Chapter Five
As they drove up to the Foundation, Elliot noticed another car in the driveway and he looked over at Cade. “Well the parents are here.”
“Did you expect anything else?” Cade asked. “He would have gone to see Mom and Dad at some point this weekend.”
“What happened wasn’t his fault, you know that,” Eliot stated. “When are you going to forgive him?”
Cade sighed. “I know, I just can’t say the words.”
“You need to find a way before this tears our family apart forever. I don’t know how much more Mom can handle.”
Cade didn’t say anything, instead he opened his car door and existed the vehicle. He marched to the front door and left it open as he made his way through it.
India watched him disappear and couldn’t help but wonder about the tension between the brothers. What had to be forgiven? As they entered the house, India saw an older couple greet Elliot and Cade. Briar she noticed was back. There was a tension in the air that everyone was doing their best to ignore but it was there all the same.
Briar turned his head and when he saw her, he jumped up and greeted her. “Oh good, you’re back.” He looked at T.K. and smiled. “I’m another brother. My name is Briar.”
“You’re India’s friend.” She smiled as she shook his hand.
Briar chuckled. “Well I’d like to think so anyway.” He turned to India and asked, “How was your trip?”
“Well, our monster now has a face and we recovered the jar,” India told him.
“Not bad then,” Briar looked surprised then he looked troubled. “I’m sorry I left, India.”
She stared at his face for a long moment. “Yes, you did leave me. I kind of understood though, but don’t make a habit out of it.” She raised a brow at him.
He smiled at her. “I’ll try.”
T.K. looked between them both and grinned.
Briar nodded his head. “The group here has been busy too.” He ushered them toward the kitchen. “But before we all catch up, Mom says lunch is ready.”
When everyone assembled in the kitchen, there was barely room to move. The older couple had moved to the front of the line. India glanced at the island and saw it was set up buffet style. Plates and silverware were on one end and an array of breads, meat and cheeses with potato salad and chips. There was enough food to feed an army.
When they got closer to the island, Briar turned to introduce her to his mother, “Mom, this is India. I’m afraid I don’t know her friend’s name. Ladies, I’d like you to meet my Mom, Claire.”
“I’m glad to meet you,” India said. “This is my friend, T.K. Jonas.”
Claire smiled. “I’m so glad to meet you. Briar has told me what brings you here and I’m happy to say if anyone can help you, my sons can.” She motioned at the buffet and said, “Please help yourself. I’m afraid I insist that everyone around here eat. They usually get so busy when they’re working a case, nutrition often falls short.”
India chuckled. “I know how that can happen.”
“Well, not on my watch,” Claire said. “There will be plenty of time to work after you eat.”
India and T.K. filled their plates and went outside to eat. The backyard was filled with small tables. The other tables were filled with the other members of the team. When an older man joined them, he introduced himself. “Hi, I’m Levi Rivers.”
India looked around and said, “Briar tells me you set this Foundation up.”
Levi looked downcast for a moment then nodded. “After the accident that crippled my youngest son, he and the others were looking for something productive to do. There was a need for this type of place, all I did was set it up. Together, they made it work and I’m proud of the fact that my sons have brought some pretty nasty criminals to justice.”
“I sure hope they can find this monster,” T.K. said.
“They won’t stop until they do, you can be sure of that.” Levi nodded.
India looked down at her empty plate and grinned. “I guess I was hungrier than I thought.”
Levi chuckled. “My wife is usually right about things like that. Now you’ll be able to concentrate on the case instead of your stomach.” He got to his feet and before he left he said, “Good luck.”
India watched him walk away then turned to T.K. “I think we came to the right place.”
“I hope so,” T.K. commented.
“Come on, let’s go find our stuff,” India said. “The sooner we solve this the better I’ll like it.”
They went back into the house and when they got to the living room, India found her overnight bag and backpack. She took her laptop out of her and sat down on one of the couches. When she had it fired up, she searched the name Gretchen Hawks on the internet.
Page after page came up on the artist. She scanned the pages and when she was finished, she thought she knew more than enough about the woman in question. When the others joined them, India looked up.
Jerah and Fallon picked up some files but it was Faith that began by saying, “We were able to firmly establish a timeline for your murderer.”
“Please don’t call him that.” India shuddered. “He’s not my anything, except maybe a nightmare.”
Faith nodded. “Sorry, I didn’t mean anything by that.” She looked at a bulletin board. “As I was saying, we were able to establish a timeline of similar murders. We made contact in all the cases and the reports are being faxed to us by the different police departments.”
“And we found our killer’s face,” Cade announced.
“Really?” Jerah asked excitedly. “We know what this killer looks like? How did we do that?”
“Thanks to Miss Jonas here, we have a drawing of his face,” Cade informed them. “We also have another clue. It seems the jars the killer used are from a local to Boston artist.”
“You found the jar?” Kanan asked.
“It was right where India left it fifteen years ago.” Cade nodded.
“Did you make contact with the local police?” Jerah asked.
“Yeah. The man’s name is Detective James Kingston,’ Cade replied. “He’s doing background checks and pulling the cold case files for us.” Cade got up and pinned the drawing of the killer’s face on the bulletin board.
Everyone took a moment to get a good look at the face of the killer.
India was able to print off a picture of Gretchen Hawks. She put it next to the portrait of the killer and said, “This is Gretchen Hawks. She created the jars the killer used to place the organs in.”
“We might want to have a conversation with Ms. Hawks,” Elliot suggested. “What else do we know about her?”
“She’s well known for her use of color and texture in her art work,” T.K. told them. “She works mostly in ceramics but her earlier works included some canvas and oil works. She’s associated with Boston College but has her own place just south of Boston.”
Jerah glanced at Fallon and Cade then looked at T.K. “And you know this how?”
“I took some classes with her at college and I’ve been to her place in Quincy. She lives on a compound. The main house is huge while her studio is just as big. She displays her works throughout her home and yard and ships to a gallery in New York twice a month.”
“You seem to know quite a bit about Ms. Hawks,” Fallon stated.
“I interned with her under a scholarship for three months during college.”
“What else does she have on her compound?” Jerah asked. “Did you see any outbuildings besides her studio?”
T.K. sat there for a moment then said, “As a matter of fact there were several other buildings within sight of the main house and the studio. She told me they were storage buildings. I never had any reason to go into them, so I don’t really know what was in there.”
“Ok, what do the murders tell us about the killer?” Elliot asked the group.
“Our killer is ritualistic with an Egyptian complex, Fallon answered this. “He’s trying to recreate how the priests mummified the Pharaohs. He got better with each murder he committed, so the first few were trial and error. We’re just starting to get the police reports but the ones we’ve gotten are pretty much the same. We’ve had several calls from police departments wanting to share information with us.”
“Do we have any of the autopsy reports yet?” Cade asked.
“Not yet,” Quinn said. “We’re still waiting on those.”
“From what India told me on our way down, the women are still alive when this butcher starts his ritual,” Briar added. “And the fact he beheads them is not within the Egyptian ritual of mummification. I think we’re dealing with one sick individual.”
“What do you suppose he’s doing with the heads?” T.K. asked.
“Killers like this guy often take something as a keepsake. This part of his ritual might be his keepsake of the murder,” Kanan told them.
T.K. shivered. “What a horrible thing to contemplate.”
“For some reason only he knows, he draws some kind of pleasure from his kills,” Quinn stated.
“I think I’ll have Captain Kingston pay a visit to this artist and see what she can tell us,” Cade stated.
“I don’t think it would be a good idea to mention the fact that we have two witnesses to the murder fifteen years ago,” Elliot said. “Until we know more, he can’t tell anyone about India and T.K.”
“I think you’re right about that,” Cade agreed. “But if we hide the fact we have witnesses what is Captain Kingston going to use as an excuse to talk to Ms. Hawks about?”
“Nothing at the moment but she’s a person of interest we’ll have to talk to at some point in the investigation.” Elliot concluded. “For now, we’ll have to wait until we get more information.” He looked over at Faith. “I need all the info you can get on Gretchen Hawks, personal and business info.” He then turned to Quinn and Jerah. “I want you two to find out all you can on the murders and how long afterward the bodies were discovered. Also find out what you can about the conditions of each body.” He turned to Kanan and said, “You keep on the police department and M.E.’s. We need those reports a.s.a.p.” Next, he gazed India and T.K. “I want you two to sit down with Faith and Fallon and tell them what you remember from the night of the murder you witnessed. Every detail no matter how slight, if you remember it we need to know it.”
“What are you and I going to do?” Cade asked his brother.
“You, I and Briar are going to dig into the information we have so far and see if we can find something useful.”
Everyone disappeared to do what they were told.
Faith took India and T.K. outside. The gentle breeze from the water sent shivers down T.K.’s arms. She crossed her arms over her chest and separated herself from the rest of the group. Looking out into the bay, she stood there for a long time.
~* * * *~
It was a somber group that met a few hours later. Several of the Medical Examiner’s reports had come in during the afternoon. Faith and Fallon had taken what India and T.K. told them and built a profile of their killer.
Claire took one look at the group and decided not to bother fixing anything for supper. Grabbing her husband, they disappeared into the kitchen while Elliot was pinning autopsy reports and newly gathered information on the bulletin board.
T.K. and India were still out in the back. T.K. was smoking a cigarette and India was talking to her. The others were looking over the paperwork.
Elliot turned and looked at the others, “Okay people, what did we learn this afternoon?”
“We got some of the autopsy reports in and this guy was meticulous about replicating the whole mummification process,” Quinn answered. “He didn’t have time to use the proper oils and herbs but he filled the body with whatever kind of salt he could get his hands on. The linen was bright orange because of the combinations of herbs and oils. The true combination is a deep dark secret but our killer was very close. As he wrapped the body, he placed jewelry and other stuff inside the linen, just like the priests used to do with the Pharaohs. The jewelry our killer used is common costume jewelry, except for one piece.” Quinn rolled over to the bulletin board and pins a photo of an Ankh. He pointed to the piece and said, “This piece was found in the three autopsy reports we have received so far. It’s a ceramic piece and the chain its hanging from is handmade silver links.”
“There’s that ceramic link again,” Cade noted. “I wonder if this piece is made by Gretchen Hawks as well?”
Briar glanced out to the backyard and saw the two women sitting out there. “I think we’re bringing memories up that one of our guests wants to leave buried. T.K. doesn’t seem to be doing very good.”
Just then, Claire and Levi came out of the kitchen carrying plates of sandwiches and bowls of potato chips. Claire put the sandwiches down on the table and announced, “I know you may not be very hungry but everyone has to eat something.”
Faith grabbed a half a sandwich and sat down next to Briar. “I agree with you. She’s teetering on a cliff and leaning very close to the edge. Your lady friend India seems to be doing much better.”
“She’s not my lady, although she is someone I see around the office a lot.” Briar looked at the window outside and sighed deeply. Then he looked at Faith. “When she came to me with this story, I didn’t know if I could believe what she was telling me.” He shifted in his seat. “This woman has gone through hell. Her grandparents didn’t want her, her mother struggled just to make ends meet then three days after they witnessed the murder, her mother is murdered in a robbery. Rather than take her in to live with them, her grandparents allowed the state to place her in foster care. The whole time her grandfather is collecting child support from the father while his daughter has to work two jobs to survive. When this is over I’m going after the bastard for what he did to them.”
“Good, no kid should have to live like that,” Faith told him as she took a bite of her sandwich.
Briar grinned at her. “When she was eighteen, her grandfather wanted her to live with them but she told him they hadn’t wanted her before, so now she didn’t want them.”
“She’s stronger than I would have been,” Faith said. “T.K. on the other hand isn’t very strong at all.”
Briar reached out and patted her leg. “Don’t you worry about T.K. India will take care of her. Those two have history together and India won’t let anything happen to her friend.”
Faith hesitated then asked, “How long are you and Cade going to be at each other’s throats?”
“Leave it alone Faith,” Briar warned.
“I can’t,” Faith whispered. “He won’t look at me when he still hurts for her.” She got up and left the room leaving a stunned Briar wondering if he’d heard her right.