The Cold Moon (46 page)

Duncan laughed. "No, no,
I'm
the one who saved him. After we abandoned the Explorer and were running out of the garage I spotted that homeless guy. I didn't like the looks of him. He had a club or tire iron or something in his hand. After Vincent and I split up, I went back to the garage to make sure he didn't hurt anybody. When he started toward you" — Duncan glanced at Pulaski — "I found a wheel cover in the trash and pitched it into the wall so you'd turn around and see him coming."

The rookie nodded. "That's what happened. I thought the guy stumbled and made the noise himself. But whatever, I was ready for him when he came at me. And there
was
a wheel cover nearby."

"And Vincent?" Duncan continued. "I made sure he never got close enough to any women to hurt them.
I'm
the one who turned him in. I called nine-one-one and reported him. I can prove it." He gave details about where and when the rapist was caught — which confirmed that he'd been the one who called the police.

The prosecutor looked like he needed a time-out. He glanced at his notes, then at Duncan, and rubbed his shiny head. His ears were bright red from the cold. "I've gotta talk to the district attorney about this one." He turned to two detectives from Police Plaza who'd met him here. The prosecutor nodded at Duncan and said, "Take him downtown. And keep somebody on him close — remember, he's diming out crooked cops. People could be gunning for him."

Duncan was helped to his feet.

Amelia Sachs asked, "Why didn't you just come to us and tell us what happened? Or make a tape of Baker admitting what he'd done? You could've avoided this whole charade."

Duncan gave a harsh laugh. "And who could I trust? Who could I send a tape to? How did I know who was honest and who was working with Baker?... It's a fact of life, you know."

"What's that?"

"Corrupt cops."

Rhyme noticed Sachs gave absolutely no reaction to this comment, as two uniformed officers led their perp, such as he was, to a squad car.

They were, at least temporarily, once again a team.

You and me, Sachs...

Lincoln Rhyme's case had become Amelia Sachs's and if the Watchmaker had turned out to be toothless there was still a lot of work left to do. The corruption scandal at the 118th house was now "front-burnered," as Sellitto said (prompting Rhyme's sardonic comment, "Now
there's
a verb you don't hear every day"). Benjamin Creeley's and Frank Sarkowski's killer or killers had yet to be identified specifically from among the cops who were suspected of complicity. And the case against Baker had to be cobbled together and the Maryland connection — and the extortion money — unearthed.

Kathryn Dance volunteered to interview Baker but he was refusing to say a word so the team had to rely on traditional crime scene and investigative work.

On Rhyme's instruction, Pulaski was cross-referencing Baker's phone calls and poring over his records and Palm Pilot, trying to find out whom he spent the most time with at the 118th and elsewhere but wasn't coming up with anything helpful. Mel Cooper and Sachs were analyzing evidence from Baker's car, house on Long Island and office at One Police Plaza, as well as the houses or apartments of several girlfriends he'd been dating recently (none of whom knew about the others, it turned out). Sachs had searched with her typical diligence and had returned to Rhyme's with cartons of clothes, tools, checkbooks, documents, photos, weapons and trace from his tire treads.

After an hour of looking over all of this, Cooper announced, "Ah. Got something."

"What?" Rhyme asked.

Sachs told him, "Found some ash in the clothes that were in the trunk of Baker's car."

"And?" Sellitto asked.

Cooper added, "Identical to the ash found in the fireplace at Creeley's. Places him at that scene."

They also found a fiber from Baker's garage that matched the rope used in Benjamin Creeley's "suicide."

"I want to link Baker to Sarkowski's death too," Rhyme said. "Get Nancy Simpson and Frank Rettig out to Queens, that place where his body was found. Take some soil samples. We might be able to place Baker or one of his buddies there too."

"The soil I found at Creeley's, in front of the fireplace," Sachs pointed out, "had chemicals in it — like from a factory site. It might match."

"Good."

Sellitto called Crime Scene in Queens and ordered the collection.

Sachs and Cooper also found samples of sand and some vegetation that turned out to be seaweed. These substances were found in Baker's car. And there were similar samples in his garage at home.

"Sand and seaweed," Rhyme commented. "Could be a summer house — Maryland, again. Maybe Baker's got one, or a girlfriend of his."

But a check of the real estate databases showed that this wasn't the case.

Sachs wheeled in the other whiteboard from Rhyme's exercise room and she jotted the latest evidence. Clearly frustrated, she stood back and stared at the notations.

"The Maryland connection," she said. "We've
got
to find it. If they killed two people, and nearly Ron and me, they're willing to kill more. They know we're closing them up and they won't want any witnesses. And they're probably destroying evidence right now."

Sachs was silent. She looked flustered.

It's hard when your lover is also your professional partner. But Lincoln Rhyme couldn't hold back, even — especially — with Amelia Sachs. He said in a low, even voice, "This's
your
case, Sachs. You've been living it. I haven't. Where does it all point?"

"I don't know." She dug a thumbnail into her finger. Her mouth tight, she shook her head, staring at the evidence chart. Loose ends. "There's not enough evidence."

"There's
never
enough evidence," Rhyme reminded. "But that's not an excuse. That's what we're here for, Sachs. We're the ones who examine a few dirty bricks and figure out what the entire castle looked like."

"I don't know."

"I can't help you, Sachs. You've got to figure this one out on your own. Think about what you've got. Somebody with a connection to Maryland... somebody following you in a Mercedes... saltwater and seaweed... cash, a lot of cash. Crooked cops."

"I don't
know
," she repeated stridently.

But he wasn't giving an inch. "That's not an option. You
have
to know."

She glared at him — and at the hard message beneath the words, which was: You can walk out that door tomorrow and throw away your career if you want. But for now you're still a cop with a job to do.

Her fingernails worried her scalp.

"There's something more, something you're missing," Rhyme muttered as he too gazed at the evidence charts.

"So, you're saying we have to think outside the box," said Ron Pulaski.

"Ah, clichés," Rhyme snapped. "Well, okay, if you're in a box, maybe you're there for a reason.
I
say don't think outside it; I say look more closely at what's inside with you... So, Sachs, what do
you
see in there?"

She stared at the charts for some moments.

Then she smiled and whispered, "Maryland."

BENJAMIN CREELEY HOMICIDE

• 56-year-old Creeley, apparently suicide by hanging. Clothesline. But had broken thumb, couldn't tie noose.
  

• Computer-written suicide note about depression. But appeared not to be suicidally depressed, no history of mental/emotional problems.
  

• Around Thanksgiving two men broke into his house and possibly burned evidence. White men, but faces not observed. One bigger than other. They were inside for about an hour.
  

• Evidence in Westchester house:
  

   
  

• Broke through lock; skillful job.
  

• Leather texture marks on fireplace tools and Creeley's desk.
  

• Soil in front of fireplace has higher acid content than soil around house and contains pollutants. From industrial site?
  

• Traces of burned cocaine in fireplace.
  

• Ash in fireplace.
  

   
  

• Financial records, spreadsheet, references to millions of dollars.
  

• Checking logo on documents, sending entries to forensic accountant.
  

• Diary re: getting oil changed, haircut appointment and going to St. James Tavern.
  

• Analysis of ash from Queens CS lab:
  

   
  

• Logo of software used in corporate accounting.
  

• Forensic accountant: standard executive compensation figures.
  

• Burned because of what they revealed, or to lead investigators off?
  

• St. James Tavern
  

   
  

• Creeley came here several times.
  

• Apparently didn't use drugs while here.
  

• Not sure whom he met with, but maybe cops from the nearby 118th Precinct of the NYPD.
  

• Last time he was here — just before his death — he got into an argument with persons unknown.
  

• Checked money from officers at St. James — serial numbers are clean, but found coke and heroin. Stolen from precinct?
  

   
  

• Not much drugs missing, only 6 or 7 oz. of pot, 4 of coke.
  

• Unusually few organized crime cases at the 118th Precinct but no evidence of intentional stalling by officers.
  

• Two gangs in the East Village possible but not likely suspects.
  

• Interview with Jordan Kessler, Creeley's partner, and follow-up with wife.
  

   
  

• Confirmed no obvious drug use.
  

• Didn't appear to associate with criminals.
  

• Drinking more than usual, taken up gambling; trips to Vegas and Atlantic City. Losses were large, but not significant to Creeley.
  

• Not clear why he was depressed.
  

• Kessler didn't recognize burned records.
  

• Awaiting list of clients.
  

• Kessler doesn't appear to gain by Creeley's death.
  

• Sachs and Pulaski followed by AMG Mercedes.
  

FRANK SARKOWSKI HOMICIDE

• Sarkowski was 57 years old, owned business in Manhattan, no police record, murdered on November 4 of this year, survived by wife and two teenage children.
  

• Victim owned building and business in Manhattan. Business was doing maintenance for other companies and utilities.
  

• Art Snyder was case detective.
  

• No suspects.
  

• Murder/robbery?
  

   
  

• Was shot to death as part of apparent robbery. Weapon recovered on scene — Smith & Wesson knockoff, .38 Special, no prints, cold gun. Case detective believes it could have been a professional hit.
  

• Business deal went bad?
  

• Killed in Queens — not sure why he was there.
  

   
  

• Deserted part of borough, near natural gas tanks.
  

• File and evidence missing.
  

   
  

• File went to 158th Precinct on/around November 28. Never returned. No indication of requesting officer.
  

• No indication where it went in the 158th.
  

• DI Jefferies not cooperative.
  

• No known connection with Creeley.
  

• No criminal record — Sarkowski or company.
  

• Rumors — money going to cops at the 118th Precinct. Ended up someplace/someone with a Maryland connection. Baltimore mob involved?
  

   
  

• No leads.
  

• No indications of mob involvement.
  

• No other Maryland connections found.
  

THE WATCHMAKER

CRIME SCENE FIVE

Location:

• Office building, Thirty-second Street and Seventh Ave.
  

Victims:

• Amelia Sachs/Ron Pulaski.
  

Perp:

• Dennis Baker, NYPD
  

M.O.:

• Gunshot (attempt).
  

Evidence:

• .32 Autauga Mk II pistol
  

• Latex gloves.
  

• Recovered from Baker's car, home, office:
  

   
  

• Cocaine.
  

• $50,000 cash.
  

• Clothing.
  

• Receipts from clubs and bars, incl. the St. James.
  

• Carpeting fibers from Explorer.
  

• Fiber that matched the rope used in Creeley's death.
  

• Ash found at Baker's same as ash in Creeley's fireplace.
  

• Presently taking soil samples from site where Sarkowski was murdered.
  

• Sand and seaweed. Oceanfront Maryland connection?
  

• Other:
  

• Gerald Duncan set up entire scheme to implicate Dennis Baker and others who killed Duncan's friend. Eight or ten other officers from the 118th are involved, not sure who. Someone else, other than cops from the 118th, is involved. Duncan no longer homicide suspect.
  

Chapter 33

Amelia Sachs walked into a tiny, deserted grocery store in Little Italy, south of Greenwich Village. The windows were painted over and a single bare bulb burned inside. The door to the darkened back room was ajar, revealing a large heap of trash, old shelves and dusty cans of tomato sauce.