Faye Kellerman_Decker & Lazarus 06

by Grievous Sin

  “You don’t say. She was such a mouse.”

  “Not anymore.”

  Marge cleared her throat. Leek and Grace stopped talking. “This Tandy,” Marge said. “She lifts weights?”

  “Not weight lifting, bodybuilding.” McKay looked at his feet. “Why are you looking for Tandy?”

  “Why do you ask?” Marge said. “Are you planning to call her up after I leave?”

  Again McKay blanched. “Not if you don’t want me to.”

  “I don’t want you to.”

  “Why are you looking for her?”

  “She was friends with Marie,” Marge said. “We’re looking for Marie.”

  McKay said nothing.

  “Did you know she was friends with Marie, Leek?”

  “Sure.”

  “Were they good friends?”

  McKay rubbed his hands together, then turned his head. “That’s the phone. I really need to go back to the desk. People call and can’t get through, they start worrying about their aged parents. You know how it is.”

  “Go answer the phone,” Marge said.

  Grace said, “Do you still need Tandy’s file, Detective?”

  “Yes, I’d like to see it.”

  “I’ll go through all the folders. It will take me a few days, but I’ll do it. If it’s here, I’ll find it.”

  Marge gave her a business card. “If you find the file, give me a call.”

  “I certainly will.” Again Grace shook her head. “I don’t know how that happened.”

  Marge said good-bye, leaving Grace alone to admonish herself for her carelessness, and went back to the front desk. Leek was on the phone and seemed to be doing home business, not sneaking in a phone call to Tandy. After he hung up, he faced Marge.

  “Okay, so what do you want from me?”

  “Why’d you turn white when I mentioned Tandy?”

  McKay dropped his head in his hands. “It’s sort of embarrassing….”

  Marge said, “Tandy had a schoolgirl crush on you.”

  “So you know.” McKay grimaced. “Not that Tandy wasn’t a nice kid, but she wasn’t exactly my type.”

  Marge took out her notepad. “She was fat.”

  “Not that I have anything against fat people, but…”

  “But you do.”

  “Yeah, okay, so I’m a confessed narcissist. I’m into my body, and I can’t stand to see anyone let themselves go to seed. There’s simply no excuse for it.”

  Marge’s expression was deadpan.

  “All right, all right. So not everyone is as disciplined as me. I can’t help it, okay? Just the way I am.”

  “All right. I won’t be judgmental. Tell me about Tandy and bodybuilding.”

  “She showed up one day at Silver’s. She told me she was determined to take off the weight and wanted me to help her. It was clear to me…at least at that time…she had no real interest in building. She just wanted an excuse to be with me. It was very embarrassing, but I just couldn’t be an asshole. So I went along with her charade, and we worked out a beginning program for her. Also a diet—a strict diet. I figured she wouldn’t last more than a week.”

  He let out a soft chuckle.

  “Last laugh’s on me. Man, she took to building like a fish to water. As soon as she started looking great, she wasn’t interested in me anymore.” He looked down at his lap. “She told me she was once a model. I can believe it. She’s gorgeous. It’s hard for me to think of her as she was. I can’t tell you how different she is. See, not only was she fat, she was weird. Now she’s just your typical gorgeous-chick egotist.”

  Marge looked up from her pad. “Weird in what way?”

  “She’d mumble to herself a lot.”

  “Mumble?”

  “Yeah, like mutter to herself. That’s not so weird, I guess. Lots of people mutter to themselves. It calms you down. Only with Tandy, it had the opposite effect. She seemed really upset whenever she muttered to herself.”

  McKay paused.

  “I don’t know if the muttering got her upset or she was upset and that started her muttering. What’s the dif? It’s history now.”

  The phone rang. McKay excused himself and picked it up.

  “Golden Valley, this is Leek McKay. How can I help you?…Well, hello, Mrs. Graham. Mom’s doing great today.”

  Marge waited until Leek finished his conversation, thinking about Tandy’s muttering. Marge muttered to herself but not frequently. For McKay to mention it, Tandy must have been doing quite a bit of mumbling. McKay hung up the phone.

  Marge said, “You knew Marie and Tandy were friends?”

  “Sure.”

  “Then why wasn’t Lita aware of her own daughter’s friendship with Tandy?”

  “Lita’s only aware of Lita.”

  “How close were they—Tandy and Marie?”

  “They were friends.” McKay paused. “I think Marie was trying to help Tandy find work after she quit.”

  “I thought Tandy was laid off.”

  Leek hesitated. “Actually, Tandy was officially laid off, that’s correct.”

  “What do you mean by officially?”

  “Tandy was going to quit, but they laid her off before she turned in her papers. I told her that was really better. She could collect unemployment until she found other work.”

  “So Marie was helping her find a job?”

  “I think so…for a while. I remember Marie coming down to Silver’s to watch Tandy work out. I think it annoyed Tandy having Marie hanging around. It annoys most builders to have an audience that doesn’t understand. There’s lots of grunting and swearing and muttering—”

  “Does Tandy still mutter?”

  “Yeah, but not like she used to. Anyway, to the average eye, it’s sort of weird. Having friends there breaks the concentration. Hold on, it’s the phone again.”

  Marge nodded, and McKay picked up the receiver. She thought about what the male nurse had said. Marie seemed to have had a passion for taking in lost girls who eventually ditched her once they felt emotionally strong. And Marie also liked the parable of the prodigal son. Marge wondered if Marie imagined herself on a cross.

  McKay set the receiver in the phone’s cradle. “Sorry. Anything else?”

  “Leek, did Tandy reject Marie after she got into working out?”

  “I really don’t know, but I’ll tell you this. When you’re really into building, your social life drops to nil. Building is an all-consuming activity. From what you eat, to how often you sleep, to how you move. It’s a demon, Detective…takes over your life.”

  “Did Marie ever ask you about Tandy after Tandy left here?”

  McKay stopped and thought a moment. “I really don’t remember. Maybe once or twice. And I don’t know what Tandy’s relationship to Marie is now. I see Tandy all the time, but we don’t talk much. Tandy’s changed so much. I can’t tell you how wimpy she was.”

  “When she wasn’t talking to herself.”

  McKay smiled. “It wasn’t all that bad. Just that she seemed so upset. I felt sorry for her.” He shook his head. “She’s completely blown me off. Our conversations are professional—muscle groups and diets. Nothing personal.”

  “I’m going to try to catch Tandy at Silver’s, Leek. Don’t call her. I don’t want to scare her. I don’t want her to think she’s in trouble, because she isn’t. I’m just asking her questions in regard to Marie Bellson.”

  “Because of the missing baby.” McKay hesitated. “Personally, I just can’t picture Marie Bellson kidnapping a baby. Then again, I would have never thought Tandy had it in her to be a committed builder. Shows you what my thoughts are worth.”

  Probably more than you’re letting on, Mr. Leek McKay, RN, Marge thought. She stared at him. His words seemed straightforward, his manner honest enough, but something was hinky. She broke her gaze, then gave him a Mona Lisa smile. Let him squirm. Never know what people’ll do when they squirm.

  21

  Marge bit into her hot dog, m
ustard squeezing out the other end. She wiped her yellow-stained fingertips with a napkin and said to Decker, “Lita thought Marie’s dentist was in Glendale. She didn’t get more specific than that. Lots of dentists in Glendale?”

  “A fair amount.” Decker sipped lukewarm coffee from a paper cup. “But if he exists, we’ll track him down.”

  “I hope Lita’s memory is intact. The woman is given over to fantasy.”

  “If I don’t find him in Glendale, I’ll look into the neighboring communities, I also have an after-hours appointment with Stan Meecham, Marie’s gynecologist. See what the reason was for her D and C.”

  “Twenty bucks says Meecham was treating her for an abortion.”

  Decker looked up from his java. Marge filled him in on the details of her conversation with Lita Bellson.

  “Three or four abortions?” Decker said.

  “That Lita knows about.”

  “But they were all when Marie was very young.”

  “That’s true. According to Lita, Marie found Jesus and changed her life. But I’m skeptical. She could be leading a double life.”

  “Any indications of that?”

  “Other than the book collection, not really. But what if Marie was wrestling against impulses, Pete? What if impulses won out?”

  “So because she was sexually deprived, she took a baby?”

  Marge didn’t respond. She was lost in thought.

  Decker said, “On a more mundane note, did you get a chance to ask Ms. Delfern about Marie’s hidden key?”

  “As I was leaving I asked her about the box. You know…trying to be casual. She said she didn’t know a thing about the key or a locked box,” Marge answered. “When they socialized, it was primarily after work—at a restaurant or at Paula’s place.”

  “What about the nurse who was Bellson’s walking partner?”

  “Janie Hannick,” Marge said. “They were just that—walking partners. Not social friends.”

  Decker took out his notebook and began jotting down some notes.

  Marge said, “Try this on, Pete. Remember Marie had a D and C? Suppose the D and C triggered memories of all her abortions? Maybe something snapped inside her. All these babies she felt she killed.”

  “Wasn’t the D and C over two years ago?”

  “Maybe she cracked slowly and no one picked up on it,” Marge suggested. “Jesus’ help could only do so much. Looks like we’re working with two nutcases, Tandy and Marie.”

  “Being religious doesn’t make you nuts, Marge.”

  Marge looked at Decker. “No, I didn’t mean to imply it did. But don’t you think there are some weirdos out there who use religion to hide other problems?”

  Decker didn’t answer, thinking about Cindy’s description of symptom substitution. “Why do you say Tandy’s nuts?”

  Marge gave him a brief description of Sondra Roberts. Afterward, Decker said, “She talked to herself, or did she talk to someone who wasn’t there?”

  “McKay just said talked to herself.”

  “Let’s check this girl out.”

  “My very thoughts,” Marge answered. “I called Silver’s fifteen minutes ago. She’s not in. I’ll keep at it.”

  Decker said, “Go over this Leek guy for me again—his so-called investment sideline?”

  “Figured the best way to handle it is for someone to check into his finances. His scamming may not be relevant to Caitlin Rodriguez, but what he’s doing is probably illegal…if it’s true. Like I said before, Lita has an active imagination.”

  “All right. We can’t have him screwing the old folks. I’ll see if Hollander can’t do a little side work. But this is not top priority right now. The baby is.”

  “Agreed.” Marge finished off her wiener. “You find anything interesting on Marie’s calender?”

  “Nothing marked Baby Kidnapping Day. I’m still working my way through April.”

  Marge licked her fingers, then excused herself and bought another hot dog, this one with sauerkraut and onions. She sat down at the bench chair and placed her meal on the plastic picnic table. Slowly, she unwrapped her wiener, liberating a puff of steam. Decker patted the aroma away from his nose.

  “Am I making you hungry?” Marge asked.

  “Yes, you sadist.”

  “Go on, Pete. I won’t tell.”

  “You’re telling me to cheat?” Decker laughed. “You are a bad one, Dunn. Leading people off the straight and narrow.”

  “And doing it while I stuff my face with nitrites. What would the builders at Silver’s Gym say about that?”

  Marge happily chewed her wiener.

  “You know, Pete, there is the real possibility that Leek disregarded my warning and called her up anyway.”

  “But you made it clear to him that Tandy isn’t wanted for anything.”

  “I did, but I think cops make Leek nervous.”

  “Maybe Tandy and Leek are scamming together. You said she left under unclear circumstances.”

  “Unclear is right. Without her records, I really don’t know whether she was laid off or fired or quit.” This time, Marge finished chewing before she spoke. “I’m gonna get a drink. You want a warm-up on your coffee?”

  “Please. And as long as you’re up, see if they have a bag of potato chips. Something kosher. You know the ropes by now.”

  “You’re really hungry.”

  “I had a sandwich about an hour ago. It wasn’t enough.”

  “Stay put. I’ll be right back.” Marge returned five minutes later with a Coke, a cup of coffee, a bag of potato chips, a salted pretzel with mustard, and a pickle. “Here you go. But don’t take your blood pressure for at least twenty-four hours.”

  Decker took a chunk out of the pickle. “Thanks, kiddo.”

  “Oooh, my mouth puckers just watching you.” Marge drank her Coke. “Will Meecham be able to tell you what he was treating Marie for? Isn’t that against the law?”

  “I’m not sure if it’s privileged information. Stan’s an okay guy. I think he’ll help me out. He may even have the name of Marie’s dentist, come to think of it. Marie’s health insurance is provided by the hospital, but it doesn’t provide dental insurance. Maybe Stan gave her a recommendation. I’ll call the office.”

  Marge crunched down on a piece of ice. “What did the coroner come up with?”

  “No baby bones.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Reasonably. We combed the car trunk and immediate area and didn’t find anything. Captain’s currently conducting a full-scale search for the baby—Rangers, sheriffs, LAPD. Never seen so much cooperation between the different agencies. We’ve got an army’s worth of manpower on one spot. Not to mention the newspeople. Got them to hold off reporting until nightfall.”

  “How’d you do that?”

  “My charm.” Decker smiled. “And no one wants responsibility for lousing up the investigation of a kidnapped baby. If Caitlin Rodriguez is in Angeles Crest, we’ll find her.”

  Decker stopped chewing and exhaled forcefully.

  “I keep thinking about Caitlin. If Marie’s dead, where is that poor little infant? Is she safe? Is she hungry? Is she dirty? Drives me nuts! Then I start thinking about Rina and Hannah and how I should be home with them, making sure they’re safe.”

  “Rina wants you here. You’re doing the right thing, Pete.”

  “I sure as hell hope so.”

  “You are,” Marge said, “What’d the coroner say about the body?”

  “Female…a large female.” Decker polished off the pickle and started on the potato chips. “From the vertebrae, the doc figured her to be around five-ten. Marie was tall.” He stopped talking a moment. “I wouldn’t have guessed her as your height, but she was taller than Cindy, and Cindy’s five-seven.”

  “You seem doubtful.”

  Decker shrugged and resumed his eating. “As soon as we find Bellson’s dental X rays, Hennon’s ready to do the comparison. When I left, she was still in the lab sifting thr
ough debris. She told me there wasn’t a lot of frontal bone mass—the face was smashed pretty badly. Hennon figures some of the tooth structure might have fallen out among the ashes.”

  “What about the back teeth?”

  “Some of them are still intact. Hennon thinks she’ll have enough material to work with once she gets the X rays.”

  Marge said, “Did you ask Hennon about Marie’s gold stud earrings?”

  “She couldn’t tell if the body wore earrings or not—too burned. As far as the gold goes, it would be in small amounts, would have melted in the heat. We’ll look for gold when we sift through debris.” Decker finished his potato chips and drained his coffee. “I’d better get back to the lab and start my prospecting.”

  “I’m off to Silver’s then.”

  “Want my pretzel?”

  Marge stared at the twisted strands of bread, then wrapped it in a napkin. “Maybe I’ll be in the mood later.”

  As Decker stood, a four-by-four pulled up in the fast-food stand’s parking lot. Annie Hennon bounced out of the driver’s side. Her hands were white, but her face and neck were gray from ash and soot. She strolled over to the table, whistling “Working in a Coal Mine,” then sat down.

  “And Loretta Lynn thinks she’s the only one who ever got her hands dirty.”

  “Your hands are clean,” Marge stated.

  “That’s only because I’m smart enough to wear gloves.” Annie examined her nails. “I could really use a decent manicure.” She blew on her cuticles and rubbed them against her blouse. “I suppose you want to know why I’m here.”

  “Can’t be for the hot dogs.” Marge made a fist and hit her stomach. “Stuff repeats on you.”

  “It’s the sauerkraut, Marge.”

  “Good going down, though.”

  “You want a hot dog, Annie?” Decker offered.

  “Always the gentleman,” Annie said. “No, Pete, I don’t want a hot dog. I want to give you Hennon’s pearls of wisdom.”

  Decker unfolded the flap on his notebook. “Shoot.”