“He’s a compliant guy. He does what he’s told. Nothing more.”
“The money and the instructions—what is that all about?”
“Vine’s business,”Bucshon said. “He moves money, drugs, people, all over the place. Sudsy Place was set up to facilitate all that. Couple of guys there keep the goods moving while Crystal handles the money. Moffit is kind of window dressing, so everything seems legit.”
“How do you know what Moffit would do in relation to Vine?”Mike asked.“What exactly did you do for Vine?”
The attorney spoke up.“My client is not going to incriminate himself. He may have made comments earlier, before representation. I will fight the use of those comments in court.”
“Hypothetically,”Mike said.“What job would a person have where he would be privy to information about what you’re saying?”
There was a sound on the tape, as if someone was playing with a plastic water bottle, tapping it on the table and crinkling the plastic.
Lainie waited, growing impatient by the minute. Hank was self-serving; she wasn’t certain they could trust anything he said.
“A runner,”he said finally.“Freelance. Someone who takes a message from one person and runs it to the next. Not knowing what the message said.”
“Taking messages from Vine to the car wash?”Mike asked.
“And the other way. Someone like that might see how the dynamics in a business work.”
“Would that person have any proof?”
“Only what he saw and heard.”
Lainie closed the file. In a way it lent credence to what Stan had said. Both men hedged their answers, and she’d bet a paycheck neither was completely truthful. Bucshon would not be the strongest witness in court, but he could be put on the stand. Still, they needed a stronger voice.
She glanced toward the cubicle where Benton lay. Crystal Benton could probably bury Vine if she wanted to. If she woke up, would she?
CHAPTER 38
Thinking about court and the type of evidence they’d need to make a solid case, Lainie got up to pace the hallway in the CCU. They’d need a lot to get Vine. And they did have a lot of solid evidence. The trouble was, it only pointed to Stan. DNA from the motorcycle helmet could blow things wide open, but it could be months before they got it. Could the DNA be Stan’s? Lainie didn’t see it.
She was about to dial the sheriff’s department and let them know about Vine’s visit when her phone chimed with a call. It was Ben Isaacs.
“I hear you’re babysitting Crystal Benton.”
“Yeah, I think she’s our best bet to get to Vine. If I know that, he knows that. He was just here.”
“What? Vine? At the hospital?” Ben’s voice rose an octave.
“Yeah.” Lainie told him about the visit.
“That is alarming. Someone does need to be watching Benton. His being there says that he doesn’t trust her to stay quiet.”
“Why should she? It certainly seems like Vine wanted her dead.”
“You need a break,” Ben said. “I can come down and cover the midnight shift. Can you wait until I get there?”
“Seriously, you’d sit here all night?”
“You bet. I believe Benton might know about Efren. I want to talk to her as much as you do. It’s important that she gets well and wakes up to talk.”
“Agreed. I will wait. Can I ask you a favor?”
“Shoot.”
“My lunch was a long time ago. Can you do an In-N-Out run for me?”
