21st Birthday (Women's Murder Club) Read online

  “Oh. Well.”

  Yuki continued.

  “That’s time enough for Luke to kill Misty at eight and drive back to Carmel by ten. Take a shower. Have a snack, maybe a drink. Watch, say, Jimmy Kimmel.”

  “Objection!”

  “Sustained. Watch it, Ms. Castellano.”

  Yuki said, “Sorry, Your Honor. Ms. Conroy, do you in fact know whether Lucas stayed in your hotel room?”

  Conroy said, “I’m not sure. Luke was very upset that weekend. I wanted to comfort him. That’s what I did. I wasn’t watching the clock.”

  Yuki said. “Thank you. That’s all I have for this witness.”

  Judge Passarelli told Conroy she could step down, and Gardner called his next and only other witness.

  “I call Lucas Burke.”

  Gardner helped Lucas around the counsel table without knocking over his chair, then released his client’s arm and watched him take the twenty-yard walk to the witness stand on his own.

  Yuki wondered what the hell Gardner could ask Lucas that could redeem him from Yuki’s crushing witness interrogations. Would he break down again? Or did Gardner have a-get-out-of-jail-free card up his sleeve?

  Whatever was about to happen, he was holding the hundred and forty–odd people in Courtroom 2C in absolute suspense.

  The bailiff stood behind Burke, ready to assist him as he climbed the two steps to the witness box.

  CHAPTER 103

  WATCHING HIM, CINDY was still shocked at how much Lucas Burke, a fairly fit, fortyish man, had declined after five months in jail.

  Gardner walked up to his client and said, “I have a few questions for you, Mr. Burke. I hope they will give you a chance to answer to the situation in which you find yourself.”

  “Ready and willing,” said the witness.

  “Fine. Did you, possibly with good reason, kill anyone? Your wife and daughter, your mistress, anyone else?”

  “Absolutely not. It’s true that my wife, Tara, and I were fighting. She was only twenty. She’d never worked for a living. She wanted a lot of clothing and accessories that we couldn’t afford on my teacher’s salary.

  “We had fights, but not physical ones. We called each other names, and once, after her mother got her going, Tara threw a pot at me, but she missed. As for my little daughter …” Burke’s voice broke and he covered his face with his arm. His shoulders shook.

  Gardner said, “Take your time, Luke.”

  Burke put down his arm, cleared his throat, took a couple of sips of water from a plastic bottle, then said with a quavering voice, “I loved Lorrie more than anyone in the world. My little sister and my mother both disappeared more than fifteen years ago, and I’ll never get over the loss of them. Lorrie reminded me of my sister, Jodie, when she was a baby. My heart is broken. I pray that Lorrie didn’t know what was happening to her. That she didn’t suffer.”

  “I’m so sorry about all of that, Luke. I must ask you about Melissa. You called her Misty.”

  “Misty was the sweetest young woman, but our relationship was doomed. She was eighteen. She should have gone to college. There was no way to make sense of our relationship except that we loved each other.”

  “Did you make a date to see Misty the night she was killed?”

  “No, and if I had, she would be alive. We did often meet in the parking lot, but I didn’t even know what day it was. Or even think about Misty. I had just been released from jail. The police were ransacking my house. I got into my car and just drove fast.

  “Alexandra Conroy, my ex-wife, had called me when she heard about Lorrie. She lives only a couple of hours away. I wanted to be with her, just to talk. Although our marriage had died a long time ago, Alex always understood me. I called her. She said, ‘Come.’

  “I drove straight to her house. It was dark when I got there.”

  “And then what, Luke?”

  “We talked. I cried for hours. Alex made a reservation for us, a weekend’s stay at a resort in Carmel. We woke up early and drove to the resort. We spent Friday night, and late Saturday morning, in the breakfast room, I saw the paper with Misty’s picture under a headline saying that she’d been murdered.

  “Alex and I left the resort and drove directly to the police station in this building, where I was arrested for murders I didn’t, couldn’t have, would never commit. So help me, God.”

  “Thank you, Lucas.”

  Gardner turned his handsome face to the jury as if to say, You see what kind of man he is. He didn’t do it.

  “Your witness,” Gardner said to ADA Castellano.

  “No questions,” Yuki said.

  “Okay then,” said Gardner. “The defense rests.”

  CHAPTER 104

  THE JUDGE CALLED a twenty-minute recess, which gave Yuki some time to settle her nerves.

  This was it. She was about to give her closing argument. She’d been rehearsing variations on her summation for months with Len Parisi, with Nick Gaines, and with her husband, Jackson Brady.

  She swung her eyes to the back of the room and saw Brady standing beside Cindy’s chair.

  He gave her a smile and she returned one of her own.

  She heard the judge call her name and felt the hush in the courtroom as if it were a chill breeze. Nick’s note was in front of her: “Go get ’em.”

  ADA Castellano walked to the lectern and addressed the jury with all of the confidence she had.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, as you know, this case is about the murder of two innocent young women and a baby girl, all of whom were intimately connected to the defendant, Lucas Burke.

  “Mr. Burke claims to have loved them all and denies his guilt, but the evidence shows that he decided, with malice aforethought, to kill all three.

  “How do we know he did it?

  “Mr. Burke has testified that his marriage was going up in in flames. Tara was too spendy with her credit cards, and the defendant states that he couldn’t afford this. He told her to grow up, to stick to the budget, and when she continued to overspend, he canceled her credit cards.

  “She was angry.

  “You heard Tara’s mother, Kathleen Wyatt, who told you that Mr. Burke was abusive to her daughter. Tara denied it, but this is often the case with abused spouses, and this seems to be such a case. Fights, bruises, mounting anger.

  “Mr. Burke already had another teenage girlfriend. We have introduced the note that he wrote to Melissa Fogarty saying that he wanted to marry her, but to date, no ring was forthcoming. Not only was this affair another sign that Lucas Burke’s marriage vows were broken, but perhaps Lucas was feeling pressure from his girlfriend.

  “Based on these financial and emotional circumstances, I believe even Mr. Burke would admit that he went to bed angry every night and woke up angry every morning. And maybe he could no longer contain that anger and had to take action before it destroyed him.

  “On the Monday, Lucas Burke fought with his wife on what would turn out to be the last day of her life. Phone records show that Mr. Burke last phoned Tara at eleven that morning. They spoke for three minutes and he never called her again. Not even after their baby was found dead Wednesday morning. He never called her during that period of nearly a week when she was missing. Unlike Tara’s mother, he didn’t dog the police department, demanding that they inform him of progress in the search for his wife, and he didn’t put up posters asking, ‘Have you seen Tara Burke?’

  “Lucas Burke knew where she was.

  “We deduce that on that last call, he made a plan to meet with her purportedly to discuss their fight — but it was a ruse. He had a different idea. He met her at a romantic place overlooking the water, and killed her by drawing his razor blade across her throat.

  “He then smothered his own baby with his hand. He tucked them both into Tara’s car, put a stone on the accelerator and, after getting safely out of the car, he rolled it into the ocean, where it stayed until Saturday. According to our medical examiner, both Tara and Lorrie were dead before t
hey hit the water.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, there is an absence of contradictory evidence from the defense.

  “You have heard from the head of our Forensics laboratory who examined the evidence, and we have shown you the murder weapon used to kill Melissa Fogarty.

  “Ms. Fogarty’s blood was found on the blade, and Lucas Burke’s fingerprints were on that razor’s handle. Furthermore, Lucas Burke was the last known person to see Tara and Lorrie Burke, and he went to great lengths to get rid of their bodies.

  “Why did Mr. Burke go on a murder spree?

  “We contend it was because he didn’t want to be weighed down with other people’s expectations. So instead of moving to a new location, he expressed the volatile personality he has shown us in this room.

  “And he believed that he could get away with it.

  “Mr. Burke’s defense is common to police and prosecutors all over this country. We have heard it too many times. It’s referred to as TODDI.

  “That’s an acronym for the words ‘the other dude did it.’ In this case of three dead souls who loved the defendant, the defense wants to blame the other dude, the defendant’s father. Mr. Burke’s father does not have a criminal record. He has not been introduced to this court in person or by way of other witnesses. In fact, the defense has not produced a single witness to support this theory of ‘the other dude.’

  “They can’t.

  “Only one person known to the prosecution had a motive to murder Tara and Lorrie Burke and Melissa Fogarty in the space of one single week. He’s sitting right over there with his head down on the table.

  “For reasons only the defendant truly understands, Lucas Burke did it. For the sake of his victims, and to keep this man where he cannot harm anyone else, please find him guilty of three murders in the first degree.”

  CHAPTER 105

  JOE AND JULIE were waiting for me at the airport’s passenger pickup zone, along with Martha. The gang was all here.

  Julie hugged me around the waist until I got her into her car seat, Martha circled my legs, and Joe squeezed me with his big man arms and opened the passenger door for me.

  I was dying to catch up with everyone, and to be absolutely honest, I wanted to tell Joe everything that happened in Vegas since he’d left there singing as he went down the escalator.

  My phone played a little tune, and when I looked at the caller ID, I had to take the call.

  “Chief Belinky?”

  “Sergeant. I’m glad I was able to reach you.”

  What was wrong? Had Burke escaped? Shot someone else? Died?

  “You just caught me,” I said. “What’s up, chief?”

  “Evan Burke is in the ICU. Turns out he has some kind of lung infection. His immune system is down.”

  I motioned to Joe, ‘Just a sec,’ hoping the chief would just get to it. And then he did.

  “Burke wants to see you. He has something to tell you —”

  “He’s a lying liar, and dangerous as the devil. ADA Yuki Castellano still wants to depose him.”

  “About that,” the chief said. “Without knowing what Burke is going to say, and without his having requested a lawyer, it’s too soon to bring in the DA’s office, even with the trial of Lucas Burke ongoing.”

  As I took it all in, the chief continued.

  “I’ll make sure there’s no way he can hurt you.”

  I didn’t want to see Evan Burke again. I didn’t feel safe, and yet the bastard was so compelling. Even while wounded and sick. Even with a dead woman’s blood on his hands and his son charged with murder. I’d never met anyone like him, and I’d really had enough of him.

  I could have used Alvarez’s take, but she’d already headed back to the squad room.

  I said, “I have to run this past my lieutenant, my chief, and my husband.”

  “I haven’t cleared it with your husband, but your chief, your lieutenant, and your task force all want you to meet with this piece of crap.”

  “I’ll call you back, okay?”

  “Sergeant,” the chief said. “It’ll be short and easy. Plane. Cruiser to the hospital. Talk until you’re done, then back to McCarran. Say yes so I can line up my ducks.”

  I’m a cop and a chief of police was asking me, as good as pleading with me, to talk to the shooter I’d seen commit murder.

  “Geez.”

  “Close enough,” said Chief Belinky. “I checked the flights and there’s one that’ll get you here by five. A car will be waiting to pick you up.”

  I couldn’t think of a good enough reason to turn him down and maybe, maybe I could help.

  “Yes. Yes. Okay.”

  Belinky gave me the flight info. I hung up and told Joe the news. He backed Belinky.

  “Linds. This could be your Ted Bundy moment. When you come home tomorrow, Bugs, Martha, and I will be here to meet you.”

  My family walked me back into the terminal. I showed Julie the huge metallic lights hanging from the ceiling. We bought her a T-shirt in the gift shop and a pink hoodie for Mrs. Rose. We consumed a fully loaded pizza in the food court, and then Joe and Julie waved good-bye to me at the check-in line.

  I flew back to Las Vegas, wondering what the hell Evan Burke wanted to tell me. He was a magnetic character, but I didn’t trust him at all.

  CHAPTER 106

  CHIEF BELINKY WAS WAITING inside the entrance to Sunrise Medical Center. He was in his fifties, wearing a blue suit, red tie, about five eleven with salt-and-pepper hair.

  He came toward me and shook my hand with both of his.

  “Thanks for coming, sergeant. I think you’ll be glad you did.”

  I doubted that.

  Belinky said, “Burke is cuffed to a bed in the ICU. He’s doped up, on antibiotics, apparently his lungs are full of goop, but I still don’t trust him.”

  He went on.

  “I promised to protect you, and we’ve taken the following precautions. The stall has a glass wall. We can see everything and there’s a camera overhead. Here’s your mic. That’ll record whatever he tells you.”

  “Excellent.”

  I clipped it to my lapel.

  We took an elevator up a couple of flights and followed the arrows to the intensive care unit. Belinky continued to brief me.

  “Officers are stationed outside the door. Keep it ajar when you go in. His good arm and ankles are cuffed. His right arm is unrestrained, but it’s in a sling and you can see his hand. I’ve promised everyone with a shield in the state of California that you’re walking out of that room unharmed.”

  “Thanks, chief.”

  “Now, this guy has not lawyered up and I would say he has no expectation of privacy, right?”

  “Right. People are coming in and out of his room. It’s a hospital.”

  “Good. We agree.”

  We were in the ICU ward and Burke’s stall was visible because of the two beefy cops standing on either side of the doorway.

  “Ready or not,” I said.

  I said hello to the two officers and took a moment to observe Burke through the glass. He was lying flat in the bed with his eyes closed, blanket up to his chin, his bandaged wing cradled against his body. I entered the stall, leaving the door open a crack.

  Pulling a chair up to his bed, I called “Burke,” and he opened his eyes.

  “Oh. Is that you, sergeant? I asked for you.”

  “And here I sit.”

  He pressed a gadget within reach of his cuffed hand, and the back of his bed rose.

  “Could you?” he asked, tipping his chin to the table near the bed. There was a glass of water with a straw. I moved the glass toward him so he could reach it and sip, and then he returned the glass.

  “Thanks. They don’t know what I’ve got, but it’s pneumonia and something else that I couldn’t fight off and it’s supposedly not contagious.”

  I said, “How’s your arm?”

  “It’s been better.”

  “Well. I flew in to see you, Burke, because
you asked to see me. What do you want to tell me?”

  “I want to tell you that I’ve killed people in my life. Quite a few. Quite. A few.”

  What was this now? False confession for leverage? Or braggadocio?

  “So, you want to give some families closure? Is that it?”

  “I told you back at the cabin, sergeant. My son, Lucas, is also a murderer,” Burke said. “He’s a killer who started very young. His first victims were small animals, and years later, I’m pretty sure he took out Corinne and Jodie. He came home from school without telling anyone. Corinne and Jodie were never seen or heard from again.”

  “Still, not proof, Evan. Why are you telling me this?”

  “Because. I don’t know how much time I have left. I want to make sure that the story is told right.”

  “Got it,” I said.

  I didn’t. These two Burkes were twisted and they’d twisted me. Senior didn’t sound repentant for the girl he’d killed in front of me. What did he want?

  I said, “Why don’t you start at the beginning.”

  “All in good time,” he said. “I’m thinking about what —”

  Without warning, he jerked, coughed, inhaled noisily, and was seized with a terrible-sounding coughing fit. The wheeze alone sounded like an accordion with pleurisy. He couldn’t grab at his chest or even roll because he was cuffed at the wrist and chained at the ankles.

  I stood up to get help, but help had seen through the glass walls and came through in the form of a nurse, an aide, and the ICU doctor.

  The nurse pulled a mask over Burke’s face and I heard the hiss of oxygen. The doctor asked me to please leave.

  She said please, but it was a direct order and I followed it.

  Evan Burke had accused his Lucas Burke of killing Corinne and Jodie Burke, but he hadn’t shed any light on the triple homicide for which Lucas was now standing trial. As much as Yuki wanted to depose Evan Burke, that was not going to happen.

  CHAPTER 107