THIRTY-SIX

Raveneau waited at the guard gate as the call got made. It was clear Shay was on base, but just as clear he was going to avoid him.

‘Sir, he’s not on active duty this afternoon.’

‘Where does he go when he’s off duty?’

‘Sir, I can leave a message for him.’

Raveneau left a message and then reasoned there was nothing to lose by continuing down the road to the intersection la Rosa gave him. He pulled away from the guard gate, spotted a road running parallel with the highway and figured it was the Lava Road la Rosa found. Across from the intersection of the road and highway was a paved lot and a ranger station, Mauna Kea State Park. Except for a pickup truck with state park department markings on it, the lot was empty. Raveneau pulled in. He backed the car up so he could see across the highway to Lava Road.

The only real leverage he had as a homicide inspector was if a senior officer ordered Shay to cooperate, and doing this was a little bit ludicrous, but it gave him a chance to think about Khan and the account la Rosa told him. He also had a view of the volcano, Mauna Loa, and he was glad to sit here in the sun and take a break from it all. The mountain was beautiful. He read they had numerous observatories up there because the sky was so clear. He watched clouds move across the mountain and then turned at dust rising on Lava Road.

Not enough dust for a training exercise with tanks, not even enough for a lone Humvee, closer to the amount a lone car would raise. He watched the car approach as he thought about the missing bomb casings. He picked up his phone and called la Rosa.

‘I got turned away at the gate and this is a real long shot, but I’m looking at a car coming at me from Lava Road. When it reaches the highway I’m going to follow it and give you the plates. If I lose you I’ll text them to you.’

‘What kind of vehicle?’

‘I can’t give you make or model yet. It’s too far away, but it looks like a green jeep.’ As the jeep turned off Lava Road and toward the highway, he said, ‘Lone occupant. Male. Middle-aged, but I have a feeling this base has got a few middle-aged males.’

Raveneau watched the jeep reach the highway and pause long enough to register him across the road in the park lot and looking at him. Then he pulled out and turned left.

‘He’s going my way,’ Raveneau said and then pulled on to the highway behind him. A few minutes later he read off the plates to la Rosa.

‘I’ll call you back,’ she said, and his thoughts turned back to Khan. When la Rosa called back she said, ‘You ought to buy a stack of lottery tickets. That jeep is registered to a Victor William Shay.’

‘So he’s running away from me. I wonder why he doesn’t want to talk to me.’

‘I know why. It’s because you ask too many questions. What else can I do for you? Do you want me to find you a restaurant to eat at tonight?’

‘Sure, look for something.’

‘Did Shay pick up on you?’

‘Yeah, he did, and he’s watching me right now.’

‘Hang back and be careful.’

‘See what you can find out about his military career. You can tell whoever you talk to we want to question him about an unsolved murder in San Francisco in 1989.’

‘Speaking of which, Henry Goya has called a couple of times today.’

‘I’ll give him a call.’

Shay turned toward the coast when he reached the highway junction. When he reached the coast highway he turned north and Raveneau slid into a line of cars behind him. He almost lost him at the next junction. He went the wrong way then doubled back and found him again in the town of Kawaihae and then only because Shay hadn’t hidden his car. He was in a restaurant parking lot and Raveneau drove past reading Blue Dragon Coastal Cuisine and Musiquarium. He pulled into a gas station and filled the tank as he debated his next move. He decided to go back to the Blue Dragon and go in.

Inside the Blue Dragon was an open courtyard, and chairs, tables, a stage, and two bars. It was dusk. There were drinkers but he didn’t see Shay, but the hostess saw him looking around and came over to help.

‘Maybe he’s out on the back patio,’ she said.

‘Where’s that?’

She pointed and Raveneau moved to the bar closest to it. He ordered a dark rum and extra ice and paid as he stirred the ice. Then he picked up the drink and walked out on to the back patio.