“Don’t get all shrink-speak on me.”
“Funny.”
“Look, don’t some abuse victims do a 180 and embrace their abuser?”
“Yes, of course—“
“And don’t some abuse victims just blot out the whole thing, deny that it ever happened?”
“A fugue or pathological denial or disassociative state, yes, but—“
“So what if with Vagabond, it was both?”
Now Manny was curious. “So what you are saying is that Vagabond pathologically embraced his abuser but pathologically repressed the abuse?”
“Bingo.”
“And convinced himself that it was a healthy, loving relationship, thereby attaining some measure of normalcy in his damaged mind.”
“Double bingo.”
The ball began to roll. “And when that relationship ended, the normalcy also ended, and Vagabond went on a revenge rampage, but the original repression of the abuse remained intact. He can’t admit he knows who the killer is, or suspects who it is, because it would mean having to face the true nature of being abused, of being trade, so he’s been running in place for the last two years.”
“You win a brand new refrigerator! The part of him that wants the fantasy won’t let him divulge all that he knows, therefore, the part of him that wants revenge is hamstrung. 49% wants revenge, 51% wants the fantasy. Part of him wants us to find the killer, and part of him wants us not to.”
Manny turned, scratching his head. “If that were true.”
“We have to confront Vagabond. It’s the only way.”
Manny snapped his head to the other man. “’Confront him?’ You are out of your mind, Bo! I’m a psychologist, and I am telling you that is nuts.”
“If it’s the truth—”
“That’s a joke, right?” Manny asked, incredulous. “You don’t need me to know that Vagabond is psychotic. He has all the hallmarks of a man who is deeply criminally insane. He makes John Wayne Gacy look like a smurf! And he has more rage than I have ever sensed in a man. He will kill and has killed without remorse or even provocation. If what you say is true, the only thing that, to Vagabond, is more sacred than finding Paul Merryman’s killer is the fantasy of Paul Merryman. Shining daylight on the magic could make Vagabond self-destruct.”
“That a bad thing?”
“It does when you have the power to take out half the city and all of you.”
Orbis grunted.
Manny grew thoughtful. “What exactly is in this photo you found?”
“A boy naked and tied up.”
“…Jesus.”
“Oh, yeah.”
Manny put his had to his forehead. “You’re going to need something more. Something irrefutable. Something he can’t run away from.”
“The photo—“
“—could be doctored. And let’s face it, age progression is never exactly dead on. He’ll just deny it…at best.”
“Why do people deny it?” Orbis asked thoughtfully.
“Pride. Humiliation. Sometimes the mind can’t take it. Hell, it could be out of habit! It can be any number of reasons. For Vagabond, it may be to keep the fantasy intact. But again, if any of this is true. You have a theory, and it is outlandish at best.”
“ROM is trying to find who he really is. Maybe find his family.”
“His family is dead.”
“That’s only what he told us.”
A pause. “I’ll give you that, but ROM’s could be in for a wild goose chase. Another one, by the way. Speaking of needles in haystacks. How the hell is she going to do that?”
“Missing Persons.”
“Why can’t you do that?”
“Because I’ll be watched.”
“Come again?”
Orbis was silent.
“Orbis…what aren’t you telling me? I can find out easily enough, you know.”
“The SFPD was told to drop this investigation and destroy the evidence.”
Scepter was suddenly very serious. “You stole that photo.”
“Yes.”
“And you’ve gone against a direct order.”
“Yes.”
“And this…ring, you think it probably has very powerful members.”
“Yes.”
“Even in the SFPD?”
Orbis exhaled. “Yes.”
“Oh, crap.”
“Yes. Or maybe not. Maybe the force is clean and was just ordered to do somebody else’s dirty work.”
Manny sat down. “Orbis, you are putting yourself directly in the line of fire of somebody who can not only boss the SFPD around, but get away with it. You could get thrown off the force for this, or worse. You’ve already stolen evidence. That alone is a crime.”
“I got thrown outta the SEALs, too. Why not make it a set?” At which point, Orbis’s cell went off. ROM. Manny was momentarily forgotten. “What did you find.”
“A whole lot of nothin’. Plenty of blonde pretty boys. None of him.”
“What? Did you check Missing Persons—“
“Yes, I did! And he ain’t there!”
“Then you did it wrong!”
“Excuse me?” ROM did not like to hear that accusation.
“ROM, he was kidnapped. Expand the search. Other countries.”
“You shittin’ me? That’ll take forev—”
Orbis clenched his free fist. “We’ve all seen him naked! He’s blonde, blue-eyed and uncut! That means northern Europe! Think! You have the brains to install a supercomputer in week and call it ‘paradise!’” He all but threw the phone across the room. “Damn. Damndamndamn!”
