by Rick Polad
“I explained the possibilities and asked him to give me a week. He said he’d rather not do the paperwork anyway and agreed. But he took my tape and said jail was only a step away.”
“Jesus. Who were you raised by… a pack of wolves? Oh yeah, a police chief. Unbelievable.”
“And then there was Bast… this afternoon. He showed up by himself and looked for a wire on Ralph. He asked how much and didn’t argue. Asked when and where. Ralph told him he’d get another note. He asked what the evidence was. Ralph told him he’d find out when he got it.”
He shook his head some more. “I haven’t heard anything illegal yet. He’s not going to pull out his badge until an exchange is made.”
“He came there alone, Stosh. He checked Ralph for a wire. He acted guilty.”
He shook his head. “Suspect but circumstantial. You’ve got a good cop who is being careful and has no idea who he’s dealing with, or a bad cop who isn’t stupid.”
“Not enough to put him in jail, but enough to point me in his direction and start tying this together with him in the middle of it. I make informed guesses.”
“Sometimes. Most the time you make gut guesses.”
“And most the time they’re right.” I thought about beer and ribs. “Actually, all the time.”
He shook his head and let out an audible breath. “Why is it always so hard to stay mad at you?”
“Because I’m so lovable,” I said with a smile.
“Right… that’s it. Let’s eat.”
When we got our beers and had ordered we continued the conversation.
“Well, if it is Bast, that solves one mystery,” Stosh said. “We know who planted the drugs in your car.”
“Probably. But he had help. Someone else had to do the actual planting. I was with him the whole time except for a few minutes when he went to the head. That didn’t give him enough time to plant the drugs, but it did give him enough time to tell someone else to.”
“So maybe Bast is the guy up the ladder Thward has been trying to catch.”
“Looks that way. And Bast knew about the deal Thward wanted to cut with Reynolds, and there was only one way to make sure he didn’t talk. And that’s why Reynolds was reluctant to make a deal.”
“And pretty easy to blame it on the Prophets.”
“Sitting ducks.”
“But how did Reynolds get involved with Bast? And what about Nadem’s kid?”
The ribs arrived.
“Good questions. There’s obviously something I’m missing.”
“Puzzles don’t make sense if you’re missing pieces. So what’s next?”
We ate and talked. The ribs were, as usual, delicious.
“I’ll have to start another fire.”
“Are you done with your blackmail scheme?”
I nodded while I ate.
“So where’s the next fire?” he asked.
“There’s the fraternity connection. Bast said he didn’t know the Margots before this, and Mrs. said she didn’t know Bast. But with Bast and Mr. Margot being back-to-back presidents of the same fraternity that’s hard to believe. There’s some connection there that I’m missing.”
“Well, if it’s there I’m sure you’ll find it. But maybe Bast isn’t the only one on your list involved in this.”
“Maybe. I’d like Nadem to be.”
“You don’t get to pick.”
“Too bad. And I’m not happy that Thward isn’t.”
“Not about you, Spencer. You know, Thward has every right to arrest you.”
“I know.”
“You gotta stop putting yourself on the line, kid. Not all bad guys get caught.”
“I know. But I’ll do what I can to get the ones that cross my path.”
He finished a rib and said, “This wouldn’t be the first time you put yourself in the line of fire.”
I thought about my folks and my sister and my health. “I don’t have much to lose, Stosh.”
“Sorry you feel that way, kid.”
“I know. It’s okay.”
“Just be careful what fires you light. You’ve got people who care.”
I nodded and unwrapped a wet wipe.
Chapter 38
My car phone rang Thursday morning as I was on the way to the office.
“Spencer, are you coming in?”
Carol sounded flustered.
“Yes. Be there in ten minutes.”
“Could you make it five?”
“What’s up?”
“Someone dropped a sheet of paper in the mail slot.”
“And?”
“It says ‘You’re still not listening. We have Rafael, and we know who is important to you. We can get them too.’”
I ran a yellow light.
“Go next door to the deli and ask Marco if you can wait for me in his office. I’ll make it five. We’ll go get Billy.”
“Spencer, I—”
“Go now. Lock up.”
I hung up and pulled around a cab and ran another light. That one turned red as I was in the intersection. I needed to get protection for Carol and Billy. But I couldn’t do that if I was working on the problem. I thought about Larry Maggio. Joey the Juicer had two hired hands who sat around the ice cream parlor all day trying to stay awake, and either one would be willing to put a bullet in someone who threatened my friends, or anyone else if the price were right. But then, as I thought about Aunt Rose and Maxine, I had a better idea.
I parked two doors down from the office in front of a fire hydrant and found Carol in Marco’s office. I thanked him on the way out.
“Is Billy in danger, Spencer?”
“Not yet,” I assured her as we climbed the stairs to her apartment. “It’s probably just a scare technique, but if they are serious they’ll wait to see if I back off.”
“But they said they have Rafael.”
“They don’t.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I’m a detective. I know stuff.” She unlocked her door as I told her to pack bags for her and Billy for a trip to Door County. Easier to protect your loved ones if they’re all in one place.
“For how long?”
“I don’t know. But put as much in a suitcase for each of you as you can.”
“I’m afraid, Spencer.”
“I know. I’m sorry. But I’ll take care of you.”
“How do I know we’ll be safe up there?”
“Because I have friends who will see to it.” I took ahold of her shoulders and told her to look at me. “You’ll be fine, Carol. If need be, I’ll back off, but I don’t think that’ll be necessary.”
She closed her eyes and said, “Okay.”
As she was packing, I told her we’d get Billy and then head for Enterprise to rent a car she could use to drive to Wisconsin. I wrote down directions while she was packing. It was a pretty simple drive. And I gave her the two hundred dollars I had taken out of petty cash. On the way out we grabbed the bag of dog food, and Watson jumped in the back seat.
The drive to the school took only a few minutes. No one was following. I waited in the car. Billy seemed excited to be getting out of school and got in the back seat with Watson.
Carol turned to him and said, “You don’t have to be so happy about missing school.”
“What did you tell them?” I asked.
“That there was a family emergency.”
“Good.”
“What emergency, Mom?” Billy asked as he was petting Watson.
She turned to the back seat. “Well, it’s not really our emergency, sweetheart. It’s something for Spencer. We have to go up to Aunt Rose’s in Door County.”
Billy and Carol had spent time at my cottage and with Rose last summer, and Billy had begged to go b
ack.
“That’s great, Mom! That’ll be fun! I thought I was in trouble. Miss May came in our room and said something to our teacher, and she called my name. When I went by Jimmy’s desk he said, ‘You’re in trouble now.’ He said it was about time.”
“Ah, the Jimmy’s of the world,” I said.
“What does that mean?” he asked.
“That means your mom’s got a good kid.”
Carol put her hand on my thigh and smiled and said, “I’ve got two good kids.”
I pulled into the Enterprise lot. Carol and I went in, and Billy sat with Watson on a bench outside. There were two people in front of us. While we waited I took Carol to chairs by the window, and we sat.
“I’m so sorry for getting you into this, Carol.”
She put an arm around my shoulder and said, “It’s okay, Spencer. I could have gotten a job at Enterprise, but I took a job working for a private investigator. That comes with some risk… everything comes with some risk.”
“The risk is considerably greater. I don’t see anyone threatening to kidnap those clerks behind the counter.”
“So far I’ve loved my job. And the guy I work for is great.”
“But, I—”
She squeezed me closer. “Look what you’re doing to protect us. I’m not concerned.”
***
I got Carol a car and saw them off. Then I sat in the rental parking lot and called Chief Iverson in Door County. He was just leaving the station.
“How’s things, Spencer?” he asked with a cheery lilt.
I told him about the letter and that I’d fill him in on the rest later. I told him Carol and Billy would be staying with Rose, and I needed a man at the inn around the clock.
“When will they be here?” he asked.
“They just left, so five to six hours. But I want someone there ASAP to cover Rose and Maxine.”
“Do they know?”
“They will as soon as we hang up.”
“Okay, I’ll have someone there within a half hour.”
“Great. Thanks, Chief. Would you call Rose and tell her who you’re sending? Let me know too.”
“Sure. Call back when you can and fill me in. Good luck.”
I hung up and called Aunt Rose. Maxine answered. I cut her off in mid-sentence.
“Is Rose there, Maxine?”
“Yes. Do you want to talk to her?”
I told her no and explained the situation and told her that Carol and Billy were on their way.
“Don’t either of you go anywhere until help gets there. Iverson is going to call you and let you know who’s coming.”
“Okay, Spencer.”
“And don’t take any new reservations. If anybody calls, you’re full for a week.”
“Got it. Will you call later?”
“Yes. Don’t worry, Max.”
She laughed. “It’s whoever wrote that note should worry if they wanna mess with me.”
“That I know. Just keep your eyes open.”
“Will do.”
***
Stosh was next on my list. I waved to the desk sergeant on my way into the station and took the stairs two at a time. He was in the hall outside his office talking with a detective. I walked past them and sat opposite his desk.
“Just make yourself at home,” he said as he sat. “Order you some breakfast? Eggs? Pancakes?”
I took the note out of the envelope I had put it in and slid it across his desk. I had folded a piece of paper over the top of the note to avoid touching it. I told him not to touch the note, and he quickly lost the attitude.
Shaking his head, he said, “Jesus, Spencer. This isn’t worth it. Time to quit and let the guys with the badges figure this out.”
“Yeah, they’re doing a great job so far.”
He started to say something, but I interrupted him.
“The circus of agencies involved in this is spending more time arguing about who has jurisdiction over what than solving anything.”
“While I’ll give you some of that, you don’t know what they’re doing. More goes on than what’s in the papers. They want this solved too, Spencer.” He drummed his fingers on his desk and said, “It’s one thing to put yourself in danger. This is another.”
“I know. And I’ve taken care of it.” I told him about Carol and Billy and Rose and Maxine. “And I figure you can take care of yourself.”
“That’s no guarantee.”
“And what do you suggest?” I asked. “Turning this over to the cops, one of which looks like he’s involved with drugs and two murders?” I let that sit for five seconds. “And asking the police to protect all these people around the clock? That better?”
He just took a deep breath and slowly let it out.
“And there’s no guarantee they’d quit even if I backed off,” I said.
“You done?”
“Hey. You don’t have to get snotty just because I’m right.”
“No, but it’s more fun that way.” He leaned forward and read the note again. “I do have to admit you did all the right things. Put all your people in the same spot and get them some hired help. I wouldn’t be surprised if Iverson showed up himself from time to time.”
“At around dinner time.”
“Of course. And this confirms the Melendez kidnapping.”
“It appears to.”
He looked at me sideways. “Why do I have the feeling there’s some hidden meaning there?”
“Maybe because you’re a suspicious government employee. What’s hidden? I agreed with you.”
“I’m not sure I like it when you agree with me.”
I nodded toward the note. “Would you check it for prints?”
“Sure. But I doubt if we’ll find any.”
“Other than Carol’s, probably not.” When she started working for me, I had her printed and put on file just in case something like this happened. “And would you see if you can find anything on Bast?”
“Yeah, but again, I doubt there’s anything. He has a good reputation.”
“Doesn’t hurt to look.”
He nodded and looked at his watch. “Got a meeting in five. Anything else?”
“No. I’m going to do some digging on the Margots.”
“You want some help with that?”
I smiled. “No thanks. I have better sources than you.”
He shook his head with a hint of a smile. “I don’t want to know.”
“No, you don’t.”
Chapter 39
I was surprised at how empty the office felt without Carol and Watson. I missed the look of disdain he gave me every time I came in.
I dug through Carol’s files and found the folder on background checks. She had a number and a password. She had to say the password first or the person would hang up. It was a contact Ben had given me, so I assumed it was some kind of government connection that most people didn’t have access to… even people in the government. Carol had told me that the password changed, and there was a complicated system of notification. I assumed she kept the password in the file current. I had once asked her what the cost was. She couldn’t answer. The cost varied depending on how soon I needed the information and how involved it was. She said we’d just get a bill. I also assumed that whoever had set this up was operating not entirely legally.
I dialed the number, and a woman answered with a very curt “Hello.”
“Reindeer.”
“Go ahead.”
I identified myself and told her I wanted whatever she could give me on the Margot family and gave her the address. She asked how soon I needed it. I said twenty minutes would be nice. She hung up. I held the receiver in front of me and looked at it, surprised at what had just happened. Carol hadn’t told me about the lack of… I didn�
��t know what to call it… humanity, friendliness, civility? But the service was always accurate and helpful, so I guess I didn’t need friendliness.
I sat at Carol’s desk watching traffic and then went to the deli for a sandwich. The last few days had been perfect weather-wise. Temperature in the seventies, sunshine, white fluffy clouds. But when I was driving back from the station the sky was clouding over, and as I walked to the deli a drizzle started. I brought an Italian sub back to the office.
I hadn’t expected results in twenty minutes, but there was a fax waiting when I got back. I wondered what that bill would be. There was nothing on the fax to identify the sender. I stayed at Carol’s desk and read the two-page report. It was well worth whatever it cost. I ate while I read.
There were the normal facts about addresses and phone numbers. But there was also a bombshell. Jeanne had told me Reynolds was their only son. There was another… Raymond. He was four years older than Reynolds, which made him twenty-two. I’d seen family pictures in their den and the library, and the only picture of a son was that of Reynolds. The second page had a paragraph on the car accident that had killed Jeanne’s husband, Robert, four years ago. Raymond had been driving. A car had run a red light and broadsided the passenger side of his car. The report listed his current location as Lone Star, South Carolina. There was an address from a speeding ticket five months ago in Charleston. I needed to have a chat with Jeanne.
As I was getting ready to leave, the phone rang. It was Iverson.
“All set, Spencer. My man is at the inn.”
“Cop?”
“Retired CIA.”
“In Door County?”
“He’s trying to get away from it all.”
“Good place to do that. Retired? But still young enough to be effective?”
“Seventy-eight.”
“Ah hell, Chief. I need somebody—”
“Nobody better. He could whup your sorry ass. And he blends in nicely on the porch with the inn look. He has a cane he uses for hiking. And a sawed-off fits nicely under an old man’s blanket.”
I took in a deep breath. “If you say so.”
“I do.”
“I’m just leaving the office. I’ll call you from the road and fill you in.”
