned ugly. He’d never seen Natalie this antagonistic before, but tempers seemed to be running high today. Or were they? He hadn’t seen any sign of the grumblies from either of his team since they’d left the crime scene. The Advil must’ve done its duty. His own oppressive headache had long since faded.

  “Whatever the motivation, he kills her,” Brady added, on edge with Fox’s criticism as well. “Maybe he notices there’s some of the vic’s blood on his clothes and he cleans up with one of the stolen towels.”

  “Right,” Nick agreed, glad to be back on task. “So, he cleans up, picks up the glass he drugged her with, and wraps it in one of the towels to take with. Then he leaves with the bundle tucked under his arm and dumps it anywhere he chooses, easy as pie. What do you think? It listens, right?”

  “Sure, that could be what happened,” Brady agreed. “Or, they could’ve messed around a bit, she goes into the bathroom solo and does the deed, the guy opens up the door and finds her there, straightens the room and bails. We won’t know for sure until we find out if there’s GHB in her system.”

  “No, he killed her,” Natalie insisted. “I know it.”

  Nick caught Park and Brady exchanging looks and could only guess what they were thinking. “Alright, we probably won’t have anything more from Libby for a few hours at least. Here’s what I want from you guys while we’re waiting on that. Park, you’re on next of kin, unless you want the honors?” He looked to Natalie and she shook her head, hands coming up with a grimace.

  “No, I’m good, I hate making that call.”

  “Lucky me,” Park breathed, but she didn’t complain beyond that.

  “See if she was at the concert last night. While you’re at it, find out if she has a boyfriend, and where he was last night too. Brady, check out her online footprint, let’s see if there’s anything that ties her to May beyond the tattoo. Check her phone records, bank records, all the fun stuff.”

  “You got it, boss-man. What are you going to do?” He looked to Nick, but it was Natalie who replied.

  “We’re going to lean on Jax until he caves. He’s not getting away from me this time.” Unable to wait any longer, Natalie pushed away from the desk she was leaning on, in search of the interview rooms.

  Nick let out a long breath, answering his team before he followed after her. “I’m going to go make sure my old friend doesn’t blow this case up in our faces.”

  * * *

  Nick caught up with Special Agent Fox outside the interview room, his hand closing over hers on the doorknob. “Why don’t you let me take a crack at him first? We’ve got a rapport going.” More than she did, at any rate.

  “Relax, Gibson, I’ve got this,” she winked, pulling the door open wide, but Nick slid in ahead of her.

  Jax May looked haggard, more than likely hung over. His eyes were red and bloodshot, hair sticking out at odd angles that didn’t look intentional. He took one look at Nick and his face twisted as though he’d tasted something sour. “Hey, I didn’t touch her. As soon as I found out she was seventeen I kicked her ass outta there. I don’t need that aggravation.”

  Was there another incident he wasn’t aware of? Nick made a mental note to ask around if there were any rumors about May and underage girls. “You’ve got way bigger problems than groping minors, pal,” he said, holding tight to the folder in his hands, even though it was mostly for show. They didn’t have any of the hardcopies from the crime scene yet and once again, Nick questioned Natalie’s objectivity for rushing in there without due preparation.

  Natalie, on the other hand, looked calm and in control, a faint smile on her face as she closed the door with a click. Jax’s face changed once he saw Agent Fox, the sour look morphing into downright distaste. “You look like shit,” she taunted him. “Rough night?”

  “I was asleep when the Gestapo came to get me,” he sneered, leaning back in his chair as they both took a seat.

  “At three p.m.?”

  “Yeah, I had a late night last night and I had to get up early this morning for an interview on Good Day Oregon. So, I crashed as soon as I got back to the room afterwards.”

  “I understand, killing a girl can take a lot out of you,” Natalie smirked and May’s hands slid over his face in frustration.

  “Shit, are we back to that again? I told you I didn’t kill those girls in Los Angeles.”

  “Oh, we’re way past that now, Jax. We’re talking about the murder that happened last night. Right here, in your home town.” She tapped on the table with her index finger.

  Jax froze. “Another girl died last night?”

  Natalie leaned back, arms crossing over her chest. “You tell me.”

  Nick jumped into the conversation, taking advantage of May’s apparent shock. “Where were you last night between the hours of two and six a.m.?”

  “I… was in my hotel room for most of that.”

  “And the rest of it? What time did you leave the venue last night?”

  “Ah… I think around one or two, I’m not sure.”

  “Which is it, one or two?” she pressed.

  “I’m not sure,” Jax’s mouth turned down into a frown. “I wasn’t exactly looking at the time.”

  “Did you leave alone?” Nick kept the questions coming rapid fire, not giving him a chance to catch his breath.

  “No, my manager was with me, and the girl he was with, but we dropped them off at some diner. I went back to the hotel after that.”

  “Alone?”

  “Yes, alone.”

  Natalie’s lips curved into a skeptical pout. “You didn’t bring back a souvenir from the concert?”

  Jax clearly understood what she meant. “I told you, I had to get up early this morning.”

  “You had groupies throwing themselves at you and you didn’t take any of them up on it?” she scoffed.

  “I didn’t say that, I just didn’t bring them back to the hotel with me.”

  “Then you did engage in sexual relations last night,” Nick remarked, making a note of it inside his folder.

  “No, it didn’t get that far.”

  “How far did it get with that underage girl?” he asked casually, scribbling faster in the folder, but it was mostly for show, to throw him off balance as if he’d made a big discovery. It worked, and Jax lost his casual posture, leaning forward on the table.

  “I told you I sent her packing, you can ask her yourself. The girl I hooked up with was twenty, I checked.”

  “But you didn’t sleep with her?”

  “No, we just had a few drinks and fooled around some. She probably would’ve come back to the hotel with me, but I was too partied out.”

  “A big strapping buck like you, too tired to party?” Natalie teased, her eyes traveling over him like she’d judged him and found him wanting. “What would Entertainment Tonight say?”

  “Say anything to them about it and I’ll sue your ass so fast it’ll make your badge spin,” he growled, and Nick jumped in again.

  “Who was she? This girl you hooked up with, but didn’t close the deal.”

  “Her name was Hayley something, or Hannah. Fuck, I don’t remember her last name. It started with a G, I think. Shit… that’s not the dead girl, is it?” The color drained from his face as the pair of detectives exchanged meaningful looks, and Nick changed tacks, hoping to keep him off balance.

  “I saw a pack of razors in your hotel room.”

  Jax blinked, not tracking the new line of questioning. “Didn’t we already talk about this? I do shave from time to time.”

  “Seems like an old fashioned habit. Most people use a disposable blade, or maybe an electric one.”

  “It was my father’s razor. One of the few things I have to remember him by.”

  “Why, did you kill him too?” Natalie muttered, and all hell broke loose.


  Chapter Fourteen

  Jax was out of his chair like a shot, rage twisting his features. “What did you say to me? What the fuck is your problem?”

  “You are, as long as you’re still breathing free air.”

  So much for being calm and in control. If it wasn’t for the table, Nick was sure they would’ve been at each other’s throats. Natalie didn’t help matters by getting right up in his face from the dubious safety across the table. His hands clenched into fists and for a terrible moment Nick thought he might actually throw a punch. Prepared to jump between them, he breathed an inward sigh of relief when Jax pushed away from the table.

  “I don’t have to sit here for this bullshit. I’m done,” May declared hotly, but Natalie wasn’t so quick to let him off the hook.

  “You’re done when I say you’re done,” she growled.

  “You are fucked in the head, lady,” Jax spat out. “You can’t hold me here, I know my rights.”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa… everybody take a breath,” Nick intervened before the guy walked, because he was right. They couldn’t hold him there without further evidence and Jax didn’t look remotely inclined to confess. Legally he couldn’t touch May, but he did lay a light hand on Natalie’s arm. “Special Agent Fox, why don’t you take a few minutes and check on those lab results.”

  “Fuck that, Nick,” she scowled, throwing his hand off. “You know they’re not ready yet.”

  “I think you should take a stroll.” Using every inch of authority he possessed, Nick calmly stared her down until she met his gaze.

  “Fine,” she finally relented. “But this isn’t over, Jax.”

  May fixed her with a dirty look, pacing back and forth in his corner until she left the room. “Jesus Christ, that chick is seriously mental. How can you not see that? Why is she still on the case?”

  “Hey, I’m sorry about that,” Nick said, continuing to use his calmest, most soothing voice. “She had no excuse to talk to you that way.” As much as it chapped his hide, he had to seize the opportunity and play good cop. That meant buddying up to him, preying on their joint connection with Annaliese.