Long Shadows (Amos Decker, #7)(83)

“She is,” said Decker. “But why do you say that?”

“Because that’s Dennis’s MO. Looks and wealth are his bellwethers. I’m sure that’s why he latched on to Julia.”

“He’s been described as controlling,” said Decker.

“I imagine he is. I’ve seen him in court. He’s good, but underneath the smooth fa?ade is something that I don’t care for. And there was that one incident.”

“What incident?” said Decker sharply.

“I don’t want to tell tales out of school.”

“And we want to solve a series of murders, Mrs. Perlman,” said White.

She placed her hands in her lap and assumed a placid manner. “It was about a year ago. It involved a prostitute. Charges were never filed and the matter got hushed up. I think she got paid off.”

“Can you be more specific?” asked White.

“She was beaten.”

“By Langley?”

“He denied it, of course, but he was seen with the woman around the time of the incident. And she initially named him as her attacker.”

“But then…recanted?” said White.

“Yes. I’m thinking that money changed hands. But no one could ever really prove anything. And the woman left town.”

White looked at Decker. “Okay, why would Cummins date a guy with that sort of rep? She must have known.”

“Maybe she liked the danger aspect.”

“Langley and Cummins also went to law school together at NYU. He told us that the judge was very different from the woman he’d known back then. He said she had gotten a lot wilder. Does that sound like your friend to you?”

“Well, I didn’t think she’d sleep with someone who was her bodyguard, so maybe I didn’t know her as well as I thought. But…she seemed to be, to use an antiquated expression, sowing some wild oats after her divorce.”

“Well, apparently, someone didn’t like that,” noted White.





Chapter 60



THEY NEXT TRIED DORIS KLINE’S house, but she didn’t answer their knocks.

“Car’s in the garage,” said Decker as he peered in the window. “But there’s another space where a golf cart might be parked.”

“Maybe she’s teeing off at the golf course, too,” said White.

“Seems to be a strong trend in this state.”

They got back into the car, but Decker didn’t put it in gear. He looked at White. “So, what would you do next?”

“I’d head back to the courthouse and talk to the judge’s clerks, especially Sara Angstrom.”

“The judge might have confided in her, you mean?”

“Women do, Decker, a lot more than men. Guys just like to keep it bottled in. Until they blow. By the way, my mother said to tell you hello. I think she likes you.”

“But she hasn’t even met me.”

“That might be the reason,” said White with a smile.

As Decker pulled off, he grinned, too.

*



Sara Angstrom met with them in her office. She was dressed somberly, and her mood matched her dress.

“I’m not sure what I can tell you that would be helpful.”

White said, “Anything that the judge might have told you about her personal life. Even if it seemed trivial. It might be important.”

“I really don’t feel comfortable divulging information like that.”

“Sara,” said White. “Someone murdered your boss, brutally. Nothing you tell us will go any further, and it’s not like the judge would mind. All we want is to find whoever took her life. I’m sure you want that, too.”

Angstrom looked anxiously between them for a moment before nodding and leaning back in her chair. “I knew about Dennis Langley. Judge Cummins told me and Dan Sykes, I suppose so we would be aware of any potential conflict. I didn’t really like him. I’ve seen him a lot in the courthouse. He just always seemed so full of himself. He practically struts through the place.”

“Then were you surprised the judge was seeing him?” asked Decker.

Angstrom seemed to withdraw into herself at this query.

“Please, Sara, whatever you can tell us,” implored White.

“When I came here the judge had been divorced for a couple of years. She was beautiful, smart, and very well off. I knew about her family money. And then I went to her house and saw how lovely that was, and her clothes were all designer stuff. And she vacationed in the South of France and Italy, and she’d even been to Japan and Australia. Pretty amazing life.”

“Tell us about her life lately,” said Decker.

“When I first got here she wasn’t really dating anyone, I mean, not seriously. But then, all of a sudden, she started seeing a string of guys, including Langley. It was like a switch was turned on for her.”

“She was nearing fifty. Maybe she just wanted to cut loose and have some fun,” said Decker. “Midlife crises aren’t limited to guys.”

“Maybe that was it. She seemed so straitlaced before. But then she started dressing, well, younger, I guess. New, cool hairstyle, blond highlights. She dieted and lost weight, not that she really needed to. I think she might have had some work done on her face. Her clothes were really costly, I could tell. But…”