Upon returning from work, Leo had taken a shower, had dinner, watched a movie, a few entertainment programs, and was just sitting on the couch flipping channels. He felt that even if went into the bedroom and lay down on the bed, he still wouldn't be able to fall sleep even for five minutes. Leo was worried about Esther all the time and cursed himself that the 'Mad Dog' case wasn't quite finished yet. Of course, maybe strictly for them as detectives, yes, after all they closed the case by catching Laurens Vermeulen and proving that he was the murderer, but they still had to face trials. Even if the hearing of both of them could fit in one day, both he and Esther would surely follow the course of events. They put so much effort into this whole investigation, finally caught this psycho personally and wanted him to get the appropriate punishment, so they could testify more if necessary, so that 'Mad Dog' won't be treated indulgently for any reason. Maybe Laurens Vermeulen had a difficu
On October 2nd, me and Leo managed to complete rest of the files and send them to the court. On that day, we also learned that the first hearing will be held on October 6, that we are both likely to be questioned at this hearing, and on top of that we heard a rumor about who became the defender of 'Mad Dog' and what line of defense he chose for his client.Alair Taylor - I knew this name very well and his line of defense made me a little panicked especially after the dream I had before. I knew very well that this lawyer had a somewhat scandalous, at least for the general public, worldview on crimes committed by people who had traumatic experiences in their childhood. In general, the point is that, according to him, people who are driven to crime by suffering in childhood should not be punished as severely as unemotional psychopaths, who commit crimes deliberately, without a specific motive or simply for fun. While partially this guy is kind of right, I don't think
And that's when it started. I heard something like a thousand whispers that sat in my head and pounded inside mercilessly like a flock of butterflies, or rather moths, not letting me write anything calmly. I grabbed my head and then heard more exactly what they were saying. "Stop", "Don't do it", "Turn back from this path", "Turn back while it's not too late"... and many similar sentences. My head hurt more and more, so I couldn't focus on listening or doing anything else. Then suddenly my laptop turned off, followed by all the lights in the whole apartment. My bedroom door was ajar so I could see the light in the living room, that I left on, turns off at the same time as the light in the bedroom. At the same time, the whispers in my head ceased, and I sat like that for several minutes in the dark, listening, but there was complete silence in the apartment. Even from the street there were no sounds, though there were some usually, even at this late hour, and when I looked at th
The next day, on October 3rd, Leo woke up early in the morning, way before the time to get up. It was Saturday, but for him and Esther, no weekend was really free, unless they had a pre-arranged day off, but even then they had to keep their phones turned on, ready to be called to the police station at any moment. They had a day off on Sunday this week, and Leo thought to himself that he should take Esther out of town somewhere so she could rest for a while, and he prayed that nothing would happen on Sunday, so there would be no phone calls from the police station.Leo got up and sat on the couch, slightly rolling the blanket. His neck ached, so he massaged it while looking at the clock on the wall. Leo had about two more hours until they needed to leave to work, so decided to slowly get up and make breakfast for him and Esther. He wasn't some very talented cook, but could make very tasty cheese toast and pretty good scrambled eggs and bacon. Plus, Leo set the carton of orange j
On October 5th, 2020, the day before the first court hearing in the case of Laurens Vermeulen aka 'Mad Dog', Esther and Leo were at work dealing with the next investigation. It was much simpler and they were actually at the stage of interrogating the main suspect and waiting for the lab results to confirm the collected evidence. Overall, the day went by without any major complications, one could say it was quite boring.In the late evening, when they were standing nearby the coffee machine, drinking from the paper cups, it hadn't escaped Leo's attention that Esther looked tired again that day, which in turn made him worry again. Apparently, one day of rest was not enough. Additionally, when they received confirmation that he and Esther would be questioned at the hearing tomorrow, she seemed very nervous. Leo wanted to lighten the atmosphere by joking around, but he didn't quite succeed. For one thing, since he was an introvert, his jokes came out rather awkward. Secondly, Esthe
On October 3rd, after breakfast, Leo and I went to work and during the break he suggested a trip on Sunday, because we had a day off then. Of course, we needed to have our phone on anyway, and be ready for an emergency, but Leo hoped luck would be on our side this weekend. I agreed without hesitation, as I was still afraid to go home. So I suggested we go right after work, and Leo said yes. Of course, I had to pop into my apartment for a moment anyway to pick up some essentials, but I hoped it wouldn't be too bad. Unfortunately, in this case, the saying that hope is the mother of the fools has proved to be true.I parked my car in front of the block and walked slowly up the stairs. When I stood in front of my apartment door, key in hand, I didn't move a muscle for about five minutes and listened, hesitating to open it. Then I got a text from Leo saying he was on the way to my place, so I had to open the door. I walked in quickly, switching on the light and it was thankfull
On October 6th, 2020, finally the first hearing in the case of multiple murder with particular cruelty against Laurens Vermeulen aka 'Mad Dog' took place. Leo and Esther arrived at the courthouse about fifteen minutes before the trial began. Less than five minutes later, Alair Taylor, Laurens Vermeulen's public defender, arrived at the door of the courtroom where the hearing was to be held.- Hello.- he said to both of them, with a smile on his face that seemed sincere.- My name is Alair Taylor, I am the public defender attorney of Mr. Laurens Vermeulen.- the man introduced himself.- You are, I suppose, the detectives who dealt with his case, aren't you?- he asked at the end.- Yes, that's right.- Leo answered first, with a serious expression on his face.- I'm Leopold Evans, Detective Inspector in Criminal Investigation Department of the South Wales Police police in Cardiff. And this is Detective Esther Moore, my partner.- he introduced them one by one, and when pointed to
- Please, tell me exactly what happened in that apartament before you were arrested...- Alair Taylor spoke up when it was his time to question.- Objection! Your Honor, these circumstances have already been described before.- interjected the Prosecutor, a tall, broad-shouldered man with black eyes and hair, with a tanned complexion, looking just like a 45-years-old he was.- Your honor, the prosecutor didn't let me finish my question.- Alair explained calmly.- I dismiss the objection.- the judge, a thin gray-haired man with a beard and mustache, pale skin full of wrinkles, turned to the prosecutor, then to the defender.- Please continue, Mr. Taylor.- he added.- So Mr. Vermeulen, what exactly happened before the police arrived at the apartment? Why were you screaming? Someone attacked you? Please tell us exactly and honestly. I remind you that you are under an oath.- Alair turned to the accused again.- Well...- Laurens began hesitantly.- When I wanted to c
Before going to the police station, Esther asked Leo to wait for her. She went to the pre-trial detention building telling her partner that just wanted to review the night incident report, although actually wanted to speak to Laurens Vermeulen as well. Of course, Esther looked at the report first, then told the guards to escort her to the 'Mad Dog' cell and asked if they would let her talk to him in private, to which the guard who escorted her agreed, but stayed nearby, just in case.- Detective Moore, finally.- Laurens greeted her.- I wanted to talk to you alone earlier, detective.- he added.- I know, I heard about it.- Esther replied shortly.- So why didn't you come earlier, detective Moore?- he asked, as if slightly disappointed by this fact.- First, I had other important things on my mind. Secondly, I don't know what else you could tell me that I didn't know, in both cases we've talked about.- Esther replied slightly irritated.- Mainly I'm here because I d