by Jay Heavner
“You try to get some sleep and hope it’s all over. Often it’s not. The next morning I went to the hospital. Nurse Ellen put an IV in my arm, and they started the happy juice. She told me some people mix whiskey or even vodka in their Maximove to help it go down. At first, I was mad I hadn’t thought of that, but then I wondered if it was really a good idea. I can’t imagine being blitzed when the Maximove kicked in like a dragster off the line. I could just see me staggering around trying to make it.
Why, failure would have meant burning the whole bathroom, maybe the whole house.”
“Please stop, Roger. My sides are splitting. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so hard,” Bill said.
“Well, it’s a funny story, at least after it was all said and done. And it all came out well in the end.”
“Pun intended?” Bill asked. “Pun intended, and the doctor gave me a clean bill of health. He said to come in and just get regular checkups like we all should anyway. Come back sooner if I had any problems.”
“That’s funny. You made the best of a bad situation. A merry heart does a body good.” “Yeah Bill, I’ve heard that somewhere before. I was sure glad I had Kay, family, and her church friends for support during that difficult time. I real- ly miss her and my kid. Since their deaths, it’s been cave times.”
“Cave times? You’re gonna have to explain what you mean by that.” “Remember King David in the Bible?” Roger said. “Yeah, took Israel to a world power long ago.”
“It wasn’t all roses in his life. He had ‘cave times’ as Kay’s pastor would have called it. David was down to nothing. He was alone in a cave lamenting. It’s recorded in Psalms 13 and somewhere in one of the books of Samuel. No family, no mighty men followers, nothing, and King Saul’s and his army are in hot pursuit wanting to kill him. It was the lowest point in David’s life. I’ve felt like David since they died. The only time I’ve felt like my life had any purpose since then was when I worked on the Windover case, and I’m getting that feeling again now.
Thank you for giving me a little reason to live.” Bill looked a little surprised. “You’re welcome.” “I remember the sermon that day. I asked myself what would I do if I was in David’s shoes or sandals, which would be more accurate. At that time, someone from the nursery came and got Kay. The baby was fussing up a storm, and mommy was needed. She left. I was all alone in a crowd. It frightened me, and I hoped it never happened.”
Roger paused. “The pastor went on to tell about being on a flight that was in danger of crashing from severe turbulence. It went up and down like a roller coaster out of control. He hoped the pilot was a good one. He asked who the pilot of your life was. He said the Lord was like the hound of heaven pursuing us.”
“Hope he was referring to a bloodhound, not a wolf type. One is so friendly; he’ll lick you to death. One will eat you alive,” Bill said.” “He mentioned a bloodhound. His words have rung in my ears at times over the years.”
The men said nothing for a few minutes. Roger broke the silence, “Think I’m ready for my nap now.” “Okay. One more thing while I’m thinking about it before you drift off,” Bill said. “Will you report what you’ve found out for us? I’d like to try to stay out of interaction with Hernandez as much as possible. Seems my presence in the matters of this case is difficult and no point in making it more so. And I think she’s been tracking down Missy’s ex and trying to get an interview arranged with you.
Roger said, “Good to hear she’s thinking ahead. I like that.” “Now get your nap, Roger.” “I would if you’d shut up and please, no more stories. Not sure my ribs can take any more of our tales at this time.” “Ten-four, good buddy.”
As Bill drove on down the interstate highway, Roger’s eyes closed. He considered a few things as he drifted off to sleep. Sure hope what I find doesn’t implicate him, but I’ve got to go where the facts lead. And he knows I will. Roger sighed. There were times he didn’t like police work. With that thought, he went to sleep.
CHAPTER 13
Roger woke up and looked around? “Where are we?” Bill said, “Well, Rip Van Winkle, we’re almost to Florida. You slept a good two hours.”
“Really? I didn’t sleep very well last night. Weird dreams about someone trying to peck me with a kiss. I need another pit stop. How about you?” “Yeah, me too. I was thinking of stopping at the welcome station even if you hadn’t woke up. Hey, there’s a Sonny’s Barbeque restaurant at Exit 3. Stop there. My treat. You could use a break and it is getting close to lunch. We could beat the crowd. And no, I didn’t kiss you. The only thing that would kiss you is your dog, ole buddy.”
“Very funny, but I’ll let it slide seeing how you’re paying. Now, that’s an offer I can’t refuse, especially from an old skinflint like you, Bill” “Roger, you cut me to the quick, but I forgive you just the same.” “Thanks, old buddy.”
Ten minutes later, the men were sitting in a booth at the restaurant. As Bill was picking up the tab, he ordered for both of them, two rib platters with baked beans, French fries, toasted bread, and two beers which they were carded on to their amazement. The waitress told them everybody gets carded, Georgia law. She got the beers for them and left. More people were coming in. Several were men and women wearing law enforcement uniforms. After scanning the room carefully, they took a table in the far corner with their backs to the walls.
Bill said to Roger, “You can always tell who the cops are by their behavior even when they’re not in uniform.” “So why ain’t we sitting in the corner like them?”
“Nobody knows us here. Drink your beer I bought and enjoy.”
“Thanks for the meal. Hope it doesn’t come back to cost me too much in the future.” Bill grinned, “You never know. So tell me some things you’ve learned in your forensics/criminology/archaeology career that would add to my knowledge of the subjects and also you.”
“Well Bill, I’m not really sure how much you know so pardon if I repeat something you already know.”
“Okay, you’re forgiven again.”
“You’re in an awful forgiving mode today.” “And generous. You forgot generous.”
“And generous.” Roger stopped. “Will there be any more comments from the peanut gallery, or can I go on?”
“You better remember the peanut gallery is buying you lunch.” Roger grimaced. “Never mind. Now, where was I before I was so rudely interrupted? Oh yeah, my career. It started out with a call from the local police where I live up north. Someone at the college had suggested my name to them, and they gave me a call on a case they had. I helped where I could, and before long I was getting calls from every agency in the area. Several times I had to testify in court on criminal matters. I developed a good reputation for being thorough and honest. It was one of the things that helped me from getting steamrolled and railroaded by the administration at the college when they wanted me gone. They never expected me to fight back, and I hit them where it hurt. I got the word out what they were doing, and a lot of big contributions started to dry up, but that’s another story.”
“Yeah, a good reputation is worth its weight in gold,” Bill said. “It is. Whether it’s a crime scene or an archaeological site, I try to ‘read’ it and ‘listen’ to it. I try to get a mental picture of what the whole would look like before looking at the pieces. You got to find and accurately record your findings whether it’s bloodstains or a piece of ancient pottery. With criminology, there’s more of a psychological angle trying to figure motive, behavior, and traits that will help in interpreting the evidence, although I like to imagine what the people in the ancient site were like also. I trust the old sites more. On a crime scene, you may have witnesses that are often less than reliable, and some of the physical evidence may be tainted or removed by the criminal. In either case, the main concern is to preserve the evidence and handle it properly.”
“Now that’s a nugget of truth. I can see why they kept coming back to you for help.” “Thanks, Bill. With crime, you always must assume t
hat whoever was at the scene left something behind, or took something away, or both. You work with what you have and look for the rest. Ever heard of Dr. Edmond Locard?”
“The name does sound familiar. I think he was mentioned in one of the criminology classes I took at the community college. French guy if I remember right,” Bill said.
“He was. He believed, ‘Every contact leaves a trace.’ In Lyons, France back in 1910, he started the world’s first forensic laboratory. A man named Emile Gourbin was accused of strangling his mistress. He had an alibi, but Locard scraped beneath the man’s fingernails and found skin flakes covered with face powder like the victim wore. Gourbin confessed to the crime. A more modern example would be right here in Florida. Ted Bundy was convicted of his last murder because of fibers transfer, some on her from his car and some on her clothes from him. Do you know if anything of this nature was looked at in this case?”
“I don’t remember it being in the case summary. Maybe the coroner would know or remember. I’ll volunteer this – they checked my nails and found her skin cells, but I did check her neck for a pulse.”
“The coroner keeps coming up. I need to see Will Corbett and see what he has,” Roger said.
“You do.” “With evidence, you can draw conclusions and make connections. You have to keep the scene or site controlled. Access must be restricted to avoid contamination. Too many feet can destroy evidence on floors or the ground. Evidence can be found anywhere, door knobs, light switches, under
furniture, and embedded in walls. Odors can give clues. Are the room’s blinds drawn? Has the mail and newspaper been picked up? How fresh is the food in the refrigerator? Does it appear the scene has been cleaned up? Is there any unique evidence?
Look for fingerprints or footprints and keep control of the evidence at all times.” “This case sure has had the ball dropped on the latter.” Roger said, “It has, and that’s what’s gonna make it so hard to prove, let alone get a conviction if we find the killer.”
Bill nodded his head, but said nothing. The waitress showed up with their meals in her hands. “Sorry about that, fellows. The cook put your order behind the cops over there. They were in a hurry, and the cook owed them a favor, too.”
Roger and Bill looked at the cops who looked back and nodded acknowledging the other men. The waitress said, “And to make up for it, for you two and you two alone, it’s an early happy hour. You get two for one beer. I’ll be right back with them.” She left and quickly returned with the brews. “Here you go.”
“Thanks,” Roger and Bill said in unison. She left, and they tore into the meal like hungry wolves.
“This is really good, “Roger said. “Got any of these down our way, Bill?” “Yup. You can trust me. I know where all the good eatin’ places are. I don’t do a whole lot of cooking, and when I do, it’s usually opening a can and warming it, or takeout.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Bill laughed, took a big swig of beer, and went back to devouring his meal. It didn’t take them long to finish. The waitress brought the check, they left a nice tip, paid at the cash register, and were out the door. Standing by Bill’s vehicle was the local police who they had seen inside, and they were waiting. “This your vehicle?” the biggest one said.
“It’s mine? Is there a problem?” Bill said. “Your tag expired two months ago.”
“No way,” Bill said. “I always send a check in when the notice comes in the mail.” The biggest one said, “Well, you better look again. It’s expired.” Bill looked, and sure enough, it was expired. “Well, I’ll be damned. You’re right.”
“I need to see your driver’s license and registration.”
“Sure,” Bill said and he got them along with his Chief of Police badge. The big fellow looked at them. “So you guys are cops from Florida?”
“That’s correct. We were up in South Carolina getting information on a cold case. We got hungry and stopped here. Thanks for letting me know about the tag. I’ll get it taken care of immediately when I get back home. You gonna give me a ticket?”
The big guy said, “Nah, not for another man in blue. Mistakes happen. I’ll let it go, but you do need to take care of it ASAP. What kind of case were you investigating?”
At that time, Roger spoke. “We were looking into a cold case. About five years ago, a young woman was brutally murdered at a diner in Titusville near the Space Center.”
“Murder you say? We just had one here less than a week ago. We got a Jane Doe chillin’ at the morgue. She was strangled and stabbed and the damndest thing was, the sicko who did this cut off one of her nipples.”
“Interesting and sounds like the body was fresh,” Roger said. “Sounds similar to our case. How about we exchange information and check back with each other? There could be a connection.”
“She was fresh. A kid stumbled on her. Like to scared him to death. Sure I’d like to keep in touch.” He pulled a business card from his wallet and gave one to Roger and one to Bill. “This here’s normally a quiet area. This is our first murder in about five years. We’re not a big force, so we do it all.” They looked at the big man’s card. “Sheriff Robert Twigg,” Bill said.
“Yeah, that’s me, and these people are the officers in blue for this county. It’s big, and we’re spread kinda thin.” Bill handed him his Canaveral Flats Chief of Police card. Roger said, “I’m new with the force and haven’t had time to get cards. I’ll write my name and number on the back of Bill’s card,” and he did.
The Sheriff said, “This was a surprise meeting you guys like this. I’ll make sure we keep in touch. Like you said, the murders could be connected. And take care of that expired tag.”
Bill said, “I will, and we’ll be sure and keep in contact.” The Sheriff said, “Good. Now you guys have a nice day and drive safe. I’ve had to scrape too many people off the highway lately.” “We will,” Roger said.
Roger and Bill got in their vehicle as the Sheriff and his crew drove off. Bill was driving, and he merged into light traffic on I 95 southbound. Rog- er looked at Bill and said, “I have some questions for you, some serious and some not so serious. You game?”
“Sure. Begin.”
“First off, where were you about a week ago?”
CHAPTER 14
“Well, my first knowledge of this poor Jane Doe’s demise was just a few minutes ago if you think I had anything to do with it. Secondly, about a week ago I was sick and took two days off from work. Guess I ate some- thing that didn’t agree with me. I had diarrhea for the better part of those two days, and if you want proof, well, I flushed it away. I hope that’s satis- factory for you, Roger.”
“It will have to do for now, Bill. It just seemed suspicious and odd.” “Life can be like that. Aren’t you the one who keeps telling me to keep an open mind and not get tunnel vision?”
“I am. Ockham’s razor which we often use to solve problems tells us the simple solution is usually the right one.” “Okay, gather all the facts and then come to a conclusion. Fair enough?” “Fair enough,” Roger said.
The two men said nothing as the miles passed driving through the low country. Roger yawned and said, “Bill?” “What?”
“Do you understand women?”
Bill rolled his eyes. “No, I’m not even sure God understands them, and He made them.” “It used to be oh, so simple in the good old days before I met Kay.” “How so?”
“Take relationships. Before her, when I listen to a woman, I was trying to solve an important question. How was I going to get her to have sex with me? How was I going to get her naked?”
“I can relate to that. Men see a problem and want to solve it,” Bill said
“With her, it was different. She helped me see women as people, a differ - ent kind of people, but as real people, not just a set of breasts and the other goodies. The sex? With her, it wasn’t just making love like all the others. It was love, real love, heart to heart love.”
“Wish I could have met this wonderful woman,
Roger.” “She changed me. She was fun to be around and complimented me. As I say, the lovemaking was great. Not only was the purpose pleasure, but you can make babies. She described it as an amazing gift from God. She said it united a husband and wife physically, spiritually, and emotionally. She was right. She asked me if I ever thought of the other women I’d been with. I told her, yes, but I tried not to. I remember her saying something about how you can’t ‘unglue’ something. Soul ties she called it. I remember her saying God gave guidelines for sex and other things to protect us, not punish us. Sex has to be one of the best ideas God created for men and women to enjoy.”
Bill said, “No argument there and probably one of the most misused and abused.” “True. Anything can be misused by someone with evil on their mind. This truck we’re in doin’ a great job by getting us from here to there, but it can also be used to mow people down.”
“Yup, evil does things like that. It’s why we need cops and judges to be agents of justice.”
“You know, Bill, even those I tried not to compare her to past lovers, I struggled. Some of the memories are slow to fade and maybe even unforgettable.”
Bill nodded, but said nothing. Seconds that seemed like hours passed before he spoke. “From the way I can see she affected you, she must have been some woman.”
“She was. There’s a hole in my heart the size of Texas. How did I ever get here? This sure isn’t the life I had dreamed of – not even close. Wish life had a reset button. Wish I had a magic wand and could somehow change things.”
“Roger, I’m not much on God or religion or philosophy, but I know a few things. What to hear some free advice for what it’s worth?” “Sure.”
“Life is like a bicycle.”
“Life is like a bicycle?” “Yup. Life is like a bicycle.”
“That’s it? Life’s like a bicycle?” Roger said.
