Chapter 71

Chapter Seventy-One

“ S o, did you find anything?” Kelly asks me as she drops onto the couch next to me, sighing and visibly frustrated, throwing the file on the table in front of her because it probably didn’t lead anywhere either. What a bummer!

We got the case files. Apparently, Thomas has taken a vacation from his office, so it was easy to access them. Being the boss’s wife has its advantages.

I’m glad he’s complying with my request to keep his distance and giving me time to process everything. I can only hope that he will then accept the separation and divorce quickly. For now, I'm just reassured that there won't be any immediate consequences and that he'll respect my need for distance as he comes to terms with it all.

“No. Nothing. All these old police reports won’t get us anywhere. He’s covered his tracks so well that you’d think he didn’t commit all those murders.”

I shake my head and toss the file into the box with the others, all of which were equally unhelpful. This can't be right—no fingerprints, no clues, nothing. Every case appears as if it never existed. But I know Jenny wasn't lying to me; she was terrified, and there’s no way she would have fabricated it. Even if she had, what purpose would it have served?

“Maybe we’re not finding anything because there’s nothing to find? Think about it. You’ve been here three days, and he hasn’t shown up. He hasn’t even tried to call you from a different number. Nothing. Maybe you’re misjudging him. Maybe he’s a nice guy who just wanted to help and with whom you were actually happy,” Kelly suggests, making me pause and reconsider.

Have I squandered everything wonderful I had with Ezra because I listened to the word of a stranger who was scared to death of him?

It’s painful to think about because I was falling in love with Ezra. I could have envisioned a future with him, seeing it clearly ahead of me. But can I truly be so na?ve as to ignore these serious accusations just because my heart wants to believe otherwise?

Lost in thought, I brood until my eyes fall on the TV. I immediately grab the remote control and turn up the news. I stare at the screen where the newsreader is reporting on a dead body. A young girl has been found dead in a motel room. She is said to have broken her neck, and the police are asking for relatives to come forward, as none have been found yet.

My mouth drops open in horror, and I point my finger at the TV as they show an older photo of the dead girl, which they must have found on her social media account.

“That’s Jenny. The one who told me all that stuff about Ezra. She… has been dead for three days!”

I rub my freezing fingers and stare at the TV in horror. I can’t believe what terrible thing is happening in front of my eyes. Jenny is dead… It can’t possibly be a coincidence. All these mysterious ‘accidents’ can’t be a coincidence. Ezra… he’s… a murderer. Oh God!

Panic overwhelms me as I bitterly realize the full extent of what I've done. I've let a serial killer into my life—into my daughter's life, into my family's life! What have I done…?

“Cora darling, calm down! We don’t even know if it was him. Maybe she just slipped in the bath, and it was a tragic accident,” Kelly tries to reassure me, clinging to the hope that I haven’t been seduced and blinded by a murderer.

“You’re telling me Ezra had nothing to do with this? That he’s not contacting me because he’s respecting my decision? Or maybe he’s coming up with a sick plan to make me—or even worse, June—disappear?” I panic, my voice rising as I jump up and start pacing the living room.

“Cora, calm down, sweetie. You’re safe here. We’ll just keep looking. Or we give the police an anonymous tip that Ezra knew the dead woman and they didn’t have a good relationship. We’ll find something to nail him with, and then he won’t get out. I promise you, sweetie. He won’t hurt you or June,” she persists in trying to reassure me, but she’s doing the opposite because I realize he’ll keep talking his way out of it, just like he did with all the other poor girls before me.

“Kelly, I’ll kill him if he gets too close to June,” I say in a rage, hyperventilating at the mere thought of him hurting my daughter.

“Hey, calm down, Cora!” Kelly stands up and grabs my face so I can’t walk around.

She looks deep into my eyes and breathes in and out calmly and deeply with me. I follow her instructions and breathe with her so I don’t go completely crazy.

“Very good… He can’t even get close to June. She’s in the library or at college all day, preparing for her new classes. She’s always around people. So calm down, okay?”

I nod. Kelly is right. June is busy studying and then coming home in the evening. Ezra has no chance of catching her alone anywhere. That helps, and my breathing gradually returns to normal. June is safe. Nothing will happen to her.

“Kelly, I won’t forgive myself if something happens to her just because I got involved with him. I brought a psychopath into her life. That was stupid, and if he does something to her, then…” I break off and shake my head in panic.

“Shh! That’s not going to happen. Besides, June is a good girl. You’ve told her that Ezra is dangerous, so she’s been warned and knows that if he gets too close, she’ll have to leave quickly or get help. She’s smart and knows what to do,” Kelly continues to reassure me.

I nod and take another deep breath through my nose and mouth to finally calm down.

“Shit, I let a killer—no, a serial killer—into my life! I imagined what it would be like to have a future with him. To be with him when Thomas and I are separated for good, and June is in on it… I’ve been so stupid and na?ve. How could I have let myself be so blinded by him?”

Tears sting my eyes because I feel so powerless. All those poor girls… they must have fallen for him too.

“Cora, it’s not your fault. He blinded us all. We’ll find something, okay? You’ll go to the police and tell them what happened between Jenny and him. Tell them about the newspaper article. They’ll believe she was with you if they find it on her. Then they might arrest him because of the old accusations from her best friend. He won’t get away with it again!” Kelly replies firmly and gives me another tight hug to give me courage.

I wrap my arms around her and nod. I just hope her optimism is enough because I’m terrified that something terrible will happen if we don’t put Ezra behind bars.

“Well then, come on. Let’s go straight to the police,” Kelly encourages, breaking away from me.

I nod again, wiping the tears from the corners of my eyes, and feel a new resolve to take action. I’m determined to see Ezra held accountable, to ensure that this psycho is locked up and can’t hurt anyone else. Especially not my daughter!