W Is for Wasted

he came across the weapon at the camp and slipped it into the small of his back. I think the panhandlers bided their time and came after him. If he’d told them where he’d hidden it, they’d have come after me. The owner of that bicycle-rental shop down on lower State saw the whole thing and he’s the one who called 911. I talked to him a couple of days ago, hoping he’d be willing to identify the guy. He knows who it was because he’s seen the same three bums hanging out at the beach for years. He refuses to help because he’s worried about reprisals, and who can blame the man?”
    Cheney made a note. “Let me find out who’s handling the case and we’ll see what we can do. You said three of them?”
    “It’s the big galoot I’m talking about. Bald guy with a red baseball cap.”
    “You have a name?”
    “I don’t, but he’s not hard to find. Rush hour, he’s usually standing on the side of the Cabana Boulevard off-ramp with a cardboard sign. You can’t miss him.”
    “You think he had a hand in Pete’s death?”
    “Either that or he stumbled on the weapon after the fact. I can’t think how else he’d end up with it.”
    “Might be completely unrelated,” Cheney said. “So far, we haven’t confirmed this was the gun used in the shooting. With all the firearms in circulation, plenty aren’t registered and can’t be traced.”
    “I’ll tell you one thing. Those bums are badasses. They’ve put together that camp with stolen goods. They’ve tapped into the zoo’s water and electrical supplies and they’ve co-opted trash pickup. There must be half a dozen ways to bust them.”
    “We’ll do what we can. If the fellow you describe has been in trouble with the law, it will give us some talking points.”
    “I want to run something by you. I’ve been thinking about this and I’d be interested in your opinion,” I said. “Leaving aside the issue of how I came up with all this . . .”
    “All this what?”
    “Would you let me tell it my way? This is pertinent.”
    “Fine.” He looked at me steadily. Instead of making eye contact, I found it easier to avert my gaze. I knew what I wanted to say, but I was organizing the story as I went along.
    “This may take a while, so bear with me. Originally, Pete Wolinsky was hired by a fellow named Willard Bryce,” I said. Then I went through the entire sequence; Pete hiring Dietz, the surveillance, Dietz billing Pete, no pay. I told him about Mary Lee meeting with Owen Pensky, and her quitting her job the same day Pete was shot to death. I told him about the stolen charts. I told him about Eloise Cantrell, who made reference to gossip about Dr. Reed’s work. As I worked my way through the narrative, I could see Cheney putting together the bits and pieces. He gave no indication of what he was thinking, but I could feel my confidence erode as I went on.
    “Pete had a shitload of debts and he was desperate for cash. I think he got wind of Dr. Reed’s problems and saw an opportunity to put the squeeze on him. You know, ‘Pay up or I’ll tell your boss and I’ll contact the NIH.’”
    Cheney cut in. “Did Pete actually have evidence of wrongdoing?”
    “I don’t know. Probably not. He might have suggested that even the
hint
of wrongdoing would tarnish Reed’s reputation and impact his career.”
    “So you think he tried blackmailing Linton Reed over an issue of I-don’t-know-what without anything to back it up.”
    “It doesn’t matter if he had anything to back it up. What matters is whether Linton Reed believed Pete would blow the whistle on him. What matters is Reed’s anxiety about the kind of trouble Pete could make.”
    “Are you talking about scientific fraud?”
    “That’s what it sounds like to me. He’s been in trouble before over lesser issues than this.”
    “You told me Mary Lee Bryce quit her job.”
    “She did. The same day Pete was killed.”
    “If she quit her job, where’s the threat to Linton Reed?”
    “She’s more likely to blow the whistle on him now. Besides, I have these medical charts Dace stole. Those should help. In the meantime, I did meet with Dr. Reed.”
    That caught him short. “Why?”
    “I wanted to hear what he had to say about Terrence Dace.”
    “And?”
    “He expressed regret about the deaths. He talked about how the study is set up and why he terminated Dace and his friend. Honestly, he made it all sound reasonable.”
    “I’m sure he did,” he said.
    “I’m trying to be