Pryce said, “Here’s the thing, Mr. Peterson. Stan. We could get a warrant, and we would get a warrant, but it would mean getting hold of a judge and filling out paperwork and cutting through red tape. All of which takes time. And it’s Sunday, and it’s getting late, so the ball might not even get rolling until tomorrow morning.”

“I completely understand, but—”

Pryce interrupted. “When I said we were investigating a serious crime, I was talking about a homicide. This car could lead us to the perpetrator before he attacks another young woman. Or we could waste time standing here talking all day?”

Peterson’s eyes widened. “Is this to do with the college student found in the motel on La Brea?”

Pryce held Peterson’s eye. “I can’t go into details about the investigation, but your cooperation could be vitally important in helping us catch this guy.”

“Christ, my daughter is at Cal State.” Peterson ran a hand through his hair, thought hard for a moment. “Here at QuikCar, we take the privacy of our clients very seriously. We like to think we run a top-notch operation in Hollywood in particular. However, on this occasion, as we are talking about a matter of urgency, I’m prepared to bend the rules this once.”

Pryce said, “Your cooperation is very much appreciated, Stan.”

Peterson shook the mouse to wake up the computer and tapped some keys. He looked up from the screen at Pryce and Medina. “Oh, and if you are ever looking to rent a car, I’m sure we could offer a special deal for our friends in the police department.”

Medina said, “We’ll bear that in mind.”

Peterson said, “The Ford Focus has been rented twice since last weekend, and all of our cars are thoroughly cleaned and waxed and polished to the highest standard after use, so I’m afraid your CSI team won’t have much luck finding anything. We do a very thorough job with all of our vehicles. As I said, this is a top-notch operation.”

“I don’t doubt it for a minute, Stan,” Medina said.

“Okay,” Peterson said, reading the screen. “The customer you’re interested in rented the car lunchtime on Saturday and returned the vehicle early evening the next day. A short-term rental.” He turned to his colleague. “Jimmy, can you go fetch this file?”

“Of course, Mr. Peterson.” Jimmy glanced at the screen, then walked over to a metal file cabinet, unlocked it with a small key from a jangling bunch produced from his pants pocket, and thumbed through a thick stack of files. He produced a slim green folder from the drawer. “Here we go.”

Peterson snatched the folder from Jimmy’s grasp and held it out to Pryce. Inside was a Xerox copy of both the rental agreement and the customer’s driver’s license.