The Hitchhiker (A DS Jason Smith Thriller Book 29) by Stewart Giles

Author:Stewart Giles [Giles, Stewart]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: STILL Books
Published: 2024-08-29T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

Dr Fiona Vennell informed Smith that she had a free morning. She had no appointments until one that afternoon, and they agreed to meet at her practice at eleven. Smith was surprised that DI Smyth had suggested this, but he didn’t think it would hurt to get a professional opinion on the man the whole city were talking about. The Hitchhiker was big news and there was very little else in the press and on social media right now.

Dr Vennell was waiting for him in the reception area. She wrapped her arms around him and Smith was worried she was going to kiss him. She didn’t. She broke the embrace and asked him to come through to her office. He recalled the first time he’d set foot inside Dr Vennell’s consultation room. He’d been injured on duty and part of his rehabilitation was a series of sessions with the young psychologist. He’d been clinically dead for a minute and a half, and a prerequisite to returning to active duty had been a professional confirmation that his mind and body were fit for duty. Smith had passed with flying colours, and a friendship of sorts had developed with the pretty doctor.

“I must admit, I wasn’t expecting your call,” Dr Vennell said. “Take a seat. Unless you’d feel more comfortable on the couch.”

“Very funny,” Smith said. “I’m not here to have my head shrunk. I need to pick your brains.”

“I’m intrigued. I assume you’re here to talk about The Hitchhiker.”

“You’ve been following it on the news?”

“You’d have to be living in outer space not to have heard about it. How can I help?”

Smith went on to explain what DI Smyth had suggested. He was reluctant to use the term criminal profile, but he told her that’s what he was after in essence.

“Is this an official consultation?” Dr Vennell asked.

“The boss asked if you could do it out of the goodness of your heart,” Smith told her.

She smiled and looked Smith in the eyes. “I thought so. Talk to me. What can you tell me?”

Smith told her everything. He knew he could trust her, and he knew that nothing that he told her would go any further.

“What are your thoughts on this man?” he said when he was finished.

“I think he’s driven by something deep seated,” Dr Vennell said. “The violence he’s displayed suggests a mind that disassociates itself from the human aspect of the killing. He’s driven, and his goal supersedes everything else.”

“I’m not sure I’m following you.”

“Killing those people was necessary to him.”

“He didn’t just kill them,” Smith said. “He mutilated three of them. The one who was shot was killed that way because he was considered more of a formidable opponent.”

“The level of aggression on display strikes me as something born of frustration. He transfers this frustration into the act of killing and that’s why the victims were subjected to somewhat unnecessary violence.”

“What is he frustrated about?” Smith asked.

“He’s a man on a mission. He has a specific goal, and I get the impression the people he’s killed so far are not his intended victims.

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