Killer Connection (A Hawaii Mystery Novelette) Read online



  KILLER CONNECTION

  A Hawaii Mystery Novelette

  By R. Barri Flowers

  KILLER CONNECTION: A Hawaii Mystery Novelette is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, business establishments, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  For Maui Mermaid, the special lady who helps make every day paradise for me.

  To the many fans of my Hawaii fiction as well as new readers who have a love for the Hawaiian Islands and enjoy a great read. Aloha!

  * * *

  OTHER BOOKS BY R. BARRI FLOWERS

  FICTION

  Before He Kills Again (A Veronica Vasquez Thriller)

  Dark Streets of Whitechapel (A Jack the Ripper Mystery)

  Dead in the Rose City (A Dean Drake Mystery)

  Fractured Trust (A Renee Steele Legal Mystery)

  Justice Served (A Barkley and Parker Mystery)

  Killer in The Woods (A Psychological Thriller)

  Murder in Honolulu (A Skye Delaney Mystery)

  Murder in Maui (A Leila Kahana Mystery)

  Murdered in the Man Cave (A Riley Reed Cozy Mystery)

  Persuasive Evidence (A Jordan La Fontaine Legal Thriller)

  Seduced to Kill in Kauai (An Exotic Thriller)

  State's Evidence (A Beverly Mendoza Legal Thriller)

  TEEN FICTION

  Christmas Wishes: Laura's Story (A Young Adult Holiday Fantasy)

  Count Dracula's Teenage Daughter (A Transylvanica High Novel #1)

  Danger in Time (A Young Adult Time Travel Mystery)

  Ghost Girl in Shadow Bay (A Young Adult Haunted House Mystery)

  Out for Blood (A Transylvanica High Novel #2)

  Summer at Paradise Ranch (A Young Adult Adventure Series)

  Teen Ghost at Dead Lake (A Young Adult Haunted House Mystery)

  TRUE CRIME

  Masters of True Crime: Chilling Stories of Murder and the Macabre (editor)

  Murder Chronicles: A Collection of Chilling True Crime Tales

  Murders in the United States: Crimes, Killers, and Victims of the 20th Century

  Serial Killers & Prostitutes: True Cases from Jack the Ripper to the Long Island Serial Killer

  Serial Killer Couples: Bonded by Sexual Depravity, Abduction, & Murder

  The Sex Slave Murders: The True Story of Serial Killers Gerald & Charlene Gallego

  TRUE CRIME SHORTS

  Dead at the Saddleworth Moor: The Crimes of Ian Brady & Myra Hindley

  Killers of the Lonely Hearts: The Tale of Serial Killers Raymond Fernandez & Martha Beck

  Mass Murder in the Sky: The Bombing of Flight 629

  Murder at the Pencil Factory: The Killing of Mary Phagan 100 Years Later

  Murder of a Star Quarterback: The Tragic Tale of Steve McNair & Sahel Kazemi

  Murder of the Banker's Daughter: The Killing of Marion Parker

  Terror in East Lansing: The Tale of MSU Serial Killer Donald Miller

  The "Gold Special" Train Robbery: Deadly Crimes of the D'Autremont Brothers

  The Amityville Massacre: The DeFeo Family's Nightmare

  The Pickaxe Killers: Karla Faye Tucker & Daniel Garrett

  The Sex Slave Murders 2: The Chilling Story of Serial Killers Fred & Rosemary West

  The Sex Slave Murders 3: The Horrific Tale of Serial Killers Leonard Lake & Charles Ng

  PRAISE FOR R. BARRI FLOWERS

  "Vivid details of police procedure one would expect from top criminologist. A gripping novel in what promises to be outstanding series." — Douglas Preston, New York Times bestselling author on MURDER IN MAUI

  "Gripping, tightly woven tale you won't want to put down. Author neatly contrasts natural beauty of tropical paradise with ugliness of murder and aftermath." — John Lutz, Edgar winner and bestselling author on MURDER IN MAUI

  "Flowers delivers the goods. An exotic setting, winning characters, and realistic procedural details make MURDER IN MAUI a sure hit with crime-fiction readers." — Bill Crider, Edgar winner and author on MURDER IN MAUI

  "Flowers once again has written a page-turner legal thriller that begins with a bang and rapidly moves along to its final page. He has filled the novel with believable characters and situations." — Midwest Book Review on STATE'S EVIDENCE

  "A clever mystery with many suspects.... Vividly written, this book holds the reader's attention and speeds along." — Romantic Times on JUSTICE SERVED

  "A model of crime fiction.... Flowers may be a new voice in modern mystery writing, but he is already one of its best voices." — Statesman Journal on JUSTICE SERVED

  "An excellent look at the jurisprudence system.... Will appeal to fans of John Grisham and Linda Fairstein." — Harriet Klausner on PERSUASIVE EVIDENCE

  STATE'S EVIDENCE will make the top sellers list because it's fast-paced, intriguing, satisfying, and I highly recommend it to you." — Romance Reader At Heart

  "A rocket of a read. Not only a heart-thumping thriller, this is that rare novel that is downright scary." — John Lutz, Edgar winner and bestselling author on BEFORE HE KILLS AGAIN

  "MURDER IN HONOLULU is an exquisitely rich and masterfully constructed mystery. R. Barri Flowers now lays fitting claim to the beautiful island paradise as his territory.... A savvy, smooth, and sumptuous read that's as hot as Waikiki beach sand." — Jon Land, bestselling author

  "It gets no better than this! R. Barri Flowers has written another thriller guaranteed to hold onto its readers!" — Huntress Reviews on DARK STREETS OF WHITECHAPEL

  "Selected as one of Suspense Magazine's Best Books." — John Raab, CEO/Publisher on THE SEX SLAVE MURDERS

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Killer Connection

  Murder in Maui – Bonus Excerpts

  Murder in Honolulu – Bonus Excerpts

  Seduced to Kill in Kauai – Bonus Excerpts

  Kaanapali Beach Paradise – Bonus Excerpts

  About the Author

  * * *

  KILLER CONNECTION

  A Hawaii Mystery Novelette

  Her biggest mistake was letting him into her apartment—a man she knew and thought she could trust. She was wrong on both counts. She didn't know him at all, and certainly anything resembling trust had gone out the window.

  She was sure he was going to kill her, unless she could somehow find a way to escape. But his imposing presence was blocking her from getting past him and out of the bedroom. Her heart was racing like crazy and she thought she was going to pass out at any moment now.

  It was only through sheer willpower that she remained on gimpy legs. She didn't want to go down without a fight. She knew about the others and the unspeakable things he had done to them. Now he had his sights set on her and, unless she thwarted his plans, she was about to become another victim of the Aloha Black Scarf Killer.

  She pretended to succumb to his advances and sensed a slight relaxation in his contorted facial expression. But the moment he touched her, she cringed.

  Knowing there was no turning back, she hoped to catch him off guard by kneeing him as hard as she could in the groin.

  Somehow he had anticipated this move and blocked her leg with his arm. His eyes burned with anger and he growled: "You stupid bitch! You shouldn't have done that—"

  Frantically, she tried to push him to get away, but it was like trying to move a brick wall. He grabbed her roughly by the hair and in the same motion slammed his fist hard into the side of her head. She instantly saw stars and felt dizzy just before everything went black.

  He caught her before she went
down, carried her to the bed, and tossed her on it like a rag doll. Now she was his to do with as he pleased.

  And he fully intended to do just that.

  Climbing atop her, he sandwiched her waist between his powerful legs. He ripped her dress open, exposing braless breasts, which he immediately began to squeeze, closing his eyes for a moment of indulgence. When she began to stir, perhaps from his intimate touch, he waited until she opened her eyes before continuing. He wanted her to be conscious to witness his pleasure and violation of her womanhood—then death.

  She squirmed beneath him and he could see the sheer terror in her eyes, which added to his gratification.

  He tore her panties off, unzipped his trousers, and forced himself into her. He could tell that she was trying to resist as much as she could, as if by pure willpower.

  But his will was even stronger. And his body.

  He had his way with the bitch, and then some.

  A half an hour later, he lifted up from the now lifeless body. He tied the black silk scarf around her neck in a nice neat little bow, smiling at his craftsmanship.

  It was done.

  Now he had to get back to his normal life before anyone else was the wiser as to his identity, forcing him to deal with that person too.

  * * *

  Kiyoshi Yoshida had just gone through the worst year of her life, and that was putting it mildly. She'd lost her twin brother and husband, costing Kiyoshi nearly everything she held most dear, including her home, career, and most of her friends. She would never wish this on her most hated enemy, though she wasn't sure such a person existed. Not anymore.

  Kiyoshi still felt chills of disbelief when she thought about it. Her brother, Sergio Matsuko, one-time dedicated and decorated homicide detective for the Honolulu Police Department, had stunned nearly everyone who knew him when he was identified as the Aloha Black Scarf Killer. This perpetrator had raped and murdered seven women in the city over two years, leaving a black silk scarf around each victim's strangled neck as his calling card. His reign of terror finally came to a fiery end when he died in a house fire as the authorities were closing in on him. Sergio's death was ruled a suicide and the scorched evidence implicated him as the so-called Aloha Black Scarf Killer, including the murder of his fiancée. Before that, Sergio had been the lead detective in the investigation into what turned out to be his own heinous crimes.

  Kiyoshi thought she had known her brother almost as well as she knew herself. After all, they were biological twins and, as such, seemed to share the same impulses—sometimes they were even able to read each other's minds. But she'd had no clue that Sergio had such dark and deadly tendencies and was not sure where they came from. Native Hawaiians, they had a normal childhood and loving parents with no family dysfunction to relate to this. And Sergio seemed to love his job. He had even planned to have his own family after years of enjoying bachelorhood.

  Yet these things remained a question mark in the final analysis, with the greater emphasis being on what Sergio had been accused of doing to innocent women.

  For Kiyoshi, the pressure of having to defend her brother against the indefensible and being the victim herself of threats and character assassination became almost more than she could handle. Perhaps the final straw came when her husband, Andrew Yoshida, filed for divorce six months ago—nearly six months after Sergio's death. Andrew had said that he could no longer handle all the negativity and pressures associated with being married to the sister of the city's most infamous serial killer.

  Kiyoshi felt that was just a lame excuse for a man who was used to pressure as one of Honolulu's most powerful criminal defense attorneys. She was sure he had bailed on her because it would be much easier for him to pursue other women without a weakened and scarred wife to tie him down.

  Indeed, Kiyoshi had known about her husband's affairs and constant wandering eye. She had tried to ignore it, determined to keep the marriage together—even when her heart and body were no longer in it.

  With her divorce finalized, and her brother laid to rest next to their parents, Kiyoshi felt it was time to reinvent herself and escape the notoriety of a rapist-killer run amok by bloodline. At thirty-one, she'd turned her back on a successful career as a fashion designer and left Oahu altogether, hoping to somehow erase the painful memories in the process.

  Taking little more than the essentials and her savings, Kiyoshi sold or gave away much of her share of the Ewa Beach property settlement of a failed marriage and moved to Maui. She'd found a nice condo in Kihei on the island's south shore, seemingly the perfect place to simply blend in and go about her business without being reminded of a past she would just as soon forget.

  Two weeks later, at the end of June, Kiyoshi had her first job interview in her new home away from home. She sat alone in a tiny waiting room at Taguchi and Fleming, an upscale clothing store in the luxurious resort community of Wailea. She had applied for the job of salesperson, with the requirement of being fashion savvy and having flexible work hours. It was not exactly what she left behind in Honolulu, but it would do for now if she got the job.

  I don't need anything too complicated right now, she thought. Just a steady paycheck to supplement her savings from years of penny pinching and perhaps a premonition that the day would come when she would need a little nest egg to fall back on.

  "Ms. Yoshida—" Kiyoshi heard the deep voice. She looked to her right and saw a fifty-something, lean man with short gray hair. He flashed an almost fatherly smile and said: "I'm Fujio Taguchi."

  Kiyoshi stood as if on command and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Taguchi," she said nervously.

  "Nice to meet you," he responded and Kiyoshi watched his steady sable eyes give her the once over, as if to see if she was physically up for the job.

  She felt slightly self-conscious but shook it off quickly, knowing that she presented a more than respectable image as an attractive, fit, Hawaiian woman. Kiyoshi ran her hand through her long brunette hair and smiled at him.

  "Let's go into my office," Fujio said, proffering his arm in that direction.

  Kiyoshi nodded as she followed him to his modest office.

  "Please, have a seat," Fujio told her, indicating one of two chairs in front of his desk.

  He put on silver-rimmed glasses and picked up her application, then glanced at Kiyoshi. "I see you're from Honolulu." Before she could respond, he said: "My youngest brother lives there. I try to visit two or three times a year, but I'm always happy to get back home." He looked up. "So how did you end up on Maui?"

  Kiyoshi had expected this question might come up, all things considered, and she had prepared an answer that said only what was necessary.

  "My family lived here when I was young," she told him. "I needed a change from Oahu. Maui's a bit more laidback and seemed like a good fit at this time in my life."

  Fujio studied her every word, as if searching for some variation in Kiyoshi's inflection, before seemingly accepting her answer at face value.

  He smiled. "Yes, it's definitely laidback here, and a great place to relocate to." After a pause, he said: "I have to say, you seem way overqualified for this position. Are you sure a simple sales job is what you want?"

  Definitely not long-term, Kiyoshi thought, but responded levelly: "It's exactly what I'm looking for right now—something not too stressful where I can help customers walk away in style."

  Fujio beamed. "I like that." He took off his glasses and eyed her in earnest. "Of course, we can't pay you what you were used to making in Honolulu. But we are competitive for this industry on a local level. If that's all right with you, then you've got yourself a job."

  Kiyoshi didn't have to take long to think about it.

  She smiled and said: "When do I start?"

  * * *

  Two days later, Kiyoshi started her new job. In spite of a few butterflies, she was intent on fitting in while keeping a low profile. The other salespeople seemed friendly enough and made her feel welcome.

&nbsp
; This was especially true of Melissa Purdy. Around the same age as Kiyoshi, Melissa was from San Diego and had the classic California girl good looks. She had blonde hair, blue eyes, and was tall and thin.

  "If any of the male co-workers try to make a move on you, don't pay any attention," Melissa warned. "Most of them are either married, involved with someone, or both. But it never seems to stop them from making complete asses out of themselves."

  Kiyoshi laughed. She could already tell that she was going like Melissa.

  "Thanks for the advice," she said, "but I have no intention of getting involved with anyone here. I just want to put in my hours, make the boss happy, and collect a paycheck."

  Melissa rolled her eyes. "I see that Fujio has already made an impression on you as to what he expects from his employees."

  "It's more what I expect from myself," Kiyoshi told her honestly. "Getting involved with middle-aged men looking for some fun on the side is definitely not part of the package."

  "You're going to do just fine here," Melissa said with approval. "For the record, most of our customers already seem to know what they want. Sometimes they just need a little push in the right direction."

  "I think I can manage that," Kiyoshi said.

  "Good, then you can put it to the test right now," Melissa told her, looking over her shoulder. "That guy over there seems like he can't take his eyes off you."

  Kiyoshi turned around and saw a man standing near a row of silk shirts. He did seem to be gazing at her as if entranced, and Kiyoshi felt a shiver of uneasiness. Then, as if a child who knew he had been caught doing something he shouldn't have, the man seemed to give up any pretense to the contrary and headed in her direction.

  "If you need any help, just holler," Melissa said with a wink.

  Kiyoshi sneered at Melissa as she made a quick retreat.

  She faced the man again and decided to meet him halfway, offering him a bright smile.

  He was tall with a solid frame, in his mid-thirties, and had black hair and blue eyes.

  "Aloha," she said cheerfully as they stood face to face. "Can I help you find something?"