"I know this is a difficult subject to talk about, but can you go into detail about your experience with Ray Corbin?”
She exhaled a tense breath. "That is a name that I never wanted to think about again. Typically, I don't revel in another person's demise, but when I heard that he died, the first time, I was overjoyed. I thought, thank God. He can never hurt another person again. Now it makes me sick to think that he had an additional 15 years to commit more heinous acts. There's no telling how many people he traumatized and tortured. And no one had a clue. No one cared.”
"At this time, we have not been able to connect him to any additional crimes.”
"A guy like that doesn't just stop being a monster.”
I wasn't about to defend Ray Corbin without more information. I just wanted to make sure we were dealing with the same person.
"You currently live in Pineapple Bay, right?"
"Yes, that's correct.”
"Can you tell me about the attack?" I asked.
Jenna took a deep breath. "It was late. I was out jogging. I should have known better. It was too late to be out, but at that age, I didn't think anything would ever happen to me. There's a certain invulnerability that goes with youth.” She took another breath. “Ray was jogging the trail ahead of me. I didn't think much of it at the time. He fell. He was clutching his knee and groaning in pain. Really playing it up. I was such a fool. But he looked so sad and pathetic and harmless, and he was kind of good-looking. I helped him to his feet, and he asked me if I would help him get back to his car. What was I going to do? Leave him there like that? We talked as we returned to the parking lot, and he seemed like a nice guy. We were actually getting along. Then all of a sudden, he had a knife to my rib cage and forced me into his van. He tied me up, put a blindfold over my eyes, and took me to an abandoned warehouse. He gave me just enough food and water to stay alive while he tortured and abused me for several days. It’s something I'll never forget.” She choked up.
It was a horrendous tale.
“I tried to do whatever he told me, and I tried to be nice and compliant. I told him the ropes were really hurting my wrists and if he could just loosen them a little bit... I promised I wouldn't run away. I tried to make him believe I wouldn't go to the cops and that I actually liked spending time with him.” She shivered. “I think he got comfortable with me. He would leave me there for long periods of time, and finally, I managed to free myself and escape. I went straight to the police and told them everything. They took pictures of the bite marks on my neck, shoulder, and back. I gave them Ray's description and told them about the tattoo on his knuckles.”
"Tattoo?”
“Yes. He had a skull tattoo on one of his fingers.”
"If I send you a picture of Ray, do you think you can ID him?"
She gasped. "Oh, please, don't make me look at that man again. I never want to see his face again.”
"I understand. But this is important. I need to be sure we really have Ray Corbin in the county morgue.”
30
Jenna sighed. “Okay. Show me what you’ve got.”
I texted her Ray’s DMV photo. He didn't have any photos on social media. He kept himself offline as much as possible. If I were a former serial killer, I’d do the same.
The image buzzed her phone a moment later, and she took a minute to examine it. "I don't know. This could be him. It looks like him. He's older, obviously. It's been a long time.”
"So, you're not certain.”
"I'm certain. I think. Maybe. I mean, yeah. That's gotta be him. Right?”
"You don't sound 100%.”
Eyewitness testimony was notoriously inaccurate. Especially after 15 years.
"You have to understand, I was so traumatized at the time,”Jenna said. “Honestly, it's really all just a blur. Vignettes. Bits and pieces of a nightmare that I never want to relive.”
"I understand.” I paused. "The Pineapple Bay Police Department chronicled the bite marks and photographed them, yes?”
"I think so. They should all be on file. I'm sure they brought in some kind of specialist to examine them. I think that's how they identified Ray’s remains from the accident. With dental records, you know?"
I asked her where she was the night of Ray's murder. I tried to put it in as nonthreatening a way as possible.
"I don't know. I guess I was here at my apartment." She thought for a moment. "Yeah. I'm pretty sure I was at home that night.”
"You live alone?”
