Jonathan Kellerman - Heartbreak Hotel

“Back into munis with some left over for charity. And charity’s where her entire estate is bound, as you’ll see when you read that.”

I said, “Where she was born?”

“Somewhere in the Midwest — Missouri, I think.”

“My home state.”

Ricki Sylvester said, “You’re a show-me guy? I guess that would be helpful for a psychologist. What exactly do you do for the police?”

Milo said, “He has an interesting brain and we like to tap it. So no idea at all about Thalia’s roots?”

“Lieutenant, asking the same question repeatedly won’t change the answer.”

“Got it, ma’am. It’s just that knowing the victim is a big part of closing a case and after all these years, I was wondering if something slipped out.”

Ricki Sylvester drew a triangle on the pitcher. “Let me clarify my relationship with Thalia. I adored her and I believe she liked me. But we didn’t interact much. With some clients, you need to adopt a more hands-on approach, get involved in their personal lives. Some even want you hovering. Not Thalia, she glided along just fine.”

Her lips trembled. “Until now. Who would do such a thing? And what exactly happened? All you said over the phone was you suspected an unnatural death.”

“Can’t discuss details, yet. I can tell you there wasn’t any significant pain involved.”

“Significant? So there was some?”

“No reason to think there was any,” he said.

“Well, that’s a relief.”

“How about her social life?”

“I wasn’t aware that she had one,” she said. “But as I said, our face-to-face contacts were infrequent. There wasn’t much to do on her estate, period. She never mentioned friends or acquaintances. She used to travel but stopped. Had no interest in joining clubs or associations. She told me so in no uncertain terms when I suggested she might want to get out once in a while.”

“When was that?”

“Years ago... around ten?”

“You were concerned about her.”

“As I said, I rarely saw her but when I did I was taken by how much time she seemed to spend in her suite. Lying like a pixie queen in that giant bed of hers, going nowhere other than walking from her bungalow to the front desk and back. It wasn’t always that way, she used to take luxury cruises all over the world. Then she just stopped. When she turned ninety — I guess it was exactly ten years ago.”

“Any idea why she stopped?”

“She said she’d seen everything she wanted to see.”

I said, “Did she cruise alone?”

“Always. Booked a cheap room, said it made no difference for sleeping.”

“People can make friends when they travel.”

“Are you asking if she met a silver fox at sea and recreated a bit? It’s a nice thought.” She coiled her eyeglass chain around a finger. “But as far as I know, no lasting relationships developed.”

Milo said, “No man’s an island but Thalia was.”

Ricki Sylvester shook her head. “I get where you’re going with these questions: Did someone she know end her life? I just don’t see it. Yes, Thalia was basically a loner, but not in the sense of being timid or antisocial. Just the opposite, she was friendly, had a great sense of humor. She simply preferred her own company. So why not investigate other avenues, Lieutenant? What would stop some burglar or random nut from breaking into her bungalow? She did keep cash for tips and whatever and if you don’t find it, there’s your motive.”

“Anything else that might’ve attracted a burglar?”

“There was some jewelry — diamond earrings, a ring set with a gigantic amethyst. It’s a semi-precious stone but one of those junkie lowlifes would go for anything flashy, right?”

Her eyes rounded. “I just thought of something. A few years ago she ditched her old TV and bought a humongous flat-screen. She was quite proud of it. If that’s gone—”

Milo said, “It’s still there, Ricki, and so is the ring and her cash.”

“Then I don’t know what to tell you.”

“Which charities get her money?”

“The primary recipient is that children’s hospital, Western Pediatric. Helping kids was her priority, everything else goes to agencies who work with them.”

Milo tapped the file. “You’re her executor.”

“I am indeed and have been paid well for such, as you’ll see from my bills. From here on, I’m going to do it pro bono because the estate’s so simple. No liens or debts, no squabbling claimants, no estate tax. So why shortchange sick kids? Now, if there’s nothing more, I do have some more complicated clients to tend to.”

“Just a few more questions, if you don’t mind.”

Forced smile. “Sure.”

“Why did Thalia choose to live in a hotel?”

“Good question, I haven’t a clue. I asked her about it once. She said it was what she preferred.”

I said, “With her experiences as real estate investor, why not buy a condo where she could build up some equity?”

“Maybe that was the point. She’d spent her entire life working and wanted to kick back and not worry about investing. If you’re suggesting she put herself in danger by living there, that really upsets me. Because I admit, it concerned me, that bungalow of hers was so secluded and she was finding it harder and harder to get around. A couple of times I arrived after dark and I found it downright spooky — oh, no, do you suspect someone on the staff ?”

Milo said, “We have no leads at all. Did anyone on the staff give you a bad feeling?”

“No, but I felt there wasn’t much in the way of security — no alarms, no cameras, and there were times when I showed up and both doors were unlocked — the porch and the main one. Now, it’s true Thalia had been expecting me, but still. I said something and she pooh-poohed it. With Thalia you didn’t nag.”

“Strong-willed.”

“Titanium-willed. It seemed to be working for her. Now if—”

I said, “You didn’t see her often but when you did it was face-to-face.”

She flushed. “Precisely. Quality, not quantity. I felt Thalia deserved it. She was such a doll, I never believed anything like this could happen.”

“Despite the lack of security.”

She blinked. “I should’ve insisted?”

“Sounds like it wouldn’t have mattered.”

“No, it wouldn’t.” Her shoulders rose and fell. Her eyelids fluttered. She sniffed, twisted her nose as if working to suppress a sneeze. Grabbed a tissue, covered her eyes and whatever face remained below.

When she looked up, a sick smile had taken over. “I believe we’ve touched all bases. I really must get back to work.”

We breezed past Jared, drinking his own tea.

In the elevator, Milo said, “Eleven-million-dollar estate, per her. What if it was actually more and Thalia found out?”

“Embezzlement?”

“Or just egregious overbilling.”

“Thalia doesn’t sound like someone you could con.”

“Again, per Sylvester. Thalia discovering she’d been conned fits that chat she had with you. Not a felonious relative, a lawyer she’d trusted for years. Yeah, it’s cynical. Then again, I just saw an old lady being carted away.”

The elevator door rattled open.

As we walked through the parking tier, Milo said, “Let’s see what the money guy — Manucci — has to say.” He scrolled to the broker’s number. “Dead zone, no bars.”

A few steps later, he tried again. “Here we go... voicemail. Guess bankers do keep bankers’ hours.”

I said, “Meanwhile you could check the bar association for complaints against Sylvester.”

He ran the search right there, frowned. “Nope, clean. I’m heading back to the hotel, bug DeGraw about that employee list. I also want to talk to whoever passes for security.”