"What the h.e.l.l are we doing here?" Carla muttered, shifting uncomfortably.
As if in response, a strong voice called out,"Detectives, glad you could make it!"
Joe, Howe, and Carla turned to see Edward Talman walking toward them. Talman was shorter than Joe imagined, about five foot five, but otherwise just as he appeared on television, with close-cropped gray hair, trademark western string tie, and eyes that always appeared to be squinting. Joe figured he must be in his mid-fifties.
Talman shook hands with each of them."I can tell a cop from a mile away."
Joe smiled."What gave us away? The ill-fitting blazers, the bad haircuts, or the sour disposition?"
"Don"t sell yourselves short," Talman said."It was your sense of authority. Plus, our guest of honor just pointed you out." Talman motioned toward Monica, who walked toward them.
"h.e.l.lo, Detectives," she said."Get a good night"s sleep?"
Howe rolled his eyes."Ha. Good one."
Talman stared at Joe."I was surprised to see your name on the guest list this morning. You"re not a homicide detective. Why would you be investigating the Spotlight Killings?"
"I"m not."
"Then, why-?"
Monica put her hand onTalman"s."He"s investigating me."
"You?"
She smiled."The Spirit Basher is on the case to keep me honest."
Talman turned back to Joe."We have a crisis in this city, Detective, and Ms. Gaines has been kind enough to try to help us. I don"t know what you"re trying to prove, but in the absence of any real progress by your department on this case-"
Joe cut in."Did she tell you about her reading of Ernest Franklin"s murder scene?"
Talman glanced at Monica."Yes. It was inconclusive, correct?"
Monica didn"t respond. She just stared at Joe.
"Inconclusive?" Joe"s gaze didn"t leave hers."I guess you could say that."
Talman"s eyes narrowed as they moved between Monica and Joe."Is there something I should know?"
Joe stared at Monica a moment longer before finally replying,"It"s an ongoing murder investigation, Councilman. I"m afraid I can"t discuss the details."
Talman was obviously miffed to be out of the loop, but he managed a faint smile."Remember that she"s our guest in the city. Please show her the respect she deserves." He took Monica by the arm."If you"ll come with me, I have some people you should meet."
Howe leaned close to Joe as Talman escorted her away."Ten"ll get you twenty she"s telling him to pressure the chief to have you taken off the case."
"I don"t think so,"Joe said."She thinks she can handle me."
"Can she?"
"No."
While Carla and Howe went to the bar to place their drink orders, Joe climbed to the upper deck and watched the tall pines along the lakeside swaying in the wind. The air rushed through the millions of pine needles, sounding like distant waves crashing.
"It"s beautiful."
He looked over his shoulder to see Monica strolling toward him. He smiled."Yes, it is."
"Thank you," she said.
"For what?"
"Not tellingTalman about my reading last night."
"You don"t stand behind it?"
"I do, but I"m not entirely sure what it means. And until I am sure, I"d rather not discuss it. I know how ridiculous it sounds."
"I don"t think you do."
"Sure I do. If I was going to make something up, don"t you think I"d come up with something a lot less crazy-sounding than that? This is my reputation on the line."
"It"s the Atlanta PD"s reputation too."
"I know that. I just have a lot I need to sort through. That"s why I want to visit the other murder scenes."
"You will, and we"ll be right there with you."
"Good." She leaned against the railing."Hey, would you consider appearing on my show sometime?"
He smiled."You want me on Monica Gaines Monica Gaines"s Psychic World?"
"Sure. We could fly you up to Vancouver, or we could do a satellite uplink with you in one of the studios here in town."
Joe shook his head."I don"t think so."
"Too bad."
"I thought you had only believers on your show."
"Oh, I have all kinds of guests. You"d be great. You"re not like most skeptics I"ve met."
"Is that good or bad?"
"Very good. A lot of people are hostile when they meet me. Vicious. They don"t even try to understand what I"m doing."
"After last night, I"m not sure I understand."
"That makes two of us. But at least you were trying. So many people are afraid to admit even the possibility of psychic abilities, but I don"t think you"re one of them."
Joe gazed at the choppy water."I used to be. I didn"t want to believe that any of this stuff was possible, because I was afraid it would color my objectivity. I"ve seen a lot of so-called paranormal investigators spend months deluding themselves into believing they"ve found the genuine article, when it takes me only ten minutes to pull apart the whole thing. It"s not because these people are stupid, but their will to believe is so strong that they don"t want to see the truth. I didn"t want to fall into the same trap."
"You feel different now?"
"A little."
"What changed your mind?"
Joe studied Monica. Was she following the pattern of most con artists, mentally compiling a profile of the mark to formulate her strategy? Possibly. He finally replied,"I met someone who showed me some things I couldn"t explain. I discovered that I actually liked the feeling."
"You"re speaking in the past tense. You eventually found an explanation?"
"No, not yet. I guess it"s still a work in progress." He shrugged."I think I"m a better detective now. I"m a little more open, and I think that I give people more of a chance to try to prove themselves. The only difference now is that I get disappointed every time I do my job well. I think there"s something in all of us that makes us want to believe in magic. That"s why you"re a millionaire."
Monica moved closer."Do you think I"m going to disappoint you Joe?"
He looked away. Her offbeat charm was as effective in person as it was over the airwaves. He actually liked her."Yes, I think you will disappoint me."
"I won"t. I promise."
After lunch, Talman summoned everyone to the upper deck for self-serving speeches and toasts to the guest of honor. Predictably, there was an outcry from the guests for Monica to give them an impromptu demonstration of her abilities.
Talman waved them off."Please, Ms. Gaines is our guest here today. Let"s not ask her-"
"It"s all right." Monica smiled and stepped forward."I"ve met a lot of you today, but there are many I haven"t met. I"m trying to reach out to those of you I haven"t had the chance to speak with. I just ask that you try to be open with me, okay?"
Standing at the back of the crowd, Joe, Howe, and Carla watched as Monica closed her eyes. Howe leaned toward Joe."If I feel her rummaging around in my myhead, I"m jumping overboard."
"There"s someone here who had a birthday not long ago," Monica said."A lot of attention was paid to it, more than usual. I"m getting the initials L.K. Does that mean anything to anyone?"
There was an"Oh my G.o.d" in the crowd, then a slender woman with dark wavy hair raised her hand."Me! Me!"
Monica gestured for the woman to step forward."What"s your name, honey?"
"Laurie Klempner. I turned forty last week."
The crowd was obviously impressed by the revelation as Joe pushed his way forward. Time for him to get to work too. He b.u.mped into an older man, quietly apologized, and kept moving.
Monica stared at the woman."Laurie, we"ve never met, have we?"
"No."
"Okay, I can feel that you have a good sense of humor and that you"re a very loving person. I"m not sure if you"re in a relationship right now, but I can tell you that you have a lot of love for animals, one in particular. Am I right?"
The woman nodded.
"A small dog, maybe a Scottish terrier?"
The woman gasped."Yes!"
"You work in a large building, very large. You"re sometimes frustrated that people there don"t communicate with each other as well as they should."
The woman nodded."Yes. And just so you know, you"re freaking me out."
The guests applauded as Joe stepped to the front of the crowd. Talman caught Joe"s eye and smiled triumphantly."There"s no way you can explain that away, Detective."
Joe shrugged.
Talman"s eyes narrowed."You think you can?"
"Maybe."
"Be my guest."
Joe turned toward the crowd."I"m getting the initials T.R. A man born in mid-June, I believe. A man who loves his three grandchildren very much."
An elderly man raised his hand and stepped forward."That would be me. My name"s Tracy Ray."
"Nice to see you, sir. Three grandchildren, is that right?"
He nodded."And another one on the way."
"Congratulations. How"s the Stingray driving?"
The man stared at Joe, stunned.
"It"s a yellow Corvette Stingray, right?"
"Yes, but I didn"t drive it today."
"Of course not, mostly weekends. Did you restore it yourself?"
"Yes."
"I can tell that you put a lot of yourself into it."
Talman walked toward Joe."What the h.e.l.l are you doing?"
"Exactly what you asked me to do."
Joe could see that Talman wanted to rip him apart, but the guests would obviously keep him on his best behavior.
"Apparently you know this man," Talman said.
"No, we"ve never met. Have we, sir?"
"Nope."
Joe glanced back at Monica. If anything, she seemed amused by the demonstration. She sipped her champagne.