One Through the Heart (12 page)

‘I need a favor. My nephew got in a fight last night with two off-duty officers and broke the nose of one of them. He’s in jail and telling me it wasn’t his fault and that he was defending himself. One of the two he fought with has been called in before for unnecessary force, so maybe that’s true, but I’ve got to stay clear of it. Can you go see him and find out what the fuck happened, and then tell me straight what you think? And tell me no right now if there’s any conflict with your investigation.’

‘I’ll talk to him this morning.’

‘Thank you, and I’m asking you because you know the whole story. You know what a struggle it’s been with him. I’ve done all I can for my sister’s kid and if he’s not going to stand up, and if there’s always an explanation and an excuse, if he’s really no good, then family or no family I can’t keep helping him.’

‘Two off-duty officers?’

‘That’s right, and Matt’s in jail expecting me, not you.’

‘OK, and so we’re clear, I know you called because you guessed I’d jump on it. I’m not jumping, but I’ll do it and not out of friendship. But you already know that too. I’m doing it because I’ve got questions about Matt. I’ll go see him and then you and I are going to meet.’

‘Not in the homicide office.’

‘We’ll meet somewhere else and it’ll be tonight.’

‘You don’t know any more than we did when we put that file in the cold case closet.’

‘I’m getting there, Hugh, and one way or another I’m going to figure out who knew about this bomb shelter and when.’

‘I know what you’re doing.’

‘And what’s that?’

‘You’re undermining the investigation Alcott and I did so you can feel better about how you let her down. But you’re not going to ever get away from that. That’ll always be on you. You don’t need to go see Matt. I’ll deal with it.’

‘I’ll go see him this morning.’

Hugh hung up without saying anything more.

‘Y
our uncle asked that I come see you.’

‘Where is he?’

‘He’s at his desk. He’s busy.’

‘Why would he call you?’

‘We’re old friends and he knows I understand what a hard time he’s had getting you to stay out of trouble.’

‘You ought to hear what he says about you now.’

‘Well, I can hear it from him. I don’t need to hear it from you. What happened last night?’

Baylor shook his head. He smiled. ‘Sorry, Inspector, but this just doesn’t make any sense. My Uncle Hugh totally trash talks you.’

‘We still go way back and not all of those times were good times so don’t worry about it.’

Matt Baylor stared at the homicide inspector. Why did Hugh send this guy when he didn’t even like him? What he needed was a lawyer who would sue the police department’s ass. He touched the bruise on his left cheekbone where the cop arresting him clubbed him and didn’t like the way Raveneau was staring at him. Truth was, he hated cops all the way down into his gut and that included two-faced Uncle Fucking Hugh, who was going to save him from a life of ruin and build a retirement fund for himself by sending him out to tear crap down and then bitch about it taking too long. Hugh, who never dealt with the Mexicans who all wanted to friggin’ get paid the same day or had to drive crap to the resource center so some prissy-ass could check it in and make sure it all got recycled.

‘So you’re here to hear my side and then help me. Is that it?’

‘I’m here to get your version. I don’t care much about helping you or listening to attitude. Either tell me what you claim happened or don’t. I’ll give you another fifteen seconds to decide, but there’s no pressure. I’ve got plenty to do today and I’m fine with walking out of here right now.’

‘What are you going to do with it?’

‘I’ll see Hugh tonight and tell him what I heard. You probably know better than I do what he’ll do with it. Doesn’t he usually post a bond and hire a lawyer when you get arrested? When you got busted for selling dope, he paid for your lawyer, right, and you’re working it off but you’re resentful about that now. You weren’t that way when you needed a lawyer, but that was then. So what do you want to do here?’

Baylor didn’t say anything but he hoped Raveneau could read his look. He wanted Raveneau to know what he was capable of and let him think about that. But the fucker just looked at him and smiled like he was going to laugh.

‘So what happened last night?’

‘Forget about it.’

Raveneau reached for the door.

‘I was at a bar and around midnight these two guys came in and started talking at this chick I’d been drinking with. They were drunk and when I went to use the bathroom one of them took my seat. He wouldn’t get up when I came back. My drink was right there in front of the stool when I went to piss and he pushed it down the bar and Rachel was freaking a little. These guys were drunk.’

‘Did you know Rachel before that night?’

‘No, but we connected. She had already given me her phone number. It’s in my cell and I can show you. She wouldn’t have done that if it wasn’t real.’

‘Go on.’

‘He wouldn’t move and I kind of bumped him and when he went to push me I grabbed his arm and pulled him off the stool on to the floor. Then the other one jumped on me and I had to fight them both.’

‘The other one says he identified himself as a police officer.’

‘That’s bullshit.’

‘They’re saying you kicked the head of the guy on the floor hard enough to knock out some teeth.’

‘I don’t know what happened, but they started it and the other one was swinging at me.’ He turned his head so Raveneau could see the bruise. ‘Look at this.’

‘Then what?’

‘The bartender goes for the phone and the one I’m fighting whips his badge out after he lands a few on me. Then other cops arrive and they baton the shit out of me before they put me in their car. I was sitting there having a good time with her before they walked in.’

‘Did the one who took your bar stool identify himself as a police officer before you got into it with him?’

‘I told you already, no, he didn’t.’

‘Is Rachel going to back you up on this?’

‘She’s probably totally freaked out.’

‘What about the bartender? How much did he see?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘A couple of witnesses told the officers who arrested you that you were wearing boots and kicked the one on the floor in the head as you held the other one off with a chair.’

‘No way, and those guys started the whole thing. They’re lying. Do you want to see the bruises on my back? I can barely stand up, dude.’

‘If we call Rachel is she going to answer?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘She’s your best witness. Should we call her?’

‘They took my phone when they booked me.’

‘I can get your phone. Is it worth calling her? If she backs up your story that’s going to help a lot, and it wants to happen before they figure out what to charge you with.’

‘Sure, I’ll call her.’

‘I’ll go get things started, and then you’re going to have to OK releasing your phone to me.’

Baylor thought about that a moment before deciding it was his best chance. Rachel sure as fuck wasn’t going to answer the phone. The cops busted her last month for prostitution, but if this bozo Raveneau thought she was legit that might help. He nodded at Raveneau. ‘Whatever I’ve got to sign to give you access to my shit, that’s cool.’

‘All right, I’ll be straight back.’

I
t took half an hour to get Baylor’s phone released. Raveneau walked back with a guard but not before thumbing through the recent calls on the phone and scanning the stored photos. He stopped on three taken on Tuesday the day after the bomb shelter was found, and then went back one more day to Monday where it looked like Baylor took photos from inside the bomb shelter though none came out very well.

Raveneau returned to the day after photos. All three were taken from above looking down. In one was a silver necklace and locket, in the next an old hunting knife with an ornate handle and a cracked leather sheath alongside it. The third was a photo of two rings, one on its side, one standing; the one standing was a gold ring with carvings, the other silver with a turquoise stone. Each photo was taken with the ring or knife or necklace lying on what looked like a faded yellow white blouse. Around the edges of it was gray countertop and familiar.

When Raveneau handed it to him, Baylor took the phone without saying anything. He was shackled yet that didn’t slow him down. He quickly found her number and Raveneau wrote the number down then put Baylor’s phone on the table and called from his phone. In Baylor’s phone directory her name was Rachel. No last name and as the phone was ringing he asked Baylor, ‘Rachel what? What’s her last name?’

Baylor hesitated.

He knows her last name and doesn’t want to give it to me, Raveneau thought. He knows her name and she didn’t give him her phone number when they were sitting at the bar. He already had it. ‘Come on, you’ve got to remember her last name.’

Baylor waited him out. He knew her voicemail was coming. Her voicemail said, ‘This is Rachel. Leave me a message.’

Raveneau left one. In it he identified himself as a San Francisco homicide inspector and gave his cell number. Baylor didn’t like that much. Passive hostility radiated off him.

‘Is she going to call me back?’

‘I don’t know. She was crying and in total shock.’

‘What about the bartender?’

‘He was a jerk. I think he knew the cops.’

‘I’ll wait for Rachel to call me and I’ll let your uncle know you’ve got a witness and maybe he’ll give her a call too.’ Raveneau stared, sizing him up again, now asking, ‘Is that OK with you?’

‘Sure. Whatever.’

‘Anything else you want me to tell him?’

‘Ask him to get me out of here.’

‘Hasn’t he always had your back?’

‘You really don’t know, dude. It’s not like he tells you, if he tells you anything. I’ve done a lot of squirrelly shit for him too.’

‘Like what?’

‘Forget it.’

‘OK, then let’s talk about something else before I leave. The first time I climbed down into the bomb shelter I could read your boot prints pretty easily. Remember, you had a guy with a hose wetting down the demo dust. You tracked mud into the bomb shelter. We questioned the crew and we’re confident no one else went down there, only you, and you didn’t work too hard at erasing your tracks, so I’m guessing you didn’t care that I knew you went through the belongings on the blankets. But now I want to know where the things are that you took and I want them back. Did you sell them or do you still have them?’

‘I didn’t take anything.’

‘Yeah, you did.’

‘Why doesn’t anyone believe me?’

‘There are photos in your phone and I just looked at them. Did you post these photos to Craigslist? Will I find them there?’ Raveneau waited for him to answer though he didn’t expect him to yet. He gave him another long beat and then said, ‘If I get those things back then that’ll be it. I’ll let it go, and if not, you’ve got a new problem.’

‘It’s not legal for you to go through my photos like that. You fucking tricked me.’

‘Do you still have everything you took?’

After a silence, Baylor said, ‘The knife sold.’

‘To somebody you know?’

‘No, some dude.’

‘Could you find him again?’

He shook his head.

‘What about the other things?’

‘I’ve got them.’

‘Where?’

‘At Hugh’s place. I’m staying there until I get another apartment. I had a screwed up room-mate who was playing music all night and I was out the door to work early every morning. I wasn’t getting any sleep.’

‘Where are they at your uncle’s?’

‘Hidden.’

‘Hidden where? The kitchen countertop is in the photos. Should I tell Hugh they’re either at his house or in your truck? Where are the keys to your truck? I’m sure he’ll look in both places and you don’t want him breaking a window to get in. Actually, you know what; it’ll be easier if I just get the truck impounded. I’ll do that.’

Raveneau got ready to leave again. He needed to get a guard to return the phone to storage, but knew same as ten minutes ago he wouldn’t get as far as the door before Baylor said something. That was about Hugh. Baylor needed Hugh to get him a lawyer and help him navigate his way out of this bar fight.

‘I don’t want him to know,’ Baylor said. ‘I’ll get them back to you as soon as I get out. I’ll meet you and give them to you.’

‘You’re out tomorrow if not today and I want them as soon as you’re out. What about Rachel? What do you want to do with her? What’s the message I give to Hugh?’

‘Just say I have a witness. I’ll give the lawyer her name and number.’

‘Is she going to back you up?’

‘She saw what happened.’

‘I got that. But is she going to back you up? I’m going to put my cell number in your phone.’ Raveneau did that and kept talking. ‘I’m taking you at your word, Matt. Now you’ve got my number and you can call me as soon as you’re out.’

‘I don’t know why I took them, anyway.’

‘Sure you do, but I want them no later than tomorrow. We’ll go from there.’

As he left the jail, Raveneau figured he had a pretty good chance of getting them back and he was glad it was the knife that had sold. The knife he could live without. But the other things, they might matter, and truth was there was no crime scene when Baylor took them. Baylor could erase the photos in his phone, change his story, and stonewall him. But chances were he wouldn’t.

H
ugh was at a North Beach bar he liked. It was also a bar that would comp a police officer a drink or two and Hugh was gregarious and full of stories once he got going, and Raveneau didn’t doubt there were times Hugh didn’t see a bar bill. He was several drinks in when Raveneau caught up to him and chatting with the bartender. Hugh didn’t turn until Raveneau settled into the seat next to him. Raveneau read that as anger. The bartender took it as a cue to move on, and without any hello or preamble Hugh started in on his nephew.

‘I’m just about at the end with him. He had some really bad years after my sister and Danny were killed and that was understandable. He fell in with the wrong people. He wasted a lot of chances, and he’s about burned up his last with me. What did you think of what he told you about this bar fight?’