I nodded. I knew the name, especially since I had once been a federal agent. Jerry Blum had single-handedly built an enormous criminal empire that stretched down into Mexico and as far up as Canada, which was no surprise since he was, of all things, Canadian. These days he worked hard to bring drugs to the streets and schools of Orange County. Six years ago, he had dabbled in home loan scams, which had been my specialty. He had an uncanny knack of distancing himself from anything illegal, and an even more uncanny knack to avoid prosecution, which is why my department never caught him.
Last I heard, he had been standing trial for a bizarre crime outside a nightclub in Seal Beach, California, where Jerry Blum had uncharacteristically lost his cool and popped someone with a handgun. Yes, witnesses were everywhere.
I asked Stuart about this, and he confirmed that his wife had indeed been one of the witnesses. She had seen the whole thing, along with five others. She had agreed to testify to what she saw, thus putting her life in mortal danger.
I tapped my longish fingernail on the green plastic table. My fingernails tended to come to a point these days, but most people seemed not to notice, and if they did, they didn't say anything about it. Maybe they were scared of the weird woman with pointed fingernails.
I said, "Why do you think Jerry Blum was involved in your wife's plane crash?"
"Because as of today he is a free man. No witnesses, and thus no case. It's been ruled self-defense."
"But we're talking about a plane crash, and if the plane was headed to a military base, then we're probably talking about a military aircraft."
"I know I sound crazy, but look at the facts. Jerry Blum has a history of silencing witnesses. This case was no different. Just a little more extravagant. Witnesses silenced, and Blum's a free man."
I continued tapping. People just didn't take down military aircrafts. Even powerful people. But the circumstantial evidence was compelling.
Whoops! I was tapping too hard. Digging a hole in the plastic. Whoops. A vampiric woodpecker.
I asked, "So what have federal investigators determined to be the cause of the crash?"
"No clue," said Stuart. "The investigation is still ongoing. Every agency on earth is involved in it. I've been personally interviewed by the FBI, military investigators and the FAA."
"Why you?"
"No clue," he said again. "But I think it's because they suspect foul play."
I nodded but didn't tap.