Page 34 of Sharp Force
Down to 30%,he writes.
Do you need us to come find you?I text him back.
Negative & you’d never get here.
We’d figure out a way,I promise.Won’t have you stranded.
As I’m typing, I envision morbid scenarios should he be forced to abandon his SUV. He could be struck by a car. He could fall and hit his head, dying from exposure.
I’ll be fine,Benton answers.Where are you?
Pulling up to the house now,I let him know.
Marino stops at the black wrought iron front gate. On either sideof the entrance is fencing that’s just as tall and formidable. Our nine-acre estate is monitored by an array of sophisticated cameras and sensors that Lucy installed and manages with AI help from Janet.
I find the remote control inside my briefcase, pointing it through the window. The gate begins stuttering open, and I hope it doesn’t get stuck. The snow is deep and not letting up. We sit impatient and restless, looking around at dark woods on either side, headlights shining on big trees that have been here for centuries.
“I don’t like leaving you home by yourself, Doc,” Marino says as the gate inchworms noisily along its metal track. “I really don’t. You know how I am when I get one of my bad feelings. And I’m getting one big-time.”
“Considering the day we’ve had, it’s no wonder,” I reply. “I have a bad feeling, too. For one thing, I don’t like Dana Diletti staying in her house after what happened earlier. I hope to God we don’t get called to respond there. So far, the Slasher shows up to butcher his victims on major holidays, and tomorrow is the biggest of the year.”
Then we’re driving through the entrance, our tires crushing unbroken whiteness. We wait to make sure the gate shuts behind us, the snow luminous in the uneven glow of iron lamps. With every passing moment Marino seems more uneasy, and I suspect I know what’s bothering him most. He’s not looking forward to what awaits him at home.
“I’m pissed Dana Diletti would put herself at risk, especially at a time like this,” he’s saying. “The latest from Fruge is the cops aren’t patrolling her neighborhood. As you might figure, they’re overwhelmed dealing with accidents, stranded motorists, domestic situations. We’ve already got a murder-suicide, the bodies on the way to our office according to Fabian. The cops have their hands full.”
“We’d better pray the Slasher stays off the streets tonight because of the storm,” I answer.
“It makes sense that he would,” Marino says. “My guess is he sent the hologram into Dana Diletti’s bedroom to create a media sensation. And he’s gotten what he wanted, that’s for sure.”
“We can only hope he doesn’t intend to follow up on his scary gesture like he has three times before,” I reply as the gate clanks shut.
CHAPTER 12
“I don’t know. It’s like something’s watching us.” Marino nervously glances around as we crunch away from the gate. “It’s the same thing I felt when Fruge and I were searching Dana’s property. I sensed something was there, a presence we couldn’t see.”
“That’s to be expected since the Slasher’s hologram had just invaded her house,” I remind him.
“Yeah, you’re right.” His eyes are on the mirrors. “It was probably my imagination. But then again, he uses the fake ghost to spy. Although I don’t see how the hell that would work. I still don’t get it. How can an optical illusion record sound and video?”
“Lucy says the Slasher has a terahertz holographic projector that uses extremely fast pulsing infrared and radio waves to pass through windows, walls.” I tell him the same thing I have before. “The electromagnetic energy electrifies the air, basically turning it into pixels. That’s how the images are painted.”
“Lucy never says anything that normal people can freakin’ understand,” Marino complains.
“These electromagnetic waves enable the Slasher to record the images and sounds. That’s how he spies.” I’m uneasy looking out at the dark woods as we follow the driveway.
“Meaning he could have been watching everything while Frugeand I were poking around her property. Just like he’s been watching Dana Diletti. It must be someone who knows what the hell he’s doing. Like a scientist gone haywire.”
As he’s saying this, a dead branch lands in front of us, a puff of snow drifting down. A great horned owl flaps from a tree with loud shrieks and hoots. I can see its feathery earlike tufts and huge wingspan as it swoops low over the truck, vanishing in the dark.
“Fucking hell,” Marino says. “Could things get any creepier?”
“We have a nest on the property,” I reply. “At the back of it high up in a tree with a view of the river. I call them our protect owls.”
“Well, they wouldn’t be very protective of Merlin,” Marino says. “And I bet you don’t have much of a rabbit population.”
“I’ve told Lucy how dangerous it is for Merlin to go out at night,” I reply while looking around for him.
The security cameras can pick up the cat when he’s on the driveway. But not when he’s in the woods because he’s too low to the ground. I rarely know where Merlin is unless he’s in front of me.
