411 Apple Tower Road

By KG Farrell

A suspense filled tale that takes you on twists and turns through the mind of a vicious child predator. Ride along as the police, the community and the families of his victims try to track him down before he has a chance to kill again.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Mar 31, 2011
• ISBN: 9781257338368

Book preview

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Prologue

At 13, Madeline O’Reilly did not yet comprehend the concept of following her dominant hand. She merely knew that she had run in a circle and ended up right back where she had started. The worst place in the world; his house. She stared at the back of it in disbelief. It can’t be! The ugly gray paint that peeled down the length of it told her that it was true. It was the only dilapidated two-story house in the middle of what appeared to be an endless lot of woods.

There were three windows on the back of the house. One upstairs window, the pane replaced by a large rain-warped sheet of plywood and two downstairs windows which had rippled glass panes, still intact save one corner broken out of the top of the window on the left. The window to the right was whole but it looked unnaturally black from her spot thirty yards behind the house, just inside the woods.

She knew she was seeing the ugly green blanket that he had nailed over the window. A thick, scratchy, dirty green blanket that reminded her of the scrubby pads her mother kept under the kitchen sink. It was the window to the room in which he had kept her. She stared at it and the house for long moments as the light faded from the evening sky.

It was apparent, even to her young senses, that the house was abandoned. The wooden back door was in one piece but severely warped. The screen had fallen off of its hinges and now sat leaning at an angle, against the last piece of wrought iron railing that remained standing next to the two small concrete stairs. The large rectangular yard was mostly dirt and weeds and there were several small holes in the back of the house. She already knew the inside was empty of furniture and did not have working lights. What it did have was the smell of rot mixed with animal urine, a harsh scent that had burned her nostrils for three days.

She shifted her eyes away from where she knew the horrid green blanket was hanging. She felt a stinging behind her eyes and felt her breath catch in her throat as she recalled it. She would never be able to erase the feel or smell of that room from her mind. Her eyes closed against a flood of images from her first night there.

When he first brought her to the house, it had been the middle of the night. The room he took her to had been pitch-black and cold. He shoved her through the door and locked it from the outside. He gave no explanation as to why or how long she would be there. She hadn’t been able to wrap her mind around what was happening.

Her first moments in the darkness had been blind and disorienting. She couldn’t tell how big the room was or what, if anything, was in it. The smell immediately made her want to vomit. She pulled her nightgown up over her face, taking deep filtered breaths through her mouth until the urge passed.

Her next instinct was to put her arms out in front of her and walk forward, but immediately a picture of another man, more horrible than the first, flashed in her mind. She imagined that he was sitting in-wait, ready for her to walk into his arms. The image terrified her. She threw her arms down to her sides and began to stumble backwards. A slow, low moan escaped her as she fell into the corner. She curled into a small ball and held her breath to keep from making any more noise.

She could hear the wooden floor creaking a few feet away from her. She shut her eyes and hugged her knees more tightly against her body. She was cold and frightened and she started to silently cry. In her mind it was large ugly feet making those boards creak and the strange smell in the air was a ‘he smell.’ She felt odd, like her mind wanted to run away, she didn’t know if she could bear this. She buried her head against her arms and wept until her tears made her cheeks stiff with salt.

Time passed very slowly that first night. She was sure that it was well into the morning. There must not be any windows, she thought. Then, long after she felt sure it had, the dawn did come. A warm light back lit the hanging green blanket just enough see that the room was empty. There were a few cardboard boxes obviously left by the previous owner. A sob of relief echoed against the bare walls as she realized she was alone.

As the light grew brighter she looked around her decaying jail. The blanket covered the only window in the room and the walls were covered in dry, yellow wallpaper that once had been covered in a pattern of roses. The wood floor was warped and uneven. There were slats that had been pulled up leaving gaping holes in the floor. Glad I didn’t go walking around last night! She thought.

It was obvious that this man was either ignorantly reckless or just not very concerned with her well being. The latter scared her more than the former. If he didn’t care if she got injured, just what was he planning to do with her? She began to cry in earnest again.

What seemed like hours passed and her tears became dry. A resolve much older than her years uncurled her limbs and forced her look around again. A surge of white-hot anger burst inside of her. It occurred to her that this man had robbed her of something. A feeling of safety she wasn’t even aware she had until he took it from her. Her mind cleared. There was no more confusion. She was not going to curl up and cry. She was going to fight him with all she had. She knew she was smart. That has to count for something, she told herself. That’s all there is to it. I am not going to waste anymore time crying. This freak doesn’t deserve it. From now on, I am all about being free.

She wasn’t sure exactly how yet, but she new she was going to survive whatever this guy had in store for her. At least she had regained her focus. She had a goal. She would get away and she would see her mother, her house, and her friends again.

Chapter One

The morning started like any other Sunday for Gail O’Reilly. She woke up at 8 AM, blinking away sleep just before the alarm sounded. Clicking it off before the buzzer, she slipped out of bed and padded softly into the bathroom to warm up her shower. She was still in the fog of sleep as she turned the knob and pushed the lever to start the steaming spray.

She would be fully alert and will have mentally organized her day by time she shampooed her hair. As she slipped off her nightgown and socks she had already started a to-do-list. She would skip breakfast so she and Maddy could get to church on time. Maddy would no doubt already be dressed and ready, having made her own cereal and watching TV before Gail even got down stairs. She loved going to church, she had a lot of friends there. So did Gail. She was looking forward to the services. After, she would have to go to work for a few hours.

When the water was warm, she stepped into the shower and let it run through her shoulder length hair. She planned her route for the trip to drop Maddy off at her friend Sarah’s house. Sarah’s mother, Pam was an old friend from her first job and a total Godsend. Pam new Gail was a single mother and was always willing to take Maddy whenever Gail found herself having to work on the weekends.

Gail knew as she scrubbed her face that she would be in for a battle with Maddy. Her daughter was so much like she was at that age, that it frightened her. She is too independent; too soon. It was always the same argument. Gail could already hear it in her head.

Oh mom! I’m thirteen. I am fine by myself. You know all my friends stay home alone. It’s embarrassing to have to go to a baby sitter! Madeline would complain every time.

In Gail’s mind, she herself was not old enough to do things alone. Heck, her mother (who was 53) wasn’t even old enough to do things alone. It was a dangerous world they lived in and she was predisposed to being paranoid.

She stood in the hot water for a few long minutes just feeling its warmth. She closed her eyes and let the water embrace her. She wasn’t aware that she was smiling as she decided to stop for a bagel on her way in to the office. It would be her little treat for going in on Sunday.

She worked for the Department of Water Conservation, which she loved and she did the bookkeeping, which she hated.She would have found a different line of work a long time ago but this one at least kept her involved with the things she loved.

She had wanted to be an Aquatic Biologist and work on the care of Missouri’s numerous rivers and lakes. She had loved the water since she was old enough to doggy paddle. As a girl, she had lived with her mother, father and older brother Chad, in a town called Lebanon, nestled in the heart of the Ozarks. Her parents were retired missionaries and had long since abandoned life in the city. They had always been nature buffs. All of their family vacations had centered on camping, canoeing and hiking.

She toweled herself off as she considered who her parents had become. Both were avid bicyclists and now in their retirement, they had taken on the roles of travel-trailer-gypsies roaming the best campgrounds in the country and riding their bikes across numerous states. It made her smile to think of them that way. She herself hoped to retire to a campground in one fashion or another some day.

A familiar pang of regret sounded in her heart. She pulled her damp hair into and easy style and began to put on her make-up. Not a lot today, she was probably going to be the only one in the office. She wanted to begin the process of closing the monthly books. What other people don’t understand is that the monthly balance sheet is the adversary in the life of the bookkeeper. Rarely does it balance on the first try. The best part of the job was solving the mystery of the balance sheet. To get it right was exhilarating. One errant entry and it all fell to pieces. Very exciting, really!

The comedic commentary that ran in her head was really an ineffective mask to hide the anger that had bubbled up in her gut. Anger along with a full dose of regret. Instead of consulting with her colleagues about travel requirements and account reconciliation, she should be consulting about river erosion and ways of conservation and pollution prevention.

She had gone to college for 3 years and 1 semester. She had worked hard to graduate high school a year early and she put her entire head into college. She was eating, sleeping and breathing school for roughly forty months, even during the summer breaks. She was studying environmental science and found that she was naturally inclined to do well in it. Her thought process had always been methodical and organized and she had an amazing ability to focus even in the most hectic of surroundings. Too bad the same was not true for her love life. She had been keeping a steady 3.8 GPA when Aaron Connor had come into her life.

She dressed slowly, her movements almost mechanical as she recalled her college love affair. He was a professor at UM-Columbia where she had attended class. He had taught the third and fourth year economics courses and she had his lecture during fifth period.

Her sixth period was a self-monitored study hall, so she always found an excuse to linger after the other students filtered out of the classroom. Aaron had a break in his teaching for sixth hour and he always found a way to engage her in conversation. It was obvious they both wanted to be there and they usually spent the entire hour talking.

At first he asked her thoughts on his lectures and they discussed different economic principals. He was funny and charming, always getting her to blush and smile. She wasn’t really all that interested in economics and pretty soon her attention turned to other things. Like just how handsome her professor was.

He was taller than her but not too tall, roughly 5’10". His hair was dark blonde and short. It was very neat in contrast to the ever present five o’clock shadow he had worn around his chin. The blue-grey color of his eyes was mesmerizing enough but the long lashes made them irresistible. She often found herself loosing track of the conversation, distracted by their appeal.

She sensed certain chemistry but thought she was just wishing. She couldn’t imagine that he would be feeling any attraction to her. He was the professor! It was forbidden. What she couldn’t quite figure out was exactly why he would continue their daily conversations. Maybe he thinks I am lonely. He probably just pities me. Thinks he’s doing me a favor by being my friend.

It hurt her to think that so she put it out of her mind. She was enjoying the electricity she felt, it made her feel more alive than she ever had. Whatever his reasons were, it was fine with her. Before long, their conversations moved to more personal matters. He asked her questions about her life and her family. He wanted to know if she had siblings, if were they older or younger, how well they had gotten along.

She told him all about her parents and her childhood of tree climbing and pond jumping and he hung on her every word. He asked all the right questions, remembered all the right details and always made her laugh. They laughed until they were both holding their sides and struggling for breath. He was such a great guy and the sexual tension was building in her every day.

She knew he must have been feeling it. It was so thick it preceded her into the room. It was in her every thought. Would he like what she was wearing that day? Would he like how she wore her hair? She walked a certain way, smiled a certain way and moved a certain way just for him. It was to the point that her constant state of arousal was distracting her from listening to his lectures and she was getting a little lost in the material.

Finally she just had to come out and tell him. She had been asking him questions about his lecture that day. He turned to the board to demonstrate a principal for her, commenting on her lack of concentration as of late. She moved quietly across the classroom and stood directly behind him. Close enough to see the hair stand up on the back of his neck as she spoke quietly with a seductive tone.

Dr. Connors... she paused as she saw him tense up. I feel like there is a lot going unsaid here. Don’t you?

Well. He said turning around very slowly until he faced her. He was careful not to touch any part of her as he did so. His expression was neutral but his body was very tense. She could see him weigh his words carefully before answering. She marveled at how important his answer became to her in those few seconds.

"Let’s just say... my pulse just went a little faster when I heard you say my name in that particular way." He finally said.

She smiled her best enticing smile. He was standing so close to her. She could feel the heat coming off of him. The electricity was buzzing between them. Her breath caught as their eyes locked. It was too intense. She had to look away or she was going to do something to humiliate her self. Her eyes fell to the floor.

He raised a hand and titled her chin back up so that she was looking at his seductive smirk that was playing at the corner of his mouth. Her heart leapt and a sudden courage came over her.

Aaron. She said in her best bedroom voice.

He moaned as he leaned forward, stopping with his lips just a breath away from hers. You are the ultimate temptation... He started to say something more but feeling his breath on her lips was too much. She closed the distance between them and kissed him hard on the lips. She bit gently on his lower lip before leaning away.

You are amazing. He whispered with his eyes still closed. His lids slid slowly open and his eyes caressed her face. So sensual... too much so for your age... His hands came up to the sides of her face and his look heated before it cooled as regret washed over his face. But we can’t...

She spun away from him careful not to let him see her smile. She was aware that he was trying to gauge her reaction to what he had just said. She had expected immediate rejection. His moment of weakness was glorious! She reveled in it but she wanted to have a little fun with him. She also wanted to show him that she was above a schoolgirl crush. She packed her books up with a straight face avoiding his pleading gaze, all the while laughing inside.

Please don’t take that the wrong way. He sounded truly distraught.

It’s okay. She started to turn away then paused and looked back over her shoulder, the laughter now evident in her eyes. Really... Aaron. I think it’s hot just knowing you want it.

She laughed and blew him a kiss. The bell rang and within minutes the room was filling with seventh hour students hungry for knowledge and completely oblivious to the lightening that had just struck their professor.

After that day, they never mentioned the kiss though they continued to have their sixth-hour conversations, one or the other periodically moving the boundary with a saucy comment or suggestive touch. She was so infatuated with him; she would have done anything he’d asked. Not having had a close emotional relationship with her father Gail craved male affection. She often sought out the attention and approval of men, especially the older ones, and Aaron was 38.

It was so flattering and exciting to her that he treated her like a peer rather than a student. He told her about his life. He confided that he was a musician at heart. He could play 4 different instruments and play them all well.

Piano of course, and the violin, saxophone and my favorite... the electric guitar. He said smiling comically as he played air guitar.

It impressed her even more than his brilliance in economics and he had graduated with distinction from Harvard Business School having dual degrees in Business Mathematics and Technology Management. Even with the loaded down schedule, he managed to graduate one year ahead of his class. He had gone on to build a new industry in information technology before getting bored and turning to teaching at age 31.

He expressed his venerable side to her and opened up about how caged he had felt during his years at Harvard. He was the fifth Connor man in his family to attend. It had been expected of him and he was never really given any choice. He had been groomed from the cradle. Not wanting to disappoint generations of his family he just did what he was told.

"Inside, I was dying. It was like I was being suffocated. I had to do something to keep from going crazy. So... I started my double life." He said wagging his eyebrows in exaggerated mystery.

What double life? she asked laughing.

I found a seedy little blues club an hour from the campus. They had a house band that wasn’t any good but they were kind enough to let me sit in one night. I fell in love with it. I gave the guys my number and sat in every chance I got. It was fantastic! I wore a crazy little hat and my sunglasses. I was a completely different person than I was in class. I never told anyone at school about it, He said laughing. I still sit in with them when I get back to Massachusetts. I also know a local band or two around here. A few more people know about it now, but I still keep it separate from the rest of my life.

When he played at a little joint near campus he invited her to come watch. She hadn’t turned 21 yet but when she told the muscle-bound doorman that she was on the list she got in without having to show her ID. She sat at a table near the stage and smiled when he lifted his glasses and winked at her.

Aaron played with the same seductive energy that she felt during their conversations in class. She fell in love with him watching him play. He was as great at that as he seemed to be at everything else. She began to believe that they had a chance. It seemed like such a dream, almost a miracle.

Every time she dreamed of a life with him, she felt lighter then air and electrified. The fact that he was graduating high school the year she was born was of no concern to her, the fact that they had so much in common made age seem small and insignificant. His ying-yang nature mirrored hers. Her artistic expression was released through her photography and her brain through her science, his through music and math.

Aaron had another gift. He could read her perfectly. He always knew exactly what she needed to hear