Then he shuffled through some costumes that seemed to be mostly white, some of them spangled and with colored trim.
He said, And here we have the traditional European whiteface, the Pierrotcomposed, poised, graceful, intelligent, always in control. His makeup is simplecompletely white, with regular features painted in red or black, like a mime, and he often wears a conical hat. Hes an authority figure, often Augustes bossand not a very nice boss. Small wonder, though, since many of Augustes jokes are at his expense.
He moved through dozens of wildly different costumes, saying
Now here weve got lots of different character clowns, based on types familiar from everyday lifecops, maids, butlers, doctors, firemen, that kind of thing. But heres the type youre looking for.
He showed his visitors a row of brightly colored costumes that definitely reminded Riley of the victims in the picture and the field.
This is the grotesque whiteface, he said.
That word caught Rileys attention.
Grotesque.
Yes, that certainly described what had been done to Janet Daviss body.
Fingering one of the outfits, Casal continued, This is the most common type of clown, I suppose, at least here in America. It doesnt reflect any particular type or profession or status. The grotesque whiteface is just generally clownish-looking, ridiculous and silly. Think Bozo the Clown, or Ronald McDonaldor Stephen Kings It, to cite a scarier example. The grotesque typically wears a baggy colorful costume, outsized shoes, and white makeup with exaggerated features, including a huge wig and a bright red nose.
Crivaro seemed to be genuinely interested in what Casal was now saying.
He asked, Have you sold any of these grotesque-type costumes lately?
Casal thought for a moment.
Not that I remembernot at least during the last few months, he said. I could look through our receipts, but that might take a while.
Crivaro handed him his FBI card and said, Id appreciate if youd do that and get back to me.
Ill do that, Casal said. But remember, the grotesque costume is extremely common. It might have been bought at any costume shop anywhere in the city.
McCune smirked a little and said, Yeah, but this isnt just any costume store. One of the victims was here pretty recently taking pictures.
His expression still inscrutable, Casal put his hands in his pockets and said, Yes, I can understand why that might concern you.
Casal looked off into space for a moment, as if deep in thought.
Then his whole body seemed to jerk to attention.
Oh, my, he said, finally sounding unsettled. I just thought of something I think youd better know.
CHAPTER TEN
Riley felt a surge of excitement as she and the two FBI agents followed Casal away from the costume rack.
Are we about to get a break? she wondered.
Without revealing what hed just remembered, the store manager had whirled around and headed back to the front of the store.
When he reached the front desk, Casal stopped and began to explain.
Janet Davis came back here a second day to take more pictures. But she left rather abruptlyand she wasnt at all happy.
Riley, Crivaro, and McCune exchanged interested glances.
Why not? Crivaro asked.
Casal opened a filing cabinet and thumbed through its contents.
Well, she complained about a young man who was working here at the timeGregory Wertz is his name. Apparently hed said something improper to her. She wasnt specific, but she was quite upset about it, and it wasnt the first time a female customer complained about him. Id also suspected him of stealing for some time, so I fired him on the spot.
Crivaro asked, Can you give us his address?
Certainly, Casal said, taking a sheet of paper out of the drawer and handing it to Crivaro. Here you gohis name, Social Security number, phone number, and address. Also, the last day he worked hereexactly two weeks ago today.
Crivaro thanked him for his cooperation, and Riley followed the two agents out of the store.
She was startled when, as soon as they were outside, Crivaro grabbed McCune by the shoulder.
What do you think you were doing back there? he asked angrily.
McCune looked surprised.
You mean showing him that photo? I wanted to see his reaction, of course.
It was a stunt, Crivaro said. I dont like stunts.
McCunes face reddened with anger.
A stunt, huh? he said. Are you telling me you trust that Casal guy? He seemed as suspicious as hell to me. Actually, he gave me the creeps, the way he talked and all. He didnt even give us a good look at his face.
Thats true, Riley thought.
But it really hadnt occurred to her to suspect Casal of anything.
Crivaro paced back and forth, barking at McCune.
So you just thought youd put the screws to him, huh? You decided to go for some kind of instant confession. Figured youd get a lot of glory if you succeeded. Well, let me put your mind at ease about something. Casals not our killer.
How do you know? McCune asked.
Crivaro rolled his eyes and said, Didnt you get a good look at him? Hes blind as a bat without those glasses, and hes as skinny as a rail. Our killer abducted two womenat least one of them probably forcibly. Then he managed to subdue them. Can you imagine Casal pulling that off?
Looking as embarrassed as angry now, McCune began, Maybe with an accomplice
Crivaro interrupted, There wasnt any accomplice. My every instinct tells me our killer acts alone. And hes sure as hell not Danny Casal. Casals maybe an important witness, though. Were all just lucky you didnt spook him into not cooperating.
McCune hung his head and shuffled his feet.
Crivaro jabbed his finger at him.
Now listen to me. No more stunts, not when youre working with me. If you get any ideas, talk to me about them first. This is not the Boy Scouts. Initiative is not a virtue right now. Either I call all the shots, or you can get off the case.
In a whisper, McCune said, I hear you. It wont happen again.
It sure as hell had better not, Crivaro growled.
A silence fell among the three of them.