Sam Kincaid 01 - The Commission

check those records. When’s the last time you had a top-to-bottom inspection of this place?”
    She didn’t like that idea very well. Actually, I don’t know a soul in either the health or fire departments, but what the hell, it worked. Her tone became noticeably more congenial.
    “Okay, okay, honey. You made your point. I don’t need that kind of problem. I’ll tell you what I can, but it ain’t gonna be much.”
    “I’d appreciate that very much, Mrs. Barlow.”
    “Sue Ann has been seeing this Vogue fella for nine or ten months now. She’s nuts about the two-timin’ bum. She knew he was married and had several kids. I tried to tell her that married guys like him aren’t about to leave the wife, kids, and their cozy upscale lifestyle for a stripper—even a young, pretty one like my Sue Ann. But Sue Ann doesn’t listen very well. I haven’t been able to tell her anything in years, particularly as it relates to men.”
    “So, how often did they get together?”
    “From what she said, I got the impression she was seein’ him once or twice a week.”
    “Where would they meet?”
    “Mostly here at the motel as far as I know. It bothered her that he didn’t want to take her out in public. He was probably afraid of being seen by one of his rich, uptown friends. On occasion, he’d drop into Satin & Lace to watch her dance. I think he got off watching all that young pussy.
    “One time he tried to talk Sue Ann into bringing another one of the dancers back to the motel with her. He said he wanted to try a threesome.”
    “And did Sue Ann comply with his request?”
    “No, I think she told him that the other dancer wouldn’t go for it.”
    “I’m sorry to ask you this, Mrs. Barlow, but do you know if Vogue was paying Sue Ann for their time together?”
    “You know, she never said, and I didn’t ask her. I do know that he was constantly buying her presents. Come to think of it, she did mention one time that he paid her rent.”
    “Could they have been spending time together in Sue Ann’s apartment?”
    “Yeah, I guess it’s possible, but Sue Ann shares the apartment with another dancer. As paranoid as this ass-wipe was about his precious reputation, I doubt he’d want to spend time at her apartment with the roommate around. Besides, the girls have a rule about not bringing guys back to their place.”
    “Do you know when they were last together?”
    “Frank was working the front desk last night and he said Vogue drove in about seven-thirty and left about eleven.”
    “Is Frank certain it was Vogue he saw last night?”
    “Yeah. He drives a fancy new white Lexus. It’s the only thing he drives. We don’t get too many of them around here.”
    “Thanks for your assistance, Mrs. Barlow. Is there anything else you can tell me that might be helpful?”
    “Just one thing, and you didn’t hear it from me, okay. Sue Ann has this boyfriend, a real scary SOB if you know what I mean. His name is John Merchant. People call him Big Bad John. He’s a real possessive, jealous guy with a God-awful temper. A first class jerk if you ask me.”
    “Why should I be interested in Sue Ann’s boyfriend?”
    “Because he almost beat a guy to death with a tire iron one night outside Satin & Lace. It seems this guy was paying a little too much attention to Sue Ann during a table dance—getting a little too handsy for his own good. John took exception to the attention the guy was givin’ her and started a fight. According to Sue Ann, it wasn’t the first time he came after a customer he thought was coming on to her. The club kicked both of them out, so John took a tire iron to the guy in the parking lot. Now the management won’t even allow him in the club when Sue Ann is working.”
    “Did Merchant end up serving time for the assault?”
    “Yeah, he ended up gettin’ some kind of fancy deal that kept him out of prison. They threw his ass in the county jail for almost a year. He’s been out a couple of months now and is back seein’ Sue Ann. I told her to dump him like a hot rock, but, like I said, she ain’t listening to me these days. That’s the guy you need to be checkin’ out.”
    “Was Mr. Merchant aware of the relationship between Vogue and your daughter?”
    “I wouldn’t know that. You’d have to ask Sue Ann. They seemed to spend enough time together that it wouldn’t surprise me if he figured it out.”
    “One last question, Mrs. Barlow, and I’ll let you get back to that filing.