by Lee Killough
Before she could answer, he continued, “Did you ever consider…” His voice suddenly hardened. “…first discussing it with me!” His fist slammed down on the desk.
Irah jumped. “There wasn’t time to ask.”
New fury boiled up in Cole. Irah killed two people, but what upset Flaxx was not having the chance to approve it? “You’re as twisted as she is.” He was going to love working them over!
“But Dunavan’s a cop.” Flaxx leaned on the desk toward her. “A fucking cop.”
She gave him wide eyes again. “I didn’t have a choice. Dunavan had Benay checking all of Earl’s accounts that Gao assigned her and she saw the correlation between Earl taking over accounts and stores being burglarized. My spy cameras caught- ”
“What spy cameras?” Flaxx asked.
Something Cole wanted to know, too.
Irah smiled. “Little self-contained units I planted. They broadcast to a TV type receiver. Installation just takes a ladder and a few minutes. They’ve been very useful for checking out target stores in setting up the jobs.” She settled back in her chair. “I thought we’d be smart to watch whoever worked on Earl’s accounts. So when Benay stayed late, I did, too…which is how I caught her leaving a phone message saying she’d found incriminating evidence in the files. After a little scuffle to take away the phone…” She touched the bruise on her cheek. “…I found out she called Dunavan. When I hit Redial, the number offered to connect me to his voice mail.”
“Jesus H. Christ.” Flaxx straightened, shaking his head in disgust. “So she found something. That’s no reason to kill anyone. You should have called me. Screwing around with Dunavan makes all that inadmissable in court. Plus we could have bought her off and made things very hot for Dunavan. Maybe lost him his badge.”
Exactly what Cole would expect of Flaxx.
Irah sighed. “Unfortunately, by the time I learned what she knew, and about her relationship with Dunavan, there was no way to buy her off, at any price.”
Cole heard no regret in her voice. He remembered the fear in Sara’s.
Flaxx frowned. “Why not?”
Irah shrugged. “Persuading her to talk got…intense. I had to hold the bitch’s head in a toiled until she almost drowned.”
Which she enjoyed doing, it sounded like to Cole. Guilt choked him, imagining how Sara must have felt, the panic, tearing at Irah’s wrists as she fought to come up for air…panic that was just a prelude to her later terror, when cloth or tape replaced water to suffocate her. Without him, Sara would never have been in that position.
“The toilet!” Flaxx recoiled. “That’s disgusting!”
Irah smiled. “Not at all. You know how a sharp deal makes you feel? That’s nothing compared to the rush of- ” She shook head. “Never mind. The point is she took the dunking personally. I made the mistake of turning my back on her to call you — because I did suggest compensation, after explaining why her information would never make it to court — and the bitch grabbed me from behind in a choke hold. ‘Let’s call the police instead,’ she said. ‘I’ll bet I can take assault and battery to court. And don’t even dream you can “compensate” me enough to drop the charges. Nothing will give me more pleasure than telling Inspector Dunavan and your insurance companies all about why you attacked me. Don’t forget that firefighter’s death is considered murder.’”
Cole groaned. He admired Sara’s guts…but it would have been smarter to play along with Irah until she got clear. Irah obviously took the situation personally, too. Killing Sara the way she did now sounded like retaliation.
“Breaking the choke hold was no problem, of course, but it did mean roughing her up some more, which only made her attitude shittier. When I took her to your office- ”
“My office!” Flaxx stiffened in indignation. “Wasn’t it locked?”
Irah rolled her eyes.
He grimaced. “Of course…how stupid of me. You picked the lock.”
Not likely, Cole reflected. That took two hands and she had to hang on to Sara. She must have a key. More knowledge she withheld from big brother. Well, well.
“Why take her to my office?”
“Because you have a bar. I needed your Jack Daniels — and don’t have a cow; I’ve already replaced the bottle and you never noticed. I needed to calm her down and slow any attempt at escape while I decided what to do with her. Though of course I told her I was getting her drunk so if she tried calling the police after I took her home, they weren’t going to believe someone they could practically breathalyze over the phone.”
No wonder Sara sounded drunk. In spite of that, when Irah stepped out of the room for some reason, Sara used the chance to call him again. A gutsy, gutsy lady. A wave of regret joined the anger and guilt in Cole. Too bad he never had the chance to really know her.
“I said that in the morning she’d see it was more profitable to deal with you than the police and court and our lawyers.”
Flaxx nodded. “That’s reasonable, and she might- ”
“No, Donald.” Irah spoke in the measured tone of someone explaining to a child. “She’d have done exactly what I would, called the police as soon as she got home, drunk or not. And…” Irah’s eyes flashed. “…there’s no way in hell that am I going to jail!”
Flaxx eyed her for several seconds, then shook his head. “But why kill Dunavan, too?”
“Let’s say it’s because he’s been a royal pain in the ass! Even though he couldn’t use anything Benay found, knowing for sure that evidence was there, he’d find a way to get it. I told you, there’s no way I’m going to jail.”
Flaxx groaned. “A cop. Fuck!”
She shrugged. “It couldn’t have gone slicker. He thought he was coming to Benay’s rescue. I made sure no one seeing me could identify me later. Between the liquor hitting Benay and her believing I planned to drive her home…as soon as I went back to the office for a minute… it was safe to leave her sitting in my car. I put on some thrift store clothes I keep in my trunk for quick disguises and went and did Dunavan.” She fired the finger gun at Flaxx again. “Then I drove my car over by Dunavan’s, put Benay in his trunk, and did her. After that, I drove their bodies away…to where…” she finished, with a ta-da spread of her hands, “…they will never be found.”
Did him, did Sara. As though, Cole reflected bitterly, she were talking about making phone calls. The gleam in her eyes and savoring tone in her voice belied the casual words. She enjoyed killing them. Her photographs screamed adrenaline junkie. And the rush from murder had to surpass all others. Risk enhanced it…leaving Sara in her car, shooting him without a silencer, taking the chance of someone hearing Sara’s agonal struggles in his trunk, not to mention driving across town with a dead body taped upright in the passenger seat.
Flaxx’s lips thinned. “Maybe they’ll never be found, but the other cops are going to keep digging, looking for him. What’s funny?”
Irah bit off her smile. “Nothing. Chill out. We aren’t going to be suspects. Dunavan won’t have told anyone about Benay. He couldn’t afford to if he hoped to use her information in court.”
“He damn well talked to someone. You said you have an idea who was outside the washroom. Tell me…right now.”
She leaned back in her chair. “Be careful what you ask. You might not like the answer.”
His lips thinned still more. “I’m not in the mood for fucking games. If you know a name, I want it!”
She hesitated, then sat forward, lacing her hands on top of her desk. “I don’t know, not for certain. I do know your joker works here.”
“What!” Flaxx scowled at her.
Her brows rose. “How else could he disappear so fast. It’s because he’s someone we expect to see around. It also has to be someone who knows about the burglaries and Kijurian.”
“But that’s only- ” Flaxx broke off, his eyes narrowing. “You’re thinking of Earl? Ridiculous!”
Cole grinned. Things might shake up more than he thought.
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Flaxx snorted. “That voice was nothing like his and Earl doesn’t take a dump without asking for my approval. I own him.”
She shrugged. “Maybe arranging to save a nerd’s butt then thrill him with membership in you’re a-list clique doesn’t buy you a worshiper for life after all.”
“Arranging!” Flaxx flushed. “I never- ”
“Oh, of course.” She sat back in her chair. “My mistake. Forgive me.”
The rescue had been a setup? Cole felt his ears prick. Then it made sense. He filed the information away under “Ammunition.”
“Even without our friendship, what I pay him in salary and bonuses earns his loyalty.”
“Maybe Earl’s losing his nerve. He did freak out about the firefighter being killed.”
Really. Cole filed that fact away, too.
“He was in the hospital on Wednesday.” Flaxx said. “There’s no way he could know anything that happened then.”
She nodded. “You’d think so. But…who else fits?”
Flaxx’s jaw tightened. “Stick up your little spy cameras and find out.” He straightened and moved toward the door. “When you do learn who it was, you will come and tell me immediately, is that clear? Then I will decide what to do about him!”
Irah smiled. “Right. Absolutely.”
Once the door closed behind Flaxx, the smile became a grimace. “‘I will decide what to do about him,’” she repeated mockingly. Dragging a legal pad on the desk to her, she wrote Lamper’s name…circled it…glanced across the room at the surfboard photograph. “It’s got to be Earl, lover…but…how? Did Dunavan get to him as well as Benay? Does Earl have a stooge of his own watching me? And why would he pull that stunt? What’s he figuring to get out of it?” She circled the name one more time and threw down the pen. “If it’s him, I expect he’ll let us know soon enough.”
Cole grinned. This just might work. “Irah, I can’t take your twisted ass off the street fast enough but, honey, I certainly appreciate the help you’ve given the cause here.” He blew her a kiss. “Happy paranoia.”
19
Walking away from Irah’s office, Cole mulled over what he wanted to do. Being devious and underhanded was no problem. Cops were allowed to lie in pursuit of a confession. As long as he avoided anything that would screw up the eventual prosecution. The biggest problem with it all was timing…being able to charge up and catch each subject at the right moment. A gamble, yes, though he did have a few things going for him. Irah’s suspicions of Lamper. Differences between her and big brother on how to solve business problems. And he had Earl Lamper.
So let the games begin.
He still had time this afternoon for an opening round to test his effectiveness with Lamper. Shuttling back and forth between Lamper and Irah’s offices, he waited for the chance to catch Lamper alone when Irah was also alone.
To his frustration Lamper seemed glued to his desk and computer. Hope rose as five o’clock approached and the Bookkeeping staff began closing down their work stations while Lamper kept working. Once they cleared out, he was in business.
Or not. Mrs. Gao and Kenisha Hayes showed no sign of quitting, either.
Cole scowled at them as the last of the others left. “Damn it, go home, ladies.”
He was considering subliminal whispers when Lamper shoved back from his desk and walked out of the department. Cole followed. And cheered silently when Lamper headed into the men’s room…into a stall. A lucky break. He should be able to pull this off without materializing.
A quick check on Irah found her alone. Back in the men’s room, Lamper remained the only occupant.
Cole leaned against the stall door at the height of Irah’s head, pulled in some room heat, just in case, and imagined his voice as Irah’s. “So…had a good day, Earl?”
Stepping up high enough to see over the stall door, he found Lamper frozen on the john. The magnifying effect of Lamper’s glasses made him look twice as startled. “Irah?” His hands clapped together over his lap, as though he thought she could see through the door. “What are you doing in here?”
Good. He heard. And the voice was right. Cole ducked back down. “I just wanted a word. Don’t let me interrupt you.”
“I’ll be back in my office in a minute.”
“No, this is better.” Cole put an edge on his voice. “It’s more private.”
Another look over the door confirmed that Lamper heard it. His expression went baffled and wary. “What?”
“I never realized that you had any sense of humor but now that I see you do, I have to say your idea of a joke is in poor taste.”
Lamper blinked. “What joke?”
“Standing outside Donald’s washroom this afternoon…pretending to be Inspector Dunavan and making accusations about me.”
“Standing-” Lamper’s jaw dropped. “I did no such thing! What accusations?”
“About Wednesday night.” Cole turned Irah’s voice into a snarl. “About Dunavan and Sara Benay. Who’s been talking to you?”
An angry flush rose in Lamper’s face. “I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about. What do you have to do with Dunavan and Sara? Will you please leave? If you want to talk to me, do it in my office.”
He was recovering his composure. That needed to change. Cole ducked down. “Don’t make me an enemy like…others have, Earl. That would be big mistake.” He backed away to the screen wall and around it. “A very big mistake.”
Lamper called Irah’s name. Moments later trousers rose from around Lamper’s ankles and the toilet flushed. Lamper peered cautiously out of the stall, then into the hallway. He beelined for Flaxx’s office. Cole followed.
Maldonado had gone and Flaxx’s door stood open. Lamper knocked on the frame. “Donald, I’m sorry to bother you. May I come in?”
Flaxx waved him in with a hearty smile. “You’re always welcome. You know that.” He eyed Lamper. “Is something wrong?”
Perching stiffly on a chair, Lamper licked his lips. “I–I just had a…bizarre encounter with Irah.”
Flaxx’s smile turned into lipless displeasure as Lamper described the incident.
“She’s wrong, Donald.” Lamper leaned close to the desk. “I wasn’t outside your washroom. I swear. What kind of accusation could there be about her and Inspector Dunavan and Sara? And saying I shouldn’t make her an enemy sounded, well, like a threat. Why would she think I’d make her my enemy?”
Cole listened in satisfaction. Lamper’s bafflement and concern must reassure Flaxx of Lamper’s innocence and his control of his flunky.
The smile came back, even heartier than before…reassuring. “I think Irah was indulging in a little twisted humor of her own. I’ll talk to her and straighten it out.” He walked Lamper to the door, an arm across his shoulders. “Don’t you give it another thought. Worrying won’t help your recovery, you know.”
Lamper still looked uneasy as he returned to his office. Behind Lamper’s back. Flaxx’s smile vanished. He stalked down the side hallway toward Irah’s office. Cole short-cut through the wall to be there when Flaxx banged in.
Irah stood at her desk pulling sun glasses out of her purse, clearly preparing to leave. Her brows rose. “Barging in without knocking is becoming- ”
“What the hell did you think you were you doing!” Flaxx slammed the door closed. “Need I remind you how important Earl Lamper is to this operation? Where do you get off threatening and upsetting him?”
She set the sun glasses on top of her head. “What are you talking about?”
He folded his arms. “Don’t try playing innocent! Did you think he wouldn’t come straight and tell me!”
She zipped the purse closed, laid it down, and sat on the edge of the desk. “I wouldn’t expect anything else from Earl, but…what did he have to tell this time? You’ll have to enlighten me.”
Cool and controlled, Cole noted. Her pulse had not changed by a beat.
Flaxx enlightened in terse sentences.
H
er eyes narrowed as she listened. Cole watched wheels turn behind them. When Flaxx finished, she shook her head. “That never happened. I haven’t left this office since our last chat.”
“Can you prove that?”
She glanced toward the door. “Is Katherine still here?”
“No.”
“Then I can’t prove it. But can Earl prove I was in the men’s room?”
Flaxx’s nostrils flared. “You think Earl would lie…to me?”
Cole smiled. Unthinkable, right? But your opinion of old Earl may have to change.
Irah said, “Since I never did what he’s claiming, what else would you call it? Why he’s doing it, I don’t know, but it goes along with him being the one outside the washroom. He’s definitely up to something.”
“No.” Flaxx shook his head emphatically. “I could tell he doesn’t know anything about the washroom incident or Wednesday night. So lay off him! Have you put up any spy cameras yet?”
“I can’t with people in the office.”
“Then stick around until everyone’s gone. I want you set up tonight to start hunting the bastard who did pull that stunt.” He wheeled and stalked out.
She caught the door to keep it from slamming again. “Nobody knows better than you, Donald, right?” She closed the door. “You want spy cameras, you got ‘em. And they’re going to prove you’re a fool.”
Cole grinned. The opening round had scored some hits.
Then he sobered. He needed to pass Irah’s admissions on to Razor. More, he had Round Two coming up…the first real test of his ability to pull off an impersonation. It would make or break of his game plan. If he screwed up, it went down the tubes, leaving him no way to prove Sara innocent of killing him. And Irah and Flaxx would walk.
20
Finding Razor was no problem. At six he came on duty at the Central Division Station. Cole just needed to intercept him.
Cole tried for a ziptrip…pinpointing the station on his mental map, concentrating on feeling the location as he pictured it, Vallejo Street outside, and Columbus and Broadway within sight east and south.