Cash Call, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 5

by William Manchee

  Chapter 27

  The Lineup

  Jodie brought me the list of the occupants of the Lakeside Village Condominiums that she had gotten from the manager. My plan for the evening was to question everyone who lived in the condominiums to see if any of them had seen anything on the night of the murder. I hoped somebody had seen something, because, so far, I still had no idea who had killed Luther Bell. Fortunately, I had represented some homeowners' associations in the past and understood the politics involved in their operation.

  I drove over to the condominiums and went to the manager's office where most of the unit owners were supposed to be gathered for a homeowner's meeting. It was after seven o'clock and almost dark. The manager, an elderly woman with beautiful white hair and pale blue eyes, got up and greeted me when I entered the office.

   "You must be Stan Turner?" she said.

   "Yes. And you're Mrs. Field, I presume?"

   "Yes, it's so nice to meet you. I've told all the members that you were coming. We're all anxious to help."

   "Good. Thank you."

   "None of us knew Luther very well. He kept to himself and didn't introduce us to any of his lady friends."

   "Is that right? How many lady friends did he have?"

   "Well, he had his wife, Laura, who came around a lot. Then there was Margie Mason. She's a bank clerk, I understand."

   "Yes, I've met both of them."

   "Then there's that prostitute."

   "Prostitute?"

   "Yes, I don't know her name, but she and Margie got into it one morning. Margie came over, it was before they were living together, and she caught him with her. I saw it from my patio."

   "Right. Margie Mason told me about that. A topless dancer, I think."

   "I wouldn't know. I try to mind my own business."

   I smiled and turned to address the members who were seated on two sofas and three rows of folding chairs.

   "I want to thank all of you for giving me a few minutes of your time tonight. You've all heard about Luther Bell's brutal murder right here in the Lakeside community. Many of you have probably already talked to the police. I represent several of Mr. Bell's partners who are suspects in the case. My clients are innocent but until the killer is found they are suspects and their lives are in turmoil. This is why I need your help. Now, I'm particularly interested in the night of the murder. I was hoping one of you might have seen something . . . something unusual maybe."

   An elderly man raised his hand and replied, "He played his stereo mighty loud, kept my wife and I up half the night many times. The first time I complained to him about it he apologized and said he would keep it down in the future. But he didn't, it only got worse. When I complained again he said I ought to learn to enjoy it or buy some ear plugs."

   "Is that right?" I laughed. "We all know he liked to party and entertain women. But on the night of the murder did anybody see anything?"

   A middle aged lady in a grey suit spoke up, "I don't know if this is important, but I was coming home from visiting my daughter about seven-thirty Wednesday night and a car drove by very slowly. I didn't think anything about it until I saw it again about seven forty-five."

   "What kind of car was it?"

   "A black Lincoln Town Car. . . . I know it was a Town Car because my brother-in-law has one just like it. I thought maybe he and my sister were coming for a visit, but it wasn't them."

   "Could you tell who was in it?"

   "I'm pretty sure there was just one person in the car, a middle-aged man."

   "Did he stop and get out?"

   "No, after I saw him the second time I went out to ask if he needed directions or something, but when he saw me he took off."

   "Could you identify the man if you saw him again?"

   "I think so. It was dark but there's a streetlight right in front of my apartment. He looked right at me so I got a good look at him."

   I rummaged through my briefcase and retrieved photos of Don, Rob, and Jim. I showed her Don's picture first. She shook her head negatively. It was the same for Rob. Then I showed her Jim's picture.

   "That's him. That's the man I saw driving by slowly, looking at Luther's apartment."

   "Did you tell the police about this?"

   "Yes, but they didn't have a picture. . . . Is he your client?"

   "Yes, I'm afraid so."

   I continued to ask them questions. Nobody saw Luther come home, the garage door go up or anyone lingering around Luther's garage between nine and ten. I wondered if anyone had seen Rob and Jennifer there that night. If there were a witness I needed to see if Rob and Jennifer were telling the truth. I said, "Did any of you see a car drive up into the driveway around ten that night--before the body was discovered?"

   There was silence as everyone looked around at each other. Mrs. Field said, "Everyone was probably in the recreation room playing bridge or watching TV."

   I nodded. Mrs. Field continued, "We didn't notice anything until the police came. Then I went right over to see what was going on. I told them I was the manager, so one of the detectives asked me some questions like you've done tonight."

   "Did you see the body?"

   "Yes, Luther was on his side, his eyes were opened, and a pool of blood was coming from his skull. His hands were bloody too. I guess he had been trying to defend himself from the attacker. There was also glass all over the floor from where the killer had broken the light bulb so Luther couldn't see."

   "Did you see Margie?"

   "Yes, she was in the back of a squad car. Someone was with her so I couldn't talk to her. She was crying and looked pretty upset. I felt so badly for the poor child."

   "While you were at the crime scene, did you hear or see anything else that you remember?" I asked.

   She thought a moment. "Well, did I mention they found burnt matches all around Luther. I guess since it was so dark he must have used them to see where he was going."

   After a few more questions, I thanked the homeowners and went home. The next day at my office I was thinking about what I had learned the previous night. I was angry that Jim hadn't leveled with me. It made me wonder if he wasn't Luther's killer. I was about to call him to confront him with this revelation when Jodie told me Detective Besch was on the line. I took the call and was advised that I needed to bring Jim, Rob, and Don down to the police station to participate in a lineup.

   I called them and arranged for them to appear at eleven-thirty that morning. When I arrived at the station, I was taken to a room with a one-way window. The witness from the Lakeside Condominiums stood behind it, along with Detective Besch and myself. Eight men entered the room including Don, Rob, and Jim. They stood facing the glass as the witness quickly scanned them. I already knew she'd pick out Jim. Detective Besch looked at the witness and said, "Well, do you see him?"

   The witness squinted and then said, "Yes, I believe it is the third one from the left."

   Detective Besch smiled and said, "Are you sure?"

   "Positive. He's the man that was in the Lincoln Town Car."

   I took a deep breath and left the room. I found Don, Rob, and Jim and took them into a conference room.

   "I'm sorry, Jim, but the witness picked you out of the lineup. She says you drove by Luther's house on the night of the murder around 7:00 p.m. I think it would be wise for you to retain a criminal attorney."

   "But I thought you were my lawyer?"

   "I am for the civil actions we have going on, but this is different. This is murder, you need a criminal expert and one that is totally independent. I've got several potential conflicts of interest here."

   "Damn it! I can't believe this. Where am I going to get the money for a criminal attorney? I didn't kill Luther, Stan, I want you to know that. I may have driven by his place but I didn't stop."

   "I believe you, but I'm afraid the police are close to getting enough evidence to arrest you. You better retain someone quick. I can give
you a referral if you like."

   "Good, because I sure as hell don't know any criminal attorneys."

   "Why were you driving by Luther's place?" Don asked.

   "Don't answer that," I said. "Don't discuss your case with anybody but your attorney. If you talk to Don or anybody else, the state can make that person disclose what was said. So keep your mouth shut."

   "I'm sorry," Don said. "I didn't realize--"

   "It's okay," I said. "You guys just need to be really careful from now on."

   After the lineup, I went by Detective Besch's office to find out where he was on the investigation and to see if they were going to arrest Jim. He offered me a cup of coffee and a stale donut. I declined. He poured himself a cup and then sat on the edge of his desk.

   "So, it looks like Mr. Cochran was at the scene of the crime, Stan," he said.

   "Right, but way before the murder. It doesn't prove he killed anybody."

   "No, but he was obviously stalking Luther. He had motive and now we know he had opportunity."

   "So, you think that's enough to arrest him?"

   "We didn't arrest him, did we?"

   "No, but are you going to anytime soon?"

   "We're getting close, but we don't want to do anything premature. If we do though, are you going to represent him?"

   "No, I advised him to get a criminal lawyer. I was Don's lawyer first, so if I have to make a choice it would be him."

   "Makes sense," he said.

   "So, what about your other suspects. Any breakthroughs?" I asked.

   "No, everybody has an alibi," Detective Besch said. "I'm afraid it's looking more and more like Cochran's our man."

   "I really don't think he did it. What would he gain by it? It's not going to make any of his problems go away. It just doesn't make any sense."

   "Murder doesn't always make sense," Detective Besch pointed out. "It's impulsive and usually driven by extreme emotion. Jim was angry at Luther Bell and for a lot of good reasons. Perhaps he killed out of anger and frustration or maybe he just wanted revenge. The only thing he had to gain was the satisfaction of seeing the person responsible for his problems punished."

   "I still don't buy it. I know Jim, he's not a killer."

   "Anyone can become a killer if they are adequately provoked. Luther's little games were about to destroy Jim, his family and his friends in the Golden Dragon partnership. He was agitated and upset and he decided to teach Luther a lesson. Or maybe he just wanted to scare him and got carried away."