“What’s that?”
“You keep your cool.”
“I had an uncle once who used to say he kept his cool, so he would be ready for the time it was his turn to be put on the cooling board.”
“Okay,” he said, his tone telling me that he was through with small talk. “I got a dozen cops on the workers you said were at Warehouse Eighty-Six, Billy Banks and that Drake Simmons guy.”
“You talk to Mildred?”
“Yeah. I sent Anatole over to her house. He thought the same thing you did, so then he brought her down to talk with me. I think she’s got a crush on you, Easy.”
“So, what you need, Mel?”
“Simmons and Banks drove out to a motel near the airport—”
“LAX?” I asked.
“Yeah. They went into a motel room wearing suits and came out in work shirts and jeans. They left the car they drove there and got into a wood-paneled pickup that was already in the parking lot. From there they drove onto the security grounds of the airport and then went into one of the property hangars where they keep the shipments being loaded and unloaded. They came out with three wooden crates on a hand truck and put ’em in the back of the pickup.”
“What was in the crates?”
“Don’t know yet.”
“You don’t? Why not?”
“We’re not workin’ this alone, Easy. There’s four or five other agencies involved.”
“So now you’re followin’ them?”
“Tried to, but because of miscommunication, we lost ’em. Luckily, because of you, we had people at Warehouse Eighty-Six. The truck passed by there and then went to a parking lot a few blocks away.”
“So, you guys are gonna try and catch the people they’re sellin’ to?”
“That’s the idea.”
“And them makin’ all those moves sounds like somethin’ about to happen.”
“It does. But I got the FBI, the CIA, and the Bellflower sheriffs all involved. An operation of that size and complexity is gonna cost a lot. I’d sure like to have some kinda assurance that something’s happening before pushin’ the button on it.”
“Gimme a couple’a hours, Mel. I got to clean up this and that around here first.”
“Sure, Easy. Make sure you say hey to Captain Lonigan for me.”
“You know about that?”
“You askin’ if I know about a shootout at the entrance to the home of the richest woman in California?”
“When you put it like that, I guess you do.”
“You need anything?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Are there gonna be any repercussions for the department?”
“I really don’t know.”
I called Mama Jo’s telephonic sentry, telling him when I would probably be out there. Then, while Kitagawa continued his interrogations, I wandered over to Orchestra’s home.
It was a three-story block of a structure, reminiscent of an office building in a small town in the Midwest. No frills, bright colors, or oversize windows. Everything about her home was pedestrian — except for its size.
A man I didn’t know answered the door. He was white, or, more accurately, a mixture of angry pink and muted gray, what passes for white in the modern world. Whatever color, he was built for battle. His suit was all blue, cut a little loose in case he had to move quickly. There was a bulge under the left breast of the unbuttoned jacket and scars around the knuckles of both hands.
“Yes?” he asked.
“Mr. Rawlins for Miss Solomon.”
The butler I had never met took a moment to digest my request and then stood back and away from the entrance.
Everything about the Solomon house went against my sense of design. The rooms were small and boxy, painted in the passive hues of muted white, ecru, and pale blue. The weave of the carpeting was cut short, and the color was a uniform tan. There were original, almost primitive, paintings of early Americana origin hung at regular intervals and the ceilings were a uniform nine feet from the floor. The furniture was of sleek fifties design and the temperature was neither warm nor cool.
I was led to one of the many sitting rooms that made up the first floor of the home. There, the butler and I came upon Orchestra. She was seated on a blue chair in this chamber, sipping from a long and slim frosted glass that held a green libation.
“Ezekiel,” she greeted, standing up from her chrome-and-maroon cushioned chair.
“Sadie.”
“Would you like a drink?”
“I’d love one, but I have a lot to accomplish today, so no.”
“You may go, Arnold,” she said to the armed butler.
“Yes, ma’am,” he said.
She watched him leave and then said, “Have a seat.”
I took a blue chair near hers.
“This has been a terrible day,” she confided. “I’m only happy that your daughter is away. I’d hate to see Feather affected by all this... this carnage.”
“Look, Sadie, I take complete responsibility for this mess. And I’m willing to move out. The only thing I’d ask is if I could hold on to the lease for Feather. I know she would love to stay. She’ll probably get married one day and have some kids—”
“Don’t be foolish, Ezekiel,” she said, interrupting my well-thought-out spiel. “You are part of our family here. And that Von Crudock monster; no one could predict what he would do. No, you are not leaving. We need you.”
I would have moved out if she wanted me to. I hated having brought violence and bloodshed to our mountain home.
“What do you think of Arnold?” Sadie asked me then.
“Who is he?”
“I have a deal with a private security agency to have staff to fill in, in circumstances like these.”
“But it was hardly two hours ago when it all came down.”
“Erculi had Matteo make the call. That’s part of the deal I have with him and his sons. A new crew came in to cover for those not here. The contract I have with their firm assures immediate replacement.”
“You mean there’s other Arnolds downstairs and at the other posts?”
“Yes.”
“Hm.”
“What are you thinking?” she asked me.
“I don’t know. I’m pretty sure you can trust Erculi and his sons. They live here. But these stand-ins, I mean, they leave here with all your secrets and one day somebody offers ’em a boatload’a money... they might not be able to resist sellin’ you out.”
The mistress of the mountain stared hard at me and then said, “You see? No one else might have said that to me. I’ll have Erculi change things around enough so that we can maintain security.”
“I’m sure he would have done that anyway.”
“You’re probably right,” she said after taking a sip from her gin, sugar, and lime drink. “But the difference is that you explain the problem where Erculi will just make the changes.”
“Yeah,” I said. “I sure hope that Cosmo pulls through.”
Orchestra’s eyes tightened in response.
Detective Kitagawa was coming down the blue-brick path as I was headed for home.
“Mr. Rawlins,” he said out of politeness.
“Detective, you get what you need?”
“I don’t know yet,” he said, wincing a bit as if he were looking into a too-bright light. “It is very strange.”
“You don’t think they were just a gang wantin’ to loot a rich woman’s enclave?”
“I don’t know.”
He waited a moment, blessing this acknowledged ignorance with a short span of silence, nodded once, and then walked on.
A few steps farther on I met Paris Minton. He was scurrying along, looking all around for potential dangers.
“Easy,” he said, unable to hide his nervousness.
“Where you goin’, Paris?”
“I’ma get my ass away from here, brother. Fearless can stay if he want to, but all this violence get on my nerves.”