Tolerance Book III

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Cause For Concern

Central Park

By the end of the week it had been determined that Thompson was intent on gaining publicity through the investigation rather than prioritizing the actual case and its' crimes. Jay, as had been expected, had been summoned to the Directors'office with Murphy the day after his visit to Billings. The Detective had, as discussed, managed to avoid lying to the irate man by choosing his words carefully. The Assistant Director had unfortunately been forced to take the brunt of the backlash for the visit. Jay had been tempted to intervene as Thompson berated his failure to clarify instructions to the Task Force but one look from Murphy had stayed the thought. Heading back down in the elevator to their floor after the heated meeting Murphy had assured the younger man he was well used to the Directors' harsh words. That however did not make Jay feel any better. After all the second visit to Billings had been his idea and his alone. He knew however it was out of his hands.

Now sitting on a bench in Central Park beside Parker Jay tried to gather his thoughts after a long morning. The Psychologists' suggestion of getting some fresh air had come after the Detective had lamented the lack of progress in the case.

"You're getting too worked up over things you can't control," Parker finally stated after a long, but companiable, silence.
"I still feel like I'm missing something."
"That's part of the job, whether it's tracking down Criminals or profiling. There are always unknown elements in a case."
"You think the bottle theory is right?" Jay finally asked.
"You know I do," Parker assured without hesitation, "do yourself a favour and don't start second guessing yourself."
"I've been thinking about .... the collection."
"And?"
"It would take a while to get those bottles. I mean he couldn't just decide today he wanted one and get it quickly."
"So?"
"So he must have had the bottles before he committed the murders," the Detective explained, "or some of them at least."
"There's no pattern to the gaps between the explosions," Parker pointed out, "but it makes sense."
"You told me before about the difference between a modus operandi and signature. The modus operandi relates to the actual manner in which the killing is carried out and the signature is something specific to the Killer that he or she feels compelled to do ...,"
"Yes," Parker frowned, unsure where the conversation was leading.
"So far there doesn't seem to be a signature."
"Maybe it's there but we haven't recognised it," the Psychologist and part-time Profiler suggested.
"Well he's not leaving much of the Victims behind to identify a signature," Jay sighed heavily, "if he has one that is."
"Most Serial Killers do."
"What if ....?"
"What?" Parker straightened on the hard seat.
"What if he's doing something to them before their deaths," Jay suggested quietly.
"You mean he has actual physical contact with them?"
"Yeah," the Detective nodded.
"In what capacity?" Parker probed, to date there had been no suggestion of prior contact.
"Need time to consider it," Jay replied as he rose to his feet purposefully, he felt invigorated, "you were right Doc. The fresh air helped."

Parker shook his head in confusion. It was clear the Detective was after gaining a new impetus but he was unsure where it stemmed from. He doubted however it had anything to do with their trip outside. More likely it originated in his companions' insightful mind.

Back in the small office a short while later,where he seemed to spend too many hours, Jay stood alone before the whiteboard eyeing the various aspects of the investigation. From Victims to date and times it was all set out in black and white detail. There were still too many unknowns that needed to be resolved. The Chicago connection was still proving impossible to establish. Choosing Victims solely from the Windy City could not fall under the pervue of coincidence. There had to be a reason yet it remained elusive. The realization that Billings was purchasing bottles before killing his Victims opened up more avenues to be followed. Was the man merely choosing a Victim to match the latest available bottle he acquired? It seemed ludicrous yet that possibility could not be ruled out. The young man mulled over what he had said to the Psychologist. Could Billings have had actual contact in some way with each Victim? If so why hadn't any link shown up. It occured to Jay it was time to expand the parameters of their searches. He turned as the door opened and Al walked in followed by Voight.