'Why do you say that?'
'Because after he said or did something unpleasant, he always brooded. He wouldn't apologise, but you could tell he was upset.'
'He didn't like himself very much,' said Felicia. 'He seemed burdened by life.'
While the boys nodded assent, Jennifer squirmed impatiently.
'Let's get back on track,' she said. 'It seems obvious that there's a significant discrepancy between his diagnosis and what he's accused of doing. Has anyone seriously looked into the possibility that he didn't do the slashings. Or is it just one of those cases where they pick a scapegoat and perseverate?'
Her face had filled with indignation. And hope that I regretted having to snuff out.
'Despite the contradictions, Jen, the evidence strongly indicates he was involved in the murders.'
'But the - '
'I don't see any contradiction at all,' said David. 'Try this hypothetical on for size; He was psychotic, and his boyfriend, Chancellor, was a psychopath who manipulated him into killing people. Presto, there goes your discrepancy.'
I sat up straighter.
'What led you to that?'
'No brilliant deducation.' He shrugged. 'The guy used
to come by and pick Jamey up. Flagrantly weird - but he had a lot of influence on Jamey.'
'Weird in what way?'
'Physically and behaviourally. He was big - pumped up like Schwartzenegger - and he dressed like a banker, but his hair was permed and dyed blond, he wore mascara and pancake make-up, and he smelled and moved like a woman.'
'What you're saying,' interjected Jennifer, 'is that he was gay. Big deal.'
'No,' David insisted. 'Gay is one thing. This was more than that. He was . . . conspicuous about it. Theatrical. Calculating. I can't put my finger on why, but he seemed like someone who'd enjoy manipulating others.' He paused and looked at me. 'Does that make sense?'
'Sure. Why do you think he was a major influence on Jamey?'
'It was obvious to anyone who saw them together that there was major hero worship in progress. Jamey had no use for people. Hell, he elevated skulking to a fine art. But the moment Chancellor walked in the door, he'd light up and start to chatter like a rhesus.'
'It's true,' said Josh. 'The change was remarkable. And after Jamey met him, he shifted his whole intellectual orientation. From poetry to business and economics, like that.' He snapped his fingers.
'Chancellor even had him doing research for him,' added David, 'poring over books he never would have gone near before.'
'What kind of books?'
'Econ, I guess. I never looked closely. That stuff bores me, too.'
'I came across him one time in the stacks of the business library,' said Josh. 'When he noticed me, he closed his books and told me he was busy. But I saw that he'd been compiling charts and columns. It looked as if he'd been researching security ratings - stocks and bonds.'
'Mind-numbing.' David smiled. 'If Chancellor could get him to do that, homicide would be a cinch.'
'That's really tacky,' snapped Jennifer. The bearded boy gave an aw-shucks look and shrugged.
'What do you think of David's theory, Jen?' I asked.
'It makes sense, I guess,' she said unenthusiastically. 'Conceptually it could fit.'
I waited for her to say more. When she didn't, I went on.
'A few minutes ago you mentioned thinking he might be having a drug reaction. What kind of stuff was he into?'
A chilly draught of silence blew into the room. I smiled.
'I'm not interested in your private lives, people.'
'Our private lives aren't the issue,' said Josh. 'This involves someone who isn't here.'
That took a moment to assimilate.
'Gary got into dope?' I asked.
'I said before you wouldn't recognise him.'
'He went through a lot of changes last summer,' said Jennifer. 'It's a sensitive topic around here.'
'Why's that?'
David laughed cynically. 'The word's come down from on high that any discussion of Mr. Yamaguchi is bad PR. A two out of six freak-out rate doesn't bode well for grant renewal.'
'I'm not interested in PR either,' I said. 'Or in hassling Gary. But if he got Jamey into dope, I need to know about it.'
'We have no proof,' said Josh.
'Educated guesses will suffice.'
'I've give you mine,' said Jennifer. 'When Gary decided to stop being a good little boy, he got heavily into dope -speed, acid, coke, downers, ludes. He spent most of last year blitzed. It was the first time in his life he'd ever rebelled, and he went overboard, just like a new convert; each time he got stoned it was a cosmic revelation, everyone else just had to try it. Jamey didn't have any friends, but Gary was the nearest approximation. Both of them were outsiders, and when they weren't insulting each other, they liked to huddle in the corner and sneer at the rest of us. It stands to reason that Gary got Jamey on something.'
Josh looked uncomfortable.
'What is it?' I asked.
'I saw something indicating they were closer than that. Once when Chancellor picked Jamey up at the library, Gary showed up, too, and left with them. The next day I overheard him teasing Jamey about being Chancellor's little harem boy.'
'Is Gary gay?' I asked him.
'I never thought so, but who knows?'
'How did Jamey react to being ridiculed?'
'He just got this spacey, disoriented look in his eyes and said nothing.'
'I need to talk to Gary,' I said. 'Where can I find him?'
This time the response was more forthright.
'I saw him a couple of months ago,' said David. 'Peddling grass on North Campus. He'd gone punk and was very hostile, bragging about how free he was while the rest of us slaved for Dr. Flowers. He said he was living in a loft downtown with a bunch of other artists and due to have an exhibit at one of the galleries.'
' What kind of art was he into?'
Shrugs all around.
'We never saw any of it,' said David. 'Probably of the emperor's clothing genre.'
'Alex,' said Jennifer, 'are you saying drugs might have had something to do with Jamey's breakdown?'
'No. At this point I don't know enough to say anything.'
It was a blatant hedge, and it didn't satisfy her. Nevertheless, she didn't push it. Soon after, I ended the meeting and thanked them for their time. Felicia and the boys left quickly, but Jennifer lagged behind, taking out an emery board and making a show of filing her nails.
'What is it, Jen?'
She put down the board and looked up.
'None of it makes sense. Conceptually.'
'What's bothering you specifically?'
'The whole notion of Jamey as a serial killer. I didn't like him, and I know he had serious problems, but he just doesn't fit the profile.'
The human animal has a perverse say of resisting
attempts to fit it into neat, predictive packages like psychological profiles. I didn't tell her that; a few more years of study, and she'd learn it on her own. But the questions she'd raised during the discussion went beyond theori-sation and dovetailed with my own.
'So you don't like David's scenario?'
