by Parnell Hall
“No,” Cora said. “I’m capable of killing him, but not the other way around.”
“I’m serious.”
“So am I. Melvin is a big pussycat. Gets by on his charm. His macho posing is an act.”
“He taught you how to shoot.”
“Sure, he did. But does he carry a gun himself? No. I do, but he doesn’t.”
“But he knows how.”
“He knows a lot of things. It doesn’t mean anything. He could probably repair my car, but you wouldn’t catch him doing it.”
“He knew the victim.”
“That’s a conclusion on your part.”
“He called her Jane.”
“So? It’s a common name. Hell, it’s her name. Any unidentified body’s a Jane Doe.”
“You’re just being silly. He knew the victim. And he wouldn’t look at the other one.”
“Becky wouldn’t let him look at the other one.”
“Yeah, but the fact is, he didn’t do it. What do you want to bet he knows him?”
“If he knows him, it’s proof he’s being framed.”
“Oh, for goodness’ sake.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“You’re like a broken record. You think everyone’s out to get your man.”
“He’s not my man. And people usually are out to get him.”
“Why is that?”
“He just generally pisses people off.”
“That’s the first thing you’ve said that I agree with.”
Becky came in the door. She didn’t look happy.
“So,” Harper said. “You’ve had a chance to talk to your client. Are you ready to let him make a statement?”
“Yes and no.”
Harper scowled. “Well, which is it, yes or no?”
“I’m not trying to give you a hard time, Chief, but I’m not kicking my client’s rights out the door, either. As attorney for Melvin Crabtree, I’m prepared to release a statement in my client’s behalf.”
“Then you’re not letting him talk.”
“I’m letting him make a statement.”
“You’re not letting him make it. You’re making a sanitized version of it for him.”
“I’m glad you understand the situation. My client believes that he is being framed. My client believes the dead girl may be a woman that he was dating. If so, my client believes that she was killed and the killer held onto her body and planted it in a place where he would be found.”
“How did the killer know he’d be in the cemetery?”
“There are two possibilities,” Becky said. “One, the killer was following him to see where he’d go. When he went in the cemetery it seemed like a good choice. Two, the killer lured him into the cemetery because that’s where he’d planted the body.”
“Lured him how?”
“That, I couldn’t say. These are just possibilities.”
“I don’t want possibilities. I want facts.”
“Of course you do. And we’d love to give you some. Unfortunately, we’re not masterminding events, so we don’t have them.”
“The girl.”
“What about her?”
“What’s her name?”
“Jane.”
“What’s her last name?”
“My client doesn’t know.”
“Your client was dating her and he doesn’t know her name?”
“Assuming she’s the girl in question, it’s possible my client was dating her casually, but didn’t know her well.”
“I find that hard to believe.”
“I don’t,” Cora said. “I can remember Melvin being somewhat hazy on my name.”
“Great,” Harper said. “So, what’s the rest of your statement?”
“The rest of it?”
“Yes.”
“There’s no rest of it, Chief. That’s the statement.”
Harper blinked incredulously. “But you’re not explaining anything.”
“Unfortunately, we don’t know anything. That’s why I’m making the statement for him. You see how beat up he’d get if he tried to make one for himself?”
“If you don’t have an explanation, I can’t let him go.”
“We understand that, Chief. Melvin very reluctantly agrees that there is nothing he could say that would make you let him go. He’s in jail awaiting arraignment. At which time I shall attempt to get the case kicked for lack of evidence.” Becky sighed. “That is the current situation at the present time.”
“You don’t sound happy.”
“I’m not happy. Under the circumstances I’d rather make no statement at all than such an obviously inadequate one. However, Melvin refuses to follow that advice. If I didn’t speak for him, he was going to speak for himself. I don’t have to tell you what a frightening prospect that is.”
“That must be frustrating, but I’m sure he’s not the first defendant to feel that way. It’s par for the course.”
“Yeah.”
“Then why are you so upset?”
Becky took a breath, jerked her thumb at Cora. “He wants to see her.”
Chapter
36
Cora shook her head deploringly. “Melvin, Melvin, Melvin.”
He grinned at her. “I do seem to have stepped in it, haven’t I?”
“I’m glad you think it’s funny.”
“I don’t think it’s funny. There’s just nothing I can do about it.”
“What do you mean, there’s nothing you can do? You’re being framed, you know who’s doing it. Why aren’t you fighting back?”
“I’m not in a very good position at the moment.”
“No, you’re not. I would think you’d want to get out of it.”
“I do. Toward that end I’ve hired counsel. The nice thing about it, this is a totally legitimate case. She has to take it seriously.”
“You’re pleased to be framed for murder because it gives you an in with Becky Baldwin?”
“It also gets me in good with you.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Would you be talking with me if I weren’t framed for murder? I don’t think so. Throw a guy in jail, and the women come a-calling. It’s an aphrodisiac.”
Cora’s eyes blazed. “Okay. For one thing, I’m here because you asked for me. For another thing, I’m here because I think you’ve lost your mind. If so, you need help. And I don’t mean legal. This is a serious situation. If you’re not going to treat it like one, you’ve lost your grasp on reality.”
“I haven’t lost my grip on anything. I know exactly what’s happening. Becky’s making my case. She’s going to hem and haw, and eventually strike a deal about letting me ID the guy in the Dumpster. He’ll turn out to be the loan shark, I’ll be charged with his murder, and we’ll begin to get the whole picture.”
“You’ve got the whole picture. You already told me the whole thing. Why aren’t you telling the cops?”
“Tell ’em what?”
“Tell ’em what? You know who did it. You know the killer. You know the guy who’s framing you. Tell the cops about him. They’ll pick him up and sweat him, and maybe we’ll get somewhere.”
Melvin shook his head emphatically. “No, we won’t. All we’ll get is deeper and deeper. Bill French is framing me for something I did over twenty years ago. Give him something new, and he’ll get really angry.”
“So what? He’s already framing you for murder. What more can he do to you?”
“I have no idea. That’s what’s scary. The man’s a psychopath. He could kill you for jostling him on the subway. Give him cause, and there’s no telling what he’d do.”
“You’re afraid to say he did it?”
“I’m in jail. A sitting duck. What am I going to do, hire someone to taste my food?”
“No, but it’s not like you to do nothing.”
“Who’s doing nothing? I have a lawyer laboring away to secure my release. I have an ex-wife running around pointing out the folly of s
uspecting me of anything. Just what is it you’d like me to do?”
“Call a press conference. Get Rick Reed and a TV crew in here and tell him you didn’t do it.”
“What a novel concept. Man arrested for murder claims—and this is going to knock your socks off—claims he didn’t do it. What a unique defense. And how ingenious. If only more killers had thought of it.”
“If you’re not going to be serious, I don’t know how I can help you.”
“I find it touching that you want to help me. Though I don’t know what you could do. Unless you’d like to come a little closer. Speaking of touching.”
Cora snorted. “In your dreams.”
Chapter
37
Judge Hobbs looked down from the bench. “What do we have here?” he asked. It was a formality. He knew damn well what they had there. He’d been discussing it with his wife over breakfast. She’d heard it from Mrs. Cushman of Cushman’s Bakery, who’d heard it from Judy Douglas Knauer, the real estate agent, who’d heard it from librarian Edith Potter, who’d heard it from the horse’s mouth, a no less unimpeachable source than Police Chief Dale Harper’s wife.
District Attorney Henry Firth was on his feet. “Your Honor, we have here the case of Melvin Crabtree, charged with the murder of Jane Cunningham.”
“I understand he was originally arrested on a lesser charge?”
“That’s right, Your Honor. He was arrested for trespassing and discharging a weapon within town limits. This was upgraded to murder when it turned out the bullet hit someone.”
“I see. And is the defendant represented by counsel?”
Judge Hobbs knew that, too. Unless Becky Baldwin was dating the defendant, there was no other reason for her to be there.
“He is, Your Honor,” Becky said.
“I see. I assume you plead not guilty to the charges?”
“Not at all, Your Honor.”
Judge Hobbs frowned. “You mean you’re pleading guilty?”
“I’m not pleading at all, Your Honor. These charges are completely without merit, and I ask that they be dismissed.”
“You’ll have a chance to argue that at the trial. This is simply an arraignment.”
“I understand, Your Honor. But surely a man can’t be arraigned simply on a whim.”
“I’m sure that is not the case.”
“I’m not, Your Honor. I would be interested in the basis for these charges.”
“I’m sure you are. But this is not a probable cause hearing.”
“This is not a probable cause hearing because there is no probable cause. My client was arrested simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. That is understandable. What is not understandable is why when no further evidence was forthcoming the charges were not dropped.”
“No further evidence,” Henry Firth said sarcastically. “You don’t count the finding of a dead body as evidence?”
“Not against my client.”
“Except for the fact he happens to know her.”
“You know the judge. Would you suggest I could proceed against you for murder by producing the judge’s dead body and evidence of your relationship?”
Judge Hobbs’s gavel silenced the debate. “No one is producing my dead body, figuratively or otherwise. We are dispensing with hypothetical arguments and proceeding with the arraignment.”
“That’s a little harsh, Your Honor, considering my client’s been cooperating with the police.”
“By cooperating with the police,” Henry Firth said, “are you referring to your client identifying the body in question, not to mention the body of the other victim?”
“Other victim?” Judge Hobbs said.
“Early this morning,” Becky explained, “my client assisted the police in identifying the body of the gentleman found in the Dumpster.”
Judge Hobbs’s wife had missed this tidbit. He raised his eyebrows. “Your client knew both victims?”
“See?” Becky said. “That is just the type of reaction that makes it hard to get a fair hearing. If he identifies both victims you take it as an indication of guilt. If he failed to identify both victims you’d say he was being uncooperative.”
“You can make that argument at another time.” Judge Hobbs looked at his calendar. “Let’s see. I will set a probable cause hearing for—let’s see, I have something tomorrow morning—tomorrow afternoon at two o’clock. Meanwhile, the defendant is hereby arraigned on a charge of murder.”
“In which case,” Henry Firth said, “in light of the seriousness of the charge, I would ask that the defendant be remanded without bail.”
“Oh, for goodness’ sake,” Becky said. “This is why some degree of evidence should be required. I ask the defendant be released on his own recognizance.”
“The defendant doesn’t live in Bakerhaven, and is a flight risk, in light of the capital charge.”
“I tend to agree with the prosecution,” Judge Hobbs said.
“What a surprise,” Cora muttered.
“What?” Judge Hobbs snapped.
“I didn’t say anything,” Becky said.
“Someone did.”
Cora, sitting on the aisle just behind the defendant, looked positively angelic.
“Very well,” Judge Hobbs said. “The defendant is hereby remanded to county jail until our probable cause hearing tomorrow afternoon at two o’clock.”
Melvin strained at his handcuffs. “No!”
Judge Hobbs frowned. “I beg your pardon?”
“You can’t do that!”
“Oh, but I can. I’m the judge. Ms. Baldwin, could you please control your client?”
“Yes, Your Honor. Melvin, shut up.”
Melvin grabbed her sleeve. “Can’t go to county!” he hissed.
“What?”
“I can’t go to county. Don’t let them put me in county.”
“You’ve just been remanded.”
“Make ’em keep me here.”
“Your Honor, my client objects to being shunted back and forth to county. If the hearing’s tomorrow, why can’t he stay in the lockup?”
“We don’t have the facilities for permanent holding cells.” Judge Hobbs banged the gavel. “Defendant’s remanded to custody. Next case.”
Melvin just had time to flash a pleading glance at Cora, before Dan Finley hauled him away.
Chapter
38
“You gotta keep him here, Chief,” Cora said.
“Oh, for goodness’ sake.”
“There’s no reason to send him to county just to turn around and schlepp him back.”
Chief Harper leaned back in his desk chair. “Actually, there is. We’re not set up as a jail.”
“You got a cell. What more do you need?”
“I got a three-man police squad. Whaddya want me to do, have Dan Finley stay here round the clock until the case comes up for trial?”
“You kept him here last night.”
“Yes, I did, and I don’t want to do it again. I want to lock up the police station and go home.”
“Fine. You do that. Just don’t send Melvin to county.”
“What’s Melvin got against county?”
“He’s afraid he’ll get a shiv in the gut.”
“Oh, come on.”
“No, really. You put him in a prison population, he isn’t going to last a day.”
“That’s a little paranoid.”
“That’s very paranoid. And for good reason. Melvin’s the type of guy who makes enemies. Mortal enemies.”
“He has an enemy at county? Tell me who, and we’ll split ’em up.”
“I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. If he has an enemy, that’s that. If he doesn’t, someone could pay to have him whacked. In a prison setting he’ll have no way to defend himself. His only chance would be to do something so atrocious he gets thrown in solitary. But he’d be doing it on purpose because he has to. Which is hardly fair, considering how it will look to a jury if he’s tr
ied for murder.”
Becky Baldwin came in the door. “Okay, here’s the deal. Melvin doesn’t want to go to county because he’s afraid someone will kill him there.”
“Yes. Cora was just telling me.”
Becky scowled. “She was? How is that? He just told me.”
“A pretty obvious deduction,” Cora said. “Anyway, the chief says he hasn’t got the manpower to let him stay.”
“Manpower?” Becky was incensed. “My client’s life is at stake, and you’re concerned with overtime?”
“It’s not a question of overtime. No one’s here at night. Would your client want to stay here unattended?”
“Is that what you’re offering?”
“No, I was just pointing out—”
“Let me talk to Melvin, see if that’s agreeable to him.” Becky ducked out the door again.
“Damn it,” Harper said. “I didn’t offer to let him stay here.”
“Well, you should.”
Dan Finley poked his head in the door. “What’s this about letting Melvin stay?”
“I didn’t say that,” Harper told him.
“Because I can’t do another all-nighter. It’s one thing to bring in a prisoner and hold him until morning. I can’t do two nights in a row. You’ll have to ask Sam. And he’s not going to be happy.”
“Oh, for goodness’ sake,” Cora said. She stormed out of the office back to the holding cells where Becky and Melvin were arguing hotly. “Kids, kids, let’s not get excited.”
“That’s easy for you to say,” Melvin said. “They’re not sending you to your death.”
“They’re not sending you, either. He hasn’t even called for the transfer yet.”
“He’s going to let me stay?”
“I think so. But he’s short staffed. You’d probably have to stay alone.”
Melvin jerked his thumb at Becky. “That’s what she was saying. Are you kidding me? I’d rather be in county. You see the lock on the front door? I could get through it in two minutes. And I’m no pro. Then there’s the windows. What are they going to do, close the shutters?”
“What’s the matter? Are you afraid the killer’s gonna bump you off so you can’t talk?”
“Wouldn’t you be?”
“Yes, I would. So the way I see it, there’s only one thing to do.”