A Corpse for Cuamantla (13 page)

Chapter 32

I
nside the library, Miguel reserved the small atelier that housed a large TV and two DVD players, one of which could play Anna's mini DVDs. They signed up for an hour, more time than their tight schedule allowed. Anna settled into one of the heavy Spanish chairs and dug out the disk for Miguel who popped it into the player, both of them anxious to review her shots from the previous day. Miguel suggested they take notes separately, compare their notes then return to the beginning for a second viewing if necessary. She noticed Miguel's hand shaking slightly as he pushed the play button.

The colorful scene unfolded and Anna congratulated herself on her newly developed video skills. The camera panned slowly across the mosaic of the zócalo pausing briefly as Malinche came into view with the small red dot moving down the Tetla road. At that point, the video switched to a shot of Pedro García crossing the street for what would be his last time, entering the fateful rose garden beside the school. A knot formed in Anna's stomach as she watched him disappear around the corner of the school building. An audible groan escaped from Miguel's lips and he reached forward to stop the DVD player.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this, Anna?" he asked, looking distressed. She sat with her head bowed for a few seconds.

"Yes, Miguel. We have no choice." He flipped the switch again and they watched the camera pan the crowd. In the background behind the crowd, Anna noticed Miguel following Pedro into the rose garden, exiting a short time later. She was stunned. She never remembered seeing Miguel in her viewfinder. Why had he neglected to tell her he talked with Pedro behind the school? She didn't know what to say and Miguel never reacted.

Neither of them spoke for the next ten minutes as the video wore on and they took notes. The camera angle changed to show close-ups of Miguel standing at the head of the parade, and this time Anna reached out to stop the player, slightly embarrassed at the amount of time her camera spent on Miguel.

"From here on," she said, "the video concentrates on the parade. I doubt there'll be any information pertinent to Pedro's murder. Should we compare notes now, or review the video again?"

"No need to review it again on my account," Miguel said. "Want to read your list first?"

"Sure. The first person on my list is Yolanda…"

Miguel interrupted her. "I should be the first person on your list. I caught Pedro as he entered the rose garden to tell him we were ready to begin. He asked me to hold off the start for another ten minutes while he attended to a couple of urgent matters. He never said what they were and I didn't think to question him. Even if I had, I doubt he would have told me. I never expected him to spend more than the usual few minutes in the rose garden."

"How come you never mentioned it to me? About seeing Pedro in the rose garden, I mean?"

"I can't really say, Anna, except that with everything going on I didn't think of it until this morning and by then I decided to wait until we saw it on your video. I wasn't trying to hide anything from you, I promise."

Anna tried not to be distressed. She believed Miguel, but a nagging voice in the back of her mind made her regret ignoring David's advice about the duplicate DVDs.  Most of all, however, she regretted the fact that circumstances led her to suspect her two best friends of involvement in Pedro's murder.

"You do believe me, don't you Anna?" Miguel asked, as they continued discussing the names of everyone appearing on Anna's video.

"I do, Miguel," she said, trying to hide any sign of uncertainty, "and for that reason, I think we should omit your name from our suspect list. It doesn't make sense since so many people saw Pedro after you did. Besides, there's no way you could have been the person who broke into my apartment last night, I would have recognized your cologne," she added with a grin.

Miguel smiled at the admission. "Well, I suggest we keep my name on the list, particularly because the police will wonder why we omitted it when they review the video."

"Okay, if you insist," she said, checking over her list. "After Yolanda, I have Tomás Bello. Interesting that he and Yolanda entered the garden together, but Yolanda came out first, quite a bit ahead of Bello."

"I noticed that, also, which raises a number of questions. Was Pedro alive when Yolanda left? If so, what about when Bello left?"

"My questions exactly," she said. "Next, I have three young men, none of whom I recognize. One waits outside while the other two go in, then a short time later, he follows, almost as if he were standing watch. Do you recognize them?"

"Yes," Miguel murmured. "I know two of them, but not the third. He mustn't be from Cuamantla. What disturbs me is that I know these boys well and neither could have murdered Pedro, despite possibly having motive. They're good boys if a little wild at times. The short one is Francisco Sánchez and the good looking one is his soon-to-be brother-in-law, Diego Mejía."

Anna recognized the names, the brother and boyfriend of Olivia Sánchez, the young woman who accused Pedro of fathering her child. She wondered whether Diego and Olivia were married. Legal relationships were often confusing but so were a lot of relationships between the villagers and the laws of the land. "They do meet the two criteria for suspects," she said, "motive and opportunity."

"So now you're a detective, Maestra?"

"Well, don't you agree?" Anna asked in response to his teasing.

"I agree they meet your two criteria, Anna,
but only those two. I know them well and they're not murderers. They come from old respected families in the village. No one will enjoy seeing these boys fall on hard times. The village will protect and defend them, especially in this case where the victim is an outsider the villagers disliked. Pedro made many enemies in his short time in Cuamantla. The barrio leaders may decide that justice was served, especially if these boys come under suspicion." Miguel finished his speech and stared across the room fixing his gaze on the plaster bust resting below the room's one narrow window.

"I can think of at least two possible alternatives," Anna said. "Just because they were the last people to emerge from the rose garden, doesn't mean they were the last ones to see Pedro, or that they murdered him. He could have been dead when they got to him. The video shows them leaving in a hurry looking frightened. You might expect the same reaction if they witnessed the murder happen or encountered a murdered man. I'm afraid the video says nothing about when the murder occurred."

Miguel looked at her with a slight smile. "You should be studying law, Anna." He reached over and removed the DVD. "Are we done here?"

"Yes," she said. "I think the police will be pleased that we've done so much of their work for them."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Anna. They might wish we'd left well enough alone."

Part III. Enter Cortez

Chapter
33

A
nna and Miguel stepped from the athenaeum darkness into the bright sunshine of the bustling Tlaxcala morning. Both adjusted their sunglasses. Miguel held Anna's crutches under his arm.

"Do you want these, Anna?"

"No, thanks. It's easier for me to limp along than try to manipulate those wobbly things." She paused on the top step of the library surveying the city and trying to collect her bearings.  "I remember seeing a police station a few blocks from here. Is that where we're headed?"

"No, that's the city police." Miguel pointed to the hills south of Tlaxcala. "We'll have to take a taxi. The State and Federal police headquarters are up the hill past the University of Tlaxcala main campus, too far to walk. I'll whistle a cab."

By the time they reached the sidewalk a taxi waited. In less than ten minutes they were at the main entrance of the Tlaxcala State Police headquarters checking in with the guard. He asked for identification and whether they had an appointment. Miguel told him they wished to see Comandante Cortez and explained why there was no time to call ahead. The diffident guard pointed them to the sign-in sheet while he called the Comandante's office.

"You're lucky," he said, "the Comandante is in and will see you." He reached for the box of visitor's passes. While they waited for their escort the guard selected two passes, carefully matching the colors of the badges to their clothing, much to Anna's amusement. She hung the turquoise pass around her neck and followed Miguel and their escort down the ramp and across a small courtyard toward a modern white stucco office building. Small citrus trees dotted the courtyard, tempting passersby with their ripe fruit.

"I wonder who gets to eat these grapefruits and oranges," she asked Miguel.

He laughed. "Probably the Regional Commander, or more likely, his wife," he said, causing the guide to turn and smile his agreement. "So, Maestra," Miguel whispered, "I'll be interested to hear your reaction to this experience."

"Are you neglecting to tell me something? That they torture gringas here?"

"I have nothing to say on that score," Miguel paused for effect, "other than the police in Tlaxcala are very amicable, that much I can assure you."

"In other words, I've nothing to worry about."

"That's not what I said, Señorita," Miguel teased, "the police are a friendly bunch, especially when it comes to attractive women with beautiful eyes."

"I think I understand," Anna said, turning over the compliment in her mind as they approached the headquarters building. "I hope you plan to accompany me throughout this interview."

"I do," he assured her, "but Commander Cortez may have other ideas. I'll do what I can."

The thought of sharing yesterday's traumatic events with a complete stranger disagreed with her. Miguel's presence would help her over the rough spots. She hoped the Commander wouldn't dismiss him.

"Perhaps you could be my interpreter," she ventured, "in case the Commander asks to speak with me alone. You could explain that I speak Spanish poorly and in matters of such importance we need to assure an adequate translation." She looked up at him finding it easier to maintain her composure if she avoided looking into his eyes. Instead, she focused on his left cheek, but then her thoughts strayed to his high cheekbones and the beautiful caramel color of his skin. She needed to get a grip on her emotions. Maybe her behavior was some kind of post-traumatic stress syndrome as a result of yesterday's trying events.

Miguel interrupted her daydreams. "Your plan sounds good," he said. "However, you'll need to struggle with the language in your explanations. Try not to forget yourself and begin blurting out your story in rapid-fire Spanish. The police are very good at their jobs. Don't underestimate their relaxed informality."

"I'll remember," she promised. "Also, I think we should point out the fact that you were at my house last night before the break-in. I mean that makes you something of a witness, doesn't it?"

Miguel cocked his head in her direction. "It may make me something of a suspect, or hasn't that occurred to you?"

"It hasn't, because I know you're not a suspect."

"How can you be so sure? Maybe you're too trusting, Maestra. Perhaps you should be more suspicious of everyone. And perhaps such caution might one day save your life."

Chapter
34

I
don't know how I know who to trust, I just do," Anna said, as she and Miguel reached the entrance to Headquarters Building Two. "It's an intuitive thing. I'm a good judge of character."

Miguel left her protest hanging in the air as he reached for the headquarters door. "In case anyone tries to divert us to a different office, we need to insist on seeing Commander José Cortez. I don't know José well, but I‘ve met him and consider him a friend. Besides, we don't have much time. There's a lot to do before we meet in Cuamantla for the trip to Pedro's village. No time to waste, Maestra, even Mexican time." He laughed, teasing her about her obsession with time.

The contemporary architecture of the building lived up to its promise once they entered. Offices with large glass windows lined one side of the room. Staff members worked at their computers in the small carrels scattered about the middle of the room. Almost immediately, a young woman arrived to escort them to the Commander's office where an attractive receptionist greeted Miguel.

I must be wearing my invisibility cloak, Anna thought.

"Yes, Comandante José Cortez is in," the receptionist said. "Please sign in here and I'll tell the Comandante he has visitors." She handed Miguel a guest book and pen, her eyes never leaving him except when he added the name of Maestra
Anna Merino to the visitor roster. The young woman nodded briefly, assessing none to discreetly the status of Anna's third finger, left hand. Anna slid her hand into her jeans pocket to let the impertinent woman know she noticed.

Miguel's eyes followed the receptionist as she sashayed down the office hallway. Her manner turned even more suggestive at the last set of doorways. Anna wondered about the nature of her relationship with the person in the office, presumably Commander Cortez. After speaking briefly to the invisible Commander, she returned with the same air of studied nonchalance, announcing to Miguel that Comandante José Cortez would see them immediately.

"Last door on the right," she added, still addressing Miguel, who thanked her with such saccharin charm Anna half-expected him to kiss her hand. Anna followed Miguel down the hall and into the office, not knowing what to expect. Her first sight of the Commander took her back. He was younger than she expected, and strikingly handsome. With some guilt, she almost regretted insisting that Miguel accompany her for the interview, a thought that struck her funny and she struggled not to smile. Commander Cortez rose as they entered and leaned across his mahogany desk extending a bronzed hand in greeting. His left hand rested on the desk's surface, ring-free, Anna noticed, though meaningless in most of Mexico where married men seldom wore wedding rings.

"Buenos días
,
my friend," he said. "How have you been? And my compadre Felípe, what is he doing this week that's legal?" The Commander smiled broadly as the two men shared a few jokes at Miguel's cousin's expense. Miguel turned to introduce Anna.

"This is my colleague," he said, "Maestra Anna Merino. Anna, Comandante Cortez."

Anna stood scrutinizing the handsome Commander, dismayed at herself for joining the artful receptionist in searching out wedding rings. An unaccustomed shyness crept over her as she tentatively offered her hand to the Commander, transfixed by a most disarming pair of green eyes. More likely she would be complimenting the Commander on his beautiful eyes rather than the other way around, she thought with amusement, wondering if Miguel noticed the Commander holding her hand a bit longer than convention prescribed. Never mind. After Miguel's brazen attentiveness to the sexy receptionist, she wouldn't worry about it.

What possessed her anyway thinking romantic thoughts about Miguel? They were colleagues and friends, nothing more, a conclusion that came easier in the presence of the handsome Commander. Anna chided herself for behaving like a schoolgirl over not one but two men in the space of one short morning, neither of whom were even her type. What was getting into her?