Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
Harriet
Ihead to my office and spend some time on my stepped pyramid made from small stacks of quarters.
It helps a little, but not that much. Alexandru’s hungry. Is he going to go for Dooley tonight?
I go up to the grand library and flop down in the newly appeared second chair in front of the fireplace. Alexandru is, as usual, in his normal chair with its weirdly curved handles.
“You are distressed.”
He’s right about that. “You never said where this chair came from. I think you put it here just for me.”
“You are always telling me to blend in with humans. Is it not the way of humans to have a furniture grouping?”
“You need a chair for Gregor, now.”
“Gregor does not use chairs.”
I squint across the room toward the corner where I can just make out Gregor’s form in the gloom. “Maybe it might be nice to ask him.”
“I do not want a chair, milady,” Gregor says.
“You see?” Alexandru says.
I lower my voice to a whisper. “You know he said that because he thinks you don’t want him here. Gregor is an interesting person with a lot to offer. Did you know he’s an expert woodworker?”
“The subject is closed.”
“I personally would enjoy sitting with Gregor.”
Alexandru sighs wearily.
“I’m sorry, am I being tedious? Because you know what I find tedious? Being punished for something my ancient ancestors did that I have nothing to do with. Is that what you’re doing to Gregor, too?”
A voice from the corner. “I am pleased to serve, milady.”
“I think he’s punishing you for something.”
Alexandru turns a page. “I am beginning to regret this furniture grouping.”
Clearly, I’m not going to be getting any answers here. I turn my attention to other matters. There are just so many. “You can’t drain Dooley.”
“Would you prefer I drain one of the Snag Tooth Riders?”
“No.”
“Somebody else, then? Either you pick or I do.”
“I can’t pick.”
“It as an honor to sacrifice oneself to provide life force to a superior being such as I.”
“Gag,” I say.
“We will catch a murderer next month.”
“I know you’re going to say this is wishful thinking, but Varla being Sherlocksmith...I’m having a hard time with it. I’m questioning it.”
Alexandru looks interested. “Say more.”
“I don’t know. Does something feel off to you?”
“I’m more interested in if something feels off to you. If something feels off to you, that is worth considering. You have known Sherlocksmith for a number of years. Tell me about this person.”
“Well, Sherlocksmith always acted superior to me in every way and always had a better solution to everything than whatever I’d put forth. Through the years, whenever I’d make any kind of assertion, Sherlocksmith would be the first to jump in to argue. Always wanting to be superior.”
“Sherlocksmith liked to best you.”
“Yes. And with that french fry thread where the Cuyahoga Killer didn’t eat his fries before hanging himself? Like I said, Sherlocksmith would pound on that so much, I felt like they wanted to keep reminding me of what happened, just to taunt me.”
Alexandru growls. “Sherlocksmith enjoyed distressing you.”
“And getting the last laugh. Getting the last word on any exchange. That doesn’t feel like Varla.”
Alexandru considers this. “Varla did not like you, but what I sensed from her was more defensive than offensive.”
“Yes!”
The planes of Alexandru’s face look stark in the firelight. “I have known devious people; some of them quite well. One thing they have in common is how they revel in their malicious handiwork.”
“Yes! And you can’t revel in your malicious handiwork if you’re dead.”
“Nor have the last laugh.”
“No,” I continue. “The Sherlocksmith I know would keep going until they couldn’t. Even if they got arrested, they’d keep on, living for the chance to force me to testify. They’d happily and gleefully taunt me from jail.”
“Such a one would not provide a convenient death.”
My mind spins. Suddenly, it’s all making so much sense.
“So what if Sherlocksmith figured out a way to make the murder look like hanging, like maybe drugging poor Varla and hoisting her up there or something. Could be just a matter of time before the medical examiner figures it out.” I stand.
“We have to solve this mystery before the police get to the real culprit!”
He looks at me the way he does sometimes, like he hasn’t quite figured me out yet. “You, my dear, have a nemesis.”
“No,” I say.
“I should know.”
“I am so not the type to have a nemesis.”
“Welcome to the club, as they say.”
“Wait. The club? Are you saying that you have a nemesis? Somebody who revels in their malicious handiwork?”
Alexandru sets aside his book. “He is of no concern to you.”
“So you do!”
“I grow hungry, Renfield.”
“Right.” I pace up and down in front of the fire. “I have to think Sherlocksmith was at the scene. And we know they have some access to InovaSpire. Also, why frame Varla?”
Alexandru says, “You once told me that murder victims aren’t ever random.”
“Right. Not for a methodical killer, anyway. Somebody obsessed enough to stalk me on a forum for years, to study every detail of the Cuyahoga case, to stage this entire elaborate trap... that kind of methodical person is incapable of doing anything random. Every decision relates to something larger. Is there some way in which Varla represents me? Or is she connected to Sherlocksmith? Does Sherlocksmith work at InovaSpire? Did Sherlocksmith seek her out and maybe even befriend her after she took over my position? The first victims, Razor Johnny and Milo, were there to implicate Jerome. But what about Nick Lernov, the retired teacher? I never did do a deep dive on him.”
“Perhaps it’s time to know more about both of them.”
I grab my tablet and do a quick search on Nick Lernov. The first thing that comes up is the fact that his memorial service is being held this afternoon.
I turn to Alexandru. “I’m assuming you have a black outfit?”
“Indeed I do.”
“We’re going to a funeral.”