House of Skin

FEMME FATALES

While Fenn was waking from his dream, Lisa was in the hotel lounge picking at a plate of pancakes. It was dim in there, not brightly washed by sunlight like the adjoining cafe. This was a place for drinking and brooding, but she was in no mood for bright lights.

There was only one other person in the lounge. A young, dark-complexioned woman dressed in a black business suit with matching skirt. Their eyes kept meeting from time to time and Lisa wondered if they’d known each other somewhere before. Finally, the woman came over.

“Would you mind if I sat down?” she asked. She had donned dark Wayfarer sunglasses now.

“Not at all. I could use the company.”

She sat. She was a tall woman, svelte, long-legged, very attractive.

“I’m not bothering you, am I?” she asked.

“Of course not.”

“This may sound terribly strange, but I have a feeling I know you from somewhere.”

Lisa looked startled. “I was just thinking that very thing. My name’s Lisa. Lisa Lochmere.”

“Cassandra.” She offered no more.

Lisa studied her. Did she know her from another place, another time? From school maybe? No, this Cassandra couldn’t have been more than twenty-five, which gave Lisa a good twelve years on her.

“I’m a psychiatrist,” Lisa said. “Maybe we’ve met in that function.”

“Christ, no,” Cassandra laughed.

“I didn’t mean to imply—”

“No apology necessary.”

“We were both probably mistaken.”

“Of course.” Something about her tone indicated she didn’t believe that for a moment. “Anyway, since we’re both in need of company, we’ll keep each other entertained. Shall we?”

“Why not?”

Cassandra cleared her throat. “So what brings the eminent psychiatrist Dr. Lochmere to the city by the bay?”

“Business, I’m afraid. Nothing but business.”

“That’s a shame. What sort of business? Or am I being too nosy?”

“No, not at all. I’m seeking out a patient of mine. A former patient. I’m afraid he might do something… unpleasant.”

“That’s fascinating. Does he have a name?”

Lisa thought about it. What was the point of bothering with patient confidentiality? Maybe she would know something. “Eddy Zero. He was under my care some years ago and then released before I thought he was sufficiently rehabilitated.”

“Is he dangerous?”

“I believe so, yes.”

“Wow. What an interesting job it must be being a psychiatrist. Always something new, I’d bet. You must’ve had to study a long time, I imagine.”

Lisa nodded. “Pre-med, med school, internship… it takes years.”

“It wouldn’t be interesting for me, though. Spending all those years in institutions. It would drive me crazy. If you’ll excuse that word.”

Lisa smiled. You have no idea, my dear. “And what about you?”

Cassandra laughed again at her own expense, as if her life was a great comedy she was playing out. Maybe it was. But there was tragedy here, too, a dark and glaring hurt just beneath the words. Lisa liked her immediately. It took a great person to laugh at their misfortune. So many live lives of pain and so few have the ability to laugh rather than cry.

It was an endearing quality.

“My life is beyond words,” Cassandra said. “I wouldn’t even know where to start. Let’s just say I’ve had my share of hurts and heartbreaks. But I’ve never let it keep me down. I always get back up and start again. It’s my philosophy, you might say: Never give in, never give up. I’ve risen up against odds that would’ve buried others.”

“I don’t doubt it a bit,” Lisa said.

“And that’s what it’s about, right? Never give up the ghost until you’ve done all that has to be done.”

Lisa smiled. She was so easy to like. So terribly easy, almost like they had been friends before. “What about now?” she asked. “Do you live here or are you visiting?”

“Visiting. I’m at a stage in my life where I don’t have to work for a living any longer.”

“I envy you.”

“I envy myself.”

They both started laughing. Cassandra excused herself and went to the ladies room. Someone walked up behind Lisa and she knew it was Fenn before she turned.

“I’d really like to talk you out of this,” he said, sitting down. “It’s too dangerous.”

She just looked at him. Even though she knew what he was talking about, his habit of resuming conversations hours or even days old was somewhat irritating.

She sighed. “It has to be done and you know it.”

“Sure I know it. I just don’t want it to be you alone in that fucking house.”

“I’ll be okay.”

“Yeah, you’re pretty tough, I guess.”

“Somebody has to do it, Mr. Fenn. And who better?”

There was no one better suited and he knew it. “Can’t blame a guy for trying. Who was that you were talking with?”

Lisa grinned. “I honestly have no idea.”

“I want to ask you about something,” Fenn said. “I’ve been keeping something from you, I guess. I’m not sure why.”

“Tell me.”

“That P.I. you hired a few years ago to track Eddy—”

“Soames.”

“I did some checking on him. He’s in the psychiatric wing of San Fran General. Did you know that?”

Lisa shook her head. “No. I’m sorry to hear that. He was good at his job. He found Eddy, gave me addresses he was staying at. Very thorough. Then, one day, he called me, said he was onto something big.”

“And?”

“And zilch. He never called again. I hounded him for months. He never would tell me what he found. He even returned the retainer. Go figure.”

Fenn looked suspicious. “I’ve been to see him a few times. He’s in a bad way.”

“Is he?”

Fenn told her everything Dr. Luce had told him.

“He’s a mystery, all right,” Lisa said. “What do you make of it?”

Fenn shrugged. “Did you know he helped stop William Zero in the first place?”

“Yes. That’s why he was my first choice. He’s the source of most of our information concerning Zero and the others. Without him, most of it would be guesswork.”

“He’s delirious, paranoid as hell. Talks in riddles. I couldn’t get much out of him.” Fenn was drumming his fingers on the tabletop. “Have you ever heard of someone called Cherry Hill?”

Lisa went pale. “Yes, our paths have crossed. She was a patient at Coalinga and later an inmate at Chowchilla. Not my patient, but I remember her very well. A psychosexual killer. Very dangerous.”

“A strangler.”

“Yes, she liked to use a wire. Though she killed her family—her mother and brother—she was also suspected of murdering at least five other people. It was believed that her psychopathy was a result of a combination of biological and psychological factors. She was horribly abused as a child, both sexually and physically. She was typical of primary psychopaths in that she was egocentric, of high intelligence, anti-social, disenfranchised, and a pathological liar that would twist reality in order to substantiate her delusions. She was completely lacking in remorse for her crimes and had nothing that we might call a conscience. Essentially, an inhuman monster wearing the skin of an attractive young woman.”

“I did some checking,” Fenn said. “She escaped from the prison a year or so ago. Never figured out how. Never was seen again. Shortly afterwards, there was a string of unsolved homicides across San Francisco and Marin Counties. Some figured it was her. But, as I said, she was never caught.”

“And what does this have to do with anything?”

Cherry. Oh good God.

“Maybe nothing. Soames mentioned her name.”

“He’s probably not even aware of what he’s saying.”

“You’re probably right. But why would he mention that particular name?”

“Who can say? It really depends on the level of his psychosis. Maybe he was looking for her as part of his job before his collapse… .though, the fact that he’s still alive means he probably didn’t find her.”

Fenn shook his head. “I don’t think I’d want to meet our Cherry Hill in a dark alley.”

“No, you wouldn’t,” Lisa said, a darkness passing over her eyes. “Cherry, as I said, was a very pretty girl and she knew how to use her looks. She easily manipulated men. She could be very sultry and flirtatious when it suited her needs or shy and innocent. The problem is that we tend to trust attractive people, thinking that because they are perfect on the outside they must be perfect on the inside. Cherry was good at role-playing and she could almost instinctively sense what was expected of her by others and act the part to perfection. If you did come across her, you would never suspect the monster that hides inside her. She had a need to possess her lovers one-hundred percent: she mated and then killed. A black widow.”

“There’s something else, though. What is it? I can hear it under your words.”

Lisa swallowed. “Yes, there’s something else. At Coalinga she developed a fixation for Eddy Zero. She believed she was in love with him.”

“Was she?”

“No, it’s impossible for her to love as such. Inside, she’s very cold. She was infatuated, yes, but in the end it was only about possessing him.”

“Quite a lady.”

“You have no idea.”

Later, when Lisa was alone, the whole idea of going into the House of Mirrors wearing a transmitter seemed wild and dangerous.

If not bloody stupid.

She couldn’t believe that she’d volunteered for such a thing. Bravery had never been one of her strong suits. And this little adventure would take more than merely that, it would take nerves drop-forged from iron.

Did I really suggest this whole thing? she asked herself.

Yes, I believe you did.

But it was far too late to back out now. Oh, Fenn would’ve been very happy to call the whole thing off. He couldn’t bear the idea and had argued through the night against it. In his eyes, she was a fragile doll of porcelain and lace. In the end, though, the policeman in him had succumbed to the logic of it. If Eddy was in the house or hiding nearby and he saw Lisa in the vicinity, his ego would necessitate that he pay her a visit.

And what kind of visit would that be?

One with gleaming knives and glaring hatred? One in which the patient got the chance to settle the score with some pretentious headshrinker who’d declared him unbalanced? Would it work out that way? It was hard to say and the criminally insane mind was a dark and bottomless pool to fathom. It was terribly difficult to second guess someone like Eddy. Expect only the unexpected, Lisa’s abnormal psychology professor had once said. Never a truer statement had been made. But she didn’t think Eddy would kill her. Even if his mind and its demented workings were an alien quarter to her, which they surely were not, she could still draw certain conclusions based upon the pattern of his crimes. All of his victims, save the woman in the house who was as yet unidentified, had been prostitutes. It was logical to assume he wouldn’t change his MO this late in the game.

But that doesn’t mean hookers are his prey of choice, a secret dread voice reminded her. He may have found them convenient as Jack the Ripper did once upon a time and countless other killers have since. Prostitutes are easy victims. They’ll gladly follow a strange man into a dark and lonely place for the right price.

Fenn had already worked out the details with his superiors. They liked the idea. It was a terrible gamble and chances were nothing would come of it, but it was better than waiting for Eddy to strike. Anything was. There would be no cops in the house, just herself. But she would be wired and Fenn and his boys would be in their van a short distance away listening to everything. Other cops would be watching from across the street and still others would be at the corner, disguised as street people. It was an awful lot of manpower to sink on such a thin hope, but Eddy had to be stopped.

All Lisa had to do was engage him in a conversation and the moment he spoke, the house would be flooded with cops. And she would be carrying a small, snub-nosed .38 in case anything went wrong. She’d carry it in her coat pocket with her finger on the trigger and if anything went wrong, a simple tug would right things again.

It all seemed quite flawless in every respect. The only thing she worried about was Eddy springing at her out of the darkness. If that was the case, she’d be dead before the police even arrived. But they’d have their man. She didn’t think that would happen, though. Eddy would want her to know who was going to take her life, he’d want to tease her with it. His inflated ego would accept nothing less.

It was all set to go down tomorrow night. In the meantime, as the police organized themselves, Lisa would start visiting the house. If Eddy was nearby, hopefully he’d see her and come calling. If not right away, then tomorrow night when she would be trapped in the house for the duration.

For these first visits, Fenn would be in the back seat of her car, communicating with the officers who were monitoring her. Gaines had suggested that she might want to take a piece of chalk along and leave a little message for Eddy. Scrawl something on a wall so he’d know it was her without leaving her name. Maybe drop the idea that she’d be waiting for him the next evening. It was worth a shot.

All the bases were covered now and with any luck she’d soon be meeting the man she’d come to meet. And the idea of that filled her with a black and nameless horror like nothing she’d ever before known.