“You said it yourself.He may have moved on from that.”
“I was just venting,” Kate said, “I didn’t actually mean that.”
She got to her feet and paced the small room, walking a circuit from the wall-length swamp cooler to the tiny kitchenette and back again.“In one of the homes, there was a photograph stolen, an object a lot more valuable than the thimble Cox chose to use.Why would he choose that thimble?”
Her heartbeat quickened, and the soft voice that warned her she was spiraling only increased its speed.“Maybe the objects reference Bible verses or something.The thimble… God talks about the eye of a needle, right?It’s in one of Jesus’ parables.”
“Kate…”
“The music box… maybe it’s related to one of the Psalms?”
“Kate…”
“Gabe, damn it, ithasto mean something.Do you understand?Itcan’tbe pointless.”
She collapsed onto the edge of the bed, her hyperventilating heart weakening her.She closed her eyes and forced her breath to slow.It helped but only a little.
“Kate, I have spent days scouring every resource I have looking for iconography as accusatory objects, and I can’t find anything.Other than those stolen objects beingprima facieevidence of theft, there’s nothing.No hidden meaning, no reason why he’d select those items and place them where he did.And since you’re telling me there’s no meaning associated with your childhood, I can only infer that there’s no meaning at all other than the simple one that Cox is showing people why he’s chosen to kill these individuals.”
“But he didn’t write a commandment,” Kate protested.
“I think the commandment is obvious.”
Kate got to her feet again.“Then what?He’s just killing?”
“Heisa murderer.”
“Yeah, but he’s a particularkindof murderer, Gabe.He has a rigid code.He kills only when he can justify it.”
“So the guard at Northbridge SMU fit into Cox’s code?”
“Yes.He was engaged in an inappropriate relationship with an inmate while he was married.He broke the seventh commandment.”
“And the drivers of the transport vehicle taking him to the hospital the last time he escaped?”
Kate’s lip trembled.“He had to escape.”
“Of course he did.And in that case, God’s sixth commandment didn’t matter.Likely, he justified it to himself by claiming they were standing in the way of God’s justice, but that’s not a code, Kate.”
“Cox doesn’t kill people for no reason.Even if it’s a bullshit reason, there’ssomemeaning to it.”
“I’m sure there’s meaning to Cox’s actions with these most recent victims, but I’m not at all sure that the meaning has anything to do with you.”
“So he just stopped being obsessed?Out of nowhere?He just decided he wasn’t interested in me after all?”
“Maybe.You’ve caught him twice.You’ve caught his disciples several times.You’ve proven a formidable adversary.He might not want to have an adversary anymore.Obviously, you’re going to be his adversary no matter what, but you understand my point.”
“That can’t be true.”
“It can,” Gabe replied with uncharacteristic firmness.“Most likely, it is.You just don’twantit to be true.”
“Of course I don’t want it to be true,” Kate snapped.“If it’s true, then… then… we’re just going to keep chasing our tails until we get lucky.Do you know how much damage Cox can do?It’s been ten weeks since he got out, and he’s already killed seven people.If he’s not leaving behind anything we can use to find him, then what’s going to stop him from killing even more people.I’m not going to run around the country taking pictures of his mess while he slaughters people at will!”
Her voice rose in pitch until it was nearly a shout.When she finished, the quiet was deep enough that she could feel her straining heart thump against the inside of her ribs.
“Oh, Kate,” Gabe said, his voice filled with compassion.“I’m so sorry.I can’t imagine how you’re feeling.”
There was nothing wrong with that statement and nothing wrong with the tone in which it was delivered, but Kate hated it all the same.It was a walking-on-eggshells tone, a be-careful-not-to-upset-her tone, a dance-around-the-truth tone that people used because they didn’t think Kate could handle it.
