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“What does this have to do with Amy Dean?” Bryce asked.
“That’s what I’m trying to determine,” Ellie said, then she turned to the whiteboard. “At this point we believe that Reuben Waycross, the victim we found in the car in the lake, either killed her or belonged to a group of young men who may know who did.” She shifted. “We know for a fact that these guys enrolled in a class on criminology taught by a professor named Dr. Camilla Dansen.”
“Nothing illegal about that,” Bryce said. “Look at what we all do.”
Ellie conceded to that. “Point taken. But we have reason to believe these young men formed a cult-type group where they indulged in dark fantasies. It’s possible they planned the murder together and may have committed a string of other crimes.” She pointed to the names on the board. “First, this man, Frank Wahlbug, who we’ve yet to locate. Another man, Professor of Zoology Roland Pockley, was part of the group.”
Derrick spoke next. “At the moment, we don’t have enough on the professor for a search warrant. But I did a background check on him. He has no record, not even a parking ticket. Grew up in Blackshear, Georgia. Mother deceased. Father was a janitor at the high school he attended.” Derrick added the info to the whiteboard. “I spoke to one of his teachers who said he had terrible acne and kids nicknamed him Pockface.”
“Sounds like a loner and a bullied kid,” Ellie said. “We know how that can manifest itself in a sensitive child.” School shooters were often kids who were bullied and mistreated by their families and peers.
“Deputy Eastwood,” Ellie said. “What did you learn about him from Pockley’s colleagues?”
“Nothing concrete, I’m afraid. Colleagues described him as a little strange, obsessed with his work and research. Keeps to himself and doesn’t socialize with the other professors. Never been married and apparently doesn’t date, at least not that the staff knew of.” She hesitated. “One female professor commented that he showed favoritism to male students. Another said she’d seen him watching females on campus, although she never actually witnessed impropriety.”
That didn’t mean it hadn’t happened. “We have to keep him on our list,” Ellie said. “Another person of interest is the manager of the apartment complex where Amy Dean lived at the time of her death. His name is Omar Coolidge, although we have not connected him to Pockley or Wahlburg. He dropped out of college his freshman year.”
Ellie turned to Shondra. “What did you and Deputy Landrum learn about Coolidge from the residents at Lake Haven Apartments?”
Shondra’s dark-brown eyes gleamed. “Female residents describe him as creepy. A couple mentioned they think he’s been in their apartments, touched their personal clothing, especially underwear. A coed named Sarah Turner planned to file stalking charges because she thinks he’s been following her. She also said he’s made personal comments to her about things that he could only know if he’d listened to her private conversations with friends.” Shondra sighed. “She and two other girls agreed for us to search their apartments to look for cameras. I’ve got warrants.”
“Good work, Deputy Eastwood. Make sure she files those charges and if you find cameras in the girls’ apartments, use that to obtain a warrant for Coolidge’s apartment,” Ellie said.
Shondra gripped the edge of the table as she stood. “Copy that. I’ll go there now.”
Shondra made her exit, and Ellie gestured to Derrick. “What about Frank Wahlburg?”
Derrick pulled a hand down his chin. “Wahlburg is more of a mystery. There’s no trace of him since 2013. Seems he disappeared right after Amy Dean did, although no one reported it or thought anything of it, just as no one reported Waycross missing. Where Wahlburg went from there is anyone’s guess.”
“So he could be dead like Waycross,” Ellie said. “Or he could be the killer and he’s been on the run since Waycross’s death.”
Derrick nodded. “Or he may have known who killed Waycross and Amy. He could have witnessed the murder and gone into hiding.”
“I guess that’s possible,” Ellie admitted. But she wanted solid evidence.
“About Wahlburg’s background,” Derrick said. “He grew up on a chicken farm in North Georgia. Worked in a poultry plant as a teen.”
Ellie exhaled. She knew what was involved in that business and it wasn’t pretty.
“It gets worse. His father was killed in an accident at the plant and the mother went crazy. Started locking him in the basement while she entertained men.”
“A traumatic past like that can lead to violent behavior,” Ellie commented. “Maybe a hatred of women?”
“Could go to motive,” Derrick agreed. “He’s definitely top of our list. I’ll keep looking for a paper trail. If we get evidence these men conspired to kill Amy or the other victims we’ve uncovered, we can squeeze them to give up Wahlburg.”
He took a quick break then continued. “On a hunch, Detective Reeves searched for coed murders over the past ten years with similar cause of death. She followed up with the detectives who investigated those cases. Detective?”
Ellie quickly explained about the deaths of Zelda North, Vanna Michaels and Kitty Korley. “Each of these women had their throats slashed. There are enough similarities to warrant further scrutiny.”
Derrick’s phone buzzed and he checked the number. “I have to take this.”
Ellie gave a little nod and he disappeared out the door.
Deputy Landrum twisted his mouth in thought. “You mentioned a possible cult. I’ll see what I can dig up on the internet and the dark web. If the men in question have been communicating the past ten years, that may be how they’ve stayed connected.”
“Excellent,” Ellie said, grateful for his tech skills.
The deputies left, then Derrick returned, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “More trouble, Ellie. Dominique Radcliff has escaped prison.”
