“What television show?” I asked.
He gave me a sideways glance, raised an eyebrow as if he was trying to determine whether or not I was yanking his chain, then smiled and said, “Well, any of them actually, but I was specifically referring to…” His voice trailed off as he cut the explanation short and shook his head while muttering, “Never mind…” Then he reached past me to shake Felicity’s hand. “Miz O’Brien.”
“Now that the introductions are over, is there anything you need before we get started? Restroom break? Something to drink? Coffee? Bottled water?” Doctor Jante asked.
“I’m fine,” Felicity replied.
“Nothing for me,” I added.
“Excellent. Then why don’t we all have a seat, and we can get down to business,” she suggested.
“So, we’re it? Just us four?” I asked, shooting her a puzzled look.
“I’m sorry, were you expecting someone else?” she asked, wearing her own confused expression.
“I just…” I started, paused, then furrowed my brow and asked, “I mean… Aren’t we going to talk to Annalise Devereaux?”
“No,” she replied, shaking her head.
“But, isn’t that what you told Felicity this is about?” I asked, glancing over at my wife. “Annalise?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “This is certainly about Devereaux, but we won’t be talking directly to her. She isn’t even being held in Saint Louis. What made you think that?”
Out of frustration I found myself preparing to ask if they had received a call from Ben but stopped before the first syllable was spoken. Obviously they hadn’t, and they were here for something other than what I originally hoped. Besides, they had never actually told Felicity that we would be speaking to Annalise, just about her. Now, the reason they hadn’t asked for me was becoming clearer, but what they wanted with my wife remained a deepening mystery. In that instant I decided it would be prudent not to show my hand just yet-especially if my friend was still trying to pull strings for me. Because, as slim as my chances of getting that meeting with Annalise already were, running off at the mouth now could possibly erase even that.
I wasn’t sure if my moment of indecision made me pause too long or not, but by way of answer I splayed my hands out in front of me and said, “Sorry. I guess I must have just misunderstood.”
“That’s all right,” Doctor Jante replied, cocking one eyebrow upward as she spoke.
I could tell by her expression that she had just mentally logged an observation about me. Without a doubt I was being profiled, and she wasn’t being the least bit secretive about it. I wasn’t so sure I liked being under the microscope all of a sudden, but then given the situation and my verbal misstep, I suppose I knew it was to be expected.
“Actually,” Agent Hanley began, directing himself at Felicity, “The reason we asked you here is that we’ve been conducting an ongoing criminal investigative analysis of Devereaux in order to compile information for our serial offenders database. It’s simply part of the standard procedure to interview relatives, victims, friends, co- workers, and so on whenever possible. It allows for a much broader and more detailed picture.”
“So you’re just getting all that out of the way before sitting down with Annalise herself,” I said, nodding to indicate I now understood where this was going-or so I thought.
“Actually, we’ve already been conducting one-on-one interviews with Devereaux for over a week now,” he replied.
I screwed up my face with a puzzled expression and asked, “How are you able to get away with that? She hasn’t even been convicted yet. Isn’t her attorney objecting to that?”
“Oh, he objects all right,” he replied. “But she requested the meetings with us herself.”
“She did?”
He shrugged. “I know, it doesn’t seem to make sense, and we’re sure she has a hidden agenda. But it’s an opportunity we simply cannot afford to pass up.”
“Yeah, I guess so…”
“So, I guess you’re killing two birds with me then,” Felicity offered. “Victim and relative all rolled into one.”
“You are definitely a somewhat unique case,” Doctor Jante agreed, giving her head a slight nod. “What with being her half sister, and…” She allowed her voice to trail off and left the second observation unspoken.
“ Unique is one way to describe it,” my wife replied. “But I prefer thinking of it as DNA being a fekking saigh.”
“I’m sorry, a what?” Jante said.
“It’s Gaelic,” I offered. “Just think copulating female dog and you’ve pretty much got it.”
“Copul… Ahh, okay, I see.”
“Yes… Well, obviously we have copies of the case files and are very familiar with the situation,” Special Agent Hanley interjected. “Your arrest for the homicides was unfortunate.”
Felicity snorted and rolled her eyes. “Unique… Unfortunate… Unintended… No offense, Agent Hanley, but I think I’ve heard all of the UN words from the bureaucratic handbook already. You might want to try a different page.”
Her voice tone was cold, and it was obvious to everyone in the room that a nerve had been struck.
“Miz O’Brien, I really didn’t mean to offend you…”
She held up her hands and shook her head. “I’m sorry… Really…” She took in a deep breath and sighed heavily before she continued. “I know it isn’t your fault. My apologies. It just isn’t a very pleasant memory.”
“We certainly understand,” Hanley replied.
Felicity looked over at me, and I knew from the quick flash in her eyes that what she really wanted to tell him was that he had just fed her yet another of the overused UN words. Instead, she simply nodded and said, “Thank you.”
Doctor Jante looked my way and said, “Mister Gant, we’re mainly interested in speaking with your wife at this point, so if you have something else you need to do…”
I gave her a curt nod. “No offense, Doctor Jante, but is that just a polite way of asking me to leave?”
Before she could answer, Felicity interjected, “I’d really rather he stayed, then.”
“That’s fine. It’s really no problem, either way,” she reassured us both then motioned to the conference table. “Shall we?”
After some shuffling of the chairs, the doctor took a position at the end of the table. Felicity was already seated diagonally next to her at the corner with me on her left, and Special Agent Hanley took a place directly across from us. Given that they waited for us to choose places first, I had a feeling it was a strategically calculated move on their part.
Doctor Jante extracted a notebook computer from her briefcase and placed it on the table. Pivoting the screen upward, she pressed the power button and started it into its boot process as she spoke. “In all honesty, while we regularly conduct interviews with serial offenders, the primary reason we are so interested in Devereaux is her classification.”
“You don’t mind if we record this, do you?” Hanley interjected, waving a digital voice recorder as he spoke.
“That’s fine,” Felicity replied with a nod, then looked over at the Doctor and quipped, “So the FBI actually has a classification for serial bitch?”
Jante gave her a thin smile. “Actually, Miz O’Brien, we use something called the Kelleher Typology nine-point categorization in order to divide serial killers into different groups. Devereaux herself falls into the classification of sexual predator, and while that is not at all unusual for male offenders, for women it is incredibly rare. In fact, until now there has been only one other.”
“Aileen Wuornos,” I offered.
“Correct,” she replied. “Do you have an interest in serial killers, Mister Gant?”
“They aren’t a morbid hobby or anything,” I returned. “But circumstances seem to dictate that I end up dealing with them on a regular basis, so I’ve done a little homework to stay ahead of the curve.”
“Of course,” she replied. “We are certainly familiar with your work helping local law enforcement.”
“I pretty much assumed you would be.”
“Yes, I don’t doubt that.” Her tone was guarded, and it was obvious that I was still being sized up. She flashed a quick smile then continued, “It might interest you to know, however, that there are some who reject that
