Bone Box. Faye Kellerman

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ Lawrence still calling himself Lawrence?” McAdams asked.

      “He introduced himself as the former Lawrence Pettigrew. He was now calling himself Lorraine Pettigrew.”

      Decker said, “Is the name Lorraine Pettigrew on the list?”

      “Let me check.”

      “I’ll send something out over the wire using both names.” Decker turned to Arianna. “Tell me about this Christopher Street fete where you met him. Obviously Lawrence made an impression on you.”

      “He was dressed in drag, but that was no big deal. A lot of the guys were in drag. The costumes are outrageous: chaps with no underwear, feather headdresses, angel’s wings, leather thongs with leather masks and whips.”

      “Sounds like Halloween in the Village,” McAdams said.

      “Kinda, yeah. The party isn’t sanctioned by the administration, but as long as we mind our manners, they turn a blind eye. Lawrence came up to me and introduced himself. He was very nice—really funny and warm. I told him I was interested in Morse McKinley and he talked to me for about twenty minutes. He was articulate and smart. Actually it was because of him that I made the decision to go here.”

      Decker said, “And when you ran into him about five years ago, you talked for about five minutes and that was that?”

      “About. You see, by the time I came here, he wasn’t in school anymore. So when I ran into him, I wanted to find out why he dropped out. I wanted to know if people were giving him a hard time about his change from male to female.”

      “Ah,” Decker sipped coffee. “What did he say?”

      “He said his dropping out had nothing to do with the attitude of the colleges. They were very accepting. He dropped out for personal reasons—his sex reassignment. And that’s when he said that he was glad I decided to come to Morse McKinley. And that was the end of it because he was in a hurry.”

      McAdams said, “And he didn’t give any hint as to why he had come back to Morse McKinley?”

      “No. Nothing.”

      “Do you know if he was close to any particular faculty member?” Decker said. “Was there someone he might have wanted to visit?”

      “What about Jason Kramer?” McAdams asked.

      “Jason has been there awhile but by the way he was talking about Lawrence, they didn’t seem close. Lawrence was more than just a gay man. He was brilliant.”

      “But you don’t who he was close to.”

      “No idea. But Morse McKinley is a small school. Besides, you don’t even know if it’s him.”

      “You’re right.”

      McAdams said, “Not to seem lurid, but a description of him as a woman might be helpful.”

      Arianna sighed. “A tall girl with makeup and big boobs. He still had long hair, but it was brown. He wore tight jeans, a sweater, and boots.”

      “Good memory,” Decker said.

      “Lawrence made a big impression on me, obviously.”

      “And you haven’t seen him since that time.”

      “No.”

      “And you didn’t keep in phone contact or anything like that?”

      “No. You know how it is. I was more interested in my own life than his.”

      “Of course.”

      She stood up. “I have to go catch a class. It’s an important one.”

      “Where can I contact you if I need to talk to you again?”

      “Why would you need to talk to me again?”

      Decker said, “You never know. What’s your cell?” After Arianna recited the numbers, he gave her his card. McAdams followed suit.

      She turned the cards over in her hand then stashed them in her satchel. Then she picked it up and left without saying good-bye.

      McAdams said, “What do you make of her?”

      “Seems like a good kid. She volunteered the information.”

      “Maybe to lead us off-track.”

      Decker stood up and smiled. “You have a very suspicious mind.”

      “That’s a good thing for a detective.” McAdams raised his eyebrows. “It’s even a better thing for a lawyer. In my meager dealings with both professions, I’ve found that clients lie a hell of a lot more than the suspects I’ve encountered.”

      “It’s a close call.” Decker’s cell rang. He fished it from his pocket. “Not our area code.” He depressed the button. “Decker.”

      The woman on the other end didn’t bother to introduce herself. “He’s dead.”

      It took a moment to register who it could possibly be. “Mrs. Pettigrew?”

      Silence. Then she said, “Yes, I’m returning your call.”

      “Thank you very much for calling back. Where are you calling from?”

      “New York City. Staten Island. I assume you’re calling about my son, Lawrence. You found his body?”

      “Since you’re being direct, I will be direct as well. I’m from Greenbury Police. We found a body in the woods near a popular hiking trail. We’re trying to identify it.”

      “So you’re not sure it’s Lawrence.”

      “No, we’re not. Did you report your son missing, Mrs. Pettigrew?”

      “Five years ago.”

      “Do you remember the exact date?”

      “December ninth.”

      “Okay.” So the timing certainly fit. “Where did you report him missing? What police department?”

      “We live on Staten Island. But Lawrence wasn’t living with us at the time. But I didn’t know who else to call, so I called the local police.”

      “Okay, I’ll certainly contact them if I need to.” Decker paused.

      “Do you think it’s him? You must have some idea. Otherwise you wouldn’t call me.”

      Decker sidestepped. “I hate to ask you this, but do you have dental records?”

      “So he’s been in the ground for a long time, right?”

      “You’re a very astute woman.”

      “How much do you know about my son?”

      “Mrs. СКАЧАТЬ