'I must've felt sick because I was pregnant. I found out Wednesday.'
It caught me off guard. I hesitated.
'Oh, Riley,' I finally said. 'That's wonderful. Did you tell the folks?'
'Yes, they know. They're very happy. It's like a miracle child because I didn't know and we hadn't really been trying.'
'It's great news.'
I didn't know how to get back to the other conversation we had been having. Finally, I just bull-rushed her to the point.
'I've got to go now, Riles. What can I tell them?'
Rachel was in the lobby when I stepped out of the elevator. She had both her computer bag and her overnighter with her.
'You checked out?' I asked, not understanding.
'FBI rules of the road. Never leave anything in the room because you never know when you'll have to fly. We get a break today, I'm not going to have time to come back and pack my things.'
I nodded. It was too late for me to pack and I had almost nothing to pack anyway.
'Did you call her?'
'Yes. She said fine. She said do it. For what it's worth, she also said he was sick. The cough syrup was his. And I figured out why Sean was killed in his car and not at home like the others.'
'Why?'
'His wife, Riley, was home because she was sick, too. My brother would have done everything he could not to take this guy back to his house. Not with her there.'
I nodded sadly at my brother's last and maybe bravest act.
'I think you're right, Jack. It fits. But listen, there's been a development. Bob's just got word and called me from the FO. He's delaying the meeting with the locals. We got a fax from the Poet.'
The mood of the conference room was decidedly somber. Only the agents from Quantico were taking part. Backus, Thompson, Thorson and an agent named Carter who had been at the first status meeting I had attended back at Quantico. I noticed Rachel and Thorson exchange contemptuous looks as we entered. I focused on Backus. He seemed lost in thought. He had his portable computer open on the table in front of him but he wasn't looking at it. He looked fresh in a different gray suit. A bemused smile spread on his face and he looked at me.
'Jack, you get to see firsthand now why we were concerned about containing this story. A five-second video bite was all it took and the offender knows we are on his trail.'
I nodded.
'I don't think he should be here for this,' Thorson said.
'A deal is a deal, Gordon. He certainly had nothing to do with the CNN story.'
'Still, I think it's not-'
'Can it, Gordon,' Rachel said. 'It doesn't matter what you think.'
'Okay, let's halt hostilities and concentrate on the problem,' Backus said. 'I've got copies here.'
He opened a file and passed copies of the fax across the table. I got my own copy. There was silence in the room as we all read.
Dear Bob Backus, FBI agent, And hello to you, sir. I caught the news and saw you in Phoenix, you sly one. No comments to dim bulb reporters do not fool me. I know your face, Bob. You are coming for me and I anxiously await your arrival. But be careful, my friend Bob! Not so close! After all, look what happened to poor Orsulak and those others. They put Orsulak in the ground today, the end of a good job. But an FBI man of such stature as yours, now that would be a noble hunt. Heh, heh.
Not to worry, Bob. You are safe. My next intended has been anointed. I've made my choice and I have him in sight, even as you read these words.
Are you huddled with your masses now? Wondering what makes your opponent tick? It's a terrible mystery, isn't it? Bothers like a pinprick in the palm I suspect. I offer you one clue. (What are friends for?) I am the rotten apple of my Best Pal's eye, who am I? When you know the answer, Bob, say it over and over again. Then you'll get it. You'll know. You're a pro and I'm sure you are up to the challenge. I'm counting on you, Bob!
I dwell alone in the world of moan, Bob, and my work has just begun. And Bob? May the best man win.
I cannot sign my correspondence for you haven't given me my name yet. What is it, Bob? I'll watch for you on television and I'll wait to hear my name. Until then I will close with this: Short and Tall-I killed them all!
Drive carefully!
I read the fax twice and each time it gave me the same chill. I knew what they meant now. About the moon. The letter was the voice of a man from someplace else. Not here. Not this planet.
'Everybody in agreement on authenticity?' Backus asked.
'There are several authenticators,' Rachel said. 'The pinprick. The quote from Poe. What about the reference to Best Pal? Has Florida been informed about this?'
'Yes. The Best Pals angle obviously becomes the priority. They're dropping everything else for the time being.'
'What does Brass say?'
'That it obviously confirms the linkage theory. There are references here to both strings, the detectives and the others. She and Brad were right. One offender. She's now going with the Florida killings as our model. Everything that follows is just a repetition of the initial crime sequence. He's repeating the ritual.'
'In other words, find out why he killed Beltran and you know why he killed the rest.'
'Right. Brass and Brad have been talking to Florida all morning. Hopefully, it won't take long to get some answers and put the model together.'
Everybody seemed to brood over this for a few moments.
'We're going to stay here?' Rachel asked.
'I think it's best,' Backus said. 'The answers may be in Florida but it's static. History. We're still closest to him here.'
'It says he's already chosen his next intended,' I said. 'Is that the next cop, you think?'
'That's exactly what I think,' Backus said somberly. 'So we've run out of time. As we sit here talking, he is watching another man, another cop, somewhere. And if we don't find out where that is, we're going to have another dead man on our hands.'
He pounded a fist on the table.
'We've got to make a break, people, we've got to do something. We have to find that man before it is too late!'
He said it with force and conviction. He was marshaling his troops. He had asked for their best work before. He needed it to be even better now.
'Bob,' Rachel said. 'The fax makes reference to Orsulak's funeral being today. When did this come in and where did it go to?'
'Gordon has that.'
Thorson cleared his throat and spoke without looking at Rachel or me.
'It came to a fax line at Quantico that is assigned to academy business,' Thorson said. 'Needless to say, its sender used a masking option on the sender ID. Nothing there. It arrived at three thirty-eight this morning. That's eastern time. I had Hazelton chase down the sequence. A fax call came into the general Quantico number, the operator recognized the fax beep and switched the call to the wire room. She couldn't tell where or who it was going to because all she had was the beep. So she took a guess and switched it to an academy fax and it was there in the basket until this morning when it was finally noticed and brought down to the center.'
'We're lucky it's not still sitting there unnoticed,' Backus added.
'Right,' Thorson said. 'Anyway, Hazelton took the original to the lab and came up with something. Their take is that it wasn't a fax-to-fax transmission. It came from an inboard fax.'
'A computer,' I said.
'With a fax modem. And since we know this guy is a traveler, it's not likely that he's lugging around an Apple Mac on his back. The speculation is he has a laptop computer with a fax modem. Most likely a cellular modem. It would give him the most freedom.'
Everyone digested this for a few moments. I wasn't sure of its significance. It seemed to me that a lot of the
