The Yoshinobu Mysteries: Volume 2

by John A. Broussard

  “Think you could take something like this on a regular basis?” Laura asked, watching him out of the corner of her eye as she turned the hot water onto the dishes.

  “Youre cheating.”

  “Now whos being cryptic?”

  “We said we wouldnt talk about the future until the case is settled.”

  Laura made a face. “I hate people with will power.”

  The phone rang.

  “Its for you,” Laura said, a puzzled look on her face as she handed him the phone. “Its Saul. Hes calling from Ruths”

  “Hi.”

  Laura watched Ken, and read shock on his face.

  “When?”

  “Are you going back?”

  “The court wont let me.”

  “Tell him, tell him…oh what the hell. What can you tell him?”

  Ken caught Lauras look as he hung up. “Pat just called Saul. Andrea died this morning.”

  ***

  “How did Andrea look when you saw her, Sid?” Kay asked as they were driving home. Sid took his eyes off the road for a moment to look at Kay. “Its not easy to say. I certainly didnt think shed be dead in less than a week.”

  “When I called Ruth, she said she really didnt have much of the details. Pat seemed to have himself under control, but he could have been in a state of shock. Andrea died in the hospital during treatment. Beyond that, Ruth didnt find out much, and didnt want to press.”

  “Did you get in touch with Laura and Ken?”

  “Uhuh. I couldnt find them. She left about four, today. They may have been shopping or just out walking along the beach. I gave Ruth, Lauras number. She already had Kens. She said shed keep trying. Saul and Noelle are still over on Oahu, which helped. I get the impression Andrea and Ruth were rather close.”

  “Hmm-mm. I got the same impression from Andrea, too. The whole crowd had a funny interrelationship. Do you think there was any chance of Clayton getting two of them to dump a third one? Or is Saul right, and there was really no possibility at all of it happening?”

  Kay became thoughtful. Sid glanced over at her. “Have you got it solved?” he asked with a smile.

  “Uh-uh, but I think I know how to solve it. What did Clayton do from the time he got here Friday night to when he was killed Saturday evening?”

  “He made a lot of phone calls, all but one on Saturday, according to Corky.”

  “Did she check out the calls.”

  “I dont think so. There didnt seem to be much point to it. None of them were local except several to Ken. Clayton kept trying to get him and finally left a message.”

  “Lets go over those calls tomorrow. Im still groping. I think there may be something crucial in the list.”

  ***

  “Hi, Corky. This is Kay.”

  “Hi. How goes the battle?”

  “It depends on which one youre talking about. At the moment were still wrestling

  with Kens case. Do you have the list of phone calls Clayton Heinicke made while he was at the Malalani?”

  “I sure do. Its somewhere here on my desk. Just a minute. Here it is.” “Have you done anything with it?”

  “Uh-uh. We checked the one phone call he made at 7:06 Saturday evening, the one

  to Kens ex -wife.”

  “Kens ex-wife?” Kay didnt try to keep her surprise from showing. “Yeah. You must have been over on Oahu when we found out about it. I dont think

  it means much, though, since the call never went through. There was nobody home.” Clayton had been probably looking for another angle of attack on Ken, this time through Ruth. She shook her head over the qualities of this man she had never met and was glad she hadnt.

  Corky was still going on. “Hank wasnt much interested in any of the other calls. When he looked at the list, and its a long one, he just said, „Forget it.”

  “Can I pick up a copy?”

  “Sure thing. Better yet, Ill bring it over. I need to get out of this box. Im beginning to get claustrophobia.”

  ***

  Sid, Corky and Kay looked over the list.

  “Nice to see they put down all calls, whether they were completed or not,” Sid

  commented. “Theres something to be said for computers, after all.”

  “The only local calls were to Kens hotel. Right?” Kay asked as she started down the

  list.

  “Right on,” Corky announced not bothering to look up the number in the phone book

  she was holding on her lap. “I checked those out already. Seems he was pretty anxious to

  get in touch with Ken.”

  Looking over Kays shoulder at the list, Corky added, “Looks like he did nothing but

  sit at the phone on Saturday. I thought he made only one call to Ken on Friday, but there

  were a bunch to him on Saturday, too. Along with all those calls to the Prince

  Kalanianaole, he made one call to a Frisco number, and a lot of others to a different

  Frisco number. Whats left are all San Jose calls,” she added after verifying the area code,

  “or at least, Silicon Valley.”

  “Five different numbers altogether,” Kay said.“Ive got Sauls number in San

  Francisco and Pats number in San Jose right here, she said, pulling her note pad toward

  her and flipping the pages. “Thats it. All but three of the calls were to those two

  numbers. One of those three remaining numbers is Computech Systems. Theres another

  one in the same area. Any idea who it might be?”

  Sid and Corky shook their heads. “Theres one way to find out,” Sid said and

  reached for the phone.

  The other two watched him as he punched in the number. When he had made the

  connection, he covered the mouthpiece and said in a loud whisper, “Fashions Unlimited.”

  Then, into the phone, “Could I speak to Celia Lincoln, please.”

  Chapter 23

  “Youre going to get yourself fired,” Ken said half-jokingly to Laura as they sat in the courtroom cafeteria, Ken with a cup of cold tea in front of him, and Laura with an equally cold cup of coffee.

  “Im pretty well caught up,” Laura said, with an answering smile. “Besides, thats one of the nice parts ofthis job. We have free rein to do as we please. Maybe thats why everyones so eager to help everyone else.”

  “Even so, if it werent for me, youd be back in your office right now researching some case.”

  “If it werent for me, youd be in your condo punching away at computer keys.”

  “Youre right, as usual. Be careful. I hate people who are always right almost as much as you hate people who have will power.”

  Laura smiled again and then turned serious. “Is Saul going back to the mainland for Andreas funeral?”

  “No. Theres not going to be any funeral or any services. Pat says Andrea was adamant on the score, and hes going to do exactly what she wanted. Saul and Noelle will be going back next week, but theyll be dropping by over here first to talk about what he can do to prepare for the trial. Pat is going to come over for sure.”

  “Thats really nice of Pat. From what you said, it must have been terrible–Andreas sickness, I mean–and then her sudden death. To be able to put all of it aside and come over and testify for you says a lot for Pat.”

  Ken nodded. “When I spoke to him this morning, he sounded very concerned. I dont think he could be any more concerned if he were on trial himself.”

  ***

  Kay punched the speaker button on the phone to catch both sides of the conversation. “Hello?”

  “Celia Lincoln?”

  “Speaking.”

  “Hi. This is Sidney Chu, the attorney who dropped by to see you a couple of days

  ago. ”

  “Yes. I remember. What is it?”

  “Do you remember receiving a call from Clayton, about two oclock on the Saturday

  when he died? ”

  “Yes.”

  “
Could you tell me the substance of the call.”

  “There wasnt much to it.”

  Sid could almost see the shrugging of the rather ungainly shoulders and the large

  hand tapping the ash off a cigarette into a Cinzano ashtray.

  “Clay said he was going to be in San Jose on Monday and wanted to know if he

  could stay at the apartment. I told him I wouldnt be here because I had to fly to New

  York in the morning todo some buying. I told him Id leave word with the apartment

  manager to let him in.”

  “How did Clayton sound?”

  “He sounded pleased with himself. He said something about paying me back for the

  hospitality. I wasnt much concerned. He had his faults, but he was never tight with his

  money.”

  “Did you have any other impressions?”

  “Impressions?” There was a pause.“Yes, as a matter of fact. He seemed to think he

  was going to strike it big this time, real big!”

  ***

  “Bautista here.”

  “Hi, Emil,” Hank said into the phone. “Whats the problem?”

  “How did you know there was a problem?”

  “Prosecuting attorneys dont call homicide lieutenants unless there are problems. Out

  with it. ”

  “I was just looking over the last report on the Cole case.”

  “Yes?” Hank was leaning back in his chair and rolling his eyes ceiling ward. “Have you done any follow-up on Wolfgang Rutherford?”

  “Wolfgang who?”

  “The guy who picked up the Express Mail package on the day Clayton was killed.” “Him? Yeah. Tried to get an identification from the clerk. Nada.”

  “You showed him a picture of Ken Cole?”

  “It was a her, and the answer is yes. We did give her a half dozen different mug shots

  to chose from. She wouldnt even try.”

  “You know of course Coles got witnesses saying he was in Oahu at the time.” “Witnesses dont mean much when theyre all buddies. And, if it wasnt Cole,

  theres absolutely no guarantee it was someone picking up a gun. Hell! All we know is it was a four pound Express Mail package.”

  There was silence at the other end.

  “Well?” Hank asked.

  “Nothing more on the guy with gloves?”

  “Nope.”

  “Did you show the witness who saw him any photos.”

  “Of course. Martine never even looked at the face at the time. All he saw was the ski jacket and the gloves. He wasnt exactly in a position where he wanted himself to be identified, so he wasnt about to make eye contact with anyone.”

  “You know Sids going to play it for all its worth, dont you?”

  “Sure. He doesnt have anything else.”

  “He doesnt, does he? The witnesses are beginning to pile up. Theres the old couple who saw Cole on the lanai.”

  “Still doesnt mean Cole couldnt have gone back up and killed Heinicke.”

  “It cuts it pretty close, according to the pm. Did you listen to the tapes Sid and Kay brought back?”

  “Yeah.” Hank could see what was coming.

  “Do you know anybody who doesnt like Ken Cole?”

  Kay began to check off the other calls. “Nice to see the Malalani computers keep times down to the second. The first call was to Computech at nine-thirty, two minutes. Its easy enough to check what it was all about. The next one was to Frisco at nine-thirty five, two minutes. The next call was to Pat Crosby, nine-thirty-nine. It lasted fifty-five seconds. The next call was to Saul Epstein at nine-fifty, sixty-five seconds. Ten-forty to Pat, forty seconds. Ten-fifty to Saul, sixty-five seconds. Those calls are repeated about an hour apart until three-thirty. The last one to Pat was then. The ones to Saul keep on until six-fifteen, which is presumably when Clayton went down to see Ken.”

  “I cant see any of those calls do much for us,” Sid said, “but I can at least call Computech.”

  Kay smiled. “I cant figure out what went on either, but Ill bet I can tell you what the call was all about.”

  “Oh yeah,” Sid said. “Want to bet?”

  “Sure. Same bet we had before on Lauras personals.”

  “Youre on.”

  “Clayton wanted to know if Pat was there. When Clayton found out Pat and Andrea had gone to Frisco for her treatment, he got the hospital phone number. Ill give you a bonus. The hospital was his next call.”

  While Sid was talking to the receptionist at Computech Systems, Corky asked Kay, “Whats the bet?”

  “If youve got a copy of Joy of Sex, Ill show you. So far, Sids been losing.”

  Sid put the phone down. “Looks like Sid lost again,” he said. “How in hell did you know that?”

  “Because Pats phone is unlisted. Once he found out Pat wasnt at work but had taken Andrea to the hospital, then the hospital was the only place where he could either contact Pat or get his phone number.”

  “What page is it on?” Corky asked.

  Both Sid and Kay turned an inquiring look on her. “What do you mean what page?” Sid asked. “What page of what?”

  “What page of Joy of Sex is the bet you lost on, Sid?”

  *** Qual had just finished consulting with a client and was about to join in the discussion going on in Kays office when the phone rang.

  “Its a Mr. Saul Epstein,” Leilani announced.

  “Hello.”

  “The reason I called is because several of us will be coming over tomorrow. Wed like to drop by to talk to you.”

  “Sure. Someone will be available, for sure. Whos coming?”

  “Ruth, Chet, Noelle and I. Sarah wants to come over too.”

  “Fine. Bring her along. The more the merrier. Leilani can entertain her while we talk. She prefers children to adults any day. Well be waiting. What flight will you be coming in on? One of us can pick you up at the airport in the van.”

  “We have to wait for the ninethirty from Frisco. Pats going to be on it. He wants to see you, too. Hesays its important.”

  “One of these days Im going to win a bet,” Sid said.

  Kay was only half listening while scanning the telephone list.

  “Bet?” she asked, looking up. “Want to bet on who murdered Clayton?” “This is getting exciting,” Corky said. “Make it double or nothing, Sid.” “Are you serious, Kay?” Sid asked.

  “Do you mean about the bet?”

  Sid shook his head. “No. I mean about the murderer. Do you really think you know who it is?”

  Kay nodded. “There are still a few glitches only the murderer can fill in.” Qual came into her office and caught the last words.

  “Well, if the murderer is one of the suspects, youll have a chance to fill in those glitches tomorrow. Most of them are showing up at the airport at ten-thirty. You going to tell us who it is?”

  “Only if we dont have a voluntary confession by eleven oclock.”

  Chapter 24

  Laura drove by Kens condominium to pick him up. “ I just talked to Kay over the phone,” she said. “Kay says she knows who murdered Clayton.”

  As Ken slid into the passengers seat, he said, “I know who the murderer is too, but I cant believe it.”

  “Who is it?”

  Ken shook his head. “I think were going to find out soon enough.”

  Laura shook her head.“You and Kay are positively exasperating. At least shes going to tell us if we dont have a confession this morning.”

  “Im not so much concerned with getting a confession. I need explanations, lots of them.”

  They arrived just as Sid drove up in the van. Sarah raced out and jumped into Kens outstretched arms.

  The door closed on the conference room, leaving Sarah expertly picking out case references on the computer under Leilanis supervision. Laura looked around the table as Qual introduced himself to the newcomers he had not yet met.

  Qual was sitting at the end of the conference tab
le. Next to him was Saul, his dark eyes scanning the group. Then there was Noelle, looking lovely and frightened. Ruth, sitting next to Noelle, caught Lauras look and smiled across at her. Laura couldn't help but compare herself to the woman Ken said he still loved. A twinge of her almost forgotten problem, her low self esteem, nudged Laura.

  Chet was a surprise. His dark, somber face was such a contrast to Kens smiling, open one. How could Ruth be attracted to such an opposite? Laura wondered. Pat was a complete surprise. Just twenty-four hours before, he had lost a wife everyone who knew him said he was devoted to. How could he be so calm? Ken sat next to him and was whispering something to him. To Lauras left, Kay, then Sid, completed the crowded circle.

  The introductions completed, the first one to speak was Qual.

  “When we first decided to talk to you folks, we were planning on working out a strategy of defense for Ken. Now its clear, clear enough to convince the prosecuting attorney to drop charges against Ken since we now know he didn't kill Clayton. This afternoon, Kay and Laura are going to the prosecutors office and place all of our evidence before him.”

  As Saul began to speak, all eyes shifted to him. Laura tried to interpret the look on the dark, brooding face, and the closest she could approximate the emotions behind it was one of relief. His words corresponded to what she saw, but there was more.

  “I couldnt believe Ken had done it,” Saul said. “I kept going over and over it in my mind. Then I couldnt believe Clayton was serious when he said he wanted to squeeze out one of the other partners. When I put those two bits of disbelief together, I began to wonder if I wasnt wrong on both counts. Then I began to worry how I might have egged Clayton on, how I might have made him believe I would join with him to dump either Pat or Ken. I talked it over with Noelle, and thats when I began to see how secretive I am.”

  Saul smiled weakly and looked around at the assembled attorneys. “I blamed it on being a lawyer. You folks know how you should never really commit yourself. Always keep the other person in the dark. You know the routine. Maybe its a good idea in the courtroom, but it sure as hell isnt in personal relationships.

  “Noelle and I had quite a session. She called my behavior game playing. Im just lucky Noelle loves me enough to be so frank. Im working toward being as frank as she is, but it isnt easy for someone like me to show how I feel. In the meantime, I had Claytons death hanging over my head. The more I thought about it, the more convinced I became I was responsible. I became certain I'd convinced Clayton I would go along with his crazy scheme.”