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“Say the word if there’s anything we can do.”
“I will. Thanks. I heard PG County is covering us at the GW thing?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll send along my thanks.”
Gonzo checked his phone and found a text from Lucas with the list of items Stahl’s sister and her kids needed from the house. It included clothing, medication and the backpacks they’d noticed on the way in. It took about fifteen minutes to gather everything, which they put in bags they found under the kitchen sink. On impulse, he grabbed a few stuffed animals from each of the kids’ rooms and put them in the bag, too. Regardless of what he thought of Stahl—and the sister, who’d given his colleagues such a hard time—none of it was the fault of innocent kids.
Chapter Seven
Gonzo drove to the hotel on Massachusetts Avenue, where they met the Patrol officer standing watch at the lobby elevators.
They showed him their badges.
“Room 413, Sarge.”
“Thanks.”
They hoofed it up the stairwell because it was faster than waiting for the elevator.
Another Patrol officer guarded the door to the room. They showed him their badges.
“She’s very upset, Sarge.”
“So we’ve heard.” Gonzo knocked on the door. “Open up.”
The heavy-set woman who came to the door bore a faint resemblance to her brother, with the same full face and eyes that could only be described as beady.
“Can you give us a minute?” he asked the Patrol officer, who nodded and moved down the hallway.
They handed over the bags of things they’d brought from the house. “I’m Sergeant Gonzales, this is Detective Cruz. Could we speak to you for a few minutes?”
She took the bags from them and put them inside the room. “I’ve already told the other cops that I know nothing about anything Lenny did at the house.”
“We’d still like to speak to you.”
“My kids are sleeping.”
“Can you step outside?”
“Do I have to?”
“We can either do this here or at the station. Your choice.”
Her scowl reminded Gonzo of her brother as she stepped outside the room, leaving the door propped open. “What do you want to know?”
Gonzo pulled his notebook from his coat pocket. “Your full name.”
“Cindy Stahl Brenner.”
“Age?”
“Forty-five.”
“Are you Leonard Stahl’s only sibling?”
“I’m his only living half sibling. We shared the same father.”
