KENHARDT - Secrets 43

You saw what happened to men like Mike Darby. He killed four people and got off scott - free. John Morgan - burned his house down and killed his wife, yet walked away without a slap on the wrist. So don’t you dare tell me that I could have gone to the police. We both know that wasn’t an option.’

Joe inhaled slowly, trying to process it all. For once in his life, he was at a loss for words. He didn’t know what to say.

‘I’m sorry that happened to you,’ he finally said, ‘You’re right, I will never know what it was like, or what you went through. And I truly am sorry. But I just can’t condone the murders of those seven men. It wasn’t your right, As an office of the Law, I see injustice every single day. Believe me. You Don’t think I want to do something about it? To take justice into my own hands? Of course I do. I wish I could solve every unsolved murder and bring justice to those who deserve it. But I can’t. I can’t do that. And I know I can’t do anything about it now - it was fifty years ago - but what you did, Suzanne… it was murder, And it was wrong.’ She stared at him, her eyes tracing his face, neither one of them moving or saying a word. She looked down at her lap and smiled, shook her head slightly. ‘So what now, Joe? What happens now?’

Joe inhaled deeply, thinking. His heart had been racing, nearly beating out of his chest. When he unclenched his fists, he realized they were drenched.

‘I’ll need to alert the authorities,’ he told her, ‘There’s no stature of limitations on murder. Unfortunately, you will be arrested and tried for your crimes.’

She shook her head again and laughed dryly. ‘You see, Joe,’ her hand was moving beside her wheelchair, next to the window.

‘I can’t let you do that.’

Before he had time to realized what she was doing, Suzanne was pointing a gun at him. Joe’s hand instinctively reached for his holster, which was empty. FUCK, he hadn’t even thought about bringing anything with him. No gun, no badge. Just himself.

‘Suzanne,’ he held up both hands in surrender. ‘You don’t want to do this.’

‘Don’t tell me what I want and don’t want.’

‘You said it yourself - you’ve only killed seven people. You Don’t want to make it eight.’

‘I want to live how I want to live,’ she said.

‘And I want to die in my home, peacefully in my sleep. Not in a jail cell, going without food or clean water or basic human rights. I’m seventy - five years old. I still have many years left. But unfortunately, Joe, you do not.’

‘It won’t work,’ Joe said. ‘What, you’re going to shoot me? Kill me? Then What? How will you get rid of the body? Look at you,’ he nodded towards her. ‘You can barely walk.’

At that, Suzanne stood from her wheelchair and walked towards him, perfectly capable. His heart pounded in his chest and he took an involuntary step backwards.

She cocked the gun…

‘Please,’ Joe said, desperate now. ‘What about Jordan - your eldest granddaughter. You’re really going to kill me and take that away from her? We’re going to get married,’ he said, ‘She wants a baby, We were planning a family.’

Suzanne sighed. ‘Begging won’t do you any good, I’m afraid. What’s done is done. You went sticking your nose around and now you know something you shouldn’t, something that no one on this planet knows except for me. And I’m afraid that’s a Secret worth Killing for.’

He was shaking, desperately willing to do anything. “Please,’ he said, tears forming in his eyes. ‘Please let me go home to Jordan. I won’t turn you in. Suzanne. I won’t tell a Soul. You have my word.’

She was quiet for a moment, perhaps considering his plea. Joe was willing her with every cell in his body to put down the gun.

‘I’m sorry,’ she finally said, looking him in the Eyes. ‘But I just can’t let you leave…’

With this Joe sprung forward and wrestled the gun from Suzanne’s frail hands.

The she pulled the trigger.

The bullet got Joe in the thigh but he still got the gun away from Suzanne, she fell to the floor when the gun went off. Unable to move from shock, she lay there on the grey patterned carpet.

Joe got his cell phone from his pocket and called Officer Kennedy to notify her what was going on. Letting the paramedics come as well as Officers Jesse and Tanner. He was going to let Frank know what he has uncovered..

Finally, the paramedics loaded Suzanne into the ambulance to be taken to the hospital. Joe was bandaged up for the time been.

Kennedy finally revealed the DNA test that Dr Kelvin had done prior on Haddie Taylor’s foetus. None of the DNA samples that Joe brought him matched.

Unbeknown to Dr Kelvin the DNA tests he did on the John Doe, matched. It was Holden Scott’s baby. Haddie was in a relationship with Holden Scott, The mystery man they were searching for.

****************

The three girls on the ground were one month shy of completing their High school year when their lives ended. Haddie Taylor, Anya Wilson and Kiera Barnes. Classmates. Best friends. Soul Sisters.

Deceased,

It was 12:05pm. The 10177 call came through shortly after 11:00am, which meant that the girls died sometime just before that. Lunch began at 11:00, so the question begged: what were the girls even doing up there in the first place? Why were they not in class?

Well, the Soul Sisters went up to the roof to Meet Holden Scott. He knew about the pregnancy and he wanted to break it off with Haddie. Yes, of course he was supplying Anya and Kiera with their weekly requirements of narcotics.

It was hard for Haddie Taylor to be dumped like that. She walked towards the edge of the roof, bluffing Holden that she would jump, but somehow her foot slipped and Anya and Kiera tried to catch her, but the weight of her falling pulled the other two off the edge of the roof as well.

That terrible fall left them broken on the pavement of the school. St Paul’s as we knew….

Joe and Jordan finally tied the knot. Their home renovated to their liking, baby Tessa on the way.

Suzanne was locked up, but she didn’t live long in prison. Took an old sheet and hung herself. The prison guards found a cooking book on the stool next to her bed. “Country Cooks” - there was a quote written there in blue ink… ‘A recipe has No Soul. You as the Cook must bring Soul to the Recipe….’ and underlined on a piece of paper left on the table was written down the 7 sins of man.

1) Pride

2) Greed

3) Lust - illicit sexual desire

4) Envy

5) Gluttony - which is usually understood as drunkenness.

6) Wrath or Anger

7) Sloth.

The schools Janitor went up to the roof to clean up, as the students always left sandwich wrappers and chip packets and cool drink cans up there. He noticed a loose brick in the wall, he pulled it away and saw a piece of paper and he read it.

‘You loved me, I loved you…

No one should have gone through what we went through, but we did. And it kills me to think of it.

But I didn’t love you like you loved me. I don’t hate you for that. It just makes me sorry, that there isn’t someone else who could love you better, I know when you think about how I went, you’ll get it. I was always uneasy about being alive. The idea of being dead makes me feel clear. When I think of it. It makes me think peace, peace, peace, peace. It makes me happy, I am looking forward to it, to the absence of everything. And so I want you to be happy for me, that this is better for me. That I found what I needed. I know you won’t be. But it’s the last thing I want. You must be HAPPY!’

Signed Haddie Taylor

A heart was drawn and her initials were written in the center of the Red Heart - HARDT..

KEN AND HARDT FOREVER…

THE END.