“See, that’s what the police have been asking me,” he said. His mouth must have been dry because I could practically hear him lick his lips before he spoke. “Jack’s a good friend and I don’t want to get him in any more trouble than he’s in. I’ve done everything I could short of telling lies.”
“You don’t want to lie to the cops,” I said. Maybe the line was tapped and they were checking my attitude.
“Well, no, I wouldn’t. And that’s just it,” he said. “I didn’t come right out and say so, but there was a stretch when Jack was, you know, uhm, off somewhere. What I mean is, I couldn’t say he-was right there in my line of sight.”
“Uhn-hun. How long a stretch?”
“Might have been as much as an hour and a half. I didn’t think anything of it at the time, but you know, later-like when this other business came up-I did, wonder about the time frame. I wouldn’t want to be quoted, but just between us.”
“Do you know where he was?”
“I know where he said he was. Out walking the tenth hole.”
“In the dark?”
“That’s not as odd as it sounds. I’ve done the same thing myself. Smokers go outside to have a cigarette sometimes. Most club members know the course by heart so it’s not as if you’re likely to get lost or fall down a hole.”
“But why would he do that in the middle of a pairings’ party?”
“He was upset-I’d say real upset-when he came to pick me up. That’s another reason I insisted on driving. Jack tends to be careless about things like that.”
“Did he say what upset him?” I waited. “I can keep it to myself,” I said.
“He said him and Guy got into an argument.”
“About what?”
“Probably the money. I’d say the money.”
“You’re talking about the money Guy was due to inherit.”
“That’s right.”
“So Jack was drunk and upset and when the two of you arrived at the club, he disappeared.”
“Uhn-hun.”
“Did you believe him?”
“About taking a walk? More or less. I mean, it makes sense you know, if he was trying to sober up and cool off.”
“And did he seem cooler when he got back?”
For a moment, I thought the line went dead. “Mr. Trasatti?”
“I’m here. See, the thing is, he didn’t actually get back in time to give me a ride. I had to find someone else.”
“And that’s what you told the police?”
“Well, I had to. I felt bad, but they were real persistent and it’s like you said, I couldn’t lie.”
“Was his car still there?”
“I think so. I couldn’t swear to it. I thought I saw it in the parking lot when I was set to go, but I might have been mistaken.”
“But you’re sure there was no sign of Jack?”
“That’s right. A friend of mine said he saw him take off across the fairway at the first hole. Then this other fellow ended up giving me a ride home.”
“Can I have both those names?” I cocked one shoulder, anchoring the handset against my ear while I fumbled in my bag for a pen and a scrap of paper. I made a note of the names, neither of which rang a bell. “And how did you find out where Jack had been?”
“He called first thing the next morning to apologize and that’s when he explained.”
“He called Wednesday morning?”
“I just said that.”
“I wanted to make sure I understood you correctly. Do you remember what time he called?”
“About eight, I guess.”
“So this was before anyone knew Guy Malek was dead.”
“Must’ve been. I know Jack never mentioned it. You’d think if he knew he’d have spoken up.”
“Is there anything else you remember from your conversation with him?”
“Not that I can think of. I probably got him in enough trouble as it is. I hope you won’t tell him I told you all this.”
“I doubt I’ll have occasion to talk to Jack,” I said. “I appreciate your help. You may hear from Lonnie Kingman or me again on this.” You’re certainly going to end up on the witness stand, I thought.
“I guess it can’t be helped,” he said glumly, as if. reading my mind. He disconnected before I could press him for anything else.
I checked the pile of change I’d laid on the shelf near the coin box. I dropped more coins in the slot and dialed Lonnie’s private line. He picked up on his end without identifying himself.
“This is Kinsey,” I said. “How’d it go?”
“Don’t let me handle any sharps. I might open a vein.”
“You heard about the shoes?”
“Did I ever,” he said. “Lieutenant Robb delivered the happy news with glee.”
“I take it the pattern on the sole matched the print at the scene.”
“Oh, sure. And to make things even better, he says the lab found bits and pieces of Guy Malek’s brain spattered on the instep. I mean, Jesus, how’s Jack going to explain a fleck of brain matter buried in the eyelet of his shoes? This is not like ‘Oh gee fellas, Guy-accidentally-cut-himself-and-must-have-bled-on-me.’ ”
“What’d Jack have to say?”
“I haven’t had a chance to ask. Once he invoked, the cops hustled him out to County jail for booking. I’m going out there later and have a long chat with him. He’ll probably tell me the shoes were stolen. Oh yeah, right.”
“What about the murder weapon?”
“They found a baseball bat shoved in with a bunch of sports equipment down at the pool house. Somebody’d made a clumsy attempt to wipe it clean, but traces of blood were still on the hitting area. At least there were no prints, so we can thank God for small favors. What about his alibi? I hope you’re going to tell me a hundred club members had an eye on him at all times.”
“No such luck,” I said. I laid out the sequence of events as Paul Trasatti had reported them.
I could hear Lonnie sigh. “Too bad Jack wasn’t out there screwing somebody’s wife. You have a theory, I’m sure.”
“He could have left the club on foot. There are half a dozen places near the road where he could’ve climbed the fence.”
“And then what?” Lonnie said. “The country club is miles from the Malek estate. How’s he going to get from there to the house again without somebody seeing him?”
“Lonnie, I hate to tell you this, but the man has a Harley-Davidson. He could have hidden his motorcycle earlier. The house might be an hour away on foot, but it’s only ten minutes by car.”
“But so what? Where was Bennet that night? And what about Donovan? He was right there on the premises when the murder occurred.”
“I can talk to Bennet this afternoon.”
“Did anybody see Jack climb the fence? I doubt it. Anybody see the Harley during the period we’re discussing?”
“I can check it out,” I said.
“I know the line the cops are taking. They’re saying Jack’s room adjoined Guy’s. All he had to do was slip from one room to the other, bash his brains out, and slip back again.”
“Not that simple,” I said. “Don’t forget he’s got to hide the shoes at the bottom of the thrift box, wipe the blood off the bat, and return it to the pool house before he hightails it back to the country club.”
“Good point. Is there a guardhouse at the club? Someone might have noted what time he left.”
“I’ll pop over there and check. I can also clock the time it takes to get from there to the house and back.”
“Hold off on that. We’ll get to that eventually. For now, let’s focus on finding someone else to blame.”
“That shouldn’t be too hard. I mean, Jack’s not the only one with access to Guy’s room. Anybody in the house could have entered the same way. The cops have the murder weapon, but from what you’ve said, they don’t have Jack’s fingerprints.”
“Yeah, they can’t find anybody else’s either.”
“So how are they going to prove Jack was wielding the damn thing? Maybe he was framed.”
Lonnie snorted in my ear. “Somebody’d have to take a pair of forceps and fuckin’ tweeze up brain material, then tiptoe into Jack’s room, find the shoes in the closet, and deposit all the little brainy bits.”
“It’s always possible, though, isn’t it?”
“It’s possible Santa Claus came down the chimney and did the deed himself. Stinks. The whole thing stinks.”
“I like the idea about eyewitnesses. So far it doesn’t sound like there’s anyone who can place him at the murder scene.”
“Not so far, no, but I’m sure the cops are out scouring the neighborhood.”
“Well, then we’ll scour some, too.”
“You’re such an optimist,” he said.
I laughed. “Actually, I can’t believe I’m standing here defending him. I don’t even like Jack.”