Sonoran Sun

by Sharon Canipe

  “Good idea,” Lin said, “especially with us being out of state. Having one person who can talk to those directly involved and share information with you is a great idea.”

  “I agree,” Neal said. “Chris apparently had an extensive conference with Dave last week and he has information to share with us. Said he’d bring notes to breakfast tomorrow.”

  “Great,” Lin replied, “Now, I guess I’d best go tackle that mess in the kitchen. I just put our dinner dishes in the sink—nothings been put in the dishwasher.”

  “I’ll help,” Neal rose from his seat, “Then I think we need to go to bed early.”

  Lin started to protest that it was only about eight o’clock when she caught a meaningful twinkle in Neal’s eye. “I guess you know what’s best,” she teased. “We do have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow and I almost fell asleep sitting on the deck.”

  Neal grabbed her playfully and drew her into his arms. “ I can promise you’ll sleep like a baby—at least eventually, after we’ve finished all the preliminaries that is…”

  “Then we’d best get busy here,” Lin nodded toward the pile of dirty dishes, “I’m not sure how long I can wait.”

  ***

  “It’s good to see you both,” Lin greeted Chris and Marla Dawkins with a smile. “I’m so happy that you could come. Neal and I both realize what a long trip you’ve made and we really appreciate your being here for the wedding.”

  “Wouldn’t have missed it,” Chris had a big grin, “I wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to see Neal Smith settle down and I think he’s one lucky guy to have found you.” He put his arm around Lin and gave her a warm hug.

  Lin was pleased to see that Marla smiled and extended her hand in greeting. “It’s good to see you again, Lin. Chris and I are both looking forward to the weekend.” Not the most exuberant of greetings but certainly friendlier than their last encounter when Chris had been hospitalized. Lin appreciated the fact that this couldn’t be easy for Marla after all that had transpired. Hopefully, as the weekend’s festivities got underway, she would be more relaxed and could enjoy herself.

  The four of them had met at a favorite local place on the lake. They chose to sit on the porch that overlooked the water. It was early and the temperatures were still quite pleasant, although the forecast for later was for a summer-like day, even though fall was just around the corner. Lin had noticed that Chris was carrying a folder that appeared to contain several sheets of paper. She hoped this was some sort of information pertaining to the murder cases and that he planned to share this with them. She almost asked about it, but Neal read her mind and gave her hand a squeeze beneath the table. She nodded her understanding and bit her tongue. Chris would share when he was ready and she needed to learn to contain her curiosity in such situations.

  The waitress brought their coffee and a basket of warm croissants then she took their orders for breakfast. When she’d left, Chris placed the folder on the table. “I think I told you that I’ve asked David Cameron to work with me and Neal as victims/witnesses in these cases. Not that we face any charges, thankful for that,” he was remembering his own brush with being a suspect earlier. “It’s just that these cases, and I think there will be several emerging from all this, are very complex and it can be difficult to understand. I felt we would be better off to have someone who could talk to the authorities and attorney’s and help us to understand what was going on and what matters we might have to testify about. I’m afraid this could be a long, drawn out affair once it gets started.”

  Neal shook his head. He certainly understood what could happen and rather dreaded what lay ahead but he also knew how important it was for justice to be served. “What have you learned?” he asked. “We’ve really been out of the loop since we returned and when we talked to DJ he indicated that Dave Jennings was being looked at in Mark Garcia’s death, based on information from the informants. That was frankly shocking to me.”

  “I know how you feel. I was shocked as well,” Chris had opened the folder to reveal several pages of printed notes. He shuffled through the pages to find what he was seeking. “Here’s what David Cameron learned when he talked to the prosecutor. Apparently, Sam Stevens has provided a lot of information, hoping it will benefit his own situation. He has told the investigative team that Dave Jennings was under a lot of pressure from his superiors at Lancers because the initial site preparation work done for the outlet mall had cost way more than was budgeted and the archeological work had proved to be far more extensive than they’d hoped and costs there were higher as well.

  Apparently Dave had been approached by one of the workmen on the site who had some contacts within the Mendoza organization. This man had let Dave know that money could be had if he would look the other way when various supply shipments came through. Stevens’ bosses at Superior Group were hoping that the Lancer project would be delayed and become too costly, but they weren’t actually planning any sort of sabotage activities. Stevens got involved when Jennings approached him and offered payment if he would stage a confrontation and make it threatening enough to cast suspicion on Superior’s motives. Apparently Stevens saw this as an opportunity to pad his own pockets, but he was naïve enough to think nothing serious would come down on him at all.”

  Lin was beginning to get the big picture now, “So maybe Mark Garcia found out that the drug folks were using the Lancer site for passing shipments into the area. With his determination to bring them down for what happened to his nephew he may have confronted Jennings with what he knew or suspected.”

  “That appears to be the case,” Chris continued. “Garcia may have threatened to turn Jennings in and Dave decided he couldn’t allow that to happen. Once he’d killed Mark, he had to make it appear that his death was related to the construction project somehow. He probably pointed the authorities to Stevens. After all, he had made threats even though they were likely staged. That was when Stevens began to realize just how much trouble he was really in. He was under arrest for a crime he didn’t commit but he was also now under the watchful eye of the Mendoza organization. He was actually at greater risk once he was released on the charges in the Garcia killing.”

  Neal spoke up, “I guess that’s what ultimately led to his taking us hostage. He was afraid and needed some sort of leverage to protect himself----but I still don’t see how that could’ve helped him.”

  “It didn’t actually,” Chris replied. “It was amateurish on his part and just made the Mendoza organization mad. They sent those men to get to him, as well as us. He was actually saved by the fact that law enforcement got involved.”

  “And that brings up the entire situation with the sheriff’s department,” Lin queried. “ What about Doug Davison? What was going on with Deputy Ramirez?”

  “Doug was just another scapegoat,” Chris shook his head, “he was opposed to the shopping center and had become a true rabble-rouser about that. When the Mendoza cartel needed someone new to blame the killings on he was a good candidate. Then they had one of their ‘insider’ guys to kill him in jail before the truth could come out.”

  “But how did they get to him, he was locked up?” Lin still found this hard to accept.

  “That was the easy part,” Chris continued, “because the Mendoza gang had several officers on the take within the sheriff’s department. Certainly, Deputy Ramirez, but also some others. They were being paid to report on the times and locations of various sting operations and to look the other way when drug shipments were coming through the county. It was just one more step to make it possible for someone to get access to Doug Davison.”

  “The investigation is still ongoing,” Chris reported. “David says that more information is coming out almost every day. He is certain that there will be charges against some of the officers in the department for their role in the overall operation. Sam Stevens has agreed to plead guilty to lesser charges in the kidnapping/hostage case in order to get a lighter sentence. He did what he did out of fear that he was
going to be the next one slain. He knew what had happened to Doug Davison and thought he would be next—he was probably right about that. He’ll serve some time though—can’t get off scott free.”

  Lin’s mind was awhirl with all of this information. It was hard to see how it could all be sorted out. It seemed to her that the top dogs in the overall drug operation were still likely to get off. None had been arrested thus far. “So where is all this heading?” she asked. “If Dave killed Mark, then who killed him?”

  “That’s still a major question mark,” Chris reported. “It is clear that his death was ordered by Mendoza or one of his higher ups. Davison was killed by an underling, someone already in jail. The hope is that one of the three men currently under arrest will come forward with some names of higher ups in the operation. Remember they have the man who chased and assaulted you in custody along with the two men who followed Stevens to Camp Cooper and held us along with Sam. David said the prosecutor’s office is working hard to get them to talk in exchange for lesser charges and maybe eventual witness protection. We just don’t know yet what will happen.”

  “What about the men in the Sheriff’s department?” this question came from Marla and was her first entry into the conversation.

  Chris smiled to see her interest, “ There is certainly a continuing investigation there. Ramirez is under suspension along with two or three other deputies at this point. Cameron feels certain that there will be charges brought against them eventually. We can only hope that they will reveal enough information to lead to more arrests within the cartel.”

  Lin could hardly take in all the information that Chris had shared. She had certainly known that this was a broad and involved situation. Things were certainly complicated and still far from clear at this point. At least there were some answers. It seemed that Dave Jennings had killed Mark Garcia fearing that Mark would reveal his involvement in the drug business. Then, evidently, the Mendoza organization had ordered the death of Jennings. Whoever pulled the trigger on him was acting on their behalf. Then poor Doug Davison had lost his life because they wanted the cases declared solved to divert attention from their operation. Sam Stevens thought he’d be next and he was probably right---thus his misguided attempt to use hostages to get them to leave him alone. That operation was doomed from the start, Lin realized.

  One could only hope that the internal investigation at the sheriff’s department would eventually uncover all those who had helped to facilitate all of this. Maybe the lower level workers in the cartel could be persuaded to continue to reveal information in exchange for future protection for themselves and their families. They’d already revealed a lot but the arrests thus far hadn’t reached those who gave the orders in the organization.

  Lin turned to Neal. The look in his eyes told her he shared her questions and concerns. While she hoped for more answers in the future, Lin realized that this entire mess was far from being totally resolved. She realized how lucky Neal and Chris had been. If not for the help of Sgt. Montoya and his cousin, they would’ve fallen victim to those two henchmen sent to intervene in the situation Stevens had created.

  “When I learned all of this, I realized how lucky Neal and Chris were to escape the situation without being harmed by more than heat and dehydration,” Marla said looking straight toward Lin, “and I also realized that you were not to blame for what happened. I owe you an apology. I now realize that Sam Stevens would’ve done what he did regardless. He was afraid for his own life.”

  Lin was thoughtful for a moment, “I appreciate what you’re saying Marla and I’m not sorry I raised questions and pressed for more information. There were too many innocent people already hurt in this situation and I still hope that those responsible in higher levels will ultimately be held accountable. That said, I also realize that I probably did contribute to what happened. I could’ve let everything alone and the case would already be closed,” she looked straight into Neal’s eyes, “but I’m not at all sure that I would act differently if I had it to do over. Mark Garcia’s wife and mother deserved to see justice done in his case and Susan Davison couldn’t live with the idea that her husband was a cold bloodied killer. I can’t be sorry that they now have some answers.”

  “Neither can I,” Neal said, “and I’m also glad that the investigations at the Sheriff’s department have moved on to a higher level. I have to believe that eventually something will break here and the higher ups in the Mendoza organization will eventually pay the price for what they’ve done both on the reservation and in the wider community.”

  “I certainly hope so,” Chris commented, “and I think we are all in agreement with that.”

  Lin realized that she’d barely touched her breakfast and now it was cold. That was pretty much the case all around; they’d been so absorbed in Chris’s report. “It’s pretty rare for me to be so interested in something that I forget to eat,” Lin laughed.

  “ That may be a good thing,” Neal joked, “We have guests arriving throughout the day who will no doubt be hungry and then there’s the dinner tonight…I think we’ll have plenty of opportunities to eat.”

  “Speaking of guests arriving,” Lin said checking her watch. “I’ll bet Ben and his family are waiting right now at the condo. Lucy was going over to meet them and wait for Brian and Sam to join them. They can’t check into the inn until mid-afternoon. We need to get going.”

  Chris grabbed the check as he and Marla rose to leave. “We need to get going also. Marla and I have plans for a round of golf this afternoon at Mallard Point. It’s a beautiful course and we haven’t had time to play recently. We’ll see the two of you at dinner tonight.”

  Neal and Lin followed them out. “I feel so much better now that we know more about the direction this investigation is heading,” Lin commented. “It certainly was a strange situation—hard to believe that Dave Jennings was both a perpetrator and a victim…”

  “Indeed, it was a strange situation. I’m just glad it’s behind us—at least for now. I realize that we’ll likely have to go back to Arizona when some of these characters actually go to trial—if indeed that happens—but for now I’m ready to forget about killings and drug cartels and simply enjoy life for awhile.” Neal smiled as they reached their car.

  “And that means enjoying family and friends and our wedding,” Lin replied. “Not to mention our honeymoon—you still haven’t said where we’re going…”

  “And I’m still not going to until after the ceremony,” Neal teased, “I want to make sure you’re committed before I reveal those plans—then you can’t back out on me.”

  “Believe me, that’s not going to happen,” Lin smiled as she got in the car, “Now lets go meet our family.”

  About the Author

  Sharon Canipe worked as a teacher and school administrator for more than thirty years. Most of her career was with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, Charlotte, NC. In retirement she has worked as an online teacher and mentor for graduate students at Walden University and as an educational consultant working through Northern Arizona Literacy Enterprises (Northern Arizona University). Much of this work took place on the Navaho and Hopi Reservations in northern Arizona.

  A native North Carolinian, Sharon now lives in Tucson, Arizona with her husband Steve and their “boys” Lucky and Snoopy, their beloved “Chowbradors.” Tucson provides the setting for this most recent Lin Hanna Mystery. Other books in this series have been set in northern Arizona, the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and along the Blue Ridge Parkway in the western part of that state.

  Follow me at

  Facebook.com/linhannamysteries

  and

  canipe.net

  What’s Next?

  Readers will be interested to know that this book is the last in this particular series of Lin Hanna Mysteries. That doesn’t mean that Lin Hanna is disappearing, not at all. Look for Lin and her archeologist husband Neal Smith to appear in future novels as they pursue new interests and adventures in new places. Trave
l with them and enjoy adventures of your own!