Death With Dostoevsky

by Katherine Bolger Hyde

  ‘I’m talking about internal change. They were both determined to live better lives, to overcome the demons within them. And they’d made a start on that by the ends of their respective stories.’

  ‘But what about Ivan Karamazov? Or Rogozhin from The Idiot? You can’t say they were redeemed.’

  ‘They lacked faith. Descent into despair or madness is often the lot of those who lack faith, if they’re faced with a crisis.’

  He snorted. ‘And what about Prince Myshkin? He had faith, and look where it got him. A gibbering idiot with no hope of recovery.’

  ‘Myshkin was a martyr. His mind was defeated by its own illness and by the actions of the people around him. That doesn’t mean his soul was damned. I’m sure that even through the wreck of his physical brain, his soul was held tenderly in the hands of God.’

  At this point Emily realized that both her companions were staring at her uncomprehendingly – Sidney because he had no understanding of spiritual matters, Colin presumably because he was not familiar with Dostoevsky. And perhaps he had no understanding of spiritual matters either. One could be a good cop without believing in redemption, she supposed.

  ‘I see Dostoevsky as focusing on retribution,’ Sidney said. ‘People get what’s coming to them in his stories. Exile, imprisonment, madness, murder.’ His eyes darkened and a shadow passed over his face. ‘Suicide.’

  A shiver passed through Emily as she remembered Smerdyakov’s untimely end. It occurred to her that perhaps being arrested would prove to be Sidney’s salvation – from himself.

  Sidney stood suddenly, jostling the table and sloshing hot chocolate out of all their cups. ‘If you’ll excuse me—’

  Colin leapt to his feet a split second after Sidney and grabbed him by the elbow. ‘I don’t think so, Mr Sharpe. You’re coming to the station with me for further questioning.’

  Sidney spluttered, attempting vainly to wrench his arm free. ‘You have no right—’

  ‘I have every right. Because of something Mrs Cavanaugh has right there in her bag.’

  Emily pulled out the white plastic bag with its distinctive Eddie Bauer logo and held it well out of Sidney’s reach.

  He lunged for the bag, toppling the flimsy table and spilling hot chocolate everywhere. Emily retreated out of reach, shoving the bag under her now-sopping coat. Colin grabbed for Sidney’s coat collar, but Sidney twisted away and made for the door.

  The door opened from the outside. Two uniformed policemen stood in the doorway.

  ‘Grab him!’ Colin shouted. And they did.

  To her astonishment, Colin invited Emily to ride along with him to the station while the uniforms took Sidney in their black-and-white. ‘I’ll need to get a formal statement from you about finding that bag. May as well do it now.’

  Emily would have preferred to wait until they could drive in snow-free daylight, but she supposed time was of the essence. ‘Of course.’

  ‘I’m hoping Wharton will be gone for the day and the captain will let me question Sharpe on my own. You can watch through the two-way mirror if you want.’

  Emily’s natural curiosity warred against her compassion – or was it merely squeamishness that made her reluctant to witness Sidney’s further degradation?

  ‘We’ll detain him for now while we get the bunny suit tested. Unless we get a confession – then we can arrest him right away. Otherwise, once the suit tests positive for Curzon’s blood and Sharpe’s DNA, we’ll arrest him and let Daniel go.’ He blew out a long breath as he inched the car through the swirling whiteness. ‘And then I’ll find some excuse to hightail it out of town, because Wharton is going to be out for my blood.’

  ‘Why? If you’ve found the real murderer?’

  ‘Because I’ll have done it all on my own – with your help, of course, but behind Wharton’s back. I will have exonerated his pet suspect and grabbed all the glory for the real catch. Not the way to win friends and influence people at this station.’

  Emily had no response. Of course, she knew cops were people too, as fallible as anyone else; but it saddened her that they would let personal jealousies and resentments take precedence over the conscientious execution of their duties.

  ‘At least I’ll have to put up the best case I possibly can so the captain will back me up. You worked out how Sharpe did it?’

  ‘I think so. In fact, Sidney as the killer makes better sense of the Bronze Horseman statuette than any other theory we’ve looked at. He knew where Daniel kept the statue and what it meant to him. He was always hanging around the library; he could have taken it at any time.’

  ‘OK, I see that. But that makes the killing totally premeditated. And why frame Daniel? I thought he worshiped him.’

  ‘Worship can so easily go sour, especially if the idol proves to have feet of clay. Daniel’s only human. I don’t know what specifically he may have done to turn Sidney against him, but I imagine it wouldn’t have taken much to tip the balance.’ She thought back over the scenes she had read that afternoon between Smerdyakov and Ivan. ‘Or, conceivably, he could have set Daniel up in order to provide himself with a safety net – not planning on Daniel being arrested, but ready to drop him in it if Sidney were arrested himself.’

  ‘Hmph. Well, setting that aside – walk me through how you see it playing out that night.’

  ‘This is pure speculation, of course, and I haven’t had time to iron out the wrinkles yet. But let’s suppose Sidney planned ahead how to do the murder, but not when. He stole the statuette and the bunny suit in preparation, maybe even carried them with him in his bag. Then Monday night he ran into Daniel wandering around in a fugue state and he thought, here’s my chance. He must already have known Taylor was still in her office – in fact, he was most likely telling the truth about having been in the building at ten-fifteen.’

  ‘Yeah, no reason to think otherwise. Maybe that bit about seeing Daniel there was on the level too.’

  ‘Possibly. But he wouldn’t have wanted Daniel around while he was actually doing the murder – in case Daniel remembered it later on. Maybe Sidney took him along to the Paradox to establish his alibi and parked him there, hoping he’d stay put. Then Sidney went back to Vollum, put on the bunny suit – possibly in the restroom, though he’d have risked being seen – then went to Taylor’s office and killed her. He stashed the bunny suit somewhere, planning to dispose of it later. Maybe he even had the gall and the incredible luck to wash it off in the Vollum restroom without being observed.

  ‘After that, he went to get Daniel, who may or may not have stayed in the Paradox all that time, but anyway, Sidney found him. He took Daniel back to Taylor’s office, where they “discovered” her body. Somehow Sidney got Daniel to touch the body – probably encouraged him to check for signs of life, maybe try to revive her – so Daniel got her blood on his clothes. Oh, and at some point in this whole process, Sidney wrote Daniel’s initials in the appointment book.’

  Colin shook his head. ‘This “plan” has so many variables, it blows my mind that it almost succeeded. I guess even for killers there’s some equivalent of beginner’s luck.’

  ‘I know. Fortune favors the bold, I suppose. Anyway, after that he probably escorted Daniel back to his dorm and put him to bed, making sure he didn’t change out of his bloody clothes.

  ‘As for what Sidney did with the bunny suit – where he stashed it, why he didn’t put it in the dedicated laundry bin right then – I have no idea. Maybe he had a hiding place he thought was secure, but after your last interview with him he got the wind up and decided the bin would be more anonymous, less likely to be traced to him.’

  ‘But surely he would have known his DNA could be on the suit? He may be crazy, but he isn’t stupid.’

  Emily shrugged. ‘Either he forgot about that, or he trusted the suit wouldn’t be found and linked to the crime. Or he thought he himself would never be suspected and tested. If he is indeed mentally ill – and I think he is – that kind of arrogant assumption wouldn’t
be out of character.’

  By this time they’d reached the Hawthorne Bridge, where the colder pavement over the water risked turning the growing carpet of snow into ice. Colin slowed to a crawl, although he had taken the time back on campus to put chains on his tires. ‘Once we get over the bridge we’re almost there,’ he said through gritted teeth. ‘God, I hate snow.’

  Emily had always loved snow in the past, but tonight it did seem sinister. With the swirling whiteness obscuring all the modern buildings and freeways around her, she could almost believe herself to be crossing the Neva, heading toward the majestic Baroque streets and squares of St Petersburg. She could be inside one of Dostoevsky’s novels – where anything might happen.

  TWENTY-SEVEN

  At the station, Colin led Emily to the observation area next to the interview room. He went to the lab to drop off the bag with the bunny suit, then returned to check in with her before going in to question Sidney. Behind Colin was a tall gray-haired man whom he introduced as Captain Ramirez. Emily stood to shake the captain’s hand.

  ‘I understand we have you to thank for our suspect here,’ he said. ‘Ordinarily we don’t like members of the public to get this involved in a case, but Richards tells me you come highly recommended. I served with his uncle Luke many years ago, back in our army days. Good man. And I think I even remember him showing around a picture of a beautiful redhead. Could that possibly have been you?’

  Emily gave a shy smile. ‘I certainly hope it was. Luke and I fell in love all those years ago, but then life got in the way and we didn’t get back together until last summer. He seems to have connections everywhere.’

  ‘Indeed he does. Quite the people person. Young Richards here has inherited his uncle’s persuasive powers – he’s talked me into letting him lead this interview. I’m going to sit in for form’s sake, but this one’s all yours.’ He clapped Colin on the shoulder. ‘If all this goes well, you could be heading for a promotion, son.’

  Colin’s Adam’s apple bobbed and his mouth twitched, as if he were trying not to smile. ‘Yessir. Thank you, sir.’ He cleared his throat. ‘You OK, Emily? Can I get you some coffee, glass of water?’

  ‘Too late for coffee – I’d never sleep – but I’d love a cup of tea. I haven’t quite warmed up yet.’

  ‘Coming right up.’ Colin sprinted down the corridor and returned in a few moments with a steaming styrofoam cup, Lipton tag hanging off its rim. Emily suppressed a grimace. She’d been spoiled by Katie’s imported loose-leaf tea, brewed and served in fine china. But at least this was hot.

  She cradled the cup in her hands and nodded to the two men as they left for the interview room. Behind their backs, she made the sign of the cross in the air. They were going to need all the blessing they could get.

  She’d been watching Sidney through the two-way mirror as she waited for Colin to return from the lab. He’d sat nearly motionless, arms crossed over his chest, staring inscrutably at the door. The glare of the bright ceiling light off his round lenses concealed his eyes and made it impossible to discern his expression. It was as if he had simply shut down, waiting for something to happen. A robot needing human contact to bring him to life.

  When the door opened to admit Colin and Captain Ramirez, Sidney leaned forward, uncrossing his arms. The light no longer hit his lenses, and she could see his eyes. They focused on Colin with an intensity that made Emily devoutly thankful she was not in the room with them. Sidney Sharpe was not a physically powerful young man, but the psychic energy he radiated in that moment could have felled a giant.

  The fact that Colin did not flinch raised him a notch in her estimation. She’d liked him all along, but now he was showing a mettle to match his uncle’s. Luke would be proud.

  Colin switched on the recorder and went through the spiel – date, time, names of those present.

  ‘Mr Sharpe, you were observed earlier this afternoon entering the educational technology building on the Bede campus, where you dropped a white plastic bag containing a clean-room coverall into the designated laundry bin. That coverall was retrieved and found to be stained with blood. Would you like to tell us about that?’

  Sidney gave a smile that reminded Emily of a serpent. ‘What’s there to tell? You seem to know all about it.’

  ‘First of all, what were you doing with that coverall? There are no classes involving the clean room during Paideia.’

  ‘Oh, I borrowed it for a project of my own. I’m building a computer from scratch in my spare time.’

  Colin made a note, presumably to have the clean room searched for evidence of such a project. ‘Why didn’t you put the coverall into the laundry as soon as you’d finished with it?’

  ‘I’d nicked myself with one of the tools and bled on it. I wanted to clean the blood off right away, before it had a chance to set.’

  ‘Very public-spirited of you. Still, you could have done that right in the building and then put the coverall into the bin. Why take it away?’

  Sidney blinked twice. ‘I was in a hurry. I had to be somewhere.’

  ‘Which would mean the blood would have time to dry anyway. So there really was no point in taking it away.’

  Sidney’s mouth opened and shut. He gave a self-deprecating smile. ‘Silly me. I just didn’t think of that at the time.’

  Colin raised one eyebrow. ‘So when was this? That you used the coverall and took it away?’

  ‘This morning. Right before lunch. I had arranged to meet Mr Goldstein for lunch.’

  ‘So he can verify that?’

  ‘Well, I’m not sure. He didn’t show up, so it’s possible he’d forgotten all about it.’

  That Sidney certainly was a slippery character. But he was clearly making this up on the fly; it was impossible that it would all hold up under scrutiny.

  ‘So why did you wait until late afternoon to return the coverall?’

  ‘I got busy. One thing and another. Including being interviewed by you, Detective.’ He shrugged. ‘I figured since the blood had set, there was no hurry. I waited until I happened to be passing that way.’

  Colin flipped back through his notebook. ‘I interviewed you in your dorm room, finishing at four oh five p.m. The dorm is southeast of the ed tech building. But you were seen approaching the building from the west at four-fifteen. Not much time to have done some other errand and be passing back that way.’

  Sidney swallowed visibly and shot out a pointed tongue to wet his lips. ‘I, uh – I went over to Vollum to see my advisor. But he wasn’t in, so I headed back to the dorm. I had the coverall in my bag, so I stopped by the ed tech building and dropped it off.’

  Colin’s stare bored into Sidney until he dropped his eyes. ‘We’ll be checking on all that, of course.’ He gave that a moment to sink in, then went on. ‘Let’s leave the coverall for the moment and go back to your movements on the night of the murder.’

  Sidney blinked and adjusted his glasses. ‘Remind me, Detective, which night was that?’

  Emily watched Colin’s nostrils flare as he absorbed this obvious delaying tactic with no verbal reaction. ‘Monday the fourteenth. A week ago today. As you remember perfectly well.’

  ‘Of course. Silly me. So much going on right now. I’m afraid I got a little muddled.’ Another smile. This one might have looked convincingly innocent on someone else.

  Colin absorbed this without comment. ‘Let’s start with your previous statement. You said you saw Daniel Razumov in Vollum Center at ten-fifteen that evening.’

  ‘That’s correct.’

  ‘What were you doing in Vollum at that time?’

  Sidney licked his lips again. ‘Another attempt to see my advisor.’

  ‘At that hour?’

  ‘He, uh … he tends to keep late hours. But he wasn’t in that night.’

  ‘Who is your advisor?’

  ‘Professor Banerjee.’

  ‘And where exactly is his office?’

  Sidney swallowed with a grimace. His voice came out
raspy. ‘Could I have a glass of water?’

  Colin nodded to the uniformed officer standing by the door. He went out, then came back in with a small paper cup, which he set before Sidney.

  Sidney downed the water in one gulp. ‘His office is on the main floor. Room two-thirteen.’

  ‘So what were you doing on the third floor?’

  ‘Did I say I was on the third floor? I think I said I saw Daniel coming down the stairs from the third floor.’

  Colin flipped through the folder of statements next to him on the table, then back through his notebook. He took his time with this, and Emily could see the sweat starting to bead on Sidney’s brow.

  ‘Your original statement was vague as to your own whereabouts. But you told Professor Cavanaugh later that you had seen Professor McClintock’s door open at that time. That puts you on the third floor.’

  ‘Does it?’ Sidney gave a nervous giggle. ‘How odd. Oh, I remember now – I went up to use the restroom.’

  ‘Isn’t there a restroom on the main floor?’

  ‘Yes, but it was … closed for cleaning. Yes, that’s right.’ He gave a triumphant smile.

  At some point Sidney was bound to talk himself into a corner he couldn’t talk himself out of, but he was creative – it could take a while. Emily admired the patience of the two policemen – especially the captain, who had sat motionless all this time, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed, narrowly observing his suspect.

  Colin gave Sidney a stare that would have wilted Emily, but Sidney kept smiling, although his hands, clasped on the table, grew white-knuckled with his effort to keep them still.

  ‘Leaving that for now, you said you went from Vollum to the Paradox Café. Did you see where Daniel went?’

  ‘Oh, ah … he came with me. Didn’t I mention that?’

  ‘You did not. We have witnesses to confirm you were at the Paradox from ten-thirty to eleven. Was Daniel with you the whole time?’

  ‘Yes. In fact, I … I left him there.’

  Emily was certain Sidney was only admitting this because he knew it could be confirmed. But it did fit in with her theory.