Show of Evil

'Voila.' Vail said it with obvious distaste. 'What if Roy had transferred to Raymond instead of Aaron?'

'It wouldn't have happened. Raymond didn't want that. Abhorrent behaviour patterns can be mirrored only to individuals who would normally accept the transference.'

'In other words, the receiver must be capable of such behaviour to begin with?'

'Correct. Raymond doesn't need Roy, never did.'

'And Aaron transferred to you, right?'

'Yes. That was a major breakthrough, I might add. It was not an easy transition. My strategy was to appeal to his need to be appreciated by his supervisors. That was what attracted him to Rushman. Aaron had transferred his need - as a child — for approval from his parents to the bishop. My problem, of course, was Rushman, who had betrayed that trust. Aaron didn't trust me for several years. The advantage, of course, is that Roy would come out, so I got to deal with them both. Then when Raymond emerged, the transference was complete. Aaron and Roy eventually disappeared.'

'And now you have Raymond, the perfect specimen.'

Woodward was surprised by the remark. He nervously stroked his beard with both hands, then said, 'There's no need for sarcasm, Martin. He'll be down in a minute. Talk to him before you judge him.'

'I just mean it sounds like Raymond encompasses all the best of Aaron - his intelligence, his dreams, desires…'

'Exactly. Aaron always saw himself as an innocent victim. He had no control over Roy. He couldn't even communicate with him. I was the pipeline between them.'

'There were two tapes. Do you know about them?'

'You mean the Altar Boys tapes?'

'You do know about that.'

'Of course.'

'Both the original and one copy were erased by mutual agreement with the prosecutor.'

'Why?'

'To protect the Catholic church. Rushman was dead, the case was resolved. It wasn't necessary to drag all that up.'

'That was very civilized of you two. I'm not sure it was in my patient's best interest.'

'Why not? You could always get the information from the horse's mouth. I assume Roy went into detail about those events.'

'That's true,' Woodward agreed.

'Let's get back to Raymond. Where did the name come from?'

'That's what he called himself the first time he appeared. I said, 'Who are you?' and he said, 'I'm Raymond Vulpes.' '

'So Roy dominated Aaron and Raymond dominated Roy.'

Woodward nodded. 'Aaron never did confront either Roy or Raymond directly. As I said, I was the pipeline. But when Raymond appeared, I was able to bring both Raymond and Roy out. It was absolutely fascinating, watching them switch back and forth. They would interrupt each other, argue, an incredible clash of the two egos. And Raymond was as normal as you or I. His ego and id were all in the right places - he was totally in control. He completely frustrated Roy. Put him in his place. Roy was impotent in Raymond's presence.'

'How about Aaron?'

'He stepped out of it and left Raymond to deal with Roy.'

'How convenient.'

'Understandable. Raymond isn't pained. Raymond didn't go through the agonies of re-experiencing; Aaron did. And what Aaron ultimately came to terms with - from all that pain - Raymond learned from him. Raymond could step back, study the clash between Aaron and Roy objectively, rationally. He accepted Aaron and Roy as one, not as a split personality. The horror that Aaron had to deal with did not infect Raymond. Raymond was capable of happiness. Raymond was, and is, everything Aaron wanted to be. So Raymond took over and ultimately destroyed Roy - and, incidentally, was perfectly happy to be rid of both of them.'

'I'll bet,' Vail snapped. 'So you can't bring either one of them out anymore?'

'Precisely. For the past eighteen months, Raymond's been