Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
That was one thought, Ryder realized. There was another one, though. “Or maybe he’s kept him drugged so far. Kris mentioned that she felt a prick on the back of her neck as soon as she and Ron got into the car. Clearly, Eric drugged them. Maybe he’s kept Ron drugged so he wouldn’t have to worry about him until it was time?”
Ryder turned to Jeremy and asked, “What kind of details did he have listed for Perry’s death?”
Jeremy pulled out his phone again. “I asked them to send me pics of the so-called kill board,” he said as he scanned through what they’d sent him. “Here it is. Ronald Perry.” He scowled as he looked at whatever was on the phone. “Looks like it involves an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a chair in the deep end, and some cement blocks for his feet. Fucking bastard.” He handed the phone over to Ryder and Remi. “Which means, if I’m a guessing man, that the trap is already laid, and Perry’s slow torture is currently in process,” Jeremy said while the other two men looked at the picture on the phone. “I mean, how long would it take to fill up a pool that size? It won’t happen overnight, that’s for sure. I bet Perry is still drugged and doesn’t have a clue he’s facing imminent death, but it’s already happening.” Jeremy started mumbling numbers regarding gallons of water, the size of the pool, and water flow, before saying, “We’re missing something. It would take days to fill an empty pool of that size.”
“I think you’re calculating water hose numbers, Jeremy. That’s what people use for residential pools. There’s got to be something else available for larger pools,” Ryder argued.
“Yeah, but even if there is, how would this Eric guy get his hands on it? I’ve heard of people having the fire department to hook up their hoses to fire hydrants to fill a pool, but I don’t know of any fireman that wouldn’t notice a man chained to a chair in the deep end.”
“I’m hearing all the arguments, but I’m just repeating what’s on the kill board. He’s been very consistent with all the other attempted murders. Why would this be any different?” He took his phone back and looked at the picture again. “Yep, it is an Olympic pool, says it right there.”
“Well, we know this much,” Remi said. “If he’s planning on killing Ron this way, it will be all about the mental torture. He’s been more focused on his victims knowing they were going to die, how they were going to die, and how badly they would suffer, than he has the actual deaths.” Remi shuddered. “I mean, he told Kris he thought she would explode when the train hit her. That comment was all about putting mental pictures in her head. He won’t just let this Perry guy stay drugged and miss out on the all the mental anguish he’s inflicting on him.”
The buzzer from the security gate caused everyone in the room to jerk in surprise. The cat jumped from Remi’s shoulder and disappeared down the hallway. Ryder walked over and pulled up the camera from the security gate. “It’s the Captain,” he said. Turning to Remi, he asked, “Do you feel like talking about this again? If you don’t, say the word, Boy Wonder.” He smiled at Remi. “It won’t give me the first taste of heartburn to turn him away.”
“No; I’m good,” Remi said. “Just…if you notice me getting drowsy or sluggish, we might need to send him away. It could mean that Ron’s reaching out to me. I’d rather your boss not be here.” He looked at Jeremy and asked, “Is your mom on the way? She really helped me when I was with Kris, but then, so did Ryder. I’m just not sure I can control myself enough to do the things I need to do without somebody guiding me. Before she got there, I did a lot of talking, but wasn’t saying anything helpful, you know?”
“She’s on her way and I’ve given her this address. You’ve got this, Boy Wonder. We aren’t going to leave you hanging.” Jeremy answered.
Ryder turned around and looked at Remi after punching the code that would allow the Captain and rest of the detectives onto the grounds. “I love you, Remi; remember that.”
Just as Eric suspected, the police captain led him straight to the idiot who had the audacity to interfere with his plans. Without looking in their direction, he drove past the gates where three police cruisers and one unmarked car were parked, impatiently waiting on someone to let them in. Thanks to the video camera he’d planted inside the car with Kris, so he could watch her get splattered, he’d heard the rescue personnel talking about how some psychic called the farm owner, letting him know somebody was trapped on the tracks on his property. The dumbass bastard had gotten on his tractor and pushed the car off the tracks before the train was able to do the damage Eric had spent hours planning and fantasizing about.