A Grand Seduction (27 page)

Halfway back to his desk, he spotted his partner’s characteristic half-strut, half-slump headed his way. He was carrying two paper cups.

“
Stopped for coffee, I see,” Warren said.

Liebowitz held one out. “Double shot, no cream. Figured you could use some yourself.”

Warren shook his head. “Figured wrong. I’ve been downing Maggie’s sludge since midnight. Any more and my gut might explode.”

The other man shrugged. “Shoulda held out for the real thing. A puddle of her coffee could fool a Texan into thinking he’d struck crude.”

They turned and walked back to their desks, Liebowitz still holding both cups. Once there, Warren half sat on the edge of his, knocking a pencil cup and photo of his niece slightly askew. “What’d you get aside from overpriced coffee?”

“
Still no lead on the friend Mrs. Harrison is allegedly visiting. No one knows whether she’s got a cell, and there’s no listing for one. She’s due back soon, so I left an unmarked nearby to report in if she shows.”

“
Neighbors think she was acting suspicious?”

“
Right as rain, whatever the hell that means. Both Mr. and Mrs. were acting status quo. Did another flyby on witnesses at the motel. Several heard the shot, but most ate carpet instead of sticking their head near a window or door to see the gunman. Go figure.”

“
Safety before curiosity. Could be a first.”

The other grunted. “Got a couple highlights worth mentioning, though. Ran a check of the guests we interviewed at the scene against the motel’s registration roster. One was missing.”

“
Ducked and ran?”

“
Looks like. Probably had their own dirty laundry to hide, heard the shot, and figured the cops were about to get too close for comfort. But it could be something else.”

“
Get a name?”

“
An alias. Alice Smith. Phony address. Paid cash. Day clerk doesn’t remember her checking out.”

Warren nodded. “Be worth trying to get a description from the night staff. See if she stayed there before.”

“
Wouldn’t hurt. Oh, and one other thing from the Harrison’s next-door neighbor. This wasn’t the first time our boy had strayed.”

“
It never is.”

“
Yeah, well, apparently it wasn’t a secret. The missus knew everything.”

Warren chewed on that for a moment. “Neighbor ever see any of the women?”

“
Nope. Just over the fence gossip.”

Warren stood up. “That definitely opens up the whole woman scorned thing.”

“
Yep.” Liebowitz dropped his empty brew in the can next to the desk, then started on Warren’s cup. After one sip, he screwed his face into an ugly twist. “Christ. Shit on a stick warning, two o’clock.” He nodded over Warren’s shoulder. He turned to see a brown nose from Forensics shuffling over.

“
Got some news on the Harrison case,” the guy said, chewing a toothpick. “You got a problem.”

Liebowitz grunted. “Yeah, well, murder usually is a problem, genius. Whaddya got?”

“
Still trying to match up the bullet, but there were no prints on the gun.” The kid shifted the toothpick with his tongue. Not even partials.”

Warren nodded. “We expected that. Gloves were used.”

“
Not the ones you sent in. They’re clean.”

His partner scowled. “Clean? They were in her purse.”

The forensics nerd shrugged. “Snatched a couple of cloth fibers off the gun that were a match, but the gloves have no traces of gun oil or powder residue. Even better, I couldn’t dredge so much as a skin flake from the inside. They’ve never been worn.”

Warren sighed. “So they weren’t used for the shooting, then.”

“
Not likely.” The kid pulled the toothpick from his mouth, pointing it at Liebowitz while she spoke. “She might have dumped the real gloves somewhere and planted these to throw you off.”

The detective sneered at the toothpick. “And you might have been watching too many CSI episodes.”

Ignoring the comment, the lanky man stuck the toothpick behind his ear and went on. “Also noticed something on your crime scene photos. Spatter patterns on the suspect and sheets are consistent with her standing beside the bed, near the victim and facing the door. But he was shot from farther back.”

Liebowitz looked at his partner. “Well, shit. That corroborates her story.”

“
Square one, then,” Warren said. “Sure like to question the wife, five minutes ago.”

“
Yep. Down here at the station, sounds like.”

“
You handle that. I’m going to chat with Lanie again.”

“
Kicking her loose?”

Warren fisted his hips. “Not quite yet. She’s not telling us everything. I’m going to spare her this latest news for a bit, see if I can’t find out what it is.”

* * *

Lanie’s momentary elation at being let out of her hellish cell turned to bitter annoyance when she saw where the deputy was taking her. Still, anything was better than keeping company with a toilet, a lumpy mattress, and the endless screaming and anguish coming from other cells all night long.

As she was escorted in, Detective Hottie was waiting. “Lanie. Thank you for coming.”

“
Like I had any fuckin’ say.”

“
Just a couple more questions, and there’s something I’d like you to do for me.”

“
Oh sure. I live to serve.”

“
Can I get you anything? Soda? Cigarette?”

“
The key to my jail cell would be nice.”

His laugh was flat. “You gave a sketchy description of the woman you say came in and shot your boyfriend.”

“
He wasn’t my boyfriend.”

“
Would you recognize her again if you saw her?”

Lanie blinked in surprise. “Yeah. I guess. Why?”

“
Let’s take a walk.”

He nodded to the deputy, who led them down the hall to another room that was just as sparse as the first, but somehow less foreboding. One of the inner walls was covered by a curtain, reminding Lanie of the viewing room at her father’s funeral. She knew what must be coming.

“
So you believe me now, right? Or else we wouldn’t be here.”

He turned to face her. “This is just procedure, like you said before. I’d like you to take a look at some women, see if you recognize any from the night of the shooting. They won’t be able to see you.”

“
Yeah, I get it,” she said. “I watch cop shows.”

He leaned over and flipped a switch. With a word from him, the curtain slid open.

“
Just take your time,” he said. “No rush.”

A number of women dressed in her own garb stood against a wall, facing her. Staring at the drained, dull faces, there was no doubt in her mind even before having to wait through a faceless voice directing the group through a series of paces.

When it was over he said, “So?”

She stared once more, then shrugged. “She’s not here.”

“
You’re sure?”

“
Positive.”

They went back to the other room, Lanie growing more heated with each step. Once inside, she refused a seat. “Why did you bother making me look at a bunch of jail hounds? I told you, the wife did it. Drag her in here and I’ll prove it.”

He blinked. “The wife
was
there. You didn’t ID her.”

Her jaw went slack. “What? Impossible.”

He fished around inside a file lying on the table, then held up a photo of Chester with a well-dressed older woman.

Lanie frowned. “That’s not his wife.”

He nodded. “Yes it is. This photo was taken two months ago.”

She blinked in confusion. “That isn’t the woman I saw. I mean, I assumed she was, the way they acted. Him cheating and all. Who else could it be?”

“
That’s the question, isn’t it? Which brings me back to you.”

“
It wasn’t me!”

“
Please, sit down.”

After she complied, he joined her across the table. “Who, then, Lanie? Who would have wanted him dead?”

“
How should I know? I didn’t even know the guy! They just told me to hook up with him.”

Shit.
She snapped her mouth shut, but it was too late.

The detective’s brow went up. “They? They who?”

She shook her head. “Nobody.”

“
I’m trying to help you get out of here. But you have to level with me.”

She sighed. “A couple of women asked me to make friends with him. They told me where he was going to be.”

“
What women?”

“
I don’t know. I’d never seen them before.”

“
So two strangers said a strange guy was at the Night Cap Lounge, and you just up and went to meet him? Why would you do that?”

She shrugged.

“
Come on, Lanie. You need to get real straight with me, real quick.”

Lanie bit her lip, wondering how clean she should come. After all, if there was a chance to skip a long-term lease on that jail cell, she should take it. Then again, things weren’t looking so hot. Maybe she should spill her guts and nip this whole murder rap thing right now.

She took a deep breath. “They were going to pay me to be nice to him.”

“
How nice?”

She heaved a sigh. “Real nice, okay?”

He shook his head. “Sounds like bullshit to me.”

“
I’m telling the truth! I swear!”

“
Yeah, like the other chats we’ve had?”

“
Look, I’m not crazy. I didn’t want to bring it up if I didn’t have to. And I didn’t think how I met the guy mattered.”

Lanie told him the story of the woman who called her out of the blue, followed by the two who showed up to hire her. Afterward, he shook his head. “So here we are again on a wild goose chase. These women supposedly contacted you, but you can’t identify them and didn’t catch their names?”

“
I said they probably didn’t use real names. Cindy and Angel is what they called themselves.”

“
And you met them in person, but don’t know what they look like?”

“
They were both wearing hats and big sunglasses. Both were slim. One was my height, the other a bit shorter. I think one had brown hair.”

“
How were you expecting to get paid, if you didn’t know anything about them?”

She sucked in a breath. “Oh! I was supposed to call. I have their cell number programmed into mine.”

Without a word, he stood up and headed for the door.

“
Where are you going?”

“
To get my partner and your cell phone. Feel like making a call?”

Her eyes narrowed in confusion, then widened. “You can trace it!”

“
To the cell phone tower nearest them.”

Hope dared to creep into her marrow. “How close is that?”

“
Depends. A few yards to a few miles, maybe. Close enough.”

“
What should I say about the murder?”

He paused at the door. “Nothing for now. Just let them think everything went off as planned. You know, do what you do best. Lie your ass off.” She tried not to curl her lip at that last as he reached for the door handle. “They owe you money, right?”

She snorted. “Oh they owe me, all right.”

“
Then you’ll want to set up a meeting, so you can collect.”

Damn right, only somehow she was guessing that money would never grease her palms. “Then what?”

He shrugged. “If you’re telling the truth, don’t leave town. We’ll be in touch.”

Ridelle made her twelfth pacing round of the day around the living room, now not even noticing the half step here, the slight veer there as she navigated the narrow space. “It’s gone wrong. I know it has.”

“
Would you stop that and sit down?” Twyla rubbed her hands against tan slacks. “You’re making me nervous.

“
Good! You should be, considering something must be wrong.”

“
You don’t know that.” Still, the blonde’s hand trembled slightly as she reached over to pluck a cup of green tea off the coffee table.

“
Why didn’t she call?”

“
She will.”

“
You know, sometimes your positive attitude really pisses me off. Can’t I get a little support for my paranoia here?” She swore under her breath. “I knew we shouldn’t have hired an outsider.”