Secrets in the Shallows (Book 1: The Monastery Murders)

by Karen Vance Hammond

  “The one thing bothering me is that it’s been almost too easy,” the sheriff replied. “When do you think your Coke bottle friend will be done with examining the backpack and rope?”

  “We should have those hair sample comparison results back by mid-morning tomorrow,” Peter responded. “Coke told me he found several bricks inside the backpack. There were even a few long gray hairs tangled in the rope; matching ones were found on one of the bricks too. Once we get the comparison samples analyzed, we may know who the killer is... Finding the hairs inside Tom Green’s backpack will make a strong case for homicide.”

  “When do you think they’ll actually exhume Tom Green’s body?” Katy chimed in.

  John smiled and said, “If we can get the judge to sign off tomorrow afternoon, then we could have something set up by the morning after.”

  The sheriff leaned forward in his chair and picked up a flashlight. Looking at Peter, he instructed, “Send me your results as soon as possible. I’ll be busy most of tomorrow morning visiting with the Greens. It would be great to come back and have your report waiting on me.”

  “We’ll get it done, Sheriff,” Peter replied.

  Sheriff Johnson stood up and stated, “Well, it’s starting to get late, so we better get those nuns out of here and taken care of. I’m dying to find out what Mother Superior will say about that recording.” Gathering his paperwork, he moved towards the door.

  John, Katy and Peter all stood up and walked into the foyer with the sheriff. John turned to the sheriff and said, “Sheriff, I need to take Katy home soon and get started on some legal paperwork, before I’m done for the night. I’m sure I’ll talk to you in the morning, and we’ll meet up when you get back from seeing the Greens.”

  “That will work, Counselor. Be careful driving her home,” the sheriff chuckled.

  “Good night, Sheriff. Thank you for letting me join in today. I learned a lot,” Katy said.

  Sheriff Johnson smiled at her and replied, “Well you definitely make working with John more tolerable.” He laughed.

  John helped Katy into her coat. “She makes work more tolerable in a lot of ways, so I can’t argue,” he replied, smiling.

  Peter couldn’t help but notice Katy’s fine figure as she slipped into her coat. He tried his best not to be too obvious as he thought to himself, She definitely does make things much more tolerable.

  In the corner of her eye, Katy caught a glimpse of Peter stealing glances at her. When their eyes met briefly, she coyly smiled and looked away almost immediately.

  After donning his own coat on, John and Katy gathered their things and headed outside to leave. As they walked out the door, Katy quickly looked back to see Peter watching her.

  The sheriff and Peter spotted Williams standing guard in front of the bridal suite. As they walked over to him, the deputy smiled and said, “Sheriff, Deputy Shamberg and I were able to escort each nun to get what they need for their overnight stay. The transport is waiting outside.”

  “Very good, Deputy. Thanks for all your hard work today. I hate that it’s going to be just a bit longer,” the sheriff said.

  “I’ll take care of the everything, sir,” Williams replied.

  “Then go ahead and get those nuns in the van, Deputy,” the sheriff smiled.

  Deputy Williams smiled and punctuated his reply. “Yes, sir!” He entered the bridal parlor and assisted every nun outside to the van waiting in the driveway, leaving only Mother Superior to be transported.

  * * * *

  Alone in the bridal parlor, Mother Superior Mary Ellen sat on the couch holding her rosary beads and praying.

  As Sheriff Johnson entered, he cleared his throat. “Mother, we need to ask you a couple of questions. With the power out, I’m going to go ahead and take you back to headquarters.”

  Mother Superior crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Sheriff Johnson, I have nothing to hide. Why am I not being taken to the inn with my sisters?”

  Sheriff Johnson replied, “I need to speak with you personally. Deputy Williams is going to speak with the other sisters to get their statements.”

  Annoyed, Mother Superior scowled at Sheriff Johnson. Counting at her rosary beads, she asked, “How long will we be gone, Sheriff? I have my duties here, you know.”

  “We will talk about that down at the station.”

  Sheriff Johnson opened the door and led Mother Superior gently by the arm out into the foyer. He maintained a grasp on Mother Superior’s arm and stopped at the coat rack.

  “You will probably need your coat, Mother. I wouldn’t want you to get sick.”

  Frustrated, Mother Superior Mary Ellen grabbed her coat and a scarf. Sarcastically, she asked, “May I have my arm for a moment, Sheriff?”

  “Be my guest,” Sheriff Johnson replied.

  Mother Superior proceeded to put on her coat, being careful to button it up completely. She took a pair of gloves out of her coat pocket and put them on before wrapping a scarf around her neck. After tying it in a knot, she said, “I’m ready now, Sheriff. Where are my sisters going?”

  “Don’t worry, Mother. We’ll take good care of them while you’re away. They are being taken to the Mariner’s Inn for the night so that we can resume the search again tomorrow morning.”

  Lightly grasping her arm again, the sheriff guided Mother towards the front door. As they reached the entrance, Deputy Williams opened it for them.

  Looking at Williams, the sheriff asked him, “Deputy, can you station a couple of men to keep watch here overnight. I wouldn’t want anyone to try to break in or anything. Once you do that, you can go ahead and head over to the inn and begin the interrogations over there. I send someone to relieve you before it gets too late.”

  “Yes, sir. I’ll take care of it,” Deputy Williams said as he closed the door. The sheriff led Mother Superior to his cruiser and helped her inside the car.

  CHAPTER 32

  The only thing Mother Superior could think about was the other sisters on their way to the inn. What’s going to happen to them? They are MY responsibility. Furthermore, what’s going to happen to me now? I wonder what they are going to ask me, she thought to herself as she looked out the window and watched the snow flurries coming down. Lowering her head in prayer, she whispered, “God, please help me?”

  Overhearing her prayers, Sheriff Johnson glanced in the rear view mirror and thought to himself, I don’t think your prayers are going to help, Sister. You’re just wasting your breath.

  Moments later, Sheriff Johnson drove up and parked in front of the Wattsville Sheriff’s Department. After getting out of the squad car, he opened the door to allow Mother Superior to exit the car and stand up.

  “Right this way, Mother,” he said as he held her elbow again.

  As they reached the front entrance, Sheriff Johnson opened the door and gestured for her to go inside. He maintained a hold of her elbow as they entered a long hallway with several doors on either side. Streams of sunlight shot through the solitary window on the bare concrete wall at the opposite end. With a slight tug, he said, “Right this way, Mother.”

  As they approached the second door on the right, the sheriff guided her into a small interrogation room. Pulling out one of the gray metal chairs, he said, “Have a seat, ma’am. Make yourself comfortable, because we’re gonna’ be here while.”

  Mother Superior obeyed and slowly sat down on the thinly padded, black seat cushion. A long gray metal table sat ominously in the center of the room in front or her. Setting at the end of the table was a lonely plastic pitcher of water with several paper cups.

  As he picked up the pitcher and a cup to pour some water, he held it out for her and asked, “Would you like some water, Mother?”

  “Yes, thank you,” she replied as she accepted his offering.

  Taking another cup, Sheriff Johnson poured some water and took a sip before setting it down on the table. Sitting down in a chair opposite from Mother Superior, the sheriff pulled out a pen and notepad fr
om his coat pocket.

  Mother Superior Mary Ellen looked around the room, searching for one element of hope. From the fluorescent lighting above them, down to the drab gray carpet, the room was completely void of any reciprocation. The almost “prison cell” appearance did little to encourage her.

  Mother’s voice quivered as she asked, “How long is this going to take?”

  “It could take a while, ma’am,” he replied as he stood up.

  Sheriff Johnson walked toward the door and opened it. Looking back at her, he added, “I’ll be back in a few minutes. Don’t leave this room, please.”

  Surprised, she said, “I haven’t done anything wrong, so why would I run away? God will bring the truth to light.”

  Amused by her response, the sheriff walked out the door and closed it behind him. As he headed back towards the hallway entrance, he spotted a young deputy, named Stephen Clark, at a water fountain. “Can you please wait in that room with my suspect until I come back? I don’t know how long I’m going to be.”

  The young deputy smiled with a slightly confused look on his face. “Yes, sir, Sheriff.”

  Patting the deputy on the shoulder, he gave him a hardy shake, “Thank you, Deputy. I’ll be back as soon as I can. I need to make a couple of phone calls.”

  “My pleasure, sir.” The young deputy pivoted on his heels and headed toward the room as he watched the sheriff walk away.

  Stephen turned the knob and opened the door. He stopped in his tracks; he was surprised to see Mother Superior Mary Ellen sitting alone at the table.

  I know her, he thought to himself. “I’m Deputy Clark, Mother Superior. I’ll be here until Sheriff Johnson returns,” he said as he closed the door. He nodded and moved over to the corner then stood at attention with one arm behind his back.

  “Didn’t you go to the school at St. Francis, Deputy?”

  “Yes, ma’am. I graduated with honors six years ago,” he smiled.

  “It’s nice to see that you are in a fine occupation, Deputy,” she smiled back at him and took a deep breath as she waited for the sheriff to return.

  * * * *

  Smoke rose from the chimney of a three-story Colonial mansion as the frigid evening air rolled in from the bay. Inside the warm dwelling, Judge Taylor sat in his study on his favorite overstuffed chair, quietly listening to his favorite Beethoven piece, Moonlight Sonata. Blue gingham slippers covered his feet, which were resting on the ottoman in front of him. An earthy aroma of pipe smoke filled the air as the judge flipped pages of The Ellsworth American.

  Turning a page of her latest novel, his wife, June, inserted a bookmark and closed the hardcover. Light from the ceiling fixture reflected from her silver hair, making it glisten. She stood up in front of her husband and asked him, “More tea, sweetheart?”

  Judge Taylor held up his empty saucer and cup, “Yes, my dear. That would be great.”

  She leaned over, giving a peck on the top of her husband’s bald head. On her way to the kitchen, the phone rang. Stopping to answer it, she said, “Hello.”

  A familiar voice asked, “Mrs. Taylor?”

  “Yes.”

  “This is Sheriff Johnson, down at the station. Is your husband in?”

  “Oh ... Hello, Sheriff. Yes, hold on, he’s right here.”

  June tapped her husband on the shoulder handing over the cordless phone. “Sweetie, it’s the Sheriff.”

  Judge Taylor took the phone and pressed it against his ear. “Hello, Sheriff. It must be important to bother me at home.”

  Sheriff Johnson sat up, holding a photo of Tom Green’s backpack. Clearing his throat, he said, “Yes, Your Honor. I am so sorry to bother you. I need to see you tomorrow, if at all possible.”

  June silently handed her husband a full cup of tea. Judge Taylor took a sip and then another. “Why? What is so urgent?”

  “Your Honor, I need to get a court order to exhume the body of Tom Green.”

  Judge Taylor took another sip and started to choke on the steaming hot liquid.

  Hearing the horrible hacking and coughing, Sheriff Johnson held his cell phone away from his ear. Crinkling his nose, he asked loudly, “Judge, are you all right?”

  Wiping his mouth, Judge Taylor replied, “Yes, I was taken off guard there. Did I hear you right, Sheriff? You want to exhume the body of Tom Green?”

  “Yes, Your Honor, you heard me correctly.”

  Judge Taylor sat back in his plush lounge chair. “I assume you found some credible evidence that would indicate Tom Green may have not committed suicide in the monastery’s pond?”

  “Yes, Your Honor, that is right. We found Tom Green’s backpack in the pond when we were diving for evidence this morning. We suspect there was foul play involved in that case too. We need to do an autopsy on the body to make sure we didn’t miss anything the first time around.”

  The sheriff continued, “Remember, I told you about Peter Balkan; that top forensic investigator that’s working with us on the Fields’ case? Well, his team went through the backpack, and they found several bricks in it. There was also a long gray hair wrapped around one of the bricks that matches some hairs that were tangled in the rope that we believe held down Timothy Fields’ body underwater in the monastery pond.”

  “So you support what he’s saying?” Judge Taylor asked.

  “Absolutely, sir! We also found the missing Fields’ evidence from the morgue locker in Mother Superior’s desk drawer, and even heard some incriminating testimony on a counseling session tape that she had in Timothy Fields’ counseling folder. It all seems to point to her being the perpetrator. We probably need to check into Tom Green’s background more too.”

  “It sounds like the evidence is overwhelming.”

  “Yes, sir, it is.”

  The judge stated, “This is what we need to do, Sheriff. Locate the whereabouts of Mr. and Mrs. Green. If you cannot find them, then you need to contact the next of kin to try to get a hold of the Greens. Let me know if you can’t locate them, or if they won’t cooperate.”

  Sheriff Johnson was relieved to hear the judge’s response and said, “I have my assistant trying to locate Mr. and Mrs. Green as we speak.”

  “That is fine. I will see you tomorrow then. I have to be in court at 8:30 a.m. Let me know when you get back so I can try to fit you in somewhere.”

  “Thank you so much, Your Honor. You have a good night.”

  “You do the same, Sheriff.”

  * * * *

  Quietly focused on her computer screen, a woman with thick, nearly black hair worked diligently at her desk. Her long wavy hair was tied back with a decorative clip to keep it out of her eyes. Heather Strong had been Sheriff Johnson’s personal assistant for five years. Lifting a pen out of her cup holder, she wrote down the only address belonging to a Tom and Helen Green, Sr. She removed the small piece of paper from her note pad and smiled as she stood up and walked into the Sheriff’s office.

  “Sheriff, this is the only address I could find for Mr. and Mrs. Green. It seems they moved to Sanger a few months ago. I also put their phone number on there. They said they would be available in the morning, if you wanted to head that way, sir.”

  Sheriff Johnson took the paper and read it. “It’s only a forty-five minute drive. Heather, you are awesome!”

  “It’s my job, Sheriff, but thank you just the same. I’ve already taken the liberty of contacting them, so they are expecting your call. All you need to do is call and verify when you will be there. Needless to say, they aren’t very excited about speaking with you.”

  “I understand, but they need to know how important this is. I’m going to head out there first thing in the morning. I imagine you’ll be going home soon, so I’ll see you when I get in.” The sheriff smiled as he headed into the hallway.

  CHAPTER 33

  Snow-covered stone steps led up to the covered porch of the Mariner’s Inn. Lonely rocking chairs looked out on the ocean, waiting for the company of warmer weather. Deputy Williams a
ssisted the huddle of nuns to carefully climb the steps of the inn entrance as they carried their belongings inside.

  Opening the door, the deputy led them into a front parlor where a nice fire invitingly waited for them. Relieved to find the comfortable room, the sisters put their bags together in a corner. Seeking relief from the cold, they gathered around the crackling flames of the fireplace.

  Deputy Williams informed them, “I’ll get you all checked in and be right back. Please stay here until I come to get you. A restroom is across the hallway if you need to freshen up.”

  The nuns nodded, affirming they understood the instructions. Turning back to the fire, their attention was focused on breaking the icy hold of the chill in their bones. Many of them vigorously rubbed their hands together to speed up the process.

  Turning around, the deputy made his way to the front desk and checked them all in. He glanced up into the front desk clerk’s gray-blue eyes and asked, “Once they are settled, is there a nice private room I can use temporarily for some interrogations, ma’am?”

  Her long, auburn hair hung loosely on her shoulders as she looked up from filling out some paperwork. “Of course, Deputy. I have a private conference area in my office. You are welcome to use that. You can close the door for privacy. Will that suffice?”

  Deputy Williams nodded and smiled. “That sounds perfect.”

  As her eyes darted over to the nuns in the parlor, the desk clerk asked, “Is everything all right? I heard about the boy’s body being found in the monastery pond. How gruesome.”

  “I can’t discuss the investigation. I do appreciate your cooperation though.”

  “My pleasure, Deputy. I’m happy to help. I’m fascinated by those forensics shows on TV,” she replied as she entered the information for the new arrivals in her computer. Looking him in the eyes, she smiled and added, “We’ll have them settled in their rooms in just a few minutes. Your office called ahead, so I have the rooms ready and waiting.”