She had to admit Eric could be kind and generous. That’s probably all there was to it. The last thing she needed right now was the complication of having romantic feelings for a man. Any man. Or worse, a man described by TJ as being in love with a ghost. Maybe what she was feeling was only lust—that she could deal with.
TJ was sharing her lower suite with her sister for the night and planned on driving them home the next day. She’d go back to her apartment where she’d meet Richard for their weekend trip to Wisconsin Dells. After Janeen and the kids had settled into the king-sized bed in the guest room, TJ went back upstairs to get a nightcap.
She wanted to talk to Lisa. Grabbing a nearly full bottle of wine out of the refrigerator, she picked up two glasses and padded up the steps. There was a light under the door to the apartment. After tapping softly on the door, TJ walked in and saw Lisa sitting on the couch, reading a book.
Lisa looked up. “Unusual for you to be awake this late. What’s going on?”
“Nothin’, just needed to tell you something before I leave.” TJ set down the wine glasses, and at a nod from Lisa, poured them each a glass of wine.
“Speaking of your weekend with Richard, are you sure it’s a good idea?”
TJ frowned. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
“I can think of a few reasons, but setting that aside for now, what’s on your mind?”
“Rollie and Charles.”
“What about them? They seemed very happy today.”
“They’re happy—it’s somethin’ else. Rollie told me he’s pretty sure Charles’ mugging wasn’t a mugging.”
“Do they think it was a hate crime because he’s gay?”
TJ looked at her impatiently. “You aren’t getting it, are you? Remember it happened a couple days after we met him at the salon?”
Lisa winced at the enormity of what TJ was hinting at. “Rollie thinks it was about what we’re doing?”
“Just sayin’ that Rollie thinks it might be.”
“Why now, after all this time?”
“Seems like now that Charles is over the trauma, he remembered somethin’. After the guy worked him over, he said to Charles, ‘Stay the fuck out of it!’ Rollie hasn’t told Charles what he thinks it means. Not yet, anyway.”
“Why isn’t he telling Charles the truth?”
“Well, there ain’t no real truth here. It’s just supposition, right?”
“But if it’s about our investigation, the assailant mistook him for Roland, just like me and Danielle. They are about the same height and build. And it was dark.”
“Yeah, yeah. But two mistakes? Well, there’s nothin’ we can do about it anyway. It’s over and Charles is okay. I think Rollie’s afraid that if Charles thinks his attack had anything to do with Rollie’s helpin’ women disappear he won’t want him to do it anymore. Or donate to the cause again. Don’t want that to happen.”
Lisa drained her glass. “Yes, but—a gay bashing? It’s unconscionable to let Charles go on thinking that.”
“Would you talk to Rollie about it?”
“Why me?”
“I dunno. Because you could do it better?”
Eric’s words came back to her; “You’re what holds us all together.” It felt like a heavy burden. She’d have to be strong for all of them. And somewhere in that strength there’d have to be a little left for herself.
74
TJ and Lisa were eating breakfast when Maggie entered the room. Her cheeks were pink from the cold, her long dark hair tied up in an intricate knot above the nape of her neck. “Hi, sorry to disturb your breakfast. Security let me in.” She nodded toward the food-laden buffet. “Is this really the day after Thanksgiving?”
Lisa asked, “Do you have news for us?”
“I do. Is everyone here?”
“No, just us. Would you like some breakfast?”
“Thanks, but I can’t stay long. The women’s bodies in Wysecki’s basement have been identified. None of them are on your short list, but one was on your original list. The woman’s husband was the prime suspect although he was never arrested.”
“Do you think Wysecki might have killed the wife for the husband?”
“They’re looking into that. Wysecki had financial problems from time to time, so I suppose it’s possible he may have resorted to it. They’re also looking into his wife’s death, but that appears to have been an accident.”
TJ scraped her plate. “Then what about Danielle Ventura? If Wysecki didn’t kill her, who did? If it was someone who thought she was Lisa, then we must be on the right track; there is a killer and it ain’t Wysecki. And get this—Teresa knew one of the ladies on our short list. Said there was a guy in her life other than her husband.”
Maggie said, “Okay, we don’t know who killed Danielle. Everything points to Wysecki, but we won’t know anything for sure until we have him in custody and that probably won’t be until next week sometime. If it wasn’t him and her murder is related to your interviews, then I’d have to ask—who knew what your group was doing?”
Lisa choked on a bite of food. “Who knew? That would be a lot of people. Everyone we interviewed. “
“That’s right. So, bottom line—you need to wrap this up as soon as possible. How long are all of you planning on staying here?”
Lisa shrugged. “I think TJ is planning to leave next week.”
TJ nodded. “Have a life to get back to.”
Lisa agreed. “I’d like to be in my own home again before Christmas and Shannon’s offered to stay with me, but our plans aren’t certain yet.”
Maggie frowned. “I think you should consider going to the police after Wysecki is interviewed. Unless he admits to killing Danielle, the Waukesha Police will be back to talk to all of you, and this time their questions will be intense. It would pay to be proactive.”
Before TJ could protest, Maggie said, “That may be a good thing for all of you. With it out in the open, there’d be no reason for the killer to go after any of you.”
“We’re making progress, Maggie. I think in a week we’ll have enough.”
“Good. They should be done talking with Wysecki by then. Until then, remind everyone to be cautious. It’s unlikely your killer will go after any of you again. If he’s the one who killed Danielle, he’s probably feeling real good about having Wysecki as a scapegoat.”
Lisa said, “One last question. Do you think there’d be any value in having a profiler look at our information?”
“A profiler? No, I don’t think so, Lisa. Because, if I’ve understood your purpose here, you’re not looking for a killer, you’re simply trying to convince the police there is a killer, force them to begin a formal investigation.
“If, and I say this very emphatically, you folks believe you have an idea who is behind these disappearances, do not attempt to play detectives. I would hope an assault on one of you and the murder of a person that was supposed to be one of you, would be enough to prevent you from doing something stupid.”
TJ and Lisa were silent, letting Maggie think she’d had the last word on the subject. Lisa didn’t mention the stack of books on Eric’s desk about profiling, the internet search he’d done, or the long list of profilers for hire he printed out.
75
On a whim, Maggie stopped in Kristy’s Classics. She found Eric out in the garage, bent under the open hood of a ‘57 Chevy.
“Didn’t think you did the dirty work,“ Maggie jabbed.
Eric looked up, a clipboard in hand. “No, just recording the number from the firewall dataplate.”
“I just talked to Lisa and TJ and decided I’d stop and see you.”
“Why the personal visit, Detective?”
Maggie repeated what she’d told the others.
Eric said, “I’m not surprised. What happens if they find out that Wysecki didn’t kill Danielle?
“You’ll have to tell them everything.”
Eric grimaced.
She said, “How many of the women o
n your list are from Waukesha County?”
“Four, I believe, including my wife and Jamie Denison.”
“I’ve been thinking; if you get nowhere with the MPD, I’m pretty sure Waukesha County would take the case. Once it’s officially on Waukesha’s books, Milwaukee would be backed into it whether they wanted to be or not.”
“I like your way of thinking, Detective,“ Eric said. “But we’d still want to finish what we’ve started. Couldn’t a profiler be helpful in finding a commonality between the women? Might move things along a little faster.”
Maggie sighed. “I’m not a big proponent of profiling. But if it would get you folks away from police work, go for it. You might want to talk to David. He had a case in Chicago when he was working there, and they used a local guy to run a profile for them. David liked him, said he was good.”
“Can you find out how to contact him?”
“Let me talk to David. I’ll let you know what he thinks. He knows this profiler pretty well, so if you decide to go that route, I’m sure he’d call him for you.”
“I’d appreciate that. I’ll be glad to pay his fee.”
“The others are talking about returning to their homes. I’m hoping you’ll convince then to stay with you. Maybe include Shannon.”
“I’ve been working on that. But I’m up against the holiday season and they’re a stubborn bunch.”
“Good. Do what you can. If there’s anything else I can do, let me know.”
76
TJ drove Janeen and the kids home from Eric’s. As she drove, she kept a close eye on any vehicles following them for more than a mile or two. TJ hadn’t told her sister all the details of what had been happening the last few weeks, only that they were trying to get evidence that someone was abducting abused women.
Janeen had her own experience with spousal abuse, one that included her sister, and ultimately resulted in TJ leaving the police force. She hadn’t been forced out. Her brother-in-law’s shooting had been ruled a clean shoot, necessary to protect the lives of Janeen and the police officer who shot him—TJ.
Try as she might to squelch them, scenes from that night still played in her mind: her sister screaming, Mario’s knife pressing into her sister’s neck, the way his body hit the wall when she’d shot him. She’d been eternally grateful that her sister had had the foresight to send the kids down the hall to a neighbor before things escalated.
TJ eased up on her rearview-mirror observations when Janeen asked, “So, what time are you meeting Richard for the big weekend?”
“Soon as he gets off; probably leave about five.”
“You don’t sound too excited about it.”
“Since when do you care about my plans with Richard?”
Janeen had never liked Richard and kept telling TJ to find a man her own age, someone she could settle down with. Have kids even, despite the fact that TJ denied wanting such mundane things.
“That Jeff guy seemed real nice. He’s the one you’ve been working with right?”
TJ should have known her sister would have picked up on her attraction to Jeff. Damn, she didn’t want to talk about it. “Yeah, he’s the one. Poor guy’s real upset about his wife going missing. Gotta feel sorry for him.” Maybe that would change the subject.
They were stopped at a light when her phone rang. Richard said, “Sorry, babe, but I’m still in Chicago. Some family things are going on and I have to stay for a couple more days. We’ll have to do our weekend another time. Tell you what. Why don’t you take your sister and the kids and go to the Dells anyway? I’ll pick up the hotel tab.”
“Not necessary.” TJ was annoyed at the last-minute cancellation but Janeen had been right; TJ hadn’t been that excited about their trip. But she suspected there was more to his call than a family thing; Richard wasn’t a family kind of guy.
He said, “Should I reschedule?”
“Sure. No problem.” Did he really think she’d bought his weak excuse? The jerk probably met someone in Chi-Town that he couldn’t resist. But she needed a weekend alone, after all. Alone, in her own place.
77
It had been two years since Lisa had stopped seeing her therapist, Robert Bernstein, but after what had happened with Tyler, she knew it was time—time to sort through her ongoing love affair with exciting, albeit unfulfilling, relationships.
“Lisa. It’s been a while.”
“I know. Sorry, Robert, you probably have a lot going on, but I’d like to see you.”
“Something urgent?”
“Not really. Can you fit me in?”
“I’m not in the office today. I’m actually off for the weekend at my wife’s insistence.”
“I don’t want to take you away from your family.”
“No, no. Mother and daughters are at the mall indulging in their favorite pastime. I’m about to go for a run. Want to join me?”
They met on a hiking path in the Kettle Moraine area, a state park north of Oconomowoc. Lisa found him at the side of his car, doing deep stretches. “I maintain a very slow pace. The better to hear you speak, my dear,” he laughed. “Baby steps, you know. I’m trying to get rid of some of this gut.” He patted his middle. A tall man, Bernstein carried the extra pounds well.
“I know what you mean. I stuffed enough food in my mouth yesterday to hibernate for a month.”
They started off walking, then picked up the pace to a slow jog. There weren’t many people on the paths, a few dog walkers the only people around.
“Robert, you’re doing a great job with Jeff. He speaks highly of you.” Lisa had sent Jeff to Robert when she had to stop seeing him.
“I’m not sure I can take all the credit.”
“Being busy has helped, too, I’m sure.”
“Lisa, I know you aren’t here because of Jeff.”
“No. I’m not sure how much Jeff has told you about what we’re doing . . . it’s been intense.”
“Intense? It sounds more like life-endangering lunacy to me.”
“Something had to be done. Too many women have been victimized by this person.”
“How do you know it isn’t ‘persons?”
“We don’t, I suppose.”
“Other than the obvious, what’s bothering you?”
“Nothing in my life has changed a whole lot since we last talked—since you gave up on me.” That’s what it had felt like.
“Gave up on you? I wouldn’t call it that, Lisa. You’d given up on yourself; there was nothing more I could do for you. Taking any more of your hard-earned dollars for therapy would have made me a charlatan.”
“I guess you’re right.” Professionally she’d known it, but it had, nevertheless, made her feel deserted.
“You know I’m right. Only a quack keeps seeing a patient who won’t make the necessary effort to get better. You’re here, so what’s changed?”
“It’s a long story, but I’m not happy with my life, my relationships.”
“Lisa, if you’re serious about working on it now, I’ll be happy to start seeing you again.”
Lisa stopped to retie a shoelace, glad for a break in the conversation.
Robert ran in place. “I’m surprised you aren’t putting therapy on hold until this investigation of yours is over.”
Lisa sighed. He knew there was more. She’d never been able to hold out on him.
They resumed their pace. “It can’t be easy for all of you, holed up together like you are.”
“You’ve guessed it, haven’t you?”
“Hey, your life is in danger, you’ve been forced to live away from the home you love, Paige is gone, and you’re trying to break away from the addiction that’s always kept you going. It’s only natural you’d want to reach out to someone when you’re in such a vulnerable place.”
“All true. But Eric Schindler can be such an exasperating man.”
“Eric Schindler?”
“You didn’t think I’d be attracted to Jeff, did you?”
Robert l
aughed. “Jeff is in your usual age range.”
Lisa grinned. “Guess I deserved that one.”
“So what’s happening with Eric?”
“Nothing yet, but there’s beginning to be an attraction there. For me, anyway.”
“What’s holding you back? That’s not like you.”
“Eric and I are both broken, Robert. Two jagged pieces don’t make a whole.”
“Lisa, I’ve always maintained that you are not a relationship addict. Not in the true sense.” When she started to protest, he said, “You aren’t. I know that’s how you label yourself, but you know as well as I do that not every little foible can be labeled a personality disorder. Everything in our profession is not black or white.”
He was right. But labeling it made it feel inescapable, unfixable. It allowed her to enjoy the excitement of the new and the pain when it ended; even a painful breakup made her feel alive. “Then what is the solution for my not-a-relationship addiction?”
“You know the answer to that as well as I do, Lisa. You have to break the pattern, learn to find joy in a relationship that isn’t destined to be terminal. One that’s both exciting and comfortable with someone who loves you, who’ll be there for you.”
“Right. Meanwhile I’m trapped in limbo with a man I’m both attracted to and despise.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Despise may be a little harsh. He has some good qualities.”
Robert chuckled. “So, what would be wrong with just going with the flow for now?”
“Are you suggesting I hop in bed with him?” She laughed at the thought, but it was an intriguing one.
“As your therapist I would never do such a thing. As your friend, I’m concerned about you and think connecting with another person might be good for you right now. I’m not saying it needs to be a sexual connection.”
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