It could be they symbolize everything that goes bump in the night and hides under our beds. When we were young, we had the boogie man. Now as adults, there's a very similar type of predator out there.
No matter how much I read or how many documentaries I watch, I still can't get enough. I can't even imagine walking out of a store without paying for something, let alone killing a person over and over.
Take a look at the usual suspects in our history: We've got Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Kaczynski, The Zodiac Killer, The Black Dahlia Killer, Jack the Ripper, The Atlanta Ripper, Ed Gein, The Death Angels, H.H. Holmes, Son of Sam... the list goes on and on.
We've got them all over the news and people are killing others every day. I'm sure everyone knows or will know at least one person that was or will be murdered. It's not a pleasant subject to think about, yet I somehow have two young women in my own history that were killed. Neither was killed by a serial killer, but a murderer is a murderer nonetheless.
Both were friends. One lived within ten miles of my house. We sometimes took her home after band practice and/or school during my high school years. She hitchhiked up the highway one day and wasn't seen alive again. I walked up that same stretch of highway about a month and a half after her disappearance without ever knowing it had happened. When she had been found, it was all I could think about for a couple of weeks.
My other friend was a part of a close-knit circle of friends from high school. After graduation, we all went our separate ways - some keeping in touch with others, but we had our own lives to build. One day while working at a bookstore in Harrisburg, PA, we had a cop investigating receipts for some books thought to be involved in a murder. Not long after that, a friend sent me a copy of an article saying that our friend had been killed by her husband and a friend of his.
I called my parents in tears to tell them the news. I collected newspaper articles concerning the death and I met up with friends at her memorial. I had lost quite a few friends and co-workers to killings, suicide and natural death by that time and it was getting pretty hard for me to deal with. I really had to wonder what was going through the minds of the guys that had taken these two beautiful lights from our lives.
To think what they may have been thinking. What was the motive. What would they be doing if they hadn't been caught. What might happen if they all met up together?
One of my favorite e-books delves into some of this: what a killer might be thinking and what would happen if two killers met. This novella, Serial by Blake Crouch and Jack Kilborn, has become one of my favorite stories ever.
The first two chapters introduce the two killers with very different methods. The third introduces them to each other. The story is very creative and cringe-worthy. I definitely would not want to meet either stranded on the side of the road. Nor would I ever want to get trapped in the minds of either of the authors.
Serial is available for both the Nook and Kindle. From what I understand, there is now an uncut and extended version that adds to the horrific fun as well as two additional books for the trilogy. Check it out if you get a chance and enjoy!
And finally, in memoriam: Trista and Randi, I'm still thinking about you both! R.I.P.
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