by Cindy Bell
“Yes, I’m sure.” Samantha smiled and slid her arm through his. “Let’s go find out.”
Eddy’s lips tensed as if he might say more, but instead he nodded, and headed to the door. When he opened it, there was silence and the bar was dark.
“Samantha, wait here.” Eddy gave her a look that left no room for argument. He took a few steps into the bar, then looked back over his shoulder. “Call Brunner, now. Tell him to get over here.”
“All right, I will. What’s happened?” Samantha tried to look past Eddy, but couldn’t see anything.
Samantha gave Brunner the address of the bar. For once he didn’t ask multiple questions, instead he said he would be there in minutes.
“Eddy?” Samantha took a small step inside the bar. “Detective Brunner is on his way, now can you tell me what’s happened?”
“It’s Orin.” He looked back at Samantha. “He’s dead, he’s been stabbed. I’m going to check in the back to make sure Rex isn’t here.”
“Be careful, Eddy!”
“I will be. Stay right here.” Eddy looked hard into her eyes. “I mean it.”
“I will.”
Samantha wrung her hands as she looked at the body on the floor. It made her nervous to consider that the same person who had killed Colin, had likely killed Orin, which meant that he had no problem with committing multiple murders. “Eddy?”
“I’m here, there’s no one back here.”
Detective Brunner announced his presence as he burst through the door.
Samantha jumped and gave a short scream.
“It’s okay, it’s just me.” Brunner lowered his weapon. “Where’s Eddy?”
“Here.” Eddy stepped out of the back. “There’s no one else here.”
“Who is this?” Brunner gazed down at the body.
“Orin Banks.” Eddy sighed and filled him in on everything he knew about Orin.
“Wait, are you telling me you didn’t turn him in to me?” Brunner’s voice wavered with anger.
“I did what I thought was best. I thought I was protecting him, like Colin would want me to.” Eddy’s cheeks reddened.
“Clear out of here.” Brunner looked from Eddy, to Samantha. “Both of you. I’m going to need to get a team in here.” He sighed as he looked back at Eddy. “You do realize that the two of you have now been at the scene of two homicides.”
“We just walked in, and Orin was there.” Samantha frowned. “You have to believe us.”
“I do.” He looked into Eddy’s eyes, then shook his head. “Anything else you want to tell me?”
“I’ve told you everything.” Eddy slid his hands into his pockets.
“I wish I could believe that.” The detective turned his attention back to the body.
Samantha nudged Eddy with her elbow.
He frowned.
She nudged him again.
“Actually. Someone might have broken into my place last night.”
“Might have?” Brunner looked back at Eddy.
“Did.” Eddy cleared his throat. “They were looking for something. Probably the flash drive that I gave you.”
“I’ll send a team over to check out the place.” Brunner reached for his phone.
“Don’t bother I already cleaned it up. There was nothing to find.”
“Eddy, you make it really hard for me to work with you.” He pursed his lips. “Tomorrow I’m going to send someone out to question your neighbors and see if anyone saw who broke in.”
“Fine.” Eddy nodded. “Let’s go, Samantha.”
As they headed back to the car, Samantha’s stomach churned.
“Now we know that Orin probably didn’t do it. Which only leaves Pete, and Hank. What if we’re wrong and it’s someone we haven’t even considered?”
“That’s always a possibility.” Eddy nodded. “Detective Brunner has the same suspects, so I think we’re on the right track. Hopefully, the stakeout tonight at Sunny River will tell us something.”
Chapter 16
“Have you found anything?” Jo leaned over Walt’s shoulder.
“Not since two minutes ago, when you asked me.” He glanced up at her. “I am doing the best I can, Jo.”
“I know you are, I’m sorry. This whole thing is just making me really nervous. The sooner we can figure out who did this, the calmer I’ll feel.”
“The calmer we’ll all feel.” Walt nodded. “But it is hard for me to concentrate when you’re so close to me.” He raised an eyebrow.
“I know, I know, sorry.” She began to pace again.
“That’s not much better. Here, why don’t you help me look?” He slid his chair over some. “Eddy managed to get me a copy of Peter Havershed’s accounts. We’re trying to find information on Peter, where he might have been in the past few days. If you were Peter, where would you go? Where would you spend money?”
“That’s easy. Nowhere. At least not on a card.” Jo shrugged.
“But he wouldn’t have a lot of cash. It looks like he’s getting some direct deposit income from some source, maybe his job at the hotel. He hasn’t made any cash withdrawals from his account. So how is he living?”
“Maybe he’s pawning things. Maybe he pawned things from the robbery and is using that to survive.” Jo nodded. “And since he’s been in this area.” She leaned past him and typed in a few quick words. “There. ‘Don’s Pawn and More’. That’s the place he’d go.”
“But there are several more pawn shops in the area, how do you know that’s where he would go?”
“He’s open to fencing stolen items. Most pawn shops have strict rules about what they will accept. Don’s philosophy is that if he has a buyer, then he will take it. Don’t ask me how I know, just trust me. Let’s take a drive over, hmm?”
“A pawn shop?” Walt cringed. “So many dirty, dusty things.”
“I know, but you won’t have to touch anything.” Jo smiled and patted his back.
“Promise?” He followed her to the door.
“Promise.” Jo winked at him.
Walt followed her directions to the pawn shop, and he could only assume that she’d been there several times. It was a small place with only a sign in the front window. As they approached it, a man stepped out, glanced at them, then hurried off down the sidewalk.
“Are you sure this is a safe place?” Walt frowned.
“As safe as it can be.” Jo held open the door for him so that he wouldn’t have to touch the handle. When they stepped inside, a man behind the counter turned to face them.
“Jo?” He stared at her. “Is that really you?”
“Yes.” She laughed. “It’s me, Don.”
“Wow, it’s been quite some time.”
“I know. I’ve been a bit busy.” She walked up to the counter. Walt hung back by the door, his gaze focused on the shelves full of unsorted items.
“Well, what did you bring me? Something fantastic, I’m sure.”
“No, sorry. Only a question.” She held up her cell phone with a picture of Peter on display. “Is this one of your customers?”
“Pete? Yeah. Why?” He narrowed his eyes. “Are you working for the cops now?”
“No, nothing like that. Actually, my friend over there.” She gestured to Walt, who seemed to be frozen in place, horrified by the chaos on the shelves. “He sold something to Pete, and Pete paid him in counterfeit bills.” Jo hoped that would scare him into telling her something.
“Oh yeah?” His cheeks grew red. “You’re sure about that?”
“Yes. That’s why we’re trying to track him down. You didn’t take any cash from him did you, for anything?”
“No, he bought something from me using some of his stuff instead of money.” Don shrugged.
“Did he tell you where he’s staying?” She pursed her lips. “I want to settle things with him.”
“I understand that, Jo, but he didn’t tell me anything. People don’t exactly fill out registration cards when they shop here.” He stared at
Walt. “Is he okay?”
“He’s fine. What did he buy from you?”
“Uh, a couple of knives.” Don lowered his voice. “You know, I’m not supposed to sell those, but this is just between us.”
“Right.” Her heart dropped. Colin had been stabbed. Was it possible that Peter used a knife he’d bought from the pawn shop. “Did he mention any place he might hang out? Anywhere he enjoyed visiting while he was here?”
“No, nothing. I don’t really get into in-depth conversations with customers. Unless they look like you of course.” Don smiled as he gazed into her eyes.
“What about video?” Walt finally turned to the counter. “I see you have three cameras in here.”
“You do?” Don stared at him. “How did you know that? They’re hidden.”
“Not well. So, do you have anything on camera that might help us? Maybe his vehicle? Or someone else who was with him?”
“Look, if there was something there that could help, I would tell you. But I wipe the cameras every day. I haven’t seen Peter in a few days. There’s nothing on there that would help. I’m sorry. But, Jo promise me you’re not going to be a stranger, eh?”
“I can assure you, she will be.” Walt slipped his arm around hers. “Unless you begin to clean and organize this place properly.”
“What?” Don stared after them as they walked out of the shop.
“That was interesting, Walt.” She laughed as she reached the car.
“It’s the truth. You shouldn’t breathe air that dusty, it’s not good for you.”
“Always looking out for me, Walt, I appreciate that.” Jo buckled her seat belt, then frowned. “Too bad we didn’t find out anything that could help the investigation. Maybe Pete bought the murder weapon here, but that doesn’t get us any closer to him.”
“Unfortunately, not. Oh dear.” He studied a text on his phone. “It’s from Eddy. Orin’s been killed. They’re on their way to stake out Sunny River.”
“Two murders now.” Jo shook her head. “This isn’t looking good.”
Eddy parked the car in the back of a grocery store parking lot that was adjacent to the property investment company. A short trek over a grassy space was all it would take to get to the company itself. It provided a clear view of the side and rear of the business.
“I have a feeling we’re in for a long wait.” Samantha stretched her legs, then looked over at Eddy. “How are you holding up?”
“Okay.” He frowned. “It’s not like I knew Orin well, but it worries me to think that two people I was with were killed in almost as many days. I never should have gotten you, or Walt, or Jo, involved in all of this.”
“We’re involved because we want to be.” She placed her hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes. “Eddy, if you have a problem, we all have a problem, got it?”
“Thanks, Sam.”
“Wait a minute, isn’t that Riley?” Samantha sat forward in the car. She kept her gaze focused out through the windshield as a figure walked towards Sunny River Property Investments. With the fading sunlight, it was difficult to get a clear view, but he looked young.
“It could be.” Eddy watched as the figure knocked on the side door. A few seconds later, the door swung open, and the figure disappeared inside. “I’m going to take a closer look. You stay here, be my lookout, let me know if anyone else shows up, okay?”
“But—”
“Samantha, I’m serious. I need you to have my back on this. I can’t have someone catching me skulking outside the building. Can I trust you to keep a lookout?”
“Yes, of course you can.” She was more than a little disappointed to have to stay in the car, but she knew that Eddy was right. She watched him go, until he disappeared into the shadows created by the overhang of the company’s roof.
Eddy made his way along the wall of the building until he reached a tall window that allowed a view inside. The lobby was dark, but there was light spilling from a few doors. He could see long shadows cast by more than one person inside one of the rooms. Unfortunately, that was all he could see. He ran quickly past the window to the next portion of the wall. When his cell phone beeped, his whole body jerked in shock. He grabbed his phone to silence it, and saw a text from Samantha.
Another car pulled up. It looks like Mitch. Hank can’t be too far behind them.
Eddy stared at the message, then looked back into the building. There was still no way to see clearly who was inside, but he trusted Samantha’s instincts. If she thought it was Mitch and Riley, then he was sure she was right. It shocked him that Hank would involve his child in his crimes. It was one thing to be crooked, but it seemed like he was intent on building a criminal empire.
There was no more time to waste. If Hank caught him there, he wasn’t going to let him go. He started to turn back towards the parking lot, when he felt the sharp pressure of someone’s grip on his shoulder. It was followed by the hard poke of a gun barrel against his side.
“Don’t move.”
Eddy held his breath. He knew with the slight tug of a finger his life would be over. He could see the reflection of his captor in the window before him. It was Riley. A brief relief flooded through him.
“Riley, just let me go, son. I won’t make any trouble for you.”
“Not a chance, Eddy. I knew when you were at the party that we should have silenced you, but Mitch said you were too old to be any threat. He’s an idiot.” He jerked him hard to the side. “Let’s go. Don’t make a sound.” He yanked his cell phone out of his hand.
Eddy gulped as he wondered if he would realize that Samantha was in the car. He hoped not. As he was steered inside the building he didn’t dare to look back over his shoulder.
“Mitch!” Riley shouted as he entered the business. “I got the other one!”
Eddy’s heart sank as he realized what that meant. They already had Samantha. He was shoved into a small office, and there he saw Samantha tied up in a chair.
“Are you okay?” Eddy barely got the words out before he was slammed onto the floor by Riley.
“You couldn’t stay away, huh? What did you think you were going to do here, old man?”
“Just let her go. She has nothing to do with any of this. Just let her walk, and I’ll tell you both everything I know.”
“We don’t need to know anything you know.” Riley chuckled. “Whatever you know is going to die with you tonight.”
“Die?” Mitch’s eyes widened. “Riley, we can’t do that.”
“Quiet, Mitch!” Riley snapped at him. “Just tie him up. Don’t put them too close together, either.”
Mitch pulled Eddy to his feet just long enough to push him down in a chair.
“Mitch, you don’t have to do what he tells you. You can make your own decision here. So, you’re dealing in some dirty money, that’s no big deal, not compared to murder.” He winced as Riley tied the ropes tight.
“Keep quiet.” Mitch stood up and looked over at Riley. “What are we going to do now?”
“Just give me some time to think.” Riley glared coldly in Eddy and Samantha’s direction.
Samantha stared back at Mitch, her heart in her throat. Not long after she spotted Mitch, he had spotted her. She scrambled for the keys to start the car, but he came straight for her and dragged her out. She didn’t even have time to scream before he had his hand over her mouth.
When Riley said he would kill them, Samantha believed him.
Chapter 17
“What are we going to do, Walt?” Jo jumped out of the car. Walt stepped out as well and caught her around the waist before she could bolt towards the building.
“Stop, Jo, just stop! We can’t just rush in there. We don’t know how many people could be inside, or how many weapons. We have to use good judgment here.”
“Good judgment?” Jo gasped out the words. “I just saw Samantha get snatched up! We have to get her out of there!”
“You’re right, we do.” Walt narrowed his eyes. “But we can�
��t do much to help her if we’re dead, can we?”
“If only we had gotten here a few minutes earlier.” Jo groaned.
“It wasn’t my fault, there was construction.” Walt frowned.
“I know that.” She grabbed his shoulder with a gentle touch. “I’m not blaming you, Walt, really I’m not. I just can’t stand here and wait, anything could be happening to her in there!”
“I know that, I do.” He gritted his teeth. “And they likely have Eddy, too, otherwise we would have seen him by now. But if we move too fast, then they might both be killed. We need back-up.”
“Let’s call Brunner.” Jo reached for her phone in the car.
“No, don’t.” Walt’s tone was sharp. “We can’t trust him, not with so much on the line.”
“What do we do then?”
“I haven’t seen Hank around at all.”
“You think Hank isn’t in on it?” She shook her head. “That’s a big gamble.”
“Yes, it is, but if he is in on it, it wouldn’t make much of a difference would it. Mitch would tell him what’s happening anyway and probably get him here to help out.”
“True.”
“I think it’s a gamble we have to take. I don’t think we should call the cops. If we call in the cops, they’ll bring in SWAT, or if they’re involved in this they might try and set up Eddy and Samantha to take the fall. If SWAT comes in, who knows whether Eddy and Samantha will make it out alive.” Walt grimaced. “I think Hank is our only chance besides going in there ourselves.”
“But he’s one of our main suspects, Walt, what if you’re wrong?” Jo gazed at him with fear in her eyes. She didn’t often feel it, but she was so worried about Samantha and Eddy.
“Just listen to me, Jo. I know what I’m doing.” Walt dialed the number on his phone and pressed the phone to his ear.
“Walt, this seems like a really bad idea. Just hang up, please!”
Walt held up a finger to silence her.
“Hank?” He paused a moment. “No sorry, you don’t know me. But I know you. I also know Mitch and Riley. I happen to know they are at Sunny River Property Investments right now. Did you know that?”
