Speak No Evil_ A Novel - Allison Brennan [47]
“So it’s the parent’s fault,” Will said derisively.
“No, I’m just saying it’s one factor. Put it all together. You have a child with sociopathic tendencies—and researchers have shown that you can see these tendencies as young as the age of four.”
“Four?” Carina couldn’t imagine being able to pinpoint a killer as a toddler.
“Remember, Cara, not all sociopaths kill. They are identified through lack of empathy, ease of lying, lack of remorse for bad behavior, among other things. But they don’t all grow up to become serial killers. I believe other factors, environment in particular, twists these kids. An abusive mother or father, usually a one-parent household or a stepparent in the picture. Not always, of course—if we knew the formula that created monsters we could put an end to them.”
Dillon continued. “You asked for my professional opinion, and based on what we know about the victim and the manner of her death, I believe that the secondary reason he cleaned her body was because of a deep-grained feeling that sex is dirty. It could have been developed by a mother who punished him for wet dreams, or something more sinister.”
“Secondary?” Carina asked.
Nick was the one who spoke. “He washed her body to get rid of evidence.”
No one said anything for a long minute. “You’re not suggesting that he’s a cop or someone with forensic knowledge?” Carina asked.
“Everyone these days is a forensic expert,” Nick said. “Look at the popularity of crime shows on television. I recently read a report about a killer who disposed of a body by feeding it to his neighbor’s pigs. Why? Because he saw it on television.”
“And the husband who put his dead wife in a drum of lye and buried it in the backyard,” Dillon added.
“Today’s criminals know what we look for, and they are doing everything they can to cover their tracks,” Nick said. “It makes our job a hell of a lot more difficult.”
“So who are we looking for?” Carina finally asked. “You said he was immature, but he has the where-withal to clean up after himself.”
Dillon explained. “Immature in that he’s not a seasoned, practiced killer. He will get more proficient.”
“He’s going to do it again,” she said flatly.
Dillon and Nick both nodded. “How old do you think he is?” Nick asked Dillon.
“Under thirty. There’re no definitive studies on the subject, but there’s evidence that most serial killers begin killing in their twenties. Killing is the first end point in a series of escalations, usually started during puberty, and sometimes younger, with bedwetting, killing animals, and setting fires. It sounds cliché, but studies have shown that these three acts are identifiable in known serial killers.”
“If he’s under thirty, he may be new to this,” Carina said.
“Exactly. Angie may be his first, or he may have another under his belt. Or perhaps a failed attempt.”
Dillon said. “He also has a strong sense of survival. He’s abnormally neat in appearance and environment. His house will be immaculate. He’ll have no tolerance for dirt. You won’t see him working in construction, for example, because he can’t stand the thought of getting that dirty. He most likely lives alone. He may date, but he can’t maintain a long-term relationship. He’ll appear safe, innocuous, pleasant, polite. He will not seem like a threat, but he has a vicious temper. He has it under control, but when it gets away from him he can’t easily regain control. Very likely a student or a college dropout. Above-average intelligence, but an underachiever. He won’t take criticism well, probably because he’s so involved in his fantasies that he doesn’t pay enough attention to anything that he doesn’t think is important.”
Nick interrupted and tapped the coroner’s report. “Dr. Kincaid, what do you make of the subdermal bruising on her torso? The coroner indicated that the marks came minutes before death.”
“You noticed that, too? What’s your guess?”
Nick shifted uneasily in his chair.