The Beast Within

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

“What do we know so far?” Lieutenant Richter asked once Hollis and Abbie had taken seats across his desk from him.

“On this victim, nothing yet. The CSI team has the body plus the remains of a leg found on the scene. The vic was nude, just like the others, and this one was missing an arm as well as his heart,” Hollis replied.

“He was found by a father and son out hunting,” Abbie added. “They said they didn’t see or hear anyone in the area at the time.”

The lieutenant nodded as he checked the case file before he handed it over to Hollis. “Three victims now that we know of.”

“Presumptively four since an unidentified forearm was found with the first known victim. We were thinking the perpetrator may have decided to go public for the publicity, so to speak.”

“Possible,” Richter said. “Or something interrupted him while he was in the midst of killing the first one we found and he had to flee the scene and leave the body behind.”

Abbie shook her head. “That doesn’t explain the forearm being there.”

“Exactly,” Hollis tapped his fingers on the case file. “So we have two males known to frequent gay clubs and possibly a third with the newest victim, unless our killer has changed how he finds them. So far we haven’t been able to link either of the victims to a specific club at the time of their disappearance. However, both seem to have been taken on weekends so no one was aware they weren’t around until they didn’t show up for work on Monday. Both of them lived alone and had no significant others in their lives.”

“Trace evidence?” Richter said.

“None that links them together. It’s the method of killing that does that. All three had their throats slit, their hearts cut out and one limb severed at the joint, which is not an easy thing to do, according to the ME. He likened it to carving up a Thanksgiving turkey only on a larger scale.”

Richter nodded then said, “Which brings us to the question of what happened to the missing flesh since it was stripped from the bones. Is this some sort of ritual thing going on here or do we have a cannibal on the loose?”

“Well the ME says he doesn’t gnaw the flesh off,” Abbie replied. “He says there are scrapes on the bones indicating he cuts it off. So,” she smiled slightly, “the comparison to a turkey dinner ends there.”

“If he is cannibalizing the heart and limb does he take them home with him or just go off deeper in the woods to eat?” Richter wondered aloud.

“I’d say, since he leaves the stripped limb by the next victim, he must take them back somewhere. Home or, well who knows where, but somewhere where he can eat without being seen then store the bones from the limb until he needs to kill again.”

“Have you talked to anyone who’s an expert on cannibalism?”

“That’s next on my agenda,” Hollis replied. “I have an appointment with a psychiatrist friend in,” he checked his watch, “about an hour actually.”

“Well get moving then,” Richter ordered. “The more we know about who we’re looking for the better. Abbie can finish filling me in.”

* * * *

“Cannibalism. An interesting topic about which there’s much controversy,” Dr Wainwright said as she tapped her fingers together. “In some societies it has religious significance, in the Western world it’s looked upon with abhorrence despite the fact that in many Western religions it’s practiced metaphorically every Sunday when parishioners take communion.”

“Can’t say I ever looked at it that way but I guess you’re right. Going back to people who eat real flesh, is there any psychological reasoning behind it, as compared to someone practicing some religious ritual?”

“One theory, and I’m saying theory because so far there’s no solid data to back it up, is that it’s the result of separation trauma when a child is weaned. The child then fantasizes about devouring the mother. Some extreme trauma in adulthood could cause the individual to regress back to childhood to seek the fulfillment he’s been denied by resorting to cannibalism.”

“Okay,” Hollis said doubtfully, which caused Dr Wainwright to smile.

“Another theory that is somewhat correlatively connected is that cannibalism is a psychological response to anger and frustration, which is then expressed through oral aggression. There is a literal desire to absorb a person through consuming them, especially if the perceived enemy threatens the strength of the individual.”

“I did a bit of research on my own on recent…” Hollis frowned, “cannibalistic killers. Dahmer of course comes to mind but there are others. A rapper high on PCP murdered then partially ate his victim. A man traveling on a cross country bus stabbed his seatmate, decapitated him, severed some of his parts, and began to eat them.”

Dr. Wainwright nodded. “There’s another case in which a man made a bet with a friend concerning their eating flesh. The friend, high on painkillers and liquor agreed to let the other man cut his p***s off. The cutter flambéed it and they both ate it. The victim was of course bleeding heavily and went to take a bath. He bled out and died and his friend proceeded to eat strips of his flesh. Over the next few months he ate forty-four pounds of his friend’s dead body.”

“None of those seem to fit into the psychological reasons you talked about,” Hollis said.

“It would be hard to tell if they did or not as no psychological profiles were worked up on them that I’m aware of.”

Hollis sighed. “I was hoping there was something that would scream ‘cannibal’ if we find any men to interview in relation to these killings. I know that doesn’t often happen but sometimes the correct words can trigger a response. Unfortunately I don’t think I can ask a suspect ‘Did you dream of eating your mother when she took you off breastfeeding?’.”

“No,” the psychiatrist replied with a chuckle, “I suspect it would probably get you in a world of trouble with his lawyer if nothing else.”

“So any suggestions at all how I should precede?”

“Quite honestly, no, not in terms of how to handle an interview unless the interviewee does in fact think they are practicing some sort of religious ritual. That could explain the missing hearts. Even then I doubt that they would admit it. From what you told me they seem to be careful to strip the flesh from the bones rather than chewing it off. That says to me they’re aware enough that they know what they’re doing is wrong. And,” she added, “that they know saliva could be used against them if they’re caught.”

“Why take a limb from the body, eat the flesh if that is what he’s doing and leave it with the next victim? Is there any validity to our thought that he’s ‘showing off’ that he can do it and not get caught?”

“I’m sorry to say but at this point, with what little you’ve been able to discover, anything is possible, even that.”

“Figured,” Hollis said as he stood up. “Thank you for your time and your help.”

“What little I could give you. If you get any closer to the killer or something new happens call me. I’ll be glad to let you know if it adds anything to your profile of the killer’s reasoning for what he’s doing.”