The body was positioned so that both arms were straight at her sides. Her skin was wrinkled and discolored from being in the ocean. The left hand rested palm down, her broken or dislocated ring finger jutting out at an unnatural angle. She wore pink nail polish, but her fingernails were dirty, and one had been torn off.
“She fought back,” Garrett said.
“I think she was wearing a ring, and someone pulled it off,” Conor said.
“Why?” Joe asked.
“Conor has a theory about how rings connect with these cases,” Tom said.
“Tell me,” Joe said.
“Whoever was imprisoned onPsychewore a diamond ring,” Conor said.
“Are you kidding me?” Joe asked. “How do you come up with that?”
“Because ‘Sfalon’ was scratched into the window glass. I think she left a message before he killed her.”
“What makes you think a diamond made the scratches?” Garrett asked.
“Because I’ve seen it before. Diamonds are hard enough to cut glass. Even tempered glass,” Conor said.
“Okay,” Joe said. “Say you’re right. How does that connect with this victim?”
“She could be the woman kept prisoner there,” Conor said. “The white dress goes along with what Grace described. Her finger could have been broken by the killer, when he removed the ring.”
“While she was alive? Or postmortem?” Joe asked.
“Since her fingernail is broken, I’d say he did it before he killed her,” Conor said. “Like Garrett said, she fought back.”
Joe slipped on his gloves. He crouched down and carefully rolled up the long sleeves on her arms. Both wrists were rubbed raw, scored with abrasions.
“These wounds could have been made by handcuffs,” Joe said.
“OnPsycheor in that bedroom,” Conor said.
“Yes. We need an ID on her right away,” Joe said. He stood up and turned to face Conor. “Tell me what you’re thinking about the ring. Say that you’re right, and she was wearing one. What’s the significance?”
“I think the killer gave it to her,” Conor said.
“Like an engagement ring?” Garrett asked.
“In his mind, maybe,” Conor said. “But not really. It’s part of hisBeauty and the Beastfantasy. He’s a romantic.”
“A romantic psycho,” Joe asked.
“Something like that,” Conor said.
“Is it one man, or are there more?” Garrett asked.
“Grace said there were men, plural. She also mentioned a woman, who seemed to be part of the same group,” Conor said.
“It seems likely that whoever killed Belinda killed this woman too. The wound looks identical,” Joe said. “A right-to-left cut. A left-handed killer. But there are no hesitation marks this time. He’s getting more confident.”
“This kill took place after Belinda?” Garrett said.
“We’ll need an autopsy for that,” Joe said. “So, what do we think happened here? He decided to kill her, then took the ring off her finger?”
“Maybe,” Conor said.
