'I have a map. You just get on I-95 south and take the Springfield exit.'
'And then what?'
'Then you'll have to pull over and reprogram the GPS.'
Ranger cut his eyes to me and there was the tiniest of smiles on his mouth. I was amusing him.
'You're a very strange man,' I told him.
'Yeah,' he said. 'That's what I hear.'
I had my cell phone clipped to my waist, and I could feel it buzzing. I looked at the screen. Morelli.
'Howdy,' I said to Morelli.
'Can I buy you dinner and a movie and a room at Hotel Morelli?'
'Sounds good but I'm working.'
'After work.'
'After work will be late,' I said.
'How late?'
'Monday or Tuesday.'
'Where are you?' Morelli wanted to know.
'I can't tell you that,' I said.
'Goddamn it, you're with Ranger, aren't you? I should have known. He's up to his armpits in murder and kidnapping, and he's going to drag you into it with him.'
Ranger reached over, grabbed my phone, and shut it down.
'Hey!' I said. 'That was Morelli.'
'If you stay on too long it can be traced down. I'm sure he understands.'
'Yeah, he understands. If he knew where we were you'd be seeing his Kojak light in your rearview mirror.'
'Then I'm glad he doesn't know where we are because I wouldn't want to have to square off with Morelli. It wouldn't end well for either of us.'
We moved onto I-95 south, and I tightened my seat belt. Driving out of DC into northern Virginia is like NASCAR on a flat straight track, racing bumper-to-bumper six wide, twenty miles deep. And attached to that is another identical race going six wide in the opposite direction. Two-story-high sound barriers rise out of the breakdown lanes, and form a cement canyon filled with wall-to-wall noise and insanity. We hurtled forward to the appropriate exit, catapulted ourselves down the chute, and peeled off toward Springfield.
Ranger pulled onto the shoulder and reprogrammed the GPS system.
'Lucky for you, you look good in a T-shirt,' Ranger said.
'Lucky for you I don't have a gun on me.'
Ranger turned to me. His voice was low and even, but there was a whisper of incredulous disbelief. 'You're not carrying a gun?'
'Didn't seem necessary for us
Nine
It was a little after five o'clock when we drove past the Cruz house. We were in a development of middle- income homes, mostly little ranches sitting on small plots of land. Every third house was the same. From the maturity of trees and shrubs, I'd have guessed the houses were maybe ten years old.
The Cruz house was pale yellow with white trim and a teal-green front door. The landscaping was economy grade but neat. There were several cars in the driveway and two at the curb. I imagined friends and relatives were sharing the Cruz's grief over their daughter.
Ranger drove two blocks over and parked. We were in front of a small public access to a bike path that wound through a narrow greenbelt behind the houses.
'I'm going to wait here,' he said. 'You take the car and go do your thing.'
'Are you sure you want to give me the car after making sexist remarks about my mechanical skills? I might not come back for you.'
'I'd find you,' Ranger said. He took my hand, kissed the palm, and got out of the car.
I exchanged seats, put the car in gear, and drove back to the Cruzes'. I parked at the curb and blew out a sigh. I was going to feel like a real shit for intruding at a time like this. I set off for the house, and just as I got to the porch two young women came out to have a cigarette. They lit up, took a deep drag, and sat down on the step to enjoy the rest in comfort.
I extended my hand. 'Stephanie Plum,' I said. 'Were you friends with Carmen?'
They both nodded.
'I'm Sasha,' one said.
'Lorraine.'
'I'm part of the task force investigating the crime,' I told them. 'Would you mind if I asked some questions?'
Lorraine looked down at my jeans.
'You're going to have to excuse my dress,' I said. 'I was called in on my day off, and I didn't get a chance to change.'
'What do you want to know?'
'Do you know her husband?'
'Carmen talked about him in the beginning. Ranger, Ranger, Ranger. I mean, how lame is that? Who calls himself Ranger?'
'Did she ever mention his real name?'
'Carlos.'
'Would you recognize him if you saw a picture?'
'No. None of us actually saw him. And then all of a sudden she was married and living in Arlington and she sort of fell off the earth.'
'Is he from this area?'
'I don't know where he's originally from,' Lorraine said. 'He was working as a security guard at Potomac Mills Mall when she met him. He told her it was only a temporary job until his business took off.'
'What business was that?'
'He was a bounty hunter. Carmen thought that was real cool. From what I hear, she cashed in an insurance policy so they could buy computers and shit.' A tear ran down Lorraine's cheek, and she wiped her nose with the back of her hand. 'The people on television are saying the bastard shot her.'
'Thanks,' I said. 'This has been helpful.'
I got directions to the mall, drove back to the bike path, and picked Ranger up.
'When Carmen met this guy he was working as a security guard at Potomac Mills. It's a mall off I-95 a couple miles south of here,' I told Ranger.
Ranger punched Potomac Mills into the GPS. 'Okay, sweetheart,' he said to the GPS. 'Talk to me.'
If you entered Potomac Mills at one end and stared down the length of the mall you would be sure it ended in Kansas. We were standing in front of a mall map getting the lay of the land, looking for the security office and not finding it.
'The mall closes at seven,' Ranger said. 'We've got a little over an hour to get someone to ID our man. I'm going to have Tank see if he can do something by phone. Meanwhile, you try to find security people to talk to. I'll be fifty paces behind you.'
I looked down the mall and saw two uniformed guards standing back on their heels watching the shoppers. Man and woman. In their twenties. The woman looked like she'd gained some weight since they'd issued her uniform. Her partner was tall and gangly. Bad complexion. I was guessing they ate a lot of meals at the food court.
