Cam Derringer Box Set

by Mac Fortner

  “Very well,” he said. “The next one is only two blocks from here.”

  We spent another hour looking at the second apartment. I didn’t really take in any of the information the young man was telling us about the history of the building or the past tenants that had lived there. I did hear some famous names being thrown at me, but I couldn’t have cared less.

  We thanked him when we finally got the opportunity to speak and told him we would be making a decision soon.

  Larry asked if we would like to get some lunch.

  “I hate to do it, but I think I’m going to have to pass. My stomach is not feeling so good today. I think I’ve been doing too much celebrating since I arrived. I believe I’ll eat something light in my room and think about the two apartments we looked at today so I can get this behind me,” I said, feigning fatigue.

  “Okay, Cam, we’ll drive you back, and when you make a decision, you call me, and we’ll take care of the details,” Larry said.

  “Thank you. You’ve been a big help.”

  ~*~

  Once back at our hotel, we went to our room. I took out my cell phone, laid it on the bed and motioned for Diane to do the same.

  “Why don’t we go down to the restaurant, have a light meal and then you can explore New York while I get some rest,” I said.

  “Sounds good to me,” Dianne said.

  Leaving our phones on the bed, we left the room.

  “What do you think?” I asked her once we were in the elevator.

  “I think we need to go over our notes again. We missed something. We’re close. But if we go back, they’ll know Chad must have been the one to tell us.”

  “I think I have a plan for that. I need to use the house phone.”

  I approached the desk in the lobby and asked the concierge if I could use the phone.

  “Yes, sir, Mister Derringer,” he said and handed the phone to me.

  I called Stacy.

  Chapter 47

  I was back in my room quietly going over my notes when my cell phone rang.

  I looked at the caller I.D. It was Stacy.

  “Hello,” I said.

  “Cam, this is Stacy. Did I catch you at a bad time?”

  “No, not at all, Stacy. To what do I owe this pleasure?”

  “Well, I didn’t want to bother you, but I don’t know who else to call.”

  “Is something wrong, Stacy?”

  “It’s Barbie. She left two days ago to go shopping, and I haven’t heard from her since. She wouldn’t have gone away and not told me. We share everything,” she said, worry in her voice.

  She was doing a good job. Just the way I had told her to do it.

  “Is there anyone here that you could recommend for me to contact? I have a bad feeling about this. I wish you were here,” she said and started to cry.

  “Stacy, just calm down. I’ll talk to Chad and see what I can do. I’ll call you back. Maybe I can arrange to come back for a while.”

  “Oh thanks, Cam. Do you think we can find her?”

  “Don’t worry, Stacy. I would never let anything happen to her.”

  After we hung up, I called Chad.

  “Hello, Cam. Did you find an apartment?”

  “Well, the first one was quite interesting, but I’m afraid I got some disturbing news a few minutes ago. It seems one of my friends in Key West has gone missing and I’ve been retained to find her.”

  “Does that mean you’re going back to Key West?”

  “Yes, it does. I feel I have to.”

  “Is there anything I can do to change your mind?”

  “No, I’m afraid not, Chad. This is important. I promise I’ll come back when I’m finished if that’s okay.”

  “You’re always welcome here.”

  “Thanks.”

  Chapter 48

  Larry Carroll bulldozed his way into Chad’s office. Chad looked up from his desk and saw the look on his face. His cheeks were red, the veins in his neck bulged and his eyes were unblinking.

  Chad flashed back to his college days when his father had found his stash of marijuana in his sock drawer. When his father had confronted him, he’d looked just like Larry.

  “You told him didn’t you!” Larry yelled.

  “No I didn’t, Larry. He doesn’t know a thing. He just had to return to help a friend.”

  “If I find out that you told him what we were doing, I’ll have your license,” Larry spat and hurried out of the room.

  Chad sat back in his chair and smiled. He didn’t like Larry. For that matter, he didn’t like the FBI. They felt they had the right to run your life the way they saw fit. Now I just hope Cam can get out of town before they find him.

  ~*~

  I was busy packing my suitcase when Diane came in. She looked at the half-packed case and the pile of clothes on the bed next to it and then back at the case.

  “Where are you going?” she asked.

  “Stacy called. Barbie has been missing for two days. She’s worried, and I’m going to go help find her,” I said, both of us still playing the part for the listening devices they had planted.

  “Let me do that. You’ll never get all that in there,” she said, stepping in front of me and pushing me aside.

  “What do you think happened to her?”

  “Don’t know, but it’s not like her to leave and not tell anyone.”

  ~*~

  Back in Key West, Barbie was driving up Highway 1 toward Marathon Key, to a very nice resort that had been booked for her for a week. “If that’s what Cam wants then I’ll be more than happy to kick back and relax for a while,” Barbie said aloud to herself.

  Chapter 49

  Billie Daryl walked into Sheriff Buck’s office. He was wearing his deputy uniform, which Buck had given him to wear on special occasions when he was deputized.

  “Billie,” Buck said, “we have a little trouble. Bill Crane has gone missing, this time for real. Now that I think about it, I guess the last time was just a trial run for the real thing. He knows way too much, and I don’t want him out there talking. He killed John for the same reason, and now I think it’s his turn.”

  “Any idea where he might be?”

  “If I had an idea where he was, I’d go get him myself. Now go find him. Start at his house. Lean on Susan if he’s not there. Just find him.”

  Billie Daryl walked out of the sheriff’s office into the bright sunshine. He stretched his arms out like a cross and yawned.

  “Screw you, Buck,” he said to himself, got in the squad car and turned south on Highway 1.

  Billie Daryl pulled into the driveway of Bill Crane’s house. The lights were out as far as he could tell. It was daylight, but the lot was shaded thanks to the large trees in the front yard.

  He stepped onto the front porch and peaked into the window before knocking on the door. It looked to him like no one was home.

  He knocked three times and put his ear to the door. Nothing. He went back to the window and looked in again. He could see a few boxes scattered around and some papers on the floor. Some of the furniture was out of place.

  He walked around to the back door by way of a stone path that meandered through a flower garden and then under a trellis with some kind of vine full of beautiful yellow flowers. He didn’t know one from another but stopped to smell the flowers that were in full bloom. They reminded him of his childhood home where his mother would nourish and talk to her flowers. “At least she nourished something,” he thought.

  He stepped onto the back porch and looked in the window over the kitchen sink. Still nothing. He tried the door. It came open. They had left and not bothered to lock it. He stepped in.

  The house was quiet, eerily quiet. It had the feel of abandonment. He checked the closets and desk drawers, all were empty. He picked up a few of the papers on the floor to see if they might hold a clue as to where the Cranes could have gone. Nothing.

  “Buck’s not going to like this,” he thought.

 
Chapter 50

  Diane and I arrived back in Key West at eight thirty, Tuesday morning. The red-eye flight had taken some of the fight out of us, so we decided to go to our separate homes and catch a nap before we rejoined the real world.

  I hailed a taxi, dropped Diane off at her house and told the driver where I lived.

  “They had some big trouble over that way last night,” he said.

  “At the boat dock?” I asked.

  “Yeah, some fella’s houseboat blew up and sank.”

  I had a bad feeling about this. About that time, my new cell phone I’d bought before leaving New York rang. My number was the same, and I had the phone book downloaded. It was Diane.

  “Are you home yet?” she asked.

  “Not yet. We’ve got a few blocks to go. What’s wrong?”

  “Your houseboat, it’s gone. I’m watching it on the news now. It blew up last night.”

  My worst fear had been realized. I was now homeless, and all my possessions were gone. I immediately thought about Malinda’s menagerie collection. I would have nothing of hers to hold and look at when I wanted to think about her.

  My thoughts then went to the FBI.

  “Cam, are you there? Are you okay?” Diane said into my ear.

  “Yes, I’m here,” I said weakly. The picture of tornado victims I had seen on TV went through my mind. This must have been how they had felt.

  “I’ll be right there, Cam,” Diane said and hung up.

  The taxi turned the corner and aimed toward the small marina where I once lived but now didn’t. I could see yellow crime tape across the gate that led to the dock where I’d strolled many times with my friends. I could picture myself carrying my bag of groceries up the walkway to my boat. I could picture Jenny’s bike leaning against the gate post.

  Wait a minute, Jenny’s bike was leaning against the gate. I looked down the dock. Jenny was standing at Stacy’s boat, talking to her.

  “It looked like quite a mess on TV,” the taxi driver said. “I hope it wasn’t yours.”

  “I’m afraid it was. Did they say what happened?”

  “Nope. Still investigating. Sorry man, what a bummer.”

  I paid the driver and gave him a generous tip.

  “Thanks, man,” he said. “Do you want me to hang around?”

  “No thanks. I have a friend coming.”

  I walked to the dock in somewhat of a daze. Jenny saw me and met me at the gate.

  “Cam, I’m so sorry. I saw it on the news this morning,” she said and hugged me.

  I automatically hugged her back, but my heart wasn’t in it.

  “How bad is it?” I asked, not daring to look down the dock yet.

  “Well, something blew a hole in the side and it took on water. The stern filled first and sank to the bottom. Luckily, air was trapped in the bow and its still above water. Everything in the front half of the boat is still dry. They’re going to float the back up again with air bags.”

  “Who is doing all of this? Why would someone go to all the trouble to raise my boat. I didn’t authorize any of this,” I said, puzzled.

  “Stacy said she saw a man go on board. No one left before the explosion.”

  “How did you know I was going to be here?”

  “I didn’t until I got here. Stacy told me you were coming home to help her find Barbie.”

  Just then, Stacy came to the gate. She hugged me, and I hugged her back. I felt I had more of a bond with her now than I had before.

  “Cam, I’m so sorry. I should have called the Sheriff as soon as I saw him enter your boat, but then I thought it was the Sheriff. It was dark, though, and I couldn’t see that well,” Stacy said, half crying.

  “Why did you think it was Buck?”

  “It’s just that he was a big man, but after the explosion, I called him right away. He was in his office,” she said and then the gates opened, and she started sobbing uncontrollably.

  I put my arms around her and comforted her. “It’s okay, Stacy. There is nothing you could have done. We’ll fix everything.”

  I looked at Jenny and nodded at Stacy, asking her to take over for me. Jenny got the message and put her arms around her. Stacy went to her, freeing me.

  The dock was littered with bits of paper and wood debris I assumed were part of my boat. I stepped over and around them, not wanting to impede any investigation. I could now see my boat, the nose rising high into the air. A group of men were gathered on the dock, talking. One of them was Sheriff Buck. He turned and saw me.

  “Cam,” he said and reached out to shake my hand. “Thank God you weren’t home.”

  “Yeah, thank God,” I said. “What the hell happened here?”

  “Don’t know yet. Stacy says there is someone on board, though. We have divers coming and a team to raise the back out of the water again. It’s too dangerous to enter right now until we get it stabilized.”

  I just stood there, dumbfounded, staring at my home. My patio table had slid against the front sliding doors, broken glass visible on the threshold, the umbrella floating upside down in the water. My chairs were nowhere to be found. My guess was they had been deep-sixed.

  Reporters were beginning to re-gather at the foot of the dock. I guessed they were here for the raising of the Titanic.

  Chapter 51

  There was a ruckus and a swarm of reporters moving toward the parking lot, all extending their mics. Diane had arrived. Most people on the Key new who she was.

  She waved off any interviews and made her way to me. She started crying when she saw the boat. I felt as though I had to comfort everyone else and didn’t have time to grieve for myself.

  I hugged her and patted her on the back. “Well, now I guess I’ll get that new furniture you’ve been hounding me about,” I said, trying to lighten the mood.

  She looked at me, trying to process what I’d said, “Don’t think I’m ever going to let you live here again.”

  “It’s my home, of course, I’ll live here again.”

  “You can’t, it’s too dangerous,” she said between sobs. “What if you would have been home.”

  “Let’s worry about those things later. Right now we need to find out what happened and who is on board.”

  Four hours later, with the help of the Key West fire department and a local dive shop, the fantail of my house was starting to shine in the afternoon sun.

  The hole was now visible, water pouring out of it. I surmised it was in the area of my bedroom, and as if to confirm my speculation, one of my pillows poked through and sunk to the bottom of the canal.

  If I weren’t such a man, and if everyone wasn’t watching me, I think I would have cried.

  There was a sea crane with straps circled around the back of my houseboat and blue airbags secured to the side, all now holding the boat in place. The damage didn’t seem as bad as I had first thought. Of course, the interior was going to have to be redone completely. The water had surely taken a toll on what wasn’t blown to smithereens from the explosion.

  I could see something else floating through the giant hole now. It was most assuredly an arm. It came through, fell into the canal, floated there for a couple of seconds and then started seesawing to the bottom.

  Buck yelled at one of the divers and pointed to the slowly sinking arm. The man dove into the water and came up with it in his hand. He swam to the dock and tossed it up. It landed on the wood planks with a thud.

  Diane turned her head away, too late. She shrieked and buried her head in my chest.

  “Why don’t you go home for a while and get some rest while we finish this. I’ll call you when we’re through for the day,” I said to her.

  “Okay, I think I will. Call me as soon as you’re done. You can stay at my house tonight.”

  “I’ll do that. Thank you.”

  Chapter 52

  Twenty hours earlier:

  Amar handed the man the package and one hundred dollars.

  “Place it in the back cabin, in
the cabinet next to the bed,” he told the man. “After you get it placed, flip the lights once and wait five minutes before leaving. I’ll give you the other hundred when you get back.”

  He watched the man walking away with the package toward the docks.

  Sheriff Buck got out of his car and walked to where Amar was sitting in his SUV.

  “Get in, and we’ll try this out,” Amar said.

  Tom Burnikel was a man down on his luck. His wife, who was having an affair, had walked out on him three days earlier, taking the three hundred dollars they had stashed for an emergency.

  When the Iraqi man approached him with the offer to make some easy money, he jumped on it. It would be plenty to get drunk for a couple of days while he got over the cheating bitch.

  The gate squeaked as he opened it, but he didn’t care. He ambled on down the dock to the big houseboat at the end and jumped over the rail.

  The sliding door was locked, so he picked up a patio chair and threw it through the glass. He reached inside, unlocked the door and entered.

  Once inside, he set the package down and opened a few drawers. Nothing of any value. He saw a glass unicorn on the shelf and put it in his pocket.

  He picked the package up again and walked to the rear of the boat. There was a very nice king size bed there, and as the man had said, there was a cabinet next to it. He opened it, placed the package inside and closed it.

  He saw the light switch on the wall next to the door and flipped it on and off. He then lay down on the big bed and stretched out. “Man, this is nicer than my bed. I could stay here forever.”

  ~*~

  Stacy heard the gate squeak and looked out her window. A man was walking to Cam’s boat. He didn’t look as though he was sneaking. He looked like he belonged. She watched him disappear after he jumped the rail. He was a big man. Was that Sheriff Buck?