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“She told us,” Hilary said, “on the advice of her lawyer. Once we showed up with the photographs, we had more than just mica powder. Photos of the dead victims are a little more serious, no offense to you guys.”
“But why not tell us? Did she actually like the kid?”
“That I don’t know. She told us that she hoped we wouldn’t find the crime scene photos because she didn’t think we’d believe her about the crime scene photographer.”
“To be fair, we wouldn’t have.”
“Neither did we. If the kid hadn’t confessed, she’d still be our number one suspect. Well, notnow, but you know what I mean.”
“How much time can she get for that?” Faith asked.
“Not much,” Hilary said. “She’ll get sacked from the university for sleeping with a student, but it’s a much bigger crime to provide crime scene photos than it is to receive them.”
“Even if she’s soliciting them?”
“Who’s soliciting? They were in a consensual adult relationship, and she mentioned how much she liked his work. He gave her some of her photographs and she took them, notunderstanding that it was illegal or intending to use it to harm anyone.” Seeing Faith’s look, he added, “I’m not saying I believe it. I’m saying that’s what her lawyers will argue. No, she won’t get time. Don’t worry, though. It’s unlikely she’ll ever work in academia again. She’ll have to hope this book does well for her.”
“It will,” Michael said. “Books like this always sell. A step below Nina Verbeck on the spectrum of sickness is people who consume the kind of stuff she creates. There’ll be people who don’t care about what she did to get her information. They just want to see blood.”
“As long as they’re not spilling blood, that’s fine with me,” Hilary said. “You want to be a sick fuck? Go ahead. Just don’t make that anyone else’s problem.”
"Here, here," Faith said.
Turk barked agreement.
They finished their drinks and shook Hilary's hand, then left for the airport. They still had three hours until their flight, but they might as well spend that at the airport. Somehow, being there allowed Faith a sense of closure. They were in the process of leaving. The case was over. She could put this one in her past and move on from it.
But what was she moving back to? With Edgar Finch’s reign of terror over, her thoughts returned to the mysterious killer that had murdered the electronics store clerk in even more garish fashion than Finch had murdered his victims.
This is your fault, Bold.
She didn’t believe that a new Franklin West was out there prowling the streets, obsessed with breaking Faith’s will.
Or was it only that she didn’t want to believe?
She looked out the window of the airport shuttle. The sky was overcast, a flat gray that the residents of Chicago likely didn’t notice anymore considering how many days a year enjoyed the same weather.
Somewhere under a different sky, another killer was plotting his or her next murder. Would they blame Faith for this one too?
Trammell’s voice echoed with the words from her dream.I’ll only show up with a new face and a new name.
And make no mistake. I will break you.
EPILOGUE
Lillian’s heart pounded with excitement. She really needed to get that under control. It was all right to enjoy herself, but she needed to keep her cool.
West always kept his cool. Even when he was taking a life in his hands, he kept his cool. Gods didn’t lose control.
She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. Slowly, her heartbeat calmed. She opened her eyes and grinned. “Okay. Let’s get this done.”
She started the engine and pulled from the parking lot. She liked this car. It wasn’t too fancy, but it was comfortable. The air conditioning worked, and the radio worked, and it was fast enough that she could drive it on the highways no problem. It was an older car, but that was fine. It wasn’t so old that it would attract attention.
The owner of the vehicle slid to the side in the backseat. Lillian frowned and swore. She pulled to the side and parked the car, then quickly got out and crossed to the passenger side, glancing furtively around.
There were no cars around at the moment, but this was Philly. There was no such thing as a deserted highway here. Someone would come soon enough.
She opened the rear door and pulled the body to a sitting position. The body tried to roll out of the vehicle, and Lillian stumbled backward, nearly falling.
