The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 58

His ankle throbbed to the point of distraction. The more he tried to walk on it, the worse it became. He sat down on a step and started to rub it, but every time he touched it, a burning sensation shot up his leg. Jake sat down on the step, thinking that his new life was going to end here in this urine smelling place.

     Just then, he heard a door opening from above. He glanced up and saw the cop whose partner he killed was slowly coming down the stairs with his revolver in his hand. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead.  

       "Jakie, do something." His mother appeared to Jake in a vision. "You've got to stop him. Shoot him, Jakie, shoot him!"

       Jake sat there for a moment wondering what his momma meant but then realized that he had in fact taken the cop's gun after he stole his clothes. He didn't even realize that he had it. "But momma, I've never even shot one before. I don't know what to do."

       "Don't be a pussy Jakie!" Her face seemed to change in front of Jake's eyes and her skin seemed to be melting off her face. "Just point the gun and shoot him." By now, her face was a bloody pulpy mess, with a hole where her eye was two moments before. 

        Jake pulled back, repulsed by what he saw. His mother had transformed from his loving mother to a monster right in front of his eyes. As he watched, the apparition started approaching threateningly, her hands raised up with knives where her fingers should be. She kept coming and started to shriek like a banshee. Just before Jake thought that he was to be devoured by this apparition, it vanished like a puff of smoke.

         Caulder let out a small scream even though he tried to stifle it. He curled up in a tight ball and started to rock back and forth. He began talking baby talk. All at once he heard from above. "Hold it right there asshole and put your hands up." Officer Cooke was approaching menacingly with his revolver pointed at Jake's chest.

        Jake continued to babble and Cooke took another step and ordered Jake once again to put his hands up. His revolver shook in his hand. Jake stopped rocking and slowly turned to face Officer Cooke. "Momma, is that you?" Jake asked in a child-like voice.

       Cooke was taken aback for a second and slightly lowered his weapon. Jake wasted no time. He raised the gun he was holding in his right hand and fired twice in quick succession. The first shot went wide, but the second one hit Cooke in the gun arm. His gun went off, but the bullet was no where near its target as his arm was now virtually useless having been shot one second before. He dropped the weapon and it clattered noisily at his feet.

      Jake got up, having forgotten his aching ankle, and staggered towards Cooke. He raised the gun and pointed it at Cooke's chest.

       "Wait, don't shoot!" Cooke pleaded.

        Jake paid no attention, and fired twice more, once into Cooke's chest and the second into his throat. The first shot knocked him back two or three feet. He let out a scream as the second bullet blew a hole though his throat and his head flipped back as he dropped to the floor. His body convulsed for a moment and then lay still.

       Just then, Jake heard voices from above, and foot steps running in his direction. On shear adrenalin, Jake managed to get up and start moving again, away from his pursuers. He moved as fast as he could, but his ankle once again caused him great discomfort.

       Caulder thought he heard screaming and yelling behind him but he couldn't be sure because his ears were ringing from firing his weapon in close quarters. All of a sudden, there was a loud booming noise and it felt like he had been hit in the back with a sledge hammer. He had been shot and was thrust forward and crumpled in a heap. His legs went numb and a coldness crept into his body. He lay on his back, the world spinning around him. He looked up and tried to speak. 

        His normal looking mother appeared to Jake for a moment. "Jakie, you are about to start your new life." A smile came over Jake as he got ready to begin his new adventure, but it was not the adventure that he was expecting. Just then a face loomed over him and the last thing that Caulder saw was Chief Inspector O'Reilly pointing his gun at his face and pulling the trigger, blowing a hole out the back of his skull the size of a baseball.  

       Jake's body twitched for a moment and then lay still, his brain matter oozing out onto the floor. At the moment of death, he had soiled himself as well. O'Reilly turned to Miller, looking older than he had at the start of the chase.

       "Well Alexander, I guess that wraps it up. We'll never know why  Caulder did what he did, or what made him tick. The important thing is he won't be bothering any one any more. Let's get out of here and report back to Sergeant Harrison so he can get this mess cleaned up.

       "You know Miller, these cases seem to be taking their toll on me. Maybe I'm getting too old for this shit."

       "Naw, Sean, all you need is some well deserved R&R. And I know just the ticket. Go get cleaned up and take Miss Cindy out. You deserve it, and she needs to be consoled after what she's seen and been through."

       After a moment, a glint appeared in Sean's eye. "You may be right there, Alexander. Let's go. We've done as much as we can here." And with that, they turned around and headed back up the stairs. Case closed.

        

                                                               THE END

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 57

When O'Reilly and Miller arrived at the hospital, there were security guards at the entrance. They showed their id's and proceeded to the room where Caulder had been held. The door was closed with a security guard posted outside.

       They opened the door, and noticed the carnage with blood everywhere. Hawkins was laying on the floor in just his underwear. "What the fuck?" O'Reilly cursed. "Where the Hell is Officer Cooke?" He went into the hall to question the security guard if he had seen Cooke when he came up to guard the door.

       "No sir. We got the call to lock down the hospital. I came up to the room to see if I could be of assistance, but there was no one here. It seemed strange to me. So I just stood guard, thinking that an officer would be back soon."

       "Shit" O'Reilly cursed again. "Where the hell did Cooke go." The chief inspector went to the nurse's station to see if the nurse on duty had seen Officer Cooke. When he got there, he could tell that the nurse was visibly shaken. 

       "Excuse me, nurse Collins." That was on her name tag. "I'm Chief Inspector O'Reilly and Caulder, the missing suspect, was my prisoner. Do you know where the officer is that was posted here?"

       "No I'm sorry sir, but I don't. The last I saw him was when he came to the station and told me what had happened and to get ahold of security and lock down the hospital. Then, he returned to the room. When the security guard arrived, I went to try to help the poor officer, but it was too late. Oh this is terrible what happened to the officer in that room. What kind of animal could do such a thing?" She looked like she was on the verge of tears but she kept it together. She looked to be in her mid forties and had probably seen her share of emergencies and disasters, but the scene in the room was quite unsettling even for someone who had had her share of trauma victims.

       "I'm sorry you had to see what happened back there." He pointed to the room where Hawkins had been killed. "I have to try to find what happened to the officer's partner. Will you be alright nurse Collins?"

       "I'll be fine. It came as a shock, that's all. I didn't hear anything when this happened. I'll be fine, thank you. Is there anything that I can do to help?"

       "Nothing for the moment."

       Just as Sean was heading back to the room, gun shots could be heard coming from the stairwell just down the hall. He pulled out his gun, and took off in a flash. He almost collided with Sergeant Miller as he came running out of the room, his gun also at the ready.

       "Let's go Sergeant. Caulder must have taken Hawkins' gun and went down the stairs. My guess is that Cooke went after Caulder, and came under fire. Lets hope that we are not too late for Cooke. He's a screw up, but I don't want him shot by that prick. Looks like Jake has stepped up his game. Instead of using a blunt instrument, he seems to be armed with a revolver. I thought that shit head was faking it. He wasn't in a coma after all."

       At that, they slowly opened the door and with revolvers ready, entered the stairwell. "Be ready for anything Alexander. That little asshole is a crafty bastard."

       "I'm ready Sean. I got your back."

       "Yeah, and I got yours, Alex."

       The first thing they saw was blood smeared all over the wall. Another couple of shots rang out and someone started screaming and then there was silence. "Let's move it!" Sean yelled and they both took off at a more hurried pace, not knowing what awaited them, but ready to deal with what fate had in store for them.

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 56

Chapter 56

       After Jake had freed himself from the cuffs, he stood there seeming light headed. He staggered for a moment and then, steadied himself against the side of the bed. He looked about, not really understanding where he was or what was going on. Then it came back to him. He turned and saw officer Hawkins slumped against the bed, covered in blood. 

       His mother's vision appeared before him again. "He had it coming Jakie. He treated you badly and he deserved what he got." The vision disappeared as quickly as it had come.

       "Yes momma, he was mean to me." Jake spoke to himself, but thought he was talking to his long-dead mother. Jake looked around the room. In the corner, someone had left a metal cane. Jake picked it up and turned back towards Hawkins. He approached with a maniacal look in his eye. He lifted the cane and brought it down upon Hawkins' skull with such force, that a loud cracking sound could be heard. He swung again and again, until Hawkins' face was nothing but a bloody, pulpy mess.

       "There, you piece of shit. Now, maybe, people will respect me and not treat me like some animal.I've done nothing to anyone, but all the time, they treat me like this. You make me want to puke." He swung the cane once more, pummelling poor Hawkins one last time, sending blood and brain matter every which way. Some of it hit Jake in the face and dripped down his chin and onto the floor. He didn't seem to notice. 

       He threw the cane into the corner and stood there, panting like a dog. His demented look slowly dissipated until he looked more or less normal other than he had the corpse's blood on him. He drew the back of his hand across his face and absently wiped it on his hospital gown, leaving a smear of gore upon it. He looked down at himself, just realizing what he was wearing.

       At times, Jake seemed to be quite lucid, and at others he was in his own world filled with delusions and visions. In his current frame of mind, he was able to think for himself, realizing that he had to get out of there as quickly as possible, but he needed a set of clothes to change into.

       He looked at Hawkins, and then realized what must be done. He removed the officer's pants and shirt and put them on. They were a little large but would do for the moment. He may have been clear headed enough to realize that he couldn't wander around and escape in his hospital gown, but that was as far as it went. The uniform was soaked in blood and when he put the items on, more of the blood covered him as well. He didn't even notice.

       His own clothes had been cut away from his body when he was brought into the emergency room, and so he had to improvise. The cop's uniform would have to do. There was no time to worry about how he looked at the moment. He had to escape as quickly as he could before the partner returned.

       Lucky for Jake, the door to the room was shut. No one had heard the commotion that had occurred. He cracked open the door, looked out. The nurse on duty was at the nurse's station down the hall, looking in the opposite direction. He wasted no time in leaving the room, and entered the nearest stairwell, grabbing the railing as he hurried down, leaving a bloody hand print as he did.

       He flew down the stairs so fast that he tripped, and tumbled two or three steps and collapsed in a heap at the first landing. For a moment or two, he lay there, but then pulled himself up. A shooting pain shot up from his right ankle and then started to throb. He tried putting weight on it, but his leg collapsed and he went down again.

       After a moment, he got up again, and tried to stand. The pain was excruciating, but after a moment, he managed to put weight on it. He didn't think that it was broken, just badly sprained, but he didn't have the time or luxury to worry about that now. He started moving again, but limped on his injured leg.

       "Shit!" He stifled a scream, and continued on towards the parking garage in the basement, and hopefully an escape from this Hell Hole that he found himself in.

       At the same time as Jake was trying to get away, Officer Cooke was returning from getting them something to eat. He had stopped for a few moments to chat up the nurse, not realizing that his partner's killer was making his escape. After a few moments, he returned to the room, opened the door, and immediately spilled the coffee and donuts down the front of his shirt. The first thing he noticed was his partner's mutilated body, and then he noticed that the prisoner was gone.

       He raced to see if he could help his partner, but he was in such a rush that he slipped in the pool of blood, causing him to fall. He got up, covered in the corpse's blood but he didn't even notice.

       "What the fuck?" He pulled out his revolver in case Caulder was still in the room. He checked the bathroom, but he wasn't hiding in there. He reholtstered his gun and grabbed his radio shakily and called in to Sergeant Patterson at the station to let him know about the situation.

       After a few moments, Sergeant Patterson told Cooke to lock down the hospital and then to wait there until back up arrived. Officer Cooke went to the nurse's station to contact the security detail to get that done and then went back to secure the room until help arrived.

       No sooner than he had returned to the room, than he heard a disturbance in the stairwell. He knew that he was to remain where he was, but he figured that if it was in fact Jake trying to escape down the stairs and he could recapture him, then maybe, just maybe, it would go easier for him after he messed up leaving his assigned post and probably getting his partner killed.

       He drew his revolver and headed to the stairs. He cracked open the door but no one was there. He did hear a noise farther down and so he decided to follow. The next thing he saw was blood smeared on the railing and the walls. 

       "I got you now, you son of a bitch." Ryan crept forward hoping to catch his prisoner before he could leave the hospital. He was a good cop at heart, but rash in his thinking. If he had waited for back up like he was told, maybe things would have turned out better. But he didn't, and they didn't.

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 55

Chapter 55

       The call came in at 6:00 p.m. Sean and Andrew had gone to their rooms about fifteen minutes earlier when the inspector got a call. It was from Sergeant Patterson over at the jail. He wouldn't give any details  over the phone but just said that it was urgent that O'Reilly and Miller get over to the jail ASAP.

       Sean hung up and went and banged on Miller's door and told him they had to get over to the prison cell right away.

       "Okay boss. What's up?"

       "No idea but Sergeant Patterson sounded pretty shaken up. It didn't sound good."

       They left the Shady Rest and raced across to the Sheriff's office. When they got there, the first thing that Sean saw was Cindy sitting in a corner, with the mayor beside her. She looked white as a ghost and it looked like she might pass out at any moment.

       "What's going on?" Sean asked the mayor but looking concerned for Cindy.

       "Miss Stevens has had quite a shock. She had gone in to get Higgins his dinner when she saw him. It was quite a shock for her."

       "What has happened mayor?"

       "You better come with me." He didn't look in much better shape than Cindy did.

       When they got to the holding cell, Sergeant Patterson met them. He was covered in blood. After a moment, they saw Higgins, laying on his cot but there was blood everywhere. He wasn't moving and it was obvious that he was dead. There were gashes in both of his wrists. They were quite deep cuts, deep enough to cause him to bleed out in a few seconds. There was also blood splatters on the walls beside the bed. He must have cut himself, and flailed around, spraying his blood as he did.

       Sean had seen victims before covered in blood but it never seemed to get any easier. You tried to harden yourself against the grizzly side of the job, but it was always disturbing. It was no wonder that Miss Stevens and the mayor were both upset by what had happened.

       "Sergeant Patterson, what happened?"

       "At about 4:50, Miss Stevens went to give Higgins his supper. She had no sooner gone in, than she started to scream. I rushed in to see what was going on, and then I saw Higgins. He was laying on the bed thrashing about. His wrists had been slit, and the blood was gushing out and splattering the walls as well. I rushed into his cell and tried applying pressure to the wounds but he had already lost too much blood. That is how I got covered with it.

       "I phoned the mayor right away and tended to Miss Stevens until he got here. He told me to give you a call and so I did. I came back down again, but like I said, there was nothing I could do for him." 

       "What did he use to cut himself?"

       "He used a switch blade. It is on the bed beside him, covered with blood. He was searched before being put in the cell, but the knife must have been inside his boot. No one suspected that the sheriff would be carrying a blade on him, especially there."

       "From what I have heard about Higgins, it doesn't surprise me in the least. He may have been the sheriff in your town, but he was not innocent by any stretch of the imagination. When the full story is made public about Higgins' sordid past,a lot of people aren't going to be too upset by this outcome. They will say that he got what he deserved. I for one, am one of them."

       "I should have found the weapon and taken it from him. This is my fault." Patterson said, glancing back at the body and the carnage within the cell. He shook his head and stood there not saying any more.

       It was Sergeant Miller who spoke next. "Sergeant Patterson, you may have overlooked it, but you had worked with Higgins for a long time. You had grown to trust him, just as everyone else in town did. No one will fault you for this. Your former boss was not what he appeared to be. He was a sheriff and supposedly a keeper of the peace, but in fact, he was nothing more than a low-life and monster who preyed on people's weaknesses, Jake Caulder's mother and Miss Stevens to name two. He has done the county a favour by saving the tax payers a lot of time and money. No one will fault you, you'll see."

       "Well I hope you are right. I just can't get over the fact that this could have been avoided."

       "Believe me, son, we all make mistakes in this job but you have to learn to just get on and learn from past events." This was inspector O'Reilly who spoke. He felt bad for the young sergeant, but he figured that he would get over it, and that he would make a fine sheriff if the mayor saw fit to promote him. "Just be glad that he decided to kill himself instead of sticking you. As far as I'm concerned, this proves his guilt. He would most surely be convicted of past murder and rape and been sent away. He knew that cops don't live long in jail, and so, regardless of how much time he was sentenced to, he wouldn't have lasted more than a month or two. He took the easy way out. Good riddance is what I say."

       "Thank you sir. It will be tough to get my head around all this but you are correct. I'll be okay as time wears on."

       "Yeah, you'll be fine."

       Just then, Miss Stevens came in, telling Sergeant Patterson, that there was a phone call from constable Cooke from the hospital.

       Patterson took the call and he went white in the face and had to sit down.

       "What is it, Sergeant?" O'Reilly asked.

       Patterson sat there for a moment and when he spoke, his hands were shaking. "Constable Cooke just phoned with tragic news. Caulder has escaped, and officer Hawkins has been murdered. He went to get the two of them some coffee, and when he returned, Hawkins was dead and Caulder was gone. Cooke was pretty shook up. He said that Hawkins had been slaughtered. He had been stabbed in the eye and also in the throat with a pen. There was a lot of blood. He said it was like a war zone with all the blood."

       "Have Cooke lock down the hospital. Sergeant Miller and I will go to the hospital to see what can be done. You stay here and call in an APB for Caulder. You have to stay here and deal with the Higgins situation."

       With that, O'Reilly ran for the door and headed to their car. As they ran, the inspector let go with a string of profanities that would make a nun blush. "That stupid fucker Cooke is responsible for this, not directly of course, but I told them to both keep an eye on Caulder. The little prick didn't want to listen, just gave me lip, and now a good officer is dead. Shit-head!" With that out of his system, he seemed to calm down somewhat as they reached their car.

       Andrew knew enough not to interrupt O'Reilly when he got like this. After he got it out of his system, he would be good to go. He got in the car, put the siren on,revved the engine and sped away, laying a strip of rubber and fish tailing for a moment and then straightened it out. Moments later, they pulled into the lot and raced inside. When they got to the room, they saw that it was worse than what they had been told. Not only had Caulder stabbed Hawkins twice, but he also bashed the left side of his face in. If there had been any doubt that Caulder had done the other murders, there was no doubt now. The M.O. was the same here.

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 54

Chapter 54

     At all outward appearances, Jake lay there almost lifeless. You had to look closely to see that he was breathing at all. But appearances can be deceiving. His mind raced as if on a runaway train. Grotesque images appeared and just as quickly faded. Mutilated bodies, both human and animal, flashed in his sub conscience. He moaned softly, too softly for anyone to hear.

     From somewhere he seemed to hear a familiar voice. For a moment, he couldn’t quite make out who it was or what the person was trying to say. In his dream he turned round and round to see who it was, but with no luck. Then he spotted what looked like a young woman.

     She approached him, seemingly floating instead of walking. She glided towards him ever so slowly. As the apparition got closer, Jake tried to let out a scream, but could say nothing. The head was nothing but a rotting mass of decaying flesh. It opened its mouth to speak, but instead of teeth, there were maggots lined up along its gums, wriggling as they fed upon what remained of the creature’s mouth.

     Jake tried to shriek, but to no avail. He was trapped inside this nightmare with apparently no avenue of escape. Almost as quickly as this horror appeared, it seemed to vanish, and in its place, his mother stood there with welcoming arms held wide to embrace him in a loving hug.

     For a moment, his tension remained but then it faded and he became completely relaxed, knowing that his mother had come again to protect her little Jakie. He approached her and let her enfold her loving arms about him.  He sighed contentedly, audibly enough to be heard by anyone in the room and then he fell quiet again and lay there, his mind at peace once again.

     It was officer Cooke who thought that he had heard something from Caulder and turned to look at the body. However, by the time that he had turned to see if Jake had moved, he was just laying there like he had ever since they started to keep an eye on him. He didn’t mention it to Hawkins, because he just assumed that his mind was playing tricks on him. If he had, maybe they would be more alert to possible dangers from their prisoner, but he didn’t.

     While Jake lay there, it seemed that he could hear nothing or sense things going on around him. The fact of the matter was, that he heard everything that went on in the room. He heard the confrontation that O’Reilly had with Cooke. In fact, he heard everything that had been going on around him.

     His mother spoke to Jake in almost a cooing voice. “Jakie, you don’t deserve to be in this bed with an armed guard. You’ve done nothing wrong. These officers have no right to treat you like some kind of an animal.” She continued in her soft angelic voice. “Jakie, you must do something about these officers that are in this room. They want to hurt you.”

     "Yes mama, I’m listening.”

     "You’ve got to punish them for the way they look at you. They are bad men, Jakie and need to be learn to respect you. You did nothing to deserve such treatment from the likes of them.”

     "Yes mama, you’re right.”

      At that moment, Cooke spoke to his partner. “Hey Hawk, you want anything from the cafeteria. I’ve gotta take a leak and after I’ll get us a couple donuts and some coffee.”

    "Yeah okay, sounds good to me. Black with two sugar.”

     "I remember, Hawk.” Cooke spoke and then went to do his business and after that get them something to eat. He had completely forgotten that he thought that he had heard Caulder stirring only a few minutes ago.

      "Jakie, one of the men has left. Now is the time to do something. After you deal with them, you can go speak to the officer who is responsible for your being in here.”

      Jake had also heard the two officers talk about Chief Inspector O’Reilly. They mentioned him by name more than once. If Cooke had not been roughed up by Sean, perhaps they wouldn’t have talked about him.

However, the officer named Hawkins had told his partner two or three times that it was a stupid thing bad mouthing Chief Inspector O’Reilly the way he had. The inspector’s reputation was well known.

      Cooke had agreed with his partner and for the next while, they talked about Sean and mentioned his name a couple of times. The name was firmly planted in Caulder’s brain, even though it seemed to Jake that his mother’s ghost was informing him of this fact for the first time.

      In Jake’s mind, his mother’s visage seemed to dissolve into thin air. Jake let out a piteous whimper, because he didn’t want his mother to go. She was gone however. Jake became more and more agitated until he started thrashing about in bed. His eyes opened but Hawkins didn’t notice. All that he saw was Jake writhing about.

      He approached the bed, not really sure what to do next. If he had called a nurse instead of going over to check on Jake, everything would have been fine. It caught him off guard though, because one moment, Jake seemed almost dead, and then in the next instant, he was moving about violently in the bed.

All of a sudden, Jake stopped moving and lay very still. Hawkins went closer to see what was going on. What he didn’t notice was that Jake had grabbed a pen from the bedside table and was grasping it tightly in his one hand. The other hand was handcuffed to the bed.

      As Hawk approached, Jake lay very still, appearing to once again be comatose, but in reality, was very much the opposite. Every muscle in his body was tensed ready to spring at his unsuspecting prey. As Hawkins leaned over Jake, he struck with lightning speed, amazing for someone who had been as wounded as Jake was. Adrenalin was coursing through his veins, allowing him to react so quickly.

He struck Hawkins savagely in his throat with the pen. A gurgling sound could be heard, and for a second, Officer Hawkins just stood there, a dazed look on his face. Jake withdrew the pen, and struck again, this time hitting Hawkins in the left eye. The eye ball exploded with a popping sound.

      Blood gushed from the wound in his throat, He tried to grab at it, but his body was going into a state of shock from the loss of blood and the fact that a pen was jutting from his eye as well. He staggered and slumped to his knees and then fell forward, his head resting upon the bed beside Jake. This was lucky for Jake because he managed to get the handcuff keys from Hawkins’ key chain and free himself from his shackles.

      "Jakie” he thought he heard his mother speaking to him. “Get out of here as fast as you can. You can make O’Reilly pay soon enough.”

      "Yes mama” Jake said to his imaginary vision, but she had faded away again. He tried to get out of bed, but staggered and his head seemed to be spinning. Grabbing the bed for support, Jake reeled there for a second before he managed to steady himself. He was still weak from his injuries, but after a moment or two, he seemed better. The only thought going through his deranged mind was to get out of there and then have a talk with Sean O'Reilly. Oh yes, that would be just fine. A smile came across his face. Things were going to get better soon. Once he "talked" with O'Reilly he could continue toward his new life.

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 53

Chapter 53

       Sean left the holding area and went over to have a talk with Cindy. When he saw her again, his pulse raced a little. He really did have a thing for her it seemed. He thought again about what she had said with regards to the way Higgins had abused her, both physically and mentally.

       His blood began to boil once more and he felt like going down to the cell and laying another beating on him. How could anyone treat someone as sweet as Cindy the way that he had? Sean shook his head and tried to calm his breathing.

       Cindy looked up and gave him a smile. “Is everything alright Sean? I heard a noise from the holding area and Sergeant Patterson raced down there to see what was up.”

       "It was nothing. Higgins slipped and fell, that’s all.” Sean lied but the way that Cindy was looking at him, he felt that she knew that that was not really the truth. It seems that he wasn’t able to carry a lie with her for too long. “Actually, I went to have a talk with him about the case and I couldn’t think of anything but what you said with regards to the way he’s treated you.

       "I lost my cool and slapped him around a little, that’s all.” To Sean, that is all that he did to Higgins, but in reality, he hurt him pretty badly. The O’Reilly justice again. No one hurt any one he cared for and got away with it, period. If Patterson hadn’t arrived when he did, Sean might have killed the suspect.

       "Miss Stevens, er Cindy, I was wondering if you would like to grab a cup of coffee or something when you are off. It appears that I am going to be in town for a few days to get Higgins processed before I head back to Cleveland to deal with Caulder. He is under lock and key at the moment at the hospital, and when he is fit to travel, I will be leaving with him."

       "I would like that Sean. I get off at 7 tonight if that would be good with you."

       "I'll pick you up at 7 and we'll go catch a bite then. You pick the restaurant."

       After leaving the sheriff's office, he went across the street to the Shady Rest Inn to check in with Sergeant Miller and catch up on some rest before meeting up with Cindy later that night. When he entered the lobby, the aroma coming from the kitchen hit him like a ton of bricks. He couldn't remember the last time he had eaten. The smell of fresh baked apple pie combined with roasted chicken was almost too much to take in all at once. 

       He had flash backs of when he lived at home with his parents. It seemed that his mother was always in the kitchen cooking and the house always smelled incredible. He approached the front desk but before he got there, he heard Sergeant Miller calling to him. He turned and saw Andrew seated in a small bar just off the lobby with a couple of beer in front of him. One thing about Miller, you could always count on him in battle or to get the beers going after a tough day.

       Sean sat down, lifted his glass and downed half the glass in one swallow. "Ah, that's good. Just what the doctored ordered." He put the beer down and sat there with a silly grin on his face.

       After a few moments, Miller spoke. "Well, boss, you look like the proverbial cat that swallowed the canary or something like that. It must have gone good at the jail when you saw Higgins behind bars."

        "Yeah, it went pretty good. I talked to Cindy first and found out that he had abused her over the years, falsely accusing her of theft and other things as well. I went to the holding cell and had a man to man chat with him. If Sergeant Patterson hadn't come in when he did, I think I may have killed that son of a bitch. Felt good to put a beating on that prick"

       "I'm sensing there's more to your story that you're not telling me."

       "Well, there is one more thing. I asked Cindy out for supper tonight and she agreed. I'm picking her up at 7:00."

       "Congrats boss. Good for you. Cheers." They clinked glasses and chugged the rest of their beers. 

       It seemed that things were starting to look up. However, events were about to take an unexpected turn, and not for the better.

       

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 52

Chapter 52

       Sean entered the sheriff’s office and he noticed Cindy Stevens almost immediately. She was busy with some paper work and so for a moment, she didn’t notice that he was standing there staring at her. When she finally looked up and saw him, a smile came across her face. “Sean welcome back. How is your investigation going into the Higgins case? You look tired.”

      "Cindy, it’s good to see you again. We found our suspect Caulder and got a blood sample from him. His DNA matches that of Higgins. We’ll be able to start procedures for charging him with the rape of Maggie Caulder and the murder of her husband, Tom.”

       "That’s good news. I’ve never liked him ever since I’ve worked for him. Working with Sgt. Patterson has been much better. He treats me and everyone around him with respect. He never runs people down like Higgins does.”

       "Why didn’t you leave if it was so bad here?” O’Reilly asked. He was becoming infatuated with the girl once again.

        "I was always afraid that Higgins would spread rumors around about me so that I wouldn’t be able to get a job any where else. One time, I went into his office to deliver some papers that he had me working on. He was out and I placed them on his desk. At that moment, he entered and went straight over to the safe and mentioned that it was open, but that he had not left it that way.

       "He accused me of taking some valuables from the safe. I protested that I hadn’t, but he was livid. He insisted that I must have because they were missing. He ordered me to return them at once, but because I hadn’t taken them, I couldn’t. He approached me, and hit me with the back of his hand.

       "I ran out of the office and began crying. I didn’t know what to do. He scared me so much that day. It was a side of him I hadn’t seen before. About fifteen minutes later, he came out with something in his hands. It was the very item that he had accused me of stealing. I was dumb founded. He told me that he had made a mistake and that he had removed it from his safe the day before and had put it in his desk drawer.

       "He didn’t apologize or any thing. All he said was that if I told anyone that he had hit me, he would press charges for theft and have me thrown in jail for something that I had not done.”

       Sean could feel his blood pressure starting to rise. “You mean to tell me that he hit you and then threatened to have you put in jail for something you didn’t do if you told anyone about it.”

       "Yes Sean, that’s exactly what I am saying. He struck me on other occasions for no reason. He is one crazy, clever son of a bitch who is not to be trusted.” Cindy warned.

       Sean was livid. He tried to contain his anger. “Will you testify against him at his trial as to the way he treated you?”

       "I’m afraid of him Sean.”

       "You don’t have to worry about him any longer Cindy, I can assure you of that. We’ll put him away for a long time. We’ll add assault and uttering threats towards you. He won’t be able to get to you.” Sean stated.

        "Alright Sean, I’ll tell the courts how he treated me.”

       "Don’t worry, Cindy, I won’t let him do anything to you, I promise.”

       "Thank you, Sean, that makes me feel better already.”

       At that moment, Sergeant Patterson came out from his office and walked over to the chief inspector and shook his hand. "Welcome back inspector. How is your investigation going against Kevin, er I mean Sheriff Higgins?”

       Sean relayed the same information that he had told Cindy. He didn’t mention what Miss Stevens had told him. It wasn’t necessary to divulge that to him. And with a little luck, she wouldn’t have to testify at the trial either. He didn’t want her opening up old emotional wounds that Higgins had caused her, if at all possible.

       Patterson admitted Sean to the holding cells where Higgins was being held. He left the room and left Higgins and O’Reilly alone. When Higgins saw the look on Sean’s face, he became somewhat apprehensive. He kept a wary eye on him.

       Sean by this time was seething with anger and contempt for this piece of shit that was there before him. It was bad enough that he had come after Miller and himself, but when he had been abusive towards Cindy, whom he was becoming quite enamored with, he had crossed a line that Sean would not tolerate.

He approached Higgins cell menacingly. The sheriff , who had been leaning nonchalantly against the bars when the inspector came in, backed away from the bars but not fast enough. Sean was as quick as a cobra ready to strike and he grabbed Higgins by the collar and yanked him forward. He crashed into the bars with such force that a welt immediately appeared above his eye which split open and gushed forth a stream of blood.

       The gore hit O’Reilly in the face causing him to strike again. He pulled the sheriff forward into the bars once again with enough force that it knocked him out. His body went limp and he crumpled in a heap upon the concrete floor, blood still pouring from the wound.

       With all the commotion, Patterson came rushing in, saw Higgins prone on the floor with Sean glaring at him from the outside of the cell. "What the hell?’ Patterson yelled.

       Sean stared at the body for another second and then spoke. “He tried to grab me through the bars and I had to defend myself. He’s one crazy mother fucker for sure.” Patterson said nothing but went and got the keys to get to Higgins to stem the flow of blood before he bled to death.

       Sean spoke again. “He’s completely nuts. I just wanted to have a chat with him and he tried to get at me through the bars.”

       Patterson managed to get the bleeding stopped and then bandaged up his prisoner. He turned towards the chief inspector and spoke. “Whatever you say sir. He is one crazy son of a bitch for sure. It’s unfortunate that he got hurt but shit happens. He’ll be more careful next time I’m sure.”

       Sean said nothing for a moment and then spoke again. “Sergeant Patterson, you will make a good sheriff. I’ll go have a couple of words with Miss Stevens for a few moments before I go.” He left and went up to see Cindy again.

       Sergeant Patterson leaned down and spoke to Higgins who was just coming to. “Listen you little prick. You got what you deserve. I should have let him continue beating on you, but I want you to go to prison in one piece. Cindy told me how you’ve been treating her. She doesn’t need an asshole like you giving her grief of any kind. I hope you rot in hell, you bag of shit.”

       He got up, and just before he left, he kicked Higgins hard in the rib cage. “I also overheard you plotting against Chief Inspector O’Reilly and his sergeant Miller. I’ll testify against you, you little turd. You’re going to become someone’s bitch in the big house; I can assure you of that.”

       He got up and slammed the cage shut, locking it tight. He whistled as he left the room. It seems that Patterson’s testimony against Higgins would ensure that he was locked away for a long time to come. Sean would be pleased with that. He would also like the way Patterson treated Higgins. The sergeant’s methods were very similar to Sean’s and Miller’s when it came to dealing with criminals.

       Higgins groaned as he rolled on his side and threw up. The pain was agonizing when he did. Patterson most likely broke a couple of ribs. He moaned again, swore under this breath. “Shit,” he muttered. “I’m fucked!” Then he passed out. He lay there, breathing heavily and panting like a dog.

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 51

Chapter 51

       As soon as Chief Inspector O’Reilly and Miller left the hospital, they went straight to the mayor’s office. His secretary buzzed them in and they went into his office. "Welcome back Chief Inspector and Sergeant Miller. How has your investigation been going and have you found out what you need to press charges against Sheriff Higgins?”

       "We’ve got Caulder in protective custody at the local hospital.” Sean reported. “He’s in a coma right now from various injuries and traumas that he sustained. At least the doctors say he’s in a coma but I’m not so sure. He could be faking it. He’s as cunning as a fox, this one. He’s not to be trusted.

       "Anyway, we got DNA from him and it matches Higgins’ DNA. We can start to prosecute him for the murder of Maggie Caulder’s husband Tom, and the rape of her.” O’Reilly stated emphatically.

       "That’s good to hear but disturbing at the same time. If he is in fact guilty, it will be good to get him locked up. However, he has been an asset to this community. I had sort of hoped that the DNA didn’t match but after you told me about him sending those men after you and your sergeant, I wasn’t so sure.” The mayor spoke and then fell silent.

       It was Miller who spoke next. “Mr. Mayor, you can be sure that if Sean has a hunch about something, then it most likely is true. More times than not, he has gone on his instincts, and they have proven to be correct.”

       "Yes I am sure you are correct sergeant. It’s just that I treated him like a son. It kind of deflates you a little when you put so much trust in someone and then you find out that they have fooled you and every one around you.”

       Sean spoke up. “Don’t worry sir. If he is guilty, and I feel he is, then he will get what’s been coming to him for a long time. You can be sure about that.”

       "Yes I am sure you are correct. What can I do to help in your case against him?” The mayor asked and you could tell that he was truly interested in putting Higgins away. He seemed to be the type of man that would go to any length to punish those who did him wrong.

       "What I need from you Mr. Mayor is a list of anyone who might have known what Higgins was up to so many years ago. We need people to say what he was really like, that in fact he was and probably still is a murderer and rapist.” Sean spoke and you could tell that he was thinking about the attack that happened to Miller and himself a little while ago. "Miller and I will also testify to the fact that the goons sent after us were in fact hired by Higgins.”

       The mayor added. “I will testify to the jury what Maggie said to me. It is as clear to me as it was the day that she told me about Higgins raping her and shooting her husband without even warning him to stop. With what you have told me and with my and other citizens’ testimonies, I am sure that you will get the conviction you are looking for.”

       "I hope you are right. I want to get a solid case against him. I think I’ll go over to the jail and have a little chat with him.” O’Reilly stated and Miller again saw a glint in Sean’s eye that he hadn’t seen in a long time.

       "Do you want me to come along boss?” Miller asked but he already knew the answer.

       "No, I just want to have a few words with the slime ball before we ship him off to prison. Once we get Higgins taken care of, we can have Caulder sent to Cleveland to start processing him on the murder charges."

       "Okay boss, give him my regards. I’ll get us a couple of rooms at the inn across the street”. Miller replied. Now he was sure he knew what was on Sean’s mind. He wanted to see Higgins for sure, but he most likely wanted to speak with the secretary Cindy Stevens in private. It was a long time since Sean had taken a fancy to any girl and Miller was happy for him. He hoped the chief inspector would get to know her the way he knew that Sean wanted to. Sean said his goodbyes to the mayor and Miller and then left to go over to the jail. Miller could have sworn that he heard O’Reilly whistling as he left. Yes, Miller knew that Cindy was on his boss’s mind.

       The Sergeant shook hands with the mayor and then he went over to the inn to arrange accommodations for himself and his boss. It would be nice if Miss Stevens was as happy to see Sean again as his boss was going to be to see her. Miller knew that Sean had been thinking about her quite a bit lately even though he never discussed it.

       He had worked with Sean for more years than he cared to think about, and he could basically read his boss like a book. He knew that O’Reilly had fallen quite hard for the secretary. A little female company was what Sean needed. He put all his time into solving cases, and he had not much time for the fairer sex. Miller knew that Cindy would be good for his boss. And who knows. Maybe things would develop into something more than a casual acquaintance. Only time would tell.

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 50

Chapter 50

       The helicopter landed on the roof of the hospital in Middletown with a medical staff waiting. The pilot had radioed to them while in flight that they were en route and to expect them within a half hour or so.

Caulder was transferred to a stretcher and wheeled inside and taken to one of the examination rooms that had been made available to them. They cut his soiled clothes away from his wounded body and began cleaning him up. Upon close examination, a few broken bones were found in his rib cage and a septic infection had set in from an apparent rat bite to his right ankle.

       There were other bites as well. One was on his stomach and another was on his left cheek. These two were not as bad as the one on his ankle, but infection was in them as well. It was a good thing that they weren’t as severe as the first one, because the doctors weren’t sure if Jake’s foot could be saved. Gangrene had started to set in and they would be hard pressed to be able to save the foot. The smell emanating from it made the doctors want to gag. When they touched it, a green yellowish pus came out of it.

       They rushed Jake to an operating room to get an IV into him and work on him as quickly as possible to stop further infection and try to save his very swollen, blackened ankle from having to cut it off. Several areas of Jake were covered with scratches from a rat as well. There were multiple slash wounds from what appeared to be a knife and part of his lower lip seemed to be barely hanging on by a thread of skin.

He was dehydrated as well and a glucose solution plus antibiotic were being injected into his veins. They cleaned his wounds again and put countless stitches in place.

       All they could do now was to wait to see if the infections were caught in time. It was no wonder that this man had suffered mental trauma. He must have gone through hell from the look of his body. Many war victims didn’t look as bad as poor Jake did. All in all Jake was in the operating room for about 7 hours. They did a thorough check to make sure that nothing was missed and then transferred him to recovery. Sean thanked the doctors for their efforts and posted a couple of heavy set police officers outside his door to make sure that if Jake did happen to wake up, he wouldn’t get any ideas about wandering off.

       He developed a fever of 104 and the doctors thought he might die but then it subsided to a livable 102. They upped his dose of antibiotics, and after a while, his fever broke altogether. Sean was becoming impatient, wanting to question Jake about the murders that he was investigating. He thought that Jake was faking his mental break down so that he could post pone his interrogation as long as possible.

       The fact of the matter was that Jake had indeed suffered severe traumas and his break down was real. He had slipped into a coma since coming to the hospital which irked Sean even more. He paced agitatedly, becoming more and more annoyed at the continual delays to his investigation.

        He could however get a blood sample and check the DNA against Higgins. With a little luck, the two would be a match and at least he could start to prosecute Higgins for the crimes of raping Mrs. Caulder and killing her husband in cold blood so many years ago.

       Several vials of blood were withdrawn from Jake’s arm and a few were sent to the lab for testing. The doctors said that it would be some time before the results were ready because they were back logged in the lab.

When O’Reilly heard this, he lost what little control he had. He called the technician every name under the sun, and people in the next office came running to see what all the commotion was about. He brow beat the poor tech so bad that he almost started crying and he did in fact wet himself.

       Sean was not very subtle, to say the least, but he always seemed to get what he wanted. Every other job the lab was doing was put on hold and a rush was put on the Higgins/Caulder tests. The results from the DNA tests returned and they were in fact a positive match. Kevin Higgins was Jake Caulder’s biological father. There was no mistaking the results.

       "I’ve got you now, you son of a bitch.” Sean cursed as he spoke to no one in particular. But Sergeant Miller knew who he was referring to. It was Higgins. He also felt glad that the sheriff was going to go to trial and with a little luck, would be put away for crimes committed many years ago. With the help from the mayor and several others who were familiar with the way Higgins was towards Maggie Caulder, it was fairly certain that Sheriff Higgins would be locked up for a long time. Chances are he wouldn’t survive in prison for too long because many inmates wanted a piece of the little shit head as well for getting them locked up behind bars. He would be lucky to last a month where he was going. He smiled to himself and was interrupted when Sean bellowed.

       "Come on Sergeant. Let’s get back to Higgins and start the process of getting the little turd put away. I’ve got to talk to the mayor at once and have him get me a list of witnesses to use against him. Paybacks are a bitch as they say. When that asshole sent those goons after us, he pretty well sealed his fate. It was only a matter of time.”

       "Yes sir. I’ll be glad to get that little prick locked up as well. I’m sure that a few good ole boys in the local prison want to make him their bitch.”

       "One can only hope Sergeant, one can only hope.” And with that, a smile came across Sean’s face that only Miller could see. He wondered if it was the idea that Higgins was going to be punished or the fact that his boss was going to be able to see the secretary Cindy Stevens again. Miller thought that it was a little of both but probably the latter because Sean seemed quite taken with the girl.

       O’Reilly turned to the officer in charge of guarding Jake. “I want you to let me know if he wakes up.” he said, pointing to Caulder as he did.

       "Yes sir, I will do that. You can rest assured that if he wakes up, he won’t be going anywhere.” Officer Hawkins stated. “We’ll call you if his condition changes at all.”

       "Thanks Hawkins. Don’t let his condition fool you. He’s a cunning little son of a bitch and not to be trusted. He’s like a mad dog. He’ll treat you as his best friend one moment and then the next, he’ll turn on you and rip your throat out. Don’t let up your guard for a second.” O’Reilly warned the officer.

       "Yes sir, I’ll be careful.”

       "Make sure you are.” O’Reilly ordered. He turned to Hawkins’ partner and basically said the same thing to him that he had just told Hawkins.

       "Yes sir,” a very young looking policeman said. “We’ll be extra careful with this one, mark my words.”

       "Don’t fuck this up, either of you.” O’Reilly ordered. He glared at the two officers for a moment until they both seemed to wilt before his eyes. His stare was said to be able to make the most powerful of men quiver with fear.

       One thing was for certain. You didn’t mess with Sean when he was in one of his moods. As stated earlier, more than one thug learned the hard way the truth behind this statement. Higgins’ four lackeys that were sent after Sean and Miller found this out. They were now little more than worm food, rotting at the side of the road somewhere.

       Sean was not averse to teaching police officers the occasional lesson if they crossed him. More than one had ended up with a black eye or a broken rib or two if they argued with him. And if Sean didn’t, Miller was always there to administer the O’Reilly/ Miller justice. Their superiors knew of their maverick ways, but nothing was ever said to them.

       A blind eye was turned toward their antics on more than one occasion. Their bosses didn’t like how they behaved at times, but the two had the best arrest record in the department. Countless criminals had been taken off the streets because of these two, and that record looked good on paper. And so, because of this, they ran rough shod over criminals and colleagues alike. They were feared but also respected by their co-workers.

       O’Reilly, followed by Miller, left after a moment or two more and proceeded down the hall. No sooner had they left than Ryan Cooke, the young officer, turned to Hawkins and said in a somewhat loud and irritated voice. “What a piece of work that is.” referring to Sean. “What an asshole. Does he think we aren’t capable of doing our job without him giving us shit? Big arrogant prick!”

       "Shut up, for Christ’s sake. He’ll hear you and we’ll both be in trouble.”

       "I don’t give a shit if he hears me or not. I’ve been on the force for years and I know how to look after a prisoner, especially one who is comatose.”

       No sooner had the words come out of his mouth than the two of them heard foot steps coming towards them from out in the hall. Sean strode into the room and before the two officers had time to react, he struck Cooke across the face with the back of his hand, hard enough to split his lip and cause blood to spray onto the near wall. The force of the blow knocked Ryan back a step or two.

       Sean grabbed the young officer by the collar and yanked him towards himself. Hawkins was about to intervene, but Miller held his arm to restrain him. “Better leave it alone, son. You don’t want to get involved with this.”

       Hawkins protested, “He can’t treat another officer like that.”

       Miller insisted. “Leave it alone son You don’t want a piece of Sean, especially at a time like this. Just let it be.”

       Hawkins was about to say something else, but thought better of it. He just stood there and watched. He knew there was nothing he could do to help his partner, even if he had wanted to.

       Sean was still holding Ryan’s collar and he had pulled him so that his face was within inches of his own. “Got something on your mind, you piece of crap? If you say one more word, I’ll knock your teeth down your throat. That shit head over there is on the ten most wanted list. I don’t give a fuck if you like how I talk to you or not. If he escapes custody, it’ll be your badge on the line. Do you understand me, or do I have to knock some sense into you?” Sean’s face was starting to turn a dark shade of red, almost purple and Miller thought that he was going to strike the boy again.

       Ryan had enough sense to not antagonize Sean further and said nothing. Sean shook him by the collar once more and then released him. The flushness in his face slowly subsided and he stood there for what seemed like an eternity before speaking again.

       Sean looked at the officer’s name tag. “No more of your shit Cooke. That prick is probably faking being comatose in order to try something when your guard is down. Don’t be fooled by outward appearances. Too many people have trusted him and now they are dead by his hand, including, I think his mother and foster mother who were killed several years ago. He’s one sick puppy who snaps when least expected. He’s also suspect in recent heinous crimes against two or more people. Like I said, if you fuck this up, you’ll lose your badge, pension and everything you’ve worked so hard to get.”

       Cooke was visibly shaken by his man handling from Sean and when he spoke, his voice had a slight quiver to it. “I apologize for my mouthing off sir. I’ve had a long day and my wife’s at home sick. I’m concerned about her. Don’t worry sir, I, er, we’ll make sure he doesn’t try anything if he wakes. We’ll notify you right away of any changes.”

       "Make sure you do. You won’t like it if you piss me off again.” The chief inspector said menacingly.

       "Yes sir. We’ll be extra vigilant in our duties.”

       "Miller, let’s go. We’ve wasted far too much time here already.”

       "Yes sir, right behind you boss.” With that they left the room once again.

       When they were gone, Hawkins said to his still visibly shaken partner. “I tried to warn you, but you just had to go and mouth off didn’t you.” Hawkins felt a little sorry for his partner who sometimes spoke before he thought, but over all he was a good cop.

       "Yeah, I should learn to listen to you more often Hawk. I thought I was going to mess myself when he turned up at the door, let me tell you.”

       O’Reilly and Miller were still out in the hallway unbeknownst to the two young officers inside guarding their prisoner. A smile came over Sean’s face and he started to chuckle softly to himself. "Gotta keep them on their toes and always guessing. Makes better officers of them in the long run.” Sean said to Miller.

       "That you do, that you do, Sean. If nothing else, you are my hero and I will follow by your example. Anyone bothers me, I’ll shake them til their head hurts and then I’ll beat them until they respect me.” Sergeant Miller said trying to keep a straight face but then he broke out laughing.

       "Shut up you buffoon.” But then, Sean also started laughing as they continued on down the hall to get procedures against the slime ball Higgins under way.

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 49

Chapter 49

       Word got back to Sean and the others that a male had been found about five miles from where they were located. From the description that they got, it couldn’t be who they were looking for. But they had to go investigate. They spoke with Harrison for a moment and told him that they would keep him apprised of any new developments and he stated that he would as well.

       When they got to the cabin, a local ranger came out to greet them. “How yo’all doin’. I’m Ranger Bob and I’m the one that phoned yo’all about what I discovered.”

       Sean and Miller looked at each other for a moment and tried not to crack a grin. The man talking to them sounded a lot like a certain army private from an old television show from the fifties or sixties. "Hello Bob. I’m Chief Inspector O’Reilly and this is my assistant Sergeant Miller. What have you found?”

       "Well Inspector, come with me. It’s easier if I just show you rather than try to explain.” At that, he turned and led them toward the cabin. When they approached, they thought that they heard a small child talking. When they went through the door, the smell was the first thing that they noticed. It hit them like a ton of bricks.

        "Oh man” Miller spoke. “It smells like a fucking out house in here.” Miller pulled his handkerchief and put it over his nose and mouth. The smell of dead bodies never affected him the way that stale shit did. It was  strange how things can affect different individuals. The heat in the room was stifling which made the smell that much worse.

       O’Reilly looked about and noticed a person laying in the corner, covered with a blanket and seemingly talking to himself or an unseen visitor that only he could see. He approached and for a moment was taken aback by what he saw. There, laying under a wool blanket was Jake Caulder, babbling to no one in particular, but sounding a lot like a small child. His face looked like a map with roads going every which way from wounds that he had received from God only knew.

       "What the hell? Was he like this when you found him?” Sean turned and asked the ranger.

       "He was laying on the floor curled up in a tight ball. His wounds were as you see them. I just covered him with a blanket and called it in. The strangest thing when I got here other than he sounding like a small child was that there was a wolf stuck in the door with extensive trauma about the head. It looked like that fella there beat him with the leg of the table and stabbed it in its eye as well. I can’t figger how someone that is like a child could do that kind of injury to a wolf as large as that.” At that he pointed outside just past the door to where the biggest, gas bloated wolf lay that Sean had ever see.

       "Holy shit” Sean stated. “That is one big son of a bitch of a wolf, for sure. I didn’t even notice it when we pulled up. My mind was on the case at hand and not on anything else. How did you manage to get inside if the wolf was blocking the door?”

       "I managed to pry the boards off the window and climbed through. They were on so tight that it took everything I had to get them off. That poor bugger there was trapped inside this cabin with no way to get out. He wouldn’t have been able to remove them.” He pointed to Jake just to let Sean know whom he meant. “Then, I managed to shove the wolf out from inside and get the door open to air the place out. Smelled like an outhouse in here.”

       "You did a good job here Bob. I’ll be sure to let your supervisor know. You’ve found the person that we’ve been searching for. He’s on the ten most wanted list of dangerous criminals.”

       "Golly, Inspector, how could anyone in his state be a threat to anyone? Look at him. He couldn’t hurt a fly.”

       "I don’t know what has happened to him to bring him to this condition, but I can assure you that he is a very dangerous man and is believed to have committed several recent murders as well as others dating back almost fifteen years ago.”

       "Well you could have fooled me.” Bob said shaking his head and giving it a scratch at the same time.

The look on his face was almost comical and if the situation wasn’t so dire, Sean probably would have broken out laughing. But the point of the matter was, here was Jake Caulder, lying at his feet, and now he could get him incarcerated and taken off the street so that he couldn’t be a threat to any one again.

       At that moment Jake turned and spoke. “Momma, Jakie loves you. I feel safe with you. Good night momma.” And with that, Jake fell back asleep.

       Miller spoke to Sean. “What the fuck do you make of all this sir? What’s with the baby talk?”

       "Beats me, son. We’ll get him back to civilization as quick as we can and let doctors have a look at him. He is either a very good actor or he has suffered some trauma that he doesn’t seem to be able to cope with.

       "It must have been quite the ordeal back at the Taylor homestead from the look of his face. He may have gotten some of those cuts from branches in the woods, but a lot look like knife cuts and even animal bites. We’ll get him air lifted to hospital and get treatment started right away. Two guards will be posted at his door round the clock.

       "Don’t forget that we’ll need a sample of his blood for DNA testing. I haven’t forgotten about that slime ball sheriff Higgins. I want there to be a match so that we can start to prosecute him for the rape of Maggie Caulder and the murder of her husband. In one way or another, he’s going to pay for setting those four goons after us.” Sean remembered the attack that Higgins orchestrated and spat on the floor.

        "Yeah, I almost forgot about that shit head as well.” Miller concurred. “We’ll get on that straight away boss.”

        Sean turned and thanked Bob once again. Then he and Miller went outside where O’Reilly called for air lift to transport their suspect out of there and start the process of determining if he was the one responsible for all the crimes that Sean thought he was guilty of. He hung up the phone and then punched in Inspector Harrison’s number from the card that he had given Sean.

       "Inspector, O’Reilly here. Just wanted to let you know that we have our man in custody. You can shut down the man hunt. Thank all those that helped that they have my utmost gratitude.”

       The line crackled for a moment and then Harrison spoke. “That’s great  Chief Inspector. Glad to have been of service. If you’re in these parts again, drop by and we’ll go for a beer or something.”

       "Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.” He hung up and turned to Bob once more. “Again, our thanks to your efforts in this. It is most appreciated.”

“Aw shucks” Bob said. “It was nothin.” He stood there with a sheepish look on his face almost like a lost puppy.

        It was too much for Sean and Miller to take. They both started to laugh until their sides ached. Bob stood there for a moment, gave his head another scratch and then he too started laughing. Sean thought to himself that Bob was just a good ol' boy with a heart of gold but one hell of an officer and he would be glad to have him on his team if he ever decided to quit his present job. Just then, they heard the sound of an approaching chopper. Sean and Miller again shook hands with Bob and then went to meet the incoming air craft.

       "Sergeant, you drive the car to the hospital and meet me there. I’ll go with the chopper and stay with Caulder until we get the guard set up. I don’t want this little prick having a chance at escaping. I think he’s putting on an act but I can’t be sure.”

       "Okay boss” Miller said “I’ll see you there.”

       "Good, see you soon.” With that Sean got into the chopper after Jake had been loaded aboard and strapped in. After a moment, the helicopter took off, leaving Miller in its dust storm from the beating of the props. He got in the car and he too raised a cloud of dust as he sped away.

The Madness of Jake Caulder chapter 48

Chapter 48

         The net was established and for the first day nothing much happened. On the second day, a forest ranger happened upon the hunting lodge with Jake inside. Ranger Bob drove up to the cabin in his 4 by 4 and could hardly believe what he was seeing. A wolf was laying part way into the cabin with its head apparently stuck in the door. He approached cautiously and called out to see if any one was about. At first he heard nothing but then he thought he heard what sounded like a child’s voice coming from inside.

        The wolf was definitely dead and the smell emanating from it was almost unbearable. Flies buzzed about his ears as he tried moving the corpse from the doorway so that he could get inside to investigate what was making the noise from within.

        He called out again, but all that he heard was the muffled gibberish that a baby would make. He tried pushing on the door to force it open, but something on the inside was stopping it from moving. He attempted to pull the wolf away from the door once more, but its head seemed to be wedged solidly in the opening and it didn’t budge at all. The body was bloated from gases having formed after the animal had died, causing the carcass to form a solid block stopping entry inside.

       Bob looked around, and after a moment, noticed the boarded up window. He thought that if he could pry the wood off, he could crawl through and determine what or who might be seemingly trapped within.

He went back to his vehicle and got a pry bar from the tool box. Working in this forested area required each ranger to be fully equipped with a well stocked kit, because you never knew what may arise and if a hiker or someone else ran into trouble, it was the ranger’s responsibility to help out until aid arrived, which could be several hours because the forest around here was so thick that not many vehicles came by.

        He took the lever over and started to pry on the wood. It held fast at first, and he didn’t think that he was going to have any success in removing the pieces, but after a few moments, a loud creaking sound could be heard and the first board came away and clattered to the ground. After that, the going got a little easier. Whoever had put these boards on wanted to make sure that they stayed in place in case a storm came up. By the time he had removed them all, he was soaked in sweat and his shoulder muscles screamed in agony.

        Within a few moments, the pain subsided and he peered through the open window. It was like night time inside and at first nothing could be seen. As his eyes became accustomed to the light, he could see something in the corner and the same strange noise was coming from there.

        He took his flash light from his belt and shone it in that direction. At first, it didn’t register what he was looking at, whether it was human or animal. In a few moments he realized that what he was looking at was indeed a man, or at least he thought it was a man. The person was curled up in a ball, and appeared to be talking to himself or to someone that only he could see. The fact of the matter was that he didn’t seem to be saying anything comprehensible. In a moment or two, Bob realized that he sounded like a small child who was talking to perhaps his mother who seemed to be comforting him.

       "Momma, Jakie feels happy. I love you momma.” Jake spoke to the unseen person. “Jakie is tired momma. I want to sleep.” At this Jake closed his eyes, and fell into a deep sleep.

​       A chill went up Bob’s spine. How could someone with such a low level of intelligence be out here all by himself? He sounded like a child of no more than two or three. At further examination, he saw that there were multiple lacerations all over the poor person’s body, and he was covered in blood and Bob was sure, excrement as well.

        Bob leaned away and broke the window to gain entry into the cabin. After cleaning the remaining glass from the frame he crawled inside. Even though Bob was about fifteen feet away from Jake, he could smell him from across the room. He did in fact smell like he had fouled himself and his body odor almost made the ranger sick.

       Bob didn’t think that this could possibly be the villain that everyone was so desperate to catch, but he had to call it in. This was more than he could handle himself. He went back to his vehicle, made the call and then went back into the room to see if he could offer any help to this poor soul trapped inside.

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