Chapter 96

Sampson promised to stay with Nana and the kids until I could get home. There was no one that I trusted more, no one in the world they would be safer with. Still, I couldn’t be sure, and that was a terrible weight to carry. I didn’t feel I could leave California until I had at least located Jamilla, and knew she was safe.  Finally I called Tim Bradley at The Examiner. He didn’t know where she was, or even that she’d taken a day off work. Maybe she had needed to get away from town - to get away from being a homicide detective.
I was beginning to feel that maybe I had made a mistake by stopping in San Francisco. The longer I sat on the street, outside her house, the more convinced I was of it. Maybe the job was finally getting to me. The instincts go first.
But every time I considered leaving, I remembered the night I arrived at Betsey Cavalierre’s house, seeing her dead body.  And instincts had gotten me here in my career.
Feelings, gut¹ reactions, experiences from the past.
Maybe just plain stubbornness².
I stayed on surveillance, stayed at my post. I got out of the car a couple of times, walked up and down the block a little. Climbed back in the car. Waited some more. I felt more than a little ridiculous, but I wouldn’t give in to it. I checked in with Sampson again. Everything was okay at home. Another homicide detective I knew, Jerome Thurman, had arrived at the house, too. Double duty against the Mastermind. Was that enough protection?
Then I saw Jamilla coming up the street in her Saab. I actually clapped my hands together. I smacked³ the dashboard with my palm.
Yes. Thank God she was safe. There she was
She parked about half a block from her house on Texas Street, got out, pulling a University of San Francisco gym bag behind her. I wanted to run up and hug her, but I stayed in my car. Her hair was up in a ponytail. She was wearing a dark blue tee and loose gray workout pants. She was all right; she hadn’t been hurt Jamilla hadn’t been murdered by the Mastermind.
I stared through the car windshield, waiting to see if anyone was watching her, stalking⁴ her. fart of me wanted to leave well enough alone now, to go home to Washington. But I kept remembering what had happened to Betsey Cavalierre after we finished our case together.
Why then? Why my partner? I almost didn’t want to go there.
I gave Jamilla time to get inside - then I called her on my cell.  ‘This is Jamilla Hughes. Your message is important to me. Please leave it at the beep.’
Damn⁵ it! I hated those machines.
‘Jamilla, this is Alex Cross. Call me. It’s important. Please—‘ ‘Hi, Alex. Where are you? How are you?’ I could hear the smile in her voice, and it sounded inappropriate because of the emotional state I was in.
‘Please be careful.’ I continued with what I was going to leave her as a message. I told her why I was concerned. Finally, I had to admit the worst: that I was on the street outside her apartment.  ‘Well, come inside for God’s sake,’ she said. There were no recriminations, not even any surprise in her voice. ‘I think you’re over-reacting. Maybe. Let’s talk about it, though. Let’s talk this thing through.’
‘No, let me stay out here for a while. I hope you don’t think I’m being too crazy. Whoever killed Betsey has been contacting me ever since her death. The Mastermind could be here in San Francisco. He killed her right after we finished our case. Detective Cooke was murdered after the magicians⁷ were killed in New Orleans.’
That gave her pause.’Maybe I think you’re a little crazy, Alex. But I understand why you would be. I see where you’re going with this.  I’m also touched that you came here to watch over me. And what happened to your last partner does scare me.’
It helped that I knew where Jam was, and that I had actually talked to her. After we spoke⁸, I continued watching her street. I don’t know how many times I had thought about Betsey Cavalierre’s murder and wondered who the killer⁹ was, but I did it again as I sat in the car.  I stayed there for several hours. Jamilla and I talked a couple of times. She urged me to come up to her apartment. I said no.’Let me do it my way. Jam.’
It was getting late, though, and I was beginning to fade. I saw the lights in her apartment go off. Good for her. At least one of us was acting⁶ sane¹⁰.
I continued to wait. Something powerful, dramatic, haunting¹¹ was nagging¹² at me. Something I almost didn’t want to face. The clues had been there, but I hadn’t wanted to see them for what they were. I’d wanted to follow my’famous instincts’. Look where it had gotten me.  I had blown it for so long.
Then I saw him, and everything made sense. Suddenly the puzzle was clear; all the pieces fit. Not just Betsey’s murder - the Casanova murder, the stalking of Kate McTiernan, the fact that he’d been able to keep a step ahead of me.
The killer was here on Jamilla’s street.
The Mastermind was here in San Francisco.
I was sure, and it made me dizzy with fear. But also with incredible¹³ disappointment, sadness, confusion¹⁴. I felt like I might throw up.It was Kyle Craig. He was watching Jamilla’s place, stalking her like the madman that he was. The goddamn Mastermind had come here to kill her.
How could I stop him?

1 gut   

n.[pl.]胆量；内脏；adj.本能的；vt.取出内脏

参考例句：

• It is not always necessary to gut the fish prior to freezing.冷冻鱼之前并不总是需要先把内脏掏空。
• My immediate gut feeling was to refuse.我本能的直接反应是拒绝。

2 stubbornness   

n.倔强，顽强；牛性；牛脾气；犟劲

参考例句：

• He has a touch of stubbornness in his composition. 他脾气有点倔。 来自辞典例句
• A blind streak of stubbornness in him wouldn't let him back down. 盲目的顽固是不会让他回心转意的。 来自辞典例句

3 smacked   

拍，打，掴( smack的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He smacked his lips but did not utter a word. 他吧嗒两下嘴，一声也不言语。
• She smacked a child's bottom. 她打孩子的屁股。

4 stalking   

围捕，潜近；潜进

参考例句：

• He spent the weekend stalking deer in the Scottish highlands. 他周末在苏格兰高地追踪鹿的行踪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A British submarine was also stalking the Turkish supply-ship. 一艘英国潜艇也在追踪这艘土耳其补给船。 来自辞典例句

5 damn   

int.该死，他妈的；vt.指责，贬斥，诅咒

参考例句：

• Damn this useless typewriter!这台破打字机真该死！
• I knew damn well what he was going to say.我非常清楚他要说什么。

6 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

7 magicians   

n.魔术师( magician的名词复数 )；巫师；术士；施妖术的人

参考例句：

• Like all magicians, he kept his secrets to himself. 象所有魔术师那样，他对此守口如瓶。 来自辞典例句
• The early priests were also doctors and magicians. 早期的僧侣又是医生又是巫士。 来自辞典例句

8 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

9 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

10 sane   

adj.心智健全的，神志清醒的，明智的，稳健的

参考例句：

• He was sane at the time of the murder.在凶杀案发生时他的神志是清醒的。
• He is a very sane person.他是一个很有头脑的人。

11 haunting   

adj.萦绕心头的；不易忘怀的；无法甩脱的；给人以强烈感受的v.常去；缠扰（某人）；萦绕心头

参考例句：

• The film's haunting musical theme stayed in my head for days. 那部电影挥之不去的主题旋律多日来萦绕于我的脑际。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The carol has a primitive strength and haunting simplicity. 这首颂歌有一种原始的力量和令人难忘的纯朴。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 nagging   

adj.唠叨的，挑剔的；使人不得安宁的v.不断地挑剔或批评（某人）( nag的现在分词 )；不断地烦扰或伤害（某人）；无休止地抱怨；不断指责

参考例句：

• Stop nagging—I'll do it as soon as I can. 别唠叨了—我会尽快做的。
• I've got a nagging pain in my lower back. 我后背下方老是疼。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 incredible   

adj.难以置信的，不可信的，极好的，大量的

参考例句：

• Some planets run at incredible speed.某些星球以难以置信的速度运行着。
• Her answer showed the most incredible stupidity.她的回答显示出不可思议的愚蠢。

14 confusion   

n.困惑，迷乱，混淆，混乱，骚乱

参考例句：

• His answers to my questions have only added to my confusion.他对我的问题的回答只是使我更加困惑不解。
• His unexpected arrival threw us into total confusion.他的突然来访使我们完全不知所措。