Though Laura was no food enthusiast, she thoroughly enjoyed the meal. Bill was disappointed she didn’t want wine with the food, and the waiter had shaken his head in disapproval. No wine was needed for Laura. After frozen turkey and gravy, anything would have seemed delicious. The Malalani produced nectar and ambrosia.
Part way through the meal, the headwaiter came by their table. “Excellent,” Bill said.
“Superb,” Laura added.
“You’re Miss Correa, I believe?” the headwaiter said, phrasing the remark as a question. “Now with Smith, Chu and Yoshinobu?”
“That’s right.”
“They are fine people. I’m sure it will be a pleasure for you to work with them.”
When the headwaiter left, Laura frowned her puzzlement toward Bill.
“He’s another fan of your firm,” Bill answered her unasked question, “as you may have concluded. His son got picked up for embezzlement. It was a weird case, involving a gang. Qual pulled out all the stops. He got the boy off after a wild jury trial. The kid’s now on his way to becoming an architectural engineer, and his Dad thinks the sun rises and sets in Qual. So nothing’s too good for your employer and his employees as far as the headwaiter is concerned.”
“See, Bill, there are satisfactions in criminal law.”
“But not many meals at the Malalani.”
“OK. I’ll enjoy this while I can, since it’s the first and will probably be the last time I get to come here.
***
“Sid!”
“Hmm?”
“Don’t go to sleep yet.”
“Why not? Morning comes early.”
“I’ve been thinking about Kimo’s case.”
Sid rolled over. “I know you have. All evening. It was like being in the same house with a mummy. Let’s get the conclusions over with. Then maybe we can get to sleep.”
“That’s the problem. I don’t have any conclusions.”
“Kay! This isn’t even your case. Let Laura worry about it. That’s what she’s earning her salary for, and you’ve already said she’s doing fine.”
“Yes, but this whole thing is really baffling.”
“So you figure you’ve got to solve it. You really should have been a private eye. Next thing you know, you’re going to want to get up and go searching Green Sand Gulch for clues.”
Kay smiled in the dark. “Might not be such a bad idea. I’m sure there are clues all over Wiliwili Circle and vicinity.”
By this time Sid was wide awake and sitting up. “All right. I know there’ll be no sleep until you’ve talked it out. What do you figure happened, and why?”
“I think I know the ‘what.’ I’m not sure of the ‘why.’ That’s what’s keeping me awake.”
“I’ll settle for the ‘what’ then.”
“Laura was on the right track when she suggested Lyndon came out of one of those houses. I’m convinced he did. Then someone in the house saw Lyndon get hit. As soon as Kimo walked away from the scene, they went out into the street, picked up the body, carried it over to the gulch and threw it into the water–after emptying the pockets. The more I think about it, the more convinced I am they were trying to conceal Stanner’s identity. Now I’m not sure about when they did that. Maybe the victim was stripped of identification beforehand, but I doubt it.”
“Oh-hoh. So Stanner was held prisoner in one of those houses. Then he escapes and gets run down in the process.”
Sid could not see Kay’s face, but he could picture her concentration. “I thought of that,” she said, “but it seems too unlikely. It’s ridiculous to think of anyone being held prisoner in one of those cracker-boxes. There are no basements, and the walls are paper-thin.” Sid was just barely able to make out the outline of her head in the dim light of the bedroom and could see her shaking it.
“Yeah. They’re all single wall construction.”
Kay’s thoughts were interrupted by her amusement at Sid’s newly acquired building expertise. His next question brought her back on track. “Any guesses as to who?”
“No, but there almost had to be at least two people involved. According to his medical record, even though Lyndon Stanner wasn’t the healthiest specimen in the world, he weighed close to a hundred-and-sixty pounds. From what I’ve heard of the people in those houses, there aren’t any Swartzenneggers living there. So that indicates some sort of conspiracy involving two or more people. There has to be a reason, not only for them not wanting the body found out on the street, but for not having the body discovered for at least a while. It wasn’t important for them to provide a permanent disposal of the body, or they’d have done a much better job of getting rid of it.”
“If we figure it had to be at least two people, we can eliminate Merritt right away.” Sid mused aloud.
“You must be asleep, Sid. It couldn’t have been Merritt, anyway. Kimo was with him while the body disappeared.”
“I know. I was just going down the street, one house at a time. The Jacintos are a real possibility. What about McMahon and his wife?”
“Unlikely. I suppose it’s possible she was at the house, in spite of what he said. Anyhow, Laura said something about going to see Mrs. McMahon at work. It might be a good idea to get her side of the story.”
“Drina and her mother could have carried the body pretty easily. Laura says they’re a couple of powerful looking women. What do you think of the Paks as a possibility?”
Sid could feel Kay shaking her head. “Very unlikely. We have absolutely nothing to connect them to Stanner except for the X-ray. Besides, he didn’t have to identify the tattoo. If we’re right the perpetrators wanted to conceal the body’s identity, then the Paks are definitely out.”
“Hell! So far we have nothing to connect anyone but Kimo and the Kalahuis to Stanner. My guess is it was the Kalahuis. Maybe there was some agreement between them and Kimo.”
“Now you’re thinking the way Hank must be thinking, and I’d be inclined to think that way too, if they’d really seriously tried to hide Lyndon Stanner’s identity—but they didn’t.”
Sid shrugged. “So they just did the best they could. Have you considered the ones in the last house, the Cambras?”
“Again, all I have to go on is what Laura told me about them. The wife’s a scared rabbit, and might not have had the strength to help carry Stanner. It’s a possibility, though. Or maybe he could have dragged Stanner off by himself. If I’m wrong, and it was a one person job, then Cambra seems to be the only one living in those houses who would have been able to do that, and it wouldn’t have been easy.”
“So now, where are we.”
“Mainly we’re trying to figure out who on the street stood to gain by what happened.”
“I get it. So you’re trying to figure out why anyone would want Stanner’s death kept secret for a certain period of time.”
“Right. Now you’re on my wave length.”
“Money is the only thing I can see. Maybe there was some sort of settlement, or some sort of contract. If Stanner doesn’t show up, someone else gets the money.”
“Right again, and the only ones we know there, who might benefit from Stanner’s death in some way, are Drina and her mother.”
“But Drina wasn’t even married to him.”
“Doesn’t matter. The kids would still be in a position to benefit, I would think. What about common law marriages in Hawaii? What rights does the wife have?”
“Damned if I know. I was bored stiff by that section when I prepared for the bar exams. I’m not even sure if there is such a thing as common law marriages here.”
“Neither am I.”
“Do you think just maybe we could wait until morning before we start looking through the books to find out about marriage regulations in Hawaii?”
“I suppose.”
“Since we’re wide awake and can’t get back to sleep, maybe we can do something else besides discuss law.”
“Why, Sid, it’s long after midnight. Wha
t are you thinking of?”
Sid demonstrated what he’d been thinking of.
After they’d made love, Kay whispered, “It still would be nice to know about common law marriages in Hawaii”
Sid laughed, then reached over and hugged her. “Go to sleep. I promise I’ll call Bill Kuroyama first thing Monday morning. If anyone would know, he would. His specialty is tangled relationships.”
Chapter 15
The evening had been pleasant. Laura could now see why people raved about the Malalani’s restaurant. Bill’s company had been as good as the food. He had regaled her with the tribulations, trials and excitement of divorce court. While the situations were amusing, even occasionally hilarious, Laura was happier than ever at not having to deal with the wild world of an angry couple dividing up possessions in the heat of uncontrolled anger.
Nice as the evening had been, she was now getting apprehensive. She knew Bill would want to come up to the apartment, and she could not decide whether or not she wanted him to. She disliked the notion he would regard this as his reward for the fine dinner. On the other hand, she was quite certain he really did not regard it that way. Going to bed with Bill would not be unpleasant, she knew, but did she really want to?
What surprised her was how Bill dealt with the situation when he pulled up in front of the apartment. “I’d like to come up,” he said, “but I’m not going to complain if you don’t want me to.”
The strange way he put it made her laugh. “I’ve been out of the running so long,” she said, “I’ve forgotten what dating is like. Aren’t we supposed to grapple in the front seat first?”
Bill joined her laugh. “I guess I’m aging. Getting all tangled up with the gear shift and handbrake no longer holds much charm for me. I think you’ll enjoy it more if we’re in a comfortable bed. I’m sure I will.”
“OK, but you’ll have to be patient. It’s been a long time. I didn’t even think about sex all through law school. There just weren’t enough hours in the day.”
“I know what you mean,” he said, as they climbed the stairs to her second floor apartment. “I was even married then, but it didn’t make any difference. Kumiko said it was like living with a monk.”
While she was unlocking the door, Bill reached out and put his hand on her back. Laura enjoyed the touch. For the first time she began to look forward to what was ahead. As soon as the door closed behind them they kissed. Laura felt her body responding to his. His moist tongue brought the moisture to her own mouth. They hugged each other as they hurried to the bedroom. She would have preferred to have had the lights out, but she remembered most of her previous partners had wanted them on. Bill stripped quickly and helped her unbutton her blouse. He kissed her neck and moved his mouth down to her small breasts as he undid her brassiere. Laura felt herself thoroughly aroused.
Bill was competent and considerate, but somehow Laura could not make it to an orgasm. “I guess I’m going to need practice,” she said to Bill, who had just rolled off and was lying on his back against her.
“I can’t provide much right at this moment, but I’ll be happy to do my best in the future—maybe the near future. This kind of practice can be a lot of fun.”
They made love once more before going to sleep. Though Laura came no closer to orgasm, she found the male nearness of Bill gratifying in itself. They went to sleep in each others arms.
***
Laura slipped out of bed early and had coffee on for the tousle-haired Bill, who came out of the bedroom and kissed her on the back of the neck.
“Nicest part of it all,” Bill said, as he picked up the steaming cup, “is we never said a word about the law all the time we were in bed.”
Laura feigned a pout. “I’m not sure that’s much of a compliment. I know I’m not the most exciting bed partner in the world, but it’s the first time I’ve ever been complimented for something I didn’t do in bed.”
Bill laughed and kissed her. “You’re great, Laura. I heard you did a bang-up job at the Stanner trial. That’s what counts. You have to have a special ability to do that. Sex, on the other hand, just comes natural. Anyone can be good at it. As I said last night. It just takes practice.”
Laura looked down into her cup. I hope he’s right, she thought.
Much as she would have preferred a lazy Sunday chatting with Bill, Laura knew she had to spend it on the neglected work. Qual had given her two more cases. She was especially intrigued by one involving trespass on Elima’s lone military reservation. The trespasser had been protesting the storage of nuclear weapons at the site, and the military denied any such weapons were there.
At the same time, the army officials refused to allow inspection of the base. A federal judge was due in to hear the case, and Laura felt thoroughly unprepared. Stacks of federal statutes regarding trespass, freedom of information, national security and a half-dozen other relevant aspects of law were piled up by her recliner.
She shooed a reluctant Bill out soon after breakfast, broke out a new yellow legal-pad and settled down with the books. The morning flew by. It was two in the afternoon before she realized she was hungry. Settling for the remnants of a bedraggled and browning salad from a couple of days before, she drank her self-assigned two glasses of two-percent milk. She ate the tired looking salad, while working her way through the county ordinance banning nuclear materials on the island.
It was almost seven when she thought of food again, when the door buzzer went off. Laura panicked as she suddenly remembered. Emil!
Her first impulse came right out of her childhood. She suddenly had the urge to run and hide. Then she thought she might just keep quiet and hope he would go away. The buzzer sounded again. She knew she would have to open the door. She did, and when she heard herself saying what she did, she knew she was making matters even worse.
“I … I completely forgot. I’m really sorry Emil.”
The tall, dark haired prosecutor smiled. Laura thought of the smile as poignant. “That’s OK. The reservations aren’t until eight, and we don’t have to be there on the dot. There’s plenty of time to get ready.”
Laura was suddenly overwhelmed by the wish to get back to her books. How could I have done this to myself? she wondered
“Sure, sure,” she said, “I can get ready in ten minutes. Can I get you anything?”
Emil shook his head. He gestured toward the law books strewn across the living room floor. “You’ve got everything I need, right here.” Laura rushed through her shower and cursed her inadequate wardrobe. Somehow she managed to make a selection. Somehow she forced her unruly hair into a semblance of order. Eye shadow seemed unnecessary. I already plucked the stray hairs out of my eyebrows for Bill. I guess I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. It sure would have been hell to have lived in the days of pancake makeup.
Emil was quick to compliment her when she came out of the bedroom. She looked longingly back at the books as she closed the apartment door.
***
Oh, no! she thought, as they pulled up in front of the Malalani, and the parking attendant ran out to the car.
The headwaiter showed no signs of knowing her as he led them to a table near the harpist who had just settled down for the evening. Good man, Laura decided. He reminds me of the stories about prostitutes who were warned never to recognize their customers on the street during daylight hours.
“If I’m prying, Emil, don’t answer, but how can a county prosecuting attorney afford to go to a restaurant like this?”
“Prosecuting attorneys can’t,” he said with a small laugh. “It’s the first time I’ve been here. You have my birthday and a wealthy aunt to thank for this. She sent me a big check with a note attached to it. It said, ‘Emil, if you spend this on law books I’ll cut you out of my will. Do something with it you really enjoy but would never do otherwise.’”
“Why, thank you, Emil. That’s sweet. Will you really enjoy taking me to dinner more than buying a law book? Would you have never done it otherwise?”
/>
He laughed. It was a laugh Laura liked. “It was a hard choice, believe me, but I really don’t want to be cut out of her will. I keep thinking about all the law books the inheritance will buy me.”
Laura joined in his laughter. “My old sociology prof would call that deferred gratification. I’m not sure I can make the evening enjoyable for you, but I know I’m hungry enough to make it enjoyable for me. Where’s our waiter?”
Emil suggested wine, and when Laura told him she was a non-drinker, he laughed and said he wasn’t into the vice either. The same waiter as the previous night was at their table and overheard Emil’s remark. Laura could see the same upward roll of the eyes which she had noted the night before when she had confessed to being a non-drinker.
Surprised to see the menu was completely different, Laura wondered if tonight’s choice would measure up to what she had had with Bill. Inevitably a comparison of the two men followed. Where Bill had done most of the talking, Emil was eager to listen to her. Where Bill’s humor was large and almost grotesque, Emil’s was subtle and more easily missed if the listener was not completely alert. Bill had been expansive and openly enjoyed the meal. Emil saved his compliments for the headwaiter when he made his routine check at their table. Where Bill had been quick to entertain her with tales of his quarrelsome clients, Emil was more apt to talk about himself, but every bit as ready to reveal his failures as his successes.
Laura was not sure whom she preferred. She was most definitely uncertain about how she wanted the evening to end.
Emil made the decision for her. Arriving in front of her apartment, he got out, rounded the car and opened the door for her. “Thank you for accepting my invitation,” he said. “My aunt will be pleased to know I enjoyed it even more than I would have a set of new law books.”
Laura stood, looking puzzled. Emil did not even kiss her good-bye. She wrestled with the mixture of disappointment and relief as she watched his car roll away from the curb and disappear around the corner.
Chapter 16
Dead and Gone Page 10
