“I hate to tell you this, but the road you’ve chosen will probably be bumpy all the way along. Nature of the beast.”
She tightened her robe. “You’ve got a point there.”
Phil, who’d slept in his clothes, waved to catch her attention. He’d rolled off the couch and put on his coat and hat. “I’m going to the trooper station to check on Amarok,” he told her.
She covered the phone. “Thank you. Call me as soon as you get there.”
“I will.”
Trying not to panic before they had any reason to, she waved as he went out.
“So … you’re taking pity on your fellow psychiatrist?” Ashton said once she’d returned to their conversation.
“Not exactly. There isn’t much about Tim Fitzpatrick that makes me feel sympathy and even less I admire. He’s arrogant, insufferable. But innocent is innocent, and if he isn’t responsible for those murders, he doesn’t deserve to spend his life in prison.”
“What makes you think he might be falsely convicted? The evidence, at least what I heard of it on your voicemail, sounds solid to me.”
“It is. Unless DNA found at either crime scene matches Jasper’s, he won’t be getting out anytime soon.”
“Jasper is the man who attacked you in high school.”
“You remember…”
“Not a lot of men are named Jasper. It’s difficult to forget. You’re not easy to forget, either,” he added.
She wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so she didn’t cut in; she let him continue.
“But this DNA you mentioned—the police have DNA they weren’t able to match to a member of the victim’s family? Or anyone else? Or what DNA are you talking about?”
“The woman for whom Charlotte was babysitting when she was murdered had only lived in that house for a short time. The person who rented it before her ran a daycare. Some kids she watched regularly, while others were drop-ins.”
“That means quite a bit of human DNA went through that place.”
“Exactly. To add to the confusion, her teenage son threw a party whenever she was gone, and so many kids attended his parties, even he couldn’t give the police an exhaustive list.”
“I see. They’ve got several unmatched DNA profiles you’d like to have compared to Jasper’s.”
“Now that we have his DNA, yes. As soon as possible.”
“Sorry if you already told me that. Your message cut off in the middle. Did you say the testing’s being done?”
“Not yet. I notified Detective Dressler, the detective who investigated his case, that testing is now possible, but he hasn’t called me back.”
“No detective wants to be bothered with a closed case. He has too many open ones. And putting the wrong guy behind bars isn’t only a travesty, it’s a publicity nightmare.”
She willed Amarok to come walking through the door as she stared down at Makita. “All true, but we have a moral responsibility to check this out. We’ve got new information that could have a material impact on whether Fitzpatrick belongs in prison.”
“This convicted colleague of yours—he doesn’t have an attorney?”
“Not right now. From what he’s told me in his many letters, he can’t afford to pay one.”
“I see.”
“I’ll completely understand if you’d rather not get involved, Ashton. Working for free isn’t an attractive prospect. But you were the only person I could think of who might be willing and able to help. That’s why I contacted you.”
“I’m intrigued despite the lack of remuneration, but I’ll admit my interest has little to do with Dr. Fitzpatrick’s guilt or innocence.”
She patted Makita, who’d edged closer in hopes that she’d hang up and take him out. “What do you mean?”
“I’d be willing to jump in and do all I can if there’s even a remote chance it’ll help capture Jasper. I’m not the only one who hasn’t forgotten him. The whole nation’s been waiting for resolution on your case.”
It would boost his career if he solved it, might even result in a movie or TV deal. That was where the remuneration would come in.
“No one’s been waiting more than me,” she said. “And capturing Jasper might be a possibility. We know he was in San Diego only a few days before Charlotte was murdered, and that he was most likely in Arizona, where we think he lives, shortly after. In order to kill Charlotte in between, he must’ve flown to Boston from San Diego and from Boston to Phoenix in a very short time. We could check the airline manifests to see how many people did that in the days before and after Charlotte’s death.”
“He can’t be using his own name.”
“No, he’s got to be using an alias, but this could help us figure out what that alias is.”
“There must be hundreds of people who fly into Boston from San Diego every day. And he might not have come from San Diego. What if he flew from Los Angeles, where there are three major airports?”
Evelyn could see why Ashton might be skeptical. This was a long shot. But they had to follow every lead. “His mother said he’s a family man now. If he has a wife and kids, he probably didn’t have a lot of time to fly all over—or drive, for that matter. I think he’d fly to Boston from San Diego and from Boston to Phoenix. And I’ll bet not too many of the people who fly to Boston from San Diego turn around and go to Arizona right after.”
“True…”
“Plus we could automatically rule out all women, and anyone too old or too young, if birthdates are given, which I think they are. Once we narrow down the list, we should have a manageable number. After that, we simply look at each and every individual we have left and see if we can’t get DNA on anyone who seems even slightly suspicious.”
“It’s worth a try,” he said. “Where’s Fitzpatrick incarcerated?”
“Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center. It’s about an hour’s drive from Boston—”
“I’m familiar with it. I’ll see when I can visit him.”
Having Ashton on board should help with everything. Despite her immediate anxiety over Amarok, Evelyn felt a great deal of relief that Ashton was willing to get involved. “Will you contact Detective Dressler with Boston PD and tell him you’re taking the case?”
“I will. We should move on the DNA testing right away.”
“We won’t get anything quickly if we go through whatever lab the police use.”
“You’re suggesting a private one?”
“Yes. I’ll pay for it.”
“That could get expensive.”
“I don’t care. We don’t have any time to waste.” She should’ve offered to pay before, when they were trying to test the DNA found under the nails of one of the Peoria victims against the mitochondrial DNA of Jasper’s mother, but she’d never guessed it would take eight months.
“You’re sure?” he said.
She thought of Sierra Yerbowitz and how slim the chances were that Amarok would find her alive. If they didn’t catch Jasper soon, others would be hurt. “Positive.”
“Okay, I’m familiar with a lab in Philadelphia that might be able to work us in. I’ll see what I can arrange.”
“Thank you. And I’ll let Tim know you’re coming.”
Eager to hang up, she almost put down the phone. She wanted to figure out what’d happened to Amarok. But he spoke again.
“It’s good to hear from you, Evelyn.”
“Good to hear your voice, too. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your help.”
“It’s time to catch the bastard who nearly killed you. It’ll be a win for all of America,” he joked.
“I could use the peace of mind.” Once again, she thought he’d hang up, but he didn’t.
“Are you happy up there in Alaska?” he asked. “I have to admit part of me hopes you’re lonely as hell and almost ready to come back to Boston, where there’s a certain attorney who never had the chance to take you out.”
She laughed. “I’m all for having dinner with you. It’d be great to catch up. But I should warn you that my heart belongs to a lawman up here.”
“You’re in a relationship?”
“I am.”
“That’s surprising. You once told me you’d never marry. Do you remember?”
“I remember telling almost everyone that, but Amarok has helped me over certain … hurdles, and that makes it more of a possibility.”