Free The Red Queen Dies by Frankie Y. Bailey

stabbed them in the heart with a hypodermic filled with a deadly substance.”
    â€œPhenol. Carbolic acid. A substance that is available to people who are not medical professionals,” McCabe said. “I’m not arguing with your reasoning, Agent Francisco. I just want to make sure we keep an open mind about other possible types of suspects.”
    Whitman, the State Police investigator, spoke up. “I agree with that. And I’m not sure we should rush to rule out the Nazi aspect of this. Even if neither of the first two victims was Jewish, we could still have some kind of neo-Nazi tie-in. With Howard Miller out there holding his rallies, we could have a lone wolf on our hands. Someone who’s targeting women he’s decided aren’t fit to live.”
    McCabe cast a glance in Lieutenant Dole’s direction. He nodded, apparently agreeing that she had been right not to allow Agent Francisco to hijack the theory-building process.
    Agencies might cooperate, but their own turf wars always lurked beneath the surface. Especially when the representative from one agency came in arrogant.
    Baxter caught her eye and winked.
    McCabe sat back to listen to what Whitman was saying about hate crimes.
    *   *   *
    The storm was sweeping in when she left the station house at nine. Driving along, Central Avenue, McCabe caught glimpses of homeless men who had taken shelter in the doorways of shuttered stores. Overhead, against a flash of lightning, she saw the question streaming across Radio KZAC’s bulletin board: ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK ?
    â€œWhat now?” McCabe mumbled to herself. “Radio on. KZAC.”
    KZAC was known for its provocative stunts, from scavenger hunts for lists of highly unusual objects to sending listeners out with KICK THE RASCALS OUT signs in front of the legislative offices during the most recent state budget deadlock.
    â€œOkay, I get that,” Larry Coffman, the radio host, was saying. “But come on, Clarence. Do you really believe we have a serial killer out there? I mean you’ve been telling us about Jack the Ripper in London in 1888. This is Albany, New York, in 2019. And we may have three dead women. But only two of them seem to have anything in common. And we don’t even know yet how Vivian Jessup died.”
    â€œBut we do know she was murdered.”
    â€œYeah, but that doesn’t mean it was the same killer. I mean, the first two victims, maybe. Both in their twenties. They could have both hooked up with the same crazy guy. But then we’ve got a third victim. A Tony Award–winning actress who was in her forties. Born in England, not Albany. Don’t serial killers always choose the same type of victim? And if the same guy killed the first two women but the third was done in by someone else, then by definition we don’t have a serial killer, right? A serial killer requires three or more victims.”
    â€œAnd would that be any better? That we have two killers? We still have three women butchered. And according to the Albany PD, that should not be happening. According to the police, there are surveillance cameras on every corner, at every stoplight, on many of the buildings that we walk past, keeping us safe.”
    â€œAnd that’s your real point, right? That’s this whole ‘Watching Albany to Keep You Safe’ surveillance program isn’t working. It isn’t keeping us safe.”
    â€œThat’s exactly my point, Larry. If this surveillance program were functioning as the police claim, it would be difficult, if not impossible, for a killer or killers to prey on women without being seen and apprehended.”
    â€œAs I recall, you said in your thread that there are technical problems, that with the solar flares, the system has been malfunctioning and isn’t being properly maintained.”
    â€œThat’s right, Larry. After investing money the city didn’t have in a system