by J A Whiting
“Have a seat,” Angie said. “Chief Martin is telling us about something that’s going on in Solana.”
“The explosives?” With a slice of the tart on her plate, Courtney sat down, eager to hear the news.
Euclid jumped up to wedge himself in next to the young woman and she let him lick some of the custard from her finger.
The chief summarized the details he’d reported so far.
“What about the woman who picked up the bomb?” Courtney lifted a piece of the tart to her mouth.
“She’ll survive although she’ll require several surgeries to deal with the injuries to her hand and arm,” Chief Martin said.
“At least she didn’t lose a limb.” Jenna tried to find something hopeful in the situation.
“Is there anyone in Solana who has some skill with pyrotechnics or fireworks or special effects?” Courtney asked. “Mr. Finch and I saw a crime show once where a guy used fireworks to set a fire at an apartment house.”
“My friend hasn’t reported being familiar with anyone like that.” The chief went to the side table to refresh his cup of coffee. “But that doesn’t mean someone with those certain skills isn’t living in Solana. The perpetrator might keep that information to himself.”
“Are the victims of the bomber similar in any ways?” Finch asked. “Is the bomb maker targeting certain types of individuals?”
“The woman who was targeted is seventy-two-years old and has lived in her house for fifty years. The man who found the package in his mailbox is forty-seven and has lived in his house for five years.” Chief Martin shrugged. “Different genders, different ages, different lengths of time in their homes.”
“Okay,” Courtney said. “Nothing similar there, but do they live in the same neighborhood?”
“They don’t. They live six miles apart.”
“So is it random?” Angie questioned. “Maybe the guy drives around looking for somewhere to leave a device. The street would have to be quiet and empty, nobody walking a dog or out for a jog. No roadwork going on. No mail truck, no school bus, no delivery services going by. He drives around looking for a house where no one will see him placing the device. The qualifying factor may be ease of opportunity, not who the potential victim is.”
“That would make it harder to catch the criminal,” Jenna suggested. “If it’s random, no one will know where he might strike next.”
Ellie’s forehead creased in thought. “Do you think he’ll strike again? Maybe he did what he wanted to do. Maybe he accomplished his goal. There might not be another incident.”
“I think there will be,” the chief said and as soon as he uttered the sentence, Euclid let out a loud howl causing Courtney to startle.
“Jeez, Euclid,” she told the cat. “Give me some warning before you decide to screech like that.”
The big orange boy flicked his enormous plume of a tail and scowled at her.
“Solana is a small town,” the chief said. “Their police force is small as well. My friend, Benny Peterson, is worried things could get out of hand if the perp isn’t found soon. Benny’s afraid the criminal will become emboldened if he’s able to allude law enforcement. He might escalate the planting of these incendiary devices. If that’s what happens, then there will be fatalities. Luck can’t hold out forever. This is what Benny hopes can be avoided.”
“The person doing this may not be from Solana,” Ellie pointed out. “He may drive in and leave as soon as he’s planted a device. The culprit may be targeting the town for a specific reason.”
“And if we can figure out the reason,” Courtney said with excitement in her voice, “then it will make it easier to catch the creep.”
Angie protectively placed her hand over her abdomen. Crimes, criminals, and bad things happening in the world had been having a stronger effect on her now that she was carrying a child. Jenna was also feeling impacted by negative events in the news, and she and Angie had talked many times about bringing children into what sometimes seemed a scary world.
“Our kids will be surrounded by people who love them,” Jenna had said during their conversation.
“And we’ll all work hard to help them become kind, respectful, considerate human beings,” Angie added. And we’ll do everything in our power to keep them safe.
3
When they stopped at the curb in front of a large ranch house, Jenna got out and helped Mr. Finch from the car. Angie and Chief Martin exited the police car and came to stand near the curb with Finch and Jenna.
“There aren’t many trees on the sides or at the rear of the property,” Finch observed. “Nothing for the perpetrator to hide in.”
Jenna slipped on her sunglasses. “I noticed that, too. The neighborhood is pretty open. Not much cover for the guy when he placed the device.”
Angie looked around the street. “But the perp put the bomb in the mailbox so he must have driven up close and slipped the bomb inside. What would that take? Ten seconds? Not even.”
“So the criminal wouldn’t need any cover to do what he did,” Jenna said. “He was probably quick about it and was pulling away from the mailbox within seconds. Sometimes the post office uses private drivers in their own vehicles to deliver overnight packages. Having someone drive up and leave something in the mailbox wouldn’t arouse suspicion if anyone saw it happen.”
“Did anyone witness someone near the mailbox?” Angie asked. “Have the neighbors been questioned?”
“A lot of them have,” Chief Martin told them. “But one guy refused to talk to us. He said he wasn’t going to help us do our jobs.”
“Nice guy,” Angie grumped. “Hopefully he won’t ever need police help with anything.”
“Or any help from his neighbors.” Finch tapped the ground with his cane.
A man came out of the ranch’s front door and moved quickly down the walkway to speak with the foursome. He was in his forties, had dark brown hair, a few extra pounds, and looked like he worked out lifting weights. He greeted the chief and nodded to the others.
“Thanks for meeting us.” The chief introduced Dennis Leeds to Finch and the sisters.
“The bomb was in the mailbox right here.” Dennis gestured to the black box set on the mail post at the end of the driveway.
“What made you hesitant about it?” Angie asked.
Dennis ran his hand over his short brown hair. “I was working on some paperwork in my home office. I’m a plumber. I had the television on and a report came across about a bomb going off on a porch here in town. I was shocked by the news. Nothing happens in Solana. Later when I went to get the mail and saw a package in the box, I stopped before removing it. I don’t really know why. I mean who would want to hurt us? We’re normal people, we don’t have enemies, we’re not mixed up in anything weird.”
“But you were uneasy about the package,” Jenna said. “What did it look like? How big was it?”
Dennis used his hands to mimic the size and shape of the box. “It was about a foot long and eight inches wide. It was wrapped in brown paper. I knew I hadn’t ordered anything and my wife doesn’t like buying things online. She likes to see the product before she buys it. It seemed kind of big to have the post office deliver it. Why not use one of the parcel delivery services? All of those things raced through my mind in a couple of seconds. I closed the mailbox door and went back in the house.”
“Did you call the police right away?” Mr. Finch asked.
“I stewed on it for a while,” Dennis reported. “I was afraid to bother the police, especially because I knew they must be at the scene in town where the first bomb went off. I didn’t want them to think I was some worrywart who had to get in on the excitement.”
“But you called eventually?” Jenna questioned.
“My wife came home. I was in the living room and saw her car. It stopped at the mailbox. I ran to the front door and shouted to her not to take the mail out. When she came inside and I told her about the package, she took her phone out and placed a c
all to the police telling them there was something suspicious in the mailbox.” Dennis shrugged. “I should have called them, but I felt like I was blowing it out of proportion. When Carol showed concern about it, it made me feel like I wasn’t being unreasonable.”
“As it turned out, you definitely weren’t being too concerned for you and your wife’s safety,” Chief Martin said. “It was fortunate that you went with your instincts.”
“Yeah.” The hot sun caused some beads of perspiration to show on the man’s forehead. “Would you like to come inside? Why don’t we get out of the sun?”
The group went into the air-conditioned house and Dennis brought out some cans of seltzer and soda. “I should have bought some snacks and stuff.”
“Not at all. The cold seltzer will hit the spot,” Finch assured Dennis. “Thank you.”
“Are you friendly with your neighbors?” Chief Martin asked.
“Sure. Most of them. We aren’t best buddies or anything, but everyone’s nice and we stop to talk when we see each other outside.”
“Are there some neighbors who aren’t so friendly?” Jenna questioned.
“The guy diagonally across from us. He’s kind of odd. Stays to himself mostly. Seems like a grouch. He’s only in his thirties, he’s not some old coot or anything. I’ve barely said a few sentences to him.”
“Is he new to the neighborhood?” Angie asked.
“He moved in about six months ago. The guy was shoveling the walkway one day and I stopped by to welcome him to the street. He gave me a weird look, said thanks, and went back inside the house. That was it. He didn’t even finish the shoveling.” Dennis shook his head recalling the neighbor’s odd behavior.
“What is the man’s name?” Finch asked.
“Dave Hanes. I wouldn’t know it except I got some of his mail by mistake one day and I saw the name and address.”
“Does Mr. Hanes live alone?” Jenna asked.
“He does. At least, I think so. Maybe there’s another odd duck living inside who never comes out.”
“Have you spoken with some of your other neighbors about the mail bomb?” Angie questioned.
“I have, yeah. They were all shocked. No one expects something like that to happen on your street, let alone in your own little town.”
“Do you know the victim of the first bomb?” Angie set her can of seltzer on the coffee table.
“I don’t. My wife doesn’t know her either. We’ve never met the woman.”
“Do you have any mutual acquaintances?”
A blank expression showed on Dennis’s face as he considered the question. “I don’t think so.”
“Do you attend church?” Mr. Finch asked.
“No, we don’t.”
Chief Martin looked up from the small notebook he was writing in. “Are you involved with any town committees or clubs?”
“I’m on the conservation commission. Most of our time is taken up by making sure any new building or renovation abides by the state wetlands laws. Sometimes I volunteer to help out at the local cable news network,” Dennis said. “With running my business, I don’t have much time do anything else.”
“And what about your wife? Where does she work?” Jenna asked the man.
“She’s a nurse at the hospital in Sweet Cove. She’s been working there for about twenty years.”
“Have either of you had any run-ins with anyone?” the chief asked.
“Run-ins? No. You mean like an argument or something?” Dennis blinked.
“A disagreement, a difficult client or patient, someone who seemed angry or annoyed with either of you.”
“Just normal stuff. My wife often has difficult patients. She works in the emergency room. She sees a lot. She hasn’t told me anything out of the ordinary.”
“Did any of your neighbors notice someone near the mailbox the other day?” Angie asked.
“The woman next door saw the mail delivery person on the street that morning,” Dennis said. “She was in her front yard and talked with him for a while.”
Jenna got an idea. “Was it the same letter carrier who delivers the mail on this street every day?”
“Yeah, the same one as always. I asked about that. I wondered if someone new was doing the mail deliveries that day, but it was the same guy as always.”
“No one noticed someone new in the neighborhood right before the bomb was found?” Jenna wondered if someone had been on the street checking the houses to see if there were people around.
“Nobody remembers seeing anyone suspicious.”
“What about someone who didn’t seem suspicious, but was new around here?” Chief Martin asked.
“There’s a new nanny at the Boyd’s house,” Dennis said. “But why would a nanny have a reason to make and place bombs? It can’t be her. She wouldn’t have any place to build the devices.”
“How long has the nanny been with the Boyds?” Angie asked.
“Maybe three months?” Dennis estimated.
“Were you at home all day on the day the bomb showed up in your mailbox?” Jenna drank from her can of seltzer.
Dennis shook his head. “I was working at a client’s place in the morning. I went by the hardware store for some parts I needed for the next day, then I came home for lunch.”
“Did you go out again after lunch?” Mr. Finch questioned.
“My afternoon client canceled so I decided to stay home and get caught up on paperwork.”
“When did you go to the mailbox?” Angie tilted her head slightly in question.
“I worked until around 4pm. Then I decided to get the mail. I needed to stretch. I’d been hunched over doing the paperwork for too long.”
“And when you went to the mailbox, you saw the package inside?”
“That’s right. I’d just seen the news report about the woman who picked up a package from her porch and it exploded in her hand. I guess I’m superstitious. I saw the package in the mailbox and I got a little freaked out. I left everything in the box and went back inside the house.”
“Was there anyone on the street or on the sidewalk when you were at your mailbox?” Angie asked the man.
“Just weird Dave Hanes. He was in his driveway. I didn’t wave or anything.”
“What was Mr. Hanes doing?”
“I didn’t look over at him, but I saw him out of the corner of my eye.” Dennis’s expression clouded. “I could see he was watching me.”
4
It was early evening with the sun lower in the sky as Angie stood near the grill next to her husband Josh, holding a platter for him to place the skewers of chicken and vegetables. The family had been eating dinner outside under the pergola whenever the weather was good which meant they’d been enjoying their meals in the open air for most of the summer.
The B and B guests were always invited to join the group for the evening meal, but tonight the visitors all had other plans. Courtney’s boyfriend, Rufus, had a small bar set up where he could make drinks or pour wine, beer, seltzer, or soda into glasses and he was chatting away with Chief Martin and his wife, Lucille.
With Circe on his lap, Mr. Finch sat with his girlfriend, Betty, near the fire pit listening to her chatter on about the latest listings she’d acquired. Betty was a successful Sweet Cove Realtor who lived and breathed real estate and always had her finger on the pulse of what was going on in town and the surrounding areas.
“Orla and Mel want to sell their house.”
One of Finch’s eyebrows rode up. “They’re not moving away, are they?”
“They want something different. They have too many stairs in their house. They want a master bedroom on the first floor so they don’t have to manage steps as they age. I think they’re being smart and proactive.”
Courtney chuckled as she walked by the couple carrying a big bowl of salad. “I bet you’d agree with them if they wanted a four-story house with all the bedrooms on the upper floors,” she teased the Realtor. “You’d get to sell their current hou
se and find them something new.”
Betty flustered and defended herself. “I might not agree with a client’s choices, but I’m smart enough to keep my opinions to myself ... most of the time. People have their own ideas and preferences. I only help them find what they want. In Orla’s and Mel’s case, I happen to think they’re being forward-thinking.”
“I’m only joking with you. You’re a good business person.” Courtney smiled and went to the long wooden table to set down the salad bowl.
When the young woman had stepped away, Betty leaned close to Mr. Finch and winked at him. “She’s wrong. I’m an excellent business person.”
Finch patted Betty’s hand in agreement.
Jack, a local lawyer and Ellie’s boyfriend, held the back door open for her as she came outside carrying a serving dish of baked macaroni and cheese. The two whispered and flirted with one another as Jack took her free hand and helped her down the steps.
Jenna and her husband, Tom, were setting the table with plates, silverware, and water glasses. Euclid sat in one of the Adirondack chairs supervising the couple.
“Look at those two love birds.” Courtney gestured to Jack and Ellie. “Why don’t they get married already?”
“They’re happy and in no rush.” Tom wiped away a smudge on one of the goblets, and then with a sly grin, he asked, “What about you and your Englishman lawyer? You’ve been dating for a long time now.”
Courtney gave Tom an impish smile. “We’re happy and in no rush,” she said using her brother-in-law’s own words.
“Nice come-back.” Tom laughed. “Maybe lawyers are so analytical and logical they have to wait years before they can make such a big decision as marriage.”
Courtney’s eyes sparkled. “Maybe when the time is right, I’ll be the one who proposes to Rufus.”
“Don’t doubt her,” Jenna warned Tom.
“I would never doubt my youngest sister-in-law.”
Euclid trilled.
“That’s a wise decision.” Mr. Finch came over to the outside serving table to add some appetizers to his plate to share with Betty. “Miss Courtney is always full of surprises.”
