The Otter Run Serial Killer
The Otter Run Serial Killer
Chapter 1: The Beginning of the End
I enter the door to 307 Otter Run, the door attendant greeting me on my way in, “good afternoon” he says, I give him an acknowledging glance on my way past. I set one bag of my groceries down to free a finger to hit the buttons on the elevator. The doors closed and I hit sixty-three and enjoyed a nice peaceful ride up. I carefully lean over and grab my bag I had sat on the floor. I take a step out of the elevator and inhale. The housekeepers must have been here again, and one must be new. I can smell the odor of cleaning chemicals, it’s better than the stench of the smelly neighbors. I begin walking to my apartment, a tall man in a large baseball cap is running towards me, not looking where he is going. I step off to the right to let him pass me and then yell rudely after him watch where you’re going. Maybe next time he will watch where he’s going. Just one turn left and I reach my apartment. The smell of the bleach is getting stronger, which is odd. The housekeepers weren’t supposed to clean for me until tomorrow. As I approach my apartment, the stench becomes more and more potent. The smell is coming from my apartment!
As I approached the door, I set my bags on the ground, one, two, three, four, bags all down onto the ground. I grab my keys from my purse and prepare to insert them into the doorknob. My door is ajar. Maybe the new cleaning ladies were here and forgot to shut the door all the way, after all it is very finicky. I push the door open the rest of the way, the stench of the cleaning chemicals is unbearable, I walk throughout the apartment opening all the windows. I go into the master bedroom, opening all the enormous windows and go over to the bathroom. I open the door and my legs buckle in horror, and I let out a terrified scream. There’s Eilene, naked and bloody in the bathtub with the facet running. My neighbor runs in and calling out to me, “Violet, is everything okay?” I don’t respond looking at him white as a ghost, phone in hand calling 911. He walks over to me and gasps in terror. He picks me up and carries me out of my apartment and into his across the hall.
When I come to my senses, he’s looking down at me gliding his hand gently though my hair, humming a quiet song under his breath. He smiles at me; I quickly sit up and back away from him on the sofa. Theres a knock on the door and he stands up, and walks over to the door, talking to someone in hushed voices. I look around, there’s virtually no artwork anywhere in the apartment, the table is fully set for four. Two full-sized chairs and two highchairs for children, one pink and one purple. There’s a China closet that looks like it was hand crafted many years ago. Inside is one picture of a pregnant women with light blond hair and green eyes and is looking extremely pregnant. I carefully open the door to the China closet and turn the picture around on the back in sloppy handwriting are the words Charlotte, eight months, Mia, and Myla. I set the picture back onto its stand and carefully close the door to the China closet. I stop wandering around the dining room and make my way back to the sofa, I think that I see movement to my right and quickly glance. I see a door to another room with three deadbolts, and two padlocks on the door. I take the last few steps towards the sofa and sit back down. I see that Bryan has come back into the living room with a police officer at his side. The officer asked me what had happened and how I knew Eilene, and why they had found keys to my apartment in her dead clenched fist. I thought back in time seven months and six days to be exact.
I’m on the treadmill, doing my usual exercises, walking then slowly picking up speed until I hit a full-on sprint. I need to take a drink from my water bottle, but I realize that I drank my bottle empty. I hit the pause button on the treadmill and walked over to the fountain and filled up my bottle and began walking back over to my treadmill. I see that someone else is now occupying the one next to mine. It’s another woman, thank gosh I thought men make all these dumb grunting noises when they work out. She’s got waist length strawberry blond hair. I got back up onto the treadmill and hit start. Three, two, one, the treadmill starts to pick up pace. I look to my right, and I notice that she’s increasing her speed too. So, I increase my speed again, and again, soon I reach my top speed, but it looks like she isn’t even breaking a sweat. So, I try and increase again, and she does the same. I soon realize that I am slowing down and becoming closer and closer to the edge of the treadmill when I hit the emergency stop. She hits hers too. She jumps down, picks up her water bottle staring back into my eyes saying nice race. She looks at me with these big bright blue eyes that are full of passion. “You’re pretty quick for how tiny you are” I say trying to start a conversation.
“Yeah, I guess. I don’t let that stop me though.” She responded. “Wanna go get a coffee next door with me?
“Sure,” I answered. “It’s on me” There I learned all about her. Her name is Eilene, she’s got a huge family of seven brothers and no sisters, she says that’s why she’s so quick, she quickly learned to put up with all their pranks and jokes growing up. Told me that she had just moved to the area and that she had bought the apartment next to mine, that she has a published career as an author in a crime newspaper and that she one day wants to become a certified FBI agent or detective, not just doing little hometown stuff. Said that maybe sometimes I could come over and she could tell me about her current case.
“Mam, Mam?” “Mam, can you hear me?” “I think she’s in shock,”
“Yes, we met at the gym over seven months ago, she’s my best friend and I gave her the key to take care of my cat when I’m out of town.” I answered coming back into the present moment.
“Okay, here’s my card, I’ll be in touch with any further questions.” He turned around and Bryan stood up following him out and locked the door behind him.
“Better safe in here with me and the doors locked than with it unlocked and everyone can come in” he said, with a little grin on his face.
Chapter 2: What Happens Next
“What do we got here boss”, I walk into the lobby of Otter Run expecting the worst.
“Body of a female, Regina Ross, age thirty-two, found in her apartment bathtub by the housekeepers, they came in at about seven am to the tub running and an abundance of cleaning chemicals were used. When the housekeepers, Diane, and Dianna, who are sisters entered the bathroom they found Miss Ross naked in the bathtub, with all of her teeth pulled out, and a lilac flower petal on the bathroom counter.”
“What does that make the body count then, sorry” I responded, “I’m new to this case, it’s my second week.”
“Thirty, and all dead are women ages twenty to thirty-four. With light blond hair and glassy green eyes. All women were tenants found naked in their bathtubs in their apartments, with all their teeth pulled, and one single Lilac flower petal on the counter in the bathroom.” Captain explained so I could get an idea of the situation. “We have several suspects, but all are dead ends. For several reasons we know that the killer is a male tenant here at Otter Run, that he is single, divorced or has a lost loved one that looks like these women, he’s in a position of power here at Otter Run, but he likes to remain anonymous. He contacts these women putting ads in news papers and online looking for clean tenants who are hard working and meet all the other normal requirements to live in this area. He has a thing for teeth, so he probably is a dentist or an orthodontist, or maybe a traumatic event surrounding the dentist in his past.” He continued explaining.
“Miss. Ross’s body has been sent to the morgue; we will need to figure something out. This is way out of control this has gone on long enough.”
I had an idea, I knew that it was dangerous, and I knew there was a huge chance he would turn it down, so I waited, waited for others to give ideas. Someone sitting down in the front said something and he yelled, “Come on think use your heads!! Any ideas, any at all!!”
My hand shot up into the air uncontrolled. “Sir, I have an idea. Have a detective go undercover, specifically a female one, send her in get close to the other females who meet his requirements, and watch and listen. Maybe we could finally get him”
Are you volunteering then Eilene? This would be your first solo undercover mission, no one else would meet his requirements or be close. You and Ann are the only females, and Ann’s never been out in the field. Plus, well you look more at his type. This could probably be the most dangerous thing you’ve ever done.”
“I know the risks, and I think I’m ready.”
“Okay, Eilene, you go, and in the next ad put in the paper or online, be prepared. Good Luck”
Chapter 3: Loves Me, Loves Me Not
“Hey Eilene, get over here and bring your picture the apartment application went up”
“I’m coming” she answers, quickly walking over to me, photo in hand. She looks elegant today, something about her is different.
“Did you do something different with your hair?” I asked her,
“Yes actually I got a trim.” She replied. She must think that I’m weird or something. Staring at her every time she passes me. She walks so elegantly in those thin heels with such purpose, such grace. Today she’s wearing a tight-fitting black dress that ends just above her knees.
“Okay, so what’s your name going to be?” I asked acting like I know nothing about her assignment. I love hearing her talk.
“Eilene, I’m going to change my last name though, how about Baker?”
“That’s perfect” I look up at her and smile. “Okay, all your information is in, here’s your license and now we wait.” Something inside me was telling me to ask her out. She was turning to leave; I pushed my chair out almost tripping on its wheels. Eilene, do you want to go out to dinner with me? You can choose the place?” She looked at me and smiled,
“I’d love to Jared, six pm tonight at Tour De Lou?”
“I’ll be there I answered immediately” She turned and walked away. Wow, I thought I never thought she even knew my name! Jared, Jared I thought, she knows my name!
Chapter 4: Pleasant Memories
I arrive early and ask the server to sit me in the most romantic spot that the restaurant has, I’ve never eaten at this place before. They walked me through the restaurant, and finally showed me where our table would be. Next to the water fountain across from the small orchestra that is playing a soft Mozart piece. Here she comes, the server just stopped at the corner making sure that she has seen where I am seated. I stand up and go to the other side of the table and pull out her chair for her. She gracefully sits down; I go back to my seat and scooch my chair in. Smiling at her, “This place is beautiful, I’ve lived here all my life, and I never knew this place existed!” She inhales and I understand she is going to tell me how she found this restaurant.
“Well, when I was much younger, before my mother passed every night, we would walk the streets and we would pass all of these restaurants, we would pretend that we were the people inside eating all of these fancy things. Well, one night we found this place and my mother fell in love with it. When I got my first job at the flower shop down the street, I saved all my money for six months in order to take her and my father to dinner on my mother’s birthday. My mother loved the dinner, she kept saying I didn’t need to do this, save my money for college. But she loved the dinner, her smile was priceless. But sadly, my mother died three days after that birthday dinner, and I’ve never been back here since. My father missed her so much that he started drinking, and he soon drank himself to death.”
“Wow, “I replied”, “I never knew I’m so sorry.” We ate our food in silence. Watching and observing all the other couples nearby. To the left there was an older woman who was eating a bowl of soup, to the right there was young man perhaps about nineteen who looked to be an employee who was taking his break eating what appeared to be a ham and cheese sandwich. On the other side of the fountain there was another couple. I tall man, with brown eyes and sandy blond hair who was talking to a woman with green eyes and light blond hair. She’s skinny and athletic. But she’s wearing a tight-fitting silver sequin dress that appears to be a size too small for her.
Soon Eilene is finished eating and I ask for the check, we both must not have been too hungry, because both of our bowls of soup were mostly full. I paid and gave our server a nice tip. I stood up and gave Eilene my hand. She had told me what she liked doing growing up. What other way to finish the night off than walking her home?
When we exited the Tour De Lou, the moon was bright in the sky, shining down and hitting her just right. She is still wearing a tight black dress and I still in my work suit. But she looks even more stunning under the moon light than in the light of the office. Her current apartment isn’t all that far away, but we were happy and enjoying each other’s presence.
Suddenly my phone rang. It’s the captain, there’s been another murder. He tells me to contact Eilene and tell her to get ready to come in. Suddenly Eilene’s phone rings, I become quiet.
“Hello is this Eilene Baker,” A man in a calm gentle voice says on the other line. “I would like to inform you that a new apartment has opened up and that you would be the perfect tenant for the apartments here at Otter Run. When is the soonest that you can move in? Eilene thought for a second and quickly replied.
“End of this week.”
“Perfect, I’ll see you then” The line went dead. Five days, that’s how long I have till Eilene goes to Otter Run.
Chapter 5: Freshly Fallen Lilacs
There she is sitting across from me; I can’t believe that she actually accepted the offer of a date. She’s sitting there, green eyes that look into my soul, her blond hair in a half up half down style, the front pieces falling down and curling at the ends. Her hand in mine, skin so soft like rose petals, she smells like honey and wildflowers. “So, Emma how do you like your food?” I asked, wanting to know her opinion.
“It’s amazing! Never eaten anything like this!” She says as she takes a bite of her shrimp. “I don’t know how I’ve never been here! I grew up like two blocks from this place! The Tour De Lou is definitely my new favorite!” I look around me and see that the table across from us, the guy with brown hair is staring at me. I think maybe we are being too loud. I grabbed her hand, and lead her slowly near the orchestra, I asked if they play Requiem by Mozart. As the orchestra beings to play I take her hands in mine and we dance, we dance for what feels like hours. Around and around and around we spin. Soon the song comes to an end, and we go back to our table, the orchestra now playing another Mozart selection. We talk and laugh, soon I notice that it is once again empty in the dining room. I called for the server to bring the check. I pay in cash and give her a nice tip, half my bill.
I grabbed Emma’s jacket off her chair and helped her put it on. Walking in the parking lot, her hand in mine, feeling her warmth in mine, my blood runs cold, and a chill runs up my spine. I clench my jaw and think control yourself! When we get into the car, I tell her to turn up the radio, the sound of classical music rises and drowns out the thoughts. When we pulled into the 307 Otter Run parking garage, she looked peaceful and turned left looking at me.
“Do you want to come back to my apartment?” She asks with enthusiasm.
“Do you want me to? I asked her in response wondering if her motives are the same as mine. “If you want me to, I will come back with you.”
“Yes,” she responded eagerly. We got out of my car, and we shut the doors, and I grabbed her hand and interlaced her fingers into mine. We ran through the hallways down the corridors and past a set of elevators. Almost running into another couple making out in the hall. We reach the elevator to take to Emma’s floor. When we got into the elevator, I faced away from the door, running my hands though her hair. She grabs my hand in hers and puts it against her cheek. I lean in closer and begin to passionately kiss her, our breathing becoming intertwined as if we were one person. The doors open and we continue running down the hall until we reach her apartment. She grasps her keys in her hand and opens the door, taking her purse off her shoulder and throwing her keys into her purse then tossing her purse onto the counter. Kicking her heels off and throwing them onto the floor.
“Give me a few I need to get ready. Is there a bathroom that I could use,” I ask needing time to get ready.
“Down the hall just on the right” Emma says, “Ill put some music on while your getting ready.”
As I walk down the hall, I hear classical music starting to play. Just as we have always loved it my dear, I thought. When I reach the bathroom, I turn around and lock the door behind me. I pull my pant leg up and pull out my tools. Flower petals, pilers, and a knife, I look around the bathroom. There is a tub, I turn on the facet, and roll my tools back up and leave them on the counter. I unlock the door to the bathroom. She’s there just outside the door waiting for me naked, she must have changed in her bedroom I think, I grabbed her hand and pulled her into the bathroom. I turn her around to face the tub. She takes a deep inhale, I grab my knife, she turns to face me, beginning to speak.
“I thought you had to get ready.” That is when she sees my knife, she has nowhere to go, she backs away and falls into the tub.
“I am ready,” I replied, I lean over her and stab her in her abdomen. She lets out a quick scream, short and quiet. This was the easy part, I went back over to the counter, and I grabbed my pliers and began pulling out her teeth, one, two, three, ten, twenty all, of her teeth now in my bag. I pulled out the lilac petal, which now has a drop of blood on the petal and sat it on the counter. I turned on the sink faucet and washed my tools. Went under the sink and found a bottle of bleach. Predictable I thought, all women keep it under the skink or in the closet. I then pour some of the bleach on the counter and in the sink, I then place the plug into the sink and pour the rest of the bottle in. I put my tools back into my pant leg, closed the door and made my way back to the elevator. When the elevator doors opened, I hit sixty-three and prepared to return home for the night, to go back to work in the morning.
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