I no longer work in the police force, for reasons that will soon become very clear, but when i did, i was in the force for over a decade, i was what some described as a model cop, a really good amount of arrests, my paperwork was always spot on and I was seen as a role model to children in the area.
I hadn’t ever really been assigned to a case that stumped me as much as the one that got me fired, I always worked all the hours needed to put the right people away for their crimes, however this one, this one was different.
I was assigned this case in late 2015, just after an accident that got me taken out of the field for a few months. A car crash, nothing too major for me at first, just your standard broken bones here and there followed with a concussion. The cause? Some idiot drunk, skipped a red and hit me dead on, i’ve never understood drink driving to this day.
Back to the case, a serial killer, one that caused an uproar in the news, seemed to only kill at night, no real motive and never a clue or shred of evidence left behind. The only thing that connected each murder was a tulip and a bottle cap of different beers, that was the killers thing. This wasn’t just the odd murder, bodies were found every other night at the height of this killers spree.
Many officers had told me this is going to be impossible to solve, that it was going to be one of those famous unsolved cold cases that go down in history. With my reputation it’s understandable as to why i focused all my attention on said case.
After 2 weeks of more killings and more research, we still had nothing, i’d go to sleep drunk and wake up with no knowledge of the night before, the case took a toll on me that i didn’t know was humanly possible. It gets to the point you can’t do much other than wait for them to slip up, but this one wouldn’t. A Man found dead with 2 missing limbs. Another man found left with his eyeballs missing. A woman found mutilated, all in the street, all with a tulip, all with a bottle cap. All with no evidence.
If i’m honest it got to the point i was ready to give up, my health was deteriorating as the crimes got worse and more frequent I was exhausted all of the time and couldn’t focus on one task. I decided to see a therapist, i’d been told by other officers it could be for the best, it was clear the effects of working this case were visible to those around me.
My first appointment with my new therapist seemed to go down well, it was a weight off my chest, not quite all the weight, but enough to help me feel refreshed. The topic of my crash from before i went back in the field got brought up, however i didn’t feel comfortable expressing what happened that night to what was a complete stranger.
My second appointment came around a week later after frequently speaking on the phone i felt that this time after he insisted, that it was time i opened up about my crash… I hesitated at first, but maybe it was for the best, it wasn’t.
“It was a cold night, me and my wife had just finished a nice date, our 5th year anniversary, a nice meal in the restaurant where we first visited. We got in the car to head home, music blasting and just enjoying each others company.”
“What happened next, i need to know?” The therapist asked as i took a moment to gather my thoughts.
“A red light, luckily wasn’t red for long, she hated waiting. The light went amber, i got in gear. The light went green, i set off. Across the road was a car, plummeting through at over 100mph. A group of drunks, they skipped a red, hit me and my wife head on.”
It took me a few minutes before i could get the words out to describe what followed.
“I got lucky, a few injuries here and there, nothing that rest couldn’t heal. My wife, not as lucky. She died that night in the hospital.”
The therapist sat silent for a matter of minutes before deciding it could be best to end the session there.
I got home distraught, it was the first time i opened up properly to anyone, nevermind a stranger. I opened the fridge, cracked open a beer like i have every other night since i started that case. 20 minutes later, another beer, and another, and another. Until i blacked out.
I woke up after what seemed an eternity asleep, my phone was vibrating next to me, the chief was calling.
“You need to come down to the station, now! It seems the killer got sloppy”
I shot up with a burst of energy i haven’t felt since i was a kid, i raced down to the station, excited at the fact we could finally catch it even advance on the killer that’s caused so much terror.