Victims Read Free

“Must be my charm and good looks.”
    Gloria grinned and patted his shoulder again. “Anything else, guys? I’m on half-shift due to budgetary constraints, figure to finish my paperwork by one then go cleanse my head with a couple of martinis. Give or take.”
    Milo said, “Make it a double for me.”
    I said, “Was significant blood pooled inside the body cavity?”
    Her look said I was being a spoilsport. “A lot of it was coagulated but yes, that’s where most of it was. You figured that because the scene was so clean?”
    I nodded. “It was either that or he found out a way to take it with him.”
    Milo said, “Buckets of blood, lovely.” To Gloria: “One more question: You recall anything remotely like this in your case files?”
    “Nope,” she said. “But we just cover the county and they say it’s a globalized world, right? You could be looking at a traveler.”
    Milo glared and trudged down the stairs.
    Gloria said, “Whoa, someone’s in a mood.”
    I said, “It’s likely to stay that way for a while.”

CHAPTER
3
    S tanleigh Belleveaux’s house was as meticulous inside as out.
    Cozy, plush-carpeted place set up with doily-protected too-small furniture. The dollhouse feel was heightened by a brass étagère filled with bisque figurines. Another case bore photos of two handsome young men in uniform and an American flag paperweight.
    “My wife’s thing,” said Belleveaux, wringing his hands. “The dolls, they’re from Germany. She’s in Memphis, visiting my mother-in-law.”
    He was black, fiftyish, thickset, dressed in a navy polo shirt, pressed khakis, and tan loafers. A fleece of white blanketed his scalp and the bottom half of his face. His nose had been broken a few times. His knuckles were scarred.
    “Her mom,” said Milo.
    “Pardon?”
    “You called her your mother-in-law rather than her mom.”
    “Because that’s how I think of her. Mother-in-law. Worst person Iknow. Like the Ernie K-Doe song, but you probably don’t remember that.”
    Milo hummed a few bars.
    Belleveaux smiled weakly. Turned grim and wrung his hands some more. “I still can’t believe what happened to Ms. Berlin. Still can’t believe I had to see it.” He closed his eyes, opened them. No booze on the table before him, just a can of Diet Coke.
    Milo said, “Change your mind about the Dewar’s, huh?”
    “It’s tempting,” said Belleveaux. “But a little early in the day, what if I get a call and have to drive?”
    “Call from who?”
    “A tenant. That’s my life, sir.”
    “How many tenants do you have?”
    “The Feldmans down below Ms. Berlin, the Soos and the Kims and the Parks and the other Parks in a triplex I own over near Korea Town. Then I’ve got a real problem rental down in Willowbrook, inherited from my dad, a nice family, the Rodriguezes, are there now but it’s been tough because of the gangster situation.” He rubbed his eyes. “This is my best neighborhood, I chose to live here, last place I thought I’d have … a problem. Still can’t believe what I saw, it’s like a movie, a bad one, a real horror movie. I want to switch to another channel but what I saw won’t budge out of here.” Placing a thumb-tip on his forehead.
    “It’ll fade,” said Milo. “Takes time.”
    “Guess you’d know about that,” said Belleveaux. “How much time?”
    “Hard to say.”
    “It’s probably easier for you, this being your job. My job, the worst thing I see is a bat in a garage, sewage leak, mice eating wires.” Frowning. “Gangsters in the Willowbrook place, but I keep my distance. This was way up close, too close.”
    “How long have you owned the property across the street?”
    “Seven years eight months.”
    “That’s pretty precise, Mr. Belleveaux.”
    “I’m a detail-man, Lieutenant. Learned precision in the army, they taught me mechanics, a little mechanical engineering, I didn’t need a college degree to accumulate adequate knowledge. Later when I was out and