Chapter 25

Chapter XXV

Kurtis reached his office before Spacer arrived in the morning.  Christina stopped in to check on how he was doing.

“You’re looking good.  Do they really think you can work with your leg in that condition?” She asked.

“We questioned Lake Ferris yesterday.  Got Stoker.”

Christina was delighted that Dieter would have revenge.  “Not bad for a day off.”

“I thought you might have heard.  Ralph supplied the transportation,” Kurtis said.  He was, in a roundabout way, asking how close she and Ralph were.

“That was nice of you.  He was as shook-up over Dieter as I was.”

“How are you doing?”

“Pulling it together.  I put in for day shift.  Afternoons get too long with everyone working.”

“Good idea!” Kurtis agreed.  “Time has a lot to do with grief.  You didn’t see Ralph after we saw Ferris?”

“I don’t see him often.  He calls when I can help with something.”

“I thought…”

“There’s too much Dieter between us.  Ralph is a good friend.  I know when I need help or advice he’s there.  Like a big brother.”

“I don’t usually take to PIs but I like him,” Kurtis admitted.

“He has a master’s in psychology,” Christina said. “He worked part time for a psychologist, who worked for the department.  That’s where I met him.”

Spacer knocked and opened the door to Kurtis’s office at the same time.  He froze in the doorway, “Sorry, am I interrupting?”

“In my dreams,” Kurtis said, winking at Christina.

“I got a new bandage,” Spacer said, “Doc said I could probably have my arm back tomorrow, if I behave.”

“That’s great,” Kurtis said. “Christina’s telling me Ralph is using psychology on us.”

Christina grunted a laugh and flung her hand in dismissal.

“He worked for the department psychologist,” Kurtis added.

“What changed his profession?” Spacer asked.

“He thought he could make a bigger difference on his own,” Christina said. “His call gave the police ‘The Blade,’ before he could finish off his fifth victim.” She was referring to a serial killer who had evaded capture though police knew who he was.

 “When he isn’t working on a case, he works on what interests him.  Dieter used to call him Sherlock because he was always analyzing things.” She paused, wondering if she should confess, then went on, “When we’re stuck, trying to find someone, or choosing a guilty someone, I sometimes let Ralph profile it.  He has good insight.”

“All the checking you do for him comes with some reward?” Spacer asked.

She smiled.  “I think he’d like to be called in on a case by case basis.”

“I’ll be in my office,” Spacer said, figuring, if that was a hint, he and Kurtis weren’t in the loop to make it happen.

 “Oh, has the prosecutor taken Lake Ferris’s statement?” Spacer asked as an afterthought.

“I think so, but Dee hasn’t come back to me with it,” Kurtis said.

“What’s Lake Ferris like?” Christina asked.

“She’s beautiful,” Spacer said on his way out.

Christina looked after him with a questioning glance.

Kurtis nodded, “She is attractive and intelligent.  Not your basic concept of woman in a man’s body.”

“And Spacer definitely noticed?” Christina asked.

“I’m afraid so.  He’s in a weakened state and she’s a nurse.”

“She is?”

While Pete and Ruby were at work, Al Johnson was alone computer room.  Al approached the three treadmills gingerly.

“Okay, guys,” he said to the machines.  “Remember I was a part of you for a long time.  I love you like a brother.  Be nice to me.”

He replaced the programmed disk with a new disk that eliminated the sixth level with a simple go-to-seven command.  No smoke rose around him.  There were no roaring blasts.

He mounted one treadmill and took trail one.  He talked to himself on the monitor.  At the end of the trail he laughed at himself for the fear he had let build. 

They’re just treadmills, he thought, then turned out the lights and locked the door when he left.

Kurtis hobbled into Spacer’s office.  Spacer looked up in acknowledgement.  “Christina leave?”

“Yeah!  You don’t think I was out of line with that remark, in my dreams?” Kurtis asked.

“She goes to your office, or finds you in mine almost every morning before she leaves.”

“She wants to know if it’s all right with our case if she gives Ralph some info,” Kurtis said.

“What did Ralph want today?” Spacer knew there was nothing.  “And she took break-time to visit in the hospital.”

“She came to see both of us.”

“With one box of candy?”

“I’d sure like to think you’re right.”

“It’s too soon anyway.  Give her time, but be there.”

“Yeah!” Kurtis said slowly, then looked to Spacer and laughed.  “I’m taking love advice from you?”

The officer who had driven them home from the hospital the day before poked his head into Spacer’s office and said, “The raid gave you a truck, with blood and a rifle, at the crime lab.  If you’re up to it I’m supposed to take you to the narc office so you can talk to a couple of punks.”

Spacer and Kurtis both tried to rise too swiftly.  They had to laugh at each other. 

The officer shook his head; “I’d better sit in on the questioning in case one of those punks is rowdy.”

“You might learn something,” Kurtis said.

“That’s what I’m counting on,” The young officer admitted.  “I hear you guys are the best, when you can get around.”

“I’m getting to like this having a chauffeur,” Kurtis said, “I can stretch out in the back seat.”

Al and Jeanne met Ruby and Pete for lunch at the little café that was fast becoming their favorite lunchroom.

“It’s done,” Al told Pete as soon as they were seated.  “I eliminated six-six-six and took a ride talking to myself on the monitor.  Any more field trips are on your psyche, and I’m not sure it wasn’t you.  The competition to win those thing matched you up as close as two people can think and react.  I think you started to imagine things and made them happen.”

“You were brave to go in there alone,” Ruby said.

Pete did some smiling and nodding to keep from saying, “It always works right when no one is on the other treadmill.”

“Okay!” Ruby said, “We’ll take a boring, but safe, ride when we get home.”

Pete didn’t say anything, but he was only hoping it was safe.

Before going in to question the two young men the DEA picked up in the raid on the pot field, Spacer took a phone call, then made one.

“Hello, Ms Ferris?  This is Inspector Spacer.  Dee Prentis gave me a call to tell me you had been very concerned about Kurtis and me.”

“Yes!  I’m afraid she thought it was a bit more.  Are you dating?”

“No Dee’s quite happily married,” Spacer said.  “Her concern was that I may have led you on in some way and that could blow her case, as prosecuting attorney.  If Stoker’s lawyers thought you and I were socializing they could convince the jury I put words in your head.” He gave her a moment to digest that then added, “I had thought to call you last night to thank you, but decided I had better not.  I’m sure you would have heard me say, ‘I’m available.’ In voice tone.”

“I’m afraid that sounded in my voice too.”

“A few weeks after this case is finished, if we ran into each other, if you would be interested, maybe we could have a drink and talk about it.” 

“You do sound much stronger today.  I’ll certainly think on that – too much, now that I realize the problems.  I have to get ready for work and I’m sure you have things to do.”

Kurtis walked down the corridor to where Spacer had gone to talk on the phone.

“We ought to get set up in the interrogation room,” Kurtis said. “Don’t want to be limping around when they come in.”

“Is the kid who’s driving us, what’s his name, set up?”

“Yeah, he’s waiting.  I think it’s Mike.  He’s sure cautious.”

“He doesn’t want to hurt your leg any more than it is,” Spacer said, “and he thinks I’m dead and he doesn’t want me falling on him.”

“That must have been some phone call it brought the dead back in full color.”

“Dee, short for demon, Prentis called to tell me not to mess with her witness,” Spacer said.  “So I had to call Ms. Ferris.”

“You really got the hots for her.”

“We’re cool – for now.”                            1391