David was studying Ashley, puzzled. Something’s very wrong here, David thought. Either she’s telling the truth or she’s one hell of an actress. He stood up. “I’ll be back. I want to talk to the sheriff.”
Two minutes later, he was in the sheriff’s office.
“Well, did you talk to her?” Sheriff Dowling asked.
“Yes. I think you’ve gotten yourself in a box, Sheriff.”
“What does that mean, Counselor?”
“It means you might have been too eager to make an arrest. Ashley Patterson doesn’t even know two of the people you’re accusing her of killing.”
A small smile touched Sheriff Dowling’s lips. “She fooled you, too, huh? She sure as hell fooled us.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’ll show you, mister.” He opened a file folder on his desk and handed David some papers. “These are copies of coroner’s reports, FBI reports, DNA reports and Interpol reports on the five men who were murdered and castrated. Each victim had had sex with a woman before he was murdered. There were vaginal traces and fingerprints at each of the murder scenes. There were supposed to have been three different women involved. Well, the FBI collated all this evidence, and guess what they came up with? The three women turned out to be Ashley Patterson. Her DNA and fingerprints are positive on every one of the murders.”
David was staring at him in disbelief. “Are—are you sure?”
“Yeah. Unless you want to believe that Interpol, the FBI and five different coroner’s offices are out to frame your client. It’s all there, mister. One of the men she killed was my brother-in-law. Ashley Patterson’s going to be tried for first-degree murder, and she’s going to be convicted. Anything else?”
“Yes.” David took a deep breath. “I’d like to see Ashley Patterson again.”
They brought her back to the visitors’ room. When she walked inside, David asked angrily, “Why did you lie to me?”
“What? I didn’t lie to you. I’m innocent. I—”
“They have enough evidence against you to burn you a dozen times over. I told you I wanted the truth.”
Ashley looked at him for a full minute, and when she spoke, she said in a quiet voice, “I told you the truth. I have nothing more to say.”
Listening to her, David thought, She really believes what she’s saying. I’m talking to a nut case. What am I going to tell Jesse Quiller?
“Would you talk to a psychiatrist?”
“I don’t—Yes. If you want me to.”
“I’ll arrange it.”
On his way back to San Francisco, David thought, I kept my end of the bargain. I talked to her. If she really thinks she’s telling the truth, then she’s crazy. I’ll get her to Jesse, who will plead insanity, and that will be the end of it.
His heart went out to Steven Patterson.
At San Francisco Memorial Hospital, Dr. Patterson was receiving the condolences of his fellow doctors.
“It’s a damn shame, Steven. You sure don’t deserve anything like this…”
“It must be a terrible burden for you. If there’s anything I can do…”
“I don’t know what gets into kids these days. Ashley always seemed so normal.…”
And behind each expression of condolence was the thought: Thank God it’s not my kid.
When David returned to the law firm, he hurried in to see Joseph Kincaid.
Kincaid looked up and said, “Well, it’s after six o’clock, David, but I waited for you. Did you see Dr. Patterson’s daughter?”
“Yes, I did.”
“And did you find an attorney to defend her?”
David hesitated. “Not yet, Joseph. I’m arranging for a psychiatrist to see her. I’ll be going back in the morning to talk to her again.”
Joseph Kincaid looked at David, puzzled. “Oh? Frankly, I’m surprised that you’re getting this involved. Naturally, we can’t have this firm associated with anything as ugly as this trial is going to be.”
“I’m not really involved, Joseph. It’s just that I owe a great deal to her father. I made him a promise.”
“There’s nothing in writing, is there?”
“No.”
“So it’s only a moral obligation?”
David studied him a moment, started to say something, then stopped. “Yes. It’s only a moral obligation.”