Murder at the Truck Stop: A Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery (Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery Series Book 16)

by Dianne Harman

  “Her name was Kimberly.”

  “Yes, I remember now. Trucking can be a lonely profession with a lot of time where there’s no interaction with other people, thus the popularity of the CB. All of us listen and over time I know Jet has taken a lot of ribbing from the other truckers about his infatuation with Kimberly.

  “Then one day one of the truckers said something about how he’d heard that Kimberly was giving Lizzie a run for her money and had started turning tricks when she wasn’t working as a waitress at the truck stop.”

  “I’m sorry, Pete, you’re going to have to fill me in. I have no idea who Lizzie is,” Kelly said telling a little fib to see what she could find out.

  “At almost every truck stop there are women who are more than willing to take care of a trucker’s needs, to put it delicately. They’re known as Lot Lizards. Lizzie is the one who takes care of the truck stop where Kimberly was murdered. I rather doubt that’s her real name.”

  “So, you’re saying there was talk that Kimberly was competition for Lizzie.”

  “Yes, but there’s more to it than that, Kelly. You see Jet is really, really religious and from some of the things he’s told me, his religion believes that prostitutes should be punished.”

  “Do I want to ask what that punishment would be?”

  “I think you already know. Punishment by death is what is preached in his religion.”

  “Hmmm. So Jet is in love with or smitten with a young woman who some believe to be a prostitute. That could create quite a problem for him given his religious beliefs.”

  “That’s what I’ve been thinking ever since I heard about Kimberly’s death.”

  “Pete, do you think Jet is capable of murder?”

  He was quiet for a long time and then said, “I don’t know what someone who is almost fanatical about something is capable of doing. What I do know is that his religion is more important to him than anything else. Is it important enough to him that he would be capable of committing murder in the name of it? That I don’t know.”

  “Well, if you look at history, we certainly know some, no, make that many, people have.”

  “Kelly, I was running late this morning and didn’t get my caffeine levels to where they need to be for me to function optimally. Mind if we take a break, and I’ll make some coffee for us?”

  “No. I’d love some. Thanks.”

  CHAPTER 14

  “Aah, I really needed this,” Pete said as he finished his first sip of the hot coffee. “Okay, back to our conversation. The other trucker I allowed to bring his rig to his home here in Cedar Bay goes by the name of Snacks…”

  Kelly interrupted him. “I think Jesse mentioned him. I had a hard time believing a guy could go by the name of Snacks.”

  “Yeah, and you can well imagine why that’s his nickname, but I’m sure Jesse told you. Anyway, he and Jet used to be best of friends. Jet even attended Snacks’ son’s baseball games. Although Jet’s quite religious, it never seemed to bother Snacks.”

  “I’m getting a sense that something changed that.”

  “Your sense would be right. Being the boss, neither one of them has directly told me anything, but I’ve heard things, although I don’t know if there’s any truth to them.”

  “Pete, I understand if you’re reluctant to tell me what these things are, but I’d really appreciate it if you’d confide in me.”

  “Kelly, do me a favor. If you have to use anything I tell you, please say it came from an anonymous source. These men are my employees, and I don’t want to lose their confidence.”

  “I promise you’ll remain anonymous, Pete,” she said.

  “All right. Let me stress that I don’t know this for a fact, but there is talk that Snacks and Kimberly were involved in running an illegal gambling ring. Evidently, he fronted the money, and she took care of everything.”

  That’s exactly what Jesse told me he’d heard on his CB, Kelly thought.

  “How did you find that out?”

  “Some guys were talking about how they’d won big the day before Kimberly was murdered and doubted that they’d get their money. The reason I say that Snacks was involved is because one of the guys wondered if Snacks was going to try to set up a new gambling ring now that Kimberly was dead.”

  “What’s your opinion of Snacks?”

  “I’ve always liked the guy. If he’s involved in gambling or some bookie ring, I never saw evidence of it, but then again, I’m probably the last one he’d tell that to. Actually, I’m quite surprised he’d be involved with Kimberly in something like that, because I know he and Lizzie are good friends, and I mean just that, friends only. Snacks is very much a family man.”

  “So Snacks was involved with Kimberly in bookmaking, and Jet was in love with her. That could explain the tension between Jet and Snacks, but what confuses me is the relationship between Lizzie and Kimberly. And then there’s the issue of Snacks being involved with both of them.”

  “I don’t know what it was. I know Kimberly and Lizzie live in those rundown houses across from the truck stop, actually next door to each other. Maybe they have some history, but it sounds like Kimberly was starting to poach on Lizzie’s territory.”

  “I’ve been making a mental list of suspects while you’ve been talking, Pete. So far, I have Jet, Snacks, and maybe Lizzie. Anyone else you can think of?”

  “I’ll think about it while I get another cup of coffee for us. Be back in a minute.”

  *****

  “This should just about bring me up to my normal levels of caffeine,” Pete said as he returned to his office with two steaming cups of coffee.

  “Thanks, Pete. I forget how much coffee I drink when I’m working at the coffee shop, so this is much appreciated. Now, back to our possible suspects.”

  “Well, there is a couple who live in their truck. They’ve got a big sleeper behind the cab and a pit bull named Flips. He makes runs for me now and then. Susie and Little Paul, that’s their names. They’re both as big as a house, and I always thought they had about the happiest marriage in the world.”

  “Are you saying she goes with him when he’s on his runs?”

  “Yes, he’s called a long-haul driver which means he goes all over the United States, not just local day trips. Actually, Susie’s licensed, and when someone is in a real hurry to get something delivered, she’ll take over and drive while he sleeps. That way, they can get a lot more miles under their belts. They sold their home a few years ago and consider the truck to be their home.”

  “You said that you had always thought they had a great marriage.”

  “I did until recently. Several times when I’ve stopped at the truck stop, they’ve been there. I began noticing that Little Paul was paying a lot of attention to Kimberly, and Susie didn’t look too happy about it.”

  “What makes you say that?” Kelly asked.

  “When Kimberly went over to their table, Susie would have a grim look on her face. I noticed her scowl at Kimberly’s back several times.”

  “Was her husband aware of it?”

  “I don’t think so. Little Paul has always thought he was God’s gift to women, even with his weight. Usually his infatuations last until the woman tells him to get lost. I don’t know if Kimberly ever told him to get lost, but I’m sure Susie would have liked to tell Kimberly to get lost. This infatuation seemed to be much longer than the others, and I think that’s why Susie was concerned.”

  “Concerned enough to commit murder? Jealousy can be a strong motive.”

  Pete was quiet for several moments and then said, “I don’t know. I did get the sense that Susie and Jesse have hit it off. Maybe he thinks of her as a mother figure on the road or something. Might be worth a call to him and see what he knows.”

  “Thanks, I will. How’s he doing? I think of him like one of my kids.”

  “So I hear. He was telling me how much time he used to spend at your house with your son, Cash, when they were teenagers. As far as how he’s
doing? I couldn’t ask for a better driver. He’s a family man, a hard worker, and very trustworthy. I’ve got two daughters, and if neither one of them wants the trucking company when I retire, might just sell it on the cheap to him.”

  “I don’t think you’d go wrong there,” Kelly said as she stood up. “Pete, I can’t thank you enough for taking a chunk of time out of your morning to talk to me. I have no idea where any of this will go, but if I find out something, I’ll let you know. Again, thanks.”

  “My pleasure, Kelly, and when you see that sister of mine, tell her Big Brother says hi.”

  “Will do.”

  *****

  Kelly got into her car and took her phone out of her purse. She’d turned it off when she walked into Pete’s office, not wanting incoming calls to interrupt their conversation. She scrolled through her messages and saw that Jesse had called, and according to the voicemail message he’d left, asked her to call him back, that he’d been thinking about something.

  She pressed in his number and a moment later heard him say, “Good morning, Kelly. How are you doing after yesterday, and how is Mike feeling?”

  “Mike is still sick, running a fever, taking aspirin, and the occasional spoonful or two of chicken noodle soup I can get down him. Just a bad case of the flu that has to run its course, but the timing couldn’t be worse, however, I’m doing fine. As a matter of fact, I just met with your boss, Pete, and he suggested I call you. Serendipitously, I saw that you’d called me. And how are you?”

  “You know, I’m thirty-five, and that’s the first dead person I’ve ever seen, so I’m a little shook up over the whole thing. And I’ve never seen a murdered dead person, and I hope I never do again.”

  “I don’t blame you for feeling that way, Jesse. Unfortunately, I’ve seen a few, but it’s always hard.”

  “Yeah, I just hope I sleep better tonight than I did last night. Anyway, you told me to call you if I thought of anything.”

  “I’m assuming from your call that you did think of something.”

  “I have no idea if it’s the least bit relevant, but I thought you’d want to know.” He took a deep breath. “It involves Little Paul’s wife, Susie, and Jet.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “About a week ago I was at the truck stop. It was one of those mornings when it was crowded, and I was sitting at the counter. I’d overslept and didn’t have a chance to eat before I left the house, so I was getting breakfast there. Jet was sitting next to me. Susie was next to him and Little Paul was sitting on the far side.”

  “From what I’ve heard about Susie and Little Paul, I’m surprised there was room for you to sit.”

  “Fortunately the counter seats are extra wide, so we could all fit in. Anyway, Little Paul was flirting with Kimberly, like usual. Everybody knows that he had a thing for her, but Susie wasn’t very happy about it.”

  “Funny you should bring that up. When I met with Pete this morning, he suggested I ask you about it. He said you and Susie have become sort of friendly.”

  “We have. Whenever I went to the truck stop, if she and Little Paul were there, I usually sat with them. I know she was very unhappy about Little Paul’s infatuation with Kimberly, in fact I’m pretty sure she was a little concerned about it, because it had lasted so long.

  “She told me once that she was too old to train another husband and although Little Paul wouldn’t be some women’s dream, he was actually a pretty good husband, and they made a good team. I think she felt threatened by Kimberly.”

  “That’s pretty much what I heard.”

  “Well, this particular morning, Little Paul was paying more attention to Kimberly than usual, if that was possible. While Little Paul was busy flirting with Kimberly, Susie started talking to Jet about how it was too bad Kimberly wasn’t interested in Jet, but Kimberly had told Susie that she wanted a college man, not some low life trucker.

  “It was almost as if Susie wanted to plant a seed of Kimberly’s unsuitability for him because she said she wouldn’t be surprised if Kimberly didn’t turn out to be like Lizzie, because she sure wasn’t giving it away for free.”

  “Wow, that’s a pretty cruel thing to say about a woman a guy’s in love with.”

  “While I was sitting there, I could overhear the whole conversation, and that’s exactly what I thought. It was almost as if she was trying to goad him enough about Kimberly that she wanted him to take care of her and make her go away.”

  “From what I understand, he was in love with her,” Kelly said. “Why would he, as you put it, take care of her and make her go away?”

  “Kelly, Jet is super religious. I haven’t known him very long, but from what Snacks and a couple of others have told me, he’s a member of a religious sect that is quite fanatic. One of the tenets of the sect is that prostitutes should not be allowed to live. Think about it. If Susie convinced Jet that Kimberly was a prostitute, in his mind he would then think, based on his religion, that she should not be allowed to live.”

  Kelly was quiet for several moments, digesting what Jesse had just told her, and then she said, “Jesse, what was Jet’s response to what Susie told him?”

  “In all honesty, for some reason there was a lot of commotion because several truckers came in at the same time. I couldn’t hear exactly what he said, because he began to whisper. It was like he was talking to himself.”

  “What do you think he was whispering?” Kelly asked.

  “I think he was praying.”

  CHAPTER 15

  Kelly walked into the sheriff’s station and said, “Hi, Tina, how are you?”

  “I’m fine, but I understand the sheriff isn’t feeling so good. How is he?”

  “About the same. Think the flu just has to run its course. I’m sure he’ll be back in a couple of days.”

  “Good. We miss him, but since the sheriff’s sick, I’m assuming you want to see someone else. Would I be right?”

  “That you would. Any chance I can see Deputy Josh?”

  “I don’t think that will be a problem. He just got out of a meeting. Let me give him a call and tell him you’re here.”

  A few moments later Josh opened his office door and walked down the hall towards her. “Hi, Kelly, come on back to my office. I’ve found out some things I’d like to go over with you,” he said as he turned and walked back towards his office.

  When she stepped into his office, he said, “Have a seat. Did you have a chance to talk to Pete, the boss?”

  “Yes, I just came from there. Why don’t you go first and then I’ll tell you what I’ve found out?”

  “Sounds good. We ran criminal backgrounds checks on Kimberly, Mac Ambrose, Jesse Ramos, and Lizzie Andrews. I know Jesse was with you, but I thought as long as we were running checks, might as well do him.”

  “And?”

  “Your friend Jesse is completely clean as are Kimberly and Mac Ambrose. Not even a traffic ticket on any of them. Lizzie Andrews is another matter.”

  “What about her?”

  “She’s been arrested twice for prostitution, but the charges were dropped both times. No reason why. I thought it was odd that she and Kimberly lived next door to each other, and I struck a little pay dirt there, although I don’t know where to go with it.”

  “You’ve definitely got my attention.”

  “I sent one of our deputies out there to talk to some of the people who live in the housing tract where Kimberly and Lizzie live, to see if he could find out anything. These are people who are barely surviving, and most of them work at the truck stop. My guy said he was sure the majority of them were illegals, and they live there because it’s cheap and in a remote area. Anyway, no one knew anything, or if they did, they weren’t talking, which would be my guess when you’re dealing with that element.”

  “Mike often says the same thing. They may know something, but they don’t want to draw any attention to themselves, particularly if they don’t have their immigration papers in order.”

&n
bsp; “Yes. But one woman made it worthwhile. She’s lived there for about twenty-five years and she remembers both Lizzie’s mother, who died several years ago, and Kimberly’s mother, who still lives there. When Lizzie’s mother died, Lizzie inherited her house according to some property records we checked.

  “The talk is that Kimberly’s father spent a lot of time at Lizzie’s mother’s home. It was pretty easy for him to do since the two houses are next door to each other. Bottom line, the woman wondered if Lizzie and Kimberly are half-sisters.”

  “Wow! But if that’s true what does that have to do with the murder?” Kelly asked.

  “Don’t know that it does. The woman said the man who was Kimberly’s father left soon after both girls were born, and to her knowledge, he’s never been back. I personally spoke to Kimberly’s mother, and she told me that her husband, Jack Laughlin, left them when Kimberly was a baby, and she has no idea what happened to him.”

  “Did you follow up on him?”

  “Yes, we did a check on him and he died while he was in prison for robbery. Pretty unsavory character, according to the records.”

  “Did you find out if he was Lizzie’s father?”

  “No. We were able to get a copy of her birth certificate, and her father is listed as unknown.”

  “Did the woman say anything about Lizzie’s mother?”

  “She said she was a tramp, and from the number of truckers she’d seen cross the highway to visit Lizzie’s house, her daughter is no different.”

  CHAPTER 16

  When Josh had finished updating Kelly about what he’d discovered, he asked, “So what did you find out from your conversation with Pete?”

  “Pete had quite a bit to tell me. Let me fill you in, and then we can brainstorm about what to do next.”

  “Sounds good, shoot.”

  She told him about the rift between Snacks and Jet and their relationship, from what Pete had heard, with Kimberly. She was starting to tell him about Susie and Little Paul when he interrupted her by holding up his hand.