Shallow Graves

about surprising Mau upstairs.“
    “In her birthday suit.“
    The laugh into giggle again. “Right, right. A nice turn of phrase then too, I thought. But Oz wasn’t up for it, so while he did the wine and Sinead was playing with her stereo, I went upstairs.“
    “Then what?“
    “Well, I knocked on Mau’s door—No, no, I tried her door first, but it was locked.“
    “Was it usually unlocked?“
    “No. No, usually she kept the bolt on but not the chain.“
    “Not the chain?“
    “Uh-unh. She broke a nail on it twice and thought it was a pain.“
    “You have a key to that door?“
    “No.“
    I stopped again. “Then how did you think you were going to surprise her?“
    Shinkawa shrugged. “Just thought I might. Party mood, you know? You don’t always think things through.“
    I said, “So then you knocked.“
    “Right. I knocked and called out to her, but I didn’t hear anything back.“
    “Nothing at all?“
    “No. No stereo, no footsteps, nothing. Then I started yelling, and I guess I must have gotten a little scared for her.“
    “Why?“
    “Why? She wasn’t answering me, and Sinead said Mau had just been in the shower. I thought maybe she slipped and hit her head or something.“
    “So you did what?“ 1
    “I ran downstairs and got Oz and Sinead. The three of us went back up and broke down the door.“
    “Was the chain on?“
    “Yeah. Yeah, that’s why we had to break it down. Sinead had a key for Mau’s door, but the chain was on from the inside and Oz and I had to break it down. Or off, I guess. The door was still on its hinges.“
    Pretty consistent with Puriefoy’s account. “Before you broke through, could you see or hear anything in the apartment through the chain space?“
    “I didn’t hear anything, the stereo and TV were off. But...“ Shinkawa finally showed something beyond cheeriness. “I could see like her head and a shoulder, on the floor by the futon. She had a big futon for her couch. When we broke in, we tried to save her, but it was... too late, I guess.“
    “Once you were in the apartment, did you see or hear anything?“
    “Yeah. I was the first one to her, and I could hear the fire escape.“
    “What do you mean?“ &
    “Well, you know how a fire escape kind of, I don’t know, ‘clangs’ when somebody’s on it?“
    “Yes.“
    “I thought I heard that, so I went into the bedroom and over to the window. But by the time I got there, the guy was gone.“
    “Gone?“
    “Well, I looked down at the ground, and up and down the alley, and I couldn’t see anybody.“
    “Do you remember seeing anything around the bottom of the fire escape?“
    “The bottom?“
    “Yes. Below where the last flight would come down.“
    Shinkawa closed his eyes. “It was dark, but... No. No, I don’t think so.“
    “Maybe trash cans?“
    “No. Definitely not. I would have seen those.“
    “Rake, broom?“
    “No. Why?“
    “Anything to pull down that last flight?“
    Shinkawa shook his head. “Man, the guy was going down already. Just his weight would carry that last flight to the ground.“
    “Okay. You’re at the window. Then what?“
    “Then I went back, and everybody was yelling at once around Mau, and she looked awful, John, her face all... contorted, discolored. So Sinead was calling for the EMTs, and I tried to help Oz work on Mau, but I could see it wasn’t going to do any good. Then I noticed the jewelry.“
    “The jewelry.“
    “Yeah. This necklace, I think, or part of one. Under the couch, kind of by Oz’s feet when he kneeled down by Mau.“
    “But you didn’t see Puriefoy do anything with it.“
    “No. No, like I said, the thing was just under the futon a little by his shoes, which were just about up against it.“
    “Anything else?“
    Shinkawa stopped and adjusted his horn-rims. “I don’t think so. We just waited for the ambulance, which got there just before the police, who kind of pushed us downstairs, then brought us back up after they rushed Mau off.“
    “You recovering all right yourself?“
    Shinkawa looked at me, like he didn’t quite know how I’d intended the question. “I take things easy, John, remember? Besides, I figured Mau and I were about at the end of the line.“
    “Why?“
    “She was going to New York.“
    “To live?“
    “Yes. The party was both birthday and bon voyage.“
    “Mau Tim told you that?“
    “Not in so many words, but I could tell she’d been making up her mind the last few