Teresa stroked Jonelle’s forehead. “How’s the arm, sweetie?”
Jonelle took a deep breath and squinted up at the face of her Aunt Teresa.
“Hurts.”
Marvin gently moved his wife to one side. He looked down at Jonelle and in a soft voice said, “The doctor says once the wound heals, you should regain full use of the arm.”
Jonelle coughed. Her throat felt incredibly dry, and she’d never felt such pain. Still, she had to know. “Del?”
“His body’s been recovered. We’ll talk about that later, when you’re feeling better.”
“Lab?”
Marvin sighed and looked at his wife.
She nodded and cautioned, “Don’t tire her too much.”
“Del was there. Adrienne identified him. She’ll explain everything to you later.”
Jonelle turned her head to look at her arm, bandaged from shoulder to elbow. “Bullet still in there?” she managed.
Marvin shook his head. “The bullet lodged itself in your upper arm. The doctor removed the slug and gave it to the police.”
Jonelle’s arm burned. She tried speaking again, but no sound emerged.
Teresa noticed the way Jonelle’s face contorted in pain. “That’s enough for now,” she said. “The nurse should be by in a little while to give you something to help you rest.”
***
A day later, Jonelle sat on the edge of the hospital bed, embarrassed her aunt had to help her with her shoes.
“Arm feeling better now, Jonnie?” Teresa asked.
“Still hurts,” she replied, touching the sling that held her arm close to her body. The medication was starting to wear off, but she couldn’t take anything for another hour.
Jonelle glanced at the four people crammed around the single bed. Bouquets of flowers occupied all of the flat surfaces of the semi-private room. The sweet fragrances competed with the various medicinal smells. That combination produced an odor somewhere just below unpleasant. Get well cards covered the small tray stand next to the bed. After three days in the hospital, Jonelle’s doctor had discharged her with the warning to take it easy for the next two weeks.
“You’re lucky you’re alive, passing out in the middle of the street like that. You could’ve been run over by a car, or worse,” Marvin glanced at his wife and lowered his voice, “killed by that lunatic.”
Besides Marvin and Teresa, Adrienne and Tyrone were squeezed into the room. Adrienne alternated between making noises of concern for Jonelle and shaking her head at Jonelle’s predicament. Tyrone brought cards and a gift from her co-workers in Campus Security and smiled nervously at Jonelle every time she looked in his direction. Marvin and Adrienne stood at the foot of the bed. Tyrone sat on a small chair on one side of Jonelle and Teresa remained seated on the bed.
“Was Del really there? In the lab?” Jonelle asked.
Adrienne nodded. “Tyrone called me after they found you and asked if I knew why you’d be lying in the middle of the street in front of the Gray-Carter Anatomy Building. He said the cops wanted to talk to me. Had to tell them everything I knew, Jonnie. Imagine me trying to explain your theory that there were people running around robbing graves. And that these same people were selling those bodies for use in the Gross Anatomy lab.” She shuddered. “They went inside the building and checked Hammond’s lab. That’s where they found Calvin.”
Marvin asked, “How’d you convince them Jonelle is innocent in all of this?”
“I insisted on going over to Hammond’s lab and checking out all the cadavers. Kept my fingers crossed the whole way that Jonelle’s hunch was right and Del was lying somewhere in there.” She inclined her head. “Tyrone went with me.”
Tyrone cleared his throat. “The police wanted someone from Security to go with Adrienne, and I volunteered, since I was already working a second shift.”
“Didn’t even have time to put on any makeup,” Adrienne grumbled.
“So that’s why I didn’t recognize you at first,” Tyrone said, trying unsuccessfully to stifle a smile.
“Funny man. You oughta be a comedian. Anyway, I printed the cadaver manifest from the computer, grabbed ‘Mister Funnyman’ here, and went over and checked the bodies. The sheet said there were supposed to be eleven bodies in Hammond’s lab, but there were eighteen. All of the cadavers were Caucasian except two, and one of those was female. I had to remove the cloth from the face of the other dark-skinned one to get a good look. Yep, it was Del all right. He was number seven. He looked pretty good, considering.”
“Thanks, guys,” Jonelle said, smiling weakly at Tyrone and her best friend.
Adrienne shrugged off the comment. “No prob. Gotta admit, though, checking out dead people at three in the morning wasn’t one of my most favorite things to do. About a ‘ten’ on the gross-o-meter.”
“Where’s Del’s body now?” Jonelle asked, looking at all of the people in the room.
Everyone focused on Marvin.
“Technically, he’s evidence. They’ve got him in the hospital morgue. The body won’t be released until the investigation is over.”
“Is he… is Calvin still alive?” Jonelle asked.
“Unfortunately, the bastard will live,” Adrienne replied. “With luck, though, some moron will get to him in jail, saving us taxpayers a whole lot of money.”
Marvin added, “If your bullet had penetrated a little higher and to the left, we’d all be standing here discussing Calvin Plant’s funeral. Once he recovers, he’ll be booked on suspicion of murder in the death of Cornelius Manross, attempted murder of you, grave robbing, and whatever else Tankersley and the other homicide detectives can think of.
“The police want a formal statement from you, of course. Based on the bullets retrieved from the lab, there’s little doubt you fired in self-defense.”
Marvin changed places with his wife. “Since the doctor wants to make sure you don’t strain yourself for the next two weeks, you’re staying at our house.”
Jonelle opened her mouth to protest. He raised his hand and silenced her.
“No arguments,” he said. He paused and looked thoughtfully at her. “If all you wanted to do was look around the lab, then why did you go armed and so late at night?”
“I didn’t want to get caught again in the position of not being able to defend myself in case something, um… unforeseen happened,” she murmured.
Teresa clutched her throat. “Again? Marvin what does she mean by again?”
Marvin shrugged. “I’d like to hear this myself. Go ahead, Jonelle, answer your aunt.”
Jonelle looked around at everyone. “Uh, maybe we should talk about this later at your house?”
Marvin shook his head. His eyes bored into Jonelle’s.
She took a deep breath and explained the events at the racetrack. “The next thing I knew, I was being shoved into a dark shed and locked inside. Fortunately, a track worker heard my cries for help and let me out. Just got a few cuts and bruises. Nothing serious,” Jonelle said.
“Oh, sweet Jesus,” Teresa moaned. “Adrienne, couldn’t you have done something?”
“I tried to reason with her,” Adrienne said. “Told her to let the police or the captain here handle it, but you know how she is. Stubborn doesn’t even begin to explain it.”
Jonelle moved a little and grimaced at the pain in her arm. “All I wanted to do was look around the lab a little.”
Marvin frowned. “And you needed a gun for that?”
Teresa walked over to her husband and placed her hand on his arm. “That gun saved her life, Marvin.” A knowing look passed between the two.
“That’s true,” Marvin admitted.
Jonelle looked at her right hand, curled in her lap.
Silence settled over the room.
Adrienne spoke first. “Uh, hate to bring this up now,” she said, “but you need to know that the university is considering making you pay for the damage to the lab. I’ll see what I can do to minimize that. I’ll remi
nd them how you risked your life to expose a serious problem. Who knows what else Hammond would’ve done if you hadn’t gone searching for Del.”
Jonelle scanned the faces of everyone concerned about her well-being, and wondered how everything got so screwed up. “What else is there to tell me?”
Marvin reached down and grabbed the tote bag holding Jonelle’s clothes. “Wait ‘til we get to our place.”
CHAPTER 34
For two weeks and three days, Jonelle occupied the guest bedroom of the second floor of Marvin and Teresa’s red brick house. On her first day there, she woke to morning sunlight flooding the room, which was twice as big as the master bedroom in her condo. The spare room contained a queen-sized bed, small loveseat, and ensuite bathroom. She often joked to her aunt and uncle that they could even rent out the huge walk-in closet if they wanted.
Although her arm ached and her mobility was limited, Jonelle felt perfectly capable of doing a few simple chores including fixing her own meals.
“Really, auntie, I can pour the cereal myself,” she’d said.
Teresa dismissed the idea as “nonsense.”
A week later, Jonelle protested to her uncle that she felt guilty letting Teresa do so much. Marvin finally convinced Jonelle to sit back and relax.
“Retirement hasn’t been easy for Teresa,” he said. “Working in the garden, going out with her friends, taking exercise classes, all of those things are fine. But it’s your being in the house that revives her nurturing spirit. Let her enjoy your time here.”
On a rainy Wednesday morning after that first week at the Shorters’, Marvin drove Jonelle to the police station where Detective Stan Eiser took her formal statement. Gordon Tankersley was also there as a favor to Marvin.
“You actually looked at the cadavers?” Eiser asked, once she’d finished recounting for what seemed like the hundreth time what happened in the lab.
“Only got a chance to search four or five I think, just by looking at the hands,” Jonelle replied.
“Oh, well, that’s not so bad then. Do you remember if Calvin Plant gave up any more specifics about Dr. Hammond’s involvement? Other than the fact it was all the good doctor’s idea?”
Jonelle shook her head. She peered over at Tankersley who stared in the distance for a few seconds. “Plant doesn’t seem like the type to plan an elaborate scheme like this on his own,” he said. “I’ve heard of organ harvesting, but digging up whole bodies for sale? That’s a new one on me.”
All the while Jonelle searched for Del’s body in the lab, something had nagged at her. How, she’d wondered to herself, could four people carry something like this off and apparently do so for a number of years? She shared her concerns with the detectives.
“What we know for sure is that Plant was the link between Manross and Hammond,” Eiser said.
“Don’t forget Bustamante,” Tankersley interrupted.
“Right. We’ve got an APB out to bring him in for questioning and have also reached out to the Chicago PD. We believe Hammond thought up this idea quite some time ago but didn’t know how to pull it off. People we talked to at the racetrack said that just about all the regulars knew Plant and that he usually stopped by in his work clothes with the name of the cemetery printed on the shirt. We figure Hammond, who also liked the ponies, saw Plant and initiated the conversation.”
Jonelle frowned. “So how did Manross get involved?”
“Plant told us he met Manross at the Laughing Moon Saloon and one day they got to talking. Plant needed help because he knew he couldn’t do it all by himself and he didn’t want Hammond to look elsewhere.”
Jonelle played with a pen she’d picked up from Eiser’s desk and repeatedly flicked the point in and out.
Tankersley held out his hand, and Jonelle blushed and dropped the pen in his palm.
“Still,” she said, “something’s missing. I mean, Calvin couldn’t just pop up at the back door of the lab building, knock, and when someone answered say, ‘Here’s a couple bodies.’ That would mean Hammond risking exposure and I can’t envision the good doctor getting that involved. Am I right?”
No one answered while Eiser printed out Jonelle’s statement. Tankersley returned the pen and waited while she signed the document. As she handed the papers back, Eiser revealed more information.
“Maybe I shouldn’t tell you this,”—he looked at Tankersley who nodded slightly—“but you’re a friend of Gordon’s here. Part of the plea deal the DA is gonna present to that scumbag Plant is that if he tells us everything he knows about Hammond’s involvement, and the contact person or persons at the university, they’re offering thirty years total, no parole, for the death of Cornelius Manross and the attempt on your life. The police won’t pursue the grave robbery charges.”
Jonelle felt as if she’d just won a blue ribbon, but lost the race.
“No one’s getting away with anything,” Eiser said. “The doctor is a harder nut to crack, but he can’t deny what we found in his lab. I have a feeling that when he realizes he’s gonna be wearing an orange jumpsuit for a good amount of time, he’ll tell us all we need to know about whether anyone else was involved. It’s a good deal, Mrs. Sweet. No one wants to go to trial.”
After the interview, Tankersley escorted Jonelle down the hall and into the reception area where Marvin sat waiting. He rose to greet them and offered to buy the detective a cup of coffee.
“I’ll spring for one of those fancy grande, latte, thingy dos, if that’s your choice.”
Tankersley laughed. “Wouldn’t be caught dead in one of those places. The day I stop drinking my coffee plain and black is the day they cart me to my final resting place. Gotta take a rain check. Still have a few loose ends to clear up.”
The smile left Marvin’s face, and he looked seriously at the man he’d known for over thirty years. “I want you to know this family appreciates everything you’ve done. You’re a good friend.”
CHAPTER 35
Ten days later, Marvin, Teresa, Adrienne, and Tyrone escorted Jonelle from the Shorter’s house back to her condo. A huge Welcome Home banner, signed by all of the neighbors, covered her door.
“Ahh, how sweet,” Jonelle said, fingertips caressing the banner.
Marvin and Tyrone picked a corner and proceeded to remove the sign.
“Careful, don’t rip it,” she admonished them both.
As everyone marched inside, Jonelle heard Sheila’s voice. “I’ve got something for you,” she shouted.
“Come on in,” Jonelle said. “I’m just going to put on a pot of coffee.”
Sheila shook her head. “Thanks, but I can’t stay. Had a busy night last night.” She handed a cake plate to Jonelle. “I’m glad you’re all right. This is for you. I know how much you like my white chocolate and strawberry cheesecake.”
Sheila nodded to the others, gave Jonelle a gentle hug, and left the apartment.
“I don’t know how she does it,” Teresa said, closing Jonelle’s door. “She’s such a nice person. Cooks like a dream, too. She could be a chef or own a bakery, instead of…”
“Sheila’s happy with her life,” Jonelle said, “and she’s been a big help with all this Del mess. I, for one, won’t judge how she chooses to live her life.”
They walked over to Jonelle’s dining room table and sat down while she went into her kitchen. Teresa, ignoring Jonelle’s “Really, I can handle this myself,” returned with five china plates. She sliced generous portions of the creamy dessert for everyone.
Jonelle waited until her guests took bites of their dessert, then sat down at the head of the table. “I’m curious about something. Does anyone know how Hammond explained Del ending up on a dissecting table in his lab?”
Adrienne snickered. “From what I hear, the doctor has kept his mouth shut tighter than a baby’s mouth clamped on his mother’s… uh… never mind. You get the idea.”
A smile spread across Marvin’s face. “How he’s gonna explain a body that should’ve been in th
e ground ended up in his lab is anybody’s guess.”
The last thing Jonelle remembered before passing out was trying to flag down a security car. “How’d I get to the hospital?”
The others turned and looked at Tyrone. He swallowed some dessert and sipped his coffee before responding. “Uh, a van was coming down the street and noticed you lying there. Fortunately, the driver was going slow and was able to stop in time. He called 9-1-1 for an ambulance, and the police called us. Michelle answered the call and rushed over and identified you.” He frowned. “You didn’t have any identification on you, Jonelle. Why not?”
Jonelle glanced up at the ceiling. “Because I’m an idiot, that’s why. Left my bag in Adrienne’s office, which also had my cellphone. I planned on stopping by and picking everything up later. Guess I should have at least called Security. Let them know what I was doing.”
“Ya think?” Tyrone said, a little too loudly.
They all stared at him in surprise.
“Sorry to interrupt,” he said, running his fork through the cheesecake.
Marvin motioned to Tyrone. “Might as well tell her now.”
“Tell me what?” Jonelle asked.
Tyrone put the fork down and cleared his throat. “From what Sergeant Carter told us, you’ve been suspended for thirty days while Security finishes its own investigation into what happened.” He sighed deeply. “Whether or not you can come back to work depends on what we find out. I’m sorry.”
Jonelle’s face telegraphed her disappointment.Tyrone noticed and quickly added, “You’ve got a perfect record at work, Jonelle, and that should account for something. Everything you did was always by the book. Until now, that is.”
Jonelle groaned. Great, just great.
“Sergeant Carter says you violated procedure,” Tyrone continued, “which resulted in two people being rushed to the hospital—”
“Don’t I get any sympathy as being one of those people?” Jonelle asked.
“—as well as damage to university property,” Tyrone finished. “Everyone’s glad you’re okay and that you exposed a serious problem, but you didn’t go through the proper channels.”
Burial Plot (A Jonelle Sweet Mystery Book 1) Page 23