by Albert Simon
The car passed close to the towers as they bounced over the carriage wheels. Henry supposed someone could jump onto the moving car from the tower but that would require a brave fool to climb one of the five towers which was unlikely. Henry remembered from the exhibit in the station that only one was accessible by anything other than the tram or a helicopter. Once on the tower, if climbing up it were possible, the killer would have had to leap onto the roof of the car as it was going by. The tram car was probably going close to twenty miles an hour Henry figured, could it have been accomplished? Certainly that would be an extremely dangerous feat in the daytime, but it had been dark on the ride down when Quinn was murdered. Not likely, Henry thought.
Gloria was quiet and she watched Henry looking around the car and at the towers as they made their way down. As the last tower and the Valley Station came into view she finally spoke and asked him quietly. “Did you figure out how the killer did it?”
“I think so.” Henry answered.
“Well, was it Spiderman?” Gloria looked at him and smiled.
Henry was still focused and ignored the joke. “No, it is Todd Gregory, he’s the only one that had the opportunity to do it when the car came into the station. We need to figure out where he is and find him.”
“Henry this is a little different than the usual case you work on isn’t it? Gloria asked.
“How so?” Henry asked looking at her.
“Well in the other cases you’ve worked on you figure out who did it and there is no problem bringing them in for questioning. This time, you’ve figured out who did it, but now you have to figure out where he is.” She put her arm around him and gave him a hug. “You get very serious and focused when you are studying a problem like you just did. I find it very attractive.”
“I do? I guess I do. I was trying to picture Quinn on the ride down and trying to feel what he felt like to see how he was murdered and who might have done it.” Henry said, he looked at Gloria again and this time he really saw her for the first time since the car left the Mountain Station. “Charles is gone and we have enough time to go home and swim in the pool before we have to get ready for Wayne and Elliot’s. Are you up for it?”
“Hmmm, a swim sounds like a great way to start, let’s go.” Gloria smiled her big smile again.
The car stopped at the Valley Station and they walked out of the gondola into the building and headed for the door. As soon as they opened the station’s exit the one hundred plus temperature hit them like a wall of heat. They laughed as they struggled to quickly pull off their sweaters.
Henry opened the car door for Gloria and another blast of even hotter air hit them again. Henry told Gloria not to get in yet and he walked around to the driver’s side so that he could start the car and let the air conditioner run to cool off the interior before driving off. As he carefully slid onto the seat so as not to burn himself, Gloria was already in the car and said she wanted to hurry home so that they could cool off by jumping into the pool’s refreshing water. Henry started the car and opened all the windows and turned the air conditioner up to high while they headed down the mountain.
They drove back to Mel Avenue and though Henry parked on the driveway, he used the opener to raise the garage door and they walked through the garage towards the kitchen. Gloria looked over her shoulder gave him a grin and told him that the last one in the pool was a rotten egg. They both had a giggling fit as they left a trail of clothing on the floor from the garage, through the kitchen, through the French doors and into the backyard. They jumped into the pool together and were soon enjoying themselves and each other in the refreshing water.
Chapter 8
By four-thirty that afternoon they were heading east on Interstate 10 towards Indio. Henry explained that despite Wayne’s modest salary as a Palm Springs police captain, the Johnson’s lived in a very large architecturally designed home on the golf course in Indio. Elliot’s father, Eugene, had been a contractor and developed the golf course and community that they now lived in. Then Eugene passed away about ten years ago and when Elliot’s mother moved into a nursing home a few years later, Wayne and Elliot moved into the house.
When her mother passed away six months after moving out of her home, Elliot inherited the house as part of her estate. At times Wayne and Elliot were embarrassed by the grandness of their place and they didn’t often entertain, though the home was certainly suited for it. Henry told her he stayed with them for a couple of weeks when he first moved to the Coachella Valley, but decided he wanted to live in the older part of Palm Springs rather than in Indio. The Johnson’s were good friends and helped him get his feet on the ground when he was still in a fog after Irma’s sudden passing.
They arrived at the house and Wayne and Elliott came out to the driveway to greet them. Elliot hugged Gloria as she got out of the car and she felt at ease right away. They brought in the wine that Henry had bought at Jensen’s and went into the house. Elliot gave Gloria a tour of the house while Wayne got two beers out of the refrigerator and took Henry to the patio to light the barbecue.
“You are one lucky man Henry Wright, Gloria is a beautiful woman.” Wayne said as the sliding glass door closed behind them.
“I am lucky, she is beautiful and wait until you get to know her better, you’ll see that her beauty comes from the inside.” Henry smiled as he took a sip of the cold beer.
“I’m very happy for both of you; I think you really deserve someone special in your life. You probably have not had much time to help me out. How are you doing on the investigation?” Wayne asked.
“I actually have done quite a bit of work. You need to find Todd Gregory.” Henry replied taking a slow sip of the beer. It was hot outside even though Wayne had turned on the misters that sprayed a fine mist of water over the patio and cooled the space off by ten or fifteen degrees. The misting systems were popular in town as well, the water evaporated in the desert heat before it hit the ground and felt good as you walked through its fine droplets.
“Believe me, we’re looking everywhere for him. Have you had any luck spotting his Jeep around town?” Wayne asked.
“No, but I’ll admit that I haven’t been looking for it real hard the past two days either.” Henry smiled.
“I don’t think he’s in town anymore, I think he’s long gone, by now he’s somewhere in Mexico.” Wayne opened the lid to the large stainless steel barbecue as he got ready to turn on the propane gas.
“I think he is either with his father or maybe he went back to Las Vegas.” Henry said.
“I know he’s not with his father. He’s an only child, so he’s not hiding with siblings. We’ve checked his friends – nothing. Las Vegas, I suppose that’s a possibility? That’s where you said he and Quinn went on their little trip. Do you think he knows someone there?” Wayne closed the barbecue lid once he was satisfied that the igniter lit the gas.
“I don’t know. I’m going over to talk to his mother tomorrow. I was thinking of asking Gloria to come with me. Perhaps his mother will open up to her. Why do you say that you know he’s not with his father? I think that he went some place that he knows and where he is comfortable.” Henry stood at the edge of the patio looking over the low fence at the golf course and the rest of the Coachella Valley beyond it. Elliot’s father had picked the best location in the entire development to build his own house; this sure was a spectacular setting.
“I knew you were going to ask me about that, he definitely didn’t go to his father’s.” Wayne pulled his note pad out of the pocket of his Hawaiian shirt. “Let’s see, Greg and Cherie Gregory were divorced eight years ago. The father was a career Marine out at the Twenty Nine Palms base until three years ago when he was killed in a car accident on highway sixty-two near Yucca Valley.” Wayne looked up from his notes at Henry. “That’s why I could say with certainty that he didn’t go to his father’s house.”
“He could have gone up to the area around the base, he’s probably familiar with it.” Henry interrupted.<
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“I’m already on that. We figured that young Todd Gregory was familiar with the whole Twenty-Nine Palms area so we asked the Sheriff’s deputies that patrol there as well as the base MP’s to keep an eye out for his Jeep. So far they have turned up nothing. I’m telling you, he’s most likely in Mexico by now.” Wayne was standing next to Henry at the edge of the patio watching some late afternoon golfers finish up their games.
“So Todd was eleven when his parents were divorced, and sixteen when his father was killed. Those are tough ages to deal with the trauma of divorce and death.” Henry shook his head. “Tell me more about Greg Gregory.” Henry said.
“Not much to tell. He enlisted in the early eighties during the recession when there were no jobs. Stayed in the service, and made it a career. He was an instructor, firearms according to my notes. Even though his legal name was Greg Gregory, everyone called him Dos. You know, Spanish for two, because he had the same first name as his last name.”
Henry took the beer bottle from his lips as he was about to take a drink. “Why do people do that to their kids? I went to elementary school with a kid named Sandy Klaus. I tell you, parents have no idea what they put their kids through. So, Dos Gregory was a firearms instructor?”
“Yep, that’s what my notes say. I had a telephone conversation with his former commanding officer. Small arms, handguns mostly. Not the heavy stuff that they usually practice with out there in the desert. More like .45 caliber automatics and some NATO weapons. I didn’t go into too much detail looking into his background, though I have asked his former CO to send me a copy of his file. Then there was some problem with visitation for Todd between him and Cherie and apparently his commander got involved. As a result he didn’t see Todd a whole lot, I’m not sure if it has any bearing on the investigation.”
“You don’t suppose he left his kid a .38 special do you?” Henry asked.
“I doubt it. That’s not a standard military weapon, us cops have a lot of them, but the Marines don’t.”
“Speaking of weapons, my barber, Mario, suggested we check out the gun shows to see if you can trace the .38 there.” Henry said taking another sip of beer.
Wayne raised an eyebrow. “I know Charles helps you think things through with your research. I can only assume that you talk with Gloria about what you find out, but now your barber is helping you investigate this murder?”
“Well, no it’s not the way it sounds. I was in for a haircut yesterday morning and he accused me of being the independent consultant that the police had called in for help according to the newspaper. I didn’t quite admit it, but he suggested we check out the gun shows. I thought that since you weren’t getting anywhere with the dealers in the Valley that I’d mention it. It’s not like I’m going around town asking every Tom, Dick and Harry for help.” Henry took another sip of beer, he wanted to go in and see how Gloria was doing.
“I guess I shouldn’t complain. It doesn’t really matter if you talk with Tom, Dick, Harry and Mario. We need to figure out who did this.” Wayne finished his beer and said. “Are you ready to go in and see how the girls are doing?”
“Yes, I was just thinking that. Todd Gregory committed the murder; there is no other physical way that the murder could have taken place. When I called you yesterday, I thought that maybe Robert had killed his partner. I haven’t ruled that out yet, but I think our young man is the most likely person. I think for some reason – maybe something happened during their little trip to Las Vegas – he was mad at Quinn and shot him as the tram arrived at the station and he opened the door. Then he could have easily changed his clothes before you guys got there and then put on the upset and hysterical act. He either ditched the weapon that evening or he still has it. Let’s make finding him our number one priority, and you should probably update that APB that he is most likely armed, if he still has the murder weapon.”
“Ok, I’ll make a phone call.” Wayne said.
Henry opened the sliding glass door and they went back inside the house where it was at least twenty degrees cooler than outside.
Elliot and Gloria were in the open kitchen laughing and making a salad. When the sliding door opened they both looked up, Elliot said. “Hey, were you guys out there checking on the golfers?”
“No, I told you they were catching up on their murder investigation. Look at how serious they both are.” Gloria said.
“I have to make a phone call, I’ll be right back.” Wayne said as he walked towards the back of the house where his office was.
“It looks like the two of you are getting along well.” Henry smiled.
The two women looked at one another and started laughing again. “It turns out that Elliot dated a boy in my high school during my junior prom. We almost met each other nearly forty years ago!” Gloria laughed.
“I didn’t know you grew up in San Diego, Elliot.” Henry said.
“Oh yeah! We lived there while I was in high school. Daddy had a contract to build housing for the Navy in San Diego so that’s where we were for five years.” Elliot explained with a vegetable peeler in one hand and a large zucchini in the other.
“We both agree that our dates and the prom was a washout. We’re much better off today than we were then.” Gloria laughed and her eyes sparkled as she looked at Henry.
Henry smiled back and put his empty beer bottle on the counter. “What are you two drinking?”
“Margaritas, we made plenty, would you like one?” Elliot asked.
“Sure, I’d love one. I can pour it myself; it looks like you two are busy with the salad.” Henry came around the counter and into the kitchen. He grabbed a glass from one of the upper cupboards and poured himself a small margarita from the blender on the counter. “I’m glad you haven’t moved your dishes around since I stayed here, I like knowing my way around.” Henry smiled.
“These cupboards were set up by my mother when she moved in here. I think I’d be more confused than you if I moved the dishes around now.” Elliot smiled.
“Geez, can you imagine you move all your stuff around and then you want a glass but reach for a pot instead?” Gloria started laughing, at which Elliot looked at her and started giggling.
“Like I said, I’m glad that you two are getting along.” Henry smiled at the two women.
“I feel like you’ve reintroduced me to an old friend.” Elliot laughed. “Thank you.”
Wayne came walking back into the room. “Henry, I upgraded the APB to say that Gregory is armed. Since we both agree that he might be out in the Twenty Nine Palms area, I’ve alerted the Riverside County Sheriff, since they patrol out there. What is all the laughter about out here, and yes, thank you for asking, I’d love a margarita as well.” He said sarcastically.
“I’ll pour it for you.” Still laughing with Elliot, Gloria said reaching into the cupboard for a glass.
“Apparently, the girls went to high school together in San Diego.” Henry explained.
“No, no, no, you have it all wrong. We went to two different high schools in San Diego, but I went to Gloria’s prom with a boy from her high school.” Elliot explained.
“Yeah, we could have met at my prom, dancing the night away.” Gloria came around the counter and handed Wayne his margarita. She put an arm around Henry and said. “But we’ve already established that we’re both much better off today than with our high school prom dates.”
Wayne looked over the top of his glass as he sipped the slushy drink. “Well, I’m certainly glad to hear that.”
“It would be kind of nice to see you in a letterman sweater and a DA haircut though.” Elliot said to Wayne.
Wayne ran a hand over his balding head and replied. “I’d wear a letterman’s sweater for you if I could have enough hair to comb it into a DA!”
Henry and Wayne sat on the stools at the other side of the kitchen counter and Gloria went back to help Elliot prepare the salad. “On a more serious note, is Gloria going to assist you investigating this Tramway slaying Henry?” Ell
iot looked at Henry.
“Well, we rode up to the top of the tramway this morning, so I guess you can say that she’s already been helping me.”
“I don’t mind going along and doing what I can. I wish I could have done more when Henry was helping out Sheriff Bill Rustow a few months ago up in Tuolumne County.” Gloria said.
“Oh, you were a big help at that time. You kept saying don’t look inside that mine for a motive and it turned out you were right.” Henry was quick to credit Gloria, she actually had sort of steered him on the right path, knowingly or not.
“You know, you have quite a team assembled here Henry. Gloria can help you out with intuitive suggestions, Charles has a perspective on things that are helpful and let’s not forget Mario.” Wayne chuckled as he finished his sentence.
“Mario? Who is Mario?” Elliot asked.
Henry laughed as well; he didn’t mind his friend ribbing him a bit. “Mario is my barber. I went for a haircut yesterday morning and Mario said something reasonable that I passed along to Wayne. Now he thinks Mario is part of my investigative team.”
