3am

Chapter 4

Liam and I pull up to the edge of the quarry less than ten minutes later. We exit the car just as the first officer on scene spots us and approaches. "Where is he?" I ask. The patrol officer shoots a glance at the edge and then points downward.

"Bottom of the cliff sirs," he says, with a visible gulp. Leaving Liam to question the first officer, I make my way toward the cliff's edge. Once there, I glance down and realize really quickly why the patrolman seemed scared. It is a sheer drop to the bottom from where I am standing. At the bottom of the cliff is a hive of activity. Other patrol officers swarm around the scene, running crime scene tape around just about anything they can. CSI has already arrived, and I spot the flash from their cameras. The ME is not here yet, but that is just as well. I want a look at the body in situ, before anyone messes with it.

Just to the left of me is a narrow half-pathway that leads to the bottom. As I continue to stare down at the scene, Liam comes upon me. He places a hand on my shoulder as I turn toward him. "Still think this isn't related to the crank caller?" I ask quietly. He shakes his head.

"Even I can't fault the logic on this one," he replies just as quietly. "You get a call from the prankster just before we get a second victim? No way is that not connected."

I nod in assent and head for the trail, with Liam in tow. We gingerly pick our way down the side of the cliff until we reach the bottom. Ducking under the crime scene tape together, we pause to survey the area. Directly in front of us is the body, surrounded by technicians from the CSI department. Uniform patrol officers skulk around the perimeter of the crime scene, looking for potential evidence.

Liam and I split up. He heads off to chat with the CSIs and patrol officers about who discovered the body and what evidence they have collected. I, on the other hand, head straight to the body. I approach slowly, allowing myself the time to take in as much information from my senses as possible. Sights, smells, sounds... all of it.

Just like the first body, this one is lying supine, his empty eyes staring into the bright blue sky overhead. There is another red strangulation mark around the young man's throat, one that looks identical to the first victim. It is another young man, but unlike John Doe #1, he has got blond hair and green eyes. He is also Caucasian, with very pale skin. He appears younger than John Doe #1. I peg him at early to mid-twenties, maybe. He is a little heavier than John Doe #1, but still got an athletic build to him.

But what really stands out is the fact that the body is dressed in the same powder blue suit as the first victim. That smacks of a signature, something distinct to a serial killer. What bothers me is the brief time between bodies. Most serial killers go weeks or months between kills. This guy has dumped two bodies in the span of a week. Either he is super comfortable with his method-which makes me wonder if these two victims aren't his first-or he is on a tight schedule. Either way, it doesn't bode well for our investigation.

I have crouched down beside the body, taking in all my observations without a sound, but now I slowly rise to my feet. As I do, I noticed that the body is fresh. Really fresh. There is no way it has been out here more than an hour. Maybe two at the most. But definitely not any longer than that, since scavengers would have been at it. I also notice that the body has only been dead a short while. Rigor mortis doesn't seem to have set in yet, except perhaps in a few tiny facial muscles. There is no evidence of bloating. Livor mortis doesn't appear fixed yet either. Everything I am seeing leads me to believe that John Doe #2 has only been dead and dumped for the last couple of hours. This means that if we can identify him, then there is an excellent chance we can backtrack his last known movements. And maybe even catch ourselves a killer.

I turn around and hike back to the trail. Once there, I look around for Liam. He is nowhere to be found, so I trudge back up the steep incline to the top. At the summit of the cliff, I take a last look down at the crime scene. I allow my gaze to travel around the cliff's edge, trying to visualize how the killer got the victim to the bottom of the quarry. From everything I have seen, the victim was carried and/or dragged down to the bottom. The body doesn't present any injuries indicative of a fall from the cliff top. Also, the body is almost exactly center of the quarry pit, something that would be difficult to achieve by throwing it into the quarry. The victim lies on a small ledge, one that extends from the dry half of the quarry into the water-filled portion.