Page 43 of The Fragile Ones

“Aren’t there a million things that these numbers could represent?”

“You have to remember, Gav, these numbers may have something to do with the killer. It means something to him.”

“You’re thinking that the parents have something to do with it.”

“We can’t rule it out. Statistically speaking, someone being murdered by a family member occurs in approximately seventy-five percent of cases, leaving a friend or stranger to make up the other twenty-five percent. But there are also associates through family and friends, people in town. We have to keep alert. We’ve been fooled before.”

She pulled a small notebook and started scribbling.

“What now?” asked McGaven, studying his partner closely.

“Could be a reference, like a verse from the Bible,” she said.

“Killers have done that before, you know.”

“Of course,” she said. “The difference here is that these numbers are branded onto a child’sscalpand scratched into the wall of the basement of that house. This is the pivotal clue, Gav—outside the forensic evidence, of course.”

“So, something about wrath? The end of days?”

“My Sunday school days are a bit behind me and I haven’t read the Bible recently, sorry to say. But…” She shuffled her notes. “I’ve come down to a couple possibilities.”

McGaven moved closer.

“Okay. It’s 372, right?” she said.

He nodded.

There are sixty-six books in the Bible—the King James Version. So, the way I see it, it could be book 3, 7, 2, 37, or 72.”

“What about 32, 23, 73?”

“I think the order is key—in fact crucial. In the same order is what they are about. I read through several books and one stood out to me – the Psalms.” McGaven remained quiet, with a blank expression.

“Okay, I won’t bore you with details, but if I had to guess I would say the numbers possibly refers to Psalm, chapter 37, verse 2.”

“What does it say?”

Looking down at her notes, she finally found what she was looking for. “It says: ‘For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.’”

“And that means?”

“As best I can understand, it refers to the evil in the world. As in, why do the good suffer, while the evil prosper? That was the way professors explained it as it was written by King David.”

“Wow,” said McGaven. “You researched all this last night, didn’t you?”

“Once I got into it, I just kept digging, but I’m not sure if this is just wishful thinking. It’s possible that whoever wrote those numbers on Tessa’s head and the basement wall felt discouraged, never getting what they think they deserve, and are tired of seeing everyone around them getting something that they want.”

McGaven took a moment to think about it. “So, your theory is that the person we’re looking for – the killer or just the person responsible for the numbers – felt inferior to everyone, or hated a type of person.”

“Something like that. There’s some deep-seated hate.”

“Good versus evil.”

“So I think we need to have a plan and be ready.”

“Ready for what?” asked McGaven.

“Scrutinize everything in Rock Creek. We need to talk to Darren Rodriguez and re-interview Mrs. Mayfield.”