Ghost Detectives Bk. 02: Virus

Friday evening, they were at the house and walked from the car to the back entrance of the property. Later, they ended up outside the dance club, went inside, and ordered a drink. It was still early and the place was only half full and they stayed for half an hour and left.

James deferred to John, "how are we going to handle this?"

"We could stay at the club and watch her all night."

"The dance club is a young person's venue. We'll stand out like two lampposts with lights on our heads waving flags. If anything, we wait outside and then follow her."

"Do you know what she looks like?"

"Not really. I've seen a picture and looked at her from a distance, that about it. I'd be hard pushed to pick her out in a crowd."

"Exactly, if we get it wrong, she's dead. We need a better plan. Carolyn's team has spent quite a bit of time profiling him, anything useful there?"

"Above average intelligence, a loner. Has a feminine voice according to three of the girls he raped but that could be a disguise, so I wouldn't place a lot of value in that direction. Average weight, height, around five feet ten, smartly dressed, but no one has seen his face. Wait a moment, the article said she was driving that night."

"We have the registration number of her car, let's get back to your house, I have an idea."

At the house, John and James went into the secret room in the basement, browsed the internet then drove to where the girl lived, located her car and waited out of sight. A little later, John walked to her car, opened the driver's door with a special key and sprayed the passenger and driver's seat with a colourless, odourless spray, then James drove them home. He explained that in normal light the spray on the seats would be invisible, colourless and odourless. It would not damage fabric or skin but would stick to anything that touched it, skin included and when viewed through special glasses would show up as a luminous gold colour. Also, under certain light it would give off electroluminescence and show up as blue as opposed to gold but remain invisible to the naked eye. As it transferred from her seat to her clothes, she would start to glow making her easy to spot; plus, encoded in the invisible spray were nanopods, a type of bacteria, and, when combined with nanorods, gave off a tracking signal they would be able to follow.

James shook his head with delight. "Neat, John, you never cease to amaze me."

"We return tomorrow and wait. When she comes out of the club, we'll follow her, I've already fixed a tracking device to her car as an added precaution."

Saturday evening saw them at the end of the street where the girl lived. A few of her girlfriends were already inside having a merry time from what they could make out. Two more girls arrived, knocked the door, and entered. An hour later the nine girls left the house in two cars heading for the dance club, they followed and parked opposite the entrance, the two cars parked to the left of the club in the car park. The girls queued for ten minutes and entered two at a time a few minutes apart. Wearing their glasses, two girls stood out from the rest of the queue, fluorescing in blue and sometimes gold so they felt contented to wait outside. They could track the movement of the two girls down to a few feet and felt comfortable in staying inside the car.

John waited thirty minutes, got out of the car, walked around the back of the dance club returning to the car ten minutes later, saying there was a fire exit at the back but seemed as if it hadn't been opened in a while. According to the forensic pathologist's report, in the other dimension, the rape and murder happened between the hours of midnight and 3am.

At eleven thirty people started to leave; their target was still inside and they were growing anxious. John reached into his bag and pulled up a small handgun and tucked it into the side of his belt. Giving James a small metal bar, showing him how it extended by flicking it a certain way opening into a solid steel baton, informing him that one good strike would break an arm or leg and to not aim for the head unless forced, a direct head strike could well kill an opponent, advising him the best area to strike was across the shoulders, legs or back.

James looked at the computer screen and tapped John's shoulder. "One girl is coming out." She stood on the pavement and staggered. "The other girl from the front seat is still inside."

John got out of the car and walked slowly toward her but she seemed to be alone. One of the bouncers steadied her and rested her against the wall before he was distracted by a few people arguing just inside the entrance. John walked past her but didn't notice anything untoward.

James noticed the man first. He wasn't alone. They were in the doorway, and checking the laptop screen, he saw that the girl with the man was the other girl from the front of the car. They walked over to the first girl, spoke something to her and left, one each side of her, virtually carrying her towards her car and placed her on the back seat. She looked to be phased out. She was either drunk, drugged or both and virtually unconscious. James remembered the articles he read. This was no party girl but a naïve, vulnerable, protected young girl, and with her parents away others were taking advantage of her. Could there be two murderers?

John returned to his car. They were her friends, at least the girl was and to approach them now would only show him up in a bad light.

"They are heading back to the house," said John.

They parked their car at the end of the street and watched as the couple got out of the car, leaving the passenger in the back seat asleep. The girl opened the front door, obviously having taken the key from the other girl, and both entered the house.

"His hands," said James, "he's wearing gloves."

They knew they'd have to move quickly, still not sure if the other girl was involved or simply another victim, but after having seen the gloves, the tipping point leaned in favour of her being an accomplice.

"We can't just go into the house."

"The rape and murder happened there, if we don't do something and quickly, we'll be too late. From the articles about this murder, there was no mention of another victim. She's with him in this, nothing else fits, James. We need to get into the house and stop the murder."

They placed gloves over their hands exited the car and headed toward the house. Most of the street, other than a few street lights, was in darkness, most of the residents asleep. They walked around the back of the house and peered into the kitchen. The light was on but the room was deserted. The inside door opened and the couple walked into the room and started kissing each other, the girl wrapping her legs around the boy as he lifted her up onto the kitchen table pushing up her dress showing her bare legs and white panties.

The looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders as if to say, what now?

"We wait and watch," whispered James, both moving back into the shadows.

The sex was rough and urgent as the man ripped at the crotch of her panties pulling them apart and violently pumped his manhood into her. She screamed, meeting his violence with equal movement, panting her pleasure as he, with laboured breath, brutally forced himself deeper into her body, both lost in the moment of their stolen lust as they corrupted the table where the family ate.

As quickly as it started it was over as they simultaneous orgasmed. He moved away breaking sexual contact, pushed her body back onto the sex-soaked table, raised her legs, placing one leg over each shoulder, connected his mouth with her wet, sperm leaking, hairy vagina, like a lizard after flies, his breath hissing and sucking as his tongue penetrated her grossness. She, using her hands to steady herself in the centre of the table clasping each side as it precariously rocked against his savage onslaught; her teeth clenched, neck and face red, sweating, concentrating, distorting, symbolising their illicit rapture, his love juices mixing with hers. Phlegm, mixed with sperm, coated with her savoury love juice dribbled from his mouth like a dog with rabies as his viral tongue found its home inside her pulsating darkness; her soaked pubic hair clogging his mouth, but he was too deep in lust to care.

He shuffled to the side of the table moving his head towards hers, hungry to share with her his mouth to her mouth, to soak her lips with what but a moment ago was inside her vagina; she, kissing him with the same fervent ardour smelling the rancid perfume of his breath as tongue found tongue; still, she sought for more, longing for the feel of his penis inside her mouth without speaking a word, both thinking the same. She turned her body to the side finding what she sought; he stood, pulled her head towards his manhood and soon it was lost inside her mouth sucking it into her black hole, tasting, savouring, smelling, lost in the animal magnetism of the moment. Their passions spent, she stood up and picked up her shredded panties and cleaned the table. He was still wearing his gloves. Her fingerprints could easily be explained away as she'd been there earlier with the other girls. They seemed unconcerned about the girl they'd left in the back of the car adding confirmation that she'd been drugged and they weren't expecting her to wake anytime soon.

"Let's get her inside and play," the man said.

The girl smirked. "She is such a miss prim and proper and I know she's a virgin."

"After tonight she won't be."

"I need a piece of her as well, after you of course," she laughed. "You must come in her mouth, Russell."

"You're a slut, my love," he grinned.

"What does that make you?"

He sniggered, "a double slut."

John and James heard every word. The two inside were so confident they made no to attempt to talk quietly. "We need to hit them before they get the girl inside," suggested John.

They started to walk toward the back door quickly moving behind the garden shed as the depraved couple exited the house. They walked around the house by the back garden coming out at the front of the driveway. The girl held the car door open as Russell carried the drugged girl into the house using the back entrance. John stopped James from moving forward. With the girl in Russell's arms, to attack him could well result in injury to her. He dumped her limp body on the kitchen table and both left the room looking for alcohol in the lounge.

Now was the time to act. Placing black balaclavas over their heads they entered the kitchen. James checked the girl whilst John waited by the side of the door for the others to return. Russell reached out to take the drugged girl into the other room and start their fun. When he saw them, he turned to run but one well-aimed punch from John was all that was needed and he was out cold. The girl shouted from the other room asking him to keep the noise down. Soon Russell was tied up like a Christmas turkey ready for the oven. They entered the lounge, James carrying the unconscious girl while John pointed a gun at the girl lying across the settee. Seeing them she jumped to her feet readying to run, saw the gun and froze. John gesticulated for her to sit down. For a brief second, she thought about running but soon realised her situation and complied with his request.

James placed the drugged girl in a lounge chair, secured the other girl's hands and legs, returned to the kitchen and carried Russell, now awake, into the room and placed him next to her on the settee.

"If you shout or make a noise, you're both dead, understand?"

"Take what you want and go," Russell said, feeling a little more settled, believing they were there to rob the place and providing they played along, he felt they had no intention of harming them. The girl felt the opposite and she was crying and starting to become hysterical. Russell shouted at her to shut the noise or they would kill her looking at his two assailants as he spoke. "You'll have no trouble from us, take what you want and go. She'll give you no trouble. If you want a taste of her or the other one be my guest."

John stared at him without speaking. He looked back at John seeing his face and started to feel nervous and afraid. The girl, quietly sniffling, calmed down.

"Take what you want and go, why are you waiting?" opening her legs showing them her vagina. "Please don't hurt me."

John turned and looked at the girl sleeping on the chair and back at the other girl. "Close your legs," he snarled.

"Don't worry about her, she'll be out for hours. Take her she's clean," he smirked, misreading the situation.

"Why?"

"Why do you think? A plump virgin for you." He was finding his confidence.

John slapped him hard across the face making him lose his confidence as quickly as he had gained it. "Why is she like that?"

"A druggy, and drunk, we've been out partying."

John wasn't sure if he was the rapist and murderer and needed to be as definite as he could be without a confession. "A question, answer truthfully and you will be on your way." Looking towards the sleeping girl John asked. "You've been there before?" Lecherously grinning. He knew that type of person he was dealing with and played to his distorted sense of reality.

"No, but I would have later and my girlfriend would also have had a piece of her. Help yourself, have them both. I won't even call the police. Let me walk out of here and you'll never see me again."

"You mean rape her?"

"No is the new yes in my vocabulary. Besides, she'll be out of it for hours," he emphasised.

"Her," pointing at the girl sitting next to him. "The one you've just rocked."

"She's mine but I have no problem with you borrowing her. What do you say, dear, are you game for him or both?"

"Russell," she sniffled, giving him a little smile, "if you want."

"You been together long?"

She looked at Russell. "We met a few weeks ago."

"Do you often go out to rape drugged and drunk girls?"

She stared contemptuously at John. "Rape, no way, tonight was about fun, a little payback for miss goody two shoes there. Russell said she'd be smiling about it tomorrow and said a little fun never harmed anyone." Her eyes rolled. She had an, I don't care, life is a ball, come what may attitude. Frankly, she had no idea what she was saying as Russell had slipped a party drug into one of her drinks.

"She's your friend?"

"No, not really, she runs with a different crowd. Sex is fun, I like it."

John asked the name of the unconscious girl, and she replied, Frances Branford. That was all the proof they needed. James believed they had their rapist and murderer but still had no proof. The article James had read stated that the name of the last murdered girl was the unconscious girl.

John could feel his anger and hatred for Russell building. It would be so easy to just pull the trigger and walk away but logic and human value held the greater sway. He looked at the naïve ill-educated girl, controlled and manipulated by the animal in front of him. He stepped back a few feet and conversed with James for a few minutes to agree what would be their next move. James picked up the unconscious girl, carried her out of the room up the stairs, placed her on the bed, removed her dress and tucked her in, checking first that she was in no danger other than waking up with a headache.

When he returned to the room, Russell shot him a lecherous look, sneered and curled up his lip in contempt, believing these people were like him but still feared for his life; he needed to show them he was one of them. "That didn't take long," he grinned. "Do you want to try this one, she'll move a lot faster and is great at giving head. She's as high as a kite, met her a few weeks ago, a right slut."

James' intolerance for this man was flooding his common sense. Murder was never right, but it felt as right as it every could to see this man on a pathologist's cold slab. "Long enough to do what was needed to be done."

The girl started sobbing, looking at him as if he'd grown horns. She was starting to realise he had intended to have three-way sex; two consensual. Initially she thought it would be fun, but the other would be non-consensual. She was seeing his intention for what it was, premeditated rape of her drugged friend and making herself a part of his sick game, an adjunct to his passion, dragging her down further into his debauchery. Her drug-induced body started to come down from its high and reality began to clear her mind. "Russell! Please, I'm not a piece of meat you can throw to anyone," she sobbed.

He sneered. "Give your body freely and enjoy it or be raped; up to you, but fucked you're going to be by these gentlemen, I had my fill of you earlier," he grinned, looking at the other two.

John and James had heard enough of his vitriol. John felt his hand tightening around the trigger and quickly placed it in his belt, protecting himself against his boiling anger from doing what his mind was urging. "You," pointing to the girl, "can leave but I suggest you go home and forget about this evening. Can you do that now you know what your boyfriend is like? There'll be no rape tonight or robbery."

She nodded. "I have only known him a few weeks," she blabbered. "Yes, I can do as you say."

John felt they needed to put a frightener on the girl as added assurance. "We know who you are, if you go to the police, we, or our friends, will hunt you down. That will be the last time you will ever see a sunrise; never contact Russell again, do you understand?" he shouted at her.

"That's easy, I'll never go out with him again no matter what happens."

"I've finished with the slut, someone else can fill her. I'm done with her. Kill her for all I care. What about me?"

John stared at Russell. "From you, I need answers."

Russell's fear started to reassert itself. He wasn't expecting this; he was like them. "Take what you want from the house, burn it down. I'll contact no police. I wouldn't trust madam here, she'll jabber as soon as she's free. Let us both go and no one will be the wiser; let me sort her. The one upstairs knows nothing so you have no worries there."

Doubt started to creep into their minds. Could they have the wrong man? To let him go free meant he would carry on raping and killing if it was him. To turn him in to the police, sounded tempting, he'd be questioned and without solid evidence he'd be back on the streets within a few days. John searched him. His address, full name, where he worked, and other information. John detested his type, but that didn't warrant killing him, still, the thought was firmly in his mind and James felt the same way, but that small window of doubt kept creeping into John's psyche. Even if he was guilty, his preferred option was to let the law take its course.

He looked at Russell and slapped him a few times across the face. "We know you but you don't know us. We know where you live, work, hang out, so you see we can come for you anytime the mood takes us. Do you understand?"

"Yes!"

"Again!"

"Yes, I understand."

"If you so much as breath over these two girls again, we'll find you, torture you and kill you. We'll feed your mangy body to the pigs. Poof! Evidence of you gone, just like that!"

Russell knew these guys were serious and he was afraid, very afraid, convinced they would kill him in any event and they were just playing with his emotions before putting a bullet in his head. "Please, don't kill me. Let me go and I'll disappear, leave town, anything you want."

"We are a large group of people and we have your number in our frame, double-cross us and you'll be forever looking over your shoulder, particularly as far as these two girls are concerned. If anything happens to them, we'll be looking for you and when we find you, and we will, the outcome will not be pleasant."