“Nothing unreasonable. I think you’ll find me the most reasonable man you’ve ever met. No need to get into the specifics at this point. All I’m talking about is an imprisonment with certain fundamental amenities. A comfortable cell of my own. Basic conveniences. The relaxation of only the most unnecessary rules. I wouldn’t ask for anything that men of goodwill couldn’t easily negotiate.”

“And in return for that, you’d be willing to confess to twenty or thirty or forty unsolved murders? With full corroborative details on motive and method?”

“Hypothetically.”

The bullhorn announced, “THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO PUT DOWN YOUR WEAPONS AND OPEN THE DOOR. YOU MUST DO IT NOW.”

Gurney tried a wild swing from another direction. “Including the White Mountain Strangler case?”

“Hypothetically.”

“And the number of victims is as high as it is because the basic method was always the same—to kill five or six people each time, to obscure the motive for the one that mattered?”

“Hypothetically.”

“I see. But there’s a question I’d like to clear up—just to be sure I understand the risk calculation driving the MO. Wouldn’t it be reasonable to assume that one well-planned murder would pose less chance of exposure than five or six?”

“The answer to that is no. However well planned one murder may be, it still focuses attention on that one victim and the consequences of that one death. There is no escape from the singularity of the event. However, the additional murders remove virtually all risk that the central murder will receive the focus it requires—and they create virtually no additional risk. Murderers are caught primarily because of their connections with their victims. If there are no connections … well, I’m sure you understand the concept.”

“And the cost—the lives ended—that never concerned you?”

Sterne said nothing. His bland smile said it all.

Gurney wondered how long it would take a tough state prison to wipe it off his face.