Inside the Mind of BTK

194 INSIDE THE MIND OF BTK
month, whenever he had time, he stalked the young woman, hoping
to learn her routine. On a couple of occasions, he cased the outside of
her duplex, trying to find a good entry point inside. Twice he undertook
what he called a “dress rehearse,” and in both instances he was
prepared to carry out his intended crime “if everything was a go.”
The more he learned about Fox, the more he decided she fulfilled
all the requirements of the perfect victim. Because of his first few
nearly botched attempts at murder, he’d come up with a list of criteria
that every one of his “projects” needed to fulfill: they needed to live
alone, have an established routine, and not have a boyfriend, husband,
or any close male friends who might interfere with things.
The victim also needed to be “cute” and of the right age—
although he never specified in his journals what that age should be. It
was imperative that she live in the type of neighborhood where he
believed he wouldn’t stick out if he were observed or spotted. The
location of her apartment needed to be such that he could break in
without being seen by neighbors. But most important, the proper victim
appeared to exude some ineffable quality that led Rader to believe
he could “control her if things suddenly went to hell, like they’d had
a tendency to do in the past.”
On the night of December 8, Rader decided he’d give what he
called Project Fox Tail one more try. He told his wife he had to work
late on a term paper at the WSU library. So after work he headed back
to Wichita in her red Chevelle. Knowing that he had nearly the entire
night to himself filled him with confidence.
It had been dark for hours when he parked the car a few blocks
away from Fox’s apartment and walked to her duplex. It was 8:30 P.M.
He was fairly confident that she’d still be at work, but just to play it
safe he knocked on her front door. If she answered it, he planned on
saying, “Oops, wrong apartment. I was looking for Joanne.” Then he’d
flash his pistol, tucked away in his shoulder holster. Provided she didn’t
go “ape shit” on him, he’d barge in.
But when no one answered his knock, he walked around back and
quickly cut Fox’s phone line. He smashed out one of her back windows,
climbed inside, and waited. When Fox finally did arrive home
around 9:20 P.M., he waited until she walked into the kitchen before
confronting her. She attempted to reach for the phone, but he
informed her that he had a knife, and pulled open his jacket to reveal
his magnum. He informed her that he wanted to rape her and threatened
to hurt her badly if she tried anything funny.