‘Too chancy,’ Friscoe said. ‘He’s sittin’ in there, somebody comes in for a look-see, a prospective tenant, you know. Bingo, he’s made. Too smart for that.’
‘How about somebody who’s out of town?’ Sharky suggested.
‘Sounds like a lot of crap shootin’ to me,’ Friscoe said.
‘No,’ Twigs said, ‘it’s deduction. And that’s what’s going to break this one no matter who handles it. You, D’Agastino, Riley, or whoever.’
‘There’s not enough physical evidence at this point. I agree,’ Barret said.
‘I think,’ said Sharky, ‘it’s time to have a chat with the security man.’
‘Look,’ Friscoe said, ‘if we are gonna do this we can’t even tell the press she’s dead. We can’t even n3tify her next of kin. What the fuck are you going to tell the security man?’
Sharky smiled for the first time since Domino had been killed. ‘I’m goin’ to con him,’ he said. ‘How do you think I stayed alive on the street for eighteen months?’
The security guard was in his office watching an old Randolph Scott movie on television when Sharky appeared at the doorway. He smiled and said, ‘Hi.’
The guard nodded back. ‘Everything copasetic up there?’ he said.
‘Yeah, sure,’ Sharky said. He lit a small cigar. ‘Old Randy was tough, wasn’t he?’
The security guard said, ‘Don’t make ‘em like that anymore,’ without taking his eyes off the screen.
Sharky blew smoke towards the ceiling and decided it was time for a long shot. ‘How long were you a cop?’ he asked.
The guard Looked up, surprised, ‘How’d you know?’ he said.
Sharky took out his wallet and flipped it open, baring his shield.
‘I’ll be a son of a bitch,’ the guard said. ‘You know somethin’? I had a feelin’ all along that story about the elevators was a lot of crap.’ He leaned towards Sharky and said very softly. ‘What in hell’s goin’ on, anyway?’
‘We need to trust you,’ Sharky said. ‘What I’m going to tell you is very confidential.’
‘Hey, I was nineteen years on the College Park force. I’d still be there only I piled up a blue-and-white chasing some goddamn teenagers and almost lost a leg. Had to retire early.’
‘That’s tough,’ Sharky said. ‘What’s your name?
‘Jerry. Jerry Sanford.’
‘This stays between us, right?’
‘Tellin’ Jerry Sanford is Like talkin’ to a grave.’
‘Okay. The boys up there with me, we’re all a special team from burglary. For three weeks now we’ve had a cat burglar working the high rent apartments and condos along Peachtree. He’s very good, driving us up the wall. He always knows exactly what he’s after, who to hit, and who not to hit. He knows when people are out of town. He can pop a double-lock LaGard box easier than opening a can of beans. So far he’s been two feet ahead of us all the way. We figure he’s got to take this place sooner or later,’
‘We got good security,’ Sanford said.
‘He’s hit just as tough.’
‘Yeah?’
‘Believe me, this guy is first rate. He’s into tricks we never heard of.’
‘No shit. What’d you say your name was again?’
‘Sharky.’
‘Tell you, Sharky, Raymond Security is tough.’
‘Here’s the thing. We figure he does a real number before be hits. Checks out the residents. Maybe even has a method for scoring financial statements. He usually hits apartments or condominiums where the tenants are out of town for a while. Business, maybe, r travelling. He might even ca1 ahead, ask questions about the tenants. But very clever.’
‘We don’t tell nobody nothin’ about our occupants.’
‘He’s clever, like I said. Maybe passes himself off as a delivery man. A salesman, like that.’
‘No solicitations in the building.’
‘Maybe a door-to-door thing?’
‘Nobody gets by this desk without we check who they’re going to see and get an okay from the occupant.’
‘How long are you on? What’s your shift?’
‘I’m on two to ten right now. The graveyard man takes over from ten to six in the A.M. Then the early man does six to two. We revolve the shift every six weeks. I been on the evening trick for a month.’
‘How about the other men?’
‘First rate, everybody. I’m telling you, Raymond Security is the best.’
‘And there hasn’t been anyone around? No phone calls?’
‘No, sir.’
‘Nobody suspicious hanging around?’
‘If there was, you’d be the first to know. We’ve had a couple of people looking at apartments, asking about vacancies. The place stays a hundred per cent full. We got four on the waiting list now. The two empties are bein’ renovated. They’re both leased already.’
‘Which ones would they be?’
‘Let’s see, there’s 10-B west and 4-C east.’
‘10-B west?’
‘Yeah. They’re puttin’ in the carpeting now. It goes to an elderly lady. A widow. Very well fixed. The other one goes to a young couple. He’s a doctor.’
‘Anything temporarily vacant? You know, people away on vacation, anything like that?’
‘Sure. But we got the list. Let’s see. There’s the Cliffords, 9-C east. They’re in Florida for the holidays. Go down every year. He’s retired. And then there’s Mrs. Jackowitz. She’s in Hawaii with her daughter. They take a trip every year this time. The daughter’s a travel agent. Mr. Jackowitz passed on about two years ago.’
‘Where’s her apartment?’
‘That would be 12-C in the east tower.’
‘That would face?’
‘West. A and B are on the east side of the building. C and D on the west. Four apartments to the floor.’
‘So the Jackowitz apartment is on the twelfth floor of the east tower facing the west tower?’
‘Right.’
‘And the Cliffords?’
‘9-C, east.’
‘Both apartments face the other tower, right?’
‘Right.’
‘And nobody soliciting, no calls, nothing like that?’ The guard shook his head.
‘Okay, Jerry, thanks. We’ll be in and out for a couple of more days.’
‘You want to stake out one of the empties, it’s okay with me. I got a passkey.’
‘Thanks, we may just take you up on that.’ Sharky started out of the office and brushed against a tall corn plant in the corner, its leaves turning brown at the tips. ‘You’re over- watering your plants,’ he said to Sanford. ‘You can always tell when the leaves turn at the ends like that.’
‘I got the original brown thumb. I already killed one of the Jackowitz plants and two more in here.’
‘You go in the Jackowitz apartment?’
‘Yeah, I water the plants for her. I hate to do It, too. I don’t have the feel for it, know what I mean?’
‘Yeah. When’s the last time you were in there?’
‘Jackowitz? Lessee, it was Sunday. I water them on Sundays.’
‘Thanks. We’ll keep in touch.’
Sharky started to leave and Sanford suddenly snapped his fingers. ‘Hey, I just thought of something. There was a call. I just thought about it when you started talkin’ about those plants. It was. . . uh. . . day before yesterday. He was with some plant store. I’ll think of it here in a minute.’
‘What did he want’?’
‘It was a new service. Plantland, that’s the name of the place. Right up the street. What they do, they water and fertilize plants for people.’
‘Did you tell him anything?’
Sanford chewed on his lower lip fr a moment. ‘What I did — see, I hate takin’ care of the plants, like 1 said. I told him to send them some literature.’
‘Who. Send who?’
‘Everybody in the place. I was afraid, you know, I’d forget if he sent the stuff to me.’
‘Did you tell him the Cliffords and Jackowitz were away?’
‘Uh, well, I told him I was having trouble, y’know. I thought maybe he could gimme a tip or two.’
‘Did you tell him they were out of town?’
‘I didn’t say anything specific. I told him they were potentials, see. Send the stuff direct to them but that it may be a little while before they get baclc.’