Chapter 59 - Bait

"Are you sure it's the captain?" Hayden asked. He knew captain Clifton and never saw him as someone that would do anything devious.

"He has a secret email and phone that shows multiple communications with Jon. It's in code, but I was able to decipher it. There are conversations that state who is working on the case. Where they are looking and updates on the investigation." Krista showed them what she'd found, and they all looked in shock.

"What do you think we should do?" Natalia asked Hayden. She had never met the captain.

"Let's not say anything yet. Now that you have this let's monitor what they communicate to each other. Maybe we can get ahead of Jon that way." He replied. He wasn't ready to say anything to Dennis yet.

Krista kept the window open with their emails and texts so she would know if there was anything new. She then continued checking through the precinct, looking for others helping Jon.

Dorian returned to work watching Jon, who was still hanging out in front of NC. He wanted to call his men to get him, but he felt Jon was up to something and wanted to see what. Everyone jumped when Hayden's phone rang.

"Hello," He answered while putting the phone on speaker so they all could hear.

"Hayden, it's Dennis. I wanted to let you know we found another body. I'm calling because this one looks a lot like Natalia, and he left a message for both her and Krista. Check your phone." Dennis felt sick after what they had walked into. He made sure only to take a picture of the message and not the slaughter.

*My name is Jon. I'm on a mission to kill as many blondes as possible until I get the two I want. Natalia and Krista, if you don't come out to play, the deaths will increase. This is a game, and the ball is in your court. What's your move? The clock is ticking...*

"He expects us to go to him willingly?" Natalia asked in anger as they read the message clearly written in blood on the wall.

"Don't worry. We're not going to let that happen. You are safest staying where you are now. Don't leave the hotel for any reason." Dennis stated firmly. He didn't want to show the message to the women, but he wanted to scare them enough to stay put.

"We're not letting them go anywhere," Hayden said, putting his arm around Natalia.

"Alright, let me know if you have any updates from your end, and I'll let you know if we find anything else," Dennis said before disconnecting the call.

"Why didn't you tell him where Jon is?" Natalia asked Dorian, who had stayed quiet throughout the phone call with Dennis.

"I want to see what he's up to. He's still hanging around NC, but I don't know for what purpose. He's not acting like he's hunting, but he's behaving as though he's waiting for someone." They all looked at the screen to watch with him. Everyone wanted to have someone swoop in to get him, but they noticed the same thing as Dorian. Jon seemed to be waiting for something.

As they watched, they saw a long black limousine pull up. They couldn't see who was in it, but Jon walked over and spoke to someone through the window. Dorian tried to get an image of the plates, but they were too hard to make out. After a few minutes, Jon walked away, and the car drove off. Everyone watched as Dorian worked on finding whose car that was. Krista took over on her laptop, watching Jon. Even though she wasn't as fast as Dorian, she could keep up with him.

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Dennis and Andy stared at the bloody mess in front of them and wondered how one man was capable of doing such damage to the human body. The only thing that wasn't harmed was her face.

When they first saw her, they both were taken aback because she looked so much like Natalia that they thought he'd gotten to her. Once they focused, they realized it wasn't her at all. Her face may not have been hurt, but her head has been removed from her body. It was sitting on the counter in the deserted shop.

He had taken off all her limbs and carved up her torso. Some of her organs had been removed and flung around the room. Jon had taken out her heart and left it on the floor with a knife stuck through it. The entire place was covered with so much blood it looked like a massacre.

"I don't like how aggressive he's getting. It shows he's getting desperate and will do whatever's necessary to get these two women. What are we going to do? We can't keep sitting back and waiting for the next body to show up. It's time to make a serious move so we can catch him." Andy looked at Dennis and saw the same look of anger on his face.

"It's clear he left this as a direct threat to them. If they don't voluntarily sacrifice themselves, he'll kill more women. He wants them to think that every woman he kills is their fault. This guy is delusional. There is no way I'm letting those two women get near him or even be used as bait." Dennis said. He didn't want Andy getting any ideas about using them to draw Jon out. He knew for certain Hayden and Dorian wouldn't allow it even if the women agreed.

"Hear me out. If we have them pretend to sacrifice themselves for the sake of other women, we'll be in control. We can follow him and arrest him before he has the chance to touch them." Andy didn't believe there was any other way than to use the women if they were going to catch Jon before he killed again.

"Absolutely not. Can you imagine telling Natalia, who already has two legs in casts and has to have someone do everything for her, that we want her to get kidnapped by Jon so we can catch him? It's not happening." Dennis shook his head. This was not something he was willing to consider. You don't play with a serial killer.

"Then tell me what idea you have because right now, we've got nothing but dead bodies piling up. I don't want to pull rank, but I will if I have to. I'll go to Captain Clifton and tell him my plan. Now are you with me or against me?" Andy asked. He had always enjoyed working with Dennis, but he knew he was right in this matter. This was the only way to stop Jon from killing anyone else. He was positive they would get to the women before he could hurt them.

"I'm asking you, as a friend, don't make these women face him. We can't guarantee their safety. What if Jon gets mad and kills them immediately so he can play with their bodies. This man is not stable. I protect and serve. I don't hand deliver innocent women to a murderer." Dennis was yelling, and the others at the crime scene began looking at them in curiosity. It was rare for Dennis to raise his voice.

Andy also noticed the stares, so he decided to drop it for now. As soon as they left, he was going to make Dennis see reason, and if it didn't work, he would go to Clifton. He was sure the captain would see things his way.

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Dorian played with the car's images and finally made out some of the letters and numbers. He started running them, looking for a match to a limo. Krista was still following Jon, but it was getting more difficult as he cut through side streets and alleys. After about an hour, they lost him completely. They looked all around, but he had gone somewhere they could no longer follow him.

"I'm sorry I lost him," Krista said, feeling useless. She was sure Dorian would have been better at keeping up with him.

"It's not your fault. He does this a lot. We'll get him." Natalia reassured her, seeing her looks of distress.

"I found something. The car was from a car service, and the last person who requested it was Elena Sumner." They all looked toward Hayden as he stared at Dorian's computer in shock.

"How does my mom know Jon, and why would she be talking to him?" He asked, almost to himself. Just as he was about to call his parents, the elevator pinged, letting them know someone was coming. They all looked with apprehension waiting for the door to open. They weren't too concerned because the police or the security men hadn't called them. When the elevator door opened, Andy walked in looking disheveled.

"What's wrong?" Hayden asked, noticing Dennis wasn't with him.

"You all need to come with me now. Dennis was killed. We have to get you out of here."