by James Ross
With a national television audience looking on, Shari dropped the ball for a one stroke penalty and chipped the ball onto the green only to see it run twenty feet past the hole. She two-putted for a double bogey.
“Now she’s six over par and only has two shots left to give away,” Trent announced.
“With eight holes to play and no birdies thus far it’s going to be tough for her to do that. Some of the tougher holes are still on the course.”
Shari fired her ball to Curt as the pair continued to the 11th tee. “That asshole. Why did he have to come around?”
“Get it together,” Curt urged. “There is always adversity on the golf course. How you deal with it is the difference between winning and losing.”
Shari missed the green on number 11 and failed to get the ball up and down to take another bogey.
“Now she has to play the final seven holes at one over par to win a million,” Trent broadcast.
“It might be time to call the RAC.”
“What in heaven’s name is that?” Trent asked.
“The Royal Automobile Club. The wheels are coming off and she needs some assistance.”
Despite the bad luck to start the back nine, Curt was doing everything in his might to settle Shari down. “Just relax. You’ve got the shots to win this thing. Settle down, make a smooth swing, and hit the middle of the green.”
Something clicked. Shari salvaged a par on number 12 and remained three over on the back with six holes to play. “That’s it,” Curt encouraged. “Hit the middle of the green and two putt. You can do it.”
The pep talk helped for two more holes but Shari bogeyed holes 15 and 17 to go five over par on the back and nine over par for the day. She and Curt strolled to the 18th tee.
“It comes down to this,” Trent Tee said.
“She hasn’t had a birdie all day but that is what it is going to take to win the SPRITZ Challenge,” Callum reminded the viewing public.
“Can she do it?”
“Whenever you have a swing anything can happen,” Callum answered. “If you play enough golf you will see it all.”
“Tell us about this hole, Callum.”
“You can see the danger,” said the Englishman.
“The lake.”
“Absolutely. The first thing she has to do is make it over the water.”
“That won’t be an easy task. How long is this hole?”
“It measures 194 yards, but she will be making the shot from an elevated tee. The hole won’t play quite that long.”
“What’s the strategy?”
“The green slopes from back to front and the sponsors have tucked the pin on the front of the green barely over the water,” Callum explained. “The green is two-tiered. What she has to do is hit the ball into the slope, have it bounce forward ten or twelve feet and spin backwards. Once the ball starts rolling down the slope it should filter to the cup.”
“Daunting to say the least.”
“If she can pull it off, that would be the Mutt’s.”
“And she’d pocket a million bucks.”
“With a one-putt that would be true.”
The pair quieted down as Shari conferred with Curt. She shook her head as he explained to her what she needed to do. He held the bag out for her to select a club.
“I like that club choice,” Callum said immediately as Shari slipped the head cover off.
“If that is her 5-wood then I would agree. With the exception of number 10 she’s been hitting it well all day.”
“What I like about the club choice is that it will take her deep enough on the green. If she can get some backspin with it the ball might get close.”
The gallery quieted as the cameras rolled. Shari swung and made fabulous contact. “Be right,” she murmured as she followed the flight of the ball.
“Get down and spin back,” Curt coaxed.
The ball hit halfway up the slope jumped forward and spun backward after losing its forward momentum.
“Watch this,” Callum said. The ball inched back toward the downward slope. “It should pick up speed.” The ball reached the top tier of the green, crept over the edge, gathered some speed and eased to within two feet from the cup as the crowd erupted.
Shari jumped three feet off the ground. She gave Curt a high-five.
“I guess we could say that was Shari’s shot to win a million bucks,” Trent exclaimed.
“It’s a mere formality now,” Callum followed. “She’ll go down, tap it in, and collect a few shillings. That’s like hitting the fruit machine at the casino.”
It was Shari’s moment. She easily tapped in the birdie putt to shoot an 8-over par 62 – just enough to win the pot. Jack Cramer and Gary Linton were all smiles. The SPRITZ publicity stunt had paid off. They had taken out an insurance policy to pay the bounty. The advertising ploy would pay off handsomely to the company and the highlight footage would play on TV at a lot of sporting events. Under a crisp blue sky they formally awarded a 3 foot by 5 foot check made to Shari Daniels-Donnelly for $1,000,000. The cameras clicked as the SPRITZ executives smiled from ear to ear.
As the crowd dispersed, Shari was jubilant as she signed autographs. After the commotion, but before she could leave the property, two men approached. The faces were familiar.
“Remember us?” Lester J asked. “Could you please step over here for a moment?”
“Sure. What’s this about?”
“You’re under arrest for first degree murder,” Bazz informed as Shari looked confused. “In a murder-for-hire scheme.”
“You must be mistaken I haven’t done anything.” That was the last comment they heard from Shari. She remembered the advice from her attorney.
“Could you put your hands forward?” Lester J asked. Shari complied.
Two Alabama law enforcement officers placed handcuffs on her wrists. The St. Louis detectives had gotten cooperation from the state. Papers had been filed to extradite Shari back to St. Louis for a formal indictment. Thank goodness they were out of the media spotlight.
Chapter Ninety-Four
For Tyler Cy there was no reason to celebrate. The charter plane trip back home did not include his wife. As for Curt? He was as perplexed as anyone. Neither fully understood the events of the last few hours.
For District Attorney Joel Sheffield and Prosecutor David Covington the legal road was going to be challenging. There was no evidence: no eyewitness, gun, phone records, and no bank records. The only item they could hang their hat on was what many would consider a coerced confession. Trying a “he said – she said” case on a limited or no amount of circumstantial evidence could damage a professional career.
The investigative duties for Lester J and Bazz would intensify.
The media in St. Louis became infatuated with the murder-for-hire theory. Newspapers, radio, and TV had a story worthy of top billing. The society pages loved the buzz about the socialite involved in a lover’s triangle.
Legal wrangling took a month. Shari missed Kara’s wedding, but Tyler Cy walked his daughter down the aisle. There were heated discussions about bond for Shari’s release. Frankie Shivetta had an opinion that he argued in front of Judge Colton Young. It was agreed that she was not a flight risk. The judge demanded a one million dollar cash bond. Her after-tax winnings from the SPRITZ challenge covered a lot of the fee and Tyler Cy put up the rest. As for the retainer, Tyler Cy had to fork over another half million bucks.
Shari’s release from jail drew a throng of reporters and cameramen. Tyler Cy’s limo driver shielded her with a blanket thrown over her head. Shari abruptly flung it out of the way and smiled for the cameras as she was whisked into the back seat. Chants of “killer” and “murderer” and “skank” rang out from the onlookers. As the driver sped to the Daniels residence, Shari quickly lit up a cigarette and began a heated diatribe against law enforcement and the courts and the jail only to be silenced quickly by Tyler Cy. “Save it for home.”
Once they got inside s
he let loose. “We’re going to sue them on this just like we did on the text message arrest.” Her civil suit against the police department and Tindra was still pending. “I’m ticked! Kara got married and I wasn’t there! I want to be compensated for missing that.”
“This is totally a different matter,” Tyler Cy replied. “Evidently they have enough evidence or they wouldn’t have arrested you.”
“How can they have that? I haven’t done anything.”
“Right now it is going to be a legal battle. We’ll let Frankie take care of it. Listen to what he has to say and don’t say a thing to anyone about this.” He gave her a reassuring hug. Tyler Cy could always think rationally and calmly while in the middle of a stressful situation. “I think that we need to meet with the divorce attorneys and put a freeze on our personal differences.”
“The divorce?”
“Yes. It is not going to do any good to be in the middle of a divorce while we prove your innocence.”
“Prove my innocence! I haven’t done anything!” A glass of Chardonnay was in her free hand now while another cigarette burned in the other.
“Like I said, calm down. Frankie will work on it. Don’t talk to anyone about this.” All he could do was repeat what he had said moments earlier and be reassuring.
Tyler Cy placed a call to Truman Stewart and Shari called Leslie Potter. Under the circumstances the parties agreed to a truce. The lawyers would slow down the process.
“I’m still divorcing you,” Shari assured her husband.
“You’ve got a mind of your own. You can do what you want. My focus right now is to keep you out of prison. I’m calling Frankie.”
Chapter Ninety-Five
Frankie Shivetta had the pulse for this sort of dilemma. His experience was on the streets and in jails talking to the dredges of society. They came in all shapes and sizes and various backgrounds. However this was the first case that dealt with self-made wealth from an affluent neighborhood that was highly publicized and included one of the country club community’s socialites.
He went to work. The time frame to trial was a little over a year. There was to be plenty of squabbling in court.
One suspect sat in jail. Rico couldn’t afford an attorney. A public defender was appointed. His bond was set too high for him to be released from the lockup. He was pissed. That wasn’t part of the deal. It was his impression that the rich cougar was to pay for his legal expenses. That was not going to happen.
Raul Mendez was sitting in jail only because Rico Avila had ratted him out. Tindra, on the other hand, cared for the home and the kids. Her attorney, Khalid Gandapur, could not help Raul because of a conflict of interest. In fact he advised Tindra not to have any communication with Raul while all of the legal maneuvering was being sorted out. His hormones raged while he sat in a cell. A fiery temper flared daily. Any contact with Shari was suppressed. Her supposed promise to handle his legal expenses was not honored.
Shari, on the other hand, put up the million bucks to get out of jail, wore an ankle bracelet, lived in luxury, drove around town in her Jag, didn’t miss a tee time, and continued an alternative lifestyle with newfound friends. When Congresswoman Lisa Boudreau was questioned about her association with Shari Daniels-Donnelly her response was, “You’re innocent until proven guilty.” In reality she was infatuated by her new acquaintance. And Shari knew how to play her cards.
Frankie loved the juice that came with his sudden celebrity and issued an ultimatum to Shari. She was to cease all communication with Raul. She followed orders. It would only be a year and the duo could make up for lost time once this minor inconvenience, as Shari put it, was over.
Frankie’s next act was to separate the three suspects in court. He argued that Rico, Raul, and Shari had three unique circumstances and could not be tried together. The judge ruled that all would be granted a separate court date.
Since Rico was the admitted triggerman, he was to go first. The public defender was successful getting the written confession suppressed in court. Rico had been kept awake for an extended period of time even after his Miranda rights had been read to him. Whether or not they were still in effect after they were read to him a second time as he was led in and out of the interrogation room and in for a polygraph was the sticky point that the judge had to rule on.
Lester J and Bazz weren’t that concerned about the final decision because the information that Rico provided put them on the right path in their investigation. They gathered enough circumstantial evidence that was admissible in court. Rather than go through a lengthy trial that might give Rico the death penalty, the parties settled out of court. The prosecutor honored the deal that had been agreed upon at the time of the confession. Rico accepted a second degree murder charge for his role in the murder-for-hire scheme and he agreed to testify at Raul’s trial as well as Shari’s. He received a twenty-two year sentence.
Rico’s mouth ultimately sealed his fate. Twenty-two years wasn’t such a bad deal for the triggerman. However he often wondered what would have happened had he gone to trial and not admitted his involvement to Lester J and Bazz. Before he got done talking, he implicated Raul Mendez as the person who had recruited him and paid him in the scheme. Had Tindra known that Raul was the courier in the plot she may have thought twice about turning Rico’s name over to authorities.
One trial down. Two to go.
A year had passed. It was Raul’s turn. He, too, had a public defender. The jury was seated, but another problem existed. Even though the confession was suppressed, Rico was called to testify and he identified everyone’s role in the scheme. Testimony from a jailhouse snitch could be taken two ways by a jury. Lester J and Bazz, led by the information they had gathered from Rico, produced bank records and phone records for the prosecutor. They also found a security camera at the storage facility that showed Raul renting the unit in Shari’s name.
The evidence was circumstantial, but at the end of the day Raul had to have a gut reaction as to what the jury would decide. The facts of the trial went to the jury. In a few hours they would determine his fate. He was nervous. There was a very real possibility that he would be sentenced to a lengthy stay in prison on a second degree murder charge. His anxiety prompted a call from his lawyer to the prosecutor. A plea bargain had been placed on the table. The parties agreed to it. A lengthy stay in prison was off the table for Raul and the uncertainty of a jury decision was off the table for the prosecutor. A guilty plea to a second degree murder charge with 16 years behind bars was accepted. Raul’s time was less because he was not the triggerman.
Raul also agreed to testify at Shari’s trial. Tindra wept.
Chapter Ninety-Six
All the regulars were together at Prairie Winds. “Can you believe what’s going on in that murder-for-hire trial?” Fred asked to no one in particular.
“You were with her, Curt. You walked 18 holes with her. Is she capable of orchestrating that plan?”
“I don’t see how. Not once did she indicate that she was involved with anything but winning the million bucks.”
“She’s a selfish bitch,” Captain Jer stated. He was on his second six-pack.
“Oh, cut it out,” Julie said. “You’re still mad that she twisted off the bottle cap and you didn’t get a chance to win the money.”
“I am not.”
“It really doesn’t matter,” Pork Chop said. “He wouldn’t have been able to shoot his handicap anyway.”
“Yeah,” Elias followed. “You haven’t done it all season.”
“At least I would have had the opportunity to try,” Captain Jer followed.
“You wouldn’t have been able to play eighteen holes without a beer,” BT chided.
“Yeah, can you imagine Jer only drinking that SPRITZ water on the course?” Paco said.
“I’ve known him forever,” Trot said. “He would have had to sneak some vodka into it to make it through the round.”
“Hey, Jer. When was the last time you walked eighte
en holes?” Julie asked.
“Years ago on the miniature golf course,” Paul said as the guys laughed.
“He can barely make it from the green to the tee box without staggering,” Pork Chop added.
“Let’s get back to the point,” Captain Jer said as he downed half a beer and got things back to the original topic. “Did she do it?”
“It sounds like she fronted the money. At least that is what the one guy is saying.”
“It isn’t going to bring 2Dix back. Hadn’t she already twisted off the bottle cap? She was over here practicing when he was shot, wasn’t she?”
“Yeah.”
“Where did she get the money?”
“I don’t think that has ever been a problem. She and her husband were members at Olde Blueblood.”
“She’s an uppity, rich bitch,” Captain Jer said, “and narcissistic to boot. I guarantee you she did it.”
“I can’t believe that she would jeopardize her future by having someone killed.”
“She was having an affair with 2Dix. We all know what he was like.”
“That lucky bastard. He was getting a piece of that for all those years and never leaked a word about it,” Fred said.
“And look what happened to him. I wouldn’t call that lucky,” Pork Chop replied.
“Yeah, she wanted him dead,” Captain Jer said, “and didn’t have the guts to pull the trigger herself. She’s a bitch.”
“Back off, Jerry,” Julie said. “We all know how you feel about her.”
“I’m sure the detectives feel the same way,” the ex-pilot followed. “They know what happened.”
“Heck,” J Dub said, “she’s been over here playing with the ladies on Tuesday mornings and acting like nothing has taken place.”
“She had to put up her SPRITZ winnings plus more for the privilege,” Captain Jer commented.
“Regardless of whether or not she did it, her trial is coming up. It ought to be an interesting few weeks,” J Dub said. “We should have a daily recap on the news.”
