something.”
Alex huffed out a breath. “What the hell is that gibberish supposed to mean?”
Leo just smiled, while Alex went on a rant about me wasting everyone’s time again. After it was over, our new partner said to him, “I’ve never seen a guy whose time was so valuable.”
Alex turned red. I had a thought that he was so angry that he couldn’t make his vocal cords work. While he was suffering rage paralysis, Oz overruled him. “Let’s go by and see what they’ve got at the studio. We’ve got nothing to lose.”
I said, “We also plan to talk to the coroner on Hodge today, talk to Reeder’s ex, and go by R&I for background on the chain of custody with the knife.”
Oz turned to Selfie and Molly. “Anything new on your side of things?”
Selfie, who this morning had on a pair of yellow glasses that matched her hair, told Oz, “We have a list of people that knew Reeder at the time he was killed. There’s a couple of studio people and a guy named Jason Quail. He was Reeder’s best friend. The original detectives assigned to the case questioned him, but didn’t come up with anything.”
“Did you talk to Quail when it came to your unit?” Oz asked Leo.
A nod. “He and Reeder were lovers at one time but the affair fizzled. They remained friends. I don’t think there was any real animosity between them but he’s worth taking another look at.”
Selfie handed me the list of the names they’d worked up as Molly said, “We ran a record check on Carla’s boyfriend, Jimmy Pulido. He’s clean but still lives in the area. I’ve got his DMV printout with his current address.”
I added the paperwork to my stack, stood up, and said, “It looks like a busy day ahead.”
***
Despite the lieutenant’s directive that we reach a consensus and work both cases together, Alex insisted that going to Bernstein Studios was a total waste of time. He agreed to let Leo and me go alone and then meet us at R&I in the afternoon. As he drove, Leo asked me what I knew about the studio.
“From what I understand, it’s been in decline in recent years. I think they rent space out to a lot of independent companies. It’s a pretty competitive business and lots of the big budget productions have moved to other states.”
“That’s kind of what I thought. My daughter did some acting a few years back and they ended up shooting a lot of the scenes in Seattle.”
I glanced at him. “Was she in a TV show?”
“One of those made-for-TV movies that were popular about twenty years ago. She got out of the business, said it was too crazy for her. She’s now a teacher.” He beamed a smile at me. “I heard you’ve got some acting chops of your own.”
I sighed, thinking how the news of my role as a Hollywood madam had probably made the rounds of every division. “I lost a stupid bet with my friends and paid the price. I’ll probably never hear the end of it.”
He laughed. “It could be worse. I once wore a dress and danced in a chorus line.”
“You’re kidding?”
He shook his head. “I played semi-pro football for a couple of years after college. A friend said it would be a good way for us to meet some girls who were part of the production.” His eyes brightened. “He was right—met my wife there, but I’ve had to spend the last thirty-three years being reminded of it.”
It was my turn to laugh. He went on, telling me that he had two children and five grandkids. I got the impression that Leo Kingsley was not only a great detective; he was also a great family man. What he’d said brought Oz and Pearl to mind, so I asked him about their early days together.
“There was a cop bar called Lulu’s. It was popular back in the eighties. We closed the place down a few nights. Pearl was a big drinker back then, a little on the wild side.”
I knew that Pearl was a recovering alcoholic. “I have trouble seeing Pearl as wild. He’s so well grounded.” I glanced at him. “You said to ask him about
Alex huffed out a breath. “What the hell is that gibberish supposed to mean?”
Leo just smiled, while Alex went on a rant about me wasting everyone’s time again. After it was over, our new partner said to him, “I’ve never seen a guy whose time was so valuable.”
Alex turned red. I had a thought that he was so angry that he couldn’t make his vocal cords work. While he was suffering rage paralysis, Oz overruled him. “Let’s go by and see what they’ve got at the studio. We’ve got nothing to lose.”
I said, “We also plan to talk to the coroner on Hodge today, talk to Reeder’s ex, and go by R&I for background on the chain of custody with the knife.”
Oz turned to Selfie and Molly. “Anything new on your side of things?”
Selfie, who this morning had on a pair of yellow glasses that matched her hair, told Oz, “We have a list of people that knew Reeder at the time he was killed. There’s a couple of studio people and a guy named Jason Quail. He was Reeder’s best friend. The original detectives assigned to the case questioned him, but didn’t come up with anything.”
“Did you talk to Quail when it came to your unit?” Oz asked Leo.
A nod. “He and Reeder were lovers at one time but the affair fizzled. They remained friends. I don’t think there was any real animosity between them but he’s worth taking another look at.”
Selfie handed me the list of the names they’d worked up as Molly said, “We ran a record check on Carla’s boyfriend, Jimmy Pulido. He’s clean but still lives in the area. I’ve got his DMV printout with his current address.”
I added the paperwork to my stack, stood up, and said, “It looks like a busy day ahead.”
***
Despite the lieutenant’s directive that we reach a consensus and work both cases together, Alex insisted that going to Bernstein Studios was a total waste of time. He agreed to let Leo and me go alone and then meet us at R&I in the afternoon. As he drove, Leo asked me what I knew about the studio.
“From what I understand, it’s been in decline in recent years. I think they rent space out to a lot of independent companies. It’s a pretty competitive business and lots of the big budget productions have moved to other states.”
“That’s kind of what I thought. My daughter did some acting a few years back and they ended up shooting a lot of the scenes in Seattle.”
I glanced at him. “Was she in a TV show?”
“One of those made-for-TV movies that were popular about twenty years ago. She got out of the business, said it was too crazy for her. She’s now a teacher.” He beamed a smile at me. “I heard you’ve got some acting chops of your own.”
I sighed, thinking how the news of my role as a Hollywood madam had probably made the rounds of every division. “I lost a stupid bet with my friends and paid the price. I’ll probably never hear the end of it.”
He laughed. “It could be worse. I once wore a dress and danced in a chorus line.”
“You’re kidding?”
He shook his head. “I played semi-pro football for a couple of years after college. A friend said it would be a good way for us to meet some girls who were part of the production.” His eyes brightened. “He was right—met my wife there, but I’ve had to spend the last thirty-three years being reminded of it.”
It was my turn to laugh. He went on, telling me that he had two children and five grandkids. I got the impression that Leo Kingsley was not only a great detective; he was also a great family man. What he’d said brought Oz and Pearl to mind, so I asked him about their early days together.
“There was a cop bar called Lulu’s. It was popular back in the eighties. We closed the place down a few nights. Pearl was a big drinker back then, a little on the wild side.”
I knew that Pearl was a recovering alcoholic. “I have trouble seeing Pearl as wild. He’s so well grounded.” I glanced at him. “You said to ask him about
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