The East Avenue Murders (The Maude Rogers Crime Novels Book 1)

by Linda L. Dunlap

  “We need to get some ropes so we don’t get lost,” he said, “and some flashlights, plus a hard hat would be good to keep from getting our skulls slapped by a low hanging rock.”

  Ernest was really excited then. “We have all that stuff!” he said triumphantly. “Last year we had some fellers out here looking to build a water slide and they left all the stuff they used to go under the river.”

  “What happened to the water slide?” Maude asked curiously.

  “They just never came back to build it.” Ernest said sadly.

  “Ernest, tell me about the river cave that’s about ten miles from here. The brochure says it was used by the Indians for council meetings because of size of the rooms and the cool temperatures.”

  Joe was looking at the deputy, pointing to a picture on one of the pamphlets. ”Seems they closed this river cave off because the Sonora Caverns down south were getting all the tourist trade.”

  “Yep, they shut that cave down ‘bout two years ago, just up and closed it. My kids liked going there cause of the river running under it. It’s kind of high in the air above the river bed.”

  Joe turned a noticeable green at the Ernest’s last remark. “How high, Ernest?” he asked quietly.

  “Fifty, seventy-five feet above the water; you got to climb a little ways and the cave goes back deep in hills. Not hard to get there though, got a trail that goes up to the main opening. It’s a little steep.”

  “Seventy-five feet,” the young detective repeated to himself, his facial color changing to a slightly pinker hue. “I can do seventy-five feet, I hope.”

  “I need some tennis shoes,” Maude said, “my boots will slide and I can’t chance falling,” she said, noticing that her remark about falling brought Joe’s color back down to a light shade of green. “Anyplace I can get a pair of women’s size ten?”

  “Yessum, there are some shoes out to my house; my wife’s sister has big feet too,” the big man said innocently. Maude looked sharply at the man but found no insult in his words or attitude. The truth was, her feet were rather large though not as large as some who were her height. A five foot nine frame needed a good size foot to keep from toppling over.

  Ernest called the Sheriff and left a message on his cell phone that he was out of the office assisting some out of town detectives and would be at the old Crystal River Caves. He gave Maude’s cell phone as a contact number because the office phones weren’t working and said they would be at the office for about ten more minutes if the Sheriff wanted to call. He never did, so Ernest figured it was okay to proceed. Maude shook her head, wondering why the deputy wasn’t provided with a mobile phone.

  After a short while Ernest had gathered all the construction materials they required and loaded them in the back of his patrol car. Maude asked about batteries for the flashlights and found that the original batteries were still hot. She also told Ernest to make sure he brought his weapon and a shotgun just in case. The deputy hadn’t been told why they were going to the caves, he was just happy to be of assistance, never questioning the detective’s motives. For all he knew they were on a vendetta and he was going along for the ride and might be killed or maimed, but Ernest had been sitting behind that desk for so long he would have almost welcomed either outcome just to break the boredom.

  Chapter 12

  It was about two miles to Ernest’s house: a double wide parked on a small lot in a trailer park surrounded by drooping flowers wilted by the August heat. There were lights on in the trailer, and Ernest jumped out of his car, ran inside the house, and returned soon afterward with a pair of high-top tennis shoes covered with dried mud. He apologized for the condition of the shoes, but Maude was already busy beating the small clods of dried reddish-colored mud off the left shoe. She quickly pulled off her boots and put the shoes on over her socks, spilling dirt upon both front floor mats of the car.

  “They fit fine, Ernest,” she yelled to the deputy as he climbed back in his patrol car. “Much obliged for the use of them. Let’s go. We’ll follow you.”

  At least once, Joe thought that what they were doing was worse than foolish, but he went along with it all, hoping his partner’s experience would lead them down the right path. A rightful plan would have had them waiting till morning when there was light enough to see, but that would have meant several hours lost. Maude believed that every minute counted with Mary Ellen’s life.

  The trip was uneventful, taking about twenty minutes to reach the park road that was sorrowfully neglected. A large sign read, Crystal River Caves Park, with a smaller sign posted underneath that added, Park Closed.

  The gate to the park was unsecured, standing open as though blown by the wind, one board loose and dangling from the post. The signs of neglect were everywhere, from pot holes in the road to the waist-high grass beside the deserted buildings at the park entrance. Clearly, some park official had put the care and maintenance of Crystal River Caves Park on the back burner.

  The road leading into the property followed a snake’s path with winding curves that were almost switchbacks, the small road growing steeper all the time. The park was deserted except for the car the detectives were following.

  Maude was driving one handed, smoking a cigarette with the other. The bright lights from the car’s console gave Joe a chance to study the woman assigned as his partner and he could see the tiredness in her face; the lines around her mouth had deepened with sadness after the killer’s abduction of Mary Ellen. Joe hoped he would be helpful in the upcoming events, yet he was concerned that he might not be good enough at his job to support Maude. He turned his eyes away from her and stared out the window, trying to see something in the faint rays of moonlight, but there was nothing except shadows and darkness.

  Ernest pulled his car up against a high mound of rocks and soil and parked, jumping out the door in his eagerness to get going on the chase, whatever it might be. Maude and Joe got out of their vehicle and stood with Ernest for a moment, briefing him on what they hoped to find. The man’s jaw dropped.

  “My Lord, I thought we was chasing some dopers out here, I never woulda thought it might be murder or kidnapping way out here in the hills.”

  “I’m sorry to have kept it from you this long, Ernest,” Maude said, “ I wanted to be sure that you were with us, but before we go any further, I want you to know, it’s not too late to jump back in your car and leave us out here. This is not your business, and yeah, we need your help, but I won’t think less of you if you decide to say adios.”

  “No Ma’am, Ernest Garrison may be just a ole sheriff’s deputy and dumb to boot, but the job needs to be done and he’s your man.”

  “You may be dumb Ernest, to go along with us on this wild trip in the dark, but you are one brave, fine man.” Maude finished. “Now what’s next, where do we go to get in the cave?” Maude was impatient, needing to get on with it, to see if their figuring was right and the killer had brought Mary Ellen to such a deserted hell hole.

  “Well ma’am, first, there is more than one cave, it’s kind of like a bunch of rooms connected one after the other back into the cliff.” Ernest began unloading the truck, getting the rope coiled for carrying, and the flashlights distributed.

  “Oh yeah,” he said, “I brung a thermos of coffee, if you want it. These here are the caves they first opened in the eighties, not as big as some of them down at Sonora, but pretty durn big.” Ernest went on, “It’s pretty easy to get to, we have to cross over that gully over there, and then there’s a kind of rock ladder that the park people think was made by some real old bunches of people that used to live in the caves.”

  ‘Well okay, let’s get after it Ernest.” Maude said “We made a long trip over from Madison, and I’d like to get this done as soon possible.”

  The gully turned out to be a twenty feet deep chasm with a thirty foot long water pipe about fourteen inches in diameter running the length of it with no handrails of any kind.

  “Sorry ma’am,” Ernest apologized, the mo
onlight shining on his round friendly face. “There used to be a little walkway bridge and it weren’t any trouble at all to walk across. Seems like the park people don’t want anyone going over to that cave.”

  “Maybe it isn’t the park people, Ernest. Maybe someone else moved that bridge,” Joe said cryptically, “someone that doesn’t want us down here. Maybe we should go back.”

  “Joe, you alright?” Maude asked, walking ahead of him. “If you can follow up on the tail end and watch our backs, I’d be much obliged.”

  Detective Allen felt his most primal fear about to overtake him. The dread of heights and no handrails was in many of his nightmares; walking along cliff edges and falling was a returning theme that left him dry-mouthed with an upset stomach when he woke in the morning.

  “I don’t know Maude. I’ll do my best. You got my mama’s phone number?” he asked worriedly. “I’d appreciate it if you’d give her a call if anything happens to me.”

  “Oh heck, Joe, you’re not going to fall. Just watch me and see where I put my feet.”

  “Maude, I already can’t see where to walk. Watching you means I’d have to take my flashlight off the pipe, then I won’t see where my feet are stepping!” the traumatized detective managed to say, about to take a step over what he believed to be his death chasm.

  “Wait a minute, Joe.” Maude said, turning around in the middle of the pipe, and walking back to the beginning where Joe stood.

  “How did you do that?” Joe yelled.

  “Just wait, Joe,” she said, getting behind him. “Ernest,” she yelled, “Come back here if you don’t mind.”

  The big deputy had already reached the other side, but being an accommodating, light-on-his-feet man, he turned and walked back across the pipe. “Okay, now what?” he asked.

  “We’re going to lead Joe across, you in the front, me in the back. Get that rope and tie it to our waists. Joe can’t help himself, it’s a paralyzing fear he has. This way if one of us falls, the other two can catch the one going over.” she added for Joe’s sake.

  “Yes ma’am, but what are we supposed to hold onto if somebody is going over the edge?” Ernest whispered close to Maude.

  “Shshsh. Hush Ernest,” she whispered with a frown, rolling her eyes toward her partner who was clearly trying to gather courage for the task ahead.

  “Now just a few steps Ernest, get us going, and Joe, you follow Ernest. You’ll be fine. Just watch Ernest’s butt and put your feet down real easy.” Maude said encouragingly. “And don’t look down.”

  Gingerly, Joe took his first step, then the second, and Maude could hear his breath coming and going, wheezing with the effort to get air through his paralyzed lungs.

  “Going good Joe, we’re almost there. Three more steps and you’re off this pipe.” Maude continued, trying to take the detective’s mind off his fear.

  Ernest stepped off the pipe and Joe followed shortly after with Maude trailing along behind. She caught up and began unfastening the rope around her waist..

  “Well that’s over with.” she said cheerfully.

  “Until we have to go back,” Joe croaked, breathing deeply. His throat scratchy after shallow breathing on the pipe walk; he sat down briefly to get more oxygen into his lungs.

  “Oh well,” Ernest said off-handedly, “we can just walk across the county-highway bridge when we go back. About a hundred yards down yonder,” he said, pointing through a stand of cedar trees.

  “Ernest, what’s going on? Why didn’t we go that way instead of this pipe-walking in the dark and scaring the heck out of Joe?” Maude asked quietly.

  “Well, I guess we could have, but this was closer and we’re in a hurry.” Ernest said matter-of-factly, walking away toward a large mound that Maude believed to be near the river.

  “I wouldn’t want to be you when Joe finds out about that.” Maude said, shaking her head, grinning a little at the deputy’s back.

  The rest of the journey to the cave was easier, mostly on flat ground, with Ernest leading them toward a dark spot on the horizon. The moon had brightened as it rose higher in the sky, illuminating the path. They were all aware that they could be seen by anyone watching from above near the tops of the caves. Before long Ernest arrived at a fenced in area where large flat rocks were stacked creating a barrier to what appeared to be a tall jutting rock. Climbing over the barrier was easy, but the idea of scorpions and snakes in the dark worried Maude a little. Beyond the rock fence they found man-made steps cut deeply into the solid rock face, treads smoothed with age. Park officials had built a series of hand holds to allow for climbing to the top which thankfully was not more than fifteen feet off the ground.

  Poor Joe, Maude thought to herself, he may be rethinking that profiling job he left.

  “I think we should get ready, he may be here watching for us, waiting to knock us off this wall.” she whispered. “Be prepared. Joe you back there?” Maude whispered again. “I’m depending on you. When I start up this wall my knees may buckle and I can’t do much.”

  “Yeah, Maude, I got it. I’ll be alright. Sorry about that pipe thing. Don’t know what came over me.” Joe was upset that he couldn’t conquer the old fear that ran so deep. Positioning his weapon where it could be easily retrieved, he started up the wall behind Maude, once again trailing behind.

  They reached the top of the wall without incident and breached the natural opening in the apex of the great rock with little effort. There was no sign of human traffic in the dust though cat tracks were plentiful and gave Maude pause. Mountain lions could be fierce when their dens were threatened. A feeling of disappointment washed over her. There were no signs of human occupation and the place didn’t feel like a crime scene.

  A detective was first trained as a peace officer, responsible to the victims of crime, no matter how great or small the incident. Those who forgot what they had been taught washed out after a while or went across the line to the other side. A few lasted in the job, but their sour attitudes about duty weren’t tolerated by good cops. Maude and Joe were good cops who became detectives. The empty cave was a responsibility, and no matter how badly Maude wanted to leave it, and continue the hunt, she had an obligation to thoroughly search the area then log it as a false lead. That took valuable time, but it had to be done.

  Flashlights and ropes were a necessity for entering a hole in the ground, no matter how high or how low the location. The rooms of Cave-A extended approximately one hundred feet through open areas, burrowing on for unknown depths to the river below. There was no sign of life in those rooms, only animal tracks, some old and some more recent. Maude was glad it was summer time, for most denning animals were still active. There would have been hell to pay if Maude Rogers had walked in on a family of mountain cats. Her natural fear of wild animals was intensified because unlike many women she knew, Maude didn’t like cats of any sort.

  After the obligatory search was done, Maude’s instincts were proven right, but even so, the night had progressed and Mary Ellen was still missing. Quickly gathering their equipment together, the detectives led by Deputy Ernest Garrison departed the scene without further ado.

  Chapter 13

  The trip across the county bridge was fast and painless. Joe had forgiven Ernest for forcing him to walk across the water-pipe in the dark, putting it down to experience. Henceforth he would always ask Ernest to specify if there was any other way of accomplishing a task for the deputy tended at times to take the hard route.

  The detectives outfitted themselves with the rest of the equipment, not forgetting the hard hats as they readied themselves for another walk. Ernest told them that the next trek was about a hundred feet from the end of the road where the truck was parked. The path would wind around the cliff, allowing a gentle ascent. He told them that they needed to be very careful as they got closer to the water, because the rocks could be loose and might fall into the river. They should be on their guard to not slide down into the water with the scree at the base of the cliff. Ernes
t said he remembered that word from one of his and the kid’s trips to the caves when the park ranger was leading, giving a tour. Maude nodded then followed Ernest and Joe came along as a reluctant third, his fear of heights not lessened with time.

  The path was overgrown although there were spots in the grass that were stamped down by deer or other animals that prowled along the river. The sound of rushing water was louder with each step, an indication they were taking the right trail. Maude wished there was more natural light for the moon’s pale illumination created shadows where the trees overcast the trail. The flashlight’s beam covered the walking path, eliminating missteps, but she worried that the old batteries wouldn’t last long enough. A few light clouds passed over the moon and the night sounds of the local wildlife intensified as the light ebbed. A whippoorwill’s plaintive call echoed throughout the forested area over and over. Locusts rubbed skinny legs against winged bodies in an airborne, moonlight opera; the repetitive hoot of an adult owl in hunt the diva in the arboreal performance. The surreal backdrop of the cliffs in the distance created a chill in the air not brought on by ambient weather.

  Joe was holding up, taking the path and its rocky surface one step at a time, grabbing bushes or tree limbs as he walked to help steady his forward motion. He noticed the steepness of the incline had increased and at some places they were walking at almost forty-five degrees. All three law enforcement officers had grown silent as they moved closer to the entrance of the cave.

  If the killer waited inside for them, he must not know the progress of their approach. At one point Ernest was spooked by some sound, for he lifted his shotgun to a more usable position and waited for a minute before continuing. They had tied the ropes around themselves as the path began its climb, the safety line attached from one to the next, with less chance of a slip and fall. Joe was especially grateful for the rope.

  Maude thought about the place they were going, wondering how the park was run when it was on-line. Surely there had been safety barriers along the path to assist travelers climbing the hill-otherwise the Parks Department could have been responsible for falls. There must have been posts with rope tied between them, handholds for the weaker ones who made the trek to the caves. She was beginning to see why the tourists quit coming to the cave. There was too great a feeling of danger for the sightseer on the rocky path. The place was, however, the perfect spot for a nefarious criminal who lived to create chaos. Her cop instincts were sounding in her gut, they were on the right track.