Page 62 of Stay Awake
Minutes later, Lavelle’s friend called back and relayed the credit card holder’s details over the speakerphone.
“His name is Edward Cole. He’s an executive at a magazine. Age thirty-nine.”
“What magazine does he work at?” Jack asked, stopping at a red light.
“Cultura. Heard of it?”
“No,” said Jack.
“I have,” Halliday chimed in. “It’s a high-end glossy magazine that claims to be the last word on music, arts, theater, style. Basically, anything cultural. Hence the name.”
“That must be why Jack and I haven’t heard of it. Our idea of culture is watching the Knicks. Isn’t it, Jack?”
“Something like that,” said Lavelle. “Hey, thanks, buddy. I definitely owe you one.”
“Let’s find out more about Edward Cole,” Halliday said, dialing Tran.
“It’s me again,” she said when the detective answered. “Can you run a name through the DMV. We want a driver’s license for a thirty-nine-year-old male by the name of Edward Cole. That’s C-O-L-E. We need the name and contact details for him and his next of kin.”
“Stay on the line and I’ll take a look now,” said Tran.
A moment later, he said, “Edward Cole received a driver’s license… four months ago.”
“That’s weird. Who gets a driver’s license at the grand old age of thirty-nine?” Halliday pondered out loud.
“Gimme a minute and I’ll find out,” said Tran, pausing as he ran another search. “Cole is not a US citizen. He’s only been in the country for five months.”
“Let me guess where he’s from,” Halliday said. “Britain.”
“How did you know?”
“Shot in the dark,” said Halliday, glancing at Lavelle.
“There’s no next of kin listed in the database,” said Tran. “There is an address for him. It’s a few blocks from the murder scene.”
“Why would Cole rent a second apartment near the apartment where he lives?” Halliday asked Lavelle after the call.
“Maybe his relationship broke up. He needed somewhere to stay for a few nights,” Lavelle suggested.
“Sounds as if you’re speaking from experience,” Halliday said.
“Oh, yeah. Bitter experience.”
Lavelle had done the same thing when his relationship with his girlfriend broke up a few months earlier. He’d rented an Airbnb for a few days and then extended it for a few days longer. Two weeks later, the penny finally dropped. He and Ingrid weren’t getting back together.
“That doesn’t explain why Cole booked the apartment using a fake name and a fake address,” Halliday pointed out.
“Maybe he didn’t want someone to find out he was staying there. Like a wife, or a girlfriend.”
“You think he was having an affair with Liv Reese?”
“That would certainly explain all that sneaking around,” Lavelle said. He did a quick U-turn and drove in the direction of Edward Cole’s apartment.
Chapter
Thirty-Seven
Wednesday 4:19P.M.
