Tek Kill by William Shatner Page A

Vidphone calls—some pleading, most of them threatening. He’d attempt to break in to my place, he’d confront me in public places,” said the former Mrs. Grossman. “Finally I put the law on Dwight and he subsided. A great many bullies are chickenshit underneath. Have you noticed?”
    Jake said, “He was doing all those tricks with Kay Norwood.”
    â€œAnd others, believe me.”
    â€œAt the same time?”
    â€œOh, no, Dwight was a one-woman psycho. Poor Kay Norwood was simply the latest target for his unrequited passion. Jesus, what a schmuck he was—rest his soul.”
    Jake said, “You’re suggesting there might be a whole batch of women who didn’t have much love for him?”
    â€œSeven or eight at least that dear Dwight plagued, yes.”
    â€œCan you provide a list?”
    â€œA partial one probably. I didn’t keep up with his activities, but I heard things now and then.”
    â€œGrossman was doing research on several SoCal pharmaceutical outfits,” continued Jake, straddling her desk chair. “One of them happened to be StanCo. Does your agency handle that account?”
    She pointed at the far wall. “No, that’s Alch & Associates, one of our neighbors here in AdVillage.”
    â€œWhile he was doing these reports, did he contact you for any—”
    â€œDwight couldn’t contact me for any reason,” she put in. “I never allowed him to communicate with me in any way,” replied Margo, her attention partially straying to the rough layouts on the wall. “Although I did hear something about this pharmaceutical project of his just recently.”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œOnly that—and this came from a friend of a friend after they heard he’d been killed—only that Dwight had seemed extremely uneasy the last days before he died. I have no idea of the reason.”
    â€œWho was the source of this news?”
    She shook her head. “I’ll have to see if she wants to be part of your investigation, Cardigan.”
    â€œOkay,” he said. “Do you know Hermione Earnshaw?”
    â€œNot as well as dear departed Dwight did,” she replied, laughing. “Hermione was his loyal assistant at Thelwell and, I’m fairly certain, frequent bedmate. In spite of their political differences, they remained extremely chummy and Dwight never apparently threatened her. That was because, if you want my opinion, little skinny Hermione did a hell of a lot of the work that Dwight took the credit for.”
    â€œShe seems to have dropped from sight.”
    â€œMaybe she joined a convent and went into mourning.”
    Jake said, “Tell me about their political differences.”
    â€œHermione’s very—excessively, make that—conservative,” Margo answered. “She’s a very active member of that nutcake group J. J. Bracken supports so enthusiastically. The Pure California Coalition. Christ, what a state this is.” She started to get up, reconsidered and sat, then hopped to her feet. “I really have to get back to work. But, I swear to God, I’ll send you that list of the other unfortunate ladies whose lives were blighted by Dwight since we split up.”
    Jake studied the six compscreens again before heading for the way out. “I’d go with the blue,” he advised.

11
    GOMEZ adjusted his big red nose and went, huge yellow shoes flapping, hurrying into the seventeenth level of a Westwood Sector building. Just across the threshold, he set down a sample case that had BUFFOON ELECTRONIC TOYS, INC. emblazoned on its bright green side.
    â€œPipe the getup on this dodo,” commented a little golden-haired doll that rested on a low ivory pedestal.
    â€œA rube from Hicksville if ever I saw one,” added a large robot rag doll who was slumped in a little plaz rocking chair.
    A two-foot-high mechanical cowboy whipped off his Stetson.