“He knows that when the basement’s in use, there are always at least two people here. How could he take on two people at once?” Rob asked.
“Maybe he is that angry, that unhinged,” Paul answered. “Wish we could have caught up with him.”
“I’m glad you didn’t,” Rob said.
A flash of anger crossed Paul’s face. “Why do you say that!”
“What if he is the murderer and he had a gun?”
“I apologize, Rob. You’re right.” Paul gave him a rueful smile.
“Apologize. For what??
“You certainly saw I was angry.”
“Everyone becomes angry at times.”
“I’ll try not to let it happen again. At least over something so trivial.”
“I don’t blame you. We’re all three on edge. Our emotions are bound to be raw.”
“At any rate,” Carlton interjected, “Christos is gone, and there’s little chance of finding him.”
“Maybe he’ll show up again,” Rob said.
“I wouldn’t count on it,” Carlton replied.
Chapter 8
When Paul and Rob arrived back at the condo, there was a note sticking out of the mailbox. “I was hoping to find you home. I need to talk to you and to get in touch with the members. It’s important. Here’s a number where you can reach me.” He scrawled a phone number and the name Christos at the end of the note.
Rob held up the note for Paul to read. “I’m astounded. Why would he do this?”
“Maybe he’s being cagy. Trying to plan some sort of game with us. Or…”
“What?”
“Maybe he isn’t the murderer. Maybe he doesn’t know that Harvey was killed.”
Paul sighed. “That’s certainly a possibility.”
“So do you want to call him, or shall I?”
“I suppose it’s better if I do,” Paul answered. “After all he knows me.”
“But maybe that will scare him off” Rob said.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, he did come here supposedly expecting to find me.”
“I suppose he did, though he probably knows only that someone lives here. I mean he doesn’t really know who you are.”
“So we’ve decided I should call then?” Rob asked.
“Yes, and he had to be here only a short while ago. So why not give it a try, Try to set up a meeting. You and I with him.”
“Sure. Any particular time or place?”
“I’d like to make it as soon as possible. Any time tomorrow. The earlier the better.”
“Breakfast somewhere?”
“How about the restaurant where we met? You and I and Harvey.” Rob nodded. “See if Christos can meet us there. If not, maybe lunch. I can always take a day off if necessary. No one to answer to but myself.”
“Okay.” Rob pulled out his key and let Paul precede him inside. He motioned Paul to a chair while he sat on the sofa and picked up the phone. He looked at the note and dialed.
“Hello?” The voice sounded tentative.
“Christos, my name is Rob. I live…well, where you used to live.”
“At the condo? The club’s condo?”
“Yes. You wanted me to call you.”
“I’ve been trying to get in touch with the club. With the members. It’s important for me.”
“What do you mean?”
“I need to take care of some unfinished business.”
Rob stiffened. Could this be related to Harvey’s murder? “Oh? What sort of business?” He hoped his voice sounded neutral.
“I’d rather not talk about it. I just need to see the members of the club. All at once or individually.”
Rob decided to play along. “So you want to know how to get in touch with them?”
“Very much. But I don’t feel comfortable talking about it. I mean I don’t even know you. In fact, I don’t even know your name.”
“Rob. That’s my name. Rob McKenzie.”
“Glad to meet you, Rob. But what I want to talk with the members about is personal. I’d feel very uncomfortable talking to anyone who wasn’t part of the group when I was their…their ‘boy’.”
“Well, then, how about you and I get together for breakfast.”
“But I just said I’d be very embarrassed about telling you why I want to contact the members.”
“What if I bring Paul along?”
“Paul Barton?”
“Yes.”
“Nice man. Hmmm. Let me think about it.” There was a pause. “Okay, why not?”
“How about breakfast?” Rob asked.
“The sooner the better,” Christos answered. “Just tell me when and where.”
Rob held his hand over the receiver and spoke quietly to Paul. “What time tomorrow? Christos says the earlier the better.”
“Let’s make it seven then.”
Rob again held the phone to his ear.
“You still there, Rob?”
“I’m still here.”
“Thought maybe you’d hung up on me or something.”
“Nope. Anyhow, how about seven?”
“I’m usually an early riser, so that’s fine. Where do you want to meet.”
“You remember the restaurant where the club takes all the prospective…well, prospective ‘boys’ for a meeting?”
“The one in the Village, right?”
“Yes.”
“Etched forever in my mind.”
“Okay. See you there.”
“Thanks for calling me back.”
“You’re welcome.” Rob replaced the receiver.
“So tell me,” Paul said.
“Tomorrow at seven at the restaurant. Christos said he wants to talk with the members, all at once, or individually. We’re going to talk about how he can do that.”
“Do you think he’s sincere, or that this is some sort of ploy?”
“He sounded sincere. But, of course, I don’t know him, so I can’t be sure.”
“Might as well not worry about it.”
“Can you stay the night then?”
“Hadn’t thought of that. But…well, I’d have to wear the same clothes tomorrow.”
“Before we go to the bedroom we can stick your underwear, socks, and shirt in the washer.”
“You’ve persuaded me. And maybe I can even wear one of your shirts…if we don’t have time for the dryer.”
“Of course.”
“Then what are we waiting for. It’s late and I’m sleepy.”
“You certainly know where the bedroom is.
In minutes, the two were undressed, the clothes were in the washer, and the two of them were naked in bed.
***
A slender young man with black hair was waiting under a canopy that led to the entrance of the restaurant. As soon as he saw Paul, his face lit up. “Dr. Barton! How are you?”
“Hi, Christos. How have you been?”
“Got my job back as a translator, so I’m finally doing okay.” The young man—Rob judged him to be about 25—rushed forward hand extended.
“Christos, this is Rob.” The two of them shook hands.
“We talked last night,” Christos said.
“Right,” Rob answered. “It’s good to meet you.”
“Shall we?” Paul indicated the door.
The three of them walked inside.
“Three?” the hostess asked.
Paul nodded.
“Inside or patio?”
Paul turned to Christos. “Patio will probably be less crowded, though it might be a little chilly.”
Christos smiled. “Well, I’d rather not be overheard.” He turned to Rob. “Patio okay with you?”
“Sure,” Rob answered. He was impressed with Christos. He’d expected… Well, he didn’t know exactly what, but certainly not someone who was as polite and seemingly self-assured.
“Just go out your door to the left,” the hostess said. “Thomas will seat you.”
Once they
were waiting for their orders, eggs and toast for Paul and Rob and pancakes for Christos, Rob brought up the reason for the meeting. “You said you wanted to talk to me?”
“Yes…but that’s before I knew Paul would be here too.”
“Not quite sure I follow,” Rob answered.
Christos laughed. “Shouldn’t admit this. But you were just a means to an end” He held up his hands. “Now let me explain before you take offense.”
Rob nodded.
“I really wanted to talk with the members, but I don’t know how to contact them. I don’t have their phone numbers anymore. When I so abruptly left the condo, I was very angry, and, I admit, awfully immature. I threw away everything I could think of that had anything to do with the group.”
“You must have been really upset,” Rob answered.
“Oh, I was.”
They were interrupted by the waiter bringing their food.
“Let’s just enjoy our breakfast,” Paul said.
Once they finished eating, Paul turned his attention to Christos. “Why did you want to get back in touch, Christos? You weren’t thinking of trying to come back, were you?”
“Heavens, no. That part of my life is over, and I have no desire to go back.”
“Then why—”
Christos smiled. “That is the question, isn’t it?” The smile disappeared from his face. Okay, I was a total shithead back then. The way I took advantage. It was like everything I could dream of was suddenly dropped into my lap, and I had to take advantage of every little bit of it before it went away.”
Paul gave him a sympathetic smile. “The phone, right?”
“It was mostly that. But it was more. I was selfish; couldn’t believe my good fortune. Not that I didn’t like the members. I did, at least for the most part. But that kind of life…” He turned to Rob. “Sorry, I know you’re the new…employee, and I don’t mean to denigrate what you’re doing.”
“He probably won’t keep the job much longer,” Paul said.
“Really? So how long have you worked for the club.”
Rob laughed. “Just a week.”
“A week!” Christos was obviously surprised.
Paul reached over and patted Rob’s hand. “You see,” he said, “Rob and I—”
“No need to explain further. I understand.”
“But I’d appreciate you’re keeping it a secret, at least for the time being.”
“A secret? But why?”
“Let me ask you a question first.”
“Of course,” Christos answered.
“Were you outside the gym last night?”
“I hate to say so, but yes, I was.”
“What were you doing there, Christos?”
He sighed. “Like I said, I wanted to talk to the members, and I thought I might see at least a couple of them there.”
“A couple?” Rob asked.
“I thought maybe you—though I didn’t know why the new person was then—and one of the members…you know, having a special night.”
“But you ran away,” Paul answered. “I opened the door and saw you running down the sidewalk.”
“I heard the door open but didn’t look back.” He turned his gaze to Paul. “So you know I was there.”
“I wasn’t sure,” Paul answered, “but I suspected it was you. But I don’t understand why you ran away.”
“I realized what I was doing was a bad idea?”
“In what way?”
“Okay, suppose Rob was there with one of the other members.”
“Yes,” Paul answered.
“Let me put it this way. Okay, I know you and Rob are…very special now to each other. But what if that weren’t the case. What if you or another member were there with Rob, and I walked in on you. I’m sure you wouldn’t like it. Neither would anyone else.”
“I see your point.”
“Anyway, I’m sorry. I heard someone talking and then starting to open the door, and that’s when…well, I panicked, which, I think, is the best way to put it.
“I need to ask you something very serious.”
“I don’t follow.”
Paul continued. “Do you know anything about Harvey?”
“Mr. Winton? I don’t know anything. I haven’t seen him since I left. Why do you ask?”
“Christos,” Rob said, “Harvey’s dead. He was murdered.”
The young man’s face turned white. “Oh, my God! When—”
“Last night, Christos,” Rob said.
“Oh, Jesus. How— How was he killed?”
Christos seemed really shocked, Rob though, even down to the blood draining from his face. Could person fake that sort of thing?
“I hate to have to even say this,” Paul told Christos, “but he was tortured to death.”
“Tortured?” His voice sounded weak.
“Everything Harvey liked to do to others was done to him—in the extreme.”
“Especially the cat-o’-nine tails with the metal tips,” Rob told him.
“You saw him?” Christos asked. “I mean after he was killed?”
“We did,” Paul answered. “Just an hour or so before you came to the gym.”
It was as if a light dawned in Christos eyes, which became wide with fright. “And you think I did it! Oh, sweet Jesus. Oh, my God, you think I did it.”
“You were awfully angry at the club.”
“I’d never do anything like that. What sort of monster could?”
“We don’t know who the murderer is, Christos. We’re just looking at things from every angle we can think of.”
“Okay, I can understand that it looks bad for me. If Harvey had just been murdered a short time earlier, and I was in the area… But you have to believe me, I had nothing to do with this.”
Rob’s voice was sympathetic. “I’m sorry, Christos. Sorry to upset you so much. But you haven’t said why you wanted to talk to the members.”
Christos took a deep breath. “It’s bothered me that I behaved so badly. I’ve been brooding about this ever since. So I wanted to do two things. Apologize for my behavior and also to offer to pay back the money for the phone calls. I finally got up the nerve to come back.”
“So it was just a coincidence that you came back now—a matter of timing.”
Christos shook his head as the waiter delivered the check.
“Can you tell us where you’re staying in case we want to get in touch?” Paul asked.
“Of course. I live a block or so from the U.N. building—good place since I’m close to work. You have a pen, I’ll give you the address.”
Paul pulled a gold Cross pen and a small notebook from his pocket. “Ready,” he said.
Christos gave him the address. “So you still think I may be the one? The person who murdered Mr. Winton?”
Paul shrugged. “Sorry, Christos. Especially, since you now seem to be such a different person from the one we all knew back when.”
“I suppose I am.”
Paul picked up the check and pulled out his wallet.
Chapter 9
“So what did you think?” Paul asked once he and Rob were back at the condo? Paul planned to go to work late.
“His reaction seemed pretty genuine to me. I mean, you saw how pale he was, and as I thought then, I don’t see how you can fake something like that.”
“And his dismay when we told him that there would be no funeral,” Paul said. “So I tend to agree, though I’m not going to mark him off the suspect list yet.”
“And we do have a lot more checking up to do,” Rob said. “And I’m not looking forward anymore to performing my duties.”
“The next one’s not so bad but the one after that is bound to be one of the worst, right?”
“Sam? Yes. I can’t believe that I had all these fantasies that I then I so much wanted to bring to life. And, I admit, I did enjoy them…for the moment. But I tried them, and it’s over. I don’t want that sort of life anymore.”
Paul l
aughed.
“What is it?”
“I was thinking. You were the perfect candidate for the job. The only one I’ve known whom the members chose with no discussion. I mean it was unanimous without any objections.”
“Well, I’m sorry about that. But…”
“As you might guess, I’m certainly glad you changed your mind about the job.”
“About the job, Dr. Barton?” Rob kidded. “I think it was more in favor of a former literature prof.”
“Literature prof?”
Rob laughed. “So, do you think we have time for a little hanky panky before you go to work?”
“Work? What the hell is that?”
***
It was two nights later, just before Rob’s meeting with Bill Cooper, an encounter he faced with dread. A week ago it would have excited him to anticipate what might happen. It still amazed him how much a person could change in just one week. All his life he’d wanted the sort of thing he’d experienced with Mr. Carlton, with Harvey, and at the sex club meeting. Now he had no interest at all. It was a case of reality not at all matching fantasy. Well, he was glad he found that out.
“I know you’re apprehensive about the meeting,” Paul told him the afternoon before he was to meet Bill. But I don’t think you need to worry.”
“Why not? Isn’t he into bondage and whatever?”
“Yes, but with him it’s more pretend than real. Like some gay men like to project an image of being hard or rough but underneath they’re pussycats?”
Rob laughed. “I suppose.”
“Well, Bill’s pretty much like that—from what I’ve heard.”
“You’ve never been with him?”
“Had sex with him? Sure, at the meetings, and it never amounts to much of anything. He’s really a gentle soul at heart.”
“But he’s with the other two, right?”
“I’ve never understood that.”
“What do you mean?”
“The other two? Well, they’re pretty serious about it, I think. Though they pretty well control what they do at the meetings. No one would want to put up with hardcore stuff there. I mean with the…employees, yes. But not with the other members. But with Bill, I’m sure you don’t need to worry.”
“That’s a big relief.”
Paul smiled. “I’m sure it is.”
Rob and Paul arrived fifteen minutes early so Paul could once more hide behind the lockers. “Don’t like this at all,” Paul said as he unlocked the door to the basement.
The Old Men's Sex Club Murders Page 5