Presumed Guilty: (A Jefferson Winter novella) Read Online Free PDF Page A

Harrigan looking like she was about to walk out of her bedroom to meet her prom date.

Chapter 6
    Winter looked up from his hands and smiled. This was Yoko’s cue to ask the next question. She’d seen this type of behaviour time and again, and understood the game he was playing.
    It was all about power and control. By setting the pace of the interview he was saying, I’m in charge here . What he was looking for was a reaction. He wanted her to keep asking questions so he could ignore her. He wanted to see her lose her temper. He wanted her to get frustrated.
    How she reacted wasn’t important, all that mattered was that he got a reaction. By sitting here quiet and calm and denying him a reaction she was saying, Actually, buddy, it’s me who’s calling the shots .
    In her own time she said, ‘Do you know how many psychopaths I’ve met?’
    ‘Interesting question. Given what you do, the simple answer is hundreds. Except it’s not that simple, is it?’
    ‘How so?’
    Winter rubbed his hands together and smirked. He had that expression on his face again, the one that gave the impression that this was the best game ever.
    ‘Okay, so some guy beats up another guy in a bar for no apparent reason and he gets labelled a psycho. The thing is, he’s not a psycho, he’s just some asshole with anger management issues. Your actual psychopaths, now that’s a different matter. And pure psychopaths are rarer still. You’re talking about something that might not actually exist.’
    Yoko lit another cigarette. ‘And given what you do, I’m sure you can give me a definition of a psychopath.’
    ‘You mean the murders?’
    ‘No, I’m actually talking about your college degree, but that works as well.’
    Winter glanced at the camera, then suddenly stood up and walked over to the mirror. He tapped the glass and a flat thick thud rang around the room. He gave the occupants on the other side of the glass a cheery wave, then sat back down.
    ‘The Hare Psychopathy Checklist is a twenty-point checklist designed by Canadian researcher Robert D. Hare.’
    He recited this like he was reading from a textbook, talking in the bored dull voice of a teenager who’d been asked to explain something so obvious that it was a struggle to open his mouth, never mind expel enough air to fill out the words.
    Yoko waved her hand, indicating that he should continue, her cigarette tracing a lazy smoke spiral in the air.
    ‘This checklist is split into two further lists that are referred to as factors, and each of those factors is split into two further subgroups. Factor One breaks down into interpersonal and emotional personality traits. That’s where you find the Machiavellian characteristics: the pathological lying, the lack of empathy, all that good stuff. Factor Two breaks down into lifestyle and antisocial behavioural traits. You still with me?’
    Winter smiled at her, and she nodded for him to continue.
    ‘Like I said earlier, there are twenty elements in the checklist. Each element is scored on a three-point scale, zero to two. A zero means it doesn’t apply, and a two means that there is a reasonably good match to the subject.’
    He stopped talking again, and Yoko nodded for him to go on. These pauses were shorter than earlier, which was probably due to the subject matter. What he’d been talking about before was personal, whereas now he was considering concepts and hypotheticals, which was obviously safer ground.
    ‘Okay, a score of thirty or above is indicative of a psychopathic personality, although for research purposes a cut-off score of twenty-five is sometimes used. In fact, a score of twenty-five in the UK is enough to get yourself classed as a psychopath. They’re not quite so hardcore over there.’
    ‘Very good, Jefferson. I’m guessing you passed that module with flying colours.’
    Winter reached for his Coke and took a sip.
    ‘Your father is an interesting case.’
    ‘I’ve already told you: I have no