Deadly Waters

by T. Alan Codder

  “Please turn off the cameras,” he asked as everyone started holding up their phones.

  “They have a right to film this!” the woman protested.

  “What’s your name?”

  “Linda.”

  “Linda, please ask them to turn off the cameras. I’d like to speak to you, in private.”

  Linda hesitated then turned to face the crowd. “Can you give us a minute? If he tries to arrest me, get that on video.”

  “I’m not arresting anyone unless you give me a reason to.” When the phones began to disappear, he nodded. “Thank you. Now, Linda, I don’t intend to hassle you, but you have to abide by some rules. If you follow the rules, you can stand out here and protest all you want, and if anyone tries to make you leave, call me and I’ll explain it to them.”

  Linda’s eyes narrowed slightly. “What rules?”

  “They’re really simple. You can’t block traffic, you can’t harass or threaten anyone, you can’t damage property and you can’t cross onto private property. In this instance, that’s anywhere inside the fence. That’s it. You follow those four simple rules, and you’re not going to have any problems from me or my officers.”

  She looked at him, her eyes narrowing even more. “You’re much more accommodating than the other guy, the chief of police.”

  He flashed her a smile. “He’s retired and I’m the new chief.”

  “So, as long as we do what you said, you don’t have a problem with us protesting?”

  “It’s a free country. So long as you abide by the laws, I can’t legally prevent you from expressing your opinion, so why try?”

  For the first time Linda smiled. “I can tell by your accent you’re not from around here. The previous chief sent his goons out to arrest some of us on bullshit charges, like inciting to riot and littering.”

  He shrugged. “So long as you’re not causing trouble, I’m not going to hassle you, but let me be very clear. You trespass, threaten, harass, or cause property damage, you’ll get to see the inside of my jail cells.”

  “What about Boyd?”

  “What about him?”

  “You’re not going to sweep this under the rug, are you, like they did with the fish kills?”

  “We don’t know that the victim is Boyd Thacker.”

  “Who else would it be? I haven’t been able to reach him and nobody has seen him in the last few days.”

  “If you can ID the deceased, that would help us a lot. Contact the Siouan County Medical Examiner’s office if you can do that, because right now, we have no confirmation on the identity of the victim. My officers are interviewing all the employees who work here and I’m here right now to collect the security video in case the cameras caught something. We’re doing everything we can to see that justice is done.”

  “Even if Boyd’s killer turns out to be a city employee?”

  “The fact the killer might work for the city holds no sway with me. We’ll follow the evidence wherever it goes.”

  Linda looked at him a moment then gave him a nod. “So long as we don’t block traffic, cross the fence, or harass anyone, you’ll leave us alone and not send your goons out to hassle us?”

  “They’re not goons,” Sean snapped, his face hardening in annoyance. “They’re officers of the law, sworn to protect you and your right to protest, so show a little respect.”

  She looked slightly chagrined. “Sorry. I just remember the last time. But your officers won’t hassle us?”

  “No.” He pulled a card from his wallet. “If you’re following the guidelines I gave you and anyone gives you any trouble, have them call me. That includes any of my officers.”

  Linda took the card and flicked it with her finger. “I’ll do that. Thank you.”

  Sean grinned. “Enjoy your protest,” he said before he turned back to his car.

  -oOo-

  Sean sauntered down Main Street, pausing to look in windows and nodding to people on the street. A weekly stroll through the downtown area was something he decided he was going to do when he took the job.

  Boston was an old city, but it had lost most of its charm as the city grew and reinvented itself. The small downtown area of Brunswick, however, still looked like something from the turn of the century. The twentieth century. The ten blocks of Main Street that composed downtown had become a collection of small mom and pop stores which sold everything from antiques to ice cream, restaurants, and professional businesses.

  This was only his second walk about, but he wanted to make his weekly strolls something the merchants could count on, and use that face time to build a closer relationship between the people of Brunswick and his department.

  It was almost one when he stepped into Big Belly Deli, the sandwich shop’s name catching his attention and making him smile. Entering the restaurant was like stepping a hundred years into the past, and he admired the antique stamped tin ceiling, rough brickwork and unfinished wood floors.

  He’d just placed his order, and had taken a table by the window, when his phone began to play its jaunty little ditty. He grimaced as he looked at the name displayed on the screen.

  “Mayor,” he said in greeting, keeping his voice low so he wouldn’t disturb other customers.

  “Sean, I just saw the news. There’s a bunch of people outside the waste treatment plant making a scene and waving signs around.”

  “I know. I spoke to them this morning. Are they still there?”

  “I don’t know, but if they are, I want you to run them off.”

  Sean sighed. “I can’t do that if they’re not breaking any laws. I explained to them what they could and couldn’t do, and they agreed to not cause trouble.”

  “Surely you can come up with something!”

  “Maybe, but why would I? They’re not hurting anything and they have the right to protest if they want to. I’ll call Maggie and find out if they’re behaving. If they are, then there isn’t anything I can do.”

  “Bill was able to break them up!”

  “Yeah, so I heard. Inciting to riot and littering? That’s what you want me to go with? Better to let them get tired and go away on their own.”

  “They’re making the city look bad!”

  “And having my officers roll in there and arrest people, people who are not hurting a thing and have the right to protest, on a bunch of trumped up charges makes the city look good?”

  “I’m starting to think we’ve made a mistake with you, Sean. You don’t seem to have the city’s best interests at heart.”

  “Mayor,” Sean said slowly, “I’m not going to harass a bunch of people just because you don’t like what they have to say. My job is to protect the people of Brunswick, including those you don’t like. If you have some evidence they’re breaking the law, get back to me, otherwise, I’m going to have to respectfully decline your request to ‘run them off.’”

  “Most of these people probably aren’t even from here!”

  “More the reason to treat the visitors to our fair city with fairness and respect, don’t you think?”

  There was a lengthy pause. “You’re not going to do anything about it?”

  “So long as they aren’t causing problems, no.”

  “I don’t think I like your attitude, Sean.”

  “I’m doing the job you hired me to do, mayor. Do you really want to go on record ordering me to harass innocent people?”

  “I’m not ordering you to do that!”

  “I didn’t think so. My lunch is ready. It’s been nice talking to you, mayor,” he said before he ended the call.

  He drummed his fingers on the table, and then dialed Maggie’s number.

  “Maggie Neese.”

  “Maggie, Sean McGhee. How are your friends at the gate?”

  “Fine. We took them coffee like you suggested. That was fun. You could tell they didn’t know what to do.” She giggled. “In fact, a little while later, they buzzed the gate and asked for a trash bag.”

  “They’re n
ot causing problems?”

  There was a short pause, probably while she stood up so she could see what they were doing.

  “No. It looks like they’re sitting in the grass eating lunch. Why?”

  “Just checking to make sure they’re following our agreement.”

  “No problems. I’m guessing they’re getting bored and will be leaving soon. At least, I hope so.”

  He grinned as he nodded to himself. “Thanks, that’s all I needed to hear.”

  Six

  “Hey, chief, got a minute?”

  “Sure, Fish, come on in. What’s on your mind?” Sean said, waving Fish into his office.

  Fish dropped into a chair. “I’m stumped. This Thacker case is kicking my ass. I can’t find anything. I was hoping you could go over it with me and see if maybe I’m missing something.”

  Sean gave him a rueful grin. “Don’t let it get you down. I’ve been in your shoes more than once. You just have to keep digging. Sure, let’s go down to the conference room so we can spread out on the table if we need to.”

  Fish flashed a quick grin. “Thanks, chief.”

  The conference room shared space in the center of the station with the dispatcher’s office, cells, and armory, while his officers shared the small offices that were spaced along the outside walls.

  They moved to the conference room and Fish dropped his case file on the table as they sat down.

  “Start at the beginning and walk me through it step by step,” Sean suggested. “Sometimes just talking about it makes you think of something.”

  “Okay. I interviewed everyone at the plant. The only person who can’t account for their whereabouts for practically every minute is Maggie.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “She lives by herself. But she didn’t key into the gate on any off-hours, so even if she did kill Thacker, that still doesn’t explain how she got him in the ditch. The only other person there might be a question about is Kevin Harbaugh. He was at the headworks during the time frame the ME estimated Thacker died.”

  “The maintenance guy?”

  “Right. The problem with him is, if he did it, he has cojones the size of basketballs. Brass ones.”

  Sean chuckled. “Why do you say that?”

  “Because I have him on video going to the headworks where Thacker was found. Makes sense, right? Thacker’s dead body was in his truck, he goes to the oxidation ditch on some routine maintenance visit, chucks the body in, and nobody’s the wiser. The thing is, his truck sat in front of the admin building for a half-hour, probably while he had lunch, right before he did. Nobody came in or out during that time, so I guess the body could have been in there, but how would he have known nobody would leave and see it?”

  Sean nodded. “I see your point.”

  “I talked to Steve Locoste. Nothing there. He loaded up and dumped just like normal. The guy who loaded the truck didn’t see anything suspicious or out of the ordinary. Let’s see… the county found Thacker’s truck and boat trailer at Riverside Park. Somebody reported it after it hadn’t moved for a couple of days.”

  “Where’s Riverside Park?”

  “About four miles outside of town. They have a campground, boat launch ramp, that sort of thing. It’s run by the county. The ME’s report didn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know or suspect. The most likely cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head before the body was dumped in the ditch. Because of the advanced decomposition he can’t be sure, but he estimated the day of death was between four and seven days before the body was found. That’s consistent with when Boyd went missing. The last confirmed meeting anyone had with him was six days before he was found, when he was on a phone call to the Waterkeepers Alliance.”

  “You pulled his phone records?”

  “Yeah. Nothing suspicious there.”

  “Did we find his phone?” Sean asked.

  “No. It might be in the ditch. No way to know unless they drain it.”

  “Can they do that?”

  “They can, but they really don’t want to. Maggie said they weren’t doing it unless Perry told them to. Apparently draining the ditch and then refilling it is a big deal and causes a lot of problems. I figured it wasn’t worth it just to find his phone.”

  “No, probably not. Did you contact the Waterkeepers Alliance?”

  “I did. Nothing. When I spoke to them, they were shocked he was dead, but they also said he wasn’t working on anything in particular. The phone call was his standard monthly report.”

  “And you don’t think Harbaugh is your man?”

  Fish shook his head. “Honestly, no. If he did it, he’s the coolest guy I’ve ever seen. I got no sense he was anything but truthful.”

  Sean pursed his lips. “This case is going nowhere.”

  “You’re telling me. The only person who came in outside their normal time was…” Fish paused as he looked through his file. “Ron Byrley. He was called in because a lift station had a high wet well alert. The operator on duty confirmed he showed up, but he also confirmed Byrley left again in his truck as soon as he arrived, and it’s all on video. He didn’t return until the next day. He said he took the maintenance truck home. I found out that’s against policy, but…” he shrugged.

  “Anything on the forensic survey?”

  Fish grinned. “Only that I never want to drive a truck that’s been at the sewer plant. The maintenance trucks, in particular, had unusually large amounts of human waste present on most surfaces. The trucks may look clean, but they’re not. Yuck. They found all kinds of stuff, including small amounts of blood residue, but nothing that could be matched to Thacker. I guess that makes sense. You work on machinery; you get cut up. Also, all the yard trucks, and the Gator, were about the same as the maintenance trucks, only slightly less disgusting. Nothing there. I also reviewed the video. People come and go all the time, but everyone logged in like they were supposed to.”

  Sean sighed. “It doesn’t sound like you’ve missed anything.”

  “I found out just this morning that yesterday someone found Thacker’s boat and motor stuck in some trees way the hell down the Siouan. The guy who reported it had seen the boat for a day or two, but thought it had just come loose and floated away, and the owner would come looking for it. After a couple of days of it being there, he pulled it out and called the police. I don’t know if it’s worth driving all the way down to Stillman to look at it or not. They said it had water in it, probably from rain, but otherwise looked perfectly normal. A life jacket with Thacker’s name on it, and a paddle, were still in it.”

  “There’s probably nothing left, but it wouldn’t hurt to check it for prints. Maybe we’ll get lucky,” Sean suggested.

  Fish nodded. “I asked them to check it, but I haven’t gotten the results.”

  “So, let me make sure I have this right,” Sean said. “Every member of the plant can account for their whereabouts except Maggie. Nobody came in during off-hours except for Byrley, and he didn’t have the opportunity to do it. Harbaugh, if he did it, left the body in the truck while it was parked in front of the admin building for a half-hour. And nobody came through the gate that was unexpected? Does that about sum it up?”

  “Pretty much.”

  Sean took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Shit.”

  Fish chuckled. “Now you know why I’m asking for help.”

  “It’s been three days since they found the body and we don’t know any more now than we did when we started. This is just what I wanted after only two weeks on the job,” Sean groused, but his tone was light and good natured.

  “I don’t know what to do with it from here.”

  “To be honest, Fish, I don’t either. It’s Friday, so maybe putting it down over the weekend will give us a fresh perspective on Monday.”

  “I hope. I don’t know what else to do with it. My gut tells me it isn’t Harbaugh, but I have no idea how it could be anyone but him.”

  Fish paused and Sean co
uld tell something was bothering him.

  “What’s up, Fish?”

  “I had vacation scheduled for next week. I suppose I can cancel it if you need me to.”

  “Oh, that’s right,” Sean replied. “No, don’t do that. Who’s covering for you?”

  “Danny and Paul.”

  Sean grimaced. Danny was a good officer but getting on up there in years. He worked the evening and graveyard shifts because his wife was a night nurse at the hospital, which would make it tough for him to work the case in Fish’s absence, and Paul was just too green and it wouldn’t be fair to him.

  “Leave your file with me. I’ll keep picking away at it while you’re gone. Maybe I can come up with something while you’re out enjoying yourself.” He smiled. “I guess I can’t expect my officers to do all the work. Where’re you going?”

  “Thanks, chief. We’re headed to Georgia to spend a few days with Laura’s parents. They bought us a crib and a few other things, so we’re going down there to pick them up.”

  “Don’t worry about it. This is a tough one. No obvious motive and no suspects. That, or too many suspects, depending on how you look at it.” Sean shook his head as his lips thinned. “I think you’ve done the best you can with the information you have available. I can’t see where you’ve missed anything. As much as I hate to admit it, sometimes the bad guys get away with it. If we don’t get a break of some kind, this may be one of those.”

  “That galls me,” Fish said, his voice hard. “My first big case and I’m left yanking on my wiener.”

  Sean chuckled. “Like I said, I’ve been in your shoes. I assume you heard about the two big cases my task force broke?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What you probably haven’t heard is the fifty or so we couldn’t solve, or hadn’t solved yet. Don’t let it get you down. Given enough time, something usually breaks… but not always. A couple of the cases we worked on had been going on for months, and some were technically active but nobody was working them because we’d run out of things to chase down.” He shrugged. “It happens.”

  “It still galls me.”

  Sean grinned. “I understand how that feels too.”