Skeleton Key

by Jeff LaFerney

  It was a close, low-scoring first half, with Perry taking the lead at halftime by a score of 21-18. Durand had six underclassmen on their roster, none of whom played particularly well, yet Logan, a senior, never got off the bench.

  Perry extended their lead to 37-25 at the end of the third period and had cruised to a 54-32 lead with three and a half minutes to go in the game. Finally, Logan took off his warm-up jacket and entered the game. He looked up at his mother and gave what looked like a disappointed half-grin, but he was in and his three fans were anxious to see if Tanner actually did see the future. In the first two and a half minutes, Logan touched the ball, but he looked very tentative. He didn’t even look to the basket to score. But with fifty-five seconds on the clock, he found himself wide open in the corner in front of his team’s bench. He let fly a three-pointer, and he hit nothing but net. Perry’s player stepped on the baseline while inbounding the ball, so the turnover gave the ball right back to Durand. Logan stepped back over to the same corner and received a pass. He shot again and hit another three.

  After a Perry player walked the ball back up the court, the team seemed content to run out the clock, but one of the reserves made a bad pass that led to an over-and-back violation. Durand had the ball one last time with nine seconds remaining. The point guard tried to rifle a pass under the basket, but it was deflected and rolled toward the sideline where Logan picked it up and shot another three-pointer from the corner as the buzzer sounded. Once again, the shot snapped the bottom of the net for his ninth point in fifty-five seconds—just as Tanner had seen. Durand lost 54-43, but Erika was jumping up and down and giving hugs like they had won. She was ecstatic. Joyous. Proud. She started laughing and high-fiving everyone within reaching distance.

  To Clay, it was like watching Jessie at Tanner’s games, and Tanner sensed immediately how his father felt. He put his arm around his dad’s shoulders and said, “Mom’s up in Heaven watching, Dad. She loves you, so she’d want you to be happy. Zander is right, you know, as hard as that is to admit. It’s time for you to move on. Besides, how many men can say they were in love with two women the quality of your two?”

  Clay had tears in his eyes. Tanner had said just the right thing. How come he was so special? Then he turned to Tanner. “Your mom raised you pretty well, I’ll have to admit. Thank you.”

  Tanner hugged his dad. “God blessed me when he gave me both of you. Thank you.”

  Before Clay went off to give his girlfriend a hug, he had one more thing to say. “It seems you were right about Logan. That’s awesome. Your powers keep growing. But do you know what that means?”

  Now Tanner had tears in his eyes. “Yeah, it means Dan Duncan is gonna try to shoot you. Promise me, Dad, that you won’t let him hurt you.”

  “One thing I learned when your mother was murdered is that a person’s future is in God’s hands. I can only hope he’s taught me all these things in the past year and has given me renewed faith because he has a plan for my life. I don’t know what the future holds, but I promise to be careful.”

  Clay and Tanner waited around with Erika for Logan to come out of the locker room. They said their congratulations and their goodbyes. Logan thanked them for coming, and Erika gave them both hugs. It had been quite a day.

  Chapter 27

  Tanner had a Saturday night game but because his coach was at a clinic, there was no walk through in the morning, so he spent the night with his dad, and they were on their way to Sports Creek Raceway to find and talk to Lawrence Maloney, the driver of the stolen truck seven years earlier. They arrived at 11:45 a.m. and looked for a truck with Equine En Route, Inc. on the side, or one with license plates from Kentucky. There was nothing, but at 12:05, the truck they were looking for rolled in, drove up to the gate and guard shack, and stopped. A very tall, thin man stepped down from his cab and presented some paperwork. A guard reviewed the papers, had the man sign something, then opened the gate and waved the truck through. The gate closed and Clay was left wondering what to do.

  “Tell him to let you in,” suggested Tanner.

  “Just like that? What if I get the guy in trouble?”

  “You have a better idea?”

  Because he didn’t, Clay drove to the gate and stopped. The guard stepped out of his shack and stood before Clay’s door. “Can I help you?”

  Clay looked him in the eyes and said, “Yes, sir. I need to speak with Lawrence Maloney, so I’d appreciate it if you’d open that gate for us and let us in.”

  The guard seemed unsure of himself, but he said, “You’ll have to sign in.”

  “No problem,” Clay replied. He signed the sheet and waited for the gate to open. When it did, he waved, smiled, and drove in. Mind control certainly had its advantages. Maloney was dropping his horses off at a paddock. There was a crew of men there waiting—presumably the owners. Maloney was clapping and rubbing his hands together to ward off some of the cold.

  Clay parked, and he and Tanner walked up to the man. Clay spoke first. “Excuse me. Are you by chance Lawrence Maloney?”

  “I am. But everbody calls me Larry,” he said with a heavy Southern accent.

  “I’m Clay Thomas, and this is my son, Tanner.”

  Larry shook hands. “What kin I do for y’all?”

  “Larry, we’ve been investigating the train wreck from August of 2003. Do you think we could ask you a few questions?”

  “I reckon so. It’s been a mighty long time. I might disremember some thangs, but if’n y’all wanna go inside, I was fixin’ to git some coffee afore I freeze to death.”

  “We might could do that,” Tanner smiled and joked in such a way that he wasn’t offensive at all.

  “A Yankee with a sense of humor. If’n there was more Gol-darned people who could laugh, it wouldn’t be so mighty aggervatin visitin’ these parts. Why’n tarnation caint people laugh more these days?”

  “I reckon we’re all a bit too serious, Larry. How ’bout we fetch a seat yonder?” Tanner smiled and pointed, and Larry smiled and headed right over. Clay marveled at his son’s personality.

  Once they were seated, Clay explained that they were simply interested in what he remembered about that night.

  “I came outta the john, fixin’ to git a cuppa coffee, but the dad-burned rig was missin’ from the lot. Lord a’mercy, and nairy a person seen a thang. If’n someone drove a semi-truck from a dinky gas station, you’da thought someone would hafta seen it, but no, not in Du-rand.”

  “There was a police car there. Do you remember that?” Clay asked.

  “I looked pert’ near everwhere fer the guy, but he warnt nowhere to be found. I recollect callin’ my boss back home. Spent a few minutes tryin’ to figger out what to do next. Boss was havin’ a hissy—hootin’ an’ hollerin’. If’n there’s someone who kin kick up a ruckus, it’s my boss. Then I seen the no ’count cop joggin’ into the lot.”

  “He was running?”

  “Yes, sir. I headed outside agin. He was all outta breath and was fixin’ to git in his car and drive away. I hitched my breetches like I use’ta when I was a young’n, and stopped the man. Aggervatin’ little man didn’t much care ’bout my predicament, but, finally, he got to workin’ on a dad-burned police report. I was fixin’ to wring his thick neck when he got a call on his radio. A train’d smashed a semi-truck on some tracks purdy close by. We got in his car to see if’n it was my truck seeins how I happened to be missin’ one. My rig was on fire. Part of the train was toppled over. That no-count cop got out the car and left me there alone. Went down the tracks like he was lookin’ fer someone. Never came back. Warnt nothin’ I could do but watch.”

  “Larry, do you have any idea who could’ve stolen your truck?”

  “Not a clue, Clay.”

  Hearing the word “clue” gave Tanner an idea. “Did you ever go back through your rig, Larry? I mean were there personal affects in the cab or anything?”

  “Yes, sir, I did fetch some thangs from my cab. Course I did.”

&n
bsp; “Do you remember anything unusual?”

  “Unusual? It’s been a long time to recollect somethin’ like that, Tanner.”

  “If I could help you remember, would you let me?” Tanner asked.

  “How’d ya do somethin’ like that?”

  “I could hypnotize you.”

  “Young man, if’n I let you hypnotize me, would y’all do me a favor? I got this gosh-darned pain in my neck—and, no, it ain’t my Missus. Do ya thank ya could make the pain go ’way?”

  “I’ve never done anything like that, but I could try. I promise to try, Larry.”

  “Then let’s do ’er. Whatcha got, a watch or somethin’?”

  “Just sit back and relax. Count backwards from ten.” Tanner focused his powers on Larry’s mind.

  “Tin, non, eight…”

  “You’re hypnotized, Larry.” He turned to his dad. “I just make ’em count for dramatic effect.” Clay laughed.

  “Larry, concentrate for a minute on the cab of your rig seven years ago. The one in the train wreck. After the wreck, you went back and took out some personal items. What do you remember? Oh, and if you don’t mind, would you speak in English, so I can understand you?”

  Larry was in a trance. He started speaking quite clearly for a hillbilly. “I climbed up in the cab. I ’member now. The seat was pulled way forward. I got purdy long legs. No way I could git in the cab without movin’ the seat. Someone super-short drove it last. I grabbed things from the glove box—papers and other junk. Had some clothes, bedding, books, food, toothbrush and stuff in the bunk. An atlas, other maps, an’ some garbage was under the seat. Sunflower seeds was spilt all on the floor. I don’t eat seeds. Where’d they come from?”

  “Was there anything else unusual?”

  “I caint remember anything else that warnt the way I left it.”

  “Thanks, Larry. Now, when I snap my fingers you’ll wake up, and you’ll feel rested, and there’ll be no more pain in your neck. If’n you start feelin’ pain agin…” Tanner started laughing…“Jist thank of yer Missus, and the pain’ll go away.” He snapped his fingers and Larry snapped out of his trance.

  “Well, I’ll be. The pain’s gone. How’s about if I bought y’all a beer to show my gratitude?”

  “No thanks,” Clay said. “You helped us plenty in return. That no-count cop friend of yours? He’s the one who stole your truck. Thank you very much, Larry.”

  “Parked it right on the tracks, fixin’ to cause a wreck? He ain’t no friend of mine. You’re gonna make sure that low-down piece of turd ends up in jail, right?”

  Clay looked at his watch. “You can count on it, Friend. Now, I need to get Tanner back to college. He has a game tonight.”

  Clay and Tanner shook hands with Larry, returned to their car, and drove away without incident. “Dan Duncan’s definitely the one who stole the truck. His car was in the lot, but he wasn’t because he was driving the truck to the tracks. He’s a former trucker and would have no problem driving the thing. Then he must’ve run back to the station. It’s just a little over a mile. He wasn’t there when Larry was first looking for him, but Larry saw him run up later, all winded. Dan is short, chews sunflower seeds, and is dumb enough to leave them on the floor. He as much as admitted to me when I read his mind that he killed two men and that he was at the tracks before and after the wreck. He went back to look for Adrian, just like Larry said when Dan left him at the tracks. I think we have our murderer.”

  Chapter 28

  Clay dropped Tanner off to get his car so he could drive back to Ann Arbor. Tanner’s game was to be on television, so Clay was hopeful that he could head back to Durand and watch it with Erika. Maybe if he visited Dan Duncan, the whole mystery would be solved before the day was over. Once Tanner left, Clay took care of a few things, called Erika, who invited him over, and then headed back to Durand. On the way, he called Chief Hopper with his news.

  “How about if we stop by Dan’s today, Luke?” Clay asked. “I’m on my way right now. You could meet me there.”

  “This is a touchy subject with me,” Luke responded. “Dan’s one of my men. I’m not gonna just walk in and make accusations. I’m not sure how I wanna handle it yet.”

  “I’d say that we should present the facts and see what happens from there.”

  “Okay. I’m on my way. Don’t go making accusations before I get there. Wait for me.”

  Luke put his gun in his shoulder holster, put a light coat on to hide it, and hopped in his car to head to Duncan’s house. Clay pulled off the expressway, checked his GPS, and followed the directions to Dan’s house.

  Chief Hopper was nervous as he reviewed the case in his head. The coroner believed Adrian Payne was killed in the accident. Adrian’s ghost mentioned more than once that he had a heart attack. That could be true since Marshall Mortonson discovered Adrian’s body apparently passed out on the train. Marshall attempted to save Adrian’s life by jumping with his body off the train just before the accident. An overturned train car crushed Adrian. Marshall then decided to hide the body, which he later buried with the horses that were killed in the crash. Someone—most likely Roberto Gomez—had wrecked the brakes on the train. The engineer was drunk and was declared responsible for the wreck. There was a semi-truck parked on the tracks at the Oak Street crossing. Someone had stolen the truck, and apparently that person was Dan Duncan, one of his own police officers. Erika didn’t have a good alibi during the wreck, and she had motive for killing Adrian. Roberto Gomez’s alibi was his wife. He had a strong motive for murder because Adrian had raped his wife. Dan Duncan was at the gas station during the wreck, and was on duty, but evidence suggests that he stole the truck and parked it on the tracks. Dan had ample reason to hate Adrian, so motive could be established. If the crash actually did kill Adrian, then both Dan and Roberto were responsible if Luke could prove it, but what if he was already dead? Could Erika have had something to do with that? However, even if Adrian was already dead, Joseph Carrollton also died in the wreck, so someone was responsible for his death. According to Clay; Dan, Roberto, and Marshall all believed that they killed Adrian, but Adrian seemed to think not. This was a very confusing case.

  While Luke was reviewing the case in his mind, he came to a railroad crossing with an unmoving train. Luke looked as far as he could see to his right and left in hopes of locating the engine so he could determine which direction the train was running, but he couldn’t see it. He was nervous about Clay getting to Dan’s house before him, so he did a U-turn and made a guess which direction the train was facing. He decided to head north, hoping he could make it to a crossing ahead of the train.

  Clay was nearly at Dan’s house. He was feeling a bit jumpy because of Tanner’s vision. What if Dan tried to shoot him? Would mind control work? Mind control kept Jessie’s murderer from killing Clay, but it didn’t keep him from killing Jessie. Clay wondered how he could be prepared for all possibilities. What if he didn’t see Dan in time? He pulled into the driveway before Chief Hopper arrived. He paused, trying to decide if he should get out of his car or wait.

  Luke found the next street farther north and turned down it. The train was crossing that street as well, and it still was not moving. He turned his car around again and headed another street farther north.

  A sports quote from Clay’s past entered his mind while he was indecisively waiting in Dan Duncan’s driveway. “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.” Clay was admittedly a bit afraid of Duncan’s gun, but as he thought of the quote, he realized that his purpose—to find the truth and help Erika and Logan Payne—was more important than his fear, so he opened his car door and stepped out of his car. Whether Luke was there or not, it was time to confront Dan.

  As Luke turned on the next street north, he could finally see the end of the train. The train was still sitting, unmoving, across that set of tracks, as well. Luke was getting anxious. Clay might be at Dan’s house already. Wh
at Luke could see was the engine, so he knew that he could go one street farther north and cross the tracks ahead of the train. He turned his car around for the third time, and headed for the next crossing.

  Clay stepped up on Dan’s porch, took a deep breath, and rang his doorbell. There was no answer, but Dan’s car was in the driveway, so Clay patiently rang the bell again and waited.

  Luke turned down the next street and groaned in dismay. The train had begun moving forward and was now blocking that crossing as well. It was moving incredibly slowly. Luke was already three streets farther north than he needed to be. As he paused a few seconds to think, the train stopped once again. The chief was forced to decide if he wanted to risk driving another street north, hoping the train wouldn’t move again, or if he wanted to head back to the south, knowing, at least, which end was the back. He decided to head back to the south.

  Dan never answered the door. Clay didn’t know if he was being ignored or if Dan was somehow occupied; there was no way to know for sure. So Clay stepped off the porch and headed around the house to the back yard. It was a cold day, but maybe Dan was outside. As he rounded the house, his heart jumped because there was Dan with a gun in his hand. But he wasn’t aiming it at Clay; he was aiming it at a squirrel that was sitting on one of his bird feeders. “You know there are bird feeders that are squirrel-proof, Dan,” Clay said.

  Dan jumped in surprise to hear his name. He looked at Clay, first in surprise and curiosity, but then in anger. “What are you doing here?”

  “Waiting for Chief Hopper. We plan on talking to you about the night of the train wreck again. Don’t you think shooting your pistol at a squirrel is a bit dangerous?”

  “I’ve earned my certificate as a marksman. I can hit it.”