A nurse came into the room and asked how he was feeling. “Confused,” he admitted. “Why am I here? This is a hospital, right?”
“Yes, you’re in Memorial Hospital. You fell and cut your forehead, banged yourself up pretty bad, and possibly had a concussion. We want you to continue to remain still and let us monitor your progress. You’re doing fine, but I imagine you’re experiencing a bit of pain.”
“A bit of pain?” Shields responded sarcastically. “... and you’re a medical person? Why are my ribs bandaged?” he demanded.
“We x-rayed your ribs. You have two broken ribs, and your entire trunk is sprained from the way you twisted when you fell. You’ll need to keep the bandages on for a while.”
“I fell?” he wondered. He didn’t remember falling, but he probably shouldn’t ask. He would ask Margaret when she came. “Where’s my wife?” he demanded.
“I haven’t seen your wife, Mr. Shields.”
“That’s Detective Shields,” he corrected. “Why isn’t she here?”
“Sorry,” she said as she left the room, not answering his question.
He tried to reach the phone, but it was out of his reach. He looked across the room and saw his clothes. There was probably a cell phone in his pocket. He attempted to get up but was restrained. He pushed the call button, but no one appeared. He pushed it numerous times. Still no one. He was able to reach the water pitcher on the nightstand. He lifted it as high as the pain would permit and threw it against the wall. It shattered. Still, no one came. He pulled off the patches that led to the monitoring equipment and attempted to stand. They all came.
Moments later he fought the sedation that was being injected into his veins. He saw a white car rushing past. He saw Margaret screaming wordlessly. He floated into oblivion.
“I called his wife several times, Dr. Mellon. The first time she said she had no interest in his condition, and we would have to wait for him to be awake to find out about his insurance.” Nurse Brier continued, “I called two or three more times and left messages, but she hasn’t called back. I really don’t expect to hear from her.”
“She hasn’t even been here?” Dr. Mellon asked incredulously.
“No. And from the way she sounded on the phone, I doubt that she’ll be coming. She’s one angry woman.”
The nurse was right. Margaret spent the morning packing her clothes. She called a cab around noon and left for the airport. Before leaving town, she called a friend whose husband was a locksmith and requested that he change the locks and hold the keys for her. She had already spoken with her attorney and requested that he serve the divorce papers he had been holding. She told him she would be back in a month or so. She told her best friend, confidentially, that she would be at her mother’s villa in the south of France. Margaret was going to have that long-needed rest and forget the dysfunctional, drunken leach, Mark Benjamin Shields.
Chapter 27
Sarah tried calling Detective Shields the next morning but got the same cryptic response from the officer answering the phone, so she decided to go ahead and talk to Detective Gabriel. As it turned out, he wasn’t available either, but she was able to leave a message. An hour later, Detective Gabriel returned her call.
Sarah was actually relieved to speak with him. He had always been pleasant with her and never made her feel like a criminal. She didn’t learn anything about Andy’s case. He did tell her, however, that they were broadening the investigation beyond Cunningham Village. “You mean it was not necessarily someone here?” Sarah asked eagerly.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“That’s a relief. You can’t imagine what it’s like to be suspicious of your friends and neighbors.” She asked about Detective Shields and was told he would be away for some time; Gabriel would be directing the investigation for now. She wondered what that was about but didn’t ask.
Darrell Gabriel was a tall, slender officer, probably in his late thirties, with chiseled features. He never liked his first name and was always called Gabriel on the job and Gabe by his friends. He had moved to Middletown two years ago from New York where he had worked homicide for most of his career. With a young family and little time to spend with them, he had searched for a vacancy on a small town force. When he was contacted by Chief Walker of the Middletown Police Department, he immediately knew this was what he and his family needed.
Middletown didn’t have a homicide unit, as such, and rarely had a homicide. He hoped to spend more time with his family, and in his job, he hoped to actually be of service to the community. On his first week, he had helped Tim from the fire department release a cat stuck in a storm drain. “This is more like it,” he had said to himself that day with a smile.
He was pleased when the chief decided to partner him with Mark Shields. The two men got along well and had much in common. Shields had worked homicide in Boston for thirteen years and seemed to be enjoying the less hectic lifestyle of Middletown. Shields had moved to Middletown several years before when he married Margaret. Margaret’s family founded the town in the 1800s and owned most of the businesses. Margaret enjoyed the benefits of old money and refused to leave the family mansion in Middletown. Mark got a job with the local police force despite Margaret’s objections. She felt it was unseemly for him to hold such a position.
The two men worked well together and complemented one another’s skills. Dividing up the workload was always congenial. But after the first few months, Gabriel began to notice the alcohol. At first, he had the fleeting feeling he smelled alcohol on Mark’s breath in the morning, but he decided it was probably left over from the night before. He knew Mark always stopped for a drink or two on his way home. But as time passed, he noticed it was often stronger in the afternoon. Then there was the talk around the office. He always defended Shields, both to other officers and even to himself.
Three months ago, however, things became more complicated. His lieutenant questioned him about the reports. Being a loyal partner, he said he hadn’t heard the rumors and had no misgivings about Shields. He went so far as to say he didn’t think office gossip should be taken seriously.
Just before receiving the call from Sarah Miller, Detective Gabriel’s boss had called him into his office and told him about Mark’s accident. The lieutenant had actually said, “He fell down his own steps in a drunken stupor, according to his wife.” Gabriel knew this drinking issue was going to be looked at more closely now. Shields’s drinking had been much more evident recently, even on the job. Then there was the white car. Shields had told him he fell asleep during the viewing. He said Margaret had been sick and he had been up with her the night before. Gabriel did not believe Shields’s story. The excuses were more frequent, and this time Shields had made a big mistake. They had probably missed the opportunity to catch the killer because of his negligence. Gabriel knew he couldn’t continue to cover for his partner.
The lieutenant told Gabriel to continue working the Burgess case, which he had intended to do anyway. He pulled the file, reread all the statements, and reviewed the details of the crime. He read the work Shields had done to track the white car after discovering his mistake.
He read the notes about the alleged affair between Andy and Millie Lake. They had brought Ralph Lake in for an informal interview. Lake was an angry man and certainly seemed capable of murder. He didn’t seem particularly disturbed when he was told about the affair. Obviously, he already knew. Perhaps he had already handled it. He certainly had a motive, Gabriel mused.
Lake’s alibi had checked out. He was, in fact, at Barney’s drinking that night, or at least that’s what his friends said. But then his friends could be lying for him. The bartender that night was new and didn’t know Lake that well. He said Lake had been in often, but he wasn’t sure about that night.
“Lake is all we’ve got,” Gabriel muttered to himself. He doubted they could make a case stick without a confession, and they weren’t likely to get that.
Chapter 28
After getting of
f the phone with Detective Gabriel, Sarah poured herself another cup of coffee. She didn’t need the stimulation; she already had butterflies in her stomach. Today was the day she would pick up Barney. “I hope he likes it here,” she said to herself. The small backyard was fenced, and he’d have a nice place to play. She might need to put a small protective fence around her little flower garden in the spring in case he was a digger.
She had put Barney’s fleece-lined bed and his toys in the guest room and had found a small store-bought quilt to put in the bed. “I’ll make him his own quilt once I learn how,” she said aloud excitedly. His water dish was sitting on a plastic place mat in one corner of the kitchen. His food was in the pantry, and his food dish was in the cupboard.
The young man at the pet store had suggested she feed him twice a day and not leave the food out all day. “If he doesn’t eat it, just pick it up and give it to him at the next meal. He’ll eat when he’s hungry, and he’ll learn the schedule.” A big cookie jar with a dog’s face painted on the front sat on the countertop and contained an assortment of dog treats of all shapes and sizes.
The salesman had warned her against overfeeding with treats. “These are nutritious treats,” he had said, “but your dog will prefer them to his food, so just use them for training and that occasional special time.” He suggested a book on dog care that explained how to integrate the new dog into the family and especially emphasized the reasons she needed to become the alpha dog. She giggled at the suggestion but seemed willing to read the book. The young salesman had watched her leave, wondering if his own mother would have such a spunky attitude at Sarah’s age.
It was almost time to leave. The animal shelter was expecting her around noon, and she made one last inspection to confirm that the house was ready for her new roommate. She put on a sweater, grabbed her bag, and left the house.
Barney was waiting in the lobby when she arrived. He smiled his usual smile when he saw her and wagged his tail. Apparently, he knew she had come for him. Sarah signed the final papers and exchanged the kennel’s worn collar and leash for Barney’s new leather ensemble. He pranced out of the door by her side without a single glance back. He hopped into the backseat and lay down on the new fleece seat cover Sarah had installed. Sarah, glancing right and left to be sure the pet-store salesman was not lurking nearby, passed Barney a big, juicy beef treat. He smiled and wagged his tail.
Just before she arrived home, she decided, on a whim, to call Charles Parker. She hadn’t used the cell phone Martha had given her but had programmed Charles’s and Sophie’s numbers in just for practice. She was glad now that she had.
“Hello there, pretty lady,” he answered.
“You have that caller ID thingy, don’t you?” she exclaimed. She made yet another mental note to get new phones. “I wanted to let you know that I just picked up Barney, and I’m very near your house. Would you like to come down to the curb and meet him?”
“Absolutely,” he responded enthusiastically. “I’ll be right down.”
Sarah rolled the windows down on the curbside, and Charles came up to the car. Barney looked at Sarah as if to get permission. “It’s okay,” Sarah said and introduced them. Barney approached the window cautiously and looked deep into Charles’s eyes. Obviously, he liked what he saw. His tail began to wag as he stuck his nose out of the window and sniffed the hand Charles had offered palm down.
“Glad to meet you, young man. You don’t know how lucky you are. You’re going home with the world’s prettiest lady.” He glanced at Sarah, who was slightly blushing.
“You terrible man,” she teased, “lying to a little dog. How about joining us at home for a bite to eat? I was too excited to eat breakfast, and here it is lunchtime and I’m starving.” She felt it was a bit bold to invite him to her house, but with Barney as a chaperone, it should be fine.
“Sounds great. I need to lock up, and I’ll walk on over. I need the exercise. I’ll be there in twenty minutes. You won’t starve before that, will you?”
“That works for me. I want to spend a few minutes showing Barney around his new home.”
When they arrived, Barney followed her into the house reluctantly. She scratched his ear and said, “Come on, boy. It’s okay. This is your new home.” She led him across the living room and into the kitchen. She showed him his water bowl and got a treat out of his cookie jar. He took it from her hand but put it on the floor and looked around. “Okay, I guess you want the grand tour first. So you’ve seen the living room and kitchen. There’s not much more to see. This is my room here, and over there is your room. Well, you might have to give it up temporarily if we ever have a guest; but mostly that’s your room.” He sniffed the doggie bed and looked at the toys. Sarah tossed a furry bunny a few feet away, and he lunged toward it and scooped it up. Holding it in his mouth, he looked at her mischievously.
“Can you bring it to me?” she asked with her hand out. He carried it over and dropped it at her feet. “Good dog,” she praised. She knew then that someone had loved this dog. She wrapped her arms around his neck and patted his curly back. “Well, I’m the one who loves you now.” He smiled and wagged his tail.
She had just taken him out to the backyard when Charles arrived. “Sorry to take so long,” he called from the fence. He had walked around to the back. “I figured you were out here when you didn’t answer the front door.” Sarah unlatched the gate and let him in.
“Have a seat out here for a minute. I’m just introducing Barney to the backyard.” Barney was busy sniffing everything in the yard. There was the brick-bordered garden of fall flowers, a row of freshly planted rose bushes along the fence, several older bushes that had probably been planted by the previous owner, and a bird bath that Barney could just reach. He treated himself to a few laps of sun-warmed water. He then went to the far corner of the yard, circled a few times, and claimed that area for his personal use.
“Do you know what kind of dog he is? He looks a little like the Irish terrier my sister had.”
“I know exactly what he is—a wonderful mix of all the sweetest dogs there ever were,” Sarah replied, realizing that she was just a bit biased already. “Let’s see if he’ll stay out here for a while to explore the yard while we fix our lunch. Would you like a glass of tea?”
“Sounds terrific. But don’t go to any trouble with lunch. I eat like a bachelor—usually over the kitchen sink.”
“Well, in my house you get to sit at the table,” she teased.
Barney didn’t want to stay in the yard alone; he obviously wanted to keep Sarah in sight. He got the treat from the floor and curled up in the corner of the kitchen. He put the treat down near his nose, sighed deeply, and closed his eyes.
“He’s right at home,” Charles said. “I like what you’ve done with the place. It’s very homey.”
“I’m looking forward to making it even homier with the quilts I’ll be making. You are, in fact, looking at my very first endeavor.”
“Here on the table?” Charles asked. “This is beautiful. You made this?”
“Yes, in the class I was telling you about. Next, I’ll be making a quilt to use on my couch.” The two friends spent the rest of the afternoon talking, sipping tea, sitting in the backyard with Barney, and ultimately taking a long walk. As they walked, Barney sniffed the sidewalk, carefully recording the way back home, as dogs tend to do.
As he was leaving, Charles reached over and gave Sarah a one-arm hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. He was smiling as he left. Sarah was smiling, too, as the telephone rang.
“You little hussy, you. I saw that kiss.”
“Sophie, that’s no way to begin a telephone conversation, and it was not really a kiss, just a friendly gesture.”
“Hmm. We’ll see how friendly this is. That man is smitten. You should have seen the smile on his face as he walked away from your house.”
“Nonsense,” Sarah responded gruffly while silently giggling to herself. I feel like a teenager.
Cha
pter 29
Mark Shields got out of the cab at his house, limping to the door using the cane the hospital sent home with him. He had asked the driver to wait. He wasn’t sure of Margaret’s mood since she hadn’t been to the hospital. He was angry about that but told himself he would not fight with her today.
His key didn’t fit the lock. He knocked but got no response, so he banged harder. Still nothing. He called from his cell phone and heard the phone inside ring. No answer. She wasn’t home, but why didn’t his key work? He tried again. He motioned for the cab driver to continue to wait, and he went around to the back. Everything was closed down tight, with the shades drawn. “What the hell is going on here?” He felt the anger rise throughout his body. His hands began to shake. He returned to the cab and, with a rage in his voice that even frightened the burly cab driver, demanded to be taken to Barney’s Bar & Grill.
* * * * *
Sarah and Charles had met at the café in town. She told him she would like to discuss a few things about Andy’s death. They ordered sandwiches and coffee, and while they waited, they chatted about what they had been doing and talked about Barney, who had made himself right at home. After eating, they ordered another cup of coffee, and Sarah looked serious. “I’m worried, Charles. I don’t think the police have gotten anywhere with their investigation. I want to know what happened to Andy. He deserves that much. He was a good man.”
She went on to tell him about Frank, the young man in her quilting class who said he had a friend who knew who killed Andy. She told him that she had hesitated to talk to the police about it. “Frank is very fragile, and Detective Shields could push him over the edge. But I think Detective Gabriel has taken over the case. I have no idea why, but I think perhaps I could talk to him about it.”
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