their heads because she had to pay off her husband's medical bills. For
years they lived day to day, on the edge of disaster. That would leave
marks on a child.'
'How did she meet Evan Harris?' Stevenson asked.
'I don't know. But after they were married, Graham took his
stepfather's name. He spent the latter part of his childhood in a
mansion. After he got his university degree, he had enough time and
money to become one of the world's leading climbers. Old man Harris
encouraged him. In some circles, Graham was famous, a star.
Do you realize how many beautiful women are drawn to the sport of
climbing?'
Stevenson shrugged.
'Not as participants,' Prine said. 'As companions to the participants,
as bedmates. More women than you'd think. I guess it's the nearness of
death that attracts them. For more than a decade, Graham was adored,
made over. Then he took a bad fall. When he recovered, he was
terrified of climbing.' Prine was listening to his own voice,
fascinated by the theory he had developed. 'Do you understand, Paul? He
was born a nobody, lived the first six years of his life as a
nobody-then overnight he became a somebody when his mother married Evan
Harris. Now is it any wonder that he's afraid of being a nobody again?
' Stevenson went to the bar and poured himself some bourbon. 'It's not
likely he'll be a nobody again. He did inherit his stepfather's money.'
'Money isn't the same as fame. Once he'd been a celebrity, even within
the tight circle of climbing enthusiasts, maybe he developed a habit for
it. Maybe he became a fame junkie. It can happen to the best. I've
seen it.'
'So have I.'
'if that's what he is ... well, maybe he's decided that being infamous
is as good as being famous. As the Butcher, he's grabbing headlines;
he's infamous, even if only under a nora de guerre- '
'But he was with you in the studio last night when the Mowry girl was
murdered.'
'Maybe not.'
'What? He predicted her death.'
'Did he? Or did he simply tell us who he had selected for his next
victim?'
Stevenson stared at him as if he were mad. Laughing, Prine said, 'Of
course Harris was in the studio with me-but perhaps not when the murder
took place. I used a source in the police department and got a copy of
the coroner's report. According to the pathologist, Edna Mowry was
murdered sometime between eleven-thirty Thursday night and one-thirty
Friday morning. Now, Graham Harris left the studio at twelve-thirty
Friday morning. He had an hour to get to Edna Mowry.'
Stevenson swallowed some bourbon. 'Jesus, Tony, if you're right, if you
break a story like this, ABC will give you a late-night talk show and
let you do it your way, live!'
'They might.'
Stevenson finished his bourbon. 'But you don't have any proof.
