Vultures at Twilight by Charles Atkins Page B

years back with Katherine Williams . . .’ He let the statement trail.
    â€˜They never proved anything,’ Carl said.
    â€˜But if someone held a grudge,’ Hank continued. ‘How does the saying go, “Revenge is a meal best eaten cold”?’
    â€˜What unpleasantness ?’ Detective Perez asked, having already reviewed the charges that had been filed, and then dropped, against Carl some five years earlier.
    â€˜It was nothing,’ Carl said, unable to meet her gaze. He stared at the grain of his oak desk. ‘Consignors always think they should have gotten more than their stuff is really worth.’
    â€˜And sometimes mistakes happen,’ Detective Perez prompted.
    â€˜I’m not saying anything, but on a Friday night we run through over three hundred lots. There are bound to be mistakes.’
    â€˜I bet,’ the detective said. ‘And the particular unpleasantness we’re talking about involved about two dozen “mistakes”, or so the consignor alleged.’
    Carl looked crushed.
    â€˜How did the charges get dropped, Carl?’ she asked.
    â€˜I . . .’ He couldn’t find the words, and he gripped his left hand over his right to keep them from shaking.
    â€˜Let me help,’ Hank said. ‘I encouraged Carl to settle. By and large it seemed to take care of all the involved parties.’
    Detective Mattie Perez looked at the local police chief and smiled. ‘Neither side wanted publicity?’
    â€˜Basically,’ Hank admitted.
    â€˜So, Carl, who was the aggrieved party?’
    â€˜That can’t have anything to do with this,’ he spluttered, struggling to keep his temper in check.
    â€˜Why is that, Mr McElroy?’ Detective Perez asked. ‘Could that be because the plaintiff is no longer living?’
    â€˜Yes,’ he admitted.
    â€˜In fact,’ Perez continued, ‘Katherine Williams never lived to receive her settlement.’
    â€˜No, it went to her estate . . . to her son.’
    â€˜Sad, isn’t it,’ the detective said. ‘An old woman consigns her prized possessions to an auctioneer, someone she knows . . . trusts. And then that auctioneer repeatedly records inaccurate sales figures for her possessions. And curiously enough, the discrepancies always came out in your favor, Carl.’
    â€˜It got settled. It never went beyond the civil suit,’ he persisted.
    â€˜Yes, and more’s the pity. So what we need to know is,’ she continued, ‘how many Katherine Williamses are out there? A dozen? A hundred? More? You have quite the dossier at the licensing board.’
    Wisely, Carl kept his mouth shut.
    â€˜You have to wonder,’ Mattie Perez continued, pacing slowly in front of Carl. ‘Is someone dishing out just desserts to the local dealers? And, Carl, I suspect there are one or two little details you’ve left out. If I were you –’ she stopped and leaned over his desk – ‘I’d cough up everything now.’
    â€˜I want my lawyer,’ he said.
    â€˜Whatever for, Carl?’ Hank asked. ‘No one’s charging you with anything.’
    â€˜She’s badgering me. I don’t have to take this,’ he said, whining like a schoolboy, his thoughts fixed on the waiting bottle, needing it desperately.
    â€˜We’re trying to look after you, Carl. While Detective Perez may come across a little hard; we don’t want to see you turn up dead.’
    McElroy blanched. He gripped his hands tighter; he couldn’t make the shaking stop. His entire body felt like it was vibrating, a darkness closed in on his thoughts, making it hard to think; just keep your mouth shut. They’ve got to leave some time.
    Mattie and Hank watched and waited. The silence was complete.
    Finally, Carl spoke. ‘I have nothing to say; I’d like you to leave.’
    Hank wasn’t surprised. They’d