Sigma Curse - 04 by Tim Stevens

Author:Tim Stevens [Stevens, Tim]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2014-10-02T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

In all his years as a cop, Venn had never ceased to be amazed how quickly a story spread.

The first editions of the morning papers ran with the Fincher murder. The latest killing, that of Alice Peters, didn’t feature, because the papers had already been printed by the time the body was discovered.

But the radio breakfast shows talked about little else.

By ten a.m., the news bulletins on TV and the radio and the Internet were headlining with the link between the murders. Same MO. Same distinctive sigma brand on the victims’ foreheads.

The press ate it up like candy.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Fil Vidal at his computer. “The online chat forums are crashing. The switchboards are jammed with callers.”

Venn knew what that was all about. People were ringing in with sightings and clues, the vast majority of which were either mistaken or else downright bogus. Or they were panicking, demanding to know how the NYPD intended to protect them and their families from the vicious killer stalking the streets of the city. It would simmer down once the initial excitement had worn off.

Venn had returned home to shower and shave and change his clothes. He’d caught Beth finishing off her breakfast before she headed out to work. Quickly, he filled her in.

“I’ll be at the press conference later,” he said. “But out of sight.”

“Pity,” she said, kissing him. “I’ve always thought you’d look good on TV.”

He watched her go. For the first time in months, she seemed at ease. Back to her old self, after the turmoil of the last six months. And for the first time in almost as long, he thought they had a chance together once again.

Damn, but it felt good.

He got to the Division of Special Projects office a little before nine. Fil Vidal was already there, as was Harmony. She didn’t avoid his eyes, as he thought she might, and she looked more composed, as if she’d made a conscious effort to get herself under control.

“You speak to your family?” Venn asked.

“Yeah. Her dad took it hard.”

Venn didn’t ask her if she wanted to take some personal time. He figured she’d be insulted.

Fil had been at work for ninety minutes already. He’d been monitoring the news and the publicity the FBI had been putting out, as well as entering the particulars of the killer’s latest victim into his statistics program and starting to cross-reference them with the details from the other three murders.

Nothing had come up yet.

The press conference was due at eleven. Teller and his team had moved fast, securing the press office at One Police Plaza, the NYPD’s headquarters. Venn had noticed a greater than average density of helicopters in the sky as he’d driven in to work. He anticipated that the international media would be there as well as all of the domestic heavy hitters.

“You coming along?” he asked Harmony.

“I figured I’d stay here and help Fil,” she said. “Not really in the mood for watching Teller and that Rickenbacker creature schmoozing with journalists.

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