the years was his hazel eyes, forever steady and holding strength of character.
The waitress brought their coffees and then Peter asked, “So what’s the other reason we’re here?”
“Oh, I didn’t get a chance to go grocery shopping and fix us dinner.”
He gave off a hearty laugh, which made her realize that his moping mood had passed, and his good-humored self was fully restored.
Then he said, “Enough talk about me, how was your day?”
“It started by my getting beaten at racquet ball.”
“I guess you can’t always win,” he teased, “after all, you’re getting older.”
“Getting older is no excuse; I wasn’t much younger last week when I won.”
“Good point! So how did your interview with the lawyer go?”
“It went surprisingly well. Stuck in traffic on the 405 driving to the West Side, I had plenty of time to think. I started to have doubts that Mr. Wachterman would give me any useful information.”
Peter interjected, “I didn’t know that you had to drive that far. Where on the West Side is his office?”
“It’s right on Wilshire Boulevard, close to UCLA.”
“You could have paid Andi a visit.”
“I thought about it on my way home, but decided not to call her since she’d probably be in class.”
She picked up her train of thought again and continued, “Anyhow, when I called the attorney’s office yesterday, I only spoke with his secretary, and, on the drive over I suddenly feared that he may be tight-lipped and brush me off with declarations of lawyer/client confidentiality. I looked them up beforehand and learned that Rosenthal, Wachterman, & Vogel is a well-established law firm, and that its partners and associates all have excellent reputations. To my pleasant surprise, it turned out that Mr. Wachterman and I had a satisfying talk.”
Peter put in, “Don’t forget, he and his client benefit if you come up with another viable suspect.”
“Yes, I’m sure he realizes that. He said that we were on the same team. However, I got the distinct feeling that he does not think I’ll find another murderer. In his opinion, there is too much evidence against Rachel.”
“Does he believe that his client is guilty?”
“He didn’t admit as much but I came to that conclusion.”
“You’ve got a tough job ahead, Regula!”
“That’s me; always up for a challenge.”
CHAPTER 5
When R. A. Huber got to her office on the next day, she determined to learn a bit more about Rachel Penrose before setting up an interview with her. She called Jonathan Lighthart, and the receptionist told her that he was in consultation with a patient, but would she like to talk to the nurse. Huber insisted that she needed to speak with the doctor himself and left her name and number. Meanwhile, she got busy with some office chores, mainly preparing a bill for the client of her last case.
Then she checked her e-mail and saw a message from Pamela of Rosenthal, Wachterman, & Vogel, which read, “Attached is a list of potential witnesses we have so far in the Rachel Penrose file. I left out the police officer who made the arrest since there is no chance that he would give you information before Rachel’s trial. I also did not include the expert witnesses, who Mr. Wachterman feels you are not interested in. Good luck, Pamela.”
Huber opened the attachment and to her delight found a list of names, complete with numbers, e-mail addresses, snail-mail addresses, and each person’s relationship to the late Steven Moretti. She quickly pressed the reply key on her computer and wrote, “Thank you so much. R. A. Huber.”
Once more, she went over the information carefully. Listed as relatives and persons of interest of the murder victim were his father, who lived in San Diego; his brother, with an e-mail address but no phone number or place of residence noted next to his name; several board of directors of the Cucina di Enzo Corporation; friends of Steven and Rachel; a housekeeper; and of course, Jasmine Dewitt.
She smiled to herself when she thought of the wording in the e-mail. She could picture the lawyer telling his secretary, “Don’t include the expert witnesses, they’re none of her business.” In fact, Huber felt more than happy with the information at hand. Interviewing expert witnesses would have cost her a steep sum, if they’d have agreed to talk to her at all. And the benefit of such interviews would be doubtful.
She was about to take the first bite from her sack lunch when Jonathan Lighthart returned her call. Before she got a chance to say anything, he asked, “Have you already made a discovery that will help Rachel?”
“I don’t work that fast. What I need is some more input from you about Rachel.”
“Sure.”
He only uttered that one word, but Huber could hear the disappointment in his voice. She said, “You gave me Rachel’s phone number, but no address. Where did she move to when leaving Steven Moretti?”
He replied, “She temporarily stays with her parents, who live in Monrovia. The number I gave you is her cell phone.”
“Something else. Did you see her after her arrest?”
“Only once, and she is a changed person.”
“I can imagine that the drama of being charged with murder would change most people’s attitude.”
“Of course, but it’s more than that. She used to be full of energy and animation, and now all her pep is gone. She seems to have given up without a fight; that’s just not like her. It’s almost as - -” he stopped himself.
Huber finished the sentence for him “- - as if she were guilty?”
“No, no!” he shouted into the phone, “I don’t accept that.”
Then he said in a normal tone of voice, “Is there anything else you need from me? I have a patient waiting.”
Huber replied, “Just one more question. You told me that you went to Rachel’s engagement party, so you knew Steven Moretti. What did you think of him?”
He paused for a long time before he answered, “I only met him twice, so I can hardly say that I knew him. He was friendly enough on both occasions, but I didn’t like him. I got the impression of an aggressive man, always taking what he wanted.”
On that note they ended the call.
CHAPTER 6
When scheduling an interview with Rachel Penrose, Huber left it up to the young woman where she would rather have the talk: in Monrovia at her folk’s house, at R. A. Huber ’s office, or meet at a Starbucks somewhere in between. Rachel chose the detective’s office in order to have privacy. They set the date for the coming Monday, one of Rachel’s short days at work, and she would swing by on her way home.
She
