A Bleak Prospect

by Wayne Zurl

  I smiled. “No, I’m not. So, are you saying you were only an accomplice and didn’t commit any of the murders?”

  “Let’s wait until J.R. gets here.”

  I nodded. “You took one hell of a risk. I mean, the stuff you did in Knoxville with your girlfriend was bad enough. And telling people about your sex junkets to Thailand wasn’t exactly your most brilliant moment. But what the hell did this person provide or offer or hang over your head to get you to participate in all this?”

  Leary let out a long breath before answering. “My life as you see it.”

  Bonnie returned with the bottle of whisky and a pint of spring water. Ralph was right behind her carrying four glasses.

  “I hope neither of you gentlemen needs rocks,” she said sarcastically. “I really didn’t feel like scaring up an ice bucket, and I’d like to finish my drink before his lawyer and my boss get here.”

  “Not a problem, miss,” Leary said.

  Bonnie frowned at the word miss.

  “Thanks, Bonnie,” I said. “I think you’ll like the single-malt with just a splash of water.”

  She uncorked the bottle and handed it to me. “I can’t believe you’re doing this. I mean, the man’s a serial killer.”

  “Last week we were all friends and colleagues. Today, that changed. Ryan says he’ll make our professional lives easy. Why hate someone when it’s not necessary?”

  I poured four shots of scotch, drizzled a little water into mine and asked if Leary wanted any. He shook his head. I handed him a glass first, then one to Bonnie and finally to Ralph. Bonnie picked up the water, added more than necessary and passed it to Ralph.

  “Bottoms up, folks.”

  Everyone took sips.

  “Since you’re cooperating and behaving yourself, Ryan,” I said, “I’m happy to deal with you without rancor. On the other hand, I could hate Lew Schmecke without much effort.”

  Leary was in mid sip when he laughed and almost choked on the scotch. “That’s why I hired him. I figgered you wouldn’t like Lew and maybe his presence might keep you away from the task force.”

  “Very clever. I hope Schmecke is the guy you’re going to flip on.”

  He took another drink of scotch and laughed again. “No such luck.”

  We finished our drinks, and Bonnie gathered up three glasses. “Would you like another?” she asked Leary.

  “Damn straight,” he said with a smile.

  Bonnie didn’t return the pleasantry. I guess Ryan’s charm wasn’t working on her. She left his glass, the Scotch and the water and left the room.

  Leary took a healthy pull on his drink. “Oh, yeah, great ass.”

  It wasn’t five minutes later when Bettye led Carl Harmon and Heidi Piper into the squad room.

  “Isn’t this cozy?” Heidi said. “A picnic?”

  Carl looked at Ralph and Bonnie like a wicked stepfather.

  I stood to greet our new guests. “I believe you both know Ryan Leary. He’s had a tough morning and has a long day ahead of him. I offered him a drink before we ordered a Chinese lunch.”

  Heidi nodded, but didn’t even come close to smiling. “Chinese food and Scotch. Interesting combination. Have you ordered the food yet?”

  “Waited for you two and Mr. Tolbert’s associate.”

  “I was a little up tight,” Leary said. “The Scotch helped. Are you ready to talk deal?”

  That seemed to soften up Heidi a bit. “Aren’t you waiting for your attorney?” she asked.

  “They’re sending an associate. Tolbert is in court. We’ll wait for him, but I know what I want to say.”

  * * *

  Five minutes and almost all of Leary’s Scotch later, Tolbert’s hired hand, a fifty-something-year-old guy named Arthur Hellman showed up. I figured him a little long in the tooth to still be an associate and not a partner somewhere, but Arthur didn’t look like a fool.

  “I hope you haven’t made a statement yet, Mr. Leary.” Hellman said.

  Leary looked at him as if he was a foolish child. “I pay you people for legal representation, but don’t think I’m stupid. I told them I’d cooperate, but I waited for you.”

  Hellman set an oxblood-colored leather brief case on the desk and looked at Heidi. “What are you prepared to offer?”

  Heidi yanked the handbag off her shoulder and tossed it on another desk. “How the hell should I know? I’ve got who we think is the Riverside Strangler in cuffs—based on lots of solid evidence, and you act like you’ve got an inside straight to play. He’s the one who asked for a deal. I can go back to Knoxville and still finish my day quite happy.”

  “Hold on now, Arthur,” Leary said. “Let me do this.”

  “I advise you to say nothing until they agree to a deal.”

  “Lord have mercy, man. I gotta tell them what I’ll give up b’fore they move an inch. Understand? It’s how it works.”

  Hellman was about to speak, but Heidi beat him to the punch.

  “I understand you’re claiming someone else is the actual killer. What exactly was your part in all this?”

  “Reasonable question,” Leary said. “And I’ll tell ya.” He shifted in the chair and took another drink of scotch. “I’m willin’ to admit bein’ an accomplice to the murder of the Wakefield girl—Rosanna or Mysty or whatever she called herself on Charlie’s List—Sam’s case. I’ll also tell you about the other seven victims in the county and a few more I know about in other jurisdictions that I had nothin’ ta do with.” His speech was beginning to show the effects of the Glenfiddich. “But I know the details. Lotsa details. For all this, I want the other seven murders written off my slate—cleared administratively—and whatever sentence Mr. Tolbert negotiates here to run concurrently with the fifty-four months AUSA Corliss offered in the Farris Tingle case. That sound reasonable?”

  Before Heidi could comment, I interjected, “You said seven other murders. There are eight more attributed to the Riverside Strangler.”

  Leary shook his head. “Seven is the number. Sorry ta disappoint ya, Sam, but I don’t know anythin’ about that young male prostitute o’ yours.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Leary’s statement took the wind out of my sails and the face of Arlo Bowman flashed into my mind.

  Heidi Piper caused my wandering mind to snap back to the present.

  “I certainly hope this actual killer is as interesting as you, Mr. Leary.”

  “Oh, don’t you worry, Miss Piper. Y’all will love what I’ve got ta say.” He punctuated his statement with a smile and a sip of Scotch.

  We didn’t have to wait another two minutes before a squad room phone rang. Ralph picked it up, listened for a minute and handed the receiver to me.

  “Chief,” Bettye said, “a Mr. Tolbert is here representing Ryan Leary.”

  “Be right there.”

  I met Tolbert in the lobby. I hadn’t run his particulars but guessed him to be about sixty and an inch or two over six feet. I won’t say he was thin, but he made a string bean look fat. His light tan suit, which might have cost as much as a good late model Cadillac, had been cut to make his Ichabod Crane-like body appear more physically imposing. That might have worked in a courtroom, but J.R. should never argue a case at a nudist resort.

  We shook hands, and he smiled. His gossamer thin white hair sparkled beneath the overhead lighting.

  “Ryan is in the squad room,” I said. “Let’s take a walk back.”

  “Have you questioned him yet?”

  “He’s made conversation but waited for you.”

  “Good. I assume Arthur Hellman is here.”

  “Also in the squad room.”

  As soon as Tolbert and I entered the crowded room, he looked at Leary. “Chief, are those handcuffs necessary?”

  I shrugged. “Protocol. Your client didn’t object.”

  “Don’t sweat it, J.R.,” Leary said. “I don’t object ta bein’ cuffed to a desk when the man is giving me Scotch that cost more ’an fifty dollars a bot
tle.”

  Tolbert looked at me. “He might not object, but I do. Can we remove them, please?”

  I shot Heidi a quick look. In essence, she was the boss. She gave me a curt nod, and I pulled a ring of keys from my back pocket and stepped toward Leary. “I can always shoot him if he runs.”

  Leary laughed. “I believe you would. And I was a friend.”

  I unlocked the cuff from around his wrist. “I make it quick and painless for friends.”

  He laughed again, and I removed the second cuff from the steel ring.

  “May we speak to Mr. Leary in private?” Tolbert asked of no one in particular.

  “Sure,” I said. “Use the room across the hall. We’ll stay here.”

  Ralph escorted them out, and Heidi asked, “What’s in that room?”

  “It’s the juvenile room, just a table and chairs. Oh, yeah, and a one way mirror if you’re as unethical as me.”

  “Maybe next time.”

  Twenty-five minutes later, the trio strolled back into the squad room. Leary sat in the same chair he had vacated earlier. “You gonna cuff me again?” he asked and forced a grin.

  “We’ll skip that because you’re a friend. But just so you know, while you were gone, I filled my hollow points with garlic butter.”

  Bonnie rolled her eyes, and Ralph shook his head. I didn’t get a chance to check on Carl Harmon before Tolbert spoke up. “Okay, Ms. Piper, how about a nice bundle and a plea?”

  “What do you have in mind?” she asked.

  The negotiations had begun.

  “Shall we say seven and a half to fifteen in a minimum security Federal facility?”

  Ralph couldn’t keep his mouth shut. “With that sentence, he’ll never do more than the seven and a half. For eight murders and torturing that kid? Madone!”

  Heidi ignored Oliveri and addressed Tolbert. “I was more inclined to say twenty-five to life with possible parole. And I could find him a bunk in one of our Federal country clubs.”

  The Tennessee horse trader in Tolbert emerged. “When you hear what he has to say, I’m sure you’ll agree to a clean cut fifteen years.” He took a moment to smile. “You’ll like what you hear.”

  Heidi looked at me. I shrugged.

  “How old are you Ryan?” I asked.

  “Fifty-three.”

  I turned the Heidi. “He’ll get out at sixty-eight and be virtually unemployable. Your call, counselor. I could live with him collecting some of the social security he’s already paid in.”

  Ralph stifled a snort.

  Heidi said, “His story must lead to an arrest. I don’t want to start chasing some phantom all over the country.”

  “No phantom,” Tolbert said. “Your Riverside Strangler is a very local and prominent person. You can have him under arrest by tomorrow if you wish.”

  “Okay, he does the full fifteen,” Heidi said. “But Mr. Leary allocutes, outlines every murder in Blount County, gives what he knows about the crimes in other jurisdictions and leads us to any evidence we need. Now, who’s the celebrity killer?”

  Tolbert extended a hand toward the seated Leary. “Tell them, Ryan.”

  Leary let out a large volume of air. “Our very own district attorney general.”

  “Jeez,” Ralph said.

  Bonnie and I exchanged looks.

  “Calvin Pitts?” Heidi didn’t exactly gasp, but I had no doubt she wasn’t expecting that.

  “This promises to be quite a melodramatic saga,” I said. “Heidi, do you want to get a recorder working?”

  She nodded. “That’s a good idea.”

  Bonnie made an offer. “I’ll call the office and get a team here with video gear.”

  Heidi nodded, and Bonnie left the room.

  I looked at Tolbert. “It’s getting late, and we’re far from finished. Everyone, your client included, must be hungry. We were about to order Chinese food. Do you mind slumming with us law enforcement types, counselor? Lunch is on the city of Prospect.”

  “Don’t mind at all, Chief. I assume you have a menu?”

  “Do I ever.”

  “Great. It’s nice doing business like civilized people. Uh, do you think I could have a bit of that fifty-dollar Scotch?”

  “Absolutely.” I made a forty-five degree turn. “How about you, Heidi? Carl? Scotch?”

  “Do you have any ice?” she asked.

  “I think that can be arranged.”

  “Good. I’ll have a double.”

  I laughed. “Ralph, you’re custodian of the Glenfiddich. A couple more glasses, please.”

  Leary chimed in, “Mind if I have another?”

  To which Tolbert said, “After your statement, Ryan. After your statement.”

  Forty-five minutes and one Chinese lunch later, two agents showed up with a fairly unsophisticated looking video recorder and tripod that they set up in my office. Before we adjourned there, Ralph and I brought in the requisite number of chairs needed to accommodate all the players and spectators. Then we settled in to watch the Heidi and Ryan show.

  The spectacle dragged on for several hours. We took a few breaks, but Leary kept on going like the Energizer Bunny. His memory was exceptional, and he provided enough detail that no one doubted the accuracy of his information.

  In addition to the eight murders in Blount County, he brought up three in Asheville on the North Carolina side of the Smokies, two more in Chattanooga and two on the outskirts of Atlanta. He ended with a suggestion.

  “Ask Cal. He might be in a talkin’ mood. He might jus’ give ya more if ya make it worth his while.” Leary spoke as if we were interested in buying a used car inventory to start a new dealership.

  “I’ll ask,” Heidi said. “But I honestly don’t know if anyone is too eager to provide him with much wiggle room.”

  Leary shrugged. “Your case, not mine. I just thought givin’ the families o’ his victims a little closure would be nice.” He looked at his lawyer. “I’m about done here, J.R. Mind if I have that Scotch now?”

  A nice gesture, I thought, but ironic coming from Leary.

  Tolbert nodded. “Yes, Ryan, you may have a Scotch now. And, Chief, may I trouble you for another. It’s very good, you know.”

  “Ralph, would you do the honors? And help yourself to one. Bonnie, Heidi, Carl, raise your hand if you’d like some before Ryan drinks it all.”

  Leary laughed as Ralph poured two fingers of amber liquid into Ryan’s now empty glass.

  “I have a question,” I said, looking straight into Ryan Leary’s eyes. “You’ve provided all the factual data necessary for the new task force to wrap up a neat package. Mind addressing a few background areas to satisfy my curiosity?”

  Leary switched his eyes to J.R. Tolbert.

  The lawyer nodded. “Go ahead. If I want you to stop talking, I’ll let you know.”

  “First thing,” I said. “Let’s go back to why you brought in Lew Schmecke?”

  Leary laughed a little too loudly. Apparently the Glenfiddich had loosened up his inhibitions.

  “I learned a little about him—what some other cops from New York thought about Lew. I mentioned you and heard you knew of him from years ago and had a little history—nothing major, but basically, I figgered he’d piss you off and keep you away from the task force.”

  “You’ve already said that.”

  He nodded and hit his drink again before continuing.

  “I told Cal not to go anywhere near Prospect with his pastime. I didn’t want you to work a case. I told him what you’d be like if you got going. But, no, he wouldn’t listen. Cal thought he knew more than anyone. Look what it got him.”

  “And that’s it? Schmecke would keep me away from your investigations? There’s got to be more.”

  He shrugged. “After Carl offered FBI he’p a second time, Joe Don started gettin’ impatient—said the county mayor had been pushin’ for some results. Schmecke had a reputation, deserved or not, of someone who cared. Lew was a TV star. He was my alternative to
the FBI. Nothin’ mysterious about it.”

  I nodded, and wondered if Joe Don Hartung was worth the hundred and fifty grand salary he collected from the Blount County taxpayers every year.

  “Next thing. How did you two get tied up?”

  Tolbert interrupted. “Ryan, perhaps you shouldn’t elaborate on that.”

  “Come on, counselor, I said this is just to satisfy my curiosity—our curiosity. It’s off the record. Ms. Piper has agreed to your sweetheart deal. There won’t be a trial.”

  Tolbert relented. He half closed his eyes and nodded.

  Leary looked at Ralph and stuck out his glass. Ralph poured. There wasn’t much left in the bottle.

  “I was waiting in Cal’s office one day early in our relationship. I snooped around a little and found an envelope full of pictures. Good quality, professional porn. He really wasn’t hiding them. We struck up a conversation, compared notes and preferences.” Leary sort of sagged in his chair with a look of defeat about him. “It was like we were happy to find someone who shared similar interests. Hell, it was like a drunk talking to someone else who’s addicted to likker. Common ground. I told him about a trip to Thailand I took and how easy it is to get all kinds of sex over there. He was interested. We went together once. A couple years later, he started a conversation about snuff movies. That wasn’t really my thing, but I listened. Then, I guess when he thought the time was right, he spoke to me about snuff sex. After a while, he said there was nothing like it—the ultimate orgasm. He admitted to doing it.”

  Leary looked at his almost empty glass and swished the remaining Scotch around. I lifted my eyes to see how my FBI colleagues had reacted. The looks on their faces were priceless.

  Leary continued. “He asked if I wanted to try.” He stopped talking and took a deep breath. “Listen, I might do some things people satisfied with the missionary position wouldn’t understand but choking a young pross while I was bangin’ her wasn’t on my wish list.”

  “Yet you went along for the ride—so to speak.”

  “Yeah, look, my job was secure working as a DA’s investigator. More than a couple times, I made sure Cal won cases that meant a lot to him. I—”