Page 49 of Her Frozen Heart

Roth leaned forward in the chair, fascination in his eyes. “Just to clarify, this killer is sexually assaulting and killing both men and women?”

“We’re waiting on the autopsy report,” Nikki clarified, “but there is evidence to suggest there’s a strong sexual component to all of his attacks, yes. It also appears that he’s not picky about ethnicity, physical attributes or age.”

Roth was silent, digesting the information. Nikki debated giving him more details, but they still had parameters to stick to. “All right, then,” Roth said. “Assuming your hypotheses hold, the question is, does he take both sexes because he doesn’t care who he kills, or because he’s bisexual and probably sexually repressed in his real life?”

“We’re hoping the medical examiner will have an answer for us soon,” Nikki said. “As I’m sure you know, very few serial killers have taken victims from both genders, and the few that have weren’t up close and personal kills.”

Roth nodded. “Son of Sam, D.C. Snipers, those types of killers may be labeled as serial murderers, but they are categorically different than sexual sadists like Gacy or Dahmer. They’re driven to commit sexual acts that cause the psychological and physical suffering of their victims. That power and control gets these guys off.”

Dr. Roth stood and walked to the whiteboard. He crossed his arms over his chest and tapped his finger against his lips. He bounced on the balls of his feet. “Traditionally, those types stuck to whichever gender they were attracted to. Gay men, almost always closeted and full of self-loathing, chose males they wanted to have sex with but knew the person would never consent. For that sort of killer, control is the key.”

Roth spoke with confidence, but he didn’t come across as an academic who thought he knew more than the cops on the ground. He’d also probably dealt with more killers than the vast majority of law enforcement officers saw in their entire careers. During her time at Quantico, Nikki had gone to interview a few violent offenders with her mentor. She’d quickly learned that connecting with an inmate sentenced for murder, when there were few, if any, benefits to the inmate, required an entirely new skillset. Nikki had watched her mentor pretend to empathize with more than one violent criminal in order to gain their trust. Roth impressed her.

“How many violent offenders have you interviewed?” she asked him when he returned to the table.

“I think all of them at this point,” Roth said with a small grin. “Beginning with my time in New Mexico in 2011, upwards of two thousand, including some of the ones well known to the public. If they were still living when I started, then I probably talked to them.” Roth shifted in his chair. “But the less well-known ones are just as scary.”

“What about single-victim killers, like domestic cases?” Miller asked. “Are those included in your study?”

Roth nodded. “Since I started with the New Mexico team over a decade ago, my goal has been to talk to every convicted murderer and rapist, no matter the victim count, as these are vastly different personality types, even after spending years in prison. Those who’ve killed multiple people are just a different breed.”

“Exactly,” Nikki said. “And the worst part is, we believe this killer is from Washington County.”

Roth looked at her, surprised. “Really? You’ve come to that conclusion with so many unknowns?”

“It’s the location of the burial pit.” Nikki explained the difficulty of navigating the area because of the water table. “He knows the area. He may not be a born local, but I believe he lives in the area and understands how to blend in.”

“Have you managed to put together a full profile?” Roth asked.

“Limited,” Nikki said. “White male, thirties or forties. Organized, financially stable, possibly drives a white 1980s Chevy pickup but likely has a nicer vehicle as well.”

“Why the second vehicle?”

“Given his likely age and the planning he’s exhibited, chances are he’s not driving that Chevy to work.” The body bags and odor neutralizer weren’t cheap, and a killer’s financial situation almost always made a difference in the choices they made. Serials always lived two different lives, and the successful ones appeared so benign they flew right under the radar.

“You mentioned the first set of remains are much older, so I assume that’s part of your age estimate?” Roth steepled his fingers together, resting his chin on top.

Nikki nodded. “If they started in their mid-late teens, our killer has to be at least mid-thirties, even if he was a young teenager when that victim was killed.” Nikki glanced at Miller and Liam, silently reminding them of the decision to keep the odor neutralizer between them. Roth was a respected doctor and an asset, but Nikki knew nothing about his inner circle. She couldn’t risk that leak and the Neutrolene could end up being the smoking gun.

“A teenager?” Roth echoed. “They’re impulsive and disorganized.”

“They are, and if they do kill at that age it’s almost always someone they know, someone accessible, which is why the oldest set of remains are so important. We do believe a significant amount of time passed between the first murder and the second, but that could be a year or fifteen at this point. The forensic anthropologist hopes to figure that out in the next day or two.”

“Good,” Roth said. “I take it from your bullet list that you believe Kesha could have been put in the lake after the lake iced over?”

“We’re almost certain of it,” Miller said. “The autopsy supports it, and we’ve got a witness who saw a man building an ice shack and hauling a tote shortly after full ice-in.”

Roth stared at him. “You’re saying that you believe this man got rid of her body while others were around?”

“It’s a strong possibility,” Miller said. “The DNR would have noticed a light on the lake at night, just like Chelsea and her boyfriend noticed the one in the woods. But you build an ice shack during the day, and no one thinks anything of it.”

For the first time, Roth seemed unnerved. He worried his lower lip, locking eyes with Nikki. “That’s a level of confidence you don’t see very often. Have you established any sort of time frame in terms of how often he takes victims? There’s no chance he’s got someone now, is there?”

“We’re not certain.” Liam explained Parker Jameson’s disappearance and the early theories the Forest Lake police had.

“I’m heading up there right after we finish here,” Nikki said, feeling defensive. She’d been obsessing about it all night. What if she’d blown off the Forest Lake detective when she called on Christmas Eve and Parker was out there right now, being tortured by the man they were hunting—or worse? “Finding the male in the grave yesterday has obviously changed a lot about the investigation.”

Roth’s sympathetic glance only made Nikki feel worse. “Hindsight’s always twenty-twenty, Agent.”

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