boy."
"I want you to go."
Janek shook his head. "Not till I'm satisfied."
"Don't try to bully me, detective!"
"Think this is bullying?" Janek laughed.
They stared at each other. Then Gale made a move toward his phone. "I'm calling the police."
He picked up the receiver, but his trembling betrayed his fear. Janek walked over to him and casually held out his hand. Gale paused, then surrendered the receiver. Janek set it down. He lightly pushed Gale into a black wooden chair bearing Columbia University's coat of arms. He pulled up a matching chair and sat down close, so close he could see a quiver in the young man's eyes.
"All right," he said, "here's how it's going down. We're going to have a polite conversation in which I ask the questions and you give me truthful answers. The alternative is you get mad and try to punch me out. That's an attack on a law officer, felonious assault, which yields your basic five-year sentence. Not to mention the fact that then I'd have to hit you back, which would probably cost you your teeth. If I had a pretty face like yours, I don't think I'd like that very much. Your choice. I can handle it either way. See, I'm mad. My goddaughter was murdered. So basically I don't give a shit."
Gale lowered his eyes. "I told youâI don't know anything."
"Let's get more specific. Jess rejected you?" Gale nodded. "You resented her for that?"
"I don't know if I'd say 'resent.' I admit I was pretty upset. Butâ"
"Yeah, yeahâyou don't know anything. Now tell me about the sex club?"
Gale screwed up his face to convey perplexity. "What are you talking about?"
Greggy's not too good an actor, Janek thought as he tutted and shook his finger. "No questions, just answers."
"I don't know anything about any sex club."
"Your little clique. The ones who watch while the new kid fucks blindfolded."
"You know about that?"
Janek reached forward and slapped Gale lightly across the face.
"I ask. You answer. Last warning. Okay?"
"Okay, okay. But it's not a club. It's more like . . . a group of friends."
"How many 'friends'?"
"Nine or ten, depending on who wants in or out."
"Percentage of women?"
"Half and half."
"Who started it?"
"My idea originally."
"You recruit new people?"
"Sort of. But it isn't exactlyâ"
"You brought in Jess?"
"Yeah. Butâ"
"You planned to bring her into the group from the moment you started dating her. You weren't interested in her as a girlfriend. You just wanted another body, right?" Gale shook his head. "I want a straight answer."
"Well, maybe that is what I had in mind."
"Damn straight it was. From the start, right? But you never told her, did you? You waited till you thought she was ready. Then you proposed it, in a slippery kind of way like I know this great group of kids, they're really far-out, but I think you'll find them interesting."
Greg lowered his eyes, resigned. " Maybe that's what I did." Then he looked up. " But she was a big girl. And she went for it. Believe me, she enjoyed it. The moment I broached it to her, her eyes lit up. Probably hard for you to hear this, but Jess liked sex. I mean she liked it. And there's nothing wrong with that. We played safe, took precautions, used condoms. That's why we formed the group in the first place, so we could have some variety and still play safe. The whole idea was to make it fun. Not nasty like you're trying to make it seem."
"Did I call it nasty?"
"It's your tone. Your whole approach. You want to make me feel like a worm."
That much was true, but Janek wanted to define his own attitude. "I don't think sex is nasty. But I think someone who uses the guise of romantic involvement to entice a girl into that kind of thing is fairly low-grade slime."
Gale twisted in his chair. He couldn't take contempt. "That's pretty close to what she told me, too," he whispered.
Janek was grateful to hear that.
"She dumped on you?"
"I already told you."
"You must have resented her."
"I'm human. Wouldn't
"I want you to go."
Janek shook his head. "Not till I'm satisfied."
"Don't try to bully me, detective!"
"Think this is bullying?" Janek laughed.
They stared at each other. Then Gale made a move toward his phone. "I'm calling the police."
He picked up the receiver, but his trembling betrayed his fear. Janek walked over to him and casually held out his hand. Gale paused, then surrendered the receiver. Janek set it down. He lightly pushed Gale into a black wooden chair bearing Columbia University's coat of arms. He pulled up a matching chair and sat down close, so close he could see a quiver in the young man's eyes.
"All right," he said, "here's how it's going down. We're going to have a polite conversation in which I ask the questions and you give me truthful answers. The alternative is you get mad and try to punch me out. That's an attack on a law officer, felonious assault, which yields your basic five-year sentence. Not to mention the fact that then I'd have to hit you back, which would probably cost you your teeth. If I had a pretty face like yours, I don't think I'd like that very much. Your choice. I can handle it either way. See, I'm mad. My goddaughter was murdered. So basically I don't give a shit."
Gale lowered his eyes. "I told youâI don't know anything."
"Let's get more specific. Jess rejected you?" Gale nodded. "You resented her for that?"
"I don't know if I'd say 'resent.' I admit I was pretty upset. Butâ"
"Yeah, yeahâyou don't know anything. Now tell me about the sex club?"
Gale screwed up his face to convey perplexity. "What are you talking about?"
Greggy's not too good an actor, Janek thought as he tutted and shook his finger. "No questions, just answers."
"I don't know anything about any sex club."
"Your little clique. The ones who watch while the new kid fucks blindfolded."
"You know about that?"
Janek reached forward and slapped Gale lightly across the face.
"I ask. You answer. Last warning. Okay?"
"Okay, okay. But it's not a club. It's more like . . . a group of friends."
"How many 'friends'?"
"Nine or ten, depending on who wants in or out."
"Percentage of women?"
"Half and half."
"Who started it?"
"My idea originally."
"You recruit new people?"
"Sort of. But it isn't exactlyâ"
"You brought in Jess?"
"Yeah. Butâ"
"You planned to bring her into the group from the moment you started dating her. You weren't interested in her as a girlfriend. You just wanted another body, right?" Gale shook his head. "I want a straight answer."
"Well, maybe that is what I had in mind."
"Damn straight it was. From the start, right? But you never told her, did you? You waited till you thought she was ready. Then you proposed it, in a slippery kind of way like I know this great group of kids, they're really far-out, but I think you'll find them interesting."
Greg lowered his eyes, resigned. " Maybe that's what I did." Then he looked up. " But she was a big girl. And she went for it. Believe me, she enjoyed it. The moment I broached it to her, her eyes lit up. Probably hard for you to hear this, but Jess liked sex. I mean she liked it. And there's nothing wrong with that. We played safe, took precautions, used condoms. That's why we formed the group in the first place, so we could have some variety and still play safe. The whole idea was to make it fun. Not nasty like you're trying to make it seem."
"Did I call it nasty?"
"It's your tone. Your whole approach. You want to make me feel like a worm."
That much was true, but Janek wanted to define his own attitude. "I don't think sex is nasty. But I think someone who uses the guise of romantic involvement to entice a girl into that kind of thing is fairly low-grade slime."
Gale twisted in his chair. He couldn't take contempt. "That's pretty close to what she told me, too," he whispered.
Janek was grateful to hear that.
"She dumped on you?"
"I already told you."
"You must have resented her."
"I'm human. Wouldn't
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