Excerpt
Kevin sprinted across the freshly cut lawn and up the hill to Carrie’s home. Instinctively he stopped at the door mat to clean the grass clippings from his shoes. He entered the home and paused in the foyer to get his bearings. Kevin scurried up the steps ahead of Carrie.
“This is Knox County, 9-1-1 Emergency, how may I help you?” a female voice said.
“My name is Samantha McAvoy. I live in Campbell Station. We need an ambulance on Woodhill Road right away, please. My neighbor has been hurt.”
“Who is the injured party and what type of injuries has the person sustained?”
“Gilliam Julian is the injured person. He’s a law enforcement officer--former FBI agent, I think.” Samantha paused for a moment because she couldn’t answer the dispatcher’s second question.
“I don’t know the nature of his injuries yet. My husband and Mrs. Julian are with him next door. It’s serious. We need an ambulance and medical assistance at 735 Woodhill Road in Rotherwood. Please hurry.”
“You said the injured party is a law enforcement officer. Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m positive,” said Samantha.
“I’m dispatching an ambulance unit right now. It should arrive at your location in minutes. I’m notifying the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, too. Can you stand outside to meet the paramedics?”
“Yes,” said Samantha.
“Please spell your last name and the last name of the injured party.”
Samantha complied with the operator’s request. She hung up the telephone and grabbed Megan by the hand. Then she rushed out of her home. She wanted to do whatever she could to support her husband and their neighbor.
Kevin McAvoy was out of breath when he reached the second floor of his neighbor’s home. “Where is he?” Kevin asked.
“He’s in our bedroom,” said Carrie. She pointed to a room down the hallway.
Kevin began making mental pictures of everything he saw in the home. To his right was a dark bedroom littered with toys. The blinds and curtains were closed.
“Where is Zachary?” he asked.
Carrie didn’t answer. Standing behind Kevin, she pushed him down the short corridor. Kevin’s head hit a low hanging light fixture at the center of the hallway. A large ceramic-tiled bathroom was on his left. He passed a second small bedroom on his right. In that room, he noticed a large wooden desk, a straight chair littered with clothing, and several cardboard boxes stacked against a wall.
The master bedroom door was directly in front of Kevin. The curtains were drawn, and the morning sunlight trickled into the room. Carrie turned the overhead light on. The first thing Kevin noticed was gaudy pink and white velvet flecked wallpaper in the room. Blood spattering was all over the walls and the white textured ceiling.
Cherry nightstands were positioned at the head of the bed. To Kevin’s right was a walk-in closet. The entrance to a master bathroom was at the left rear of the room. The room’s contents were tousled and disheveled. Women’s clothing lay on the floor everywhere. Garments in the closet had fallen from their hangers. The hardwood floor and the large Indian area rug were barely visible. Three drawers in the dresser were partially open and women’s undergarments and other lingerie were falling out of the top drawers.
Kevin stepped over a man’s brown wallet as he moved further into the room. Monetary bills of various denominations littered the floor. Then, Kevin turned to his right. Lying on the left side of the bed was a man’s nude frame. It was his neighbor, Gilliam. Kevin didn’t immediately recognize him. The man’s upper torso was drenched in blood. Had Kevin not seen Gilliam’s feet, he wouldn’t have known that the man was lying face down. The back side of Gilliam’s head was pulverized.
Gilliam’s head was hanging partially off the bed. The floor underneath his head was drenched with coagulated blood. Even though he appeared to be looking down at the floor, the bed was soaked in blood.
Kevin moved closer to the bed. Carrie was on his left holding on to his elbow. Kevin was speechless as he stared at the bloodbath. He stepped over a pair of men’s briefs and a fluted wine glass on the floor. An empty wine bottle and a second fluted glass were undisturbed on the nightstand.
“My God, Carrie, what the hell happened here?” Carrie didn’t answer Kevin’s question. She was stunned.
“Gill, can you hear me?” Kevin gently raised Gill’s left arm and checked for a pulse. The arm was stiff and difficult to move. Being careful to avoid the pool of blood at his feet, Kevin knelt close to Gill’s face. His neighbor’s thick blonde hair was matted in blood. The sheets, the blanket, and both pillows were saturated with dark red blood.
Kevin became nervous when he saw gray brain matter exposed on the back of Gill’s head. The same material dotted the pillow and the sheet. A large open gash about a half-inch deep and six inches long extended across the back of Gill’s head. Gilliam had a smaller cut on the left side of his head just above his left ear. It seemed that Gilliam’s skull was warped. Kevin was reluctant to touch Gill again. He thought to himself, Something really bad happened here and this was no accident.
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