There were only three people in that room when he said those things. Rose, myself, and Franklin. And Franklin is dead.
CHAPTER TEN
I stopped by to see Maven the next day. He had the phone record on his desk. “It was a pay phone on Ashmun Street,” he said. “It’s only a block away from the second murder site.”
“I don’t understand why he didn’t say anything,” I said.
Maven rubbed his chin. “It’s almost like he knew he was being recorded.”
“How would he know that?”
“You tell me,” he said.
I shook my head. “You’re something else, Chief.”
He picked up the piece of paper and looked at it again. “Funny, you got three other calls last night. They’re all from the same number.”
“The Fultons’.”
“Yes.”
“So what?”
“It’s just funny,” he said.
“Uttley called me, and then Mrs. Fulton, and then Edwin.”
“Mr. Uttley is baby-sitting them now?”
“We didn’t have much choice, Chief,” I said. “I’m stuck in my cabin now, remember? And you didn’t seem too willing to post an officer over there.”
“Oh, I’m sure they’re safe,” he said.
“I don’t follow you,” I said. I felt the acid building in my stomach again. How long would I have to keep seeing this bastard every morning?
“This is your own personal psycho, McKnight. Why would he bother your friend? He even said in his note that he likes the guy, didn’t he?”
I just looked at him. “Am I ever going to get a coffee in this place?”
“Maybe some day, McKnight. The next time I’m in a good mood.”
That was enough of Maven for one morning, so I got myself out of there. While I was in town, I stopped by to see the pay phone. A detective was still there, finishing his work. He had dusted for fingerprints. I could still see traces of the powder on the phone.
There was a little bookstore nearby, a gift shop next to that. But I didn’t imagine there would have been anyone around at three o’clock in the morning. And even if there was, would they have noticed a man making a call at a pay phone?
If the man was wearing a big blond wig, maybe. Ha ha.
Angelo’s restaurant was just down the street, so I walked down to see it again. It was still deserted. I walked around to the back alley. The police had cleaned the place up pretty well. I had to get down on my hands and knees to see the faint residue of blood on the bottom of the grease barrel.
What was I doing here? Here I was in a dirty little alley, on all fours like a dog. My pants were probably ruined. What was I looking for? I didn’t even know. All I knew was it was driving me crazy, just sitting around wondering who this person was and what he would do next.
On the way back to Paradise I gave the Fultons a call on my cell phone. Everyone was fine, although Uttley had a stiff neck from sleeping on the couch. He told me he’d try the prison again when he went in to the office.
I went home and slept for a couple hours. Later I stopped in at the Glasgow. Jackie was the only person in the place, but that was fine by me.
“Haven’t seen ya in a couple days,” he said as he cracked a cold Canadian for me. God bless him.
“Things have been a little crazy,” I said.
“Have you seen the paper today? They had another murder in town.”
I took the newspaper from him. The headline read, “Local Man Slain Behind Restaurant, Second Murder In Three Days.” I read the story, but it didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know. They tried to get Maven to say something about it, but he gave them the usual line about it being too early in the investigation to comment. Maven’s picture was on page two. He didn’t photograph well.
“Damnedest thing,” Jackie said. “Hey, didn’t I read something about Edwin and that first murder? The one in the motel?”
“He just found the body,” I said. I was about to tell him all about it. He certainly knew how to listen. But I didn’t. I just felt too tired and confused to go through it all again. Maybe next time, I thought. We’ll go sit at a table and I’ll lay it all out for him. He might be able to help me make some sense of it.
I went back to the cabin and called Uttley. “The lock-down’s over,” he said. “I was able to get a message through today.”
“Great, so what happened?”
“Well, I wasn’t quite sure what to say. I just asked them to double-check on Rose, make sure they take a mug shot with him.”
“Maybe I should visit him,” I said.
“You actually want to go down there and see him?”
“Maybe that’s the only way I’ll know if it’s really him,” I said. Although I couldn’t imagine actually being in a room with him again. Even with four inches of wire-reinforced glass between us.
“I can give it a try,” he said.
“Thanks,” I said. “Are you spending the night at the Fultons’ again?”
“Mrs. Fulton wants somebody there. As long as they refuse to leave, I figure I’ll keep staying there with them.”
“You’re doing a good thing,” I said.
He laughed. “Just wait until they see my bill.”
The night came again, and with it another small dose of the fear. I found myself thinking about those pills in the back of the medicine cabinet. But I couldn’t afford to take them. I had to be ready.
The same cop waited all night in the same place. His name was Dave. He had a wife and two kids at home. I felt for the guy, having to spend all night sitting in his car. I made him some coffee and a couple sandwiches this time. It was the least I could do.
Uttley spent his night on the Fultons’ couch. I spent my night lying on my bed, looking over at the phone every five minutes. I got up a few times and looked outside.
He didn’t call. Not even just to hear my voice. Not even just to let me hear the silence on the other end. The night passed without a sound. Even the wind stayed quiet.
The next day I had no reason to go see Chief Maven. That gave me two choices. Either pick some daisies and show up at his office anyway, or give myself the day off. It was a tough choice, but I stayed home.
I split some firewood and delivered it to the other cabins. On my first run I stopped at the bend in the road, just to see where Dave was spending his nights. It looked like he had chosen a thick stand of jack pine trees. You could just barely make out my front door.
I came back to the woodpile and finished my last load. It felt good to swing the ax, but it didn’t make me forget my troubles. Out of the corner of my eye I caught a flash of something that looked like blond hair. It turned out to be a doe making a break through the brush. I had to stand there leaning with both hands on the chopping block for a full minute before I could move again.
I gave Uttley a call at his office. “You sound pretty beat,” he said.
“You sound a little rough around the edges yourself,” I said. “I was just wondering if you had heard anything from the prison.”
“Just talked to them. The guy’s going to go check himself. I haven’t heard back yet.”
“Did you tell them I want to visit him?”
“Alex,” he said. “This man shot you. I gotta tell you, the man at the prison thinks it’s a bad idea to try to visit him.”
“Don’t worry,” I said. “What’s he going to do to me in a prison?”
“Alex, it just seems… unhealthy.”
“I’ll tell you what’s unhealthy,” I said. “Somebody killing people and writing me love notes about it.”
“But Alex, that can’t be Rose. You know that. A man can’t be in two places at one time.”
“What if he has a twin brother?”
“What? Are you serious?”
“It’s just an idea,” I said. “What if his twin brother is in prison and the real Rose is up here?”
“If he had a twin brother, why would he even… never mind. I don’t even know what to say.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I know this sounds crazy, but I have to start somewhere.”
“Look, I’ll see if I can locate any records. Birth certificate, school records, whatever. And I’ll let you know as soon as I hear back from the prison, okay?”