Hangman (11 page)

H
OPING TO FIND
some quiet time to read Adrianna’s diary cover to cover, Decker had arrived at his desk by seven-fifteen and began sorting through pink message phone slips, most of which could wait but a few needed to be dealt with. There was a call from the coroner regarding Adrianna Blanc, two calls from Kathy Blanc wondering when the body was going to be released, two calls from Melissa McLaughlin, Terry’s half sister, and one call from West L.A. regarding Terry McLaughlin.

He made the LAPD call first, to Detective Eliza Slaughter in Missing Persons, who was handling the case. At this hour, he was lucky to find her at work.

“No body, no car, nothing,” she said. “Where can I get hold of her husband? I’d love to talk with him, and the number I have for him doesn’t work.”

“Do you have a few minutes?” Decker said. “I need to bring you up to speed and give you an idea on what and who you’re working with.”

With questions and answers, the few minutes took twenty.

“Oh my, my,” Eliza said. “That’s a story and a half. This guy is really a hit man?”

“So I’ve been told.”

“So why hasn’t he been caught?”

“He’s excellent at what he does.”

“And you talk to him on a regular basis?”

“Not on regular basis, but we’ve communicated on and off over the years. Like I told you, he was supposed to come in last night and pick up the kid. I don’t know where he is, but somewhere in the future, he’ll contact me or his son or both.”

“This is a little much for me to absorb this early in the morning. You say he owns brothels?”

“He owns some legit ones in Elko, Nevada. He used to have others scattered throughout the States that were illegal. Maybe he’s cashed those in for the legal ones. I haven’t kept track of his business ventures.”

“How’d he get a license to run legit brothels if he’s a felon?”

“It’s all in his wife’s name: one of the reasons why they got married.”

“Should I call up Elko PD?”

“You know, I’ve been thinking about that. If Donatti thinks he’s going to be cornered, he’s gone. My feeling is the best thing to do is wait him out. But it’s your call.”

“What if he killed his wife? Why would he stick around for you to wait him out?”

“He could have killed her, but the fact that he called me back says maybe he didn’t. Did you get a chance to talk to the staff yesterday at the hotel?”

“I talked to the desk clerk and the concierge…hold on, lemme get my file.” It took a few moments. “Harvey Dulapp and Sara Littlejohn. They both knew Terry pretty well since she’s been there for a while.”

Decker took out a notebook. “When was the last time they saw her?”

“Neither one remembers seeing her Sunday. She’s paid up for the
month. Any time you want to go back in the room and look around, that’s not a problem.”

“Did you talk to anyone in the parking lot? Maybe someone remembers seeing her leave…”

“Didn’t get a chance to speak to the valets on duty. There’s also a self-parking area that has an attendant. That’s probably where she left her car. I’d like to go back today and see if anyone remembers her leaving after the kid spoke to her. Wanna meet up at the hotel?”

“I have a big whodunit on my desk. I can make time in the afternoon.”

“That would work. I’m trying to get a time line for Donatti on Sunday. What time did you leave the hotel?”

“Around two-thirty. Chris and I walked together to the lot. I saw him pull out. He was driving a black 2009 Lexus, either a GS 10 or an ES 10. Like an idiot, I didn’t get the license.”

“And he didn’t come back?”

“If he did, Terry didn’t call me up and tell me. But maybe after meeting him and having things go her way, she felt secure enough to meet with him alone.”

“We really need to talk to him, Lieutenant.”

“First we need to find him. He’s a big, big fish, Detective. If we try to reel him in too fast, he’ll break the line and get away. You’ve got to tire him out.”

“Okay, Lieutenant, you’ve not only got the rank, you’ve got the history. I’ll take your word on this one. When would you like to meet at the hotel?”

“How does two in the afternoon sound?”

“It sounds doable. I’ll meet you in the parking lot. I’ll also keep a need-to-locate on Terry’s car. You know, if this guy is the asshole you say he is, maybe she decided to cut out.”

“It’s possible, but I can’t see her leaving her son.” Decker paused. “She definitely wouldn’t leave him in Chris’s possession. I could see her leaving Gabe with me.”

“That may be why you have him now. I’ll see you at two.”

She cut the line and Decker rubbed his temples. Next on tap was
Melissa McLaughlin. She picked up after two rings. “It’s Lieutenant Decker, Melissa. How are you?”

“Nothing about my sister?”

“If I had information, I’d call you right away. She’s still missing.”

“He killed her! I just know it! The bastard finally did it!”

The bastard who has been supporting his sister-in-law for the last four years since Melissa has been living on her own.
Decker could hear her pacing in the background. “Have you heard from Chris?”

“What do you mean?”

“Has he called you?”

“Why would he call me?”

Go slow.
“Melissa, there is a very definite possibility that he killed her. There is also a possibility that he didn’t do it and is looking for her. He might call you for information.”

“What kind of information?”

“Have-you-heard-from-Terry kind of information.”

“Why would I hear from her if he killed her?”

Decker sighed to himself. “Maybe he didn’t kill her. Maybe she disappeared on her own.”

“She would never leave Gabe. She was constantly afraid of what Chris might do to him.”

“Did he abuse Gabe?”

“Not that she told me, but Chris is capable of anything.”

Approach the subject from a different angle.
Decker said, “Melissa, if Terry were to run away—and I’m not saying she did—but if she were to escape, any idea where she might go? Did she have a favorite place where she liked to vacation?”

“Vacation! Hah! The guy wouldn’t let her out of his sight. She had no freedom. Her one stab at freedom was moving out here after he beat the shit out of her. And now she’s gone.”

“So you don’t know of any place or country where she might have escaped to.”

“You’re not hearing me. She wouldn’t leave Gabe…could you excuse me? I’ve got a call on the other line.”

“Sure.” Decker rolled his eyes. Patience. She was just a kid herself.

She came back on a minute later. “Hi. I’ve got to go. Just find the bastard, okay?”

“Okay. If the bastard happens to contact you, can you let me know?”

“If he comes anywhere near my door, I’m calling 911.”

“Probably a good idea. If Terry happens to contact you, let me know as well.”

“If she contacts me, it’ll be during a séance. ’Cause the way I see it, the only way she’s gonna talk to me is from the grave.” She hung up.

Kathy Blanc was next in Decker’s long line of obligations.

“When can we give her a proper burial?” the grieving mother asked.

“I have a call in to the pathologist,” Decker said. “I’ll call you as soon as the release comes through.”

“And when will that be?”

“Not too long. Probably by the end of the week at most.”

“That’s a very long time.”

“I’ll try to speed things up. Thanks for being patient.”

“Do I have a choice?” When Decker didn’t answer, she said, “How is my daughter’s case coming along?”

“We’re going through her friends and acquaintances.”

“What if it wasn’t one of her friends or acquaintances?”

As in a stranger murder.
“We’re exploring everything including the possibility that the crime was done by someone she didn’t know. I’m sending a team out to canvass her apartment complex. Had Adrianna ever complained about someone bothering her…maybe stalking her?”

“Like someone who lived in her complex?”

“Someone who lived in her complex, someone at work, anything like that.”

There was a moment of silence. “I don’t recall her ever mentioning a stalker. But she was a very friendly person. It’s possible that someone mistook her sociability for something deeper.”

“Of course,” Decker said. “Would you happen to know any of her favorite hangouts?”

“She loved movies.”

“How about restaurants?” More like restaurants with bars, but Decker didn’t amend the statement.

“Her friend Crystal worked at Garage downtown. She’d go there sometimes. Also, I know she liked the Marina.”

“How about restaurants closer to work? I know her friend Sela Graydon sometimes goes to Ice.”

“I really don’t know, Lieutenant. We were mother and daughter, not drinking buddies.”

“That’s fine, Mrs. Blanc. I just need to ask. Is there anything else that I can help you with right now?”

“Just find out…when we can pick her up.”

“I will. Call me if you need anything else.”

“I need a lot of things, Lieutenant, but I doubt you can help with any of that.”

MARGE KNOCKED ON
the frame and walked into the open door. She was dressed for summer even though spring had just begun—ecru linen pants, a white blouse, and white sneakers. She plunked a cup of hot coffee on his desk. “For you.”

Decker picked up the mug and sipped without looking up. “Good stuff.” He raked his fingers through his hair and smoothed his mustache and then smiled at his favorite sergeant. “Thanks for the brew.”

“You’re welcome. You look exhausted and it’s only ten in the morning.”

“Catching up on my phone calls.” He pointed to a chair and Marge sat down. “Adrianna died from asphyxiation. But there was nothing on her body other than the ligature marks from the cable wire: no bruises, no scratches, nothing under her fingernails. My opinion? She was drugged or strangled before she was hanged—or both. The cable wire around her neck could have obliterated manual marks.”

“What about the stomach contents?”

“At the time she died, she didn’t have much undigested food. We did test the blood for alcohol and that was negative. There didn’t appear to be any cocaine or pot in her system either. For the more exotic drugs, we’ll have to wait until the lab work comes back.”

“Any evidence of sexual assault?”

“No semen found, but these days our psychos are getting very clever about leaving evidence behind. He could have worn a rubber.”

“Any indication of sexual activity?”

“Nothing forced.”

Marge said, “I have Lee Wang going through old cold cases to see if we have any unsolved hangings. There isn’t anything that pops up.”

“It’s a weird way to die unless it’s suicide or erotic hanging and that’s usually more a guy thing than women. And usually with rope, not with cable wire. Did you find a stool or a box that she could have stood on?”

“Nope,” Marge said. “But there were piles of lumber around her feet. I tell you what I did find. The cable company called back. They claim that no one was in the area yesterday.”

“That’s sucks. Where are we on locating Aaron Otis?”

“Funny you should ask.”

Decker sat up. “You found him?”

“He finally decided to clear his mailbox. I just got off the phone with him.”

“So what’s going on?”

“Aaron actually talked to Adrianna on the phone and—according to Aaron—this is what she told him.” Marge turned to her notes. “He said that Adrianna told him—Aaron—to give Garth a message. The message was—and I quote—that he could fuck himself. Adrianna then went on to say that she was tired of giving him money that he spent on vacations without her. She also said that Garth shouldn’t bother calling her back now or ever. She would just hang up on him. When Aaron offered to give the phone to Garth, she did hang up. The conversation, according to him, lasted about two minutes. According to the records, it was two minutes fifty-two seconds.”

Decker thought a moment. “If she wanted to break up with Garth, why not call Garth?”

“I don’t know, Pete. Aaron felt that maybe she was using him as a messenger of bad news.”

“Did he give Garth the message?”

“He did, and this is where it gets interesting.”

“Go on.”

“The boys were supposed to go on a weeklong river-rafting trip. But they decided to shorten it to five days and spend a few days in Reno for some R and R.”

“So that squares with what Crystal told you last night.”

“It does. Aaron got Adrianna’s phone call a few hours before they were supposed to leave for the rafting trip—at about eight in the morning.”

“That also squares with the records.”

“At first, Aaron didn’t tell Garth right away because he figured…” She flipped through her notes. “And again, I quote, ‘Why ruin the dude’s good time?’ But then he thought it over and figured it was better to tell him before the trip in case he wanted to call Adrianna. Once they got deep in the mountains, their cells wouldn’t work.”

“And?”

“Garth’s reaction was unexpected. ‘The dude flipped out!’ was what he told me. He immediately wanted to go back to L.A. But the other guys didn’t want to go back. They had planned the vacation for a while and tried to convince Garth to come along. But he was adamant about returning home. Garth’s reaction shocked Aaron. They’ve been friends for a long time and he really didn’t think that Garth cared that much about Adrianna.”

“Okay. So what did he do?”

“According to Aaron, Garth packed up on the spot and left in a taxi to go to the airport.”

“So Aaron thinks that Garth came back to L.A.?”

“That was Garth’s plan.”

“Does Aaron know what time it was when Garth left?”

“He thinks around nine in the morning. Aaron and Greg packed
their car and left for the mountains about an hour later. Within a few hours, their cells were out of range, so he wasn’t answering the phone.”

“So that was around…noon, maybe one in the afternoon?”

“Something like that,” Marge said. “When they got finally got to the spot where they were supposed to camp, they both realized that the river was really swollen. Plus, it was bitter cold. They changed their minds about rafting. They camped overnight and decided to go back to Reno. As soon as his phone was in range, Aaron checked his messages. So did Greg. They found out about Adrianna roughly the same time because everyone was calling them. They freaked. Aaron was especially scared because he got a call from us—the police. They’ve both tried to call Garth, but he hasn’t been picking up his cell or his house phone. Aaron says he’s in total shock about the murder.”