Evelyn
Chapter 21
Neila Ratner is expecting the police. It's hardly the first time. Bobby started getting himself in trouble practically from the moment he came screaming out of the womb. Even as a baby, he'd steal toys, cookies, anything he could get his little fingers around. She thought he'd grow out of it when he learned how young men are supposed to behave, but he never did.
Bobby's first suspension from school came in fourth grade, but he'd spent endless hours in the principal's office before that. After he was expelled from high school, she tried to convince him to get his GED so he could get a decent job. But Bobby had no interest in working for what he was convinced he had a right to take.
Finally, Neila gave him an ultimatum. If he brought anything she even suspected he'd stolen into her home, he'd be out for good. It didn't take long for him to show up wearing a ruby pinky ring. On the little money that she was able to spare for him each month, he would never have been able to afford even a fake gem, and that one looked real.
When Neila told Bobby to leave, he didn't even give her an argument. He just told her he didn't want to live in her rat hole anymore and that he was going to make it big. After that, the police started showing up regularly, except when he was in jail, but he never seemed to stay locked up for long. They let him go early for good behavior. He probably stole the silver out of the guards' teeth on the way out. But the police haven't called on Neila for a long time. She hasn't heard from Bobby either, not even begging for money for the big score he's always claimed was just around the corner. When Detective Beckett called, Neila got a sick feeling in her stomach.
"Last one," Kate notes, navigating worn stairs to a fourth-floor walk-up. "His poor mother. No one that age should have to make this climb."
"Not crazy about it myself," Castle admits.
The woman who ushers Kate and Rick into her apartment has a face furrowed as much by experience as age. She hasn't bothered with makeup, not even lipstick, to widen the thin line of her mouth, but the apartment is clean and surprisingly large. It has scarred hardwood floors recalling an earlier era. The room where Ms. Ratner urges them to sit even has a fireplace, but it appears unused. Probably years of going unmaintained have left it dangerous to light. "You said on the phone that you need to talk to me about Bobby. What about him?" Neila asks.
"Ms. Ratner, when was the last time you saw or heard from your son?" Kate inquires.
Neila twists the thin fabric of her skirt in her fingers. "It must have been about a year ago. He said he was setting up something big, and if I would give him $2,000, I could get in on it."
"Did you give him the $2,000?" Rick inquires."
"I didn't have $2,000, but I wouldn't have given it to him if I did. I love Bobby. He's my little boy, but he's never had an honest bone in his body. He would never have used that money for anything legal. I was afraid he'd put himself back in prison and maybe even pull me in with him. Was he arrested?"
"The last arrest on our records was two years ago," Kate explains. "And he would have been on probation at the time he called you. Not long after that, his probation officer lost track of him. If the police had picked him up, he would have been sent back to prison, but there's no record of him being seen by anyone."
"So you're trying to find him to send him back now," Neila interjects.
Kate leans forward in her chair, holding Neila's gaze. "No, we don't believe we're going to find him. His blood was identified on the weapon of someone we believe to be a serial killer. We suspect Bobby was one of his victims. I'm so sorry."
The gleam of moisture Kate expected to see in Neila's eyes never appears. The woman squares her shoulders and draws in a breath. "I guess it's over then. Thank you for coming to tell me."
"She knew what you were going to tell her before you opened your mouth," Rick concludes, as he and Kate make the descent from Neila Ratner's apartment.
"Yeah, I think she did," Kate agrees. "And I think she's been preparing for it for a long time."
A text alert sounds from the pocket of Kate's slacks. "What's going on?" Rick asks as she reads the message.
"Johnson's been transferred from Bellevue to Rikers. We can go up there and question him. He'll have an advocate with him, but he's been judged sane enough to interview."
"How about our research on the groups that might have killed Mara and Paul Stoot?" Rick wonders.
"We'll get into it after we talk to Johnson. I want to use what we learned about his victims while it's still fresh in my mind."
"Do you remember me, Mr. Johnson?" Kate asks as Ralph and his advocate are led to a bench opposite Kate and Rick at a small metal table. All the furniture is firmly bolted to the floor, preventing inmates from using it as weapons.
"You don't have to say anything," the advocate cautions Johnson.
"But I want to," Ralph protests. "There can be no shame in doing what God commands, only in disobedience. Of course, I remember you, Detective Beckett. Are you here to return my holy weapon so I can finish delivering God's message?"
"Actually, I'm here to ask you about some of your other messages from God, Mr. Johnson. How long have you been doing God's work?"
Ralph gazes into empty air. "Many, many years. He had to teach me how to make sure the evil was cleansed from the bodies of the souls he demanded. I had to learn how to use the holy flames."
"Are you referring to a cremation chamber?" Kate asks.
"My employers have called it that," Johnson agrees. "My first body was stolen from a comfortable resting place. I learned not to make that mistake again. I believe God was pleased that I did better."
"And how did you do better?" Kate queries. "What kind of souls do you believe God wanted you to take?"
Ralph closes his eyes. "There were so many: thieves, those who gave poison to innocents, or allowed them to be hurt, those who didn't care for their wives as Paul decreed."
"Souls like Norris Ratched, Morgan Lionheart, Bobby Ratner, and Cyrus Latimer?" Kate presses. "Would you be willing to swear to gathering as many souls as you can remember, in court?"
"I'll give my testimony," Ralph proclaims. "But Detective, swearing is a violation of God's law. I will affirm what he has commanded me to do. I bring the message to the world that the word of God must be obeyed."
"You may get the chance to do that, Mr. Johnson," Kate responds.
"Do you think that Johnson will ever make it to trial?" Rick asks as Kate approaches the bridge connecting Rikers Island to the rest of the city.
"I doubt it. It would depend on if he knew he was doing something wrong when he did it. Other than stealing the khopesh, which he never intended to do, he believed what he was doing was right. But one way or another, he'll be kept from doing any more harm."
"I can think of some who'll believe he'll be kept from doing any more good," Castle remarks. "I'm glad I don't have to be the judge."
Kate drives silently back to Manhattan.