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The pungent smell of wet smoke forced Damien awake. As he opened his eyes, he found himself in the abandoned cabin in the middle of the groves, its wood still damp from the fire department’s hoses. Damien was cuffed to a chair and, on the floor below him, noticed a burnt circle where Darlene was set on fire.

Damien tried to reach up to his throbbing head, but his cuffs rattled as he pulled against the wood of the chair. His vision was blurry and he could hear his heart beating in his ears. Through the haze he also knew he wasn’t alone.

Tobin stood across from him, his back to the window through which Damien first peered days before. Damien spied his gun sticking out from Tobin’s belt and leaning against the wall in the corner was the wooden bat stained with the spray of Damien’s blood.

“Tobin,” Damien said, still groggy. “Let me go.”

“I can’t,” Tobin said. “Not until it’s done.”

Damien’s head drooped into his chest, fighting an uneven equilibrium. The cabin felt as if it were a boat on heavy seas, leaning to one side, then back again. If he weren’t cuffed to the chair, Damien would have fallen onto the floor.

“Where’s Charity?” Damien asked.

Tobin remained silent, walked outside of Damien’s view, then returned with another chair. He placed it down and sat across from him. The teen boy leaned forward, smiling, almost giggling.

“I figured it out first,” Tobin said. “Even before my dad.

I figured out where Mark killed his first victim.”

“Taylor Lawson.”

“Yup. No one else knows but me. It’s a weird feeling, being the only one to know something. It makes me feel like I have a superpower or something.”

“You’re not the only one who knows,” Damien said. “Mark does too.”

“True. It’s been his secret, until now. Which meant, my father was right all along. He’s a great man and I’m going to prove it to the world.”

“By killing three women?”

“Two,” Tobin corrected. “So far.”

“That’s two too many.”

Tobin leaned back in his chair and shrugged.

“I guess. I mean, it’s Mark’s fault isn’t it? Starting all this? Besides, when I was a little kid, I remember how everyone reacted when my dad arrested him. No one talked about the victims anymore, not after Mark was in jail. They only talked about my dad and the murderer. I’m sorry I had to kill Mandy and Darlene… those were their names, right?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry about that, but, in a little bit, no one will really care about them, except maybe their families. Even then, who knows. When my dad dies, do you think my mom is going to show up for the funeral? I doubt it. My sisters? Maybe, if they think there’s money in it for them. Sure, they loved my dad when he was a hero, but after people lost interest and they weren’t treated special anymore, they didn’t think we were worth sticking around for. But it doesn’t matter now. I’m going to show them. I’m going to show everyone. I’m giving my father the best gift I can. I’m going to make him a hero again. They won’t forget his name this time.”

“You’re right about that,” Damien said. “Because his name will be tied to yours. You aren’t making him a hero. You’re making him the father of a serial killer.”

“You’re wrong. You’ll see.” He scooted his chair closer. “What gave me away?”

“Red nail polish,” Damien said. “That detail was never released to the media. Only someone with intimate knowledge of the crimes would know about that. I thought the killer was a cop.”

“Nope. It was me.”

“Tobin… those girls, they didn’t deserve to die.”

“I guess not, but the one thing my father taught me is that the world isn’t fair. You have to take what you want.”

“And this is what you want?” Damien asked. “This is what needs to be done.”
Damien shook his sore head, trying to understand the twisted logic of this evil young man.

“It’s not going to turn out the way you think,” Damien said.

“Sure it will. Just like last time.” “Tobin-“

“My dad has always been a great man,” the young man continued. “Even after my mom and my sisters left us, he kept working hard. He never gave up on a case. He out-worked everyone. After I discovered the location of Mark’s first victim, I realized I had to do something to show everyone what I already knew. And I had to do it fast.”

“Why?” Damien asked. “Why now?”

“Because…” Tobin’s voice cracked. “My dad’s dying. Lung cancer. You can barely tell, that’s how strong he is.” “I’m sorry, Tobin.”

“He doesn’t like to talk about it. He won’t let being sick stop him from what he wants to do. Which is why I knew if I recreated Mark’s crimes, he’d have to follow the clues to the end, and when he did, everyone would see how amazing he is. And by committing the crimes backwards, not only could my dad solve the case, but also discover Mark’s first victim. Then he’d be vindicated. It would show he’d been right about Mark all this time.”

Damien gave a tug at his cuffs, but the wood remained firm.

“Why didn’t you just tell him about the location of Taylor Lawson?” Damien asked.

“And show him that I was smarter than he was? That wouldn’t make him great. That would tell everyone he’s less than me. I couldn’t let that happen. I will never be better than my father.”

“Except when it comes to killing blonde teen girls.” Tobin ignored Damien’s remark and rose from the chair. “I found out something else too,” the teen boy said. “About you.”

“That I’m going to arrest you?” Tobin laughed.

“No,” he said. “You don’t even know how you’re tied to these murders, do you?”

“I went to school with Mark,” Damien said. “We were friends once. That’s not a secret.”

“I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about Taylor Lawson. Where she’s buried.”

“What does that have to do with me?”

“Where she’s buried is the most important place in your life,” Tobin said. “Without it, you wouldn’t have been born. Mark wasn’t the only person my dad had hunches about.”

“What are you talking about?” Damien asked.

“You’ll find out, eventually. Unless I have to kill you. I really don’t want to do that. You’ve been so nice to me, trying to build me up. I appreciate that. That’s why you’re not dead already. But, if you try to stop what’s happening, then I’ll have to kill you too. I can’t let you get in the way of my father’s greatest moment.”

“And what would that be?” Sanders said, standing in the doorway, pointing his gun at Tobin. “Arresting my son for murder?”