Spoilt (21 page)

He observed that there were three houses on Chelsea’s
street where, on two separate occasions, at different times and on
different days, the detectives' knocks went unanswered. They’d
noted down that they should try again the following day. Lucas made
a mental note to check their progress as soon as a new report was
submitted.

The canvassing around the houses of the other victims was very
much the same. No-one really paid any attention to what was
happening around them. What he would have given for there to have
been a nosy neighbour peeking out their window.

Deciding this wasn’t getting him very far, he grabbed the
notes Maggie had taken regarding her interviews with the family
members she’d questioned along with her interview with Gavin
Morgan.

Lucas had already brought Maggie up-to-date with the
interviews he had undertaken the previous day with Mrs. Anderson,
Amy Miller and a few of Kate’s friends. The information he’d
obtained didn’t helped with their investigation either.

It was all more of the same - none of them had heard of Chad
or knew any information about their loved ones' mystery guy. The
girls had all been quite secretive about their new romances. It was
amazing how he could convince these girls to keep their budding
relationship a secret and still gain their trust.

Maggie’s interview with Gavin Morgan had gone as they had both
expected. He was a decent family man and didn’t show any
recognition when he saw the girls, apart from Elle, and it was a
given he would know her from the times she’d worked at Bloom with
Chelsea. He wasn’t suspicious in any way and willingly gave a
sample for DNA comparison.

Next, Lucas went through the list of hotline tips. Every call
had been logged and then followed up. Most of them were the usual
crazy calls, confessions and people reporting their neighbours.
Nothing substantial came from them either.

He grunted in frustration. They were still getting nowhere.
He searched the endless files piled and scattered on his desk to
ascertain he’d yet to receive the file on Wesley Robinson. He
placed a call, only to be informed he should receive the file in a
few days. It was archived and still being retrieved. He shook his
head, annoyed at the system for holding things up. They were
hitting one dead end after another.

The only thing left to do was check missing persons. Now
they’d found Lindsay, it was plausible the killer had kidnapped
another girl. There was one hit, a young brunette who’d left her
house the previous day and not returned.

Glancing at the time, Lucas discovered he’d spent the entire
afternoon reading over the reports, which in the end had been
totally unproductive. He would make a detour on the way to
Chelsea’s and speak with the latest missing girl’s
family.

Chapter 23

Elle

Tuesday

Drained from an emotionally raw morning, Chelsea’s head ached
and her eyes stung. Upon arriving home, she decided to rest. After
a dream-filled nap, she located Charlotte and Sarah outside eating
their lunch and enjoying the sunshine. Chelsea, suddenly famished,
tucked into the sandwiches and iced tea lovingly prepared by
Sarah.

“
Are you feeling better, honey?” Sarah asked.

“
Yes, much better.” She managed a slight smile. “I hope I
don’t have to do that again in a hurry.”

“
It’s never easy to say goodbye to someone you
love.”

“
As much as I loved Elle very much and I’ll miss her a lot, I
can’t even imagine what it would be like to be a family member. I
don’t know how Lucas coped with the loss of his parents or stayed
so strong for me today.”

“
Lucas had Carrie.”

“
I really don’t think he has ever gotten over it. I believe
his initial bluntness towards me was unconscious. He has been so
busy pushing everyone away
,
it became an automatic reaction, almost a natural response
to attraction.”

“
He’s taking a chance with you, Chelsea, which indicates to
me it’s getting easier for him, although it has taken the poor boy
an awfully long time to get over it. I remember when your father
lost your Gran, he was heartbroken for quite a
while
,
and he was an adult. I can’t imagine how a young man could
deal with such a tragic loss
,
and witnessing the aftermath too.” She shook her head in
disbelief at the horror. “I feel for Carrie too as she, being the
eldest, would’ve needed to be strong enough for both of them.
Perhaps, in the end, this made it easier for her.”

“
I can barely imagine it, much less live through the ordeal. I
think Lucas is amazing. He has a strength I can’t comprehend and I
admire him for it.” Chelsea stopped and stared into the garden for
a few moments. “I would like to find someone else to live here but
feel like I would be replacing Elle.”

“
You‘ll never replace her, dear, but it’s nice to have company
too.”

“
Maybe Lucas will move in with you,” Charlotte said, pushing
love, as always.

“
I think it is a bit soon for that, don’t you?” Chelsea
asked.

“
Is there a time limit on falling in love? The only thing that
is going to change is the intensity.”

“
That wasn’t the case with Wes. He just upped and
left.”

“
Wes was different and there was always something about him
that felt wrong.”

“
That’s what Pa said. What felt wrong was he didn’t love me.
I don’t want to take the chance as quickly this time.”

“
I think it’s too late for that,” Charlotte informed her.
“You’re already in love with him. I can tell by the goofy look on
your face all the time, even in grief.”

“
Yes, I suppose it’s too late.” She smiled.

Deciding that a lazy afternoon relaxing in the yard was
essential, a bottle of champagne was opened and instead of mourning
Elle, they resolved to celebrate her life. The first glass after
their toast began to lift their spirits somewhat. They avoided
talking about death and the evil lurking out there somewhere.
Knowing there was an officer at the front door and that they could
still sit unseen in the private back garden helped alleviate
Chelsea’s fears a little.

Chelsea told stories about Elle and her memories of their time
together, which lightened her heart. This was definitely the best
way to say goodbye to Elle and she thanked Charlotte for thinking
of it. Chelsea knew Elle would have appreciated this much more than
the gloominess of bereavement.

The sun began to descend and the dusk regaled them with pinks
and purples. Chelsea thought it a fitting way to end the day she’d
said goodbye to her friend. Darkness ended their outdoor party.
They moved inside and Sarah prepared dinner. The girls opened
another bottle of champagne. Chelsea, feeling tipsy, began giggling
hysterically at everything Charlotte said and an overwhelming
happiness consumed her. She couldn’t wait for Lucas to arrive. She
missed him and longed to share the celebrations and her champagne
buzz with him.

* * *

After discovering the missing girl had actually packed her
things and simply left, Lucas drove to Chelsea’s house. His
frustration and confusion grew from the endless dead ends and
because, as far as they knew, another girl hadn’t been abducted.
Although this pleased him somewhat, he was suspicious nonetheless.
Surely he wasn’t finished? Could he have simply stopped? Killers
this bloodthirsty rarely stopped unless captured - escalation was
usually the norm. They would need to check missing persons again in
the morning.

He forced thoughts of the killer from his mind. His excitement
grew as he thought of his girl. He wondered how she was fairing
after her difficult ordeal. Funerals, although a good way to say
goodbye, were never pleasant.

The girls were cleaning up when Lucas entered after dismissing
Officer Lewis. He could hear them playfully fighting, their squeals
and giggles a wonderful welcome. He crept quietly in their
direction and winked at Sarah, sitting at the table, on the way
past. He watched as Chelsea and Charlotte, while attempting to wash
the dishes, flicked bubbles and water at each other.

“
I hope I won’t have to arrest you two for disturbing the
peace,” Lucas said, coming into kitchen. They both squealed again,
this time with fright. “I’m sure only dogs can hear you,
though.”

“
Lucas!” Chelsea said giddily. “Are you going to use your
handcuffs, Detective?” She sidled over to him with her arms up,
wrists together and his desire was instantaneous. How does she do
it to me?

“
As much as the idea appeals to me, I think I want to kiss
you.” He pulled her roughly to him to give her a kiss filled with
urgency.

“
Okay, I think that is my cue to leave,” Charlotte groaned.
“You can finish the dishes.”

Lucas lifted a hand to her hair to remove the bubbles
lingering there.

“
It’s about time you got here
.
I’ve missed you.” She kissed him again. “And from
what I can tell, you missed me too.” She smiled
seductively.

“
I should be late more often then. You seem happier than I
expected, this being a good thing by the way.”

“
We were celebrating Elle with some bubbly and I guess I’m a
little tipsy.”

“
I like it.”

“
You’ll like it more later,” she purred.

“
I want to like it now.” He grabbed her hand and all but
dragged her to the stairs.

“
Good night,” she said cheerily to Sarah and Charlotte as they
hurried past.

* * *

“
I want to know everything about you,” Chelsea said as they
lay entwined. “Tell me something, anything.”

“
There isn’t much to tell.” He didn’t want to taint this life
with anything from before her.

“
Who was your first girlfriend?” He stiffened.

“
Did I say something wrong?”

“
No.”

“
I promise I won’t be jealous ... much.”

“
I had no life before you.”

“
Lucas, as sweet as that is, I want to know.”

“
I was with Stacy the night my parents died. She was my first
... everything. That night was the first time for us both. I was
late because ... well you know. Anyway, it probably saved my life.
I broke up with her the next day. I felt guilty, ashamed that I was
getting my rocks off while ...”

“
Oh well, I’m glad you were late.”

“
That’s what Carrie says. I haven’t had or wanted a serious
relationship since then, until now.”

“
Really?”

“
Yes I never want to go through that again.”

“
You mean you’re serious about us? I know we’ve only known
each other a week, but it feels right being with you. I know that’s
crazy.”

“
Yeah it is a bit but I feel the same.” He paused and his
voice turned serious. “Promise me you won’t leave the door unlocked
again, like it was tonight. I know the officer is on the door
...”

“
I promise. I’m sorry, it's habit keeping it open.”

“
So are you okay after this morning?”

“
Yes. I know Elle wouldn’t have wanted me moping around. She
would be really happy for us.” Her voice broke.

“
I’m sorry
.
I
shouldn’t have brought it up.”

“
I need and want to be able talk about her. I’ll miss her a
lot but she’s gone and there is nothing I can do but remember her.”
She lifted her head to look into his eyes. “I’m sorry I made you
come to the funeral today. It must have been difficult.”

“
At first I thought I wasn’t going to be able to handle it but
then guilt took over.”

“
It wasn’t your fault, what happened to them.”

“
That wasn’t why I felt guilty.”

“
Why then?” She searched his face with her trusting green eyes
and the words tumbled out.

“
I was thinking about myself and not you. I kept wondering why
my memories aren’t happy ones, why I have never gotten over this. I
thought I had, until this case and today. It is the first funeral
I’ve been to since. Thinking of them still brought pain. I thought
I was over it, it was so long ago, but these murders have rehashed
all the anger and pain that I pushed aside for all these years.
I’ve been in homicide for five years but never have I come across a
case so callous, so similar to their deaths. I learned to switch
off and focus only on the case and never allowed any feelings to
surface. Maybe I would have dealt with it sooner if I was
confronted with something like this before. There were many times I
thought I wouldn’t make it through but somehow managed to bury it
all, until last week. I have never allowed myself to grieve and I
think this is why my memories are painful. I don’t want them to be.
I want to be happy when I remember them. It’s time to move
on.”

“
I’m sorry I asked you to come. It was selfish of
me.”

“
No, Chelsea, I should never have let my feelings get in the
way of being there for you. I’m upset with myself.” She lay silent
for a moment.