Trip looked surprised. ‘You worked here, Kimble?’
‘I did.’ He smiled fondly at Shorty. ‘I washed dishes for three summers to earn the money for my first car.’ He waved and Shorty gestured them toward another door in the back. It was the office and looked just like it did when Adam had been in high school, down to the supersized cans of tomatoes that were stacked against one wall.
He shook Shorty’s hand, slapping the man’s back when he pulled him into a fast hug.
Shorty swallowed hard. ‘I didn’t expect it would be you to show up for this. But I’m really glad you did.’
Adam pointed to Trip. ‘Special Agent Triplett, FBI.’
‘Sit, sit.’ Shorty gestured to the folding chairs, grabbing one for himself so that he sat with them rather than sitting behind the desk. ‘I still can’t believe this. I didn’t see the news until after the dinner rush was finished. I’d heard about what happened, but I didn’t see the report. And then . . .’ His eyes closed and his throat worked. ‘God. That poor kid.’
‘Andy Gold,’ Adam said. ‘What can you tell us about him?’
‘He wouldn’t hurt a fly, that’s what I can tell you. Real nice kid, working hard to put himself through college. Wanted to be somebody.’ His eyes welled up and he looked away until he’d regained control. ‘He was the skinniest kid, but never asked for food. One day he nearly passed out. He finally admitted that he hadn’t eaten in two days. Dammit, Adam. A kid starving here? In my place? I never would have let that happen.’
‘I know, Shorty,’ Adam said quietly. ‘You fed him.’ It wasn’t even a question.
‘Yeah. Tried to fatten him up. Kid was finally looking healthy. I saw him on that video clip. He was . . .’ A strangled sob tried to escape, but Shorty pushed it back with a visible effort. ‘He was so damn scared in that video,’ he whispered. ‘He didn’t want to hurt anyone. Ever. He was a gentle kid.’
‘We believe that,’ Adam said. ‘We’re trying to reconstruct his movements leading up to what happened today. Somebody killed him and we want to find that person.’
‘Good,’ Shorty said roughly. ‘Hope you put him away in a dark pit. A bomb? God. He strapped a bomb to that sweet kid. Sent Andy in to do his own dirty work.’
‘How do you know that?’ Trip asked.
Shorty’s angry gaze jerked to Trip’s face. ‘Because that kid did not want to be there. Any fool could see that from the picture you guys gave the media.’ He sucked in a breath, pursed his lips hard. ‘I’m sorry, Agent Triplett. I’m not saying you guys are fools. It’s just that Andy Gold worked for me for a year and he was always on time, always respectful, honest, good-hearted. All the things you want to see. I saw his photo on the news – the one the couple getting engaged got on their video. He was pale, shaking. That wasn’t Andy.’
‘I understand,’ Trip rumbled and the immediate drop in Shorty’s tension was palpable. ‘I thought maybe you knew someone who’d be able to force him. Who’d have that kind of control over him.’
‘No,’ Shorty said, shaking his head. ‘I didn’t know much more than that he had no family. He lived in a shitty apartment in somebody’s basement. I’ll get you the address.’
‘He mentioned concern over a girl,’ Adam said. ‘Do you know who that could be?’
‘Ah. Could have been Linnie.’ Shorty frowned, thinking. ‘If I ever heard her last name, I can’t remember it. I only saw her a few times. Seemed shy. Half the time Andy’d use his meal allowance for her. Took care of her.’
‘Did she live with him?’ Trip asked.
‘No. He said that she went to a different school than him. Lived in the dorm.’ He made a sad sound. ‘I think he was into her more than she was into him, if you know what I mean. She was . . . touchy. No, that’s the wrong word. Skittish, that’s it. Like if you touched her, she’d bolt.’
Trip’s mouth tightened. ‘Like someone had hurt her in the past?’
‘Maybe. I don’t know. I only saw her a few times. But . . . yeah. I think it’s fair.’
Trip took out his notepad. ‘Can you describe her?’
‘Dark hair. Dark eyes with dark shadows under them. Her hair was shaved to the skin on one side and kind of uneven on the other, like she’d taken shears to it herself. Once she came in with a lot of makeup on. Looked a little . . . hard. She had a really quiet voice. Husky, as I recall. She looked young. Andy swore they were the same age, but she looked sixteen.’
Trip wrote it all down. ‘Height? Weight? Clothing style?’
‘Um . . . well she was about five-four, maybe. Skinny as a beanpole, just like Andy was when he first started working for me. She wore jeans and combat boots every time I saw her. One of her ears was pierced all the way up and around.’
‘Where did she and Andy meet?’ Adam asked.
‘He said they knew each other in high school. That’s how he knew she was his age.’
‘Where was that?’ Trip asked.
‘He never said where he grew up or anything about his family except that he didn’t have any. Andy was kind of tight-lipped about his past.’ Another sad shake of his head. ‘I got the impression it hadn’t been so good.’
‘When did you last see Andy?’ Trip asked.
‘Friday, about nine? He took a break to smoke out back.’ He met Adam’s eyes. ‘You know, out on the loading dock.’
Adam nodded ruefully. ‘Oh, I know.’
‘You smoked?’ Trip asked in surprise.
‘Only once. Thought I’d choke to death.’ Although he’d nearly tried again more times than he could count over the last year. So many of the folks he knew at AA smoked to fight the cravings. Adam just chewed gum. He’d chewed a buttload of gum this year. ‘Of course Shorty caught me that one time.’ Adam returned his gaze to the older man. ‘And you never told my dad. Thanks for that, by the way.’
‘That’s because he’s an as—’ Shorty broke off, shaking his head. ‘Never mind.’
Adam knew exactly what he’d been about to say. He’s an asshole. And Shorty would be right. ‘So Andy was smoking. And then what?’
‘He never came back. I called his phone, but he never answered. I even sent somebody to his apartment in case he’d gotten sick, but he wasn’t there either.’
Adam grimaced at the prospect of getting anything decent from the loading dock. ‘It’s been over twenty-four hours. We’ll need to get a forensic team to the dock, but . . .’
‘How many deliveries did you take today?’ Trip asked.
Shorty looked miserable. ‘Three. And it’s where all my employees take breaks. Anything usable will be destroyed, won’t it?’
‘We’ve got really good forensic guys,’ Adam told him. ‘Do you know what brand he smoked? We can at least separate his butts from all the others.’
‘No,’ Shorty said sadly.
‘We’ll need a list of everyone who was working last night,’ Trip said. ‘Names and addresses, please. And anyone who got along with Andy.’
‘Everyone got along with Andy, but he didn’t have any close friends. He used to joke that he’d have time for friends when he graduated.’
‘What was he studying?’ Adam asked.
Shorty’s eye roll was sadly fond. ‘English Lit. He wanted to be a teacher or a writer. Kid loved poetry.’ He got up and went to the door. ‘Johnny! Need you in here.’ He looked over his shoulder at Adam and Trip. ‘Johnny is our other smoker. Sometimes he and Andy would take breaks together. I’m going to get Andy’s address and the other employees on shift last night. They’re in my computer.’ He pointed at his desk. ‘Should I leave while you talk to Johnny? I can take my laptop out into the dining room.’
‘If you would,’ Adam said. ‘I can’t visualize you on a laptop, Shorty.’
A snort. ‘I never said I was good with it, but my daughter-in-law made it about as foolproof as possible. She’s got everything backed up so I can’t do anything irreversible.’
He was leaving with his laptop when a young man came in, wiping his hands nervously on the rag hanging from the apron tie that wound around his waist. ‘You rang, boss?’
‘Yeah. These detectives want to talk to you about Andy.’