“That has nothing to do with it.”
“Jesus Christ you told them, didn’t you. You said I was under surveillance so they figured it was all over, they were safe. Right?”
“I didn’t tell them.”
“No? Well someone did and they figured they didn’t have to worry because the prime suspect, namely me, was essentially under lockdown at home. Right?”
Manning didn’t say anything, but his ears looked red and the top of his head was quickly growing a hotter pink.
“How do you know I didn’t sneak out a back window?”
Manning glanced down at the open file in front of him.
“Let’s see you made a phone call a little after nine. You were online from about nine-thirty until one-fifteen in the morning. A number of different porn and escort sites. What? Did the word finally get out about you and now you have to pay for it?” he laughed at his little joke.
“You’re paying for it, too, Manning, you just don’t know it yet.”
“Drunken Mommies, Girls Gone Wild, Back Page, Date Night…”
“Okay, okay, I was just looking, which isn’t a crime, at least as far as I know.”
“Much as I’d like to tie you into this, unless you flew up your chimney, over to that hotel on a broomstick and then back, it doesn’t work for me.”
“How was she killed?”
“Throat slit.”
“That’s up close and personal, someone she knew, maybe.”
“Gee thanks, Sherlock.”
“Signs of a struggle?”
“How ‘bout we handle the investigation end of things for right now. I need your help in that area, you’ll be the first to know. Okay?”
“So what do you want from me?”
The color seemed to drain from Manning’s face. He actually looked pained, swallowed, and in almost a whisper he said, “I could probably use your help, maybe.”
A lesser man would have said no. Would have made him crawl, or stood up and walked out. I sat there staring into the paper cup at the baby-shit-brown Latte, too shocked, too stunned to do anything. After a long moment I looked up.
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Look, you don’t want to help and give this jerk a chance to slip away, there’s nothing I can do about that. Not that I’m surprised. I thought you might want to help us out with something that can quickly turn into an ugly international incident here, but if…”
“I’ll help.” I said.
“You want to walk away that’s…”
“I said I’ll help, Manning. Stop beating me over the head and just tell me what you want me to do.”
He studied me for a moment, his jaw sawed back and forth on his hapless piece of gum. The blue eyes were back to looking like lasers, and they zeroed in on me.
“Thanks, I appreciate it,” he said, sounding a hundred percent genuine. “Here’s what we’re thinking. Someone fingered you, pardon the pun, tried to set you up. I’d like to play that card, make it look like you’re our guy. See if that takes us anywhere.”
“Okay,” I said.
“Well hang on, what this means is we may release your name to the media.”
“Okay.”
“Yeah, we’ll play like we normally would. You’re brought in for questioning, as a suspect…”
“I know how that part works,” I said.
Manning gave me a genuine smile.
“We’ll send you home then pick you up tomorrow, make an arrest we’ll release your name, say you’re being held as a suspect.”
“And?”
“And then we wait and see, we’re looking at someone, we’ll see if they make a move.”
“Make a move?”
“Make a move,” Manning said and didn’t add anything.
“I’m glad to help, but I want my attorney in on this and Aaron LaZelle, too.”
“LaZelle, your buddy over in vice?”
“Yeah, no offense but if Louie and Aaron give the nod I’m on board. It’s not that I don’t trust you, but I really have to be sure, okay?” I extended my hand over the desk.
“Not a problem, under the circumstances I’d do the same thing,” he said and then shook my hand. “Haskell, for the record, thanks.”
“For the record, Manning, if anyone can do it you can, so get this bastard.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Louie and Aaron gave their approval just before the noon hour in a conference room down the hall. Louie drew up the paper work. Some guy named Captain Elkers who Manning and most of the department seemed to report to signed off on it, literally.
“Please don’t take this the wrong way gentlemen, but my client, Mister Haskell, has had a bit of a checkered history in some, shall we say, gray areas and I’d just like to be sure here. Once you sign this, absolving Mister Haskell of any complacency we can move ahead.”
“Damn unorthodox,” Captain Crabby grumbled, but signed then quickly left the conference room.
Aaron looked serious, but winked at me as he signed.
Manning signed and looked relieved.
“Thanks Louie, I owe you dinner,” I said.
“You’ll owe me a lot more than that,” he said. Then looked over at Manning, “What’s the next step?”
“We release Mister Haskell and then we’ll make a very public arrest later tomorrow, in time for the six o’clock news. Your choice, where,” Manning said, turning to me, home or the office.
“I think I’d prefer home, the office would be bad publicity.”
Manning nodded, you need a lift home.
“I can give you one,” Louie said.
“Me too,” Aaron said.
“Is Officer Trang available?” I asked Manning.
“Yeah, I’ll make sure she is.”
“Nothing personal, guys,” I said.
“You’re sure getting the special treatment,” Officer Trang said. It was close to one-thirty by the time she was driving me home. As she spoke she looked at me in her rear view mirror, viewing me through the heavy mesh screen.
“What can I say, I have that effect on folks.”
“Gee, who knew? And all this while I was thinking that woman was right.”
“Woman?” I asked.
“Menace and detriment are two of the words that spring to mind. I’m sure she has plenty of others.”
“I’m sure she does. So, who did you piss off to get the short straw and draw this gig.”
“Driving you around?”
“Yeah.”
“I was involved in an incident, standard procedure, you’re off the street for a few days.”
“Here I was thinking you were trying to get on Manning’s good side.”
“That would suggest he has one.”
“You got me there. An incident, it wasn’t that shooting? The one over on the East side, two or three nights ago?”
“Yeah,” she answered, but with a tone that suggested she didn’t care to go any further.
“Sorry, been there. So, you got time for a late lunch?”
Her eyes flashed in the rear view mirror, but I could detect a smile.
“Thanks, but no. How ‘bout a rain check after hours sometime?”
“For sure, I’ve got a busy next few days, but maybe if you gave me your number and…”
She had just pulled to a stop in front of my house; amazingly the old bat with the little dog wasn’t in sight to tell everyone what a low life I was. She didn’t tell me her number, but climbed out, then opened the rear door for me.
“Here’s my card,” she said, smiling as she handed me the card, “give me a call when things lighten up. I’d like that.”
“You can count on it. Thanks, a real pleasure meeting you,” I said, then held out my hand.
She took it, gave me a double squeeze, maybe just the hint of a lingering look. Then climbed back behind the wheel and drove off.
I felt my heart thumping, slowly calming down as she turned at the corner. Now all I had to do was wait around until I got arrested.
It was a little after four the following afternoon, I’d just taken a couple of burrito’s out of the microwave, popped open a can of Dr. Pepper and strolled into the living room to turn on the television. I glanced out the front window, noticed a Channel Four News van up the street with a black and white parked behind it. I looked down the street in the opposite direction a black and white was parked on the far corner. I guessed there would be one or two uniforms in my back yard shortly if they weren’t there already. They had really set the stage. I quickly gulped down my burrito, drank some of the Dr. Pepper and thought I better use the bathroom and put on a clean shirt for the cameras before they walked over and knocked on the door.