Of Guilt and Innocence Read Online Free PDF

she helped her daughter up off the floor.
    â€œOh it’s no problem at all. I shouldn’t have been standing looking at my cell phone on a busy day like today.” He leaned down so he was eye level with the girl and asked in the kindest tone he could muster, “Are you OK, sweetheart?”  
    â€œYes, sir, I’m sorry.”
    â€œIt’s OK, I’m sorry, too.” He smiled at her and stood back up. A sense of satisfaction and excitement washed over him. “Well, have a nice afternoon,” he said as he walked to sit down on a bench that had just become available. He was close; he could feel it building inside him.  He watched the two as they walked away, hand in hand.  He noticed how the woman began swiveling her head from store to store again, as if she had already forgotten the incident had occurred, or did not think much of it happening at all. Then he saw the little girl turn back and look at him. At first he saw a look of puzzlement, then, just before she turned her head away, he saw a look of calm, of trust. He had his mark.
    With his target now determined, Louis continued to stalk his prey. For hours he would watch at a distance, calculating and recalculating his plan on how he would separate the woman from her daughter, or how he could strike if they became separated for any reason. But he soon realized a crowded mall was not the place to take action, and so he continued to just watch. He had become very patient over the years. He had been observing them for over two hours and felt strongly that their shopping day was almost over. He felt confident if he left right now they would soon follow, however, he hoped he would have enough time to get in his car and prepare for their departure without losing them.
    He quickly exited the mall and did just that. From his parking space he had a clear view of the exit from which he knew his mark would come. Now, he would just wait.  Fifteen minutes passed as he stared at the doors, hoping he had not been too slow. Finally, in a flash, a blonde woman holding the hand of a little girl darted out and very sharply walked to a blue Ford Expedition. Both were quickly inside the SUV and rapidly pulling out of their parking space, heading toward the parking lot exit. Louis backed out of his spot and put his car into drive.

 
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    CHAPTER 3
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    In yet another part of the Sunshine State that same morning, just a little farther south in the upscale city of Coral Gables, Carlos Hernandez was just settling down on a stool at his kitchen counter after his morning jog. As he sipped from a bottle of fruit punch sports drink, he spread out the day’s edition of the Miami Herald on the granite countertop before him. The kitchen that surrounded him was lavish and gourmet. Not an expense was spared, despite the fact that neither he nor his wife cooked or entertained often enough to justify the opulence. It went well, however, with the rest of the gorgeous home nestled in the highly sought after Las Islas gated community. He began reading the Herald as he drank to replenish the electrolytes shed during his workout. After skimming its pages, he folded it up and set it back on the counter, replacing it with the Palm Beach Post . As he began reading the front page headlines, his wife, Julia, slowly emerged down the stairs.    
    â€œDid I wake you? I am sorry, I tried to be quiet.”
    â€œNo, no, I woke up on my own,” she said as she passed by him to the refrigerator.  
    â€œIt says here that the South Florida Strangler is no more, left town, never to return,” Carlos said with a large smile, exaggerating the real story. Being born in Cuba, he generally spoke with a slight Hispanic accent, but at times like this he brought it out on his own to make things sound more fantastic and emphatic.
    â€œGood, that man is a sicko, killing helpless old ladies.”  Julia responded, not a trace of her Hispanic