Undying Devotion
Not Part of the Set.

Shannara hung up the phone with the coroner, a puzzled look on her face. It had now been several hours since she left the street where the victim had been found. It was approaching lunchtime. She’d made her way over to the storage lot on the note that had been left in Kayla’s mouth. But she had received the call just as she was going to unlock it.

The news of the girl’s death was not a pleasant one. She had been drugged, the toxicity report had shown traces of midazolam. The drug would have calmed her down, maybe even put her to sleep as she was being coated in wax, while still alive. She doubted that the woman could even struggle as her throat, nose and eyes were coated with the substance, suffocating her until she died frozen in time. Traces of wax had been found in her lungs and stomach, it was possible she had been fed it through tubes as well. She had been turned into a living wax figure until she finally succumbed to death. It was likely, not quick death once the wax started being poured into her lungs, not a pleasant way to go.

The autopsy was still in progress, but the coroner wanted to inform her as soon as he knew any vital information. She asked if anything was missing from her body, her response was everything. Her insides had been completely replaced, he had sounded puzzled by it. on the scans he could see that they had been replaced, the empty cavity filled with objects, he described them as action figures. When she asked the question if they looked like or could be antique statues the other end of the phone had gone dead silent. A short time later, he confirmed that she was correct having opened the body and removed a small fabergé egg from her abdomen. The corone stated that it felt as though the person who had done this had some medicinal knowledge. The body had been sewn shut similarly, if not exactly like he would after an autopsy was performed.

She focused on her current task now that the conversation was over. She slipped a new pair of gloves on, she retrieved the key from the small evidence bag, no time like the present investigate the storage container. Better to cover all her bases quickly. Unlocking the padlock she lifted the large roller doors to be greeted by what she had feared.

Picking up her phone she dialled Jessie. “You heard the news?”

“Yeah, pretty messed up.” He sounded defeated.

“Well, I’ve just found her insides, you might want to get down here.”

“I was really hoping it was just going to be normal stuff, like a spare bed, some cabinets, old lamp shades, ya know.”

“That stuff is here too... just with a sprinkling of body parts.” She cringed at her own joke.

She heard him sigh. “Alright suiting up, cya soon.”

She hung up the phone and stepped inside the lot. Lined up on some old-looking chairs were several jars. Each held a different piece of what she assumed was Kayla, DNA would confirm. Her heart, her lungs, her liver, her kidney and her intestines. Each jar had a typed note stuck to the top, each with its own price.

“I think I know how she was able to pay for the house she owned on her little wage...” She mumbled.

The entire lot was crammed full of bubble-wrapped and boxed goods. Each had a note stuck to it showing what it was, what year it was from and where she had obtained it and its worth. She was shocked to see items she had known to be reported as stolen by the local museum.

Off to the side she also found a list of potential buyers, Kayla probably made her living selling stolen goods on the back market. So this was her dirty little secret that nobody knew about.

Once Jessie and his team arrived she left them to work, heading back to the station. More details came trickling through as the day progressed, but no concrete leads came to light.

Her small office, which she had been given, gave her a full view of the comings and goings of the small police station. The parents had been called in for a positive ID of Kayla, she’d seen them come in rather composed, then leave broken. She needed to find this sick bastard.

She had requested Kayla’s diary and handbag as soon as she got back. While she waited she had retrieved the other girl’s belongings and compared common interests, or possible locations they had visited. She needed to know where the killer was finding these girls. Scanning the wallets she noted down all the cards and receipts she found. Cell phone records could show what towers they were closest to, but not exactly where they had been.

Some things did cross over and warranted a visit, while others just seemed bizarre. An officer dropped off Kayla’s belongings and her cell phone records. Pulling all the items from the girl’s wallet she came across a note, it read:

Hey beautiful, so good to see you out and about. I hope we cross paths again soon.

Was this a new fad? Did people send handwritten notes to each other like they were in school? Her own note came to mind. But the handwriting had clearly been different. Definitely from two different people.

Shannara flipped open Kayla’s diary and skim-read most of it until she found what she was looking for. Kayla had started receiving little love notes, as she called them, she didn’t say where though. She would also leave him messages in reply, knowing that he was watching her. The notes grew quite flirtatious and she even recorded having met him twice.

This person sounded like a creepy stalker to her, perhaps Kayla was just happy to be receiving attention. She cringed, poor girl. This was not a man she would openly meet with or be happy receiving notes from. This could be who she was looking for, it did fit, but not for her other cases.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket, retrieving it she answered while still reading. “Yes?”

She frowned as no one answered on the other side, but there was someone there, she could hear them breathing. She pulled the phone away from her ear to look at the caller ID. She wasn’t holding her phone, it was Danni’s and the screen read Kayla.

She slammed the phone back to her ear and waved frantically to someone to get the tracking device. “Hello, is this the man that was dating Kayla?” She asked.

“No, but I took the phone after he tossed it. She’s not part of the set.” The voice on the other end was so deep it sent chills down her spine. As fast as he had spoken, he had hung up.

As the police officers came fumbling in she stared at the phone shocked. “What the hell did that mean?!” Her mind was wailing, screaming at her that her hunch was correct.

She jumped as her actual phone rang this time. “What!” She answered it sternly.

“Eh, ah, sorry...” It was Jessie.

“Jessie, sorry. Danni’s phone just rang, I’m a little on edge.”

“Understandable, but ah,” He paused, he sounded wore and concerned. “I’ve got some bad news... Every part of her is here.”

“How is that bad new-” She cut herself off, her eyes widening. With each murder up till now, the killer had taken something of the victim’s body. They had not released that fact to the public, so if this scene was so similar but no body part was taken. She wasn’t a part of his set, her blood ran cold as the man’s voice on the phone echoed in her mind. That had been him, not only did he have a handle on the fact that he was being investigated, but he knew of the latest victim. How?

“We have two murders on our hands now.” He concluded for her.

“Shit!” She couldn’t deny it.

“There also seems to be someone else’s DNA at this scene.” Jessie’s voice snapped her back to the present.

“That doesn’t seem right with how clean the house was... It couldn’t be deliberate to throw us off?” She questioned.

“Oh I agree, but this, this feels like it’s different. I’ve sent you a photo.”

She pulled her phone back and put it on speaker to look at the image. There was a small back substance that appeared on the underside of the roller door. “What is that?”

“It’s congealed like blood, but it has an odd color and the odor... I’ll be sending it to the lab for analysis.”

“Alright, thanks for the update Jessie.” They said a quick goodbye and hung up, all eyes now on her.

She sighed. “This case just got a whole lot more complicated. We are now under the assumption that this latest murder is not of the same killer, but is related.”

“A copycat?” One officer queried.

“I hate that phase.” She remarked dryly.

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