*****
Rose was in the interrogation room smoking a cigarette. Foxy grabbed Manny and me so we could sneak into the viewing room unnoticed. He had called Reid, who had said he’d be down in fifteen minutes. Foxy decided to wait, knowing that he could get more out of Rose if he and Reid played off each other.
Once Reid arrived, he walked directly into the interrogation room with Foxy following behind him. He had showered and changed into a pair of dark blue jeans, a black t-shirt, and a light black leather jacket. He fit the part of the tough cop perfectly – down to his black leather boots. It was summer in LA, but no one dressed for the weather. People wore whatever they felt like – a tank top, a sweater – either would be acceptable on a hot, sunny day.
Reid and Foxy offered Rose a coffee, which she declined. They were being nice to her for now, trying to figure out what she knew.
“We’re glad you came down, Rose,” Foxy said.
“I might not have if I knew that she-devil was gonna be here. You know she came down on my turf last night, right?”
“Yes she mentioned something about that,” Foxy said.
“She told me that I’m your only suspect. That you think I killed Chaser.”
I could see the surprise on Foxy’s face. “Bam!” I said to Manny in the viewing room. “I am awesome at this, aren’t I? I must have scared the hell out of her and now she’s talking. I wish Mac were here.”
“What the hell went on last night?” Manny asked.
“Shh, I’m listening,” I said, turning back to the window.
Reid leaned in to Rose. “Convince us that you are not responsible for Chaser’s death.”
“I didn’t do it, okay?” Rose said. “I could never do that.”
“Do you know who did?” Foxy asked.
“Could be anyone,” Rose said.
“Do you want to help us find Chaser’s killer, or do you want to keep playing games?” Reid asked.
“The only games I play are in bed, Detective,” Rose said, giving him her most sultry eyes.
I shuffled in my seat. “Slut,” I said under my breath.
“Are you sexually involved with anyone right now, Rose?” Reid asked.
“Not right now,” Rose said, staring at Reid and licking her lips. She let the beige shawl fall off her shoulders, revealing the gold and black corset beneath. Her breasts were amazing.
“Oh man! Look at that shit! I would die to be in there right now!” Manny said to me.
Foxy and Reid exchanged glances. “Were you sexually involved with anyone other than Chaser at the time of his death?” Foxy said.
“Maybe once in a while. Not everyone’s perfect – I’ve got an addiction, a sex addiction.”
“Sweet Jesus!” Manny shouted. He said it so loud that Rose actually heard him.
“Is someone listening to us?” she asked.
“Are you prepared to talk to us on the record?” Foxy said, changing the subject. “Is that why you’re here today or just to flirt with Detective Reid?”
“A little of both,” Rose said demurely.
“We’d like you to sign some paperwork waiving your Miranda rights. Would you be willing to do that?” Foxy asked.
Rose looked from one detective to the next. “Sure – I’ve got nothing to hide.”
“Excuse us for a minute,” Reid said, and he and Foxy walked out of the room. A minute later the door to the observation room opened. Foxy looked in at me. “You shouldn’t have told her she was our number one suspect – but it got her in here. Nice work.”
I smiled in return and nudged Manny on the shoulder. “See?”
“And you,” Foxy said to Manny, “keep your voice down.”
Foxy and Reid returned to Rose’s holding room with the paperwork. She signed it, agreeing to speak to them without a lawyer present, and understood that she was being recorded. Manny and I let the cameras roll, or, more to the point, we continued rolling. Rose had already signed my release, and I was following a different set of rules.
Reid placed a recording device on the table and pressed record. He didn’t need to – we had the room wired for sound, but I think he wanted to feel like he was still running this show.
“State your name for record,” Reid said.
“Rosario Ortez.”
“Are you a citizen of the United States?” Foxy asked.
Rose’s smile dropped. “Why are you asking that?”
“It’s routine,” Foxy said.
“Listen, if you guys are gonna try to pull some immigration shit on me, I can leave now,” Rose said, standing.
“No one is calling immigration,” Reid said lazily. “Sit down.” Rose hesitated, and then sat.
“Tell me about Chaser – how did you meet?” Foxy asked.
“At the track. When I was a kid in Mexico, my cousins used to race cars, and I always felt safe there. When I came here I started hanging around the track, watching the races. Chaser and I got to talking and well, you know how it goes,” Rose explained.
“How long did the two of you date?” Foxy asked.
“Couple months – I don’t know.”
“Did you love him?” Reid asked.
Rose was a little shocked by the question. Her eyes darted around the room. Finally she answered. “Yes, I did.”
“What did Chaser do for money?” Foxy asked.
“Odd jobs,” Rose said.
“Did he also make money racing cars?”
“Yeah, sometimes.”
“Was he involved in drugs – either buying or selling?” Reid asked.
“No,” Rose said quickly. “Chaser was clean. He hated that shit.”
“We found marijuana in his home when we searched it,” Reid said.
“That’s not a drug, that’s just a cigarette. I’m talking about the hard stuff.”
“How often did he race?” Foxy asked.
“Usually twice a week.”
“Did he just race at the Oxnard track, or did he race someplace else?”
“Just the Oxnard track,” she said.
“Was Kitt a close friend to Chaser?” Reid asked.
“Yeah, they were pretty tight.”
“Were you sleeping with Kitt while you were dating Chaser?” Foxy asked.
“No,” Rose said sternly.
“So last night was the first time you fucked him, right?” Reid asked.
“That’s right, Detective.” He was trying to rattle her, but it didn’t work.
“That’s not what he told us – he said he’s been with you dozens of times.”
Rose’s eyes widened. “That’s between him and me.”
Reid stood up. “Don’t bullshit us, all right? If you’re lying about this, how do we know you’re being truthful about anything else?”
Rose leaned forward. “My sex life has nothing to do with Chaser’s death.”
“Did Kitt kill Chaser?” Reid said flatly.
“What? No!” Rose said.
“Is that why you were screwing his brains out last night? As a thank-you? Or do you expect us to believe that you were grieving your boyfriend’s death? The body’s barely cold, Rose,” Reid snarled.
I would have to bleep out some of the profanities but this was still good stuff.
Rose stood up. “I was grieving – different people deal with stress in different ways. Kitt had no reason to kill Chaser – this is stupid.”
“Did they race against each other?” Foxy asked.
“Sometimes.”
“Did Chaser owe Kitt any money?” Foxy asked.
“No.”
“Who do you think did it, Rose?” Reid asked her.
“I don’t know. It was probably just an accident.”
“How did you get to the track last night?” Reid asked.
“I got a ride with a friend.”
“Are you and this friend sexually involved?” Reid asked.
“Sometimes. I told you, I have a sexual addiction.”
“We’ll need t
he name and address of the person you were riding with,” Foxy said.
“Why?” Rose asked.
“We need to exhaust all options. What was the driver’s name?”
“Jaeger.”
“What’s his real name?” Foxy asked.
“I don’t know. You’re not going to tell him you got his address from me, right?” Her voice broke as she spoke.
“Not if you don’t want us to,” Foxy said.
Rose gave them the address, and Foxy jotted it down. She explained that Jaeger was another racer from the track – he knew Chaser, but they weren’t as close as Chaser and Kitt.
They interviewed her for over two hours, and by the end, she looked run ragged. The cops left things open with Rose, and she agreed that they could call her if they thought of any more questions.
Rose stood up to leave the room, but before she could, Reid placed a hand on her wrist.
“If I find out Jaeger was tipped off that we’re coming after him, my first call is to the INS. You got me?”
Rose yanked her hand away from him and stormed out of the room. Manny watched Rose walk out and then turned to me. “You think that sex addict thing is true?”
I shrugged. “Could be. I worked on a show about sex addicts – they usually come from screwed up families and use it to feel loved.”
“I could make her feel loved.” Manny stood up. “Um, Sharpe, I’m going to go take a pee break, okay?”
Manny opened the door and ran out while Reid popped his head in. “Did Mac call with the plate yet?”
I handed him a slip with the numbers written on it. He took it and carried it back to his desk, where he plugged it into the computer. I walked over to him with the PD-150 camera rolling.
“Is it coming up?” I asked.
Reid turned to me and frowned when he saw the camera. “Come on, Sharpe.”
“I have to, I’m sorry. Did it come up?”
“Yeah.” Reid pointed to his computer screen. “The owner is Justin Jaeger. The address on file matches what Rose gave us.”
“So now we go shake him up?” I asked, focusing the camera on Reid’s face.
Reid rolled his eyes and looked back at his computer. “Yes Sharpe, now we get this guy.”
“Okay, great. Can you just wait for Mac to get back before we nail him?”