“What is AGATT?” Carlita asked.
“All the gear, all the time. Protection in the event of a crash,” Dernice explained.
“It didn’t help Creed,” Mercedes said. “He looks like he’s in rough shape.”
“Here’s where I was going with my theory.” Dernice ran a plastic pointer across the computer screen. “Creed and his bike are here. Rocky Skidz is here. Sonny Skidz is over here.” She ran the pointer diagonally from corner to corner. “Creed claims Rocky cut him off, causing him to jerk the handlebar. He lost control, ran through the shrubbery and hit the curb.”
Elvira picked up. “Based on the location of where Rocky’s bike is parked, there was no way he caused the crash.”
Carlita squinted her eyes and studied the scene. “How can you tell anyone apart? The motorcycles and gear all look the same.”
“Precisely.” Dernice snapped her fingers. “Rocky never had a beef with Creed, and neither did Sonny, but Sonnydidhave a beef with Paul Maul. Do you see how Sonny and Creed were riding side by side? I think Sonny was the intended target, not Creed…targeted by Paul.”
“Was Paul at the party?”
“He was.” Dernice described a man who sounded vaguely familiar.
“I remember the name but can’t quite place the face,” Carlita said.
Mercedes scratched her forehead. “I’m a little confused.”
“Let’s start from the beginning…the accident,” Dernice said. “Creed is riding alongside Sonny. CreedthinksRocky, who is Sonny’s brother, cut him off and caused the crash.”
“So far, so good,” Carlita said.
“I believe it was Paul Maul, who was on the other side. Hetriedcutting Sonny off, but instead, Creed took the fall, literally,” Dernice said. “As a side note, Creed is a hothead. As soon as he hit the pavement, he started looking for someone to blame.”
“So Sonny was the target. Creed took the fall. Why is Paul Maul a suspect?” Mercedes asked.
“Because of Cyclone Courtney.” Using her pointer, Dernice tapped the shoulder of a woman, curvy in all the right places, with long dark hair and painted-on jeans, standing on the sidewalk puffing away on a cigarette. “This is Paul Maul’s girlfriend.”
“I don’t remember her from the party,” Mercedes said.
“She wasn’t there,” Dernice said.
“How does she fit into your theory?”
“Rumor has it that she and Sonny were having a fling. She’s a real looker and flirty with the guys.”
“Paul Maul, her boyfriend, got jealous,” Elvira said. “He tried to cause Sonny to wreck but ended up wrecking Creed’s motorcycle instead.”
“I’m starting to get it,” Carlita said. “Sonny was here at the party. So was Paul. Your theory is Paul was behind Sonny’s poisoning.”
“Who was recovering until he was in the hospital.” Elvira hurried on. “We need to find out if Paul visited Sonny. He could’ve gone to the hospital, realized Sonny was on the mend and did something to him to take him out.”
“Three times is the charm,” Dernice said. “Cause a wreck, poison him. If those two don’t take Sonny out, try again.”
“What about Yvonne?” Mercedes asked.
“Collateral damage,” Elvira said. “She was never the intended target.”
Carlita started to pace. “Paul had a beef with Sonny and figured he would try to poison him at the party when the bike crash backfired.”
“Yeah, but how?” Dernice asked. “I know you mentioned his heart, but we need to confirm the cause of Sonny’s death.”
All eyes turned to Elvira.
“What?”
