SOUL

Janel Kade

Janel Kade, 28, married, kidnapped from her home in the middle of the day. She'd been taken a day prior and they were no where near finding any more answers, this guy moved too fast.

Leo sat at his cluttered desk in the dimly lit station, a cup of cold coffee beside him that he had long forgotten about. The last few days had been a blur of stress, dead ends, and desperate attempts to piece together enough evidence to catch whoever was responsible for the string of kidnappings. But amidst all of it, one thing kept gnawing at him—the fight he had with Mary. He could still see the hurt in her eyes, the way she recoiled when he snapped at her, and it made his chest ache with regret.

He picked up his phone, scrolling through their recent messages. He knew he had been unfair, but he also knew his outburst had been driven by fear—fear of losing control of the situation, and fear of seeing someone else he cared about get hurt. Still, that was no excuse for how he had treated her. He took a deep breath and began typing, carefully choosing his words.

Hey Mary. I know things were rough between us last time we talked, and I've been thinking about it a lot. I'm sorry for how I acted—I know I was harsh, and you didn't deserve that. You were just trying to help, and I shouldn't have shut you down like I did. I'm struggling with everything going on, and I took it out on you. That's not fair, and it's not right. I'm really sorry. Can we talk? If you're free, could you come by the station this afternoon? I'd like to see you and figure this out.

He hovered over the send button for a moment, re-reading the message. It felt like there was so much more he wanted to say, but he couldn't find the words. He hit send and set the phone down, running a hand through his hair. Almost immediately, his phone buzzed, and he glanced down to see Mary's response.

It's okay, Leo. I understand. I'll come by this afternoon. See you then.

The tightness in his chest eased slightly, and he felt a flicker of hope. At least she was willing to come and talk. He couldn't fix everything with one apology, but it was a start. Now, he had to focus on the case. They were running out of time, and they needed a breakthrough—anything that could point them toward Maria's whereabouts.

Leo turned his attention back to the computer screen, pulling up the surveillance footage they had collected from the last locations where the victims had been seen. He had gone over these videos a dozen times already, but something told him there was still a detail he had missed. The room was quiet except for the occasional murmur of conversations from other detectives working nearby, the clinking of keyboards, and the faint hum of the air conditioning.

He fast-forwarded through one clip, then rewound, scanning the background for anything that looked out of place. He clicked to the next video, his eyes growing tired as he forced himself to concentrate. Suddenly, something caught his eye—a car parked in the distance, barely visible, but there all the same. He zoomed in, squinting at the grainy footage. It was the same car he had seen in another clip, parked near a different location where a victim had disappeared.

Leo's heart began to race as he switched between the footage, comparing the images side by side. It was a dark sedan, older model, with a dent on the rear fender. He quickly jotted down the license plate number, then ran it through the system. He needed to be sure, and when the results came back, it was confirmed—the same car had been spotted at multiple crime scenes, always around the same time the victims had been last seen.

Leo immediately called Harris over. "Hey, you need to see this," he said, pointing at the screen. "Look at this car. It shows up at every location where we know the victims were last seen before they vanished."

Harris leaned in, his brow furrowed as he studied the footage. "You're sure it's the same one?"

"Same make, same model, same dent on the fender. It's got to be," Leo replied, his voice steady but intense. "I ran the plates. The car belongs to a guy named Jerry Wade."

"Who the hell is Jerry Wade?" Harris muttered, leaning over to type the name into the database. Within seconds, Wade's profile appeared on the screen. He was in his early forties, owned a small family butcher shop, and had a criminal record that included charges for assaulting two women. Although he had served time, he was released early on good behavior.

"Assault charges..." Harris said, scrolling through the details. "Looks like he got off light. Two separate incidents, and both times the victims didn't press charges after he pled down. That's not a good sign."

Leo felt a chill run down his spine. "The butcher shop," he said quietly. "It fits. The bodies we've found... the cuts were precise, professional. Like someone who knew exactly what they were doing."

Harris nodded, his expression darkening. "Yeah, and a butcher would know how to handle a knife. It explains why the dismemberments looked so practiced." He straightened up, crossing his arms. "I think we've got our guy."

Leo felt a mix of satisfaction and dread. "We need to act on this. If he's the one behind these kidnappings, he's not going to stop. And if Janel is still alive, she doesn't have much time left."

"Let's bring it to the captain," Harris said, already heading for the office. "We need to figure out how we're going to move forward."

The captain's office was at the far end of the station, and the door was slightly ajar. Harris knocked twice before pushing it open. The captain looked up from his paperwork, his eyes sharpening as he saw the serious expressions on their faces. "What's going on?" he asked, setting down his pen.

"We think we've identified a prime suspect," Harris said, getting straight to the point. "His name is Jerry Wade. He owns a butcher shop on the east side of town. We found footage that shows his car at multiple locations where victims were last seen before they went missing. He's also got a history—assault charges against two women."

The captain's gaze hardened. "And what's his current status?"

Leo answered, "He's out on parole, technically free, but with a record. It looks like he was released on good behavior, but given his background and what we've seen, we think he's our guy. The way the bodies were dismembered... it fits. He'd have the skills to do that cleanly, quickly."

The captain leaned back in his chair, tapping a finger on the desk as he considered the information. "Alright," he said slowly. "It's circumstantial, but it's enough to build a case. We can't bring him in just yet—we need more solid evidence, something that directly connects him to Maria or the other victims. But I agree, he's our prime suspect."

"What do you want us to do?" Harris asked, his voice steady. "We're running out of time, and if we wait too long, we might not get another chance."

The captain thought for a moment before he spoke. "We're going to handle this carefully. I want surveillance on Wade and his shop. Around the clock. If he's got Janel, we need to find out where he's keeping her, and we need to catch him in the act, or at least with enough evidence to get a warrant. We can't let him know we're onto him."

Leo nodded, but he felt a knot of anxiety tightening in his gut. "And what if he catches wind that we're watching him?" he asked. "If he panics, he could disappear, or worse... he could hurt her."

"That's why we need to be smart about this," the captain said, his tone firm. "We can't afford to make a mistake. I'll have our best people on surveillance, and I'll make sure they're discreet. But we need to gather as much information as we can before we make a move. If he's got a pattern, or if he slips up, we'll be ready."

Leo clenched his jaw, forcing himself to stay calm. "Alright. I'll keep digging into Wade's background. Maybe there's something we've missed, some connection that'll give us an edge."

"Good," the captain said, nodding. "And keep me updated. The moment we have enough, we'll move in. Until then, we proceed with caution."

As they left the office, Leo glanced at his watch. It was already approaching noon. He had a few hours before Mary would come by, and he needed to be ready for that conversation. But right now, there was a man out there who might have Maria, and Leo wasn't going to stop until he found her.

The stakes had never felt higher, and as he sat back down at his desk, he felt the weight of every decision bearing down on him. They were closing in on Jerry Wade, but the clock was ticking, and Leo knew they had to make every moment count.