by Laura Snider
Juan looked up. “That one there, hmm…” He paused. “I think I found it in one of the suburbs of Des Moines.”
“Found?”
“Yeah. I picked it up on junk day.”
Junk day was something every Iowa town organized. It was the one day during the year that residents could throw out anything of any size and the city would take it to the dump. Often people threw out items that could be refurbished or easily repaired, especially in the wealthy neighborhoods. So, people like Juan would drive around and turn rich people’s trash into treasures.
“It was fine other than a wobbly leg. It was easy to fix. Do you like it?”
Katie nodded. It was quite beautiful.
“I would sell it to you, but my daughter is attached to it. She thinks the rose looks like the one from Beauty and the Beast.”
Katie studied the chair. His daughter was right. It did.
“But I’m a little short on cash these days, so…maybe I should sell it.”
“Speaking of short on cash,” Katie said, using his comment as a segue into the reason for their visit. “Do you know why we are here, Juan?”
Juan looked from George to Katie, then shook his head. “I don’t.”
“We saw something last night that we wanted to ask you about.”
“I’m not sure what you mean.” Juan swallowed hard. He no longer met Katie’s gaze. His eyes darted all around the room instead.
“Officer Jackie, he followed you into this building.”
“Okay.”
“And he came out counting cash.”
“Okay.”
“It looked as though he got that cash from you.”
“I…” Juan opened and closed his mouth, then patted his forehead with his sleeve.
“Do you want to tell us about it?” George asked.
There was a long silence. Juan clearly did not.
The interview was not going anywhere. They needed to change tactics. “I’ll tell you what Keisha told us,” Katie said, “and you can build on that. Will that be okay?”
Juan nodded.
“Officer John Jackie is blackmailing you.”
Juan froze.
“Is that true?”
Juan still did not respond.
Katie wondered if his reluctance was based on a fear that she would use his statement to charge him with operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. “I’m not trying to jam you up on the OWI, Juan. I can’t. An investigation for operating while intoxicated has to happen at the time of the stop. So, when John Jackie stopped you. That’s the only time we can get your blood alcohol level. I could never prove it now. The alcohol is way far gone out of your system by now.”
Juan nodded slowly, but he did not seem convinced.
“So, I couldn’t charge you with OWI even if I wanted to. The evidence is gone. Besides, I don’t want to charge you with any crimes. I’m here to talk to you as a victim of a crime.”
“Okay.”
“So,” she leaned forward and patted his hand, “you don’t need to worry.”
“I’m not worried about arrest,” Juan said after a long moment.
Then why wouldn’t he answer her questions? Maybe he didn’t trust her. She couldn’t blame him. Not with Officer Jackie’s recent behaviors.
“Listen, Juan,” Katie said in her most soothing voice. “I am here to help you. We,” she gestured toward George, “are here to help. Both of us are veteran officers on the force. Officer Jackie is a rookie. We pull rank over him. If it comes down to our word versus his, the chief is going to believe us.”
Juan chewed on his lip. “And what about me? Who will believe me?”
“We already do believe you. But we must hear the facts from you. We cannot get the story from Keisha alone. You’re the victim, not her.”
Juan was silent for a long moment, then he finally nodded. “Okay. But you’ve got to keep that Jackie guy away from me. He isn’t right in the head.”
“We will do everything within our power to keep you safe from him.”
“Okay. Then, yes. Officer Jackie is blackmailing me. I can’t afford to pay him everything all at once, so I’m paying him in increments.”
“Do you have any idea why he is blackmailing you?”
Juan shrugged. “I don’t know for sure, but I heard him mumble something to himself about paying off a debt. I don’t know who he owes money or why.”
Katie thought this over. It could be anything. Gambling. Addiction. Prostitution. Old business debt. Medical bills. Really, anything. For the first time since John Jackie moved to Brine, Katie wondered where he had come from and why he chose Brine. She knew virtually nothing about the kid. He never talked about his past or his family. She made a mental note to follow up on that.
“Do you know if Officer Jackie is blackmailing anyone else?”
“Yes.”
“Yes, you know, or yes, he is?”
“He is.”
“Can you give me names, Juan?”
Juan shook his head. “I need to talk to them first. They might not want to get involved.”
“Why not?”
“Because they are poor people. They have to work day and night just to make ends meet. They don’t have time for this kind of stuff. Nobody ever believes them anyway. Especially those who have been in trouble before. Nobody has ever trusted their word over a cop’s.”
Katie rose from her seat. “I believe you, Juan, and I’ll believe them if they are willing to come forward with their stories. But if we are going to hold Officer Jackie accountable, we have to know the extent of his crimes.”
Juan nodded. “All I can tell you is that I’ll talk to them. They fear him too. A rogue cop is not safe for people like us.”
Katie did not like it, but she understood. Their interview here was done. Juan had verified Keisha’s story, and that was all they were going to get from him. She pulled a business card out of her pocket. It had her office line, cell phone, and email address.
“Thank you. Please give them my contact information.” She handed her card to Juan before she and George headed toward the door. Katie stopped short and looked over her shoulder. “Stay safe, Juan. Keep looking out for that girl of yours.”
Juan nodded and they left. Katie hoped it would not be the last that she heard from Juan or his friends.
30
Katie
December 15th – 10:00 a.m.
Katie followed Tom down a long corridor to his office. It was situated at the back of the jail, down several winding hallways. The halls were barren and cold, built with punishment in mind. Qualities Katie used to think suited jails. Especially after the first time she had been inside one visiting her father.
She had entered thinking the same things she thought now, wondering how they could house people in such conditions when they were supposed to be innocent before trial. Then she had spoken with her father, and that changed. The jailers had brought him into a meeting room. A glass partition separated them. He sat down on his side and picked up the phone, slowly and methodically.
Dad, she’d said, almost breathlessly.
Hi, sweetheart.
We have to get you out of here.
He shook his head.
Mom left.
What?
I’m alone.
He lowered his head and placed his hands over his face. You need to go, he said.
What? I need you, Dad.
If she’s gone, then there’s nothing I can do.
You can get out of here. You didn’t do it.
He was silent, hands still covering his face.
Dad? A long pause. You didn’t do it, did you? Another long pause. Dad?
He dropped his hands and looked straight at her, but he did not see her. He saw through her. His eyes were round holes, devoid of emotion. It’s time for you to go.
After that, Katie knew that defendants deserved the impersonal callousness of the jail. It was meant to strip them of their individuality, their mea
nness. But then she had developed a friendship with Ashley. Those same features that seemed so appropriate for Katie’s father were unacceptable when it came to Ashley. Ashley was innocent. The jail would break her. Destroy her self-esteem, chip away at her very being. It was unbearable.
“Here we are,” Tom said, motioning toward his office.
Tom’s office was small. His desk took up most of the space, but there was room for two small chairs. Katie sat in the chair nearest to her, and Tom sat behind his desk.
“What did you bring?” Tom asked.
Ashley still refused to see Katie, but not for lack of Katie trying. She came to the jail every day, often more than once a day, but Ashley turned her away. Each refusal cut Katie, but not all that deeply, because she knew that Ashley was not thinking clearly. Nobody could while surrounded by so much cement. A tomb for the living. But it hurt all the same. Like paper cuts. They healed quickly and would not cause any real harm, but they were still pretty miserable.
“I have my latest report as well as a copy of a recorded follow-up interview with Erica Elsberry.” Katie handed Tom a document and a disk.
Tom was quiet for several minutes as he read through Katie’s report. He set it down and looked up, his eyes questioning. “Do you believe Erica?”
Katie shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t trust her. Not with that jail visit to Petrovsky. I just can’t work out why she would go see her child’s rapist before his release.”
“You can’t?” Tom seemed genuinely surprised.
“Why? Can you?”
“Yeah. Sure. Erica handed Petrovsky a lighter, right?”
“Yes.”
“Erica wore gloves. Petrovsky didn’t. So Petrovsky’s fingerprints would have been on the lighter, not hers.”
“Okay.”
“Erica found Von Reich’s body early the next morning. She could have planted the lighter to frame Petrovsky and put him back in jail.”
Katie’s eyes widened. “It’s so obvious. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it. Erica was pissed that Petrovsky was getting released. She wanted him to go to prison for life. How else to do it than to frame him for murder.” She paused. “But why would she kill Von Reich the day before Petrovsky’s release from jail? Shouldn’t she have waited until the next day to be sure that Petrovsky wouldn’t have an alibi?”
“Whoa.” Tom put his hands up. “I think we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves. All we know is that Erica intended to frame Petrovsky. We don’t know that she killed anyone.”
“Yeah. But she was acting strange.”
Tom nodded. “I agree. She was under a lot of stress, though. With her son and Petrovsky’s release. She was distraught. I don’t fault her for that.”
“Maybe.” But Katie was not convinced.
Katie leaned back in her chair and looked around the room. The walls were plain, unpainted cinder block. The same as the hallways, except Tom was fighting back. He had hung motivational posters to try and liven the place up. There was one with a team of rowers that said Teamwork. A kitten’s back feet hung from a tree branch in another, stating, Hang in there. She shook her head. Only Tom would have such corny office décor.
Katie slapped a hand on Tom’s desk and stood. “Give those to Ashley. I’ll be back when I have more for you.”
“Okay.” Tom rose to his feet and came around the desk.
“Do you think she will see me tomorrow?”
Tom patted Katie on the shoulder. “I don’t know. I hope so. She’s going through a lot, though.”
“Does she still blame me for her arrest?”
“No. It isn’t that. She just hasn’t been in the mood for visitors.”
“But she’ll see you.”
Tom chuckled. “She has to see me. Believe me, she didn’t want to at first. I bribed her with dogs and coffee.”
Katie nodded, but it didn’t make her feel much better. She wanted to see her friend. She wanted to tell Ashley in person that she was on her side.
“Hang in there,” Tom said. “She’ll come around.”
Katie’s eyes traveled to the poster of the kitten. She almost laughed. Of course Tom would say something like that.
Katie went straight to the police department from the jail. She searched for George, passing every cubicle and every desk. She found him in Chief Carmichael’s office. The chief looked up and saw her in the doorway.
“Come in, Katie,” Chief Carmichael said, beckoning. “We were just talking about you.”
Shit, Katie thought. That was never a good sign. She entered the room and sat in a chair across from the chief. It was the only empty one in the room. “Is that so?”
Chief Carmichael smiled. “Don’t look so nervous.”
Katie met George’s gaze, giving him a questioning look. Had he told the chief about Officer Jackie? George gave a barely perceptible shake of his head. So he hadn’t, then. At least not yet.
Katie tried to relax her shoulders. She leaned back in her chair, slouched, then sat up straight. It was not a convincing display of ease. She turned to George. “What’s this all about, then?”
“Ashley Montgomery,” George said flatly.
“And Elizabeth Clement,” Chief Carmichael added.
Katie swallowed hard. Were they going to tell her to stop investigating the Petrovsky and Von Reich murders? She didn’t think she could. There were too many unanswered questions.
“What about Ashley and Elizabeth?”
“I’m not going to beat around the bush here,” Chief Carmichael said. He ran his hands along his well-groomed mustache. “Elizabeth was in here earlier today. She knows that you are still speaking with witnesses. She doesn’t like it. She says it is going to undermine her case at trial. So she wants you to discontinue the Von Reich and Petrovsky investigations.”
Katie’s heart sank. Those were the precise words that she had been dreading. She opened her mouth to protest.
“But.” Chief Carmichael put a hand up to silence her. “I’ve been talking with George.” He nodded to George, who gave Katie a winning smile. “It sounds like the two of you have uncovered some new information. Possibly exculpatory evidence.”
Katie nodded vigorously.
“I was going to tell you that we need to follow the county attorney’s directive. But after hearing what George had to say, I’ve changed my mind. We have a duty to find the truth and to do justice. Neglecting to follow up on known information that could lead to Ashley’s release would be a failure for this police department.”
“Oh, thank you. You won’t be sorry.”
“I know,” Chief Carmichael said. “That’s the only reason why I’m going against the wishes of the lead law enforcement officer in our county. I don’t want to look back and regret what I did here.”
“You won’t.”
“But you two are going to have to tread lightly. Elizabeth is not going to be happy when she finds out that we’ve ignored her request. Then, without a doubt, she will come to me and the next time it will not be termed as a request. She is a political figure. She has power in this county. She can force our hand if she wants to.”
A dark dread spread through Katie’s heart. She could read between the lines. Chief Carmichael was giving them this one chance. He could not extend the same courtesy a second time. To do so would put all their jobs in jeopardy.
“So,” Chief Carmichael said, leaning back in his chair. “What next?”
George reached into his jacket pocket and produced a disk. He held it up and shook it triumphantly, like an actor who had just won an Oscar. “We need to review this.”
Katie’s eyes widened. “You found it.”
George nodded. “I spent hours going through logged recordings, but I got it.”
“You found it!” She jumped to her feet and threw her arms around George. “That’s fabulous.”
George cleared his throat nervously. She released him and took a step back.
“We were lucky,” George said. “It wa
s set to delete tonight.”
Chief Carmichael threaded his fingers together. “Now, what is this you two are going on about?”
“George found a copy of Officer Jackie’s interview with Erica Elsberry on December twelfth. Erica denied giving Officer Jackie the information contained in the complaints against Ashley Montgomery. We don’t know if she’s lying or if he is. Now we’ll know for sure,” Ashley said.
Chief Carmichael’s eyebrows shot up. “Wow. That is a good find. I wonder why Officer Jackie didn’t save the recording.”
As police officers, they were supposed to save all evidence recorded in every case. Sometimes things were accidentally deleted, but that was rare. It usually only happened when charges were uncertain at the time of the interview and weren’t filed until sometimes years later. Recordings could fall through the cracks in a situation like that. But that wasn’t the case here. Officer Jackie filed his complaints shortly after Erica’s alleged interview.
“Oversight?” George suggested. “I mean, Officer Jackie is fairly new. He could have forgotten to save it to a disk.” That was George, always giving the benefit of the doubt.
Katie shook her head. After what she saw outside The Apartments, she did not feel like giving Officer Jackie the benefit of anything. “Then he should have asked someone. Better yet, he shouldn’t have inserted himself in a double homicide investigation without telling any of us.”
“Oh, Katie,” Chief Carmichael said with a chuckle. “Let’s ease up on the boy. I do need to discuss his actions with him, but George is probably right. Officer Jackie’s choices here were likely ignorant, not evasive.”
Katie crossed her arms. Chief Carmichael was going to change his mind once he knew about Officer Jackie’s side hustle. But it wasn’t time to tell him about it yet. They needed to know more.
Chief Carmichael extended a hand, motioning for George to give the disk to him. “Let’s not waste any more time. Let’s give this puppy a listen.”
31
Ashley
December 15th – 11:00 a.m.