−If you’re having me on, it isn’t funny.
−Why would you say that? Why would I ever want to make fun of you?
−I don’t know... You’re 19, and I’m only 14. I imagine it’s really easy for you to laugh at my hopes and dreams.
−I would never do that; I swear that what I’m telling you is the truth. What hopes and dreams are you talking about? Do you maybe feel the same way?”
−Well, I like you, and have done for some time now...
−You don’t know how happy it makes me to hear that. I was so afraid that you’d get angry and stop talking to me... I thought about not telling you anything, so as not to scare you, and I would at least be able to have you as a friend.
−I was thinking the same thing. I couldn’t imagine that anybody like you would take notice of me, but at least I could talk to you...
−How could you think that? Did you think I was going to let somebody as wonderful as you get away?
Gus stopped typing and looked at Carlos and Natalia with an expression of triumph.
“He’s taken the bait. Now all that’s left for me to do is spend hours and hours talking about how much we love each other, so do me a favour and fetch me something to drink; I’m in for the long haul now.
***
When they went into the kitchen, Natalia sat down on one of the stools and indicated another to Carlos for him to do the same thing.
“Is something up?” he asked, surprised.
“Well, yes,” she replied. “This morning I requested a few hours’ leave to take care of some personal matters outside of work, and I went to San Sebastián to question Alex’s old girlfriend.”
“Have you gone crazy or something? Do you know what would happen to us if Aguirre finds out?” Carlos stood up out of his seat and began to pace through the kitchen.
“What would happen to me. In the eventuality that they do discover it, the responsibility will be exclusively mine,” Natalia corrected him. “I already know you told me that we shouldn’t go, but something was telling me that she had important information, and I wasn’t wrong.”
Carlos stopped, looked at her for a moment, and sat back down again, looking attentively at her for her to continue talking.
“Okay, Esther told me that Alex enjoyed tricking other girls over the Internet, making them believe that he was in love with them. He told her that one of the girls he had been chatting with had a boyfriend and that at some point the two had ended up arguing over her.”
“Is that all?” asked Carlos, incredulous. “And what makes you think that has anything to do with Charon?”
“The girl’s name. She was called Mónica, like his ICQ password. The problem is that I can’t think how to fit all of this in with the hypothesis we have about Charon’s personality. If the one being tricked had been the boyfriend; if Alex had made him believe that he could want a homosexual relationship, then that young man could be our prime suspect.”
“I wanted to talk to you about that,” interrupted Carlos. “What proof do we have that Charon is homosexual and that he could have wanted a relationship with Alex?”
“There is no proof... That’s why it’s a hypothesis. We’re just considering it because of the graphological analysis of his online font.”
“Well, now... The problem with that is that, on the one hand, we have the fact Charon chose that font, which might not mean anything other than him just liking that font, and, on the other hand, we have the statements of all of Alex’s friends, family members, and other people he knew, who confirm that Alex would spend the day chasing girls.”
“But the analysis could be right. My friend is a great graphologist. And that obsession with girls could be a disguise for hiding his homosexuality...” retorted Natalia, feeling angry.
“Or it could simply be that he liked the girls,” replied Carlos, smiling conciliatorily in the face of Natalia’s tone. “I’m not saying that we reject the hypothesis, I’m just saying we also have to bear in mind the hypothesis that Alex might not be homosexual.”
“Then what was it that linked him with Charon?” asked Natalia.
“Well, you yourself have said several times that the hypothesis did not entirely fit; that, if Charon was a homosexual in denial, he should have murdered other homosexuals, or try to rape the girls in order to demonstrate that he was capable of doing it. I think we ought to consider new hypotheses regarding what it was that linked Charon with Alex, and try to test them out. Like, for example, the idea that neither of the two were homosexual; that they fought over the same girl; and that her boyfriend ended up getting so sick of it that he decided to kill him.”
“It’s possible, but that still doesn’t answer the question of why he chooses girls as victims. It’d be more logical that he would take his revenge for the hurt that Alex caused him out on the bodies of other young men,” argued Natalia.
“We’re in a bad mood today, aren’t we?” joked Carlos.
“No, it’s not that. We can take any one of these hypotheses as valid. In reality, any one of them could be the truth. Or they could all be false,” she said, feeling lost and confused.
“There’s no need for us to get down about it now,” Carlos tried to encourage her. “The only thing I want is for us not to shut our eyes to any idea. And you have to acknowledge that this last one is pretty coherent. Jealousy is a very powerful motive. Try to find logic in it.”
“All right,” said Natalia, trying to focus. “Let’s imagine a relationship in which the guy is very much in love, but the girl prefers Alex. He can’t take it any longer, and he kills Alex, but the one who really betrayed him was her. That’s why his victims are girls whom he meets over the Internet. He goes along taking his revenge on the original girl, by taking it out on the bodies of all of the other girls,” pondered Natalia, as she sat down. “And that’s why he doesn’t kill any more men. Alex was just a rival he needed to eliminate but, the thing that truly hurt him was the girl’s rejection; therefore he has to repeat it over and over again.”
“Do you see? It all makes sense.”
“Yes, I can’t deny it. But, I don’t know why, I’m not convinced,” she insisted.
“It doesn’t convince you because it contradicts all of your previous wonderful hypotheses. But don’t worry; we can all make mistakes. On my part, I’m glad to verify that you’re human too,” joked Carlos.
“I’m not so proud as to not acknowledge my mistakes... And I remind you that the information that brought us to this latest hypothesis was also attained by me.”
“It’s okay, don’t get angry,” he said. “You know I always take your ideas into account. Let’s see, tell me, what do you think happened with Mónica?”
“The most likely thing is that he also killed her. So the only thing you have to do is convince someone over in the archives department to look for any similar unsolved murders and, once we find her, we’ll know who her boyfriend was and we’ll be able to arrest him.”
“Don’t you think it’s possible that she’s still alive?” Carlos asked her.
“Alive? No, I don’t think so,” she answered. “If we presume that the crimes he’s committing are a recreation of how much he hates her, the logical thing would be to think that the first one he killed was her, but that his desire for revenge was so strong that it was not enough for him to kill her once. That’s why he has to replicate her murder.”
“What if he loved her so much that he couldn’t kill her? Maybe with these murders he’s not reproducing her own murder, but rather substituting one murder for another.”
“I don’t know... We know he’s a highly obsessive person, entrenched in duty. If that girl caused him so much pain, he wouldn’t be able to allow her to keep living.”
“Haven’t you ever loved anybody enough to forgive all their mistakes; enough for duty to cease to have meaning; and for the only thing you care about to be with that person?” Carlos said to her in a soft voice whilst he looked intently at her. “It ca
n happen to you even though you may know it’s not the right time; even if initially that person may have seemed unsuitable to you. Haven’t you ever felt like that?”
Natalia did not know how to answer at first. Was he talking about Charon’s feelings or his own? What was he playing at? Or was it only her imagination that was making her see hidden meanings where there were none?
“There are people to whom duty is the most important thing; people who know how to control their feelings, and who do what they have to do,” she answered at last, forcing herself to hold his gaze. “And I think that Charon is that kind of person. But we’ll not rule out the idea that she could still be alive. If that girl was ever on ICQ, it’s possible that she’s still using that account. I’m going to ask Gus to search for her details.”
It seemed to her that in Carlos’s eyes there shone a spark of disappointment. Maybe he really was trying to tell her something, and she had just ruined it. She left the kitchen trying to ignore those doubts. If he really did feel something for her, if there could be something between the two of them, they would be able to talk about it once the case was solved. The fear of letting her final chance slip by came back to torment her, but she knew that she was doing the right thing. Charon was on the verge of falling; they could wait a few more days.
***
The car’s headlights lit up the following curve, which was as blind as the previous ones. Was I ever going to get there? It seemed impossible to me for somebody to live in a place so far away from civilization, but Silvia had told me that this was where she lived, and I had no reason not to trust her. I had to find the perfect place for the sacrifice, to confirm that the place was secure, and that everything would go well.
The steep slope came to an end, and I came to a group of village houses. That was where Silvia must live. I continued along a small white road, and straight away I could make out an abandoned rugby field. I drove towards it, analysing the place. It was solitary, and not so far away as to make her feel unsafe and not show up, but it was within three minutes from the town. The houses could be spotted perfectly from there. If she screamed, it was possible people would hear her, so I needed to attack with precision and render her unconscious with the first blow.
On the other side of the road began a forest, which rose up in a gentle incline, to cover the whole mountain. I stopped the car on one side of the road and got out. The air was very cold, and carried a strong scent of pine and damp. I lit a cigarette and walked towards the thicket. The ground was covered in soaked pine needles, and turned out to be very slippery. I walked parallel to the rugby field, hiding myself between the trees, and smiled. I had now found the perfect place to wait for her and, furthermore, the forest would serve as a useful hiding place for me if anything went wrong. I tried to dispel that thought from my mind. Nothing could go wrong, not this time.
I sat down on a rock and continued to smoke as I thought about all of the details. It was possible that, upon seeing that I was not there yet, Silvia could decide to go towards the slope to see whether I was coming; she may even decide to go down to the cable car stop. I needed to avoid that at all cost. She had to stay in this place, whatever happened. I would insist on that point when we finalised the date. If she stayed there, looking towards the town to see if I was coming, it would be very easy for me to approach through the forest and surprise her from behind. She would never expect me to appear from that direction.
I got up from the rock and went back towards the car. I pulled away again, following the white road. It continued along the mountain, gradually rising before reaching the top. It must be a well-traversed road during the summer time, but on a winter’s night, there was nobody there. I would leave the car behind the first bend, as close as possible to the shadow of the trees, and then I would come back, walking across the forest in order to lie in wait for her. Then I would use the same road to come back on. It seemed it was going to be easy.
I turned carefully, taking advantage of some extra space in the road, and went back towards the village. The feeling of unrest in my stomach was still present, growing increasingly stronger. I needed to forget the nerves; everything was going to go well. I passed once more alongside the small group of houses, thinking that inside one of them, Silvia would be peacefully sleeping, that she was so close... If only I could call her on the telephone and tell her that I had come to see her by surprise, and she would come out, we would be able to finish it right there and then. But it could not be that way. I needed to do things properly. If I calmed down a little, everything would go perfectly this time.
CHAPTER FIVE
−I’ve always been really bad at maths. To tell the truth, I’m not good at any subject.
−Don’t talk nonsense. You are a really smart girl... The only thing you need to do is have more confidence in yourself, like I do.
−Yeah, and put in more hours, but the thing is I just don’t like studying.
− I am going to move away from babying you and telling you what you ought to do now, but I will say that perhaps you really ought to study more.
Gus smiled. Wow, this guy certainly had some nerve. How could he be planning to murder a young girl, knowing that she did not have any future, and on top of that try to convince her to spend her final days of life studying?
−Yes, of course... For example, I could dedicate the hours I spend talking to you to studying instead.
−No, please... :-(
−It was only a joke. You’re so much more fun than maths.
−I should hope so, because I love being with you.
−Man! You’re saying ‘be’, but we’re not exactly together.
Gus anxiously awaited the reply, hoping for a promise or at least a suggestion of a future date. So far, Charon had not tried anything, and it made Gus nervous to think that this lack of urgency could be due to the fact that he may have already chosen another possible victim with whom to meet up. He heard the sound of the keys in the lock, and a pair of high-heeled shoes in the hall. Gus did not move from the chair to greet Natalia. What he was doing in that moment was much more important.
−Well, that would be because you don’t want to.
−Who said I don’t want to? I’m longing for it...
−Oh, well I hadn’t said anything to you because I thought that perhaps it was too soon, and that you were going to say no. I didn’t want to scare you.
Natalia came into the living room followed by the dog, which was scampering around between her feet. Gus greeted her with a smile.
“Come on; get over here now, run... He says he wants us to meet up.”
She quickly went up to him, pulled up a chair, and sat down next to him, just as he was writing his answer:
−Why would I be scared? I thought you knew I loved talking with you, and that I’m dying to meet you.
−Yes, but I didn’t know you wanted a date so soon. You know, what with how there’s all this stuff right now about the Internet, especially ever since the murders of those girls started... It’s possible you wouldn’t have dared to meet with me alone.
−Don’t worry about that, I know you. I know I have nothing to worry about.
Gus laughed, as he took two cigarettes out of their packet.
“Fuck, just look at this guy ... Talking with him, nobody would guess he devoted himself to killing little girls. He’s throwing stones onto his own roof.”
“No, not at all... He’s playing it very well,” commented Natalia as she accepted the cigarette. “He poses the objections before the girls can, so that they’re the ones who reject them and convince themselves.”
“I don’t know what you mean,” said Gus.
“It’s much more convincing for him to say jokingly that he could be a murderer than for you potentially to have it occur to you it, spend the whole night going over it, and then have him trying to convince you that he’s a good guy. Anyway, he’s already answering.”
−Then I’m glad. You don’t know how much I’ve been lo
nging for us to be able to meet. The thing is I don’t know when we would be able to see each other.
−As soon as you can. I don’t have anything better to do and, besides, I’m already getting nervous.
−I’ll have to think about it. As you’ll know, it’s not the same thing as if you lived in the next village.
−But it’s only an hour by bus from San Sebastián to Bilbao.
−Of course, but then I’d have to get to where you live, and you’ve told me it’s quite a long way from Bilbao.
−We could meet up in Bilbao.
−No, that’s out of the question. A gentleman would never allow his lady to come and fetch him.
−You’re so stupid! If that’s how I’m going to be able to get us to see each other sooner, I don’t care about coming to fetch you. I wouldn’t even mind going to San Sebastián.
Natalia looked at Gus, quizzically. He turned towards her, smiling.
“Aren’t you making him give a lot of explanations?” asked Natalia. “So much insistence could end up looking suspicious.”
“No, not at all... This guy doesn’t suspect a thing. Besides, it’s a small revenge for all those chat threads I’ve had to read through. I like seeing how he tries to outdo himself when I make things difficult for him.”
“I hope you know what you’re doing. I wouldn’t like for him to get away from us now that we’re so close.”
“Don’t worry, he won’t get away. Besides, it’s part of the role. I’m supposed to be really in love with him, and I want to see him as soon as possible. If I don’t put pressure on him, he could end up thinking I’m not interested, and that is where he could suspect.”
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