“Marino and I are very involved in all this, Kay. Richmond P.D. is involved. The Bureau’s involved. Either we’ve got a psychopath out there who should have been executed or we’ve got somebody else who seems intent on making us think someone is out there who should have been executed.”

“Marino doesn’t want me involved at all,” I said.

“He’s in an impossible situation. He’s the chief homicide investigator for the city and a member of a Bureau VICAP team, yet he’s your colleague and friend. He’s supposed to find out everything he can about you and what’s gone on in your office. Yet his inclination is to protect you. Try to put yourself in his position.”

“I will. But he needs to put himself in mine.”

“That’s only fair.”

“The way he talks, Benton, you would think half the world has a vendetta against me and would love to see me go up in flames.”

“Maybe not half the world, but there are people other than Ben Stevens who are standing around with boxes of matches and gasoline.”

“Who else?”

“I can’t give you names because I don’t know. And I’m not going to claim that ruining you professionally is the major mission for whoever is behind all this. But I suspect it’s on the agenda, if for no other reason than that the cases would be severely compromised if it appears that all evidence routed through your office is tainted. Not to mention, without you, the Commonwealth loses one of its most potent expert witnesses.”

He met my eyes. “You need to consider what your testimony would be worth right now. If you took the stand this minute, would you be helping or hurting Eddie Heath?”

The remark cut to the bone.

“Right this minute, I would not be helping him much. But if I default, how much will that help him or anyone?”

“That’s a good question. Marino doesn’t want you hurt further, Kay.”

“Then perhaps you can impress upon him that the only reasonable response to such an unreasonable situation is for me to allow him to do his job while he allows me to do mine.”

“Can I refresh that?”

Getting up, he returned with the bottle. We didn’t bother with ice.

“Benton, let’s talk about the killer. In light of what’s happened to Donahue, what are you thinking now?”

He set down the bottle and stirred the fire. For moment, he stood before the fireplace, his back to ;a hands in his pockets. Then he sat on the edge of hearth, his forearms on his knees. Wesley was more rev less than I had seen him in a very long time.

“If you want to know the truth, Kay, this animal scares the hell out of me.”

“How is he different from other killers you have p sued?”