The Night School Strangler

Chapter 12

"Ed, do we have blood types of the ten men on that list," Ironside asked.

"Not yet, Chief. Carl is getting them. He is still working on it," Brown replied.

"What the blazes is taking so long? We need to shorten that list and we need to do it now before he murders another woman."

"It takes time, Chief," Eve said.

"Time is something we don't have. We have to find this man before he kills again."

Mark brought another cup of coffee and set it in front of his boss. He noticed the look Ed and Eve were giving him. It was obvious they did not think the chief needed any more caffeine.

"We know of at least one of them that has the type O blood. We need to take a closer look at Wyatt Smith," Ed said.

"He doesn't fit the pattern," Mark said.

"How so, Officer Sanger?" Ironside asked sarcastically.

"He cooperated completely. He even offered his blood type," Mark pointed out.

Ironside studied his notes in front of him. He had been able to confirm that Wyatt Smith had blood type O. Mark was right that he had cooperated. That did not mean that he was not the Night School Strangler. He could have figured out that they would check his blood type. He would know that they would find out that he had the blood type they were looking for. So, what better way to put them off his trail than to offer his blood type. Ironside had not let it get past him that he offered information on James Lander. He was quick to point out that he had a nervous breakdown.

Despite his cooperation, Ironside had no intention of giving him any less scrutiny. The sooner he got that list of male students with type O blood, the sooner they could shorten the list and start concentrating on those with the correct blood type, and that included Wyatt Smith.

The phone started ringing. Ironside was close enough to answer it, but decided to allow one of his staff members to take the call. He would continue to study his notes on the men they had interviewed.

Eve reached for the phone, picked up the receiver and greeted the caller, "Chief Ironside's office."

"Eve, put the Chief on," Carl Reese said with urgency.

She turned to look at the boss. "Chief, it's Carl. He sounds anxious."

"Put him on speaker," the detective barked. After Eve punched the speaker button, Ironside said, "Go ahead, Carl."

"Chief, the Night School Strangler has struck again," Carl told him.

Ironside glanced over at Mark. "I thought there were no law classes on Friday night."

"There isn't," Mark confirmed.

The chief returned his attention back to Carl. "Where on the campus was she murdered?"

"That's just it, Chief. She wasn't murdered on the campus. In fact, she wasn't murdered. She survived."

"Survived!" Eve exclaimed.

"Where was the attack?" Ironside demanded.

"In her home. He apparently went in the back door," Carl reported.

"How do we know it was the Strangler?" the chief asked.

"Same MO, he used a wire and approached her from behind."

"What's the girl's name?" Ed asked.

"Debra Moss."

"What hospital did they take her to?" Ironside demanded.

"Saint Mary's Hospital. It was closer than San Francisco General," Carl explained.

"Okay, we are on our way." Ironside slammed the phone in the cradle. He looked around at his staff. "Well, what are you waiting for?"

That sent Eve, Ed and Mark toward the door. Mark stepped behind the chief's chair and pushed it up the ramp.

They rode the elevator to the police parking garage and got into the van. Once inside, Mark started up the vehicle, pulled into the street and headed towards Saint Mary's Hospital.

Ironside remained quiet as Mark drove. If Carl was correct, this was the first time the Strangler had attacked a woman off the campus. Was he now branching out or did Debra Moss have a connection to the college? If she did, why did the Strangler choose to attack her in her home? Was it possible that she knew him? Would they finally get the break they needed to now nail this maniac? He shook his head. There wasn't any use speculating. They would be at Saint Mary's shortly. Hopefully, they would get some answers that would lead to some clue to the Strangler's identity.

Ironside had been so lost in thought that the entire drive went by without realizing he had not said a word to any of the members of his staff. Mark, Ed and Eve had worked with him long enough that they knew when to leave him alone when he was hashing out the case in his mind.

Mark pulled into a handicapped parking spot near the main entrance and shut off the engine. Before he could even step out of the van, his boss was in the lift and pressed the button that would lower his chair to the ground. Eve and Ed were already out of the vehicle and waiting for the chief. Mark joined them and pushed Ironside towards the entrance of the hospital.

As soon as they entered, memories of the shooting that put him in the wheelchair surfaced. The months he spent recovering from the bullet wound, as well as the time he spent when it was thought that another operation would put him back on his feet, started flooding back to him. Despite the surgery Doctor Ben Stein performed, the operation was not a success, and Ironside remained in the chair. He could still remember the looks on the faces of his staff as he answered their question about the results of the surgery. "We go on as before." He was certain they were just as disappointed as he had been when Ben told him it had no effect on his ability to walk again.

The chief did not show any emotion to his staff. He let on that it didn't bother him, but it had. It was the realization that nothing, no operation or anything else would ever put him back on his feet again. He would remain in the flaming chair for the remainder of his life. Still, it was not going to stop him from living life to the fullest regardless of his disability. He would continue to solve crimes and protect the people of his beloved city.

That was the reason he was here. There was a maniac loose in San Francisco and murdering women. He had to find a way to stop him before he killed anyone else. This time they got lucky. The woman had survived. He had to find out if she saw anything that could help them identify this man.

Ironside went immediately to the emergency desk. Pulling out his detective credentials, he presented them to the woman. "I am Chief Robert Ironside. These people are members of my staff. I am hear to see Debra Moss. She was brought in a short time ago.

"Sister Agatha said you would be arriving shortly," she smiled. "I am afraid, Chief Ironside, that she has given strict orders that you are not to be allowed in until she arrives."

"Then find her," Ironside barked. "This is an official police investigation."

The woman was immediately intimidated by Ironside's manner and tone of voice, as people usually were. Ironside had a way about him that intimidated those that were just simply in his presence.

Coming toward them, Sister Agatha hurried to the woman's rescue. She was one of the few people that was not the least intimidated by Robert Ironside. She had taken care of him for the months he had been in this hospital and again when he came in for the surgery that was intended to make him walk again.

"Robert, please remember you are in a hospital. Keep your voice down," she scolded him.

Ironside wanted to smile at the sight of his favorite nurse, but he could not. It was the little game they played with one another. Anyone observing them would think they could not stand each other, but nothing could be further from the truth. The affection between the two of them was great. "Well, if it isn't Sergeant Agatha," the detective said with a bit of sarcasm.

"I know why you are here, Robert. However, we can't let you interrogate Miss Moss at this time."

The expression changed on Ironside's face. It darken, his brows turned into a frown. Ed, Eve and Mark watched their boss. There was always a battle of the wits between Ironside and Agatha, and at any given time, one could make a bet as to who was going to win. This time the bets by all three would have been on their boss. He had a killer to catch and he was not about to allow a thing like medical treatment to get in his way.

"Sister, there is a maniac out there murdering college women. So far, he has been able to allude us. This is the first time one of his victims has lived through an attack. I have to know if this young woman saw the man or can give us anything that will help us find out who is doing these murders."

"I am sorry, Robert. She has been traumatized. I cannot allow you to traumatize her further. Come back in a few days and I will arrange for you to see her then." She turned to go but Ironside was not ready to give up the argument.

"No Sister, I am sorry, but I am going to have to insist on talking to her. I am not going to sit around and wait for this man to kill another woman. We may not be lucky the next time. His next victim could join the other dead women."

Agatha shook her head. "I am sorry, Robert. I simply can't allow it."

Any other cop would have taken no for an answer, but Robert Ironside was not any other cop. "Ed, let's go. We are going back to the emergency treatment rooms. You and Eve are to search every one of them until we find Debra Moss."

"Robert! I forbid it. You will force me to call the police," Agatha cried.

"Are you forgetting, Sister, I am the police, and there is not an officer on the entire force that will arrest me." He looked straight into her eyes in what she knew was a challenge. Before she could say anything, he softened his voice. "Agatha, I don't like this any more than you do, but I am trying to save the life of the next woman he attacks. I promise you I will not stay long."

Agatha stared at the detective. There was no detective in the police department that she had more respect for than Robert Ironside. He had saved her life when Morgan Haynes had tried to kill her here in this very hospital. He had been working with another doctor to kill terminal patients and collecting a fee from insurance companies that did not want to continue to pay out on patients that were going to die, but were not leaving the world fast enough for them. Robert had seen to it that she had the best surgeon available to relieve the pressure on her brain due to the blow to her head she received when she had been knocked from a shelf she had been standing on.

She was torn between allowing him to question Debra Moss in order to find the maniac that was killing women at the college, and standing her ground to keep from causing her any more trauma. She also knew Robert Ironside. He was not going to stop until he interviewed this young woman. Still, he would be as gentle as he could be, and despite his reputation for being gruff and loud, Robert was a gentle and caring person.

Rather than continue to argue with him, she decided to give into him... this time. "Alright, Robert. I will let you see her but only you, no one else. You have five minutes."

"Ten," Ironside argued. He had to push the limit to allow Agatha to beat him on this point.

"I said five and I mean it, Chief!"

"Take me to her, Sister," he told her.

"Follow me." Agatha led the way back to the emergency treatment rooms. Leading him down the hall, they passed several rooms with curtains pulled to give the patients some privacy. When they reached the end of the hall, the sister turned to the left and led him to the second room on the left. Ironside pulled back the curtain and wheeled his chair into Debra Moss's treatment room. She laid on the bed with her eyes closed. She must have sensed that someone had entered the room as she opened her eyes. Either that or Ironside had become so accustomed to the squeak of his wheelchair that he did not notice it any more, and did not realize it had waken her.

She smiled at the wheel-chair-bound detective. "You're Chief Ironside," she said.

"I am," Ironside confirmed. "Could we talk for a few minutes?" he said gently.

"Of course, Chief. I am sure you want to know about the man that attacked me, but I am afraid I cannot tell you very much."

"Did you see him?" Ironside asked.

"No sir, he came up behind me. He put a wire around my neck and started to strangle me. I fought for a moment, but I soon realized that it was not going to save me, so I pretended to have succumbed. I went limp. He stopped as soon as I did."

"Is there anything at all you remember that could help us? Did he speak to you?"

"No, he never said a word. He was wearing gloves, I know that because I could see them. They were leather gloves. I did not see anything on them that would help you. They were just gloves."

"He got in the back door. Didn't you lock it?" Ironside asked.

"He must have forced the back door, Chief. I know I locked it. The front door was locked as well. I am very careful about keeping the doors locked," Debra insisted.

Ironside had a hunch and he had to check it out. "Debra, do you go to college? Law school?"

She smiled slightly. "Yes, how did you know. Oh, probably from Mark Sanger. He goes to the same school I do. In fact, he is in one of my classes."

"I am assigning police officers to protect you until we catch this man. I promise you, he will not get near you again," Ironside assured her.

"Thank you, Chief Ironside."

The chief pulled a card out of his suit coat and handed it to her. "If you can think of anything at all, call me at that number. If I am not there one of my staff will take a message. Anything at all, something that happened at the college that you thought strange at the time; you call me."

"I will. Thank you, Chief."

Ironside lifted her hand and kissed it. Turning his chair around, he headed for the door. Just as soon as he reached it, there was Sister Agatha, ready to kick him out no doubt.

"Your five minutes is up, Robert."

"Doesn't it look like I am leaving," he snarled.

Agatha stepped in front of him. "She will be alright. She was lucky. Are you any closer to catching this maniac?"

He blew out a breath that to Agatha seemed like fire from a dragon. "I am not getting much to go on, Sister. This is the first time a victim has been left alive and she cannot tell me much. He approached her from behind. She never saw him."

"Robert, there is another first," the sister said.

"Yes, I know. It is the first one he has attacked that was not on the college campus. However, I have no doubt it is related to the college murders. She is a student there as well."

"But why didn't he go after her on the campus," Agatha asked.

"Maybe he spotted our security. Maybe he is branching out. I don't know, but one thing is for sure... it is going to make it harder to catch him." Ironside began wheeling away from her."

"Robert."

He turned his chair back to face the sister. "Yes."

"Be careful, these types always seem to come after you in the end."

The detective stared at Agatha for a moment. "Sister, you are right! I need to draw this man out instead of waiting for him to kill his next victim."

"You are not going to use yourself as bait, are you?" she said in disapproval.

"No, I don't look like a college student. However, I have a pretty policewoman who could pass for one." He turned and wheeled his chair back towards the waiting room.

*

The Night School Strangler had watched them take Debra Moss away in an ambulance. Thank God, she survived!

"You fool! You did not kill her. If you had done your job, she would have been taken away to the morgue, not the hospital. You let her live. So, how is the headache now?"

The Strangler sat there in his car. His head in his hands, he tried to ease the pain that was now increasing in his head. "I don't care, I did not want to kill her in the first place. Why don't you leave me alone?!"

"You really are a fool. You know fully well these women have to be removed from the campus. Ironside may find a clue to us and our mission will be destroyed. You must find Debra Moss and take care of her. She must not talk to Ironside."

"Our mission, yes, I almost forgot about our mission. You are right, they must be eliminated from the campus. But Ironside is watching the campus now. How will we eliminate them without him finding out?"

"You must find another way. Maybe you already have. Go to their homes. There is much less chance that Ironside can interfere with our mission. He won't be able to catch you."

"Yes! That is the way. I must kill them in there homes." The voice disappeared as it always did when the Strangler gave into it. The headache began to subside. He felt better already.

He just did not understand how he was going to reach Debra Moss at the hospital. He had heard that she had been taken to Saint Mary's Hospital. Maybe if he went over there, he could find out if she had any security around her. He might be able to get to her.

The Night School Strangler grabbed his coat and headed out the door. The voice was right, he had a mission and he must complete it. He did not know why he kept questioning it. But it was wrong to kill, wasn't it? He shook his head. The Strangler did not need that kind of thinking. He would never accomplish his mission if he did not suppress that kind of compassion. Those women did not deserve it.

The voice was right, he had to find a way to silence Debra Moss before she had a chance to talk to Robert Ironside. But, he was not a killer. Why would he kill such a beautiful woman?

The Strangler shook his head as it immediately started pounding again. "Stop it, just stop it!" he screamed. "The voice is right!! I must complete my mission. Those woman deserve no mercy! They are breaking the law!!

He turned the ignition of the vehicle and headed for Saint Mary's Hospital.

*

Ironside wheeled his chair into the office and down the ramp, slowing his chair as it descended. "Ed, find out what is taking so long to get the blood types of those male students. Call Carl, I want those blood types and I want them now!" Ironside ordered his sergeant.

Brown was on his feet and heading up the ramp. He was out the door before the chief completed his order.

"Chief I can finish the rest of the interviews with the students," Eve said, as she got up and headed towards the door. She did not get very far before Ironside stopped her.

"No! You and I are going to go over to Donna Moss's house and see if we can find anything our killer left behind that could help us."

"But the police already went through it," Eve said. When she saw the look on Ironside's face, she said, "And we will see if they missed anything." She followed her boss up the ramp.

When they reached the door, Ironside turned his chair back towards the office. He noticed Mark had not made a move to join them. "That includes you, Mister Sanger."

Mark hurried to catch up with them.

*

Ed entered the police lab outer office. Spotting Lieutenant Carl Reese, he went immediately over to him. As he approached him, Carl knew exactly what his presence meant.

"The chief is getting impatient," Carl said.

"And how," Ed replied with a grin. "Do we have any confirmation on the blood types yet?"

"I don't know, I just tried to get them from the lab. I knew this latest attack was going to set the chief off, so I headed right over here. So far they are not cooperating much. They said I would have to wait."

"Are you willing to wait?" Ed asked.

"Are you kidding, with the chief ready to explode?" Reese responded.

"Then let's get some answers," Ed said and headed for the lab.

The policewoman sitting at the desk was out of her seat immediately. "I am sorry, gentleman, but you are not allowed back there. You will have to wait until one of the technicians is free to talk to you."

"Do you want to tell Chief Ironside he has to wait?" Ed demanded. "Because I am about to call him down here. You know how he loves to have to come into a job that he has assigned us to do?"

The policewoman stood there in a moment of indecisiveness. She had a run-in with Chief Ironside when his patience had run out and she did not want to deal with him ever again when he was in that state of mind. She then stepped out of their way, clearing the entrance to the lab. Ed and Carl walked swiftly down the hall until they reached the door that read "Police Lab." Carl opened the door and the two men burst into inside.

It immediately caught the attention of several of the lab workers. One of the men came directly over to them. "You are not allowed in here," he said not so politely.

"We are under orders of Chief Ironside to get the results of the blood tests on the men who offered to have their blood taken," Carl said.

"Well, Chief Ironside will just have to wait. You would think he is the only cop that sends stuff to this lab," the technician growled.

"He may not be the only one," Ed said, "but he is the highest ranking one. Now what about those tests?"

"I will get them to him tomorrow," he snarled, as he turned to walk away.

Carl Reese hurried to step in front of him, blocking his way. Pulling out his cellphone, he threaten, "Suppose we just call the chief and you can tell him they won't be ready until tomorrow? Because we sure as hell are not telling him that. And by the way, in case no one has told you, he way outranks you. Now I am telling you for the last time, Chief Ironside wants those tests and he wants them now. Do you provide them or do I place a call to the chief?"

Ed almost smiled. Carl's Italian temper came in handy on occasion. This was one of those occasions. It was amazing how quickly police officers could come up with the information Chief Ironside wanted when they were threatened with him.

The technician stood there for a moment. He resented being pushed around by these officers. On the other hand, he had dealt with Robert Ironside and his demands before. It was never pleasant when he wanted something and would not wait until they had time to do it. "Alright, but I am filing a complaint with Commissioner Randall. I don't know where you get off thinking you are more important than anyone else in the department," he grumbled.

"We're not," Ed said, "but we do work for the highest ranking cop in the department." He stood there staring into the eyes of the technician, making it obvious that he was not backing down.

The technician left the two men standing there and went through a door in the back of the lab. A few minutes later he brought back an envelope with the information they had come to retrieve. He shoved the large envelope towards the two men and said, "Now I would like you to leave. You are disturbing our work."

"This was completed and you had not sent it to Chief Ironside?" Ed said in disbelief.

"I haven't had time to take it over to his office. Like I said, he is not the only cop that sends things over here."

"You could have called us, we would have picked it up," Carl snarled.

"I have not even had the time to do that," he protested.

Ed shook his head. "By the way, you go right ahead and file a complaint with Commissioner Randall. He is the one that assigned this case to Chief Ironside in the first place. I have a feeling it will fall on deaf ears."

"And we intend to tell the chief that this was sitting here completed and you didn't even bother to call us," Carl added. "I am sure that will go over big with him."

"Not to mention the commissioner," Ed said. The two men left the technician standing there with a worried look and headed outside. "Come on, Carl, we will go over these in my car." Reese followed Ed to his car and got in as Ed slipped in behind the wheel. He unsealed the manila envelope, opened it and pulled the contents out. Holding it over so Carl could also read it, they looked up at each other.

"Well, this certainly narrows the field," Carl said.

"We have to get this back to the chief. I'll meet you back at his office," Brown told him. If the killer was indeed one of these students, they had just gotten a huge break in the case by reducing the list to three men.

Carl got out of the vehicle to head to his own. Ed started the Ford and raced back to the old Hall of Justice building which now served as Police Headquarters.