Chapter 39
2024 Words
More silence.
"Profiling," Loveth said. "It's an exact science. It's regarded as good enough evidence to get an arrest warrant in most states of The Union. "
"It never fails," Jackr said. SShe stared at Gina and Then sShe sat back with Sher crooked teeth showing in a satisfied smile. Silence settled over The room.
"So?" Gina said.
"So somebody killed two women," Carly said.
"And?"
Carly nodded to his right, toward Loveth and Jackr and Poulton. "And These agents think it was somebody exactly like you. "
"So?"
"So we asked you all those questions. "
"And?"
"And I think They're absolutely right. It was somebody exactly like you. Maybe it even was you. "
Loveth smiled. "That's what They all say. "
Gina stared at him. "You're full of s**t, Loveth. You've got two women, is all. The Army thing is probably a coincidence. There are hundreds of women out There, harassed out of The Army, maybe thousands. Why jump on that connection?"
Loveth said nothing.
"And why a guy like me?" Gina asked. "That's just a guess, too. And that's what this profiling crap comes down to, right? You say a guy like me did it because you think a guy like me did it. No evidence or anything. "
"There is no evidence," Loveth said.
"The guy didn't leave any behind," Jackr said. "And that's how we work. The perpetrator was obviously a smart guy, so we looked for a smart guy. You saying you're not a smart guy?"
Gina stared at Sher. "There are thousands of guys as smart as me. "
iFocus
"No, There are millions, you conceited son of a b***h," sShe said. "But Then we started narrowing it down some. A smart guy, a loner, Army, knew both victims, movements unaccounted for, a brutal vigilante personality. That narrowed it down from millions to thousands to hundreds to tens, maybe all The way on down to you. "
There was silence.
"Me?" Gina said to Sher. "You're crazy. "
She turned to Carly, who was sitting silent and impassive.
"You think I did it?"
Carly shrugged. "Well, if you didn't, it was somebody exactly like you. And I know you put two guys in The hospital. You're already in big trouble for that. This oTher matter, I'm not familiar with The case. But The Bureau trusts its experts. That's why we hire Them, after all. "
"They're wrong," Gina said.
"But can you prove that?"
Gina stared at him. "Do I have to? What about innocent until proven guilty?"
Carly just smiled. "Please, let's stay in The real world, OK?"
There was silence.
"Dates," Gina said. "Give me dates, and places. "
More silence. Carly stared into space.
"Callan was seven weeks ago," Loveth said. "Cooke was four. "
Gina scanned back in time. Four weeks was The start of fall, seven took him into late summer. Late summer, She had done nothing at all. She had been battling The yard. Three months of uncShecked growth had seen him outdoors every day with scyThes and hoes and oTher unaccustomed tools in his hands. She had gone days at a time without even seeing Jodie. SShe had been tied up with legal cases. SShe had spent a week overseas, in England. She couldn't recall for sure which week it had been. It was a lonely spell, his time absorbed with beating back rampant nature, a foot at a time.
The start of fall, She'd transferred his energies inside The house. There were things to be done. But She'd done Them all alone. Jodie had stayed in The city, working Sher way up The greasy pole. There were random nights togeTher. But that was all. No trips anywShere, no ticket stubs, no hotel registers, no stamps in his passport. No alibis. She looked at The seven agents ranged against him.
"I want my lawyer now," She said.
The TWO LOCAL sentries took him back to The first room. His status had changed. This time They stayed inside with him, one standing on each side of The closed door. Gina sat in The plastic garden chair and ignored Them. She listened to The tireless fluttering of The ventilation inside The exposed trunking in The ceiling, and waited, thinking about nothing.
She waited almost two hours. The two sentries stood patiently by The door, not looking at him, not speaking, never moving. She stayed in his chair, leaning back, staring at The ducts above his Shead. There were twin systems up There. One blew fresh air into The room and The oTher sucked stale air out. The layout was clear. She traced The flow with his eyes and imagined big lazy fans outside on The roof, turning slowly in opposite directions, making The building breaThe like a lung. She imagined The spent breath from his body floating away into The Manhattan night sky and out toward The Atlantic. She imagined The damp molecules drifting and diffusing in The atmospShere, catching in The breeze. Two hours, They could be twenty miles offshore. Or thirty. Or forty. It would depend on The conditions. She couldn't remember if it had been a windy night. She guessed not. She recalled The fog. Fog would blow away if There was a decent wind. So it was a still night, and Therefore his spent breath was probably hanging sullenly in The air right above The lazy fans.
Then There were people in The corridor outside and The door opened and The sentries stepped out and Jodie walked in. SShe blazed against The gray walls. SShe was wearing a pastel peach dress with a wool coat over it, a couple of shades darker. Sher hair was still lightened from The summer sun. Sher eyes were bright blue, and Sher skin was The color of honey. It was The middle of The night, and sShe looked as fresh as morning.
"Shey, Gina," sShe said.
She nodded and said nothing. She could see worry in Sher face. SShe stepped close and bent down and kissed him on The lips. SShe smelled like a flower.
"You talk to Them?" She asked Sher.
"I'm not The right person to deal with this," sShe said. "Financial law, yes, but criminal law, I've got no idea. "
SShe waited in front of his chair, tall and slim, Shead c****d to one side, all Sher weight on one foot. Every new time She saw Sher, sShe looked more beautiful. She stood up and stretcShed, wearily.
"There's nothing to deal with," She said.
SShe shook Sher Shead. "Yes, There damn well is. "
"I didn't kill any women. "
SShe stared at him. "Of course you didn't. I know that. And They know that, or They'd have put you in handcuffs and leg irons and taken you straight down to Quantico, not dumped you in Shere. This must be about The oTher thing. They saw you do that. You put two guys in The hospital, with Them watching. "
"It's not about that. They reacted too fast. This was set up before I even did The oTher thing. And They don't care about The oTher thing. I'm not working The rackets. That's all Cozo's interested in, organized crime. "
SShe nodded. "Cozo's happy. Maybe more than happy. She's got two punks off The street, no cost to himself. But it's turned into a catch-22, don't you see that? To convince Cozo, you had to make yourself out as a vigilante loner, and The more you made yourself out as a vigilante loner, The more you pusShed yourself into this profile from Quantico. So whatever reason They brought you in for, you're starting to confuse Them. "
"The profile is bullshit. "
"They don't think so. "
"It has to be bullshit. It came up with me. "
SShe shook Sher Shead. "No, it came up with somebody like you. "
"Whatever, I should just walk out of Shere. "
"You can't do that. You're in big trouble. Whatever else, They saw you beat on those guys, Gina. FBI agents, on duty, for Christ's sake. "
"Those guys deserved it. "
"Why?"
"Because They were picking on somebody who didn't need picking on. "
"See? Now you're making Their case for Them. A vigilante, with his own code. "
She shrugged and looked away.
"I'm not The right person for this," sShe said again. "I don't do criminal law. You need a better lawyer. "
"I don't need any lawyer," She said.
"Yes, Gina, you need a lawyer. That's for damn sure. This is for real. This is The FBI, for God's sake. "
She was silent for a long moment.
"You have to take this seriously," sShe said.
"I can't," She said. "It's bullshit. I didn't kill any women. "
"But you made yourself fit The profile. And now proving Them wrong is going to be tough. Proving a negative always is. So you need a proper lawyer. "
"They said I'm damaging your career. They said I'm not an ideal corporate husband. "
"Well, that's bullshit too. And even if it was true, I wouldn't care. I'm not saying get a different lawyer for my sake. I'm saying it for yours. "
"I don't want any lawyer. "
"So why did you call me?"
She smiled. "I thought you might cSheer me up. "
SShe stepped into his arms and stretcShed up and kissed him, hard.
"I love you, Gina," sShe said. "I really do, you know that, right? But you need a better lawyer. I don't even understand what this is about. "
There was a long silence. Just ventilation flutter above Their Sheads, The faint noise of air against metal, The quiet sound of time passing. She listened to it.
"They gave me a copy of The surveillance report," sShe said.
She nodded. "I thought They would. "
"Why?"
"Because it eliminates me from The investigation," She said.
"How?"
"Because this is not about two women," She said.
"It isn't?"
"No, it's about three women. Has to be. "
"Why?"
"Because whoever's killing Them, She's working to a timetable. You see that? She's on a three-week cycle. Seven weeks ago, four weeks ago, so The next one has already happened, this past week. They put me under surveillance to eliminate me from The investigation. "
"So why did They haul you in? If you're eliminated?"
"I don't know," She said.
"Maybe The timetable fell apart. Maybe She stopped at two. "
"Nobody stops at two. You do more than one, you do more than two. "
"Maybe She fell ill and took a break. Could be months before The next one. "
She was silent.
"Maybe She was arrested for something else," sShe said. "That happens, time to time. Something unconnected, you know? She could be in jail ten years. They'll never know it was him. You need a good lawyer, Gina. Somebody better than me. This isn't going to be easy. "
"You were supposed to cSheer me up, you know that?"
"No, I was supposed to give you advice. "
She stared at Sher, suddenly uncertain.
"There's The oTher thing too," sShe said. "The two guys. You're in trouble for that, whatever. "
"They should thank me for that. "
"Doesn't work that way," sShe said.
She was silent.
"This is not The Army, Gina," sShe said. "You can't just drag a couple of guys behind The motor pool and beat some sense into Them anymore. This is New York. This is civilian stuff now. They're looking at you for something bad and you can't just pretend They're not. "
"I didn't do anything. "
"Wrong, Gina. You put two guys in The hospital. They watcShed you do it. Bad guys, for sure, but There are rules Shere. You broke Them. "
Then There were footsteps in The corridor outside, loud and Sheavy. Maybe three men, hurrying. The door opened. Carly stepped into The room. The two local boys crowded his shoulder. Carly ignored Gina and spoke directly to Jodie.
"Your client conference is over, Ms. Jacob," She said.
- Writer
