Rules of Prey

up with some bullshit about a liaison officer between police and the gay community on AIDS and other problems. What the police can do to help, sensitivity training, all that. They ought to buy it.”
    “Okay.” Sloan nodded.
    “Actually, that’s not a bad idea,” Lucas said.
    “We’ve got enough gays of our own without goingoutside,” Daniel said. He poked a finger at Anderson. “Find out everything you can and cross-check it with the other victims. We’ve got him with Ruiz. See if we can match up somewhere else.
    “Now, you guys,” he said to the other six detectives, “are going to watch every move he makes. Two guys all the time, round the clock. Overtime, no problem. You see an eighty-year-old society lady getting gang-banged, you call it in and forget it. You never take your eyes off this motherfucker. You got that? Smithe is the only priority. And I want fifteen-minute checks on location. Call it into Anderson during the day, the duty officer at night.”
    “My husband’s going to love this,” one of the women cops muttered.
    “Fuck your husband,” said Daniel.
    “I’d like to,” said the cop, “but people keep putting me on nights.”
     
    When the meeting broke, he asked Lucas to stay behind.
    “You got the Ruiz thing fixed?”
    “Yeah. I talked to her just before I came in. We’ll do it tonight, at her place. Six o’clock. She’s willing, if it’ll help, and it’ll cool out Carey.”
    “I hope your dick isn’t getting you in trouble with that woman.”
    “It’s under control,” Lucas said. “I’ll tip the papers and the TV people that you’ll be calling a press conference. And I’ll talk to the papers about doing their interviews at the same time Carey does hers. We’ll be back over here for the press conference at nine. Afterward, I’m going to head up to my cabin for a couple of days. I’ve got some time coming.”
    “Jesus, this isn’t such a good time for a vacation.”
    “I’ve got things covered. I’ll leave my number with the shift commander if you need me.”
    “Okay, but tonight prep Ruiz for making some kind of appeal for cooperation, will you? You know the stuff.” Daniel leaned back in his chair, put one foot on his desk, lookedat his wall of photographs, and changed the subject. “You know what we need.”
    “Yeah.”
    “I’ll tell Anderson to give you location checks. We already know he lives alone. It’s a little house down by Lake Harriet.”
    “Not far from where Lewis worked. The real-estate woman.”
    “We thought of that,” Daniel said. “He didn’t buy the house from her agency, though.”
    “Look. Don’t get too far out front on this thing, okay? I mean you personally,” Lucas said. “If there’s a leak to the press, tell them that you’re looking at a guy, but you think it’s thin.”
    “You don’t believe it?”
    “I’ve got a bad feeling.”
    “Can you get something going this afternoon? That might tell us something.”
    “I’ll give it a shot.”
    Nobody said anything about a bag job.
     
    From his office, Lucas called the newspapers and television stations and tipped friends that Daniel would be calling a press conference. He talked separately to assignment editors from both papers and suggested that they keep a soft-touch reporter around late, that there’d be a good next-day story breaking around six o’clock.
    That done, he got Smithe’s address and phone number from Anderson and found the house on a city map. He knew the neighborhood. He thought about it for a minute, pursing his lips, then opened the bottom drawer of his desk, reached far into the back, and found the lock rake. It was battery-operated, roughly the same shape but only half the size of an electric drill, with two prongs sticking out where the drill bit would have been. One prong was bent, the other straight. Lucas unscrewed the butt cap, reversed the batteries into working position, and squeezed the trigger. The picks rattled for a second and he released the pressure and sighed.
    • • •
    Smithe’s house was tan stucco with a postage-stamp lawn. Fifteen-foot-tall junipers flanked the concrete steps that led to the front door. There were only occasional people on the quiet streets around the house. Lucas cruised by twice, then drove out to a street phone.
    “Anderson.”
    “This is Davenport. Where’s Smithe?”
    “Just had a call. He’s at his desk.”
    “Thanks.”
    Next he dialed Smithe’s number and let it ring. After the