James Carol: The Quiet Man

They parked in the hotel basement and took the elevator to the third floor. Freeman and Jefferies were waiting in the conference room. Charlotte Delaney was up on the stage with her crew, getting organised. The two large padded chairs that had been set up in the middle of it were angled so they weren’t quite facing each other. A camera on a tripod had been positioned to catch both chairs. The lights that the TV technicians had brought in were dazzlingly bright.

Winter gave a whistle and Delaney’s head jerked up. She looked over and he waved her to come and join them. Cathy had winced when he whistled. She gave the impression that she would prefer to be anywhere but here. And who could blame her? This morning she’d woken up in paradise, and now she was in hell. There was a round of introductions. Cathy didn’t shake hands. She was hugging herself as if she was cold. Everything about her body language screamed, ‘Go away and leave me alone.’

‘We’re almost set up,’ Delaney said. ‘The plan is to prerecord the interview. That way we can edit before broadcasting. We’ll air directly after the seven o’clock round-up.’

Winter turned through three hundred and sixty degrees, starting at the chairs on the stage and finishing back there. The conference room was painted in brown, beige and white. The carpet was brown, the upholstery on the chairs was brown. They could have been in any conference room, in any hotel, anywhere in the world.

‘This isn’t going to work,’ he said. ‘It’s too anonymous. We want Gifford to assume that Cathy is staying here. There’s nothing for him to latch on to.’

‘We were going to mention the hotel in the link,’ Delaney said.

‘That’s too brief, and if he does catch it then it could come across as being too obvious. The last thing we want is for him to think this is a trap. On the flipside, if he doesn’t catch it, then how is he going to know that this is the Shangri La?’

‘So what do you suggest?’

Winter took out his phone and ran an image search for the ‘Shangri La lobby’. The first picture that came up showed a comfortable seating area that had a polished floor, a high ceiling and tall windows. The Asian-inspired art on the walls would help Gifford to narrow things down further. He held up the phone and moved it in an arc so everyone could see.

‘This is where we do the interview. When Gifford sees Cathy his first reaction will be shock. He hasn’t seen her for over three years and there she is on his TV. Once the initial shock wears off, he’ll start to wonder where she’s staying. He knows that she doesn’t live in the city. If she did he would have found her by now. That means she’s staying in a hotel. Chances are he’ll recognise the lobby because he’s photographed weddings here, but even if he doesn’t it’s not a problem. He’ll just search the internet until he’s joined the dots. Just make sure the artwork is visible, but keep it at the edge of the shot. The key here is to lead him in the direction we want without making him suspicious.’

‘Okay,’ Delaney said. ‘That makes sense.’

She turned to her crew and started barking out orders. Ten seconds later they were hustling toward the stage to get their equipment moved downstairs. Delaney was leading the way, striding out in front like she was going to war.

‘A quick word, please,’ Freeman said to Anderton.

They went off into a huddle at the side of the room. Jefferies tagged along with them, leaving Winter and Cathy standing all alone in an awkward silence.

‘How are you holding up?’ he asked her.

Cathy just stared at the empty stage.

‘Look,’ he went on, ‘I know you probably hate me and I can live with that. I’m not looking for a new best friend here, I’m just trying to find a way to make this as painless as possible.’

She turned slowly to face him. ‘I don’t know you well enough to hate you.’

‘That’s good to hear. So back to my question. How are you holding up?’

‘How do you think?’

‘I think that right now you’d rather be sat on your porch with Brett, drinking cocktails and watching the sun go down.’

Cathy almost smiled. ‘Brett prefers beer and the porch faces east, so it’s better for watching the sun rise, but aside from that I’d say that pretty much covers it.’

‘This is a very brave thing you’re doing.’

‘It doesn’t feel like it.’

‘That’s how you know you’re being brave. Anyone who claims to be brave should be locked away. For everyone else’s safety, not just their own.’

‘Do you think this is going to work?’

The question sparked off a whole load of different scenarios inside Winter’s head. In some the plan worked, in others it didn’t. In some they were victorious. In others all he saw was disaster.

‘If I didn’t think it would work I wouldn’t have brought you here.’ He smiled reassuringly. ‘Do you know what you’ve got to do?’

‘I read the statement, then answer some questions.’

‘Put like that, it’s not so scary, is it?’

‘Aside from the fact that there’s going to be a TV camera pointing at me, and my crazy ex is going to be watching, no, I guess not.’

‘Billy needs to think you’re on his side, so bear that in mind. We want him to view you as an ally. That’s key here. His obsession with you is currently dormant, but it’s still going to be there. We want to tap into that. Seeing you on TV will send him tumbling back in time to when you were together. If that happens then there’s a good chance he’ll try to reach out to you.’

‘How do you know he’ll be watching?’

‘Because he won’t be able to help himself. Serial killers follow the news religiously. Two reasons. They get a buzz out of hearing about their exploits, and it enables them to keep tabs on what the police are doing. The interview will get repeated throughout the evening. At some point he’s going to see it.’

‘Is that what he is? A serial killer?’

Winter nodded. ‘Without a doubt.’

‘Jesus, how could I not have known? I was living in the same house as him. We were sharing a bed.’

‘Don’t be too hard on yourself. He wasn’t active when you were together. Those urges would have been well hidden.’

‘Even so.’

Winter hesitated. ‘My father was a serial killer and neither myself nor my mother suspected a thing. And he was active while we were living with him.’

‘You’re bullshitting me, right? You’re just saying that to make me feel better.’

‘No, I’m not. Cross my heart.’

‘You must have suspected something.’

‘In hindsight, the signs were there, but at the time it never occurred to me that he might be a monster. And why should it? Look at your situation and you’ll see that it’s not much different. Because that’s the really scary thing here. Serial killers like Billy and my father are experts at hiding in plain sight.’

‘When he comes for me, the police will be waiting to arrest him. That’s the plan, right?’

‘They’ll get him long before he gets anywhere near you. The interview will flush him out. As soon as he breaks cover he’ll get taken down. And remember, you’ll be staying at a different hotel. You won’t be in any danger whatsoever. I can guarantee that. Any questions?’

‘Just one. When can I go home?’

Winter was sitting arm-to-arm with Anderton on one of the lobby’s sofas. On the other side of the walkway, a sound man was clipping a microphone to Cathy’s top while Delaney sat there quietly, psyching herself up. The cameraman had set up a small monitor so they could see what was being recorded. Cathy and Delaney were in the middle of the screen. At the right-hand edge of the shot was a glimpse of a painting that evoked the Far East. On the left was part of a window that held the reflection of another painting. This one was distorted but the Asian influence was still evident. Jefferies and Freeman were sitting on the next sofa along. Both of them had their eyes glued to the monitor. The sound man did a quick sound check then gave the thumbs up and moved out of shot. Delaney sat back in her chair and got comfortable. Then she faced the camera.