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

by Dianne Harman

  “Terrible thing,” Little Paul said. “Kimberly was a nice person, and she sure didn’t deserve being murdered.”

  Kelly slid her eyes to the left and noticed the grim, tight-lipped expression on Susie’s face, but Susie reached over and put her hand on top of Little Paul’s, which surprised Kelly. He squeezed her hand and then she put it back in her lap.

  “Were you here that morning?” Kelly asked innocently.

  “We spent the night in the truck lot and took off early that morning, about 6:30. We usually have breakfast here, but that morning we had a lot of paperwork before our run, so I made breakfast while Susie did it. When we were finished, we headed out. First heard about it on the CB a couple of hours after she was discovered,” Little Paul said.

  “Yeah, Little Paul and I spent the rest of the day talking about it. Just don’t expect something like that to happen.” She looked at her watch and said, “Paul, it’s time for me to feed Flips his breakfast. You know how he gets when he isn’t fed on time,” she said with a laugh. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  “Kelly, remember I was telling you about the sleepers some rigs have. Well, let me tell you, Little Paul and Susie have about the most beautiful one I’ve ever seen,” Jesse said. “Susie, any chance you could take Kelly with you and show it to her?”

  “Sure, be happy to. It’s the one with the American flag on it. Can’t miss it. Pretty much everyone knows where we are because of it. Come on, but give me a minute to feed Flips. Always been the sweetest dog in the world. We got him when he was just eight weeks old. Trained that little guy on the road. I know you hear a lot of bad things about pit bulls, but I don’t believe them. Only thing I know is that he does get a little testy if he’s not fed on time.”

  “I’m a dog lover, too,” Kelly said as she walked over to the big rig with Susie. “We’ve got a big boxer, a yellow Labrador retriever, and a German shepherd. I can’t imagine a life without dogs.”

  “Here we are. Home sweet home. Let me go in and feed him and then we’ll come out, and I’ll take him for a little walk. After that I’ll show you my palace.”

  After a few minutes Susie stepped down from the rig with a beautiful silver-colored pit bull with a red nose. Kelly made a mental note to ask her about the red nose, because she’d never seen one on a dog. A few minutes later Susie and Flips returned to the truck.

  “May I put my hand out for him to sniff?” Kelly asked.

  “Yes, he really is a sweetie,” she said as Flips sniffed Kelly’s hand and then licked it. She gently stroked him, and he sat down next to her as if silently asking for more.

  “He’s really a beauty, Susie, but I’ve never seen a red nose on a pit bull, or come to think of it, any other dog. Does that indicate something special?”

  “Yes, he’s a blue fawn pit bull, and I learned that one of the distinguishing characteristics of this particular breed is the red nose. I got him at a shelter, so I had to do quite a bit of research. Fortunately, I’ve got the time on these long runs that Little Paul and I make, so it wasn’t much of a problem. Come on in, the tour won’t take long.”

  Kelly followed Susie and Flips up the steps and into the sleeper section of the truck. She was amazed. Although it was small, it had all the comforts of home other than large windows and a yard.

  “Have a seat,” Susie said. “Little Paul has to go buy a couple of things in the store, so we have a little extra time for me to show you our home. What do you think of it?”

  “I think it’s amazing. Like everyone, I’ve seen hundreds of trucks on the road, but I had no idea there was a space like this behind the cab. I mean, why pay all the money for a house when you can live like this and be totally self-contained?”

  “That’s exactly why we decided to do it. Seemed foolish to keep a house up with just me in it when Little Paul was on the road, so about ten years ago we made the transition, and it’s really worked out well for both of us. We keep a car at my sister’s home near Portland and use it when we’re taking some time off.”

  “What’s it like being with your husband 24/7? I know some couples don’t do well with that much together time.”

  “It was an adjustment at first,” Susie said, “but other than Little Paul’s almost monthly infatuations with women that are a figment of his imagination, it’s been fine. And at least this way, I can see his infatuations. We both kind of laugh about it. That’s just who he is, although I was a little more concerned about his infatuation with the young woman who was murdered than his usual ones. She had a dark side to her, and I didn’t like that.”

  “Really, how so?” Kelly asked.

  “I don’t know why, but she seemed to change from the sweet waitress she was. Suddenly she was wearing diamonds and expensive clothes. Even had some of them red-soled Laboutin high-heeled shoes. I don’t say a lot to the other truckers, but I noticed truckers starting to go over to her house across the way in the evenings when her mother was working at the truck stop.”

  “Are you implying what I think you’re implying?”

  “Yes, and it’s probably more than implying. As I said, I keep pretty quiet when I’m in the truck stop, but I listen a lot and from what I’ve overheard, she had a number of male friends who were willing to pay her for shall we say, her treats.

  “Something else. I like Snacks. He’s always treated me with respect, and he told me that he’d funded a bookmaking operation for Kimberly to run out of the truck stop. He said he knew it was technically illegal, but he also knew that most of the truckers like the diversion of a little gambling, and he didn’t see how anyone could get hurt.”

  “I’m gathering from what you’re saying that someone got hurt.”

  “Yes. Kimberly started skimming money from the gambling proceeds she was supposed to split with Snacks. I don’t know if he knew about it, but I’m sure he wondered about it.”

  “Susie, I can’t see Kimberly telling you that. What makes you think she was skimming?”

  “She wasn’t the brightest star in the sky. One morning Little Paul and I were having breakfast in the truck stop restaurant, and she was standing a couple of feet away from me. She was using an old adding machine that they keep in the truck stop, you know, the kind that has a paper printout.

  “Anyway, she added some numbers up, and I saw the figure $6,240.00. I figured that must have been the amount she’d taken in from that week’s bookmaking operations. I thought that was pretty good for a week’s take.”

  “I’d think so, too.”

  “Then I saw where she’d handwritten the figure $3,120.00 below it, which was 50% of the weekly take. I happened to see Snacks a couple of days later and asked him how his new business was working out. He told me it was great for a while, but it had really been down lately. He told me he only made $1,560.00 the week before.

  “I already knew that his deal with Kimberly was that they would equally split the money they made from the bookmaking operation. The amount he told me he got from the prior week’s operations was exactly half of the reduced figure Kimberly had written down, after skimming 50% off the top. I’m certain she kept the other fifty percent.”

  Just then Flips went over to the door and whimpered. “Will you excuse us for a moment? Flips is really good about letting me know when he needs to go over to the bushes, and it usually happens after he eats. We’ll be right back.”

  *****

  “Sorry, Kelly, but I was right,” Susie said a few minutes later. “The one thing you don’t want to have happen in a space this small is a doggie accident.”

  “No,” Kelly said with a laugh, “that would not be fun. I’ll bet training an eight-week-old puppy was a challenge in this space.”

  “Ever seen wall-to-wall doggie diapers? Trust me, it’s not pretty, but we survived and fortunately, he’s very intelligent and was easily trained.”

  “Susie, I’m curious about how you could stay so nonchalant about Little Paul’s infatuation with Kimberly. That must have been hard for y
ou.”

  “I’ve gotten used to it over the years, and I know how much he loves me. It’s more of a game with him than anything else. I think if one of his infatuations ever took him up on it, he’d be scared to death, and wouldn’t know how to handle it.

  “It’s funny, the day before Kimberly was murdered, we were talking about Snacks and some of the other people we know from some of the truck stops that we frequent, and I told Little Paul about what I’d observed Kimberly doing with the money and my conversation with Snacks.”

  “What did he say?”

  “Not many people know this about Paul, but he has a very strong moral code. Flirting and infatuations are one thing, but cheating someone is, in his book, morally wrong. He was horrified and asked if I could ever forgive him for flirting with Kimberly. I told him of course, just look at all the other times I had. We laughed about it, and then he told me he didn’t want anything else to do with Kimberly.”

  “That must have been a relief to you.”

  “It always is. I’m sure Little Paul and I are the subject of some conversations and people wonder why I put up with the way he acts, but I know it’s harmless, and it’s not going to last all that long. Our type of marriage may not be for everyone, but it works for us. And speaking of that, we have a run to make and I see Little Paul heading over here.”

  “In that case, I better leave. By the way, here’s my card. Give me a call before you come to Kelly’s Koffee Shop, and I’ll make sure there’s a place for you. And thanks for inviting me into your home. It really is lovely.” She bent down and petted Flips. “Goodbye big guy. Take care of your people.”

  “Trust me, Kelly. All people have to do is take one look at Flips and we don’t ever have the problems some of the other truckers do,” Susie said with a laugh.

  CHAPTER 23

  Kelly walked back into the truck stop and over to the booth where Jesse was sitting. He looked up and said, “Kelly, I need to get on my way, but I did ask around, and at the moment there’s nowhere to place a bet. In fact, a couple of the guys asked me if I wanted to start a little bookmaking operation because they really missed it. Naturally, I said no.”

  “Glad to hear it. By the way, you’ve got a real friend in your boss. When I met with him yesterday, he said you just might be the heir apparent to his trucking business. He really likes you.”

  “You’re kidding! That’s great news. I like him, and from what I’ve seen, he’s not only a hard worker, he’s devoted to his family. Anyway, that’s all I have for you. I did check and Mac, the truck stop owner, is in. You met him the day Kimberly was murdered.

  “His office is right behind the shop were the truckers buy all kinds of stuff they need while they’re on the road. I’ll give you a call this afternoon and see what he had to say. I’m curious.” He stood up, kissed her on the cheek, and left.

  Kelly walked out of the restaurant and headed over to the trucker’s shop. Just as Jesse had told her, it catered strictly to truckers and whatever they needed for themselves or their big rigs. She walked up to the clerk and said, “My name is Kelly Reynolds. I’d like to talk to Mac Ambrose.”

  “Sure. Let me tell him. He’s in his office. Back in a minute.” He turned around and walked the short distance to a closed door, opened it, and walked inside. A moment later he came out and motioned for Kelly to go on in.

  “Mr. Ambrose, you may not remember me, but my name is Kelly Reynolds. I’m the one who discovered Kimberly Laughlin’s body the day before yesterday. I think I told you at the time that my husband is the Beaver County Sheriff.”

  “Of course, Mrs. Reynolds. How could I forget anything about that day? It will be etched in my memory forever.”

  “As it will in mine. The reason I’m here is my husband has a very bad case of the flu, as do most of the people who work for him. The sheriff’s station is working with a skeleton crew right now. Since I was the one who discovered the body, Mike asked if I would come to the truck stop and talk to a few people, which I have. If you don’t mind, I’d like to ask you a few questions.”

  Well Mike didn’t specifically ask me to come out here today because he’s incapable at the moment of doing much except sleep, but I’m sure if he had been awake, he would have. At least I’d like to think that, Kelly thought.

  “Of course, Mrs. Reynolds. How can I help you?”

  “I’m curious about Kimberly and her mother. I understand they both worked here, and I’m assuming her mother still does.”

  “Yes, although I’ve given her a week off. Considering the circumstances, I thought it was the least I could do. I’ve owned the truck stop for several months. Both of them were working here when I took it over and obviously, I kept them on. They live across the highway, so it made it easy for them and for me. Actually, most of the people who work here live in that little housing tract. I’ve never found out whether it was an offshoot of when the truck stop started up thirty years ago or whether it was already there.”

  “And Kimberly and her mother have been good employees?”

  “Yes. They were very good employees. They showed up on time and worked hard. You can’t ask for much more from an employee.”

  “No, I suppose not. Mr. Ambrose, did you notice any changes in Kimberly lately?”

  She noticed his eyes flit from side to side, and he began to twist his hands. Finally, he looked directly at her and said, “Yes.”

  “What were those changes?” Kelly asked.

  He was quiet for a moment and then said, “I know what she gets paid for working here, and while it isn’t minimum wage, it wasn’t enough to pay for the clothes and jewelry she’d started wearing.”

  “Could the clothes have been used? Maybe she got them on the internet or bought them at a discount outlet.”

  “That’s a possibility, but even so, for what she was getting paid, it was pricey. My wife loves magazines, particularly fashion magazines, and one night she showed me what she said was a pair of one of the most expensive brands of shoes, and one that was easily identified. It had red soles. I don’t remember the brand name, but one day when Kimberly left work, she had on a pair of shoes with red soles.”

  “Well, where do you think she was getting the money from, if it was more than what you were paying her?”

  Mac was quiet for several moments and then said, “I think it came from two sources, neither of which was legal.”

  “And those two sources would be what, Mr. Ambrose?”

  “Prostitution and bookmaking.”

  “Where do you think she was conducting those two businesses?” Kelly asked.

  “Here at the truck stop,” he said in a voice that was almost a whisper.

  “Obviously, I have to ask if you knew she was doing either one of them.”

  “No, I was completely unaware that she was doing them.”

  “How did you find out?”

  “I’d rather not say.”

  “That’s your prerogative, but you realize that if you don’t answer my question it will cast some suspicion on you and will probably lead to someone investigating you.”

  Mac swiveled his chair away from Kelly and faced a wall filled with framed photographs. It looked to Kelly as if they were family pictures. Mac appeared to be deep in thought. After several minutes he turned back to her and said, “All right, Mrs. Reynolds. What do you want to know?”

  “I’d like to know who told you Kimberly was involved in prostitution and bookmaking.”

  “I was told by a woman named Lizzie.”

  “Is that the woman the truckers refer to as the Lot Lizard?” she asked.

  “Yes, that’s a pretty common term in the trucking community, and yes, I would have to say that Lizzie is a prostitute.”

  “I don’t know if prostitution is taking place on your property and you have knowledge of it, but if so, you could be held liable in some way…”

  Mac held up his hand. “Lizzie does not engage in prostitution on my property. What she does, she does in her ho
me across the highway.”

  “Well, I’m not an attorney, but it seems to me if the act of prostitution is not committed on your property but you have knowledge of the solicitation for prostitution, you might still be held liable. But that’s not what I’m interested in finding out. How and when did she tell you?”

  “She came to my office about two weeks ago and told me she lived next door to Kimberly, and that there was a new car in her garage. She said she’d been told that a number of men had been visiting Kimberly recently and she could only assume it was for prostitution.”

  “Did that surprise you?”

  “Yes. Maybe it wouldn’t have if I’d spent more time out in the coffee shop talking to the truckers. I’m a bit isolated back here and obviously I missed that. I also missed that she’d gone into the bookmaking business with a trucker named Snacks.”

  “How long had that been going on?”

  “I don’t know exactly, but I got the impression it was several months. According to Lizzie, Kimberly had started cheating Snacks.”

  Just what Susie told me, Kelly thought.

  “How did Lizzie know that?”

  “She told me that Snacks is a good friend of hers, and when he suspected what Kimberly was doing, he went over to Lizzie’s home and they compared notes. Between them they became certain that Kimberly was cheating Snacks and had also become a prostitute, thereby seriously cutting in on Lizzie’s clientele. Lizzie told me her weekly earnings were easily down by half.”

  “Mr. Ambrose, I’m not in law enforcement, but when I tell my husband what you’ve told me, I can almost bet that you would be pretty high on a suspect list. I mean you had everything to gain by Kimberly being murdered. The main thing would be that there would be no more gambling on the premises, which, if discovered, could cause you to lose your license. That alone is huge, and I assume that the prostitution would also figure in their somewhere.”