Chapter Twenty-Five
Jack barely made it to the bathroom before vomiting up everything he had eaten in the last few hours. The sickening smell of the beer he had sipped made him vomit even further. He vomited until he was wracked with dry heaves. Perspiration spilled down the back of his neck and soaked his shirt.
Had he really just killed his own brother? Jack justified his actions to himself, thinking, Joel would’ve died from the head wound anyway. Jack walked back to his brother’s lifeless body. “You would have just ended up ruining your own life as well as mine.” Jack knew he shouldn’t really blame himself. Joel drove him to it. At least now his problems were solved. Jack stared at his brother, laid out like a dead fish on the floor. He had done the right thing.
Jack went to the bathroom and let the tap water run ice cold before splashing it on his face. He found a dusty glass on the counter and filled it. Taking a swig, Jack swished and spit until the taste of vomit no longer lingered. Jack realized he had one more problem to solve; what to do with the body.
Jack looked around the bathroom. He reached over and ripped the plastic curtain from the cheap hotel shower. So damn cliché but it would be the easiest to wash out and return if he had to. There wasn’t much blood after all.
Jack walked back into the bedroom and using the toe of his shoe, he flipped the filthy pillow off of Joel’s face. For a minute Jack was afraid the vomiting would start all over again. He moved his gaze to the ceiling and took deep breaths. In through his nose and out through his mouth, Jack breathed deeply until the nausea faded. He had to get on with this. It was getting late.
Jack laid the shower curtain flat on the floor next to Joel’s body. He checked for breathing one more time. He couldn’t help it. He half expected Joel to wake up and start cussing him out. Jack felt numb. He rolled Joel face first onto the shower curtain.
Jack removed the pillowcase from the pillow and wiped as much of the blood off of the floor as possible. He threw the stained pillowcase on top of Joel’s body before he wrapped it up tight. Jack took a quick look around the room. Now what?
Jack had never killed anyone before. Any ideas he had of how to dispose of a body were straight from the movies. He tried to roll Joel’s body closer to the front door. Jack could have bench pressed his brother in life, but now the finality of death seemed to add 500 pounds to Joel’s small frame.
Jack drug Joel’s body to the door and glanced around the room once more. He decided he had better clean up a little. Maybe make it look as if no one had been here at all? Jack made the bed. He searched and found a thin garbage bag in the cupboard under the bathroom sink. He collected all the beer cans, cigarette butts and the rest of Joel’s meager belongings.
Jack opened the drawer in the bedside table. Inside were the motel room keycard and a set of car keys. Of course his brother was still stealing rides. Jack bet his brother had one stashed close by. Jack took a few minutes to wipe the room for prints.
Jack left Joel’s body on the floor near the door and headed back to the parking lot. The stolen car had to be in the back somewhere out of sight. Jack casually walked the back parking lot, pressing the lock button on the car key fob. An older blue Honda with Oregon plates beeped in response. This had to be the one. No doubt his brother had switched the plates with those from a valid registered car. If a cop ran the plate it would come back clean.
Jack climbed into the driver seat and started the Honda. He drove around to the front parking lot and wedged the Honda into the one disabled parking space. It was the closest available space to Joel’s door and he wouldn’t be here long enough for a cop to spot it and ticket him.
Jack felt a sliver of panic. He had been gone too long. What if Joel hadn’t really been dead at all but only dazed? What if he had somehow regained consciousness and made a call to 911 or worse, gotten out. Jack tried desperately to keep his breathing even as he tried not to run back to Joel’s door. He swiped the motel key card. It didn’t work! What was going on? Was this even the right room? Jack re-checked the number on the door. 318. Right room. He frantically swiped the card again. This time the light signaled green and Jack let himself in quickly.
Joel was right where Jack left him. Pocketing the room key and car keys, Jack bent down and hoisted Joel’s wrapped corpse into a seated position. Bending down, he put all of his weight under Joel’s body. Utilizing a fireman carry, Jack stood up straight with Joel draped across his shoulder. It wasn’t far to the car but Jack wondered how the hell he would be able to explain this if he came across someone? He would just have to chance it. It was almost two in the morning. No one is going to be out here at this time of night anyway.
Jack opened the door to the motel room and took a quick glance outside. Nothing stirred. Jack carried Joel’s body as quickly as he could manage to the stolen car. Using the key fob once again, Jack popped open the trunk and dropped Joel inside.
Jack closed the trunk and headed back to the room one last time. He was sweating again and he was sure that if he hadn’t been in such good physical shape he would have had a heart attack by now.
Back inside the room Jack gathered up the garbage bag and the pillow. He slowly scanned the room to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything. He went to the refrigerator and found a fifth of vodka inside. Crap! He almost missed that. Jack unscrewed the top of the bottle and took a huge swallow to steady his nerves.
Jack went back to the air conditioning unit and retrieved his drugs. He wiped down all the surfaces with the edge of his shirt and then let the door close softly behind him as he exited into the parking lot.
Jack opened the trunk and threw the bag of Joel’s belongings on top of his lifeless body. He got into the driver seat once more. After starting the car he sat quietly for a moment. He spotted a pack of Joel’s cigarettes on the dash. Jack picked the pack up and turned it over in his hand as he considered what he had done. Murdering his own brother had to be the worst. If he had ever thought he could come clean with Lizzie and find understanding, it was too late now. There was no coming back from this.
Jack shook a cigarette loose from the pack and put it to his mouth. He reached over and punched in the car lighter. The lighter popped out and Jack held its glowing coil to the cigarette. He inhaled deeply. It had been years since he smoked. It still tasted good. He might just have to take up the habit again. No time like the present! Jack put the Honda in gear and steered it out of the motel parking lot. Time to dump a body.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Jack pointed the stolen car towards Roland. Lizzie had no idea that Jack knew Roland like the back of his hand. Roland was where he had met Jimmy. Jimmy had shown him things and because of Jimmy’s tutelage, Jack knew exactly where to hide Joel’s body.
Just before entering Roland city limits, Jack exited onto a frontage road. He continued south through an industrialized area made up of railroad tracks, government housing and freight storage. Jack was fairly certain there would be no cops out at this time of morning. He calculated that he had an hour or so to do what he needed to do.
Ten miles further, the frontage road met up with the freeway once again. The two roads intersected at a train yard. Under the overpass where the freeway covered the frontage road and the rail yard, there was plenty of vacant space to hide. Vacant to some anyway. Sometimes homeless people used this yard to set up camp.
Jack wasn’t too concerned. The yard was frequently covered with spare rail equipment and trash blown in by the wind. The lack of security and lighting made this the perfect spot to hide the stolen car and its occupant. It would take days for the cops to find him here and even then they wouldn’t care.
Jack arrived at the rail yard gate and found it wide open. Jack cut his headlights and drove slowly into the empty lot. This was the perfect spot. Even in the daylight the empty rail cars would cast shadows deep enough to hide the car.
Jack put the car in park and took a deep breath. He got out of the car and went around to the trunk. Jack stared at the cl
osed lid for a brief second. Maybe he should just leave him in the trunk? No, a body in the trunk definitely signified murder. Duh. No one dies on accident and then ends up in the trunk of a stolen car.
Like it or not, Jack wasn’t going to be able to avoid this part. He started to sweat just thinking about seeing his brother’s body again. “Screw it,” he said to himself as he popped the trunk.
Jack stared at the body and took a half step back. He walked a few steps away to gather his nerve once again. He knew he had to get this over with quickly. Returning to the trunk, Jack reached inside and unwrapped the shower curtain from Joel’s corpse. He grabbed Joel’s stiffening arms and pulled the body out onto the ground with a thud. Jack dragged the body by the arms toward the driver side door. Jack opened the driver door and struggled to get the body in. Lividity had already started to set in and Jack had to strain to get the body into a seated position behind the wheel.
Jack managed to stuff Joel’s feet into the car and he tipped Joel’s head down to rest on the steering wheel. With Joel finally in the car, Jack returned to the trunk and took the shower curtain out. He walked to a nearby trash pile and stuffed it deep under some garbage.
Jack returned to the trunk and grabbed the bottle of booze he had thrown in. He uncapped it and took a swig. He gasped at how harsh the alcohol stung his throat. Jack drank another deep swallow of the liquid courage and then took the bottle with him to Joel’s body.
Jack poured the remnants over Joel body. If and when someone found the body it would look like Joel drank himself to death. Jack left the empty bottle on Joel’s lap. Jack took one last look around as he closed the driver door. He had to get out of here. He had that sudden feeling that if he stayed any longer he would get caught.
Jack quickly retraced his path to the train yard entrance. Once clear of the gate he walked toward the freeway on ramp. A lone cabbie drove by slowly and Jack flagged him down with a wave of his hand.
“Hey man what are you doing out here so late,” asked the cab driver.
“Ah, nothing. Partying with some friends. You working or not,” Jack asked anxiously.
“As long as you got money. Where do you want to go?”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Jack got into the cab and gave the driver the address to the motel where he had left his truck. He flopped back against the seat and tried to bring his blood pressure under control. His heart was still beating a million miles an hour. He felt restless. He reached into his pocket and withdrew his cell phone. He had three messages and they were all from Lizzie.
Jack pressed play and listened to the first message.
“Hey babe, I hope you’re ok? Call me when you get a chance so I don’t worry too much. You didn’t come home last night. I’m on my way in to work. We have a search warrant this morning so I have to be in early. Ok, well, I’m just getting off the freeway into Roland now. I’ll try you again this afternoon if I don’t hear from you before then. Get some sleep. Love you!”
Jack cringed at the message and briefly considered calling her back. He decided to wait until he could think of what he was going to tell her. He erased the other two messages without even listening to them. Lizzies voice was evoking a guilty feeling and he didn’t want to deal with that just now.
The cabbie pulled up to the front of the hotel and Jack paid him in cash. He waited for the cabbie to disappear around the corner before moving into the parking lot and approaching his truck. Jack nervously examined the truck to make sure no one had touched it. He laughed at himself. He was getting paranoid!
Jack considered going back into the motel room to double check he had remembered everything. No. He was being ridiculous. The least amount of times the door was opened and closed with the card reader, the better. He hoped he had remembered to get everything out of the car that would identify him.
Jack reached inside his jacket pocket for the pack of cigarettes he had commandeered from Joel’s corpse. He shook one out and fished a lighter from the glove compartment. He lit the cigarette, inhaled deeply and froze. The butts!! The cigarette butts in the ashtray would have his DNA on them! Damn it!!! Jack threw his lit cigarette down on the ground without bothering to extinguish it. He threw the rest of the pack onto the seat and climbed into the truck. As the truck engine roared to life Jack realized he would have to hurry. It would be daylight soon. He had to get back to Roland
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The early morning air in Roland was cold and foggy. Lizzie shivered as she walked from her car to the police building. She changed into her uniform and grabbed her heavy police jacket. She hurried to the briefing room to find Dekker.
When she arrived Dekker was waiting for her. “Bad news kid. Search warrant has been put on hold. Sergeant Shaw wants us to stick around while they iron out some kinks. Now it’s just hurry up and wait.”
Lizzie’s shoulders dropped in disappointment. “Ok, so what do we do now?”
“We might as well hit the street and work on some car stops. Maybe work on your geography? But first, coffee.”
Since their usual patrol car was currently in use by a graveyard officer, they signed out a spare. It was a little rundown and not nearly as comfortable but Lizzie did a full inspection and loaded their gear before jumping into the driver seat. Dekker directed her to the nearest donut shop and they went in.
Dekker asked, “You drink coffee, right?”
“I’m a mom aren’t I?”
Dekker ordered two large coffees to go. “You take cream or sugar?”
“Neither. Just black, thanks.”
“You just made probation,” quipped Dekker as he handed her a cup.
Lizzie grabbed a lid for her cup and followed Dekker back to the car. Sirens screamed as fire truck sped past.
“I wonder what’s going on,” said Lizzie as she pulled the patrol car away from the curb.
“Doesn’t matter.” Dekker checked the cars mobile computer. “There are no calls holding. They are probably just going to a medical call.”
A second fire truck blasted past them. Lizzie asked, “With two fire trucks?”
“They could have twelve trucks for all I care. If there’s no police detail we don’t go. If we do go we will end up getting stuck doing scene security and then when the real calls come out someone else will get the good stuff.”
Lizzie countered, “It’s early and we don’t have anything to do just yet. Can’t we at least just see what’s happening?”
Dekker looked at Lizzie and then set his coffee cup on the dashboard in front of him. “Ok fine. Go ahead rookie, catch up, but if you spill even one drop of that coffee on me you won’t get to drive for a week. And you’ll be paying my dry cleaning.”
Lizzie drove carefully but skillfully until she caught up with the fire trucks. She followed the lights and sirens southbound onto the frontage road and slowed as the two firetrucks pulled up outside of the rail yard gates.
It looked like they were late to the party. A car was fully engulfed by flames under the overpass. Firefighters got busy dousing it with water. They were moving quickly with two hoses trained on the small inferno. Water and noxious fumes flooded the nearby homeless encampment. There were no people scrambling so Lizzie figured the encampment was vacant.
“Better start directing traffic onto the freeway,” said Dekker. “You asked for it so now you get to play crossing guard.”
Lizzie parked the patrol car across the oncoming lanes of traffic to keep people from driving through the area. She started directing angry drivers onto the freeway. Dekker headed towards the fire captain who was barking out directions.
Lizzie could see Dekker and the fire captain shake hands like old friends. They appeared to be deep in conversation as they watched their respective worker bees do their assigned jobs. Smoke blew Lizzies way as more commuters entered the freeway.
A truck pulled up and then stopped. The driver window rolled down. “Hey gorgeous!” Lizzie was startled to see Jack.
“
Jack! What are you doing here?”
“I was out on the job and on my way home when I saw the smoke and this gorgeous blonde waving at everyone.”
“Ha. Ha. Very funny but you’re blocking traffic.”
Jack ignored her. “So what’s going on?”
“Just a car fire.”
“Have you been over there?”
“No. Dekker was kind of pissed I wanted to come to this but here we are. Now I’m stuck with traffic post.”
“Any idea how it started?”
“No. I’m sure Dekker will fill me in when he gets back from chumming around with the fire captain. Hey, did you get my messages?”
Jack tore his gaze away from the car fire and focused on Lizzies face. “Yes, sorry I didn’t get to call you back but we were slammed. By the time I could call you back I figured you would be asleep.”
“Well I’m wide awake now! Although I am glad it’s my Friday. How would you feel about taking Sam away for the weekend? We could head to the coast or maybe go camping up in the redwoods? Maybe celebrate a little that my first week is done and we both survived?”
Jack smiled at Lizzie, “Sure, that sounds nice.” He thought getting out of town sounded like a great idea after all he had been through in the last few days. It would be nice to be away and maybe he could focus on his little family’s future, now that his past was laid to rest. Lizzie was right, a little celebration was indeed in order.
“Ugh, that fire smells horrible,” said Lizzie, wrinkling her nose. “You better roll up your car window before you get smothered. I’m sure it’s already soaked into my hair.”
“Yes, boss,” said Jack with a lopsided green.
Lizzie looked down the road to the accident scene and saw Dekker watching her.
“You better get out of here or you’re gonna get me in trouble!”
Killing Frank Barnes Page 8