The Mercedes Coffin (37 page)

Melinda blew out air. “Because I felt tremendously guilty. It felt good for a while, and then it felt very dirty. I wasn’t getting any affection at home, but I didn’t care anymore. I just wanted out.”

“Especially after the band stopped giving you spending money,” Decker said.

She turned daggers onto his face. “Yes, especially after the band stopped giving me money. Don’t be so damn smug, Lieutenant. I’ve paid for my sins in more ways than you could count. After it was all over, I was haunted by a lot more than just nightmares.”

“Haunted by what?” Oliver asked. “That Ben would find out?”

“Uh, yeah, that, too. Look, guys, I’m exhausted. I can’t deal with this anymore. You’ve got to go.”

Something clicked inside Decker’s brain. “You weren’t afraid of Ben finding out, you were afraid of the band. And not the entire band, only one member. He was stalking you.”

Tears leaked from Melinda’s eyes. Decker gave Marge a barely perceptible nod.

“Tell us about it, Melinda,” Marge cooed. “Unburden yourself.”

When Melinda finally spoke, her voice was so soft Decker had to lean forward to hear her. “He’d show up as soon as Ben left for work and the kids were in school. And when he wasn’t bothering me in person, he’d phone me ten times a day. He was a big guy. I was terrified.”

Decker said, “You mean Ryan Goldberg. Mudd. He was obsessively in love with you, wasn’t he, Mrs. Warren?”

“He was crazy!”

“And it never occurred to you that he had something to do with your husband’s death?”

“Maybe…” The tears were streaming down her cheeks. “Even if I knew he did it, I wouldn’t have said anything.”

“You were afraid he’d come after you?” Marge asked.

Melinda wiped her eyes. “He was big, he was strong, and he was psycho! He thought I was going to leave my family and run away with him. I was petrified that if I implicated him in Ben’s death or even mentioned him to the police that my sordid past would come out, but even more important, I was scared that Ryan would come back and finish off the kids!”

Decker regarded her flushed face. Yet, he wasn’t totally satisfied. “So you
did
think that Ryan might have done it.”

She dabbed her eyes. “I thought it was a possibility, even though he told me he didn’t do it. He swore that he didn’t lay a finger on Ben.”

Decker said, “So he was still coming around after Ben was murdered?”

“He came a couple of times. That’s when he swore he didn’t do it.”

“And you believed him?”

“I don’t know what I believed,” Melinda said. “All I know is he finally stopped showing up at my doorstep. I had to convince him that if he didn’t leave me alone, the police would think he murdered Ben. I told him that, for his own sake, he had to hide out for a while and that I would contact him when it was safe.”

“And he agreed to that?”

“All I know is he stopped coming around and we never had any more contact.”

“Did you wonder why he stopped seeing you, stopped trying to contact you?” Decker asked her.

“No, I didn’t wonder why. I was just relieved. After Ben died, I was so stunned. I was scared, I was broke, and I was crazed. I had two kids to support, and I had no one to turn to. I suppose that I assumed that Ryan got bored waiting for my phone call and moved on to another woman. He was an easy mark. A little flattery and he’d give you anything he had.”

“He gave you money.”

“He gave me lots of money until the other band members took over his bank account.”

“You were angry at them?” Marge asked.

“Of course. I was furious. But it was the best thing that happened to me. It made me realize how low I’d sunk. I tried to call it quits with Ryan, but then I realized he was in love with me.”

Oliver said, “So why didn’t you just dump him?”

“Because I was afraid he’d say something to Ben. And I felt a little sorry for him… he seemed like a gentle giant until he started showing up at my house ten times a day. Then all pity flew out the window.”

“So you think if anyone murdered Ben, it was Ryan?”

“I don’t know.” She threw up her hands. “It’s over. Ben’s dead. I’ve moved on.”

Decker said, “What was your relationship with Rudy Banks like?”

“It was torrid and it was brief. Rudy was a good-looking guy and a total psychopath. We had an affair and then poof, it ended, which was fine for both of us.”

“Did you know that Rudy was a North Valley student and that he knew your husband?”

Melinda looked confused. “I don’t… I seem to recall him being a local.”

“Rudy didn’t like your husband,” Marge said. “He claimed that your husband got him expelled from high school.”

“News to me,” Melinda said.

Oliver said, “Your husband also busted up Rudy’s drug business.”

“Rudy had a drug business?”

Her surprise seemed real. Decker said, “Rudy sold drugs to North Valley High. He used ghetto kids as runners because they were easy targets. One of his runners was Darnell Arlington. When Darnell got suspended, the whole business collapsed.”

Melinda said, “I didn’t follow what went on in my husband’s school.”

“But you knew Darnell Arlington.”

“I knew that my husband had a special interest in him. And I knew that Darnell had a grudge against Ben when he got expelled. But he had an alibi and that was that.”

“Rudy never mentioned anything about knowing your husband?”

“No, of course not. I wouldn’t have gone with him if he had. When I met him, he was pure punk — lots of drugs, kinky sex, and angry music. He was young, he was really good-looking, he was wild, and for a while, he was very exciting. Then it got boring. When he stopped giving me cash, I hooked up with Mudd, who was very generous. Why else would I have a fling with Ryan? It certainly wasn’t his dashing looks.”

Decker could see the calculated shrew inside the respectable woman. He said, “Where did Liam O’Dell fit into the string?”

“You don’t need to know all the sordid details, okay? It ended with Ryan. I did
not
murder my husband and I
don‘t
know who did!”

Decker raised a finger. “You cheated on your husband. You stole from his bank account. You resented his time away from you and his disinterest sexually. So tell me why I should believe that you had nothing to do with your husband’s murder.”

“How about this!” Melinda snapped back. “The police spent hours checking me out. They checked out my story on the evening of the murder and it was all true. They checked my phone records. They checked my financial records. They checked insurance policies. They checked if I had ever purchased any weapons. If I was cheating on him at the time… which I wasn’t, by the way. I had come to appreciate how much I had. I truly loved Ben.”

She became suddenly angry.

“Look, I’ve been cooperative. I’ve told you everything and I’ve talked without a lawyer. What more do you
want
from me?”

Oliver said, “Really quickly… you were interviewed at the time by Arnie Lamar and Cal Vitton. They’re the ones who cleared you?”

Melinda rolled her eyes. “I don’t know who cleared me, but they were the primary investigators in my husband’s case and, yes, I spoke to both of them many times. If you don’t believe me, go ask them.”

“I can ask Lamar; Vitton is dead.” When she didn’t react, Oliver added, “Suicide.”

She flinched. “When was this?”

“Right when we reopened your husband’s investigation,” Oliver said.

“Interesting timing,” Marge added. “Do you think his suicide might have had something to do with your husband’s demise?”

“How would I know?” She began to tap her foot. “Can we wrap this up?”

Decker said, “Rudy Banks moved out of his apartment about a week ago. Since then, no one has heard boo from him. And his disappearance also neatly coincided with our reopening the case.”

“Didn’t you tell me that you had a witness who implicated him in Ekerling’s murder? Or was that utter bullshit?”

“No, it’s absolutely true. We do have a witness.”

“Then maybe he felt you were closing in on him and he took off.”

“It doesn’t worry you?” Decker asked. “Vitton’s dead and Rudy’s missing?”

She didn’t answer.

“Well, how about this?” Decker said. “Probably one of the reasons that you stopped hearing from Ryan Goldberg is that he had a serious mental collapse. His breakdown was so serious, he underwent shock therapy. I spoke to him a couple of weeks ago. He’s completely decompensated.”

“Did he bring me up?” Melinda asked.

Decker digested the question. Talk about narcissism. Or maybe it was fear. “No.”

“Why’d you go to see him?”

“Initially I went to get some information about Primo Ekerling. Then Rudy went missing and I went back to Ryan for information about Rudy — and to make sure he was okay. Now Ryan appears to be missing as well.”

Melinda’s reaction was slow shock. “
Ryan’s
missing?”

“Maybe he’s lost, maybe he packed out. We can’t locate him.”

She bit her thumbnail. “Should I be worried?” When none of the detectives answered, she cursed out loud. “God, this is just terrific… just fucking terrific! Ekerling is dead and two maniacs are missing plus the police are breathing down my neck. I think it’s time I hired a lawyer!”

“Sure, do that,” Decker said. “And while you’re at it, you might also consider hiring a bodyguard.”

DECKER TOSSED MARGE
the keys to the Crown Vic. “You drive. I need to think.”

No one spoke for the first ten minutes of the ride back to the Valley. Oliver put his hands behind his head, lay back, and closed his eyes. Decker had popped open a can of root beer and was sipping it while reviewing his notes and making diagrams. He said, “Okay, let’s have a go at it. Melinda Little Warren. Lying or not lying about her involvement in her husband’s murder?”

“Even though she is a liar, in this case I vote not lying,” Marge said. “She spoke to us without a lawyer.”

“To play devil’s advocate, maybe she knew that once a lawyer was involved, her current husband would find out about her past and dump her.”

“True, but if she was in real trouble, I don’t think she would hesitate to hire the best legal mouthpiece in the country. She certainly could afford it.”

“Or at least her husband could. How much money does she have on her own? And what if her current husband is like her past husband? What if he holds all the purse strings and she knows he’d be reticent to hire a lawyer to defend her?”

“All true, but the fact that she did speak without a lawyer to me means either she thinks she’s clever enough to beat the system or she doesn’t have anything to do with Ben Little’s murder. Plus she was checked out thoroughly by Vitton and Lamar, and they couldn’t dredge up anything against her except Ben’s insurance policy. I think Ben was worth more to her alive than dead. He allowed her to tap into her trust fund. And, as a woman, I think part of her really liked her husband.”

“Ditto,” Oliver chimed in with his eyes still closed.

“Are you agreeing with him or me?” Marge said.

“You.” Oliver straightened up. “Melinda’s arrogant, and a liar and a thief. She could even be a murderer. But I don’t think she murdered Ben Little. I believe her when she said she had enough of the sex, drugs, and rock and roll. I think she was grateful to get out of the scene with her marriage intact and get rid of those losers.”

Decker said, “You think she was happy in a loveless marriage?”

Marge said, “Some women can deal with passionless marriages, especially if they occasionally get it from an outside source. Melinda seems to me to be one of those.”

Oliver said, “I also don’t think that she set up Ryan Goldberg to murder Ben. She wouldn’t be involved with a loser unless she was planning to whack him afterward. Otherwise he’d be an albatross around her neck.”

Marge said, “I agree with that as well.”

Decker said, “May I remind you two that Goldberg is missing? Maybe she did have him whacked.”

“If she was going to whack him,” Marge said, “she would have done it long ago.”

“Then how about Ryan murdering Ben on his own?” Decker asked.

Marge was noncommittal. “Melinda told us that Goldberg swore he didn’t do it.”

“That’s meaningless.”

“You met Goldberg, Pete. What do you think?”

“At first glance, he seems too compromised mentally to pull off a murder. But like you said, I didn’t know him then, and I don’t know him now. He could be a gentle giant ninety-nine point nine percent of the time. It may be that point one percent that we should be concerned about.”

Oliver made a face. “He stalked Melinda. That’s not a passive guy.”

Marge said, “But he stopped after Ben Little died.”

“That fits with what Liam said about Ryan moving on to someone else,” Decker commented on. “Goldberg was a serial romantic, falling in love with the women he screwed. On the other hand, Mudd had a major breakdown. Maybe his crack-up was precipitated by his murdering Ben Little.”

Oliver said, “And from talking to Melinda, you could tell that she really was frightened by him. So scared that she didn’t even report him to the police.”

Marge said, “Was Ryan so out of it that he could have thought that murdering Ben Little was the only solution to getting Melinda?”

“Maybe,” Decker said. “But if he murdered Ben with the hope of snagging Melinda, why did he suddenly disappear from her life after Little died?”

“How about this?” Oliver said. “Ryan murdered Ben with or without Melinda’s okay. But now she’s stuck. She tells Mudd to lay low. He did, and while he was hiding out, he felt so guilty that he had a breakdown and forgot about Melinda.”

Decker nodded. “Sure, although I’m not certain I see him as a premeditated killer. If he did kill Ben, it was probably heat of the moment or an accident. A hulking guy who’s not aware of his strength in an argument that got out of hand.”

“Like Lenny from
Of Mice and Men,
” Marge said.

Oliver said, “Let me remind everyone that Little was shot execution style in the trunk of his own car.”

“He had help, Scott,” Marge said. “We know Leroy Josephson was involved. Maybe Rudy Banks wanted Little dead and didn’t want to do it himself. He hired out Leroy Josephson but knew that Leroy needed help. That’s where Ryan Goldberg comes in. Rudy puts the two of them together: two men he could manipulate.”