Chapter 41

I Can Do

 

 

Lincoln Day’s address led Parker and Jaden to a gated community north and west of the Las Vegas strip. Higgs had called ahead and an LVMPD patrol unit met them at the gate and escorted them past the sleepy-eyed security guard. Parker had Googled and learned nothing in the neighborhood sold for under two million. Despite the obscene property values, he did not find the architecture or the scenery appealing. All the homes looked the same to him, sprawling tan and brown stucco Spanish-style ranches with red solar tiled roofs. None of them had lawns or anything green growing in their yards, even the ultra-rich were bound by the area’s water restrictions. Instead, the homes were all surrounded by crushed stone, cactus, and sickly date palms. The color schemes and landscaping appeared purposefully crafted to blend in with the sun-blasted Mojave that stretched for miles in every direction.

“Welcome to where the rich and famous live,” Jaden announced.

“Everything is brown and dead. Makes me want to run home to Virginia,” Parker said.

“It is an acquired taste.”

The Day’s house was perched on a hill in a cul-de-sac overlooking Red Rock Canyon. Even Parker had to admit the view was spectacular. A shirtless elderly man with a wide-brimmed hat and khaki shorts stood by a mailbox smoking a cigar. His watchful dark eyes crowned by bushy white brows tracked them as they passed. The patrol car parked in the street near him. The two uniformed officers showed no signs of leaving their air-conditioned ride. Higgs and Chavez pulled into the empty driveway and Jaden slid the roadster alongside.

“What do you think?” Jaden said. “Is he here?”

“No,” Parker said. He wiggled his eyebrows. “Who knows, though? Maybe Jasmine’s in there.”

“You think?”

“No.”

Higgs and Chavez climbed out of their car and stared at them from behind dark sunglasses.

Taking his cue from the uniforms, Parker said, “I’m staying here.”

Jaden looked at him. “You hate the car.”

“I like the air conditioning. Besides, as Higgs said, it’s their case.”

Jaden opened his mouth but climbed out without speaking. All the cool air in the little car exited with him, much to Parker’s dismay. Higgs said something that made Jaden laugh and the three of them went to the front door, where Higgs and Chavez took turns pressing the bell. After a minute or so, Chavez moved between the windows reachable from the porch and cupped his hands on the glass as if he was trying to see in. Parker could tell from where he sat the windows were covered by shades. Jaden glanced back at him and shook his head.

Parker lowered his window as the three of them returned to the cars. “You got a judge that will approve a warrant, Higgs?”

Higgs shrugged. “We don’t got much in the probable cause department.”

“The Day kid murdered Abby Loveridge to hide his backdoor,” Jaden said.

“You don’t think I know dat,” Higgs snapped. “We’ll talk to da boss lady and see what she says. You feebs have the juice. Magistrate’s office is fifteen minutes away, why don’t you pay dem a visit?”

“We’re just consultants on this, Higgs,” Parker said. “But we’ll see what we can do.”

“Consultants, what da fuck does that mean?”

Parker slid his sunglasses down his nose and looked over the frames so Higgs could see his eyes. “We are from the government and we’re here to help.”

“Fuck you.”

“Work on Divine, Higgs, and I’ll work my side.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Higgs groused and waved at the patrol unit. A moment later, the interceptor flashed its lights and crept out of the cul-de-sac.

Jaden dropped into his seat. “What now?”

“Let’s go talk to the old guy across the street.”

They backed out of the driveway and stopped in front of the man as Chavez and Higgs disappeared down the hill.

“Kind of hot to be standing out here in the sun,” Parker said.

The old man blew a puff of smoke into the open window. “Old lady won’t let me smoke in the house. You guys cops?”

“FBI,” Parker said.

“Democrats,” the old man said flatly—a statement, not a question.

Parker nodded. “I am.” He hooked his thumb toward Jaden. “But he’s a right-winger.”

The old man glanced at Jaden. “You’re fucking with me.”

Parker grinned. “A little. We are from the FBI, though.” He retrieved his credential case and presented it to the man. “We need to talk to your neighbor. Have you seen him around?”

The old man blew another puff of smoke. “Nah. There’s been no one up there for weeks. Weird guy though.”

“How’s that?”

“Whitest person you ever seen.”

“Our kind of people,” Jaden said.

The old man’s face flattened like a plate, then he smiled. “That’s good,” he said. “Got Chinese eyes, though. Weird.”

“Huh,” Parker grunted. “Anything else weird about him? You ever seen him with a long knife or a sword?”

The old man coughed, smoke bursting from his nose like a dragon. “Sword? Not that I ever saw. Wait. Does this have something to do with the beheading that was all over the news last week?”

Parker didn’t respond.

“Ah, you’re barking up the wrong tree. The guy’s weird, but he’s harmless. Small.” He held his hand level with his chin. “He can’t be much more than this tall and no more than a hundred and forty pounds soaking wet. I thought he was a child when I first saw him.”

“You ever talk to him?” Parker asked.

“Some. He comes down and gets his mail. Always after dark. Like I said, weird. But I’m always out here.” He looked back at his house. “She won’t let me smoke in the house I bought.”

“What’s he like?”

“Soft talker. Might be gay.”

“Those gays are all soft,” Jaden said.

The man frowned. “Now, I didn’t say that. All I meant was he talks really soft, and he never has women over there. A young guy, rich enough to own a house in this neighborhood. You’d think he’d have a harem.”

“Does he have male visitors?” Jaden asked.

The man shrugged. “Workmen mostly. Can’t say that I’ve seen him have any guests.” He blew some more smoke and grinned. “A young Latin pool guy is over there every week.” Then he cast a thoughtful look across the cul-de-sac at the Day’s house. “Now that I think about it, there was this one guy. He was only over there once that I know of. I never actually saw him, but I remember him because I heard them fighting one evening, and I did think maybe it was, you know, a lover’s quarrel.”

“Fighting?” Parker said.

“Not physically, I don’t think. Like I said, I doubt Day could fight his way out of a wet paper bag. They were shouting at each other. It got heated. They must’ve been out back by the pool because I could hear them clear as I can hear you.”

“When was this?”

“Let me think. I was sitting right over there watching the sunset.” He pointed to a pair of pink Adirondack chairs beneath some palm trees. “I was drinking a beer.” He looked back up his driveway again. “Old woman only lets me have those on Saturdays. Guess it would’ve had to have been three weeks ago. That was probably the last time he was home.”

“Since you could hear them so clearly,” Parker said, giving the man sheepish eyes, “do you remember what they were arguing about?”

“I wasn’t listening that close,” the man said, sounding put off by Parker’s implication. “But I remember there seemed to be some foreign words. Probably Chinese, given those eyes of his. Even when he yelled, Day’s voice was soft, but the other guy’s voice was loud and deep. I remember thinking he must be huge, and I was worried Day might’ve bitten off more than he could chew. Thought I might have to call the police.”

“But you didn’t?”

“No. Things settled down.”

“And you don’t remember anything they were saying? Maybe a name of the big guy?”

The man stared at the Day’s driveway for a moment and shrugged. “Like I said, I think he was speaking in Chinese. It sounded like he was shouting something like, ‘I can do’, over and over.”

“I can do?” Parker repeated for confirmation.

The man nodded.

Parker glanced at Jaden and the young agent gave him the raised eyebrow. “Could it have been Akandu?”

“Maybe,” the man said. He puffed on his cigar. “Yeah. I think that’s right. Day was yelling Ay Kan Doo over and over. Is that Chinese?”

Parker ignored the question. “Then what happened?”

“Nothing. Like I said, they settled down. Frankly, I thought the big guy killed him, but then I saw Day drive off in his sports car.”

“With the big guy?”

The man’s eyes tilted skyward as if he was trying to recall an image. “I don’t remember seeing him. I assume so, though.”

Parker fished a card out of his credential case and held it out the window. “You’ve been a great help, sir. If you see your neighbor, do you mind giving me a call at this number?”

The man tentatively took the card like he was afraid it might bite him. “Ah. I guess. Don’t much like your politics, though.”

“Get over it,” Parker said as he raised the window.

They left the man puffing on his cigar and headed back toward the city. After they passed through the security gate, Jaden pulled the roadster over.

“Where to?” he asked.

Parker stared out the window at the Vegas skyline shimmering like a mirage in the distance. He had been thinking about their next move all morning. “I want to go back to Xperion and shake up the Days. Get them to tell us how to find their son.”

“Assuming he’s still alive,” Jaden said. He turned in his seat and looked back into the neighborhood. “Maybe the big guy killed him and left him in the house up there.”

Parker shrugged. “The thought crossed my mind.”

“Should we get a warrant and go back?”

“Call Chavez. Tell him what we learned. That should be enough for them to go inside.”

“What about us?”

“We’re going back to San Francisco.”

Jaden grimaced. “Long ride.”

“I’ll call Becky and get travel arrangements made. We’re going tonight. I want to be sitting with the Days first thing in the morning. We’ll personally shove the subpoena up their lawyer’s ass.”