Dead Cold Mysteries Box Set #1: Books 1-4 (A Dead Cold Box Set), Blake Banner [classic children's novels txt] 📗

up at the bureau. I am satisfied that our arms do not belong to Lynda, and if Zak was at the rally killing Lynda, he could not have been somewhere else killing our victim—wherever she was killed. So we can, finally, eliminate Zak from our list.”

“Which brings us back to Peter and Dave.”

She reached in her pocket and pulled out her cell. She scrolled through her address book, selected a number, and dialed. She put it on speaker and put it on the dash. It rang a couple of times, and then a man’s voice said, “Canadian American Chemicals, good afternoon, how may I help you?”

“This is Detective Dehan of the NYPD, 43rd Precinct. I would like to speak to Mr. Richard Chambers, head of sales.”

“Speaking. How can I help you, Detective?”

“We are making some routine inquiries, sir, into an old case, and we are just tying up some loose ends and eliminating people from our investigation. I wonder if you could give me some information about an employee of yours, back in 2005.”

There was a moment’s silence, and then he said, “I doubt we would have records that old readily available. Who is the employee, and what do you want to know?”

“The employee is Peter Smith…”

“Peter?”

“We wanted to know if his work back in 2005 would have taken him to California at all?”

“Why yes, indeed. I don’t need to check the files for that. Peter was instrumental in opening up the west for us, from Los Angeles down to San Diego. 2004, 2005, and 2006 he was there for at least a week every month. He was a tireless worker, highly ambitious. He is a good friend of mine. What is this about, Detective?”

“I wonder if you could send me that information by email. I would be very grateful, Mr. Chambers.” She gave him her email address, and he repeated his question. “As I said, sir, we are just tying up loose ends.”

She hung up and was silent for a while, then exploded, “Son of a bitch! What were they, Stone, accomplices?”

I thought about that. It was one of the questions I had been asking myself. “I think our killer selected his venues with the same care he devoted to everything else. He chose highly populous places where there was plenty of prostitution. There is another possibility.”

“What?”

“That one of them is trying to deflect suspicion onto the other.”

“If that is true, only one of them was going to San Diego and Los Angeles because he had to, and that was Peter. Whereas Dave chose to go, and he continued going after the killings stopped. Plus, the arms could be seen as having been planted in Peter’s unit. Stone, you have to admit, the evidence is just piling up against Dave.”

“Yes, yes it is, Dehan. And I am not opposed to Dave as our prime suspect. I just want to be sure. As of right now, all we have is circumstantial, and I would like some real evidence. I’ll tell you what we are going to do. We are going to visit Peter’s wife, while Peter is out.”

We got back to the station at almost three. When we got out of the car, Dehan said, “Stone, you going to see the captain about Zak?”

“Yeah, why? You want to do something else?”

“I need to do some shopping. It’s just four or five things. I will be less than half an hour. Can I borrow your car?”

I smiled. “Of course.” I threw her the key.

“Thanks, Sensei.”

She climbed back in, and I watched her drive away.

I went to my desk, collected everything in the file that related to Zak, and went to see the captain. I knocked.

A big sigh and then, “Come.”

He was an agreeable guy. He smiled and stood as I stepped in. He shook my hand and invited me to sit. He was in his fifties, with graying temples and an intelligent face. He was a welcome change from Jennifer.

“Stone, of Stone and Dehan. The dynamic duo. Your reputation precedes you both.” He chuckled as though he’d made a joke, then asked, “What can I do for you?”

First I told him about Zak. I put the file on his desk and said, “This all has nothing to do with the cold case we’re conducting, Captain. The crimes involved span at least three states. This belongs to the Feds, and I believe the sheriff of Duchess County is contacting them himself.”

He leafed through it. He had what you could only describe as a twinkle in his eye. “So you cracked this one in your spare time while you were working on mission impossible, huh?”

I was about to explain, but instead I said, “Yes, sir.”

Newman chuckled. “And what about the arms? Do you think you’re close to cracking that?”

“We have two suspects, but all the evidence is circumstantial at this stage.” I outlined how the case stood and said, “I would really like to talk to Mrs. Smith while Peter is out. I’d like to call him to come to the station for an interview and have him wait here for half an hour while we talk to his wife. I want to rattle his cage and also see if she breaks down when he’s not around.”

He thought about it for a moment. “Well, it’s not illegal, as long as she invites you in. And if you think it’s the right way to go, I have great confidence in your abilities.” He glanced at me. “I don’t share Captain Cuevas’s opinion of you, Stone. You may as well know that. But I am keen to see some of these cold cases resolved, and I can’t think of anyone better for the job.” He paused, then glanced at me again. “As you have seen in both of these cases, some of