Introduction
In cold blood
Saratoga Springs was neither one of the loudest nor the quietest places in New York. In the summer of 2005, it was just the place you would want to be if you were looking for that upstate feel, without the inconveniences of the countryside.
Not too long a drive from Albany, it boasted not just a scenic lifestyle, but also a budding nightlife community. There were quite a few descendants of first generation Irish immigrants who had crossed the seas in search of fresh soil that set up shops and pubs over the generations.
The area also held a naval base that housed and processed quite a few Sailors. It was crucial in the area of nuclear technology, having researchers that spent much time providing information for the state nuclear technology programs.
John Dawson found his way to recruitment at the base in late summer 2005, having a few drinking buddies who were stationed at the base. As he awaited his call to boot camp, he called his three buddies to go drinking with him that night at Slugger O'toole's pub over on south street.
John was a well built descendant of two English colonists that had settled quite some time ago when the United States was still expanding. He stood a good five foot eleven and had remarkably broad shoulders and a sturdy build. His short hair was a light brown, and his eyes were a dull blue and were always bright despite their color.
He was a college graduate with a Bachelor's in Engineering from Suny Albany and was planning on serving in the Navy for a long time.
The day quickly passed by into nightfall as the sun made it's slow arc across the sky. As it began sinking and the sky began darkening, John met up with his buddies, three Sailors who were a bit aggressive compared to your average working civilian.
One of them, a tall American of mixed heritage, half German, half Irish brought his wife along to drink with them. She was a loud polish woman who would drink a lot and start arguments with her husband. Thankfully, it hadn't caused any problems that would be hard to solve for the couple so far.
Fox Sports was showing the offseason training and interviews with various NFL teams tonight, and it would be playing at eight that night. It was seven forty five when everyone met up in front of the pub and went inside.
The next few hours went by uneventfully as everyone ate and drank. John had a good time and got pretty sloshed.
At ten, they left the pub all completely hammered. John felt himself get pretty sick pretty fast as they stumbled to the nearby park to cool off and simmer down. However, he really needed to throw up. It hit him that he might have gotten food poisoning.
"You guys go on ahead, I'll be right with you in a bit" he told his friend who was closest to him before he ran back up the block and emptied his guts in the trash can. It was pretty bad. He threw up for almost two minutes.
Then he heard argument between his friends and some unknown man, then the terrified scream of his buddies wife and what sounded like four rapid thunderclaps.
Quickly running back to see what happened, he felt the need to throw up again when he saw his friends, or at least what remained of them.
The mangled bodies of his friends where horrid. There were fist sized holes through their bodies, right where their hearts should have been. Blood splattered the concrete in long sprays that reached many meters behind them.
Someone had brutally murdered them in a horribly violent and vicious way.