“The four of them,” he said, “total pros. But they’re doing a girls’ night out when Doug comes in. Meagin likes younger guys so they kid her. She says watch me and picks him up. Then she finds out who he is and takes it to the next level.”
He hummed the wedding march.
I said, “Doug’s personality would’ve made him a dream match for Meagin if she’d already been traumatized by a possessive, controlling guy. He’s young, inexperienced, distant, and asocial to the point of being uncurious about people. Even better, he was gone nearly all the time, giving her freedom to do what she pleased.”
“Woman on the run finds her bliss,” he said.
“Until someone caught up with her.”
He drove me home and said, “Sure, why not, thanks,” when I offered coffee. As it brewed, he sat at the kitchen table, made no move toward the fridge.
Distracted. Defeated.
When I pulled out bread and eggs and milk and began whipping up French toast, he said, “Maybe some of that,” but with no passion.
Blanche had been napping in her crate with the door left open. She knows the ropes and as we ate, she lingered near his cuffs and scored occasional tidbits.
When he finished his sixth slice, he sat back, rubbed her head, and said, “Thanks for the blood sugar.”
Two cups later: “One thing I figured was taken care of was a nice easy victim I.D. Turns out hers was phony. You really think Doug has no idea about her past?”
I said, “Real estate, real estate, and real estate.”
“Guess so... he impresses me as one of those kids who got bullied in school, now one of the popular girls finally paid attention. But marrying her still seems crazy careless, Alex. All that money? So maybe he did do some research, didn’t like what he learned, decided to end the relationship with no way for her to walk away with any of his bucks.”
“Either way,” I said, “it puts the focus back on Meagin as the primary target.”
“Gio was collateral damage.”
“That would be my bet.”
“So where do I go with it?”
“I’d talk to the people who saw her every day.”
“The maids.”
“The help sees and hears all sorts of things. And some employers confide in them. Alone in a big house, even a woman escaping her past could’ve opened up. I just saw Irma Ruiz and she was definitely antsy.”
“Making her my target,” said Milo. “Let’s go.”
Chapter 22
A bell-push at the March estate produced silence. Same for the second time. The third, fourth, and fifth.
I said, “Privacy, the ultimate luxury.”
Milo said, “The ultimate pain in the ass for a truth-seeker.”
He jabbed two more times. No answer. “She was edgy, huh? Maybe for good reason so she split.” Another push. Nothing. “But what about the other one — Adelita? They both cut out?”
“Fear can be contagious.”
“If they’re scared of a guy with March’s resources, hiding out’s not gonna cut it for very long.” He peered through the gate pickets. “Now what?”
“You could try talking to him,” I said. “See how he reacts to his employees being gone.”
“If he’s what they’re scared of, I’m giving him a heads-up.”
“Like you said, if he wants to find them, hiding from him will be futile. And letting him know you’re aware of their absence could help them.”
He thought about that. Pushed the button again. Cursed and yanked out his phone.
Doug March said, “What?”
“How’s it going, sir?”
“You’re not calling because you care about me. What do you want?”
“You’re out of town.”
“Columbus, Ohio,” said March. “If you must know. The Hotel LeVeque, would you like my room number? My in-room breakfast order?”
“Not necessary, sir.”
“Then why bring it up?”
“Sorry if I’m irritating you, Mr. March. I am investigating your wife’s murder.”
“Any progress on that?”
“Nothing dramatic.”
Doug March said, “In other words, you’ve got nothing. Well, that’s not going to change by talking to me. I’ve told you everything I know about my wife, which is apparently very little. In the last analysis, my ignorance is my own fault. My due diligence on properties is way better than my research on her. Which was nothing.”
Prolonged, breathy laugh. The kind of sound effect you’d get at a carnival haunted house.
March said, “My ignorance was fine with her, for obvious reasons. Looking back, she encouraged it. The few times I brought up the past, her family, she’d distract me. Getting what my mom used to call kittenish.”
Milo said, “The reason I called is I wanted to talk to your housekeepers. I’m here in front of your house but neither of them answers the gate button.”
A beat.
Doug March said, “Without someone around, they’re probably slacking off. For all I know, they’re swimming in the pool. Hold on.”
Half a minute passed before he came back on. “I tried their cellphones, can’t get through either. Maybe they went somewhere to stuff their faces. Even though we keep plenty of food around for them.”
Milo said, “Could you give me those numbers, please?”
“Hold on. Here we go. The first one’s for the old one — Irma. The second’s her niece’s, don’t remember her name.” He read off the numbers.
“Thanks. Do you have home addresses for them?”
“Why would I? They live with us,” said March.
“You hired them—”
“She hired them. One of her few domestic accomplishments, I don’t bother with stupid stuff. Okay? Can I attend to business?”
Milo said, “I have to ask: have you thought of anything since we last spoke?”
“I’ve thought about lots of things,” said March. “I’m always thinking, my brain’s active. But none of it’s been about her. The less I think about her, the better.”
“Okay.”
“Do I sound irate, Lieutenant? You bet. The more I thought about what she did, how she played me for an idiot, the more irate I got. At some point I’m going to have to tell my parents and that will not be enjoyable.”
“They didn’t approve of Meagin.”
“Ha. They warned me about her, told me she was too nice. Told me someone who shied away from talking about her past had something to hide. And guess who was right? I do not like the taste of crow, Lieutenant.”
Milo said, “Who does?”
“That’s neither here nor there,” said March. “I am not some clueless moron, I deal with people all the time. Then I go and marry a person who’s a flat-out, fucking liar and a cheat? So yeah, I’m angry and I don’t care if you know that because I had nothing to do with what happened to her. And that Mafia scumbag. Nor do I care to learn about what happened because I’m wiping this phase of my life clean and moving on and the next time, if there is one, I’ll be smarter.”
Long speech; it left him panting.
Milo said, “Got it, sir.”
“Oh, bullshit,” said Doug March. “You’re just patronizing me like I’m one of your idiot suspects. That’s how you make your living. Catching stupid people.”
Click.
Milo stared at the phone as if waiting for it to ignite. “No way I can deal with smart people? Was that a dare?”
“More like a tantrum,” I said. “If he was guilty, the last thing he’d want to show you was rage.”
“Unless he really does think I am that dense. Or he’s so weird — what you said, asocial — that he can’t handle his rage.”
“For all his quirks, I think he’s too smart to incriminate himself that blatantly.”