The Ties That Bind by Warren Adler Page B

would not be able
to tell the difference between bloodletting before and after death?"
    "Maybe. Sometimes in the press of business, you can't
vouch for the thoroughness of your colleagues. We are understaffed and this is
the worst murder epidemic in the history of Washington."
    Fiona's mind turned over possibilities. Faced with this
sudden unplanned death, a man like Farley would have to think things through.
Aside from removing all clues, he would have to create a situation that might
indicate an unhinged mind, a serial killing, something bizarre and brutal
enough to indicate a psychopath, a condition he surely rejected in himself. He
would, therefore, want the crime to look like a slaughter perpetrated by
someone with a deranged mind.
    "One thing is certain," Dr. Benson said.
"The man was apparently not a classic necrophiliac. The woman's anus was
damaged when she was alive. And the absence of semen indicates that he did not
ejaculate in the woman's vagina, which someone of this abnormality might do. My
own view is that he was quite clever and wanted the situation to look as if it
was perpetrated by a madman."
    "I agree," Fiona said, not willing to reveal that
she was far ahead of him on that point.
    These new facts seemed to validate her consensual theory,
but they were hardly compelling enough to accuse Farley Lipscomb. Other men
could also be clever. The woman had, in fact, died by what could be
characterized as an accident. He was gambling on forensic inefficiency, hoping
that his attempt at cover-up would go unnoticed.
    "Gail thinks the woman was coerced into participating
in his little charade," Fiona said, fishing for further support for her
theory.
    "Could be," Dr. Benson said thoughtfully.
    "You said there was little evidence of struggle."
    "I said some evidence, but not enough to show a battle
to the end. Which means the woman could have died when the pain reached an
unbearable level. An oversized instrument was put into an organ that could not
properly expand to receive it without inflicting terrible pain." He
shrugged. "I seriously doubt there are people who look forward to that
happening." She caught the contempt in his tone. "This woman was
deliberately brutalized. She could not have consented to that."
    "I'm afraid we're in a business, Doctor, where
normality is not the norm."
    "Well put, Fiona," Dr. Benson said. "But sex
crimes, as we both know, are a real anomaly. The pursuit of pleasure is always
a secondary consideration."
    "In the case of this kind of act," Fiona said
cautiously, "it's about power."
    "Probably so," Dr. Benson said. "I'm not an
expert in this type of..." His voice droned off.
    "I've done some research, Doctor," Fiona said
after a long pause. "It is mostly theatrics. A game of trust, where
inflicting harm is not the object."
    "Yes, harm," Dr. Benson said. "But often
harm has a different meaning to different people. It apparently was different
in this case. The woman, if she hadn't died, would have suffered mightily from
injuries inflicted by the perpetrator."
    "Yes," Fiona agreed, remembering her own
situation. "The person who did this must have enjoyed the spectacle of
seeing the woman suffer."
    Dr. Benson looked up from his finger cathedral and shook
his head.
    "I'm afraid I'm from the old school of morality. Sex
is a mystery and a wonder, something beautiful. To transform it through these
ugly practices, is, for me, beyond the pale." He looked at her curiously
and she averted her eyes.
    The conversation was getting personal and she felt the need
to turn its focus back to the victim.
    "In my view, I go all the way on her consenting,"
Fiona said. What she needed most was an unquestioning ally against Gail's
arguments.
    "How can you be so sure? Just because there weren't
conclusive signs of total resistance."
    It wasn't the kind of support she was looking for.
    "As you say it may be beyond the pale, but these
practices do exist. It does happen. A young impressionable woman could be ...
well