Trifecta

by Pam Richter

  "Really?" She was sitting down again.

  Robin nodded. "Also, if you need to cry, it's just fine. You have good reason. Now, who goes first?"

  "I will, I have so little to say," Julia answered. She took a deep breath and described the scene in the hospital room. Brian had mentioned beautiful music several times. Then Julia described how he had seemed to be in some anguish. At first she was afraid he was in pain. Julia repeated the words Brian had spoken to her, about something being too small. And about heroines and little angels. Julia finished by telling Robin that it seemed like Brian had observed something he did not want to see, inadvertently. Whatever it was, it had upset him to the extent that he had spoken of it from the depths of a deep coma.

  Robin nodded at her thoughtfully. "I'd like to know your impression of Aaron Quijada."

  "As you know, I just left a meeting with him," Julia said. "He is charismatic, and enthusiastic about his work. But I also feel he's a very cold, calculating man. The meeting was strange because there must be quite a few people who work on an estate as large as his, but he answered the door himself, and I saw no one at all. No wife or children. And no domestic workers. Also, he surprised me because he's a blatant chauvinist."

  "How do you mean?" Robin asked.

  "He obviously didn't believe I could do the work. And then, when we finally agreed that I would, he tried to cut my salary. I had quoted a very modest fee for finishing Brian's book, and for doing extensive photographic work. I made the fee low, so I would get the job. It was much lower than the salary Brian was receiving. But he tried to cut it down even more, saying that I would just be putting Brian's work together."

  "Not much respect for the female gender," Robin commented. "How did you resolve it?"

  "I said, truthfully, that with the photographic supplies I would be using and the rental of a studio, which I will have to do here in Los Angeles, I couldn't make the salary any lower. In Boston, where I have my own dark room and equipment at my studio, I could have lowered the price. But he's in a hurry, and I can't go to Boston to finish the work. We have to send it to the publisher as soon as possible. So he finally, and very reluctantly, agreed to my price."

  "Did he ask you if Brian spoke to you in the hospital?"

  Julia nodded. "As I was leaving."

  "That may have been the reason the two of you were alone. You answered 'no'." Robin didn't make it a question, as though it were the only reasonable way she could have answered.

  "I have to find out what happened to Brian."

  "Damn! You didn't tell him?" Robin seemed agitated. He got up and started pacing from the front door to the windows of the balcony. It took him about five strides on his long legs. He even pealed back the draperies and looked out, as though he thought they might be being watched.

  "Not exactly," Julia answered, thinking that he looked like a lethal panther stalking around. "I implied that Brian had been speaking quite a bit before he died."

  "I don't believe it," Robin said, shaking his head. He came back and sat down. He was looking at her fiercely again. "That was a stupid thing to do. And maybe suicidal. Do you want to end up dead, too?"

  "I told you I'd find out what I needed to know," Julia said, angrily. She had given that response to Quijada on purpose, to force his hand.

  "Now I believe it, when you said you'd find out by any means," Robin said.

  "Your turn," Julia said.

  "What?" Robin said. He seemed deep in thought.

  Julia repeated the sentence.

  "Oh. Yes. Well, I did go back to Cedars. I talked to some of the people there. Not the doctors and nurses that had direct control of Brian's medical care. Other people. And what I found out was that someone went into Brian's room, right after you left, dressed like a hospital orderly. The hospital staff is still trying to find out who it was. Anyway, during the time that person was in the room, there were changes in the machinery that was helping keep your brother alive. The oxygen was turned off. The machine that would have alerted the staff if Brian needed critical care was also disconnected, so that it would not make an alarm sound. The nurse at the front desk thought it was an electrical failure. Then both machines were turned back on again."

  Julia had her hands over her eyes now, shaking her head back and forth.

  "Do you want me to go on?"

  She nodded but didn't remove her hands from her face.

  "I was told that an autopsy was not performed. But needle marks were found on the body, before it was sent back to Boston. The hospital management is still conducting an investigation, trying to figure out exactly what happened during the minutes you were absent from your brother's room."

  Julia looked up at him. "Charlotte, my grandmother, didn't want an autopsy. There was no indication that the death might not be natural. I mean, caused by something other than the beating."

  Robin could see that Julia had to get her emotions under control. He picked up her cup and left the room, saying he would get fresh coffee. He told her to use the rest room if she wanted to.

  Julia was grateful for his sensitivity and fled to the bathroom, where she splashed her face with water. She had come to find out the truth. Now she was shocked and horrified. What she had feared was true. Brian had been murdered. She now suspected that the brutal beating was not an attempt at theft, but a carefully plotted scenario. The only unplanned part of it was that Brian survived.

  When Robin reentered the living room, he brought her a glass of water with the coffee. Julia appeared to be composed again. He resumed talking, but changed the focus from her brother, so she could remain objective and unemotional. "Let me tell you what I found out about Aaron Quijada. He is, first and foremost, a business man. He was a director of films in name only. He really is the money man, and from what I hear, he doesn't have an artistic or creative bone in his body. He's been described as a shark. He has some kind of unknown financial backing, although he has had no tax problems that I have heard of with the IRS. Still, he lives in a beautiful mansion, which he bought with cash."

  Julia smiled. "I can understand him being called a shark. He has this unblinking stare. It's quite intimidating."

  "He's famous for it. But he has been successful in several business ventures and has turned failing companies around, making them fabulously lucrative. Many people think he's a financial genius who can deliver California from its current financial woes."

  "Maybe he would be good for California," Julia said, playing devil's advocate.

  Robin was shaking his head. "Many people think so. It's a scary thought to me, now that I've done some research. Aaron Quijada is rumored to be a major player in the Mexican Mafia. That may be where his financial backing comes from. Their main business is the sale of heroin. Many of the gang fights in Los Angeles are over territory for the sale of heroin."

  "Brian said 'little heroines’ several times," Julia remarked thoughtfully.

  "I noticed. There's also Quijada's wife, who committed suicide some years back. There are allegations that he embezzled money from his own movie company, with tricky bookkeeping, which was supposed to go to the legitimate people backing the films, and to the actors and actresses. But he's so slick no one could figure out what happened. A woman friend of his died of unknown causes."

  "You're trying to scare me," Julia said.

  "People who deal drugs are violent and have no mercy. If Quijada is taking money, well, that's immoral, but if he's having people killed, that's something else altogether. He's a very frightening man. He also has this big dog, which accompanies him everywhere, and is known to have mauled a man almost to death."

  "Bruno?"

  "You've seen him?"

  "I made friends with him. On purpose. I really liked the dog. He's just doing his job, guarding his master."

  "Don't you trust him for a minute."

  "The man or the dog?" Julia asked.

  "Either one."

  "How'd you get all this information? It couldn't be common knowledge, if
the man is running for governor."

  "It's not. I did some research," Robin said. He was not going to tell her that he had used two of his paralegals for the research on Quijada, all day yesterday, and that he himself had taken the day off to go to Cedars-Sinai Hospital to obtain the information he had given her.

  "Your research is very impressive, for such a short time," Julia said. She looked around the room. If Robin did live in very low income housing and this place was borrowed for their meeting, she would have liked to offer him some money for the help he had already provided. He had gone to a lot of trouble, but she was afraid he would be insulted if she offered to reimburse him.

  "I really don't carry mace," Julia said.

  "I didn't think so," Robin said, smiling. "You should have something though. I do have a gun, but you would have to keep it concealed."

  Julia shook her head in distaste. "I would probably shoot myself."

  "I would offer my services, but it might be a little obvious."

  "As a bodyguard?" She seemed to think it was a very funny idea.

  Robin tried to look insulted, but he liked seeing her laugh. She had beautiful white teeth.

  "Sorry," Julia said, when she sobered. "I can see you would make an excellent body guard, but I agree, it might be a little noticeable. I must say, though, you've gone to a lot of trouble to piece together this information. I'd like to pay you for the research."

  "Damsels in distress are my hobby," Robin said, smiling and brushing it off. "But I will get you some pepper spray. It's not much against thugs who deal in drugs, but if that dog ever came after you it would be effective."

  "Bruno evidently doesn't attack women."

  "Consider the source of that information," Robin warned. "You'll be going to his home tomorrow. He'll try to pump you for more information, to see if you have any suspicions about Brian's death. It's essential that you don't let him think you do."

  "I'll be careful," Julia said.

  "All we know is that someone manipulated those machines at the hospital. I'll try to find out what kind of medical expertise that would take. Maybe it was a bribed hospital employee."

  "The person may have disconnected the machines so Brian could be injected with heroin, if that's what they have available and Quijada's behind it. An overdose could be fatal, especially for someone in fragile condition."

  "We could go to the police right now," Robin suggested.

  "If we're wrong, it would be a horrible thing to do to Aaron Quijada. I don't want Brian exhumed for a postmortem autopsy unless it's absolutely necessary. It might kill my grandmother. She's very distraught. It was hard to leave her to come here. But I convinced her it was important to finish Brian's last work."

  "Well, it might eventually evolve into a real police investigation. But first we have to get more evidence. We'll have to be careful, though, because he's a powerful man, and if he's not responsible, I agree, we don't want to make premature allegations. It would be unwise, considering his influential position in Los Angeles. And you have to be extremely careful when you're dealing with him. Maybe Brian will have left clues in his notes."

  Julia nodded. "I think I'll be safe working there for a while. But if something happened to Brian, it could happen to you, too. You could be putting yourself in danger, just because you're helping me. For that reason I'll pay you for your time, at the very least. This might be hazardous duty."

  If there had ever been a time to tell her he was a lawyer, it was now, Robin thought.

  "I could hire a private detective," Julia said, when he hesitated. "They get about two hundred dollars a day, plus expenses for use of the car and, well, I don't know what else, really. If you want to go on with this investigation, I will insist."

  She just might hire someone, Robin thought. But he knew he could do the work as well as any detective. He would probably be more discrete. No one would ever guess that he was involved, and Quijada might find out if she hired someone, which could put her in danger.

  Robin smiled at her naivete. He usually received at least two hundred dollars an hour for his time as an attorney. "If you really insist, I'll accept your offer."

  Robin didn't feel guilty about the money she would spend on him. He knew he was worth it. And Robin had not only done research on Aaron Quijada. He had looked into Julia's background. Her parents had died when she was very young and had left her a virtual fortune.

  Robin thought her smile was just beautiful when he accepted her offer. He stood up and put out his hand to complete the contract, but he admitted it was mostly because wanted to touch her.

  When Julia took his hand she felt a shock of electricity go through her whole body, like a quick wave of heat. His hand was very warm and felt large and substantial. Comforting somehow. It was odd. To cover her surprise at the strangely immediate physical reaction, Julia quickly asked him to show her around his apartment.

  She had already seen the kitchen and bathroom, so Robin took her through the apartment, ending up in the office. She made nice comments about his pictures on the wall, saying that she was a sports fan also. Then she walked across the hall to the door of the bedroom.

  "It's a mess in there. I would rather..."

  She had already opened the door. She just stood there for a minute, and then she started giggling. He thought her reaction was charming. She didn't seem embarrassed at all and he wondered why. She conveyed the impression of being restrained and puritanical, and he was surprised.

  She turned around and headed to the front door, still giggling.

  "I have to go now." She finally had herself under control. "We should probably meet in a couple of days."

  Robin forced himself to be serious after her funny reaction to that blatantly suggestive bedroom. They agreed to meet at a restaurant called Franklin's on Sunset Boulevard in two days.

  Julia insisted on giving him a check before she left so that he could cover his expenses over the next couple of days. He put it in his pocket. He had no intention of cashing it.

  When he closed the door, he went to the kitchen and frantically began searching for something alcoholic to calm his nerves. Julia had a very strange effect on him.

  CHAPTER 10

  Julia was practically tearing out her hair, trying to figure out the code that Brian had used so she could access his manuscript on the computer. It was almost time for Aaron Quijada to come back to see the work, and she had absolutely nothing to show him.

  Quijada had met Julia at the door to his home that morning and had taken her back to the little cottage where Brian had been staying. He left abruptly, saying he would look in on her and see how she was doing in a few hours, before lunch.

  Julia had been glad when Quijada left, after showing her around the cottage, which was a studio apartment composed of one large room with a bed, and a small kitchen and bathroom. It had been chilling to see Brian's clothes in the closets and his personal belongings casually strewn around the place. His razor in the bathroom, with his toothbrush and the silver comb he always used.

  She moved about, touching Brian's things. She had planned to start packing all of his personal items and clothing back into the suitcase that was so familiar, and which had been pushed under the bed, but she was drawn like a magnet to the computer. It was sitting on a desk beside a window overlooking the back grounds of the estate. The view from that window was beautiful, with a large oak tree right outside, showcasing the pool and tennis courts. Julia could almost picture Brian working here, on this very computer she was now delicately touching.

  There were a few biographical facts on Aaron Quijada under a heading listed BIO in the directory, but that was all she had found pertaining to the book. There were personal letters, also in the main directory, but otherwise the machine appeared to be empty. She knew the manuscript was in there, if only she could access it.

  Julia got up and started folding Brian's clothing and putting his things in the suitcase. She tried to turn off her mind as she did so. It was sad, but
she was becoming used to the concept that Brian was gone. She didn't want to be used to that horrible fact. She still wanted to feel the pain as sharply as ever, but her mind had accommodated to the fact, even though her emotions were still in turmoil.

  When she went back to the computer she tried her own name for a secret code as a lark. Nothing. She tried her initials. Still nothing but a serene and frustratingly blank, light blue screen. Finally she put in her whole name, including her middle name, Julia Theresa Monay. Suddenly the blank screen was filled with words. She leaned forward quickly, reading with rapt concentration:

  J.

  DON'T LET ANYONE ELSE SEE THIS. AS SOON AS YOU READ IT, DESTROY. DO NOT PRINT OR SAVE, AS I'M AFRAID IT MIGHT GET IN THE WRONG HANDS. THERE ARE DOCS AND VIDS IN Q'S SF. YOU HAVE TO GET THEM SOMEHOW. (D.R.) I DON'T ADVISE LOOKING AT VIDS. KNOWING YOU, YOU PROBABLY WILL. GIVE TO TAD. PACKING AND LEAVING NOW. IF YOU GET THIS MESSAGE I AM A DM. LOOK UNDER 092611 FOR M.

  LOVE YOU

  Julia buried her face in her hands for a moment, then hit the 'print screen' key. She had to have it.

  Julia looked out the window, afraid someone might see her. With two large windows overlooking the grounds, she was visible inside the guest cottage.

  Damn, Aaron Quijada was coming! She could see him walking quickly toward the cottage with Bruno. He bent down by the side of the pool and put his hand in the water, testing the temperature.

  Julia jumped up and ripped off the sheet of paper that had just come out of the printer. She quickly folded it into tiny squares and stuffed it into her blouse, inside her bra.

  Then she pressed the save button on the computer and when it said Y or N, she pressed N, for No. She had to get rid of the message before Quijada got here.

  Julia quickly entered 092611 as a code into the computer. The directory for the manuscript appeared instantly. The secret pass-code was the probably the date Brian had begun the book, but backwards.