Page 37 of Shadow Angel
Beth smiled at him. “Thanks. I was going to use my phone but that’s much better.”
A guard led them into a small room outside the interview room and as they arrived, Blackwood stepped out.
“He’s ready to talk.” He eyed them all critically. “I will stop you if any question is inappropriate. Is that understood?”
Rolling her eyes, Beth nodded. “Sure. We’re all tired. Can we get this started?”
They filed inside and, Beth took a seat to one side, and Jo sat beside Styles with Carter on her right. Chained to a desk sat Crenshaw. Even though this man hadn’t gone to trial, no one was taking any chances and his chains clanked as he surveyed the faces. She placed the recording device on the table and switched it on. She gave the date, time, and who were present in the room.
“We’ve found the videos and the photographs plastered all over your loft. Your wife gave us the clothes and jewelry you took from the bodies.” Styles leaned on the table, hands clenched. “What we’d like to know is why?”
“My lawyer has negotiated a deal if I talk to you. He’s told me about the evidence against me, so I figure you’d got me, seeing the chains and all. They wouldn’t grant me bail, so I guess this is home now.”
“So talk, we’re all listening.” Styles stared at him.
“Yeah, I’d love to talk about my darlings. They’re all in here.” Crenshaw tapped his head. “I understand you’ll need an excuse why I killed them all. I don’t know, it seemed the right thing to do, is all. The first one, I needed someone to be nice to me. Greet me when I came home.” Crenshaw wiped the end of his nose, making his handcuffs rattle against the metal loop on the table.
“Did you have a happy childhood?” Jo crossed her legs and looked interested. “Your father was a minister, I believe?”
“He was and I was happy for a time.” Crenshaw shrugged. “I guess.”
“A time?” Jo raised an eyebrow. “What changed?”
“When I was fourteen, I think, I liked looking at girls—that’s natural, right?” Crenshaw seemed to wait for Jo’s nod of approval and then smiled. “Not for my pa. He said it was sinful and beat me any time he noticed my eye wandering to a pretty face. The girl next door was so cute, long hair and a dazzling smile. I would imagine her naked and smiling at me. It had gotten the best of me when I started to peek through her bedroom window and watch her undress. It was like a dream until my pa caught me. He took me to church and told everyone what I’d done. Flogged me right there in front of the congregation and did so every Sunday. So, I decided to get me my own girl and hide her away where no one would find her.” He sighed and stared into space as if recalling his first kill. “After that, well, I was just on automatic.”
“What about your wife? Didn’t she smile and welcome you home?” Jo casually took out a notepad and made notes, ignoring him.
“I needed an excuse to move around unnoticed.” Crenshaw’s mouth twitched into a smile. “No one suspects the nice guy who works for a charity, has a wife and kids, do they? None of you suspected me for years. All that time, I had my darlings out there waiting for me, welcoming me with open arms, saying, ‘Here I am. I belong only to you.’”
Suddenly wishing Crenshaw would escape so she could wipe him from existence, Beth snorted. She couldn’t help herself. “I’m sure when the truth gets out that I took you down, all five-foot-five and one-ten pounds of me, and you cried for your mommy, no one will ever want you again.”
“Trust me, one day I’ll get out and come looking for you.” Crenshaw smiled at her. “You’ll be on the top of my list.” He licked his lips. “I love blondes just like you, Agent Beth Katz. Yeah, I know who you are, and you’d make a great addition to my collection.”
Beth stood and pressed both knuckles on the table and glared at him. “Bring it on. I’ve made it my life’s work to take down monsters like you.” She turned and left the room.
Outside in the small room. She stared at Ryder’s astonished expression and burst out laughing. “Oh, that feels so much better.”
“He hasn’t upset you?” Ryder offered her a bottle of water.
Shaking her head, Beth looked at him. “Nope. I wanted to push him over the edge. He’s all talk. He uses drugs and weapons to overpower women. He’s nothing but a coward. I’m not afraid of him.”
“I am.” Ryder rubbed the back of his neck. “After seeing the maniac side of him, I’ll have bad dreams for a long time.”
The questioning continued but they already had what they’d come for, the why behind the murders. Being belittled and beaten as a child would have been the trigger, and once he’d gotten started he couldn’t stop. Beth took a seat and stared through the two-way mirror. The voices coming through the intercom sounded tinny.
“Where did you obtain the fentanyl?” Styles dropped into Beth’s seat and raised both eyebrows at Crenshaw. “We know you used it to subdue your victims or more likely anesthetize them.”
“It’s spread all over and easier to obtain than you figure.” Crenshaw shrugged. “That and oxy. If I wanted to deal in drugs, I could get a regular supply.”
“How?” Styles frowned. “I personally cleaned up the fentanyl drug ring and they’re all in jail.”
“I clean out people’s homes, right?” Crenshaw waved a hand dismissively. “The majority are deceased estates. You know, old people’s places? The family can’t take the time or don’t care about the possessions. They just want me to empty them. They always want a rush job so they can get the cleaning crew inside and get the property on the market. It’s all about money. I guess to make them feel good about not caring, the family donates the contents to the charity and I go in and clear it out. The old folks usually have cancer drugs, pain meds, all types of stuff. It’s a treasure trove of drugs.” He shrugged. “Ask the local pharmacists. I drop a ton of them by for disposal. I only kept the drugs I needed.” He winked at Styles. “Sometimes I got lucky and found a stash of morphine.”
“And where are these drugs now?” Styles narrowed his gaze at him.
“In my truck, inside the gun locker.” Crenshaw shrugged. “I’m a responsible citizen. This thing with my darlings was a distraction, is all. When you look at the facts, you’ll see they made me do it. I’m not responsible for my actions. I’m a law-abiding citizen. Ask anyone.”
“Do you recall where you left the bodies of your victims?” Jo glanced up.
