by Rayna Morgan
“Go on.”
“After several late night games with him and his buddies, I was into him for a substantial amount of money. Instead of demanding payment, he tore up my IOU. He even offered to pay off the chit held by my bookie.”
“What a generous guy,” Warren said, dryly. “Did you accept?”
“I refused at first. My wife comes from a wealthy family. I considered going to her for money to pay off my gambling debt.”
“What stopped you?”
“The fear she would lord it over me the rest of my life. I prefer to be obligated to someone I’m not required to bed.”
“Nice sentiment,” Warren snorted. “So you’re telling me you played cards the night of Cate’s death?”
“From eight o’clock until well past midnight. As usual, they cleaned me out.”
Warren made no effort to conceal contempt. “You have a bad habit of not walking away soon enough.”
Allen returned to his desk, the look on his face all business. “If you’re satisfied, I have work to do.”
“I’ll check out this alibi, same as I checked out the first version,” Warren said. “I must say, as a habitual liar, you’ve chosen the right profession.”
Kirk smacked the desk with his palm. “I’ve had enough of your judgmental attitude. Get out of my office.”
“No problem,” Warren said.
He stood to leave, but didn’t stop talking while pulling out his car keys.
“A lot of what goes on behind closed doors at the capitol is beyond the reach of rules. Thankfully, new laws and ethics regulations make legislators like you more transparent.”
He twirled the key ring on his finger as he walked out the door.
“It’s too bad they can’t create a bill to legislate a sense of honor.”
• • •
Warren felt discouraged as he emerged from the office.
Kirk and Townsend would back each other’s story which meant neither had an alibi, but there was no point tracking down the other players who would undoubtedly confirm their account.
He stopped in the front room beside a woman dressed in a chic sports outfit and pricey shoes that looked as though they were never used for running.
“I can’t wait, Natalie. I’ll be late. Remind my husband of the black tie dinner we’re attending tonight.”
She called over her shoulder as she pushed through the door. “He needs to be home in time to change.”
Warren stepped to the receptionist’s desk. “If that was Mrs. Kirk, I need to speak with her.”
The girl reached to answer an incoming call. “You can probably catch her. She’s going to get her nails done. Unisex salon half a block down the street.”
• • •
Rushing into the salon, Warren found himself in a large room of chattering women.
“May I help you, sir?” the male receptionist asked. His slightly disdainful tone indicated he didn’t suspect the visitor of frequenting salons.
Warren glanced toward the waiting area. “I need a haircut, but give me a moment.”
He took a seat next to Mrs. Kirk and introduced himself.
“I don’t mean to intrude but I saw you in your husband’s office. Could we have a word?”
He couldn’t tell if the look she returned was one of mild interest or contempt.
“I can’t imagine what we have to talk about,” she said, “but proceed.”
To dispel any concerns, he didn’t inquire directly about her husband.
“I’m trying to determine the activities of Ron Townsend. Your husband told me he and Mr. Townsend were together on the night in question. I wonder if you could verify that fact.”
“I’m aware of most of my husband’s comings and goings. What night are you referring to?”
He gave her the date.
There was no mistaking the woman’s look this time. She responded with pure distaste. “The day Cate Palmer died.”
Her comment caught Warren off guard. “You knew Miss Palmer?”
“I’m aware of every woman with whom my husband cheats,” she said in an icy tone. “Why don’t you tell me what you’re really up to?”
“Cate Palmer’s family has asked me to look into her accident. I’m talking with people who knew her.”
“I’m not surprised. No family wants to believe their child is taken from them in a way which might have been prevented.” She lowered her voice. “If part of your investigation is to confirm Allen's whereabouts that night, I can oblige.”
“You sound very certain, Mrs. Kirk.”
“As soon as I suspected his affair with Cate, I hired a private investigator. The PI informed me the young woman broke off the affair, but I had him keep an eye on Allen for several weeks just in case.”
There was no end of surprises from this woman. “I can see you’re not someone to be trifled with.”
“That’s a lesson my husband has yet to learn.”
“So you can confirm his activities that night?”
“Allen was indulging another of his obsessions. Besides young, pretty women, he likes to gamble. He tries to convince me he’s overcome that particular addiction.”
“Are you willing to back up his story?”
“I’m a dutiful politician’s wife. I do what’s required to protect our public image and reputation.”
• • •
A well-groomed woman came to fetch Mrs. Kirk at the same time the receptionist called Warren to the desk.
“It’s your lucky day, sir. Gigi had a cancellation. She can take you now.”
He led the way to a station where a girl with pink-and-green striped hair sorted through a collection of combs and sprays.
“Lucky day, indeed,” Warren grumbled.
He usually got his hair cut by a barber at a less fancy place and for a fraction of the cost. He wondered if he could write it off as a business expense.
As he sat in the chair worrying about what the stylist was doing, he considered Mrs. Kirk’s statement. He wondered how far she was willing to go to prevent embarrassment to her family.
He looked in the mirror as the stylist applied a layer of gel.
His next stop would be Townsend Towers.
But first, he’d go home and wash his hair.
Chapter 31
When Ricardo picked her up Monday noon, Lea asked to be driven to a restaurant near the malecon. She could have taken the bus or walked, but she wanted him to know her location for the next hour.
She chose an outside table where she was clearly visible and accepted a menu from the waiter. Her custom at an unfamiliar restaurant was to order the house special. Instead, she perused the menu to draw out the time as much as possible.
She was right to let Ricardo know where she was. His cousin arrived at the same time as the daiquiri she ordered.
“Glad to meet you, Mario.”
He angled a chair and sat down, stretching his long legs.
“Cerveza, please,” he told the waiter.
“You know from your cousin who I am,” she said when the waiter left. “I should also mention I’m Warren Conley’s daughter.”
“Warren Conley as in former chief of police?”
“Yes.”
“That’s interesting.”
His easy smile and boyish good looks made him appear friendly, but she could see in his eyes that he was on alert.
“My cousin says you’ve come on behalf of Cate’s family.”
“Why did you leave town after her death? Didn’t you realize people would want to talk to you?”
“I needed to be close to my family. My father and I are not on speaking terms but I’ve seen my mother.”
“There is rumor of drugs in connection with Cate’s death.”
His eyes locked on hers like magnets. “What does that have to do with returning my personal possessions?”
“Perhaps you’ll tell me why you stayed in Chapala when Cate returned to San Diego. Holly said the reason was to get
your passport renewed, but you’re required to keep it current for your job on a cruise ship.”
He was clearly surprised by the question. “You’re wrong if you think I used Cate as a decoy or to carry drugs. I never asked her to do anything illegal.”
“That’s the furthest thing from my mind,” she assured him. She leaned forward and lowered her voice. “I know who you are, Mario. Or should I call you Macario?”
She held out her phone displaying the picture of Mario’s class at the academy.
“You’re even more handsome in person,” she said.
“How did you find out?”
“My father has a friend who trained recruits before he retired. Let’s see. His name reminds me of hot dogs.”
Mario smiled. “Oscar Mayerson. He’s a great guy. I was proud when he picked me as best all-around recruit in the class. There’s a wall at the academy with pictures of recipients of outstanding service awards. I promised Oscar I’d have my picture on that wall someday.”
He lowered his head.
When he looked up, his eyes were clouded in pain. “Lofty goals but look where they got me.”
“What do you mean?”
“When I was a teenager, I coached sports at the Boys and Girls Club. I watched those kids, and others in my neighborhood, get hooked on drugs. After witnessing how addiction destroyed them and their families, I made it my mission to get dealers off the streets. Oscar recommended me for the vice squad based on my desire to do something about the drug epidemic.” He looked at her with a strangled expression. “I’m afraid my involvement with drugs is the reason Cate was killed.”
“What makes you think her car ending up in a ditch wasn’t an accident?”
“Her family was told there was substantial alcohol in her system when she drove off the road.”
“Her friend confirmed she had a lot to drink,” Lea said.
“That’s what convinced me of foul play. We talked before she went to Holly’s dinner. She promised she would only have one glass of wine.”
“All right. Start at the beginning. I want to know everything.”
“Someone in Vice saw my potential to work undercover. Cops can be spotted a mile away. Not me. I wasn’t known on the streets and I didn’t have the hardened look that comes with experience.”
“Who was the officer who saw your potential?”
He shook his head. “Sorry. I can’t disclose that information in light of the ongoing operation.”
“I understand. Go ahead.”
“Our timing couldn’t have been better. Cruise ships are a big part of San Diego’s tourist industry. The mayor’s office was putting pressure on the chief to clean up on-board drug trafficking.”
“What role were you expected to play in that effort?”
“The plan was for me to get a job on a ship so I could infiltrate the network dealing drugs. My experience as a disc jockey made me a natural. Another piece fell in place when I remembered my friend in Ensenada.”
“Are you talking about Lyle?”
He nodded. “He house-sits a place in Punta Banda. It provided a safe base to carry out drug and money exchanges.”
“Does Lyle know what you’re doing?”
“I only told him I wanted a pad to crash where I could surf during cruise layovers.”
“Has the operation been successful?”
“Very. A supplier made contact within weeks of my start date. I completed my first delivery days later. To use the term, it’s been smooth sailing ever since.”
“No one suspects you of being a cop?”
“My cover was nearly blown by the chick I work with in the casino.”
“Anita?”
“That’s the one. She asked about the player who always sits at my table. She saw us talking outside the casino and suggested I was making extra money doing things the captain should know about.”
“How did you keep her from blowing the lid off your operation?”
He grinned. “Her price to keep quiet wasn’t difficult to pay. She’s a fiery beauty with a temperament to match.”
He turned his head and looked toward the lake.
“All that happened before Cate. Once I met her, I never noticed another woman. The moment she walked into the club where I was working, I knew she was the one. She turned my world upside down.
“It made me rethink my career. I knew a marriage built on lies and deceit couldn’t survive, and Cate was eager to have kids. I wasn’t willing to expose children to the dangerous environment an undercover agent inhabits. Besides, my family needed to be part of our kids’ lives. I had to let my father know he had a son to be proud of.”
“Did you tell Cate about your undercover police work?”
“Not at first. That was the worst part. Living a lie every day we were together. Pretending my only job was the cruise ship.
“But Cate was smart. She knew there were things I wasn’t telling her. At first, she suspected I was seeing another woman. When I convinced her that she was the only one, she thought of other things a man keeps secret. She asked if I was doing drugs which I denied.
“When our relationship became more serious and we talked about starting a family, Cate became adamant about not allowing drugs near our children. She warned against activities or acquaintances which might jeopardize our future family. I promised her there were none.”
“Was she satisfied with your assurance?”
“Until she caught me at Townsend’s party in the middle of a drug transaction.”
“What did you do?”
“I had no choice. She followed me to Ensenada. I ended up telling her everything. She forgave me, but made me promise to get out. We spent the night making plans to be married.
“I told the cruise ship I had food poisoning and couldn’t make the return trip. Then I informed my boss I no longer wished to work undercover because of potential danger to my future wife and family. He understood my feelings. His own marriage was ruined by his over-zealous approach to the job.”
“Did he accept your wish to be re-assigned?”
“He only asked that I return to finish our current operation after I took Cate to meet my family.”
“What was your last task to be?”
“To catch the supplier red-handed so we didn’t waste months of undercover work. We knew if we busted the head of the ring, the network would unravel and multiple arrests could be made.”
“How did your boss propose you flush out the ringleader?”
“By stealing a payoff, then arranging a meet to turn over the stolen money in exchange for what I demanded.”
“Which was?”
“A bigger slice of the pie or a greater role in the organization.”
“That was a risky move.”
“It seemed straight forward at the time. When I didn’t show up to turn over the money from my last delivery, the supplier would get hold of me. That’s when I would drop the bomb about what I wanted.”
“He doesn’t sound like a person who tolerates demands.”
“We’d been planting those seeds for weeks. The supplier had refused, using the excuse my position on the boat was too instrumental to move me into a different capacity. We felt certain he would buy my grandstand move for a bigger role and my rash behavior would force his hand.
“The plan was for me to turn over his money at a predetermined time and place. I’d wear a wire to record the conversation and the vice team could arrest him in possession of the money.”
“What made you think the supplier wouldn’t shoot you once you turned over the money?”
He shrugged carelessly. “That kind of risk-taking is why Cate wanted me out of undercover work.”
“What happened to your scheme to bust the drug ring?”
“Before I set a meet with the supplier, Cate’s car was run off the road and all hell broke loose.”
“It sounds like you believe, same as Sean, that Cate was intentionally run off the road.”
&nbs
p; He nodded. “I don’t know if the dealer was sending a message about what happens to people who cross him, or he thought Cate had the money and he’d get it from her before he and I met.”
“Can we get back to my question about your passport?”
“It was my Mexican passport I was renewing.”
“You have dual citizenship?”
“I wanted to keep my papers current for family visits after Cate and I married. There’s a lot less hassle at the border when I show my Mexican passport.”
Lea wanted to believe him, but she had doubts.
Was he getting a passport renewed or fake ID so he could run with the money?
Did he plan to start a new life with Cate as he claimed or did he plan to disappear alone?
His question interrupted her chain of thoughts.
“Did you find me by talking to Holly?”
“She’s worried about you. You haven’t been in touch. She mentioned this as a place you might come, hoping I could find you.”
“Besides a need to see my family, I came here to decide whether to continue the sting. If the supplier killed Cate, he won’t hesitate to kill me, too, or get me blamed for her death.”
“Things are already moving in that direction.”
“Holly doesn’t think I had anything to do with Cate’s death, does she?”
“Of course not. She’s worried more than anything. It’s good to have friends like that.”
“Once upon a time, we were more than friends. But we’re still close. Holly’s the one who introduced me to Cate.”
“So she said. Have you and Holly known each other long?”
“We went to the same school until she dropped out. I ran into her a couple of years back at a party she hosted where I was the DJ. That’s when we took up for a while. Neither one of us wanted commitments so it didn’t last long. She was interested in getting her business off the ground and I had a secret desire to be a policeman.”
“She seems to have succeeded in her goals.”
“It didn’t surprise me to find her business thriving when we hooked up later. Holly’s always been independent and strong-willed. She’s used to looking out for herself. That woman doesn’t need anyone.”
