The Cinco de Mayo Murder (25 page)

“Someone was.”

“I want to know.”

“How will you benefit from finding out?”

For a moment, I didn't quite understand his question. “Do you mean will I make money from learning the truth? I won't. I wouldn't try to. All I know is that something terrible happened that day on Picacho Peak and if I can find out what it was, perhaps I can make some good come out of that day.”

“I will tell you one thing today, something you've already guessed. I was on the mountain when Heinz fell.”

“Thank you.”

“I can't say anything—” The line was suddenly silent and I realized his phone or card had run out of time. He had given me one small fact that I already knew, and now I would have to wait to see whether he would ever call again.

I hung up and sat there, wondering if Steve had another phone card, but after a few minutes I pulled my salad over and began to eat again. Steve Millman had made contact and that was surprising and rewarding. Now I had to wait.

Mel called when she got home from school. Both her kids were at activities in town, and she wanted to sit and chat and enjoy the fine weather. I told her to come over and I put the kettle on the stove. Eddie was also doing something at a friend's house, which gave us an hour or so to relax without children present.

We sat at the patio table under the umbrella, feeling a pleasant breeze, and I listened to a tale of Mel's mother, whom I knew, and she listened to an update of my case.

“How did he find you?” Mel asked when I had told her of my call earlier in the day.

“I think I gave him my full name and he knows approximately where I live, so between the Internet and trial and error, he got my number.”

“And he admits to being on the mountain that day.”

“It's not much of an admission, Mel. He's been my main suspect since I found out he lived in Phoenix and dropped out of Rimson after that semester.”

“But he told you a different story last time you spoke. Now he's coming clean.”

“That's what it looks like. I hope there's going to be another call and he'll come cleaner.”

“Why won't he say these things to you in front of that other fellow, the one who took you to lunch?”

“I don't know. I assume Steve is going to implicate him in some way.”

“So this other guy—”

“McHugh.”

“Killed your friend and won't let Steve disclose what he knows.”

“Steve said there was no murder.”

“Sounds like there's more to the story, Chris.”

“This is one story that doesn't seem to have an end.” I poured more tea. “I think it's getting to be time for iced tea.”

“Right. And homemade lemonade. I always use ice cubes made of the tea so it doesn't dilute.”

“Good idea. Jack will appreciate having something tasty in the fridge in hot weather.” I leaned toward the house, thinking I had heard a sound.

“What's up?”

“Thought that was my phone. I don't want to miss Steve if he calls back. If I don't answer, he may give up.”

“He's not going to give up, Chris,” Mel said. “He's made a big decision. It's taken him twenty years to come to this point. He wants to get something off his chest and you're going to be the one who hears it.”

“I'm glad he said there was no murder. I didn't exactly promise not to tell anyone, but I have to go to the police if there's a cause and I don't want to betray a trust.”

“You'll work it out. It won't be the first time.”

If there hadn't been a murder, it had to have been an accident. If it was an accident, I didn't have to give my information to the police. I decided that some argument must have taken place among the three young men on the mountain.
Steve was not the most likable fellow from what I had heard, and Marty had lied to me about the plagiarism to make his story more poignant. It had certainly worked on me, but discovering the lie had turned me completely against him. He had a beef with Steve Millman, and Steve Millman was angry with him. Heinz wanted to hike in the mountains and ended up with two companions who disliked each other. It must have been an unpleasant day to say the least. Which of the two had taken the suitcases? Which had taken the little backpack and returned it in time for the Towers to find it? There were still many unanswered questions.

“He called you?” Jack was astounded. “That's not usual for a killer.”

“He said there was no murder.”

“When did a killer say anything else?”

“If he'd killed Heinz, I hardly think he would call me and talk about it. Something's going on there and he wants to clear his name.”

“By using you.”

“In a way, yes.”

“So that leaves McHugh. Unless there was a real crowd on that mountain.”

I smiled. “Three's enough of a crowd. Can you drink iced coffee tonight?”

“Sounds good.”

“Mel mentioned how to make iced tea, so I brewed a bunch of coffee and froze coffee ice cubes.”

“Sounds like a treat.”

We drank it out of tall crystal glasses that I had inherited from my aunt. I still had some in my glass when the phone rang. It was right beside me so I pressed the button and said hello.

“This is Steve.”

“Yes, Steve.” I saw Jack perk up.

“Do you know who was on the mountain that day?”

“You, Heinz, and Marty McHugh.”

“You knew Marty McHugh was there.”

“I figured it out.”

“You're short one man.”

“There was a fourth man on the hike?”

“Yes. There was one more.”

I had a sudden terrible feeling that the fourth man was Herb Fallon. “Who was he?” I asked.

“It's one of the people you've been talking to. I'm sure he won't admit it. But there were four of us who went up and three of us who came down.”

“Tell me what happened to Heinz's suitcases,” I said, since he didn't seem to want to disclose the fourth name.

“They were in my car because he had stayed at my house, and he wasn't coming back.”

“Where was he going?”

“I think he wanted to go down to Tombstone.”

“How did he plan to get there?”

“He had a ride.”

“With Marty or the other man?”

“With one of them.”

#x201C;So there were two cars.”

“My car and someone else's.”

“I'd like to know who the fourth man was,” I said.

“I'm not ready to tell you. I'm not sure I'll ever be ready.”

“But Marty McHugh knows.”

“He'll never even admit that he was there. And I told you: you say anything to him and that's the end of our conversations.”

“I won't say anything,” I promised again. “But I want to know who the fourth man was.”

The line went dead. I was left with a phone in my hand and an unanswered question hanging in the air.

“You're up to four guys?” Jack asked after I turned the phone off.

“That's what he says.”

“You think he's making this up? It's getting to sound like a party, not a hike in the mountains.”

I told him what Steve had said. “I'm afraid it's Herb Fallon. Some of the things he told me don't agree with what I learned myself. The more I learned on my own, the less often he called. He may be worried that I'm putting together a scenario that includes him. Of course he'll deny being there. And if these three men keep quiet, there's no one else alive who can tell me the truth.”

“But Millman may talk.”

“But why, Jack? If he was partly responsible for Heinz's death, what would motivate him to talk when the others won't?”

“Think about what you just said and maybe you'll come up with an answer.”

I picked up the coffee glasses and took them to the kitchen, where I washed and dried them and put them away. People talked about the blue wall of silence put up by the police department. I felt as though I had just run into a similar wall made of Rimson students. They were all protecting themselves, and in doing so they were protecting one another. Why would Steve Millman break the bond?

I found myself thinking about it as I tried to fall asleep later that night. The three men were on the mountain when Heinz fell. They were horrified when it happened but the slope was too steep to negotiate, as it had been for Joseph and me. Heinz did not move, and the men feared
he was dead or dying. Worse, they knew that if he survived, he would tell a tale that would implicate them in his accident. So they ran, leaving him to die. One of them picked up his backpack and took it along with no thought to whether he would keep it, throw it away, or return it to the site.

In the parking lot they made a pact that none of them would ever tell the story of the accident. Steve Millman drove home in his mother's car. Herb and Marty, who had probably rented a car intending to drive to Tombstone with Heinz, returned the car and flew home. Steve's mother had not expected the guests to return so she asked no questions. Probably Heinz's suitcases were in the Millman car.

It sounded like a good story. I just couldn't figure out why Steve was now speaking out. And I knew I could no longer call Herb Fallon because he would tell Steve or Marty that I knew there were four of them, and Steve might suffer repercussions.

I was so close, but I wasn't there yet. And my lines of communication were now blocked. I was at the mercy of Steve Millman, who might never call back.

The next morning, after my men left, I was trying to make sense of what I knew and what I wished I knew when the phone rang. Steve, I thought, hurrying to pick it up.

“Chris, this is Herb Fallon.”

I felt a moment of panic. “Herb, hi. What's up?”

“Just wanted to tell you. My wife and I are on our way to New Yorkin a couple of hours for a few days of good food, theater, and music. I could meet you for cocktails tomorrow evening if you're available. My wife'll be shopping or recovering
from shopping, so it'll just be you and me. We can talk.”

I knew there was nothing on our calendar, but I felt uncomfortable meeting him alone. “Sure,” I said. “Where were you planning to be?”

“I always like the lobby of the Waldorf-Astoria. I'll get us a table and keep an eye out for you. How's five?”

“Five is fine.”

“You have a cell?”

“No. But I'll be there.”

“Great. Just look for a bully.”

I called Jack when I hung up.

“I'll meet you there,” he said. “At the Lexington Avenue entrance. He'll be on the Park Avenue side. You can go on ahead and I'll keep watch. It's a public place and he's not going to do anything, but I'll feel better if I'm there.”

So would I. “Great. I'll call Elsie.”

“Why don't we make an evening of it? We haven't been out to dinner for a while.”

“That sounds terrific.”

His suggestion made me feel much better. Whatever happened during our meeting, I had dinner with Jack to look forward to. And despite the fact that Herb and I would meet in a very public place, knowing that Jack was nearby made me feel safer. I just had my fingers crossed that no emergency arose in Midtown South that would keep him from getting to the Waldorf by five.

I guessed that this meeting was Herb's way of finding out what I knew and whether I had him on my suspect list. I would have to be careful what I said to keep him thinking he was my number one informant, and not suspect number three.

While I was having lunch, Steve Millman called.

“Sorry for these abrupt conversations,” he said, “but I'm using a phone card and it runs out without warning. You were asking me who the fourth man was when last night's card expired.”

“Yes. I'd like to know.”

“It's someone you've talked to.”

“Did I tell you that?” The truth was, I couldn't remember what I'd told him.

“I don't remember. Marty briefed me at some length before we spoke the first time. His name is in my notes.”

“Will you give it to me?”

“I'm still concerned about retribution.”

“Steve, let's be honest,” I said. “You're calling me. You have something you want to get off your chest.”

“That's true.”

“You said there was no murder.”

“That's true, too. But there might have been.”

“There might have been a murder if what?”

“If things had gone as planned.”

“There was a plan and it wasn't carried out?”

“That's it.”

I kept waiting each time he stopped talking to see if he would elaborate with something more than these brief comments, but he wasn't biting. “Tell me about the plagiarism.”

“I don't want to talk about it.”

“I talked to Professor Addison.”

“How'd you find him?”

“I've done a lot of work, Steve. His name came up.”

“What did he say?”

“That one of you plagiarized the other.”

“He really said that?”

“Steve, I need to know who the fourth man on the mountain was.”

“I'm still thinking about that. There was someone who—
let's just say there was someone I had a justifiable complaint against.”

“And he was on the mountain with you?”

“Yeah. Look, I've gotta go. I'll think about what else I want to tell you.”

I was getting tired of this. If he was making these calls to have some fun at my expense, I would be very annoyed, but how would I know?

When Eddie came home, the weather had turned hot and humid, and I decided we could give the town pool a try. The water might still be cool, but I was aching to do some laps. We changed our clothes and drove over, finding a couple of lounges in a shady place. And then we were off. Eddie was like a fish. He would take his deepend swimming test as soon as I felt he was ready, and from the way he was moving through the water, I thought that would be very soon. Over the weekend, I would get Jack's opinion.