“I’m going in. Make sure we have CSI and a sergeant on the way.”
Chantle laughs. “Already done, Sir.”
I walk away thinking tonight is going to be interesting. Reaching into my pocket, I pull out a pair of gloves and put them on. With my recorder in hand, I start describing the scene before me.
“Entering the entryway now, and the floor is littered with debris. One green high heel and two shattered champagne glasses are scattered toward the living room. Following the blood trail, it runs from the backside of the couch into the kitchen.”
I walk into the kitchen and my entire body jolts to a stop. My stomach lurches. “Fuck me.”
Officer Moody said someone had stabbed the girl from the throat to the pelvis. Good God, I thought he meant multiple wounds around her body. Not this. Taking a moment to gather myself and put my words together, I look around the scene. Fuck, this was overkill.
I have to clear my throat before continuing. “They propped the victim up against the oven. The victim’s hair is scattered all over the floor.”
I close my eyes and take a deep breath. “The victim's eyes have been cut out and placed in her hand. Tongue is on the floor to the left of the body.”
Gulping, I stop the recording.Lord have mercy. I have to pause for a moment because this is brutal. This isn’t random. If this is The Mad Hatter, they are getting progressively more violent.
Turning the recorder back on, I continue with my notes. “Victim’s clothes have been removed. Victim has what appears to be a two inch wide cut the length of her body from neck to pelvis. The skin around the wound is jagged, with tears around the stomach.”
“Don’t you throw up on my crime scene.” I turn to see the medical examiner and a forensic analyst standing at the door. I turn off the recorder as they walk in.
“Oh my God.” The forensic analyst takes a step back. He’s fresh out of college. I want to say welcome to the shit show, but I stop myself.
“Doctor, you can take over from here,” I tell Dr. Forsythe.
“I’ve been a medical examiner for thirty years, and this town has gotten worse over time. But this right here, this takes the damn cake.” The older doctor looks at me, takes out a handkerchief, and wipes his brow. His wrinkled hand tremors as he looks at the naked girl with guts hanging out of her body.
He places his hand on my shoulder, and I look at him. “Son, you better buckle up because I’m pretty sure things are about to get even worse.”
I nod at him and continue down the hallway. My gut isn’t settling, and I feel as if something is still amiss. I’ve seen death and destruction before, but I consider this to be the worst. Opening the first door, I shake my head.
“Oh, this is definitely The Mad Hatter,” I whisper to myself as I see a young man hanging from the ceiling fan by a tie. A white rabbit card is at the end of the man’s cock with a knife sticking through the card and his urethra.
“Yeah, that had to hurt.”
I look at Officer Chantle as she comes in.
“You didn’t tell me about this.”
“Didn’t get this far. Officer Moody took one look at victim number one and told me to wait on entering.”
“You mean to tell me you and Officer Moody didn’t clear the scene?”
She looks down with guilt written all over her face.
“Fuck. Call in a second victim. Get another ambulance here. I’m calling Sergeant Adams, and I will report this fuck up to your direct superior.”
God damn it. I don’t wait for her to respond. I go to each room and clear the house. With a push of a button, I call Sergeant Adams as I canvas the backyard.
“Adams.”
“Sir this is …”
“I know who it is. What the hell do you want?”
“The Mad Hatter has struck again. Over on Maple Street. Two victims.”
“Mother fucker that makes five in one night.”
