Jonathan Kellerman - Therapy

“Sign my name to some therapy forms. Also, to pinpoint good candidates.”

“Meaning?”

“Druggies, losers, guys who wouldn’t give problems.” Hacker smiled. “She was a businesswoman.”

Milo said, “She owned the halfway houses in partnership, with her ex.”

“So?”

“What about him?”

“Fat boy? He owned the houses, but he had nothing to do with it.”

Zevonsky said, “You’re sure you want to go on record saying that?”

“I’m on record because it’s true. Why would I lie to you?” Puff puff. “Hell, if I could bring someone else into this, I would. Spread the wealth, do myself some more good.”

“Maybe you’d lie just for the fun of it?” said Milo.

“This isn’t fun,” said Hacker. “This isn’t anything near fun.”

“What about Jerome Quick?” said Milo.

“Again with that? The only Quick I know is Gavin, and I already told you about him. Who’s Jerry, the kid’s brother?”

I already told you about him.

Recounting it coldly. Gavin snooping around the building after hours, seeing scruffy men filing in and out for five-minute visits, overhearing things. Conversations about billing.

Gavin, the brain-injured would-be investigative reporter, stumbling upon a real story. And dying because of it.

“Crazy idiot,” said Hacker.

“Crazy idiot because he snooped,” said Milo.

“And opened up his big yap. He went and told Koppel about his suspicions. During therapy. He’d never seen her with the cons, so I guess he assumed she wasn’t in on it. She told Larsen, said she’d handle it. Larsen didn’t believe her, had Ray handle it.”

Confidentiality.

Milo said, “Who did Gavin see with the cons?”

“Ray and Larsen.”

“Aren’t you leaving something out?” said Dwight Zevonsky.

Hacker smoked and nodded. “I was occasionally there. Mostly, my job was getting names, making sure the cons were stable.”

“Passing out bribes,” said Zevonsky.

“Whatever.”

Milo said, “Did Koppel know Gavin was going to be whacked?”

“No,” said Hacker. “Like I said, she thought she could handle it.”

“Larsen didn’t believe her.”

“Larsen didn’t want to wait.”

“So he called Ray.”

“Ray had done it before.”

“Killed for Larsen?”

“No, for himself.”

“Who?”

“Guys in prison.”

“What about another woman?”

Pause. “Maybe that, too.”

“Maybe?” said Milo.

“I don’t know for sure. Ray implied it. Said when women put him down they were gonna get stuck with the tab. When he said it, he was playing with a knife. Cleaning his nails.”

“Get stuck. He used those words.”

“It was a… figure of speech with him. When someone went down they were stuck with the tab. Ray could be generous. When we partied, he’d give women whatever they wanted. Long as they didn’t disappoint him.”

“Disappoint him, how?”

“By not doing what he wanted.”

“Bossy fellow,” said Milo.

“He could be,” said Hacker.

“So Koppel wasn’t in on Gavin’s murder.”

“I told you. No. When she found out, figured out what happened, she went nuts. Threatened to shut the whole thing down. Larsen tried to calm her down, but she was pretty upset. I think what bugged her the most was that one of her patients had been whacked. She took that personally.”

“So Ray whacked her, too.”

Hacker nodded.

“He told you he was gonna do it. Told you about Gavin, too.”

“Uh-uh, no way. If he told me, I would’ve tried to stop it.”

“Being an upright guy and all that,” said Milo.

“Hey,” said Hacker, winking. “I used to be his PO.”

“What about Christina Marsh?”

“She partied with us, a slut, Ray was fucking her. She was a stripper, and he liked her ’cause she was stupid and had a tight body. He bought her expensive stuff.”

“Like what?”

“Clothes, perfume. Like I said, Ray could be generous.”

“All the money you were making, he could afford to be.”

“It ran through his fingers,” said Hacker. “Typical con.”

“Ray buy Christina shoes?”

“Wouldn’t surprise me.”

“He liked her.”

“He liked what she did for him.”

“Until…”

“Until what?” said Hacker.

“She was also up there on Mulholland, Bennett.”

“True,” said Hacker.

“This is full disclosure? The deal can be turned around.”

Hacker pushed his glasses up his nose. “The deal’s already inked.”

“You keep twisting things to put yourself out of the picture, we’ll tear up the papers and send you over for a 187 prosecution.”

“I’m putting myself out of the picture because I wasn’t in that picture,” said Hacker. “In the Sentries picture, yes. The help-with-the-paperwork picture, yes. But not the up-on-Mulholland picture.”

“You knew Ray was going to whack Gavin.”

“He never came out and said so.”

“He hinted,” said Milo. “Said someone was gonna get stuck with the tab.”

Hacker hesitated. Nodded.

“He told you about it, afterward.”

“Who says?”

“You were roommates.”

“We weren’t asshole buddies.”

Milo mimed tearing up a sheet of paper.

Hacker said, “What he said was, ‘I solved our problem.’ I didn’t ask. Later, a couple of days later, we were getting high in the apartment and he was feeling good and he told me the details. Said it went down easy, the kid was surprised, he didn’t put up any resistance.”

“Why’d he kill Christina Marsh?”

“ ’Cause she was there.”

“Any other motivation?”

“He said she irritated him by being with the kid.”

“Irritated.”

“That’s the word he used. Ray had a way… using little words for big feelings. I know for a fact that Christi irritated him other times, too, because he told me.”

“What’d she do?”

“It’s what she didn’t do. Not being there when Ray wanted her to be. One time, he scored some high-class coke, wanted to party with her, and she wasn’t available. Then she did that again. Said she was busy. Ray didn’t like being told no.”

“How’d Ray meet Christi?”

“Some bar,” said Hacker. “He picked her up.”

“A bar where?”

“Playa Del Rey. The Whale Watch. It’s a place we went a lot.”

“Christi was there,” said Milo.

“Right there,” said Hacker. “Ripe for the picking- Ray’s words.”

“You party with her, too?”

Hacker laughed and smoked, shoved his glasses up again, took them off, and said, “I need a smaller size of these.”

Milo said, “You party with Christi Marsh, Bennett?”

“Not quite.”

“Why’s that?”

“Ray wasn’t into sharing.”

“Ray ever talk about someone named Flora Newsome?”

“Her?” said Hacker, surprised. “Yeah, I knew Flora; she temped at an office where I worked.”

“Ray come into that office?”

“Yeah,” said Hacker. “As a matter of fact, Ray knew her, too. They dated for a while.”

“As a matter of fact,” said Milo.

“Why? What’s she got to do with anything?”

“She got stuck with the check.”

Hacker’s myopic eyes bugged. “You’re kidding.”

“You didn’t know?”

“I transferred out of that office- it was a satellite- after maybe two weeks. Flora? I liked her. Nice girl, quiet. I thought about dating her myself, but then Ray started with her.”

“And Ray didn’t like to share.”

“He did her?”

“Oh, yeah,” said Milo.

“Too bad,” said Hacker. His voice had dropped; he looked as if he meant it.