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Chapter 9 - First Interrogation
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2024-10-29 19:42:56When Esther and Leo arrived at the police station, they left the police car in the parking lot and led 'Mad Dog' inside. He was immediately taken to a cell, where he was to wait for the first interrogation, which was to take place on the same day. First, Esther and Leo prepared the documents needed for the interrogation, and handed over to the laboratory the items found on the man - a dagger and a rope. Samples of his DNA and an imprint of teeth were also collected, both before and after his metal jaw was removed, after which it was also included in the evidence. Until the results were obtained, which were to check the similarity to the traces found on the bodies of the dead victims, the detained man was to remain in a cell at the police station. As these tests has been classified as urgent, the results should be delivered in two days at the latest, the next day at the earliest. Before the results came out, however, Leo and Esther were to interrogate the suspect, as so far this status was given to the man.
- I'm gonna put pressure on this bastard so much he'll say it all...- said Leo, clearly angry and eager to do so.- Leo, I think I should question him.- Esther replied, looking at him with concern.- I won't let you talk to him if you're behaving like this. First of all, you need to get your emotions under control. He may be a murderer, but you have no right to beat him or something. Secondly, until the tests confirm one hundred percent that it is him, we are not sure if this man is a 'Mad Dog'. There is such a thing as a presumption of innocence, and until we have hard evidence, we cannot treat the detainee as a criminal. The fact that the would-be victim called him that way, and we found few things on him, it may only indicate suspicion, but doesn't mean that he's the killer for sure.- she reminded him.- Yeah, I know. But who said I was going to beat him?- Leo asked, indignant.- I can see your facial expression. You're so angry now that I'm not sure if you will be able to control your nerves.- Esther noticed.- Besides, it has happened to you a few times, so don't be surprised that I have such a feeling.- she added after a moment.Leo wanted to cut in, but hearing her last words he fell silent immediately. Esther was right, several times he had lost his nerve while questioning a criminal. After that, Leo had a lot of trouble and a chat with the Chief.- See?- Esther said, breaking a brief moment of silence.- I'll question him, and you'll sit in the next room and watch through the semi-transparent glass, okay?- she offered, and Leo just nodded.Then they both started going toward the interrogation room.~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~Esther entered the interrogation room where the man was already sitting. She had a paper folder with her, which contained the man's personal data, determined on the basis of the identity document he had with him. Of course, these data were immediately compared with databases, which only confirmed his identity. Esther sat across from him, setting a paper folder on the table and opening it immediately. She quickly scanned the sheets of paper in it and only then looked up at the man sitting across the table. He was looking at her with kind of bored expression on his face. His hands, handcuffed, were placed on the table.- Let's start by confirming your identity, shall we?- Esther spoke up without taking her eyes off him for even a second.- Sure.- he answered shortly, and only now, in this empty room, Esther heard the man's accent, which only confirmed that he was not British.- Your name is Laurens Vermeulen, 30 years old, born in Dragør, Denmark. Is that right?- she asked, peeking at the papers from time to time.- Exactly.- the man confirmed in a tone as if he didn't care.- You live in Cardiff for 5 years now and work at a Sainsbury's supermarket on Queen Street, and rent a place not far from there, on Adamsdown inner-city, Sapphire Street. Correct?- Esther continued reading, then looked up at him.- Yes, that's right.- the man sighed and ran his fingers through his blonde hair.- Why do you ask me these questions if you already know everything? You must have checked me thoroughly. Besides, I had my ID with me, right?- he continued, a little annoyed.- Of course, but these are the procedures. We need to confirm the information with you.- Esther answered calmly.- Don't worry, Mr. Vermeulen, we'll move on to a more specific part of this questioning in a moment.- she assured, watching him all the time.- Since I confirmed the data, let me ask you a few questions ... - she began to say.- Yes, I am the 'Mad Dog' you are looking for, although I don't like this name and the fact that people think I'm doing something wrong.- the man interrupted her in mid-sentence.- Yes, I was in this woman's apartment because I wanted to punish her. She is a whore, and deserve it, believe me. Each of them deserved what happened to them.- he concluded.- So you admit your guilt, Mr. Vermeulen?- Esther asked, obviously surprised by his sudden confession.- Yes.- he confirmed, looking at her.- And don't be so surprised, detective. You've got evidence on me anyway, don't you? Why would I argue if you took my DNA samples and toothprints? When the results come, I'll be accused anyway, right?- the man continued, his expression bored all the time.- Of course, in my opinion, I didn't do anything wrong, I just punished the harlots... But it won't convince you anyway. I'm just a murderer to everyone around. You are blind and can't see that I'm only cleansing the world of spoiled women.- he added at the end, livening up slightly.- You punished them, is that right?- Esther gave him a slightly mocking look.- First of all, who gave you the right to punish anyone? Secondly, did you have to punish them in such a brutal way? Since when promiscuity is punishable by torture and death?- she asked with obvious resentment.- In the old days such women were stoned, so what I do is not much different.- the man replied with such calmness that Esther was speechless.- Besides, before they die, I give them a little pleasure, exactly what they like, right?- he asked, an ominous smile on his lips.- Are you talking about the brutal rape of these women? It's no pleasure for them, but another torture.- Esther grunted through her teeth, trying hard to stay calm. At that moment, she understood Leo's feelings about this man perfectly.- Torture?- he laughed lightly.- They spread their legs in front of just anyone. You can't rape such a woman. You didn't see what I saw on their faces. They were resisting, but liked it, each one of them. Body language doesn't lie.- the man added, still looking amused.Esther had a feeling she was going to throw up, therefore wanted to end this interrogation for the time being, so she closed the paper folder in front of her.- Detective Moore, why don't we talk about what really interests you?- she heard the man's question and immediately looked up at him.- What do you mean?- Esther answered the question with a question. She ignored the fact that he knew her last name, this man must have heard who was dealing with his case.- When we were in the apartment, you curiously aksed about the 'Scarlet Angels' I saw, detective Moore. Judging by the look you had at the time, I conclude that you are very interested in this subject.- the man replied, leaning forward a bit, getting closer to her.- Wouldn't you like to know more, hmm?- he asked in an almost whisper, which was so sensual that Esther felt a shiver run down her spine.- End of the interrogation.- she gasped, getting up quickly from the chair, propping her hands on the table, because she felt that her legs were like jelly.- You can take the accused to the cell.- she said through the door and knocked several times. Shortly thereafter, two policemen entered the room, took the man by the arm and led him away.Immediately after this, Leo literally burst into the interrogation room.- Esther? Is everything all right?- he asked, seeing her palce face.- I'm okay.- she assured him immediately.- I just can't believe what I heard from him. That a human being can say something like that.- Esther continued.- And he doesn't seem to regret what he did. At all.- she added, looking up at him.- He's a psychopath, of course he has no regrets.- Leo replied firmly.- This kind of people always think what they do is right, even if they murder others. They always find an explanation for their crimes, and most often it's some higher mission that no one else understands.- he added with obvious contempt.- This is terrible.- Esther admitted, staring at the floor as she clutched a paper folder to her chest.- Listen to me.- Leo took her face in his hands, forcing Esther to look at himself.- Don't take it so personally. We just have to punish this man for what he did. That guy confessed, we have it on tape, so the lab results will be just a formality.- he continued, looking into her eyes.- Do you remember how much you wanted to catch him? Well, we have this man, we caught the 'Mad Dog'. You should be happy he won't kill any more women. Besides, the congratulations, bonus, respect from colleagues, maybe some media mention... It will probably come true now.- Leo added, smiling slightly.- You're right, I should be glad we finally got him.- Esther admitted and smiled as well. She also felt immense relief at the thought that 'Mad Dog' is already in their hands.- Now let's get out of here, it's time to go home and rest. It's very late.- Leo released her face from his hands and opened the door.- We both need a good night's sleep now, so we'll be ready for the results that may come tomorrow or in two days.- he added as they both left the room.Related chapters
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 10 - The Evidence
The next day, police reached Laurens Vermeulen's place of residence, which he was renting, and made a search. A lot of vibrators were found there, which 'Mad Dog' probably used to rape his older victims. Besides, pieces of ropes and leather belts matched the appearance of those with which the victims were tied were also found. In addition, an album of photographs of the victims taken from different angles and during several stages of torture was discovered, many of them showing alive or half-alive victims. The laptop was connected to a printer, which contained paper ideal for printing photos. It all explained why, in the inner pocket of his jacket, Laurens Vermeulen had a small digital camera, which came out during more thorough search conducted on the police station.Meanwhile, Esther, not mentioning it to anyone, not even Leo, made her way to the would-be victim's apartment where 'Mad Dog' was captured. However, she had no intention of looking for traces related to the killer
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 11 - Second Interrogation
The 2nd interrogation of Laurens Vermeulen, nicknamed 'Mad Dog', was conducted this time by Leo. Esther herself gave it into the hands of her partner, because she didn't know if the killer's words would make her feel bad again. Leo was certainly less sensitive to such a sick talk. The only thing she feared was that Leo would lose his temper, but he assured her that was much calmer now. In that woman's apartment he reacted in this and no other way because of meeting 'Mad Dog' face to face for the first time and was still frustrated by the long months they had spent looking for this man. Now Leo was just glad that they have him in their hands, and lots of hard evidence, so interrogations were now just a formality for him. Besides, although in the beginning the man had mentioned the 'Scarlet Angels' more often, even to the cell guard officers, he hadn't mentioned a word about them for two days. And it seemed that Leo was most irritated by this 'crazy talk' about supernatural beings. Es
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 12 - Entering the Mystery
After work, Leo wanted to go with Esther for a drink at the bar to celebrate their success, but she excused herself with a headache and quickly returned home. The feather hidden in her pants pocket was bothering her and she wanted to examine it as soon as possible. Could it really belong to the legendary 'Scarlet Angels' or was it just that the woman who lived in that apartment once had a parrot? For at first glance, such a red and quite large feather reminded her only of this bird. But on the other hand, how big feathers could a parrot have? The one she found was the length of her hand, which was small, but Esther had never found a feather as large as this part of her body.Once in her apartment, Esther quickly took off her shoes, and tossed the coat carelessly on the couch in the living room. She quickly found herself in bedroom, where her laptop was. Esther turned it on quickly and waited impatiently for the system to boot up completely. Then she took a picture of the scarle
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 13: Esther's Diary (Page 07)
The next day after the arrest of 'Mad Dog', as not all lab results came, I decided to leave the police station for a moment under the guise of going to lunch and I went to the apartment of the would-be victim, in which he was arrested. I wanted to look around there myself, without any prying eyes around, because I wasn't going to look for anything closely related to this serial killer. I was looking for traces of the presence of 'Scarlet Angels'. According to the testimony of a woman and of the 'Mad Dog' himself, he saw legendary creatures in the living room of the apartment. And if you consider that they are real, they may have left a trace. Of course it wasn't certain, but I thought it was worth checking out. And it's good that I decided to do it, because behind the couch in the living room I found a large feather in a deep shade of scarlet. When the rays of the sun fell on this thing, it seemed as if the feather was made of a thousand tiny rubies, such a glow emanated from i
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 14 - The Mystery
The next day, all the test results from the laboratory came to the police station. As Leo and Esther had predicted, the DNA taken from Laurens Vermeulen matched the samples collected from the victims' bodies, and so did the tooth marks. So it was already certain that this man was the 'Mad Dog', and his testimony with admission to guilt was only a confirmation and a great help. It all also made the success of the 'Amazing Duo' even more visible. There was a lot of congratulations and a substantial bonus of course, besides, the television asked for an interview with detectives who solved the 'Mad Dog' case. However, neither the Chief of Police, nor Esther and Leo had a desire to do it. However, it was written about them on the internet and in newspapers, there was talk on radio and television too. The whole of Cardiff has been talking about the case nonstop for the past several months, so no wonder that catching 'Mad Dog' triggered such a reaction. Even a few foreign media picked up o
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 15 - The Private Talk
The next day, September 23rd, Esther and Leo were preparing files to be sent to the court, the prosecutor's office and the defense attorney attached to the accused Laurens Vermeulen. Preparations for the first court hearing were underway and each party had to familiarize themselves with the evidence. Towards the end of the evening, the police station grew a little calmer, so then Esther decided to do what she had been thinking of for several days - somehow imperceptibly sneak to the cells and talk to Laurens Vermeulen. Tomorrow, he was to be transferred to a pre-trial detention center located closer to the court building, that's why she only had a chance today. She went into the cell room and greeted the two officers who sat at their desks watching over the detainees.- Welcome, detective Moore.- they both replied almost simultaneously. One of them, Esther knew very well, he had been hitting on her once, but she clearly rejected his advances. This time, however, Esther decided
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 16 - Uncertainty
For the rest of the evening, Esther and Leo did the paperwork, closing the 'Mad Dog' case. Of course, there were also court hearings awaiting them, but that was a formality. After being summoned, they will appear in court, answer questions, confirm everything in the investigation files, and that's it. Then they could get ready to accept the next case.However, Esther couldn't concentrate on her work, thinking constantly about what Laurens Vermeulen had told her about the 'Scarlet Angels' and what she had seen in the drawing. While Leo was busy, she took out a piece of paper with a drawing, and on it's back wrote the names of the angels Laurens had mentioned and their supposed positions in the 'squad', if you could call them that. She also made notes about how the female angel, Saraqael, was eager to complete the mission because she didn't believe in human justice, and male angel, Rathanael rushed her so they would disappear before people saw them. It showed that the 'Scarlet An
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 17: Esther's Diary (Page 08)
On September 23, I finally decided to implement my plan to talk to 'Mad Dog' without being noticed by others. I had already checked who was on the shift, guarding the cells at the station, and seeing the familiar name I was glad. On that day, an officer was on duty, with whom I was already working on guarding cells, shortly after I was hired to work at this police station. Thanks to the fact that I started working in this position, I knew very well how the monitoring program works, which showed the image from the cameras. I knew that this program was old and crashed frequently, and according to my information, no one has changed it so far. That's why I already knew what to do so that no one would notice on the recordings that I was talking to 'Mad Dog'. Yes, it was doubtful that anyone would want to check the video from the whole day, if of course there were no reported problems, but I preferred not to risk. The plan was to look into that part of the station and suggest to the
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Leo, after reading Esther's diary, didn't know what to think about it all. He sat down on the edge of her bed, resting the notebook on his lap. If he would take her words seriously, especially from one of the last entries, it seems that Esther's grandmother, Eloise Moore, might be right. However, this did not convinced Leo's skeptical mind. Less important now was what was putting Esther in danger, for even if it existed, now probably wouldn't be able to find her since she disappeared. However, Leo still wanted to know what exactly had happened and where Esther was now. And what was he able to do to contact her in some way... But on the other hand, if all of this, by some miracle, was true, what could he possibly do to find out what happened and how to contact Esther? Therefore, the more he wanted to reject this version of events, because it took away his opportunities, and he really wanted to find her, to see her one last time, even if it was in a coffin.He finally got up, clo
The Scarlet Angels ~Epilogue: Part 1~
Esther slowly regained consciousness, feeling some very bright and warm white light around her. It was an extremely strange feeling, besides, it felt as if she was lying on an extremely soft mattress, pillow and and was covered with an equally soft duvet.- Esther, wake up.- she heard a woman's voice nearby, and then opened her eyes fully, realizing she was lying on a bed of some sort. Esther got up, sitting down, and looked to the side, noticing that on the chair near the bed there was sitting a tall, slim woman with blonde hair, pale complexion and dark blue eyes without pupils, then she also saw two huge scarlet wings. She was similar to the figure on the Laurens Vermeulen's drawing, but her facial features were a little bit different.- You know who I am, don't you?- the woman asked calmly, and contrary to what Esther saw in her dream, she was moving her lips while talking.- Yes... I mean, I think so.- replied Esther, looking at the female angel uncertainly.- You
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 47 - The Last Entry: Esther's Diary (Page 21)
Today, on November 20, when I write all this words, I was supposed to go to work normally, the more that Leo wanted to participate in the 'Mad Dog' trial as an observer, and the Chief agreed that he would be late for work only on condition that I would be on the station, alone for a few hours, taking care of the work for both of us. Unfortunately, not only did I have nightmares full of some devilish creatures at night, but also woke up in the morning with a terrible headache. My head felt like it was about to explode and no pills helped me, I also felt terribly tired, as if someone had sucked all my energy out of me. Therefore, I was forced to call the station and take a day off, and even added that I might have to go to the doctor and take a sick leave, because I seriously thought about it. Then I silenced my phone completely, leaving it on the table in the living room. I didn't want anyone to disturb me, besides the noises only made my headache worse.
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 46 - The Last Entry: Esther's Diary (Page 20)
After an argument with Leo, being at home became a bigger nightmare. It was only in the last week of vacation that I finally managed to go to my mother and grandmother in Penarth, and to this day I regret that did not go to them right after returning from a week's vacation near the Cardiff Bay Wetlands Reserve, because it was only in my family home that everything seemed get back to normal. There were no more whispers, no shadows seen in the corner of my bedroom at night, no nightmares. When it was time to go back to Cardiff, I didn't want to get on the train. I chose this type of transport because while leaving home I didn't feel strong enough to drive a car.When I was back in my apartment, I immediately felt the dark atmosphere that had been with me from the moment I entered that search engine again, trying to find this website about 'Scarlet Angels' and a user 'the_scarlet_truth'. I started to seriously think that maybe this was all some kind of punishment for messing
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 45 - Desperation
From November 20th, when Leo reported Esther's disappearance, until the end of December 2020 there was an investigation into the case, and although the Chief transferred the case to other detectives, Leo was still conducting a private investigation on his own. It irritated him that his colleagues could not find any clues and answer the question of what happened in Esther's apartment that night, and most importantly, where she was now and whether she was still alive or not. However, the case was extremely difficult to solve, as the locked door and the keys being in the apartment prevented anyone from entering, also no fingerprints were found except Esther's and Leo's. The detectives for a moment admitted the possibility that Leo could have had done something to Esther, but the time between him finishing his work and when he called the station was too short and made it impossible for him to do something and then get rid of any traces, including the body. Besides, everyone knew that Le
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 44 - Disappearance: Part 2
When Leo went to the police station, he found out that Esther had called the Chief of Police and said she was feeling unwell and could not turn up for work today. Unable to take it out on her, the police chief spilled his frustrations on Leo, telling him to speak to Esther about it. Leo agreed, of course, and as soon as he got to the office he called Esther, but she didn't answer. It worried him a lot, but he tried to explain to himself that maybe Esther just needed some peace, she was feeling bad after all, right? That's why she took the day off, reportedly even mentioned going to the doctor, so it must have been serious. Unfortunately, Leo became even more worried about that, and he couldn't concentrate properly on his work, and he had twice as much today because had to do Esther's part too. In addition, every now and then someone came to the office and asked him about the court case he was in, even though the media was already dealing with this topic everywhere. That's why Leo re
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 43 - Disappearance: Part 1
Esther woke up in the morning with a huge headache. She had the impression that her head was about to burst, and the pills she took were not helping at all. Esther also felt terribly weakened and saw in the mirror that was terribly pale and had huge dark circles under her eyes. She knew very well that today Leo wanted to appear in court on the 'Mad Dog' trial as an observer, and Esther promised the Chief that she would show up at work so that he would calmly let Leo be a bit late. Unfortunately, Esther felt terrible and knew she couldn't even get dressed, let alone drive or focus on work. Therefore, half an hour before the beginning of the duty, Esther called the police station saying that she would not show up at work today for health reasons, and if necessary, would go to the doctor and take the sick leave. Esther knew the Chief would not be pleased and will surely scold Leo instead of her, but she had no choice.Esther remembered having nightmares at night, but was terrified
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 42 - The Punishment
Laurens Vermeulen was not happy with the sentence, but there was nothing that could be done about it now. He was legally convicted, without the possibility of appealing the sentence. The only chance he had to regain his freedom was to apply for parole after 25 years in prison. Laurens hoped that after that time people would forget about him and that he would be able to safely get it, because he intended to behave properly so as not to worsen his situation. Laurens was afraid enough of the other inmates he would meet in prison, because if the word will spread that he had raped his victims, the others surely won't leave him alone. But the worst part was that Laurens could still hear those damn whispers - they constantly talked about the fact that imprisonment would not be his only punishment, and that they would stay with him forever, to remind about the grave sins he committed, the suffering he caused to the victims, their families and loved ones.Laurens was transported to pris
The Scarlet Angels Chapter 41 - The Final Trial
On November 10th the forensic opinion finally reached the court, and after a careful examination of it, the date of the next hearing was set for November 20th. Esther and Leo were not called in this time, but Leo wanted to appear in court as an observer at least. Esther, back from her vacation, concentrated completely on her work. She looked a bit better than before, but not as well rested enough for a person who had 3 weeks of vacation. Leo found out that Esther had finally visited her mother and grandmother in the last week of her vacation, but he hadn't talked much to her. The atmosphere between them was still tense even though they theoretically apologized to each other for their behavior.- Esther?- Leo spoke to her as they sat in the office.- Yes?- she shot him a quick glance before turning her attention back to going through the files of their current case.- Would you like to come to 'Mad Dog' trial with me as an observer?- Leo asked a little bit shyly.
