“Drive carefully!”

“Promise!”

He threw her a kiss. Madison started back into the house, reading the first few lines of the manuscript.

The giant teeth on the arm of the crane turned up dirt, garbage, and something starkly pink against the gritty black of the earth.

Pasty pink.

Crane operator John Laramore sat dead still, staring at the puddle of pink, gaping. He jumped down from the crane, moving closer.

Flesh. Human Flesh.

A woman. Now her naked body lay among the refuse, her murderer having discarded her as if she were no more than a leftover meal. Her eyes, blue, remained opened to heaven. Her mouth was locked open, as well, contorted in a silent scream…

“Oh, jeez!” Madison groaned aloud, walking inside. She didn’t want to, but she would have to read the manuscript. It meant so much to Trent.

If he’d been trying so hard not to compete with their father, why hadn’t he opted for children’s books?

“Madison!” Peggy was calling brightly.

Madison dropped the manuscript on the kitchen counter, staring from Peggy’s face to her hand—she was holding the telephone receiver.

“I know, it’s a member of my family. Or Kyle’s.”

“Right on the first guess, dear. It’s your sister, Kaila.”

“Thanks,” Madison said, taking the phone. “Hello, Kaila.”

“Hey, cool! You went off and married our big brother!”

“He’s not our brother, Kaila.”

Kaila giggled. “Of course he’s not, silly. It’s just such a trip, isn’t it?”

“It’s that, all right.”

“I called to say I’m thrilled. You’re perfect for each other.”

“Thanks,” Madison said. The phone made a double-beeping noise—call waiting.

“Kaila, hang on one sec. Don’t go away. You and I need to talk big time. I meant to force you into some nitty-gritty at the gallery, but…Hang on,” she said, and hit the button. “Hello?”

“Madison!”

“Hey, Rafe!” she said, shaking her head with amazement.

“Just called to say congratulations to you and my little bro. Where is the dude, by the way?”

“Working somewhere. I have no idea where.”

“One-track mind! He marries the babe of the century and goes off to work. I’ll have to speak with that boy.”

She smiled. “It’s all right, Rafe. We’ll make up for it somewhere along the line.”

“I’m sure you will. I just wanted to wish you both the absolute best.”

“Thanks. I’ll tell him you called. I know he’ll be sorry he missed you.”

“I’m sure he will. Bye, kid, take care.”

“You, too.” She clicked back to Kaila. “Kaila?”

“I’m here.”

“It was Rafe.”

“Wishing you luck.”

“Yup.”

“Well, that’s all I was doing, too. God! I’m so happy for you both!”

“Thanks.” Her line began to double-beep again. She groaned. “Kaila—”

“Go get it. I’m hanging up. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Wait, Kaila—”

“I really will talk to you later.” Kaila hung up on her.

“Kaila!” Madison wailed, then clicked the phone again. “Who else can it be?” she murmured aloud. “Jassy?” she said into the phone.

“How did you know it was me?”

“I’m running out of family.”

“No one else ever calls you?”

“Yeah, now and then. So what’s going on?”

“What’s going on with me? That’s not the question. You pretended you weren’t even happy to see Kyle,” Jassy taunted.

“That’s not exactly true. And is that your way of congratulating me?”

“No. I didn’t call to congratulate you.”

“Oh?”

“I need to talk to you.”

“Okay. Talk.”

“Not over the phone.”

“Oh, Jassy, you don’t want me to come to the morgue, do you?”

“No. I’m at Jimmy’s place.”

“Jimmy’s place?” Madison said, surprised.

“Do you know where it is?”

“Vaguely. I’ve never been in his apartment, but I met him downstairs in the parking lot once. He’s in one of the apartments on Brickell.”

“Right.” Jassy gave her the exact address. “Can you come right now?”

“I guess.”

“Kyle isn’t there, is he?”

“No.”

“Good. I want you to come alone.”

“Jassy, why this secrecy?”

“Please, just come over. I’ll explain when you get here.”

“All right. I’m on my way.”

Madison hung up the receiver. “Peggy!” she called. “I’m off to meet my sister. I’ll be back soon.”

“No! Not alone!” Peggy called back to her.

But Madison pretended not to hear her, picked up her shoulder bag and left the house to see Jassy alone. The midmorning traffic was light, and she made it to Jimmy’s apartment complex in less than fifteen minutes. She parked, found the right apartment and rang the bell.

“Yes?” came her sister’s voice.

“It’s me, Jassy!”

“Come on in!”

She turned the doorknob, tentatively walking in.

Startled, gaping, she let the door close behind her as she turned slowly around, staring at the living room of Jimmy Gates’s apartment.

It was a small, handsome room. Leather chairs and a matching sectional sofa filled the center of the room, arranged around an entertainment center with a stereo, laserdisc player and a television. The room was painted off-white.

Attractively framed posters were everywhere. Movie posters and playbills.

All of them featuring Lainie Adair.

18

“If I were to see him, I could identify him,” Bitsy corrected. “I mean, how do I identify a guy if I can’t see him?”

“Perhaps you could describe him. To a police artist. Face shape, eyes, hair,” Kyle said. “Would you be willing to do that?”

“Sure. But I don’t know how much help it will be.”

“Why not?”

“Well, he kept dark glasses on the entire time he was here, so I don’t know his eye color.”

“That’s okay. The artist can draw him with the glasses on.”

“Then there was his hair.”

“What about his hair?”

“I think he was wearing a rug.”

“A toupé?”

“Yeah.”

“So he was bald beneath?”

“Who knows? I had the feeling that he was trying to disguise himself. Like maybe he was cheating on his girl with this other one or something, you know?”

“Bitsy, you’re all that we have. I’d really appreciate it if you’d come to Miami with us and work with one of the artists there.”

Bitsy looked at her boss.

“This man has brutally murdered a number of women,” Kyle reminded her.

Her lip trembled slightly. “I know. I want to help. It’s just that I have a kid, and…”

“We’ll split tips just like you were here, Bitsy,” one of the other girls offered.

“And you’ll get your hourly wage,” the manager assured her.

“That’s good of you guys,” Bitsy said, relieved. “Thanks!”

“Hey, honey,” said a busty brunette waitress. “A killer’s on the loose. You go get him, before he gets one of us!”

“Let’s go,” Bitsy said.

“What the hell…?” Madison exclaimed.

“What?” Jassy said, frowning. “Oh, the posters.”

“Yeah, the posters! Of Lainie!” Madison said, staring at her sister.

Jassy curled into a corner of the leather sofa. “He kind of had an obsession with her, I guess.”

“I guess!” Madison turned back and stared at Jassy, shaking her head. “Jassy, what are you doing here? What’s going on? Where’s Jimmy—Is he here, too?”

Jassy shook her head. “Jimmy is working. And I can’t believe you haven’t figured it out by now, but…Jimmy is the guy.”

“What guy?”

“The guy. The guy I’m sleeping with.”

“Oh, my God!”

“What do you mean, oh, my, God! What’s the matter with Jimmy?”

“Nothing, nothing…I just didn’t…I mean—I had no idea, and now…these posters! Jassy, these posters are…scary!”

Jassy shook her head impatiently. “He had a crush on Lainie when he was a kid. That’s why it was so important for him when he worked her murder. And all those posters are collectibles now—worth a bundle.”