Murder in Mountain Springs

by Alene Anderson

  “I can’t imagine you going to Little Orphan Annie,” Kate said, leaning her chin into the palm of her hand as she propped her elbow on the table and stared at Jake.

  “I took my niece when I lived in D.C. When her father moved out and filed for divorce, it hit her pretty hard and I was trying to do everything I could think of to take her mind off of it.”

  The next morning, Jake ate his breakfast and then went up to his cabin to wait for Dave Wilson who had promised to be there early. He couldn’t help but wonder why Dave had wanted to meet with him.

  He didn’t have long to wait. Hearing the quiet sound of an engine, he looked out to see Dave pull up in a BMW and park beside his Jeep. As the realtor walked up the steps of his cabin, Jake swung open the door and the man stepped inside. Motioning him to a chair, he sat down in another one and waited for Dave to speak.

  Dave appeared nervous and he fidgeted in his chair for a moment before he finally spoke. “Kate mentioned you were an attorney and I need some legal advice.”

  “Don’t you have an attorney in Lava Cove who can help you out?” Jake asked, curious.

  “Not the kind of attorney I need,” Dave answered.

  “What exactly is your problem?”

  “I need to talk to someone about Kioko.”

  “Go ahead. I’m listening.”

  “Can I talk to you in confidence?”

  “I can’t really commit myself unless I know what you’re going to tell me.”

  Dave was quiet for a minute as he stared at Jake giving him a considering look. Whatever he saw in Jake’s face must have assured him he could be trusted.

  “I know neither you nor Kate have said anything to the police about seeing me with Kioko. Why?”

  “I don’t know about Kate, but from what I’ve heard about your good reputation, I think if you felt there was something they needed to know, you would have gone to the police by now.”

  “I do feel there is something they need to know, but the story is preposterous. I doubt the police here in this town would believe it,” he said slowly. “I found it hard to believe myself.”

  “Why don’t you tell me and let me be the judge,” Jake suggested as he studied the other man.

  “Kioko told me the Mountain Springs Health Spa is really a house of prostitution and the girls who work there were brought to America with the promise they would find them a husband.

  “When she complained to Kuri, the lady who runs the spa, she was told she would have to pay back the money it cost to bring her to this country, before they would find her a husband. Kioko threatened to go to the police. Kuri told her if she went to the police, she would be sorry. She told her that her identity had been destroyed as well as the other girls at the spa. There was no way the police could help her.”

  He paused.

  “I believe that is why she was killed,” he continued when Jake made no response. “I think she tried to go to the police.”

  “How did she ever get away from the spa the day Kate and I saw you in Cedar National Forest?”

  “She managed to slip out while Kuri was processing a new girl. There is a gate at the back of the property buried in the bushes. No one seems to know about the gate. Kioko is a very curious girl and she found it one day when she was snooping around on the grounds. It opens on a path that leads into the National Forest. I was up there looking at some property adjacent to the path. I thought I might have a buyer for it. Kioko saw me and came over to talk to me. We walked on up the path and into the National Forest where you saw us by the waterfall.”

  Jake was silent wondering how best to handle Dave. He didn’t want him to know who he was. Neither did he want him to know he already knew about the Geisha House. How the girls were brought into the United States with the promise of finding them a husband, and then forced into prostitution. He didn’t want him to know this was prevalent throughout small town U.S.A and the USCIS was trying to prosecute the men involved.

  “Let me think about what you have told me,” Jake said. “Also I will talk to my partners and see what we can come up with. In the meantime, I wouldn’t say anything about this to anyone.” He emphasized the last word. “If someone did kill Kioko because she threatened to go to the police, your life could be in danger if they knew she had talked to you,” Jake explained. “You haven’t told anyone else, have you?”

  “Just my wife.”

  “Good. Keep it that way. And tell her not to say anything. I’ll get back to you as soon as I get some advice on this from my partners.”

  Knowing the conversation was at an end, Dave stood up to leave. Jake couldn’t help but notice how much more relaxed the other man looked, now that he had shared his story.

  Kate was excited as the evening of the barbecue approached. She admired Hank’s pies, lined up on the large kitchen table. She knew he had spent the whole day baking. Now all they had to do was transport them safely to the barbecue.

  Jake had offered to help load them into the back of her SUV. He had put down the back seats, which left room for all the pies. Hank was going to ride with her and Jake would follow in his Jeep and the three of them would unload them onto the tables set up at the nursery.

  Kate ran up to her apartment to change into the outfit she was going to wear to the barbecue. She put on her favorite jeans and green silk shirt, which accented her green eyes. After she tucked the shirt in, she put on a pair of diamond earrings, which had been a gift from her mother on her graduation from college.

  After brushing her blond hair and applying a light touch of eye shadow and lipstick she ran down the stairs where Jake and Hank were taking the last of the pies out to her car.

  She couldn’t help but think how attractive Jake was in his tight jeans and light blue knit short-sleeved shirt. As he leaned to put the pies he was carrying into the back of the SUV, she noticed how the muscles in his upper arms tightened and she wondered if he worked out regularly to have developed such a build.

  She turned away as he stood and caught her staring at him. She knew she was blushing and was glad Hank stepped between them to set down his pies.

  “That’s all of ‘em,” Hank said as he stepped back to admire the results of his baking.

  “Let’s do it,” Jake said as he closed the back of the SUV.

  While Kate and Hank climbed into the car, Jake headed up the hill to his Jeep where it sat in front of his cabin.

  In a few minutes the two cars drove into the nursery parking lot. After the pies were unloaded, Jake and Kate went to park their two cars.

  When they walked back to the barbecue, a large crowd of people had gathered by the tables admiring the pies. Kate could see the proud look on Hank’s face as he pointed out the various kinds.

  Numerous card tables were set up nearby and as people filled their plates, they gravitated in fours to the tables covered with red and white checkered cloths.

  Dallen and Connie invited Jake and Kate to sit at their table. At first the conversation was general and then it turned to talk of the murdered girl, Kioko.

  “Everyone knows Mountain Springs Health Spa is really a Geisha House,” Connie said. “I don’t know how the owner ever got a permit to open here in Mountain Springs.”

  “That’s how they got the permit,” her husband said. “By applying for a permit as a health spa.”

  “If it’s a health spa, why is there difficulty in getting in?” Jake asked.

  “Supposedly it’s very exclusive and in order to become a member, you have to be approved by the owner,” Dallen replied.

  “Who’s the owner?” Jake asked as if he hadn’t already received the information from the banker in Lava Cove.

  “Are you planning to apply for membership?” Dallen joked.

  “Why not?” Jake grinned at the other man. “I’ve alw
ays wondered if those Geisha Houses were all they’re cracked up to be.”

  “Word around town is it belongs to someone from Salt Lake. I’ve never heard his name and neither has anyone else around here. I heard an attorney from Salt Lake handled everything.”

  As they finished dinner, Kate saw a small stage had been set under some nearby trees and a group of musicians were setting up their instruments.

  “You didn’t tell me there was going to be live music,” Kate said to Connie.

  “What’s a party without a little dancing?” She smiled. “Do you dance, Jake?”

  “Are we talking ballroom or square dancing?”

  “Heaven forbid we do any square dancing.” She laughed. “No, it’s just your regular ballroom dancing with maybe a little rock thrown in for the younger generation.”

  The tables were quickly cleared and folded up until there was a large dirt packed area of ground where couples began to gather as the musicians launched into a familiar tune.

  Jake turned to Kate and held out his hand. For a moment Kate hesitated. She was afraid everyone in Mountain Springs would soon know how she felt about Jake once they saw her dancing with him.

  “Afraid I’ll step on your toes?” he asked.

  “No, of course not,” she replied and took his hand.

  As he pulled her close and began to move to the music, Kate realized he was a good dancer and relaxed into his arms. They moved in perfect rhythm without speaking.

  It felt good to be in his arms, she thought. She wondered if he really was interested in joining the spa. The thought made her pull away and she knew she was going to ask him.

  “Do you really have plans for joining the spa?” she asked.

  “I might. Would it bother you?”

  “Of course not,” she answered a bit crossly. “It’s none of my business what you do.”

  “Would you like for it to be your business?” he asked in a husky voice, leaning down to speak into her ear.

  She stared up at him, her green eyes wide and startled. Had he said what she thought he had said?

  At that moment the song came to an end and Jake released her.

  “Think I’ll ask Connie to dance,” he said and headed toward where she stood talking to an older lady.

  Kate could only stand and stare. As usual she had a feeling Jake was trying to get a rise out of her. Turning around she bumped into Howard Hartman, the owner of the General Store.

  “How about this dance, Kate?” he asked.

  She smiled and accepted. After dancing with a few more of the local men and a couple of the campers from the lodge, she decided to call it a night. As she went to thank Connie for a great party and check to see if there was any leftover pie, she glanced around for Jake but didn’t see him.

  She wasn’t surprised to see all the pies had been eaten and the empty pans stacked on one table. Grabbing a black garbage bag from a box, she dropped the pans into it and waved at Hank who was dancing with his wife.

  He waved at her, acknowledging he knew she was taking the pans and she headed towards Connie and Dallen, where they stood talking to another couple. They turned as she walked up and she thanked them for a wonderful evening.

  When she reached the lodge she was disappointed to see Jake’s Jeep wasn’t in front of his cabin. She could guess what that meant. He was probably trying to find a way to get into the Geisha House.

  Sighing, she carried the bag of dirty pans into the kitchen and filled up the big sink with hot soapy water. Putting the pans into soak for a few minutes, she ran up to her apartment to change her clothes.

  She tried to tell herself she really didn’t care if Jake had gone up to the spa. After all, it was obvious she had no future with him. Their values appeared to totally different.

  As Jake drove up the road leading to Mountain Springs Health Spa, he thought regretfully of leaving Kate at the party without at least saying goodbye. Knowing how he felt about Kate, he had to be careful not to let his feelings get in the way of the job he was here to do. He hoped this would be the night when he would obtain the evidence he needed.

  When he had been dancing with Connie, he had seen the white limousine driving by. It was all he could do to finish the dance before leaving. He knew it was unusual for the limousine to make a trip up to the spa in the evening because it meant the driver would have a long drive back to Salt Lake late at night. Must be a group.

  He was hoping to get to the security gate of the spa before the limousine unloaded its clients and drove back through the gate. The best way to get onto the property was to slip through when the gate opened for the limousine, letting it in or out.

  Once he got in, he would have the cover of darkness but he wasn’t sure how he was going to get back out. Hopefully, he was resourceful enough to figure it out once he was inside.

  Before he reached the gate, he drove his Jeep off the road and parked behind some bushes. As he climbed out he carefully arranged the limbs, covering any trace of the Jeep. He wanted to make sure his car couldn’t be seen from the road.

  Previously, he had thoroughly scouted out the entrance to the spa and knew there was a large bush which he could hide behind and then move through the gate after the limousine drove back out. If he was lucky the driver would be looking straight ahead and would not see him slip inside.

  He didn’t have long to wait before he saw the headlights of a car coming from the spa. He watched carefully and after the limousine had driven through the gate, he rolled inside before the gate could close.

  He lay on the ground for a moment and waited to see if the driver had seen him, but it continued on down the road and its lights soon disappeared around a curve. He was glad he had put off his trip to Salt Lake in order to go to the Morrison’s barbecue.

  This was the chance he had been waiting for. To get the proof this was indeed a house of prostitution, not a health spa. He needed to be able to report to his boss what he had seen with his own eyes. Then they would feel comfortable about making plans for a raid on the spa. He didn’t want to blow his cover if the information was wrong.

  He thought there might be security lights, which would be triggered by movement. He deliberated a few minutes about the best way to approach the building. If there was night life moving close to the ground the owner of the spa wouldn’t want to trigger the lights at every little movement. The best plan would be to stay low to the ground.

  It would be slow going but it was probably the safest bet. He would need to proceed quietly in case they might have someone outside on watch.

  He was relieved when he reached one wall of the building and could press his body against it as he raised himself up to peer in one window. The window was covered with a drape which was not quite closed and one look told him everything he needed to know.

  As he slid back down to the ground he shook his head in disgust. It had looked like a Roman orgy in the large room. He didn’t need any more proof that the USCIS should go ahead with a raid, but before he committed his boss to proceed with one, he had to get to Salt Lake and locate Brad Jenner.

  He sat on the ground for a few minutes leaning his back against the brick wall. He took the flashlight he had taken from his Jeep and debated how he was going to get back out to his jeep. Suddenly he remembered the gate Dave had told him was at the back of the property. He needed to find it and get back to the lodge.

  He crouched low to the ground as he made his way from the back of the spa in what he hoped was the direction toward the fence where he felt the gate should be. Once he found the gate he knew he would have to make his way through some heavy brush along the outside of the fence and back to his jeep.

  It took him a few minutes to reach the fence. He went first in one direction to the corner, but found no gate. He retraced his steps and sighed in relief when he found it
behind a group of thick bushes. He couldn’t believe with the security gate and lights, someone would have overlooked the wrought-iron gate.

  He was lucky to have talked to Dave. Otherwise, he would have had no idea the opening was there and he might have had a problem getting back to his Jeep. Letting himself out through the gate, he followed the fence until it turned along the side of the property and headed in the direction of the road.

  He moved as quietly as he could through the thick brush and in a few minutes, he was turning the front corner of the fence and his flashlight lit the back of his Jeep.

  As Kate came back into the kitchen after changing her clothes she put on a big apron of Hank’s and begin to wash the pie pans. When she heard the front door to the lodge open and shut, she turned toward the entryway into the kitchen hoping it would be Jake. She couldn’t help but feel disappointed when Hank walked in.

  “Knew you would be washin’ up those pie pans,” he began without preamble. “Leave ‘em for me to do tomorrow.”

  “I don’t want you to come in to a mess in the morning,” she said.

  “Can ya believe, not a piece of pie was left.” The grin Hank gave her almost reached ear to ear.

  “I can believe it.” She smiled. “Please, go home now, and get some rest. We have new campers checking in tomorrow. We’ll be needing more of your famous pies.”

  “OK, Boss,” he said as he turned and left the kitchen.

  As she finished drying the last pan, she glanced at the clock. It was past eleven and she hadn’t yet heard Jake drive in. Looking out the kitchen window, she could see his Jeep wasn’t in front of his cabin like it usually was.

  Sighing, she turned away and began turning off the lights. As she flipped the last switch, she heard a familiar sound. Jake’s Jeep.