Dwight Hillick might have looked like he could have done with skipping a couple of meals, but he was nobody’s fool. He took Parker step-by-step through every detail of the fire at the diner, the discovery of Errol Dobey’s body, and the disappearance of Esther Bachmeier, all without stumbling, hesitating, or referring to a single file or note.
‘So the blaze is being treated as accidental?’ said Parker.
‘Dobey’s body was badly burned, but there was no sign of injuries other than those consistent with a fire, and no trace of accelerants, paper apart.’
‘And Dobey liked to smoke weed.’
‘Certainly did. He wouldn’t be the first man to have died from dropping a lit joint. We’re still waiting on the results of toxicology tests, but we won’t have those for another month. On the other hand, there’s the matter of Esther’s disappearance, which raises a couple of flags.’
‘Is she a suspect?’
‘Officially, we’d sure like to talk to her. Unofficially, I don’t believe so.’
‘What about the women and girls who stayed with Dobey in the past?’
‘What about them?’
‘Any reason to suspect a grudge? Boyfriend, husband?’
‘We haven’t ruled it out. We had the Indiana State Fire Marshal down here, and a private arson investigator was engaged to perform an origin and cause. That’s still ongoing, but like I said, no sign of accelerants, or not yet. But with all that paper, a match would have been enough.’
‘Back to the women who passed through: You were aware that Dobey and Bachmeier were running an unofficial shelter?’
‘I was.’
‘Any suggestion of impropriety on Dobey’s part?’
‘None.’
‘It never crossed your mind?’
‘You didn’t know Dobey. I did. I’m not pissed at you for asking. I’d do the same if I were in your shoes, but he wasn’t like that.’
Parker threw a few more questions at Hillick, just to clarify and confirm. When Parker was done, Hillick made a call to the department’s detective, a former Indianapolis PD officer named Shears, asking him to drop by, even though Shears was off-duty that day. Shears arrived shortly after, and together the three men drove first to Dobey’s diner, where they went over everything a second time, with Shears adding what he could to Hillick’s account, before they proceeded to the Bachmeier house. Shears led Parker through each of its rooms, which had been examined by detectives and forensics experts from the Indiana State Police, the ISP having jurisdiction over homicides outside major urban areas. There were no signs of disturbance, but equally no indications that Bachmeier was planning to leave for any length of time. A half-finished pint of Ben & Jerry’s had even been found melted by the sink, a spoon still inside.
Parker went outside and stood in the sun while Hillick and Shears locked up. He’d expected Indiana to be flat, Lord knows why, but the area around Cadillac was hilly and forested. It was a pretty setting for a town, but he still wouldn’t have wanted to live there.
‘And Leila Patton?’ he said, when the two lawmen had rejoined him.
Hillick adjusted his bulk.
‘Yeah, that’s a strange one. Leila says she was attacked after she came back from the diner. The staff and a lot of the townsfolk went there to gather after what happened – you know, to console each other, lay flowers, say some prayers – and Leila had just returned home. She couldn’t tell us much about what occurred, other than being certain it was a woman that tried to abduct her. The woman was wearing a ski mask, and as soon as it became clear that she wasn’t going to be able to take Leila, she turned tail. Leila thought she heard a car pull away, but she didn’t see it.’
‘I hear Patton might have cut her attacker.’
‘That’s right. Keyed her.’
‘You think it’s connected to whatever else may have happened?’
‘I’m keeping an open mind. This is a small town. So much occurs under the surface, like in most small towns, but to have a fatal fire, a disappearance, and an attempted abduction all in the space of twenty-four hours is off-the-scale unusual. So yeah, a link is possible, but I can’t see what it might be. Well, I can: it’s got to have something to do with Dobey’s girls, but it’s not like Dobey and Esther kept a record of the ones who passed through; or if they did, we haven’t found it yet. Could be any papers went up with everything else in that blaze.’
‘Leila was working on the night of the fire, right?’
‘Yes, she was.’
‘And she saw nothing unusual?’
‘She says not, other than some guy reading poetry. I don’t think that’s a crime, although I guess it might depend on the poetry.’
Parker looked at Hillick. Hillick looked at Parker. Parker looked at Shears.
‘Don’t ask me,’ said Shears. ‘I’m not a critic. I just work here.’
‘Leila thought that Dobey didn’t appreciate the custom of the poetry guy,’ said Hillick, ‘and was acting a bit antsy after, but Dobey claimed he didn’t know him, and Leila believed him. She gave us a description, but it sounded like Ralph Waldo Emerson. And not liking the look of someone wasn’t unusual for Dobey. He had his peculiarities.’
‘He didn’t like men who wore sandals with socks,’ said Shears.
‘No,’ said Hillick, ‘he did not.’
They all considered this, decided it was pretty reasonable, and moved on.
‘So Leila Patton is assaulted outside her home, apparently as part of an attempted abduction,’ said Parker. ‘She manages to get inside her house and lock the door before calling the police. End of story.’
‘That’s it,’ said Hillick.
‘So why try to abduct her to begin with?’
‘You’re the P.I. with the reputation,’ said Hillick.
‘Because,’ said Parker, ‘whoever this woman was – assuming it was a woman – she believed Patton knew something, or had seen something, that might aid the investigation. But according to you, Patton didn’t have anything useful to offer.’
‘Which doesn’t mean she doesn’t have anything to tell,’ said Shears. ‘Leila Patton is a bright young woman. She’s smarter than I am.’
He waited for Hillick to deny this. Hillick didn’t.
‘Nice,’ said Shears.
‘So the attack could have been a warning?’ said Hillick.
‘If the fates of Dobey, Bachmeier, and Lombardi have a common root,’ said Parker, ‘then we’re looking at conclusive actions, not warnings.’
Hillick jammed his hands in his trouser pockets and looked around for something to kick. When nothing suitable presented itself, he opted for swearing loudly. Behind him was Esther Bachmeier’s garage, and in the garage stood Bachmeier’s Nissan. Wherever she was, she hadn’t driven there herself. Either way, none of the three men currently standing in her yard believed she was coming back.
‘I’m fond of Leila,’ said Hillick, once he’d purged himself some. ‘She’s a good girl. And Shears is right: she’s smart.’
‘So she could be holding out on you?’ Parker asked.
‘I guess, but I don’t see why she wouldn’t want to help us figure out what’s going on.’
‘Perhaps she’s scared.’
‘Yeah, but she’s also tough. Her mom’s been lingering for a long time. It would be a mercy if she was taken to the Lord, but I’ve never heard Leila complain, not once. What I’m trying to say is that if Leila Patton had information that could point toward proof of intent to do harm to Dobey or Esther, I’d expect her to tell us.’
‘So what’s she hiding?’ asked Parker.
‘Well, maybe that’s what you’re here to find out.’
89
Giller sat at the kitchen table, staring toward the front door. Gregg Mullis was lying half in the hall, half in the living room, so Giller could only see his feet, one of which was still twitching. Tanya was slumped against the wall, her legs outstretched before her. The bullet had taken her in the chest, killing her instantly.