'Yes.'
'Interesting.'
'He knew about my trip to Talladega. He must have followed us.”
“Or he’s bluffing.'
She shivered. 'I don’t think he’s bluffing.'
'Neither do I.' He shrugged. 'I’ll give you your skull. It’s not going to make any difference. He’s going to play out his scenario no matter what we do.'
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'How can you tell?' Joe asked.
'There are two kinds of serial killers. The disorganized and the organized. A disorganized killer is spontaneous, random, and sloppy. Talladega has some of the marks of an organized killer.
Bodies hidden and transported. Weapon and evidence absent. We’ll probably find other signs as we go along. Your caller’s being very careful not to be recognized. There’s nothing sloppy about this man, which fits the usual pattern.'
'What’s the usual pattern?' Eve asked.
'Average to above-average intelligence, aware of police procedures and may even associate with the police. Owns a car in good condition, travels frequently, usually commits crimes out of his area of residence. He’s socially adept, has verbal skills that he uses to—'
'That’s enough.'
Eve shook her head. 'You argued with me but you believed this man is the Talladega monster all along, didn’t you?'
'My job is to take the supposed truth apart and look at it every way possible.' He headed for the door. 'When he calls again, write down everything he says the moment you hang up. Digital calls are tough to trace, but I’ll arrange for a bug on the house phone. He might decide to call on that line if he can’t reach you on your digital.'
'How does he even know I have a digital? How will he get my number? It’s private. For that matter, Joe’s number here is unlisted too.'
'There are ways if you’re determined enough and smart enough. As I said, one of the characteristics of the organized serial killer is average to above-average intelligence. But you’re right. One of the first things I’ll do is run a check on the phone companies and see if there’s been any detected infiltration into their computer banks.' He stopped at the door. 'I have a skull in my car. Come out and get it, Joe.”
“What are you going to tell Joe that you don’t want me to hear?' He hesitated and then shrugged. 'That I’m sending Charlie down to guard the cottage while you’re working on the skull. I have to go back to Talladega to meet with Spalding from the Child Abduction Serial Killer Unit and explain why I’m stepping on his toes by giving you a skull. CASKU might have their own forensic sculptor on tap.'
'I don’t need Charlie. Joe is here.'
'A little more protection won’t hurt. A hell of a lot more protection wouldn’t be bad. I’ll try to arrange it as soon as possible. One of the other marks of the organized killer is that he targets his victim.' He frowned. 'Though the victim is almost always a stranger. It makes me uneasy that he wants to establish an intimate link with you.'
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'I’m sure he’s sorry to upset your profile,' she said ironically. 'It could be he’s not going to play by your rules.'
Spiro’s lips tightened grimly. 'You’d better hope he does. It may be our only way of catching him.'
'When will Charlie be here?”
“A couple of hours. Why?'
'I want Joe to go back to Atlanta and get me photographs of those boys. I’ll need to verify after I do the reconstruction.'
'Joe should stay here,' Spiro said. 'I’ll have the Bureau fax me the photographs to Talladega and I’ll bring them to you myself.'
'Thank you.'
'Don’t thank me. I should tell you to leave this place and go to the city. You’re too isolated here.'
'I need the isolation to work on that skull.'
'And I need to get my hands on that killer.' He shrugged. 'So I guess I’m willing to risk your neck to get him.'
'Nice,' Joe said.
'Don’t give me that.' Spiro suddenly whirled on him. 'I warned you both of the danger of working on a skull, and you wouldn’t listen. Well, don’t blame me for doing anything I can to get that asshole. I’ve just spent a week staring at those nine graves. God knows how many more he’s killed. Can you guess how many serial killers are out there? We probably catch only one in thirty. The dumb ones. The ones who make mistakes. The smart ones walk away and kill and kill again. This is one of the smart ones. But this time we have a chance. I don’t know why, but he’s giving us a shot at him, and I’m damn well going to take it.'
'Okay. Okay.' Joe lifted his hands in surrender. 'But don’t expect me to let you use Eve as bait.'
