abused, why not take the children with her?”
“We should ask Wheaton that,” says Kaiser.
“What about Leon Gaines?” I ask. “I’ll bet there was some abuse there.”
“Undoubtedly,” says Lenz. “He spent time in a juvenile reformatory, which is a high-percentage indicator for abuse. But the kind of radical psychological break I’m talking about has its roots much earlier in a child’s life.”
I look at Baxter. “Didn’t you say his father did time for carnal knowledge of a minor? A fourteen-year-old girl?”
Baxter nods. “That’s right. We’d better dig deeper on the father.”
“Frank Smith,” says Kaiser. “What do we know about his childhood?”
“Wealthy family,” says Lenz. “Not the kind where abuse would be reported. I’ll try to contact the family doctor.”
As we ponder this angle in silence, the SAC’s phone rings. Bowles goes to his desk, then motions Baxter to the phone. Baxter identifies himself, asks some questions I can’t quite hear, then hangs up and returns to us, a tight smile on his lips.
“What is it?” asks Kaiser.
“Frank Smith’s Salvadoran butler just told NOPD detectives that Roger Wheaton has visited Frank several times for extended periods at night. He’s stayed over twice.”
Kaiser whistles. “No kidding.”
Baxter nods. “And get this. On those nights, he’s heard them screaming at each other. Heard it through the walls.”
This image is hard for me to reconcile with what I’ve seen of both men, but Dr. Lenz looks more excited than I’ve seen him to date.
“We’ve got to see both of them again,” he says.
“No doubt,” agrees Baxter. “How should we approach them?”
Lenz purses his lips but says nothing.
“I think I should talk to Frank Smith,” I say firmly.
They all look at me. “Alone?” asks Baxter.
“He invited me back, didn’t he? That’s your best shot of finding out about those visits.”
“She got Laveau to trust her,” Kaiser reminds them. “I say let her do it.”
Baxter looks uncomfortable, and turns to Lenz for an opinion.
The psychiatrist shrugs. “I know you’d prefer some other way, but Smith really responded to her. We have to go with the best odds.”
Baxter sighs. “Okay. Jordan will talk to Smith.”
“Arthur and I can see Wheaton,” Kaiser says. “We should have the phone company fault their lines. We don’t want any more warnings passing between them.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Baxter concludes. “How much of this do we give the task force?”
“All of it,” says Kaiser. “They’ve proved trustworthy so far. If we hold out without reason, we’re only screwing ourselves.”
“The multiple-personality theory as well?” asks Lenz.
“No,” says Baxter. “That’s the kind of exotic speculation they rib us about, so let’s play it down unless we have some reason to think it’s the right track.” He glances at me. “Something other than the Sherlock Holmes theory, at least.”
A belated smile tells me he said this in fun.
“Any last questions?”
Kaiser flicks up his hand like a schoolkid. “This morning you said you had that Argus computer program chewing on digital photos of the abstract Sleeping Women. Has it turned up any recognizable faces?”
“They’re looking more human,” says Baxter. “But none matches any murder victim or missing person in the New Orleans area over the past three years.”
“Who’s making those comparisons?”
“Couple of agents I borrowed from Counter-intelligence,” answers the SAC. “Good men. Twenty years in, between them.”
“I’d like to see whatever Argus spits out,” says Kaiser. “I’ve studied a lot of victims’ faces in the past few months.”
“Will you see to that, Patrick?” says Baxter.
Bowles nods. “We’ll get you copies of every image e-mailed from Washington, as we decrypt them. I hope you’ve got a lot of time on your hands.”
Baxter looks at his watch. “We need to go.” Turning to me, he says, “Jordan, more than ever, we need you to stay isolated from any friends from your former life here.”
“No problem. I’m beat. I’m going back to my hotel, ordering room service, and racking out.”
“Do you trust your brother-in-law to keep quiet?”
“No problems there.”
His eyes linger on mine. “I’ve already gotten Wendy a room next door to yours. Just yell out if you need help.”
I nod, preferring Wendy Travis to a stranger, though I sense potential complications from her presence.
Baxter slaps his thighs and stands, and the other men follow suit like football players rising from a huddle.
“Let’s go talk to the boys in blue,” says Baxter.
“Black and blue,” says Kaiser. “The NOPD wears black and blue.”
Baxter leads the way to the door, headed for the Emergency Operations Center, which I have yet to see. Bowles follows, and Lenz falls into line behind him. Only Kaiser hangs back, contriving to walk beside me as I move toward the door.
“So, you’re going to bed early?” he says softly.
“Yes.” I pause at the door and watch the others move down the hall. “But maybe not to sleep. Call me from the lobby.”
Looking up the hallway, he touches my hand and squeezes slightly, then without a word follows Dr. Lenz. I give him a few seconds, then go around the corner to the elevators, where I find Wendy waiting for me.
18
I’ve been asleep for a while when the phone rings beside my bed. The TV is still on, set to HBO, but the sound is muted. I shut my eyes against its harsh light and pick up the phone.
“Hello?”
“It’s me. I’m downstairs.”
John Kaiser’s face appears in my mind. “What time is it?”
“Well after midnight.”
“God. The meeting went on that long?”
“The police questioned each suspect for hours, and we had to hear it all.”
I rub my cheeks to get the blood moving. “Is it still raining?”
“It finally stopped. You were sleeping, weren’t you?”
“Half sleeping.”
“If you’re too tired, that’s all right.”
Part of me wants to tell him I’m too tired, but a little tingle between my neck‘ and my knees stops me. “No, come on up. You know the room number?”
“Yes.”
“Will you get me a Coke or something on the way up? I need some caffeine.”
“Regular Coke or Diet?”
