Smash Cut (28 page)
Authors: Sandra Brown
Tags: #Legal, #Suspense, #Fiction, #General, #Georgia, #Thrillers, #Rich people, #Atlanta (Ga.), #Trials (Murder), #Legal stories, #Rich People - Georgia
A few minutes later Derek joined him in a courtyard where the hotel served high tea from three to five each afternoon, weather permitting. Shady and serene, it was enclosed by ivy-covered brick walls on three sides and an impenetrable hedge of shrubbery on the street side. In the center was a carved stone fountain, unobtrusively trickling water over a cherub holding a lyre.
They had it to themselves.
Derek sat down at a small wrought-iron table where Dodge had already lit up an unfiltered Camel. For a time they just sat there. Derek watched a hummingbird flit from one hibiscus blossom to another. Dodge stared into space and smoked.
Finally he looked over at Derek. Youve tupped her?
Since the plane?
Since breakfast.
Derek snuffled. Essentially.
Dodge nodded as he rubbed out his cigarette. He lit another. She never mentioned the will.
No.
Bad time to find out.
Tell me.
What did she say about it just now?
Nothing. I didnt give her a chance. I had to get some air, clear my head.
Is it clear yet?
Not even close.
So what are you going to do?
Hell if I know. Derek stood up and began to pace the lichen-covered brick paving.
Didnt you tell me that shes retained Ned Fulton to represent her?
Yeah, and hes good.
My advice, Counselor, let him have her and stay away from this mess.
Derek continued to pace, Dodge to smoke. Several moments elapsed, then Dodge said, Youre not going to, are you?
Derek stopped pacing and studied the hummingbird where it hovered above a blossom as large as a bright red parasol. Its very possible shes being framed, Dodge.
Sounds awful melodramatic.
Thats the point. Cutting off Maggies head was melodramatic. We cant dismiss Creighton and his flair for melodrama. Hes devious. Hes a goddamn eel. As Julie said, he doesnt have a conscience. Hes cocky and one hundred percent confident of his ability to pull off anything he damn well pleases
and
to get away with it.
And hed have the same motive for killing Wheeler, Dodge mused aloud. The inheritance. Maybe he knew his uncle was about to change his will and wanted him taken out before he could.
Or he could have learned it was a done deal and killed him to get vengeance.
If that was the case, why didnt he have her capped, too?
Derek thought about it, thought about Creightons personality traits and everything Julie had told him about the man. That wouldnt have been any fun.
Fun?
He likes the inside joke. If he successfully pins his uncles murder on her, he gets his laugh at her expense, as well as guarantees that she never gets to spend the fortune. If shes convicted, he and his parents could probably have the new will recanted.
Millionaire duped by murdering mistress. Nephew reinstated as heir.
Precisely. That would give Creighton a chuckle or two.
Dodge crumpled an empty pack and thoughtfully opened another. Works. In theory. But theres still nothing tying Creighton Wheeler to Billy Duke.
There wouldnt be. Hes too frigging smart. Somethings been bothering me, but I couldnt put my finger on it. But when Julie started talking about his keeping out of the limelight, I realized what it was. That first day he came to my office, and the time after that, he didnt touch anything. Not a drinking glass, not the arms of the chair, not the doorknob. I or Marlene held the door for him every time. He didnt even shake hands.
He leaves no trace of himself.
No physical evidence.
By contrast, theyve got a shitload of it on her. The investigator hitched his chin in the general direction of the hotel room where Derek and Julie had spent the night. Theyll have an arrest warrant by lunchtime. Mark my words.
For killing Billy Duke?
Him. Wheeler. Take your pick. Maybe both.
Its all circumstantial, Dodge.
They can still hold her for a few days while they gather more evidence.
There isnt any that wasnt planted. Im certain of that. She loved Paul Wheeler.
Were talking about a lot of money, Derek.
Dodge never called him by his first name. And he never spoke that softly or earnestly, either. Derek couldnt miss the significance of his doing so now. He repeated, She loved the guy, Dodge. Believe me, it gives me no pleasure to say it, but its a fact.
He stared Dodge down until the older man relented. Okay. She wouldnt have had Paul Wheeler killed for any amount of money. You can say it till doomsday, but it doesnt solve your problem.
Well get nothing from Creighton. The solution lies with Billy Duke. Derek thought a moment, then said, Julie says he looked ghastly, sick, in need of help. When can we expect the autopsy to be done?
Since so much is hinging on it, Im sure the detectives are pressing the ME to get to it soon.
Stay in the pipeline, Dodge. Let me know everything you hear.
Itll cost you.
Promise that policewomanDora?three fancy dinners. I need information which translates to ammunition. Start with the contents of the duffel bag they found in Billy Dukes car.
I told you already.
Get me a complete inventory if you can. And
Am I gonna have time to take a piss?
Not today. Check for a rap sheet on Creighton.
Already have. No such animal. Not even a DUI. Hed been issued a few speeding tickets. Thats it.
Juvie files?
Ive put out a few careful feelers, but thats the Holy Grail.
Do what you can.
Meantime, what are you going to do?
Go back upstairs and confer with my client.
They had it to themselves.
Derek sat down at a small wrought-iron table where Dodge had already lit up an unfiltered Camel. For a time they just sat there. Derek watched a hummingbird flit from one hibiscus blossom to another. Dodge stared into space and smoked.
Finally he looked over at Derek. Youve tupped her?
Since the plane?
Since breakfast.
Derek snuffled. Essentially.
Dodge nodded as he rubbed out his cigarette. He lit another. She never mentioned the will.
No.
Bad time to find out.
Tell me.
What did she say about it just now?
Nothing. I didnt give her a chance. I had to get some air, clear my head.
Is it clear yet?
Not even close.
So what are you going to do?
Hell if I know. Derek stood up and began to pace the lichen-covered brick paving.
Didnt you tell me that shes retained Ned Fulton to represent her?
Yeah, and hes good.
My advice, Counselor, let him have her and stay away from this mess.
Derek continued to pace, Dodge to smoke. Several moments elapsed, then Dodge said, Youre not going to, are you?
Derek stopped pacing and studied the hummingbird where it hovered above a blossom as large as a bright red parasol. Its very possible shes being framed, Dodge.
Sounds awful melodramatic.
Thats the point. Cutting off Maggies head was melodramatic. We cant dismiss Creighton and his flair for melodrama. Hes devious. Hes a goddamn eel. As Julie said, he doesnt have a conscience. Hes cocky and one hundred percent confident of his ability to pull off anything he damn well pleases
and
to get away with it.
And hed have the same motive for killing Wheeler, Dodge mused aloud. The inheritance. Maybe he knew his uncle was about to change his will and wanted him taken out before he could.
Or he could have learned it was a done deal and killed him to get vengeance.
If that was the case, why didnt he have her capped, too?
Derek thought about it, thought about Creightons personality traits and everything Julie had told him about the man. That wouldnt have been any fun.
Fun?
He likes the inside joke. If he successfully pins his uncles murder on her, he gets his laugh at her expense, as well as guarantees that she never gets to spend the fortune. If shes convicted, he and his parents could probably have the new will recanted.
Millionaire duped by murdering mistress. Nephew reinstated as heir.
Precisely. That would give Creighton a chuckle or two.
Dodge crumpled an empty pack and thoughtfully opened another. Works. In theory. But theres still nothing tying Creighton Wheeler to Billy Duke.
There wouldnt be. Hes too frigging smart. Somethings been bothering me, but I couldnt put my finger on it. But when Julie started talking about his keeping out of the limelight, I realized what it was. That first day he came to my office, and the time after that, he didnt touch anything. Not a drinking glass, not the arms of the chair, not the doorknob. I or Marlene held the door for him every time. He didnt even shake hands.
He leaves no trace of himself.
No physical evidence.
By contrast, theyve got a shitload of it on her. The investigator hitched his chin in the general direction of the hotel room where Derek and Julie had spent the night. Theyll have an arrest warrant by lunchtime. Mark my words.
For killing Billy Duke?
Him. Wheeler. Take your pick. Maybe both.
Its all circumstantial, Dodge.
They can still hold her for a few days while they gather more evidence.
There isnt any that wasnt planted. Im certain of that. She loved Paul Wheeler.
Were talking about a lot of money, Derek.
Dodge never called him by his first name. And he never spoke that softly or earnestly, either. Derek couldnt miss the significance of his doing so now. He repeated, She loved the guy, Dodge. Believe me, it gives me no pleasure to say it, but its a fact.
He stared Dodge down until the older man relented. Okay. She wouldnt have had Paul Wheeler killed for any amount of money. You can say it till doomsday, but it doesnt solve your problem.
Well get nothing from Creighton. The solution lies with Billy Duke. Derek thought a moment, then said, Julie says he looked ghastly, sick, in need of help. When can we expect the autopsy to be done?
Since so much is hinging on it, Im sure the detectives are pressing the ME to get to it soon.
Stay in the pipeline, Dodge. Let me know everything you hear.
Itll cost you.
Promise that policewomanDora?three fancy dinners. I need information which translates to ammunition. Start with the contents of the duffel bag they found in Billy Dukes car.
I told you already.
Get me a complete inventory if you can. And
Am I gonna have time to take a piss?
Not today. Check for a rap sheet on Creighton.
Already have. No such animal. Not even a DUI. Hed been issued a few speeding tickets. Thats it.
Juvie files?
Ive put out a few careful feelers, but thats the Holy Grail.
Do what you can.
Meantime, what are you going to do?
Go back upstairs and confer with my client.
Ariel didnt hear the news about Billy Dukes death until she turned on the TV early that morning. As one report segued into another, each as startling as the next, she tried to call Carol to ask if shed heard. Of course, since her friend had urged her not to get involved, Ariel would leave out the role she had played in identifying him. And she wanted to remain out of it. All the same, it was exciting to hear repeated references to the anonymous call shed placed to the police hotline.
It had shocked her to hear that Billy had died in Julie Rutledges house. The police department spokesperson, a detective named Roberta Kimball, had strongly hinted, although she didnt come right out and say it, that he hadnt died of natural causes, like your basic heart attack, and that Ms. Rutledge had somehow caused him to die.
Ariel asked herself why a classy woman like her, with a millionaire lover, had got tangled up with a hustler like Billy Duke. But then the millionaire had been older than Ms. Rutledge. Maybe he hadnt been able to satisfy her sexually, whereas that was Billys specialty. He could also be suave, charming, and funny when he put his mind to it. Julie Rutledge would be a target for his kind of hustle.
Ariel became so engrossed in the related reports that, before she knew it, a half hour had elapsed, meaning that she was going to be off schedule for the rest of the day. Today of all days. When she had so much to do!
She wanted to make things perfect for her dinner date tonight.
She didnt get off work until five-thirty, and dinner was scheduled for seven-thirty, so she wanted to do as much as she could ahead of time.
She dressed for work in a hurry, then went into the kitchen, browned the beef roast in olive oil, then placed it in the Crock-Pot, where it would simmer all day. She would add the vegetables when she got home. And make the salads. And spoon the sorbet into individual dessert glasses and return them to the freezer.
She had set the table when she returned home last night, tipsy from the apple martinis and drunk with the pleasure of having seen him again, and learning that he hadnt run out on her after all and that he really wanted to see her again.
Alone
. And how many times had she had to assure him that nobody would walk in on them?
If that didnt sound promising, she didnt know what did.
On her way out, she gave the dining table one last glance, wishing that she had a screen or some other means of separating the table from the kitchen. Candles would help to achieve a softening effect. She must remember to pick some up when she bought the flowers and wine. Red. To go with the beef. Tony would know stuff like that, like red wine going with red meat.
And she must remember to buy a package of condoms, too.
A girl could hope.
She turned up her car radio when they did headline news, and sure enough Billy was mentioned. The last time hed called her, hed tried to say something before she immediately hung up and then took the phone off the hook so he couldnt call back. That would have been the night before last.
Ariel hoped her neighbor Mrs. Hamilton wouldnt connect the man whose death was making news this morning with the man who yesterday had come seeking Ariel at home mere hours before he died. Which was kinda creepy. Ariel couldnt help but wonder what it was that Billy had wanted to tell her.
A matter of life or death, hed said to Mrs. Hamilton. Ariel had thought it was only a figure of speech, but obviously not. Billys antics had finally caught up with him. He was dead. While she mourned him as a fellow human being, she was relieved she no longer had him to worry about.
She could push him from her mind and daydream solely about her date tonight with Tony.
It had shocked her to hear that Billy had died in Julie Rutledges house. The police department spokesperson, a detective named Roberta Kimball, had strongly hinted, although she didnt come right out and say it, that he hadnt died of natural causes, like your basic heart attack, and that Ms. Rutledge had somehow caused him to die.
Ariel asked herself why a classy woman like her, with a millionaire lover, had got tangled up with a hustler like Billy Duke. But then the millionaire had been older than Ms. Rutledge. Maybe he hadnt been able to satisfy her sexually, whereas that was Billys specialty. He could also be suave, charming, and funny when he put his mind to it. Julie Rutledge would be a target for his kind of hustle.
Ariel became so engrossed in the related reports that, before she knew it, a half hour had elapsed, meaning that she was going to be off schedule for the rest of the day. Today of all days. When she had so much to do!
She wanted to make things perfect for her dinner date tonight.
She didnt get off work until five-thirty, and dinner was scheduled for seven-thirty, so she wanted to do as much as she could ahead of time.
She dressed for work in a hurry, then went into the kitchen, browned the beef roast in olive oil, then placed it in the Crock-Pot, where it would simmer all day. She would add the vegetables when she got home. And make the salads. And spoon the sorbet into individual dessert glasses and return them to the freezer.
She had set the table when she returned home last night, tipsy from the apple martinis and drunk with the pleasure of having seen him again, and learning that he hadnt run out on her after all and that he really wanted to see her again.
Alone
. And how many times had she had to assure him that nobody would walk in on them?
If that didnt sound promising, she didnt know what did.
On her way out, she gave the dining table one last glance, wishing that she had a screen or some other means of separating the table from the kitchen. Candles would help to achieve a softening effect. She must remember to pick some up when she bought the flowers and wine. Red. To go with the beef. Tony would know stuff like that, like red wine going with red meat.
And she must remember to buy a package of condoms, too.
A girl could hope.
She turned up her car radio when they did headline news, and sure enough Billy was mentioned. The last time hed called her, hed tried to say something before she immediately hung up and then took the phone off the hook so he couldnt call back. That would have been the night before last.
Ariel hoped her neighbor Mrs. Hamilton wouldnt connect the man whose death was making news this morning with the man who yesterday had come seeking Ariel at home mere hours before he died. Which was kinda creepy. Ariel couldnt help but wonder what it was that Billy had wanted to tell her.
A matter of life or death, hed said to Mrs. Hamilton. Ariel had thought it was only a figure of speech, but obviously not. Billys antics had finally caught up with him. He was dead. While she mourned him as a fellow human being, she was relieved she no longer had him to worry about.
She could push him from her mind and daydream solely about her date tonight with Tony.
CHAPTER
24
D
EREK RETURNED TO THE HOTEL ROOM TO FIND JULIE ON HER cell phone, apparently talking to Kate. She was admitting to her assistant that having Billy Duke show up at her house and die there had been a harrowing experience.
Unfortunately, the news reports are correct. He did suffer a knife wound, but She glanced at Derek, who was slicing his finger across his throat. Its a police matter, Kate, so Im really not at liberty to discuss it.
She went on to assure Kate that she was safe and doing as well as could be expected, and then entrusted the management of the gallery to her assistant until further notice. I hope to be back to work very soon, she concluded.
Did you tell her where you were? Derek asked as soon as she disconnected.
I hedged on that.
Good.
Am I officially avoiding arrest?
Not yet.
What about your office? Arent you going in?
He shook his head. I called Marlene and brought her up to date, told her Id be out all day. She knows how to handle inquiries.
Evasively?
Exactly.
What about your other clients?
Youre the one with the urgent situation, so you get my attention.
Thank you.
Its not gratis. Youll be billed. You can afford it, he added under his breath.
She frowned. Thats exactly the kind of remark I hoped to avoid.
Is that why you didnt tell me? To avoid wisecracks? Or did inheriting a bloody fortune just slip your mind?
When would have been a good time to drop it into the conversation, Derek?
Anytime.
For instance?
When we met.
Thats not something you tell a total stranger.
Yeah, that would have been awkward. Both before and after we screwed. She flushed red, but he went on before she could come back. How about the day after, when I showed up at the gallery?
You were furious, in no mood to listen.
You could have told me last night.
She didnt say anything to that. She didnt have to. The look she gave him said it all. He cursed out of frustration, moved to the window, looked out, came back around. It was bound to come out sooner or later. Surely you knew that.
I hoped it would be later. I dreaded it. It was the second shoe.
Then why in Gods name didnt you tell me, Julie?
Because I knew this is how youd react. I knew it would change everything.
Youre damn right it changes everything! he said with heat. It gives you the oldest motive in the history of jurisprudence. Its criminal law 101.
I know! I knew how it would look to you. How it would look to Sanford and Kimball. To everybody.
It wouldnt have looked as bad as it does now.
Her anger evaporated. I was wrong to withhold it. I see that.
He backed down, too. Im as mad at myself as I am at you. I knew all along you were keeping something from me.
Actually, youre not as angry as I thought youd be.
As Derek, the guy you made love to all night, Im furious with you. He flung his arm toward the French doors separating the rooms. In there, nothing was We did How could you His eloquence abandoned him. He swore, then sliced the air with his hands. Well deal with that aspect of it later. As your lawyer
Youll still represent me?
It would look really bad to the police if I backed out now, after declaring myself your legal representative last night. Anger is an emotion I cant afford. Anger is counterproductive. So is hindsight. You misjudge a juror you thought would favor your side, you miscalculate how convincing a witness will be, your clients lie is exposed to you in open court, theres no do-over. Its done. You deal with it and move forward. He sat down on the ottoman, facing her. So, first things first. Sanford and Kimball will want to know when this came about.
Paul changing his will? He mentioned it as far back as a year ago and continued to bring it up. I tried to talk him out of it.
Theyll seriously doubt that, Julie.
Its the truth.
Who would turn their back on that kind of money?
I would. I did. But Paul wouldnt be dissuaded. He had his lawyer draw up a new will. He had signed it that Tuesday morning before meeting me for lunch.
Thus the celebration.
His
celebration. Not mine. He was pleased. I was
Displeased?
Dubious. I knew it would cause trouble.
Derek lapsed into thought for a moment, then asked her what the lawyer had thought of the new will. Did he try and talk Wheeler out of it?
I wasnt privy to their conversations. But he was very kind toward me when we met following Pauls death. I made it clear that I was in no hurry to have the will probated.
Creighton would be.
The lawyer stalled him.
So the Wheelers were and still are unaware that Creighton is no longer going to inherit?
As far as I know. Paul was emphatic that it remain just between us for as long as possible. I think he feared Creighton would do something. Paul made no secret of his affection for me. Creighton made no secret of disliking it.
He saw you as a threat.
Which has made me wonder why I wasnt his target instead of Paul.
Dodge remarked on that, too. Derek shared with her what hed ventured to his investigator.
Youre probably right, she said after giving it some thought. If Creighton had eliminated me, it wouldnt have been nearly the game this has become. Im afraid hes still playing it. She leaned toward him. What was Billy Duke doing in my house, Derek?
He stated the obvious. Planting evidence linking you to the robbery.
If we can prove that
Were screwed.
That took her aback. Why?
Because it then would appear either that Billy Duke was acting alone or that he wanted to double-cross you, his partner. Either way, Creightons clear.
Billy Duke was doing it on Creightons behalf.
No doubt. But dont advance that theory to the detectives, Julie.
Why not?
Because theyd ask why, if Creighton had the jewelry all along, he didnt hide it in your house while he was in there messing with your stuff.
The police dont know about that.
They will. They must. Thatll be your only explanation for the housecleaning that was so extensive your maid mentioned it to Kate, who told the detectives.
Who thought it was significant.
Theyre not detectives for nothing.
She dropped her head forward.
Furthermore
She groaned. Theres a furthermore?
Billy Duke didnt have a weapon. Reasonably, we cant contend that he went to your house to do you harm.
Making it appear we were friendly.
At least acquainted.
But I didnt let him in. He broke in.
Thats something. Not much.
She sighed. Its bad, isnt it?
I wont bullshit you, Julie. Yeah. Theyve got the motive.
The new will. But what about opportunity? When was I supposed to have plotted this with Billy Duke? Id never laid eyes on him until yesterday.
Theres a preponderance of evidence to the contrary, he said. The phone records. His coming to the gallery. The button in his room, the hair in his car. All circumstantial, but added up and coupled with Paul Wheelers estate, its enough to make an ambitious prosecutor salivate.
She got up and went to the bar, opened a soft drink, but set the can down without drinking from it. Meanwhile Creighton is free of suspicion.
Im afraid youre right. His fall guy is dead, and so far nobody has linked the two of them.
Where would they have got together? Nebraska?
Playing devils advocate, Derek asked, What would a cosmopolitan urbanite like Creighton be doing in Omaha? I can see him shuddering at the thought of even flying over Omaha at thirty thousand feet.
He went there to recruit Billy Duke.
To swap murders.
The widow for Paul.
Possibly.
Reading his doubt, she asked, What?
First wed have to place Creighton in Omaha. And if Billy Duke was in jail, where did they meet to strike this bargain? I suppose Creighton could have visited him in jail but
He would be too smart for that, she said. The jail would have a record of his visit.
Exactly what I was about to say. If Creighton strangled a woman on a supermarket parking lot, like a phantom, and without anybody witnessing it, he would
Want someone to know.
This time it was Derek who was taken aback. That
wasnt
what I was about to say. It contradicts what you said about him earlier keeping a low public profile.
No it doesnt. It would be an inside joke. Which is exactly like him. Going back to the movie, beyond the point where we stopped watching, theres a scene where the millionaire shows up at a party.
The murder of the tennis players wife is the talk of the city. In the course of party conversation, this silly old woman questions how one would go about strangling someone to death. The millionaire offers to show her. He places his hands around her neck to demonstrate. Of course no one, except the tennis player, knows hes actually reenacting the murder he committed.
She returned to her seat on the sofa. Creighton doesnt want to be caught, but I think hed like to show off, particularly to us, how clever he is.
He wants us to be in on his joke.
Yes, and Im very afraid of what the punch line will be.
Derek stood up and began to pace. Weve got to connect him to Billy Duke.
She picked up the sheet Dodge had left behind, Billy Dukes cell phone records. The gallery isnt the only number he called numerous times. She pointed the other out to him. He called it at all hours of the night.
It could be a pizza delivery.
It isnt. While you were outside with Dodge, I dialed it and got one of those voice mails with an automated response, not a personal greeting.
If we noticed it, you can bet Sanford and Kimball did. Derek reached for his own cell phone, flipped it open, and used speed dial to call Dodge.
He answered immediately. Your ears mustve been burning. I was just about to call you.
Listen, on those phone records
They already checked it.
And?
Ariel Williams. Twenty-seven years old. Working girl. Scared shitless when Kimball showed up at her place of employment, wanting to ask her questions about Billy Duke.
She knew him?
She admitted it was her who called and IDd him after his picture went out on TV.
What was their relationship?
She hem-hawed on that, but general thinking is that he was a former boyfriend she no longer wanted to lay claim to.
Where did they meet?
Nebraska. She disapproved of his acquittal. Said she wished hed gone to prison, which is what he deserved. She moved down here and wasnt at all happy when he called and told her hed followed. She told him to get lost and leave her alone. But he was persistent. Did the call and hang up routine he did with Ms. Rutledge.
Derek had put his phone on speaker so Julie could also hear. He cut his eyes to her when Dodge said that, and she gave him a look of satisfaction.
The girl swore up and down she hadnt seen Billy Duke since she left Nebraska, and when she heard on the news this morning that he was dead, she wasnt sorry. Dodge paused and wheezed a breath.
Did she mention Creighton Wheeler?
Not to my knowledge.
Ask.
Okay. Something else. You ever heard of a movie called
Frenzy?
No. Derek looked at Julie, who shook her head.
Well, I dont know what it signifies, if anything, Dodge said. But a DVD of it was in Dukes duffel bag.
EREK RETURNED TO THE HOTEL ROOM TO FIND JULIE ON HER cell phone, apparently talking to Kate. She was admitting to her assistant that having Billy Duke show up at her house and die there had been a harrowing experience.
Unfortunately, the news reports are correct. He did suffer a knife wound, but She glanced at Derek, who was slicing his finger across his throat. Its a police matter, Kate, so Im really not at liberty to discuss it.
She went on to assure Kate that she was safe and doing as well as could be expected, and then entrusted the management of the gallery to her assistant until further notice. I hope to be back to work very soon, she concluded.
Did you tell her where you were? Derek asked as soon as she disconnected.
I hedged on that.
Good.
Am I officially avoiding arrest?
Not yet.
What about your office? Arent you going in?
He shook his head. I called Marlene and brought her up to date, told her Id be out all day. She knows how to handle inquiries.
Evasively?
Exactly.
What about your other clients?
Youre the one with the urgent situation, so you get my attention.
Thank you.
Its not gratis. Youll be billed. You can afford it, he added under his breath.
She frowned. Thats exactly the kind of remark I hoped to avoid.
Is that why you didnt tell me? To avoid wisecracks? Or did inheriting a bloody fortune just slip your mind?
When would have been a good time to drop it into the conversation, Derek?
Anytime.
For instance?
When we met.
Thats not something you tell a total stranger.
Yeah, that would have been awkward. Both before and after we screwed. She flushed red, but he went on before she could come back. How about the day after, when I showed up at the gallery?
You were furious, in no mood to listen.
You could have told me last night.
She didnt say anything to that. She didnt have to. The look she gave him said it all. He cursed out of frustration, moved to the window, looked out, came back around. It was bound to come out sooner or later. Surely you knew that.
I hoped it would be later. I dreaded it. It was the second shoe.
Then why in Gods name didnt you tell me, Julie?
Because I knew this is how youd react. I knew it would change everything.
Youre damn right it changes everything! he said with heat. It gives you the oldest motive in the history of jurisprudence. Its criminal law 101.
I know! I knew how it would look to you. How it would look to Sanford and Kimball. To everybody.
It wouldnt have looked as bad as it does now.
Her anger evaporated. I was wrong to withhold it. I see that.
He backed down, too. Im as mad at myself as I am at you. I knew all along you were keeping something from me.
Actually, youre not as angry as I thought youd be.
As Derek, the guy you made love to all night, Im furious with you. He flung his arm toward the French doors separating the rooms. In there, nothing was We did How could you His eloquence abandoned him. He swore, then sliced the air with his hands. Well deal with that aspect of it later. As your lawyer
Youll still represent me?
It would look really bad to the police if I backed out now, after declaring myself your legal representative last night. Anger is an emotion I cant afford. Anger is counterproductive. So is hindsight. You misjudge a juror you thought would favor your side, you miscalculate how convincing a witness will be, your clients lie is exposed to you in open court, theres no do-over. Its done. You deal with it and move forward. He sat down on the ottoman, facing her. So, first things first. Sanford and Kimball will want to know when this came about.
Paul changing his will? He mentioned it as far back as a year ago and continued to bring it up. I tried to talk him out of it.
Theyll seriously doubt that, Julie.
Its the truth.
Who would turn their back on that kind of money?
I would. I did. But Paul wouldnt be dissuaded. He had his lawyer draw up a new will. He had signed it that Tuesday morning before meeting me for lunch.
Thus the celebration.
His
celebration. Not mine. He was pleased. I was
Displeased?
Dubious. I knew it would cause trouble.
Derek lapsed into thought for a moment, then asked her what the lawyer had thought of the new will. Did he try and talk Wheeler out of it?
I wasnt privy to their conversations. But he was very kind toward me when we met following Pauls death. I made it clear that I was in no hurry to have the will probated.
Creighton would be.
The lawyer stalled him.
So the Wheelers were and still are unaware that Creighton is no longer going to inherit?
As far as I know. Paul was emphatic that it remain just between us for as long as possible. I think he feared Creighton would do something. Paul made no secret of his affection for me. Creighton made no secret of disliking it.
He saw you as a threat.
Which has made me wonder why I wasnt his target instead of Paul.
Dodge remarked on that, too. Derek shared with her what hed ventured to his investigator.
Youre probably right, she said after giving it some thought. If Creighton had eliminated me, it wouldnt have been nearly the game this has become. Im afraid hes still playing it. She leaned toward him. What was Billy Duke doing in my house, Derek?
He stated the obvious. Planting evidence linking you to the robbery.
If we can prove that
Were screwed.
That took her aback. Why?
Because it then would appear either that Billy Duke was acting alone or that he wanted to double-cross you, his partner. Either way, Creightons clear.
Billy Duke was doing it on Creightons behalf.
No doubt. But dont advance that theory to the detectives, Julie.
Why not?
Because theyd ask why, if Creighton had the jewelry all along, he didnt hide it in your house while he was in there messing with your stuff.
The police dont know about that.
They will. They must. Thatll be your only explanation for the housecleaning that was so extensive your maid mentioned it to Kate, who told the detectives.
Who thought it was significant.
Theyre not detectives for nothing.
She dropped her head forward.
Furthermore
She groaned. Theres a furthermore?
Billy Duke didnt have a weapon. Reasonably, we cant contend that he went to your house to do you harm.
Making it appear we were friendly.
At least acquainted.
But I didnt let him in. He broke in.
Thats something. Not much.
She sighed. Its bad, isnt it?
I wont bullshit you, Julie. Yeah. Theyve got the motive.
The new will. But what about opportunity? When was I supposed to have plotted this with Billy Duke? Id never laid eyes on him until yesterday.
Theres a preponderance of evidence to the contrary, he said. The phone records. His coming to the gallery. The button in his room, the hair in his car. All circumstantial, but added up and coupled with Paul Wheelers estate, its enough to make an ambitious prosecutor salivate.
She got up and went to the bar, opened a soft drink, but set the can down without drinking from it. Meanwhile Creighton is free of suspicion.
Im afraid youre right. His fall guy is dead, and so far nobody has linked the two of them.
Where would they have got together? Nebraska?
Playing devils advocate, Derek asked, What would a cosmopolitan urbanite like Creighton be doing in Omaha? I can see him shuddering at the thought of even flying over Omaha at thirty thousand feet.
He went there to recruit Billy Duke.
To swap murders.
The widow for Paul.
Possibly.
Reading his doubt, she asked, What?
First wed have to place Creighton in Omaha. And if Billy Duke was in jail, where did they meet to strike this bargain? I suppose Creighton could have visited him in jail but
He would be too smart for that, she said. The jail would have a record of his visit.
Exactly what I was about to say. If Creighton strangled a woman on a supermarket parking lot, like a phantom, and without anybody witnessing it, he would
Want someone to know.
This time it was Derek who was taken aback. That
wasnt
what I was about to say. It contradicts what you said about him earlier keeping a low public profile.
No it doesnt. It would be an inside joke. Which is exactly like him. Going back to the movie, beyond the point where we stopped watching, theres a scene where the millionaire shows up at a party.
The murder of the tennis players wife is the talk of the city. In the course of party conversation, this silly old woman questions how one would go about strangling someone to death. The millionaire offers to show her. He places his hands around her neck to demonstrate. Of course no one, except the tennis player, knows hes actually reenacting the murder he committed.
She returned to her seat on the sofa. Creighton doesnt want to be caught, but I think hed like to show off, particularly to us, how clever he is.
He wants us to be in on his joke.
Yes, and Im very afraid of what the punch line will be.
Derek stood up and began to pace. Weve got to connect him to Billy Duke.
She picked up the sheet Dodge had left behind, Billy Dukes cell phone records. The gallery isnt the only number he called numerous times. She pointed the other out to him. He called it at all hours of the night.
It could be a pizza delivery.
It isnt. While you were outside with Dodge, I dialed it and got one of those voice mails with an automated response, not a personal greeting.
If we noticed it, you can bet Sanford and Kimball did. Derek reached for his own cell phone, flipped it open, and used speed dial to call Dodge.
He answered immediately. Your ears mustve been burning. I was just about to call you.
Listen, on those phone records
They already checked it.
And?
Ariel Williams. Twenty-seven years old. Working girl. Scared shitless when Kimball showed up at her place of employment, wanting to ask her questions about Billy Duke.
She knew him?
She admitted it was her who called and IDd him after his picture went out on TV.
What was their relationship?
She hem-hawed on that, but general thinking is that he was a former boyfriend she no longer wanted to lay claim to.
Where did they meet?
Nebraska. She disapproved of his acquittal. Said she wished hed gone to prison, which is what he deserved. She moved down here and wasnt at all happy when he called and told her hed followed. She told him to get lost and leave her alone. But he was persistent. Did the call and hang up routine he did with Ms. Rutledge.
Derek had put his phone on speaker so Julie could also hear. He cut his eyes to her when Dodge said that, and she gave him a look of satisfaction.
The girl swore up and down she hadnt seen Billy Duke since she left Nebraska, and when she heard on the news this morning that he was dead, she wasnt sorry. Dodge paused and wheezed a breath.
Did she mention Creighton Wheeler?
Not to my knowledge.
Ask.
Okay. Something else. You ever heard of a movie called
Frenzy?
No. Derek looked at Julie, who shook her head.
Well, I dont know what it signifies, if anything, Dodge said. But a DVD of it was in Dukes duffel bag.
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