Page 19 of Criminology of a Character

“What are the chances of two different people who chew the same flavor and brand of gum and who fold the wrappers into butterflies ending up on the same island?”

“True, but what if Anne wasn’t the first to fold her wrappers like that?” Eamon said. “What if someone like Gianni—a criminal who enjoyed flirting with the legal guests—taught her as a way to leave part of himself behind once his face changed? The one you just saw could’ve been his.”

“Or I’m seeing things again,” Bel said.

“Today’s been a lot, so don’t doubt yourself.” Eamon wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her against his side. “If it helps, Anne’s scent was nowhere to be foundinside that facility. The smells were overwhelming between the surgeries, disinfectants, and the FBI, but I didn’t detect her. She hasn’t been at that clinic, not recently at least. I can’t say that she’s never stepped inside, but if she has, it would’ve been years ago, her scent long scrubbed clean. So maybe the simplest answer is the correct one. The butterfly was just wandering trash.”

Bel’s cell rang,interrupting the online origami tutorial, and she paused the video, tossing the half-folded Post-it note to her desk as she answered.

“Agent Barry,” she greeted. “How are you?” After collecting their luggage from the FBI agents upon their return, Bel and Eamon had joined her father for dinner in the city and recounted a redacted version of their trip for him. They’d then packed an overexcited Cerberus into Eamon’s car and driven home, where they sequestered themselves in the Reale Estate for the weekend. They spent Bel’s last vacation days hiking with the dog, cooking meals together, and lounging before the fireplace to read or watch TV. But Monday morning arrived all too soon, and she, unfortunately, traded in tropical resorts and half-renovated mansions for her own cabin and desk at the station. With Thanksgiving fast approaching, work was slow, and Bel felt guilty for her boredom. An uneventful shift was a blessing. It meant Bajka had returned to the peaceful town it had been advertised as, but returning to sleeping alone with the rapidly chilling weather had her antsy. Hence the sudden urge to learn how to fold origami shapes out of office supplies.

“I have good news,” Agent Barry answered. “We found Alex Kinley. He was caught trying to cross the Mexican border.”

“Oh, thank God.” Bel sagged in her seat.

“With the new evidence and his attempt to flee the country, he won’t escape his sentencing this time,” he said.

“That’s a relief. And Hyde? Did you find him?”

“Unfortunately, no. He vanished without a trace.”

“At least you found Kinley.” She didn’t bother to hide her disappointment. “He’s too dangerous to let run free.”

“Agreed,” Barry said. “We’re also making progress on tracking down the criminals who changed their faces. There will be a lot of arrests in the coming weeks, but we’re trying to time them to happen simultaneously to keep the guilty from realizing we know their new identities. Once we begin, the others might catch on.”

“Do you think Hyde has already warned them?” she asked.

“It’s possible. We’re hoping that he lost contact with his clients after they left the island, though. They became new people, and the only records kept were photos. Makes sense they wouldn’t leave a callback number with the surgeons who remade them.”

“Let’s hope that’s the case,” Bel said.

“And if it’s not, changing their faces again will prove harder without the island in play. They might know we’re coming for them, but they’re stuck with these features now. We’ll find them.”

“I look forward to seeing the arrests on the news,” she said. “Thanks for calling.”

“No problem,” Barry said. “Have a good day, Detective.”

“Wait, before you hang up, I have a question,” Bel said as she studied her Post-it note butterfly. “When your team interviewed the island guests after we left, did they uncover any connections between the facility surgeons and those vacationing at the resort?”

“None,” Barry confirmed. “Most of the doctors we arrested kept their mouths shut, but a few have talked. Hyde hired physicians who either failed their medical boards, lost their licenses, or weren’t authorized to practice medicine in the United States. He did this to keep his staff from turning on him, so everyone you met at the resort was, unfortunately, just as fooled as you. We found some overlap between the guests and the resort’s clinic, but since it only offered simple beauty procedures to the rich and famous, we can confidently say the vacationing doctors were part of Hyde’s cover-up.”

“Thanks.” Bel picked up her clumsy attempt at origami and held it against the paused video on her computer screen.

“No problem, Emerson,” Barry said. “I’ll call when I have an update, and if I don’t speak to you before then, have a wonderful Thanksgiving.”

“Happy Thanksgiving,” she said before hanging up.

“You so bored that you’ve taken up origami?” Detective Olivia Gold asked as she came up behind her partner. “Was vacation that bad? Are you tired of Eamon? Or tired of the job?” she teased.

“Eamon was awful,” Bel teased back. “Muscles everywhere in a bathing suit. Gross.” She stuck out her tongue in mock disgust as she closed the online tutorial. “We’re fine. More than fine. I’m back at my place, and I’m annoyed I have to adjust to sleeping alone again.”

“It’s weird how that happens.” Olivia pulled up a chair and sat beside her friend. “I was perfectly happy living alone, but now if Ewan isn’t there, I toss and turn. Part of me hopes he’ll ask me to move in with him so we don’t have to deal with bad sleep anymore, but then I worry we haven’t known each other long enough.”

“Preaching to the choir,” Bel said.

“Okay, so Eamon isn’t what’s bothering you. Was it that phone call?”

“No. That was good news.”

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