“Something like that,” Kate agreed, pulling up Gloria Prentiss’s address on her phone.“I want you to help me figure it out.Look up the houses and figure out how the houses are oriented relative to a map of the United States.Then look at the photographs of the objects and figure out which direction they were pointing.I’ll bet anything it’s a roadmap of Cox’s travels since beginning his eighth commandment spree.”
“Oh boy, Geography.I love Geography.”
Kate chuckled at the sarcasm in his tone.“Who hates Geography?It’s like, the easiest subject.”He smiled sadly at her, and she frowned.“What?”
“Nothing.Road map coming up.”
Kate's heart thumped with excitement as they built their map.Paul Delaney's cufflinks pointed northeast in the rough direction of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Ruth Osgood.This could be it.He could be telling Kate exactly where to go next.Figure out where the letter opener pointed, and they would know what his plans were.
That meant playing into his hands, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t outsmart him.They’d done it before.And as resourceful as Cox was, they had more resources at their command than he did.
Her excitement faded when she realized that Ruth’s dog was pointing the wrong way.“The dog’s nose is pointing south,” Marcus said.“Should be pointing southwest if it’s supposed to be leading us to Jordan Prescott in Louisville.I’m sorry, Kate.It sounded really good, but…”
Her excitement faded further when she saw that both the second and hour hands Jordan Prescott’s pocket watch were pointed just a tick off due east rather than precisely northeast to Buffalo.When Karen De Luca’s music box pointed southeast instead of southwest to Greenfield, Indiana, her heart started to thump again, not with excitement but with panic.
Was she wrong?How could she have been wrong?This didn’t make sense.Or rather, itdidmake sense.It made perfect sense.This fit so well.
Marcus lifted his hands and let them drop.“Shit.So much for that.”
Kate stared at the makeshift map, eyes narrowed almost to a squint, lips pressed together until they hurt.
“Plot the other three victims,” Kate said.
She started on Schulz.Marcus looked at her, decided it wasn’t worth his time to argue, and started on Douglas Hale.Schulz pointed almost due east.Same with Hale.Patricia Lowe’s letter opener pointed northwest.
“A lot of them point east,” Marcus said half-heartedly.“Maybe that means something.”
Kate sighed heavily and ran her hands through her hair.She grabbed a fistful of her auburn locks but released it, afraid she might actually tear some out in her frustration.“It’s right here,” she insisted.“I swear it’s right here.What am I missing?”
She looked back at the map.A spark flickered in her mind, went out, then flickered again.She took a pen and traced lines from each crime scene all the way across the table.
“I guess we’re paying to have the table resurfaced,” Marcus said.“Can’t wait for Winters to ream us about the expense report.”
“Each flight we’ve taken cost more than this whole table,” Kate said, continuing to draw lines.As she did, the answer began to take shape.“And if this works out, then Winters won’t care about a table.”
A moment later, Kate stood up.Marcus leaned over her shoulder and whistled.“Well.That looks promising.”
The first seven objects all pointed toward Baltimore.Cox hadn’t just sent obscure messages with the placement of his objects.He’d aimed all of them at his final target.
“So Patricia Hale was the icing on the cake, huh?”Marcus said.“Why her?”
Kate shook her head.“No.Not her.The objects are all pointing here, but I don’t think they’re pointing to Patricia Hale’s house.I think they and the knife from Hale’s home are pointing somewhere else.”
“Where?”
Kate shook her head.“I’m not sure.”
Her phone buzzed.Poppy.She answered, and the nervous young agent said, “Yes!Hi!Kate!Hello!”
Kate brushed away an image of a cartoon mouse hopping up and down and waving her hands exuberantly.“What do you have for me, Poppy?”
“I have a lead on Cox’s companion!”
Kate perked up.She put the phone on speaker and said, “Go ahead, Poppy.”
“Well, the description you sent us from Northbridge matched the one given by St.Louis police.”
“Yes, I know,” Kate said, trying not to let her impatience show.
