by Sam Skyborne
He started scribbling down names. “I am not the only one. Erika had lots of others.”
“How did that work then?” Toni said, glancing around the room. “Is it not a bit unusual for a gay bloke and lesbian to be lovers? Where did you hook up?”
“Not at all. The Vox is a very sex positive environment. We don’t subscribe to defining ourselves by convention, straight or gay.” He handed her back the notepad.
“So if the club is so sex positive, why the cloak and dagger with your husband?” Maxine asked. “I take it you have something you don’t want him to know.”
Terry unconsciously glanced at the front door. Obviously realising that the easiest and quickest way to get rid of them was to come clean. “Okay, okay! He does not know about Erika. He does not know I sometimes fancy pussy. We were very discreet and I only ever saw Erika in that flat. I really have nothing else to hide. You’ve got to believe me!”
“So Erika was not threatening to out you to your husband and so you conveniently decided to top her in order to keep your little secret?” Maxine asked.
“No, no, I swear! I was at that party. I had not seen Erika for about two weeks before that.”
“Well, in that case, and since you claim you were not with Erika the night she died, you won’t mind if we take a DNA sample, just to make sure?” Toni asked.
Maxine stepped forward with a DNA swab.
Terry flinched.
“Believe me Terry, if you have nothing to hide then this is the easiest way to get Toni off your back,” Maxine said.
“If you are innocent, we promise to be discreet,” Toni added.
Terry opened his mouth and allowed Maxine to take a swab.
“Are all of Erika’s lovers as secretive as you, Terry?” Maxine asked.
“I’m not sure. Maybe some. Not everyone’s partners or family is entirely comfortable with sex positive behaviour.”
Terry glanced at the door again. “I’ll tell you what was freaky though, is that friend of Erika’s.”
“In what way?” Maxine asked.
“Well, she really pushed Erika to sleep with men. I mean really pushed. It seemed like some kind of religious vocation—getting Erika to do penance or something, not sure. We, Erika and I, always met at a flat not far from the club and Antoinette was always there. It was like she thought of herself as some kind of welcoming committee. I won’t be surprised if she tossed her own cherry listening to us do the deed.”
“Do you know anything about Erika’s other lovers?” Maxine asked.
“Not really. I occasionally saw her tap off with a few people in the Dark Room at the club and once or twice I saw her leave with someone.”
“Do you know the guys she left with?” Toni asked handing him back the notepad.
“I only happened to see her hang out with a few people,” he said, scribbling down four names. He handed the notepad back to Toni. “Sorry, I don’t know all their full names. You know how it is. I could probably tell you their cock sizes before I get to know anyone’s surname.”
Toni looked at the scribbled names before putting the notepad in her jacket pocket. “Thank you, Terry, for being so co-operative.”
“Really? That’s all?” Terry said, surprised and somewhat relieved.
“We will be in touch again if we need something else from you,” Maxine said.
“Even better,” Toni said taking out a business card from her pocket, “call me if you think of anything else.”
Terry took the card.
Toni and Maxine headed to the door.
“Next time, if you have any other questions, could you ring first, please,” he said, opening the door for them.
“I might,” Toni said, holding out the palm of her hand towards him, “if you give back my pen.”
He realised he was still holding it, and instantly handed it over as if it were contaminated.
On their way out, Toni spotted a man in his late forties, smartly dressed and very well groomed, heading up the path towards the block of flats Terry lived in.
“I bet this is the husband,” Toni said under her breath.
“Looks like he could fit into a courtroom,” Maxine agreed.
Once outside, Toni went up to the man. “Excuse me, Sir, I was wondering if you could tell me what the time is, please.”
He smiled at her and said, “Of course.”
He pulled up his sleeve to reveal an Omega wristwatch and a gold band on his finger.
“It’s five-fifteen,” he said.
“Thank you very much. We were meant to meet someone here at five and they obviously aren’t going to show,” Toni said.
Toni nodded at him and kept on walking and Maxine followed.
Once out of his earshot Maxine asked, “What did you do that for?”
“Did you see the curtain twitch on the second floor?” Toni said.
“Yes, Terry was obviously watching. So?”
“I don’t believe that little weasel for one minute. I don’t believe that he has nothing to hide.”
“Are you hoping if he saw you talk to his husband it will spook him into telling you more?”
“Something like that. Or at least keep him honest until I can verify his alibi.”
While in the car, en route to Maxine’s sister’s place, Toni’s phone rang.
She hit the speaker button.
“Hey, Aiden. What’s up?”
“Hi Toni. You driving again?”
“Chill, I have you on speaker.”
“Good.”
“So what is this, a social call?”
“No, I looked into that case you asked me about.”
“And?”
“Well, there is no way you can submit the DNA.”
“What?”
“There is no mention of DNA to match it to at the original crime scene and I have looked at your proposed evidence to reopen the case. I am afraid your case is not strong enough!”
“Ah shit!” Toni hit the steering wheel. “But Aiden—”
“Before you shoot the messenger… I have had a second opinion. And really there is no way. You need more to go on.”
Toni groaned. “Okay, okay. Thanks Aiden. I’ll call you back.”
Toni rang off.
“What good is it to persuade the lovers to give up their DNA if we can't get it into the system?” Maxine said, irritated. She was not used to tap dancing around like this. If this were a case back home it would be so much easier. Here she felt way out at sea and utterly at the mercy of this PI sitting next to her. Diplomacy was not her strong point but she had to try it if she wanted to solve the case and prevent other women from suffering the same fate as Erika.
“I might be able to make a few other phone calls,” Toni said.
Maxine rolled her eyes. “You do get around, Mendez. Do you have a contact for everything?”
“Clearly not as many, nor am I as intimate with them, as you,” Toni said.
Maxine did not miss the accusation. “Somehow I doubt that.”
“Just as well I do know a few people, since you seem to be stumped without being able to wield your shiny little badge,” Toni said.
Maxine tried to imagine what it would be like to find her best friend in bed with a colleague, especially one with whom she had a slightly volatile relationship. Even though she could understand Toni’s agitation on some level, she mentally shook her head and tried to refocus on the case. She had not come all this way to get caught up in local politics.
She suddenly had an idea. “If you can get the DNA through the door and submitted via the right channels, I’ll arrange for someone to match them against the evidence in the related cases on my side.”
Toni nodded.
Maxine studied the list of people Terry had seen Erika get it on with in the club. “James, Jake, Sam, Alfie,” Maxine read them out aloud. “Not exactly positive identification.”
“If the killer is male, why rape her with the bat?” Toni asked.
“
Perhaps our perp couldn't perform for some reason. Maybe he got nervous or stage fright and couldn’t get it up.”
“Or maybe he’s clever and thinks that way he’ll not be leaving behind his DNA,” Toni said.
At that moment Maxine's phone beeped in her hand.
Hi. Thx for last night! ;-) Lx
Maxine looked up and saw they were almost at her stop. “Okay, this is great. Thanks.”
Toni pulled the car over.
“I have a few things I need to check out tomorrow morning so I'll see you later,” Maxine said as she got out.
“That's fine. I can get DNA from a few of the other suitors on my own.”
Maxine nodded and closed the door.
Toni drove off.
Toni went back to her office to get her files. When she got to her floor Lawrence was waiting for her at the lift. It was customary for them to have a quick debrief while he walked her to her door.
“Don’t mind me saying but, you look like shit,” Lawrence said.
“Thanks, mate. You’re a stunner yourself!” Toni retorted.
“I’ve had a long night on surveillance and haven’t slept yet. What’s your excuse?”
“Similar.” Toni had no intention of explaining to Lawrence what had been going on in the past twenty-four hours with her. “So, what have you got for me?”
“Well, funny you should ask. I’ve managed to track down more information on our illustrious politician come business woman,” Lawrence said.
Toni did not miss the hint of pride in his voice. “And?”
“Patience Toni, sometimes you should just let me build to a climax.”
“Under normal circumstances, Lawrence, I’ll indulge every non-sexual climax you choose to have, but today has been a very long day.”
“Okay, I’ll cut to the chase. Basically, Lucille Ransom-Evans was away when Erika was murdered and she has about a thousand conference attendees who can verify her presence over the course of the three day seminar.”
“Well, that is good news.” Toni said. “At least we can rule one person out. This case is feeling like a pick-and-mix of suspects. What else did you find out about her?”
“The usual. She is a very successful entrepreneur in aeronautical accessories for the film industry.”
“Should I ask?”
“Basically, gadgets that make cameras fly.”
“Okay. I didn’t realise there was a market for that.”
“Oh, there is a huge market, not only in the film industry. Naturally her products have some surveillance uses too.”
“Ah. So how much are we talking?”
“Her net worth is about 24.2 million.”
“Okay, which means she wouldn’t be strapped for the cash to buy someone to do her dirty work.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Lawrence said. “Having cash at the ready is one thing, but more importantly some of her business partners would likely be able to put her in touch with someone prepared to take on that sort of job quite easily. And before you say it, I’m already looking into it.”
“Okay, let me know when you know more.” Toni reached her office door.
Lawrence nodded and headed back down the corridor.
“Oh, Lawrence, someone that connected is bound to have made some enemies along the way—“
“On it!”
Toni nodded. “And get some rest!”
“Yes, boss!” He playfully saluted. “Ditto.”
Toni groaned.
Later that day Toni finally returned to her flat. She had been so focussed on getting hold of Lizbeth and making sure that she was safe that she had not really taken in the extent of the damage to her own place. Even though she did not care much for her possessions, in the clear light of day, the invasion and violation of her private space felt horrible.
Despite the fact that the police had finished processing the scene and officially cleared it for her to return, it was obvious she could not stay there. The locks were busted. The bed was broken and it would take a few days—days she did not have free at the moment—to clean up the mess, repaint the walls to remove the offensive writing and to make the flat generally habitable again.
The only thing she could do in the meantime was to call an emergency locksmith to come to replace the broken locks. At least the flat would then be secure until she could return. She had no way of knowing how long this case would take to resolve or even if it could be resolved.
While she waited for the locksmith she packed a small overnight bag with her essentials. She figured that she could come home for changes of clothing as she needed them. More urgently, she had to figure out where to go to in the interim. Lizbeth’s spare room would normally have been the obvious refuge. However, under the current circumstances, that did not feel like a viable option. Lawrence was renting a room in a house with an elderly couple, in order to save money, which also ruled him out. She considered her office. It was far too small and crammed.
Once the locksmith left, she got into her car and drove around London for a while, hoping to find inspiration along the way. Finally, at around 8pm she pulled into the car park of a budget hotel conveniently close to her office.
Toni entered the small hotel room carrying the large brown box of case files and her small overnight-bag tucked under her arm. She carefully put the box down on the little table in corner of the room and flung her overnight-bag onto the chair next to it. She had asked the lad on reception for a room with an ensuite since she was desperate for a relaxing bath. Sadly, the best he could do was a pokey little shower room, complete with a cheap plastic shower-curtain that clung to her body like a second skin.
Oh well, at least she had a chance of getting clean.
Without wasting time she turned on the shower and stripped off.
Lizbeth had once again not heard from Toni all day. Her phone-calls had also remained unanswered. When she finally managed to get away from the office she headed straight to Toni’s flat. She needed to make this right between the two of them. She so wanted things to just undo themselves, to go back to the way they were. She should’ve listened to her gut. She should not have pushed things with Toni. There was no need to come out to Toni. They were good friends before and somehow things worked.
When she arrived at Toni’s flat and found it in darkness with no sign of her, she started to get worried. She had no idea where Toni would have gone. She waited in the car for a while to see if Toni arrived home but soon felt like a stalker. Suddenly it dawned on her. If anyone would know where to find Toni it would be Lawrence.
She picked up her phone and dialled his number.
Five minutes later she had persuaded Lawrence to share Toni’s whereabouts. She was not a lawyer for no reason.
“No, she will never know how I found out,” she reassured him. “Definitely not from me, I promise. Thanks Lawrence.” She rang off. Of course they both knew Toni would instantly know where her information had come from.
She was tempted to ask him if Toni had said anything about their current altercation. Knowing Toni, she would not have said much to anyone at all. Somehow Toni had a knack of being able to deal with things on her own. Lizbeth, however, desperately wished she could talk to someone about it. She doubted Lawrence minded being her sounding-board generally, but she was not sure how he would feel if her conversation actually concerned Toni. In any case, right then she had more urgent things to do. She had to go find Toni herself.
It was only after seeing Toni’s reaction to the fact that Lawrence knew about her sexuality, and she didn’t, that Lizbeth realised how much it must have hurt Toni. She felt guilty because, not only had she kept it from Toni, she had come out to Toni’s work colleague first. In truth, it all happened purely by accident.
She remembered that night like it was yesterday. She had gone out to dinner with Nelda, the fiery red-head architect, she was seeing at the time, when she bumped into Lawrence and his girlfriend. Lawrence was caught off-guard and invited them to join him and his
girlfriend for a cocktail. Nelda had not realised that Lizbeth was not out at work and let it slip that they were on their way to Lizbeth’s flat. Although Nelda had had enough discretion not to divulge why they were on their way to Lizbeth’s flat, Lizbeth was sure their intention was pretty clear.
All kudos to Lawrence, he took the information in his stride and when she’d decided to bring up the incident a few days later, he had confessed to having had his suspicions for quite some time. She appreciated that, of his own accord, he assured her that her secret was safe with him as long as she wanted it to be.
He was a very kind and perceptive man. Another reason that he made such a good PI
She wondered if he would guess about her and Maxine. So far he had not seen them together, which was probably a blessing, since she was convinced that the sexual tension between them screamed louder than a banshee.
About twenty minutes later Lizbeth pulled up in the small car park outside the hotel. She instantly recognised Toni’s beast of a car.
When she described Toni to the young lad at reception he pointed her to room forty-five.
She exited the elevator and turned right. As she neared the right door, she could hear the TV blaring. She took a deep breath and knocked.
A few seconds later the door flew open revealing Toni in her sweats, her hair wet and looking highly irritated.
“I told you the room service is for fifty-four—”
Lizbeth extended her hand in which she was holding a six-pack of Toni’s favourite beer.
“Oh,” Toni said, ignoring the offering. “What are you doing here?” She turned and headed back into the room.
Lizbeth did not follow immediately, not wanting to presume Toni would invite her in. But, since Toni had not told her to go away either and, considering Toni turned down the TV, Lizbeth finally took a few cautious steps into the cramped hotel room and slowly closed the door behind her.
“Classy establishment,” Lizbeth said, taking in her surroundings. The hotel room was painted pale green with brown furnishings. Case files, photos and notes were strewn all over the bed and the small table.
