David hung back. "Look, I can't stay. My mom will kill me if she finds out I didn't go to my shrink."

"What does he do, call your mommy when you don't show up?" she teased. Inside the store, she stopped by the purses to study a Prada bag. She glanced at David to see if he'd buy it for her.

"Nah, he doesn't call. He doesn't give a shit." David wasn't thinking about the Prada bag. He was twitching all over, worried about his mother's mood. He didn't want to get yelled at.

A saleslady asked, "Can I help you?"

"I hate this place. Let's get out of here," he said.

"Okay, whatever." Disgusted, Brandy got on the escalator and they traveled up to the main floor. She got off and dawdled as much as she could in the vast cosmetic section, then the men's store. Finally, he dragged her out on Third Avenue. Sam Goody was across the street. Brandy thought he might buy her a few discs, but David couldn't handle the music store for more than thirty seconds, either. He wasn't in a buying mood.

"Come on, let's go," he said angrily. "I hate shopping."

"Buy me something," she urged.

"Why?"

"Because I want some new discs. You're my boyfriend. You're supposed to get me stuff."

"Fine, I'll get you a pizza. Then I have to go home."

"I don't see why." Sulky, Brandy followed him out.

David raised his hand and punched her lightly in the arm. "Better watch out. Like the talented Mr. Ripley, I can make anybody disappear."

"Yeah, right." She punched him back, not happy without the present.

"Two for dinner?" Inside California Pizza Kitchen, a girl who looked like she ate all the leftovers came over with two menus. She led the way up the stairs to the second floor, where David pointed at a corner table in the back.

They ordered.

"What did you do with the finger?" David asked.

"Oh, I forgot it."

"What do you mean you forgot it? I thought you were taking it with you for a souvenir."

"I was, but I dropped it."

"Now you tell me. I wanted that, you nut."

"You're the nut. You go to a psychiatrist."

"Yeah, but I don't need it. Half the time I don't even go. I'm really bummed about the finger."

Brandy leaned over the table and lowered her voice. "Okay, tell me."

He looked at his watch. "Tell you what?"

"How you killed him? Tell me everything."

"I punched him, then I kicked him. Then I strangled him," David said simply.

Brandy bounced in her chair. "It sounds cool. You're cool."

David turned around. Four tables were occupied but nowhere near them. "You know we could get fingers from the other two."

"This is true. We could, and we should. You fucked me over on the cave-dwellers."

"You're crazy. I didn't fuck you over."

"Yes, you did. You got spooked before the others were done. How am I supposed to trust you if you get scared so easily?"

He smacked the table. "Jesus, you know what happened. We had to go."

"All right, fine. We finish up tonight. You can get their fingers. Whatever." Brandy sulked. She'd done it with him, and he hadn't bought her a bag or a disc or anything. He was fucking her over. Killing one guy was not good enough. How was she going to go on TV as the girlfriend of a serial killer now? "I'll never trust you again," she muttered. He snorted in reply.

The waiter came with the pizza.

"Hurry up. I have to go home now, or I'll get in trouble," he said.

Boys! She shook her head. "You can't do this to me. You made a promise."

"So what?"

She put a slice of pizza on his plate and took one for herself. "If they find him, and he isn't dead, he'll tell. You don't want your mom to find out, do you?"

David shook his head. "You're a real pain in the ass. I said I'd finish it up tonight."

She looked at him with those big eyes. "I'll come with you," she said. She ate the first piece quickly and took two more.

"Yeah, thanks." He glanced at his watch again.

She stared at the pizza on his plate. "Aren't you going to finish this?"

He shook his head again. "I have to get home," he said softly.

"Why go home? Why not go from here." She took the last two slices of the pizza with a little smile. "If the cops come back, you won't get a chance to get out later."

"Okay, you're right. Let's do it now." He raised his hand for the bill.

Fifty-eight

Mike was in the middle of a clot of smoking men in the squad room. April went out and caught his eye. She didn't say anything, just returned to her office. Seconds later he joined here there, smelling like a smoker.

"New?"

"I just talked to the ME. Pee Wee died of a head injury."

"No surprise there." Mike sank into a chair.

"Yes. Surprise. Dr. Gloss thinks Pee Wee may have fallen, or been hit on the head earlier in the day, then wandered around for hours. He says the attack in the park isn't what killed him. The earlier head injury was the cause of death."

"Wow." Mike inhaled, exhaled, sucked on his mustache. "Where does that get us?"

April gave him a grim little smile. "Quite a ways. We have some evidence on Brandy and David."

"Those kids? Ah Jesus. What does he have?"

"Nail polish for starters. Black nail polish chips on Pee Wee's body. Brandy was wearing a color like that yesterday when I talked to her in the park. Dr. Gloss told me Pee Wee's finger was cut off when he was still alive. That's something."

"And she was cool as a cucumber an hour ago."

"There's more. Hey, stop him for me, will you?" Behind Mike, April saw that Baum was getting ready to go downtown with his warrant request to search Dylan Rodriguez's apartment. The man was so slow filling in a form, this time he'd gotten lucky. He wasn't going to have to hang around the courts waiting forever for a judge to give his autograph. They had new suspects now and new apartments to search.

Mike followed her eye and called out the office door. "Hey, Woody."

He trotted into the office looking pleased not to be banished anymore. "What's up?"

April liked having the floor. "Woody, you're off the hook on Dylan's warrant request. And hold on for this one. Brandy and David were Pee Wee's attackers."

"They were?" Woody was surprised.

"Yeah. That puts them in the park last night. When I spoke to John, I thought I'd feel him out about trying another search for Maslow." April swiveled back and forth in her chair. "You know, Mike, that whole story you told me about tunnels in Vietnam made me think, I don't know, maybe Maslow is there, under the ground somewhere."

Mike nodded. "I thought of that. Drainpipe or something."

"And Peachy never had a chance to search because she got distracted by dead smells, and then we got distracted by Pee Wee's homicide. We never looked for Maslow, either over or underground. So I thought we might take Peachy out and try now. Those kids must have gone out to Zumech's place last night and stolen his body parts to throw Peachy off track."

The two men stared at her. Mike chewed on the ends of his mustache. Woody made faces. "Body parts?"

April checked her watch. "I've got people out watching the buildings where they live. But we should get going. John is on his way into the city with the dog. But who knows, maybe we won't need her. We'll bring Brandy and David into the station. If they're involved in the Maslow disappearance, we'll know soon. I also have a BOLO out on Dylan Rodriquez."

"Body parts, querida?"

April gave him her deadpan look. "John Zumech kept body parts in his garage for training the dogs. Brandy and David knew all about it."

"Okay, I gathered this morning that John had some personal concern about this. And then David told me all about his father's Mercedes. I didn't put the two together."