House of Skin

SPIDER’S WEB

Fenn dropped Lisa off at her hotel earlier and wasn’t invited up as he’d hoped. He supposed his love of her was wishful thinking at best. In a way, he thought he should just lay it on the line and tell her how he felt. But at the same time, he feared it would damage their working relationship and what friendship they’d managed to accrue. It was all so terribly strange. He hadn’t felt so nervous about pressing his attentions on a woman since he was fifteen. And, if nothing else came of this, it was good to feel that way again.

He drove around for some time, thinking of these things.

When he got back to Southern Station, there was a good deal of activity as there always was that time of night. Hookers, pushers, pick pockets, and all manner of street garbage were being dragged in and processed. Some were quiet, others screamed and fought. Such was the atmosphere of a city precinct at night. Fenn worked days now, but he still did night duty. There seemed to be no set hours for a homicide detective.

“We’ve got him,” a voice behind him said.

It was Gaines. “We got your boy, Jim. He’s in holding.”

Fenn smiled. “Spider?”

“Yeah. He’s one weird bastard, too.”

“Bring him on up then.”

Gaines left and Fenn went to his desk, getting a pad of paper and a folder of crime photos. He went into an unoccupied interrogation room and waited. He felt nervous and he wasn’t sure why.

It took three uniforms and Gaines to bring Spider in. He was in cuffs and leg irons. Fenn had never seen anything like him. He was dressed in a knee-length black leather coat, his hair knotted in braids and set with gleaming beads. His face was painted white, black grease around his eyes and on his lips.

“Motherfuckers! Get your fucking hands off me!” He was squirming in their grips like a snake. Fenn half expected him to slip right out of the cuffs.

“Take it easy,” Gaines said. “Take it easy!”

“You don’t know what you’re doing! You don’t know what you’re involved in!”

“Sit him down,” Fenn said. God, he got so sick of these fucking deviants. He longed for the old days when he could have beaten them into submission.

They did, but not without great effort. Spider apparently had the strength of the insane. If it wasn’t for the bonds that held his arms and legs together, he would’ve surely overpowered all three men with ease. Fenn had never seen such raw hatred in a man’s eyes.

“He ain’t going anywhere,” one of the uniforms said proudly. They were on either side of him, holding him down. Gaines was behind him, twisting his cuffed wrists up. If Spider fought too much, his arms would break.

His lips curled in anger, drool ran down his chin. His eyes were nearly as black as the make-up highlighting them.

The door opened and Moore came in, his black face sweaty. He was carrying a leather case that had been tagged as evidence. He set it down before Fenn.

“He was carrying this. Take a look.”

Fenn did so. It was loaded with knives of every conceivable sort. “Jesus. You gotta love a perp that comes with his own evidence.”

So many knives. So goddamn many knives. Fenn felt a dull throb at his temples. He could just imagine all the cutting and pain. It made him want to use his fists. He made himself relax. “Why, Spider?” he asked. “Why did you do it?”

It was a simple question, a pretty shop-worn one for cops, but he knew that the answer—if he got one—was going to be interesting.

“Answer the man,” Moore prompted.

Spider grinned and chortled deep in his throat. There was a certain sarcasm in his laugh as if he were asked something far too obvious to answer.

“Because I’m a lunatic,” he said.

“And that’s the only reason?”

Spider laughed loudly this time. “It’s too late to stop any of it now.”

“Any of what?”

Spider shook his head. “You’re too bloody stupid to even understand.”

“Better cooperate,” Gaines told him, twisting his arm a bit, “you’re in deep enough shit.”

“Humor me, then,” Fenn said.

“You couldn’t grasp what I’d say,” Spider told him. And it was obvious to all that he wasn’t being merely derisive; he actually believed what he said.

“C’mon, Spider, for chrissake,” Moore said.

“What’s your real name?” Fenn asked. “The one you were born with.”

“I’m crazy, I tell you,” Spider maintained. “I can’t even remember what I am, let alone who I am. This body is a shell, this life is synthetic. Soon I’ll abandon both to make the trip.”

“You ain’t taking a trip anywhere,” Gaines said. “They like to keep the animals in their cages at San Quentin and that’s where you’re fucking going.”

“You don’t know anything.”

Moore shook his head. “Crazy like a fox.”

“Your prints are already being processed,” Fenn said, trying to remain calm. He’d never dealt with a true serial murderer before, but he supposed it was important not to upset them.

“Then when you find out who I am, tell me.”

“Do you know where Eddy Zero is?”

“Eddy Zero?”

“You know who I’m talking about. Where the hell is he?”

For the first time, Spider looked less than confident. He seemed somewhat puzzled, frightened even, though it was hard to tell under all the make-up.

“If you help us get Eddy, maybe we can help you.”

Spider spat a stream of mucus at him. “You’ll never find him. Never.”

Gaines gave his arms a nasty pull. “Be civil, freak.”

“Where is he?”

“I don’t even know. I’m a lunatic, can’t you see that? How do you expect me to recall all these details when I don’t even know the difference between right and wrong?”

“Make it easy on yourself, Spider,” Moore said.

Fenn lit a cigarette. He wondered if he should call Lisa in and let her have a go at this nut. He had no idea even how to proceed with something like this.

“Eddy’s much smarter than you, boss,” said Spider. “You can lock me up all you want, but he’ll carry on with our work until the time comes.”

“The time of what?”

“Oh, you silly bastard, wouldn’t you like to know?”

“Yes, I would.”

“The time of departure,” Spider laughed. “The time we leave the here and now for the Territories. When they come for us.” Spider looked from Moore to Fenn. “See, I told you you couldn’t understand.”

“Help me,” Fenn urged him.

“If I could I would, boss,” Spider admitted. “The road to true knowledge is a long and grim journey. It’s not for everyone.”

Fenn tried a different angle. “Who are they? The ones that come for you?”

“The Sisters, of course.”

“And who the hell are the sisters?” Moore asked. “Do they have names?”

“You cannot know their names.”

“This is bullshit,” Moore snapped.

But Fenn was beginning to wonder. Yes, it was bullshit to them, but to Spider and Eddy, it meant something. But what? What sort of insane relevance did it have? “You seem to be a bright boy, Spider. I want to help you. So, why don’t you help me? Tell me about these sisters and Eddy. Tell me what it all means. We’re going to find out from Eddy when we pick him up, anyway. And I’ll just bet he’ll do anything he can to save his own ass and sink yours.”

Spider laughed. “You don’t know Eddy. You don’t know who he is.”

“He’s the son of a psycho. We know that.”

“Like I said, you know nothing.”

“Put him back for now,” Fenn said.

They hauled him away and he went quietly this time, giggling at some joke no one could pretend to ever know. Fenn didn’t like this at all. He’d thought it would be much easier, somehow. Maybe it was time to bring Lisa in. If there was logic here, maybe she’d see it.

After all, nutjobs were her specialty.