Hotline to Murder

see his face, and I couldn’t see his hair. But his size and the way he moved. It’s funny that we’ve been talking about Nathan.”
    “He reminded you of Nathan?”
    “I couldn’t come up with a name before, but maybe it is Nathan. You know how Nathan walks, kind of jerky, like a puppet being controlled by strings? This guy had the same awkward movement when he was trying to stop me from getting to the beach. He wasn’t graceful, like an athlete. If he had been better coordinated, he might have been able to do it. He was certainly big enough.”
    Shahla paused. “But it wasn’t Nathan’s car, was it? I seem to remember that he drives a Jeep or something.”
    “That’s my memory too,” Tony said. “But sometime after we attended that church service, it occurred to me that Nathan’s alibi didn’t hold water. He said he was at a service until eleven the night of the murder, but the way people came and went during the service we were at, he could have snuck out and never been missed.”
    “He might even have returned before eleven.”
    “Right. Let’s assume for a minute that it was Nathan who tried to kidnap you and that he called here just now. He could have gotten my phone number off the Hotline roster. He might have been calling to see if you’re still here. And of course your address is on the roster, too.”
    “So he’s going to try again?” Shahla looked out the living room window at the swimming pool and shuddered.
    “Don’t worry; it’s not going to happen.” Tony chastised himself for scaring her. “Go upstairs and get dressed. I’m going to call my boss and tell her I won’t be at work today. Then we’ll get on the computer. I found a website for the Church of the Risen Lord back when you and I attended the service. The first thing we’ll do is to check and see whether there’s any new information there.”
    ***
    “Here it comes,” Tony said.
    He was sitting in the swivel chair in front of his computer. Shahla was leaning over his shoulder, intently watching the screen. The home page of the Church of the Risen Lord appeared; it showed people being carried upward in an endless stream, presumably into heaven, where they acquired wings and started flitting about.
    “It’s wonderful what can be done with graphics these days,” Tony said, hoping he didn’t sound too sarcastic. There were a number of hyperlinks on the page. Tony clicked on the one marked, “Day of Judgment.” A new page appeared on the screen. It was printed in large, bold text. Tony and Shahla read it together.
    “To the Faithful: Hallelujah! The time we have been waiting for has arrived. Gather at the appointed place at sunset on Monday, September 30. Our Ascension will take place at midnight. You already have a copy of the bus schedules showing you how to get there by public transportation. Be sure to bring all your money in cash. Get a maximum cash advance on your credit cards. You must have divested all your worldly goods. Remember that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into heaven. As we wait, we will conduct a prayer vigil and sing the praises of our Lord. Do not be late. Anybody who does not show up will be cast into the fiery pits and burned to ashes. You do not want to be among that number.” At the bottom, “Reverend Luther Hodgkins” was printed in larger, bolder letters.
    “That’s tonight,” Shahla said.
    “Time is running out,” Tony said. It was coming together. “That’s why Nathan isn’t driving his own car. He’s probably sold it and is driving a loaner or a rental. But if he wants to take another girl to heaven with him, he has to work fast.”
    “Another? You mean Joy…?”
    “Maybe it works something like the Muslim suicide bombers. They get seventy-seven virgins in heaven, give or take a few. Maybe Nathan has to collect his own.”
    “You mean, if he kills them, he gets to have them in heaven? Tony, that’s horrible.”
    “I know. We have to keep him away from you until tonight.”
    “What happens at midnight when…nothing happens?”
    “Hopefully, that will expose the Reverend Hodgkins as a fraud. But it would also help if Nathan has already been arrested. I wish we knew where this place was. But the good reverend is too clever to put it on the Internet. I suppose that the only ones who know it are those who have been faithfully attending the church services and giving willingly of their material