Page 24

24

LEI

Lei spun her chair in her cubicle, her mind racing ahead as she prepared to make the call to David Steinbrenner’s residence. She’d already tried his cell and it went immediately to voice mail, where she’d left a message urging him to call her ASAP.

The case was getting more urgent by the minute, and talking to David Steinbrenner—the developer behind Kuleana—was critical.

She dialed the number for the Steinbrenner residence. The phone rang several times before a woman’s voice answered, sounding slightly out of breath.

“Hello?”

“Helen Steinbrenner?” Lei recognized a feminine voice. “Wife of David Steinbrenner?”

“Yes, who’s this?”

“This is Detective Sergeant Lei Texeira with Maui Police Department. I’m calling to speak with your husband, David. Is he home?”

There was a brief pause on the other end, followed by a slight rustling sound, like Helen was adjusting the phone. “David’s not here right now. He left for work this morning, like usual. Can I help you with something, Detective?”

“Sergeant Texeira, please.” Lei said.

“And you can call me Helen.”

“Thank you, Helen. You’re sure he went to work?”

“Yes. David left early—said he had meetings all day in Wailuku. Why? Is something wrong?”

Lei glanced down at the notes on her desk, working through the possibilities. “I tried reaching him earlier, but he hasn’t answered his phone,” Lei said. “I left a message, but I was hoping to speak with him as soon as possible. Have you heard from him since he left this morning?”

Lei could hear unease creeping into Helen’s voice as she spoke. “No, I haven’t. David usually calls or texts me around lunchtime, but it’s still early. Is this about the police patrol you sent last night?”

Lei’s brow furrowed. “Yes. I wanted to follow up on that too. Did the officers report anything unusual near your property?”

Helen hesitated. “I didn’t speak with them. David thought the whole thing was a bit silly. He spoke to them outside, wouldn’t tell me what it was about. He came in and kept saying he didn’t need police watching the house. He’s . . . well, you know, he’s confident. He just went about his business this morning, like nothing was wrong.”

That sent a chill down Lei’s spine. The man should’ve been on high alert, after two of his colleagues had been brutally murdered.

“Helen,” Lei said, her voice lowering with concern, “I’m going to be honest with you. We have reason to believe that David might be in danger. As you may know, two people connected to David’s development project have already been killed, and we’re concerned . . .”

There was a sharp intake of breath on the other end of the line. “No, I didn’t know that. David doesn’t talk with me about his work. You think . . . someone’s going after him?”

“We don’t know for sure,” Lei said carefully. “But it’s a possibility we can’t ignore. I need to locate David as soon as possible. You said he went to work in Wailuku. Do you know if he had any specific meetings scheduled? Anywhere I might be able to find him?”

Helen’s voice trembled slightly. “He didn’t mention any specifics to me. Just that he’d be at the office most of the day. He hasn’t been acting like he’s in any danger, Sergeant Texeira. Are you sure?—”

“I understand this is a lot to take in,” Lei interrupted gently. “But it’s very important that we locate him. You said he hasn’t called you yet today?”

“No. He usually calls around noon. It’s only eleven now.”

If David had gone to work as usual, there was a chance he was fine. Maybe he was just tied up in meetings, oblivious to the growing threats closing in around him. But there was an equal chance that something had already happened. That he wasn’t answering his phone combined with his dismissive attitude toward their warnings meant he was vulnerable, at least.

“We’re going to do everything we can to make sure David is safe,” Lei told Helen. “I’ll go out to his office now to check on him. In the meantime, if you hear from him, please have him call me right away.”

“I will,” Helen said, her voice tight with worry. “Please make him take this seriously, Sergeant Texeira.”

Lei hung up, her hand gripping the phone tightly for a moment before she set it down. She stood, feeling the weight of the case. She couldn’t shake the feeling that time was running out—for someone—and Steinbrenner was the most likely target.

She grabbed her keys and headed for the door, bumping into her partner as he came in, carrying a mug of coffee. “Pono! Throw that in a car cup. We’re going to David Steinbrenner’s Wailuku office. He might already be missing.”

* * *

Lei and Pono stepped out of Lei’s truck and made their way into the cool, modern lobby of Steinbrenner’s office building in Wailuku. The receptionist, a young woman who looked like she belonged in a high-end boutique rather than a downtown office suite, glanced up from her desk as they approached. “Can I help you?”

“Good afternoon,” Lei said, flashing her badge. “I’m Detective Lei Texeira, and this is my partner, Detective Pono Kaihale. We’re looking for David Steinbrenner. Is he in today?”

The receptionist blinked, her perfectly manicured fingers hovering over her keyboard. “Mr. Steinbrenner? He . . . hasn’t come in today. He had a meeting scheduled this morning, but he never showed up.”

Lei exchanged a quick glance with Pono. This was confirming what she had feared—Steinbrenner was in the wind.

“Has he called or left any messages?” Lei asked, keeping her voice calm but firm.

The receptionist shook her head. “No, nothing. We’ve tried reaching him as well, but . . . no response.”

Lei’s jaw tightened. “We need to check his office,” she said, the urgency in her tone making it clear this wasn’t a request.

Surprisingly, the receptionist didn’t argue. She simply stood, her heels clicking against the polished floor as she led them to the elevator. “I’ll need to unlock the door for you. His office is on the third floor.”

“Thank you,” Lei said.

They rode the elevator in silence, the soft hum of the machinery the only sound. When the doors slid open, the receptionist led them across a plush carpeted foyer to a sleek glass door with ? David Steinbrenner ’ etched in elegant script. The entire third floor was David Steinbrenner’s office.

The young woman swiped her keycard and the lock clicked open. “I hope you find him,” she said. “I heard about his partners. I’m worried.”

“We are too,” Pono assured her.

Lei nodded, offering a tight smile of thanks as the woman retreated to the elevator. Pono pushed the door open, and they stepped into Steinbrenner’s massive suite.

The space was as upscale as Lei had expected—floor-to-ceiling windows with a view of the mountains, modern furniture, and a large, polished desk in the center. Everything was meticulously organized.

“He’s not here,” Pono muttered, stating the obvious as he walked around the office, checking drawers and looking for anything out of the ordinary.

“Don’t think he’s set foot in here today.” Lei’s eyes scanned the room quickly. There was no sign of struggle, no overturned furniture. She pointed to the stripes of fresh vacuuming on the lush cream carpet. “I’ve seen executives come and go behind their receptionist’s backs, but it doesn’t look like he made it in at all.”

“Let’s put out a Be On the Lookout,” Pono said.

“Agreed.” Lei took out her phone. She called in to Dispatch and gave the necessary details, requesting officers keep an eye out for Steinbrenner’s vehicle and any sighting of the man himself. Once the call was made, she turned back to Pono, who was now leaning against the desk, arms crossed. “We’re not going to find anything here. We need to check out that development site in Iao Valley. We’re close by.”

Pono nodded. “Makes sense. If this is about the project, we might get some answers there.” He paused, then added, “You want to call the project manager, Beck what’s-his-name? Maybe he knows something—or at least could show us around.”

Lei nodded. She got the program manager’s number from Dispatch and called it. After a few rings, the project manager picked up. “Hello. This is Beck Noble.”

“Mr. Noble, this is Detective Sergeant Texeira from Maui PD. I’m calling because we’re trying to locate David Steinbrenner. He didn’t show up for work today, and we’re concerned.”

There was a brief pause. “What? David’s missing?”

Lei kept her voice firm. “We’re not sure yet—he hasn’t been answering his phone, and he hasn’t been in to his office. We’re heading to the development site in Iao Valley to take a look around. Can you meet us there and show us the area?”

“Uh, yeah, of course,” Noble said, his voice tight with concern. “I’ll head over there now. I can meet you at the site in about thirty minutes.”

“Thanks,” Lei said. “We’ll look for you.”

She hung up and turned to Pono. “Let’s head out.”