The Target

his chin on his clasped hands, his elbows on the table. "I've known Ramsey for a while now. We were both in law enforcement, Ramsey with the U.S. Attorney's office in San Francisco, and I with the FBI. We found we had a lot in common.

    "We've kept in touch. I admire him, Mrs. Santera. I don't like what's happening. As for Sherlock, she's been a special agent less than a year now, but she's tough and bright, and although she's pregnant, she wouldn't have dreamed of not coming. Uh, if you could not mention the word pregnant in front of her, both of us would appreciate it."

    "So it's anyone who says the word pregnant?"

    Savich grinned at Ramsey. "As in she blames any messenger or just the guy who got her in this condition?"

    "That's it."

    "I don't know. I thought it was just me. Maybe you could drop the word by accident and we'll run a small scientific experiment."

    "I wouldn't do that to another woman," Molly said. "Thank you both for coming."

    "No problem. This is a royal mess. Sherlock doesn't like what's happening to you guys, either. So, this guy was either wearing a Clinton mask or he was a master at makeup and disguises. But it'd have to be a really good mask for Emma not to have realized it was a mask. I vote for a guy who's really good at disguises."

    "Yes, that sounds more reasonable," Molly said. "Emma even put bad teeth in Clinton's mouth. Emma's bright."

    Ramsey said, "I'm not her mother, but she's right. Emma's three dozen points sharper than Molly's razor."

    "I told you not to use it."

    "I was lucky not to cut my throat." He turned to Savich. "Did you mean it? You're not here to take over the case from the locals?"

    "Nope. Sherlock and I are off for a week. But I've got MAXINE-"

    "MAX experienced another sex change just three days ago," Sherlock said from the doorway, a wet washcloth in her hand. She daubed at her forehead, but she was smiling. "It's happened twice since I've known Dillon."

    "I might have thought it meant MAX didn't know how to relate to her," Savich said. "That he was trying to make an accommodation since he knew she was here to stay. But the fact is he's gone back and forth now for about four years."

    Ramsey said simply, "Molly and I both appreciate your help."

    "We know that, Ramsey." He smiled up at his wife. "You okay, Sherlock?"

    She nodded. "Just a brief brush with the devil." She turned to Molly. "That's what Dillon calls it every time I'm sick. Now, we'll put every scrap of information we can get our hands on into MAXINE and see what she comes up with." She saw that Molly didn't understand. "Dillon is the chief of the Criminal Apprehension Unit or CAU at the FBI. We don't do profiling, but we work with the profilers and with local law enforcement to catch serial killers. We use a number of programs that Dillon's developed. We plug in all the information we can get our hands on, including everything from the local police, the forensic reports, the autopsy reports, witness statements, you name it. MAXINE isn't better at figuring things out than real people, but he or she, depending on the month, is faster and looks at the data in many different ways. In just the first year, we solved six cases along with the local cops. We think we can apply that experience to help us catch this monster."

    Savich said, "Ramsey, I'll speak to Agent Anchor and get all the reports on the cabin where Emma was kept. There's bound to be some physical evidence left. I'll get MAXINE to work on child molesters who have an M.O. using disguises."

    Ramsey said, "Emma said he smoked, had bad teeth, and drank. Once when she was coming out of a nightmare, she remembered he'd said that he needed her more than God needed him."

    Molly said, "He also used twine to tie her up." She swallowed and looked down. "He used twine because she was just a little girl."

    "That's a start," Savich said.

    Sherlock patted Molly's shoulder as she said, "Dillon and I took a week's vacation. We're at your command."

    "I already told them," Savich said, pulling her down onto his lap. "They haven't applauded just yet, but when they see what we can do, they'll do handsprings. I'll also speak to the police in Denver. We can add stuff from forensics from the explosion. Sherlock can help us by translating what you know into data for MAXINE."

    "Then we push a button and MAXINE becomes the brightest Cuisinart on the planet," Sherlock said. "While Dillon talks to the cops, why don't we make a list of all the things you