Page 34 of Race to Save Her

“What kind of notes?” she pushed.

“I don’t know… like on my car… slipped through a window or on the door at my place.”

“How did you meet him?”

“I didn’t. I just started getting notes written on torn pieces of paper and sometimes napkins.”

Katie moved away from Bates and glanced at McGaven.

“And then what?” she said.

“I didn’t take it seriously at first, but then someone came into my house in the middle of the night… and beat me pretty good, telling me I better pay attention.”

“What did he look like?”

“I couldn’t see him. He had a mask and was wearing all black with a thick coat.”

“Is there anything else? Any detail?” she said.

Bates shrugged. “I dunno.”

“Did he ever ask you to kidnap someone?”

“No.”

“Did he ever ask you to hide body parts?”

“No.”

“No?” she said. “So when did those body parts show up at your house?”

Bates didn’t want to answer, but he finally said, “I received a note on my car that said, Stay away from your house for four hours.”

“And you didn’t think that was strange?”

“No, well, kinda.”

“Kinda?”

“Look, Detective, that’s all I know.”

Katie looked at McGaven. Both detectives moved toward the door.

“Oh, Detective,” said Bates.

Katie turned.

“He did say that if anyone ever came looking for him—they would regret it.”

The words seemed to hang in the room.

Katie and McGaven left and the door was secured again.

“I’ll meet you outside,” said McGaven. “I’m going to check if Bates has had any visitors.”

Katie sat in the car thinking about what Bates had said. Overall, she believed him. Now they were going to have to piece everything together. It was appropriate that the killer called himself Puzzler. It obviously meant something to him and it wasn’t just a nickname. What she didn’t know was if this man was the same one leaving appendages in Pine Valley.

The passenger door opened and McGaven got in. “Hey.”