McDade said that the full message was key fact evidence that had been held back. Only a few task force detectives, including McDade, knew the exact, full message that had been found in each case. Some media outlets, claiming to have sources close to the investigation, had reported the full message to be “You can’t do this to me,” or, “You can’t get away,” or “You can’t go to Heaven.” All had been wrong.

In a slight sidetrack, McDade noted that the case file was flagged UNSUB, the FBI term for Unknown Subject. But among task force members, the suspect had been nicknamed the Hydra Killer, taken from Greek mythology and referring to something hard to destroy. The Hydra was a snake with many heads; when one was cut off, two more grew in its place.

The Hydra Killer name found its way to the press.

“We’ve determined that the Hydra murders had taken place over a period of ten years,” McDade said. “To the best of our knowledge, the killer has been inactive for five years. Until now. DNA evidence has confirmed the killer surfaced nearly six months ago in Vermont.

“In one of the earliest Hydra murders, DNA was obtained from under the fingernails of one of the female victims. We believe she scratched her killer. Analysis of that DNA was limited to the technology at that time. No matches were found in any database.”

McDade began outlining the most recent case.

“Nearly six months ago, Samantha Victoria Moore, age twenty, of Queens, New York, was traveling to Canada to attend the University of Toronto, when her boyfriend, Kevin Tatum, reported her missing from their room at the Green Rolling Hills Inn, in Spiritsburg, Vermont.”

McDade then praised Vermont State Police for their excellent work.

“Using the newest advanced technology, Vermont’s forensic experts analyzed DNA collected from the scene and submitted it to CODIS where we got our hit—our break in the Hydra case. Now, I’d like to invite Detective Sergeant Rod Noble, with VSP Major Crimes, to update us on the Moore case. Are you there on the line, Detective?”

A few static-filled seconds passed.

“Yes. Thank you, Agent McDade.”

Noble summarized the Moore case with a timeline. Then he listed key aspects of the investigation so far, and gave a status report on ongoing work—the DNA analysis; the pursuit of the mystery vehicle that stalked Moore, using light configuration information from the dashcam video to narrow down the possibilities of makes and models; and the continued questioning of all registered sex offenders in the region.

“As Agent McDade mentioned,” Noble said, “our newest and most promising development is the recent collection of video from a residential bird cam showing Tatum and Moore arriving at the motel. We believe there’s something on there.”