Keyed in Murder

by Helen Gray

  Toni smiled. “You’re thinking like an office worker.”

  “It has to be Stephanie Granger,” Allison said, her voice animated. “Her daughter, Stacy, is in my grade, and we have activities where everybody talks about their families.”

  “Have you ever heard anything about her mother giving away or selling large amounts of things that would be available at the supermarket?”

  Allison’s face twisted up in thought. Then she snapped her fingers. “I don’t remember that, but I do remember hearing Stacy complaining to someone about her mother never being home. She said Mom worked at the store all week, and then spent the weekends going to garage sales.”

  At the last two words, Patsy and Toni exchanged round-eyed looks. “Did Stacy say whether her mom was going to garage sales to shop, or was she having garage sales to sell?”

  Allison shrugged, her head rotating back and forth. “I just assumed she was a shopping junkie. But maybe she is having sales.”

  “Where would you have garage sales if you weren’t having them at your house?” Toni asked, speaking more to herself than to the others.

  Patsy’s face went contemplative for a few moments, and then she began to waggle an index finger in a signal that an idea was forming. “People rent storage units for that purpose all the time. That way they can keep their junk stored and priced and just open the doors when they’re ready to have a sale. They just add stuff as their stock dwindles.”

  Toni’s head was nodding now.

  Allison made a small, “Oh,” and matched her mother’s finger wag. “I remember Stacy telling whoever she was talking to that she had to drive across town every time her mother called and told her to bring something she wanted or had forgotten.”

  “They live on the south side of town,” Patsy interjected. “If she had to drive across town, Stephanie could be using the storage lockers at the east edge of town.”

  “That has to be it,” Allison said, growing animated.

  Patsy gave Toni a sly grin. “Do you feel like going to a garage sale?”

  *

  “Stay where we can see you clearly,” Toni instructed Gabe.

  The thirteen-year-old gave her a look of longsuffering. “I know the drill, Mom.” He set out across the gravel covered area between the roadside ditch and the row of storage sheds.

  “He’ll be fine,” Patsy assured Toni, patting her arm. “Allison’s over there where she can keep him in sight, and see us as well.”

  Toni and Patsy were standing near the storage shed at the end of a row of twelve. The one where they had spied Stephanie Granger was almost to the far end of the row. Allison was positioned near the last one, with a clear view of Stephanie as well as her mother and Toni.

  When Patsy had suggested they go to a garage sale, Gabe had entered the room, on his way to the kitchen for a cold soda. In their excitement, no one had noticed when he stopped at the doorway to listen. When he realized what they were discussing, he had stepped back into the room and insisted that they wouldn’t be able to buy any of the stolen goods, since Mrs. Granger knew them—and they weren’t teenagers, her main market for the kind of items she was selling. In his studious way, he had pointed out that he was now a teenager, and the woman didn’t know him personally.

  They had finally agreed to bring him along and let him attempt to buy cigarettes from Stephanie. The two younger boys had been left behind with Kyle. If anyone could carry out such a “sting,” it was her precocious oldest son. Allison had also loved the idea and insisted she was the best candidate to play bodyguard on him.

  Toni and Patsy watched tensely, being careful to stay out of Stephanie’s line of view, as Gabe ambled up to her unit and began to browse the items she had on display. Then he struck up a conversation with her. Hand motions, accompanied by head nods and shakes, became impossible to read, but apparently he was making progress.

  Toni nearly fainted when they turned and walked inside the storage shed.

  “Allison’s on it,” Patsy said, nodding to where her daughter had walked closer to the shed. The girl looked their way and gave them a thumbs-up signal.

  Toni relaxed a bit, but not much. When she saw Allison raise her phone in the air and begin snapping pictures, she held her breath.

  Two minutes later, Gabe emerged from the storage unit and marched back to them, Allison hot on his heels.

  “Have a smoke on me,” he offered cheekily, extending a package toward Toni.

  “He did great,” Allison enthused as she came up behind him. “And I got pictures of Mrs. Granger selling them to him.”

  Toni gave Gabe a hug, which he accepted, but kept brief. Allison bestowed hugs on both Toni and her mother.

  “Let’s sit in the van while I call Bonnie,” Toni said, leading the way.

  Bonnie actually let out a little victory whoop when she answered and heard what they had done. “That completes the picture,” she crowed triumphantly. “The auditor can verify how she’s bilking us, and now I know how she’s disposing of my products.”

  Toni glanced back at Allison in the seat beside Gabe. “My friend’s daughter took pictures of the transaction. Would you like me to have her forward them to you?”

  “Absolutely,” Bonnie said with force.

  “I need your cell phone number.”

  As Bonnie quoted it to her, Toni repeated the numbers to Allison, who added the contact to her phone, the expression on her face one of pure pleasure.

  “I’ll share them with the Chief of Police when I call on him in the morning,” Bonnie said. “Thanks. I owe you. It won’t solve Jake’s murder or make things any easier, but it’s satisfying to stop a thief that I think he was about to nail himself.” By the time she finished speaking, her voice had lost all animation.

  “I’d appreciate hearing how things turn out,” Toni said before they disconnected. Then she turned in the seat to face her passengers.

  Chapter 16

  “Do you three mind if I stop by the nursing home and visit Loretta for just a few minutes? I feel like I need to do that, and I’ve been ordered to not be out alone.”

  Allison grinned. “I don’t mind playing bodyguard for a few more minutes.”

  “And we certainly understand why you need someone with you,” Patsy added. Her hand rubbed along her arm that had been shot, but was no longer in a sling.

  Toni hated the need for this kind of service, but was going to take full advantage. She wanted to see if Loretta had seen her brother since their last visit.

  “We’ll sit in the gazebo while we wait for you,” Allison said when Toni parked at the nursing home.

  Gabe’s quiet acceptance, and the look of infatuation on his face, made Toni wonder if he had taken a fancy to his older consort. “I shouldn’t be long,” she repeated.

  Patsy accompanied her inside, and Toni was surprised when they met Levi in the lobby.

  He smiled in recognition. “Hi, Mrs. Donovan. I’ve just been to see Loretta. She’s sleeping now.”

  So it was not a good time to visit with her. But here was the very man she wanted to ask about. “This is Patsy Brower,” she said. “Patsy, meet Loretta’s brother, Levi.”

  “Do you work at the school with Loretta?” he asked as they shook hands.

  “I do, but I’m a secretary in the middle school office,” Patsy explained. “But I know Loretta, and I see her at district wide meetings and activities. I’m sorry about what has happened to her. Are you her only family?”

  He nodded. “I’m her only sibling. Our parents are gone, but there’s some extended family.”

  “Do you have a minute to visit with us?” Toni asked the man.

  Levi glanced at his watch. “I can spare a few.”

  She and Levi moved to a sofa, and Patsy sat in the chair at the end of it. “How is Loretta?” Toni asked.

  He shrugged. “It’s not certain at this point how much she’ll recover. She’s made some progress, but the doctor said they can’t know how much of her speech and body
strength she’ll regain. He said recovery time is different for different people, and that it can take weeks, months, or even years. Some are left with long-term or lifelong disabilities. At the rate Loretta’s going, she’s going to have some permanent disability. I doubt she’ll return to school.”

  “How are you doing?” Toni asked. “The police chief told me you contacted him, but I don’t know if you were completely cleared. I hope you were,” she added.

  He grinned faintly. “Buck seemed surprised when I stopped in to see him. I think I’m in the clear, but it’s not been confirmed.

  “Do you know if your ex’s new husband has been investigated?”

  He scowled. “I don’t know. I saw the jerk last week at the Olympic Restaurant in Fredericktown. It was the anniversary of my divorce, and I was there drowning my sorrows in gluttony. I figure Butch had probably been to the main office of the sawmill there. He was with a woman I didn’t know. So I figure my ex is in for some shocks. Not that I care,” he added glumly.

  He stood. “It’s been nice talking to you ladies, but I need to be moving up the road. Tomorrow will start early.”

  *

  Monday morning, as Kyle had decreed, he followed Toni to school, and waved as she turned into the parking lot and he drove on past, headed to the airport. John and Jenny pulled up beside her van in the lot.

  “I don’t need an escort on school grounds,” Toni protested, but not too strongly. A couple of her students had once been attacked on the ramped sidewalk between the curb and the front entrance. It had happened after a murder in the nearby school from which Zoe and Melody had transferred a year earlier.

  “Don’t you dare leave after school unless we’re right behind you,” John ordered. He said it in a light manner, but he clearly meant business.

  “She’ll wait for you,” Gabe promised, giving Toni the look she gave him or Garrett when dealing sternly with them.

  “I need to talk to Ken,” she said to the adults as the boys trotted ahead of them, instrument cases swinging from their hands and bumping their legs.

  Jenny veered off toward the area of the building where she taught music. “See you later,” she called over her shoulder.

  Toni and John went to the cafeteria, where they quickly spotted Ken talking to one of the cooks. John continued on to his room while Toni walked across the floor and stopped a few feet from Ken. When he spotted her, he paused in his conversation and turned to face her. “Do you need to talk to me?”

  She nodded.

  “Go to my office. I’ll be there in a jiffy.”

  When Toni entered the outer office where the secretary worked, she continued past the students waiting in line at Pam’s desk. Toni pointed at Ken’s office and mouthed, “He’s meeting me.”

  Pam nodded, and Toni entered the unlocked office and found a seat. In less than five minutes Ken entered. “What’s so urgent?” he asked, knowing time was limited until classes started.

  Toni swiftly informed him of Patsy’s visit and the rumors Brian and Allison had heard about a dangerous game being played among the students.

  Ken raked a hand over his face in frustration when she finished. “It’s bound to be related to this rash of vandalism, but I don’t see how. I’ll talk to some trustworthy students and see if they’ve heard anything about a game. This is a nightmare. Another student was assaulted over the weekend. The parents called me at home, saying it happened when the boy got off his bus after school Friday. He had to walk about a block and a half from the bus stop to his house, and he was jumped at the end of his block and beaten.”

  Toni’s stomach thudded. “It has to be stopped.”

  “You’re right. And it will be. I’m going to call the superintendent right now and discuss it with him.”

  Toni went on to class, seething with anger that another student had been hurt. During her plan period she had a Coke and tackled a stack of paperwork. Just before time for the bell to ring, she walked down the hall to Rick’s math classroom and opened the door. He was standing by it, ready to dismiss his class when the bell rang.

  She stepped near enough to speak to him privately. “Can you join me and John for lunch in his room? I want to ask you something.”

  “I’ll grab a tray from the cafeteria and be there as soon as I can.” His green eyes glinted beneath a cap of dark hair. The man was a hunk, and a good teacher. He was also working hard at restoring his marriage after some rocky times.

  During lunch, Toni repeated for Rick and John what she had told Ken that morning. “What I’m wondering,” she said, focusing on Rick, “is if you can find out more about this awful game. I’m afraid it’s connected to the gang issue, and I’m not sure how to get students to talk about it.”

  Maybe she was overdoing the helpless female bit, but Rick needed to feel he was helping her, rather than just ferreting out bits of insignificant information. She had believed in him at a time when he was struggling.

  His grin was roguish. “I might have an idea or two.”

  They tossed their debris in the trash can and headed to their respective classrooms.

  A few minutes before the last class was to end, Toni’s phone buzzed the arrival of a text message. She pulled it from her blazer pocket.

  Buck wanted her to come by the station as soon as she could get there. She went to the school phone and called John.

  “Jenny and I will follow you,” he said instantly when she explained about the summons. “And while you’re in there we’ll keep an eye on the boys at the little park.”

  When Toni entered the police station twenty minutes later, she was told to go straight into the chief’s office. Buck Freeman sat behind his desk, facing a teenage boy across it. The chief looked up at her entrance and pointed to a chair.

  “Have a seat, Mrs. Donovan. You know Trent Crawford. He and I were just beginning to have a chat.”

  Trent Crawford, sixteen or seventeen and blond haired, wore a surly expression, stylishly ragged jeans, and a camouflage jacket. He glared at Toni.

  She nodded and took the vacant seat against the wall.

  “Trent here is having a rough time,” Buck said. “He lost his dad, and he thinks he knows who to blame for it. He went on a rampage last night, working his way around town throwing rocks through windows. He was on his fourth stop when we caught up to him. We’re waiting for his mother and her lawyer to join us. They should be here any minute.”

  Toni frowned at the boy. “Why did you resort to violence instead of just talking to the police? Now your mother has more trouble to deal with, trouble she doesn’t need.”

  The kid slumped in the chair, still stubbornly silent, but apparently remorseful that he had caused more grief for his mother.

  “You didn’t think this thing out, Trent. Why did you target those particular houses?” She thought she had an inkling, but she wanted to hear it from the boy.

  When Trent didn’t answer, Toni glanced at Buck.

  “All four places he hit are on that list you gave me,” he said, his expression and tone grim. “I know this is a bit unorthodox, but I thought since you’ve had Trent in class that he would be more comfortable with you in our discussion. He’ll trust you more, and I thought you’d care about a former student.”

  She couldn’t help but wonder about the chief’s motive. Maybe he just felt he was following through since he had allowed her to get involved in the case. Or maybe he truly valued her input. Whatever it was, she was going to take full advantage of the opportunity to learn more.

  “Who all did he hit?”

  “We caught him at the Hewitts. He had already been to the Chandlers, the Lawsons, and the Zambronis.”

  “They’re a bunch of jerks,” the boy snarled unexpectedly.

  “Why are they jerks?” the chief asked.

  Trent straightened in the chair just a bit. “They all like to party and …other things.”

  Buck gave him a measured stare. “They think nobody knows about these other things that they do.
Is that right?”

  Trent nodded. “I know, but I can’t prove it.”

  The door swung open, and Bonnie Crawford and Bart Ramsey entered the room. Bart? One of the party group, he could be more to Bonnie than just her lawyer. She went to Trent and dropped to her knees before him. “What have you done, Son?”

  Buck stood and indicated with a head jerk toward the door that he wanted Toni to follow him.

  “We’ll give them a moment,” he said when they were outside the room with the door closed behind them. “Bart will insist on time to speak to his client alone. But there’s something you’ll want to know. We found a gun in the kid’s coat pocket. Thank goodness he didn’t use it.”

  Toni’s interest intensified. “What kind of gun?”

  “A twenty-two pistol.”

  “What kind of bullet did the doctors take out of Jake, Ray, and Patsy?”

  “A forty-five in each case. So it’s not our murder weapon. I trust that Kyle and John are keeping a tight rein on you. I’ll be posting someone to watch your place all night. I just wanted to have you take a look at the boy and get a feel for where the investigation is headed. Now get out of here.”

  He went back into his office, leaving her standing there with her gut wrenching. Nothing fit, but things were escalating. She sensed the danger.

  *

  After supper that evening, Kyle remained seated at the table while the boys went about their business and Toni cleared the table. “Sit,” he said in a grave tone.

  She resumed her seat facing him. “What’s wrong?”

  His green eyes darkened. “I have a charter that’s going to keep me out of town for the next two nights, possibly three. It was short notice, but the money’s so good I couldn’t turn it down. I only booked it today. But I called your dad and discussed it with him before I did. He and your mother are expecting you and the boys to spend the nights with them while I’m gone.”

  Toni groaned silently, but she recognized from the look on his face that he would cancel the charter, even though they needed the business, rather than allow her to stay here with only her and the boys in the house. This kind of overnight absence was inevitable in his business.