The Child's Plan by Audrey Walker (books to read this summer .TXT) 📗

The Captain’s picture flashed on the screen, and Robin clenched her fist. She knew they just all are under fire for what had happened. They were all probably questioning the entire team; they may even be in danger of losing their badges. She didn’t even know what happened to Kyle or what he was going through. There was no mention of him anywhere.

“The disgraced Captain is under investigation and has been removed from his position. He is suspended from the task force, and the entire homicide division is under investigation. The public has been thrown into a panic. Anyone can be the next victim of the deranged Detective. Will our families ever be safe? A nationwide hunt for the detective is ongoing, but up until now, they have no leads.”

Robin turned off the TV and looked at her reflection. A new wig that she had stolen from a shop rested on her head, followed by a huge mustache and a beard. The pillow she had stuffed in her shirt made her appear like a middle-aged man, and she had completed the look with a tucked-in shirt and pants.

This disguise was necessary, considering where she was heading. She needed to find the identity of this child. Robin was certain he had some link to the killer. “He might even be the killer,” she thought. She needed to find him, and she had to do it soon. And she knew a place where she might find a clue.

She will have to go back to hell, back to that damn basement.

Chapter Three

Robin looked around, not noticing anyone around her. She had been cautious coming here, and she had a feeling the police might be keeping an eye on it. Even though it was necessary, Robin almost wished she hadn’t come. She knew that this was where she would find her answers. Robin could leave no stone unturned in her search. God knows what that killer might do next and who he might hurt while executing his plan. She had to find out where he was and do it quickly. The killer clearly had a personal vendetta, and Robin knew going down the path of her past would eventually lead her to the killer.

She jumped in through the window after managing to unlock it with her tools. It wasn't a trick that was taught at the academy, but Robin had learned it from her experience with criminals. She looked around the house. It appeared as empty and untouched as before. She went down to the basement, investigating every single corner. She tapped on walls making sure none were hollow, and she even looked under the stairs. Every room in that house was gone through by Robin, and she made sure not to leave any fingerprints or disturb anything noticeable.

After an hour of searching and after all that hard work, Robin found nothing; nothing to help her find the killer or make this easier for her to track him. What was she going to do next? How could this have been a failure? She was so sure that she would find something here. She had been so confident, but how could there be nothing?

“Where did you get this?” Robin whispered, looking down at the diary in front of her.

“It’s his,” the child whispered.

“Where was it?” Robin asked again.

“It’s a secret,” he said.

“How about you tell me your secret, and I will tell you one of mine?” Robin asked.

“Will you tell me about your sister? A story?” the child asked her, his eyes wide.

“I will tell you about a fun story at the park we all played at,” Robin said. “Now, tell me, where did you find it?”

The child whispered something in Robin’s ear and then smiled proudly at her. “Now, tell me about the park,” he said.

Robin gasped as she remembered. The child, he had somehow found the Butcher’s diary, and he had told her where he found it. It was a location she doubted the police discovered, and she rushed toward the Butcher’s room. She took a deep breath in, and as the child had promised, she found the secret safe exactly where he had told her it would be.

She opened it up and found documents and pictures strewn about. Slowly, Robin took them out, one by one. She gathered the photos, realizing that they were all pictures of his victims. Behind each smiling face, the Butcher had written the name and the date of the kidnapping. Killers were known for collecting mementos of their victims, and the police were surprised when they didn’t find any. But they didn’t realize just how well-hidden they were.

Robin frowned as she observed a face that she hadn’t seen before. She turned it over and softly read, “Lilly.”

The date on the back of the photo was eight years before the first victim was discovered. “Is it possible that this woman was the original victim? Is this where he had started it all? Her body had never been discovered, but it was possible that she was missed since there was a huge gap between the first kidnapping and this woman’s,” Robin wondered. She had to find out more about the first victim, so she pocketed the photo for later. Now, Robin had a new lead, a piece of information she didn’t have before. The Butcher kept ‘Lilly’ for eight years; she must have meant something to him. “Lilly could be the key in this murder spree. Or maybe I’m going down the rabbit hole, and this discovery will only distract me,” she thought. And yet, this was her only clue, and she planned on following it.

Robin continued looking, and she soon found the diaries that belonged to the Butcher. There were so many that Robin barely had time to read it all. She remembered the diary that the child had stolen for her, and she flipped through them all until she found the one. The same childlike writing greeted her, and she slowly started