Billy had had a crisis of faith a few years ago. A serious one. He believed in Jesus and the power of Christ. But he also believed he was meant to put his talents to use as a tattoo artist.

The problem was this: The book of Leviticus warned, You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks upon you: I am the LORD.

He’d been depressed for weeks upon learning this. He wrestled with how to reconcile the conflict.

One argument was that the Bible was full of such dissonance: In the same chapter, for instance, it was written: ‘Nor shall a garment of mixed linen and wool come upon you.’ Yet God surely had other priorities than sending to hell people wearing blended cloth suits.

Billy had wondered if He intended future generations to reinterpret the Bible, to bring it into line with contemporary society. But that seemed suspect; it was like those Supreme Court justices who said that the Constitution was a living thing and should change to suit the times.

Dangerous, thinking like that.

Finally the answer to this apparent contradiction appeared. Billy had reasoned: The Bible also says, Thou shalt not kill. But the Good Book was filled with instances of outright murder – including a fair amount of carnage by the Almighty Himself. So, it was okay to kill in certain instances. Such as to further the glory of God, eliminate infidels and threats, further the values of truth and justice. Dozens of reasons.

So in Leviticus, it was clear, God had to mean that tattooing too was acceptable under certain circumstances, just like taking lives.

And what better circumstances could there be than the mission Billy was on at the moment?

The Modification.

He opened his Bible. He settled on a verse in Exodus, a well-read page.

And if men strive together, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart, and yet no harm follow; he shall be surely fined, according as the woman’s husband shall lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. But if any harm follow, then thou shalt give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

II
THE UNDERGROUND MAN

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 6
NOON

CHAPTER 17

The morning had been a flurry of activity, trying to correlate the evidence Sachs had come up with to pinpoint a place where the unsub might be living or had decided to make his stalking ground.

Rhyme wheeled back and forth in front of the chart, feeling in his neck and jaw the thump as the Merits chair rolled over one of the power cables bisecting the floor of his parlor.

237 Elizabeth Street