“So you saw her on and off?”

“And every time that I assumed she was out of my life for good, she’d call and ask me to meet her someplace new. She always paid. It was like she knew what she had to do to keep me on the string.” He turned to Teo. “You know women like that?”

Teo ignored the attempt at male bonding. “You must really have had a thing for her.”

“It got to be a game. I wanted to see what was going to happen next.”

I decided to move the time line to the present. “So this went on for, what, years?”

He gave a slight nod. “I moved around, took a couple of different jobs, but she always knew where to find me. Then a long time went by when I didn’t hear from her. I decided it was time to come back to my own country, time to start over and find a better life. So I quit the job I had in Albuquerque, arranged for this one and got ready to move home.”

“How did you end up in Santa Fe with Wendy?”

“She called one night, and she said she was sorry she’d been out of touch. She wanted to make it up to me. Seeing her one last time seemed like a goodbye present, so I said sure. She told me I was going to love the resort where we would stay, that it had these cute little casitas scattered over the hills, and we would have one all to ourselves. I didn’t tell her I was moving here. I thought maybe I’d change my mind about that if, you know, things went well.”

Teo took over. “Do you have a different opinion now about why Wendy invited you to the resort? Not just for a good time, but maybe for something else?”

“Sure. She knew Vítor Calvo was going to be there, and she wanted to kill him. I don’t know why she wanted him dead, but she did.”

I drew in a sharp breath, but Teo went on. “So you think that’s what she planned all along?”

“It’s the only thing that makes sense.”

“How do you know?” I asked.

He sounded almost earnest now. “Here’s what happened, and you can believe it or not. On the phone she told me she was going to Golden Aspen to look over the place for Gracey Group, kind of like a secret shopper. She asked me to register and get an extra key for her, and she would pay me back in cash. She said it would be better if we weren’t seen together, in case somebody figured out who she was.”

“So you registered. Did you use your own name and credit card?”

“No.”

“But you were able to register?”

“I found a way. I wasn’t going to charge anything, so it didn’t matter what card number I gave them. I had cash and I paid in advance. I had some outstanding traffic violations, so I figured it would be better not to use my own license and name until I paid them off.”