Dahmer's Not Dead

was telling the truth.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“And to get back to my point. I don’t think we should trash our whole relationship because of something like this.”

Helen nodded in embarrassed agreement. In no time, she was rubbing her locket.

“So why don’t we, like, get together sometime soon and talk about things. Not right now—I need a little space right now and I’m sure you do too. But soon. I mean, if you want to.”

“I do want to,” she peeped.

“Okay, then. We’ll get together soon, okay?”

“Yes.”

“Take care—” He smiled. “And quit rubbing that locket.”

She smiled back, flushed, and watched him leave, sat there and listened to his footsteps disappear down the vacant hall.

How many more ways can you be an asshole, Helen? she asked herself. How many more ways can you screw up?

She tried to resist the impulse but couldn’t quite do it, and this made her feel even worse. Even now, the number she’d seen on Tom’s pager reminded burned in her head—224-9855—and in her reverse directory, she looked it up.

No surprise, either. 224-9855, BILKER MEDICAL SUPPLY ANNEX, 959 Bilker Street, N.W.

He was telling the truth.

Yeah, screw up a little more why don’t you, Helen? Chase every man out of your life forever. Paranoid bitch.

She wanted to get up just then, run after him, apologize and plead with him. I love him, she realized. I’ve got to tell him.

At the same time, though, her printer began to percolate, paper feeding automatically as her search request was finally answered.

M:> MAC SEARCH SYSTEM REQUEST

FR: CLOSS, H. WSP VCU, CRED #/ID 455

DE: PROXIMAL THEFT REPORT/FED CONTROL #51995/ SUCCINICHOLINE /SCHILLER INC>/LOT #42239SV/EXP. 3-97/LICENSED UNDER U.S. PATENT #4,315,926

CASE NUMBER TH 1514 MADISON PD

M_INIT ALLOCATE SPEC MEMORY

STATE SIGNAL CODE 84CV/ COUNTY EMT VEHICLE #154 REPORTS THEFT OF CONTROLLED PHARMACEUTICALS ON 1500 BLOCK, UTAH STREET, MADISON.

Utah Street, Helen paused to muse. A ghetto block. It was more than that, though. The 1500 block, part of Madison’s Precinct Five, was the worse crime district in the city.

PARAMEDIC COOPER, C., REPORTED DEAD ON ARRIVAL TO ST. JOHN THE DIVINE’S HOSPITAL VIA MULTIPLE GUNSHOT WOUNDS TO THE ABDOMEN AFTER LONE ARMED ATTACKER ENTERED VEHICLE #154. DRIVER GOODWIN, D., SUFFERED HAIRLINE CRANIAL FRACTURE AND CONCUSSION AND NOW LISTED ON COMP LEAVE IN GOOD CONDITION. PHARMACEUTICAL VAULT REPORTED RANSACKED.

M:>FIND [……………GO TO NEXT]

AMONG FDA CONTROL SUBSTANCES REPORTED STOLEN:

SEARCH OBJECT:

CARTON, ONE, TWELVE (12) .4 MG INTRAMUSCULAR VIALS OF PARALYTIC AGENT SUCCINICHOLINE SULPHATE (SOLUTION) [SEE LOT # ABOVE FOR MNFR REC.]

END OF SEARCH SYSTEM REQUEST

How do you like that? Helen thought, creaking back in her chair. An ambulance jacking. It happened all the time these days. Drug addicts would frequently make phony 911 calls to some remote, dark alley, overpower the paramedics, and steal any drugs that the vehicle might be carrying.

And this perp stole a carton of succinicholine sulphate?

An interesting find but it was useless to her without the date. Quickly she punched in the cited Madison PD case number, waited, stared at the screen at moment later.

FIND: MADISON PD CASE # TH 1514, PREC 5

CITED: SIGNAL 84CV/THEFT OF PROPERTY FROM REGISTERED COUNTY EMERGENCY VEHICLE

The date blinked back at her.

2304 HRS/11-29-94

“November 29th,” she whispered to herself.

Just one night after Jeffrey Dahmer was murdered.

— | — | —

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Circles.

Squares.

Triangles.

Planes.

Me, he thinks in the dark.

««—»»

The heat swooshes on. The curtains move. White moonlight winks in the vaguely moving gap.

It is in this gap that he sees it all, his destiny.

Me, me…

From the nightmare, he hears a voice—

A man’s gotta grab life by the balls, his father said once afterward. Moonlight looked like ice in the window panes.

Real men take what they want.

His father’s face smiles through a scarlet grin.

The little boy’s hand quivers.

It’s take or be taken. One day you’ll understand.

««—»»