"T" is for Trespass by Sue Grafton Page B

At the same time, I thought her behavior was bullshit, pure showmanship.”
    â€œAccording to the police report, you were at fault.”
    â€œI know that’s what it says, but that’s ridiculous. The way the law’s written, they had the right-of-way so I’m technically the guilty one. When I first saw the van it was creeping along. I swear he wasn’t going more than three miles an hour. He must have floored it when he realized he could catch me before I finished the turn.”
    â€œYou’re saying he hit you deliberately?”
    â€œWhy not? He had the opportunity of a lifetime staring him in the face.”
    I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”
    â€œTo collect the insurance money,” she said impatiently. “Check it out for yourself. She’s essentially self-employed. She works as an independent contractor, so she probably doesn’t have long-term medical coverage and no disability insurance. What a great way to support themselves in their retirement years, suing the shit out of me.”
    â€œYou know that for a fact?”
    â€œWhat, her having no disability insurance? No, I don’t know it for a fact , but I’d be willing to bet.”
    â€œI can’t picture it. How could Millard be sure she’d survive the crash?”
    â€œYeah, well, he wasn’t going that fast. Relatively speaking. I mean, he wasn’t driving sixty miles an hour. He must have known neither one of us would die .”
    â€œRisky nonetheless.”
    â€œMaybe that depends on the stakes.”
    â€œTrue, but auto insurance fraud is usually highly organized and involves more than one person. The ‘mark’ might be maneuvered into rear-ending another vehicle, but it’s all a setup. The ‘victim,’ the lawyer, and the doctor are in cahoots on the claim. I can’t believe Gladys or Millard are part of anything like that.”
    â€œThey don’t have to be. He might have read about it in a book. It wouldn’t take a genius to figure how to set it up. He saw a chance for big bucks and acted on the spur of the moment.”
    â€œHow are we going to prove that?”
    â€œFind the old guy and he’ll tell you.”
    â€œWhat makes you so sure he saw the accident?”
    â€œHe must have because I remember catching sight of him as I approached the exit to the parking lot. I didn’t pay much attention because I was focused on the street ahead.”
    â€œYou saw him where?”
    â€œOn the far side of Palisade.”
    â€œDoing what?”
    â€œI don’t know. I guess he was waiting to cross the street, so he must have seen the van about the same time I did.”
    â€œWhat age would you say?”
    â€œWhat do I know about old guys? He had white hair and his jacket was brown leather, sort of dry-looking and cracked.”
    â€œCan you recall anything else? Did the old guy wear glasses?”
    â€œI don’t remember.”
    â€œWhat about the shape of his face?”
    â€œKind of long.”
    â€œClean shaven?”
    â€œI think so. For sure, he didn’t have a beard, but he might’ve had a mustache.”
    â€œNo moles or scars?”
    â€œCan’t help you there. I was upset so I didn’t pay much attention.”
    â€œWhat about height and weight?”
    â€œHe seemed taller than me and I’m five-six, but he wasn’t heavy or rail thin or anything like that. I’m sorry I can’t be more specific.”
    â€œWhat about his hands?”
    â€œNope, but I remember his shoes. They were those old-time black leather lace-up shoes like the kind my granddad wore to work. You know the ones with holes punched around the instep?”
    â€œWing tips?”
    â€œYeah, them. They needed polishing and the sole on his right shoe was coming loose.”
    â€œDid he have an accent?”
    â€œNot one that I noticed.”
    â€œWhat about his