Faye Kellerman - Blindman’s Bluff

At last he said, “Paco Albanez takes care of the grounds around here. He has a backhoe. I asked him if I could borrow it. He told me it was out of order and asked me why I needed it. When I told him I had to dig a grave for the horses, he said he’d help me dig the hole if I wanted.”

“Anyone else help you dig the hole?”

“Just meself and Paco.”

“How did you decide where to dig the hole?” Decker could see Karns gnashing his teeth together, a big bulge forming along his jawline. “Did someone tell you where to dig?”

“I don’t want any problems, Guv.”

“No problems, Riley. But I do need you to tell me who told you to dig the hole.”

“The mister told me to dig the hole. Joe Pine was on duty that day. He told me where to dig it.”

KARNS WENT BACK to his grooming. When Decker didn’t disappear, he said, “That’s all I know.”

“What you know is a lot, Riley.”

Karns made a point of exhaling loudly. “Why I didn’t want to get into it.”

“Riley, my friend, you are very much into it whether you like it or not. You were one of the first people at the crime scene, and now you tell me that you dug Denny Orlando’s grave-”

“Horseshit!” Karns whirled around, his face flushed and his hands shaking. “I didn’t dig Denny’s grave. I dug a grave for the horses where poor Denny was found.”

“Well, someone dug up that hole for Denny,” Decker snapped back, “and it had to be someone who knew that the grave existed.”

Karns spat on the ground, missing Decker’s shoe by several feet. “I’ve been honest with you and now you’re twisting me words so the murders are me fault or something. I have nothing more to say.”

Decker decided on the cooperative approach. “If you are being honest, then I got a deal for you. Take a lie detector test.”

“Those things are worthless.”

“Not true,” Decker told him. “It’ll only work to your benefit. I can’t use it against you if you don’t pass, but if you do pass, I’ll direct my energies elsewhere.”

“I don’t trust you, Guv. You’ll probably get me to say things I don’t mean.”

“I won’t be giving you the test.” When Karns regarded him, Decker smiled. “And as far as saying things, the questions are yes/ no. It’s hard to put your foot in your mouth with one word answers.”

Karns didn’t answer right away. Though Decker reserved a large sector of his judgment until the facts verified the hunch, his gut feeling told him that Riley wasn’t being deliberately evasive. It was more like Karns had a profound distrust for anything that required electricity.

“How about if I set it up?” Decker said. “If you change your mind, just let me know.”

“I’ll think about it,” Karns answered. “Now I’d like to get back to me business in peace if you don’t mind.”

“Just a few more questions. The animals’ corpses must have been very heavy. You had to have had help to lug them over to the grave.”

“We did the grave first, Guv. Then we put them to sleep near the hole.”

“Ah, that would make sense.”

“You’d know it if you really had horses.”

“I had horses but I never put them down. The vet always did it.”

“Yeah, I figured you wouldn’t get your hands dirty.”

Decker ignored the snide comment. “And you’re sure that you and Paco did all the digging by yourselves? If you’ve been honest until now, don’t go blowing it on a simple question.”

Karns lowered his eyes. “Maybe Pine helped, too. Why don’t you call him up?”

“We can’t find Joe. Any idea where he might be?”

“No, not me.” Back to eye contact. “Go ask Brady. He’s in charge.”

That was Decker’s next step.

THE HEAD OF Kaffey security picked up on the third ring, but the connection was lousy. “I can barely hear you, Lieutenant. Can you text me?”

Decker hated texting. His thumbs were too big for the phone’s keyboard. He pulled the unmarked onto the shoulder just before the entrance to Coyote Ranch’s freeway ramp. “Where are you?”

Static.

“I can’t hear you.”

“What about now? Can you hear me?”

“Better,” Decker said. “Don’t move. Where are you?”

“At the Newport Beach residence. Mace and Gr…(static)…hired me…an eye on the place and, more important, on them.”

Decker wasn’t sure he heard right. Grant continued to trust Neptune Brady even after Gilliam and Guy were murdered under his watch? He said, “I need to talk to you.”

“I can’t leave…(static)…promised…(static)…protect them.”

“You’re breaking up, Mr. Brady.”

“Damn this reception.”

“I heard that.”

“I can’t leave my post, Lieutenant.”

“Then I’ll come out to Newport.”

“I’ll ask Mace and Grant. If it’s…(static)…it’s okay by me. When…(static)…be here?”

“It’ll take me at least a couple of hours.”

“…(static)…bosses don’t mind, how about three?”

“Three would be perfect.”

Brady might have tried to say good-bye, but all Decker heard was the crackle of white noise then silence.

AFTER MARKING THE mug books with Post-its, Rina turned to the first preselected page. “This guy here-Fredrico Ortez-he could be the slighter man of the two.”

Decker said, “Could be or definitely?”

“It’s either this guy or maybe this guy.” She turned to another page. “This man here…Alejandro Brand, the guy with the scar. The two men look alike-at least in the mug shots.”

They did resemble each other-shaved heads, narrow faces, small noses with broad nostrils, thick lips, and deep-set eyes. Under distinguishing marks, both had tattoos of animals: Brand had a snake on his arm, and Ortez sported a dragon on his chest. Other marks included XII and a B12 for Bodega 12th Street.

Rina said, “I thought they might be brothers except they have different last names.”

“Didn’t you tell me that one of the guys had a snake tattoo?”

“I did. Maybe you should take a closer look at Brand?”

“Maybe I will. What about the bigger of the two men?”

“Maybe this guy…” Rina showed him a picture. “Or maybe him or him. I’m less sure about that one.”

She closed the books. “To tell you the truth, after a while everyone begins to look alike. At the time, I could picture them in my head, but things fade. I just gave them a glance.” She shrugged. “Sorry.”

Secretly, Decker was relieved. “You did great. I’ll copy down these names and see if we have any legitimate reason to bring them into the station house. And even if we don’t have anything on them now, these guys are mess-ups. If I tailed them for an hour, I’m sure I could catch them doing something illegal.”

“I could have been more precise if I looked a little harder, but he kept telling me not to stare…the blind guy…Harriman.”

“He used good judgment.”

“I don’t know if I could pick them out of a lineup.”

“You won’t have to. If I can bring in these jokers on something else, I’ll record the interview and send the tapes over to Harriman along with some similar tapes. He told me he could identify the voices. Let’s see if he means it.” Decker closed the mug books and stood up. “I have to go to Newport Beach. It’s a long ride. Want to keep me company?”

“What’s in New-Oh, that’s the Kaffeys’ main house. I suppose I could go look at the art galleries. See if there are any botanical paintings I want to add to our collection.”

Decker frowned. “Two-thirds of the collection is sitting in closets. And we didn’t pay for those. Why would you want more and pay for them?”