Imitation in Death (In Death #17)(108)

She gazed at-the rearview to make sure the team was still behind her. "Dead sure, and he likely did a search on Fortney and knew he'd be in New York during this period._ Takes time to put on- a show, months of lead time. Renquist didn't plan this overnight."

"Keep going."

Roarke was keeping her talking, she realized, so she wouldn't lose her temper and her patience with the traffic.

Which was hideous. She toyed briefly with hitting the sirens and punching it. -But that violated procedure. She'd do this straight, right down the line.

"He needed time to scope out his targets, so you've got several weeks between him sending the paper to Breen and the first murder. The first in New York," she amended. "We're going to find more bodies, or what's left of them, scattered over the planet, and possibly off. "

"He'll tell you," Roarke deduced.

"Oh yeah." Her face was grim as she threaded through a narrow break between bumpers. "Once we get him in, he'll tell us. He won't be able to stop himself. He wants his place in the history books."

"And you'll have yours. Care about it or not, Lieutenant, Roarke said when she scowled. "You'll have yours."

"Let's stick with Renquist. He's a perfectionist, and he's had years of practice. In his work, within the image he's built, he has to be discreet, diplomatic, often subservient. And this goes against the grain, day after day. At; heart, he's an exhibitionist, a man who finds himself above other seven as he's been hammered down by females all his life. Women are inferior, yet they have power over him, so they have to be punished. He hates us, and killing us is his greatest joy, his finest accomplishment."

"You were going to be his last."

She glanced over, saw him watching her. "Yeah, he'd have gotten around to me, later rather than sooner because he'd want to string this out. I saw it in his eyes the first time I met him. Just an instant. Couldn't stand the son of a bitch. I wanted it to be him."

She pulled up in front of the Renquist home, and the search team pulled up behind her. "This is going to be fun."

She waited for Feeney, let the team file in behind. Home security scanned her badge, then the warrant, before shifting to a holding pattern. Within two minutes, the housekeeper, in a long black robe, opened the door.

"I'm sorry," she began, "there must be some, mistake-" -

"This warrant authorizes me and my team to enter this residence and conduct a search thereof. I am also authorized to arrest Niles Renquist on multiple counts of suspicion of murder in the first degree, and a count of first-degree assault with intent. Is Mr. Renquist on the premises?"

"No, he's away on business." She looked more baffled than annoyed "I'll. need to ask you to wait here while I inform Mrs. Renquist of these... circumstances."

Eve held up the-warrants again. "These mean I don't have to wait. But go right ahead and tell her we're here. After you direct me to Mr. Renquist's home office."

"I'm not... I can hardly take the responsibility for"

"It's my responsibility." She signaled the team behind her to enter. "Split into groups of two. I want a complete and thorough room-by-room. All recorders on. The office?" she said to the housekeeper.

"It's on the second level, but---"

"You're going to want to lead the way, Stevens, then step back. You don't want, a part of this."

Without waiting for the housekeeper, Eve started up the staircase. Stevens came after her in a trot. "If you'd just let me wake Mrs.' Renquist and inform her-"

"As soon as you show me his office."

"It's the last door, on the right. But it's secured."

"You got the code?"

She pokered up then, struggling for dignity as she stood in her nightrobe surrounded by cops. "Only Mr. Renquist has the code. It's his personal office, and he handles sensitive material. As an official of the British government-"

"Yeah, yeah, blah blahs" Eve decided she'd been right. This 'was fun. "My warrant gives me the right to open this door, with or without the code." She pulled out her master. "I am employing that authorization at this time, and using a police master code. to disengage the subject's security on this door."

The housekeeper turned and fled up to the third floor. Mrs. Renquist, Eve thought, was about to get a rude awakening.

She used the master, and wasn't the least surprised to find the police code denied.

"He's taken extra precautions." She looked over her shoulder at Roarke. "At this time I find it necessary and expedient to employ alternate methods. If the electronic experts on team are unable to disengage locks, I will utilize the battering ram."

"Let's have a look first," Feeney suggested, and Eve deliberately turned her recorder away so that it wouldn't show Roarke crouching down with burglar tools in his hands.

"Feeney, I'm going to need you to confiscate all security discs. I suspect the subject doctored them, so that he wasn't scanned when he left the house for the'murders and attack."

"If he did, we'll find the shadows." He tracked his gaze toward Roarke and had to bite down on a grin. Magic hands he thought again.

"I want all 'links and transmission devices as well." She didn't look at Roarke, kept herr back to him. But her mind was muttering: Hurry up, damn it, hurry up. I can't stall much longer."