Shallow Graves

girl.“
    “With the price tag still on?“
    The beaming smile again. Like Nancy , a bright, direct woman who became more attractive the longer you talked to her.
    “Actually, they do have the tags still on the garments. Part of the cachet of going to the luncheon is seeing how much looking great costs.“
    “Did Ms. Dani do many of those?“
    The smile became wistful. “Mau Tim could have done just about anything she wanted, John. Elegant neck, generous mouth, perfect skin tone and bone structure. But most of all, those eyes. The most exotic girl I’ve ever seen.“
    “How did you come to represent her.“
    “The usual way. A scout.“
    “A talent scout?“
    “A photographer who spotted her in a mall. Or maybe just on the street, I’m not sure. But he spotted her, asked her if she wanted to be a model.“
    “Sounds like kind of a pick-up line.“
    “I know, but it works. Especially on a fifteen-year-old.“
    “Fifteen?“
    “Not Mau Tim. No, she was at least eighteen when she first came to us. But the prime age is fifteen to nineteen.“
    “Why so young?“
    The good smile again. “Unfairness of nature, John. It’s easy to use makeup to make the face look older. It’s tough to use makeup to make the body look younger.“
    “So the career is over early?“
    “Not for everybody. Some of the girls do fine into their midtwenties. And after that we can use them as commercial models.“
    “As opposed to?“
    “Oh, sorry. Commercial as opposed to fashion models. Mommies selling diapers or businesswomen selling computers rather than vamps in evening wear. Some even subspecialize as parts models.“
    “Parts of the body?“
    “Right. Hand model, leg model, even foot model for shoe ads.“
    “Do you remember which photographer scouted Ms. Dani?“
    “Sure. But you might make more headway if you called her ‘Mau Tim.’ That’s how she was known in the business.“
    “Thanks. The scout?“
    “Oh, right. It was Oz Puriefoy.“
    Oz. Short for Oscar Puriefoy, one of the men at the party.
    Lindqvist looked at me strangely. “If you need to talk to Oz, George will have a number for him.“
    “Thanks. Did you ever meet any of Mau Tim’s family?“
    “Never did. That’s what I meant about it being tough to give you any background on her. She was over eighteen when Oz sent over her test shots and she first signed on with us, so she didn’t need parental permission.“
    “You ever speak to them by telephone?“
    “Her parents, you mean?“
    “Yes.“
    “No.“ Lindqvist seemed to think a moment, her eyes flitting left-right-left without focusing on anything. “No, I think the only person I ever talked to was an uncle. On the telephone. I think he owned the building she lived in.“
    “Vincent Dani?“
    “Maybe. I know she changed her name.“
    “From ‘Tina’ to ‘Mau Tim’?“
    “No. No, originally it was even more ethnic—’Amatina,’ that was it. I wanted to change it to ‘Violeta,’ for the eyes and all, but there was already a black model with a name like that. Then I think she checked on the Vietnamese word for ‘violet,’ and it turned out to be ‘mau tim,’ which fit her beautifully.“
    “Do you know how I could reach her parents?“
    “No, but their number might be in her file.“
    “Her file here?“
    “Right. It would have places where we could reach her, that kind of thing. Might have some family stuff, but can’t you just get that from the police?“
    I thought about Holt. “Maybe, thanks. I take it you didn’t go to the funeral, then.“
    “No. No, we didn’t. I think George called the uncle, but he said—the uncle said that the family wanted to keep it closed. The funeral I mean, not the... well, maybe that, too. I’ve never... I’ve never seen anybody strangled before. I don’t know what it does to... the features.“
    Lindqvist spoke more carefully than emotionally about it. Like she wanted to use the right words, not that she was upset by discussing violent death.
    “Did Mau Tim ever talk with you about her personal life?“
    “No. No, she really didn’t, John. We talked a little once about what growing up in an ethnic Swedish family was like, but— you see, quite a lot of the girls see me as kind of a big sister.“
    “Somebody they can confide in?“
    “Yes, but not Mau Tim.“
    “Independent?“
    “More... insulated. I think growing up Amerasian must have given her some problems. I don’t mean while she was working. She could be