Текст книги "The Gift of Death"
Автор книги: Sam Ripley
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Текущая страница: 12 (всего у книги 21 страниц)
28
‘You don’t think Gleason could have been working with an accomplice?’ asked Josh.
‘The father of Gleason’s first victim seemed to think so,’ said Kate, taking a sip of green tea. ‘But from what I remember, though, there was no evidence. Vaughan looked through the files that Collins gave him – documents compiled by a team of P.Is employed by Collins – and he didn’t find anything.’
‘So Vaughan believed that Gleason was proud to be a sole operator?’
‘Exactly.’
They had met in one of their old haunts, a Japanese restaurant downtown. From the outside it looked nothing special, in fact it was more than a little shabby around the edges, but the Japanese couple who ran it served some of the best sashimi in LA. Not that Kate was eating it.
Josh picked up a piece of tuna with his chopsticks and dipped the raw fish into a dollop of wasabi. But as he brought the glistening piece of fish towards his mouth an image of that tongue torn from the mouth of Jackson Weekes flashed into his brain. Fuck. Suddenly he didn’t feel hungry anymore.
‘Are you alright?’ asked Kate.
‘Yeah, just a bit tired, you know.’
‘You should get some sleep. Staying up all night is counter-productive. And it’s not good for you.’
‘Yeah, I know. It’s just that every time I try I think of that – that monster – out there and what he might do next.’ He paused and looked at Kate. ‘In fact, I’ve been giving it a lot of thought. I’ve been thinking a lot about you. About the –‘
Kate’s felt the blood rush to her face. What was Josh about to say? Did he want to come back to her? Could he have ended it all with Jules? The thought made her a little dizzy and suddenly nauseous, as though a small bird was trapped inside her ribcage. She wanted to take another sip of tea, but was afraid her hand would shake too much. She chewed her lip instead, hoping that the couple of drops of saliva would be enough to lubricate her parched mouth.
‘I w-wanted to talk to you about it too,’ she said, before her mouth dried up again. She pictured moving her things back into Josh’s loft. Her photographs were back on his walls. There was that black and white picture she had taken of his naked back, his broad shoulders and trim waist forming a kind of cross, his muscles clearly defined. She’d hang that back in the bedroom. She remembered she used to look at the photograph and then turn her eyes to the real thing next to her. She would run her fingers down his back, massaging his strained and tired muscles, until he would turn over and –
‘It’s hard for me to say this, and I’ve been talking it over with Jules, and I want access to the child – our child,’ he said.
Kate couldn’t speak. In fact, she was certain that her mouth dropped open slightly. She couldn’t grasp the reality of what Josh was saying.
‘I feel it’s only right, only proper,’ he said. ‘And Jules feels the same. It’s half my child and I have a right to see it. Of course, I want to contribute, financially, that’s not a problem. Jules’s restaurant is doing quite well at the moment – you know she had that great write up in the Times recently – and she’s more than willing to invest in the child’s future. In fact –‘
‘Excuse me?’ Her voice was raw, rasping. ‘What are you trying to say?’
‘Come on, Kate. Don’t take that tone. We’ve got to be able to talk about this without getting all –‘
‘All what? Hysterical?’
‘Well – yes. To be honest. Yes. And we need to get things sorted out. We need to talk about the future of – of our child. Like I said, Jules –‘
Kate slammed her cup down on the table, spilling her green tea, and stood up.
‘Kate – sit down. We need to talk.’
‘There’s nothing left to talk about.’
Josh placed a hand on her shoulder, but she brushed him away, his wide, slightly hairy fingers suddenly as disgusting as the legs of a tarantula.
‘Leave me alone.’ She grabbed her bag and pushed past him.
‘Kate, don’t make a scene. This isn’t fair.’
‘You don’t know the meaning of the word.’
And to think that she actually thought he was going to ask her to move back in with him. How foolish. How pathetic. He was still in love with Jules. But did he seriously think she would let her baby spend weekends with the woman who had stolen him away from her? As she moved away from the table she turned back to look at him.
‘And as for access? Forget it. It’s not going to happen.’
‘Kate, please.’
‘And if you want to “talk”, as you so quaintly put it, you can do that through my lawyer. I’ll get him to draft a letter, which he will deliver to your office.’
In her car she placed a hand up to her face. Her mouth, as dry as the desert only a few moments ago, was wet now, full of her tears.
29
Cassie lifted her hands up to feel Kate’s face.
‘You’ve been crying,’ she said.
‘Is there nothing I can hide from you?’ Kate ran her fingers over the smooth – and, as she thought, dry – surface of her skin, tracing the line up from her high cheekbones to her temples. ‘Anyway, how do you know? That was hours ago.’
Cassie smiled.
‘Witch,’ Kate joked, reaching out to give her a little mock slap, before pulling her down onto the sofa with her.
‘What did you say?’ said Cassie, tickling Kate under her arm.
‘Stop! Stop!’
‘Take it back,’ said Cassie, her finger working like a worm now. ‘Do you take it back?’
‘Yes,’ said Kate between her giggles. ‘Yes. Stop!’
The two women fell backwards on the sofa, consumed by laughter.
‘I haven’t laughed like that for months,’ said Kate.
‘Me neither.’
Cassie turned her head towards the woman who, during the last few weeks, had become her friend. Kate knew that Cassie could not see her, yet she felt somehow that she was assessing her, searching her face for traces of the thing that had made her cry. It reminded her of her mother.
‘I know I may as well tell you,’ said Kate.
‘What happened?’
‘What do you think happened? Josh happened. Or rather didn’t.’
‘I thought you two had split up.’
‘Yes, we had.’
‘So?’
‘Call me crazy, but for some stupid reason I got it into my head that we were going to get back together. I know, I know, it’s dumb. I suppose it was the fact that the case had brought us closer, that I felt him somehow protecting me, but – ‘ She bit her lip, which was beginning to tremble. ‘I got carried away, I guess. In my head I could already see myself back in his place. I had already reorganised his kitchen, put my books back on the shelves, hung my photographs.’
‘Kate,’ said Cassie, stroking her friend’s shoulder.
‘But, of course, the reality was that he’s got no intention of leaving Jules. And – and he wants access to the child.’
Cassie didn’t say anything, a silence which Kate guessed was an indication of her point of view.
‘Enough of that,’ she said, standing up. The last thing she wanted was an argument with Cassie. ‘There are some things you need to know about the case.’ She reached out her hands and pulled Cassie up from the sofa. ‘It’s time we got to work.’
‘Do you mean my plan?’
‘No,’ said Kate. ‘You can forget about that.’
‘But –‘
‘No discussion. It’s too dangerous.’
‘Then what?’
Kate led Cassie over to a desk in the corner of the room. She pressed a button on her laptop, bringing it to life.
‘Hoban told me what Gleason said to him when he was arrested.’
‘What? What was it?’
‘”Watch out for another me.” Those were his exact words, apparently.’
‘Oh my God.’
‘So it seems like he knew what was going to happen way back then. That he had it all in place.’
‘What – like he trained someone? Like – like an apprentice in murder?’
‘You should have been a mystery writer, Cassie.’
‘Don’t joke, Kate. I don’t like this.’
‘I know, I know. Sorry.’ She turned to the computer and brought up Google. ‘I reckon with what we know we should be able to find this fucker.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Well, who else knows more than we do about the Gleason case? Vaughan, sure, but he’s long since gone. Weislander, maybe, but he’s worked a hundred or so cases since then and anyway, after finding that tongue in his icebox I doubt that he wants to put his wife at risk. Apparently she really freaked out, and who can blame her?’
‘What about Josh?’
‘Forget it. From now on I’m having nothing to do with him.’
‘But what about the case?’
‘What about it? From what I can tell, he hasn’t come up with any new leads. I don’t know about you, but I think we’re better off doing this on our own.’
‘I thought you said it was too dangerous?’
‘Your plan was suicide, Cassie. Trust me. We don’t want to go down that route. But I’ve got a better idea.’
‘What?’
‘Good old fashioned research.’
Kate tapped in the name Robert Gleason, sandwiched between quotation marks, into the search engine. There were 49,500 results. Cassie heard the disappointment in the silence.
‘What’s wrong?’ she asked.
‘Nothing,’ said Kate, in an unconvincingly bright manner.
‘I believe you,’ said Cassie, sarcastically. ‘Come clean.’
‘Just than there are nearly 50,000 hits. Rather a lot, but –‘
‘But, what?’
‘But look, lots of them are just about the case. About Gleason. I can scan through them quickly. And –‘
‘So you think that the man we’re looking for has taken Gleason’s name?’
Kate’s ice blue eyes widened. She blinked in quick succession.
‘Oh my God, I hadn’t thought of that.’
‘What?’
‘I was working from the theory that the murderer might have posted something on one of the serial killer websites. You know, some kind of tribute or whatever. Like Gleason was his hero, his god. I never thought about it so literally.’
‘Well, sorry –‘
‘No, you’re a genius, Cassie. It may not lead to anything, but it’s worth a try. If we work from the theory that the person who is behind all of this worshipped Gleason so much that he wanted to erase his old identity and become him then –‘
‘Then all we have to do is find a man who –‘
‘Who has changed his name to Robert Gleason.’
She scanned down the list of results, past the straightforward reports on the Gleason case, noting down the details of men who held the same name – the chairman of the Pennsylvanian Republican Party, the author of Icebound in the Siberian Artic, a book editor, and an actor (credits included the film Dead Poet’s Society). Nope. They were too much in the public eye. Too conspicuous. Too well-balanced. And she guessed they all had been born with the name. What she was looking for was a man who existed way off the radar. Someone who slithered under the surface of society. Someone almost invisible. It would be hard to find them – no doubt they had done everything in their power to avoid being noticed – but she would do it. She had never been more certain about anything in her life.
Patiently, Cassie stood by her side, seeing nothing but sensing pretty much everything.
‘Hey, why don’t you take a swim in the pool or a nap?’ said Kate.
‘No way. I’m fascinated to see what you come up with.’
‘But it won’t be quick. It’ll be really boring, I warn you.’
‘I can do boring. Boring is good after the last couple of weeks.’
She double-clicked on the white pages site that listed the telephone numbers of the 250 or so Robert Gleasons in America – there were 26 in New York state, 19 in California, 17 in Massachusetts, and 16 in both Florida and Michigan. Cassie listened to the sound of pencil on paper as Kate took down names and numbers.
‘What are you writing? Got your list of suspects already?’
‘No, it’s just a list of Robert Gleasons in all the different states. California ranks third as having the most, after Massachusetts and, at the top of the list, New York.’
‘So what are you going to do? Ring each one up and ask if they happen to be a sick fucker who gets kicks out of sending people dead babies and the tops of fingers?’
‘Well – it’s an idea.’
‘Now who’s the crazy one?’
‘The problem is there’s nothing on public record web sites to show me details of people who have changed their names. For that, I need access to governmental records. And to get that –‘
‘You need some inside help.’ Cassie paused. ‘Like Josh?
‘No. Like – like … ‘ Kate ran through her list of old contacts in her head. She could call on the help of Cynthia Ross, but she she’d rather – what was that expression of her father’s? – cut her own arm off than ask a favour from that bitch.
‘God – I’ve been so stupid,’ said Cassie, the words tripping off her tongue. ‘Gloria – my friend Gloria. She’ll help. I’m sure of it. She works in the social security office downtown. She could run a check for us.’
‘Can you trust her?’
‘Of course. She helped me through everything. I don’t think I would have survived what Gleason did to me without her.’
‘Well, what are you waiting for. Give her a call and get her over here.’
Cassie’s face began to darken, her sightless eyes looked worried.
‘What? What’s wrong?’
‘I’m just worried for her, that’s all. I mean, look at what’s happened to us. Obviously this man bears grudges.’
‘Yeah, you’re right.’ Kate walked towards her and placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder. She had to convince her that this was their best – their seemingly only – option. ‘But what’s going to happen if this fucker isn’t caught? He’s going to carry on not only screwing up our lives, but those of countless others. If he’s anything like the other Gleason then he poses a real and present threat. And he’s not going stop now. If anything it’s going to get worse – for you, for me – all of us.’
Cassie bit her lip. ‘You’re right. Can you dial a number for me?’
‘Sure,’ said Kate, picking up her cell. ‘Go ahead.’ She dialled the number, which was picked up by voicemail. ‘Hi, this is a message for Gloria Smith. My name is Kate Cramer. I’m a friend of Cassie’s. Please call me as soon as you get this message. I think you know what happened to Cassie. Well, I’m afraid it’s beginning to happen again. And she – we – need your help. I’ll explain everything when you call.’
30
‘It’s actually relatively easy to change one’s name,’ said Gloria, clutching a gold hair clip between her teeth. ‘In fact, you can order things like a name change kit over the internet for less than thirty bucks. It contains all the necessary forms you need, instructions about how to go about it. And the beauty of it is that you don’t need to go anywhere near a goddamned lawyer’s office.’
Gloria pulled the back of her raven black hair and stretched it over the top of her head, securing it with the clip. She took a breath before she started again.
‘You are obliged to publicise the name change in a local newspaper, once a week for at least four consecutive weeks, but the whole process can be completed in two to three months. As long as a court doesn’t think a person is going to change their name for an improper purpose – such as defrauding creditors – then the name change is usually granted.’
‘And what about for the purpose of glorifying a dead serial killer?’ said Kate, her voice rising, her face flushing. ‘Would that not be considered “improper?”’
‘Obviously, in this case the court granting the request did not recognise the name.’
‘Obviously,’ said Kate. ‘Sorry. I’m just angry that no-one seemed to have spotted this. I can’t believe that no-one found it the least bit suspicious that a man wanted to change his name to one of the state’s most vicious –‘
‘Gloria, it’s great that you came over,’ said Cassie, interrupting. ‘And we’re both really grateful that you’ve been able to explain the legal situation to us. But now comes the hard part. I’m afraid we’ve got a question to ask you that may put you in a – a slightly awkward position.’
‘What do you mean?’ said Gloria.
‘We need to find out who’s doing this,’ said Kate. ‘Who is behind it all.’
‘And you want me to help?’
‘Yes. We know that we’re asking a lot of you. And that it’s against all the rules. That you’d probably lose your job if your bosses ever –‘
‘Yes.’
‘Sorry?’
‘I said yes, I’ll do it. My bosses need never find out. And I can easily cover my tracks, if need be.’ Gloria stared at Cassie, remembering what she had looked like when she had first gone to visit her in hospital soon after the attack. ‘If there’s some creep out there who thinks he can get his kicks out of freaking out one of my girlfriends then I’m going to do everything in my power to stop him. Even if it’s only something as simple as checking a few records. So count me in, sisters.’
31
The media had a lot to answer for, he thought, as he sat in his car and watched the blonde woman come out of her downtown apartment. Really it was just an extension of man’s lowest instincts – vulgar curiosity, insatiable prurience, obsessional interest in the business of others – slanted in such a way as to emphasise the sordid and the negative. Where had all the good news gone?
Surely when he was a child, the world wasn’t that interested in the bedhoppings of minor actors or actresses or the pathetic lives of ordinary people turned into overnight ‘celebrities’ via the medium of television? He was pleased not to have a TV. Why allow the portal of the devil into your home if you had a choice?
He listened to the woman as she walked past his car. She was laughing into her cell. ‘I just know it would make a great story,’ she said, as she flicked back her blonde hair. That was the problem. Everything was just a story to her. Little did she know, however, that he also possessed a talent for storytelling and, if he so wished, he could take her as a character and shape her destiny accordingly. He could do anything he wanted with her, within reason.
Of course, he lived by certain rules, certain codes of behaviour. He knew the difference between right and wrong. Morality was at the very core of him. It was his essence, if you like. And although he was tempted to just finish her off, he thought that this would not be quite appropriate somehow. Not at the moment, anyway.
A plan was beginning to form itself in his mind that might have a particularly satisfying ending. And he had reserved a special place in that scheme for Cynthia Ross.
32
‘Okay, so this is the deal,’ said Gloria, running one of her ring-encrusted fingers over the smooth, coffee-coloured skin of her damp forehead. She was back at the house in Beverly Hills less than twenty four hours after her initial meeting with Kate and Cassie. Outside the temperature was rising and, although the air conditioning of her car had protected her from the heat, taking those few steps from her bright red Chrysler and walking up the gravelled drive to the house had been enough to make her break out into a sweat. She was always promising herself that she would lose those extra few pounds, but it never seemed to happen.
‘You were saying?’ said Kate. ‘The deal?’
‘Yeah, sorry. So this is what I managed to find out,’ she said, taking a deep breath. ‘I ran a check on every single person who changed their name to Robert Gleason in the US since 1997, the date that that psycho was arrested.’ She reached over and squeezed Cassie’s hand; the girl’s fingers felt cold today, oddly lifeless. She looked unusually pale, like all the blood had been drained from her face. ‘Darling girl, are you okay?’
‘I’m fine. Just a little nervous, I guess.’
‘Do you want me to carry on?’
Cassie nodded. Kate took hold of her notepad, feeling her heart beat inside her chest. She was sure that they were on the point of some kind of breakthrough. So much for Josh and the resources of the LAPD. Fuck him. He had been trying to reach her since she had walked out on him at the Japanese restaurant. He’d left repeated messages, but she had refused to listen to them. What was the point? Every time she thought about the idea of him – or even worse, her – seeing her child she felt a surge of anger run through her. So what if it was only going to be weekends and the occasional vacation? He was the one who said he didn’t want a child. And now that he’d dumped her and settled down with Jules he seemed keen all of a sudden.
‘Kate?’ said Gloria.
‘Sorry. I wasn’t just thinking about the past, about the case.’
‘Just as well I didn’t get my hands on that sick fuck,’ said Gloria. ‘I swear I would have been had up for first degree. But as sure as anything, that creep is burning in hell as we speak.’
‘Let’s hope so,’ said Cassie, chewing a fingernail.
‘Cassie,’ said Kate. ‘We know that Gleason is dead. It’s a fact.’
‘So who’s out there then? If it’s not the Gleason we knew then it’s somebody who wants to be him. To be honest, I don’t know which is the worst, which one I’m scared of more.’
‘I know, I know,’ said Kate. ‘But Cassie? I guarantee that this is going to stop soon. We’re going to bring his little games to and end. Isn’t that right, Gloria? Tell us what you’ve got. The sooner we’ve got that information the sooner all this is over.’
‘I sure as hell hope this is going to help,’ she said looking down at her notes. ‘Okay – I discovered that there are only three men in the whole of the US who have changed their names to Robert Gleason since the date of the arrest.’
‘Only three?’ said Kate. She felt a sense of anticipation rise within her. They were getting close. Soon he would feel what it was like to be hunted, to be prey.
‘That’s what the records say.’
‘Where are they?’
‘There is one – a man born Saul David Coben in 1989 who was adopted as a teenager by a married couple, a Jane and Harvey Gleason, in Pennsylvania.’
‘Not our guy,’ said Kate. ‘Who else?’
‘A gay guy who used to be called Robert Olson who lives in Portland.’
‘What’s his story?’ asked Cassie.
‘Don’t know much. But it seems that he “married” his boyfriend, a Charlie Gleason last fall. I’m not sure of two guys getting together like that and in fact –‘
‘Okay,’ said Kate, eager for Gloria to move on. ‘And the last one?’
‘The last one is interesting because I’ve hardly got anything on him. No credit card details, no car loan, no telephone records, no mortgage, no bank account. Nada.’
Kate felt the hairs prick on the back of her neck.
‘All I know is that his birth name was Gideon Walsh and that he was born in Vegas to a single mother.’
‘Did you find any reason why he wanted to change his name?’ asked Kate.
‘No. No reason.’
‘And where does he live now. Still in Vegas?’
Gloria looked down at the piece of paper in front of her. ‘No. According to the most recent record I could find – his court application for a name change – he now lives here, in LA. Listed as 5520 West 104th street, right next to LAX, I guess.’
Kate tapped the address into the search engine on her computer. At the top of the results list was the name of the Aviation Motel with advertised rates in the region of twenty five bucks a night.
‘It’s a low rent hotel.’ said Kate. ‘The perfect place for some psycho to hang out who never wants to be found. Ladies, I think we’ve got our guy.’
