“Phone calls?”
“Yeah. When you called him, set this meeting up-any chance those calls could have been traced?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“You sure?”
“Absolutely. I called from pay phones.”
“Oh?”
“I was afraid the calls would be traced. I wasn’t taking any chances. I called from pay phones on the street, and never the same ones.”
“And how long were you on the line?”
“What’s the difference? Even if they traced the call, they couldn’t get to where I was.”
“Maybe not, but even so. How long were you on the line?”
“Five minutes tops.”
“Long enough to trace the call.”
“But not to get there. If I’d used the same phone, sure. They trace the call and stake someone out there for when I call again. But I didn’t do that. The phones weren’t even near each other. There’s no way that could have happened.”
Steve sighed. “Great. Nice work. You understand it would be better for us if it could?”
“Yeah, but it’s you and me talkin’ here. And you don’t want some nice theory, you want the facts. Well, those are the facts.”
“Great,” Steve said. “And then we have the little matter of the gun.”
“I can’t understand that.”
“You and me both. How did David Castleton come to get shot with your brother’s gun?”
“I have no idea.”
“What a surprise.”
Kelly opened her mouth to say something. Steve held up his hand. “Look, let’s not go through the same bullshit over this. The fact is, he was. The cops are gonna say you pulled the trigger. Now, how would you have had access to Herbert’s gun?”
“I didn’t.”
“Fine. I know that. But the cops are gonna claim you did. Now, how are they gonna base that claim?”
“They can’t.”
“Did you ever see the gun?”
“Of course not. I didn’t even know he had one.”
“He didn’t tell you?”
“No.”
“You never saw it?”
“No. I told you that.”
“Okay. After you came to New York and you went to see Herbert …”
“Yes?”
“Did you go to his apartment?”
Her eyes faltered. “Oh.”
“Shit.”
“Well, how was I to know?” she said indignantly.
“You weren’t. But here we are. I take it you went there?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“It’s a two-bedroom apartment. Herb was sharing it with this other guy. When Herb went to jail, of course he stopped paying rent. His roommate was pissed off, didn’t want to go it alone, wanted to rent the room. Anyway, the guy was putting all of Herbert’s stuff in storage.”
“So?”
“So I packed for him.”
“Oh, hell.”
“It was the least I could do. Sort through things, make sure nothing got left behind.”
“The roommate knows this?”
“Of course. He was there when I did it.”
“He didn’t watch you all the time, did he?”
“No. Why should he?”
“But he can swear you went through every inch of your brother’s stuff. Which is all the cops will need to convince the jury you would have found the gun.”
“But I didn’t. It wasn’t there. If it was, it was in some box I didn’t open.”
“But it wasn’t.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because if the gun was packed away in storage, it wouldn’t have killed David Castleton. No, there’s only two theories. Either the gun was there and you found it, or it was already gone.”
“It was already gone.”
“So you say. Who would have taken it?”
“I don’t know.”
“What about Herb’s roommate?”
“What about him?”
“He could have taken the gun.”
“Why would he?”
“I don’t know. But he had access to the gun. That makes him as good a suspect as any.”
“But killing David Castleton-why the hell would he do that?”
“I don’t know. Who is he, anyway?”
“Some guy. I don’t even know his name.”
“He work for Castleton Industries?”
“I don’t think so. In fact, no. He’s an actor.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah. I remember now. I didn’t like him. I didn’t like him because Herb told me he was an actor. My husband was an actor and he was a schmuck, and when I heard he was an actor I immediately didn’t like him.”
“Was he a schmuck?”
“Who?”
“The roommate.”
Kelly shrugged. “He was a nice enough guy. But he was an actor and he was throwing Herb out, so why should I like him?”
“I see,” Steve said. He sighed and got up.
“You going?”
“Yeah. It’s real nice talking to you and all that, but the problem is you don’t know anything.” Steve shrugged. “Looks like I’m gonna have to have a talk with your brother.”
21
“She didn’t do it.”
Steve Winslow frowned. He looked through the plexiglass at Herbert Clay, who was sitting opposite him, holding the other telephone. He remembered what Kelly said-dead, defeated. Yeah, that was Herbert Clay all right. But in Steve’s mind it wasn’t just prison. There was something about Herbert Clay that wasn’t quite right. Steve couldn’t put his finger on it. He wasn’t handsome, but he wasn’t ugly. He didn’t look bright, but he didn’t look dull either. He just looked a little off. An inept con man. A sharpie not quite sharp enough to make it.
A loser.
That’s what it was.
Your basic loser.
“Oh yeah?” Steve said. He chuckled and shook his head. “I don’t know what it is with your family, but that’s what they all say.”
“Huh?”
“She says you’re innocent. You say she’s innocent. Big deal.”
“But she is. Kelly wouldn’t hurt anyone.”
“Well that’s reassuring. Great. You’ve made my day.”
Clay frowned. “Hey. What’s with the sarcasm?”
“This may surprise you, but I don’t exactly need you as a character witness.”
“Character witness?”
“Yeah.” Steve gestured around an imaginary courtroom. “And now, Your Honor, I’d like to call Herbert Clay, a convicted embezzler, to testify that in his opinion the defendant, his sister, did not commit the crime.” Steve widened his eyes in mock surprise. “You have that, Mr. Winslow? Why didn’t you say so? Case dismissed.” Steve looked back at Herbert Clay. “See what I mean?”
Clay scowled. “Hey, what the fuck you doin’, man. Whose side you on?”
“I’m on your sister’s side. I’m trying to help her. If you want to help her, you’ll come down to earth and answer my questions. I’ve been talking to you five minutes now, all I hear is what a great girl she is and how she wouldn’t do it. Big deal. Tell me something I want to know.”
Clay’s eyes hardened. “Son of a bitch.” He held up his finger. “Look. I want to help Kelly, but I don’t have to take this shit. A convicted embezzler. Just for your information, I didn’t do it. Maybe that’s what they all say, but in my case it happens to be true. I didn’t do it.”
“Maybe not, but if you weren’t dipping into the till and playing the ponies you wouldn’t have taken the fall. Now I’m not your lawyer. I’m Kelly’s. You want to help her or not?”
Clay glared at him a few moments, then dropped his eyes. “Yeah. Go on.”
“Tell me about the gun.”
Clay shook his head. “I can’t understand that.”
“That makes two of us. Tell me, how did David Castleton get killed with your gun?”
“I have no idea.”
“Well the cops have. Your sister took it and killed him with it. How’s that sound to you?”
“That’s ridiculous. Kelly-”
“-wouldn’t do such a thing,” Steve finished for him. “Right. So who would?”