Murder in Alphabet City Read Online Free PDF Page A

super.”
    â€œYeah, you should talk to him. He’s a white guy, young, or he was eight years ago, and I think he’s a writer or musician. The super job gives him a free apartment and some walking around money. He knows what’s going on in the building and the neighborhood. He didn’t like me very much, didn’t like the cops either, but maybe you can sweet-talk him. It’s happened before.”
    â€œWhat shape is the building in?” Defino asked.
    â€œI forgot to tell you. They renovated it about a year after Stratton died, gutted it completely. Gentrification. It’s happening all over the area. So the apartments are gone and so are the people. You may still find some of them; the super might know where they went. Some of the older tenants moved into other old buildings just to keep their rent down.”
    â€œBut the super’s still there?”
    â€œYeah. He liked the lifestyle, although he bitched a lot about the kind of people that were moving in. Their jeans were Lauren, not Levi’s. Makes a difference.” Shreiber grinned.
    â€œWhat impression did you get about Stratton’s mental condition?” Jane asked.
    â€œIt depended. If he took his medication, he could be OK. I gather he was very bright. I talked to people who had discussed pretty highbrow stuff with him, politics, world affairs, philosophy. He read a lot. He didn’t make it through college because he broke down and had to leave, but he educated himself.”
    â€œAny record of suicide attempts?”
    â€œNone I could find. I talked to his psychiatrist. He hadn’t seen Stratton for a long time, at least a year, because Stratton wouldn’t go, even when Constantine sent a car to take him. But he had access to the records in the institution and Stratton never tried to hurt himself. I have to tell you, he had to be encouraged to eat sometimes. Eating wasn’t high on his list of priorities.”
    â€œSo he may have just sat down in his chair and read books and not bothered eating,” Jane said, feeling discouraged.
    â€œThis could be one of those cases that looks like what it is, an accidental death.”
    â€œWhat’s your impression of Mrs. Constantine?” Defino asked.
    â€œShe’s an interesting woman. She’s as rich as God. You see that apartment? I saw that Picasso, I couldn’t catch my breath. She was still married to Constantine when I worked for her, but I only saw him once for a minute. Not the communicative type. I don’t know why she bothered to get divorced. She could’ve stayed married to him and not known he was around. Maybe she wanted the money in her bank account, not his.
    â€œI think she grew up protecting this brother from the world. It was like a personal affront when she couldn’t save him. She comes across as a tough broad, but I don’t think she has a nasty bone in her body except where Constantine was concerned. She also hired me to look into that, whether he had something on the side.”
    Defino raised his eyebrows. “And?”
    â€œWhat do you think? A guy with that much money has what he wants. Probably didn’t mean much to him, just a little diversion like horse racing or baccarat. Although he married a cute little piece of ass after the divorce. It was in the papers. I was out of it by then.”
    â€œSo Mrs. C. kept the art and the apartment and Mr. C. moved on.”
    â€œThere was enough there, no one got cheated. Believe me.”
    â€œWhat you’re telling us is that you believe Stratton died of natural causes, probably brought on by his mental condition,” Jane said. They weren’t getting anywhere. They might as well wrap this up.
    â€œYou expect me to say anything else?”
    That seemed to do it. They both stood at the same moment. Wally helped Jane on with her coat.
    â€œYou have any specific questions, give me a ring. I know why you’re doing this. The