Hindsight, page 16
“Unbelievable,” Kendra said.
“You’ll never forget it, will you?”
“Never.”
“Then Zales is a marketing genius. A tasteless son of a bitch, but a genius.”
“If you say so.”
They parked on the street and walked through a gravel parking lot that looked as if it had once been two house lots. Lynch stopped and pointed to a Tesla Model X parked near the back door. “That’s his, or at least I think it is. It’s registered to the business.”
“Nice car. Did you think of getting one of those instead of that Lamborghini you’re driving?”
“I briefly considered it.” Lynch pulled out his phone and spent a few seconds typing something into his screen.
“What are you doing?”
“Just checking something. Let’s go inside.” He put away his phone and led her around front, where half a dozen outdoor tables were occupied with patrons watching a soccer game projected on a large white tarp. They walked inside, where the same game was playing on a pair of wall-mounted televisions. The place was packed, with the customers gathered around a long bar that looked to Kendra almost like a deli counter. Then it dawned on her: The place had once been a diner, only slightly modified for its current use as a dive bar.
A short, curly-haired man in his fifties greeted Kendra. “Hola, bella dama!” Then he saw Lynch. “Oh, shit.”
Lynch clasped his shoulder. “What kind of greeting is that, Zales?”
“Vincent,” he whispered. “My name is Vincent Seles now. You’re gonna ruin everything.”
Lynch smiled. “I wouldn’t do that to you. Not after all we’ve been through together.”
“You almost got me killed.”
“I persuaded you to do your civic duty.”
“You didn’t give me a choice.”
“Sure I did. Testify or go to jail.” Lynch looked around. “You’ve done well for yourself. Much better than jail.”
Zales nervously glanced around the bar. “What do you want?”
“I want to talk about Justin Hayes.”
“Never heard of the guy.”
“Come on.”
“Sorry. Name doesn’t ring a bell.”
“Don’t lie to me. Part of your agreement with the U.S. Justice Department is that you would divulge all illegal activities. If you left even one out, that could mean years in jail for you. I’m not trying to jam you up. I just need some information.”
“I’m not going back.”
“You don’t need to. Just tell me what you know about Justin Hayes and what you did for him. Then I’ll leave you alone.”
“Ohhh…Justin Hayes. It’s all coming back to me.”
“I thought that it might.”
Zales pointed to the doors behind the bar. “I need to go to the kitchen for a second. But I’ll tell you what you need to know, okay? That’s all you need? Nothing else, no hidden strings?”
“No hidden strings. You’ll never see me again for the rest of your life.”
Zales gave him a sour look. “That’s what you said after I testified at my last mob trial.”
“Circumstances change, my friend. By the way, this is my friend Kendra.”
Zales gave her a nod much less enthusiastic than the greeting he’d given her earlier. “Charmed. I’ll be right back.”
He circled around the bar and disappeared through the swinging doors to the back.
Kendra turned toward Lynch. “I’m surprised you’re letting him out of your sight.”
“Why, don’t you trust him?”
“Hell, no.”
“Good instinct. Neither do I.”
“Then why are we sitting here?
Lynch chuckled. He pulled out his phone, tapped the screen, and looked up. “Let’s go talk to him.” He stood and strolled out of the bar.
Kendra jumped to her feet and ran after him. She followed him around the bar and back to the gravel lot where they’d been only minutes before.
Lynch gestured toward Zales’s Tesla. “Oh, look,” he said, in mock surprise.
Zales was in the driver’s seat, frantically pounding on the window.
Lynch leaned against the car and crossed his arms. “Why, Zales. Oh, sorry, I mean Vincent. Or can I call you Vince?”
“You son of a bitch!” Zales yelled from inside the vehicle. He slapped the window again. “What did you do to my car?”
“I took control.” Lynch held up his phone. “A custom app I had a friend make for me. Like it?”
Zales frantically tried the door handle again. “I can’t get out of here!”
“You’re fine where you are.”
“I can’t freakin’ breathe!”
Lynch tapped the phone again, and the driver’s side window cracked open. “How’s that?”
“You bastard.” Zales jammed his foot on the brake and repeatedly punched the start button. Nothing.
“Bastard?” Lynch laughed and jerked his thumb toward Kendra. “She’s called me that once or twice. That’s why I prefer to think of it as a term of endearment.”
“It isn’t, trust me,” Kendra said reassuringly. “I feel your pain, Vince.”
“Nice vehicle you have here.” Lynch turned to admire its sleek lines. “The trouble with upscale cars these days is that they’re really computers on wheels. Are you enjoying the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth upgrades? Because that’s what’s letting me into your car’s operating system without even touching it.”
“You’ve made your point. Let me out.”
“Not yet. Listen, the same thing happened to me recently. It was no fun. I lost a Ferrari I loved very much. Just heartbreaking.”
“It’s true,” Kendra said. “We almost died, but of course that didn’t matter to him nearly as much as the loss of that car.”
“I don’t give a shit.” Zales was trying to loosen his collar. “I’m kind of claustrophobic. I’d appreciate it if I can continue this conversation outside.”
Lynch shook his head. “I remembered that phobia from the old days. But I’m afraid you’ve already violated our trust. You’re right where you need to be.”
“Okay. Fine. What do you need to know?”
“You staged a rather spectacular phony death for Justin Hayes a few years ago. Off the Maltese coast. He was a killer and all-around thug for the Cardinelli crime family.”
“Who told you I did that?”
“I have sources. I found you, didn’t I?”
“Okay. Ancient history. I may have helped him start a new life, so what of it?”
“I need to find him.”
“Now? You know guys in that line of work…He may not even be alive.”
“He is,” Kendra said. “He tried to kill me a few nights ago.”
“Damn. Sorry about that.”
“Touching,” Lynch said. “So tell me, do you think he’s still working for the Cardinellis?”
“No way. They were kind of pissed at him. They thought he’d gotten sloppy. They wanted me to stage his death so the authorities would stop looking for him. They were afraid that if he got pinched, he might somehow lead the FBI back to them.”
“Lucky man,” Lynch said. “That wasn’t like the Cardinellis to go to such extremes, especially when their own hides were on the line. Normally in circumstances like that they’d just snuff him out.”
“That’s what I thought. And that’s not a service I provide. But he’d done good work for them and I guess that was part of their severance to him.”
“A mob benefits package. I like it. So where did he go?”
“How the hell should I know? It’s not like I was married to the guy.”
“No, you just staged his death. Tell me, how did you rig the mast through his chest?”
“There was no broken mast in his chest. We piloted the boat into a cargo ship and paid a couple of college-kid tourists to act as witnesses and tell the story to the cops and coroner. I basically paid for their spring break.”
“And you have no clue who Hayes may have gone to work for later?”
“None. Can I get out of here now?”
“I don’t think you’re being entirely forthcoming with me.” Lynch tapped his phone, and the car’s engine roared to life.
Zales’s eyes widened. He grabbed the shifter, but the car wouldn’t engage. “What are you doing?”
“My Tesla-driving friends just love showing off how their car automatically pulls out of their garage and rolls down their driveway without them being in it.” Lynch swiped his finger across the phone screen, and the car suddenly went into reverse. It slowly backed out of the parking space.
“Lynch…!”
“And I have to admit, it’s a pretty neat trick. But do you want to see a neater one?”
Zales beat on the window with his fists. “Come on, Lynch. It’s not funny.”
“A neater trick is if I waited for a truck to roll down the street, and I suddenly backed you out into its path. It wouldn’t even have time to stop.”
“What more do you want from me?” Sweat was beading his forehead. “I told you everything I know!”
“I don’t believe you.” Lynch slid his finger back, and the car lurched out of the parking lot.
Zales looked around frantically. “Shit!”
“Lynch,” Kendra whispered. “What are you doing?”
“Watch.” He and Kendra walked closer to the car, which was now slowly backing down the street. He called out to Zales, “There’s a railroad track down here, isn’t there?”
“Please, man!”
“And if you’d stop whining long enough to listen, I think I heard the sound of a train horn in the distance. It’s almost like it was meant to be, isn’t it?”
Zales stopped to listen. Sure enough, a train horn blasted and a locomotive engine rumbled closer. A moment later, the white crossing gates dropped across the road. Zales looked back at Lynch with panic in his eyes.
“Stop it!”
Lynch quickly walked alongside the driver’s side window with his phone extended in front of him. “I’m sure I can put you over the tracks before the train gets there. And your car will snap those crossing gates like twigs, don’t you think?”
“Oh, God! No!”
“Give me something. Where can I find this guy? Who may he be working for?”
“The Cardinellis paid me for that job. They’d kill me if they knew I ratted the guy out.”
“Everyone already wants to kill you.” Lynch pushed the control button, and the car rolled faster toward the train tracks.
“No! Stop!”
“Give me something, Zales.”
“Padres! Padres!”
“You’re calling for your dad?”
“No! He was working for the Padres baseball team!”
Lynch slowed the car. “Doing what?”
“Security. He was like a bodyguard. I saw him about a year ago. He was bragging about it. He said he was working for a company that was doing security for them on their away games.”
“What company?”
“I don’t know! Stop it! Please!”
The train’s roar was getting louder. The car rolled closer toward the thin gates.
“Is that all?”
“Yes! Please! Believe me! That’s all I got!”
Lynch tapped his screen and the car stopped. “See, Zales? Was that so hard?”
Zales lunged out as the doors unlocked and rolled away from the car. The train roared past only seconds later.
Lynch pocketed his phone. “Have a good day.” He took Kendra’s elbow and led her toward the Toyota. “You should really take better care of your vehicles, Zales. You almost damaged a fine piece of machinery.”
Zales was still swearing helplessly as he watched Lynch and Kendra drive away.
“That was…interesting,” Kendra said when she could get her breath. “What if Zales hadn’t had anything to tell you?”
He shrugged. “I had to go the limit. I knew I had at least another thirty seconds before I could be sure that he didn’t know anything else.”
“Oh, thirty seconds. That’s different.” She moistened her lips. “I was afraid it was really close.”
“Only if the Tesla hadn’t performed as well as I thought it would.” There was a sudden twinkle in his eyes. “But as I told Zales, it is a fine piece of machinery.”
“Bastard.”
“You can’t convince me that there’s not a hidden term of endearment buried in that word somewhere. Particularly when I’ve just performed every bit as well as that Tesla. Don’t I deserve it?”
“You’d deserve it more if you’d given me warning ahead of time.” She added grudgingly, “But that would probably be too much to expect considering who you are. And you did get us the information we needed. Where do we go from here? What do you know about the Padres?”
“That I lost quite a bit of money on them last year. I’m hoping for better things this season.” He held up his hand as she opened her lips. “And as far as I know, the franchise would have no reason to hire a thug of Hayes’s caliber in a security capacity. But there are always possibilities to explore. I think we should go to Petco Park and talk to the Padres security department about why they’d do that.”
“I only hope none of their executives drive a Tesla,” Kendra said. “At least the interview should be comparatively tame in comparison.” She looked at her watch. “It’s only the middle of the afternoon. We should be able to get across the border and to the stadium before five or six. That should be—” She stopped. “Shit!”
“What?”
“I can’t go with you. You’ll have to go by yourself. Olivia’s had Harley all day and she’ll be upset if I don’t take him over on schedule.”
“Can’t you call for an emergency dispensation?”
“I could, if I could prove it to her. But she wouldn’t consider an interview with a bunch of sports executives as any kind of emergency. And you have no idea how tough she could be if she thought I was avoiding my obligation. Ask Jessie.”
“I will.” He smiled. “I definitely want to hear that tale. I suppose I can do without your company, but it does leave me wondering who’s in charge of whom where Harley is concerned.”
“Don’t go there. We’re trying to work it out.” She changed the subject. “I suppose you want me to take you to my place to pick up your Lamborghini before you go to the stadium?”
“By all means. I’m already suffering withdrawal symptoms from riding around in this Toyota. Maybe I was wrong about needing a less showy vehicle.”
“Color me surprised,” she said dryly. “But Herb will be devastated that you’re taking it away from his loving care. You’ll call me about what you found out later tonight?”
“I’ll report in person.”
She looked away from him. “That won’t be necessary.”
“I always believe the personal touch is best. Besides, I promised to go over hand signals with Harley. Olivia seemed excited about it.”
Yes, she had, Kendra thought resignedly. It seemed she was going to get the personal touch whether she wanted it or not…
* * *
“Where’s Lynch?” Olivia asked the minute Kendra entered her condo. “I told you I need him to—”
“I know what you told me,” Kendra interrupted as she knelt to pet Harley. “But he wasn’t finished for the day. He said he’d come by later to work with him.”
“And me,” Olivia added. “Hand signals are important and might keep Harley’s barking to a minimum. I’ve noticed lately that he seems to get upset whenever anyone flinches away from him. He doesn’t understand it.” She was frowning. “We have to do everything we can for him.”
“And we are,” Kendra said. “Lynch promised he’d drop by. He keeps his promises.”
“I know he does.” Olivia went to the desk and signed out of her computer. “How did it go today? Did you find out anything?”
“Well, I found how close you can get to extermination in a Tesla,” she said dryly. “And no, it wasn’t me. It was Lynch’s way of interrogating one of the bad guys from his shady past. I’ll tell you all about it over dinner.”
“I can hardly wait.” She went toward the kitchen. “Lynch stories are always entertaining. I told you his contacts would be—”
“Excuse me.” Kendra was getting an email and she glanced at the signature in case it was Lynch. It was not Lynch. Praxidike. “What the hell?”
Olivia stopped. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s an email on my business account and it’s weird. It’s signed Praxidike and it’s only two lines.” She read it to her.
“It’s important you meet me at the grove near where Mr. Kim was killed this evening at 6 PM. Please do not notify either the FBI or any school officials of this email. Sincerely, Praxidike.”
“Very weird,” Olivia said. “What the hell?”
“I believe that’s what I said,” Kendra glanced at her watch. “And he didn’t give me much time to make up my mind what I was going to do about it. It’s ten after five right now.”
“You’re not thinking about going?” Olivia asked. “May I remind you that you came close to getting yourself killed a few days ago? Now you’re supposed to go along with this message that says you’re not to tell anyone who might possibly protect you what you’re going to do? Not smart, Kendra.”
“But it’s the school, Olivia. That meeting place he chose is out in the open. It will still be daylight at six and no one will be hovering, ready to pounce. This sounds more like someone who wants to give information and is afraid to do it. Look, he even said please.”
“So he’s a polite murderer.”
“No, I mean it’s just not something anyone with bad intentions would naturally say.” She was nibbling at her lower lip. “I think I’d regret it if I didn’t go.”
“Then call Lynch.”
“He’s busy. Besides, he can be…intimidating. He might scare Praxidike away.” She made a face as she repeated the name. “Whatever that means. No, it’s better if I go alone.” She went to Olivia’s desk and pressed the combo to release the lock on her security drawer. “But if it makes you feel better, I’ll borrow your gun and take it with me. That’s what I was planning anyway. I just don’t want to have to run upstairs and get mine.” She tucked the Smith in her handbag. “Now I’m great. No problem with going alone.”
