The Trick-or-Treat Killer

Synopsis

Police Detective Rafe Hectore is baffled by a rash of killings on Halloween night.  The only thing that is common is a bag of candy left beside the victim.  Who is committing these murders?

Chapter 1

Rafe Hectore was glad he had Halloween night off to take his 4-year-old son, Gabriel, trick-or-treating.  His son had been looking forward to trick-or-treating all month long.  Rafe would have been devastated if he didn’t get the opportunity to take his son out on Halloween night.

But Rafe was shook beyond his core when he received a call from the police station after he had just got home from taking his son out, and was informed by his supervisor that there had been a murder in Rafe’s own neighborhood.  Saying goodbye to his wife and son, Rafe headed to the home where he was told of the murder. 

When Rafe parked outside the house where the murder was reported, Rafe cautiously walked up to the front door; with gun pointed straight out in case the perpetrator was still lurking … Rafe went inside the darkened home.

Flipping the light switch near the entrance of the front door, the lights didn’t come on;  Rafe was spooked when a flashlight came on behind him.

“Need this?” Rafe’s partner, Goldie Finch asked.

“Goldie, I’m glad you arrived.” Rafe said relieved.

“So, a murder . . . on Halloween?” Goldie said unenthused.  “I’m not surprised!”

“So, let’s check the scene out before forensics arrives.” Rafe suggested.

As they looked over the crime scene, they found the victim lying face-down in a pool of her own blood from stab wounds with the knife still in the victim’s back.  But the odd thing was, there was a bag of candy lying next to the victim.

Chapter 2

The CSI team arrived just as Rafe and Goldie finished their search of the crime scene.  Rafe was baffled by that there were no clues . . . except the bag of candy next to the body and the knife stuck in the victim’s back.  There were no fingerprints found anywhere, which means the killer wore gloves.  Clearly, they were dealing with a master killer who knew what they were doing.

“Well, partner, looks like our job is done here?” Goldie said to Rafe.

“Yeah, for now>” Rafe replied, as he watched CSI zip the body bag up with the corpse inside.  “Did you ID the victim?”

“The home is rented out to a Norma Jensen, and it appears she lives alone?” Goldie said.

“Hmmmmmm.” Rafe mused, as a call came in on their radio about another murder.

“Two murders on Halloween night?” Goldie questioned as Rafe and Goldie jumped in their patrol cars and headed for the location of the murder.

“We’ll be there shortly!” a CSI team member called after them.

This time the second murder was across town in The Heights, the wealthiest part of town.  Was it the work of the same killer, or a murder completely unrelated . . . Rafe wondered?

Chapter 3

By the time Rafe and Goldie arrived at the crime scene, the body was already cold and rigor mortis had set in.  Even the blood had started to coagulate around the body, that of another woman in her 20s with the knife stuck in her back as she lie face down in her own blood.  And a bag of candy lying next to the victim . . . possibly the work of a serial killer, the Trick-or-Treat Killer, as Rafe has now dubbed the killer.

“Well, Goldie, it looks as if we have a serial killer on the loose?” Rafe quips.

“Yeah . . . the Trick-or-Treat Killer!” Goldie adds.

“You read my mind!” Rafe laughs.

“Well, it’s not hard being both murders have had a bag of candy lying next to the killer!”

The CSI team arrived a short while later after they had cleaned up the other scene.

“What do you have here.” Janie Richmond asked as she viewed the body.

“Looks like the same M.O.” Rafe said to Janie.

The victim was also a young woman in her 20s who also lived alone.  in both cases, Goldie questions neighbors from both crime scenes.  Both neighbors reported they heard nothing because they were out with their children trick and treating. 

Rafe and Goldie headed for the police station to go over clues while CSI cleaned up the crime scene. 

But when they arrived back at the police station, the media was already abuzz with the news of a serial killer as they talked of the Trick-or-Treat Killer.

“Damn!” Rafe said.  “Leave it to the media to blow everything up!”