Jack In The Box novel Chapter 26

“If your brother is dead, then who is that man in the asylum?” I asked.

“It can’t be Ezra. I...I was there with him when our car crashed. I was the only one who survived...unless...”

“Unless what?”

“Unless he didn’t really die and was in hiding for a long time.” Jack said.

“Do you think he killed all those people?”

I knew I’d voiced Jack’s concern because he went silent on the other end. A beat later, he said. “I have to go. I’ll talk to you later. If that man pretending to be me is in fact, Ezra, you need to be very careful. If they call me vicious, then it’s only because they haven’t met my brother yet. Alert the authorities and for godsake, Riley, don’t go alone in his room again.”

I didn’t mention the part where I kissed him. I realized that bit could wait.

“I promise, I won’t.” I assured him.

“This makes things more complicated.”

“But—.”

Before I could say another word, Jack hung up on me.

He really was in need of a good grilling for always cutting my call mid sentence.

I called Agent Flint early next morning. Thinking I had some lead, he asked me to come down to the station. Naturally, James was with me. He’d warned me against having any type of conversation with the fed in his absence.

Although I wasn’t scared of the agent, I was quite aware of his tactics of trying to fool me with his words. I sat in the office and tried not to show how pissed off I was about the other day when his team of officers had bulldozed their way into my apartment and nearly turned it upside down. I was quite certain my parents were rolling in their graves thinking how I’d come to turn from an innocent nurse to a suspect in a high-profile murder case. Anyway, the officers managed to find zero evidence in my house involving Jackson and that disappointed Agent Flint. He’d made up his mind that I was somehow involved and this was like a kick in his face.

“So, what information do you have, Miss. Frazer?”

“I’m sure you’re already aware that Jack was brought into the asylum recently and he’s been confined to a high security room.”

Flint looked bored. “I thought we weren’t wasting our time. What you’re telling me are facts. What I’m looking for is a solid lead, one that would help us in our investigation.”

“You didn’t let me finish.” I said. “I’m getting to that.”

“Please go on.” He urged me.

“The person in the asylum posing as Jackson is actually not him. It’s his twin brother Ezra.”

Flint stared at me for a good thirty seconds before he started laughing. “Is this some kind of a joke?” He threw a look at James who was seated silently by my side, occasionally stepping on my foot.

“I’m not making this up!” I insisted. “I’m sure of it.”

“You probably don’t know this but Ezra died three years ago in a crash. Jackson can give you a good account of the tragedy himself since he narrowly escaped with only a few injuries which is kind of strange, isn’t it? It’s like the man’s got some curse on his family. Getting them killed left and right.”

“It is possible that Ezra survived that crash and somehow lived and now...and now he’s--”

“You think Ezra killed all those people and staged it to look like Jackson did it?”

“Yes.”

“How can you be so sure that the man is Jackson’s twin and not himself?”

I couldn’t confess that I’d paid a male nurse to sneak me into his room the other night, neither could I say that I kissed him and the man didn’t kiss me back. “I...I just sensed it. He looks a bit different. Jack never crops his hair short.”

Flint nodded, but I knew the wheels were turning in his head and he wasn’t believing a word I’d said. “I’m not sure how you came to this bizarre conclusion, Miss Frazer but I can assure you that the man we have in the asylum is in fact Jackson Wolfe. You’re either trying to put us on a wrong trail, or repeating the words Jackson drilled into you. I must admit, the twin brother troupe is so fucking outlandish, I find it more hilarious than the Kevin Hart movie I watched with my wife the other day.”

“Why is it so hard to believe this?”

“Because he is dead!” Flint yelled. “Unless you’re going to suggest that perhaps Ezra dug up his own grave and walked out of it.”

He continued, “you don’t see what I see here.”

“And what is that?”

“Jackson is manipulating you again. He’s making you see him as an innocent man, putting the blame on his dead twin.”

“I’ve told you what I know, it’s your job to take necessary precautions. If someone else dies, Agent, the blood will be on your hands.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, Miss. Frazer.” He said sarcastically. “I’d like to know something else.”

James remained alert. So far he hasn’t said a single word.

“What proof do you have that proves the man is not Jackson but is in fact Ezra? Because as far as what I’ve known they are identical, same height, built, hair color and eyes.”

“I just sensed it. Ezra has a scar near his forehead, Jack doesn’t.”

Agent Flint narrowed his eyes at me. “How did you manage to notice such details? Unless you went to see him personally, you did that, didn’t you?”

“My client will not answer that question.” James said. “She’s doing you a favor by telling you something important. Her duty is done.”

“If that man in the asylum is the twin, and if Jack is in touch with you, ask him to surrender because that’s the only way me or the department is going to believe there’s a double. If he surrenders, the case takes a different turn and I will promise that if Jack is innocent, he will walk out of the court. He gets his freedom, if not. We go from what we have right now.”

I thought about that for a while. “How about you get Ezra’s finger prints? If they don’t match with Jack, you would know I’m not lying.”

“I told you an alternative.”

Feeling exhausted, I asked. “Can I leave now, Agent?”

He gestured a hand towards the door. “You may, and think about it Riley.”