What had he been apologizing for? Killing Marissa? Killing his mother? Killing himself? When had he been bad? Thirty years ago? A week ago?

Marissa, Marissa. Mommy, mommy.

Had he confused the two and killed Marissa? Or was he saying she had been the mother he never had?

“Wow,” Mendez said. “Brilliant guy like that ... I guess it’s true what they say about it being a thin line between genius and madness.”

“I guess,” Vince murmured.

“So he was in a dissociative state when he came out of that closet at you?”

“Something like that.”

“He sure as hell looked crazy. Do you think he snapped like that when he went after Marissa?” He snapped his fingers as a thought popped into his head. “I’ve got to get his blood type so we can match it to the blood on the sweatshirt—in case he cut himself during the attack.”

Vince said nothing.

Mendez looked at him, brows furrowed. “Are you okay?”

“Sure.”

“We just closed our case, man. It’s all over but the paperwork.”

“The crazy guy did it,” Vince said with none of the enthusiasm Mendez was looking for.

“Well, he did,” Mendez said. “He all but confessed.”

Vince tipped his head. “All but.”

Getting irritated, Mendez got up and began to pace. “What the hell do you want? A fucking Perry Mason moment?”

“Yeah, that’d be nice.” Vince got up and threw his coffee in the trash.

“You’re not still thinking you pushed him over the edge?” Mendez asked. “He’d already killed two people before you ever met him, Vince. The guy is a wack job.”

“Forgive me if I’m not happy about that,” Vince said.

The doors whooshed open, and Cal Dixon came in, trailed by a dozen reporters all shouting questions at the same time. Dixon ignored them and motioned to Mendez and Vince. The three of them went into an exam room while deputies and hospital security chased the riffraff back outside.

Mendez told the story. Dixon stood with his arms crossed over his chest, intent on every detail. Vince sat on the exam table with his forearms on his thighs, and said nothing.

“So that’s it?” Dixon said. “Zahn went crazy and killed her.”

“And then he went crazy again and tried to kill Gina Kemmer,” Vince said. “And then he went nuts again and sent a box of breasts to Milo Bordain. And one more time when he tried to run her off the road for no real reason.”

Mendez sighed his frustration. “He lost it and killed Marissa, and tried to kill Haley. Then he had to try to cover it up, so he shot Gina and dumped her down that well. He walked that fire road every day.”