Chapter Twelve.
Thepersonal phone calls were beginning to take their toll. It seemed everyone had been content to leave her alone for a few days to recover from Saturday's marital disaster. By Tuesday, however, the comfort cushion was over. The whole world suddenly seemed to think it was time to check on Andie. Friends called. Her father called. Her mother called. Several times.
"Mom, really. I'm okay." Her voice was strained. She had one eye on all the work piled up on her desk.
"You're sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure. Honestly, I've been so busy I haven't even had time to think about Rick."
Her mother paused, as if something other than Andie's well-being were on her mind.
"What is it, Mom?"
"Why did you go through with the ceremony, Andie?" "What?"
"If you knew he had cheated on you, you should have just canceled. It would have saved a lot of embarrassment."
"Rick deserved it."
"It's not him I'm talking about. It was embarrassing for the whole family."
"Gee, Mom. Sorry I ruined your day."
"Don't be that way. Your sister made a terrible mistake and immediately apologized."
"Linda couldn't wait to jump out of bed with Rick to come tell me she'd fucked him."
"Andie!"
"It's the truth. That's the real reason she knocked on my door in the middle of the night to give me her so-called apology. She hates me. She always has. What did you think, forcing me to name her as my maid of honor would suddenly make her love her adopted sister?"
"You should have shown more consideration for your guests."
"I was angry."
"It was cruel."
"Cruel? Can't you just let me have my moment and move on? Maybe it's not the way you would have handled the situation. But for me it brought closure. That's just my personality. I need to get even."
"That's not a very Christian attitude."
The mention of Christian values was an all too familiar and infuriating tactic. All her life, whenever she had misbehaved, her mother had found a subtle way of attributing it to the fact that she was half Native American, an adopted child.
There was a knock on the door. It opened a foot, and Victoria poked her head in. "There's a break in the case."
Andie cupped her hand at the receiver, trying not to let Victoria know it was her mother. "I gotta go," she muttered into the phone.
"We're not done," her mother answered.
"Let me put you on hold." With a push of the button she cut off her mother's protest, then waved Victoria in.
"We got a message from someone who may be the killer."
Andie did a double-take. "What kind of message?" "E-mail from a copy center in Seattle. One of those temporary office places where you can rent a computer for an hour and send all the e-mail you want over the Internet." "He sent an e-mail?"
"Photographs, actually. They appear to be our Jane Doe, alive. From the looks of things, however, I wouldn't guess she was alive for very long after the little photo session. Looks very weak, obviously been beaten. The neck was badly bruised, too, which suggests some ligature strangulation."
"You sure she was alive?"
"No question. One look at those eyes, and you know she's looking right at her killer."
Andie fell silent. "How'd you get the photos?" "Minneapolis field office sent them to me."
"He e-mailed the FBI in Minneapolis?"
"No. He sent it to the Torture Victims' Institute, which is in Minneapolis. They contacted the local FBI."
Andie asked, "There's an institute for torture victims?" "Quite an impressive organization, actually. Some very skilled psychotherapists. Victims of political torture all over the world go there for treatment and counseling."
"So maybe he's insinuating there's some political agenda attached to his killings."
"No political agenda," said Victoria. "His message is more straightforward."
"Which would be what?"
"You said it at the meeting. We're dealing with a sadist. And his agenda is torture. Period."
Andie was suddenly flummoxed. Victoria sensed her discomfort. "Not sure how you should feel, are you?" Andie shook her head.
"That's the thing about profiling. Once you figure out what kind of monster you're dealing with, there's no rejoicing in being right. Not till he's caught."
Andie said nothing.
"I'm having hard copies of the photos reproduced. You need to get them distributed to the task force as soon as they're ready. You'll also need to coordinate with the Minneapolis field office on their follow-up with the institute. I don't think an airplane trip is necessary, but make sure the personnel records are thoroughly reviewed, with an eye in particular for disgruntled former employees. Certainly if the institute has received any messages like this in the past, you'll want to check that out. And there's also an International Center for Victims of Torture. It's in Denmark. Touch base there, see if this jerk sent them anything."