“Well,” Zoo said, “we’d better get on with this. The media will be breathing down our neck.”
“Can you blame them?”
“Not this time, I guess. This is made to order for them-all this prepublicity and all.”
The two officers, agreeing to keep each other posted, parted with a handshake, Rughurst nodding a pro forma good-bye to the priest.
Zoo and his faithful shadow crossed to Sergeant Moore, who had just ended an interview with one of the employees. “How’s it going, Angie?”
“We’re making good time, Zoo … but we’re not coming up with anything significant.”
“Anybody remember someone hanging around this building over the past couple of days?”
Moore frowned. “Yeah. Trouble is there’s been a lot of that. The locals were fascinated with this new toy on the block. Not very many are gainfully employed, so watching the comings and goings here was almost better than TV … at least it was live entertainment.”
“Nobody even a little extra suspicious?”
“Oh, a couple. We’re following up on them. A lot of our people are on the street, so we’ll probably come up with something soon. It’s just frustrating for now. Whoever did this was so dumb-”
“Or high.”
“Or high,” Moore agreed. “If he was on drugs, even if he’s down by this time, he’s probably still up emotionally. In any case, it shouldn’t be that hard to collar him. That’s what’s frustrating. We are so close and still so far.”
“Hang in there,” Zoo encouraged. “I’m going back to headquarters. Let me know if anything breaks.”
“Right, Zoo.” Sergeant Moore nodded. “Glad to meet you, Father.”
“Same here,” the priest responded.
Eleven
Lieutenant Tully and his brother were in the car, heading back toward downtown Detroit. They drove in silence. Mostly because Father Tully was reluctant to speak.
“So,” Zoo said finally, “how do you feel about your first homicide?”
“It’s hardly my first. I’ve been at the scene of more of them than I want to remember. It’s my first experience in the investigative side of a killing. And that is fascinating.”
Zoo smiled. “It gets to be routine. The thrill is in the chase. This one won’t be very thrilling. Just dogged investigative work: keep asking questions until you find someone with the right answer. It’ll happen; it just takes time.”
Silence for a few more minutes.
“Did I tell you much about that party I attended night before last?” the priest asked.
“The one at Adams’s place? No, not much, as I recall.”
The priest turned slightly so he could measure his brother’s reaction to his words. “I managed to meet everyone at the party. Outside of Tom Adams, I can’t say anybody else there wanted to meet me.”
Tully snorted. “
“I guess.”
“What was the lineup?”
“There was Adams. Then there were the three executive vice presidents and their wives. And the two candidates for the new branch. As the party developed, there was a double of odd man out-Joel Groggins and me. The rest of ’em had no trouble relating to each other. Groggins and I were left hanging … so we hung out together-”
“Wait a minute. What about Mrs. Ulrich? She wasn’t in that tight inner circle.”
A good sign. He’s listening to me carefully. “No, she’s not,” said the priest. “But that didn’t seem to bother her any. She made a late entrance and sort of took over … maybe not as the life of the party, but as a significant guest.”
“Okay. So you and Groggins-he’s the construction guy?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay. So you and Groggins were sort of walled off.”
“Yes.”
“And his wife is the Nancy we just spoke to in the bank.”
“Yes.”
“So?.”
“So, while nobody else seemed to want to make conversation with us, he and I talked all through the meal.”
“I don’t want to rush you, but I’m going to be dropping you off at the rectory. Does this story have a point?”
“The point is Groggins gave me a brief sketch of each of the main characters and their interactions. There was an air of tension in that room and Groggins’s accounts made the friction pretty clear.
“Alonzo, it boils down to this: The vice presidents-and necessarily their wives-felt threatened by the real possibility of being fired.”
“Fired! Why? What for?”
“It all stemmed from the creation of this position of manager of the new branch. The two final contestants both volunteered for the job. The thinking was that Adams would want to reward whoever made a success of the job. The only feasible reward would be an executive vice presidency. And that meant that one of the present executive VPs would be elbowed out.
“Hmmmm.”
“You could feel something in that room. Fear-fear that could lead to violence.”
“I think …” Zoo began cautiously. “I think I know where you’re going.”
“Is it too much to presume? In the light of what happened this morning, I mean? Is it too farfetched to think that someone at that party was responsible for the death of Al Ulrich?”
After several moments, Tully sighed deeply. “You know, Father Koesler’s help and advice concerned religious matters. He didn’t really get involved with police work.”
“I was sure you were going to say that. For this moment, I’d like to escape from Bob Koesler’s shadow. I’ve asked myself the question over and over. And as far as Father Koesler is concerned, I’m sure that if he’d been in my shoes the other night-heard what I heard, seen what I saw-he’d be telling you exactly what I’ve just told you.”
The lieutenant thought this over. “I’m sorry, brother. I was out of line. I guess it all stems from your taking Koesler’s place. Then all that talk about how you want to help me like he has.
“Well, let me tell you, I may just go the rest of my life without needing the help or expertise of any religious person. Maybe yes, maybe no. And I gotta admit that I’ve been a little jumpy about you thinking you’ve got to help me. But I shouldn’t have overreacted.
“Just keep one thing in mind, Zachary: police tend to follow the most obvious solution in a criminal investigation. Right now we’re working on the assumption that this attempted robbery/murder was committed by a guy who was stupid or drugged enough to think he could break into a bank vault with a sledgehammer. We assume he’s still in the neighborhood. Or, if he’s running, if we ask the right questions often enough, we’ll still pick him up.
“But what you learned at last night’s party could be significant. If our first lead dries up, we might have to look at that party. In that case, you’re saving us a lot of time by giving me a rundown now. So, go ahead, brother: Tell me about Mr. Groggins and his insights and his gossip.”
Now that he knew he had his brother’s undivided attention, Father Tully swiveled to face forward, forgot about the traffic, and concentrated on his story.
