Short Straw Read online

  "Expecting somebody else?" Vittorio asked, dumping his carry-on in a corner and taking the chair in the corner.

  "I wouldn't put it past Mrs. Ed Eagle to track me down and take another shot at me."

  "Tell me about it."

  "I followed her out of her hotel and around the corner and into an alley. When I spoke to her, she turned around and fired a round at me, then walked away, as calm as you please."

  "What kind of round?"

  "A.25, I think; something small." He pointed at where the bullet went in. "Went all the way through."

  "Weren't you carrying?"

  "Not at the time. Since then a bellhop found me a guy who found me a Sig P-239." He poured himself a glass of water from the bedside jug and popped a pill.

  "What's that?"

  "Percodan."

  Vittorio nodded at the tequila bottle. "You're mixing it with that?"

  "It hurts like a son of a bitch," Cupie explained.

  "You're going to be useless until you're off that combination for twenty-four hours. Tell me what you know while you can still move your lips."

  "I got friendly with the desk clerk at Mrs. Eagle's hotel, and he told me she checked out and took a cab to the airport, to the terminal for an airline called Aerolitoral."

  Vittorio nodded. "Regional carrier; Mexico only. Where'd she go?"

  "That was my next move," Cupie said, "but I been busy. Eagle says she likes Puerto Vallarta; why don't you check it out?"

  "Tomorrow," Vittorio said. "This place got any more rooms?"

  "There's the phone," Cupie said, nodding, "or you can have the other bed here; I don't really give a shit. I'm going to get some sleep." He lay down on the bed and pulled the covers up.

  "I'm going to get some dinner and a room," Vittorio said, tossing a card onto the bed. "There's my cell number. Tomorrow morning, early, I'm going to start tracking the lady. If you want to tag along, be downstairs, sober and wide awake, at seven a.m."

  "Pass," Cupie said, snuggling in. "I'll catch up with you in, maybe, another day."

  "Good night," Vittorio said, picking up his bag and letting himself out.

  "Yeah, whatever," Cupie called back.

  Vittorio was happy that Cupie didn't want to go along. He wanted to wrap up this lady quickly, then get in some beach time.

  Ten

  AS EAGLE WALKED INTO HIS OFFICE, HIS SECRETARY flagged him down. "A Mr. Morales returned your call: he says that Joe Big Bear was at his house fixing his car between one-thirty and four-fifteen last Wednesday. I asked him if he was sure, and he said, yes, he could see him out the window. Mr. Big Bear was working on his car in the driveway the whole time."

  "Get him for me, will you?"

  "He's left town for a week, but I asked him if he'd be willing to testify to that in court, and he said yes."

  Eagle went into his office and called Bob Martinez, the district attorney for Santa Fe County.

  "Morning, Ed."

  "Morning, Bob. You all right?"

  "Can't complain."

  "Judge O'Hara laid the Joe Big Bear case on me Friday afternoon."

  "I guess you'll want the lab reports and the detectives' notes."

  "I don't think I'll need them."

  "Oh, yeah? You want to plead him to three counts of first-degree?"

  "Nope. You know, I really can't believe that the cops could do such a lousy investigation on a triple homicide."

  "What are you talking about?"

  "Big Bear told them he was working all day, didn't he?"

  "Yeah, but so what? If I'd just done three people, I'd say something like that, too."

  "Of course you would, Bob, but in Big Bear's case, he can prove it."

  "How's he gonna do that? He got some friends to give him an alibi, maybe?"

  "No, he worked all morning on a perfect stranger's car and all afternoon on another perfect stranger's car. And he had his invoice books in his briefcase in his truck to prove it. We spoke with both customers, and they both back him up. Didn't your people search his pickup?"

  "Well, they already had the murder weapon; why should they search his truck?"

  "To save themselves a lot of man-hours. You got a pencil?"

  "Sure."

  "Write this down." Eagle gave him the names and numbers of both customers. "The second guy is out of town for a week and unreachable, but he says he'll testify. Big Bear was at his house from one-thirty to four-fifteen, then he went to the Gun Club on Airport Road and played pool until six o'clock; the bartender backs his story. He stopped at a liquor store on the way home and picked up a bottle. I drove the route, and it took eight minutes to get from the Gun Club to the trailer. He called in the crime at six-ten, and he says the blood in the bedroom was already dried at that time. I'll bet you a hundred bucks your lab report backs that up. What does your man estimate as time of death?"

  "Between three and four," Martinez replied.

  "So you've got the wrong guy."

  "Do you really think you're going to get bail with a story like that?"

  "Bail? With a story like that, I'm going to get the charges dismissed."

  "Dream on, Ed."

  "I'm going to petition for a hearing; you'll be hearing from the judge."

  "Suit yourself."

  They both hung up, then Eagle's secretary buzzed him. "Russell Norris on the phone."

  "Great!" Eagle picked up the phone. "Russell? What's happening?"

  "Well, I'm calling from the bank in Mexico City; I have the vice president in charge of personal accounts right here, and he'd like to speak to you."

  "I'd be glad to speak to him."

  "Hello, Mr. Eagle? This is Emiliano Rodriguez speaking."

  "Good morning, Mr. Rodriguez."

  "Would you be good enough, please, to tell me the circumstances of your wife's wire transfer?"

  "I'd be happy to. My wife made two unauthorized wire transfers, nine hundred and thirty thousand dollars from the account of my law firm, and a hundred and seventy thousand dollars from my personal account."

  "And how do I know these transactions were unauthorized?"

  "If they were authorized, Mr. Rodriguez, you and I would not be having this conversation. I should tell you that she also instructed my stockbrokers to wire another four million dollars, the proceeds of the sale of all my stocks, but I was able to stop that transaction before it took place."

  "Well, Mr. Eagle, if you will give me a notarized affidavit to that effect, I will stop further withdrawals on the remaining balance in Mrs. Eagle's account, pending the results of an investigation by my bank."

  "Remaining funds? How much is still in the account?"

  "On Friday last, on faxed instructions of Mrs. Eagle, I wired three hundred thousand dollars to a bank in Puerto Vallarta, and this morning I was going to wire further amounts to banks in Cozumel and Rio de Janeiro, but I have not yet done so."

  "Mr. Rodriguez, I will fax you a notarized affidavit within the hour, and I will FedEx the original document today for delivery tomorrow. How long will your investigation take?"

  "It will take a day or two to appoint an outside investigator, for purposes of objectivity. He will interview both you and Mrs. Eagle and anyone else necessary, then submit his recommendations. I should think this would take ten days to two weeks. Then the board of the bank will make a judgment on the matter, so in all, two to three weeks, I imagine."

  "Thank you, Mr. Rodriguez. I am pleased that we have been able to avoid a complex international legal action in this matter. You will have the fax of the affidavit this morning. May I speak to Mr. Norris, please?"

  "Ed?"

  "Russell, that was brilliant; thank you."

  "Ed, I think it would be a good idea if I stayed on here long enough to talk personally to the bank's investigator."

  Eagle thought about this. "Good idea. I've already impressed on Mr. Rodriguez the possibility of legal action, should we not get a favorable solution."

  "Good. I'll be in t
ouch."

  Eagle hung up the phone and buzzed for Betty. He felt enormously relieved. If he could get out of this with the loss of only three hundred thousand, he'd be a very lucky man.

  Betty came in.

  "Take an affidavit," Eagle said.

  Eleven

  VITTORIO LEFT THE PUERTO VALLARTA AIRPORT, TOSSED his carry-on into the back of a taxi and got in.

  "Buenos dias, senor," the driver said.

  "Amigo," Vittorio replied, "what are the three best hotels in Puerto Vallarta?"

  "Well, senor, there are many fine hotels, but if I must, I will name three." He did so.

  "Okay, let's start with those." Vittorio broke the seal on the box containing his guns, which he had checked through, and returned them and the magazines to his holsters. The first two desk clerks took his money and denied all knowledge of Barbara Eagle, under any name. At the third hotel, the clerk came up with a guest named Barbara Kennerly.

  "Is Senorita Kennerly in her room now?" Vittorio asked.

  "No, I saw her walk through the lobby in her swimsuit a few minutes ago, toward the pool," the clerk said.

  Vittorio asked for a room and checked in. Upstairs, he got into his swimsuit and put the Keltec.380 and his cell phone into his small briefcase, got into the provided robe and walked down to the pool.

  Barbara Eagle was lying in the hot sun, lotion lathered on her very handsome body, reading a paperback book.

  Vittorio waved at a waiter.

  "What may I get you, senor?" the man asked.

  "A Diet Coke. And tell me, can guests receive phone calls at the pool?"

  "Yes, sir."

  "Can you take a phone to a guest?"

  "No, sir. A guest receiving a call would need to go to the outside bar to receive it."

  "Thank you." The man went to get his drink, and Vittorio called Ed Eagle.

  "Vittorio? Where are you?"

  "In Puerto Vallarta."

  "Any luck yet?"

  "I'm looking at her across a swimming pool."

  "Can you get her on the phone?"

  "Hang on a minute." The waiter was returning with his Diet Coke. "You see the woman, there?" he asked nodding.

  "Yes, senor."

  "I want you to take her this cell phone. Her name is Senorita Kennerly. Tell her she has a call and hand her the phone." He gave the man the phone and a ten-dollar bill. "Keep an eye on her, and be sure you get the phone back when she hangs up."

  "Yes, senor." The man placed the open cell phone on his tray and walked around the pool. Vittorio watched sidelong through his sunglasses as the waiter approached. She stared at him for a moment, then picked up the phone.

  "Hello?"

  "Hello, Barbara," Eagle said.

  "I've nothing to say to you," she said.

  "You don't have as much money as you think."

  "What?"

  "I stopped the wire transfer from the brokerage house, and the funds still in the Mexico City account have been frozen."

  There was a long silence. "What do you want, Ed?"

  "A divorce. You can keep the three hundred grand you've still got, and, of course, you have your jewelry. You can get by on that until another patsy comes along."

  "You bastard," she said.

  "In a few minutes, there will be a file waiting for you at the front desk of your hotel; it contains six sheets of blank paper. All you have to do is to sign at the bottom of each sheet and give the file back to the desk clerk, and it will be done. I'll send the final papers to you wherever you wish for another signature. We will never have to see each other or speak again."

  "Ed, you think you know what's happening, but you don't."

  "Barbara, I don't care what's happening. Just do as I ask, and it's over. You don't want to get in court with me; I think you know that."

  "It won't be over."

  "What are you talking about?"

  "I don't want to go into it now."

  "You don't have to; just sign the sheets of paper."

  "You could put anything you wanted above my signature," she said.

  "I could, but I give you my word that all I will put on the paper will be a brief agreement giving you three hundred thousand dollars and terminating your marital rights."

  "And if I don't sign the papers?"

  "Then you will subject yourself to a punishing legal process, and, given your criminal record, you will very likely go to prison."

  "Ed, do you think I'm stupid? I haven't broken any laws."

  "Barbara, if you believe that you can escape the legal process, then you have been very badly advised."

  "You don't know what advice I've taken."

  "Whatever that advice is, what good has it done you? If you'd simply divorced me you'd have gotten a decent settlement, but instead, you tried to steal from me. I don't understand how you could have been so stupid."

  "You are the one who's stupid."

  "Don't you realize that you've shot a man? That's illegal, even in Mexico. Do you want to end up in a Mexican jail? Do you have any idea what that would be like? I can assure you it would be very different from the country club where you did your previous time. Sign the papers, and I'll see that all that goes away; no charges will be pressed."

  The line suddenly went dead.

  Vittorio watched as the waiter collected the cell phone from Barbara Eagle and walked around the pool toward him. It began ringing as the waiter approached. He grabbed it.

  "Hello?"

  "It's Eagle. She hung up on me. Get her signature on those sheets of paper; I don't care how you do it."

  "All right. Any other instructions?"

  "Don't let her get away from you until she signs."

  "Right." Vittorio closed the phone, picked up his briefcase and walked into the hotel. He went to the front desk and asked for the manager. When the man appeared, Vittorio showed him ten one-hundred-dollar bills and explained to him that they would be his, if a desk clerk would inform him if Ms. Kennerly decided to check out and, further, to delay her departure for ten minutes. The man accepted the offer with alacrity, and Vittorio gave him five of the bills. He added a hundred to the offer, in exchange for a key card to her room. "It is purely a domestic matter," he explained. "Her husband wishes to speak with her."

  Eagle sat at his desk and thought. What was the matter with the woman? He had offered her an easy way out. She had behaved stupidly, but she seemed to think he was the stupid one. What the hell was going on?

  Twelve

  VITTORIO RETURNED TO HIS ROOM, DRESSED AND PACKED his things. He had a feeling that Barbara Eagle would be leaving the hotel shortly. As if to confirm his judgment, the phone rang.

  "Yes?"

  "It is the manager, senor. Senorita Kennerly has ordered a taxi in thirty minutes' time."

  "Thank you. You'll have the rest of the money shortly." He took his bag and briefcase down to the front desk, paid the manager and asked him to keep his bags for a few minutes. He removed the file from his briefcase and went upstairs. First, he listened at Barbara's door, but he heard nothing. He looked at the surrounding doors and judged the size of her room, then he put an ear to the wall twenty feet down the hallway. He could hear water running, probably the shower.

  Vittorio went back to the door, inserted the key card and cracked the door. He could hear the shower running. He let himself in and took a seat at a table in the corner, facing the open bathroom door, then put the file on the table and waited. A moment later the water was turned off, and he heard the shower door open and close. Perhaps ten seconds later, Barbara Eagle walked into the room, naked.

  Vittorio hadn't expected that. She was still wet, and for a woman who must have been forty, she looked spectacular. Her breasts were high, the nipples erect, her belly flat, all her pubic hair waxed away. She had a small tattoo of a bright yellow sunflower between her breasts.

  "Good afternoon," he said, putting a finger to the brim of his hat.

  She did not move. "Who are you, and what
do you want?"

  "There are six sheets of paper in this file," he said, tapping the file with a finger. "Sign each of them at the bottom, and I'll leave you in peace." She continued to stare at him and he at her, but she still made no move toward the table or to cover her body.

  "If you don't sign them, I am authorized to persuade you. I think I would enjoy that." He knew from his experience that people, especially women, often found his appearance threatening, and he used this to his advantage. He actually considered himself a peaceful, nonviolent person, but threat had its uses.

  "I'll get a pen," she said, nodding at her purse on the bed. She took a step toward it.

  "Stop," he said, opening his jacket, so she could see the gun at his waist. He took a pen from his jacket pocket and placed it on the file. "Use mine," he said.

  She did not move, just stared at him.

  "It would be a mistake to try with me what you did to the other fellow," Vittorio said. "In fact, he is on his way here at this very moment. I think it would be good for you to be gone before he arrives."

  She still just stood there.

  Vittorio reached into his jacket pocket and removed a small plastic box cutter, bright orange. With a thumb, he extended the blade to its maximum, about three inches. "You have such a beautiful body," he said. "It would be a shame to have it scarred."

  A shudder ran through her. She walked over to the table, picked up the pen, opened the file and signed all six pages at the bottom. "There," she said. "You can tell him it's not over." She walked back to the bathroom door, then stopped and turned. "Now get out of my room."

  Vittorio put a finger to the brim of his hat, took the file and left. He was surprised it had been so easy. He collected his bag and got into a cab for the airport, still thinking about the beautiful, naked body. He was halfway to the airport when a trace of doubt drifted across his mind. He opened his briefcase and took out the file. Each of the pages was signed, perfectly legibly, "Minnie Mouse."

  "Turn around," he said to the driver. She was a smart woman. She had known he would be looking at her tits, instead of her signature.

  As his cab turned around, another taxi passed them, and Vittorio caught sight of Cupie Dalton in the rear seat. When he had told Barbara that Cupie was on his way, he had been bluffing, but there he was. Ten minutes later, they arrived simultaneously at the hotel.