The Night Stalker

Forty-Four

Hunter knew that with everything his brain was trying to process, sleep just wouldn’t come. And he’d have to wait until morning for any sort of answer. Forensics were still processing the basement room in the old preschool, though he didn’t hold out any great hopes about what they’d find. Doctor Hove would expedite the body’s autopsy, but that’d only be at first light.

He collected some files from his office before making his way back to his place and then onto Jay’s Rock Bar, a joint just two blocks away from his apartment. It was one of his favorite drinking spots. Great Scotch, fantastic rock music and friendly staff. He ordered a double dose of Glenturett 1997 with a single cube of ice and sat at a small table towards the back.

Hunter sipped his drink slowly for a minute, allowing its strong flavor to take over his palate. In front of him, spread out on the table, were all the photographs they’d received from Missing Persons. He scanned through them carefully, and despite the disfigurement to the new victim’s face caused by the rough stitches, he knew she wasn’t among them.

He needed to search the MPU database again, go back four, maybe five weeks, but as before, with the stitches and swelling, the face recognition software wouldn’t work. Doing it manually again would take too long. Hunter would have to wait until the end of the autopsy and use the new face close-ups once the stitches have been removed from the victim’s mouth.

He finished his drink and debated if he should have another one. His eyes rested on the wall closest to him and all its paintings and decorations. He observed them for a moment. That’s when a new thought entered his mind.

‘It can’t be. .’ he whispered as he shook his head.

Hunter gathered all his files together and rushed back to his apartment.

Sitting at the table in his living room, he fired up his computer and accessed the MPU database. He knew the criteria he used for the new search would reduce the output result considerably. He wasn’t expecting any more than three, maybe five matches.

He was wrong.

Seconds later the screen flickered and the displayed table showed that his search had produced a single match. Hunter double-clicked it and waited for the file to upload.

As the new photograph materialized on his screen, Hunter let out a heavy breath.