I sighed. “Do you really think Vernon had that much confidence to take Brie right in front of us?”
“If it was him, then it was a confident move indeed. Granted, he doesn’t know that we’re looking at him.”
“But he must be a little nervous.”
“This would be his seventh girl. With each new victim and the fact that they’ve got away with it, serial killers gain confidence, satisfaction, and even are encouraged by their success.”
I tapped my finger on the side of the door. “That makes sense. It’s popularly believed that serial killers secretly want to get caught. I’ve heard that’s not true.”
“Not at all. They love the act of killing. And while they’re not experts from the start. The logistics involved in committing murder and disposing of the body for the very first time are complicated and requires meticulous planning. Once achieved, he or she has gained a load of confidence that can’t compare to most things.”
I considered Vernon.
Could a teenage killer truly carry out these horrors?
Novice serial killers had to learn how to target, approach, control, kill, and dispose of their victims without being detected. The learning curve was very steep. Infamous and prolific murderers such as Jeffrey Dahmer and Joel Rifkin have stated that their first kill was the most difficult one. Still, with this first murder of the Fullbrooke Six, it had been meticulously executed.
Because Vernon’s first murder didn’t start with the Fullbrooke Six, it began with his sister.
Serial killers gain valuable experience with each new, successful murder. Along the way, they perfect all of their skills and techniques while minimizing problems and avoiding critical mistakes. In other words, serial killers improved at the business of murder, which made them very difficult to apprehend.
Alexander cut my thoughts. “I thought Vernon was spooked by us. Perhaps, he was motivated.”
“Motivated?”
“By increasing the risk factors in their murders, such as killing during the daytime rather than at night, serial killers can enhance their excitement.”
“So, he probably went after Brie today to see if he could?”
“Yes.”
“Jesus Christ. He sat at that dinner, eating calmly like he had no care in the world.” I fisted my hands. “I could wring his neck right now. In fact, I want to go over to Pastor Miller’s house and beat the hell out of him.”
“I understand. We’re all feeling that way this morning. The only problem is that we don’t know for sure. Everything points to him, but I’ve been wrong in some cases, after. . .having a heated discussion with a suspect. Trust me; you don’t want to go there.”
“Heated discussion?”
“I thought for sure I had a serial rapist. I might have come close to beating a man. Thankfully, Stein grabbed me before I laid a punch.”
I grinned. “Alexander King out of control. I would have loved to see that.”
“You act as if you haven’t seen me out of control before.”
“Have I?” I glanced his way.
He licked his lips. “A few times.”
I blushed and turned back to looking out the window.
That kiss rushed back to me. It was the worst time to even consider it. Not only was it the best moment of this whole shit show in Fullbrooke, but it was the highlight of my whole year. His lips represented smooth perfection. His tongue equated to lusty skill. And the hardness that pressed against my stomach triggered an ache that I had not experienced ever in my life. It was a kiss that had seared our mouths together—passion, dominance, and fury. And he’d unleashed a wild hunger within me.
My phone rang.
I took it out of my pocket and placed it on my ear. “Hello.”
“Haven, this is Brett.” He cleared his throat. “You were right about Pastor Miller’s father having an old church in Northside. It’s still standing and registered under the Pastor.”
I pulled out a pen and paper from my pocketbook. “Okay. What’s the address?”
“The address is 2055 Sunny Place.”
I wrote it down. “Got it. Thanks.”
“Hope that helps. Keep me up to date.”
“I will.”
“By the way, fingerprints were found on your doorway.”
“What?” Shock hit me. “Do we have match?”
“Yes. For some reason, they belonged to Sean Thompson.”
I swallowed.
“I thought I should tell you first, since. . .you used to date him.”
I sighed. “No wonder we couldn’t catch him. He used to play football. No one could grab him back then either.”
“The local police are heading to his house now.”
I shook my head. “Okay. Let me know what happens.”
“In all fairness, I think this Sean Thompson was just trying to scare you so you would go back home. Maybe, he thought this case was too dangerous.”
I snorted. “Or maybe Sean thought his father had something to do with it, and he didn’t want me to catch him.”
“Good point, Haven.”
“Like I said, keep me up to date with that. Thanks.” I hung up and put the address in Alexander’s GPS.
Alexander watched me. “That’s the old church?”
“Yes.”
“It would be a good place for a teenager to put kidnapped girls, especially if he has his own car.”
“The Millers trust him. I’m sure they bought him the car when he began working.” I looked at my phone. “Should I call Sheriff Michaelson and have his men meet us up there?”
Alexander ran his fingers through his hair. It would be a tough decision. At this moment, no one outside of the FBI knew Vernon Miller was our person of interest. If we sent the police to the Miller’s old church, the Sheriff would get suspicious. At the bare minimum, he would know that one of the Millers was being considered.
On the other hand, the craziness in Colesville was still up in the air. Sheriff Michaels and Sheriff Bran were hiding something. We still didn’t know what it was, but did not have the time to focus on it.
In the end, this was about saving a little girl, not an investigation of dirty sheriffs.
He gripped the steering wheel hard. “Call the Sheriff and give his men the address. No other questions need to be answered.”
“Okay.” I did as he asked.
“And what about Sean? I heard his name mentioned.”
I let out a long breath. “Sean’s fingerprints were found around my doorway. Brett thinks Sean was the one that was leaving me notes under my door.”
“Idiot. I’ll have to pay him a visit.”
“They’re sending local police over to check.”
“I should be there.”
“We have more to do, then check on my ex-boyfriend.”
“You think he wanted you to rush back home?”
“Definitely. And he hoped no one would be looking into his father.”
“Idiot. He scared the hell out of me.”
I shrugged. “I’m just glad it wasn’t Vernon or any other psycho.”
“Me too. And regardless, his actions put you in my bed, so maybe I should thank him.”
I smirked.
“You will still remain in my room.”