“You can claim the solve.”
Her eyes widened in surprise. “Just like that?”
Gelman shrugged. “The office operates differently from other agencies. We know what happened and that it can’t come out. Giving you the solve is the logical step to prevent anybody from digging deeper. The FBI came here to look into a suspicious murder, did its usual thing, was successful, end of story.”
“And nobody will ever know what truly happened.” DeCapristo looked at George. “You’re okay with that?” She sounded incredulous.
“Why wouldn’t I? I told you. We want justice for the victims, and now we know who the killer is. Also, our superiors know that we cracked the case, so it’s no skin off our noses if you claim the fame for yourself with your agency. See it as a parting gift.”
“Well, in that case, thank you.” She nodded at George and Gelman. “I can’t say it was a pleasure, but it was better than I feared.” Agent DeCapristo shook hands with Gelman and George then briefly touched Andi’s foot. “I wish you all the best, Detective Hayes. I have a feeling you’re going to need it.” With that, she was gone.
After a brief silence, Gelman turned directly to Andi. “Are you well enough to talk, or is it better if we do this tomorrow?”
Andi groaned and sat up. George hurried to help him. The way Andi was swaying, George wouldn’t be surprised if he fell off the bed. “I’m not well enough, but I want to get this over with so we can go home.”
“Are you sure?” George didn’t like how heavily Andie was leaning on him.
His partner nodded. “Can I have some water, please?”
George grabbed the bottle from the nightstand, opened it, and held it to Andi’s lips. After Andi had taken a few sips, he sighed.
“Where do I start?” He snuggled closer to George, almost crawling into his side.
Agent Gelman started pacing in front of the bed. “You said you couldn’t sense Tamika?”
“No. There was no way for me to trace her through the arthropods. And I’m reasonably sure it’s impossible, though I wouldn’t yet swear on it. Her Alzheimer’s could have something to do with it.”
“You said you couldn’t sense your oma either,” George interjected.
“Yes, but again, I was young, and I might have forgotten it or never realized I was sensing her because I knew she could do it.”
“Well, that’s a mystery for another day. How did Tamika manage to do it? I doubt she traipsed around Spartanburg to kill people.” Gelman made a short stop in front of the bed before he resumed his pacing.
“It was her Alzheimer’s. Remember how you told us that many people who have some kind of talent never realize it because they don’t experience the trauma necessary to wake it up?” Andi’s left hand rested on George’s thigh, drawing in warmth. “She wasn’t born with the geschenk. Otherwise, Judge Dunhill and Trevor Asten would have died a long time ago. It started to stir when Alzheimer’s set in, and as far as I could decipher from the memories she had stored, the deeper she became immersed in them, the quicker the illness progressed and the deeper she became immersed, the quicker…you get the picture. It also explains how she could reach as far as the lake. If your sense of self is already fraying, you probably don’t feel the symptoms as badly, and even if she did, she was in the care home and the nurses probably just chalked it up to her having a bad day.”
“Okay, that makes sense.” Gelman shook his head. “As much sense as any of these things can. And to think I once was eager to start working at the office.”
“It certainly isn’t boring.” George was gently massaging the side of Andi’s neck.
“No, it never is. Though I’m starting to think that boring isn’t so bad. Anyway, the reach is somewhat explained, but how did she know about Isabelle Hopper? Did Tammy mention her? And since we’re at it, how did she know that Dunhill and Asten were in Spartanburg?”
“From what I saw in her memories, and mind you, those might not be accurate or even downright false because of the Alzheimer’s and the toll the geschenk takes, she started hitching hikes to keep an eye on Tammy and Rosalie. The picture of Isabelle was distorted because there were almost no arthropods on the bus, just a few ticks on a dog and a fly that had gotten lost. But she did get how upset Tammy was, so she found Isabelle.”
“And killed her.” Gelman had stopped again in front of them.
“Yes, but not deliberately. She just wanted to get back at her and thought destroying her porch was a good way to do it. Isabelle breaking her neck was a coincidence. Tamika didn’t even know.”
“Was Suzie Monahan deliberate?” George was now massaging Andi’s side, not happy at all about how distinctly he could feel his ribs.
“Yes, Tamika was outraged about her stealing the necklace.”
“Which means Judge Dunhill, Trevor Asten, and Jagger Thomasin were very much deliberate as well.” Gelman tapped his chin with his left forefinger.
“Oh yeah. She reveled in their deaths. Especially those of Dunhill and Asten. The memory of their death struggles are absolutely clear.”
“Did she follow us? When she attacked Agent DeCapristo?” George felt Andi’s stiff muscles slowly relaxing under his touch.
“That was actually a coincidence as well. She didn’t know we were on to her as we thought. It just happened that she’d been checking in on her daughter when DeCapristo took her into custody.”
