Murder Mysteries Series Seven

by Waggoner, Robert C.

  "I'll contact an old friend of mine Norm," said Eric. Another deputy like Peter and I retired not long after we did. He moved to Florida for the same reason other's do. We keep in contact. He's bored like us guys. I'll have him snoop around for us."

  "That's fine Eric, but remember, if this is a mob hit, then your friend must be very careful going around asking questions."

  "He's no fool, but I'll warn him just to be on the safe side."

  "Okay, good now I'm going to call Sheriff Biggs and alert him to a possible missing guest at the Sea Turtle Motel. My gut tells me he'll be found washed upon the shore very soon."

  Debra said, "I'm wondering why, if it's a mob hit, why they would wait until these two guys were on the west coast. I mean, why were they here in the first place and why separate motels and towns?"

  "Good questions Debra. One answer might be that they think we are hillbilly cops out here and not equipped for solving serious violent crimes. Which is, by the way, is partly right if you think about it? As to why they were here, any number of reasons all of which we've not a clue. Now I did find a laptop in Newport that belongs to possible victim number two. I left it there for the time being. If Bill White doesn't show up by tomorrow, then we'll fetch it to see if we can ID the guy. Okay, Eric and James you've got some things to do. Debra and I are going to see if we can locate a private jet that may or may not have flown in from back east to the west coast recently."

  Everyone went to work on the phones. Eric made contact with his friend, Tom [Tommy] Torsen. "Hells bells Eric, you woke me from my afternoon nap. It's alright though because it's about happy hour anyway. Fresh squeezed orange juice from our own trees and a better screw driver is hard to find. Now, what the hell is up as I can tell by your heavy breathing something important is going on?"

  "You're right Tommy. We're on another homicide case with Norman Payne. You remember the last case with the wheelchair lady. Now we have a body on the beach with a hole in his head similar to mob style. The victim is from Florida and not so far from your house. His name is Edgar Townsend and his company is ABC Investments. I'll send all we have via an attachment to your e-mail. We've a strong suspicion that its mob related. I'm to warn you Tommy, if you decide to snoop around, be damn careful. Give me your bank account number and we'll send some expense money. Rent a car and remember, be damn cautious asking questions. Also, we've a tailor by the name of Bill's Finest out of Florida somewhere. Okay, any questions?"

  ''No right now Eric, but later I'm sure I'll have a few. First I'll get a cell from a department store and make some inquiries. Tomorrow I'll rent a car and see what I can dig up after I find the tailor dude."

  "Keep in touch and take no chances Tommy," said a serious Eric as he put down the receiver.

  At the conference table, Debra was checking flights from Miami. After checking the passenger list, which took an hour or more, the name Edgar Townsend had flown business class to Portland four days ago. The airlines person said, "Detective Payne, also on the flight was his brother Edward Townsend."

  Deb thanked her profusely and closed her cell. They only had three lines into the office and Norm was using one, Eric and James, another. Jenny had the last land line. Norm was busy talking to some airport guy. Debra made some notes and noticed the sun was cascading through the window. Lim was under the table stretched out to receive the warmth while she dozed away. Debra slipped off her shoes and reached out to rub Lim with her bare foot. She heard Lim emit small sounds of throat pleasure.

  Norm had hung up and turned saying, "Any luck potential mother?"

  She punched his arm and he faked an owee while laughing out loud. "Okay, I give up. But be careful, Lim will have to choose sides and that is not a good idea."

  "Us girls stick together former Master. When Rachel is born, that makes it three against one dude," she said demurely.

  Eric called out breaking the ice that had just formed around the conference table telling Norm about the call to his friend. Norm nodded, and told Jenny to wire funds when they received Tommy's bank account number.

  Debra then told Norm, rather smugly, her information on the passenger list from Miami. A little disappointment shown on Debs face as Norm told her he thought as much that the two had flown together. Now the case was beginning to take shape. Norm was fairly sure Edward Townsend would be found with a hole in his head like his brothers. The ‘who did the deed’ was not going to be easily determined. Norm was edging closer to a gangland killing as the case developed. However, he held back the notion it might be something entirely different. A man that jumps to a conclusion best stay away from a cliff.

  Norm winked at Debra. She winked back, knowing he was tuned into her and not excluding her from anything. "I think we'd best alert Sheriff Biggs about a possible body washing up on shore in Newport."

  "What if they killed him and dump in the woods somewhere Norm," said Debra.

  "I'd guess in this case they want the bodies discovered to prove the hit was completed."

  "I see, well, what is our next move?"

  "The killer had to get here and what method of transportation is what we need to discover. A plane is the logical choice of how he or they got here. If that's the case, they needed to land somewhere. Also, the next leg of the journey is ground transportation. A rental company is likely. I checked McMinnville, but struck out there. Next is Eugene. I'll do that now. Why don't you check Salem?"

  "I'm on it. Then let's take a break for awhile. I think I'll go home after this next call. I feel a little sleepy."

  A half hour later they were driving home in the midst of a heavy summer shower. It seemed that all around them the sun was brilliant, but inside the small pocket of rain, the wipers were struggling to keep up. Fortunately, when they arrived home the rain had stopped leaving a crystal clear late afternoon. Debra went inside while Norm took Lim to the backyard. Lim gave a small whimper, but just sat looking at her master as he entered the back door making Norm feel a tad guilty.

  Upstairs he found Debra stretched out on the bed with her eyes closed. He missed his morning shower so he stripped down to wash the day's unseen grime off of him. Afterwards he dressed in sweats with a hoodie. A gaze out the window, a look at his wife, he decided to join her in a nap.

  Phones Have no Conscience:

  At precisely 6:29 pm, the phone killed a pleasant dream Norm was having. Debra yelled, "I'm in the bathroom. You get it."

  Norm rolled over to her side of the bed and picked up the mobile phone. "Norm here."

  "Norm, Sheriff Biggs confirming your fear that a guest at the Sea Turtle, name of Bill White, has been found on the beach to the north of the motel."

  "I'm on my way Sheriff. Have an officer on the side of 101 leading me to the crime scene or where the body is."

  "Will do Norm. I've got to go now to secure the area."

  Debra walked out of the bathroom with a puzzled look on her face. "Did they find another body?"

  "Yes they did. By the looks of it, but not confirmed, it's the brother of our first victim. I'll take Lim with me and you take a rest," he suggested with a raised eyebrow.

  "Yea, you go get em cowboy. I'm home for the duration," she said plopping down on the bed.

  First Norm fed Lim and while she was eating, he found a yogurt and banana to fill the empty hole. Next thing he remembered was driving down the road to another dead body, but this time he had his favorite companion with him.

  Not so far north of the Sea Turtle, Norm saw flashing lights alongside the road. Norm flashed his lights and slowly followed the police car down a narrow street to the beach. With Lim on a leash, Norm followed the officer down some wooden steps to the beach. The sun was preparing for a nights rest casting shadows onto the group of police officers standing around a dead body. Lim was acting rather nervous at the lump on the sand. Norm guessed she didn't like the smell emanating from the body.

  Sheriff Biggs motioned Norm in for a look. An officer pulled back the tarp and it looked like a carbon copy
of the body found north about twenty five miles. He saw the purple hole, the tan skin, the same style of clothes and attention to the body that depicted, what turned out to be his brother. Ironically, they were born on the same day and almost died on the same day.

  Norm and Sheriff Biggs talked for awhile and then Norm went to the Sea Turtle to gather up the computer he had not taken the first time around. After that chore, he and Lim drove home. The sun was sliding down out of sight when Norm pulled into the driveway. He put Lim in the backyard and went inside. Debra was in the kitchen making some coleslaw salad.

  Norm said, "Are you having a craving for salad?"

  "Yes. I guess so. I've some frozen chicken strips and thought coleslaw might be good with the chicken."

  "I'm starving and ready anytime," he said while sitting down at the kitchen table observing his lovely wife.

  "Hang on big boy, dinner is about ready. Meanwhile, tell me who was on beach dead as a mackerel?"

  "The first victim's brother is what I expect will be revealed. They look identical if you look past the sandy face with some green seaweed mixed in. I'm sure if this keeps up, the crab population will increase dramatically," he said laughing.

  "That's sick Norm. Here munch on this fast food dinner. I'm only eating salad. Lim might want a few strips later."

  "Ok, sounds good. I wonder what Eric and James found out down in Florida?"

  "Oh, I forgot to tell you to call Eric when you're finished with dinner."

  Norm knew to find the killer, it would probably take out of state to find him or them. He was really banking on some word from Florida. He also realized that with Eric calling, meant some news was forthcoming. With the last bite, he regretted the thought of leaving Debra for a few days.

  He put the dishes in the washer, tossed a couple strips to Lim and went upstairs to call Eric. Norm sat at his desk and rang up Eric. Eric said, "Some good news Norm. My friend Tommy told me some interesting facts about our victims. I'll try to make a long story short, but it's a little twisted with historical facts. First off both Edgar and Edward were born in England. Their father was English and the mother Sicilian. Strangely, the mother was from a powerful mafia family who wanted to go her own way. The father didn't want the kids to be attached to the Sicilian family. Anyway, that's why the English names. However, as it was told to me, the twins wanted to know the mother's family. Hence they moved to Sicily and eventually to Miami where they opened a restaurant in Midtown. The name of the restaurant is, Quito's Buona Mangiata Restaurant. My friend said there's more coming, but he must be careful. He suggested you might want to come visit him."

  "Let's wait a day or so to see what he comes up with before I go off to Florida. Tell your friend thanks and a job well done. Call me when you have more Eric. Good job and good night."

  Norm left Debra lightly snoring to check on Lim for the nightly lock up chores. Lim was eagerly waiting for him. The night was a little chilly, but Norm decided a walk on the beach would be good for both him and Lim. He could do some thinking and Lim could do some running around.

  On the deserted beach, a hazy thin layer of clouds let some light from a half moon reflect off the waves rolling onto the beach. Being a young dog, Lim scampered around in the spilled waves running circles around Norm. Norm hardly noticed as he thought about going to Miami and what that might mean to the case. He struggled with the notion that to let the killer go or to pursue the trail to lord knows what end.

  On the one hand, his pride told him to take the mob on and let the pieces fly. But on the other hand, he had a new life with a family developing. He could probably tell the sheriff that chasing a contract killer to Florida was both dangerous and expensive. Plus the fact Debra would be incessant that he was landing in a hot bed of mob related crime.

  It was a 'what to do' thing as he put Lim away for the night. He thought it best to sleep on it and see what developed in the morning.

  Day Two the Morning After:

  What Norm thought would happen the next morning happened. Debra went slightly ballistic at the idea of her husband and the father of their unborn child, going off to apprehend a killer hired by the Mafia. "You're not serious about flying to Florida to chase down a killer smack in the middle of Mafia Land," she asked with a slight spray of spittle flying off her lips while she emptied the dish washer. "I think you need to talk to Biggs and let him decide what to do. The people who did this are professionals. They've connections and of course you'd be a stranger in their playing field. No, no way you're going."

  Norm felt numb and sat there with his mouth hanging open. The only sounds he heard were the rain beating against the window and his heart pounding. He quickly concluded that a talk with Sheriff Biggs was in order. Let him take the responsibility of solving the cases. He said, while seeing her wipe the tears from her face, "Sorry honey. I guess I wasn't thinking straight. I'll bag that idea and let the authorities in Florida take over. I'll see Biggs today."

  "You left New York for the peaceful west coast. Let's enjoy our lives Norm. We've a family coming and we both need you in our lives. Lim too. These murders are not your responsibility to solve. See that newspaper guy, what's his name – oh – Jason Matty and fill him in on what you think about the crimes. I sure hope that these killings were isolated with the two victims."

  "I still have the computer that I recovered from one of the victims. Let's see what's inside and then I'll see Biggs."

  "I like that idea. Now I'm in no mood to fix breakfast my dear. Go see Beth and Lim wants to go as well. I'm going back to bed. I'll talk to you later."

  Norm hurried out the back door to feed Lim and take her for a walk with his trusty shovel. The rain had lightened up a bit, but it still required a rain coat. While she ate, he took a large beach towel to his SUV for wiping down Lim after the rain and sand coated her.

  A half hour later they were driving to Beth's for something to eat. Lim was sitting in the back panting with excitement. Occasionally she whimpered sounds of happiness. Norm smiled and said to her, "Lim, it's too bad you can't see what is about to happen with a new born baby in the house. I’m wondering about you having a litter of pups?"

  It was as if she heard him talking to her. She gave off a yelp of sorts and pranced around the back seat as he drove into Beth's back parking lot. He saw Jenny's car and parked beside it. Inside he sent Lim up the stairs and he went to his table by the window.

  Beth had a fresh mug of coffee for Norm. She could see he was gloomy by his slow actions this morning. She attributed it to Debra's morning sickness, but later that day she realized her mistake. "How about some breakfast Norm," Beth asked with a happy voice.

  "Yes, indeed I will Beth. How about an omelet of your choice?"

  "Coming right up. Excuse me for asking, but any progress with your case?"

  "Yes and no Beth. Very few clues to work with, but we'll keep grinding away." Beth hurried off leaving Norm to stare out the window. The rain had stopped, but some meandering streams of rain still ran down the window. He sucked in a deep breath and dug out his cell to call the Sheriff. Just then Beth came with his omelet.

  When he dug into it, he was surprised that it was packed with fresh crab and cheese. This was his first time eating a Dungeness crab omelet. It was rich, but he ate it all wiping up the last with his toast. He felt better as he climbed the stairs to begin the day's work.

  Jenny said hello and he gave her a nice smile of welcome. "Anything to report Jenny?"

  "Not really Norm. Is that the laptop I've been hearing about?"

  "Yes, have somebody hack into this guys personal and business activities if you will please."

  "I'll take care of it. Oh, Sheriff Biggs wants you to call him soonest you come in."

  Norm rang up the sheriff. He said, "Norm, I'm coming your way and let's meet at noon at Beth's."

  "Sounds good sheriff. I was meaning to call you this morning anyway. I'll see you around noon time."

  Eric walked in with James in tow. They both sat
at the conference table to pass on what they had learned from Miami. Eric began by saying, "Tommy's neighbor is the source of his information about the Townsend brothers. Apparently a former mob guy retired next to Tommy. He made Tommy swear that what he said would not get back to the family or he was dead meat. I told him we'd not risk his source at any cost. Well it appears that the Townsend brothers are clean and well liked by the families in Midtown. One of his friends was shocked to learn they'd been killed. He told me that we'd best look elsewhere for the killer."

  "As they say, 'back to the drawing board.' I guess we best find another direction to find our killer. The trail is getting colder by the hour. I'm open to ideas and let's kick around some thoughts about where to go from here."

  James said, "How about that laptop?"

  "It's being worked on now. No idea when we'll know what's of interest to us. Meanwhile, how about that ABC Investments company that was noted on the guest register?"

  "I'll call my friend Tommy to see if the Townsend twins were actually running a side business. I do think it's a bit strange that both would register under the same business name. I think it must be significant that both chose that business name," said Eric.

  Norm nodded his agreement as he watch Eric walk away to use his cell to call Tommy in Miami. James was doodling on a legal pad while Lim moved under the table next to Norm's feet. James said, "Let me check my computer about ABC and see what pops up."

  "Norm was staring out the window watching the clouds break up after a morning squall came through. It seemed a thousand thoughts were running through his head at the same time. The shot to the temple bothered him and could it be a red herring? If so, it had worked quite well. What was really bothering Norm was the fact he'd been duped. However, all the evidence led to the mob connection. Patience Norm, patience, he told himself as Eric came back to the table.