the joint and needs some fast cash. But I don’t have the money, see? I have some friends that might chip in, so I go around, put the deal together, collect a thousand bucks, and that’s when that little bitch decides to split—with the money. I couldn’t believe it. Fucking cow. She wasn’t even a good fuck. Boy, I caught shit for that one. If Messier hadn’t backed me up… They thought I’d ripped ’em off. Can you believe it?”
I looked at him for a moment, wondering how Kunkle would have conducted this interview—and wishing he was. “Describe Shawna’s hairdo,” I asked, having left Shawna’s photo at the office.
His mouth fell open. “Huh? What the hell… It was punklike. You know, purple and orange, shaved on one side. I hate that shit.”
“How ’bout her teeth—anything unusual there?”
He stared at me, totally baffled. “She had a gold tooth.”
“Was there any kind of design or inscription on it?”
“What’re you guys asking this shit for? No—it was just a goddamn tooth, all right?”
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah.”
“When did she disappear?”
His eyes narrowed. “What the hell did she do, anyway?”
“Answer the question,” Ron said flatly.
Redding scowled. “Middle of May, I think. It was starting to warm up a little.”
“During the time you were together,” I resumed, “did she make friends with anyone?”
“I told you. She was paranoid about her mother. She stayed inside all the time.”
“What about Messier? What was his relationship to her?”
“They didn’t like each other. He told me—just before she split with the money—that she had to go. After she ripped us off, he threw me out anyway. Such a prick. He was talking about how I should start paying rent, so I would’ve been outta’ there anyhow.”
“You didn’t look for her after she ripped you off?”
“Where was I going to look? I called that bastard Hugh—asked if he’d seen her. I thought maybe he’d set the thing up. I knew things were tight with a baby and everything. I even drove down there a couple of times, staked the place out. Never saw nothin’.”
“So you dropped it?”
He shrugged. “Hey, you know? It wasn’t my money, and once everybody knew Shawna’d done it, things cooled off. I found new digs, life went on.”
“How many people chipped in on the money she stole?”
“Four.”
“What’re their names?”
He looked at both of us with a crafty smile. “Oh… I don’t think so. You got me on possession—small change. When we get to the judge, there’s no way I’m talking about any dope deal gone bad—I got nothin’ to win by rattin’ on my friends. I gotta live in this town.”
I leaned forward, forcing him to bump the back of his head against the wall to avoid touching noses with me. “Listen, you cockroach. You want to know why we’re so interested in Shawna? It’s because she’s dead—you’ll read about it in the paper tomorrow. Those bones we found on Hillcrest were hers.”
His eyes grew wide. “You’re shittin’ me.”
“We figure she was killed right about when you last saw her—”
“I didn’t—” he interrupted.
I grabbed his arm tightly to shut him up. “But you sure as hell had a grudge against her, Patty, and you’re the one we got. You catch my drift?”
I could smell the sweat breaking out on him. “You guys are nuts. I didn’t kill her. I didn’t even know where the fuck she went. This is crazy.”
I squeezed his arm harder. “Patty, Patty, listen to me. Maybe you didn’t care about the money, but I bet the people it belonged to cared a lot. Am I right?”
“Sure. They were pissed. But murder? For a lousy thousand bucks?”
“People kill for a parking place, Patty. Think about it. You want to keep their names to yourself, it’s up to you. But then we got no one to focus on but you.”
He nodded jerkily. “Okay, okay. I’ll tell you.”
I pulled back and straightened up. “You have a phone I could
I looked at him for a moment, wondering how Kunkle would have conducted this interview—and wishing he was. “Describe Shawna’s hairdo,” I asked, having left Shawna’s photo at the office.
His mouth fell open. “Huh? What the hell… It was punklike. You know, purple and orange, shaved on one side. I hate that shit.”
“How ’bout her teeth—anything unusual there?”
He stared at me, totally baffled. “She had a gold tooth.”
“Was there any kind of design or inscription on it?”
“What’re you guys asking this shit for? No—it was just a goddamn tooth, all right?”
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah.”
“When did she disappear?”
His eyes narrowed. “What the hell did she do, anyway?”
“Answer the question,” Ron said flatly.
Redding scowled. “Middle of May, I think. It was starting to warm up a little.”
“During the time you were together,” I resumed, “did she make friends with anyone?”
“I told you. She was paranoid about her mother. She stayed inside all the time.”
“What about Messier? What was his relationship to her?”
“They didn’t like each other. He told me—just before she split with the money—that she had to go. After she ripped us off, he threw me out anyway. Such a prick. He was talking about how I should start paying rent, so I would’ve been outta’ there anyhow.”
“You didn’t look for her after she ripped you off?”
“Where was I going to look? I called that bastard Hugh—asked if he’d seen her. I thought maybe he’d set the thing up. I knew things were tight with a baby and everything. I even drove down there a couple of times, staked the place out. Never saw nothin’.”
“So you dropped it?”
He shrugged. “Hey, you know? It wasn’t my money, and once everybody knew Shawna’d done it, things cooled off. I found new digs, life went on.”
“How many people chipped in on the money she stole?”
“Four.”
“What’re their names?”
He looked at both of us with a crafty smile. “Oh… I don’t think so. You got me on possession—small change. When we get to the judge, there’s no way I’m talking about any dope deal gone bad—I got nothin’ to win by rattin’ on my friends. I gotta live in this town.”
I leaned forward, forcing him to bump the back of his head against the wall to avoid touching noses with me. “Listen, you cockroach. You want to know why we’re so interested in Shawna? It’s because she’s dead—you’ll read about it in the paper tomorrow. Those bones we found on Hillcrest were hers.”
His eyes grew wide. “You’re shittin’ me.”
“We figure she was killed right about when you last saw her—”
“I didn’t—” he interrupted.
I grabbed his arm tightly to shut him up. “But you sure as hell had a grudge against her, Patty, and you’re the one we got. You catch my drift?”
I could smell the sweat breaking out on him. “You guys are nuts. I didn’t kill her. I didn’t even know where the fuck she went. This is crazy.”
I squeezed his arm harder. “Patty, Patty, listen to me. Maybe you didn’t care about the money, but I bet the people it belonged to cared a lot. Am I right?”
“Sure. They were pissed. But murder? For a lousy thousand bucks?”
“People kill for a parking place, Patty. Think about it. You want to keep their names to yourself, it’s up to you. But then we got no one to focus on but you.”
He nodded jerkily. “Okay, okay. I’ll tell you.”
I pulled back and straightened up. “You have a phone I could
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