Skin Deep

saw her?”

“I told you, the last time I visited the lounge, which I guess was last Thursday night.”

“Right, which means you were one of the last persons to see her alive.”

“So were a hundred other people. And anyone she saw over the next two days.”

“True, but as far as we know you’re the only one of those hundred guys who dated her.”

“But that doesn’t mean that I killed her.”

“True. So, where were you last Saturday, June the second?”

“I went into the office for a few hours.”

“On a Saturday?”

“Yeah. I’m leaving next week for a month, so I was finishing some preps for the fall.”

“How long were you in the office?”

“I don’t know, until around four.”

“Then where did you go?”

“Home. I had a splitting headache. So I stayed in all night and went to bed around nine.”

“And you didn’t leave your place at all?”

“No.”

“When was the last time you were at her apartment?” Neil asked.

Pendergast flinched. “I told you, I’ve never been there.”

“Never?”

“You just want me to say yes to confirm your suspicions.”

“No, we just want you to tell us the truth,” Steve said.

“I’m telling you the truth.”

Neil cut in. “Look, Earl, you admitted that you dated her, right? You’ve also got a hard drive full of porn sites, including several specializing in redheads. You’ve contacted at least four escort services asking for ‘hot foxy redheads.’ You’ve got a reputation for being sexually aggressive with women. Plus you’ve got a lewd and lascivious conviction with a girl of seventeen.”

“Those charges were dismissed because she’d lied about her age.”

“A mere technicality,” Neil said. “Frankly, Professor, you fit the profile of someone who could have done this to her, okay? So let’s cut the bullshit and get real. You’ve got a track record of someone who’s a sexual predator.”

Pendergast looked from Neil to Steve. “I don’t need to take this.” He started to get up.

But Neil stopped him. “You walk out of here, and you give us probable cause to arrest you, which means everything goes public, so you might as well make it easy for yourself.”

That was a bullshit bluff, and Steve cut in again before Pendergast left. He turned to Neil. “Maybe you can get me a bottle of water, okay?” His look said, Leave this to me.

Neil glared at him for a bristling moment then got up and left the room, his face ablaze because he didn’t want to break the momentum. Steve put his hand on Pendergast’s shoulder. “He’s coming down pretty hard because he was a personal friend of Terry’s.”

Pendergast nodded and choked back the tears. “It’s unfair. He’s bringing up stuff that I want to put behind me. I made mistakes and paid for them, believe me. But I’m not a sexual predator.” He began to sob.

Shit! “Okay. Okay.” What hope Steve had held out was beginning to dissipate.

“She also wasn’t a real redhead.”

“Pardon me?”

“You could see the dark roots. She began to color it about a month ago.”

“Did you have something to do with that?”

“No.” He was having a hard time controlling himself.

“Okay. Take it easy. I’ll go out and talk to him to ease up on you.”

Steve left the room and found Neil in the kitchenette. “We don’t have him.”

“Bullshit. He’s fucking lying.”

“I don’t think he is.” But, God in heaven, do I wish he was.

“Then he’s got you conned. The guy’s a sexual pervert.”

“She was not raped but murdered,” Steve shot back. “He doesn’t fit the profile.”

“Then let’s get a poly on him.”

“We can try.”

Neil followed Steve back into the room. “We have no more questions. You’re free to go. But we’re wondering if you’d consent to a polygraph before you leave the country.”

“A polygraph?”

Steve saw instant panic in Pendergast’s eyes, but it had lost its appeal. Polygraphs spooked most people. “It might be the one way to clear you.”

“I’ve heard they aren’t very reliable.”

“They can never be wrong,” Neil said, “because it’s only a recording of what it reads from you.”

Pendergast got up to leave. “I’ll think about it.”

With a predatory glare Neil tracked him as he left the room. As soon as the door closed he slapped the file on the table. “And think about how we’re going to get you, you little worm.”

Before Steve could say anything, Neil’s PDA rang. “Yeah, come on up.” He clicked off. “Lily.”

They headed back to the homicide office where, a few minutes later, Lily and a girlfriend arrived. Neil met them at the door and led them inside. They were shopping nearby and stopped by to ask Neil for money.

Steve had only seen Lily a few times. She was about five seven, gaunt-limbed, and wearing a loose short- sleeved pullover that made her look even less substantial. Her complexion was pale and her hair had the dead-black flatness of a Goth dye job. A small silver stud winked from her left nostril. The girlfriend was a sullen-looking kid with magenta-streaked hair and a tight little mouth that looked as if it was tasting vinegar.

“Catch any bad guys today?” Lily asked.

“We’re working on it. How are you doing?”

“Pretty good.”

“Get you kids something cold to drink?” Neil said.

“Diet Pepsi,” Lily said. Courtney, the girlfriend, nodded, and Neil left to get the drinks.

“Doing some shopping?” Steve asked.

“Yeah.” She flopped the Gap bag she was holding against her leg but didn’t elaborate.

“You and your dad saw a pretty good game the other night.” Neil had gotten box seats.

“What game?”

“The only game in town—Sox and Yankees.”

“Oh, that. Yeah.”

“You were lucky. You saw history in the making—that unassisted triple play. I don’t think there’s been more than a handful in major league history, and probably never at Fenway.” It was the sixth inning with no outs and two men on base and moving when Rodriquez hit a line drive to the shortstop, Alex Cora, who stepped on second to retire Jeter and tagged Giambi before he could return to first.

“I guess.” She looked at Courtney and shrugged.

“You did see it, right?”

“We left early.”

“You did?”

“I don’t like baseball that much.”

“We can’t all be perfect.”

Lily made an awkward smile.

“But it was fun seeing the crowd and all,” Courtney said.

Neil returned with the drinks. The girls said goodbye, and Neil walked them to the door, where he pulled something out of his wallet for Lily then kissed her on the cheek before they left.

Steve gathered his stuff. “How’s she doing?”

“Better.” Neil began to leave.

“Hey, I thought you saw the game the other night.”