The Caller by Alex Barclay Read Free Book Online Page B

pretty boy types, hooked up with this forty-year-old guy, they had a thing going on for a while. Then we’re called out, the boyfriend has beaten the crap out of the poor kid, totally smashed up his face and, I mean, like our vics, he was unrecognizable. The boyfriend was out of his mind with grief, crying and saying he just wished the kid hadn’t spent so much time talking to that cutebarman, that he would have been still alive if he had. Unbelievable.’
    ‘And remember that guy in Jersey who shot his boss?’ said Cullen. ‘He’d been arrested for beating the crap out of his boyfriend with a hammer a few years before that.’
    ‘But then, there’s no damage to the genitals with our vics,’ said Joe. He shrugged. ‘That usually goes along with it.’
    ‘Also – on the sex thing,’ said Rencher. ‘According to Lowry’s wife, the DVDs and whip and shit were just theirs, they liked to watch porn together, no big deal. She figures he was just going to watch some that night while she was gone.’
    ‘OK. But what else was left lying around the other scenes? What was in the bedrooms?’
    ‘There was a sexual element at the Aneto and Lowry scenes,’ said Blazkow.
    ‘Yeah, same for Ortis,’ said Bobby. ‘Toys, DVDs. Some of them were a little dusty, I remember, but they were out there on his bed. But there was also work papers, diaries, photos.’
    ‘Yeah, we got photos at Aneto’s too,’ said Danny.
    ‘There were love letters from Lowry’s ex-girlfriend by his bed.’
    ‘Oh, there were boxes of wax strips at Aneto’s,’ said Martinez.
    ‘And Preparation H at Ortis’s place,’ said Bobby.
    ‘It’s kind of like they were all looking forsomething,’ said Blazkow. ‘Pulling out drawers, looking through closets. Do you think maybe the perp was after something?’
    ‘Maybe,’ said Bobby. ‘Maybe they could have all ripped him off.’
    ‘Let’s take a look at what they’ve got in common,’ said Danny. ‘We got a Wall Street guy, an actor, a graphic designer …’
    ‘Faggoty jobs?’ said Martinez.
    ‘Yeah, I see that sensitivity training worked out well for you,’ said Danny.
    ‘It’s cool, I’m dating the guy who gave the talk,’ said Martinez.
    ‘You’re such a dickhead,’ said Danny.
    ‘What about success?’ said Blazkow, ignoring the interruption. They all nodded. He continued, ‘Perp could have a chip on his shoulder. All these guys were successful … at least, on the surface, like if you saw them on the street.’
    ‘The Wall Street guys are all about surface,’ said Danny. ‘Why else do they freak out so much when they’re caught with their pants around their ankles burying it in some ten-dollar whore? My neighbors, my clients, my wife …’
    ‘Yeah,’ said Bobby. ‘And then the pricks tell us they’re paying our salary, like that’s going to help their situation. How to win cops and influence whatever.’
    ‘OK – phone calls,’ said Joe. ‘All the vics made calls the night they died. Looks like while theperp was in their home. William Aneto calls his mother – she says it was just to say goodnight.’
    ‘Gary Ortis calls his former business partner just to say hi, he says, see how he was doing,’ said Bobby.
    ‘Hmm,’ said Joe. ‘Maybe not. We need to go talk to these people again. And how is he choosing the vics? Is he following them home? If so, from where? If not, how is he meeting them – on line, at work, in a bar, at the gym …’
    ‘Why, though? Why is he killing them?’ said Blazkow.
    ‘It’s going to be a long night,’ said Danny.
    ‘What’s Denis Cullen’s story?’ said Joe later, when he was alone with Danny.
    ‘That’s Denis Cullen who the 10-13 benefit’s for next month. Well – it’s for his daughter. She’s got cancer, she’s only thirteen years old.’
    ‘Shit,’ said Joe. ‘I didn’t know that. I thought he’d just been through a divorce or something.’
    ‘Nah, they’re a real close family. He’s a good guy.