Murder in Madden

by Raegan Teller

  “Enid here, she’s a writer,” Molly said to Rachel.

  Rachel smiled. “That’s nice. I mean it’s nice to have an exciting career.”

  “What do you do, Rachel? Do you work?” asked Enid.

  Rachel nodded. “At the convenience store.” Rachel stared at the green peas on her plate and rolled them around with her fork. “Sometimes I do volunteer work with the vet over in Camden, as an assistant.” She looked up briefly. “I love animals.”

  Molly offered to refill Enid’s glass. “No thanks, I’m good.” said Enid. She still hadn’t adjusted to drinking the sugary sweet iced tea everyone seemed to drink in Madden.

  During the rest of the meal, Molly and Enid talked about how Madden was changing. Occasionally, Rachel would join in for a brief comment. Molly was particularly concerned that family values were not what they used to be.

  When Molly announced she was going to get dessert from the kitchen, Rachel excused herself. “I’m sorry, but I need to go. Got a busy day tomorrow.”

  Molly looked disappointed but smiled. “I’m so glad you came tonight, honey. Don’t be a stranger.”

  After Rachel left, Molly said, “Sometimes I wish she was still a little girl. Don’t get to see her much anymore.” She handed Enid a huge slice of coconut meringue pie. “Here you go. My auntie’s recipe. You’ll love it.” Enid thought about Fern’s secret-recipe coconut cake.

  While Enid was helping Molly clear the table, she asked, “Wasn’t Rachel a close friend of Rosie’s?”

  Molly looked up suddenly. “Why do you ask?”

  “I’m looking into Rosie’s life, for the story I’m writing about her, and I wondered if Rachel might be able to provide some details?”

  Molly set the stack of plates in the sink. “I’d rather you not talk to her about Rosie. That girl was trouble. God bless her soul. It was a tragedy what happened to her, but she put herself in a bad situation.”

  Enid threw the paper napkins in the trash can by the kitchen door. “I don’t want to cause any problems, and I’m not defending Rosie’s behavior. But if I tell her story, perhaps it could at least serve as a cautionary tale for other young women.”

  Molly put the glasses in the dishwasher. “Rosie is best forgotten. Let her rest in peace.”

  Enid and Molly worked in silence, except for a few polite comments about the weather and other trivial topics until the kitchen was clean. Afterwards, Enid retrieved her tote bag from the hall. “I want to thank you for a lovely meal. It was nice to meet a friend of Rosie’s.”

  Molly showed her to the door. “I hope you don’t feel I’m not being Christian when it comes to Rosie. No matter what, she was God’s child, and I’ll be glad to help you any way I can. It’s the least I can do for that poor girl.” She then added, “But leave Rachel out of it.”

  CHAPTER 15

  Enid was driving on the state road back to the inn when she saw headlights in her rearview mirror. She slowed to let the car pass, but it stayed behind her. When Enid sped up, the car did too. Headlights flashed in her mirror. The car pulled beside her and Enid recognized Rachel behind the wheel. She motioned for Enid to follow her.

  Enid drove behind Rachel until they pulled into an Exxon station near the edge of town. She followed Rachel inside to a snack bar at the back. No one else was there. Rachel sat at one of the tables and brushed crumbs off with the back of her hand. Enid sat across from her.

  “Didn’t mean to scare you any,” said Rachel.

  “Well, I’d be lying if I said you didn’t. Why did you follow me?”

  Rachel squirmed in her seat and looked down at her hands in her lap. “I wanted to talk to you, but I didn’t want Mama to know.”

  Enid put her tote bag on the seat beside her. “Is this about Rosie?”

  Rachel nodded.

  “Your mother made it clear she didn’t want me talking to you about her.”

  “Mama knows I’m still upset about Rosie’s death. She’s just trying to protect me.” Rachel paused. “Rosie wasn’t what everybody says she was.”

  “Then why don’t you tell me about her.”

  Rachel glanced at the front door of the building. “Can’t nobody know I talked to you.”

  “It’ll be our secret. I can identify you as a confidential source.” Enid reached into her tote for a pen and writing pad. “May I take a few notes?”

  Rachel nodded again.

  Pen in hand, Enid asked Rachel, “Who was the real Rose Marie Garrett—the person you knew? I’d like to know what she was like. What did she enjoy doing? What were her dreams?”

  Rachel stared at the water-stained ceiling tiles of the Exxon snack bar as if the answers would appear there. “She liked animals, just like me. She wanted a dog, but Myra wouldn’t let her have one.”

  “Did you and Rosie ever talk about leaving Madden and doing something else with your lives?”

  “All the time. I wanted to be a veterinarian in a big city, like Charlotte, where you live.” Rachel added in a low voice, “But that probably won’t happen.”

  Enid felt sorry for the young woman sitting across from her. “Hold onto that dream. One day, you’ll find a way to make it come true.”

  For the next few minutes, they talked about Charlotte and whether dogs or cats made the best pets. Focusing on a safe topic that she was passionate about, Rachel talked excitedly.

  Enid shifted the conversation back to Rosie. “And what about Rosie? What did she want to do when she left Madden?”

  Rachel’s expression hardened. “She just wanted to get away.”

  “Small towns can be pretty confining.”

  “It weren’t that. She just wanted to get away from Myra.”

  “Why is that?” Enid tried to remember what Cade had said about Myra and didn’t recall anything about her being mean or abusive.

  “Because Myra told Rosie her mama was dead.” Rachel paused. “She wasn’t.”

  “I don’t understand. Why would Myra lie to her about something like that?”

  “Myra told Rosie she was forced to.”

  “I’m sorry, but none of this is making sense. Who forced Myra to lie to Rosie?”

  Rachel shrugged her shoulders. “She never said.”

  Enid couldn’t decide if Rachel really didn’t know or just wasn’t willing to talk about it. “If Rosie’s mother wasn’t dead, where was she?”

  “In prison.” Rachel pulled a napkin from the dispenser on the table and began tearing bits of it from the edges, making a little pile.

  “Why? What was she convicted of?”

  “Killing Rosie’s daddy in Mississippi. Her mama was in prison there.”

  Enid’s mind was racing, trying to make sense of Rachel’s puzzling comments. “Poor Rosie. She must have been upset, learning that her mother was alive and having no other immediate family. At least, I’m glad she had you as a friend.” Enid knew what it felt like to be alone, without a mother, father, or siblings.

  “Is Rosie’s mother still in prison?”

  “All I know is that Rosie found out about her mother being alive about a year before Rosie got killed. When I asked Mama later about Rosie’s mama, she got mad and told me not to ask questions.”

  “When Rosie found out her mother was alive and in prison, is that when Rosie became rebellious and began using drugs?”

  Rachel’s eyes flashed with anger. “She only did that a few times, ‘cause she was upset with everybody lying to her. But she weren’t trash, like they called her.”

  Rachel was shutting down, but Enid decided to press on. “When she did buy drugs, did she get them from Eddie or someone in the biker gang?”

  “Ray bought the drugs from Eddie.”

  Enid recalled her conversation with Jack. “You mean the police chief’s son, Ray Jensen?”

  Rachel nodded. “If he got caught, his daddy wouldn’t have put him in jail, so he was the one that got the drugs.”

  “Do you think Ray had anything to do with Rosie’s murder?”<
br />
  Rachel appeared to be thinking before replying, “No. He liked Rosie. They were close.”

  “Was Ray using drugs too or just buying them for Rosie?”

  “He used sometimes, but mostly he got them for Rosie and a few of his other friends.”

  “Did the chief know?”

  “Mama caught us one time out in the back shed. Ray and Rosie were smoking pot. She tried to slap Rosie, but Ray stopped her. Mama said she was going to tell his daddy, but I don’t know if she did.”

  Enid had so many things she wanted to ask Rachel, but she was clearly nervous and looked like she was ready to bolt any minute. “On the day Rosie disappeared, do you know where she was going?”

  Rachel nodded. “To a job interview.”

  “Do you know where?”

  “Down at the insurance agency. She was going to file and type, you know, stuff like that.” Rachel wiped a few tears from her cheek. “She was saving money to go see her mama.”

  Enid leaned back in her seat. “You mean in prison?”

  Rachel nodded. “Ray gave her some cash to get a bus ticket, but she wanted to save some more money.” Rachel paused. “I don’t think she was planning on coming back.”

  “Going back to the day Rosie disappeared, did she make it to the interview? You know, before she went missing?”

  Rachel shook her head. “They said she never showed up.”

  Suddenly, Rachel’s eyes froze on the front door. “I gotta go.” Rachel ran toward the back of the store and through a door marked “Employees Only.” Enid turned around to see what had startled Rachel. A man about six feet tall walked toward Enid, pausing to tip his hat to the attractive blonde at the checkout counter. His uniform fitted as if it were tailor-made, and his brown hair was streaked blond by the summer sun, with a bit of grey around the temples.

  The blonde at the front register winked at the man. “Hi, Chief Jensen. How you doin’ tonight?”

  The man winked back with his enormous blue eyes and smiled as he walked toward Enid. “Well, hello. You must be Ms. Blackwell. Heard you were looking for me earlier, and there aren’t too many red-headed strangers in town, so I’m guessing it’s you. You sitting here by yourself?”

  Enid put her notepad and pen in her tote. “Yes, I’m Enid Blackwell. And you must be Chief Jensen.” Enid held out her hand, but he just stood there. “I was just catching up on my research notes.” She stood up to leave.

  Jensen glanced down at the tabletop and the small pile of torn napkin bits. Enid brushed the debris into her hand and then tossed it in the trash. As she walked toward the front door, she could feel Jensen’s eyes following her.

  “Looking forward to our meeting tomorrow, Ms. Blackwell.”

  CHAPTER 16

  The weather was overcast in Madden when Enid arrived at the police station the next morning. Dark clouds hinted at an afternoon storm. She pulled into the gravel parking lot and reached over to the passenger seat for her tote.

  “Hi, Molly,” said Enid as she walked into the station.

  Molly glanced up from her computer screen and nodded. “Good morning. Chief Jensen is on the phone. Have a seat, and I’ll let you know when he’s off.”

  Enid sat on a wooden chair against the wall in the small waiting area. The seat was covered in thick red vinyl. A piece of it had torn and the rough edge was cutting into her leg. She pulled out her notes and digital recorder from her tote.

  “No recorders in here,” said Molly.

  Enid dutifully put the recorder back in her tote.

  After a brief wait, Molly called out to her, “Chief’s ready. You can go in now.”

  Chief Jensen remained seated when Enid walked into his office. “Well, hello again.”

  “Chief Jensen, thank you for seeing me. I want to be respectful of your time, so I’m going to get right to the point,” said Enid.

  “Good! I’ve got a busy day.”

  Enid wanted to ask what kept him so busy in a town like Madden but decided against it. “I’m writing a story about a murder that happened around here. It was about ten years ago.”

  “Molly told me you were asking around town about Rose Marie Garrett’s death,” said the chief.

  “I’m curious as to why you call it a death instead of a murder, since she was killed and dumped in a shallow grave at the edge of town.”

  Molly walked in and reminded Jensen of his appointment with the mayor in twenty minutes. When she left, Jensen replied, “Rosie led a troubled life. Her unfortunate demise mirrored her life.”

  “So I’ve been told.”

  The chief sat up straight in his chair. “What’s your interest in Ms. Garrett?”

  “Rosie was my husband’s cousin. I recently found some old newspaper clippings about the murder, and as a writer, I’m doing some research for a possible article, or perhaps a series, if I can get enough research. You know, about a young girl who lost her way and her faith in everyone around her.” She paused so she could emphasize her next comment. “And how everyone just wants to forget her.”

  The chief failed to take her bait. “That’d be a mighty short article, since it’s a pretty simple story. Girl turns into rebellious teenager, gets hooked on drugs, and then gets herself killed by some drugged-up junkie.”

  “Is that what you think happened? What about the bikers who sell drugs in and around Madden? Could they have killed her?”

  The muscle in Jensen’s jaw tensed. “You have a vivid imagination, Ms. Blackwell, but I suggest you stick to what we know, not what will make your story sell.”

  Enid forced herself to ignore his jabs. “I was hoping you could help me.”

  “What have you got so far?”

  “I’ve got enough to make me keep asking questions.”

  Jensen grunted. “I think you’re wasting your time.”

  “I appreciate your concern for my time, Chief Jensen, but I’d like to hear what you know.”

  The old wooden desk chair squeaked as the chief swiveled slightly from side to side. For the next few minutes, the chief described a troubled teenage girl that had come to his attention numerous times in the year prior to her death, mostly for petty theft or minor mischief. One of Myra’s neighbors had also reported Rosie for yelling curse words at him.

  “She sounds like a typical teenage to me,” Enid said. “How long had she lived in Madden?”

  “She was real young when she came here to live with Myra.”

  “Is that when her mother went to prison?”

  Jensen got up and walked to the coffee pot on the metal table along the wall. “Want some?” he asked, holding his cup out toward Enid.

  She shook her head. “Did you have any problems with Rosie when she was younger?”

  Jensen sat down again in the squeaky chair. “Not that I recall.”

  “Why do you suppose she became rebellious later?”

  Jensen put his coffee on the desk in front of him. “Why do I get the feeling you’re asking me things you already know the answer to?”

  Enid looked up from her notepad. “Just confirming some things I’ve been told.”

  “About a year before she died, Rosie was kicked out of school, and Rosie told Myra she wanted to work instead of going back. Myra was a good person, although a bit strict at times. I don’t think she was prepared to handle a teenager, especially one like Rosie.”

  “I know that on the day Rosie disappeared, she told Myra she was going on a job interview. Myra and Rosie had a few words and Rosie stormed out the house to catch a ride with someone. That’s the last time Myra saw her. Is that correct?”

  Jensen sipped his coffee. “That’s about right.”

  Enid recalled her conversation with Rachel the night before. Rosie must have longed for the kind of family her best friend Rachel had, but Rosie had no adults in her life she trusted. Enid’s heart ached when her own mother’s face flashed into her memory. Since Enid’s father had died when she was a toddler, what would she have become without her mother�
��s love and protection? Pushing those thoughts aside, she focused on Jensen.

  “Where any suspects identified?” she asked.

  “We checked out several people, but nothing panned out. Look, that’s about all I can tell you. As I said, this is still an open case.” He glanced at the large schoolhouse-style clock on the wall. “And I’ve got an appointment I need to keep.”

  “May I call you if I have any further questions?” asked Enid.

  “I think we’re done, don’t you?” Jensen stood up. “I’m sure you’re anxious to wrap up your research here and get home to Cade.”

  Enid stiffened. “Do you know my husband?”

  “He lived here when he was younger, but I wasn’t the police chief then. I only know Cade by reputation.” Jensen flashed the same smile he had given the clerk at the Exxon station last night. “He’s a well-known, reputable journalist, isn’t he?”

  “How would you know about Cade’s work?”

  “I’m an avid reader.” He put his hands in his pocket and rocked back on his heels. “Funny that you should both have Welsh names. You’re not related somehow, are you?”

  Enid remembered the day she and Cade met at a campus party and laughed about their Welsh names. Cade told her he would trace their family trees before he picked her up for dinner, just to make sure they weren’t distant cousins. She told him it was the most unique pick-up line she had ever heard.

  “I’m impressed that you know the origin of names.”

  “It’s a hobby of sorts. I like to study names and their meanings. For example, your name means— “

  Before he could continue, Enid gathered her notes and stood up. “Yes, I’m aware that it means ‘soul’ or ‘life.’ Have a good day, Chief.”

  Molly watched as Enid marched out the front door of the station and slammed the door.

  CHAPTER 17

  Jack and Enid sat at the table in the inn’s library. Jack’s reporter notes scribbled more than a decade earlier were spread out in front of them.

  “That son-of-a-bitch!” she said, telling Jack about her meeting with Chief Jensen.

  Jack laughed. “Sounds like you and the chief hit it off pretty good.” He patted her arm lightly. “Don’t let him get to you. That’s what he wants. You said Rachel followed you. What was that all about?”