Second Horseman Out of Eden

'How the hell do you know they were speaking in tongues-whatever that means?'

'Glossolalia is characteristic of some so-called Charismatic or Pentecostal Christians,' Garth interjected in a flat tone. 'They believe that speaking in tongues is a gift from God, and they view it as evidence that they're filled with the spirit of God.'

'Do they normally kill themselves while they're speaking in tongues?' McCloskey said tersely.

Garth shook his head. 'This group is beyond the pale, Lieutenant. Once you've heard someone speaking in tongues, you don't forget what it sounds like. Mongo and I have heard it before in connection with this business. Craig Valley was making babbling sounds like that just before he killed himself, and we said so in our previous statement. Remember?'

McCloskey dismissed Garth's words with a weary, slightly contemptuous, wave of his hand. His cold, black eyes fixed on my face. 'You know what I think?' he said after a long pause, to me. 'I think your big brother here killed those men.'

'You think wrong,' Garth said evenly. 'You should look at a man when you're accusing him of murder, Lieutenant.'

'I'll damn well look at you, Frederickson!' McCloskey snapped, wheeling in his chair to face Garth, then wincing and putting a hand to his back. His body was now arched into a position that resembled a question mark, but his obvious pain served only to fuel his anger. 'You were roughing them up! You're an arrogant son-of-a-bitch who thinks he can get away with anything! They wouldn't tell you what you wanted to hear, so you threw them off the fucking roof! You lost it, Frederickson, and you killed two men!'

'No,' Garth said simply. 'That's not what happened.'

'Bullshit! You roughed up Patton, and you threatened to kill him! You're damn lucky he doesn't want-'

'But I didn't kill him, McCloskey; and I didn't kill those two brothers.'

'But you were damn well roughing them up, weren't you?! I know Goddamn well you were, but I don't see any mention of it in your statement!'

'Look, Lieutenant,' I said quickly, 'I can understand why it might be hard for you to believe that two men could suffer religious hysteria and kill themselves-if it hadn't happened once already, with that crazy orchid keeper. I don't think even you believe that we jabbed razors into Craig Valley's throat. Well, we didn't kill Valley, and we didn't kill the two you found on the sidewalk. They killed themselves, just like Valley; just like Valley, they possessed information they considered vital, and which they didn't want us to have.'

'Where to find a fucking pile of dirt?!'

'Yes, Lieutenant. Except that it's not the dirt they're worried about; it's what else we'll find when we find the dirt. Garth and I have already suggested that that's something the police might want to give serious thought to looking into, but that's your business.'

'And you say they killed themselves rather than risk having the two of you force the information out of them?'

'Yes.'

'Then you admit you were roughing them up?'

'Garth and I don't admit to anything except for what you've got in that statement in front of you.'

'What were they doing up on your roof, Frederickson?'

'They followed us home.'

McCloskey laughed without humor, rolled his eyes. 'And they followed you all the way up onto your roof?'

'Well. . actually, we did sort of have to invite them to come up there. After all the time and effort they'd put into following us up to that point, it seemed the only decent thing to do.'

'Don't be a smart-ass with me, Frederickson,' McCloskey said in a low, decidedly ominous voice. 'You're the one who's asking me to take this statement seriously. I don't think the two of you realize how very, very close you are to the inside of a jail cell.'

'All right, Lieutenant. We were rather insistent that they join us on the roof.'

'Oh, I know you were-the same as I know that you took them up there so that you could rough them up and frighten them.'

'No, Lieutenant. We took them up there to talk.'

'On your roof, in the middle of winter?!'

I glanced at Garth, looking for help. My brother seemed merely bored. 'Well, uh. . it was more private than the street, and certainly no colder.'

McCloskey picked up a piece of paper off the cluttered top of his desk and slowly crumpled it in his right hand. 'I've got the famous Fredericksons,' he said softly, an odd catch in his voice. It was as if he was only now fully realizing how much serious damage he could do to us, and was trying to decide what he wanted to do about it. 'I wonder what a jury would make of the nonsense you're telling me? Two men fall to their deaths from your roof after you forced them to go up there with you. What did you want to do? Just talk. Why did they die? Religious ecstasy. Jesus Christ, I really think the famous Fredericksons may have gone too far this time.'

I was really thinking just about the same thing when Garth shifted in his chair and, in a maddeningly casual tone, asked, 'Who were they, McCloskey?'

'Huh?' McCloskey blinked in surprise, but quickly recovered. 'Look, I ask the questions here. Don't you remember the routine?'

Garth tilted his head toward me. 'Mongo, do you happen to have the number of Haggerty, Haggerty, Schwartz and Haggerty?'

Ah. The bugles of the cavalry. 'I certainly do, brother.'

'I think it may be time to call our lawyers. What do you think?'

'I'm not sure. Let me ask the good lieutenant here.'

The good lieutenant's face was flushed a deep red. 'You sons-of-bitches,' he said in a voice that was quavering with rage. 'You're goddamn right it may be time for you to call your lawyers, and I don't give a shit if they come from one of the most high-powered firms in New York and Washington. You tell those pin-striped shits that I'm thinking of booking the two of you on charges of first-degree homicide, and if they want to plea-bargain maybe the DA will let you off on an aggravated manslaughter charge, with relatively light prison sentences of five years. While you're in prison, maybe both of you can learn a new trade.'

'Mongo?' Garth said evenly. 'I don't think he grasps the situation. Call our lawyers.'

'No, no, Garth. Just a second.' I looked at McCloskey, smiled, and hoped that I grasped the situation Garth was referring to. 'Lieutenant, Garth has trouble communicating when he's upset. I, on the other hand, tend to be almost infinitely patient, even under the most trying circumstances. So I'm going to try to interpret what he just said for you.'

I didn't think McCloskey's face could get any redder-but it did. 'Are you calling me stupid, Frederickson?! I heard what he said! And you heard what I said!'

'Yes, but we don't seem to be communicating. If you think you're going to be safely retired at this time next week, with the Fredericksons out of your hair because you've booked us, you're wrong. This case is a haunt; three men are dead, and somewhere a little girl is being sexually abused by a fugitive from justice. The NYPD threw this-us-in your lap, but if you think you can walk away from all of this with a clear conscience simply because you've laid heavy charges on us, you're a lot stupider than I think you are. The kid will haunt you, McCloskey. So if you want to retire in peace, I suggest that you start showing us a little cooperation and listen.'

That got his attention. He blinked slowly, swallowed hard.

'We've been cooperative, Lieutenant,' I continued quickly, wanting to follow up before he'd had too much time to think about it. 'But Garth asks you for one teeny-weeny bit of information, and you go nova on us. We've found out quite a few things up to this point, and we've freely shared our information with you. Who knows what else we may turn up? Frankly, Lieutenant, I don't think you're going to book us. You know why you're not going to book us? Because Nuvironment definitely does not need the negative publicity we'll be sure to generate for them. This is what Garth really meant when he asked me if I had the number of our lawyers.'

'You just hold on, Frederickson. I don't work for Nuvironment.'

'You're doing great, Mongo,' Garth said dryly. 'It never fails to amaze me how you're able to interpret my words for me.'