No One Is Innocent

by Gayle Tiller

  "I was just curious."

  "Do you like him or something?"

  "I told you I am a private investigator."

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  "Well, my uncle likes black women."

  "He does?"

  "Yeah, both of his wives were black. One of them looked sort of like you except she had a lot bigger boobs and really long hair."

  So there was a lookalike version of me with silicon breasts and a weave. So what. I was satisfied with my flat chest and my hair that won't grow past the back of my neck. I don't know why I was tripping on some teenage twit's comments.

  I said with an authoritative voice, "I am sure he has dated other women who are not black."

  "Nope. He only goes for black women."

  Damn, if this twit brained niece knew this, how many other people knew about Chuck's preference for black women. I decided to ask a question that I was afraid to ask.

  "Do you know Kristal Woods?"

  "Who?"

  I showed her a picture of Kristal.

  "Oh, she's a real pretty lady."

  "Do you know her?"

  "Not really."

  "So you don't know her."

  "I met her once."

  "Where?"

  "At the mall with my uncle."

  "You and your uncle saw her at the mall."

  "Yeah, we ran into her at the mall and my uncle introduced us."

  "So what did you think of her?"

  "I don't know. She was alright."

  "Was she your uncle's friend?"

  "Maybe. I don't know. Maybe even his girlfriend."

  "Did he tell you that?"

  "Nah. But he acted real kind of dumb around her. It was weird like he liked her or something."

  "But that doesn't mean that she was his girlfriend."

  "Maybe not. But then why did he have a picture of her in his wallet?"

  For God's sake, Kristal was a married woman. Did this man know what discretion meant?

  "How do you know that?"

  "Because when I was borrowing some money from him, I saw her picture in his wallet."

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  "He let you take money from his wallet?"

  "He kind of didn't know about it. I needed a few dollars, so I got it from his wallet while he was asleep."

  Ms. Teenage Twit was a petty thief. Why did Kristal give him a picture of herself? How stupid! My head was beginning to throb.

  I swallowed hard and asked, "Does anyone know about the picture?"

  "I don't know."

  If this girl answered one more "I don't know," I was going to slap her.

  My head was ready to explode.

  "You don't know. So you never told anyone."

  "Not exactly."

  "So you told somebody."

  "Yeah."

  "Who?"

  "My best friend."

  "Sonya."

  "Sonya. What's her last name?"

  "Britton."

  "Is she related to the Mayor?" God, please tell me that she's not.

  "Yeah, she's Sonya's grandmother."

  "Did you tell Sonya the name of the lady in your uncle's wallet."

  "Yeah, I did."

  "What did you tell her?"

  "I told Sonya my uncle was seeing Kristal Woods."

  Shit. Goddamn it. This case was really getting on my nerves. The Mayor probably knew about Kristal and Chuck. When that shit comes out, Kristal had better start preparing herself for the death penalty.

  "Okay, Shannon. Can I ask you a favor?"

  "Yeah."

  "Tell your uncle, I came by."

  "Sure."

  I handed her my card knowing that she would not give it to Chuck.

  I left and headed toward Half Moon Bay.

  * * *

  When I got to Kristal and Chuck's place, I was shocked to find the door opened. 93

  I knocked several times, but nobody answered. I entered the place and found that it was trashed with broken bottles, clothes, and papers thrown everywhere in the living room.

  I walked into the bathroom and found the cabinet had been smashed in and pills were thrown into the sink. Next to the pills, there was a note scrawled with the words: Your bitch is going to pay and so are you.

  Shit, had they gotten to him? Was Chuck still alive? I looked at the hallway leading into the bedroom and I was afraid of what I might find.

  I was about to walk into the hallway, when I heard a knock. I needed to leave. But how? I looked for a back door and there was none.

  I spotted a window in the bathroom, but it was too small even for me to fit through. Damn. What was I going to do?

  I wish I had my gun. I had given up carrying years ago after I almost accidentally shot myself in my leg. God knows how clumsy I was. So it just didn't make sense for me to have a gun.

  I decided I would approach whoever the knocker was. I took a deep breath and walked toward the door. To my surprise, an older Asian cop was standing at the front door.

  He said, "I am looking for Chuck Roberts."

  "I am sorry sir. I don't know where he is."

  "Who are you?"

  "I am a private investigator. My name is Jasmine Myers." I flashed him my ID.

  "You're Lt. Myers' daughter, aren't you?"

  "Yeah, he's my father."

  "That's interesting. So why are you here?"

  "I am looking for Chuck Roberts."

  "Why?"

  "I can't disclose that. It's confidential."

  "Does it have anything to do with Kristal Woods?"

  "I am sorry. I cannot disclose that."

  "Ms. Myers, if you do find Chuck Roberts, can you tell him that we are looking for him also?"

  "What for?"

  "This morning a warrant was issued for his arrest in the connection with the murders of Ralph Woods, Richard Carpenter, and Dan Fulton."

  "On what grounds?"

  "On the grounds that he and his lover Kristal Woods murdered her husband Ralph Woods and then covered it up with the murders of Richard Carpenter and Dan Fulton."

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  "On what evidence?"

  "There is plenty of evidence beginning with the declaration of Mayor Britton."

  So the Mayor did know about Kristal and Chuck.

  I swallowed hard and said, "That's all circumstantial."

  "Maybe it is and maybe it isn't. But your father Lt. Myers doesn't think so."

  "Did you find anything?"

  He looked at the ground and said, "You mean from our search of the house?"

  God, he was irritating. I said, "Yeah."

  "I can't reveal anything. If you want information, I suggest you give your father a call."

  "So you did find something?"

  "Look, I am not at liberty to say anything."

  I said coldly, "Thank you for your help."

  He said, "Ms. Myers, I just want to remind you that it is a felony to harbor a fugitive."

  I began to get irate. I said, "Look, I know what the law is and I will follow it."

  "It's been a pleasure meeting you. And good luck with your search.

  Don't forget about that arrest warrant."

  I gritted my teeth and said, "I won't officer."

  He left.

  I thought about retrieving the note, but I decided to leave it. Probably one of the cops who searched the apartment had left it.

  But how did the police know about the apartment? Both Chuck and Kristal told me that no one knew about the apartment. Unless Chuck had slipped and told somebody. After all, he hadn't been really discreet with carrying Kristal's picture. He could have written the address down and someone had found it.

  Then again, someone might be following me. Which didn't make sense, because I hadn't seen anyone tailing me. Besides the police had gotten to the apartment before I had. So that theory made no sense.

  If they weren't following me, maybe I was being bugged. When I saw Kristal, it was in jail. And when I saw George Stone, it was at the Fire Department. I
stared at my briefcase. Someone could have planted a bug in my briefcase. I know that it sounded paranoid, but Dad had warned me not to investigate Bill Roberts. The San Jose Fire Department or someone connected to the department might have bugged me.

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  Years ago, I had been bugged when I was investigating the death of a local FBI's agent. So I knew where to go to confirm my suspicions.

  * * *

  I knocked on the door several times before he answered. Raul Vasquez was a tall, older man of Mexican and African-American descent. His salt and pepper hair was thick and his face was chiseled like an Aztec god. Even in his early sixties, he was a striking man.

  Raul smiled and said, "Hi Jasmine, come in."

  He took me inside his office. On the wall behind his desk hung a picture of his late father Ricardo Vasquez who was the first Latino Lieutenant with the San Jose Police Department.

  Raul had followed in his father's footsteps and done a brief stint with the SJPD. Later, he joined the FBI and rose up the ranks until he retired a few years ago. He was now a specialist in surveillance techniques.

  "Raul, I am working on a case and I need your help."

  "What is it?"

  I pointed at my briefcase and scribbled a note saying- "I think it is bugged. Can you check it out for me?" I emptied out the contents of my briefcase on his desk.

  With Raul's trained eye, he quickly scanned everything. He shook his head and wrote, "Nothing here."

  I wrote back, "There has to be something."

  He took my briefcase and inspected it with transmitter detector. He scanned each zippered part and the lining. He still found nothing. He inspected the handle to the briefcase and the transmitter detector beeped.

  He took out a penknife and pulled out an electronic device that was less than a quarter inch long.

  He wrote, "Here's your culprit." He pulled out a spring that deactivated the device.

  Raul said, "Jasmine, why would anyone place a bug on you?"

  "I am investigating the deaths of three firefighters."

  "Isn't the wife of one of the firefighters being charged with the crime?"

  "Yeah, but I don't think she did it. The day before her husband was killed, he gave a note to their minister to contact Bill Roberts."

  "Who is Bill Roberts?"

  "He was the former mayor of San Jose and he disappeared over twenty years ago."

  "Oh that Bill Roberts."

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  "Anyway, my Dad told me that I should stop investigating Bill Roberts or I could get hurt. I believe somehow the deaths of Bill Roberts and the firefighters are all connected."

  "Jasmine, how do you even know the former Mayor is the right Bill Roberts?"

  "I have a feeling that he is the right one. Can you tell me anything about the bug?"

  "This bug is not very sophisticated. It's not currently used by law enforcement agencies. It was used about eight or nine years ago, but no one uses it nowadays."

  "So you are saying that a police officer bugged me."

  "I am not saying that. This is such old technology that you probably could order it from a magazine or pick it up from a surveillance shop. It's a dinosaur."

  "So there is no way you can tell where it came from."

  "No, not at this point. But I think we also should check out your phone at your office."

  "Are you free now?"

  "Sure, I have an hour to spare. I will follow you in my car."

  We drove to my office. Raul inspected my phone with the transmitter and found nothing.

  "Jasmine, everything looks clean. We should also check out your house phone as well."

  * * *

  At my home, Raul inspected the phone with the transmitter and found nothing. "Jasmine I didn't find anything. But I can tell you that whoever placed the bug in your briefcase knows that you take it everywhere with you.

  My guess is that the bug was planted by someone you know. It could be a friend, a former client or someone on the police force you worked with.

  It's not an internal tap, because standard operating procedure for surveillance would include a basic phone tap. But there is none."

  I knew in my heart, it couldn't be a client or friend. That would leave the police. I had worked with a number of cops over the years. It was no secret that I carried my briefcase everywhere I went. And with Chief Lindsey possibly involved with the union cover up of Bill Roberts' disappearance, he could have ordered someone to bug me with a device that could not be traced back to him.

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  Maybe I was getting into this too deep. And who knows what would happen once they discovered the bug had been deactivated.

  I asked, "Can you reactivate the bug?"

  "What for?"

  "I don't want them finding out that I know about it."

  "Okay. But where are you going to put it?"

  "I will find a place."

  I handed him the bug and he put the spring back in place.

  "Thanks for your help."

  "Anytime for the lady who found my wife's murderer."

  He then left. Now where was I going to put this bug?

  I went into my kitchen and found a small plastic bag and placed the bug inside it. I then went to my garage and placed it inside an empty trashcan. It should be safe for now.

  98

  14

  Chapter

  New Chapter

  I waited for James in his lobby for a few minutes. James greeted me and led me back to his office.

  "What's up Jasmine?"

  "I found a bug in my briefcase."

  His eyes got big and he said, "A what?"

  "A bug. Someone has been watching me. I think it is related to the case. Either the San Jose Police Department or someone connected to the San Jose Fire Union. Over twenty years ago, Bill Roberts who was the Mayor of San Jose disappeared. The San Jose Fire Union was investigated and everybody was cleared. His son is currently the Assistant Fire Chief. The day before Ralph's death, Ralph gave his minister a note to contact Bill Roberts. My father later told me to stop investigating Bill Roberts or I could be hurt. Apparently, the police chief was the chief investigating officer assigned to Bill Roberts' case. To reopen this case could mean hell for him and the union. I think either the Chief or the Fire Union ordered someone to bug me."

  "What does this have to do with the firefighters' deaths?"

  "I don't know."

  "Jasmine, I don't see the connection. Anyway, how do you know this is the right Bill Roberts?"

  "I don't. But who else could it be?"

  "That's not good enough. Nothing you told me clears Kristal. She is facing the death penalty and we need more. For all we know that a former client bugged you or some cop is pissed off with you. We need a lot more evidence."

  "I think that when Ralph started investigating Bill Roberts’ disappearance, he was coming close to the truth."

  "Then why were the Chief and Dan Fulton killed?"

  "They might have known too much."

  "If that were the case, they would have been killed years ago."

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  "Maybe they learned about everything recently."

  "That may make sense for the Chief. But that doesn't make sense that Ralph who is the President of the Black Firefighters would be communicating with Dan Fulton who is a known racist."

  "I hear what you're saying. But still … "

  "Jasmine, I think you're wrong about this Bill Roberts thing. Why would Ralph or the Chief open up a twenty year old investigation?"

  "I don't know."

  "Well, we need answers. We need to show that these murderers are all connected and not by some twenty year old disappearance."

  "But we have no other leads."

  "Jasmine, Kristal is probably guilty. My job is to make sure that she won't get the death penalty and she'll get a life sentence. And if we are lucky, she will walk. But it's not going to happen here in Santa Clara County."

  I couldn't believe that he
had already labeled Kristal a murderer. I said, "James, how could you say that? All they have is circumstantial evidence. Besides you managed to get the jury to exonerate the white firefighter who killed the African-American Coalition vice president.

  "If I try the case here, she's going to get convicted of first degree murder. Sure if it were only her husband and the Chief, she might get off. That would be just black on black crime. But there is a white boy involved. There's no way that any jury in Santa Clara County is going to let her walk.

  And as for the white firefighter, I knew from the beginning that he was guilty as sin. He deserved the death penalty. But I also knew how racist Santa Clara county jurors were. Once they saw the victim was African-American, it didn't matter. No it was simply a white man defending himself."

  "So you took his case for the money."

  "No. I did it, because I believe that everyone has the right to the best representation possible. Even racists."

  I should have been turned off by his statement, but I wasn't.

  He continued, "Look, Kristal has made a lot of mistakes. First getting involved with Chuck. That alone provides a motive. Because you know, in a love triangle, it's the cheating spouse and the lover who kill the spouse off. And it doesn't help that Chuck hasn't turned himself in.

  "And even you discount their affair; you have Kristal's money problems. And if someone can corroborate that Ralph was going to leave her because he knew about the affair, there is a motive right there. In fact, all 100

  the DA has to argue is that Bill Roberts was a code name for Chuck Roberts and the note to the minister meant that Ralph was going to leave Kristal. And like I said before the killing of Dan doesn't help matters."

  "But they don't have the note."

  "The DA knows about it. Because she called me and told me that she had heard about it. You know they have to disclose all evidence."

  "She probably learned about it from the bug."

  "I don't know about that. She told me that she heard about from the Mayor's granddaughter."

  Damn, I never should have told Chuck's niece anything. Shit, how could I make such a stupid mistake?

  I swallowed hard and decided to switch the subject. I said, "It seems that there is too much damn publicity in this case. There's no way that Kristal can get a fair trial. Why don't you move the case to another county?"