* * * *
“Maya, I have brought your tea. I thought perhaps you could enjoy it as you take your
bath.” Speaking through the closed door, Dalia waited outside the bathroom.
Coming out of her reverie, Maya turned to the authentic, claw foot, scarlet tub and turned
off the water taps. Opening the door, she motioned her friend inside.
As Maya was adding bath salts to her bath, Dalia walked over to her and gave her friend
a tight hug before kissing her lightly on the brow. “Maya, I am going to leave you to your bath.
You and I will talk tomorrow. If you need me for anything, please call me. I am so sorry about your sister, Maya. You will see that you will feel better tomorrow.” She promised.
After she’d left, Maya slumped against the door. Peeling her body away, she undressed
and slowly sank into the fragrant, steaming water. The water began to work its magic; Maya felt her rigid muscles start to loosen, as the combination of the water and heat made their way into every tense muscle and tendon.
She sighed and leaned back against the inflated cushion and allowed the day’s events,
and the warm bath, to wash over her. She loosened her hair and pinned it on top of her head as she picked up the teacup and took a sip. As she tried to relax, her mind refused to allow that to happen. Instead images of Ally’s lifeless body on the cold impersonal slab in the mortuary
played havoc behind her closed lids. Although they’d grown apart, in her heart, her love and commitment to her foster sister had remained strong, something that time or distance hadn’t erased.
She finished her bath and dried her body. After she finished her nightly routine, she
turned off the light and slipped under her quilt. She hugged her pillow tightly to her chest and fell into an exhausted sleep, tears staining her pillow.
* * * *
In another part of town someone else was also preparing for bed. Walking into the
bathroom, the reflection that gazed back mirrored a small smile that disappeared as quickly as it appeared.
The mirror images reflected the olive-toned arm as it reached up and took off the
cascading blonde wig, and then opened the cabinet to carefully place it atop its Styrofoam head.
There it sat next to its three companions.
Staring long and hard at the reflection, a well-manicured hand opened a jar of cold cream
before meticulously scrubbing all traces of makeup away.
Keeping skin smooth and soft was no easy task.
The carefully manicured hand began to vigorously scrub each and every tooth, making
sure none were neglected, with excruciating slowness.
After completing the last tooth, the face that stared back was one that was quite different from the one that was presented moments ago. With a satisfied smile, the wig cap was tossed aside and both arms reached up to begin a deep massage throughout the much shorter tresses.
It had been quite a day at work. The investigators had found two more, after much careful
and deliberate planning. One interesting tidbit was the apparent popularity of the male. He was known as quite the philanthropist around town.
Well, his damn benevolent days were over. It would take the idiots a while to find the latest that ‘justice’ had been dispensed to.
The woman had been an accident. Unfortunately it couldn’t be helped.
If she had been allowed to escape, there was a chance, although really slim, that she would have been able to make identification.
That could not happen yet. The time was not right, not quite yet. There were still so many who needed to learn their lesson.
Jaime wondered what Aunt Meg would think. She’d raised Jaime from the time her sister
had overdosed on cocaine. Aunt Meg and her lover were the reason Jaime was compelled to
dispense judgment to those self-righteous pillars of society.
Walking into the bedroom and turning off the light, a satisfied smile settled across small
attractive features, as the slayer quickly climbed into bed and within moments fell into a deep, content sleep.
CHAPTER 4
Monday morning, Mark was at his desk working before his customary 8 a.m. He’d been
restless the entire weekend, at loose ends.
It wasn’t as though he didn’t have plenty to do in his off hours. He’d recently purchased a turn of the century Victorian farmhouse and had already clocked in most of his free time
renovating it. Jordan often joined him, and the two would participate in traditional male bonding that only the presence of hammer and nails seemed to inspire.
“Hey, man, when did you get in?” Jordan went directly to the coffeemaker after entering
the squad room.
Mark silently asked for a refill before answering. “A few hours ago. I needed to clear up
a few cases. This damn case has demanded so much of my time, I haven’t had much time to do
anything else.”
“Yeah, tell me about it. By the way, did the lieutenant get the DNA results back from the
strand of hair they found on the female victim?” Jordan asked as he handed Mark the steaming Styrofoam cup.
Mark took a tentative sip before grimacing. “Damn, man, how long has this stuff been in
there?” He set the coffee aside and went back to his files.
“Snob.” Jordan laughed. “The night crew made it, I think. Man, what happened Friday
with the doc? Did she make a positive ID?”
“Yes. It was her foster sister, Allison Hill. I asked Maya if she knew any of her sister’s
‘friends’ but she didn’t. It seems as though Allison kept a tight lid on who she hung out with.”
“Maya, huh? First name basis? I guess the two of you got pretty acquainted.” Jordan
flopped his large frame in his chair and crossed his equally large feet on Mark’s desk.
