Sanders’ intrigued stare returned. He had no idea Hunter knew about the filming.

‘You’re not a trophy collector. The films mean nothing to you. You did it because “The Monster” did it. You even found a place hidden away and transformed it to look similar to the place in which he kept you.’

‘With a few modern modifications, of course,’ Sanders admitted. ‘How do you think I knew that you were approaching the house at this time in the morning?’ His eyebrows arched. ‘There are hidden sensors all around this place.’

Those words filled Hunter with dread.

‘Why do you think that the front door was unlocked, Robert? I was waiting for you. I wanted you to get inside.’

Hunter’s arms were starting to feel like meat lumps.

‘But I’m impressed, Robert,’ Sanders continued. ‘You are right. I became “The Monster” to prove a point. My point. But I didn’t just take to the streets and start killing people. I began devising my plan years ago. I didn’t want to rush it. And I planned everything to the very last detail. The first victim had to be the result of an over-the-top, daring abduction. That way, I could guarantee that the Missing Persons Unit’s Special Division would get the call. I would get the call.’ He chuckled at his own cleverness. ‘I even managed to find the person who, if the detective assigned to the murders investigation didn’t make a complete fuck-up of everything, would become the perfect scapegoat. The perfect prime suspect.’

‘Mat Hade,’ Hunter said. ‘I Am Death.’

The surprise in Sanders’ eyes was sincere.

‘Wow! You figured that one out too?’ He nodded approvingly. ‘OK, now I’m really impressed. I knew you were good from the first time we met in my office to discuss Nicole’s case. You were asking all the right questions, but I must admit that I wasn’t expecting you to ask for a history search on similar abductions. I thought that you would just grab the files and leave. But your request gave me the perfect opportunity to bring Mat into the equation and to run my first quick test on how good you really were.’

‘You called me and told me you hadn’t found anything,’ Hunter said.

‘Exactly. And that was when you figured out what we were doing wrong. We were searching only for concluded cases. That really impressed me, Robert. Obviously, I already had it all covered from the beginning. The idea was to suggest that search to the detective in charge of Nicole’s murder investigation myself, but you saved me the trouble. And if you hadn’t brought the “concluded case” mistake to my attention, I would’ve just said that I thought better of the search you had asked me for and had come up with that idea myself.’

Hunter’s mouth was starting to feel bone dry.

‘I knew I needed a scapegoat and it took me years to find him, but Mathew Hade fitted my plans like a glove,’ Sanders said. ‘But not even the best-laid plans could’ve delivered his name. That was pure luck. How perfect was it? Can you imagine how surprised I was when I figured out that I could make the perfect anagram out of it?’

Sanders laughed another throaty, macabre laugh before continuing. ‘That also gave me the perfect opportunity to drop the best hint into my note.’

‘“The clues are in the name”,’ Hunter said.

‘Wasn’t it perfect?’ Sanders boasted. ‘A clue with a double meaning: I MAT HADE or I AM DEATH. But in the end, that wasn’t the name, or names, the clue was referring to. That was genius, if I might say so myself.’

‘So once you knew you would hand us Mat Hade’s file,’ Hunter said. ‘You took care of him.’

Sanders applauded Hunter again. ‘Of course I did. I didn’t want you finding him. That would’ve spoiled all my plans.’

‘And you planted those items in his apartment – the red pen, the sheets of paper, the book of matches.’

‘Another genius move, don’t you think?’ Sanders replied. ‘This whole case was supposed to have stretched for a very long time, Robert, and with every new victim I gave you, a new cryptic clue would’ve once again pointed to one person, and one person only – Mat Hade. How frustrating do you think it would be for you to chase a ghost, Robert?’

Silence reigned for several seconds before Sanders spoke again.

‘But though you were good, Robert, very good indeed, you weren’t good enough. Because you made the same deadly mistake that was made twenty-five years ago. You know what that mistake was, don’t you?’

‘I looked into your eyes and I didn’t see it.’

‘Correct again. You and your partner looked straight into my eyes. I sat in your office. You sat in mine. We conversed and you still didn’t know. Admit it.’

Before Hunter could say anything, an electronic beeping sounded in the room.

Hunter’s eyes scanned the place.

‘They’re here,’ Sanders said, grabbing the double-barreled shotgun he had left on the workshop table that was half hidden in the shadows.

Hunter looked at him with deep concern.

‘I knew that you wouldn’t turn up here by yourself, Robert. You’re not that dumb. Sure, you might turn up here first to check things out, but the cavalry would be right behind you, correct?’

Hunter breathed out.

Sanders smiled. ‘I know I’ve got no way out of here. But I don’t need a way out. I don’t want a way out. My life ended when I was eleven, and whatever hell I go to from here, it will feel like paradise compared to the last twenty-five years of my life.’

He cocked the hammer on both barrels.

‘One for you, one for me. Congratulations, Robert. You managed to stop the murders. And, believe me, I would’ve carried on until someone corrected the mistakes that were made twenty-five years ago. But you still failed me. You failed to identify the monster in me when you looked into my eyes.’

The beeping got louder and more frantic.

‘They are inside,’ Sanders announced with a smile, pointing the shotgun at Hunter.

Hunter looked straight into Sanders’ eyes. He would not give him the satisfaction of closing his eyes or looking away.

The door at the top of the staircase creaked.

Sanders squeezed the trigger.

Ninety

As Garcia pushed open the basement door, he heard the second shotgun blast. Both had happened in very quick succession. The confined space made them sound louder than normal, almost like a double bomb going off.

Garcia dropped to his knees, his weapon in a firm double-hand grip. Instead of returning fire, as he had no fixed target he used the door as cover and waited.

Two seconds.

Five.

Ten.

Nothing. No other shots.

Garcia pushed the door open further and glanced inside. His weapon was still searching for a target, searching for Troy Sanders. All he saw was a staircase going down into a basement and some gun smoke floating around at the bottom.

‘Robert?’ he called.

No reply.

‘Robert? Are you down there?’

Not a sound.

‘Fuck!’ Garcia drew in a deep breath and slowly started down the stairs.

‘Robert?’ he called again after three steps.

Still nothing.

Garcia moved down another five steps. He now had a better look at the basement but gun smoke and the dark shadows still made everything unclear.

‘Robert? Are you down here?’

The place was still.

‘ROBERT?’

‘I’m here. I’m here.’ Garcia heard Hunter’s voice. ‘Everything is OK, it’s all clear.’

Garcia didn’t fight the smile that stretched his lips. He didn’t want to fight it.

He went down the last few steps in a hurry and paused at the bottom, his eyes widening in shock.