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WALTER JACKSON COULDfit together information better than any computer. His profiles always prepared me for interviews on sensitive subjects.
The victim in the case of Kyle Banning’s arrest was named Celia Cartwright. She lived in Newark. I groaned. It could take me an hour or more just to get there. Thankfully, Walter next dropped that she worked at the American Museum of Natural History, right here in the city.
When I asked him what her job was at the museum, Walter said, “The wage and hour report only tells me who pays her, not what she does.”
“Fair enough.”
It didn’t take me long to get to the impressive American Museum of Natural History on the western edge of Central Park. My kids had had little interest in the museum until they watched the movieNight at the Museumwith Ben Stiller. Now the place was a great family outing.
I went through the museum’s main entrance. I badged an uninterested guard and asked if I could speak to the head of security. I smiled when the tall form of Steve Barborini strolled toward me. The former lieutenant had retired from the NYPD to become head of security here at the museum.
Barborini raised both hands and said, “Homicide? I swear I haven’t murdered anyone.”
As we shook hands, I said, “You’re too lazy to murder anyone, Steve. Unless you shouted at them long enough that they just died.”
The director of security laughed and patted me on the back. “Good to see you, Mike. I got no one to talk to around this place. And not all that much to do most of the time.”
I gave him the name of the woman I needed to talk to and a brief rundown of why I wanted to talk to her.
Steve understood. He made a quick phone call, then told me, “Celia Cartwright works on the second subfloor in entomology.”
“She works on the origins of words?”
He shook his head in disdain. “No, you idiot. That’s etymology. She studies insects.”
After what seemed like a miles-long trek, following Steve Barborini down two floors, through endless hallways, he led me to a sublevel office-lab without windows but with nice, soft light.
A very pretty young woman with dark hair looked up from a magnifying glass. She said, “May I help you?”
It was Celia Cartwright. Once Steve Barborini made sure she was comfortable talking to me, he left us alone. I tried not to look at what she was working on currently, which appeared to be maggots swarming over some kind of rotted flesh.
She noticed my discomfort and placed a rag over the dish of maggots. I smiled and said, “How did you get into this line of work?”
“I’ve always been fascinated by insects. Did you know they make up over two-thirds of the life forms on Earth? They can work together on projects far beyond the scale of anything humans have ever built. And even these simple maggots digest waste matter and turn it into useful material, like fertilizer or feed for other animals, without us ever appreciating them.”
Celia explained that she was on a fellowship and paid a small stipend. “That’s why I live in Newark.” She saw me wince at the name of the New Jersey city. She smiled. “I always get that reaction from New Yorkers. But I could never afford to live on my own in the city on what they pay me here. Anyway, I’m sure you’re not here to talk about my salary.”
“You are correct. I appreciate you getting to the point. I’m here to ask you a few questions about what happened to you in January.”
“Why? No charges were ever even filed.” She seemed upset but continued: “Using my deductive reasoning from watchingLaw & Order,I’m guessing Kyle’s assaulted someone else and you’re trying to figure it out.”
“Impressive. You’ve expressed exactly why I’m here and what I’m interested in. Maybe I should start watching more TV.”
Then she started to cry.
Chapter34
I SAT SILENTLYwhile Celia Cartwright sniffled, then blew her nose. When she looked up, her brown eyes had red rims around them. She managed to say, “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I reacted like that.”
“You’re allowed to react any way you want. You were the victim of a crime. And nothing was done about it. That’s a crime in itself.”
She reached over and patted my arm like she appreciated my comments even if they didn’t make her feel better. I heard a quiet “Thank you.” After a moment she added, “I take responsibility for my part in not filing charges.”
It is rare for a cop to hear anyone take responsibility. Everyone has an excuse for all kinds of stupid behavior. This was refreshing.
I gave it another minute and she started to talk without prompting.
Celia started slowly. “I met Kyle at a party in the financial district. I was there with one of my roommates. He invited me on a date, and a couple of weeks later, right after New Year’s, I met him in Times Square. We ate from sidewalk vendors, had drinks at a couple of different Irish pubs, just had a nice evening. He was charming and so good-looking.”
