Chapter 31
Calvin knew that it was risky, but he had to make the call. He needed an ally.
“Mr. Grant’s office.”
“Shawn Grant, please.”
“Whom may I ask is calling?”
To convince that he was legit, he had to use his real name. Because of his special phone, he knew that it was safe.
“Tell Mr. Grant that Calvin Watters would like to speak with him.”
Shawn Grant had just sat down at his desk when his secretary rang. As the new president and chairman of the board for the Greek, he had not wanted to be disturbed. He pressed the intercom button.
“Yes, Maureen?”
“Sir, a Mr. Watters is on line one.”
Shawn froze, goose bumps springing on his arms. He only knew of one Mr. Watters—the man at the top of LVMPD’s list of murder suspects for his father’s investigation.
“Thank you, Maureen, patch him through.” Shawn picked up the receiver. “This is Shawn Grant.”
“Thank you for taking my call, Mr. Grant. This is Calvin Watters.”
“How do I know you are really who you say you are?”
The caller gave a list of the collections he had made for Pitt and said, “I know you can’t check them out right away, but you’ll have to agree that only Pitt, who is dead, would also know them. If I were an imposter, I would know you wouldn’t trust me after you discovered a mistake.”
Shawn decided to hear him out. What did he have to lose? “That is a good start, Mr. Watters. Okay, you have me interested. Why call me?”
“First, I had nothing to do with your father’s murder, or any of the other three murders.”
“So you say.”
“You have to trust me. I have a solid alibi for the night he was murdered, but I don’t want to involve that person if I don’t need to. I’d rather prove it by finding your father’s real killer.”
“And why should I trust the man who allegedly killed my father?”
“The same reason I’m trusting you right now. We both want to know the truth behind your father’s murder and the rest of the unsolved ones. I have already started to investigate and I have some leads. If we work together, maybe we can uncover the truth.”
Now Shawn was very interested. “So what do you want from me?”
“The way I see it, we both want something out of this arrangement. We both want to find your father’s killer and I want to prove my innocence. Let’s share information.”
Shawn hesitated, contemplating the pros and cons of the proposal. He didn’t know Calvin Watters and wasn’t sure how far he could trust him. The man was accused of killing Shawn’s father. He would have to tread in slow motion. But he knew he needed help in nailing Sanders. His father had always told Shawn that he was a natural- born deal maker.
“Fine. Let’s trade information. If that goes well, then we can continue, but if not, then we stop immediately.”
“Fair enough.”
“What do you want to know about my dad?”
“What was your relationship like?”
He thought about his answer. “I loved him and he was my best friend. That is why we worked together for so long. He’d been showing me the ropes for the last fifteen years and preparing me my whole life to take over the family business. Nothing would have made my father prouder. It was perfect, until she came along.”
“Who?”
“His wife.” Again Shawn calculated his every word. “She’s a greedy, money-hungry whore. The only reason she married my father was for his money.”
“I knew that you and your father were close and I’m sorry for your loss. What I don’t see is why your father married Linda?”
Shawn snorted. “Look at her. After being divorced for almost fifteen years from my mom, dad met Linda when we upgraded the casino entertainment. Linda was one of the dancers in the night show. He should have known and I tried to tell him. He told me that he had fallen in love the moment he saw her and they married right after that.”
“Okay, but she’s not the first beautiful woman who went after your dad, I expect. Did he want children with her?”
“Please. Linda would never do that to her body. It’s her most prized possession. And my dad was too old to raise another child. But it was his choice to get married again and we never let her come between us. At least he finally saw through her.”
“How is that?”
Shawn smiled. “He made her sign a prenup. In case of a divorce, she was only entitled to six percent of my father’s estate and was automatically cut out of the will. She wasn’t happy about that.”
Money was always a motive in Vegas.
“As for my father’s other enemies,” Shawn added, without being asked, “as a collector, I know you understand who I mean.” Shawn considered how much to say. How much could he trust Watters?
“Ace Sanders?” Watters asked.
Shawn’s voice grew cold. “The hatred between them is well known. It’s not often that Casino owners get along, but the heated feelings between those two were extreme. It was more than just business. It was personal. And now the bitch just made him my partner. I detest the man! I despise Linda, but I hate Sanders more. I’m going to try to get more information on him.”
“Wait a minute, you said other enemies. Do you consider Linda an enemy?”
“What do you think, Mr. Watters? First she cheats on my dad with Sanders and then she sells him his casino.”
“You knew about the affair?”
“I had my suspicions. Now I’m sure of it!”
“How are you so sure?”
“My dad told me.”
“He knew too?”
“He had heard the rumors, so he hired a private investigator to follow Linda. The PI confirmed the affair and had the photos and documentation to prove it.” Shawn knew the cops already had the pictures.
“What did your dad do?”
“He confronted Linda. Of course, she denied everything and claimed the photos were manufactured composites. What an idiot. My dad had expected the denial, but when Linda lied, despite all the evidence, he was amazed. Did she think he was a total fool? She used sex even at that point, but she must have been stupid not to see that he didn’t buy the repentant loving wife.”
“Why didn’t your father just divorce her?”
“He tried.” Shawn told Watters about his father’s plans to file for divorce the morning after the night he was killed. He was also going to change his will but never had the chance to do it. Linda would have gotten nothing.
“Okay, so what do you have for me?” Shawn asked.
Watters explained the Pitt-Sanders business deals and gave his version of what he found at Pitt’s murder scene. This interested Shawn and he wanted to find this so-called evidence.
If anything was discovered by either man, they would talk on a secure line. Otherwise, they each had plans about getting Sanders. They’d just have to try not to duplicate their efforts.
Calvin hung up, satisfied that the primary murder suspect had called the victim’s son and offered and received help. He sensed that Shawn was thinking the same thing. Why had Grant agreed to join him without so much as a
