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I really didn’t think this through.
It’s dark. What can I possibly learn now with everything closed? Plus, I need to find a place to stay because, of course, I didn’t think of that as I fled the city. I spot a Motel 8 that will have to do for tonight.
With any luck, in the light of a new day, I’ll find something.
Hopefully, this isn’t all a huge mistake.
38
Layla
At first, when I open my eyes, I forget where I am.
Then everything comes back to me. I’m in Somerset.
Still drowsy from sleep, I hear the sound of my phone going off.
Grabbing it from the side table, I see that I have several texts and a phone call from Cain. Seeing as I lied to him about where I am, and I don’t want anyone to know I’m here, I don’t answer.
I ignore every text and call. Probably not a good move, knowing how hot his temper can become.
The plan is to dress, grab a cup of coffee at a nearby shop, and then set out to find all the information I can on Cynthia. Once I’m done here, I’ll head home. Easy peasy. No need to worry Cain with where I’ve run off to today.
Rising from the bed, I throw on some clothes and then brush my teeth.
Sitting on the bed, I grab the map I got at the rest stop on the way here.
With my red Sharpie, I start to map out where all the bodies were identified, starting with the initial victims from the old cases.
Once done, I look down at the completed markings.
Oh, my God. How can this be right?
I double-check everything because I don’t trust this is a coincidence.
It’s a pattern. Holy fuck.
The police never released this information to the public. Unless they didn’t put two and two together?
The geological areas where the bodies were all found almost form a triangle.
Except for one.
Cynthia’s body was found outside the proximity of the original crime scenes.
Instead of being part of the triangle, it lies outside of the path. This makes no sense. Why would The Compass Killer place her body away from the same path as the initial victims?
Cynthia’s murder makes no sense, and it must have meaning to the case.
Why, after all these years, did he start killing again, and why does her homicide not fit the MO? She’s the only one who falls out of the original age range.
Even the new victim is on the edge of the lines of the triangle. She fits the original age of the women murdered too.
What is special about Cynthia?
What does a triangle mean?
I open my computer and type in the definition of a triangle.
Meaning: A triangle represents manifestation, enlightenment, revelation, and a higher perspective. It is often used to mark the cycles of growth that lead to a higher state of being. Spiritually, it represents a path toward enlightenment or connection to an omnipresent being.
Hmm. Is that it? Is the killer looking for enlightenment?
No. That doesn’t seem likely. With all the information I’ve gathered, nothing points to this motive. This whole pattern doesn’t feel right.
Pulling out my notebook, I look over my comments.
That’s when I want to groan and hit my hand against the table.
If I remove Cynthia—because she might be a copycat and doesn’t fit the MO, the original pattern of murder locations changes shape slightly.
It forms the arrow of a compass facing north.
Okay, now this makes sense, but what does this mean?
After a little bit of online digging, I find that generally, this direction stands for hardships and discomfort. North represents the trials people must endure and the cleansing they must undergo.
This leads me to think this killer is likely very intelligent but also very broken. What could have made him so broken?
I jot down a list of things the killer might’ve experienced in his life. Terrible family. Abandonment. Sexual abuse. Then I put my pen down and look back at the map. The compass is pointing north.
What are you trying to tell me?
The biggest question keeps coming back to why is Cynthia different? Why is this victim important? If she doesn’t fit the pattern, it has to be something else that brought her to the killer’s notice.
It’s on the tip of my tongue. I feel like I’m grasping for the connection.
Why would someone kill her and copy the pattern of a cold case? Maybe it’s the killer, and she meant something to him, and her location is the key.
That could be it and would be a reason why the killer would come out of hiding.
Maybe her death was used to mark an anniversary? A special date, and he killed her to immortalize his talents for killing?
Okay, if her age is thirty-five, that would have made her eighteen when the killings took place. Maybe the reporter was right. Maybe he was incarcerated, and maybe she’s the one who got away . . .
