Desert Kill Switch

by Mark S. Bacon

  Nina tilted her head to the side slightly. “There are ex-wives involved and, well, Al couldn’t keep it in his pants, so there are people lining up. With lawyers, y’ know? No one at the office really knows what’ll happen.”

  “So you don’t think Rick killed his father,” Kate said.”

  Nina shook her head again.

  “He has a temper. I’ve seen it.”

  “He’s just emotional sometimes.”

  I’ll bet Rick’s way beyond emotional, Lyle thought.

  “What about those guys with the Eastern European accents at the pony car shop?” Kate asked.

  “Alex?” Nina said. “He owns another classic car company. He and Ricky are doing some trades together. Alex’s guys are helping out. Ricky’s interested in historic automobiles, not just hot rods.”

  “So Stark, who fought constantly with his stepfather and has no alibi, had nothing to do with his death,” Lyle said. “Is that what you’re telling us?”

  “I don’t see how.”

  Chapter 45

  “Why’d you let Nina off so easy?” Lyle said when they walked down the hallway outside the CCN office.

  Kate expected the question. “Nina’s main reason for coming over tonight was to tell Quick about me. She’ll probably be coming out soon. Why don’t you head back to the hotel? I’ll wait here for a few minutes.”

  Lyle paused before saying something then just smiled and gave Kate a half salute. “Good luck.”

  Ten minutes later, Nina walked down the hall.

  “Can we talk a little?” Kate said. “Go for coffee?”

  Nina looked up at her with a cautious expression. “I told you everything you asked.”

  “Couldn’t we just talk a little more? Maybe go for a glass of wine if you’d rather.”

  “I don’t think so.” Nina started for the door.

  “Have you told Mr. Quick about your relationship with Rick?”

  “You were listening at work. Shit, I thought you were. What’re you up to, more blackmail?”

  “Of course not,” Kate said in the softest tone she could muster, considering the circumstances. “Let’s just have a talk, girl talk. I’ll buy the wine.”

  ***

  Nina didn’t look any more agreeable after she’d had half a glass of wine in the bar of a nearby restaurant. She and Kate sat in a corner booth.

  “You encouraged Rick to let me interview him.” Kate said.

  “That was before I knew you were a spy. I thought a story might help him and his business.”

  The “spy” comment rankled, but Kate let it go. “So you do care about him?”

  Nina took a long swallow of wine. “Yeah, maybe, sort of.”

  “Just sort of?”

  “After my sister’s son died, all I could think about was getting even. I wanted to kill somebody, the finance company, Busick, anybody. My sister hired a lawyer, but the corporations had all the power. They offered her seventy five thousand dollars. Seventy five thousand dollars for her son’s life? She needed help. I knew they needed to prove a conspiracy with the finance company, so I got a job there. But even still, I didn’t know exactly what to do. Then I heard about Larry. I saw a story on TV about how he was attacking these companies, so I went to talk to him.”

  Nina finished her wine and looked like she wanted another. A waitress soon obliged.

  “So,” Kate said, “Mr. Quick helped you figure out a way to collect the evidence you needed.”

  “Right. And it started working. Being in the accounting department I have access to all kinds of files from finance. I could see what they were doing. I even copied one of the training manuals that shows how to sell customers things they don’t need and how to bury the costs in the contract.”

  Nina paused to take a swallow of her second glass. “So why do people think you killed ol’ friendly Al?”

  “Long story. Did you see the video?”

  “Yeah once, on my phone. And I saw the story on the news. Then when I saw you walking--”

  “That video is pretty much the main evidence they have,” Kate said, ignoring the fact the police found her with the body. She took a modest sip of her own wine. “So what about Rick.”

  “Yeah, Ricky.”

  Kate wondered how much a couple glasses of wine would loosen up someone of Nina’s petite stature. She waited for Nina to continue.

  “Here’s the thing. I really wanted to hate him like I hate everyone else there, but I couldn’t. You don’t know what he’s been through. His first father, his real father, beat him. And then Al didn’t give a shit about him at all.”

  “Are you in love with him?”

  “I dunno. I feel sorry for him.”

  “What about your sister and her son.”

  “Ricky didn’t have anything to do with those kill switches. That was Al. Ricky hated his guts. He wouldn’t do anything bad like kill switches. He just sells fancy old cars.”

  “Nina, that’s not true.” Kate debated touching Nina’s hand, decided just to look her straight in the eye. “Schuyler Lamprey told me Rick figured out a way to make the GPS and kill switches tamper proof. He kept the system going. The same system that--”

  “Shut up. Ricky couldn’t do that. I’m sure. He’s just, I dunno, crazy sometimes.”

  “Why don’t you ask him?”

  Nina glowered.

  “What does your sister think about Rick?”

  “Maria? I haven’t told her nuthin. I love her, God bless her, but she wouldn’t understand.”

  “So what happens now? Is Rick planning to leave?”

  “You heard that, too?” Nina took another sip. “I don’t know what he’s gonna do. He and Alex are selling two antique cars. Ricky has to take one to Reno tomorrow or the next day. He said they’re going to make millions.”

  “What kind of cars?”

  Nina fished in her purse and pulled out a crumpled copy of a website story. It showed two cars, a 1935 Mercedes-Benz and a 1939 Alfa Romeo, each car valued at about $2 million.

  “Expensive cars,” Kate said. “Rick’s selling them in Reno?”

  “This one,” Nina said pointing to the Alfa Romeo. “They just finished working on it. They’re going to haul it to Reno. They delivered the other one already.”

  As Nina stared into her almost empty wine glass, Kate pulled out her cell phone and took a picture of the car photos.”

  “And when the deals are done, he’s going away?” Kate asked.

  “He’s been to Europe before.”

  “Nina, is he scared of the police?”

  “Maybe. Says he hates ’em.”

  “Does that give you any ideas? He hated his stepfather, is afraid of the police. And he wants to leave the country?”

  “Maybe he thinks someone is trying to blame him,” Nina said defiantly, locking eyes with Kate.

  “You said he gets crazy sometimes.”

  Kate saw anger in Nina’s eyes, but the expression seemed to shift to despair. After a long pause Nina said, “I told you. He hasn’t done anything. He’s like, just mixed up.”

  “Are you going with him?”

  “I don’t know. He said I could come later, but I can’t. Not right now. I don’t know what I’m doing. But Ricky needs me.”

  “Can you tell him you’re working with Larry Quick.”

  “God no. He’d kill me.”

  Chapter 46

  Lyle had to get up off his hotel room bed to open the door when Kate knocked. He slouched back on the bed, leaning against the headboard and several pillows.

  “They’re going to sell a $2-million car in Reno,” Kate said. “And then Rick’s going to leave the country.”

  “Does Nina have a thing with him? Is that what you were talking about?”

  She plopped down in an overstuffed chair. “Uh huh.”

  “That’s why she’s antagonistic. It’s not because she’s worried about us wrecking the Busick case. She’s protecting Stark.”

  “She’s c
onfused and conflicted,” Kate said.

  “What about her sister and the baby?”

  “That’s another issue. She obviously hasn’t told her sister that she’s seeing Rick.”

  “Too bad,” Lyle said. He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. “She sounds like our key witness.”

  “Just about everyone at the dealership heard Rick and Busick arguing one time or another. And a receptionist told me she heard Rick threaten Busick shortly before the murder.”

  “Think you can persuade Nina to talk before Stark gets out of the country? If she could tell the police everything Stark’s told her. Maybe he even confessed to her.”

  “I tried. I told her what I heard about Rick improving the kill switches.”

  “But she didn’t believe you.”

  “No.”

  “We need to do something soon. When’s Stark going to sell the car?”

  “Right away.”

  “Eventually, we’ll have to make a case to the Reno cops. We’ll need your attorney.”

  Kate looked at Lyle, apprehension coloring her face. The bedside lamp shone on her mottled hair. Her makeup, designed to make her look un-Kate-like, made her seem unsure and vulnerable. Kate’s dangerous predicament wasn’t an escape from his anxieties. It had become a source of its own. He too, had become convinced that Stark killed Busick, but the evidence was thin.

  “If we had a little more time,” Lyle said, “you could work on Nina.”

  “We could try to delay the sale of the car. They have to haul it to Reno.”

  Lyle walked over and sat in the desk chair facing Kate. They both lapsed into silence.

  Finally, Lyle said, “The only way I can think of to delay the sale is if someone else offered him more money.”

  “We don’t know any car buyers, do we?”

  “No, but at the auto action, some collector thought I was a buyer and gave me a spiel about his car.”

  “I’ve got the details about the car here,” Kate said. She turned on her phone and showed Lyle the photos. “But how would we even know about the sale?”

  “Sales this big get around. I heard guys talking at the auction about some big deal that Stark cooked up.”

  “So what do we do, call up and say you’re interested in the Alfa Romeo?”

  “Yeah. That might delay them, but I’d probably have to show up and look at the car.”

  “Do you know enough about these old models to pass as a collector?”

  “Ah, not really. Not for very long. But I know some people who do.”

  “At the park?”

  “Right. There’s probably a half dozen people or more at the NC garage who could tell me enough to get by.”

  Chapter 47

  Known for gambling, headliner shows, and activities that “stay in Vegas,” Nevada’s largest city is also home to some of the finest restaurants in the world. Restaurants at the MGM Grand, Bellagio, and Caesar’s have more stars than some generals. Unfortunately, Kate thought the eatery she and Lyle had selected that night looked more like a mess hall, its proximity to their hotel its biggest selling point. Lyle got a gin and tonic and they settled into a quiet spot to talk.

  Before they left, Kate took a few minutes to put on dress slacks and a blouse--to look a little more like herself.

  “Why don’t you call Busick Pony Cars tomorrow morning?” Lyle said, sipping his drink. “Say you represent some megabucks buyer who wants to send a representative to see the car. Make it clear that Mr. Megabucks doesn’t quibble over a few hundred thousand. Greed might just make Stark pause for a day or so.”

  Kate was skeptical. She’d seen Rick’s wild behavior. You couldn’t predict how he would act at any time. Were they getting desperate? She’d been fighting that feeling, especially after she’d failed to gain Nina’s complete confidence.

  “Lyle,” she said, “I don’t know what to say.” She took his hand. It was cold and damp from his cocktail glass, but she squeezed it anyway. “Thank you for staying with me. Thank you for being here. Thank you for being you.” She could feel a tear making its way into her eye, so she kept talking. “Rick’s crazy. I don’t know what motivates him, but okay. Let’s try to fool him.”

  Lyle placed his other hand over Kate’s and held tight. Could he see the emotion on her face?

  “We’ll finish this together,” he said. “No thanks necessary. Besides, you saved my bacon once.”

  Kate smiled, forcing back tears. “Actually, twice.”

  Lyle laughed. He let go of her hand and clapped. Restaurant customers at two tables next to them turned and stared at the sound.

  “Yes, twice,” he said. “I’ll have to work even harder now.” Lowering his voice, Lyle said, “I’ll take a quick flight back to the park tomorrow morning and see if I can get a crash course in classic car collecting. If we can put this deal on hold for a while it will give us some time to--” He stopped, mid-sentence.

  “What?” Kate said.

  “Hell, I’ve been wanting to know what the Reno cops have been doing, but I can find out one thing they already know--Rick Stark’s record, if he has one. Why didn’t I think of this before? If he’s got a record of violence, that would help our case. I’ll call Marko and have him run a check.”

  When their food arrived, Lyle ordered a second G and T. “What’s Rick look like? I’ve only seen a picture of the guy on the Pony Cars website.”

  “Trim and athletic. A little like Johnny Depp, but taller.”

  “So you interviewed him and checked him out.”

  “Definitely not.” Kate raised her shoulders and trembled. “He gives me the chills. But I noticed you were checking out Nina.”

  “Just trying to discern her character.”

  “She’s sexy and I think she knows it. Guess Rick does too.”

  Lyle smiled, then turned serious. “When was the last time you talked to Max?”

  “Just after I left my condo and came over here. Tuesday.”

  After they’d finished their meal and their portion of the restaurant had cleared out, Kate borrowed Lyle’s phone and called their boss at home. Since Arizona doesn’t observe Daylight Savings Time, it was the same time as Nevada and the rest of the Pacific Coast zone.

  “I called and left messages,” Max boomed as soon as Kate identified herself. “Where the hell are you? The cops are looking for you. They called your office here. Even wanted to speak to me.”

  Not likely, Kate thought. “I hope my case isn’t affecting the park.” She’d been too focused on the police breathing down her neck to think about Nostalgia City public relations.

  “Things are jumping. The hotel managers tell me some people have come here directly from Reno.”

  Max was happy. That part of her job was under control.

  “We’re sold out every day,” Max said. “I wish you could tell that to some of the smug sons o’ bitches there in Vegas.”

  When Max had left Vegas to start his historical theme park, many casino executives and other observers had written him off. But Kate had sensed something different, something promising at Nostalgia City and accepted Max’s offer to become his PR VP.

  “Yup, we’re doing okay. But where do you stand now?”

  “We’re getting close.”

  “Kate, you know I’m behind you, but it’s now time to talk to the police and settle this. Get that hot-shot lawyer to set something up. Stop running.”

  Chapter 48

  Back in the park Friday morning, Lyle stopped at the taxi company office. He wanted to let his supervisor know he would probably not be back at work until sometime next week--with luck. Static and scratchy voices from two-way radios echoed throughout the large open office containing a waiting room, a break area for drivers, and the dispatcher’s desk.

  Lyle smiled at Rita, the red-haired dispatcher, who sat behind a radio console that looked like it might have come from the 1940s rather than 1970s.

  “Oh, Lyle. I got a message for you.”


  Lyle looked at the pink phone message form. Even paper forms in NC were retro. The message was five days old. Sal Galluzzo, owner of the NC deli, needed to talk to him regarding his son.

  “Rita, do you have my cell phone number?”

  “Yeah, I think so, Lyle.”

  “Why didn’t you just call me with this?” Lyle spoke up over the radio static.

  “I didn’t know you were going to be out so long.”

  “As in out cold, out to lunch, or out of my mind?”

  “Huh?” the dispatcher said.

  “Just talking to myself, as usual, Rita. Thanks.”

  Lyle ducked into a back room to use his cell phone. He first called Gayle LeBlanc, the garage manager, to ask if she knew someone who could brief him on buying classic cars--old classic cars.

  “Lyle honey, what are you up to? You’re not going to buy an old car, are you?”

  “Not really, Gayle. It’s um...”

  “Never mind. I get it. I heard y’all have some trouble in Nevada. I could probably help you a little bit myself, but our real expert is Mitch Kohler. He used to be the head classic car guy for one of those wealthy billionaire collectors back east. C’mon by. I’ll ask him to tell you whatever you need.”

  Next Lyle called Galluzzo’s deli.

  “Lyle, you’re here, ” Galluzzo said. “They told me you were gone. Didn’t know when you’d be back. I gotta talk to you about Dario, my son. He’s in trouble. Can you help me? Please?”

  At first, Lyle wondered if the young man had tried to put up another Facebook sign or other prohibited artifact from the twenty-first century, but Sal’s voice carried a note of alarm, even fear. Lyle pocketed his phone and headed toward the deli. As he walked down Main Street, he reminded himself to enjoy the moment, the cool morning air. Nostalgia City’s elevation made the summers a little cooler than Vegas or Phoenix.

  The smell of fresh bread, marinara, and spices hit Lyle before he walked in the deli door. Galluzzo rushed from behind the counter to greet him.