“Then A. Biggy and his crew turns around and A. Biggy says, ‘You done?’”
“And one of them cops, seemed like the head dude, said, ‘I’m sorry. Put yourself in my shoes,’ something like that, and he just blew them away.”
Arturo’s expression drooped, like he was seeing it all over again. He shook his head like he couldn’t stop the images.
Yuki said, “Arturo. Why haven’t I heard this before?”
“’Cause I was the only living one that saw it go down. And then I see the three of them men go down the stairs like nothing happened.”
“Then what?” Yuki asked.
“I wait a couple of minutes, make sure the coast is clear, and then I’m ready to run out and A-Rey comes charging upstairs. He missed the shooting and he’s looking for his homies like always. They treat him OK. He doesn’t see anything yet. He says to me, ‘Lookit what I found on the stairs, ’Turo.’
“He had a thirty-eight in his hand that belong to the shooter.
“And I say, ‘A-Rey, get out of here, man.’ He sees the dead guys and he starts to go over to them. He loves them, man, and he’s crying and I just yell, ‘Let’s go!’
“And then we run down the stairs. Aaron-Rey is first. And by the time I get to the street, he’s running and a patrol car sees that big boy and they chase him in the car. Then they get out and throw him to the ground.”
Arturo went on.
“I see that, but what I’m supposed to do, huh? It was cops who shoot those boys. I just fade out of sight.”
Yuki said, “You know what happened to A-Rey in jail?”
“I heard, yeah. He thought everyone was his friend.”
“Arturo. Could you ID those men in the police jackets?”
“Not really. Definitely not the head dude. One of the other two, maybe. He had a little tat on his neck. I might have seen a tat like that on a narc.”
Yuki felt the adrenaline shoot straight through her, but she kept her expression as neutral as possible. She said, “I’m suing the City on behalf of A-Rey’s family. I need you, Arturo. I need you to testify for Aaron-Rey.”
“And then what? I’ll be dead, too.”
“Let me see what I can do,” said Yuki.
“Oh, yeah. Right,” said Arturo. He started to get out of the car, but Yuki reached over and gripped his forearm.
She said, “I’m your lawyer. I’ve got pull. If I call you, take my call. It means I can get you whatever you need.”
Arturo got out of the car and didn’t look back.
Yuki sat in the car and watched him cross the street the way he’d come. Then she did the unthinkable. She called her former boss and current opponent, Red Dog Parisi. When he answered, she said, “Len. It’s Yuki. I’ve got two new witnesses who can turn this case upside down. We need to meet right away.”
CHAPTER 76
ON THE WAY home from another fruitless day of interviewing the Calhoun family’s friends and neighbors, I found myself thinking about Tina Strichler.
Taking a chance, I phoned Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Gosselin from the car.
The Gosselins had been on Balmy Alley when Dr. Tina Strichler had been knifed in the crosswalk, and Mrs. Gosselin had actually seen the killer, although from behind and with several people between her and the man with the knife.
Conklin had interviewed Nathan and Allyson Gosselin on the scene, and Inspectors Michaels and Wang, the two homicide cops in charge of the case, had also spoken to them that day.
But because the Gosselins had said they couldn’t make an ID, they’d been written off. In fact, I was pretty sure the entire case had been shelved now that every cop in the Hall of Justice was working some portion of the Windbreaker cop case.
The Gosselins sounded glad I’d called and told me they hadn’t thought about much other than the woman who’d been killed on the street since it had happened. Mr. Gosselin gave me their address, which turned out to be a well-kept apartment building at Elizabeth and Diamond Streets. Mrs. Gosselin buzzed me in, answered the door, and welcomed me into her home.