garden.
They took me around to the side of the house. All this wealth helped jog my memory. I recalled where I'd heard the name Maluga before. There was some kind of big-time rap producer named Maluga. Not Stacy, but Louis. I remembered now that he had recently done a nickel in San Quentin for assault with intent to commit. He'd gotten out about a year ago. He was legendary for his violent temper, which had earned him the nickname 'Luna' Maluga. Stacy had to be his wife.
After the cart stopped, my two escorts got out and led me through a back door into a large, empty kitchen pantry.
'KZ, wait with this buster while I go see if Stacy wanna give the man some play.'
I guess she was home after all.
He left me standing with the other guy, KZ, who kept glowering at me like I'd just bitch-slapped his sister.
'This Lou Maluga's place?' I asked, trying to sound nonthreatening and friendly.
No response. But he had his hands on his hips and I could see the wood-checked grip on a big automatic peeking out from under his basketball jersey.
'Nice spread. How much does a place like this go for?'
Not expecting an answer and not getting one.
A few minutes later, Baldly returned. 'You strapped?' he asked.
'Yeah.'
'Gimme it.'
'Hey, Mister whoever you are. In my line of work, letting go of your gun is a career felony. I don't give up this piece unless you pry it outta my cold, dead hand.'
He studied me for a long moment, then he pulled up his Lakers shirt and showed me a mean-looking automatic that looked like a big 9mm Glock or some equally brutal, hard case piece of iron.
'I work security here,' he informed me. 'You go off on me and your ass gets served. We straight on that?'
'Very impressive.' I smiled and pointed at his piece. 'Hope you're permitted for that thing.'
He didn't smile back. 'KZ, walk this motherfucker's six,' he said, and we headed out of the kitchen single-file. Baldy was leading the way, with me following. KZ was trailing at six o'clock.
Two doorways and a short, narrow hallway took us into an expansive living room. The place was overdecorated, but reeked of money. Some Melrose designer had made a killing here. Inch-thick glass coffee tables with sculpted chrome legs squatted over large, white area rugs. Lots of leopard-and tiger-print sofas were placed around the room like sleeping jungle cats. The ceiling was at least fifteen feet high and adorned with expensive, carved beams. A built-in bookcase ran along one wall and was full of pictures in silver frames and expensive knickknacks, but not many books. There was a line of what looked like leather-bound photo albums on the bottom shelf. Gold records hung on every wall.
Standing in the center of all this eclectic expense, wearing a pink terrycloth robe, was a woman about thirty years old, with white-blond hair and a strong jaw. She was pretty in a hard, strip-club kind of way. You could tell that under that fuzzy pink robe she had very nice equipment. She dissected me with angry ice-blue eyes.
'Mrs. Maluga?'
'Hey, Wayne? This fool be packin'?' she asked, the words accented by the street. She was looking over at Baldy, who was now revealed to me as Wayne. He didn't look like a Wayne; he looked like a Sluggo or a Spike.
'Man wouldn't give up his strap, Stacy.'
She glowered at me. 'I don't allow no chrome in here.' I guess she wasn't counting all the chunky ordnance Wayne and KZ were packing.
'I'm a police officer. It's against regulations for me to surrender my weapon.'
' 'Cept it's my crib,' she answered. Her voice still full of flat vowels and the colorful lilt of the hood. She was Caucasian, but talked ghetto… a white sister.
I wasn't about to do another round on whether or not I could keep my gun, so I didn't respond, and just moved on. 'Do you own a white Escalade?'
'So what if I do?' she finally said. 'Zat against the law now?'
'The vehicle was involved in a fatal accident tonight. A man named David Slade died at the scene.' I watched her carefully as I said Slade's name.
Nothing. Her expression remained cold and steady. Then she said, 'Don't know no David Slade. That Cad got vicked last week when I was shopping on Beverly. Slade must be the busta who jacked it.'
She glanced at Wayne, who nodded.
'You report it stolen?' I pressed.
'I got a lotta cars, sugar. Didn't get around to it just yet. Wayne gonna do it Monday.'
'David Slade was a police officer, so I don't think he stole your car,' I said, dropping it on her and watching to see how she handled it.
'Wayne,' she said softly. It must have been some sort of prearranged signal because Wayne and KZ suddenly turned and walked out of the room, leaving Mrs. Maluga and me alone.
'Lou Maluga is your husband?' I was out of time and already down to fly-casting. Flicking an empty hook across the water, hoping to snag something.
She watched me for a long moment. Then she said, 'If that be all, I got things need tending,' pulling the belt on her pink robe tighter.
'I'm trying to find out what a dead police officer was doing in your stolen car. I'm afraid this is going to take a little longer, Mrs. Maluga.'
'Then make a damn appointment with my attorney. He inna book. Name a Nathan Red,' lobbing that name at me like incoming mortar fire.
Nathan Red was L. A.'s new Johnnie Cochrane, an African-American lawyer who handled high-profile media cases for wealthy minorities. When Nathan Red was behind the bar, somebody was usually about to be accused of racism.
'And you're sure you've never heard of LAPD Sergeant David Slade?' I continued on.
'What I be doin' scrillin' with some five-oh? I don't kick it with no po-lice. You go now, 'fore I have them put you out.'
Stacy looked toward the kitchen, but Wayne and KZ were still gone, probably making me a glass of arsenic lemonade. She was angry that they were taking so long and sighed theatrically, then went to look for them, leaving me alone for a minute. For a street-smart, tough lady, this was a major error in field tactics. As soon as she was out of the room, I quickly moved to the sliding glass doors and opened them wide. Then I hurried to hide behind the bar. Just before I ducked down, I saw her pager sitting on the green marble top. I had already broken enough regs to end my career, so I thought what the hell and snatched it up, turned it off, dropped it in my coat pocket, and crouched low with my gun drawn.
A minute later, Wayne and KZ returned. 'Where he be at?' KZ blurted.
They did a quick sweep of the living room, completely missed me, but then saw the open glass door and ran into the backyard. Adios, g-sters.
I waited until they were clear, then sprinted across the white area rugs and closed and locked the slider. Next I walked over to the bookcase, kneeled, and looked at the picture albums. I found one labeled for this year, pulled it out, and started paging through it. I was looking for a shot of David Slade like the ones I'd seen in his bedroom. Stacy Maluga was the star of most of the pictures. She had a tight gym-trained butt and long stripper's legs, which she dressed to show. There were shots of her at different private parties and rap music events, always the center of attention, often with her arms around well-known celebrities. On every page, there were pictures of her looking hot and trashy.
Then, sure enough, in one of the photos, there he was: Sgt. David Slade of the good old LAPD. All decked out in his black 211 suit partying his heart out with a bunch of guys in Crip head wraps, looking as out of place as a cockroach in a Waldorf salad. The picture also made a liar out of Stacy Maluga because in the shot, she was sitting on Slade's lap with her hand between his legs, groping him like a Tijuana hooker. He had his tongue halfway down her throat.
I pulled the picture out of the album just as Stacy came back in from the kitchen.
