Chapter 19

I waited until they went through the cheerleader's computer and Jamison's as well. Nothing told us who Lucy was with that night. Nothing told us who anyone was with for the last week. Jamison only updated the files weekly. So the prick still had something to deal. That must have been his thinking. He had planned that it would be about the kiddie prostitution and maybe porn, but he never planned on murder.

Accessory after the fact of murder was going to be quite an incentive to talk his head off. If he chose not to do so, he would never again see the light of day. Not only would he be going inside, but he would be going inside as a kiddie pimp. Life would be a bitch for him, at the very least.

"Eddie, don't count on Jamison. Call Mission, if she hasn't raided that club, we can try to talk to the club manager. If she has, maybe we can get a half hour alone with him." I suggested.

While Eddie did that, Osborn and I went out to round up the girls on the cheerleader's computer. Jamison coded them on his computer as the names of fruit. You know like apple orange pear ect. The Cheerleader had them by name on her computer. Her contact with them seemed limited to the computer after their training.

We had five girls in the office when Eddie said, "Mission hasn't raided the club yet. We can leave right now and get there before they do. The are going in this evening." he said.

"You stay here to question the girls, I'll go down and pick up the manager." I suggested.

"You can't pick him up. We have no jurisdiction down there," he reminded me.

"No, but he can agree to ride with me. He might want to come up here for questioning." I suggested. Eddie looked skeptical as well he might.

"Sheriff you do know, you have to read him his rights before you question him. He is going to lawyer up, and you will have wasted your time going down there?" Eddie asked.

"You could well be right, then again maybe not. He might want to avoid the murder charge." I said.

"Well, all I can say is good luck," Eddie said.

"Thanks," I replied.

"You want me to come along," Osborn asked.

"No thanks that truck is too small for more than two of us," I said.

From the entrance hall of the courthouse I made a call and talked for about five minutes. I headed out to Abbottsville for a drive of about thirty minutes. I took me five more minutes to find the manager of the club. I had no idea who the owner was, but the manager would know what was going on in the club. The owners might or might not. Either way I felt pretty sure I would know soon.

"Remember me," I asked.

"Yeah, you butt fucked on tape. I gave all the copies to your boyfriend," he said.

"You don't think I believe that do you?" I asked. "That's not why I'm here. You have about two minutes to follow me out to my truck. If you want to avoid an arrest for aiding and abetting prostitution. Follow me and we will have enough time to work something out. If not you are going with the SBI," I said.

"Why you doing this?" he asked.

"Let's say we have a mutual friend in Miami," I replied. "You coming?"

He followed me out to the parking lot. The timing couldn't have been better. I didn't know the SBI would be rolling in when they did, but they drove up as we pull out of the parking lot in my truck.

"Now you are coming with me to be questioned in the death of Lucy Martinez," I said.

"Like hell," he said. I shouldn't have enjoyed shoving the .22mag revolver in his ribs but I did. I also pulled onto the shoulder of the interstate highway.

"Suit yourself. Come with me or go with the State Bureau of Investigation. All I want to know about is Lucy. If you weren't involved you get a head start getting out of the state." I said.

"Why don't we do it right here?" he asked.

"I need an official statement from you. If you weren't involved you can go," I said.

"Okay, but you cuff me in front. It's a long ride up to County Seat," he said.

"Sure why not," I replied. I also ran the cuffs through the seat belt. "You will note the noise that seat belt made when it closed. It makes the same noise when it opens. If I hear that noise before we got to the courthouse, I'm going to shoot you. Are we clear?"

"Yeah, I get it. That friend of yours with the accent made it clear that you guys don't play around. Then there was that call from the Miami crowd, that owns the club, saying to stop antagonizing you. I don't know which one was more menacing," He said.

"Well it is hard to say," I said. The phone rang. "Our ETA is about ten to twenty minutes. Thanks.'

"Who was that?" he asked.

"Just one of the guys in the office," I declared.

"I turned off at the second exit for County Seat, then instead of turning toward town I turned toward the regional reservoir.

"Is this the way to the downtown," the club manager asked.

"We are going to make one stop first. I thought you might want to talk without all those cameras and microphones picking it all up. We just want to discuss Lucy Martinez, but you know how other stuff might come up. You nor I want our complete relationship to come to the surface." I said.

"Yes, I suppose you are right," he said.