74

Anatomy of a Killer

Chapter 74 - Is It All Over?

I wake up, and the first thing I feel is an intense pain in my chest. My head feels like it’s about to explode, and my entire body is numb. I try to move, but something stops me. I slowly open my eyes and see that I’m in a hospital room.

The walls are white, and the only things around me are the bed, an IV, and a monitor. How did I get here? What happened after the detectives arrived at the scene? The truth is, I think I lost everything I had wished for because of a simple mistake.

That doesn’t mean everything was lost—Dexter might have fixed things. Still, I didn’t know if, in the end, he betrayed me and blamed me for the entire crime scene.

Larry’s DNA was all over the crime scene. Even though he had worn gloves while beating Brian, the truth is that Dexter, being a forensic expert, could have manipulated the entire scene to his advantage.

Larry didn’t know what awaited him now—maybe this was the end of everything. His revenge might never be fulfilled, and everything he had dreamed of was hanging by a thread.

He never imagined Brian could get up, let alone that Sergeant Doakes would shoot him. He remembers the bullet piercing his chest and another hitting Brian’s body, making him wonder if the sergeant truly meant to kill him.

Instead of just looking around, his mind focuses on the smallest, most meaningful details.

And with that, wasn’t it obvious that just as he woke up, his colleagues entered the room followed by doctors? Would they accuse him of everything or ask questions first?

Larry is extremely detail-oriented—perhaps that’s why he’s such a remarkable criminal profiler.

Standing beside Lieutenant LaGuerta was Angel Batista, who looked at Larry with a face full of concern. “Fortunately, the bullet didn’t damage any major internal organs. We managed to get you here in time to treat you.”

“You shouldn’t have gotten so close to the Ice Truck Killer. Even with the damage done to the department, you’re being considered a hero for catching him,” said Lieutenant LaGuerta with a grateful expression as she looked at Larry lying in bed.

It was then that Larry realized the extent of his injuries. It wasn’t just a bullet to the chest—another had grazed his leg.

Every breath he took was painful, and Larry felt like his body was on fire. Despite the pain, he knew he had to keep his composure and find a way to uncover the truth.

“Do they know everything?” Larry asked, trying not to give himself away.

“We know what Dexter told us: you were both kidnapped by the Ice Truck Killer, who was posing as someone else and had become Detective Morgan’s boyfriend… Fortunately, Sergeant Doakes arrived at the scene when he was on his way to their dinner and saw how you were being taken to the warehouse.”

“He didn’t call for backup?”

“No, I suppose he didn’t want to alert the killer…” LaGuerta thought that didn’t make much sense, but since she hadn’t gotten any answers from the sergeant, she didn’t know much more than that.

Angel looked at his friend and said, “You were lucky to get out alive, man.”

“How’s the sergeant?”

“He took a bullet to the side of the head. They managed to stabilize him, but he’s still in a coma… The chances of him waking up are slim, and worse, he might lose his memory…” LaGuerta was upset. The damage to the department was serious.

A single man had seriously injured their best criminal profiler and forensic expert, deceived a rising detective, kidnapped a blood spatter analyst, and left a sergeant in a coma.

“It’s a tragedy…”

Larry, of course, didn’t see it that way. He knew this was more than just luck—it was a miracle. “Well, I’m glad at least we’re still alive…”

“Get some rest. We’ll come back when you’re feeling better.” Lieutenant LaGuerta left, leaving only Angel behind, who began to explain everything that had happened in detail.

That’s when Larry understood his situation much more clearly, leading him to consider that as long as the sergeant remained unconscious, he might have a chance to escape.

In that case, he needed to go to the FBI, to Jack—at least for a while, until he could be sure that Sergeant Doakes’s statements wouldn’t incriminate him.