by Ron Hudson
“I’m looking for the home of Sarah and Homer Aiken. Can you tell me if they live around near here?”
“Oh yea, Misa Homer lives just up the road to the right. But you know he was killed recently, so Misa Homer won’t be there.“
“Yes, I know, I’m Deputy Sheriff Givens, and I’m looking into the killings.”
Oh, by the way, do you know Jim Avant?” said Caley.
“Oh yes. I know Misa Avant. He is a big one all right. Everybody knows Misa Avant. You won’t forget him if you meet him.”
“Why’s that?”
The man, not wanting to speak ill of anyone, especially a white man, didn’t reply directly. He changed the subject, “Well Misa Homer’s widow, Miss Sarah lives just up the road to the right, and she’s a fine lady.”
Caley followed the directions the man had given her. Soon she pulled up in front of a home that was half trailer, and half-homemade structure attached to the old trailer. This arrangement was typical in the Lowcountry. Since the advent of comfortable trailer homes in the seventies, many people bought trailers and when they began to deteriorate, just added a permanent structure to them. In the country where there were no building codes, people could do anything they wanted on their own property.
Caley honked when she pulled up in the yard. This is another custom that stayed with her from an early age, when she was brought up in rural S.C. People didn’t walk up to the door and knock on it as one might in the city setting for a couple of reasons. First, most people had yard dogs that would be sure to alert the owner and possibly attack the visitor, and second people may not be around the house but in the broad expanses of the property.
She saw no guard dog, and no one appeared home. Caley honked the horn a couple of times and waited. Within a few minutes, a well-dressed lady who looked to be in her sixties opened the door. Caley got out, walked over, and introduced herself.
The lady replied, “Yes, can I help you?”
After introductions, Caley expressed her condolences for the loss of Sarah’s husband and told her she was investigating the crime. She said at this point there were no leads, but was hoping that Sarah could provide any helpful information. Sarah proceeded to discuss her husband’s activities in a forthright manner. She did not hesitate to say both her husband and the other man, Henry Padgett, had been making moonshine for most of their adult life. They had never been caught, and this is the first time any trouble had occurred.
“Can you tell me the names of some of Homer’s customers and suppliers? I think this would give us a place to start the questioning and maybe, find out who your husband’s enemies may have been.”
Sarah provided several names of people she had seen meeting with her husband when they came to the trailer to buy moonshine.
“Do you know where he got his supplies, such as corn and sugar?”
“Well I know he got the corn from Jake Ellis. Jake planted a whole lot of corn every year. When it was harvested, he sold some of it to my husband. Jake stored it in his barn and Homer would go over there and help him bag some of it. I don’t know exactly where, but I heard him talking about getting sugar somewhere in North Carolina.”
“Where is the Ellis’ farm?”
“Over by the main highway right by where the old school used to be.”
“You mean old Heyward School that was closed some years ago?”
“Yes, that’s it. He is living in the old school house. He lives there and farms the surrounding property. I heard he bought the whole place when it went up for sale.”
Then Caley inquired, “Do you know a Jim Avant?”
“No I don’t know him personally, but I have heard his name mentioned by my husband.”
“Do you remember how your husband mentioned him?”
“I don’t recall his exact words, but I do remember it was not in good nature. Homer always said he was a son-of-bitch, but then again Homer, God bless his soul, talked about lots of people like that.”
The information she got wasn’t much in and of itself, but Caley knew her work rarely involved getting a substantial lead, which pointed directly to a perpetrator. The routine of an investigator was more like a crossword puzzle. It meant understanding the big picture, which was only possible after collecting and putting together the web, piece by piece.
As she pulled onto the small main road, she saw the old man and the dog still standing beside the road as if he hadn’t moved out of his steps from where she left him. She decided to stop and have another conversation, as she was not satisfied with his information about Jim Avant. Although she thought it could be just another futile lead, she had to check it out. After all, the owner of Nel’s place did say that he saw Avant in his field near the entrance to the illegal still.
On the second try, she asked the man what is name was.
“Well, dey all call me Fuzz and dis here is my dog Cricket.”
“Well, Fuzz that’s mighty fine looking dog you got there.”
“Yes’em, she is. I done had her a long time. She is a fine one alright, she even has visions sometimes ya know.”
“Why do you say she has visions?”
“Cricket can see in the future and sometimes eben predict things wat’s gonna happen.”
Caley treated the comment as just Fuzz’s love for his best friend, never for once believing that the dog was a physic, but decided she would play along anyway.
“Well, Cricket does kinda look like a telepathic dog for sure. I bet she can communicate with the spirits alright.”
“Well now, I never heard it said like that before, but I guess it’s what she’s is alright, and yes 'em she even talks to me sometimes.”
As if understanding exactly what Fuzz and Caley were saying Cricket said, “yip, yip.”
“Well, Fuzz can you tell me where Jim Avant lives?”
“Oh, yeah, down da road little ways. It’s da next house on da left.”
“Thanks, Fuzz. Take care of that fine dog you have there.”
“I will, and I’m gonna see if she can tell me some mo bout dem killings.”
Then Caley followed the road to the where Fuzz had indicated and stopped at an old and dilapidated shack on the left.
Again, she honked when she pulled to a stop. After several minutes, a man came out of the front door. Immediately Caley realized what Fuzz meant when he said if you see him, you won’t forget him.
The man, she assumed to be Jim Avant, was at least 6 feet 6 inches tall with a hunched over appearance. H he was overweight and had a large stomach. Like many people in the area, he wore bib overalls. However, he was distinguishable by the manner in which he wore them. The overalls had only one strap buckled, with the other dangling behind him. Beneath them, he wore a white tee shirt. One leg of his overalls was rolled up, about two inches above his brogan. He wore an old felt hat that had a small rim but no band on it. The hat had a wide bead of sweat visible. Avant walked with a limp and one hand swinging, while the other hung straight down by his side. When he walked out of the door, he came toward the vehicle, taking only a few steps to reach the window Caley had rolled down.
“Good morning, I am deputy sheriff Caley Givens.”
The man, now within a few feet of Caley shot a spurt of tobacco spit from his mouth that landed just short of the vehicle. It made a squirt-squirt noise as it left his lips and a splat on the ground.
As he spoke, his face was distinguishable by heavy wrinkles and all of his top front teeth were missing but one on the left side. His red, top gum had two indentations that once held teeth as he spoke, “I’m Jim Avant, whatta you want?”
“I’m investigating the murder of two men at their whiskey still up to the road, and I would like to ask you some questions.”
“I heard about ‘em. I guess every around here heard about it.”
“I have information that you were over by the area where they were shot a few days ago. You mind telling me what you were doing there?”
“I don’t remember being over
there. Who said I was there?”
“So you were not in the field behind Nel’s Place a few days ago?”
“I didn’t say I wasn’t there. I said I don’t remember being there. Maybe I was. I have been there before, I just don’t remember when.”
Caley continued to question Jim. She got the feeling that he was lying, but was unable to confirm it or detect why. Maybe he was involved with moonshining himself and just wanted to be evasive. On the other hand, maybe he was just buying it for his own consumption.
“You know much about making and selling moonshine,” Caley said. She didn’t want to accuse him of being a moonshiner but wanted to see what his reaction would be to the question.
He paused as if trying to think of a good answer.
“When I was a young-un, I learnt about it.” Pointing to the thick pine trees behind the house, he said I guess if you arrested all the moonshiners back in dem woods, you would fill up the jailhouse.”
“I suppose so, but I’m not interested in doing that, I just want to get the bottom of the two murders.”
“How come you out here anyway?”
“As I just told you, I am investigating the death of Homer Aiken and Henry Padgett, and I was hoping that you might have some helpful information, you know what I mean?”
“Well, I don’t. Why would I have any information?”
Now Caley was getting a little perturbed but didn’t want to let Avant know it, so she tried a different tack.
“I was told that you were seen in the field behind Nell’s Place where the two people were found dead, and I thought you may have saw something. Being the good citizen that I know you are, you would want to help find who did it. Wouldn’t you?”
“I don’t know a thing. I need to feed my dogs now, so I need to go,” he retorted
“Just one more question before you go, do you own a gun, Jim?”
“I guess I do. Everybody around here owns guns. We’re not like you city people. We gotta shoot animals what’s messing with our property sometimes.
“What kind of gun do you own Jim?”
“I got me a pistol and a shotgun.”
“Can I take a look at them, Jim?”
“Nope!”
“What if I come back with a warrant, Jim?”
“You do what you gotta do. I gotta feed my dogs.”
Jim turned around and walked to the back of the house.
Caley didn’t have a reason to get a warrant to search Avant’s house, but she was certainly suspicious of his behavior. Maybe it was just his natural manner, but in her experience, most people were friendly with law enforcement in these parts. In fact being in a remote location, they were glad to see a law enforcement officer patrolling around.
Caley slowly backed the vehicle up, pulled it into drive while curiously looking around. She moved slowly down the one lane dirt road to the somewhat larger dirt road. As she did, suddenly it occurred to her. Jim said he had to go feed his dogs, but she heard no dogs bark when she drove up, or after she sat there and talked with him. She made a mental note to get back to him, as she was more convinced now than ever he was anxious to hide something.
She honked and waved as she drove by Fuzz and Cricket. They hadn’t moved from where they were before.
Chapter 21
Caley pulled up to the property that was once a thriving grammar school, where kids attended classes through the sixth grade. Where the old school once stood, she saw a large building surrounded by a field of corn and soybeans. Beyond, was a tree line of pines typical in the area. Off to one side of the yard, was an open front equipment storage shed with several pieces of large farm equipment parked in it. Most of the equipment had the John Deere logo on the side of a bright green background.
Standing outside the barn was a man holding a grease gun as though he had been busy maintaining the equipment. She got out, walked over to him, and introduced herself.
“Hello, my name is Caley Givens.”
There was no reason to state her position since her dress and the vehicle clearly signified that she was with the county sheriff’s office.
“Good morning, I’m Jake Ellis what can I do for you?”
Caley went on to tell him she was investigating the murder of two moonshiners and wanted to ask him some question.
Jake was a tall, well-built man with a top lip mustache and a rough, unshaven face with a few days stubble. Maybe in his late-40s! Unlike most farmers, he wore khaki pants and a neat short-sleeved red T-shirt that revealed the large muscles and veins in his fat-free arms. His left forearm sported a medium tattoo of a shark. He appeared to be very physically fit. The difference from most farmers hereabouts, was that his clothes seemed to be clean, almost to a fault. Caley was impressed...maybe even awed.
It was unusual to see such a physically attractive man in the Lowcountry. Right away, she was somewhat smitten. She rarely had thoughts like this when initially meeting a man. Surprised and embarrassed by her emotions she mused to herself, “Wait a minute!” This is business. Get your head on straight and treat Ellis like any other person you may be interviewing.
“I understand you sold corn to Homer Aiken, is that correct?”
In a very pleasant and forthright voice, he replied, “I did. As a matter of fact, he came over to help me bag it up when he wanted some. You see I don’t usually sell corn to individuals. I use most of my corn to fatten hogs that I sell at the auction house in Warrenton.”
“Did you know he was probably using it to make illegal whiskey?”
“Well yes I did but what could I do, refuse a good customer in a free market? He bought a lot of corn too.”
“Did you ever ask him why he needed so much corn?”
“No, because I knew he also had some hogs to feed. I often ran into him at the auction selling them. He and I would compare notes on raising hogs. Since he has been around here doing this kind of thing much longer than I have, he was sought of a mentor to me on hog raising.”
“How long have you been farming here, Jake?”
“About three years! When the old school property came up for sale, I placed a bid on it and was lucky enough to get it. I was born and raised right up the road. My family was farmers. Due to bad luck when I was in the Navy, they had to sell their place. I always wanted to be a farmer and this place was perfect for me.”
Jake was friendly, but not pushy or flirty.
“That’s interesting! I was also in the Navy.”
The two talked for another 15 minutes about their Navy experiences and Caley learned Jake retired at 48 years old as a chief petty officer with 20 years of service. He then returned to the Lowcountry where he was able to buy the property and start a farm.
The conversation continued on a casual basis. Caley became more self-conscious about how comfortable she felt talking with Jake, but her female senses couldn’t resist the desire to continue.
Then Jake said, “Would you like to see the rest of the farm?”
At this point, Caley’s rational mind took over as she replied, “I would love to, but I am too busy now on these murders. Maybe we can do it later.”
“I’ll take that as a promise and look forward to seeing you soon. Don’t bother to call, just come on out to the place anytime.”
As Caley was walking away, Jake casually commented, “You know, if I were you I’d try to find out what Homer was doing with all the liquor he was making. I know he was selling a whole lot to someone down around Charleston. He got into some trouble one time not too long ago. He promised to make several hundred gallons they had paid for in advance, and he couldn’t deliver it for some reason. He tried to borrow $1,000 from me to get them off his back. That’s a lot of money. I doubt if they would let it go without consequences.”
“You don’t have any names do you?”
“Nope, all I know is he wanted to borrow money from me. I decided not to lend it to him, and he didn’t ask me again.”
“Thanks, Jake, I’ll check it out.”
What a pleasant and fulfilling life Jake must have out here. Now I’ve done it. I think I’m attracted to a farmer. I don’t really know if he is a murder suspect or just another attractive man. One thing is for sure though, he is a hunk and has the demeanor of a gentleman. Both traits are uncommon in the Lowcountry.
Chapter 22
Caley continued to question several people in and around Whiteside and received no substantive information on the two men who had been killed. Disappointed and perplexed, she thought to herself, “What would Bubba do?”
Bubba was a Deputy who was the primary investigator before he was offered and took a better paying job with SLED. He taught her a lot about the culture as well as investigating crime in the Lowcountry. She always had a great respect for him and felt that she would be happy to become as good of a deputy as he was.
I should push SLED for help, even though they have indicated they are busy. I know the sheriff will be on my back shortly and want some answers as to what I have done.
Sitting at her computer, she was looking through the 200 or so pictures she had taken at the crime scene. She didn’t expect to see anything she hadn’t already found by being there in person. But maybe it would give her some more ideas and who knows something might just pop up.
The first 10 or so pictures were on the scene and showed the whiskey still and wooded area. Then the pictures of the deceased men she had taken came up. The images were grotesque. The fly’s and maggots were plainly visible in the high-resolution photos. Even though she had been on the site, and saw the carnage first hand, the re-appearance of it in the photos almost made her sick. She continued to flash through the pictures, pausing on each to study every small detail.
