Moe smiled. “Guess you’d have to be when you’re actually lifting but some of us keep our mellow going.”
I said, “She didn’t?”
“Never saw her blow up, Doc, but she did give off a stay-away vibe. Like the time I helped her. She got off the bench, mumbled thanks, and hurried away. Not hostile but clearly not pleased.”
I said, “Embarrassed about needing help.”
“That’s how I took it. A lot of people are like that in the serious gyms. Come in thinking they’re going to impress, overextend themselves and get into trouble. So yeah, she was probably embarrassed. And come to think of it, that was the last time I saw her there.”
Alicia said, “Did she hold on to her looks at all?”
“She wasn’t grotesque,” said Reed. “Nothing like some people I’veseen. I guess in clothes and with the right makeup, she’d still look good. But not like those shots on the board.”
Sean said, “Losing her money and her looks. That could make you mad.”
Alicia said, “So you kill three people? Saw the arms off one?”
Everyone looked atme.
I said, “Life circumstances getting worse and steroids could be a volatile mix. Especially for someone with long-festering resentment and anger control problems. Which we know Tiana had at nineteen when she suddenly attacked another beauty contestant.”
Multiple note-taking.
“Walt Karski recalled that Tiana had a meeting with Martha and left looking unhappy. Mike Heck confirms that, though he describes Tiana as being angry. We may never know what transpired but here are some guesses. This was a woman who’d gone from conspicuous wealth and the chance to star in a reality show to being a pariah shut off completely from funds. What if she’d asked Martha for some sort of flexibility and Martha refused.”
Milo said, “Martha had no control over the money.”
“Tiana may not have been rational. If she was panicking, begged Martha for help, and was turned down that would’ve compounded the rejection. Especially if Martha was harsh.”
I turned to Milo. “From what you knew of Martha would that be likely?”
He scratched the side of his nose. “Never saw her get nasty but she did tend to be business-like. And Heck describes her as unemotional and tough. So maybe.”
I said, “Another possibility is that Martha called Tiana in for the meeting in order to accuse her of participating in the scam in the hope of getting a confession.”
Sean said, “She could’ve participated.”
Milo said, “No one was indicted except Alberts and he never served a day of time. The whole thing was a shitshow.”
I said, “If something hostile did occur between Tiana and Martha,Tiana may have stewed on it for years only to be triggered by meeting Lynne Gutierrez at Safe Place and learning she was Martha’s daughter. To someone with serious psychiatric issues—like paranoia—that could’ve seemed like an omen. And we know steroids can foster paranoia.”
Moe said, “If she combined it with meth, even worse.”
“Any evidence of that?”
“No, but people do try to energize.”
Alicia said, “She’s there to volunteer and ends up bashing Lynne to death.”
I said, “Not as Lynne, as Martha’s daughter. She may have begun volunteering as a way to feel better about herself. She claimed to be helping sick kids but we haven’t been able to verify that, so she could be trying to bolster herself. Then she’s faced with a remembrance of things past and blows.”
Milo said, “When Lynne walked to Martha’s, it woulda been easy enough to follow her and learn where Martha lived.”
“Or,” said Moe, “she pretended to be a buddy and walked with her. Or gave her a lift.”
“Evil,” said Alicia. “If any of it’s true.”
Hector Villalobos said, “Going to do my darndest to get more footage, maybe we can finally get tags on the Highlander and confirm it as hers.”
