I wondered how I'd lived so long without such a simple miracle as that.
"Yes. I think we really are."
Osborne came by again about a week later. He seemed subdued. He listened to the things Lisa had decided to give him without much interest. He took the printout she handed him, and promised to turn it over to the departments that handled those things. But he didn't get up to leave.
"I thought I ought to tell you, Apfel," he said, at last. "The Gavin case has been closed."
I had to think a moment to remember Kluge's real name had been Gavin.
"The coroner ruled suicide a long time ago. I was able to keep the case open quite a while on the strength of my suspicions." He nodded toward Lisa. "And on what she said about the suicide note. But there was just no evidence at all."
"It probably happened quickly," Lisa said. "Somebody caught him, tracked him back-it can be done; Kluge was lucky for a long time-and did him the same day."
"You don't think it was suicide?" I asked Osborne.
"No. But whoever did it is home free unless something new turns up."
"I'll tell you if it does," Lisa said.
"That's something else," Osborne said. "I can't authorize you to work over there any more. The county's taken possession of house and contents."
"Don't worry about it," Lisa said, softly.
There was a short silence as she leaned over to shake a cigarette from the pack on the coffee table. She lit it, exhaled, and leaned back beside me, giving Osborne her most inscrutable look. He sighed.
"I'd hate to play poker with you, lady," he said. "What do you mean, 'Don't worry about it'?"
"I bought the house four days ago. And its contents. If anything turns up that would help you re-open the murder investigation, I will let you know."
Osborne was too defeated to get angry. He studied her quietly for a while.
"I'd like to know how you swung that."
"I did nothing illegal. You're free to check it out. I paid good cash money for it. The house came onto the market. I got a good price at the Sheriffs sale."
"How'd you like it if I put my best men on the transaction? See if they can dig up some funny money? Maybe fraud. How about I get the F.B.I, in to look it all over?"
She gave him a cool look.
"You're welcome to. Frankly, Detective Osborne, I could have stolen that house, Griffith Park, and the Harbor Freeway and I don't think you could have caught me."
"So where does that leave me?"
"Just where you were. With a closed case, and a promise from me."
"I don't like you having all that stuff, if it can do the things you say it can do."
"I didn't expect you would. But that's not your department, is it? The county owned it for a while, through simple confiscation. They didn't know what they had, and they let it go-"
"Maybe I can get the Fraud detail out here to confiscate your software. There's criminal evidence on it."
"You could try that," she agreed.
They stared at each other for a while. Lisa won. Osborne rubbed his eyes and nodded. Then he heaved himself to his feet and slumped to the door.
Lisa stubbed out her cigarette. We listened to him going down the walk.
"I'm surprised he gave up so easy," I said. "Or did he? Do you think he'll try a raid?"
"It's not likely. He knows the score."
"Maybe you could tell it to me."
"For one thing, it's not his department, and he knows it."
"Why did you buy the house?"
"You ought to ask how."
I looked at her closely. There was a gleam of amusement behind the poker face.
"Lisa. What did you do?"
"That's what Osborne asked himself. He got the right answer, because he understands Kluge's machines. And he knows how things get done. It was no accident that house going on the market, and no accident I was the only bidder. I used one of Kluge's pet councilmen."
"You bribed him?"
She laughed, and kissed me.
"I think I finally managed to shock you, Yank. That's gotta be the biggest difference between me and a native-born American. Average citizens don't spend much on bribes over here. In Saigon, everybody bribes."
"Did you bribe him?"
"Nothing so indelicate. One has to go in the back door over here. Several entirely legal campaign contributions appeared in the accounts of a State Senator, who mentioned a certain situation to someone, who happened to be in the position to do legally what I happened to want done." She looked at me askance. "Of course I bribed him, Victor. You'd be amazed to know how cheaply. Does that bother you?"
"Yes," I admitted. "I don't like bribery."
"I'm indifferent to it. It happens, like gravity. It may not be admirable, but it gets things done."
"I assume you covered yourself."
"Reasonably well. You're never entirely covered with a bribe, because of the human element. The councilman might geek if they got him in front of a grand jury. But they won't, because Osborne won't pursue it. That's the second reason he walked out of here without a fight. He knows how the world wobbles, he knows what kind of force I now possess, and he knows he can't fight it."
There was a long silence after that. I had a lot to think about, and I didn't feel good about most of it. At one point Lisa reached for the pack of cigarettes, then changed her mind. She waited for me to work it out.
"It is a terrific force, isn't it," I finally said.