Fatal Stance: A Jade Pearson Mystery (Jade Pearson Mystery Series Book 1)

by Nora Kane

  “You look happy,” said a deep voice, startling her.

  Jade opened her arms and quickly turned to see the Captain standing by her side.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he apologized.

  “No, of course not. You didn’t,” Jade said, regaining her composure. The Captain just smiled.

  “Shouldn’t you be steering the ship?” Jade asked, sincerely wondering.

  “I’ve got my second-in-command at the wheel,” the Captain said.

  “Well then, Captain, what brings you out here?”

  “You looked lonely. After all, you’re the only one on the upper deck. Thought I’d come out and give you some company,” he answered, leaning against the railing next to her.

  “Well, that’s fortunate for me. I’m Jade Pearson,” she said.

  The Captain was very smart-looking in his uniform. He was very attractive and had a stern beard that hid a nice smile. His curly, red hair stood out against his white uniform. Underneath the uniform was a small medical bracelet. He was tall and muscled just like any navy man would be. She guessed he must be ex-navy to be the Captain of the boat.

  “Do you mind if I ask you some questions? About your work?” Jade said, trying to sound like an interested tourist.

  “Not at all,” the Captain replied, stretching out on a nearby seat.

  “Well, firstly, I should ask your name.”

  “Captain Arnold Monahan, at your service,” he replied, jokingly giving a little bow.

  “Arnold? Like the ferry line. Do you own it?” Jade asked.

  “No. That’s just a funny coincidence. I don’t own the ferry service. I just work for it.”

  “And how long have you been working here?” Jade continued.

  “About seven years.”

  “What made you want to become a Captain?” Jade asked. The Captain simply smiled and looked out at the sea before answering.

  “I was a Captain in the navy. But the military life wasn’t really for me, especially since I’ve got a mild heart condition, so I left and found the job here in Camden. It’s better than working on the fishing vessels,” he explained.

  “I bet.”

  “Can’t stand the smell,” he chuckled.

  “Me neither. Did you hear about that body this morning?” Jade added lightly, easing into her real questions. This guy certainly looked like he could kill someone and he had the military training to do so.

  “Yeah. I wonder who that guy was?” the Captain pondered.

  “Apparently he’s some businessman.”

  “No way! I saw a business-type guy on the docks last night.”

  “Really? Where?” Jade asked, trying to hide her surprise.

  “He was headed to the boats. He only caught my eye because of the suit he was wearing. You don’t see that every day in Camden. But I didn’t pay him too much attention. It was late and I just wanted to get home. We had the same guy on the ferry earlier that morning.”

  “How could you tell?” Jade asked.

  “He was wearing the same suit.”

  “Do you know why he was on the ferry in a nice suit?” Jade asked.

  “No, only that he had a nice briefcase and a lot of papers with him. Some of them almost flew right off the deck. I suggested that he move to the first level, but he insisted on being at the top,” the Captain replied.

  “Strange,” Jade said, mostly to herself. “You should probably talk to the authorities about what you saw.”

  “Hmmm, yes. Well, I’ve got to get back to the wheel,” said the Captain. “It’s almost time to dock. It was lovely meeting you, Jade.”

  “You too, Captain.”

  He left her alone and Jade went back to thinking. What had her victim been doing on the docks last night? And how did Captain Monahan know so much? Maybe he knew more than he was letting on. Maybe he was the killer or at least knew something she didn’t.

  The ferry pulled into the dock, but Jade didn’t get off. After all, she was on the other side of the bay and nowhere near her car. She’d have to ride the ferry back. Passengers on the decks below her stomped on and off the boat. A few children joined her up on the top deck. Jade sat down and let them stand up near the front of the boat. The boat would stay here for an hour and then take off back for the other side of the bay. While it was docked, people could tour the ferry. It wasn’t anything special, but not everyone had seen a big boat like this before. Jade remembered her first time seeing a large boat out on the water. She’d been mesmerized. She knew immediately that she wanted to live by the water.

  Jade waited for the hour to pass and thought about her case. The Captain seemed too put together. He’d had all the perfect answers but had ended the conversation abruptly when she’d mentioned the authorities. Most people would be keen to talk if they realized they’d seen a murdered man shortly before his death. It was suspicious. Hopefully, she’d get the chance to talk to him again before they crossed the bay. It would be a long ride back to her side, but it was worth it. Jade was calm in the warm sunlight. On the ride back, the ferry rocked a bit more than usual. The Captain didn’t come out of the wheelhouse. Jade was a little disappointed and even more suspicious. Was he avoiding her because he’d worked out she was on the case? Or was he simply too caught up in running the boat?

  The ferry finally pulled into dock and Jade was guided back down the metal stairs to the steep ramp connecting the boat and the docks. Before getting off, she noticed a small piece of paper lingering in the corner. She picked it up and put it in her purse, pretending that she wasn’t interested. She waved goodbye to the Captain and walked down the docks, past the shops, and back to her car. She didn’t notice Mr. Johnson staring at her as she went by. She didn’t notice the Captain’s deep-set gaze upon her as she walked off. Getting in her car, she shook off the feeling that someone had been watching her.

  Pulling out the little piece of paper, she looked it over. It was a business card. A very dirty business card. Only one word was readable on it: Yates. This had to be Mr. H. Robert Yates’ card. It proved that he’d been on that ferry. Clues were adding up that Mr. Yates was her victim. It was time to call Edna.

  “Hello? Head Detective Edna Mann speaking,” Edna said, picking up Jade’s call.

  “Edna, it’s me,” Jade said.

  “Oh, thank heavens,” Edna said dropping all her professionalism, “Have you gotten anything?”

  Jade let out a small smirk at Edna’s behavior.

  “I think I know the name of the victim,” Jade said excitedly.

  “Really? We should be getting that information any minute now. The lab is running our dead guy’s fingerprints.”

  “I’m surprised you could even get fingerprints. Anyway, you can confirm it for me, but I’m pretty sure our dead guy is H. Robert Yates. I haven’t looked into him yet, but I will later tonight,” Jade explained.

  “Why can’t you do it now? You could come into the station and we could go through the files together,” Edna protested.

  “Sorry, Edna, but I’ve got a date tonight,” Jade said. The ferry ride had taken up all of her afternoon. It was almost time to meet Mark for the movie.

  “With Mark? He’s working late tonight. Told me this afternoon when I went down to check out the body. He found more evidence pointing to murder. Our victim drowned eventually but before that, he suffered from blunt force trauma to the head. There are multiple skull fractures and a definite laceration to the brain.”

  “Sounds like our guy was hit on the head pretty hard Jade.”

  “Yeah. The indentation in the head had some metal and rust residue on it. This most likely came from some kind of tool.”

  A tool? Mr. Johnson’s shop was full of tools. The ferry would also carry some tools in case of repair. She definitely had two suspects now, and there was also the mysterious voice on the phone. She decided not to tell Edna about that yet. Instead, she would lead her to the Inn.

  “Edna, you might also want to search room 205 at t
he Grand Harbor Inn,” Jade said.

  “We already have. Someone at the hotel called saying that it looked like someone had broken into the room,” Edna replied.

  Jade hoped that the caller had meant the someone who had been there before her. After all, she hadn’t disturbed the scene that much.

  “That’s great. Did you find any papers there?” Jade asked, just in case she had missed something.

  “Nothing important. Oh, Jade, hang on a second. I just got the report from the lab.”

  Jade waited for a minute and listened to the rustling of papers on Edna’s end.

  “You were right,” Edna announced. “Our dead guy is H. Robert Yates. I’m guessing he was the guest of room 205?”

  “Most likely,” Jade confirmed.

  “So, someone broke into the room looking for what, papers?” Edna asked.

  “From what I know now, that’s what it sounds like.”

  “What kind of papers could this guy have that would be worth killing over?”

  “I don’t know,” Jade said, “but we need to find them.”

  “Jade, do you want to come in now and we can look over the case? Do some research?”

  “I think I’m going to look up Mr. Yates myself after I head for dinner. Haven’t really eaten all day. Maybe we can look it over this evening?” Jade asked

  “Fine. Let’s say eight. That gives you two and a half hours.”

  “Great. I’ll see you then,” Jade said, hanging up the phone.

  She was disappointed. Was her date with Mark really canceled? Why hadn’t he told her? Was he mad about lunch? She decided to go home and get something to eat and call Mark. In the car, she let her hair down from the bun it’d been in all day. It was starting to get dark out already, despite being summer. She wasn’t exactly distracted while she was driving, but she was deep in thought. About the case, about her relationship, about the suspects.

  It was only in the nick of time that she noticed the car coming straight for her, in her lane. She swerved violently off the road and around the car as it swept past her, speeding off. She cursed loudly and kept driving, quite shaken up. She pulled into her driveway and took a deep breath. She was at home. She was safe. The question loomed over her head though: Had it been an accident or was somebody trying to send a message?

  Chapter 6

  Jade marched inside, locked her door behind her, and walked to her bedroom. She wanted to change into more comfortable clothes. After all, it was after normal work hours now. She didn’t have to be so professional. She already had the perfect outfit in mind: a pink blouse, blue jeans, and a jean jacket embroidered with pink flowers to match. Jade had always loved the color pink, even through her dark phases where she would only wear black and very foreboding greys. Her combat boots were still in the closet, ready to be worn along with her leather jackets and spiked gloves. Unfortunately, she’d given up the motorcycle that went with them a long time ago.

  But tonight she would get lost in the good feelings that pink gave her. Pink was a happy color. Pink was the first date that she had with Mark and every date she’d had since. Pink was solving a tough case and putting bad guys behind bars. Pink was in her heart. She pulled out her clothes and ripped the pantsuit off, shoving it to the floor, not caring that it was getting wrinkled. She pulled the tight jeans over her curves. Her shirt fell into place neatly and she pulled on her jacket. She felt better, almost immediately. It was true that a nice change of clothes could change your attitude. She was safe in her home in her favorite clothes and no car or gravelly voice could get her here.

  Jade wasn’t one for cooking. Usually, she ordered out and had stuff delivered. But she decided to cook in tonight, not really wanting to deal with the outside world. She started heating up the stove to make macaroni and cheese, her favorite comfort food. She even had cookies for dessert, sent to her by Mark for their anniversary a week ago. Thinking of Mark, she decided to call him.

  “Hello? Mark Foley,” he answered.

  “Mark, it’s me. Edna told me you were working late. I guess that means our date is canceled,” Jade said, trying not to sound too disappointed.

  “I really meant to call you, but work got piled up here. We’ve had to inform the family of Mr. Yates’ death and talk to them for quite some time. Then I had to finish my examination of the body. I’m still not even done running tests. Time just really got away from me this afternoon and I can’t make it tonight. I’m sorry,” Mark explained.

  “It’s fine, really, Mark. I was just hoping you weren’t mad about lunch,” Jade said.

  “No, I wasn’t mad…but something’s up. You don’t sound great. Is everything okay?” Mark asked.

  Jade simply sighed. She’d have to tell him eventually.

  “I got a threatening phone call today. It was on my personal number. It just doesn’t look good,” Jade said.

  “Wait, someone threatened you? Did you call Edna?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?!” Mark asked, audibly concerned.

  “I didn’t want anyone to worry. Besides, it was just a phone call. They weren’t man enough to threaten me in person,” Jade said, putting on her tough voice.

  “But?” Mark asked, clearly sure that there was more.

  “But…then a car driving on the wrong side of the road almost hit me. That can’t be a coincidence,” Jade revealed reluctantly.

  “It’s time to call Edna,” Mark asserted.

  “No, I don’t want to get the police involved yet. They’d just put some officers by my side and really blow my cover. I’m trying not to stand out too much.”

  “Alright. So, we can’t call the police—who I work for, in case you’ve forgotten,” Mark added. “What do we do now?”

  “We? There is no we in this. There’s only me. I can’t let you get into any danger,” Jade said seriously.

  “I can’t let you get in danger either. That’s why I said ‘we,’” Mark insisted.

  “Sweetheart, we are a ‘we’ as a couple outside of work. But at work, there’s just me and me alone. I’m fine when it comes to danger. I’m used to it. You’re a coroner. You deal with dead people who can’t do any harm other than smell. You’re not suited for danger.”

  “Not suited for danger? I’m a man. I can take care of myself,” Mark said, getting angry.

  “I’m not saying you can’t take care of yourself, I’m saying I don’t want you in danger.”

  “I want the same. If I can stop you from going into danger then I will,” Mark countered.

  “Well, you can’t stop me,” Jade replied.

  “Fine.”

  “Fine.”

  Jade hung up the phone. She felt awful. She and Mark rarely fought. She knew deep down he was only worried about her safety, but his caring was getting in the way of her work. She had a job to do, and she was going to finish it. But first, she’d have dinner. Settling down in the living room with her macaroni and cheese, she watched the seven o’clock news. They were running a story on the body that had floated up on shore that morning. The very body that was the case that Jade was working on.

  She didn’t really pay attention to the news. All she could think about was the case. She had very few suspects, two to be precise. Mr. Johnson didn’t exactly look like the type to commit murder, but he sure acted like it. He was grumpy and rude and could probably find a motive to kill anyone. His glare alone might kill someone. But what reason would he have to kill a sharply-dressed man from out of town?

  Then there was Captain Arnold Monahan, a nice enough guy who seemed to have secrets. Jade didn’t think he’d told her everything. He had the build of a killer and the training. But the question came up again as to why? What motive would Captain Monahan have to kill a random person?

  And then there was the mystery surrounding Mr. Yates. Why had he been on the ferry with so many papers? Why had he been on the docks late at night? And what had happened to the papers he’d had? Were they in the briefcase? There hadn’t been a b
riefcase in the hotel room. It just didn’t add up.

  She was about to turn the news off when she noticed someone in the background of the reporters and the cops on the beach. It was an older man dressed in red flannel and khaki pants. It was so obviously Mr. Johnson. He had been at the beach this morning, so why then had he lied about being gone and uninterested?

  Jade turned off the tv, brewed a cup of coffee, and grabbed a couple of cookies. It was time to get down to researching Mr. Yates. First off, she searched his name. The first thing to pop up was a Facebook profile. She clicked the link and found his page to be open to the public. It was a common mistake that was ultimately good for her. Social media had helped her solve more than one case over the years. Some criminals tagged themselves at bars and were all too easy to track down.