Cast of Characters:

Cody Schroder - main character of the story
Sheriff Brock Daniels - long time sheriff of Astatula
Beth Sorensen - Sheriff Daniels' confidant
Lionel Simmons - Corpus Christi Cannibal. Murdered seventeen men and boys
Mark Stevens - the first victim of the Corpus Christi Cannibal
Marcus Washington and Darius Noles - co-owners of the Ichabon Buffet and the first two victims of the Astatula Assassin
Anthony Schiavanni - retired police captain. Challenges Sheriff Daniels in his re-election campaign
Buzz Cochran - Sheriff Daniels' best friend and campaign director
Astatula Assassin - mass murderer in the small Texas town


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THE SHERIFF LAYS TWO POLAROIDS FACE UP ON THE TABLE. He comments, "Isn't it peculiar the deceased have been small business owners like Marcus Washington and Darius Noles who owned the Ichabon Buffet? I've heard it said all members of the human species start dying the moment they're born."

"There went one of our favorite diners," Beth responds.

The idiosyncrasy of the sheriff's anomaly enters her mind while they discuss the Astatula Assassin. She removes their dirty dishes from the table, rinses them off in the sink under warm water, stacks them in the dishwasher, and operates the Amana.

Lost in deep contemplation, Sheriff Daniels remarks, "Earlier, you said the Astatula Assassin reminds you of Lionel Simmons, the Corpus Christi Cannibal."

"Who was just executed the other day," Beth confirms.

"He got what he deserved," Sheriff Daniels is quick to remark. "Over the progression of eleven years, Lionel Simmons raped, tortured, murdered, dismembered and consumed parts of his victims' cadavers."

The thought makes Beth quiver like icy cold water runs down her back.

The sheriff notices, and to calm her nerves, adds, "No evidence exists to prove any of his sufferers were alive at the time of consumption."

"What else do you know about Lionel Simmons and his reign of terror?" Beth asks.

Sheriff Daniels leans back in his chair and recalls, "Simmons was the second oldest of five children. He had three sisters and two brothers. Simmons also had alcoholic parents. Evidence shows the paranoid schizophrenic to be a woodworker by trade, and divested of attention as a young child by his infirmed mother."

"That's never a good combination," Beth says.

The sheriff continues his story, "Repressed, Simmons manifested an interest in animals he accumulated. This included the roadside carcasses of those run over by traffic. These, he dismembered and stored in Mason jars hidden in his family's toolshed."

Unsure she wants to hear the rest of this, Beth rejoins the sheriff at the table.

"On one occurrence, Simmons decapitated a feral cat. He nailed its body to a tree and impaled its shell on a stake in Belleview Park down the street from where he abided. Solitary by nature, Simmons learned how to bleach animal bones from his chemist father. When he reached thirteen, he divulged he was a homosexual and developed fantasies about the total domination of other males."

"Didn't Simmons live a BDSM lifestyle?" Beth asks.

"This much is known, two weeks after he graduated from high school, Simmons committed his first violent random murder. His patsy was Mark Stevens. Simmons bludgeoned Stevens with a baseball bat outside the Half Acre Bar in Houston. He dissected the nineteen year old in the crawl space of the home he lived in."

"There are some real sickos in this world. That's for sure," Beth states.

The sheriff ponders her remark, "I'll tell you this much, the similarities of the murders committed by the Astatula Assassin brings Simmon's recollections back to me."

Beth wonders, "I'm sure they do, Brock, but, do you think we have a copycat on our hands?"

Unable to reveal the quandary, the sheriff responds, "I don't know, Beth."

"And that Brock, is just enough to keep you scented like a bloodhound on the trail that ties these random murders together," Beth insists. She raises a hand to the back of her neck and massages her tense muscles. The maneuver feels good.

"Believe me, Beth. No one wants the Astatula Assassin more than I do. The morbid degenerate needs to be stopped!" the sheriff replies. "Not only that, but Astatulan voters demand someone they can trust to enforce their laws. And, that someone is me."

"That would be a wonderful feather in your cap in the middle of a close re-election," Beth chimes in.

"I'm no rookie to the political world, Beth," the sheriff remarks, "and, I still maintain a slim edge over Anthony Sciavanni, that untested, retired Police Captain from Dallas, who relocated to Crosby County."

"You don't need to worry about being re-elected Sheriff, Brock. The results are just a matter of time," Beth states in confidence. "After all, you've built a rather successful law enforcement career out of intensive labor, and that's something this town can never forget. So, just push all thoughts about the campaign out of your mind. There are much more important matters to confront. Those other pieces will take care of themselves."

From out of the blue, Sheriff Daniels asks, "Where's Cody? Shouldn't the little imp be home from school by now? They only had a half day."

"Brock, it's twenty after twelve. Cody'll be home soon," Beth answers him. "This case has got you wound up tight, hasn't it?"

"It isn't so much the case," the sheriff tells her, "I feel more like the Astatula Assassin has placed me in this constricted predicament as if somehow to test my resolve. I assure you, it's a challenge I accept. And, I did promise to take Cody to see that new Avengers: Endgame movie at the IMAX. He is so into that whole superhero film scene."

A moment passes before Beth comments, "Superboy's been fighting kryptonite his whole life." She gathers her thoughts then confesses, "I do believe though in the six weeks we've had him, Cody's come out of his shell some. By the way Brock, thanks for inviting Cody to the movie. He'll appreciate you more for that." With a kiss on his lips, she smiles, "So do I, Cowboy."

The sheriff considers Beth's response. He knows she believes in the perfectibility of humanity, even if he does not. In agreement with her comment about Cody, he says, "After what the boy's been through, if anybody's earned the right to be ten feet tall and bulletproof, it's that little man."

A bell peals. Buzz Cochran, the sheriff's boon companion and campaign director, stands at the entrance of the residence. Punctual as ever, he reports for their consultation to strategize the newest scheme in the sheriff's re-election bid. Beth opens the door and Cochran enters the residence.

The sheriff takes note, "Greetings, partner."

Cochran joins them at the table with a folded newspaper tucked under his arm. He comments as though he knows a secret, "With the Astatula Assassin on the loose, the voting public scrutinizes you much closer than they ever have before. Check out the lead story."

Sheriff Daniels takes the newspaper from Cochran and proclaims, "I want to make a statement so consummated no one ever questions my leadership again. So, let's get to work shall we?"