Second Honeymoon

Chapter 13

I WATCHED AS Eldridge took another puff of his cigarillo, the smoke leaving his lips in a perfect thin line.

“Agent O’Hara, when you arrived here, what did you see outside my office?” he asked.

“A horde of reporters from all over the world,” I answered. “Even the Middle East.”

“And how did they look?”

“Hungry,” I said. “Like a pack of wolves that hadn’t been fed enough for the past forty-eight hours. I’ve seen that look before.”

He smiled. “Yes, exactly. So please don’t take this personally when I tell you I can’t divulge any details of the investigation. If for no other reason than I’d like to think I’ve learned from other people’s mistakes.”

Right away, I understood what he was talking about: Aruba.

So much information and misinformation had leaked in the Natalee Holloway case that the Aruban authorities ultimately came off looking like the Keystone Kops. Eldridge seemed determined not to let that happen under his command.

Still, I had a job to do here, and he knew it.

“Can I at least assume that you have your entire CID working on the case? Every inspector? Every person, down to your last constable?” I asked.

I’d already done a little homework on the setup down here. Whereas NYPD detectives were ranked by grade—first, second, and third—on Turks and Caicos there were four levels of seniority to the CID, or Criminal Investigations Division: detective inspectors, then sergeants, followed by corporals and constables.

Hell, the way I saw it, even the janitor should’ve been trying to catch the killer.

“Yes, you can assure Mr. Breslow that we have everyone working on the case,” said Eldridge. “Everyone including you, too, now. Can I assume you’ll be heading over to the Governor’s Club as soon as possible?”

I nodded. “Yes.”

“I’m sure you know that the Governor’s Club is a private resort, and they can press charges for trespassing, if they so desire.”

I stared at Eldridge again, trying to get a read on him. I couldn’t. Was he really trying to stand in my way?

“Do you think that’s a possibility?” I asked. “I mean, would they really consider my being there to be trespassing?”

“It’s very possible,” he said. “They cater to a high-class clientele, people in the know, and are very sensitive about respecting the privacy of their guests.”

It suddenly dawned on me what Eldridge was doing. He was actually trying to tell me something, only not in so many words. This was off the record. Between the lines. Code.

So long as I was smart enough to figure it out.

“Yes, I see what you mean,” I said. “I’d hate to put you on the spot with something as frivolous as a trespassing charge. You’d have to arrest me, wouldn’t you?”

“Yes, I’m afraid I would,” he said. “Without hesitation.”

I stood up and shook his hand. “Then I’ll do my best to save you the trouble.”