Dead Like You

didn’t understand why I changed my MO, from taking one shoe and panties to taking both shoes. You weren’t meant to understand, see? I wasn’t going to make your job easy for you by just repeating exactly the same stuff over again. Variety’s the spice of life, right?
    I’m your man, all right! I’m just going to hope that the creep who raped that woman on the ghost train strikes again.
    You’ll have egg all over your face, Detective Superintendent Grace.
    And I’ll have a big grin on mine.
    And who will have the smaller dick then?

124
    Sunday 22 February
    ‘It’s good to see you relaxed, my darling,’ Cleo said.
    It was the evening now. They’d spent the afternoon together, working on the wedding list. Roy Grace had his feet up, a glass of red wine in his hand, and was watching The Antiques Road Show , one of his favourite programmes. Most of all he enjoyed watching people as they were given the valuation of their treasured – or otherwise – heirloom. The look of astonishment when some tatty bowl they’d been using to feed the dog was valued at thousands. The look of dismay when some splendid painting, which had been in the family for generations, was pronounced a fake worth only a few quid.
    ‘Yep!’ He smiled and just wished he felt relaxed. But he didn’t. Doubt was still gnawing away at him, despite the Shoe Man having been caught. And there were still ripples from Starling’s wife’s suicide. He’d listened to the prison tape, where she’d talked about going home and topping herself. It had sounded like an idle threat. But then she had gone and done it. No note, nothing.
    ‘I mean,’ she said, gently lifting Humphrey out of the way and curling up next to him on the sofa, ‘as relaxed as you’re ever going to be.’
    He shrugged, then nodded. ‘At least the Shoe Man’s had some comeuppance. He’s permanently blinded in one eye.’
    ‘How sad is that? Shame that young woman didn’t castrate him while she was at it,’ Cleo retorted. ‘All of his victims are maimed in some way and one’s dead.’
    ‘I just wish we knew who all of them are,’ he said. ‘He’s coughed, but I somehow don’t think he’s telling us everything. He’s one of the nastiest creeps I’ve ever come across. His home and office computers are full of weird shit. All kinds of foot- and shoe-fetish sites and chatlines – a lot of it sadistic. And he’s got a whole cocktail of sleeping and date-rape drugs in his office fridge.’
    ‘Is he going to plead guilty and spare his victims the ordeal of giving evidence?’
    ‘I don’t know. Depends on his brief – good old Ken Acott again. We’ve a ton of evidence against him. The lock-up’s in his name. We’ve found missing pages from the Shoe Man’s 1997 files in a safe in his office. There are links to Facebook and Twitter sites of some of his recent victims on his computer and iPhone. DNA evidence from Rachael Ryan’s body.’
    He drank some wine.
    ‘But we’re going to have to wait for psychiatric evaluations as to whether he is fit to stand trial. Great! Garry Starling’s able to run one of the biggest companies in the city, to be vice-captain of his golf club and treasurer of his Rotary Club – but he might not be fit to stand trial! Our legal processes suck.’
    Cleo smiled sympathetically. She understood some of his frustrations at the criminal justice system.
    ‘Jessie Sheldon should get a medal. How is she? Has she survived her ordeal OK?’
    ‘Remarkably well. I went to see her at home this afternoon. She’s had surgery on her ankle and hopefully it will be fine in time. In fact she seemed in very good spirits, considering. She’s looking forward to her wedding this summer.’
    ‘She was engaged?’
    ‘Apparently. She told me it was her determination to get married that kept her going.’
    ‘So don’t feel bad about his injury.’
    ‘I don’t. Not about his injury, no. I just don’t feel we’ve nailed it. Not completely.’
    ‘Because of those other shoes?’
    ‘I’m not so concerned about those. If we can get him to talk more, eventually, maybe we’ll clear those up.’
    He sipped some more wine and glanced at the television.
    ‘Is it the one on the ghost train who’s bothering you? What’s her name?’
    ‘Mandy Thorpe. Yes. I still don’t believe it was the Shoe Man who raped her. Even though he says he did. The forensic psychologist is wrong, I’m still convinced.’
    ‘Meaning the perpetrator is still out