Festive in Death (In Death #39)(38)

“He beat you out of the top award the last couple years,” Eve pointed out.

“Yeah. Don’t give a shit about the trophy, but the prize money would’ve been handy. BB, places like that, they’ve got a strong rep, so their trainers get one, and that weighs on the competition. BB’s got—what do you call it?”

“Cachet?” Peabody ventured, and he pointed a finger at her.

“Yeah, that. I’ve been building up my place. Cachet, maybe not, but I’m solid, and I’ve got a strong following now. My time was coming. I don’t kill somebody over a contest and a grand.”

“Add in your sister,” Eve said.

“I don’t kill somebody over what’s done. It doesn’t change what’s done.”

“Where were you the day he was killed?”

“Here till about four. Got in at four-thirty—A.M.—that day to work with a guy—welterweight trying to make a comeback. So I left about four. Went home, had a beer, a shower, turned on some sports, did some paperwork. It’s hard to get any paperwork done here, work on programs for clients. Then I went to my mama’s for dinner. Got there about seven, I’m guessing. Maybe a little after. I didn’t clock it. Went home about nine, stayed in.”

“Did you speak or see anyone between the hours of five and seven?”

“No. You going to arrest me?”

“Not yet.”

“Where does your mother live?”

“Same apartment building, two floors down. I moved there to help her out. She thinks it’s the other way around. We’re probably both right on that.”

He’d smiled, a real one, when he spoke, but now his face hardened again. “She doesn’t know about Kyria. I don’t want her to know. You got no reason to bring that up, if you talk to her.”

“No, we don’t. We appreciate your time.”

“That’s it?”

“Have you got anything else to tell us?”

“It’s going to sound like spite.”

“Why would I care?”

“Okay. I’m just going to say, he had more money than he should have, seems to me. More than he should’ve had from the work. I don’t know how he came by it.”

“But you have your suspicions,” Eve finished.

“I do. Kyria was pretty upset when I found out, when I pushed her about what happened. She finally told me how he kicked her out right after she did it with him. She said how she wanted to stay, she didn’t feel good, didn’t feel like she could get home on her own. And he said women didn’t stay in his place unless they paid for it. Said maybe he’d let her stay till morning for a thousand. Girl didn’t have that kind of money on her, so he tossed her out.”

He stared down into his power drink. “I figure he got women to pay. Everybody knew he banged clients—that’s up to the client, to my way of thinking. Not my business. But when you charge money, that’s not legal without a license. Maybe he had one.”

Rock shrugged again, drank again. “But I don’t think so.”

“We appreciate the information, and the time.”

“Are you going to have to talk to Kyria?”

“We may.”

He let out a long breath, stared down at what was left of his drink. “Go easy, will you? She’s embarrassed it happened. Put it behind her the way you should with mistakes. But she’s embarrassed.”

“Understood.” Eve walked to the office door, opened it, turned back. “I like your place.”

His grin spread, quick, bright, added unexpected charm to his face. “You box?”

“I fight.” Eve smiled back. “There’s a difference.”

Peabody waited until they were outside, then poked a finger in Eve’s biceps. “You liked him. You don’t think he did it because you like him.”

“I liked him. I know he didn’t do it because he’d have used his fists. I know he didn’t do it because the vic would never have opened the door to him much less taken him back into the bedroom. There would’ve been signs of struggle, of a fight. Alternately, if Britton had grabbed the trophy on impulse, rage would have jumped right in with it. He wouldn’t have settled for two blows. He’d have beaten Ziegler’s head in, and he’d have gone for the face, too. The ‘pretty face’ Ziegler was so proud of.”

“Oh, well, when you put it that way. But you still liked him.”

“He said right out he hated Ziegler and wasn’t sorry he was dead. That takes balls. He resisted caving in Ziegler’s face and/or skull months ago when the sister thing happened. That takes control. I like balls. I respect control.”

“Are we going to talk to the sister, the mom?”

“I don’t see any reason to rush that.” Time, to Eve’s mind, to circle back around. “We’re going back to do a follow-up with Natasha Quigley.”

“Okay. Why?”

“Because she’s lying. She slept with Ziegler. I figured it for a lie yesterday. I’m more sure of it now. She’s good-looking, wealthy, a client. Married. She’s a prime target. We’ll go shake it out of her.”

“Okay. Why would she lie, especially when she could’ve jumped right on the he-gave-me-tea-too gambit?”