Free Unwanted Company - Barbara Seranella by Barbara Seranella Page A

around
the empty room.
    " Cassiletti's giving me the high sign. You got
any message for Munch if I talk to her?"
    He heard her click her tongue. She did that when she
was exasperated. "Tell her I'm really proud of her for moving on
with her life."
    "I'll do that." He straightened up in his
chair, cleared his throat. "Well, listen then, I'll call you
later when we have more time to talk."
    "You do that. "
    He hung up the phone, dropping the receiver into the
cradle as if it were too hot to handle. "That went well,"
he said out loud.
    " Sir?" Cassiletti called from the doorway.
    Mace spun around to face him. "What you got?"
he asked. Cassiletti consulted the yellow legal pad in his trembling
hands. He was either nervous or excited, Mace knew. In an effort to
build the big man's confidence, Mace encouraged his junior partner to
take some initiative. He would die a happy man if he could get
Cassiletti to drop the inevitable question mark that punctuated half
his statements.
    "I ran the name Raleigh Ward through NCIC,"
Cassiletti said, referring to the National Crime Information Center.
    " Anything?"
    "No." Cassiletti sounded as if he were
apologizing. "So I ran a DMV search?" he said, looking up
hopefully. "State of California issued him a driver's license
two years ago? We should be getting a copy sometime tomorrow."
    "Just two years? Did you try running an address
update?"
    The address update was one of their tricks for
backing into a social security number trace.
    Cassiletti flipped frantically through his notes,
looking for what wasn't there. "I'll be right back."
    Mace felt a twinge of impatience as he pulled out the
Social Security Index.
    Cassiletti returned moments later and handed Mace the
nine-digit social security number issued to Raleigh Ward. The first
three numbers identified the state of issuance, in this case
California. According to the index, the number had been issued prior
to 1973.
    "Just for fun," Mace said, "let's run
him through civil-court records and voter's registration."
    Twenty minutes later, the two men compared notes.
    "What did you come up with?" Mace asked.
    "A lot of blanks. Too many blanks. Then I pulled
utility records?"
    "And?"
    " This is where it gets interesting. The account
was opened last year by the diplomatic branch of the State
Department, but until six months ago the meters hadn't clocked any
usage."
    " Six months ago?" Mace asked, thinking of
the Westwood murder. "I want to talk to this guy."
    He leaned back in his chair and stared at the blank
wall. He'd been around long enough to spot a smoke screen. Sounded
like this Raleigh Ward was either a protected witness or some kind of
spook.
    " Write down this number," Mace said,
reciting the TCP number on the cab's bumper. "I want to
interview this cabbie. We'll have the photo lab make some prints of
the bald guy I'll take one to Munch."
    " You're going to go see her?"
    " Yeah. I could use the reminder of happier
endings."
    Cassiletti didn't ask, and Mace didn't explain.
 
 
    CHAPTER 7
    At one o'clock Ellen and her customers reached San
Diego. By then they were all on a first-name basis. Victor Draicu
announced that he was hungry.
    " What are you in the mood for?" Ellen
asked.
    "Do you really wish an answer to that?"
Victor asked. Ellen noticed that he had unbuttoned his shirt almost
to his navel and was massaging his chest muscles as he spoke.
    "Oh, now, g'wan," she said, gracing him
with a giggle. "You know what I'm talking about."
    Victor nudged Raleigh and winked at him. "She
knows what I speak of also," he said.
    Raleigh's mouth tightened. "Take us to a Mexican
joint," he said. "Might as well get this show on the road.
You'll join us, of course."
    " Thank you, Raleigh. Y'a1l are such gentlemen."
    Raleigh snorted. "Oh, yeah, we're the cream of
the crop."
    Victor laughed and slapped Raleigh's shoulder. "Cream
of the crop. I love it."
    Ellen looked in the rearview mirror to catch
Raleigh's eye and give him some silent sympathy. The