Chapter 2-Devil's Breath
Archie had gone over all the video footage supplied by the banks for the ATM's and in the footage the only person's face they could see was Jeffrey Parker's. They could see another person in the passenger seat but they kept their face turned away and wore a hat. So they were no closer to finding out who the killer was by the video footage.
A couple days had passed by with no new evidence that might tell them who their killer was. They knew they were looking at the same person for both of their male victims but they had no idea what kind of person they were dealing with on the murders. They knew their victims were all single men who had both last been seen at their workplace. They were not sure where they were taken. It did not look like from their homes since both were untouched. Their only guess was that they were taken from some more public location.
Nick and Greg were going back over the case files when Grissom came into the break room where they sat. "Hey guys. Looks like our killer may have struck again, although the victim is not dead, yet."
Nick and Greg both looked at each other shocked. "What? What do you mean?"
"Victim was found in an alley behind the Voodoo Lounge on West Sahara Ave. Victim appeared dead upon arrival but paramedics were able to get a pulse. He is at Desert Palms right now. But I need you two to go out to where he was found and process the scene. I know the victim is not conscious right now so we cannot talk to him anyway yet."
Nick and Greg quickly grabbed their kits and got to their Denali.
"Wow, let's hope this guy makes it. This might be our big break on finding out who did this," Greg said excitedly as they pulled up to the scene.
"Well the killer messed up or purposely left this guy to live. We will have to wait and see exactly what the case is. For now, let's see if our person left anything behind for us to find." Nick turned off the engine on the Denali and got out, joining Greg who had his camera ready to take photos.
They canvassed over the scene thoroughly but again came up with little that would most likely be linked back to the killer, so they headed back to the lab with little evidence again. When they got there Grissom found them.
"Hey guys, looks like our guy did not make it. He died about 30 minutes ago. Looks like the dose of the drug took its toll on this guy and his heart finally gave out."
Greg and Nick both looked dejected. They had really hoped this was their break on this case.
"Did you find anything at the scene that might help us out?" Grissom asked them.
"No, nothing useful. Whoever this person is cleans up well after their self. We are not any closer to figuring out who this person is than we were before." Nick told Grissom disheartened.
"One of these days this killer will mess up and leave something for us," Grissom said to him.
"Yeah but how many more men have to die before they mess up?" Greg asked.
Nick shrugged his shoulders. "We can only hope it is soon."
--
She sat next to her latest pet. He slept after she took advantage of him under the influence of the drug. She traced her fingernail down his chest. He was not muscular like the past two men but that did not matter to her. He had once again come on to her after she kept eyeing him at the bar. It was too easy for her. It was like a spider drawing a fly into her web.
She liked this guy more than the others. He was nicer and obeyed a lot better than the others had. Sometimes the drug had different affects on the men. Some fought it better than others but most did not remember the details of what she put them through. They just knew by the pain they were in what they might have been through. Then when she was ready she informed them exactly of what she did to them. They all would look at her with disgust and horror but she did not feel any pity usually. After what the man in her life had put her through for years, it was time to get some payback. It was just a shame the man who put her through hell were already dead. But she was always able to picture him in her victims.
As she was in deep thought her latest victim opened his eyes. He jerked back from her when he realized who she was. He tried to move away only to be restrained by the ropes that bound his wrists to a metal bar on the wall.
She smiled at him, but unlike the sweet looking smile she had given him at the bar, this one was filled with malicious intent. The longhaired wig was gone and now the woman who sat beside him had shortly cropped dark hair in which allowed a long scar along the left side of her head to be seen. "Don't be scared. If you cooperate I will not hurt you too much."
He narrowed his eyes at her, unsure if he should speak or not. "I've heard about you on the news. You are the psycho that has been killing men, only they have no idea who you are."
She sighed and stood up and started walking away from him. "Yes, it is true and you are my next victim. That is shame for you. I can make it easier for you if you just cooperate. My last victim almost lived, perhaps you could be unlucky and be the first one to live." She reached into her black metal trunk and pulled out two items. She turned back and came towards him. She had a surgical mask around her neck. She knelt down next to him. She opened a small packet that held a powder in it.
"They call this the Devil's Breath. Inhale enough and it can kill you. Time to see how much you can handle." She held the substance in the palm of her hand and blew it into his face. She quickly put her mask on to avoid inhaling it herself. She watched as he started to cough from inhaling the powder.
"It can take awhile to have its full effect, but in the meantime you will help me finish you off."
--
"The victims are being dumped all in the same 4 mile radius, but it is not near where the victims live, so I would assume these drop locations are near where our killer may live," Greg pointed out on the city map that was on the table in front of them.
"That's a good assumption, but there is not a whole lot of residential area near there," Nick said as he studied the map carefully.
"Well, there are a lot of older buildings in that area. Some had apartments on the upper floors plus there are a lot of abandoned buildings in that area too. Maybe our killer is using one of those buildings," Greg suggested with a shrug.
"There are a lot of places to check in that area. Maybe we should see if any of the active businesses in the area have security cameras and have maybe seen some suspicious activity going on, mostly like a body being dragged around." Nick looked to Grissom, who had been listening intensely to the ideas.
"It can't hurt. Get Brass and see if he can help you get a list of businesses near our drop areas that have cameras. Maybe we will get lucky that way," Grissom told his CSI's.
"We'll get on it right away." Nick paged Brass since this case had become a priority with 3 murders now.
"Sure, I'll get you guys a list of businesses that have security cameras and if you need warrants, I'll help get those for you," Brass told Nick.
The next day Greg and Nick sat with Archie in the AV lab going over a couple security videos they got from a couple cooperative businesses in the area.
"So how are things going with Vicki, Nick?" Archie asked the Texan.
"We are seeing each other this afternoon. Things are going well," Nick smiled and then nudged Greg next to him. "I keep telling this guy here he needs to get out more. Since he's been a CSI he's hardly been dating."
Greg rolled his eyes at Nick.
"Yeah, I remember you always were flirting with chicks even here on the job. You've become tame, Greg," Archie teased him.
"Will you guys leave me alone? Okay I plan on going out tomorrow night since I am off, but I am not making any promises. I'll find someone when I find someone," Greg said slightly ticked off.
Nick laughed. "Okay we'll leave it be for now, but you seriously need to get laid, it's affecting your mood."
Greg narrowed his eyes at Nick. "I won't dignify that comment with a response."
Archie and Nick just laughed at Greg's expense. Greg glared at both of them. "Why don't we get back to studying these videos?" He said in a huff.
Nick bit his lip and got back to watching the video screen with Archie.
It was nearing the end of their shift when Captain Jim Brass found the two CSI's still in the AV lab. "Hey guys, we have another male victim found. He's still alive but barely. Need you two to go out to the scene and meet Grissom out there. Some homeless guy behind the old Shooters Bar found him in the same condition as the others. I'm heading to the hospital in case the guy comes to and we can ask him some questions."
Nick and Greg nodded to each other and got up. They passed Warrick and Catherine in the hallway on the way to the parking garage. "Hey were are you two headed off to so late?" Warrick asked them.
"We have another hit from our serial killer, but this victim is still alive. We have to process the scene," Nick told them.
"Dang, this guy is on a roll. How many does this make now?" Warrick asked.
"The fourth one. No telling when he will stop and we still have nothing to go on," Greg replied.
"Well good luck. Maybe this guy will live," Catherine said hopefully to them.
"We can only hope." Nick looked to Greg who nodded in agreement.
A/N- Feel free to leave me some feedback on how you like it so far. I won't bite...I promise. :)