‘Alright.’ Shockley sighed. ‘For now, I’ll just say we’re talking to “a person of interest.” That’ll hold ’em for a while. Just do me a favor. Don’t wait too long.’

McCabe headed out into the corridor. ‘Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.’ He could hear Shockley’s voice behind him, the man’s trademark smile in the delivery. ‘This morning, as you may have guessed, I’ve got some very good news . . .’

On the monitor in Fortier’s office, McCabe watched Kelly sitting alone in the small interview room. He didn’t look happy. ‘Did you have to cuff him?’

‘Yeah. I think he might have gotten violent if I didn’t,’ said Brian Cleary, ‘and then I would have had to get violent back.’ Cleary grinned. ‘And I know how you hate that.’

‘He say anything?’

‘Not yet,’ said Eddie Fraser. ‘Other than to tell us several times we were assholes. He’s just sitting there seething.’

‘Ask for a lawyer?’

‘Again, not yet.’

Even on the monitor, McCabe could feel anger radiating off the man in waves. He stared at the image, trying to square Kelly’s hot temper with the cool, methodical MO of Lainie Goff’s murderer. He was sure Kelly was capable of killing Goff. He was just surprised at the way he went about it. The whole scene at the Fish Pier didn’t feel right. It was too showy. On the other hand, maybe he was reading the guy wrong. The minute anyone starts thinking . . . Wolfe’s words played in his head again. Maybe that was it. Maybe he’d better think again.

Before entering the room, McCabe unbuckled his holster and weapon and handed them to Fraser. He’d decided to remove Kelly’s cuffs, and he knew Kyra would be really pissed if he let a prisoner shoot him with his own gun. Probably never agree to marry him.

‘Hello, John,’ McCabe said in a cheerful voice. ‘Sorry about the restraints.’

Kelly looked up. His blue, nearly violet eyes bore into McCabe for a few seconds. Then he turned away.

‘I can remove the cuffs if you like.’

No response.

‘You’ve just got to promise you’re not going to get crazy on me or anything.’

Kelly looked down. Closed his eyes. Took some deep breaths. McCabe could see his jaw muscles working as if he were clenching his teeth. Finally he looked up. ‘Okay.’

‘Okay what?’

‘Unlock the cuffs. I won’t beat you up.’

McCabe smiled. ‘Good. My girlfriend will be glad to hear that.’

He went behind Kelly’s chair and freed his arms. Then he walked around to the other side of the table and sat.

Kelly stretched his arms, rubbed his wrists, then clasped his hands on the table like a student in Catholic school waiting for the teacher. Neither of them said anything. They just sat there looking at each other for a while.

McCabe spoke first. ‘We searched your cabin.’

‘Yes. I know. I gave you permission. Remember?’ There was still an edge in his voice.

‘We found the quote.’

‘Good for you.’

‘The one from the Book of Amos. It was in the paper you wrote. The one from grad school.’

Kelly shrugged. ‘Okay.’

‘Oh, by the way. We also found the boy.’

He saw a flicker of doubt in Kelly’s eyes. Then it disappeared. ‘What boy?’

‘The one outside your cabin.’

‘I don’t know who or what you’re talking about.’

‘He was only about fourteen or so, wasn’t he?’

‘I still don’t know what you’re talking about.’

‘The boy you sexually abused? Then killed. Then buried in the snow. At your place? On Harts Island. You did a hell of a job, John. What did you stick up his rear end? The same knife you used to kill Goff?’

Kelly stared at him with a puzzled expression. He looked like he was trying to figure something out. McCabe guessed it was probably how he was gonna get himself out of this one.

‘Why did you have to kill him, John? Was it because he told Goff what you were doing? So you had to get rid of both of them? Because they both knew? Is that what it was?’

Kelly remained silent.

‘When was it you brought him out there? To your cabin, I mean?’

Kelly looked up. ‘I haven’t been to Harts Island in months.’

‘Where were you about one o’clock this morning?’

‘I told your buddies. I was home. Asleep.’

‘In your apartment?’

‘Yes.’

‘With your partner?’

‘Yes.’

‘How do you know Leanna Barnes?’

‘I don’t know any Leanna Barnes.’

‘That’s funny. I’ve got a couple of witnesses who say they saw you at her apartment around one this morning.’ Not exactly true, but not exactly untrue if you counted Barnes saying the word ‘Ellie’ and Maggie seeing a man in glasses with heavy black frames.

‘They’re wrong.’

‘They swear it was you.’

‘I told you. They’re wrong. I don’t know any Leanna Barnes. I don’t know where her apartment is.’

‘They say you shot her.’

‘They’re even more wrong. I never shot anybody in my life.’

‘You’ve hit people.’

‘Yeah. With my fists, and usually when they deserved it. I’ve never even fired a gun. I wouldn’t know how to hold one.’

McCabe looked at Kelly and decided to try a different tack. ‘The good thing, John, is it looks like Barnes is going to be okay. Be able to testify in court. So you’ll only be up on two counts of murder, not three,’ he said carefully, watching Kelly’s eyes for a reaction. He didn’t see one. ‘Amazing the gun didn’t do more damage.’

‘I’m glad to hear that.’

‘Yeah. She’ll be right as rain in no time. Be able to tell the jury how it was you who shot her.’

‘You’re lying.’

‘You mean you thought Leanna was dead? Is that what I’m lying about?’

‘I don’t know any Leanna. I’ve never been to her apartment, and what you’re lying about is the whole thing.’

‘Yeah? You’re saying maybe the witnesses got it wrong?’

‘I’m saying you’re lying.’

Kelly’s hands were clenched tightly together, the knuckles white. He was barely holding it together. He was talking, though. At least for the moment.

‘You know your place on the island?’

Kelly didn’t answer. Just looked at him.

‘Was the boy we found the first one you killed out there? Or were there others? You ever bring any other boys out there? You know, for a little fun and games? You must have known a lot of little lost boys, didn’t you, John? Just like Peter Pan. Runaways who wouldn’t be missed. No matter what you did to them. Is that why you started Sanctuary House? So you’d have your own little magnet to draw them right in. As many as you wanted. Whenever you wanted. A real treasure trove, wasn’t it? And if they disappeared or turned up dead, hey, who was going to miss them? They were runaways. Nobody at home waiting up or worrying about kids like them, was there, John? Except of course for you. Come in, come in, said the spider to the fly.’

Kelly hung his head and clenched his teeth. Then he looked up. He spoke quietly and slowly. ‘I have devoted my entire life to protecting kids. To helping them. Not to abusing them. Or killing them. That is the covenant I made with God. That is the covenant I have honored. And God knows, even if you don’t, that is the simple truth.’

‘Really? When was the last time you were out there on Harts Island?’

‘I already told you.’

‘Oh yeah? I don’t remember. Tell me again.’

‘I don’t use the place in winter. I haven’t been there since, I don’t know . . . I think Teddy and I went out the weekend before Thanksgiving.’

‘You sure you haven’t been out there more recently? Say in December? After it started getting cold and the ground froze too hard to dig.’

McCabe slipped two of the crime scene photos of the boy, lying in the snow dead and frozen, across the table. ‘Like maybe for a little recreational outing?’

‘Oh, sweet Jesus.’ Kelly stared at the pictures, one in each hand, looking first at one, then the other.

‘You do know this boy, don’t you, John?’ McCabe dropped the teasing tone. His voice was hard now. Threatening. ‘Well, don’t you?’