Bel Geddes said, “Oh no. Donotgo down that street, Mike.”
She looked at Wendy. Then back at Heck.
“All this is nothing but pure pie-in-the-sky supposition and you are already dealing with enough stress, Michael. So we’ve gotmuchto accomplish in order to restore your sense of well-being.”
“Yeah, sure, great, whatever,” said Michael Heck, rising. “Meanwhile, I’m still getting the hell out of Dodge.”
He left the room quickly. Bel Geddes took a moment to recover before hustling after him. Disoriented by having to follow.
Wendy was the last to leave. She wanted to say something but was smart enough to keep her mouth shut.
Chapter
10
Milo said, “Thoughts?”
Before I could answer, the hostess stepped in wearing a permafrost smile. “The room’s reserved, guys.”
“Big-time meeting? Industry honchos?” said Milo.
The question threw her. Like most people who casually lie she was unprepared for challenge.
“Um…”
He flashed a wolf grin that scrubbed her face clean of intention and we walked past her. No escort in, ditto out.
Both of us had parked around the corner, on a pine-shaded Beverly Hills street lined with mansions. Wide swath, smooth and nearly silent; hard to believe the high-end dorm was a brief walk away.
As I walked Milo to his unmarked, he said, “Same question.”
“To me, Heck comes across credible.”
“Yup. And I put the guy in jail. Did you feel what I did? Ol’ Bettina’s definitely setting up a big civil suit.”
I said, “No doubt and that might be the reason she let him stay in jail for two days. And he put up with it. Either he was part of the plan or disoriented. Or maybe both. He agreed with Bel Geddes then experienced what County’s like.”
“Yeah, he does look edgy. Wonderful. Can’t wait for the subpoena.”
“Meanwhile, he did give you some info you might be able to use. Sophie’s friends and his time with Darren Alberts.”
“Baron Darren, Lord and Master of Scumbaggery. It took, what, to uncover him—a decade? I thought he was headed for prison but Heck said he’s senile. You hear anything about that?”
“I did,” I said. “Major dementia, he’s in a care facility.”
His eyebrows dipped. “How come you know that and I don’t?”
“Three neuropsychologists evaluated him. One’s a friend.”
“Honest friend?”
“All three are, including the one hired by the defense. Everyone agreed Alberts has deteriorated to where he needs special care.”
“Convenient. So you’re saying he’s too messed up to pull off a fake-DNA thing.”
“That would be my guess but I can try to find out. And even if Alberts wasn’t directly behind it, someone else at his firm could’ve tagged Heck as a snitch and decided to get even.”
“Someone gets back at Heck by strangling an innocent woman?”
