Killer Dreams Ch. 31-35

He put his hand on my shoulder. "Stay out of trouble and let this shit blow over, Talia. I'll keep you away from him now that I know."

And with that, I was exiled to my desk. It wasn't a bad deal; I got to read my favorite author's books while getting paid. I'd have to bring them along sometime and get him to sign them for me.

'Sometime' after we caught this bastard.

The big news came out of Lakeville. The search warrant was a bust; David's new car didn't have enough miles on the odometer to reach Lakeville, much less make the return trip. The Sheriff was returning it to him. The other stuff they took wasn't going to amount to anything. I finished the spreadsheet for the Miles murder and emailed it to Detective Landsdown, then started working on murders three and four.

Nobody in our group had any new information to add about the Hardin murder, and Lakeville had less than nothing. Most of the discussion was related to lines of inquiry that were closed out. The disappointing part was not the absence of any solid leads. The bad part was our leads were likely planted to cast suspicion on someone else. We couldn't exclude David Hardin or Michael Klinesmith, and we had no other suspects.

"Our leads are shit," James said. "Where can we go next?"

"The bondage club," I volunteered.

Hank scoffed at that. "The ultra-private one where no one will talk to us?"

"Yes," I said. "We need confirmation that Klinesmith and Tracy Hardin had a secret relationship inside the Club. Michael could get in the door based on their professional relationship, but if they are both into BDSM? He'd know she had bondage gear at home, and he might go there to indulge their mutual kinks."

"Why her place," Yvonne asked. "Why not a neutral site like one of those dungeons?"

"Perhaps they did that too, but no one is talking. Miss Hardin lived alone, and her fiancé was out of town. Rumor is that Lars slept around on the road. Maybe he didn't mind if Tracy had fun while the Wild were off on road trips? Stranger things have happened."

James looked over at me. "How would we do this?"

"I could go back and interview people again. The Lakeville murder shocked people. It's beyond two people in the Society now." Oh, shit. "I think. We should see if Vanessa Miles was out of communication every second Saturday night of the month."

"Call Lakeville PD and have them follow up on that, Talia," my partner said. "They should have all the information from her calendar and phone, and we don't want to step on their investigation. As for the dominatrixes, I'll leave those to you. Finish your spreadsheets on books three and four first, though. I want all four ready for the morning meeting."

"On it," I said. I typed out a quick email while others gave their ideas.

It wasn't until the Captain was closing things out that we got any good news. "I got a call from Gerald Costley this afternoon. Mr. Costley is the lawyer for David Hardin. David wants to meet with us tomorrow at noon. He says he has some information that might be helpful to the case."

An Assistant Hennepin County Attorney, Keisha Williams, looked up in shock. She was barely out of law school, and her presence meant the County Attorney was not seeing a political win in our investigation. "He's making a voluntary statement? His lawyer isn't negotiating a plea, is he?"

"No, and I got the impression Gerald isn't happy with his client. Mr. Hardin is coming in person to discuss the information he's assembled and answer questions. It is not a sworn statement, and he will have his lawyer on the phone during our interview. We'll do it in our conference room. James, Talia, and Hank? You three will sit in the meeting. Detective Felder and a representative of the Dakota County Attorney will attend. We'll also have Federal guests in the morning, so be on your best behavior."

James shook his head. "FBI?" Groans sounded around the table. We worked well with the local FBI, but the Headquarters guys thought they walked on water. Too many cops saw it as 'Seagull' enforcement; agents show up making a lot of noise, shit on everything we've done, and leave a mess for us to clean up. Worse, they could poach the case and freeze us out. No detective likes getting pulled off a case.

The Captain held up his hands for calm. "Yep. Lakeville made a call. Two Special Agents from Quantico's Behavioral Analysis Unit are flying out to help. They'll want to review our evidence, walk through the crime scene, and get our impressions. With Mr. Hardin volunteering his help, they'll sit in on that meeting. After they finish with us, they'll head to Lakeville. Detective Hardin, I'm sure they'll want to talk to you at length since you're our murder mystery expert."

"Yes, sir." I don't need a special agent psychologist to tell me this is a sick fuck who enjoys torturing people.

Chapter 33

Talia Devine's POV

St. Paul Police Headquarters

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

The two FBI Special Agents were right out of central casting. Dark, off-the-rack suits, white shirts, and slacks. The man had a plain tie that matched his dark grey suit. The woman's dress shirt collar was open, with no necklace or jewelry. Agents didn't like wearing anything that someone could grab. Both wore leather shoes with rubber soles, with low heels for her. I could see their heavy gun belts and their standard-issue Glock 19M 9mm pistols in Safariland hard-polymer holsters as they exited their black sedan. The FBI had recently switched to these, and psychologists didn't shoot enough to have a favorite. The car was a standard FBI Fleet call that any criminal would make at a glance.

Everything about them screamed "Fed."

The senior agent was tall and thin, with short black hair turning grey at the temples. He looked more like a college professor than an agent. His partner was a woman in her early thirties with straight black hair to the collar, a decent body, and a cast-in-stone resting bitch face. I disliked her immediately. "Special Agents Howard and Dennison," I said as I stepped away from the Officer's entrance to the station. "Welcome to Minnesota. Detective Talia Devine, St. Paul Robbery-Homicide Division."

"Special Agent Harold Dennison, FBI Behavior Analysis Unit," the man said as he extended his hand. He had a firmer grip than expected.

"Special Agent Leslie Howard, BAU," the woman said. Her handshake was quick and uninterested.

I handed them visitor badges. "If you can follow me, I'll take you to Captain Cullen's office." We entered the old building and walked the stairs, ending up in our office. I made introductions, then left the room and waited outside.

It only took a few minutes before I was escorting them to a small conference room they'd use while here. The pair quickly set up their laptops while asking me questions. "The Captain said you were the in-house expert on David Hardin's life and works," Harold started.

"I'm a big fan of his writing. As soon as crime scene details came out, I linked them to his first book," I replied.

"Your spreadsheets were in the data Lakeville shared with us last night. Fascinating stuff," Harold said. "What is your impression of the killer?"

"He's going to be tough to catch," I replied. "He's meticulously planned the crimes with the end in mind. He's careful not to leave physical evidence. The wild part is he leaves EXTRA evidence to confuse the investigation and provide reasonable doubt. Even if he gets caught, he's planned out a way to survive the trial."

"Can you give me an example?"

I described what we'd found about the step-off pad, the extra hairs, the burner phone, and the whiskey glass. "It wasn't enough to raise doubt. He gave us multiple suspects with multiple lines of investigation, each leading nowhere. By planting the whiskey tumbler, he hamstrung the County Attorney's office and threw the investigation into disarray."

"You don't believe Michael Klinesmith did it?"

I let out a breath first. "There are only three reasons to steal that glass and leave it at your bedside. The most obvious is to frame Klinesmith for her murder. The second is to match the book, where it happens to a partner in the victim's law office. The third is the one I can't eliminate but scares me the most."

"What's that," Leslie asked.

"That Klinesmith IS the murderer, yet is devious enough to use the book to divert us away from him. We can't rule him out, but we don't have the evidence to convict."

She was skeptical. "What about David Hardin? He's the one that came up with the scenarios for planting evidence. It was his script the killer followed so faithfully."

"I don't believe that for a minute. The killer was punishing these women and torturing them for a reason! David forced his wife away and made zero attempts at contact or reconciliation. He's not a bitter ex-husband, and he's more successful now. He forgave Vanessa and was upset when she got dragged into a lawsuit that blamed her for him getting shot."

Harold nodded. "What about a crazed fan? Someone doing this as a tribute to his favorite author?"

"I'm not buying that either. There is a sadism here that goes way beyond recreating a scene. This guy LIKES what he is doing. He takes pictures. Hell, he probably was jacking off over the dead bodies into a condom he took with him!" I looked at them both. "You could pick a far simpler murder to copy than the one in Bloody Knife. The murder by crucifixion in Construction Site was unnecessarily complicated to pull off. We can find no link between Vanessa and Tracy, so it's not personal. I think he liked the books because they fed his fantasies, and now he's acting them out."

"What is his end game, Talia?"

I looked into Harold's green eyes. "He loves what he is doing. The longer this drags out, the more superior he believes himself to be. He enjoys inflicting pain. He thinks he's smarter than us, and so far? He's right. And he's going to do it again, using Book Three."

"Headless Horseman?"

"Yes. I've got some ideas, but I hope David can provide more insight into the next target. I don't see a path to conviction on the first two."

"Interesting," Harold responded. He looked at the clock on the wall; we had about ninety minutes until David arrived. "Thank you for your help. Who is the best person to talk to about the crime scene?"

"The Lead Detective is James Maloney. I'll get him for you."

"Thank you," I said. After sending James in, I went back to my desk and plopped down in my chair.

"That bad," Yvonne asked.

"At least they listened to me instead of telling me that the professionals were here now," I said. "Do you believe these guys can help?"

"I have no idea," she replied. "I understand why Lakeville called them in. This shit is getting out of hand."

"Yeah." I started preparing questions for David's interview. At 11:30, I took a break to heat some leftover Imperial Squid stir-fry from Yang's.

James was eating a Subway sandwich as he sniffed at my lunch. "How can you eat squid?"

"With chopsticks and a brown sauce," I replied. "Haven't you ever had calamari?"

"I'll stick to salami." We'd just finished eating when he took a call from the Desk Sergeant. "Our guy is here, and he's talking to the press. Let's go."

"You want me along?"

"He's comfortable with you, and I want him to feel comfortable enough to tell us what we need to know." I grabbed my suit jacket and followed him downstairs. Either David or his lawyer must have called the press here. Three television stations and two newspapers had reporters asking questions while he stood on the front steps.

David looked hot in a suit, and I had to stop reacting to him being so close again. We stopped in the background, our badges visible to the cameras, while David talked. "Look, I'm as outraged by these murders as anyone," he said. "Two good people I cared about are gone, and the police are no closer to finding the real killer than they were a week ago. That's why, against the advice of counsel, I'm here to help."

"How can you help," a reporter asked.

"It's clear the killer is following my books. I'm the expert on them. Perhaps I can find things they wouldn't find otherwise."

"ARE YOU THE KILLER," someone shouted.

"I've killed one person in my life, sir, and that was in the line of duty to save a woman from being stabbed to death," he responded firmly. "I may not be a cop anymore, but I still think like one. I want this guy in jail."

"Do you think Michael Klinesmith is the killer," a woman asked.

"I think the killer is planting evidence against Michael as well as me," he replied. "He's using my books to make me look guilty, and I won't stand for it." He looked back, seeing the two of us. He smiled when he looked at me, making me flush. "Thank you all for coming. It's time for me to talk to the Detectives about the case, and I don't want to keep them waiting." He turned to follow us and ignored the questions as we walked him inside. Two uniforms kept the press from following. I gave him his visitor's badge, then we took the elevator upstairs and walked to the conference room. He was confident, standing tall, with his limp barely showing as he entered the room. "Let me get my lawyer on the line, and then we can begin."

The chairs were full of important people, so I ended up standing near the door to David's right side. I leaned against the wall, hoping this didn't go south on him. I know he didn't want me to ruin my career, but I'd rather do that than let him take the fall for this.

Chapter 34

David Hardin's POV

St. Paul Police Headquarters

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

I was nervous the whole drive down. Not about my driving, which I hadn't done much of since I sold my car in 2015. Not about the press conference I'd called before going in, despite my hatred of public speaking. Not about the interview itself, with the ever-present danger of self-incrimination when I was trying to help find the killer.

No, I was nervous about seeing Talia again. Saint Paul was her territory, not mine. I didn't have the power to dominate her there like I'd enjoyed back home. I couldn't show interest or affection for her without risking her job, so seeing her would be torture.

I'd left Rocky in the house this morning, and Jennifer Parson would take him home tonight for added protection. Connie Cook would stay at Jennifer's home for the rest of the week. The lake home was more secure, especially with Charlie Cook shipping out on the freighter John J. Bolund tomorrow. I worried about the two girls, but they weren't my responsibility. I hoped they would listen to me and get them to a safe location. If not? Maybe I'd have to help pay for a bodyguard or something.

I was a Minneapolis cop, so I'd never been to the St. Paul headquarters. The navigation system had me exit on University Avenue. It was only a few blocks from there to the parking lot on Grove Street. I parked my car in the visitor's parking and got out, stretching my back and hip before pulling on my suit coat. It was a short walk to the front steps, but the cameras started dogging me as soon as I hit the sidewalk.

I got through what I needed to say, emphasizing I was here voluntarily to do anything I could to assist the investigation. I couldn't allow the investigators to keep coming back to me; two search warrants were enough! I knew the pressure on them to make an arrest was building, and there was nothing I could do about it.

I smiled when I saw Talia standing behind me with her partner. I was glad to see her again, but spending time with her would be difficult. This afternoon's meeting was strictly business.

I ended the questions and answers with the press, which didn't stop them from shouting more. I took time to appreciate Talia's toned curves as I followed them up the stairs and inside the building. She was in phenomenal shape, and her fantastic ass couldn't hide under those slacks. Talia handed me a visitor badge, and an officer wanded me down for weapons after I set off the metal detector. "Too much hardware in my hip," I said as I finished the scan. "How are you two doing," I asked as Detective Maloney pushed the button for the elevator.

"I've got two police chiefs and two county prosecutors riding my ass twenty-four/seven," James replied. "I hope you can help."

"I'll do what I can. Good to see you again, Talia. Glad to be back in the cities?"

"I love the North Shore, but it gets a little cold at night," she replied. James raised an eyebrow at her phrase. "I don't know how you can take the winters. The cold and snow we get here are more than enough." The elevator chimed before the doors opened.

"I've only got another six weeks or so before lake ice starts interfering with my morning swim," I replied.

"I don't know how you can do that to yourself," James said as we got in. "My nuts would climb inside and not come out for a week."

"Next time you two are up there, we can go. Cold water swimming is good for you and good exercise. Studies show it boosts your immune system, increases your libido, improves circulation, and reduces stress."

"So does watching porn," James said with a shake of his head. The elevator door opened, ending the conversation. I followed the detectives down the hall and into a large conference room, where a dozen people waited. "Let me get my lawyer on the line, and then we can begin." I used my phone to video call Gerald, who would be recording the meeting from his end. I took a seat at the head of the table. I set the phone on a stand on the table before we went through the introductions.

On my right were Detective Maloney, Detective Hank Johnson, and Captain Mike Cullen of Robbery/Homicide. Those three were the major players in the investigation of the first murder. Next to them was a young prosecutor from Hennepin County, Keisha Williams. At the far end were two senior members of the St. Paul Police, Assistant Chief John Fordham of Major Crimes, and press liaison Captain Lewis. At the far end of the table were FBI profilers Harold Dennison and Leslie Howard. From the far left sat Assistant County Attorneys Matthew Carlson and Natalie Dunlap of Dakota County, which had jurisdiction over the second murder, BCA Investigator Roger Farnsworth, Dakota County Sheriff's Detective Christine Johnson, and Detectives Corey Felder and Max Landsdown of the Lakeville Police.

"Let me address a few things before my client starts," Gerald Costley said over the line. "Mr. Hardin set this meeting up against my advice. I would have preferred a written statement, but he insisted on doing this in person to answer questions. We know you still consider him a suspect, so I have him on a short leash."

"Your client is not under arrest, nor has he been Mirandized," Miss Williams stated.

"And we both know that doesn't matter," Gerald replied. "If the discussion goes downhill, I will direct David to stop speaking and may suspend or end it. I am recording this conference. I would ask that the discussions and recordings stay confidential, although you may characterize David's assistance in general terms to the press. Is that acceptable to everyone?" There was agreement all around, so we were able to begin.

I removed two folded papers from the inside jacket pocket, handing a copy to Detective Maloney and Detective Landsdown. "I worked before with Detective Devine on the characteristics of the crime in Bloody Knife, along with my impressions. I've included that, plus I've done the same with the next three books. Hopefully, there is something there you can use."

James gave them to Talia, who ran out to make copies. "We appreciate your insights. What are your impressions of the first murder?"

"Without access to the crime scene photos and reports, there is only so much I can tell you. If he is holding close to the book, that does tell me a lot about the killer."