"What do you mean, 'vulnerable on sexual matters'?"
Tony frowned. "I mean, like Tanjy and her rape fantasies."
"In other words, women with secrets to protect."
"That's right."
"How does he find out about their secrets?"
"I don't know. If you can find that out, you can probably identify him."
"Does he know these women? Could he have a personal relationship with them?"
"Possibly. That's not the typical profile, but the fact that he knows so much about the victims would lead me to think he has some connection to them."
"Would he be acting alone?"
Wells arched his eyebrows in surprise. "That's an odd question. Rapists almost always act alone."
Stride knew that was true, but he still wondered about the possibility of an accomplice. "Is this man likely to strike again?"
Wells nodded. "Rapists always strike again unless they find some alternate resolution for their pathology. Some other way to address their sexual tension. I don't think that's likely here."
"Why?"
"The time line is too short between assaults. Whoever is doing this is acting quickly. I'd say he's a sociopath-no conscience, no guilt, no hesitation. Many predators want to stop and wage a giant internal struggle to control their violent tendencies. They can succeed for months or even years before reoffending. Not this one. He's enjoying the game. In fact, I'd have to say that this rapist is more dangerous now than ever before."
"Why?" Stride asked again.
"You said it yourself, Lieutenant. This man probably killed Tanjy and Eric. He's upped the stakes. It's not just rape now, it's murder. He may decide that killing his victims gives him an extra thrill."
25
Serena passed through a cloud of warm steam billowing out of the sewer grates as she crossed First Street downtown. The green light turned yellow, and she hurried to reach the opposite sidewalk before the five o'clock traffic roared southward. A neighborhood pizza joint was on the far corner, and she pulled open the glass door and stepped inside. The steel pizza ovens were on her left. She waved at the sweaty men in T-shirts behind the counter and took a booth for herself inside the restaurant. She unbuttoned her coat and unwound her scarf from around her neck.
She pulled her laptop computer from its case and began searching for a wireless network. A young waitress greeted her, and Serena ordered a Diet Coke. They knew her here. She and Stride had a weakness for the pizza and usually dropped in a couple of times a month. They cut the pizza in squares, and she liked to roll up each tiny piece and pop it in her mouth.
She loaded Internet Explorer on her laptop. The signal was weak. Jonny had told her about Eric's visit to the Ordway a few days before he was killed, and she searched news stories to see if there had been any recent incidents in the Rice Park area surrounding the theater. Especially sexual assaults. She found stories about road construction, the winter carnival, and Broadway musicals, but nothing that gave her any clue as to Eric's motive. The only way to find out was to go there in person, which was on her calendar for tomorrow.
She found a lot more when she searched for Nicole Castro. The murder trial of Abel's ex-partner had been big news in Duluth six years earlier. She studied the photos of Nicole and saw someone not unlike herself, a cop in her late thirties, tall, athletic. Nicole was black with dark skin. Her hair was kinky and big. She had pink, puffy lips and flared nostrils, and coal-black eyes wide with defiance. In one photo, she was on the steps of the courthouse, surrounded by cops in uniform, her mouth open as she shouted at the media.
Nicole had a little boy, twelve years old. Serena wondered what had happened to him with his father dead and his mother doing twenty-five years for his murder. He was a cute kid, pretending to be tough, but you could see his heart breaking as he clung to his mother's arm in the photo. He would be nearly nineteen now.
Serena's cell phone rang. It was Maggie.
"Hey."
"Hey yourself," Maggie said. She added after a pause, "Stride told you, right?"
"He did. I'm really sorry."
"He couldn't understand why I didn't report it."
"Men never do."
"Even telling him now made me feel so fucking dirty," Maggie said.
Serena understood. It wasn't just about telling someone. It was about Maggie telling Stride. Leaving herself naked in front of him.
"Want to join me down at Sammy's? We could talk."
Someone slid a pepperoni pizza into one of the ovens. The tangy aroma filled the restaurant, and Serena realized she was hungry.
"I don't want to talk anymore," Maggie said. "I just want to catch this son of a bitch."
"Sounds like you're sailing that Egyptian river called Denial."
Serena waited for Maggie to fire back, but she didn't. "Yeah, I know, but being angry about it is better than locking myself in my bedroom. I called to tell you I have more dirt about Eric's visit to the Ordway."
"What is it?"
"I was able to reach their floor security attendant. The reason Eric was almost kicked out of the theater is that he kept trying to find a woman who worked there. He thought she was an usher. He wouldn't say what he wanted with her, and they started getting creeped out. They told him to sit down or they'd toss him out."
"Do you know who the woman was?"
"No, Eric didn't know her name."
"All right, I'll check it out tomorrow. You sure you don't want pizza?"
"No, thanks."
Through the restaurant window, Serena saw a tall man in a tan trench coat cross the street toward her. "That's okay, your nemesis is about to join me."
"Who?"
"Abel Teitscher."
"Why are you seeing him? You're not a spy, are you?"
"I want to talk to him about Nicole Castro."
"Yeah, Archie told me she called. I think you're wasting your time. Nicole tells everyone she was framed, but we had her dead to rights."
"Like you?"
"Yeah, okay, I see your point."
"I'll talk to you when I get back. Call Tony. Get some help."
"Anyone ever tell you you're a pushy bitch?"
"Everyone."
Serena hung up and closed her laptop. Abel Teitscher entered the restaurant, and his head swiveled over his long neck, looking for her. She waved at him. He nodded back at her but didn't smile. He was earnest and bleak, like the city in January. She had met him a few times in Jonny's office at City Hall, and although there was bad blood between Jonny and Abel, she felt sorry for him. She knew the story of his divorce and knew he kept people away with a prickly armor. He was smart, bitter, and lonely. Once upon a time, she had been the same way.
They shook hands. He had a solid grip. As he sat down, he smoothed his coat underneath him without taking it off. That sent her a message-he wasn't staying. She could see he was suspicious of what she wanted.
"Are you hungry?" she asked. "We could order something."
Abel shook his head. Serena sighed. She could smell the sausage now, blending with the pepperoni, and it was driving her crazy.
"You're a runner, aren't you?" she asked.
He nodded.
"Me, too. You've got that runner's look."
She was being kind. His face reminded her of the desert floor in Death Valley, leathery and cracked. His gray hair was trimmed to half an inch and squared off on top of his head. He looked old, but also lean and tough.
"What can I do for you?" Abel asked. "If this is about Maggie, you know I can't say a thing."
"It's not about Maggie."
"Oh?" He looked surprised.
"I was hoping you could tell me about Nicole Castro."
"Why?"
"I have to go down to the Cities tomorrow," Serena explained. "Nicole asked me to meet with her."
"She told you she was framed?"
Serena nodded.
"That's bullshit."
"You sound pretty harsh. Wasn't she your partner?"
"That's why I'm harsh. I don't like being lied to. Plus, she tells everyone that I planted evidence against her, which is a crock."