“Did you meet the demon?” Dan asked her, after they had been introduced and were all seated in Ryder’s office, including Katie.
“Well, of course I saw him. He came to me,” Greta told them earnestly.
Ryder produced one of the sketches drawn from Katie’s memory of Neil Browne and showed it to Greta.
“Is that him?” Ryder asked.
“Oh, um. Hm... Maybe. The face is...different. But the eyes... See, that’s where you know,” Greta explained. “The world is full of charlatans.” She laughed. “Take Washington, DC. Look at what goes on up there, eh? Everyone lying, and I’m not picking on any party. They act the good act! We see people here all the time who think they’re something special, or unique or...” She paused, shrugging. “But when he came to me, I knew. I just knew. I looked into his eyes, and I knew he was the real thing.”
“Did he ask for a reading? Cards, a palm reading?” Katie asked quietly.
“He asked me to read my crystal. To tell him what I could see in my crystal ball. But he was the one who saw events first...and he showed them to me. First, it appeared that storm clouds filled the space, and lightning jagged, and then...the clouds seemed to grow red. He said death and destruction were coming, and we all needed to adhere to the number six, bow down to the number six. A presence had returned from the bowels of hell. He had come, the immortal one. And I just stared into that ball because I could see it all as he told it! Storms, darkness, shadows, thunder, lightning, blood...and death. I was... I was so scared! But he told me I was safe, protected by six, but I must warn others. Tell them the immortal being was back, that hell was out there, a demon wielding a bloody axe.”
“But this was after the first murders, and before the woman was found at the old family cemetery?” Dan asked, glancing at Katie.
Greta nodded somberly. “I... Yes, I believe so. I... I don’t know if he was the immortal one, or if he was a prophet for the immortal one. But he promised I would be safe but that I should spread the word, warn others that they had best repent, that they...they needed to adhere to the number six.”
“Greta, look at the picture again, will you please?” Ryder asked her. “How did he appear different?”
“His chin and nose...his chin almost had a point. And his nose was larger...or longer. He...he almost had the look of a satyr or something like that,” Greta said. “But he wasn’t threatening to me. He was kind. He promised I would be safe.”
“How many times did you see him?”
“Just that once. Oh, and he gave me cards to give out, cards with the number six written on them. You know, just playing cards, but all with the number six.”
“And did you give them all out?” Katie asked softly.
“Yes! I did within the next hour!” Greta said. She frowned suddenly. “I—I want to help. That’s why I came in. I don’t want people to die. I don’t want the city to be in a cloud of blood. I saw this man only once, and as I told you, he’s very real and... I made sure to do what he asked of me. Getting the warning out, telling people about the number six, getting those cards out. I know I’ll be safe, but Detective, now it’s up to you. Please, tell people to honor the number six. And to listen and obey when someone comes, telling them to obey the laws of six, the law of the immortal demon. It’s up to you!”
“Greta, what was he wearing?” Dan asked.
“A cotton shirt...trousers. Not jeans, trousers. He was nice-looking, um...smooth.”
“Did he wear boots, shoes? Did he wear gloves?”
“Shoes, not boots, not sneakers. Leather dress shoes. And no gloves. He would have looked silly wearing gloves, I think.” She shook her head. “He wasn’t silly. There was nothing silly about him. Everything about him was...real. You must warn people. The demon will only hurt those who don’t know that he must be honored. And honor our great music, too. Jazz must be played. I don’t think he cares for modern music. There is a lot of screeching and that kind of thing. Jazz is true music. I think... I can’t remember everything that was said! Especially when I was staring into the ball. It was watching something amazing!”
Ryder nodded politely. “Greta, I’d like you to see a friend of mine for a bit of a conversation.”
“Oh?” Greta asked.
“Come with me,” Ryder said gently. He glanced at Dan and Katie, a nod that indicated he’d be right back.
“I think Benny may have gotten one of those cards,” Katie told Dan when the two had left Ryder’s office.
“This probably is the same woman who approached him. Would he have kept the card?” Dan asked her.
“I can call him, but if he’s working, his phone will be off. It will vibrate. That way he knows he needs to check his phone when he takes a break. But he was going to be Satchmo today... The same woman told him he should be Satchmo. Louis Armstrong.”
Dan smiled warmly. “Yeah, I know Louis Armstrong was Satchmo. Home here in the city, remember?”
“Sorry.”
“No worries. Can you go ahead and call Benny, leave him a message?”
“Sure. And we can leave here and maybe have time to swing down to Decatur Street. You can always see him on his little stand, and find out if she did give him a card, and if so, if he still has it. Do you think there might be prints on the card? That’s why you asked about his appearance, if he was wearing gloves?”
Dan shrugged. “Might be hard. Greta would have held the cards, some
