Free Faustus Resurrectus by Thomas Morrissey

told him.
    A man found drowned out in the swamps near JFK missing his lower legs—definitely Aquarius. Makes sense to look for Pisces out at the aquarium.
    A tiny thrill tightened his stomach.
    He called me to get involved. He must think I can do more. Or, he’s desperate. But why is Joann there? What does she know?
    To avoid tipping their presence, Fullam asked that he not bring his bike near the aquarium. Instead, Donovan took the Stillwell exit to Neptune Avenue and parked on West 8th Street opposite the 60 th Precinct. In the near-distance KeySpan Park, stadium of the Brooklyn Cyclones, shone as a beacon of minor league baseball. Down the block and across Surf Avenue, crowds had shifted from the beach to the rides and eclectic attractions of Coney Island’s boardwalk. Donovan watched them and again felt the thrill, the secret thrill of having knowledge others didn’t. Tonight at the aquarium, he was looking for a murderer.
    Beats the hell out of pouring mojitos in midtown.
    Joann met him at the rear service gate, near the Seaside Pavilion. She was dressed in dark jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt, with a rough plastic pistol on her belt. Donovan recognized it as a taser. “Hey, babe,” he said, embracing her. “Are you okay? You look really fried.”
    “Gee, thanks.”
    “You know what I mean.”
    She nodded. “Dad was right—the mayor is going to make his opinion about Dinkins known tomorrow. It’ll force Raphael to take me off the case and give it to Jessie Parker.”
    Jessie Parker, Donovan knew, was another rising attorney at the DA’s office. “Ow.”
    “Yeah. So this is, I think, my last shot at Charming Man.”
    “Charming Man here? How? Why?”
    “After you told me about the Capricorn victim being found in the Dinkins Shelter, I started thinking. I talked to Frank, and we agreed it was possible the location was chosen because the killer was familiar with it, which meant Charming Man and Mister X could be the same person. He agreed to let me speak with Mabel Muglia at the Church of the Transfiguration. I showed her the pictures we got of Charming Man off the shelter camera, and she said it could be him.”
    “That’s a lot of ‘could.’”
    “It’s all I have. Frank is still scrambling around trying to get help for this, so he has no problem with me being here. He found the Aquarius victim two days ago, and we’ve been staking out this place since. We’ve had his partner, Josh Braithwaite, with us up to now, but he couldn’t make it tonight.”
    “So he asked me.”
    “You and Father Carroll.”
    Donovan blinked. “Father Carroll is here?”
    “They’re both in the security office. Are you ready for this?”
    “What do you mean?”
    “I mean, this isn’t a crime scene that you go to even though you’re high. This is serious. Are you ready?”
    Donovan examined her face and body language. The stress he saw made him more determined to help. “Absolutely.”

    ***

    Not as big or elaborate as a Sea World, the New York Aquarium is part of a chain of parks run by the New York Zoological Society. Although Donovan hadn’t been here in years—the Aquatheater and the Alien Stingers buildings were both new to him—he had fond memories from when he was younger. The first motorcycle ride he’d taken on the back of his uncle’s Harley-Davidson had been to Coney Island; they’d come here to see the sharks.
    Joann led him through the aquarium to the entrance hall. Inside, the lighting was low and the air cool. Tanks set into the walls glowed with artificial illumination and natural colors. To their left, a series of large windows revealed a lively collection of reef fish darting about the coral. Ahead was the security office door and the public entrance to the grounds.
    The security office was a videogamer’s dream—small, with everything reachable while sitting at the monitor console. The console monitored a half-dozen television screens that showed the park’s attractions and various