by David Wind
“Yes, you do! And I need to tell you. I spent the first years in New York, doing whatever was necessary to keep me alive and going while I tracked Conklin down. I had no idea he was a politician. But I found him and discovered he had an uncle in New York. Then I researched Jeremy Thornton and worked out a way to get him to the theatre when I was in the chorus line. From there it was easy.”
She took a deep breath. “Once I was Mrs. Jeremy Thornton, I waited until my time came.”
“Did you kill him too?” I asked, again, not wanting to hear her answer.
“Jeremy? He was the gentlest man I ever knew. But that didn’t matter; Jeremy was there for one purpose, to move me forward to my revenge. I watched Scotty in every way. I would follow him at times. I read everything written about him. When he did his first play, I invested under a different name. I did what I could to make Scotty a success. The more successful he became, the better I would feel when everything was taken from him. I….”
Her eyes went up and to the left, at something only she could see. Then she looked back at me and smiled. “I almost forgot, you were asking about Jeremy. No, I didn’t kill him, not physically. All I did was to tell him what Conklin did to me. It was right after he’d told me about Brian. It was such a sad confession. I almost felt sorry for him.
When he was done, I told him what his nephew, or you could call Conklin his brother, had done to me. Then I told him I couldn’t hold it back any longer. I said I was going to the newspapers to tell them the whole disgusting tale. I told him Brian was going to expose Conklin for what he was. Brilliant, wasn’t it?”
Understanding came quickly. The reason for Jeremy Thornton’s suicide hadn’t been the banking commission investigation, or his nephew’s blackmail; it had been his wife.
“Poor Jeremy couldn’t take it. He didn’t have the strength to face the scandal, the degradation of his name. He killed himself that night. And from there, I believe you know the rest.”
Looking at her, all I saw was Scotty’s face. I blinked the false image away and concentrated on Lia. “All you had to do, when you first got to New York, was to go to Scotty. He would have done anything. He loved you so much.”
Her face turned ugly with hatred and anger. “Love? There is no such thing! Love is a promise to a little child not kept. Love is a lie used to make a girl believe she’s safe. Love is an excuse for people to hurt each other.”
“You’re wrong, Elizabeth, I’m sorry you never had the chance to love.”
“One day you’ll find out I’m right. What are you going to do now? Kill me because I killed Scotty?”
“You’ve been hurt enough.”
“No!” she screamed. “Damn you! You’re supposed to kill me. You’re supposed to avenge Scotty,” She took a half step back and at the same time reached into her purse and pulled out the forty-four magnum she’d used to kill Scotty. Before she could free it, Sonny Marks caught her wrist while Chris pulled the gun from her fingers.
Marks spun her around and cuffed her while Chris, Femalé and I watched. When he was done, he turned her back to face him and said, “Lia Thornton, you are under arrest for the murder of Scotty Granger. I am now going to read you your rights.”
The detective sergeant read them as he walked Lia to his squad car and his partner, who was standing with the door open, waiting.
When she was in the car, and Marks got behind the wheel and pulled out, I turned to Femalé. “You did this,” I said. “You were right from the beginning, and your work was what caught her. I’m damned proud of you.”
Her response was a broad smile and a single tear she couldn’t hold back. “Thanks, Boss, it means a lot.”
“Now go home. Take the rest of the day off and play.”
“Yes sir,” she said, looked at me, at Chris and then bit whatever she was going to say. “See you in the morning.”
I watched her until she reached the street, and then turned to Chris who was staring out at the Statute of Liberty. “You okay?”
“I’m okay,” he said without looking at me.
Yeah, he was as okay as I—was which didn’t say much. We hung silent for a long time, just staring out at Lady Liberty the way we used to do when we were kids. After a while, Chris turned to me.
“I don’t want to be at the office. I’m going home. Can I give you a ride?”
“Not yet,” I said. I dipped into my jacket pocket and pulled out the two Avos. I handed him one and kept the other. “For Scotty,” I said.
When he nodded, I pulled the cutter from my pocket, we went through the ceremony, clipping the ends, taking our time lighting the cigars, and then, after we’d each stoked the smoke properly, I leaned against the railing, took a draw of the cigar and released the smoke into the air.
“She’s brilliant, you know—as much a genius in her own ways as was Scotty. She worked everything out, every detail, and every nuance. She knew what would happen, how it would happen and what the results would be.”
“She’s also insane,” he whispered.
“I want to hate her for what she did, but I can’t. It wasn’t ‘Lizbeth Granger who killed Scotty; it was Brian Conklin and the man who bought her from Conklin. It was what happened to her before she could understand what it was.”
Chris eyed me for a few seconds. “And what do we do now?”
I looked down at the cigar, watching the grey white smoke curl upwards in a lazy arc, daring the breezes to bother it. “Get her a lawyer, make sure she pleads out and spends the rest of her life in an institution and not in the general population. She’s been through enough, and –”
He cut me off before I could form the words and finished it for me. “We owe it to Scotty. We need to do it for him.”
“For Scotty,” I said.
We smoked for a few more minutes, and then I remembered the tickets in my pocket. I pulled them out and handed them to Chris. “Take Amanda tonight. It will be good for both of you.”
He cast me with a suspicious glance. “Why aren’t you using them? Go with Gina.”
I put the cigar to my lips and took a savory pull. When I let the smoke free, I met his gaze and said. “Gina will be busy tonight. She’s getting engaged.”
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Author’s Notes
Dear Reader,
Thank you for taking the time to read COPS, SPIES & PI’S. If you enjoyed this boxed set, please consider telling your friends and posting a short review on Amazon, using the link below. Word of mouth and reviews are an author’s best friends and every review and referral you give much appreciated.
Thank you,
David
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About the author
David Wind has published thirty-eight novels including Science Fiction, Mystery and suspense thrillers. He lives and writes in a small village about thirty miles upstate of NYC, and shares his house with his wife, Bonnie and dog Alfie, a sub-standard poodle (email him for an explanation).
In 2008, David formally became an independently published writer and published Angels In Mourning, his ‘homage’ to the old time private detective books of the 50’s and the 60’s. He used to sneak them from his parents’ night tables and read them as a young boy. Angels is a modern day take on the old style hardboiled detective. In April of that year, Angels In Mourning won the Amazon.com Book of the Month Reader’s Choice Award.
In February of 2015, David published the Sci-Fi fantasy trilogy Tales Of Nevaeh. The first book of the series, Born To Magic, was released on February 15, 2015 and has received numerous 5 star reviews. The second book of the series, The Dark Masters, came out May 15, 2015. The third Book, TRINITY: The Battle For Nevaeh, was released on February 29, 2016.
David's Fantasy, Queen Of Kni
ghts, reached #2 on the Amazon.Com bestseller lists for historical fantasy and medieval fantasy, and his sci-fi paranormal, Infinity's Doorway has received wide acclaim.
He wrote his last thriller, The Cured, with Terese Ramin, The idea for this Medical Legal Thriller came shortly after the death of a close friend. David said, "I couldn't help but wonder about the medication...."
His suspense thrillers are The Hyte Maneuver, (a Literary guild alternate selection); , and The Sokova Convention, and The Morrisy Manifest. .And Down will Come Baby, and Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep, and Shadows, are mystery suspense novels.
To learn more about upcoming books, please do sign up for my Newsletter.
My novels have been translated into 11 languages and published in 15 countries.
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David’s Links
David’s Amazon.com Author’s Page
David’s Newsletter
Twitter: @david_wind
Facebook: authordavidwind
David’s website: http://www.davidwind.com
Goodreads Authors Page
Available Novels by David Wind
Thrillers, Suspense, Mysteries
The Cured
BOXED SET: Cops Spies & PI’S
Angels In Mourning
The Hyte Maneuver
The Sokova Convention
As Peace Lay Dying
CO OP
Shadows
And Down Will Come Baby
Sci-Fi / Fantasy
Tales of Nevaeh, THE BOXED SET
Born To Magic , Tales Of Nevaeh, Volume I
The Dark Masters, Tales Of Nevaeh, Volume II
TRINITY, Tales Of Nevaeh, Volume III
Prelude To Nevaeh: Roth’s Story (A novella prequel)
Queen Of Knights
Infinity’s Doorway
General Non-Fiction
The Lifeboat: surviving The Writer’s Life
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For more information about David Wind, please visit http://www.davidwind.com
