Murder at the Movies
Page 13
“He said he had to change his name. Asked me if I knew the Italian word for heaven. Paradiso. He said his father was Vincent Paradiso. The man that night a long time ago, when I… you know …”
“When you shot him,” Tretheway finished.
“In the line of duty,” Jake said.
“A policeman’s lot, Miles,” Wan Ho said.
“What became of the girl?” Addie tried to change the subject. “His sister?”
“She died at eighteen,” Terminus said. “Pneumonia. In his arms apparently. Somehow he blamed me for that too.”
“What happened then?” Tretheway persisted.
“He admitted to everything. The tricks, the pranks, the murders. Quite proud of them. From the time he stumbled across your bowler to his discovery of the Clarences’ wine casks. To the point of bragging. And he told me about the finale. The burning of Atlanta. Terminus. Me. That’s when I went after him. But he was expecting it. He was too quick. That damn sword.” He patted the still sensitive welt on the side of his head. “Knocked me out.”
“That’s when he tied you up,” Tretheway said. “And got you down to the truck.”
Terminus nodded. “He wasn’t that big, but strong. I vaguely remember the bumpy ride in the back of his truck. Under a tarp. Strong smell of gasoline. Then being hauled out. Dragged up the tracks. Every time he thought I was coming to, he whacked me with that sword. He enjoyed it too. First thing I remember half clearly is you two trying to untie me.”
“Heavenly must’ve been hiding somewhere at the bottom when we arrived,” Jake said.
Tretheway nodded. “Probably interrupted his gasoline-on-the-tracks trick.”
“Must’ve surprised the hell out of him,” Wan Ho said.
“And when we reached Miles,” Jake said, “Heavenly lit the fire. Then took off.”
“To the top,” Tretheway said. “Where the coaches were.”
“Tell me,” Addie asked. “How can one small man move a heavy railway car?”
“Leverage,” Tretheway answered.
“Pardon?” Addie asked.
“Take the wheel chocks away,” Tretheway explained. “Then inch it along with a large crowbar.”
“Easier than you think, Addie,” Jake said.
“And we found a crowbar at the scene,” Wan Ho said.
“Did he plan that?” Addie asked.
“I don’t think so,” Tretheway said. “It was out of desperation. He saw us trying to free Miles. That would ruin his whole plan. I think he went over the edge then.”
“In more ways than one,” Wan Ho said.
“He certainly underestimated the speed of the car,” Jake said.
Tretheway and Jake looked at each other. They shared a remembered moment of Neil Heavenly’s remarkable charge into the inferno.
“Well, it’s all over now,” Addie said. She smiled at Terminus. “I’m sure tomorrow will bring better things.”
Tretheway settled back in his easy chair. He opened the FY Expositor. The date on the paper was the last day of the month. Tomorrow was September 1, 1939.