Waves were softly breaking, white foam licking the sand. From the bluff’s height, it sounded like whispering winds.
Brady waved off his men with a flick of the wrist and within a few minutes it was just the two of them. He said, “I had this installed when the family first moved in.” He was still peering through the lens. “Kaffey refused to fence off the bluff because he claimed it ruined the view.”
“He had a point,” Decker said.
“Yeah, but it’s easier for someone to breach security.” Brady looked away from the lens and regarded Decker full face. “Not that it stopped them at Coyote Ranch.”
In the harsh sunlight, Brady had aged in just a few days: more wrinkles and more gray hair. His pupils were constricted, and his eyes appeared almost colorless. “I don’t know how much time I can give you. I may have to leave abruptly.”
“Where are Grant and Mace Kaffey?”
“At the hospital with Gil. He’s doing better.”
“Good to hear.”
“Thank God he made it through.” A heavy sigh. “I think it’s finally dawning on me … the scope.” He waited a beat. “It’s coming to an end for me.”
“What’s coming to an end?”
“Everything. My business was taking care of Guy and Gilliam, and I failed.”
“The family kept you on,” Decker said.
His jaw went up and down as he stared at Decker. “What choice did they have?”
“They could have fired you immediately.” And the fact that they didn’t is of interest to me. “They chose not to.”
“I think they’re too dazed to make changes. Once Gil recovers, I’m going to get axed.”
“What do you think went wrong?”
“It could be a thousand things. On the surface it looks like that once you found Denny, well … I guess everyone’s pointing a finger at Rondo Martin. But I can’t believe … I still think it had to be outsiders with inside information.”
Thinking about Joe Pine, Decker asked, “Anyone specific in mind?”
Brady sat down on a bench and stared at the ocean. “There were lots of maids and people working the grounds: here at Wind Chimes and also Coyote Ranch. At least ten people a day roaming around, weeding or watering or planting. Who knows what conspiracies go on behind my back?”
“Did the same people work at both locations?”
“Mostly yes, but there’s a lot of turnover. Guy would get angry and fire people, and then there’d be a whole new crop of workers.”
“Did you vet everyone who worked for the Kaffeys?”
“I did background checks on anyone Guy asked me about. But I wasn’t in charge of hiring and firing domestic help.”
“Who was?”
“I don’t know. It wasn’t me.”
“They never asked for your opinion?”
Brady’s jaw began working overtime. “This didn’t come from me, but I’m sure that some of their help didn’t have green cards. Like I told you before, Guy was cheap. If all he needed was a body to pull out weeds, he’d go for the lowest price tag. Maybe Paco Albanez would know more. He’s legal, by the way. I did the background check on him.”
“Who hired Paco?”
“Guy.”
“Who hired Riley Karns?”
“Gilliam. She put him in charge of all the animals—dogs and horses.”
“Where’d she find Riley Karns?”
“She hired him away from one of the horse clubs where she used to show her Morgans. I did a background check on him and nothing turned up. He had a good reputation with the animals. Once he was a skilled jockey. He rode quarter horses.”
“We’ll get back to him in a minute,” Decker said. “So you personally think the murders were the work of the hired help?”
“Someone on the inside. Not all of them … just a few bad apples.”
“What about Rondo Martin? Is he a bad apple?”
“I personally screened him. He had worked for Ponceville for eight years. The place was a rural farming community so there wasn’t much crime to begin with, but under Martin’s reign whatever crime they had had gone down. Nothing about him waved a red flag.”
“How long had he worked for you?”
“Two years.”
“Why did he leave Ponceville?”
“I seem to remember him wanting a bigger city, but I might be mistaken. Look it up in his file. I gave it to one of your detectives. His name escapes me, but he was a sharp dresser.”
It is said that the clothes make the man and nothing could be truer in this case. “That would be Scott Oliver. How well did you know Rondo Martin?”
“He showed up for work on time. He did his job well and without attitude.”
“Did he speak Spanish?”
It took a moment before Brady processed the question. “Some of the guards were bilingual, but I don’t know about Martin.” He took in Decker’s eyes. “I know how it looks, but you had your suspicions about Denny Orlando. Then he turned up dead.”
“You think Martin is dead?”
“No idea.”
“What about Joe Pine? Did he speak Spanish?”
Brady paused. “Yes, fluently. Why are you asking about him?”
“He’s missing.”
The pause lasted longer than it should have. “He’s missing?” When Decker nodded, Brady shook his head. “He was one of Guy’s rehabilitated gangbangers. I’m sure he has a record. I never liked him, but Guy was the boss.”
Brady’s PDA went off.
“Excuse me.” The guard talked in hushed tones, then he said, “Right away.” He turned to Decker. “Grant and Mace have returned from the hospital. They’d like a few words with you.”
“That’s fine. Riley Karns told me that he was one of the guys who originally dug the graves for the horses. He said that Joe Pine—who was on duty that day—told him where to dig it.”
“That could be. Hold on.” Brady spoke on the phone. “I need the cart A-sap.” He stowed his phone in his pocket. “Usually, I had nothing to do with the horses but when one of them was sick … I think it was Netherworld, Guy told me that he didn’t want to spend the money on cremation. He told me to find an out-of-the-way spot on the property and get rid of it. I think I did punt to Pine to find the spot.” A pause. “I think I told him that if he needed help to ask Riley or Paco.”
“So you didn’t choose the spot?”
“No, but I knew the horses were buried somewhere around there.” The man was sweating. He wiped his face with a handkerchief. “I’d like to remind you that I was five hundred miles away when the murders occurred.”
That meant nothing. Decker said, “I need a list of everyone who knew about the grave. So far I have Karns, Paco Albanez, Joe Pine, and you. Anyone else?”
“I don’t know, for goodness’ sakes. It was at least a year ago.”
“You’re in charge,” Decker said evenly. “You have to know these things.”
Brady took a deep breath and let it out. “You’re right. I’ll find out.”