As she walked into the office, trying to forget the way Julie Noble made her feel, her desk phone rang and disrupted her flow of thoughts. She’d been trying to piece together when the killer had made his initial contact with the reporter and why he’d chosen her. She ran across the room and picked up the receiver.
‘DC Maggie Jamieson speaking.’
‘Hi. It’s Julie Noble here. Do you have a moment to talk?’
‘I’m still on the line, aren’t I? What do you want?’ She’d just left the woman; she could have her done for harassment. Maggie smiled to herself at the thought.
‘When I got back to my office, I found another note waiting for me. Thought you might be interested, but if you’re going to be arsy about it …’
‘Hang on. Sorry, OK, I’m sure you’ll appreciate the pressure we’re under and why you may not be my favourite person. Please tell me you haven’t opened it yet.’
‘I could tell you that, but I’d be lying.’
‘Fucksake. I thought you wanted to help us. What did it say?’
‘He makes references to Jeffrey Dahmer. That serial killer in the US? Didn’t he kill boys and men?’
Maggie tapped her pen on the table. ‘Dahmer, eh? Anything else?’
‘Just some sketch of a little girl and signed with something that resembles a figure eight, I think. It slants slightly to the left.’
The line went silent.
Julie Noble didn’t seem to recognize the significance of the infinity symbol, which meant the killer hadn’t spelled things out for her. At least they had that to hold back from the public. ‘What are you planning on doing with the information?’
‘Well, I was hoping we could come to some sort of an arrangement. We work together on this and you give me an exclusive when this is all over.’
‘I can’t agree to those terms. I’d have to speak to my boss. But let me make one thing clear: you’re not a police officer, so leave the investigating to us.’
‘Do you always take things so literally? All I meant was, I’d share anything that I receive and agree not to report on the case until the killer is caught. But in exchange, I want to be the one to break the story. Go and speak to whoever you have to and call me back.’
Maggie heard a click and the line went dead.
Who the fuck did she think she was? As much as it pained Maggie, it would be better to have Julie onside than constantly fighting against her. She needed to speak to Nathan, and she turned in her chair to see if he was in.
No time like the present. Maggie took a deep breath and walked into Nathan’s office, tapping on the door as she said, ‘Hey boss, do you have a moment?’
‘Sure. Take a seat. What is it?’
‘I just got off the phone with Julie Noble. She’s received and opened another note from our suspected killer and she wants an exclusive in order to keep this latest off the news.’
‘I thought I already gave the go-ahead for that? Why didn’t you sort it when you met up with her?’
‘We didn’t exactly get around to that. She pissed me off and I left.’
‘Well, call her back and tell her that as long as she continues to share everything with us, she’ll get the story first. But any pissing about, and that offer is withdrawn. What did the note say?’
‘References to Jeffrey Dahmer and the figure eight as well as some drawing. But what she did fail to mention to you before was that he sent her a CD. With Cliff Richard’s “Living Doll” track highlighted. When I call her back, I’ll make arrangements to have everything picked up and I’ll make it clear that if she receives anything else, she’s to leave it until we can pick it up.’
‘Dahmer? Cliff Richard? What’s the significance?’
‘Don’t know, boss. Could he be hinting at something? I’m sure I read somewhere that Dahmer used to lobotomise his victims. Maybe he’s just confirming what the pathologist found? Could he be using Julie Noble as his way of explaining things to us? Or he could be leading us down the wrong path, knowing Julie would come to us. But I do know that she has no idea about the infinity symbol, so at least that’s something.’
‘True. Go make your call. If anything else comes up, let me know.’
Maggie returned to her desk and called the reporter, relaying Nathan’s instructions. ‘So where are you now?’
‘Markston Police Station.’
‘What the hell? Why are you there?’
‘I thought I’d speak to Dr Moloney and get her take on things while I waited for you to come back to me. Speaking of which, here she is now. See you soon, DC Jamieson.’
‘Wait! Leave Dr Moloney out of this for the time being.’
‘Why? What do I get in return?’
Maggie kicked her desk. This woman was infuriating.
‘I can’t offer you more than the exclusive you already have.’
‘How about you tell me how Dr Moloney is involved in all of this … when the time is right. That seems fair.’
Maggie bit her nail. If she promised Julie the information she wanted, she may be putting Kate in jeopardy. Julie wasn’t known for her tact. But if she didn’t, Julie would do it anyway.
‘Fine! But I’m serious. Keep away from Dr Moloney. Do you hear me?’
‘Great. I look forward to your update.’
She paused and Maggie could hear her breath in her ear.
‘I probably should tell you before you jump into a car, I’m not really at Markston. I had a hunch and you confirmed my suspicions. How would I have got to Markston so quickly after leaving you? C’mon, detective. Use that brain of yours. Don’t you think we’d make a great team?’
The journalist laughed down the phone.
‘You bitch! I should charge you with obstruction.’
‘Mind yourself now, DC Jamieson. I could be recording you.’
Maggie screamed as she flung the phone down onto her desk. She wouldn’t let Julie Noble get the best of her. At least she knew Kate hadn’t been contacted.
Kate wasn’t aware that the killer had been in contact with the news, though given the recent stories, it wouldn’t take her long to put two and two together. It irked her that she had to keep things from her friend due to a conflict of interest, but Maggie knew Kate was already stressed enough knowing the killer and her stalker were one and the same. She didn’t want Julie Noble to push her friend over the edge.