Hollywood Murder Read Online Free PDF Page B

partner in the law firm of Duffy, Harrington, and Marsh. He’s thirty-three. He and his wife, Allison, have been married for almost seven years. I was able to get ahold of Allison’s sister, Karen. She lives in San Diego and was able to give me a cell number for Vince, as she calls him.” She handed me a slip of paper. “I thought you might want to try his cell phone yourself.”
    Since I had seniority in Section One and the others were still upstairs, I made the call. I was surprised when Vince Marsh picked up on the second ring. I briefly explained about the maid, but didn’t go into the details about the homicide. “Are you with your family tonight?”
    His voice pitched higher with anxiety. “No, I’m working late at the office. I don’t understand what you mean about…my family. Are they okay?”
    “They aren’t here, Mr. Marsh.”
    “Wh…where are they?”
    “I don’t know. When did you last see them?”
    His voice bordered on frantic now. “I came home…I think it was around six and told Allison, my wife, I had to work late. I left after a few minutes.” There was a pause on the line before he said, “Oh, God…I’m coming home now.”
    “I’ll meet you in front of the residence.”
    Leo came downstairs a few minutes later, telling me that Darby and Mel were still searching, but the rest of the residence looked untouched.
    I told him about Marsh’s reaction to my call, adding, “He seemed at a loss to explain where his family is. Do you think this could be a kidnapping?”
    Leo shrugged. “It’s probably too early to say. I wonder if there are any relationship problems in the marriage.”
    “The husband seemed pretty upset, but we’ll need to follow up on that.”
    Fifteen minutes later, I saw a couple of uniforms coming up the street with a man. As they got closer, I knew he was Vincent Marsh because he was moving quickly and was obviously distraught. The officers had to block the entrance to the residence when they got to the front steps.
    “You don’t want to go in there, Mr. Marsh,” I said. I took a moment, introducing myself and Leo. Vincent Marsh was handsome, with caramel eyes and a full head of short, dark hair. He was about six feet tall, with a solid build.
    “What’s…” Marsh tried to see beyond where the officers were blocking his view. “You said the maid was killed. What exactly happened to her?”
    I decided to temper my remarks. “She was killed with a knife. It happened in your kitchen.”
    “What?” He broke down, sobbing. After a moment, he said, “My family, do you have any idea where they are?”
    “We were hoping you could tell us that,” Leo said. “Your maid’s sister came here to check on her and found the body. The house was empty.”
    Marsh brushed his tears on his long-sleeved shirt and looked at me. “I haven’t seen them since I left, around six tonight.”
    “Any idea where they might have gone?” I asked.
    “No. It’s not like my wife and kids go out much during the week, especially this late. I don’t understand any of this.”
    Darby and Mel came outside and joined us. Mel shook her head, telling me they hadn’t turned up anything inside the home.
    “Are you and the wife having any kind of problems?” Darby asked Marsh after he and Mel had been introduced to him.
    The question came out of the blue. While it was necessary ground to cover, it seemed a little premature.
    Marsh’s response was not unexpected. “What are you talking about?”
    Darby didn’t back off. “I’m talking about a woman whose head was cut off in your kitchen tonight and a family that’s gone missing.”
    “What?” Marsh looked at me.
    I took a breath and confirmed what Darby had blurted out. “It’s a pretty bad scene. Whoever did this meant business.”
    “Let’s get back to your relationship with your wife,” Darby said, acting like a bulldog with a bone.
    Marsh looked at me. “I don’t understand this line of questioning.” His eyes found