Things were a bit awkward between Dana, Laurie and Ashley the following morning. Dana was giving Ashley the cold shoulder. She was still angry at Ashley for suggesting bringing another person into the investigation and Ashley was hesitant to initiate any sort of conversation. It was Laurie who was juggling between the two, failing miserably to patch the fallout.
"The passageways are well- built" said Laurie, in another pathetic attempt. "It prevents the stray from getting lost"
All three of them were walking into the confines of St Teresa's Institute of Mental Health, Texas. Dr Phil Montez had phoned Dana early in the morning and said that there was something very important for her to come and see. It was really hard to leave Sunil behind on a Saturday but the thought of getting a lead out of Daphne encouraged her. She promised to get back home as soon as she could and called Laurie, asking him to bring Ashley along with him to St Teresa's Institute of Mental Health.
Dana was too thrilled to notice the interiors of the hospital, straggling patients or staring nurses. They finally turned around a corner and strode straight into the first door on the left to meet the smiling face of Dr Phil Montez. He beckoned them in and shut the door behind.
At first, Dana thought the room was empty except for the four of them. The peeling walls were painted white and almost everything, starting from the fireplace to the portraits on mantelshelf were white. Daphne's pale face barely stood out in the room.
She looked better than the last time but still wasn't anywhere close to full recovery. They could simply tell that from her face. She'd put on weight so it was evident that her eating habits had improved. Her cheeks weren't as drawn in as before and the cut under her lip was healing. Her beautiful, long, silky mane was combed neatly and tied back in a ponytail. But, her eyes were still vacant, staring desperately, almost longingly at something that didn't exist. Laurie shuddered to think what it might be. Her long, pale fingers were fumbling knots on the bed- sheet she was lying on.
"Daphne is a go- getter" said Dr Phil Montez, smiling wider as his eyes fell on Daphne. "She's improving fast and at this rate I'm sure she'd be up and about sooner than I expected"
The corner of Daphne's lips twitched as though she was trying to smile.
"This morning, I was trying to make conversation with her" explained Dr Montez, his eyes twinkling. "I was talking about random things like the weather and the wind. Suddenly, her eyes brimmed with tears. It wasn't like the episode we had the other day. She wasn't thrashing or screaming, just crying, silently, as if the thought of something was making her heart bleed. Then she motioned for a pen and drew something..." Dr Montez paused and mimicked her.
"I was so happy there were tears of joy in my eyes" he went on, sliding one of his hands into a pocket and bringing out a folded paper. "If you were here, you would have had a tough time figuring who the patient was"
Dana's fingers laced around the paper, her heart beating like crazy. Laurie and Ashley inched closer to her, their faces screaming curiosity.
Dr Montez smiled and beckoned them to open it. Laurie wondered if his muscles ever ached from constant smiling.
Dana had trouble opening the paper without giving away her trembling fingers. Ashley looked so excited that it was a miracle she didn't pass out then and there.
"I wonder what it could be" murmured Laurie as the rustle of the paper filled their ears. "I mean, she only heard the killer's voice and that's hardly something she could illustrate with a sketch. Anyway, I don't deny any clue at this point would be useful. I just hope it's not the horrified face of Gabi as that must've been the last thing registered in her mind..."
"Laurie?" said Ashley.
"Yeah?"
"Shut up"
Dana unfolded the paper and ran her fingers over it, smoothening the creases. The three of them peered in and agreed about one thing: Daphne might have other talents, but she was really terrible at drawing.
It looked like something a kindergarten kid would scribble at school, but it wasn't hard to distinguish what she was trying to convey.
She had drawn a window with two bars, one vertical and the other horizontal. A man was peeping through it. There wasn't anything discrete about his features except that he was wearing glasses.
Dana, Laurie and Ashley looked at each other, stunned.
"If this is supposedly the last thing registered in her mind..." began Laurie.
"Then, it keels over everything we've been assuming so far" finished Ashley.
Dana grabbed a chair and sat on it, a hand over her head.
Could this mean, the killer had clambered in through the window in their hotel room? Wondered Dana. If this asserts that the killer had been present on the spot of murder, then it absolutely debunks their Devil's breath theory!
"What does it keel over?" remarked Dr Montez. He sauntered towards a window, inches away from Daphne's bed and pulled the blinds.
Laurie, Ashley and Dana had to shield their eyes for a while from the generous amount of sunlight that was pouring in. And then, when their eyes readjusted, they noticed that the window had two bars. One horizontal and the other vertical.
"We noticed a cut in one of the barbed wires on our compound wall" elucidated Dr Montez. "I asked one of our staff to check the surveillance and this is what we found"
He opened a laptop they'd barely noticed lying on the mantelshelf and swerved it towards them.
It was the back of a head Dana had seen before. It was dark and the man was pushing past thick trees and bushes surrounding St Teresa's Institute of Mental Health. Dr Montez jabbed a button and the scene changed.
They could see the side of his face now and it was obvious that he was wearing glasses. He was standing behind two bars, one horizontal and the other vertical, straining his eyes to find a gap between the blinds. Then a strong wind blew and the blinds lifted.
The man smiled.
*****
If anybody had entered Noah's room at that moment, they would have gagged and vouched to never step into it again. His underpants were strewn on the floor along with piled up pizza boxes and heaps of stale food. As all windows were tightly shut, there was no chance of fresh air finding its way into the room. It looked more or less like a wild animal's cave. Noah was seldom bothered to fix it as long as it kept any breathing creature safely away from him.
He knew it was pointless staying shut up from the rest of the world. He knew it was cowardly and would be the last thing Gabi ever wanted from him. But, he wasn't ready. He couldn't quite explain why but it felt wrong to go live his life like nothing ever happened when a large chunk of his soul was missing.
Mr Clearwater was also staying shut up in his study most of the time. It was only Mrs Clearwater who channelled all her grief into something Gabi would be proud of. She was spending a lot of time, energy and money for charity. Even then, at the end of the day, when she had nothing else to think about, she would curl up into a ball and cry her eyes out.
Noah knew it was foolish of him to take out all his anger on Damien. For all he knew, Damien loved Gabi dearly and her death was taking as much of a toll on him as it was on them. But, Noah did not have a choice. As much as he knew he was being unsympathetic, if it wasn't for Daphne, Gabi would not have been murdered. And he'll continue to hate the Bishop family until he finds someone to blame it all on.
Perhaps, he was just one step away from clearing Daphne's name.
He recollected the events of the latter part of the night in question. How he'd bumped into the florist who might be the only person to have set eyes on the actual murderer. How he'd taken ages to process Noah's question and finally pointed at Jordan Brown.
Jordan Brown.
It is funny how not a single person could've noticed a world- acclaimed pop-star walking down a busy road to bribe a mad man selling flowers at the entrance of a luxurious hotel. Besides, during the course of that day, the hotel had momentarily transformed into a shrine for him. It would have been a tough job eluding them when almost every single person staying in the hotel were expecting Jordan Brown to turn up any moment.
It was, however, impossible to override the fact that a couple of mysterious incidents in the past were connected to Jordan. Noah recalled what Damien had said about Jordan Brown's concert being bad omen, how a girl called Samantha had been murdered in the night of his concert. And how, Gabi herself had seen his face glowing in the dark of the holiday spot.
Even now, he couldn't quite make sense out of what happened at the holiday spot. His thirst for adventure had led them all into a pointless journey. And if the fact that two cops, a medical examiner, a journalist, a photographer and a chef had been following them wasn't bizarre enough, Gabi had seen Jordan Brown himself lurking near the lake!
It was time he put this all to an end. It was time he took matters into his own hands.
The flapping of a pizza box resonated oddly against the walls as he stared at his laptop. If there was anybody who could tell him how to get in touch with Jordan Brown, it was his father!
Mr Clearwater seemed genuinely perplexed when Noah had asked him about how he'd contacted Jordan Brown to discuss their business dealings. Fortunately, he was a little too concerned about getting away with his son, so he'd be able to resume crying in peace. Therefore, he told him that it was always Jeremy who established connection between Jordan and himself. However, his rightful part in the concert was once e-mailed to him from Jordan Brown himself.
And now, Noah was going to send Jordan an e-mail, coaxing him to turn up in a private place. There are chances he might not even open the message but it was worth a try.
And so, Noah started typing away. He explained how Gabi had been mad about him, how she was dying to be a part of the concert and ended up actually dying during the course of it.
Now, it was time for him to add a chunk of lies.
He went on adding how Gabi had owned a T-shirt and it was her desire to get Jordan's autograph on it. Unfortunately, she couldn't live to fulfil that wish but Noah was craving to do it for her. If Jordan Brown would oblige, he would place that T- shirt to rest in her grave forever.
Noah re-read the message and wondered if it sounded lame. But, it wouldn't make much difference as there were millions of lame girls around the world who were so mad about Jordan Brown that they wouldn't think twice to jump into a pit for him.
Noah reckoned Jordan would never notice the message. He wondered if he should send such e-mails every once in a while to be able to grab his attention. What he didn't expect was to see a chat box open almost instantly in the corner of the screen with Jordan Brown's name flashing on top of it.
*****
"Did you all notice something?" said Dana, as their car swished past the busy streets of Houston.
"Notice what?" Laurie asked coolly, swerving the steering.
"We have seen the man in the footage before" replied Dana.
Ashley speculated for a moment, twisting the tips of a few strands of hair with her fingers. "Oh yes. We saw him in another footage. He was carrying Samantha in the black Ferrari F430"
"Yes" affirmed Dana.
"So" added Laurie, slowing down a bit as they neared their precinct. "We can be assured that it's all the same man"
"Yeah" chirped Dana, biting her lip. "Although, I don't understand why he would want to approach Daphne. I mean, there's nothing she knows about him except his voice"
"Perhaps, she knows something more" said Ashley. "We can't take chances, Bernard. We mustn't leave the girl unprotected. Let one of us take charge in the hospital until she's back to normal"
"Makes sense" said Laurie, peeping at them through the driving mirror. "I know who is perfect for the job, Bernard"
Dana tilted her head, giving him a knowing look. "Who would that be?"
"Who else but Babble-Buck?"
"Gerard Bucklebaron is a potent officer, Laurie. Sometimes, I reckon you're a bit too hard on him"
"Never said he's not potent or anything" grumbled Laurie. "In fact, we need quite a potent officer to protect Daphne. She's really important to this case"
"Is that really why you want me to send him?" asked Dana, a smirk lighting up her face. "Or is it just because you want to get rid of him?"
"Well" said Laurie, driving the car into the parking lot. "It wouldn't be a discomfort to anyone if they didn't have to hear his constant gabbling"
Dana gave him a stern look. "He doesn't gabble, Laurie"
"He does" retorted Laurie, his eyes bright with energy. "You don't know how he is outside your precinct. He's a different person when he's with you, Bernard. When he's with us, all he ever does is brag. He won't work half as much as us, but from the way he talks, people would assume he's straight from God's own army or something..."
"Laurie, relax" said Dana. "Some people are born with such traits and there's nothing we can do about it. As long as he's good at his work, he's allowed to talk. Ignore him if it's bothering you"
Laurie opened his mouth to protest but did not say anything. Ashley nudged Dana with her elbow and pointed towards a window fixed at Dana's precinct. It was closed with blinds drawn in. But, they could see the silhouette of a person loitering around.
"That's not possible" gasped Dana, shaking her head. "I remember locking the door before leaving"
Laurie looked as stunned as her. "I think we should hurry up and check who that is"
Nodding slightly, Dana opened the car's door and sprinted inside, closely followed by Laurie and Ashley on either side. The last thing she wanted was Sophia Whitney writing a vicious tabloid about a break-in at the precinct.
However, when she opened the door, the first thing she spotted was bottle green bob and bright red lipstick.
"Hi" said a chirpy woman she'd met a few times before.
Laurie's jaws hung open while Ashley looked like she was about to faint. She caught Dana's eye and tried to mouth that she wasn't responsible for anything.
"How do you like my new hairdo?" said Stana Marcus, smoothening a few strands around her ears. "Pink got really boring so I thought, why not another colour? I was thinking about yellow but that would be too bright, then blue...."
"How did you get into my precinct?" Dana asked between gritted teeth.
"Well" said Stana, blown off-course by the sudden change in the subject. "The young gentleman over there helped me"
She pointed at Gerard Bucklebaron.
Laurie snorted. "Surprise- surprise"
Dana looked murderous. "Bucklebaron! Come here!"
Gerard Bucklebaron jogged towards them. His tall figure cast a shadow on Laurie's pale, pointed face.
"You let someone inside my precinct without my permission!"
Dana was literally shaking with fury. Bucklebaron looked abashed while Laurie barely tried to conceal his delight.
"She said she wanted to tell you something really important, so I reckoned it would be better if she could wait in your precinct...."
Dana glared daggers at him. "So, you just let her in?"
Bucklebaron's face turned ashen. "But, this is Stana Marcus, the best detective in the country. What could she possibly..."
"You do not let anybody inside my personal space without asking me first, do you understand?"
Bucklebaron did not want to take the risk of arguing further. So, he simply nodded like a diligent little kid.
"Fire him. Fire him" whispered Laurie into Dana's ears.
"Shut up, Laurie"
Dana dismissed Bucklebaron and sauntered into her precinct flanked by Laurie and Ashley. Stana Marcus was hardly aware of all the drama going on around her. She was busy examining her bob through the reflection in the window pane.
"Good evening" said Dana, a little too sharply.
"Oh, good evening" replied Stana, her voice as chirpy as ever. "How have you been?"
"I've been good, thanks" said Dana, smiling curtly. "What is it you wanted to tell me?"
"Oh that, yes" Stana opened her bag and fetched her phone. The glittering phone case shimmered against the lights.
She pressed a few buttons and handed the phone to Dana.
The title on the screen read 'IB's Playground'
"IB is an extremely talented poet and an artist" she elucidated. "I've been following his works for a couple of years"
Dana and Laurie exchanged knowing looks. They'd come across this website once before.
"He released a new piece of his artwork today" went on Stana. "And I thought the woman depicted in the work looked a lot like Gabi Clearwater. I went on to scanning a few of his previous works and I found another one pretty close to Samantha Bates, who I assume was another victim of the same killer"
Laurie gasped. "The riddle in the diary...." stammered Laurie. "Holiday spot...Jordan's song....all from IB's playground..."
"Who is this IB guy anyway?" asked Dana, bewildered.
"I don't know but there's definitely a link between all of these events. Bernard, I think we should go back and dig in every detail inch by inch" said Laurie.
"I have a suggestion" chimed in Stana. Dana fixated her eyes on her, throwing a questioning look.
"You keep asking what, how and when" said Stana matter-of-factly. "Those questions work well with minor cases. But, here, you have a cunning fellow operating behind the curtains. So start asking why. There's definitely a reason why he's doing all this and if you deduce that, you'll be able to zero in on the perpetrator"
Dana smiled, a very crooked smile. "Thanks. Anything else you want to say?"
"No but..."
"Good. The door is open"