Copycat (3 page)

Tuesday, March 7, 2006
Noon

D
eputy Chief of Detectives Salvador Minelli listened quietly as Kitt presented her case. A strikingly handsome man, with silvering hair and at fifty-one, a nearly unlined face, he dressed with panache and walked with the barest hint of a swagger. These days, Sal—as almost everyone in the department called him—was as much a politician as a cop. In fact, most of those in the know felt he was the front-runner for the chief of police's job when he retired in a couple of years.

Sal had been a very good friend to her. He had been her superior five years ago and had been as supportive as a man in his position could be, maybe more. He'd certainly gone to bat for her, facing the displeasure of the chief himself.

Perhaps it had been because he was the father of five. Perhaps because he came from a family that valued familial bonds above all else. He had seemed to understand how deeply painful the loss of Sadie had been.

“I know this guy,” Kitt argued. “I know the SAK case better than anyone, you know that. Give Detective Riggio the lead spot, no problem. Let me assist.”

He was quiet for long moments after she finished. He steepled his fingers. “Why are you doing this, Kitt?”

“Because I want this guy. I want him behind bars. Because I'd be an asset to the investigation.”

“I suspect Detective Riggio would disagree on the last.”

“Detective Riggio's young and overconfident. She needs me.”

“You had your shot, Kitt. He slipped through your grasp.”

“This time he won't.”

He went on as if she hadn't spoken. “You know how important a fresh pair of eyes can be to a case.”

“Yes, but—”

He held up a hand, stopping her. “Detective Riggio's good. Damn good.”

There was a time, she knew, he had said the same about her. She doubted that would be the case again.

To a certain degree, she
had
become a liability.

“She's headstrong,” Kitt countered. “Too ambitious.”

He smiled. “White's a good ballast for that.”

“How can I prove to you that I can handle it?”

“I'm sorry, Kitt. You're too close. Still too fragile.”

“With all due respect, Sal, don't you think
I
should be the one to make that determination?”

“No,” he said simply. He leaned forward. “Have you considered that working this case might overwhelm you and send you running back to the bottle?”

“It won't.” She met his gaze unflinchingly. “I'm sober. I have been for nearly a year. I intend to stay that way.”

He lowered his voice. “I can't protect you again, Kitt. You know what I'm talking about.”

She'd let the SAK slip through her fingers.

Sal had covered for her. Because he had felt partly responsible.

And because of Sadie.

“I'll ask Riggio and White to keep you in the loop. Bounce things off you. It's the best I can do.”

She stood, shocked to realize her hands were shaking. More shocked to realize that she longed for a drink to still them.

The urge she could never give into again.

“Thank you,” she said, then crossed to the door.

He stopped her when she reached it. She turned back.

“How's Joe?” he asked.

Her ex-husband. High school sweetheart. Former best friend. “We don't talk much.”

“You know how I feel about that.”

She did. Hell, she felt the same way.

“If you see him, tell him I said hello.”

She told him she would and walked away, with Joe suddenly very much on her mind.

Tuesday, March 7, 2006
5:30 p.m.

“H
ello, Joe.”

Her ex-husband looked up from the house plans on the desk in front of him. Although his blond hair had silvered over the years, his eyes were as blue as the day she had married him. Tonight, the expression in them was wary.

She supposed she didn't blame him. These days, she never just “popped in.”

“Hello, Kitt,” he said. “This is a surprise.”

“Flo already left,” she said, referring to the woman who served as both his secretary and office manager. “So I came on in. How's business?”

“Picking up. Thank God spring's here.”

Joe owned his own home-construction business, Lundgren Homes. Northern Illinois winters were tough on builders. Home starts simply didn't happen. The goal was to have several jobs closed in and ready for interior work by the time severe weather hit. Some winters, it had been pretty lean going.

“You look tired,” she said.

“I guess I am.” He passed a hand across his face. “Judging by the bulge, you're back on the job.”

Her shoulder holster.
Joe had never really gotten used to her wearing it. “Sal sends a hello.”

He held her gaze. “And the drinking, how's—”

“Still sober. Eleven months and counting. I plan to stay that way.”

“I'm glad to hear that, Kitt.”

He meant it, she knew. He had seen the alcohol almost destroy her. And though they'd divorced, he still cared for her. As she did him.

She cleared her throat. “Something's happened. The Sleeping Angel Killer…it looks like he's back.”

He didn't speak. Didn't move. She saw several different emotions chase across his face. “A little girl named Julie Entzel,” she continued. “They found her this morning.”

“I'm sorry.” He shifted his gaze to the plans laid out in front of him. “Sal has you working the case?”

“No, he thinks I'm too close. Too…vulnerable.”

He looked back up at her. “But you don't agree?”

His tone had taken on an edge. She stiffened slightly, defensive. “I see you do.”

He made a sound, part frustration, part anger. “You chose that case over our marriage. Over me. I'd call that ‘too close.'”

“Let's not start this, Joe.”

He stood. She saw that his hands were clenched. “Even after the killings stopped, you couldn't let it go. Even after Sal closed the case.”

That was true. It had consumed her. Fueled her drinking, her defiance of direct orders.
But she had not chosen it over him. She told him so.

He laughed, the sound bitter. “That case became the focus of your life.
I
should have been your focus. Our marriage. This family.”

“What family?” She regretted the words the moment they passed her lips. She saw how much they hurt him.

She started to say so; he cut her off. “Why are you here?”

“I thought you'd want to know. About the little girl.”

“Why?”

She frowned. “I don't understand.”

“Julie Entzel wasn't our daughter, Kitt. None of those girls were. I'd never met even one of them. And that's the part you never got.”

“Oh, I got that, Joe. But I feel a sense of responsibility that you, obviously, don't. I feel a need to help. To do…something.”

“Don't you think my heart breaks for that little girl, her folks? I know what it's like to lose a child. That some monster could do such a thing sickens me.” He cleared his throat. “But she wasn't Sadie. She wasn't ours. You've got to move on with your life.”

“The way you have?” she shot back.

“Actually, yes.” He paused for a long moment. When he spoke again, his tone was flat. “I'm getting remarried, Kitt.”

For several seconds, she simply gazed at him, certain she had misheard. She must have. Her Joe, getting remarried?

“You don't know her,” he went on, before she could ask. “Her name's Valerie.”

Kitt's mouth had gone dry. She felt light-headed. What? Had she expected him to pine for her forever?

Yes.

She struggled to keep her turmoil from showing. “I didn't know you were seeing anyone so seriously.”

“No reason you should have.”

No reason? She had a lifetime worth of reasons.
“How long have you been dating?”

“Four months.”

“Four months? Not very long. Are you certain—”

“Yes.”

“When's the big day?” Her voice sounded strained even to her own ears.

“We haven't set one yet. Fairly soon. It'll be a small service. Just a few family members and close friends.”

“I see.”

He looked frustrated. “Is that all you have to say?”

“No.” She stood, blinded by tears she would never allow him to see. “I hope you'll be very happy together.”

Wednesday, March 8, 2006
12:10 p.m.

K
itt sat at her desk, brown-bag lunch untouched, thumbing through the original Sleeping Angel case files. The information was available electronically, but she preferred to review hard copies.

She slipped out the scene photos of the first victim. Mary Polaski. It hurt to look at her. She had let this little victim down. She had let her family down.

Kitt forced such thoughts from her mind and studied the photos, comparing them to those of Julie Entzel. Why had he positioned the hands this way? Why take the chance of remaining at the scene for hours? What had been so important to him?

Her phone rang; Kitt reached for it without taking her gaze from the photos. “Detective Lundgren, Violent Crimes Bureau.”

“The Detective Lundgren who was in charge of the Sleeping Angel case five years ago?”

“Yes. Can I help you?”

“Actually, I think I can help
you.
”

The call didn't surprise her; the morning newspaper headline had read: Sleeping Angel Killer Returns. What surprised her was the fact she hadn't received one before now. “Always happy to have help. Your name?”

“I'm someone you've wanted to meet for a very long time.”

The sly amusement in his tone grated. She didn't have time for wackos. Or for games. She told him so.

“I'm the Sleeping Angel Killer.”

For the space of a heartbeat she wondered if it could be true. Could it be this easy?

Of course it couldn't.

“You're the Sleeping Angel Killer,” she repeated. “And you want to help me?”

“I didn't kill that little girl. The one in the paper today.”

“Julie Entzel.”

“Yeah, her.” She heard a hissing sound, as if he were taking a drag on a cigarette. She made a note. “Someone ripped me off.”

“Ripped you off?”

“Copied me. And I don't like it.”

Kitt glanced around her. Everyone, it seemed, was either out on a call or at lunch. She stood and waved her free arm, hoping to catch the attention of someone walking by. She needed to initiate a trace.

“I want you to catch this asshole and stop him.”

“I want to help you,” she said. “But I've got another call coming in. Can you hold a moment?”

“Now who's playing games?” She heard him exhale. “Here are the rules. I won't talk to anyone but you, Kitt. May I call you Kitt?”

“Sure. What should I call you?”

He ignored her question. “Nice name. Kitty. Kitten. Feminine. Sexy. Doesn't fit a cop, though.” Another pause, another deep inhale. “Of course, everybody calls you Detective. Or Lundgren. Isn't that right?”

“That's right,” she said. “But here's the thing, I'm not working the Entzel murder. I'll transfer you to the team who is.”

He ignored her. “Rule number two. Don't expect anything for free. And don't expect it to be easy. Everything costs. I determine payment.”

His voice was deep. Relatively youthful. The smoking hadn't yet altered that. She would place his age between twenty-five and thirty-five. “Is there a rule number three?”

“There may be. I haven't decided yet.”

“And if I don't want to play by your rules?”

He laughed. “You will. Or more little girls will die.”

Shit. Where the hell was everyone?
“All right. Just give me a reason to believe you're anything more than a crank. Something to take to my chief—”

“Goodbye, Kitten.”

He hung up. She swore and dialed the Central Reporting Unit. Because all the department calls were routed through a switchboard, a trace had to be manually initiated on a per call basis. However, the number of each call that came into the RPD switchboard was automatically trapped.

“This is Lundgren in Violent Crimes. I just received a call to my desk. I need the number, ASAP.”

She hung up and two minutes later CRU called her back. It was Brian himself. “It was a cell number, Kitt. What's up?”

A cell number.
Unlike a call made from a landline, which could be trapped in ten seconds of continuous connection, one from a cell took five minutes. If the guy was smart, he also knew that all new cellular phones included a GPS chip that allowed a call's location to be pinpointed within ten minutes. Older models, without the new technology, would take hours.

She glanced at her watch. She would guess the call had lasted no more than three minutes. Which meant this guy understood trace technology.

“Guy claimed he was the SAK,” she said. “The original SAK. Said Julie Entzel's murder isn't his.”

Brian whistled. “Obviously, you want a name and address to go along with that number?”

“ASAP.” She glanced toward her sergeant's office and saw he was still out. “Call me back on my cell.”

She hung up, collected her notes and headed for Sal's office. She paused as she saw Riggio and White entering the squad room. She pointed toward Sal's office. “You'll be interested in this.”

She reached the deputy chief's, the other two detectives right behind her. She tapped on his open door.

He looked up, waved them in. Kitt didn't waste time on a preamble. “I just received a call from someone claiming to be the SAK.” Seeing she had everyone's attention, she continued, “He also claimed he did not kill Julie Entzel.”

“Why was he calling you?”

This came from Riggio, and Kitt met her gaze. “He wants me to find this copycat and stop him.”

“You?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I don't know.”

Sal frowned. “What else did you get from him?”

“I'm pretty sure he's a smoker. I guess his age to be between twenty-five and thirty-five. He told me—” She glanced at her notes. “‘Someone ripped me off. Copied me. And I don't like it.'”

“Did you initiate a trace?”

“Everyone was at lunch or out on call. When I tried to put him on hold, he told me to stop playing games.”

“You called CRU—”

“The minute he hung up. Call came from a cell phone. I'm waiting to hear back on the owner's name.”

“The caller, did he say anything else?”

“He gave me two rules. Said if I didn't follow them, more little girls would die.”

White stepped in before she could finish. “But he claims he didn't kill Julie Entzel? How's he so certain more girls will die?”

“He didn't tell me, so I can only suppose.”

“Maybe he knows who the copycat is?” White offered.

“Maybe,” Riggio agreed. “
If
we can believe anything he said.”

Kitt cocked an eyebrow, growing annoyed with the other woman. “Would you like to hear the rest of what he said?”

Riggio nodded tersely, and Kitt went on. “He gave me two rules. The first—he won't talk to anyone but me.”

“Please.”

That came from Riggio. Kitt ignored her.

“And the second?” Sal asked.

“That nothing will be free. Or easy. The cost will be determined by him.”

“He wants money?” That came from White.

Kitt looked at him. “I don't think that's the kind of ‘cost' he was referring to. But he didn't ask for anything.”

“Sure he did.” Sal moved his gaze between the three. “He asked that you work the case.” He picked up the phone and rang Nan Baker, the VCB secretary. “Nan, is Sergeant Haas back from lunch?” He paused. “Good. Get him in here.”

Every bureau in the RPD had a senior officer. Sergeant Jonathan Haas was Violent Crime's. He had been Brian's partner before being promoted and was known around the bureau for being a solid cop.

The tall, fair-haired sergeant arrived. He smelled of the burger and fries he must have had for lunch. It looked as if he had dribbled “secret sauce” on his tie. Though the differences between the two men's personal styles was dramatic, Sal and Haas had a good relationship. In fact, early in both their careers, they had also been partners.

As Sal began filling him in, Kitt's cell rang. “Lundgren here.”

“Kitt, Brian. Bad news. The number belongs to a prepaid cell phone. I have the name of the outlet that sold it.”

Smarter than the average bear, obviously.
“That'll have to do. Maybe we'll get lucky.”

She ended the call. The sergeant turned to her. She greeted him, then filled the group in.

Haas nodded. “I want to initiate a trace on every call that comes in to you, here and at home. And I want them all recorded.” He turned to Riggio. “Is the autopsy in?”

“Yes, Sarge. I picked it up last night. No new information, unfortunately. She was smothered, just like the three original SAK victims. Nails were clean. No sign of sexual assault. No defense wounds. Only the hematoma to the forehead.”

“Any help there?” Sal asked.

“Pathologist believes it's a thumbprint.”

White stepped in. “This guy's like a cat. Neighborhood canvas turned up zip.”

Riggio took over. “Realtor promised to get back to me this morning with a list of everyone who's been through the house.”

“Fingerprints?”

“ID Bureau's working on it. So far, everything's consistent with the three original killings.”

“Except for the hands,” Kitt said. “Big inconsistency there.”

The room went silent.

Detective Riggio broke the silence first. “We have no proof this caller's not just another crank. The
Register Star
ran the story front and center this morning. This guy may have been the first to call in with a wild claim, but I hardly think he'll be the last.”

“Point noted, Detective Riggio. But I'm not willing to put my money on that. Are you?”

“No, sir.”

“Lundgren?”

“Chief?”

“Let us know if he contacts you again. Put in the trace orders now.”

She nodded and unclipped her cell phone. “And if he does call, what do I tell him?”

“Say whatever the hell you have to to keep him on the line.”

Meeting concluded, they exited the office. Out of their superior's earshot, Riggio leaned toward her. “Looks like you got what you wanted. You're in the loop.”

“You have a problem with that?”

“Just don't forget who's lead on this one, Lundgren. It's my case.”

“Somehow, I don't think you'd let me forget, Detective Riggio.”

The woman looked as if she had more to say; Kitt didn't give her the chance. “If you'll excuse me, I have traces to order.”