Hope Callaghan - Garden Girls 03 - Smoky Mountain Mystery

by Hope Callaghan

  He focused his sharp eyes on Liz. “Did you call 911?”

  Liz wilted under the officer’s steely stare. “No.” Her eyes filled with fear.

  The officer didn’t say a word as he stepped off to the side of the kitchen. He pulled his police radio to his mouth and pressed the button. “Yeah, this is Officer Peyton. I need some backup out here at the old Henderson place. The one off Thornbush Road.” He looked directly at Gloria. “It looks like we have a murder investigation on our hands.”

  Murder investigation! Her gaze darted to Margaret and Liz still hovering in the corner. The color had completely drained from Margaret’s face. She clutched her chest and sank to the floor in a stupor.

  This was all a terrible misunderstanding. None of them killed the old woman! “We didn’t…” Gloria’s voice trailed off. She remembered from watching all the crime shows that anything she – or the other girls– said could be used against her, against them. Twisting their words to make it seem like they did something wrong.

  She made her way over to Margaret and Liz. She bent down so she was eye level with Margaret. “Don’t worry about, Margaret.” She spoke in a low voice. “The autopsy will prove she wasn’t murdered. She probably died of a heart attack.”

  “What happens in the meantime?” Margaret whispered.

  Gloria wasn’t certain about that part. She didn’t really want to think that far ahead.

  A mob of police was soon swarming the kitchen. Gloria turned her back as they placed Ethel on a stretcher and covered her body with a white sheet. She blinked back tears as she said a small, simple prayer for her aunt’s soul.

  After the body was gone, Mally limped out from under the table and over to where Gloria was standing. Gloria gently patted Mally’s side as the dog slumped down beside her.

  One of the officers stopped what he was doing when he noticed Mally. “What happened to your dog?” He bent down to inspect Mally’s bandaged paw.

  Beads of sweat formed on Gloria’s brow. How was she going to explain this? “She got shot.”

  “By who?”

  Gloria glanced uneasily at Liz. “Aunt Ethel.”

  The officer’s gaze shot up as he studied Gloria’s face. This case was getting more interesting by the minute, he decided. The officer rose to his feet. “Where’s the gun?”

  Liz pointed to the back door. “We propped it on the wall just outside the door over there.” The hole kept getting deeper and deeper for the girls. “We didn’t want it to go off again by accident.”

  By now, Gloria could read the lead officer’s name tag. Officer Pete Peyton. He nodded his head at another uniform who headed out the door in search of the weapon.

  “So you got into an argument with Ethel, she shot your dog and then you killed her?” the officer in charge speculated.

  Gloria opened her mouth to speak and instantly shut it back up as she reminded herself anything she said could and would be used against her.

  The officer who headed out back for the gun suddenly reappeared, shotgun in hand. “Is this the weapon?”

  Liz nodded. “Uh-huh.”

  The younger uniformed man turned to Officer Peyton. “We’ll need to take this with us as evidence.”

  Margaret gasped. Evidence!

  The officer holding the gun looked at the three women. “What about them?”

  “We’re going to take them down to the station for questioning,” Officer Peyton answered gravely.

  “But we didn’t harm her!” Margaret protested.

  Gloria grabbed her arm and shook her head warningly at Margaret.

  His words sunk in. They were going to jail. She glanced down at Mally. “What about my dog?”

  Officer Peyton hadn’t considered that. It wasn’t the dog’s fault they were in this predicament. “We’ll try to keep her with you but I can’t promise anything for sure,” he warned.

  At least that was something. The next hour was a complete blur as the women were handcuffed, read their rights and loaded into the back of the cop car.

  Gloria could hear Paul’s voice ringing in her head. See? I told you you were going to get in hot water one of these days. He was right. She glanced at Margaret. Guilt filled her as she realized this was all her fault. They never should’ve done the stakeout, never should’ve broken into the house.

  This was all a terrible misunderstanding. Surely once the autopsy was done they would be released from jail. Of course, it did look really bad that they didn’t call 911 after Ethel died.

  Gloria wished they were alone for a minute. She needed to find out what the others did with the coins.

  Liz must’ve read Gloria’s mind. “Hidden in the kitchen,” she mumbled under her breath.

  Gloria let out a sigh of relief. She couldn’t imagine the police finding the valuable gold coins in their possession. That would be a motive for murder. They’d lock them up in the state penitentiary and throw away the keys!

  The local police station was a small, brick one-story building on the edge of town. An unassuming structure the girls had passed by more than once and never even noticed.

  Gloria’s cuffs were a tad bit tight. She wiggled her wrist, which only made them pinch her skin even harder. The officer reached out and grabbed hold of the side of her arm, helping guide her out of the back seat and onto the pavement.

  Liz was sandwiched in the middle. It took a little more wiggling around for her to slide to the edge of the seat and climb out. Margaret was already out and waiting on the other side with a second officer. She looked none too happy as she glared at Gloria over the roof of the car.

  Mally was still curled up on the floor of the patrol car, her sad face gazing up at Gloria as if to say, “What’s going in?”

  “Can someone help my dog out?” She was near tears, feeling completely helpless with her hands cuffed behind her back.

  “Someone’s coming around in just a minute. She’ll be fine inside,” Officer Peyton reassured her. “I’ll keep her in my office. I have a small sofa she can rest on.”

  He felt sorry for the poor woman. He doubted she’d ever been arrested in her life. He could see she was deeply concerned about her dog and could just imagine how helpless she was feeling.

  But he was torn. It was his job to uphold the law. He couldn’t just release them onto the streets until they were cleared of any charges.

  Gloria hit one of the lowest points of her life as she looked over at Margaret. She mouthed the words “Sorry” but Margaret didn’t notice. The officer was already leading her up the steps and inside the front door.

  The inside of the lobby was just as drab as the exterior. The plain walls were a dull white. The countertops a faded brown. The whole placed looked very cold, very bleak. The kind of place where could easily lose all hope.

  The young gal behind the counter glanced up as they stepped through the doors. Her mouth fell open at the sight of three mature, grandmotherly-type women wearing handcuffs being led inside. She started to speak but promptly shut her mouth and pressed the buzzer to allow the small group to make their way to the back of the station house.

  Officer Peyton stopped at the first open door. He motioned them in. “Have a seat.” He pulled some papers out of the top desk. “Let’s start with you.” He pointed at Gloria. I need your full name, address, date of birth and occupation.” After she answered the questions, a young officer tapped her on the shoulder. “Follow me.”

  He led her further down the hall to another room where he removed the handcuffs. Pain from the too tight cuffs shot down her arm. It didn’t help with her arthritis and the fact her hands had been stuck in an uncomfortable position behind her back.

  She rubbed them gently as he motioned her over to a wall.

  “We need to get a picture now,” he explained.

  Gloria’s eyes grew as large as a full moon during fall harvest. She was having a mug shot taken! She could only imagine the expression on her face as the man snapped the picture. The last thing he did was take her
fingerprints.

  Finally, he led her out of the room to the end of the hallway and to another door. There was no doorknob, just a small key pad. He entered a code and the door swung silently open. Gloria stepped inside.

  One whole walls was filled with cells. Empty cells. He plucked a ring of keys from his front pocket. He easily inserted the key in the lock and with a firm click, the lock released and the door opened.

  “I hate to do this to you,” he said gently. “Unfortunately, I have to put you in here.”

  Gloria glanced inside the cell. The space was small. A metal sink and white porcelain toilet crowded the back corner while a long, narrow, metal bench jutted out from the opposite wall. She stepped inside and he immediately pulled the door shut. The door closed with bleak finality.

  Gloria slumped down on the hard metal bench and closed her eyes. It was time to strike a bargain with God. Please, God. Get me – get us –out of this mess and I promise to never, ever stick my nose in where it doesn’t belong, she promised.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Gloria’s eyes flew open just in time to see Margaret barrel through the door and she looked none too happy.

  The same young officer was leading Margaret to the cell next door. He wasn’t quite as kind to Margaret as he was to Gloria but that was probably because Margaret was giving him a bit of a fit. “This is the most horrid, filthy place I have ever been. You expect me to stay in there?” She pointed at the open cell.

  Apparently the officer had heard enough. He refused to answer her question as he popped the door open and motioned her in. She took her sweet old time as she sauntered into the cell. He slammed the door shut, tugged on it just to make sure it was securely locked and made his way back out without saying a word.

  Margaret plopped down on the bench and frowned at Gloria. “What a fine mess you got us into!” she snapped. She glanced around the cell in disgust. “This place is probably going to give us some kind of incurable disease!”

  Gloria thought that highly unlikely but she had to agree it wasn’t the nicest of places. She wondered how Mally was doing. Her shoulders slumped as she worried about her poor dog being in a strange place with people she didn’t know. Her paw was probably really bothering her.

  As soon as the officer came back, she reminded him that the dog needed a pain pill. “It’s in my purse.”

  “Yes, ma’am. As soon as I leave here, I’ll check on your dog,” he promised.

  Gloria believed he would. He seemed like such a decent fellow. It wasn’t his fault he had to lock them in a jail cell.

  He led Liz to the last cell on the end. After he shut the door and made his way out of the room, Liz walked over to the edge of the prison and leaned against the bars. “How come you got the biggest cell?” she griped.

  Margaret whirled around to face Liz. She couldn’t believe her ears! “We’re in jail, probably going to be charged with Ethel’s murder and your biggest concern is that my cell is larger than yours?” she asked incredulously.

  Margaret jumped off the metal bench and strode over to where Liz was still standing. She reached through the bars, grabbed the front of Liz’s shirt and yanked her to within inches of her face. “Listen you nincompoop! I told you we should’ve called 911 as soon as ole Ethel keeled over but NO you insisted we wait for Gloria to come back. Now look at us!”

  Margaret’s face turned beet red as she let Liz have it. Gloria was torn between trying to smooth things over or let Margaret vent. She decided on the latter. After all, if she had called 911 right away, there was a good chance they wouldn’t be in this mess.

  “I was confused,” Liz wailed. “If Gloria hadn’t taken so long to get back!” Her eyes narrowed and she stared at Gloria accusingly.

  Gloria threw up her hands. “Oh no you don’t!” She glanced around. There was no one in sight but that didn’t mean there weren’t hidden cameras recording everything. In fact, there probably were cameras.

  “Girls, this is all a misunderstanding. We know we didn’t harm Ethel in any way,” she reasoned. “As soon as the autopsy comes back and they figure out she died of natural causes, we’ll get out of here.”

  “I’m going to sue!” Margaret threatened. It must’ve dawned on her at that exact moment that there were probably cameras in the holding area. She stared up at a small round ball in the corner of the ceiling. “You hear me? I’m gonna sue the pants off you people!”

  That seemed to make her feel slightly better. Like a deflated balloon, she collapsed on the hard metal bench and closed her eyes.

  The door suddenly opened and the young officer stepped back in the room. He ignored the others and walked straight over to Gloria’s cell. “I found Mally’s medication. We slipped the pill into her food. She’s resting comfortably,” he added.

  Gloria opened her mouth to thank the young man but instead she burst into tears, grateful for his kindness and compassion towards her and her dog. “Thank you so much,” she whispered through a cracked voice.

  He glanced down the row at the other two girls. “We’re fixin’ to bring you some food in a minute. You’ll probably feel a lot better once you eat something.”

  True to his word, he returned a few minutes later carrying three brown paper bags in one hand and holding three bottled waters in the other. Gloria reached through the bars and grabbed a small bag and drink. “Thank you!” she said gratefully.

  Next, he handed Margaret a bag and drink. “Thanks,” she mumbled grudgingly.

  When he reached Liz’s cell, she stuck her hand through the bars and reached for the final brown bag. “I hope mine doesn’t have lettuce,” she said. “I’m allergic to it.”

  Gloria stuck a hand on her hip. She couldn’t believe Liz’s nerve. “Just peel it off, Liz. It won’t kill you!”

  Inside Gloria’s bag was a ham and cheese sandwich and a small bag of chips. Despite all the trauma and stress, Gloria surprised herself with how hungry she was. It had been hours since they ate. She wasn’t even sure what time it was now since the officer took her watch and all her other personal belongings before locking her up.

  The young officer returned a short time later. Gloria watched as he picked up the empty bottles and bags they placed just outside the cell doors. He seemed like such a nice, clean-cut young man. She imagined one of her grandsons looking just like him when they were older.

  “What’s your name?” She asked as he stopped by to pick up her trash.

  He flashed her a dimpled smile. “Nick. Nick Baird.” No one ever really cared who he was. Most of the time, the people he brought in here swore at him, called him names. Sometimes they even threatened him.

  He overhead the Lieutenant say these ladies were involved in a death, possibly a homicide. He’d seen enough people come in and out of these cells in the five years he worked here and figured he was a pretty good judge of character. These women weren’t killers, especially not the one here on the end.

  “I have to run back up to the front for a while.” He pointed to a small, round button on the wall, just within Gloria’s reach. “You can ring the buzzer on the wall if you need anything before I come back.”

  She smiled warmly at Nick as he made his way back outside.

  After the door shut, Liz piped up. “You’re laying it on pretty thick, aren’t you Gloria?”

  She turned to Liz. “What do you mean?”

  Liz waved towards the door. “Don’t mind me. Go ahead. Butter him up. Maybe that’ll help get us out of this dungeon quicker,” she decided.

  Gloria stuck a hand on her hip and grabbed a metal bar facing Liz. “It’s not that young man’s fault that we’re stuck in here!”

  Disgusted with her sister and aggravated with the entire situation, she plopped down on the metal bench, her back to her sister. She vowed not to get sucked up into a battle with her. At least not right now when they were trapped in the same room.

  The hours dragged on. Gloria tried lying on the metal bench but every time she shifted, even just a lit
tle, pain would shoot down her leg and she’d have to shift to a more comfortable position.

  Margaret seemed to be doing a little better. A couple times Gloria heard her snoring softly from the bench next door.

  Not Liz. She paced the entire time. Back and forth, back and forth. She was mumbling under her breath. Gloria didn’t bother asking what she was saying. It would probably just tick her off if she knew.

  It seemed like they’d be stuck in the cells forever. Finally, the door swung open and Officer Pete Peyton stepped inside, a set of key jingling in his hand.

  He walked to Gloria’s cell first, jabbed the key inside the hole and unlocked the door. The sound was music to Gloria’s ears. He grinned as he stepped to the side. “Today is your lucky day.”

  Margaret was awake now. She sat upright and slowly slid off the hard bench. “Let me guess. You found out that Ethel died of a heart attack.”

  He nodded as he unlocked Margaret’s cell door next. “Yeah. All charges have been dropped in light of the coroner’s report.”

  Last but not least, he freed Liz. They followed him to the exit door. Before he opened it, he turned to face the three. “I’m sorry for having to lock you up but want you to know we’re just doing our job.”

  “You’ll be lucky if we don’t sue you!” Margaret snapped.

  Gloria thought that all a bit much. She touched Officer Peyton’s arm. “We know it’s not your fault. Thank you for watching over Mally.”

  He smiled at Gloria. She seemed like such a nice lady. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you!”

  Mally was happy. When she saw Gloria standing in the doorway, she struggled to her feet and limped over to where she was standing. Gloria knelt down on the floor and gently wrapped her arms around the dog. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply as she sent up a silent prayer of gratitude.

  Officer Peyton smiled at the reunion. “She was as good as gold. Makes me miss my own,” he added.

  Gloria turned to face him. “You have a dog at home?”

  He smiled sadly. “I did. My German Shepard, Thor, died a few months back.” He paused to pet Mally’s head one last time. “He was a good ole dog.”