Murder on Sagebrush Lane (8 page)

23

DJ looked at his watch. Four-thirty. Time to head back to the office and prepare a report on his interview with John Smith. He’d just gotten off the phone with his SAC, who was more than a little annoyed at this new development.

“Hell, DJ, we certainly don’t need another agency mixed up in this,” his boss had said. “Tell me you can give us a good description.”

“Yes sir,” DJ had said, “I can, and I have the card he gave me with the phone number on it. We’ll see what fingerprint analysis tells us about him. We can also run a trace on the phone number.”

“It’s better than nothing, which is what we have at the moment. In the meantime, I’ll reach out to a few contacts in D.C. and see if they can shed any light on the situation. It’s supposed to be a new age of interagency cooperation. Let’s see if those in charge are willing to do that.”

DJ went in search of Swannie and found him in the kitchen. He had just finished up with an older gentleman, the last interview of the day. The old man thanked the Lieutenant for the work the officers were doing to find whoever had caused this tragedy in their neighborhood.

After the man left DJ said, “I have to go down to my office and turn in a report. Let’s keep in touch. I’ll let you know if we have any luck identifying ‘John Smith,’ and I know you’ll keep me posted on the charming Ms. Bellows. I hope she stays away from us until we get things sorted out.”

“Not to worry,” Swannie said. “I still need to find out who tipped her off about Katie’s location. It better not have come from any of our guys.”

“I doubt that it did,” DJ said, “but it would be nice if we knew how she found out.” He stood to leave. “In the meantime, I should call Harrie and let her know I’ll be later than we thought. I hope all is going well with her and Katie at my mother’s.”

Swannie said, “Hold up a minute. I’ll walk you out. We’re finished here for now, and my guys will secure the house. We’ll keep a patrol car in the neighborhood tonight, just in case.”

When they got to Swannie’s car, DJ said, “Have you heard anything on your BOLO for Rinaldi’s BMW?”

“No, not yet. But the Swing Shift just got on the streets. If it’s still in town, we should have an idea before too long.”

DJ nodded. “Okay. Here’s hoping something turns up soon.” He waved to Swannie as he walked up the street toward his home. He would retrieve his car, call Harrie, and head down to the office. With any luck he could be finished and on his way to his mom’s house by 6:30, just in time for dinner.

He went inside to grab his security badge, and on his way back out to the garage, he saw the light blinking on the answering machine. He pressed the “play” button and listened to Harrie’s voice.

“Hi, my Love. I thought I’d let you know that I’m on my way over to Caroline’s house, and I noticed a dark blue BMW following me. It might be Michael Rinaldi’s missing car. I’m pretty sure I can lose him, but I wanted you to know what’s going on. I’ll see you at your mom’s. Honey, please get there as soon as you can. I love you.”

DJ’s jaw tightened. He grabbed his cell phone and punched in Swannie’s number as he ran back to his car.

“This is Swannie.”

DJ let out the breath he’d been holding. “Swannie, this is DJ. Harrie left me a message. It’s possible your missing BMW was following Harrie when she left our house with Katie.” He stopped and swallowed hard. “Swannie, please get a squad car over to my mother’s house. I’m on my way. That nut job is probably already there.”

24

DJ forced himself to remain calm when he pulled his car out of the driveway. Once behind the wheel, he pressed the button on his Bluetooth earpiece and asked to be connected to Harrie’s cell phone. It rang four times and went to voice mail. He disconnected the call, pressed the earpiece again, and said, “Call Mom.”

He waited through more ringing before another voice mail invitation was issued. He fought down his rising apprehension. There had to be a reason for the unanswered calls. He would be there in a matter of minutes.

DJ and Harrie’s house was east of Tramway and south of Academy a few blocks. If traffic was with him, he could be at Canyon Estates in less than ten minutes. His eyes glanced repeatedly at his rearview mirror, paying special attention to any car that might be the elusive dark blue BMW. At this moment DJ felt grateful that his mother had moved into the gated community of Canyon Estates. Anyone trying to follow Harrie would have been stopped at the gate, and if they couldn’t provide an address or name of a resident to contact, they wouldn’t have been admitted.

Luck was with him, and he arrived at the gate in eight minutes. He had a Canyon Estates sticker on his car, which would automatically admit him to the property. But instead of going through the “Residents” gate, he pulled into the “Visitors” lane beside the guard shack. The guard on duty recognized DJ and waved him through, but DJ motioned him over.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Scott,” said the guard. “Is there a problem?”

DJ showed the guard the license plate number of the BMW belonging to Michael Rinaldi. He explained that the car was stolen from a murder victim and was being sought by local police. The guard copied down the information.

DJ said, “I’m also concerned the individual driving this car might be trying to find my mother’s house.”

The guard nodded. “I’ll enter this information into the computer so all our personnel will have access to it. Let me look in the book and see if that car entered through our gate this afternoon.”

DJ waited less than patiently while the guard went over the entries in the log. He took the opportunity to place another call to his mother. Again there was no answer.

“Okay, Mr. Scott. I’ve checked the logbook and found a dark blue BMW entered the complex about forty-five minutes ago, but it had a different license plate number. The driver indicated he was attending a meeting at a home on Sierra Bonita. That’s on the other side of the community from your mother’s house. I’ll speak to my supervisor and have him check the video records to see if that automobile has left yet.”

DJ thanked the guard and left his cell phone number, along with a request to be contacted as soon as information became available.

DJ forced himself to slow down after encountering the first speed bump. Canyon Estates had hit upon an effective way to enforce a 25-mile-per-hour limit. Anyone disregarding their speed throughout the community could end up with major shock absorber problems. He hadn’t realized how fast he’d been going and slowed the car. He deliberately focused his mind on conversations he’d had with his mother about buying a house here. At first, she’d rejected the idea, not willing to spend the kind of money necessary. She had always been a frugal woman who had to carefully watch her funds. When she found herself an heiress three years ago, she was reluctant to spend any of it. It had all happened so suddenly and came from the estate of a man Caroline never liked. She had been stunned to discover he was her biological uncle. Even so, she never expected to be his heir. DJ and Harrie had finally convinced her the money was meant for her use, and purchasing a new home was not an extravagant thing to do. She assuaged her conscience about what she considered to be tainted money by using a large portion of the inheritance to create a trust fund at the University of New Mexico for promising law students.

When DJ turned onto his mother’s street, he didn’t see Harrie’s car It should have been there, but it was nowhere in sight. He parked across the street, and hurried to the front door. He had his key in the lock when abruptly the door opened from the inside.

“Where have you been?” Harrie’s face was flushed and her eyes blazed with intensity. She threw her arms around him before he could close the door. He held her tightly, and relief flooded through his body.

“I’ve been calling both you and Mom. What happened? Is Katie okay?”

Harrie shuddered. “We’re all fine, but the BMW followed me.”

DJ went to the living room window and moved the curtain enough to give him a view of the street. “I don’t see it now.”

Harrie pulled him away from the window. “That’s because I gave him the slip.”

DJ’s eyes narrowed, and he cocked his head. “And how, may I ask, did you do that?”

Caroline came into the room and hugged her son. She had a satisfied grin on her face.

“That, dear boy, is a whole other story.”

25

“Why didn’t you answer your cell? I called you several times.” DJ’s face was grim as he paced the room.

“It’s in the car. In our hurry to get Katie inside, I forgot it. I think it’s in the console, at least that’s where I saw it last.”

He exhaled a long breath and rubbed the back of his neck. He turned to his mother. “And where was your cell? I called you, too, with no answer.”

Caroline’s face blushed a pretty pink. “Sorry, DJ. I’m afraid I left it in its charger at the office this morning. I completely forgot to take it with me. I was so worried about you and Harrie, and I simply didn’t think about it. Why didn’t you call me on the land line?”

“Because, you always have your cell with you.”

“Well I didn’t today, so you’d better learn to try the other number when you don’t reach me,” she said.

“Yes, Ma’am,” he said and turned his attention to Harrie.

“Okay, start from the time you saw the BMW.”

He waited while Harrie slipped out of her shoes, sat on the sofa, and pulled her feet up under her. It was a typical Harrie-at-home posture.

“Well, I was in a hurry to get to here and make sure Katie got settled. So after Steve installed the new car seat, we loaded up Katie and all our stuff, and I left. About two blocks before I reached Tramway, I caught sight of this dark blue BMW in my rear mirror. I thought it might be Rinaldi’s missing car, but for some strange reason it seemed to be following Katie and me. I considered calling you right away, but I knew you and Swannie were busy at the murder scene. I thought it was better if I simply took a circuitous route. If the BMW kept up, then I would know for sure it was following me. So I called the house and left you that message on the answering machine.”

DJ looked down at the ground and shook his head. “Didn’t it occur to you to simply call the police?”

Harrie shrugged. “It crossed my mind, but my main concern was getting Katie out of there. I was afraid maybe the BMW was being driven by that awful Bellows woman.”

“When did it start following you?”

“I’m not sure. I wasn’t expecting to be followed, and I was just driving and paying attention to traffic. We’d only gone a few blocks, and then I caught a glimpse of it in my rearview mirror.”

“So what was this big plan of yours, and how did you get away from him?”

Harrie smiled, and her eyes lit up. “That was the good part. When I got to Tramway, rather than going straight on Academy, I turned south. The light changed to red just as I drove through the intersection, and the BMW was far enough behind us that it had to stop and wait for it to turn green. Meanwhile, I got up to speed, barreled down Tramway, and turned west on Montgomery. I cut back north at Juan Tabo and turned west again on Spain. When I approached Eubank, I pulled into the parking lot at that little shopping center on the southeast corner. My hairdresser works in the salon there. Anyway,” she continued breathlessly, “I waited about three minutes, saw no sign of the BMW, so I took off, heading north on Eubank. I made it to the gate at Canyon Estates, and as I waited for the guard to let me through, I saw the BMW about three cars behind me in the line.”

DJ narrowed his eyes. “Are you sure it was the same BMW?”

Harrie frowned. “Well of course I can’t be absolutely sure. But it looked the same. It was the same color. So anyway, I took the long way around to Caroline’s. I cut through all the back streets and when I got here, Caroline had the garage door open for me. I pulled in, and we shut the door immediately. She took Katie in, and I brought in Tuptim and our stuff. Then we waited for you to get here. What kept you so long?”

“Well, as you said, I was busy with Swannie. There are multiple issues involved with this murder, and things are getting complicated. In fact,” he looked at his watch, “I have to get down to the office now and file my report. The boss is waiting for me.”

He turned to go. “Oh, by the way, the BMW you saw behind you at the gate wasn’t Rinaldi’s.”

Harrie’s eyebrows furrowed. “And how, exactly, do you know that?”

DJ grinned, leaned over, and kissed her forehead. “I checked it out with the security guard on duty. The BMW in line behind you has a different license plate number and signed in to visit a residence on the opposite side of the complex.”

As he opened the door, he turned to Caroline. “Don’t wait on me for dinner. I’ll grab a bite when I get back from the office.” And with that, he was gone.

Caroline and Harrie looked at each other. Caroline spoke first. “Well that was interesting.”

“You didn’t tell him about the phone call,” Harrie said.

“No, but he really didn’t give me a chance, did he?”

Harrie looked out the window. “The squad car Swannie promised just went past. Looks like they’re cruising the neighborhood instead of parking in front of your house. I think we’re clear for at least ten minutes.”

Caroline said, “I think now is as good a time as any, don’t you?”

Harrie grinned. “Exactly what I was thinking. I’m sure I’ll be back long before DJ.”