“That’s a crock,” Chuck said from the safety of his recliner. “Whoever heard it called Zoe-ol-ogy. She’s as much a game warden as me. She can’t even pronounce zoo-ol-ogy?”
Julie couldn’t help but smile and reached into her purse. “I’ve got my badge in here somewhere,” she said and made a show of dropping a few things on the floor. We didn’t know how to make it seem natural when we cooked up our plan the day before. Chuck made it so easy for us.
“Is that an epipen?” Shelia asked when she saw Julie pick up the injector I had borrowed from Sherry the dog catcher.
“So that’s what it is,” Julie answered. “Jake’s dog found it and Jake gave it to me thinking a poacher might have dropped it. My purse can be a bottomless pit sometimes. I’d completely forgotten about it.”
“What the hell is a hippy pen?” Chuck asked.
“Epipen, Chuck. It’s for people with severe allergies,” Shelia answered. “You inject yourself with ephedrine when you get stung by a bee or eat peanuts. Carlos is always losing his. I wonder if it’s his?”
Margot seemed to be getting impatient and broke in, “Maybe Jake can tell us more when he tells you why he’s here. Bonnie says he has something to tell us.”
Bonnie stopped dead and turned around to look at me with guilty eyes. She hadn’t gone two feet toward the kitchen. “I’m sorry, Jake. She is my sister,” she said while giving Margot a nasty look; it was the kind of look sister’s share when they’re not happy with one another for telling secrets.
“Just get this bullshit over with, will you. Saturday’s are my busiest day. I should be at the dealership instead of listening to whatever pathetic plea you have.” Chuck said, staring me in the eyes. A cold stare would be an understatement. His eyes were so dark I couldn’t see what color they were. Bonnie started to protest, but Margot nudged her with a foot to stop her, so she left for the kitchen without a word.
Chuck didn’t seem to notice. He didn’t wait for me or anyone else to answer. “And if you think you can get me to back off with some stupid plea for mercy, you’ve got another think coming.”
Reverend Johnson didn’t give me a chance to answer Chuck. “I must say, I’m a little put out too, Jake. Shelia and I really have much better things to do today. We only stayed because Margot insisted, so please say what you need to so I can get back to preparing tomorrow’s sermon.”
“Well put, Reverend,” Chuck said. He was trying to get up, but the cushions were too soft for his mass. He finally sat back down when no one offered to help him.
He looked over at me with contempt and said, “So say what you came for so we can all go.”
Bonnie came back with the cookies before I could answer Chuck. She gave Chuck a not-too friendly look and put the cookies on the coffee table without a comment.
Julie saw her chance and picked up the plate, offering Carlos the first one. “I made these myself, Carlos. I hope you like chocolate.”
The boy seemed to hesitate, looking at the reverend for approval. Johnson nodded okay and the cookie was gone in a second. “Can I have another?” he asked the pastor.
Once again, Reverend Johnson nodded, but added, “One more. You need to save some for the other guests.”
Julie set the plate on the table for the others to help themselves. Chuck turned up his nose at them when Shelia offered him one before taking one for herself.
“Well,” Chuck said. “If everyone is done stuffing their faces, I’d like to hear Mister Martin’s earth shattering announcement.”
“These are really good,” Shelia said as though Chuck wasn’t in the room. “What is your recipe, Julie?”
“It’s an old family secret. We use a full cup of peanut butter in every batch.”
Reverend Johnson spit out his coffee and grabbed a half eaten cookie from Carlos. “You said they were chocolate!” he yelled. “Why didn’t you tell me they had peanut butter?”
Shelia looked like a vampire just drained her blood. “Give me that pen. Quick!” she yelled.
Julie handed her the epipen. This time she didn’t have to fumble. Our plan called for an instant reaction.
Johnson grabbed the pen from Shelia before she could inject Carlos. “Don’t use that one. You’ll kill him.”
Everyone became so quiet; you could hear a woodpecker outside pounding a tree for his dinner.
The scene was playing out better than I could have possibly hoped, but it was time to break the news. “Don’t worry, Reverend. Carlos will be fine. There’s no peanut butter in the cookies, and that isn’t your injector. The police have that one,” I said. “They’re checking for prints and analyzing the contents as we speak.” The last part was pure fiction. I needed to convince the reverend we were on to him.
Reverend Johnson put his elbows on his legs and his face in his hands. “I’m not sorry. He was an evil man who wouldn’t leave us alone. When Shelia moved in with me and he couldn’t beat her anymore, he threatened to tell the congregation about my past. He would have ruined everything.”
“Shut up, Daddy!” Shelia yelled at the reverend. “He can’t prove any of this.”
“You’re forgetting about the injector, Shelia,” I said. “I’m sure they will find the reverend’s prints on it and the fact it wasn’t filled with ephedrine.”
Johnson raised his head and looked up at Shelia. “It’s okay, Baby. I couldn’t live with the guilt much longer. I’m glad Jake figured it out.” Then he turned to me. “How did you know, Jake?”
Julie slipped into the kitchen to call for backup when all eyes were on me to answer. “The epipen; you can thank Charlie for that. He’s been trying to crucify me ever since the accident. He’s harassed me with lawsuits, criminal charges and even dog catchers. The dog catcher was his downfall. She carried an epipen just like yours. I knew Lonnie couldn’t have died from first and second degree burns, but didn’t realize he was poisoned until I saw her injector and then I remembered you had one just like it. I already knew about Shelia being your daughter. You’re not the first father who killed to protect his children.”
I paused long enough for everyone else to grasp what I had said, then continued, “What did you use anyway, Reverend?”
Johnson actually smiled. “Aconitine, I extracted from wolfsbane. The mountain meadows are covered with it.”
Shelia stared at me then started to cry. “The bastard wouldn’t leave us alone,” she said between sobs. “Beating me wasn’t enough. He said he’d tell I was driving the Corvette if I didn’t move back in with him.”
Bonnie looked like she’d seen a ghost. “Lonnie wasn’t driving?”
“No. He was too drunk and made me drive. I didn’t even have my license yet. I’m so sorry, Bonnie.”
“Oh my God,” Bonnie said and sat down. “I killed the wrong person.”
Once more we could all hear the woodpecker. His pecking didn’t last nearly as long this time before I cut in. “No, Bon Bon. It was the reverend. Peanut oil is nearly harmless unless it’s ingested. The oil you put in the Bactine couldn’t be absorbed in sufficient quantities to kill even the most allergic.”
She looked at me in horror. “You knew about the Bactine?”
I simply nodded my head. I had planned on telling her when we were alone. Now everyone knew she tried to kill Lonnie.
Chuck spoke before I could continue. “Reverend Johnson is your father?” he asked Shelia. “You said I was your father! You even showed me the birth certificate!” For the first time since I met him, I was thankful Chuck had bad manners. Not that anyone would soon forget Bonnie’s confession.
“I’m sorry, Charlie,” Shelia answered. “It was Lonnie’s idea. He made the phony birth certificate when he found out about you and my mother’s engagement.” she answered and started crying again.
“Was that before or after he tried blackmailing me?” Chuck asked.
“Lonnie was blackmailing you?” Margot asked. Her eyes had become as dark as Chuck’s. “What on earth for?”
&
nbsp; Chuck answered like she was one of his employees who had just scratched the paint on a showroom car. “That’s none of your damn business, but before Jake goes running off his mouth, it had nothing to do with any of this. Lonnie was always looking for a way to make a buck without working for it. He got what he deserved.”
“It was probably the fragging, Margot,” I said. Chuck was right, it had nothing to do with Lonnie’s murder, but I couldn’t help myself.
“And if my guess is right, Johnson is also Carlos’ grandfather,” I said to Chuck before turning toward Johnson.
“I’m sorry, Reverend. Julie had you checked out after I read about you in Ray’s book. You aren’t his foster parent. The county would never give a child to an ex-con.”
Julie turned away from the conversation and went to the front door. No one seemed surprised when she let in two uniformed cops and a detective.
In contrast to the trip down a few hours earlier, the girls hardly spoke on the way back up the mountain. When Julie wasn’t dozing off, her mind seemed to be elsewhere. The doctors had warned us this might happen, so I let her rest while trying to keep my answers to Bonnie’s questions short.
“How did you know about the Corvette, Jake?” Bonnie asked.
“I did some digging after you gave me those clippings on the hit and run. I found one of the witnesses and she told me it was a Daytona Blue Corvette that ran over Diane. I did some more snooping and found Jonathan’s vette had been repainted and its original color was, you guessed it, Daytona Blue.” I stopped talking long enough to check on Julie.
“Jonathan came clean and told me the car was owned by Lonnie’s uncle up in Fort Collins, and that he borrowed it the night of Diane’s hit and run,” I said once I saw Julie was sound asleep. “When his uncle died last year, Lonnie got the car and promptly sold it to Jonathan.”
“Do you think anyone will press charges against me?” Bonnie asked. Her gaze was fixed on the passing scenery. It was like she was asking someone outside the car.
“I doubt it, Bon. What proof would the DA have if he did decide to go after you? Just make sure you get rid of that Bactine bottle when you get home.”
“I already did, Jake. I already did.”
I should have been feeling great. I just solved a murder case and a twenty year old manslaughter case and was about to break up a poaching ring, but the two women who meant the most to me were far from cheerful.
I let Bonnie off at her place and then drove up to my cabin with Julie. Jonathan was waiting for us on my porch. Luckily, Julie’s nap had given her the energy she needed to finish my nightmares.
“Hello, Jonathan. Have you met Officer Bartowski?” I said after we joined him.
“You sure I’ll remain anonymous?” he said to Julie.
“Scouts honor,” she said without raising her hand, or offering it for a handshake.
“Come on in, Jon. Let’s go on the back deck and have a warm beer,” I said while opening my front door.
Fred didn’t give me his usual greeting. He didn’t even go outside. I guess he wasn’t about to leave me unprotected. Jonathan and I went out to the back deck with Fred while Julie followed.
I took three beers from my beer cooler. I opened one for Julie and passed it on to Jonathan when she waved it off, then opened one for myself.
“How’d you know it was Chuck?” Jon asked after taking a long drink.
I followed his lead and took a drink too before answering. “To be honest, after Alec confessed, I thought the case was closed, but the fact that Mario was working for him when Mario had about the same salesman skills as an offshore telemarketer got me to thinking there was more to it. My dog speaks better English.
“I knew whoever planted the bow was a roofer for he left a huge smear of tar on my motor home when he put your bow under my bed. At first I thought it was you, but you never get your hands dirty. Chuck put Mario up to the poaching as a way to finance the meth operation. When the law was getting too close, he had Mario plant your bow to frame me, and then left a tip on the hotline on where to find it.”
“No way is that hypocrite my father or I wouldn’t be doing this. Real fathers don’t ignore their children for thirty-five years and only try to make amends when they think the end is near,” Jonathan said while taking a folded piece of paper from his pocket and sliding it across the table. “Here’s my statement. In writing and signed like you asked.”
Then he turned to Julie. “When will I get that reward, Miss Barkowsky?”
“Bartowski, with a tee,” she answered.
The last time I’d seen her so business like, she had me in handcuffs.
“Sorry,” Jon said. “Did you bring it with you?”
She surprised me and slid Jonathan a piece of paper. “This is your code. You’ll need it to collect the reward if we get a conviction.”
Jonathan smiled at her wickedly. “Oh, you’ll get the conviction okay, and I hope you take down that pompous ass.”
Epilogue
I had to find a place away from the crowd where I could let Fred out so I chose an overlook far from the Grand Canyon’s visitor center.
It had been nearly a year before Jonathan got his reward. Unfortunately, Charlie Randolph didn’t. Mario confessed to the poaching and being Alex’s meth partner, but there was no hard evidence to prove Chuck had bankrolled the operation and his lawyers got him off without so much as a reprimand. Mario relied on the public defender and got twenty years in Sterling.
Julie would have received a commendation for her work if she had lived. Her cancer made a ferocious comeback soon after we married. Except for potty breaks, Fred never left her side the entire time. I know, because I didn’t either.
Fred seemed to know it was Julie’s ashes we were spreading in the soft breeze. He actually had tears in his eyes.
[To Die For 02] - A Book to Die For (2014) Page 18
