Chapter 53
Dilemma
After the jury acquitted Fred, Maria insisted they get married immediately. She said she didn’t want to take a chance on Fred doing something stupid and ruining their marriage plans. It was a bright, sunny Saturday in May when the limousine pulled up in front of Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church in Ventura, California. The driver got out and opened the back passenger-door and offered his hand to Maria. She got out, dressed in her long white silk wedding dress. The crowd of late-arriving guests and press covering the event admired her as she walked up the steps to the church. Cameras flashed all around her like she was a royal princess.
Fred was waiting patiently at the altar with Steve and Randy at his sides. It was a day he didn't think he would ever see, and he was overwhelmed with joy. Randy smiled at him as the organist began to play the traditional “Wedding March.” The crowd rose to their feet as Maria slowly made her way down the aisle on her father's arm. When she reached the altar, Fred thanked God for granting him this moment. From the balcony came the sweet melody of the soloist singing “Ave Maria.”
After the wedding, Maria's parents had a big reception, which lasted into the night. Maria and Fred ran off on their honeymoon to the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego. It was a wonderful week, followed by a weekend at Cabo San Lucas in Mexico.
They had promised Maria's mother that immediately upon their return, they would come by and retrieve all of their gifts and mail, which were piling up in her dining room. Maria also wanted to send out thank-you notes right away, as everyone had been so generous. Maria was sitting at the dining room table as Fred was going through cards and admiring all of their gifts.
"I can't believe we got all of this loot," he commented.
"I know. There are a lot of gifts from people I don't even know," Maria noted.
"We won't be able to fit all of this stuff in our new apartment."
"Maybe my dad will let us borrow part of his attic for a while."
"That would help," he agreed.
Fred began opening mail. "Here's a card from Sam Whitehead Can you believe that? Hey, a gift certificate for fifty bucks!"
"You've got to be kidding," Maria responded. "Send it back!"
"No way. Fifty bucks is fifty bucks. Look, here's a card from Congressman Bartlett. Let's see what it says. . .
"Dear Fred,
It was with greatest relief that I learned of your acquittal. You have always been a favorite of mine, and I knew you couldn't have done the terrible things with which you were charged. Congratulations on your marriage. I know Maria's parents well, and they have often bragged about their wonderful daughter. So, if what they tell me is true, you are a lucky man.
After your life gets back to normal, give me a call. I think we could probably find a job for you while you finish up at UCLA. You've become quite a celebrity, and your employment on my staff could probably benefit both of us.
With deepest regards,
Congressman Charles Bartlett
"That was sure nice," Maria said.
"Yeah. I didn’t think the Congressman would touch me with a ten-foot pole after the mess I got myself in.”
“And he’s offering a new job which you sorely need since you lost your job with Bank USA.”
“Right. I hope working for the Congressman will pay as well as the bank,” Fred said as he rummaged through more mail. “Let me see what else we have here."
As Fred shuffled through the mail, he picked out a plain, letter-sized manila envelope with a postmark from Toronto, Canada. "Look at this," he said as he held it up for Maria to see.
"What is it?" Maria asked.
"I don't know, but it's from Toronto," Fred replied.
"Open it up. I wonder what it is."
"Okay."
He took the crystal-handled letter opener that someone had given them as a gift and slit open the top of the envelope. Inside was a smaller envelope containing a wedding card and a note on a plain piece of white paper. Fred looked at Maria and then began reading the note.
Dear Mr. Fuller,
Even though we have never met, I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am that my brother caused you and Maria so much trouble. Sam has been a big disappointment to the family and caused us much grief and agony over the years. Although we still loved him and never wished him ill, now the family will finally have some peace.
Congratulations on your wedding and best wishes to you both.
Yours truly,
Molly Stewart Miller
P.S. Now that Harvey is dead, nobody knows about the million dollars, except me, so don’t worry about it. Consider it a wedding present from Sam.
“Oh my God!” Maria gasped. “She knew about it. Sam must have told her all about the heist.”
Fred swallowed hard. “So, he did put it in my trunk while I was in the bank.”
“Don’t you lock your car?” Maria asked.
“Not necessarily. I’m only inside a couple of minutes, and canceled checks aren’t worth anything. The trunk is locked, but you can pop it open from inside the car.”
“That’s how he did it then. He left and then came back and planted the bag of money in your car.”
Fred nodded. “Yeah, I think you’re right.”
On the drive back to LA, they discussed the topic of the money buried at Devils Canyon, now that they knew the truth. They both had carefully avoided the topic during their honeymoon, as it was a very delicate issue, and they didn’t want anything to spoil their romantic trip. But Fred knew sooner or later they’d have to deal with it.
At first, they let their imaginations go wild. They both agreed it would be nice to spend the rest of the summer taking a Mediterranean cruise and then come home and buy a beautiful house with a swimming pool. Then Maria suggested they both get new cars—a Lincoln for her and a Porsche for Fred. They, of course, would have to give Sam's sister some of the money to ease the guilt they’d be feeling spending all that free money, but there was plenty to go around.
By the time they got to Palm Springs, however, their excitement had subsided, and the harsh reality of their situation reared its ugly head.
"You know, we can't really buy anything with the money," Fred said, "at least not for a while. Even then we'll have to be really careful not to attract attention."
"I know, but it's fun to think about spending it. At least we'll have some security, and if we really need money, we'll be able to get it," Maria replied.
"I don't know. I am scared to death having it. I am not going to be able to sleep at night. What if we get caught with it? How will we explain where we got it?"
"What about double jeopardy? They can't try you again since you were found innocent, can they?"
"Technically, that's right, but the bank could sue me for conversion and, if they won the lawsuit, I’d have to give it back plus be liable for punitive damages and their attorney’s fees."
Maria snuggled up next to Fred in the car and put her head on his shoulder. "Oh, Fred, you're right. The money's not important as long as we're together."
"That’s right. I’ll make plenty of money as a lawyer."
When they got home there was a message on the recorder for Maria. It was from Tammy, the girl she had met at the Silver Stallion Saloon. Maria called her back while Fred unloaded the car. When she hung up the phone, she was as pale as a ghost.
“What’s wrong?” Fred asked, fearing the worst.
She told him.
The following Saturday night, they had gone to the movies and returned home close to 11:00 p.m. Fred flipped on the TV to catch the news before they went to bed. Being newlyweds, they were still making love at least once a day, so they had just ripped off each other’s clothes and jumped under the covers when George Putnam and the eleven o'clock news came on. They surfaced momentarily to listen to the familiar newscaster when they realized they were the topic of the story.
"Well, tonight we have a follow-up to our story on the
sensational Fred Fuller murder trial that ended just weeks ago with the jury's acquittal of Fuller on charges of bank robbery and murder. Today, Agent Jim Walters of the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced that another one million of the 6.7 million that was stolen from Bank USA had been recovered. The money was found near Big Bear, California, buried behind the cabin of former bank messenger Sam Stewart. Stewart recently died in a fiery collision with a Canadian Midwest freight train in a suburb of Toronto, Canada. With this discovery, $1.25 million the bank’s money has been recovered. That leaves over $5 million dollars still missing.
"In a footnote, Fred Fuller and his new bride, the former Maria Shepard, just returned from their honeymoon amidst continued speculation by some that, notwithstanding the jury’s verdict, Fred had the missing money and had stashed it somewhere in the Mojave Desert.
“In a related note, Bank USA messenger Jake Johnson was arrested today in conjunction with his alleged involvement in the Bank USA robbery and the death of Harvey Hamlin. Reportedly, over $200,000 cash from the robbery was found in his possession. Informed sources have told this reporter that Johnson and the late Sam Stewart conspired together to rob the bank. So, perhaps with Johnson in custody the missing $5.2 million will finally be found.”
“So, did that tip come from your friend, Tammy?”
“I think so. She said Jake found her after I left that day, bought her a drink and they started dating.”
“Big mistake,” Fred chuckled.
Maria nodded. “Yeah. Tammy’s a nice girl as long as you don’t piss her off.”
“I wonder what Jake did?”
“He was going to leave the country without her?”
Fred raised his eyebrows. “Well, I’m glad that’s over.”
Maria shook her head. “Thank God.”
“Now that we’ve given all the bank’s money back. How will we live?”
“Oh, if we’re careful with our money, we’ll be okay,” Maria assured him.
Fred frowned. “What money?”
“FDF, of course. There at the end, the money was flowing in like lava out of a volcano. Even after replacing the $100,000 that belonged to the bank and ended up paying Roberts, there’s still over $200,000 left.”
“Holy shit!” Fred gasped. “But don’t we have to give it all back since we don’t need it?”
Maria shrugged. “I don’t know how. I don’t have any record of who gave it to us. Besides, I don’t think a single person will ask for a refund, do you? We provided a lot of entertainment for a lot of folks, and people expect to pay for their entertainment these days, don’t you agree?”
Fred thought about that for a moment and couldn’t think of a thing wrong with Maria’s reasoning, so they both laughed as they ducked back under the covers to finish what they’d been doing before George Putnam had so rudely interrupted them.
Epilogue
Eight Years Later
It was early evening on election day and a large crowd of supporters had gathered at the Pierpont Inn in Ventura for what they hoped would be a victory celebration for Fred Fuller, their candidate for the California State Assembly. After being acquitted of charges of bank robbery and murder while in his sophomore year at UCLA, Fred continued his education and was awarded his bachelor of arts degree in 1969. Without taking a break he started law school and obtained his law degree three years later.
Due to all of the publicity he had received during his trial, Fred Fuller was a household name in Ventura County and, not surprisingly, was recruited by the party to replace the retiring assemblyman from the district, Paul Bryan.
Fresh out of law school Fred jumped at the opportunity to get into politics because he knew the power and notoriety that came with the office would jump-start his new law practice. Maria was not thrilled with Fred’s candidacy because she knew, if elected, he would have to spend several months each year in Sacramento and now that Fred was finally out of law school, she wanted to start a family. But Maria knew Fred really wanted to run and an opportunity like this didn’t come along every day, so she reluctantly put her family plans on hold for a few years and threw herself into the campaign.
There were three candidates in the race, the mayor of Fillmore, Fred Garcia; a real estate developer, Paul Grimes; and Fred. With Paul Bryan’s endorsement and the support of Congressman Bartlett, Fred was expected to win handily and all recent polls supported that expectation, but Fred was still worried. Nothing he’d wanted to achieve in life had come easily, let alone handed to him on a silver platter. And this election night celebration didn’t feel right.
Fred and Maria arrived by limousine to the Pierpont Inn at 8:00 p.m. A small crowd of well-wishers braved a cold ocean fog to welcome them and congratulate Fred on, what all expected would be, a victorious night. Fred stepped out of the limousine and then turned and helped Maria out. She looked stunning in her black velvet evening gown and pearl necklace. Several reporters yelled questions to Fred as their photographers took pictures of the couple.
Fred took Maria’s hand and escorted her inside. Joel Roberts was the first person they saw as they entered the exclusive venue. He immediately came over and shook Fred’s hand. “Fred! Congratulations. Several precincts are already in and you have a double digit lead.”
“That’s great,” Fred said evenly. “Hopefully that trend will continue.”
“It will. Don’t worry.”
Other supporters and well-wishers began to crowd around and Fred and Maria did their best to be polite and show their appreciation for their support. Joel excused himself to thank some contributors, leaving them stranded. Fortunately, Fred’s publicity chairman showed up to rescue them.
“There you are,” Shirley said. “I’ve been looking for you two. We have some special guests who want to meet you. Come on.”
Fred smiled at the people around him and excused himself. “Nice meeting all of you.”
Shirley escorted them to a private suite where a dozen well-dressed men and women were drinking champagne, talking, laughing and eating hors d oeuvres. When Fred was spotted, several of them came over to greet them. Maria recognized one of them as Margaret Thompson, Congressman Bartlett’s administrative assistant.
“Mrs. Thompson,” Maria said. “So nice to see you.”
Maria and Margaret had met at the trial when Margaret testified. She liked her very much and was very appreciative of her testimony at Fred’s bond hearing and her support of Fred throughout the trial.
“Yes, this going to be an exciting night!” she exclaimed. “Your life is really going to change. Are you ready?”
“I guess I have no choice,” Maria replied warily.
“So, Fred. I want you to meet Priscilla Prescott. She has been my assistant for the last year and she’s been dying to meet her new boss?”
Fred looked at the petite middle-aged brunette and said, “New boss?”
“Oh, you haven’t talked to the Congressman yet. Oh no, am I bad? I just spoiled his surprise.”
“Surprise,” Fred said, confused.
“He’s been having me train Priscilla to manage your local office. Isn’t that wonderful? We’ve found a great location for you too, huh, Priscilla.”
“Oh, yes,” Priscilla beamed. “Up on the hill near the Courthouse. You’ll have a great view of the ocean.”
Maria looked at Fred and he shrugged.
“I am so excited to finally meet you two,” Priscilla went on. “You’ve been through so much and now you’ve been elected to public office. Wow! Who would have believed it?”
“Not many, I’m sure,” Fred replied curtly taking Maria’s hand. “Excuse us. I think I need another drink.”
When they were alone Maria asked, “Why is the Congressman making staff appointments for you?”
“Yeah. That’s what I’d like to know.”
“I guess he thought he was doing you a favor.”
“Yeah, maybe, but I have a bad feeling about this.”
“Why? Wha
t do you think is going on?”
Fred took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I don’t know but I’m going to find out.”
They walked around until they spotted Joel Roberts. When he finished his conversation with an elderly couple, they approached.
“Joel. Can we have a word?”
“Sure, sorry I deserted you two but I have to pat everybody on the back and thank them for their support, so we can count on it at the next election.”
“Of course,” Fred said. “Listen, Margaret just said the Congressman has already found me an office and a manager to staff it.”
“Yes, Priscilla. You’ll love her. She’s very efficient.”
“I am sure she is but it’s not the Congressman’s place to be hiring my staff and making decisions that I should be making.”
Joel gave Fred a hard look and then shook his head. “Fred, you are so naive. Did you think they’d just give you this job without expecting something in return?”
“What are you talking about?” Fred protested. “I won this election fair and square. The voters elected me. I’m not beholden to anybody!”
Maria glared at Joel then looked at Fred worriedly.
Joel chuckled. “Don’t worry. We just need to have a few key personnel in place to keep you honest. It won’t be so bad and you’ll be well compensated. You can vote your conscience on most issues, but once in a while you’ll have vote how we tell you. Sometimes we have to deliver a vote and we have to be sure we can do it.”
“I won’t. I never agreed to this?”
“Yes, you will, Fred,” Roberts said with a confident smile. “We know about the million dollars?”
“What million dollars? We don’t have any of the bank’s money.”
Roberts nodded. “Okay. But even if you were foolish enough to bury it in Sam’s backyard to ease your guilty conscience, there is still over five million missing.”
Fred’s eyes widened.
“Ah!” Maria gasped.
Fred just stared at Joel in disbelief. Then he said softly, “I’ve already been tried and acquitted of the bank robbery. I can’t be tried again for that— double jeopardy, remember? You don’t have a damn thing on me.”
“Ah. So true,” Joel agreed, “but you can be recalled by the voters, and what about Maria?”
“Maria has nothing to do with this!” Fred spat.
“Oh, but she does. She’s an accessory, Fred. You’re a lawyer now, you know I am right. So, step out of line and you’ll be kicked out of office and visiting your wife in prison.”
Fred and Maria looked at each worriedly but said nothing. Fred wondered if Roberts was bluffing or if he had the proof to back up his threats. He pondered his response for a moment, then replied, “Well, Joel. We know about the $4.8 million embezzlement from the Congressman’s campaign fund and how you covered it up by orchestrating the Bank USA robbery.”
The grin on Joel’s face fell away and he swallowed hard. “What? That’s ridiculous.”
“Is it? You know, at the time I just thought your PI was incompetent and you were, well, just a lousy lawyer, but now I know you were doing your best to get me convicted. You and the Congressman were going to make sure I took the fall for your crime.”
“No. No. You’ve got it all wrong,” Joel pleaded.
Fred took a menacing step toward Joel, looked him in the eyes, and cautioned, “So, if you want to go the FBI and tell them how you tried to set me up, be my guest. I gave back the money you had planted in my car, so I’m sure they’ll forgive me for my transgressions, especially if I agree to testify against you, Sinclair and the Congressman. What do you think?”
Joel forced a smile and started backing off slowly. “Listen, you’re right, Fred. What were we thinking? You should pick your own staff. The Congressman was just trying to help out, but I can see now you don’t need our help.”
“Of course, I’ll have to file a complaint with the State Bar too,” Fred continued. “How many canons of legal ethics did you break? I lost count at about twelve.”
“Okay. Okay,” Joel agreed. “You made your point. This won’t come up again.”
“I’m glad to hear it. Now get the hell out of my sight, and take Priscilla with you!”
Joel turned and made a hasty retreat.
Maria took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Then she smiled wryly. “We’re gonna owe Tammy a drink.”
Fred nodded.” Yeah. You better make it a bottle.”
About the Author
William Manchee is originally from California. He earned his B.A. degree from UCLA in 1969 and a J.D. degree from SMU Law School in 1976. Now a resident of Plano, Texas, Manchee has practiced law in Texas for over 40 years. He is the author of the Stan Turner Mystery Series, the Rich Coleman Novels and the Tarizon Saga.
THE STAN TURNER MYSTERIES
by William Manchee
Undaunted
Disillusioned
Brash Endeavor
Second Chair
Cash Call
Deadly Distractions
Black Monday
Cactus Island
Act Normal
Deadly Defiance
Deadly Dining
"...appealing characters and lively dialogue, especially in the courtroom . . . " (Publisher's Weekly)
"...plenty of action and adventure . . . " (Library Journal)
"...each plot line, in and of itself, can be riveting . . . " (Foreword Magazine)
"...a courtroom climax that would make the venerable Perry Mason stand and applaud . . . "
(Crescent Blue)
"...Richly textured with wonderful atmosphere, the novel shows Manchee as a smooth, polished master of the mystery form . . . " (The Book Reader)
"...Manchee’s stories are suspenseful and most involve lawyers. And he’s as proficient as Grisham . . . (Dallas Observer)
"...fabulous-a real page turner-I didn't want it to end!" (Allison Robson, CBS Affiliate, KLBK TV, Ch 13)
Uncommon Thief Page 53