Blood Defense

FORTY-NINE

I called Alex and told him to stop. “Let me handle it.”

But he wanted to stay. “You gave me two days, remember? If I can’t get him after tonight, I’ll give up. I promise.”

I had to give in. “Fine, but if he’s not there by midnight, I want you to pull the plug.”

“How about two thirty? After the bars let out?”

“No. Midnight. And I want you to call me.” Not that I would be able to tell from his voice whether he was still at Scott’s place. But it might be harder for him to lie about it if he had to talk to me. What the hell, it was worth a shot.

Alex sighed. “Okay, I’ll call you.”

Michelle was smiling when I got back to the office. I glared at her. “What’s with the happy face? Knock it off.”

“We might have a paying customer. A real one.”

As opposed to the one who had threatened to kill Dale. “No way. Who? What?”

“It’s white collar. Computer and bank fraud.”

“Ugh.”

Michelle gave me an indignant look. “White collar is where the money is. And you have Alex now. He’ll handle the workup.”

He’d probably love it. “How do we know he has money?”

“She, you sexist. I asked for all her numbers-checking account, credit cards, debit cards, the works. Nina Lederman is in good shape.”

“Assuming those accounts aren’t all fake.”

“Go work on your trial. You’re bumming me out.”

At six o’clock, we got a delivery. A big FedEx box that’d been designated for overnight delivery. I put my ear to the box to listen for ticking, then frowned at Michelle. “What on earth could this be?”

Michelle handed me a pair of scissors. “Gee, if only there was a way to find out.”

But she looked puzzled, too. The only deliveries we ever got were from Staples. I sliced through the tape, feeling apprehensive. As I pried open the box, my mouth was dry. I had a lot of haters lately. But this was an awful lot of trouble and expense to go to. I hesitated before pulling out the filler paper. Maybe it was a dead animal? I didn’t smell anything. Or maybe it was some of those ugly posters people had been waving outside the courthouse? Or maybe there was a spring-loaded bottle of acid inside? Was there even such a thing? Enough. I made myself pull out the paper.

And there lay a pile of gorgeous suits. The packing slip said they’d come from Barneys. As I pulled each of them out, I could feel the richness of the fabric. These suits cost more than a year’s rent. They were the right size, too.

I was furious.

Michelle examined the packing slip. “Who…?”

“Fucking Celeste. That’s who.” I’d been taking some heat in the press for my somewhat battered, hugely out-of-date wardrobe. “She’s embarrassed because people are saying her daughter looks like a rag doll.”

Michelle sighed and nodded. “But you know what? Free clothes are free clothes. And your wardrobe could use a little… refreshing.”

“I don’t care. Screw her. I’m not wearing this shit.” I repacked the box and closed it up. “How do I return this?”

Michelle folded her arms. “I am not going to help you cut off your nose to spite your face. Figure it out on your own.”

I didn’t have time to fool around with this. “Fine.” I stomped into my office and threw the box on the floor.

I went back to work. But an hour later, my cell phone rang. It was Jack, my stepfather. “Are you still at work?” I said I was. “Guess you’ll be burning the midnight oil until it’s over. I hope you’re taking care of yourself and finding a way to get some rest.”

“Thanks, Jack. I’m trying.” Jack was always doing this-showing me how a normal parent behaves. It would’ve been easy for Celeste to put on a better act. All she had to do was copy him. But that would never occur to her. “I hope all’s well with you?”

“Fine, just fine. Look, I know you don’t have time for jibber-jabber; I just wanted to make sure you got the package.”

“The FedEx package?”

He cleared his throat. “That’s the one. I hope the suits are the right size. I asked your mother. Do you like them?”

Jack bought them? I glanced at the box. “Uh, yeah. I mean, who wouldn’t? They’re gorgeous. Thank you, Jack.” But I was suspicious. Jack was no fashion maven. He didn’t even shop for his own clothes. “How’d you pick them out?”

“I… uh… got some advice from the salesperson. Good. I’m glad they worked out.”

When we ended the call, I told Michelle that Jack said he’d bought the suits. “I think he’s just covering for Celeste. He knows I won’t wear them if they came from her.”

Michelle raised an eyebrow. “But you can’t be sure of that. And if he really did buy them and you send them back, you’ll hurt his feelings.”

I picked up the box. This was one hell of a bind.

Michelle smirked. “I’d say Jack played that nicely. Now hang up those suits before they wrinkle.”

I shot her a dagger, but I took them out and laid them across a chair. Then I buried myself in fingerprint and DNA evidence for the next four hours. At ten thirty, I told Michelle to go home. “Someone around here should get some sleep.”

“If you’re staying, I’m staying.”

She had that don’t-mess-with-me look I’d known since seventh grade, so I didn’t bother to argue. “Want me to go pick up some dinner?”

A police siren that’d been a distant wail was getting louder and louder. I glanced at my watch. Right on time. This was when our Barrios Van Nuys gang neighbors tended to get busy. Michelle looked out the window and shook her head. “Probably not a good time for us to be out walking around. I’ll order pizza.”

The cops had found whatever they were looking for just a block away, and more were coming. It was getting too noisy to think. I closed my window and went back to work. When the pizza came, we took a break. I decided to keep going until Alex called. But midnight came and went, and I got no call. I went out to Michelle’s desk. “Did Alex text you?”

“No.”

I took out my cell and called Alex. The call when straight to his voice mail. It was twelve fifteen. “I don’t like this.”

“Me neither. Let’s go.”

I knew that Scott’s place was in an even lousier neighborhood than this one. I put my gun in my briefcase and we headed out.

But I hadn’t even reached the freeway when my cell phone rang. I gave it to Michelle.

She looked puzzled, but she took the call for me. “Yes, this is her phone. I answered because she’s driving.” After a pause she said, “I’m Michelle… yes, Michelle Fusco.” Another pause. “Oh my God. Yes, we’ll be right there. Thank you.”

My stomach tightened as I took in Michelle’s stricken look. “What?”

“Alex is in the hospital. Someone attacked him.”

Panic filled my brain. “Where is he?”

“He’s at Saint Vincent Medical Center.”

I floored it. “What did they tell you? Is he going to be okay?”

But Michelle didn’t have any other information. At that time of night, we could fly, and I took full advantage of it. We got there in twenty minutes flat. I parked in a doctor’s space, and we ran to the emergency room.

Alex was in a bed at the far end. His left arm was in a sling, and his head was so heavily bandaged I could barely see his face. His eyes were closed. I looked up at his monitors. His heartbeat was slow but regular. I turned to go find a doctor, but Michelle grabbed my arm.

She leaned down. “Alex? I didn’t quite hear you.”

Alex’s eyes were open, but they were just slits, and he whispered through swollen, bloody lips. “Don’t tell. Okay?”

I nodded.

“I went inside to look for the phone. Someone…” He stopped and tried to lick his lips. I grabbed a Kleenex, poured some water on it from a bottle on the table next to his bed, and gently patted his lips. After a few seconds, he said, “He was looking for Scott.”

I poured some more water on the Kleenex and swabbed his lips again. “The guy who beat you up thought you were Scott?”

“Yeah. When he saw it was me, he ran.” He closed his eyes, then slowly opened them. “No phone. Sorry.”

“No. You don’t get to say that word. I do. I’m sorry. I should never have let you go out there alone. I’m so sorry, Alex-”

A doctor walked up and pulled the curtain around the bed. “Are you Michelle and Samantha?” We nodded. “He’s got a few cracked ribs, a concussion, and his arm is sprained, but it’s not broken. He’ll be out of commission for a little while, but there shouldn’t be any lasting damage.”

“Did you call his family?” Michelle asked.

“Yes. His uncle is on the way.”

I stared at his battered face. “When are you going to release him?”

“If everything stays stable, probably tomorrow morning. I’d guess by about ten a.m. So if you two plan to take him home, come back then.”

The doctor left. I sat down next to Alex’s bed. “I’ll take him back to my place-”

Michelle shook her head. “And then what? You’re in trial. You can’t take care of him. He can stay with me-”

“How is that any better? You’ve got to be in the office.”

“I can forward the calls-”

Our bickering got cut off by the arrival of Alex’s uncle-who made it clear that he’d be taking Alex home with him.

Tomas Medrano looked like the kind of guy you’d be glad to have on your side. Height clearly ran in the family. He was more than six feet tall. But unlike Alex, he was barrel-chested and had thick, heavy features. Jutting cheekbones; a wide, broken nose; and heavy brows combined to make him look like someone you didn’t want to piss off. His biceps and thick hands said how much it’d hurt if you did.

And when he said Alex would be staying with him, we didn’t argue.