Chapter 37
Their eyes locked and a progression of emotions crossed Vine’s features: surprise followed by irritation and then recognition.
Lainie recovered from the shock quickly and spoke up first. “What are you doing here?”
“I could ask you the same thing. This is a long way from Long Beach, Officer Jensen.”
“Detective Jensen now. I’m here on official business. Guarding a witness.” Her heart still pounded. She hadn’t seen him in person for at least ten years. He creeped her out now as much as he did back then. He was an evil murderer as far as Lainie was concerned.
She felt a little uncomfortable being without her duty weapon. She’d left it locked up in her car, thinking she wouldn’t need it. And in reality, the last place she wanted to get into a gunfight would be the hospital.
Vine arched an eyebrow. “Detective. I’m here to check up on a faithful employee. You might have heard that she was injured in a horrible traffic accident.”
“I have heard. She’s been here for four days. You just checking up on her now?”
“I only recently received the message. What did Crystal witness?”
Lainie heard the question; she wasn’t immediately certain how to answer. The last thing she wanted to do was give away anything she knew but he didn’t.
“I didn’t say I was here for Crystal. Why are you here now?
Visiting hours just ended. How did you even get in without someone opening the door?
” At that moment Lainie realized that Ava and Cherie were still not on the floor.
Other than the patients, the only people on the floor were her, Vine, and his two goons.
“As I stated, I was only just notified.” He leaned forward. “On another subject, I’m astonished to hear that you’re still employed by the city of Long Beach.” His tone turned snarky, his lips curled into a smirk.
“I don’t really care what astonishes you.”
He threw back his head and laughed. The goons with him also smiled.
Lainie seethed inside but she kept her cool. She was fifteen years older and wiser; she would not make the same mistakes she had made when she was green.
When he saw that he hadn’t gotten a rise out of her, the laughing stopped. The smirk stayed.
“It’s just quite a juxtaposition. I read an article just the other day, and it appears as if you have a serious criminal in your family.
The only thing he’s not guilty of is having a dead woman in his car.
I’d think an officer of the law would have a tighter grip on such things. Amazing how situations turn in time.”
His expression told her that he knew something; he was baiting her. The problem was, as Ben had noted, she had no leverage.
“Nothing’s turned. You’re still a criminal and you won’t evade justice forever.”
His face darkened; a muscle twitched in his cheek. “You’ve been a shadow over my life for long enough. You’re nothing but a bug I’ll squash and then scrape off my shoe. Soon. I’ve waited too long as it is.”
“Are you threatening me?”
Through clenched teeth, he said, “I don’t make threats.”
Lainie tensed but Vine’s attention turned from her when the double doors opened, and Ava and Cherie stepped in. They were chatting, and Lainie caught snatches of their conversation.
“Weird.”
“I don’t think that’s ever happened before.”
Vine glanced behind him, then turned back to Lainie. “I guess we’ll just have to come back tomorrow.” His tone changed instantly to something less sinister and more conciliatory. But darkness never left his eyes.
He turned to leave, and the two goons followed him, but not before each cast a glare toward Lainie.
“You might want to take the stairs,” one of the nurses said. “The elevator malfunctioned a few minutes ago.”
He waved a hand toward her, and the trio exited through the double doors.
When she was sure they were gone, Lainie looked over at Cherie and Ava.
“Who were those guys?” Ava asked. “Did you let them in?”
“No. They opened the door and walked right in. What’s wrong with the elevator?”
“I don’t know,” Ava said as they exchanged glances. “We were both called downstairs separately, and when we got down there, there was nothing for us. So when we hopped onto the elevator to come back upstairs, it wouldn’t work. That’s why we came up the stairs.”
Lainie walked over to the double doors and peered through the window in the door just as Vine and his men stepped onto the elevator and the doors closed. “It works now. They just got on.”
“Weird, huh?” the nurse said.
“Yeah.” Lainie didn’t like it at all. She would use the word sinister. Vine didn’t just show up to check on Benton. All her instincts were tingling, telling her that Vine was here because he was up to no good.
Her phone rang, and she saw that Mike was calling. “Hey, partner, what’s up?”
“I wanted to let you know how it went with Bucshon. Are you still in San Bernardino?”
“I am. I was just getting ready to leave.” She took a seat back in her chair. “What did Hank say?”
“Some interesting things about Benton. Bucshon’s attorney allowed me to record the interaction.
I’ll send it to you in an MP3 file and you can listen to it at your leisure.
He offered nothing that we can use in court, but he did give some interesting insight into the relationship between Stan and Crystal Benton. ”
“I can’t wait to hear it.”
“Are you heading back to the city?”
“I was, but something weird just happened.” She explained to him about Vine’s visit.
“Strange. From what I’ve heard, that guy never comes out in public anymore. If he showed up to try and check up on Benton, wow, something is going on.”
“I agree. I’m almost afraid to leave.”
“You can’t stay there indefinitely. At some point you must trust hospital security.”
“I know you’re right. I’ll call the sheriff’s office and give them a heads-up. Send the file.”
“You got it.”
After about a minute, her phone chimed with an incoming message. Lainie could sit here for a few minutes and listen to the interview. She put her earbuds on and downloaded the file. It took a few minutes, but the hospital Wi-Fi was more than adequate.
The file opened with the normal sounds of people moving around, and Mike announced who was present and that the recording was allowed by Bucshon’s public defender.
“Thanks for getting me sent here, Detective Pepper.”
“I wish I could take credit for it, Hank. But the Feds put you here.”
“Whoever, it’s just better here than County.”
“Are you ready to answer some questions?” Mike asked.
“I’ll answer whatever I can.”
“Do you know who Stan Moffit is?”
“Yeah. He was the stooge running Sudsy Place.”
“Why do you call him a stooge?”
“He isn’t that bright. He doesn’t really know what he’s doing. Out of his league really.”
“League?”
“Yeah, Vine is miles ahead of that guy. And so is that girl of his, Crystal. I think the two of them play Moffit, like an instrument. Especially the girl. Moffit is one of those guys who checks his brain at the door when he sees a pretty face. Just my observation.”
“Why do they need to play Moffit?” Mike asked.
There was the sound of fidgeting, whispering. Lainie heard a voice she guessed belonged to the attorney. The sound of someone clearing their throat, then Bucshon spoke again.
“Sudsy Place is a drop. Money comes in and instructions go out. Moffit ain’t going to question anything.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“He’s a compliant guy. He does what he’s told. Nothing more.”
“The money and the instructions—what is that all about?”
“Vine’s business,” Bucshon said. “He moves money, drugs, people, all over the place. Sudsy Place was set up to facilitate all that. Couple of guys there keep the goods moving while Crystal handles the money. Moffit is kind of window dressing, so everything seems legit.”
“How do you know what Moffit would do in relation to Vine?” Mike asked. “What exactly did you do for Vine?”
The attorney spoke up. “My client is not going to incriminate himself. He may have made comments earlier, before representation. I will fight the use of those comments in court.”
“Hypothetically,” Mike said. “What job would a person have where he would be privy to information about what you’re saying?”
There was a sound on the tape, as if someone was playing with a plastic water bottle, tapping it on the table and crinkling the plastic.
Lainie waited, growing impatient by the minute. Hank was self-serving; she wasn’t certain they could trust anything he said.
“A runner,” he said finally. “Freelance. Someone who takes a message from one person and runs it to the next. Not knowing what the message said.”
“Taking messages from Vine to the car wash?” Mike asked.
“And the other way. Someone like that might see how the dynamics in a business work.”
“Would that person have any proof?”
“Only what he saw and heard.”
Lainie closed the file. In a way it lent credence to what Stan had said. Both men hedged their answers, and she’d bet a paycheck neither was completely truthful. Bucshon would not be the strongest witness in court, but he could be put on the stand. Still, they needed a stronger voice.
She glanced toward the cubicle where Benton lay. Crystal Benton could probably bury Vine if she wanted to. If she woke up, would she?