Chris Carter - The Night Stalker

Hunter finally turned and faced Captain Blake. ‘When we spoke on the phone, he thought I was a detective with the fraud squad.’

‘Fraud squad? Why?’

‘Because that’s his crime, Captain – impersonating. We all know James Smith isn’t his real name. Nevertheless, he’s managed to obtain a driver’s license, an ID card, a library card, maybe even a passport, all under a false identity. That can get him one to five years inside. But as he said on the phone to me, that’s not enough to trigger a major investigation. That’s why he couldn’t understand why his photo had hit the papers. Why we were after him. When he found out I was with the Homicide Division, he hesitated for a moment, then there was a distinct change in his voice.’

‘Like what?’

‘Trepidation… fear, but not for himself, or of being caught.’

The captain looked lost.

‘The reason why he hesitated was because at first he couldn’t figure out why Homicide would be after him. But as we all know, he’s far from stupid. He quickly realized that it must’ve been something linked to his obsession.’

‘Laura Mitchell,’ Garcia said, comprehending.

Hunter nodded. ‘We know that they exchanged phone numbers at the exhibition. We checked Laura’s cell phone records. Just a couple of days before the presumed timeframe of her disappearance, she received a call from a payphone in Bellflower.’

‘That’s the next neighborhood along from Norwalk,’ the captain said. ‘Smith’s apartment is in Norwalk, right?’

Hunter and Garcia nodded.

‘Only one call?’

‘That’s right. My guess is that they talked that day, maybe arranged to talk on the phone again later that week or even meet up somewhere. She didn’t turn up or he got no reply on his next call. He kept on trying, still no answer. He got worried, maybe a little annoyed. When I mentioned Homicide on the phone to Smith, it took him just a few seconds to make the connection.’

‘So he started staking out Laura Mitchell’s place to try to spot her, get some sort of confirmation,’ Garcia said.

‘That’s what I figured he’d do,’ Hunter agreed.

‘Well, for someone who isn’t stupid, that’s a pretty dumb thing to do, don’t you think?’ the captain shot out. ‘You’re gonna tell me that he didn’t at least suspect her place would’ve been watched?’

‘You saw the pictures of his collage room, right? He’s been obsessed with Laura Mitchell for years. The kind of obsession that overrides rational thought, Captain – pure, undying love. Of course he knew it was dangerous. Of course he knew he could be caught. But he couldn’t help it. He needed to find out. He needed to make sure she was OK.’

‘Like an addiction?’

‘Stronger than an addiction, Captain. It’s a compulsion.’ Hunter turned towards the officer in the room. ‘Has he requested a lawyer yet?’

‘Not yet. He said he wanted to talk to you.’

All eyes moved to Hunter.

His gaze returned to James Smith for a moment longer. ‘OK, let’s do it.’

James Smith’s eyes darted towards Hunter as soon as he entered the interrogation room.

‘I’m Detective Robert Hunter of the Homicide Special Section. We talked on the phone a couple of days ago.’ Hunter placed a tray with a coffee pot and two mugs on the metal table. ‘Coffee?’

‘She was kidnapped and murdered?’ Smith’s voice was edgy and concerned. His eyes looked haunted.

‘It’s fresh.’ Hunter poured two cups and slid one over towards Smith. ‘And you really look like you could use some.’

Smith’s eyes didn’t leave Hunter’s face. ‘Laura was kidnapped and murdered?’ He pleaded rather than asked this time.

Hunter pulled the chair across the table from Smith and sat down before sipping his coffee.

‘They told me I was being arrested on suspicion of the kidnap and murder of Laura Mitchell.’

‘Yes, she was kidnapped… and murdered,’ Hunter said and paused for a second. ‘Everyone in the station has their money on you. They think you did it.’

Smith closed his eyes for a fraction of a second and breathed out a heartfelt breath. ‘When?’

Hunter regarded him.

‘When was she murdered?’ There was pain in his voice.

‘A few days before we knocked on your door.’ In contrast, Hunter’s voice was calm and collected.

Smith kept his eyes on Hunter but his stare was distant. The kind of stare you get when your mind is somewhere far away.

‘We know that you talked to Laura on the last night of her exhibition at the Daniel Rossdale Art Gallery. And we’ve seen the room inside your apartment.’

His focus returned to Smith’s stare.

‘I have the right to have an attorney present, don’t I?’

‘Of course you do, but I’m not here to interrogate you.’

Smith chuckled. ‘Really? So what’s this, a friendly chat? You’re here to be my buddy, is that it?’

‘Right now, you need all the friends you can get.’

‘Friends won’t help. You already said that everyone’s money is on me. Your mind is already made up. You’ll believe what you wanna believe no matter what.’

‘Try me.’ Hunter leaned forward.

Smith’s focus moved to the two-way mirror and the tension intensified. ‘Do you really think I’d be able to hurt Laura… in any way?’ His gaze returned to Hunter. ‘I love her in a way you’ll never understand.’

Hunter allowed the moment to settle.

‘The kind of love that strangles your heart and keeps you awake at night?’ he countered. ‘The kind of love that makes it hard for you to breathe when she’s near, even if she never notices you? The kind of love that if you have to wait forever for just a simple touch, or a kiss, you will?’

Smith went silent.

‘Yes, I know the kind of love you’re talking about.’

Smith interlaced his fingers together so tight his knuckles started to lose their color.

‘Is that how you loved her?’ Something in Hunter’s voice made Smith believe that maybe he understood.

‘I knew Laura from the bank. Way before she became a famous painter.’ Smith’s tone was full of melancholy. He gave Hunter a sad headshake. ‘But she didn’t know me. She never noticed me. I don’t think she even knew I existed. I spoke to her a couple of times back then, in the coffee room. She was always nice, don’t get me wrong, but every time I talked to her, I had to reintroduce myself. I was never important or attractive enough for her to remember who I was.’ His eyes filled with sadness. ‘I wasn’t even invited to her leaving party.’

Inside the observation room, Captain Blake turned to Garcia. ‘We need a list of names and photographs of all bank employees from Laura Mitchell’s section during her last six months there.’

Garcia was already on the phone. ‘I’m on it.’

On the other side of the glass Smith relaxed the tight grip on his hands and blood returned to his knuckles. ‘I stayed with the bank for another two years after she left. But I followed her career from the beginning. I read every article, attended every exhibition. I even started liking and appreciating art.’ A sliver of confidence crept into his eyes. ‘Then one day I looked in the mirror and decided that I wouldn’t be weak any more. I decided that I was important and attractive enough for her to notice me, I just needed to polish off some rough edges.’

‘So you created your new identity,’ Hunter pressed.

‘More than an identity. I created a whole new person. New diet, strict exercise program, new haircut, new hair color, colored contact lenses, new wardrobe, new attitude, new way of talking, new everything. I became someone she would notice. Someone she would talk to and flirt with. Someone she’d like to spend time with. I became James Smith.’