Spiral

pair.”
    I watched Lazar and Reyes. ”They seem closer than just joint guests.”
    ”Each told me they are involved with one another.” A pause before, ”Romantically.”
    Another skinny man—white, with a bad hair transplant—came across the screen, a drink in his hand. Pintana said, ”The band’s manager, Mitch Eisen.” Cassandra Helides followed him, also carrying a drink, this one sloshing over the sides of her glass.
    ”And she is the wife of Nicolas Helides. Cassandra.” Next I got a couple of frames showing a guy in his twenties, the hair wildly platinum and orange, before the VCR made a clicking, whirring noise, and the screen went to snow abruptly.
    ”Who was that last one?”
    ”Ricky Queen, the band’s drummer.”
    ”Kalil have to switch tapes?”
    ”No. You have seen all he gave us.”
    Didn’t seem right. ”How many minutes of running time after Veronica left the room?”
    ”One minute, thirty-two seconds. The reason I told you I would have to be quick to identify the other guests.”
    I checked the digital timer on Pintana’s VCR. ”That says we’ve seen a total of only twenty-five minutes of tape?”
    ”Right.”
    ”You ask Kalil Biggs why he stopped rolling on his epic?”
    ” Sí. He said to me that he got bored with the party.”
    I looked at Lourdes Pintana. ”Shortly after Veronica left it.”
    The homicide sergeant just nodded.

    ”Let me give you my cellular number so you don’t have to play phone tag with the voice mail, okay?”
    We were in the corridor leading to the metal security door by the reception area. I watched Pintana in front of me take a business card from the side pocket of her green, maybe-linen jacket.
    At the door, she handed the card to me. I read the information on it, then looked back up at her. ”Good cop, bad cop.”
    The twitch that was almost a smile. ”Polite cop, difficult cop.”
    ”Use whatever adjectives you want, but I have the feeling you and Cascadden were kind of playing me, him stonewalling so I’d be even more appreciative of whatever you gave me.”
    Pintana did smile this time. ”I am playing you, Mr. Cuddy, but Kyle is not. He is what he seems, but he took a bullet for the city once, and he came back from it maybe a little harder than wiser. So I try to temper him, but I do not pretend to control him.”
    ”Yet he stays on Homicide?”
    ”The politics of heroism.”
    ”That’s pretty blunt.”
    Her smile grew wider, as though my comment were a compliment. ‘Then allow me to be blunter still. The reason I am playing you is that this is the most problematic kiling I have seen in my time in the department, much less running Homicide. The captain I report to dumps on my head all the shit which is dumped first on his. I would like to really work this case, not shuttle to another press conference every time one of our esteemed politicians has a ‘promising lead’ for the police to follow. The force in Miami Beach suffered from the Cunanan-Versace media circus, and I myself have studied the Ramsey case in Colorado until my eyes cross. The fact is, though, that every one of the people at the Helides party may have put in the same amount of study, because they all either have gotten lawyers or claim to be dumb as fenceposts, and the forensic evidence doesn’t give me squat to use as leverage with any of them. If you can make better progress, I would welcome it, and I would hope you would share your results with me.”
    ”With you, not Cascadden.”
    ”Do not underestimate Kyle, Mr. Cuddy. A man who would step in front of a bullet is capable of many things.”
    ”He stepped in front of one?”
    ” Sí .” She pushed open the security door, ushering me into the little second-floor reception area. ”One meant for me, in fact. And Kyle does not appreciate another male showing him up before the woman he saved.”
    By the time I turned around, the beige metal door was closed enough that I couldn’t see Lourdes Pintana’s face.

    ”And who are you showing up?” said Justo Vega as we went down the stairs toward the first floor.
    ”Long story. Will Pepe be outside?”
    ”I have never known him to fail in an instruction I have given him. Where do you wish to go?”
    ”Back to the hotel, pick up my rent-a-car.”
    ”You feel sufficiently familiar with the area now?”
    ”I can still read a compass.”
    Justo gave one of his musical laughs. ”What did you think of Sergeant Pintana?”
    ”Smart and tough. Maybe even