Page 27

I WAS IN the office and settled fairly early. Mary Catherine had plenty of help and I was happy she had still been snoozing quietly when I’d left. Of course, Rob Trilling and Walter Jackson had beat me into the office. When I’d walked in, they were both at their desks, hard at work. I was no longer the office early bird. I didn’t mind. It happens.

I had greeted both of them quickly, then scooted to my desk. A case like this requires a great deal of reading. Not just scanning through useless documents but looking for details hidden deep in the reports.

I found the reports from the New York Department of Corrections on the death of Richard Deason, seven years ago. There wasn’t a lot of detail to get from the short report, but they had included a number of black-and-white photos that were plenty gruesome even without color. The narrative of the report simply said Deason was repeatedly stabbed with an edged weapon in the face and neck. The accompanying photo showed a toothbrush handle sharpened to a point.

The autopsy photo showed ten holes in Deason’s face and three more in his neck. His right eye was punctured. Nasty stuff. The report noted that the killer claimed his motive for the murder was because Deason had disrespected 1980s star Mr. T. Apparently, Deason had infuriated his killer by claiming Mr. T, his hero, was just an actor and not an athlete.

I was still shaking my head when Trilling walked up. He parked himself in the seat next to my desk.

“What’s going on with the case you and Terri Hernandez are working?” I asked.

He shrugged and said, “We keep finding bodies who are rivals of our group. We’re still trying to identify who does business with them. They could be involved in the murders as well.”

“You look beat.”

“I’m okay.”

I felt responsible for this young man. I couldn’t let this one slide. “Talk to me. Honestly. We’ve been through too much to have any secrets.”

Trilling smiled. I think he appreciated that I didn’t mention his recent suspension. It had turned out to be a well-orchestrated frame-up. Trilling had handled the suspension and aftermath extremely well. The young man had impressed me.

But I noticed he still didn’t tell me why he looked so exhausted.

I decided to take a different tack. “What do you have going on Sunday for dinner?”

“I thought Mary Catherine was on bed rest. I don’t want to be any trouble.”

“You forget we have Ricky.”

Now Trilling gave me a wide smile. “Can I bring anything?”

“Nope. But you can bring some one if you want.”

Trilling blushed. I didn’t comment about it. Then my phone rang. It was Celeste Cantor.

She said, “Retired detective Roger Dzoriack was just found in his Staten Island apartment. Another former member of the Land Sharks. It looks like he committed suicide.”

“Give me the address and I’ll be there shortly.” I wrote down the address, then looked up at Rob Trilling. It was time for me to bring him in on this whole Land Sharks business. “Let’s go.”