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“What the fuck?” he asked as the sheriff followed his line of sight then grabbed his arm to stop him.
“Don’t go any closer. I don’t trust this fucking guy. He knows you’re with Paula now, and he’s pissed. That’s obvious from his previous threats in the letters.”
“Let’s see what the asshole left me.”
“Wait. Walk slowly.”
The sheriff made Tyler nervous, but right about now Tyler’s anger was ruling any other thoughts he might have.
He touched the envelope and looked around. He’d parked next to the sheriff’s truck near a set of trees. He opened the envelope and pulled out pictures and a note.
THEY’LL DIE BECAUSE OF YOU.
YOU AND YOUR BROTHER BETTER STAY AWAY FROM MY WOMAN.
SHE’S MINE.
LAST WARNING!
Tyler passed the letter to the sheriff as he looked at the pictures. They were photographs taken of him and Matt at the club talking with two women they knew and had casual relationships with. Their names were Carole and Marla.
He felt his gut clench.
“You have to call them and make sure that they’re safe,” Tyler stated.
The sheriff pulled out his cell phone and called into the precinct to ask them to contact Carole and also Marla.
“Send a patrol car to each location.”
“These past lovers of yours and your brother’s?” the sheriff asked him.
“We played together a few times over a year ago. Nothing serious and no strings attached. Marla and Carole are free spirits.” Tyler ran his fingers through his hair.
“Hopefully Marla and Carole are okay,” the sheriff stated.
Just then the sound of the fire alarms in the distance blared into action. Tyler looked at BJ.
“Fuck!” Tyler opened the truck door to reach for the radio to find out about the fire call. There on the seat were pictures of women tied to beds, blood covering their bodies. He recognized their faces despite the bruises and cuts. They were the victims found in the past few fires. Then he came to the last picture. It was of Paula. She was completely naked and standing in her bedroom. In that moment it hit him. They were all local women.
The serial arsonist was also the person stalking Paula.
* * * *
Marla’s boyfriend Felix hugged Marla as she sat on her sofa,
talking with the sheriff and Detective Louis.
“So this guy sent you some letters stating that he was interested in you?” the detective asked.
“Yes, multiple times until I started dating Felix. No one ever approached me, and it was more recently. Suddenly, about two months ago, the letters just stopped. I figured this guy found someone else to bother,” Marla stated.
Immediately, Tyler knew that it was Paula. He felt his phone vibrate and he got an update of the earlier fire call. It was a barbeque fire and easily put out by one truck. He sighed but felt incredibly uneasy. He wanted to get to Paula and Matt, but he also worried about Marla and Carole. Carole was sitting on the other couch just staring at them.
“And the same with you, Carole?” Detective Louis asked.
She nodded her head.
They talked to them some more but really didn’t get any possible leads or indication of who this guy could be. Tyler left the house and headed home. He was exhausted, and he wondered how he would tell Matt and Paula about the envelope and the update in the case. Their serial arsonist and killer was the same man stalking Paula. Tyler clenched his teeth as he gripped the steering wheel and headed home.
