First to Die

Chapter 19

I DIDN'T WANT TO GO HOME. And I knew I couldn't stay at the Hall any longer. I grabbed my bag, rushed down to the underground garage, and started up my trusty-dusty Bronco without a clear sense of where I was headed. I just drove- Fourth, Third, onto Mission, past the Moscone Center- cafes, closed-up shops. All the way down toward the Embarcadero. I wrapped around Battery, heading away from the bay. I had nowhere to go, but my hands seemed to act on their own, leading me somewhere. Flashes of the murdered bride and groom flickered in my head. Echoes of Orenthaler. I had finally called Dr. Medved, the hematologist, for an appointment. I was approaching Sutler, and I turned. Suddenly, I knew where I was heading. I pulled into Union Square. Without even trying, I found myself in front of the brightly lit entrance of the Hyatt. I badged the manager and took the elevator up to the thirtieth floor. A single uniformed guard sat in front of the Mandarin Suite. I recognized him, David Hale out of Central. He stood up as he saw me approach. "Nowhere to go, Inspector?" A crisscrossing barrier of yellow tape blocked the entrance to the Mandarin Suite. Hale gave me the key. I peeled off a band or two of tape and slipped under the rest. I turned the lock and I was inside. If you've never wandered alone at the site of a freshly committed murder, you don't really know the feeling of restless unease. I felt the dark ghosts of David and Melanie Brandt were still in the room. I was sure I had missed something. I was also sure it was here. What? The suite was pretty much as I had left it. The Oriental carpet in the living room had gone to Clapper's lab. But body positions and blood sites were clearly marked out with blue chalk. I looked at the spot where David Brandt had died. In my mind, I retraced what had likely taken place. They are toasting each other. (I knew that from the half filled champagne glasses on a table near the terrace.) Maybe he just gave her the earrings. (The open box was on the master bathroom counter.) There's a knock. David Brandt goes to answer. It was as if secrets were buzzing in the thick air, alive with whispers. The killer comes in, carrying the champagne box. Maybe David knows him. Maybe he just left him an hour before at the reception. The knife comes out. Only one thrust. The groom is pinned against the door, apoplectic. It happens so fast that he cannot scream. "Poor man went in his pants," Claire had said. The bride doesn't scream? Maybe she's in the bathroom. (The jewelry box.) Maybe she went in there to put on the earrings. The killer hunts through the suite. He intercepts the bride, coming out unsuspectingly. I envision Melanie Brandt- radiant, full of joy. He sees it, too. Was he someone she knew? Had she just left him? Did Melanie know her killer? There's a Navajo saying, "Even the still wind has a voice." In the quiet, confessing hotel room, I listen. Tell me, Melanie. I am here for you. I'm listening. My skin tingles with the chill of resurrecting each detail of the murder. She fights, tries to run away. (The bruises and small abrasions on her arms and neck.) The killer stabs her at the foot of the bed. He is horrified, yet wildly excited about what he has done. She doesn't die immediately. He has to stab her again. And once more. When he is finished, he carries her to the bed. (Not drags. There is no sign of blood trailing behind.) This is important. He is gentle with her. It makes me think he knows her. Maybe he once loved Melanie? He folds her arms on her waist in a restful pose. A princess sleeping. Maybe he pretends that what has taken place is only a bad dream. Nowhere in the room do I feel the clinical pattern of professionals or hired killers. Or even someone who has killed before. I'm listening. A ferocious anger rises up in his blood. He realizes he will never see her again. His princess… He's so angry. He wants to lie down with her this one time. Feel her. But he cannot. That would defile her. But he must have her. So he lifts her dress. Uses his fist. It is all screaming at me. I'm sure there is one last thing I am not seeing. Unrevealed. What am I missing? What has everyone missed so far? I step over to the bed. I envision Melanie, her horrifying stab wounds, but her face is calm, un accusing He leaves her like that. He doesn't take the earrings. He doesn't take the huge diamond ring. Then it hit me with the power of a train exploding from a dark tunnel. What was missing. What I hadn't seen. Jesus Christ, Lindsay. Rings! I ran my mind over the image of her lying there. Her delicate, blood-smeared hands. The diamond was still there, but.. Jesus! Is it possible? I ran back to the foyer and brought to mind the crumpled body of the groom. They had been married just a few hours before. They had just completed their vows. But they weren't wearing gold bands. Wedding rings. The killer doesn't take the earrings, I realized. He takes the rings.