by Bob Moats
“Mr. North, why do you say that when we have witnesses who have seen you and Lori together?”
He hemmed a bit then said, “Oh, Lori, I thought you said Loni. Sorry, water in the ears.” He sat on the lawn chair and crossed his legs. Lynn moved away from the view of his crotch he was exposing and asked him to cover himself. He smiled and did.
“Did you know she was murdered two nights ago?” Lynn asked.
He tried to look stunned and said, “Why, no, how’d it happen?”
“Stabbed. Where were you last Saturday night around 1 a.m.?”
“Well, let’s see, I finished my show and went with some friends to the Bellagio for food. Then we all went home around midnight. I was here.”
“Anyone see you here after midnight?”
“Just my housekeeper, Deano. We sat and talked in my rec room until about 3 a.m., watching a movie. Then I went to bed.”
I whispered to Lynn, “Alone?”
“You went to bed alone, Mr. North? I’ve heard you have quite a harem. Didn’t spend the night with anyone then?” Lynn picked up on my suggestion.
“I’m not the playboy people make me out to be. I do have my quiet moments.” He smiled widely.
“I’ve been told you have a girlfriend in California. Is that true?” Lynn questioned.
“We broke up a long time ago. That’s old news,” he said derisively. “I’m presently engaged to a very nice woman. She’s a pit boss at the Golden Nugget.”
Lynn asked if she could verify with Deano about the night in question. He smiled and said sure and called Deano again.
I came forward and asked, “Excuse me, Mr. North, do you have a rest room I could use, please?”
He didn’t bother looking at me, just waved to the doors at the back of the house. “Sure, through that door. Just leave your dollar.” He laughed at the old joke. I said thanks, and looked back to Lynn as I went through the door. She was smiling.
In the bathroom I checked the oval mirror on the wall. It was still fastened to the wall. I carefully opened the door that I knew led to the back office. No one was there. I looked up to the wall where the mirror was attached to the other side. There was a picture hanging there. I moved it and found the hole peeking through to the bathroom. It was still there. Bastard didn’t change it. Probably had a good collection of private smut of his female friends on his computer in his workroom. I noticed the office was cleaned out, the office computer was gone as well as the file cabinets. Backing out of the office, I closed the door, surveyed the bathroom, snooped around the sink and medicine cabinet and then went back out to the patio. I nodded to Lynn and smiled.
Deano was on the patio telling Lynn how he and Mr. North sat every night, talking while watching a movie. He was with him Saturday night. The guy wasn’t the most convincing liar.
Lynn thanked Deano, and he skittered off. “Mr. North, were you aware that Lori Davis was pregnant?”
He was quiet for a moment then said, “No, I didn’t know. I do know she had a number of men in her life. She was a bit of a tramp. I guess that’s what I liked about her, no commitments.” He snickered.
“Mr. North, would you submit to a DNA test to help determine who the father was?” Lynn threw it at him.
“Only if you have a warrant. Otherwise, no.” He was starting to sweat a bit. “Do you have anything more to ask? I’d like to get back to cleaning the pool.”
“Just a couple of things. You did know Lisa James, correct?”
“I did, and I proved I was in L.A. when she was murdered. I had nothing to do with that.” He was really getting agitated now.
“Did you know Lisa was also pregnant?”
“No, I didn’t, and that has nothing to do with me, either, so I think you people should leave now unless you have something to arrest me for. Otherwise, I’m calling my lawyer.” He stood and stepped forward. Deacon moved between him and us and gave him his stony look. Nick backed up.
Deacon moved aside as Lynn was saying, “We will get that warrant for DNA, Mr. North. We will be back.” She turned toward the gate and started to walk out.
Nick muttered, “Go fuck yourself.” Not loud, but Lynn heard him. She wheeled around and came back to him, almost in his face.
“What was that, Mr. North? You have something more to say? I’m not sure I heard you, but it sure sounds like you told me to fuck myself. Not a good way to start my day. I don’t like being pushed. You’ll find that out.” She glared at him. He stared at her with bloodshot eyes.
Lynn led us out the gate and back to the car. Once we were on the road I said that the two way mirror was still there, and he most likely would have video on his computer. Lynn said she probably would be able to get a warrant to search the house based on that info. “After all, Nick did give you permission to enter the bathroom.” She smiled and said they’d also get the fat fuck’s DNA.
I said, “I may be able to speed that up a little.” I took out a toothbrush in a zip lock bag. “I always carry a few bags in case. While I was in the bathroom I found it on the sink, next to his extra hairpiece. I also got a piece of tape off the hairpiece for comparison,” I said, producing a second bag.
She grinned at me then she pulled out her cell phone and dialed a number. After a moment, she asked someone named Morrie if he had fluids from the baby of Lori Davis for DNA comparison. She smiled, asked if we could get a quick DNA test, said thanks, and hung up. All good to go, she said.
I asked if we could stop at a bank for minute. Lynn laughed and said, not a chance. We did stop at a Sonic Drive-in and got lunch. I always love the Sonic burgers and onion rings, something I missed back in Michigan. Deacon said he heard they were building a Sonic in Mt. Clemens. I gave a little cheer. We sat in the car eating and talking.
“I saw so many ‘tells’ he was making. He lied a number of times during your questioning. Nicky would be so lousy at poker,” I said. “I remember that stupid look he would make when he wasn’t sure what was going on, and the fake laugh when he thought he was being funny.”
Deacon offered, “He said Lori was a tramp, but Maria said she was seriously Catholic and never mentioned any other men. I’ll double check with Maria on that.”
Lynn agreed, “I never worked with him or even saw him before last night’s show, but even I could tell he was covering up. I think we may have our killer, just need to prove it. I’d like to get Deano into interrogation, stir him up. May pick him up later and do that.”
She went quiet for a minute, and then said, “Hell, I’m going to do it. Fuck myself, he says. We’ll see who fucks who.” She got on the phone and called, listened for a moment, then said, “Warren, Carter here, get the nearest car ASAP to Henderson to go pick up a housekeeper named Deano for further interrogation as a material witness in a murder case. If he or Nick North gives you any trouble, threaten him with INS. Oh, and don’t let the gate guard give you any shit. You have my permission to beat the crap out of him.” She laughed, gave him the address and said to call her when he was settled in. “I just hate myself at times.”
She smacked Deacon’s knee and laughed. She looked at me, smiled and offered, “I’ll take you to a Wells Fargo bank. I never liked them anyway. Just be sure to smile at the camera.”
*
Chapter Eleven
Deano was sitting in interrogation room three, fiddling with his rosary. He looked around the room nervously. Sitting next to him was a man in an expensive suit. Lynn asked Officer Warren who the fancy boy was. Warren said, North’s lawyer.
“Ah, just what we need. Did you have any trouble bringing him in?” Lynn inquired.
“Only North. He raised a stink. We threatened to arrest him for obstructing an officer in the duty of his job. He bought it and shut up.”
“Good, I hope he’s sweating it out.” She smiled and told Deacon and me to go to the next door, the observation room. We entered. I saw Deano and the lawyer and said, “Just like watching TV.” Lynn entered the interrogation room.
&nbs
p; Deacon said, “The actors are better looking here.”
Lynn sat across from Deano and didn’t acknowledge the lawyer. She said the conversation was being video recorded, was that all right with Deano? He nodded. She asked, “Were you given your rights? Not that you are under arrest, just a formality.” He nodded again.
She opened the file folder in front of her and picked up the one sheet of paper in it. “Not much here, Deano. It says that your real name is Julio Hernandez, you are from Morelos, Mexico, and you’ve been in the country for two years. What I don’t see is a visa or work permit here. You’ve been here illegally all this time? Didn’t North bother to get you at least a work permit?”
Deano fiddled with his rosary all the more, and the lawyer said to get to the point.
“The point is, Mr. Lawyer, he’s an illegal alien, and Nick North, along with you is harboring an illegal alien. That’s not the reason you are here, but piss me off and I’ll somehow make it a reason.” Lynn sat back and went expressionless.
Deacon muttered to me, she’s good.
She continued, “I just want some truthful information, and maybe we can see about getting some help for Deano’s immigration status. OK, Mr. Lawyer?”
“I’m just here to protect my client’s interests,” he said.
“Who, Deano or North? Who is your client, Mr. Lawyer?”
“My name is Potter. Please use it. I’m here at Mr. North’s request to be sure Deano gets his due justice.”
“Gee, we stopped torturing suspects when President Obama rallied against it. Your client will get his due justice.” She smiled then turned her attentions to Deano. “Do you speak English well?”
Deano nodded and said, “Si, I mean, yes.”
“Good. How’s your memory? Do you remember last Saturday night after Mr. North got home around 11 p.m.? Remember that?”
He nodded and said, “Yes.”
“Or was it after midnight like Mr. North said?”
He looked confused and said, “Yes.”
“What time did he get home, Deano?”
Deano stuttered, “I think it was midnight, yes.”
“Or maybe he got home after 2 a.m. Could that have happened?
“No, he and I sat watching a movie on TV after midnight,” Deano said almost like reading from a script.
Lynn pushed, “What was the name of the movie, Deano?”
“I don’t remember the name. It was a western with John Wayne,” he stammered.
I was checking my Palm TX program that had downloaded listings of TV shows recently. I found a John Wayne western, but it was on Sunday night, not Saturday. There was no John Wayne movie on any channels Saturday night. I told Warren, and he went around to the interrogation room door, knocked and went in. He whispered in Lynn’s ear for a minute then left.
“So, you watched John Wayne on Saturday night with Mr. North?”
He nodded. She continued, “Do you know what it means to lie to an officer of the law? I’m not very friendly when I’m lied to. I’m sure you may have been confused on which night the John Wayne movie was on. Saturday or Sunday?”
“I think it was Saturday. Mr. North doesn’t work on Sundays, and he was gone all night then.”
“Well, Deano, my sources say there was no John Wayne movie on Saturday night late. So was North really home then, or are you lying to me.”
“Yes, he was home Saturday night late.” He paused. “He was with a lady.” He went quiet.
“Who was it, Deano?”
“I don’t know her name. Mr. North sent me to my room when they came in. He wanted privacy,” he said quietly.
“Mr. North told you to lie about being alone with you?”
He quietly said, “Yes.”
“What time was this when they came in?”
“About 11:30 p.m. They left again around 12:30.”
“Just before Lori Davis was murdered.”
“I don’t know anything about that,” he said in panic.
“Did Mr. North have any blood on his clothes when he came back?”
“I didn’t see any. He came in without me noticing.”
She looked to the lawyer. “I think you’d better have your client come in for a talk before I send a squad of men to bring him in. Oh, and I now have the warrant to search his home. I have men heading there as we speak.” She motioned to the mirror. Warren took the sign and went out to send the men.
The lawyer sat there stony faced. Lynn looked at Deano. “I have a few friends who may be able to help you stay in the country a bit longer, but you’ll have to answer to INS eventually. Maybe my friends can work something out.” He thanked her. “Do you have a place to stay, away from North?” He said he had some relatives in town, but he would need his belongings.
Lynn said she would have an officer take him to get his things and drop him at his relatives. He thanked her. Lynn went out of the room, talked to an officer about taking care of Deano and then gathered us. She said she wanted to be in on the search, so we left.
When we got to the gate, the guard opened it without questions. We drove to the house just as officers were escorting Nick to a patrol car. Lynn said we’d deal with him later. We went in by the side door, near the laundry room. Lynn asked if they found any blood stained clothes, and they said they hadn’t. CSI had already arrived, and Lynn asked them to look particularly for blood drops or stains anywhere in the house. Lynn asked where the computer was, and I took her to Nick’s workroom. Lynn handed Deacon and me rubber gloves.
I sat at the keyboard and hit a couple of keys to bring the computer to life. I opened up the explorer and did a search for videos. The list was long. I opened up a few that looked promising but came up short of anything suggestive. Lynn said to keep digging. I did. Lynn and Deacon wandered around the house and were standing in the front vestibule when the door opened and a man walked in.
“You are?” Lynn asked.
“Kris Wallace, Mr. North’s personal assistant. What’s going on?” he asked.
I heard him say his name and came out to see. I had never met Wallace, just heard about him. Lynn identified herself and asked Wallace if he knew of Nick’s whereabouts last Saturday night. Wallace said he last saw Nick at his show, and after it was over, Nick left.
“Did he leave with anyone in particular?” Lynn asked.
“He left with a number of friends. They usually go out to eat after a show,” he answered.
“About what time was it when they left?” Lynn was curious about the timeline now.
“Well, his show ended around 11 p.m. that night. They start early on Saturdays. I didn’t see him after that.” Wallace seemed to be gathering his thoughts.
“How many people were with North?”
“Oh, about five or six,” he offered.
“I’d like the names of those people, if you don’t mind. Officer DeAngelo here will write them down. The people’s locations would be helpful, too.”
“I may remember a couple, but everything was happening so fast. I’ll try.” He seemed hesitant to offer names.
Deacon took him to the family room to get the information from him.
I said, “He saw them leave at 11 to go eat, but Deano said he came in with the woman around 11:30. I’m guessing they didn’t go eat.”
“Or Wallace is lying about who left with whom, maybe covering for the woman, or knew he left with Lori Davis.” She went into the family room, and I followed.
Kris Wallace was standing next to Deacon. Lynn asked him to sit, she had a few questions to ask. He looked at his watch and said he really didn’t have the time. Lynn said to make time or he could go down to the precinct and answer there. He hemmed a bit then sat on a footrest.
“First, do you know Lori Davis?”
Wallace really looked distracted, and answered, “No.”
“Oh, come on now, Wallace, North already admitted to seeing Davis. You’re his personal assistant, and you don’t know his comings and goings?”
“I’m not privy to his love life,” he snapped back.
“Bullshit,” I spoke up.
He looked at me, and said, “I beg your pardon?”
“I worked for Nicky back in 2003, doing your job, just before you took over. I knew every female that he hooked up with. You’re saying he didn’t parade them around you. That’s crap. You aren’t doing your job if you didn’t know everything he was up to. That’s in your job description.”
He looked at me. I still had the make-up on, but he never saw me back before I quit.