Nameless

by Joe Conlan

  Perhaps it was time to change tack. Leland decided to shift his focus to the crew, especially the cabin stewards whose responsibility it was to cater to the passengers and clean their rooms. His team had done a reasonable job moving the passengers quickly through the exercise. He could now afford to assign a good number of the interviewers to the ship’s service providers. He called Agent Frye who was overseeing operations at the security office and ordered him to get the process started. He barely had time to end the call when his dog bark ringtone echoed against the walls of the theatre.

  “Sir, it’s Howard Klein.” Leland had assigned Special Agent Klein to stand watch outside Daniel’s hospital room. “Agent Falcone regained consciousness about five minutes ago. He’s been asking a lot of questions. He wants to know what’s going on.”

  “He has no idea his wife and in-laws were murdered?”

  “He doesn’t seem to be aware, sir.”

  “Don’t say a word. Stall him for now. Try to distract him and keep him calm. I’m on my way.”

  Robert called Annie to notify her Daniel was awake. Having a moment of rare compassion, he thought it might help to have a close friend present when they told Daniel his wife was murdered. Annie didn’t hesitate to accept his invitation. Broward General was less than a ten minute drive from Port Everglades. Dropped off by one of his men directly in front of the main entrance to the hospital, Leland held up his badge as he bolted past the security guard on the way to the elevators with Annie in-tow.

  Daniel was in a private room on the third floor. Agent Leland and Annie could see that Agent Klein and the attending physician were standing outside Daniel’s room as they darted out of the elevator. After making their way up the hallway, Leland addressed the physician, Dr. Fred Clauson.

  “I’m Agent Robert Leland. I’m in charge of a criminal investigation involving your patient. This is Annie Bryan. How is Daniel doing?”

  “Physically, he’s doing fine now, although his body’s been through a great deal of trauma. The amount of heroin found in his system approached levels significant enough to cause overdose and death. All his vital signs are currently back to normal. Psychologically, he’s very agitated and obviously distressed. He wants to know where his wife and in-laws are and how he ended up in the hospital. He had no recollection of what happened. Agent Klein told me it’s your preference to notify the patient of their deaths. So far, we’ve been able to avoid telling him, but I’m glad you’re here now. I know this is going to be devastating news for him, but I don’t think telling him will have any adverse effects on his health at this point.”

  “Well, I guess we better get to it, then. Agent Klein, you wait out here. Unless you feel the need to be in the room when we talk to him, Doctor, I’d prefer Annie and I do this alone.”

  “That’s fine. I’ll be at the nurse’s station if you need me.”

  Annie and Robert entered the room. Daniel instantly lurched upright into a seated position and almost screamed, “Annie, Robert, thank God you’re here. What the hell is going on? Where’s Deborah? Is she alright? No one wants to give me any information around this place. What the fuck am I even doing here?”

  Leland said, “Daniel, try to settle down. It’s not doing you any good to be so agitated. Why don’t you sit back and take a deep breath.”

  “I don’t want to take a deep breath. I want to know what’s going on. I have a right to know. I’m sick of people telling me I need to relax.”

  “Alright, Daniel. You’re right. You do have a right to know... I’ve got really bad news. There’s no easy way to do this so I’ll just come right out and say it. I’m very sorry. Your wife and in-laws were murdered last night on the cruise ship.”

  Daniel cried out, “What? That’s impossible. No, no way. How could you say something like that, Robert? Annie, what’s going on?”

  With tears flowing down her face in narrow, crooked lines of black mascara, Annie responded, “I’m so sorry, Daniel, it’s true. Robert wouldn’t joke about something like that.”

  Daniel collapsed in his bed. He released an agonized howl that could be heard at the nurse’s station at the opposite end of the hall. The emotional pain caused by the realization that unexpected tragic news was true pierced his heart like a poisoned spear. He frantically tore at the intravenous needle in his arm in an attempt to tear it out. It took Robert, Annie and two orderlies to restrain him. When they were finally able to calm him to the point of concession, Daniel said, “I need to get out of here. I want to be with Deborah.”

  “There’s nothing you can do for her right now, Daniel. You need to concentrate on getting yourself better,” said Robert.

  “I don’t give a fuck. I want to see her. Physically, I feel fine,” he lied, his head pounding like it had been hit with a sledge hammer. “Who did this to them, Robert? How were they killed? Is the murderer in custody?”

  “Daniel, we think it was Damien Drysdale. It wasn’t pretty. You don’t want to know the details. They haven’t found him yet,” said Annie.

  Daniel buried his face in his hands. Annie was right. Knowing the particulars of Drysdale’s previous murders, he didn’t even want to imagine what might have happened to his wife. He asked, “How’s it possible? He was on the cruise ship? Was he a crew member?”

  “We don’t know, yet,” said Robert. “We’ve been searching the ship, turning it upside down. We’ve been showing his employee photograph to every passenger before we let them off the ship. Three quarters of them have already been interviewed and not one indicated they recognized him. I have the team going through the crew members as we speak. If he’s on the ship, he’s found a great hiding place.”

  “This is my fuck’n fault. I’m a trained law enforcement officer, for Christ’s sake. I should’ve seen something. Maybe, if I was more alert. Oh God, this can’t be happening. I’ve got to get to that ship. I’m not gonna sit here and do nothing while that fuck’n psychopath is on the loose. Call the doctor so I can get these needles out of me.” Daniel rummaged around the bed and under the sheets for his call button. Before he was able to grab it, Leland pulled it out of reach.

  “Daniel, we have everything under control. The first order of business is to get yourself healthy. You can worry about helping with the investigation when you get out of here.”

  “Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do, Robert. I’m the Special Agent in Charge. It was my family that was murdered. I need to be there. I’m checking out of here right now.”

  “I’m sorry, but, no you’re not. Sit back and I’ll tell you why.”

  “You’re not gonna tell me what to do. I’m not gonna sit here and twiddle my thumbs. Now, either call the doctor or give me that damn call button, now, Robert. I’m not gonna ask again.”

  Robert raised his voice in an attempt to get control of the situation. “Daniel, listen! After the murders occurred, you were found wandering the halls holding both murder weapons. You were covered in blood. We have a lot to talk about. I understand you’re in a lot of pain right now, but we need to get some information from you and fast.”

  Daniel took a couple of minutes to digest what Leland had said. It was all beginning to feel like some kind of surreal nightmare. Nothing was making sense. One thing he knew for sure. He didn’t like the way Leland was looking at him. After a long period of uncomfortable silence, Daniel responded, “You’re not suggesting I had anything to do with this, are you? You’re out of your fuck’n mind if you think I’m gonna put up with this shit. Annie, please go get the doctor.”

  “Daniel, calm down,” implored Robert. “No one is saying you murdered your wife. This is a very complicated situation and you’re way too personally involved. That’s all I’m saying. I can’t begin to understand what you’re going through and I’m very sorry. But you’ve got to back off and let us handle this. Now, I’d like to give you a few minutes to settle down and then we need to go over what you remember. I’m gonna step out for a few minutes. I don’t mind if Annie stays while
I’m gone. It’s up to you. But, when I get back, I’m gonna have to ask her to give us some privacy.”

  No matter how much it was repugnant and perverse to every fiber of Daniel’s character to sit back rather than act, he realized Leland was not being unreasonable. Coming to that understanding caused the reality of the situation to come crashing down on him. In that moment, he lost all control of his emotions and began to weep silently. The piercing pain slashed at his heart leaving him unable to speak. Annie sat on the edge of the bed and put her arms around him. Together, they cried and tried to comfort each other, though there was no possibility of peace for either of them. Leland left the room to give them time.

  Daniel felt as though a twenty pound boulder was lodged in the pit of his stomach. The thought of telling his children their mother and grandparents were dead was more than he could bear. He considered himself a complete failure. He was a highly trained FBI agent who dedicated his entire being to protecting the public, yet he couldn’t even save his own family. There was no denying it. It was a theme, a curse he couldn’t escape. The same shame that crushed him after his brother’s death was threatening to squeeze the life out of him now. The disgrace of it all combined with his grief over Deborah and his in-law’s death was a heady cocktail. Rallying every ounce of discipline available in his weakened mental and physical state, he sat with Leland and tried to relate his recollections of the last night on the ship before he lost consciousness.

  “Robert, I can’t remember anything that happened after we decided to take a break from a game of dominoes we were playing. I definitely don’t remember walking down the hall with a knife and .357 Magnum. That’s just crazy.”

  “Why don’t we start with what you do remember? The coroner estimated the time of death anywhere between ten p.m. and midnight. Do you remember what you did for dinner?”

  “Yes, we ate at the main dining room.”

  “Who’s we?”

  “Deborah, Jack, Kate and I.”

  “What time did you get there?”

  “Deborah and I spent most of the day relaxing at the pool. We went back to the room about 4:30 to get ready for dinner. We both took showers. By the time we dressed and were ready to go, it was about 5:30. We called Jack and Kate. They said they needed a little extra time, so we agreed to meet them down at the dining room at six.”

  “Why don’t you just take me through the rest of the evening? Up to the time you have no memory.”

  “Ok, the women wanted to go to the early farewell show. It started at eight. I would say we were done with dinner at about 7:30 then headed straight for the theatre. When it was over, we all went back to our cabin, Deborah’s and mine. Deborah’s parents are really into dominoes. We played just about every night of the cruise. Deborah invited this guy we met one of the first days of the cruise. He played once or twice with us.”

  “How many people played the game that night?”

  “The five of us.”

  “There were only four chairs around the table.”

  “No, there were five.”

  “I’m telling you there were only four chairs around the table. Who was this guy you invited to the game?”

  “I didn’t invite him, Deborah did. His name was Isaac Jefferson. He was kind of a pathetic guy. Deborah felt sorry for him. His wife left him at the altar and the cruise was supposed to be their honeymoon. We hung out with him a few times. He climbed Dunn’s River Falls with us. But, there definitely were five chairs around that table.”

  “If that’s the case, then someone took one away before we inspected the room. Before we get to that though, I want you to take me through the rest of the evening. What time did you guys get back to your cabin?”

  “Just after nine. Isaac probably showed up five minutes later. We started the game almost immediately after he got there. We played for an hour or so. Then, we decided to take a break. Isaac fixed us some drinks and that’s about all I remember. The next thing I knew, I woke up in the hospital.”

  “Can you describe this guy, Isaac, for me?”

  “He’s about my age, about the same height, 6’2. Probably weighs around two-forty, definitely overweight. He was completely bald. Had blue eyes. He was from Detroit, a firefighter. He was travelling alone. Like I said, the cruise was supposed to be his honeymoon.”

  “Was he naturally bald or was it shaved?”

  “I couldn’t be absolutely positive. Probably shaved. It was pretty clean.”

  Up to that point, Daniel had been so distraught he didn’t have the opportunity to analyze the events leading to his memory loss. Relaying them to Leland, the light bulb in his head suddenly and terrifyingly switched on. He asked, “You don’t think he was Drysdale, do you?”

  “I don’t know, Daniel. It’s possible. Other than you, he would have been the last one to see Deborah and her parents alive. There’s a way to find out. I have a picture of him.” Leland picked up his briefcase, opened it, pulled out the photograph of Damien Drysdale and handed it to Daniel. In an instant, Daniel recognized the eyes that initially gave him an uneasy sensation. A lump that felt like the size of a grapefruit developed in his throat as he gradually realized his fatal mistake. He was so concentrated on his reconciliation with Deborah and governed by his guilt over her disapproval of his inability to forget work, he totally let down his guard. The more he thought about it, the more obvious it became. Isaac always seemed to show up at the most opportune times. He weaseled his way into spending time with the family with his pathetic story, a form of manipulation Daniel should have surely identified. Other than the occasions when they were with Isaac, Daniel never saw him anywhere on the ship. The few times Daniel knocked on his door, he wasn’t there. How he could have ignored his first instinct was moronic and unacceptable. It was a skill he had honed over many years of investigating crimes and the criminal mind. Never, would he be able to forgive himself. Once again, he lost complete control of his emotions. If he had a weapon in his possession, he would have seriously considered putting an end to his life. After several minutes passed, he finally regained his composure enough to speak. By then, Leland had already guessed what his answer would be.

  “It’s him, Robert. He must have gained weight to disguise himself. He was a good twenty to twenty five pounds heavier than what I saw in the airport surveillance tapes. And, obviously, he shaved his head bald. How could I be so stupid? I should’ve insisted that I get in touch with you when I wanted to. Deborah talked me out of it. None of this would’ve happened. The motherfucker would be behind bars. Deborah and her parents are dead and it’s all my fault. I was so concentrated on our reconciliation, I lost all focus. Now, instead of having my wife back, she’s gone forever. My children have no mother.”

  Daniel turned away from Leland to weep privately. Though he thought he had already depleted his inventory of tears, it was going to be a while before he was able to collect himself. Sensing Daniel wanted to be alone, Leland took the opportunity to leave the room to call Agent Frye. He described his conversation with Daniel and gave him an updated, detailed description of Damien Drysdale. He asked him to have Ted Hauser look up Isaac Jefferson’s cabin number and try to locate him as soon as possible. Doubting the suspect would respond to a public address summons, he asked Frye to have the ship searched again and once found, take him into custody without delay. For at least the moment, he decided not to inquire about what happened to the picture of Drysdale he had sent to Daniel via text message on the first day of the cruise.

  Agent Frye ended his interview abruptly with a middle-aged man from Venezuela and allowed him and his wife to leave the ship. He walked briskly to the security office to find Hauser wasn’t there. Emphasizing the urgency of the issue, he asked the security staff secretary to contact her boss and have him come back right away. When Hauser arrived moments later, Agent Frye updated him on the latest information obtained from Daniel. Hauser sat behind his desk and punched in the name Isaac Jefferson using the search engine of the computer softwa
re for locating passenger information. The window that popped up surprised both men. It read, “Passenger not found.” Hauser repeated the process with no change in the result.

  “What does that mean?” Frye asked.

  “It means no one by that name was on the cruise.”

  “No way, you sure?”

  “I’m positive. That’s exactly what comes up if the passenger wasn’t on the cruise you’re looking at.” Confused, Agent Frye called Leland to report their findings.

  “Yes, Chris, make my day and tell me you have Jefferson already in custody.”

  “No such luck. Far from it. The guy’s not even on the passenger list. Now, Hauser’s telling me King has never had a passenger by that name.”

  “It doesn’t totally surprise me. If it was Drysdale, he could’ve given the Falcones one name and the cruise line another. Hold on. Let me ask Daniel if he knows his cabin number.” Leland turned to Daniel and said, “Daniel, they didn’t find him on the passenger list.”

  “That’s impossible. I saw his keycard with his name. I also went to his cabin.”

  “I’m sure the name had to be false. And he probably fabricated the card. The son of a bitch is clever. Do you remember his cabin number?”

  “Yes, it was Deck 9, Cabin 476. But Robert, it would’ve taken huge balls to give us a different name than the one he used to reserve the cabin. What if I had checked on him at the purser’s desk? He’s not that sloppy. It doesn’t make sense to me.”

  “We’ll sort that out later. Right now, we need to find the son of a bitch.”

  Daniel agreed with Leland, but was totally baffled by the results of the computer search. Some hard thinking would be necessary. Leland had already moved on relaying the cabin number to Agent Frye.

  “You need to get to that cabin right away, Chris. Take a few agents and the S.W.A.T. team with you. Is the ERT still there?”