text: (Descriptions of fictional crimes investigated by the story's main Character Max.) Detective's Fate It's august of 2008..... Max is a detective living in Chicago He checks his pistol and puts on his police badge as he walks out his front door. He has been searching for a serial killer known as the Caller for years and always been one step behind due to the red tape..... More importantly the chief's lazy attitude towards getting search warrants and actions approved by the courts for raids. Twice Max had good intel on the suspect's locations and photo evidence showing him at the sites. The department needs more vigilant, caring officers and leaders but no one steps up to do it, instead they just complain about the slow progress and officers. And hinder investigations. Now Max has decided that it might be time to stop playing by the rules and catch this scumbag.... .... .... Starting his car Max sets his GPS to the address that "The Caller" was last seen and pulls out of his driveway as the 50 miles of directions pop up. The killer's nickname being for his signature of calling in as he is committing the crime. As he drives he remembers his first case, five years ago now..... ..... ..... A woman, Joane Taylor, was found dead in an alleyway after going out for the night. She showed no signs of struggle leading the police to believe she had drank to much and expired from alcohol poisoning.... ... The death was written off as a "party gone wrong".... That is until several more were found and the coroner decided on a whim to test for other substances. Once it came out that the deaths were possible murders... The calls started coming in, almost like the suspect wanted credit before revealing himself.... Then ways of the deaths began changing as the Serial Killer explored his twisted desires searching for his preferred method. The last case being a young woman found stuffed in a dumpster after the killer apparently got scared off.... Max will never forget it.... .... .... The GPS finishes and the car beeps its final direction, taking an exit off the highway. Ramps out here are always confusing... Which is funny since he has driven this one for five years now... The chief says he should sit this one out but he can't... The latest victim 3 months ago. Marie Spelner, a waitress out on her smoke break talking to her spouse on the phone. Survived by her husband, no children or living relatives. .... Max Spelner turns into the driveway of the house he was directed to... Stepping out of the car he walks up and knocks on the door. Looking at the house he knows the family must be doing well if they live here.... Raising his hand to knock again he hears a scream from inside.... A second later the door is answered by a middle aged butler holding a tray with wine glasses on it... "Hello Sir, I'm sorry but this house does not wish to partake in any offers at this time..." Max calmly says. "I'm not selling anything." The butler looks confused for a moment before his eyes dart over Max's shoulder seeing his unmarked cruiser and he nods. Looking past the butler Max sees that a woman is cleaning up after their dog. "Have you seen this man?" Says Max holds up a picture of the one suspected of being the killer. The butler gives it a once over before replying. "I'm sorry sir, no I have not." His tone sounds like he is lying... .... "Are you sure?" The detective asks. "I would not lie about something like that, sir." He states, his eyes not meeting Max's. The woman calls from inside "Fletcher, who are you talking too?" "Some man asking about a killer" he calls back. "The killer is an inside job!" The woman quickly states. "What?!" Max says. "The Killer, it's an inside job." She says again, louder this time. In the same Max also hears a child begin to cry in another room. "We should start from the beginning, it will be easier to explain trust me." The woman says. 'She seems to know what is going on.... "How do I know your story holds water?" He asks out loud. "Oh I wouldn't lie. I have been following the case myself and it seems like an inside job to me." She states, somehow sounding hurt. "Is there anyone else in the house besides you two and the baby?" He asks noticing the baby isn't crying anymore. "Just Fletcher and I live here, the baby is my cousins but he just stays the night sometimes." She replies. Max draws his gun and enters the house upon reasonable suspicion of an emergency in progress or suspect on the premisses as the man seems to be deceiving. While the woman still seems unconcerned that the child is now silent. He pushes past the butler and rushes towards the area he heard the crying. passes the entryway, the dinning room, and a kitchen before finally finding a child in a playpen. "There there..." He says in a sing song voice picking up the child. "I'm officer Max, do you know where your mommy is?" The child just cries louder. Then he sees the man from the photo walk out of the bathroom, upon seeing him he bolts for the door and Max sets the child down gently then gives chase. He runs through the house, following the man as he can hear the woman screaming at him to stop but he doesn't." "Stop or I'll shoot." The man doesn't even break stride. Instead he runs out of the front door and jumps into his car. Furious that the man might escape he fires at the car as it drives away. The back window shatters and he hopes he got his tire, but he doesn't wait to find out as he runs to his car and initiates a pursuit.... He flips on his concealed lights in his cruiser as he reverses down the drive and into the street. The suspects car is fast but he manages to keep up with it weaving in and out of traffic as people move over for the siren. As they approach a red light there is heavy traffic in the intersection..... .... The suspect slams on his brakes and Max's cruiser only just stops short of hitting it. Jumping out the Detective points his firearm at the vehicle running up beside seeing heavily tinted windows. "Get out of the car and on the ground now!!" He shouts as he moves to the driver's side door. After seeing no response.... Max throws open the door and the driver is gone with the passenger side open. He quickly runs to the other side catching the man trying to sneak off tackling him to the ground and then takes his arms putting them behind his back. Max grabs his radio and calls it in as the man cries. As he is waiting he hears a noise that sounds like static..... "Wrong guy moron.. Did you ever stop to think I wanted you close for this one. That I planned everything...Even framing the pothead..... I almost lost interest until you pulled in the driveway... The attic is kinda cramped tho... I think I'll go carve some meat. Maybe graduate to other things to. I'm not sure yet. Lets see if you can catch me before......" A familiar voice says over the radio then cuts off... ... Max looks at the man on the ground. "Why did you run from me?" He asks. "Cause I have like 19 grams of marijuana in my pocket." He replies... "Do you know how stupid that is?! I don't care about that I'm looking for a killer." Before he can answer Max hears the woman from the house screaming for her life and a child's cries on his radio. Then from below Max. "He's in the house, he's in the house! My mom and the baby!" The man on the ground says crying. Max uncuffs him and runs to his car heading back to the house as he lays down rubber on the road... ... ... As he approaches and pulls into the driveway he notices the front door is open. "Hold on I'm coming!" Max screams jumping out of his cruiser... He runs into the house finding the woman's body arriving too late. Moving over to her he checks for a pulse but she is gone, a large gash in her neck. As he stands up he slips in a fluid but gains his balance and tries not to think about what it is.... He rushes to the room the baby was in finding the play pen empty. He leaves the room searching the rest of the house and still doesn't find the child. "Where are you!!!" He calls out.... "This is the Callers first kidnapping and the media would eat up the fact I failed to stop the man." He thinks as he blames himself. Sirens begin to blare in the distance as backup is about to arrive... ... ... "There's a woman dead and a baby missing! The woman is in the dinning room straight ahead of the front door, Hurry!" He yells into his radio... Looking over at the mother seeing a piece of paper on the floor. He walks over to it seeing writing. "So close... Looks like I'm a kidnapper now.... Good luck finding me.... And... I so enjoyed killing that sweet wife of yours. Might do it that way again. Not to the kid tho....later Max. Ps. This game is so fun.." It says. "He was here..." Is all he can muster as the team enters. "He was right in this house and I missed it because her son freaked over weed and ran..." He says as another officer speaks to him gently. "Don't beat yourself up Detective, it's not your fault. He must have hid before you got her and left after you arrived." The words do little to comfort him "First day back on the job and the killer escaped taking a child..." He says as he walks away. The chief arrives in his new lexus with a screeching of rubber as he lurches to a halt. He quickly exits and leaves his door hanging open as he rushes into Max's face.... "I told you to stay away from this case MAX!!!!....(takes a breath)... "If I catch any flak from my superiors, I won't suspend you.... That'd be to easy. Desk duty and an entry level demotion. The new guy will have a higher rank than you if things go my way.... Now get outta my sight...". "(Sighs)... "This job is gonna be the death of me..." He says walking away from Max and towards the Coroner's van..... ..... ..... On the way home the detective stops by the store close to his house which is unlike him because he usually follows the same routine. He nears the front door and he hears a kitchen timer ding loudly from behind him as his car explodes throwing him through the storefront windows as they are blown out..... ..... Alarms around the lot and others nearby create a cacophony of noise. His head pounding as his body aches, Max pushes himself up and collapses as the store manager runs over to him telling him not to move as he dials 911.... .... .... Waking in the hospital Max recalls the feeling of the Shockwave as he flinches in phantom pain. "Who woulda thought its like holding a ringing metal bat that hurts your hands but all over and way more intense." He thinks. He suddenly feels tired and falls asleep.... .... .... .... The next time he wakes, he sees a breaking news story that Jane Saltani is reporting on.... "Young toddler Accidently Shoots Serial killer/kidnapper ending his life and Alerting residents in the Area." The news anchor says. Sighing to himself Max thinks about how crazy that is and laughs. Tho he really wanted to bring the guy in. He closes his eyes to get some much needed sleep as his door opens. Max looks up to see a man with a silenced pistol pointed at him. "Hm. Now they think I'm dead. Funny how they just assume they got the right guy. Just like.... You did Detect... ....." Max hears but then hears no more as his end comes at just over the speed of sound.... The Caller leaves the hair of another intelligent convicted murderer that he obtained in a spot that's believable and quickly leaves..... He disables the surveillance system and sends a virus out to any device that has received video data from the hospital. Erasing and corrupting the systems. Leaving a master hackers finger prints on a glass from his home.... "Sorry, no witnesses." He says to the security guard as he fires... ..... ..... .... ....