Latent Danger (On the Line #2)(6)

Zach nodded, back in the game, and stepped up beside Shauna as she began pulling files from a box and setting them out on a table. “As far as the rope goes, yes. Not only the same type, but she believes the rope was cut from the exact same length of rope that was used on the last victim thirty years before.”

Shauna froze for a split second at that news and he understood. He’d felt the same way when he heard. It was a hell of a thing to have the exact same rope show up at crime scenes with a thirty-year gap between them. A hell of a thing.

He continued his report. “Dr. Kane noticed that the polymers used in the fibers of the rope aren’t currently used in today’s market, so she compared them to the case file. She has copies of the old case file with the images of the length of rope found on the last victim.”

“Michelle Hanley?” Shauna asked. Michelle Hanley was the last and final known victim of the Marsh Killer.

“Yes,” Zach answered before continuing, all business now. “The cuts to the rope were jagged and uneven. She said it looked like someone had taken a dull knife and sawed back and forth on the rope rather than making a clean cut. The rope from the Edwards crime scene shared the same features.”

“And the lipstick?” Shauna asked.

“Pigment and type is an exact match, whatever that means. And it’s got some ingredients that were banned from use in cosmetics fifteen years ago.”

“Do you have pictures of the crime scene?” Shauna asked. She was practically bouncing on her toes and he understood. He knew she wasn’t happy to have another dead body, but having a lead on a thirty-year-old case had to get the blood pumping.

Zach held out a folder. Shauna took it and tossed it to one of the other investigators—a young man with hair and eyes so dark they were almost black. Another man, older and balding, pushed a dry-erase board in front of the group and Shauna lifted files from the table. As Zach and Ronan watched, the detectives silently and efficiently filled the board with names, dates, and photos.

Zach leaned closer when it was over and heard Ronan whistle beside him. “Holy—” Zach swallowed the curse. In his precinct cursing wasn’t allowed and fines from his Captain over the years had drilled the rule into him.

The crime scenes were different from their scene, but there was an eerie similarity there, as well. It almost looked as though their killer had transformed from a killer showing evidence of remorse and care for his victims to one of anger. One who wanted to shame the victims now. Could it really be the same person? Had something happened to their killer over the years to transform his MO?

Shauna didn’t mess around. She took a marker from the ledge on the murder board and began a column on the left side of the board. “All right, guys, let’s look for differences.”

One of the other state investigators looked at the photos of the victims’ necks. “This is different.” He pointed to a spot where the ligature marks from the ropes stopped on Adrienne’s neck. In its place was a unique twisting bruise.

“The ME thinks something was slipped into the rope to give our killer leverage in twisting it. Something like a stick or bar,” Ronan offered.

“That wasn’t on any of our victims.” Shauna wrote stick/bar leverage on the board.

“There was no evidence of sexual assault with our vics thirty years ago,” one of the cold case guys offered.

“Our ME took swabs of Adrienne’s mouth and vaginal cavity. She saw evidence of recent sexual activity but no evidence it was forced.” Ronan offered this quietly and the rest of the group was silent as Shauna wrote sexual activity.

“Lack of posing with this recent victim.” Zach pointed to the victims from the cold case files. Each was posed lying on her back, hands clasped over her heart. “And the lipstick is clownlike on ours, as if the killer wanted to make the victim appear ugly or foolish in death. There’s a lack of care, lack of remorse. In fact, I’d say there’s almost glee evident in the death whereas, before, there was guilt or even regret.”

Shauna nodded and wrote no posing and clown mouth in two separate entries on the board. If it wasn’t so serious, the way she worded it would have made him laugh. It was exactly what he’d have written. She then added remorse as another entry.

Shauna looked at the list and tilted her head. “Weaker.”

“What?” Ronan asked.

“Yeah,” Zach said, “she’s right. The need for something to provide leverage for the strangling makes me thing this perp’s weaker somehow now. If they were in their thirties or forties, or even older, thirty years ago, they could be facing weakening from either old age or a disease that’s causing muscle loss.”

Ronan and some of the others nodded.

“But why the change in the lipstick and posing?” the balding guy put in.

The dark-haired detective nodded. “Hutch is right.” Ah, the balding guy is Hutch, no wait, the captain had said Hutchison, so Hutch must be a nickname. Zach made a mental note. He should have paid attention during the intros. The dark-haired guy kept talking. “Something’s distinctly different and age doesn’t really account for that. The look of the girl is wrong, too. Our guy liked blondes.”

“The lipstick,” Shauna said almost under her breath, as though going through each difference. “Maybe he’s got a tremor in his hands. It’s possible he can’t apply the lipstick the same way.” Shauna kept her eyes on the board. Zach couldn’t help but wonder if Shauna was the least bit thrown by his presence.