“There’s no evidence of him being anywhere else.”
“There’s no evidence of him being anywhere, period.”
“Except the necklace.”
She rolled her eyes.
I said, “The TikTok’s his first post in a year. He’s dumped all his other social media, but he wants the world to see where he is. What’s the significance of that spot? Where’s he headed?”
“Oh, you’re one of those guys.”
“Which guys.”
“Armchair shrink.” She affected a plummy, pompous voice. “ ‘My guiding principle is that the why is more important than the how. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.’ ”
“I take it you’re a how kind of person.”
“All there is, sugar tits,” she said. “Who did what to who, how hard and how long. The rest is Monday-morning quarterbacking. Your wife cheats on you? I’ll sit in my car for nine hours and get you the proof. You want to know what’s in her head, buy a saw.”
“You’re right,” I said. “It’s thin. That’s why I’m here.”
“What do you want from me?”
“Whatever’s not in the file.”
“The file is what’s in the file.”
“You expect me to believe you haven’t thought about it?”
“Sorry, Freud, my compartmentalizing skills are world-class.”
“Did you know that Warren Pezanko is alive?”
She shrugged.
“You knew.”
“Of course I knew.”
“You didn’t put that in the file.”
“I was off the clock,” she said, cramming in the last bite of scone.
“What will it take for you to trust me?”
“You could share your Netflix login.”
“I’m serious.”
“So am I,” she said. She wiped her mouth. “I’ve missed the last two seasons of The Great British Baking Show.”
“How about another scone?”
“Cherry walnut.”
I brought it to her.
“It’s a start,” she said, breaking it in half.
“I’m asking about Pezanko because I think it could be relevant.”
“How?”
She had put down the scone and was paying attention. A turning point?
“Could explain why he’s heading in that direction,” I said. “I think it’s more than theory. The video’s called ‘In the name of the father.’ ”
“It’s a TikTok, for fuck’s sake, not the Bible. And how’s he finding out? Tara never told him the guy’s name.”
“Maybe it wasn’t Nick who found Pezanko. Maybe Pezanko got in touch with him.”
“Same problem. How’s he gonna know where Nick is?”
“I don’t know. I put in a call to the warden at Pelican Bay to see if he’ll talk to me.”
“And?”
“I haven’t heard back yet.”
“You’re a disappointment and a half.”
“All I’m trying to do is avoid reinventing the wheel.”
“Easy for you. I gave you a head start. What’re you going to give me?”
“Gabe Espinoza.”
“The fuck is that?”
“Number thirteen on your list of friends and co-workers.”
“Once again: my legwork.”
“No argument from me.”
She picked at the scone, trying, unsuccessfully, to squash her curiosity. “What’d he say?”
“Nick had a thing for this girl, Naomi Cardenas. She lives here.”
“In Santa Cruz?”
I nodded. “I’m headed over to her next.”
She was quiet for a long time.
“Okay. That’s a good lead.” Begrudging admiration.
“I’m sure you would’ve found her eventually.”
“Don’t you condescend to me.”
“I’m not. I’m rubbing it in your face.”
She laughed. “Get bent.”
“Despite your uncontrollable hostility, I’ll keep you in the loop.”
“No fuckin thank you.” She wiped the crumbs from her hands, shaking her head vehemently. “He’s all yours now.”
Chapter 26
Before leaving the beachfront I made a quick circuit of the neighborhood souvenir shops. Of the many puka shell necklaces for sale, few featured pendants and none of those were a rooster. The shopkeepers claimed they’d never seen or sold anything like it. One guy suggested I try a “real jewelry store.” I asked for recommendations and he told me to google it.
Naomi Cardenas lived on the south side of campus. I loitered by the building entrance, pretending to talk on the phone and catching the lobby door as a resident left.
The roommate who answered my knock had me wait in the hall.
I heard the chain go on.
A moment later Naomi opened the door, peering at me through the crack. “Yes?”
I introduced myself and showed my license. “I wanted to ask you about Nick Moore.”
She flinched slightly; glanced back into the apartment. “One second.”
Taking off the chain, she stepped out into the hall and shut the door behind. She was less glamorous in person but prettier for it, wearing mesh shorts and a tank top and a messy bun. Dark circles under her eyes. Long night at the lab?
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“You know Nick.”
“Sort of.”
“When were you last in touch with him?”
“Is everything okay?”
“His mom hasn’t heard from him. She’s worried. It would help to know how long it’s been since you spoke to him.”
“A year? More.”
“What’s that mean, you ‘sort of’ know him?”
“We went to high school together. But I didn’t know him then, we only met here.”
“How?”
“I was on my way to class and I heard someone calling my name. This guy comes up to me. He’s like, ‘I went to Hoover. You probably don’t remember me.’ ”
“Did you?”
“Kind of? I think I recognized his face. You know what it’s like when you’re out in the world and you run into someone from your hometown. You feel this... bond. Even if you don’t really know them. We were just, like, chatting about places and people. After that we started texting a little.”
“Was there anything romantic between you?”
“With Nick? Nooo. Nooo. Totally platonic. Truthfully, I felt bad for him. He seemed kinda lost. I think he was having trouble meeting people. I invited him to this Halloween party we were having. I didn’t think he’d actually show up.”
“But he did.”
“Yeah. And... Yeah.”
I said, “What happened?”
With another backward glance, Naomi led me down the hall and into the stairwell.
She said, quietly, “He hooked up with my roommate.”
“The one who answered the door?”
Naomi nodded.
“What’s her name?”
She stubbed the concrete with her flip-flop. “I shouldn’t even be telling you this.”
“I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.”
“...Maddie.”
“Maddie what?”
“Zwick.”
“Do you think she’d be willing to talk to me?”
“That’s not a good idea. Her boyfriend’s over right now.”
“Was he her boyfriend at the time?”
“They were broken up when it happened. Plus she was really drunk.”
A door slammed on an upper floor. I waited for the echo to fade. “Did Maddie and Nick have a relationship or was it a onetime deal?”
She touched a fingertip to her lips. “Well, it’s not like they were dating.”
“But?”
“For a while they were hanging out, and he’d stay over sometimes. Then she got back together with Alex. But it became this whole big drama. Nick kept texting her. She blocked him and he started sending her letters. Actual letters, written on paper. Who does that?”