Her Shallow Grave (Detectives Kane and Alton)

The women are all loners, runaways, and either on the streets or living in shelters. Very few have been listed as missing persons which would confirm this.

I believe the kills are opportunistic, or very close to it. He sees the woman that fits his need and then strikes soon after.

Strangulation, from the front, eye-to eye up and personal is favored but he will shoot them in the back, if they try to escape.

No sexual assault.

From the autopsy reports, all the women were well-nourished. Seeing as they were homeless, this suggests they were held for a time before he murdered them.

No torture evident.

Freezing, winter or ice is evident in all the cases.

Posing the frozen victim at first and then escalating to displaying body parts, as Dave suggested as his art.

All victims are naked, clean, and without any trace evidence.

He uses a chainsaw.

He uses Super Glue on all his victims to create an expression.

Traces of Rohypnol, the date-rape drug found in all victims over the last five years.

Jenna scanned the list Jo had sent and nodded. “Yeah, these are the same conclusions we had but how many victims and when did this start?”

“I’ll hand you over to Carter.” Jo cleared her throat. “He has that info.”

“Hi Jenna, we’re talking hundreds across the country but I believe we have found a starting point out at Blackwater. I went back a bit further just in case. Eighteen years ago, Delores Garcia, seventeen, went missing early December. She was found the following March after the melt. Naked and posed, her eyes pulled open with duct tape and her mouth pulled back in a smile. Apart from using the glue, it was the same as the Zoe Henderson case. In fact when I send you the crime scene photographs, you’ll be surprised at the resemblance.”

A tingle slid down Jenna’s spine. If the killer started in Blackwater, he could be close by and not passing through as she’d hoped. “And the others?”

“There seemed to be a hiatus for about four years.” Jo’s voice came through the speaker. “Which, for a psychopath, isn’t unusual. They can start slow and escalate or stop altogether. Most times, once they start escalating, they find it difficult to stop unless they have something to take its place. In this case I would assume something substantial intervened to put his need to kill on hold. An event could have triggered it again or whatever was preventing him killing, ended.” She sucked in a breath. “So, include this data when you’re hunting down suspects. Getting back to the victims, Kalo is entering the updated data into the computer and we’ll have a more accurate list soon. The main concentration of victims have been discovered in Utah and Wyoming, so you can leave them to us.”

Jenna nodded. “If he’s using the snow to cover his tracks, those would be the places to go.” She lifted her cup and sipped the now tepid coffee. “If he’s been living in Utah or Wyoming, perhaps the current cold spell here drew him to Black Rock Falls?”

“Just a minute.” Kane cleared his throat. “Four years—that could be a jail term or he could’ve enlisted in the military.”

“Exactly, and something we’ll look into. If he’s active in Black Rock Falls now, that is your priority. We’re handling the cases of the last two victims, so you don’t have to worry about them.” Jo took a breath. “Okay, now getting back to his profile. We discussed age. Kane and I both agree the killer must be in good shape and mid to late thirties. I figure he started early, maybe at high school. He knew his victim and she was the first trigger to his psychopathy. Something happened between them, maybe he loved her and she didn’t see him as a friend or lover. This would be why he’s gluing their eyes open. He’s making her see him. The smile is what he craves from her. I believe every kill is Delores Garcia.”

“So why is he killing all over the country? Most serial killers operate within certain boundaries. They have a comfort zone.” Kane leaned on the desk and stared at the phone. “He had that in Blackwater, so what made him start killing all over?”

“We don’t know where he lived after the four-year break but we’re searching everything we have to find men from Blackwater who lived in Utah or Wyoming. Their comfort zone extends around their home or work, and is their anchor point. They usually kill in familiar areas and only extend if they haven’t been caught. In their minds they likely believe they are doing the world a favor and they’ll never get caught. On the other hand, if this man travels extensively, his comfort zone expands accordingly.”

Jenna nodded in agreement. “Yes, we have dealt with that type before. Kane suggests a white male who lives alone, do you agree?”

“That is a stereotype that doesn’t apply to all psychopathic serial killers but in this case, I agree with Kane. If he has a wife and children or lives with his folks, he’d require a separate place to keep his victims and wouldn’t risk allowing his family to see the other side of him. People like this usually lead a double life, the killer side and the family side. Very few families are aware of a killer in their midst.” Jo sighed. “I know you’re both mindful of the other traits: he slides unnoticed into his environment, has a good job, gets along with everyone. That seems to be a given with most of them.”

“Yeah, we came up with the same profile.” Kane smiled at Jenna. “Thank you for your time. I’ll send you our updates as they occur.”

“Hey guys before you go, it’s Carter again.” Ty Carter sounded excited. “We’re trying to clean up the CCTV footage from outside the newspaper office. I’ll call you if we find anything.”

Jenna smiled. “Great, thanks.” She waited a beat. “You still there, Jo?”

“Yeah. It’s been great speaking to you all.” Jo cleared her throat. “There is one other thing. The posing of Zoe Henderson the same as Delores Garcia marked the beginning of a new cycle. He posed her at the newspaper office because he craves notoriety. If he isn’t satisfied by the response, he’ll commit an atrocity.”

Jenna gripped her cup so tight it groaned. “Worse than he has already?”

“Yeah, and it’s going to happen in the next forty-eight hours.”