She expected Tucker to contradict her, but the reply from Florida was positive, thoughtful, and analytic. “So you’re thinking our Composer will be a man of about fifty-five, the age Lenx would be now . . . married, conservative, and traditional. Is he likely to have the same number of children?”
“Probably. A conservative type like Lenx would try to re-create his family, but this time without flaws. And, remember, he assumes no personal responsibility for any of his own shortcomings.”
Johnson took it one step further. “Following that reasoning, you’d assume his wife wouldn’t stand out, and neither would his car. He’d have a middle-class house and a middle-management job, and he’d still be religious. Lenx went to church several times a week, insisted his children attend confirmation classes, and did a lot of volunteer work for the congregation. He seemed dull on the outside, but in fact he was a zealot. His letter makes that clear. He justified the murders by claiming that his family had deviated from the path of righteousness.”
Dupree nodded, looking down at the phone console.
“Well, then, what we have found here is going to please you,” Tucker said excitedly. Amaia heard a smile in her voice. “Emerson and I have been looking into something from the conversation with Nelson that bothered me. Nelson denied any negligence this afternoon, but he was evasive. Agent Johnson sent us the case summary of the Andrews murders, and it sounds like the investigation was done properly. So I had to ask myself, Why was Nelson so defensive? Remember, when we called to interview him, he was in Miami with a rescue team just after the most recent family murders. And he was in Galveston when the Andrews family was killed.”
“He’s a homicide detective!” Johnson interrupted her. “And he lived in Galveston before he moved to Florida. I don’t see what—”
“And as soon as Joseph Andrews Jr. raised the alarm about the violin, the evidence disappeared.”
“Agent Tucker, let me remind you that the violin disappeared after the forensics team’s second visit,” Johnson said. “Nelson himself authorized the reexamination of the violin when the son insisted it was important.”
“I’m sure whoever placed it there wiped it down; a killer like the Composer wouldn’t fail to do that. There’s not a single unknown fingerprint anywhere at the scene, remember, and it’s pretty easy to fake a burglary. Especially if you’re a police officer.”
Johnson wasn’t buying it. “If there was a reason to lose the violin, wouldn’t it be logical to have done that before the crime techs took a second look?”
“I think it would have been too obvious for it to vanish as soon as Joseph Andrews drew attention to it; but after the lab checked it out, the disappearance would mean nothing. Maybe the violin could suggest a different approach. It might be a clue, but not in a way that the technicians could detect. Maybe its mere presence has a significance. Andrews certainly thought so.”
Dupree took charge. “Agent Tucker, we studied the photos of the violin and found a mark along one side. Assistant Inspector Salazar is almost certain that something was inscribed there. We asked for assistance from Quantico in deciphering it, but we sent you a copy too.”
They heard the faint sound of computer keys clicking on the other end of the line. “Yeah, I have it. It actually does look like some sort of inscription, like someone tried to mark the instrument. That’s the sort of evidence I was talking about, something that could be easily overlooked because it seemed like a scratch or accidental damage. Do you think it could be used to identify the person who left it there? Maybe whoever placed it at the scene wasn’t aware of the mark. Or he could have noticed it for the first time in the photos, the way you did.”
“Are you suggesting Detective Brad Nelson should be a suspect?” Dupree asked.
“How should I know?” said Tucker, sounding a bit hassled. “I’ve been trying to get in contact with him for a follow-up, but they say he went to New Orleans to help with Katrina.”
“Shit!” Amaia exclaimed. Johnson and Dupree looked at her, fully realizing the import of that information. “He’s hiding in plain sight! Agent Tucker, does Brad Nelson have children?”
“Two boys and a girl, ages twelve, fifteen, and sixteen. And there’s more. Nelson and his wife are separated. They haven’t filed for divorce, but they’ve been living apart since she came to Florida. She moved out eight months ago, not long before the Andrews family was murdered, and he followed her to the state three months later, when he landed a job in Tampa.”
“She left him, so he sent out his résumé?” Dupree commented.
“That’s what I think,” Tucker replied. “He followed them to Florida, so he’s enough of a family man not to want a divorce. He’s a midlevel officer of no particular distinction. He drives a family car, a four-year-old Crown Victoria. In the photo I found, he’s wearing the kind of suit and tie you could buy off the rack in any department store. Nelson fits the profile.”
“He’s conservative, like millions of other Americans,” Johnson objected. “As for following his family, well, why wouldn’t he? You said they haven’t filed for divorce.”
“And on top of that,” Tucker said with a certain flourish, “he joined a rescue team only fifteen days after the Andrews murders in Galveston. It’s a nonprofit called Rescue Me that puts together teams of firefighters, police officers, and specialists from all over the country to help at disaster sites. Anywhere in the United States. I’m scheduled to talk to the administrator in half an hour. I’m going to get the details of Nelson’s participation, especially dates and places.”
“Sounds like a good guy,” Johnson said.
“Agent Tucker,” Amaia interjected, “I have a good photo of Lenx and a facial recognition program. It can compare images and detect similarities even when the individual’s features have been altered by plastic surgery. I’m going to need a headshot of Detective Nelson.”
“I sent you one by email, but I don’t know if it’ll be of much use.”
“In fact, I’ll need photos of his whole family. And their names.”
“Emerson will take care of that.”
Dupree took command, speaking into the console but keeping his eyes on Johnson. “We urgently need to establish beyond a doubt whether Nelson was at any of the disasters where other families were killed. A volunteer quick-response team would be a perfect cover to travel anywhere in the country, but whatever we find will be circumstantial at best. There’s lots more work to do, but maybe this explains why Captain Reed sent us the original file on the Andrews killings. I think we need to have a chat with him. Good work, Agent Tucker, Agent Emerson. I’ll call you as soon as we have news. You do the same.”
Johnson held up a hand. “Agent Tucker, you didn’t say anything about Nelson’s religion. Martin Lenx was deeply religious. We all agree that his bizarre concept of sin drove him to murder his family. Does Brad Nelson go to church?”
Tucker didn’t answer immediately. “We’re still working on that, haven’t had the time. But everything I’ve seen suggests that he doesn’t.”