The Whiteout Murders

The Whiteout Murders
By Mack Mani

The next murders would occur mere hours later in a similar house, in a similar cul-de-sac, just a few streets over from the first. Around 2:00 a.m. the blizzard conditions worsened. Through the sleet and snow, the houses would have looked almost identical. Indeed, they had been manufactured by the same company in the early 1950s. Galway & Hobbes was one of the first to capitalize on the mass production of “cookie cutter” homes in the area. The Pascal residence was even painted the same hue as the Harrisons'—an off-color teal. The only difference that fateful night was that, unlike the Harrisons' house, the entire Pascal family, Miles (41), Taylor (39), Marco (8), and Gabby (3) were at home, peacefully sleeping while a near whiteout storm raged just outside the warmth and safety of their abode.
What did The Mangler think as he stalked the Palace Green Neighborhood's backyards? He had already taken one life that night and gotten away scot-free. It would be another six days before the Harrison family returned from Florida to find what was left of their housekeeper strewn up and down the stairs. Art Harrison would later recall that had the weather been any clearer, their flight would have departed as scheduled and they would have arrived home almost twelve hours before the killer entered the house. If we continue to follow the theories of Sheriff Hutchins, The Mangler would have been anticipating their arrival. For him, the killing of Juana Herrera had been an act of necessity but after he looked at what he had done, seen the way he had spread her intestines out along the banister, the way her half-lidded, lifeless eyes stared up at the unlit Christmas tree (still up two weeks after New Year's) he felt unsatisfied. He knew that his unholy urges would not be satisfied by the offhand murder and mutilation of a cleaning woman.
He hungered for innocence...