Trunk Music

her.
    “All this talk,” she said then. “I need some water. Do either of you want something?”
    “Water would be fine,” Bosch said. “We’re not going to be much longer.”
    “Detective Rider?”
    “I’m fine, thank you.”
    “I’ll be right back.”
    While she was gone Bosch stood up and looked around the living room in a manner that suggested he wasn’t really interested. He said nothing to Rider. He was standing near a side table looking at a carved glass figurine of a nude woman when Veronica Aliso came back in with two glasses of ice water.
    “I just want to ask you a few more questions about this past week,” Bosch said.
    “Fine.”
    He sipped from his glass and remained standing.
    “What would your husband have taken with him to Las Vegas as far as luggage went?”
    “Just his overnighter.”
    “What did it look like?”
    “It was a hanging bag that, you know, folded over. It was green with brown leather trim and straps. He had a name tag on it.”
    “Did he take a briefcase or any work with him?”
    “Yes, his briefcase. It was one of those aluminum shell kind. You know, they are lightweight but impossible to break into or something. Is the luggage missing?”
    “We’re not sure. Do you know where he kept the key to the briefcase?”
    “On his key chain. With the car keys.”
    There had been no car keys in the Rolls or on Aliso’s body. Bosch realized that the reason they might have been taken was to open the briefcase. He put the glass down next to the figurine and looked at it again. He then began writing the descriptions of the briefcase and hanging bag in his notebook.
    “Did your husband wear a wedding ring?”
    “No. He did wear quite an expensive watch, though. It was a Rolex. I gave it to him.”
    “The watch was not taken.”
    “Oh.”
    Bosch looked up from his notebook.
    “Do you remember what your husband was wearing on Thursday morning? When you last saw him?”
    “Um, just clothes…uh, he had on his white pants and a blue shirt and his sport coat.”
    “His black leather sport coat?”
    “Yes.”
    “Mrs. Aliso, do you remember if you hugged him or kissed him good-bye?”
    This seemed to fluster her, and Bosch immediately regretted the way he had phrased the question.
    “I’m sorry. What I meant was that we found some fingerprints on the jacket. On the shoulder. And if you might have touched him there on the day he left, it could explain this piece of evidence.”
    She was quiet a moment and Bosch thought that she was finally going to begin to cry. But instead, she said, “I might have but I don’t remember… I don’t think I did.”
    Bosch opened his briefcase and looked for a print screen. He found one in one of the pockets. It looked like a photo slide but the center was a double-sided screen with ink between the screens. A thumb could be pressed on the A side and a fingerprint would be imprinted on a card held against the B side.
    “I want to take your thumbprint so we can compare it to the print taken off the jacket. If you did not touch him there, then it might be a good lead for us.”
    She stepped over to him and he pressed her right thumb down on the print screen. When he was done she looked at her thumb.
    “No ink.”
    “Yes, that’s nice. No mess. We just started using these a few years ago.”
    “The print on the jacket, did it belong to a woman?”
    He looked at her and held her eyes for a moment.
    “We won’t know for sure until we get a match.”
    As he put the card and the print screen back in the briefcase, he noticed the evidence bag containing the poppers. He took it out and held it up for her to look at.
    “Do you know what these are?”
    She narrowed her eyes and shook her head no.
    “Amyl nitrate poppers. Some people use them to enhance sexual performance and satisfaction. Do you know if your husband ever used these?”
    “You found them with him?”
    “Mrs. Aliso, I’d rather that you’d just answer my questions. I know this is difficult, but there are some things I can’t tell you yet. I will when I can. I promise.”
    “No, he didn’t use them…with me.”
    “I’m sorry that I have to be so personal, but we want to catch the person who did this. We both want that. Now, your husband was about ten or twelve years older than you.” He was being charitable here. “Did he have problems performing sexually? Is there any chance he might have been using poppers without your knowledge?”
    She turned to go back to