Hush Little Baby by James Carol Read Free Book Online Page A

unreadable. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking.
    ‘Suzy’s the key here,’ she went on. ‘The way I see this playing out, the first thing the unsub did was grab Suzy and use her to threaten Heidi. And Heidi would have complied because she would have been terrified and not thinking straight, and she’d be looking to do whatever she needed to do to protect her daughter. Like I said, speed was the critical factor. One second they were watching TV or eating dinner or whatever they did during their evening routine, the next they were dealing with The Sandman. While they were confused and reeling, that’s when he took control.’
    ‘What do you think the unsub used to threaten Suzy?’ Dixon asked.
    ‘It’s got to be a knife. A situation like this, it makes for a more dramatic statement. Heidi would have looked at the unsub standing there with a knife pressed against Suzy’s throat and her brain would have shut down. There’s no way any mother is going to be able to think straight under those sort of circumstances.’
    ‘What about a gun?’ Winter suggested. ‘If this is all about making a statement then that would be just as dramatic. If the unsub is standing there with a gun pointed at Suzy’s head then surely that’s got to be just as terrifying for Heidi.’
    Yoko was shaking her head. ‘That doesn’t work. The threat needs to be credible. This house is detached, so noise isn’t a major consideration. A neighbourhood like this, raised voices would be part of the background noise. People have arguments all the time. Parents reach the end of their rope and shout at their kids. A gunshot is a different matter altogether. A gun goes off around here and someone is going to call the cops. I guarantee it. Something like that is not going to be ignored.’
    ‘But you said that Heidi wouldn’t have been thinking straight. Do you really think she’s going to be in a fit state to reason things out to that degree? Someone puts a gun to your kid’s head, you’re going to be scared to death.’
    ‘This isn’t about Heidi’s state of mind, it’s about the unsub’s. Committing a crime like this is risky, and that’s one of the reasons he does this. For the thrill. However, the risks he takes are calculated ones. He can’t afford a situation where his bluff gets called.’
    ‘I can buy that.’ This came from Dixon. Winter didn’t look so convinced.
    ‘Also,’ Yoko added, ‘with knives you can threaten by degrees. You can make small cuts. You can show a little blood. You don’t have to go straight for the jugular. With a gun, you don’t have that option. Once you pull the trigger, that’s it, game over.’
    Winter still didn’t look convinced.
    ‘Finally, we know from what happened to Heidi and the other two moms that knives are his weapon of choice.’
    ‘And we get there in the end.’ Winter grinned and, crazy as it seemed, Yoko felt like she’d just passed the exam. ‘Okay, so what happens next?’
    ‘Next, he needs to make sure they can’t make any noise. He’s going to kill them one at a time and when that happens the screaming will start. A few shouts might be ignored, but end-of-the-world screaming won’t be. That one’s up there with gunfire. So he tosses a roll of duct tape across to Heidi, tells her to rip off a strip and put it over her mouth. She’s probably going to hesitate, so he’ll press the knife a little harder against Suzy’s throat to get some more tears. Heidi complies, then hands the tape back so the unsub can gag Suzy.’
    Yoko stared at the shadows gathering in the corner of the room, scenarios running through her head. The soft toys arranged on the chair under the window appeared sinister in the gloomy half-light sneaking in from the hallway.
    ‘He binds Heidi’s hands and feet with the duct tape. Then he takes Suzy to her bedroom and smothers her with a pillow. At this point, Heidi won’t know that her daughter is dead so she’ll still be cooperating.