Chapter 18
Private notes: Detective Callum Baxter (LAPD)
Second interview with Tavish Advani was more frustrating. He came with his lawyer, who happens to be his father—Anand fucking Advani. Same Anand Advani who got Celia Byers off for the murder of her married lover. Woman was covered in blood and had the gun in her hand. Jesus.
Tavish didn’t say much during the interview, with Anand blocking most of our questions. We couldn’t hold him. Have nothing on him. Can’t actually blame the man for shutting up—Jason Musgrave’s poisoned the well there with how he’s been shooting his mouth off in the media.
At least the journalists have the good sense not to leak Tavish’s name—no proof, but I’d say they probably got their hands slapped by their bosses after Advani senior threatened them with a lawsuit if they crossed that line.
Not that it matters; the implications are all there in the headlines—especially now that they’ve dug up his connection to Jocelyn Wai.
Gina Garcia’s still on leave, so I’ll have to wait a bit longer to get further background on that case.
And still no word on where all his money is going.
It definitely didn’t go toward financing his condo—at least not openly.
Perez was able to confirm it was purchased by a corporation, which then transferred the deed to Advani’s name, free and clear.
He’s trying to see behind the corporate setup, find out where the money actually came from, because he doesn’t think it was Mom and Dad after all.
Says he’s not getting “happy family vibes” there. Gotta agree. Audrey Advani is seen a lot with her elder son, Raja, but neither of us has been able to find a recent photo of her with Tavish. Then again, could be the corporation is Daddy Advani’s baby. He’s certainly showing up for his boy.
Perez’s theory is that Tavish Advani is funneling “ill-gotten gains” through various corporations to clean them up. If he is, he might’ve outsmarted us—we’ll have to pull in the finance cops if Perez has no luck.
Time: 14:00
Got a call back from Emilio Vasquez, Advani’s old college roommate. Apparently they’re still in touch online but not really close after Vasquez relocated to New York. Per Vasquez, Advani was always “choosy.”
“Could have any girl he wanted,” Vasquez said.
“It wasn’t just the looks. Don’t want to sound like an asshole, but I’m not exactly ugly.
But Tavish…he just knew what to say to the girls, how to make them feel important and beautiful.
Hell of a thing to watch. I figured maybe it was the acting genes—you know, from his mom.
“I used to be happy to go out as his wingman because he’d attract the women and sometimes I’d get lucky after a disappointed girl turned to me as a consolation prize. I didn’t mind. I was a dumb college kid who wanted to get laid.”
Per Vasquez, Advani didn’t have a steady girlfriend that he knew of in college, but— “He was definitely seeing someone off campus. He took a gap year toward the end of our course, so I wasn’t with him for that.
But before that, he used to vanish all the time on weekends and come back grinning like a man who got real lucky.
When I asked, all he’d say was that her name was Suzi, Suzi W. ”
Suzi W.
It’s some kind of starting point at least.