by Alan Cook
“The police want you to call them collect. I wrote down the number. I put it here somewhere. Just a minute.”
While her mother was searching for the phone number, Penny spotted Gary buying postcards. When she caught his eye she waved frantically for him to come to the phone. He took his time coming, which made her mad, almost the first time she could remember being mad at him. Then she realized it was because of the tension she was feeling.
Her mother came back on the phone. “I’ve got the number. Do you have a pencil and paper? The police want you to call them right away.”
Penny wrote down the number. She didn’t want to hang up abruptly on her mother, so she chatted about where they were and what they had done. She told a couple of funny stories about their experiences, but she didn’t mention that they had been with Alfred. She didn’t want her mother to worry about her. When her mother seemed calmer, Penny said good-bye and hung up.
By this time, Gary had been cooling his heels for several minutes. Penny blurted out, “Alfred killed somebody.”
“Huh?”
“He shot a clerk in a food store.” She was acting as disjointed as her mother, so she took a deep breath to slow herself down and told Gary what she knew.
“He’s been following us,” were the first words out of Gary’s mouth. “He’s crazy. It’s a good thing we got away from him when we did, and that we didn’t give him specific information about where we were going in Yellowstone.”
“I have to call this number,” Penny said. “Maybe the police can tell us more.”
She dialed the operator and told her she wanted to make a collect call. After the officer who answered accepted the call, she was asked to wait and impatiently suffered on hold for thirty seconds. Then a man came on the line and said, “Detective Landon.”
Penny identified herself. In response to his questions, she acknowledged that she knew Alfred and that she had seen him recently. She asked how they knew he had murdered someone.
“Shortly after the murder, he was stopped for speeding in another town. He posted bail, but when the officers in that town received news of the killing, they immediately informed us about him, because he had acted suspiciously. We put out an APB for his car, and it was found apparently abandoned three or four hours later. Inside we discovered several bullets that were the same make and caliber as the one in the victim’s body.”
“Did you find a gun?”
“We haven’t located the murder weapon. Or Alfred Ward. We think he may have taken another car that was stolen from a driveway not far from where his car was found. We have an APB out for that car.”
“Do you know where he’s headed?”
“He told one officer he was going to Billings, but based on other evidence in the car, we suspect he may be following you.”
“What other evidence?” Penny looked at Gary. He must have seen the fear on her face, because he was paying close attention to what she was saying.
“We found a spiral notebook in the car. Did you recently get married in Reno?”
“That’s our notebook.”
“And there were several pictures of you.”
“More than one?”
“Yes. I’d like to meet with you. Where are you now?”
“Mammoth, in Yellowstone.”
“It’ll be a while before I can get away. Can you meet me at the coffee shop at Mammoth Hot Springs at six o’clock this afternoon?”
Penny agreed.
Detective Landon told her to watch for Alfred. He described the car Alfred was suspected of having stolen, including the license plate number.
“Do you think he’ll find us here?”
“Your plans for Yellowstone, as stated in the notebook, are pretty general. And, of course, he no longer has the notebook. We have the Park Service employees at the entrances to Yellowstone looking for his car, but I would certainly keep an eye out for him.”
Penny hung up the phone in a state of shock and said to Gary, “He’s got our notebook.”
“So that’s what happened to it. He must have taken it out of our tent at Crater Lake. No wonder he knew where to find us. Although that doesn’t tell us how he followed us to Crater Lake.”
“Gary, he’s the one who had you arrested and disrupted our wedding.”
“But the description the woman at the chapel gave was that of a man who had long hair and a beard.”
“And a potbelly.”
“My God. I think you’re right. He could have shaved off his beard. He must have followed us all the way from Los Angeles. Which means that he knew where you lived there. That boy is sick.”
“I never did anything to encourage him—to lead him on.”
“It’s not your fault, honey. As I said, he’s sick.
“But he must think…. Anyway, we’re meeting the detective at the coffee shop here at six. He thinks Alfred is still following us.”
“It sure sounds like it.”
“And he may still have a gun. What shall we do now?”
Gary thought for a minute. “Let’s stay on the move. I think it’s the safest thing we can do. We can spot his car easier on the road, but Yellowstone is a big place. There’s a good chance he’ll never find us. Anyway, I’ll protect you.”
Gary gave her a hug. Penny felt better in his arms. Could he really protect her from Alfred with a gun? He might get shot. She would never forgive herself for that.
***
Alfred was feeling remorse about giving up his car. He loved that car. He should have been able to figure out a way to keep it. If only that man hadn’t tried to pull a gun on him. Or had he? Alfred didn’t remember actually seeing a gun, only a glint of metal. And then blood. Lots of blood. He hadn’t meant to shoot. He thought the safety was on.
Oh well, no use crying over spilt milk, as his grandmother used to say. He had slept in the car on a side road, not trusting himself to register at a motel. The police knew his name. He could register under an assumed name, but he had never done that before, and he might make people suspicious by his nervousness. And, of course, his California driver’s license would give him away, if he had to show it.
The inside of the Falcon wasn’t as large as that of his Fairlane. He had been uncomfortable and cold while trying to sleep, even wearing his jacket. His stomach had growled all night, since he hadn’t eaten much yesterday.
Now he was thawing out at a café with plenty of hot coffee and good food. Trying to figure out what to do next. He was determined to kill Gary. Gary wouldn’t be his first. Killing Gary wouldn’t make much difference in what would happen to him. It might be his last grand gesture. If he couldn’t have Penny, Gary couldn’t either.
He wondered whether he would have a problem getting into Yellowstone. He had to pay an entrance fee; that was no problem. The Park Service employees might be on the lookout for the stolen car, but if they were looking for the plates that were on the car when he had taken it, they wouldn’t find them. They might also have a description of him. What could he do about that?
The day was warming up. He took off his jacket and put it in the trunk. Underneath he was wearing a sweatshirt that the police hadn’t seen. He bought a pair of sunglasses and put them on. He also bought a cheap version of a cowboy hat. The kind they sold to souvenir hunters. Really cheap. Made of straw, or something like that. He had left a baseball cap in his car, but this hat would help him blend in with the local population.
He had also left some of his clothes and the pictures of Penny in his car. He hadn’t even remembered to bring the treasured pictures. Damn it. Actually, once he took the new car, he didn’t have time to stop and retrieve anything from his own car. Well, seeing her again would make up for not having the pictures.
Confident now that he wouldn’t have any trouble getting into Yellowstone, he drove south toward Wyoming.
***
Gary placed his eye up to the viewfinder and focused on the herd of Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep. As a ram with large curling horns
came into profile, he fired away. He and Penny had been following the sheep up the Mt. Washburn trail.
Mt. Washburn was a ten thousand footer, and it was highly unlikely that Alfred would hike up here, even if he found their car at the trailhead. His recent history at Sperry Chalet told Gary that. They were about as safe on the mountain as they would be anywhere.
Gary loved this kind of outdoor adventure. Sure it was windy, but that was part of the fun. Penny seemed to like it, too. She certainly enjoyed seeing all the animals they had spotted today, including moose, elk, bears, antelope, horses, chipmunks, and now sheep.
As they approached the peak, Gary saw a fire tower on top. They could climb that and get a good view of Yellowstone. When they went back down the mountain, they would have to keep a sharp eye out for Alfred. Gary had vowed to protect Penny, and he would do it.
***
Everybody who visited Yellowstone went to see Old Faithful. The geyser that erupted regularly day and night had achieved fame throughout the world. As predictable as a Disneyland ride, the fact that nature and not man had created it made it better than the mouse kingdom.
Everybody included Penny and Gary. They had presumably been sightseeing in the park since this morning. They planned to be here for several days. They would get to Old Faithful tomorrow, or the next day at the latest.
Alfred would be there waiting for them. He had a new resolve. He couldn’t do anything worse than he had already done. He wouldn’t have been forced into killing that man if Gary hadn’t enslaved Penny. Circumstances had made Alfred the way he was. It wasn’t his fault. He deserved revenge. He would see that Gary got his just desserts.
He hadn’t had any trouble getting into Yellowstone. It had been ridiculously easy. The Park Service employee had barely glanced at him as he paid the entrance fee. Maybe the police weren’t looking for him. Maybe he had made a mountain out of a clump of dirt. Nothing tied him to the murder. There were no witnesses. The only person who could connect him with the gun was the pawnshop manager, but the gun wouldn’t be found for years, if ever.
He was home free. Free to take care of Gary. He watched for Gary’s Volkswagen as he drove south toward Old Faithful. If he spotted it, fine. If not, the day of reckoning would come at the geyser.
CHAPTER 18
The coffee shop was rustic, with wooden benches in the booths. Gary and Penny arrived about a quarter to six, because Penny hated to be late for anything. The sound of a dozen conversations kept the noise level high enough so that they would be able to talk without anybody overhearing.
Rather than sit and wait for Detective Landon, they ordered dinner. Exhausted after a day of sightseeing and hiking, they didn’t have enough energy to cook dinner at the campground.
At least they hadn’t seen Alfred. With any luck, he would be arrested, and the danger would end. Penny certainly hoped so. During the day she had racked her brain, trying to remember whether she had ever led Alfred on. She had been friendly to him, but she had been friendly to everybody at her high school, even the students the snobs ignored. She felt that all human beings deserved fair treatment.
She and Emily had also been friendly to Darren, the janitor at Fenwick High School, and he had killed Emily. Friendship apparently wasn’t any guarantee that the friend wouldn’t turn on you.
Why Alfred would think she had a special interest in him she didn’t know. He had never given any indication of having a crush on her, but apparently he had taken her picture out of the class yearbook and carried it around with him. Plus other pictures. She wondered what other pictures he had. Was it her fault that he was infatuated with her?
“Are you Penny Blanchard?”
Penny started. She had seen the young man come into the coffee shop, but he was too young and preppy to be a detective, with his cable-knit sweater over a button-down shirt. She had pegged him for a college student. She wasn’t used to answering to her new last name, and it took a couple of seconds before she realized that he was speaking to her.
She looked up at his freckled face under reddish hair and said, “Yes, I’m Penny.”
“I’m Detective Landon.” He offered his hand. “You look just like your picture.”
She shook his hand and said, “How do you do? This is my husband, Gary.”
“Don’t stand up,” Detective Landon said as Gary made an effort to unwedge himself from his booth seat.
They reached out and shook hands and murmured greetings to each other. Gary moved over to give the detective room to sit down beside him. He was carrying a briefcase that he placed on the floor.
At that moment the waitress brought their salads.
“We were hungry, so we ordered dinner,” Gary said. “Would you like something to eat?”
“No thanks,” Detective Landon said quickly. “Maybe a cup of coffee.”
The waitress nodded and scurried away.
“Did you find Alfred?” Penny asked.
The detective shook his head. “Haven’t seen hide nor hair of him. No word that he’s come into the park, but I’d still be careful if I were you two.”
“Why did he kill the man in the grocery store?”
“Probably because he needed money. He got several hundred dollars.”
“But killing him. I didn’t think he was violent.”
“The clerk had a gun, although he didn’t get a chance to fire it.”
“Are you sure Alfred did it?” Gary asked.
“Pretty sure. The bullets in his car match the one in the body. From his direction and speed when he was stopped, it appears that he would have been at the store about the time the murder occurred. What I’d like to do now is find out when you last saw him.”
He was looking at Penny. His blue eyes were kindly, but she sensed that she’d better tell him everything.
“Two days ago.”
Detective Landon cleared a space on the table for his briefcase, opened it, and took out a small notebook. He started taking notes with a ballpoint pen.
“We first ran into him in Seattle.”
Penny related that experience while the detective wrote. He asked occasional questions, and Gary filled in some of the details. The waitress delivered the detective’s coffee and then their dinners. The dinners sat uneaten, as did their salads.
They told him about Alfred showing up at Sperry Chalet in Glacier National Park and how they helped him get down the trail. How he pleaded that he was too sore to drive. Penny told how Alfred asked her to run off with him, but not about his threat of blackmail.
Detective Landon wrote busily in his notebook.
“He was with us all day,” Penny continued. “He ate dinner with us and even washed his clothes with us. He got me away from Gary at dinner and made a pass at me. I punched him, but it didn’t seem to bother him. We made him get a separate room at the lodge. I lay awake most of the night. Before dawn I woke Gary up and asked him if we could leave. We haven’t seen Alfred since.”
The detective asked a few questions, which Penny answered, feeling guilty that she hadn’t told the whole truth. Then he said, “I’d like to confirm that the notebook found in his car belongs to you.” He extracted their notebook from the briefcase. “We’ve already checked it for fingerprints.”
Gary took it and flipped through the pages. “This is ours.”
“Unfortunately, I can’t let you keep it. We need it for evidence. If there’s any information from it that you need, you can look at it now.”
“I think we successfully reconstructed everything. He took it from our tent at Crater Lake.” Gary handed the notebook back to the detective.
“Which proves that he’s followed you throughout the trip.”
“We think he’s the one who tried to stop our wedding in Reno,” Penny said. “Gary was taken to the police station.”
She and Gary elaborated on the police incident while Detective Landon took more notes. When they finished that recital, he looked at Penny.
“When was the last time you
saw Alfred before your trip?”
She thought. “I saw him a few times while I was going to college. Not very often. Usually during the summers when I was home. I think he was working in Fenwick. As far as I know, he didn’t go to college. But we never did anything together. I don’t remember saying more than a hundred words to him all the time I was in college.”
“When did you go to California?”
“June 1962, right after I graduated from college.”
“You didn’t know that he was living close to you in Lomita, California?”
“No.” She still couldn’t believe it, although the evidence indicated it must be so.
“He’s probably been keeping tabs on you for some time. Your mother told me he called her from California before you left on your trip. He was looking for you.”
“She didn’t tell me that.” Sometimes her mother could be exasperating.
“She told him you were going on a trip.”
“Great.”
“What about the phone calls and the notes?” Gary asked.
Penny explained about those to the detective. Alfred knew where she lived. She shivered, realizing that he had been watching her, and she didn’t even know it.
“Now I’d like to show you the pictures that were found in his car.” Detective Landon hesitated, looking sideways at Gary. “You might find one of them a little…shocking.”
Penny didn’t think she could be any more shocked than she already was. Detective Landon pulled a sketchpad out of the briefcase with pages approximately equal to legal size stationery. He lifted the cover and extracted a black-and-white photograph that Penny recognized immediately. She was in her cheerleader uniform. Her sweater had a large F on it, and she had a smug smile on her face and one hand raised into the air, as if she were in the middle of a cheer.
“That’s from my high school yearbook.”
Detective Landon nodded. “It was hanging from his rearview mirror.”
“It wasn’t hanging from the mirror while I was driving his car.”