Jayne and Steelie - 01 - Freezing by Clea Koff Read Free Book Online Page B

name Rite Aid , the local pharmacy.
    Jayne pulled out the package inside: night-lights, pack of two. She smiled. ‘Thanks.’
    They sat in companionable silence until the wind picked up enough to blow out the candles. ‘You want coffee?’
    â€˜No, darling, I’ve got to go. I’m judging the student exhibits at the Garden Expo in Pasadena tomorrow, so it’s an early night for me.’
    Jayne saw her mother down to the driveway where Marie’s sleek, sky-blue Mercedes 450SL was parked behind her truck. As she walked back up the stairs to her door, she looked at the much-maligned cacti and laughed to herself. They did look like sentries; totally unapproachable and silent.
    After Jayne cleared up, she locked the sliding door and went to bed, banishing all thoughts of real people as she pressed the Play button on the cassette deck resting on her bedside table.
    She didn’t hear the man on her front doorstep when he smashed one of the cactus pots. The measured reading of Gaudy Night had taken her into a rare dreamless sleep.

DAY TWO
    Wednesday
    SIX
    E ric’s voice was quiet. ‘Here he comes.’ He stepped away from the door of the Suburban to allow Scott to get out. They had been waiting for the owner of the body shop on Magnolia Boulevard, Al Corso, to finish locking his office so they could question him a second time. When Corso saw them advancing, he came to a standstill and threw out his hands, causing his nylon briefcase to wave around.
    â€˜What? You not done with me yet?’ His tone was aggressive and resigned all at once. ‘I answered all your questions, didn’t I?’
    â€˜Yeah,’ said Eric, resting an arm on his shoulders and pulling him toward the Suburban. ‘We just didn’t like your answers so much, Corso. Thought we’d give you another chance.’
    They reached the vehicle and Scott opened the back door. Corso looked at each of them, then his shoulders slumped and he got in. Eric hopped in next to him while Scott got in the driver’s seat and closed the door. The door locks thunked closed.
    Eric used a friendly tone. ‘Mr Corso, are you familiar with the term “obstruction”?’
    The body shop owner held up his hands. ‘Look, I told you what I know.’
    â€˜No . . . you told us you had a van in here for bodywork but that you didn’t get its license plate number.’
    â€˜That was true!’
    â€˜But you remembered that it was a California plate?’
    â€˜Yeah?’ Corso sounded tentative.
    Eric punched him lightly on the shoulder. ‘Don’t get nervous, Corso! I’m just reminding everyone of what you said when we interviewed you.’
    The man tried to laugh but he looked nervous.
    â€˜So it was a California plate but you didn’t get the number,’ Eric rejoined.
    â€˜Uh-huh.’
    â€˜And you said that you couldn’t remember if it was a vanity plate or a regular one.’
    â€˜So?’
    â€˜I wondered if you knowing that we’re looking for this van because it’s at the center of a Federal murder investigation might help jog your memory?’ Eric smiled at him.
    Corso’s voice came out at a slightly higher octave. ‘Murder?’
    Scott leaned around from the front seat. ‘And not just murder. We have evidence to suggest that the guy driving the van cut people up into pieces.’
    â€˜I-I-I didn’t know about any murder! The guy didn’t look like a murderer.’
    Eric was calm. ‘The guy who brought the van in.’
    â€˜Yeah. I told you, he was just a nobody, maybe forty years old, nothing weird about him.’
    â€˜And he paid cash.’
    â€˜Everyone pays cash!’
    â€˜Let’s talk about the other cash.’
    â€˜What other cash?!’
    â€˜Come on, Corso. We know he paid you hush money. And don’t pretend you haven’t been in this business long enough to note the plates even