Presumed Guilty: (A Jefferson Winter novella) (10 page)

Yoko pulled up beside Winter’s bright red VW Beetle and killed the engine. She lit a cigarette and opened the window a crack to let the smoke out. The kid made a face, but kept his mouth shut.

‘We need to talk about what happened at the Fitzgerald place,’ she said.

He said nothing.

‘I’ve got all night.’

Still nothing.

‘I’m serious.’

He opened his mouth to speak. Given his expression, Yoko was convinced that whatever he said next would be laced with teenage sarcasm. His mouth snapped shut, his lips tightened, and she gave him the space and time he needed.

She could give him all the space and time in the world if that’s what it took. She’d been serious when she’d said she had all night. If all night was what it took, all night was what he’d get. When it came to patience she could give a saint a run for their money.

‘You wouldn’t understand,’ he finally said.

It was an echo of the response he’d given at the Fitzgerald place, except it didn’t seem as heartfelt. The sentiment was there but the intent was missing.

‘Try me.’

Winter sighed and rubbed a hand over his mouth. He was quiet for a minute, then said, ‘I was eleven when my father was arrested. Eleven years I lived with him; how could I not know what he was?’

He spoke quietly, the words aimed at his faint reflection in the windshield.

‘Because you were a child. Nobody would have expected you to have known.’

‘But I
should
have known.’

‘And “should” is one of the most dangerous words in the English language. Should have done this. Should have done that. “Should” is the key that opens up the gates of guilt.’

He let go of a tiny strangled half-laugh and shook his head. ‘And you sound like a shrink.’

She took a drag on her cigarette and waited for him to say more. When it became obvious that there wasn’t going to be any more, she said, ‘The reason you offered to help us catch Valentino was because you wanted to see a real-life serial killer in the flesh.’

A nod.

‘You thought that would help you to understand your father better.’

Another nod.

‘Which in turn would help you to understand what you are.’

Another nod.

‘But it didn’t work like that, did it?’

He shook his head slowly, sadly. ‘You were right, Agent Tanaka, I’m a psychopath. Plain and simple.’

‘Nothing’s ever that plain, or that simple. Yes, you’re a psychopath, but it doesn’t necessarily follow that you’re a murderer. Remember all those CEOs.’

He almost smiled. ‘So I should start applying for positions at Fortune 500 companies, is that it?’

Yoko almost returned the smile. ‘There are worse things you could do with your life.’

Winter’s face turned serious again. ‘What would you do if you were in my position?’

‘I’d study and party as hard as I could. Your college years are some of the best years of your life. Enjoy them. Yes, your childhood sucked, but that doesn’t mean the rest of your life has to as well. Worry about the future when it gets here, Jefferson. Until then, let your hair down and live a little.’

He stared hard at her, and for a moment she felt like he could see all the way through to her scarred soul.

‘You know, Agent, the thing with advice is that it’s easy to give, but when it comes to applying it to yourself, well, that’s another matter.’

The dig hit home and Yoko’s first instinct was to slap him. Her second instinct was to fire off a scathing, sarcastic comeback. Instead, she said, ‘You know something, Jefferson? Maybe you’re right, maybe I should loosen up a little.’

‘Careful. Remember, “‘Should’ is the key that opens the gates of guilt.”’

Yoko grimaced. ‘I actually said that, didn’t I?’

‘Yes, you did.’

‘Take a look in the glove box.’

Winter opened the glove box and pulled out a thick Manila folder. On the front cover was the FBI’s logo, the word
CONFIDENTIAL
, and a name: Albert Winter.

‘That’s your scorpion,’ she said in answer to the questions in his eyes. ‘Either it’s going to kill you, or you’ll find a way to get it off your back.’

He flicked through the file. Flashes of photos and the occasional printed word. He snapped it shut, tapped his fingers on the cover.

‘Thank you.’

She responded with a small dip of the head.

‘So, this is it,’ he added. ‘This is goodbye.’

‘I guess it is. Thanks for your help.’

‘Any time. It’s been a blast.’

‘I’m not sure those are the words I’d use. It’s certainly been interesting, though.’

Winter held out his hand and they shook. Yoko held on longer than he wanted. He looked across at her. ‘Promise me you won’t let that scorpion kill you.’

‘I’ll do my best, Agent Tanaka. That’s all I can promise.’

‘Then that’ll have to do.’

She let go of his hand.

‘Maybe we can do this again sometime,’ he said.

‘Maybe. How about you give me a call when you finish college?’

‘Sure, how about you give me your number?’

Yoko shook her head. ‘If I do that, I’ll never hear from you. However, if you’ve got to work it out then it becomes a puzzle, and that’s a whole different ball game.’

Winter smiled. ‘We’ve known each other for less than a day and you’ve already sussed me out.’

‘Jefferson, not for one second am I going to pretend to know who or what you are. You don’t even have the answer to those questions, so what chance have I got?’

‘Later.’ He got out and slammed the door shut.

Yoko watched him cross the parking lot and disappear into his dorm building. She took a last drag on her cigarette and dropped it out the window. ‘Later,’ she whispered to herself, and put the car into gear.

 In the Jefferson Winter series

It takes a genius to catch a psychopath

Jefferson Winter is no ordinary investigator.
The son of one of America’s most notorious serial killers, Winter has spent his life trying to distance himself from his father’s legacy. Once a rising star at the FBI, he is now a freelance consultant, jetting around the globe helping local law enforcement agencies with difficult cases. He’s not got Da Vinci’s IQ, but he’s pretty close. 

When he accepts a particularly disturbing case in London, Winter arrives to find a city in the grip of a cold snap, with a psychopath on the loose who likes abducting and lobotomising young women. Winter must use all his preternatural brain power in order to work out who is behind the attacks, before another young woman becomes a victim. As Winter knows all too well, however, not everyone who’s broken can be fixed. 

NOW AVAILABLE IN PAPERBACK AND EBOOK

It takes a genius to unmask madness

Ex-FBI profiler Jefferson Winter has taken a new case in sunny Louisiana, where the only thing more intense than the heat is a killer on the loose in the small town of Eagle Creek.
 

Sam Galloway, a prominent lawyer from one of Eagle Creek’s most respected families, has been murdered. All the sheriff’s department have to go on, however, is a film of Galloway that shows him being burned alive.
 

Enter Jefferson Winter, whose expertise is serial criminals. But in a town where secrets are rife and history has a way of repeating itself, can Winter solve the case before someone else dies?

COMING IN SEPTEMBER
2014