The smile melted. The man slipped the cigar out of his mouth and placed it in the overspilling ashtray. “I’m sorry. Yes, you resemble your brother.”
“Was it you who dealt with my brother?”
“Yes, it was.”
“Do you mind if I ask a few questions?”
The Mexican smiled. “You sound like a policeman.”
“This is just for my peace of mind.” Then Reeve spoke to the man in Spanish, and the man nodded. Family, he was saying, I have to take these memories back for the family. The Spanish understood these things.
“See,” he said in English, “I’m trying to understand my broth-er’s state of mind on that night.”
The Mexican was nodding. “I understand. Ask your questions.”
“Well, one thing I don’t quite yet understand. My brother was last seen drinking in a downtown bar, then it seems he came here. A cab picked him up from the bar. But to get here, he had to pass three or four other car hire firms.” In his hotel room, with map and telephone book, Reeve had done his work.
The Mexican opened his arms. “This is perhaps easily explained. For one thing, we have the lowest rates in town, you can ask anyone. Being blunt, if you only need a car so you can drive somewhere quiet and put an end to your life, you do not need a Lincoln Continental. For a second thing, I open later than the other places. You can check this. So maybe they were closed already.”
Why would I want to “check this”? Reeve thought, but he nodded his head. “My brother had been drinking,” he said. “Did he seem affected by drink to you?”
But the Mexican’s attention was on Cantona, who was leaning against the noisy air conditioner. “Please,” he said. “It breaks easily.”
Cantona got up from the unit. Reeve noticed that the machine was dripping water into a bowl on the floor. He repeated his question.
The Mexican shook his head. “I would not have done business with him if I thought he’d been drinking. I have nothing to gain by seeing my cars wrecked or messed up.”
“Speaking of which, where is the car?”
“It is not in the lot.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“It has gone for repair and… detailing. The police smashed the driver’s side window to effect entry. Remember, the car was locked from within.”
I know that, thought Reeve, but why are
“Of course.”
Reeve stared at the man.
“What is it?” the Mexican asked, his grin looking queasy.
“He held a UK driving license, not valid over here.”
“Then I should not have rented him one of my automobiles.” The man shrugged. “A mistake on my part.”
Reeve nodded slowly. “A mistake,” he repeated. He asked a few more questions, trivial ones, just to put the Mexican more at ease, then thanked him for his help.
“I am truly sorry about your brother, Gordon,” the Mexican said, holding out his hand.
Reeve shook it. “And I’m sorry about your car.” He followed Cantona to the door. “Oh, you forgot to say which garage is fixing the car.”
The Mexican hesitated. “Trasker’s Auto,” he said at last.
Cantona started chuckling the moment they were outside. “I thought he was going to swallow that cigar,” he said. “You really had him going.”
“He wasn’t a very good liar.”
“No, he surely wasn’t. Hey, where did you learn to speak Spanish?”
Reeve opened the car door. “There was a time I needed to know it,” he said, sliding into the passenger seat.
Daniel Trasker ran what looked like four parts wrecking operation to one part repair. When Reeve explained who he was, Trasker went wide-eyed with shock.
“Hell, son, you don’t want to see that car! There’s stains on the-”
“It’s okay, Mr. Trasker, I don’t want to see the car.”
Trasker calmed a little at that. They’d been standing outside the wood-and-tin shack that served as Trasker’s premises. Most of the work was done in the yard outside. Trasker himself was in his well-preserved early sixties, clumps of curling silver hair showing from beneath an oily baseball cap. His walnut face showed deep laugh lines around the eyes, with oil and dirt in-grained. He wiped his hands on a large blue rag throughout their conversation.
“You better come in.”
In the midst of the shack’s extraordinary clutter, it took Reeve a while to work out that there was a desk and chair, and even a PC. Paperwork covered the desk like so much camouflage, and there were bits of engines everywhere.
“I’d ask you to sit,” said Trasker, “but there’s nowhere
“Standing’s fine.”
“So what is it you want, Mr. Reeve?”
“You know my brother was found in a locked car, Mr. Trasker?”
Trasker nodded. “We got the car right here.”
“Police smashed the window to get in.”
“That they did. We got the replacement part on order.”
Reeve stood close beside the older man. “Is there any way someone could have locked the car afterwards? I mean, after my brother died?”
Trasker stared at him. “What’s your point, son?”
“I’m just wondering if that’s possible.”
Trasker thought about it. “Hell, of course it’s possible. All you’d need’s a spare set of keys. Come to think of it…” Trasker’s voice trailed off.
“What?”
“Let me go check something.” He turned and left the shack. Reeve and Cantona followed him outside, but he turned back to them, holding up his hands. “Now, let me do this by myself. That car’s not something you should be seeing.”
Reeve nodded, and watched Trasker go. Then he told Cantona to stay where he was, and began to follow the old man.
Around the back of the shack, and past heaps of wrecked cars, Reeve saw that there was another low-slung building, double-garage size. Half a dozen tall gas cylinders stood like metal sentries outside a wide door, which stood open. There was a car jacked up inside, but Trasker squeezed past it. Reeve looked around him. He was five or six miles outside San Diego, inland towards the hills. The air was stiller here, not quite so fresh. He had to decide now, right now. He took a deep breath and made for the garage.
“What is it?” he asked Trasker.
The old man shot up from his crouching position and swiveled on his heels. “Nearly gave me a damned heart attack,” he complained.
“Sorry.” Reeve came forward. Trasker had opened the door of the car and was studying it. The car James Reeve had died in. It was smarter than Reeve had expected, a good deal newer, as good certainly as anything in the Mexican’s lot. He approached it slowly. The seats were leather or Leatherette, and had been wiped clean. But as he bent down to peer inside, he could see stains against the roof. A rust-colored trajectory, fanning out towards the back of the car. He thought of touching the blood, maybe it was still damp. But he tore his gaze away from it. Trasker was looking at him.
“I told you to stay put,” the old man said quietly.
“I had to see.”
Trasker nodded, understanding. “You want a moment to yourself?”
