Madison Johns - Agnes Barton 04 - Trouble in Tawas

by Madison Johns

  “Just get some rest, dear. I’ll visit when you’re feeling better, but I really hope you both consider getting married.”

  “It’s two thousand and thirteen Gramms, not nineteen fifty.”

  “It was easier in those days.”

  “Huh,” El said. “My husband still ran around even though we had a child. You can’t force a man to marry you. It won’t fix anything or encourage him to stay. Marriage is a two way street, both parties have to want it.”

  This whole conversation was making not only Sophia uncomfortable, but also Trooper Sales. “We’re leaving. Take care, Sophia.” I hugged her and whispered in her ear, “I know you’ll both do the right thing.”

  El and I left with a squeal of rubber on US 23.

  “You need to leave those two kids alone,” El said. “Let them work it out themselves.”

  “It’s easy for you to say. Sophia is my granddaughter, not yours.”

  El sniveled. “What an awful thing to say. You know my son doesn’t talk to me. I don’t even know if I have grandchildren.”

  “I didn’t mean anything by that, Eleanor. I’m sorry. I know you’re right.”

  She brushed away her tears. “I guess you weren’t able to convince Sales to give us any information. I wonder if anyone else could help us out, like Peterson.”

  “I doubt he’ll tell us anything about the body at the beach, but I guess it wouldn’t hurt.”

  I drove to the sheriff’s department and we caught Peterson as he was walking to his car. His brows furrowed when he saw us. “Ladies, you have any news to share about my dad?”

  “Not yet, but we have one or two suspects.”

  “Any cause of death yet?”

  “Agnes, you know I’m off the case.”

  “But the coroner is your friend.”

  “If I ask him anything to do with that case I’ll be in deep trouble. I want to clear my dad, but I’m not willing to throw my whole career away.”

  “For all we know Raul’s death might be ruled an accident.”

  “I hope that’s the case, but it won’t help him with the fraud case the state police are putting together.”

  “Oh, did Sales say something about that?”

  “Hal’s days are numbered. He’ll be arrested at some point.”

  “They’d arrest him?”

  “It will happen. Dad broke the law and he knows better.”

  I agreed with that. He was a sheriff himself once. “He’s not in his right mind though.”

  He smiled, rubbing his mustache. “I know and believe me I’m doing everything in my power to talk Trooper Sales out of arresting him, but he has to. It’s his job.”

  “I just can’t see Hal in jail. I can’t see that going well.”

  “They might just book him and perhaps release him on bail.”

  I nodded. “They could give him a tether.”

  “He’s going to be even more of a handful then. It’s bad enough already.”

  “So he’s not behaving himself then?”

  “You know my dad. He’s ornery and asking me to lease him an apartment.”

  “He can’t stay by himself.”

  “I know that, but convincing him of that is going to be tough. Perhaps I should have just left him at the County Medical Facility Center .” I must have been glaring at him because he quickly added, “I know how that must sound.”

  “I understand. I hope you decide what’s best for Hal.”

  “For now it’s best if you can clear his name. Public opinion has gone against him and the coroner hasn’t even released his report yet.”

  I took a pregnant pause and then asked, “I heard the body of a woman was found at the beach. Any truth to it?”

  Peterson licked his upper lip and shook his head. “You’re really trying to put my head on platter here.”

  “I don’t mean to. It’s just that you never know if it might be related to Raul’s case.”

  “You’re fishing here.”

  “It’s how I roll.”

  “Pretty hip talk for a seventy-two year old.”

  “It’s not like we’re a couple of old coots,” Eleanor said. “Agnes even just bought a laptop and we have one of those white boards like you cops have.”

  His lips curved into a smile. “I see. You might want to check out social networking sites. It’s a great way to check out the activities of suspects.”

  “Social networking sites?” I asked, totally clueless.

  “Yes, Facebook and Twitter are the main ones. We also use them to check into the activities of suspects.”

  “Thanks, Peterson. And about the woman at the beach?”

  Peterson glanced around and then said, “It was a woman, but it might be a drowning.”

  “Was she a floater?”

  “No, found her on the shore. You better keep that to yourself. I don’t want to hear this in the gossip mill.” He stared at Eleanor when he said it.

  She gulped and nodded. “You don’t have to worry about me.”

  “We still aren’t sure who she is yet, but you’ll have to wait for the news report. I’ve said too much already.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Who are your person’s of interest, Agnes?”

  “We don’t have any names yet. I keep hoping Raul’s death was an accident.”

  “Me too.”

  He glanced at his watch and I spoke up, “I guess we better get going. I’m sure there’s somewhere you need to go.”

  “I promised the wife I’d come home for lunch. She’s not too happy to be babysitting Hal.”

  We left and I headed down to the beach where hours earlier we weren’t allowed. The news teams weren’t there now, but the caution police tape was. I pulled up next to a white van and as I clamored out of the wagon, a laughing Martha whipped open the sliding door of the van. “You’re busted,” she giggled.

  I peered inside the van where a smiling, youngish man sat inside. From the look in his eye, I knew Martha’s day at the beach wasn’t to get a suntan. “I’m not doing anything wrong,” I insisted.

  “Not yet you aren’t, but if you are planning to go beyond the police tape—”

  “Don’t be silly with your suggestions. I’m sure the police are done investigating here or they’d still be here. I’m hoping they missed something.”

  “Not so sure about that. They were here for hours.”

  “Was the mobile crime lab here?”

  “Yes. They left just as we pulled in.”

  I smiled at the young man. “Well, you two kids have your fun. We’re going to work here.”

  “Carl, I’ll see you later,” Martha said.

  As she made her way over to us I blurted out, “We don’t need any help. El and I got this.”

  “Oh phewie,” she spat. “I want in on this.”

  “Do I have a choice here?”

  Martha stood there, her white shorts gaped open where the zipper was. She zipped it up quick, pulled a cigarette from her cleavage, a lighter from her pocket.

  “Since when do you smoke?”

  “I always do after… you know.”

  I’d rather not know so let that one go. We yanked the police tape up and it snapped. I shrugged and made my way onto the beach. Hot sand packed into the sandals I wore, but I trudged onward. There was an area on the edge of the water that was marked out with flags with the number ‘one’ on them.

  I gingerly worked between them and frowned, as fresh sand had blown over the entire area. I knelt and worked my fingers, sifting through the sand, but encountered nothing. Not a drivers license, nothing. “There’s nothing here,” I spat.

  El helped me up and then asked, “What did you expect?”

  “I guess it would be too easy, but I was hoping a driver’s license.”

  “That would be too easy. I’m sure the cops combed the area pretty well.”

  “Maybe.” I took my sandals off and waded into the cold water. I then turned around and said. “Is it possible that
if she drowned, her body would wash to shore?”

  “Not likely,” El said. “There’s no tide here in Lake Huron.”

  I searched the beach which just days ago had been the site of a political fundraiser. “What if someone made it look like a drowning?”

  “I like where you’re going here, Aggie,” El said. “Just like Raul’s death looks like an accident.”

  “We need to find out if anyone knows who this woman is.”

  “Peterson said that we’d have to wait until—”

  “How about a car? Maybe one was taken to impound.”

  “Like anyone’s gonna tell us that,” El muttered to herself. “It couldn’t hurt to take a look around though, at the impound yard. Maybe we’ll notice a new car there.”

  “But we’ll need a distraction or some wild story. Maybe we could insist that something was left behind, like a wallet.”

  “Great idea, Aggie, but Martha could always flirt with the man at the yard.”

  Martha spouted out, “Hey, why me?”

  I fixated on Martha’s skimpy white blouse that revealed like way too much cleavage. Her daisy duke shorts revealed plenty of leg. “You’re certainly dressed for the part.”

  She pushed her fingers through her wild blonde hair and said, “Why not? It might even be fun. I’m always looking for a man.”

  Thinking about the overweight, greasy haired man at the impound yard, all I could do was smile. “Thanks Martha. Team Barton is on the prowl.”

  Chapter Eleven Twelve

  Martha rode in the back of her station wagon, allowing me to drive, which I was more than happy to do since in my opinion, she drove like a maniac.

  I drove up the beaten path and sure enough the same man was working. His wide frame wobbled to the fence as I honked at the gate. He opened it without further prompting and strode to the driver’s side door and asked, “You again? Did you get yourself arrested again?” He laughed with a snort.

  I smiled when I saw Martha’s eyes widen at the man.

  “Thanks again, Mother,” she said with a kick through the seat.

  We all got out and I introduced him to Martha. This time I got his name—Ralph. “You see the thing is Ralph, that I think I dropped my wallet out here when we picked up the Caddy. I was hoping we could take a look-see. I’d hate to have someone get hold of my personal information. Identity theft is on the rise, I hear.”

  He poised to move and said, “I’d be happy to go out with you to look, but I’m sure it’s not out there.”

  Martha moved into action. “Aww. I was hoping we could get better acquainted while those old birds went out there.”

  Ralph licked his lower lip and with a smile that resembled a clowns face, he agreed. “Why not?”

  I linked arms with El before he had a change of heart. We walked out to the middle of the yard where there was a blue Impala parked, and a few feet away, a rusted El Camino. “I’m opting for the El Camino,” El said.

  “Why is that?”

  “Sorry, but I haven’t seen one of those in years.”

  “I know. I thought only Martha drove an ancient rust bucket.”

  “Maybe whoever drives it knows Martha.”

  I walked to the Impala first and tried the door, but it was locked. I tried to look through the windows, but they were tinted. I next walked to the rear of the car and jotted down the license plate number. I joined El at the El Camino, which was unlocked. “That’s a relief,” I said.

  “The mechanism looks broken,” El pointed out.

  Soon we were rummaging through the glove box, but it was only filled with maps and coupons from fast food joints. There was a map of Michigan with East Tawas circled in red, but also a map of Arizona and Mexico. “If I didn’t know better I’d have thought this car belongs to Raul.”

  “Why is that, Aggie?”

  “There’s a map of Mexico and he’s from there originally.”

  El wrote down the vehicle identification number and license plate number. It was then that I felt over the ceiling of the car, and found a slit in the material. I pulled out a packet and shoved it into my purse before Ralph came up. The rest of the car was pretty clean. I glanced at the tires and noted how worn the tread was. Where had they found this car, really?

  “We better get back to the car before Ralph becomes suspicious,” El recommended.

  I nodded in agreement and we rescued a relieved and frazzled Martha who was almost pinned to the chain link fence. I waved my wallet in the air. “Thanks, Ralph. I found my wallet.”

  He whirled with a snarl on his face. “You didn’t have to be so quick about it.”

  “That’s some El Camino back there. I can’t say when I’ve seen one of those.”

  “I couldn’t believe it when the state police brought it in. It still runs too, if you can believe that.”

  “Wow, really? Where did they find that at?”

  He took in a sharp breath and smiled at Martha. “You know I can’t tell you that, unless the lady here agrees to meet me for a drink later.”

  My eyes pled with Martha and she swallowed hard and said, “Why not. Hidden Cove at six tonight.”

  He licked his lips. “Sounds great.”

  “You were about to tell us where the car came from?”

  “The beach. I heard tell they found a body there if you can believe that one .”

  “I’m sure it was just a drowning, not that it’s any better, but we can’t assume foul play is at hand whenever a body turns up.”

  “The crime lab doesn’t show up if it was only a drowning though.”

  “No?”

  “Not to my knowledge. I was told to make sure nobody went near that car , too.”

  I gulped at that. “Good advice. We’ll be going now.”

  “See you later, baby,” he told Martha.

  Once we were back on the road. “No way am I showing up at Hidden Cove to have a drink with that disgusting man.”

  “Oh come on. Take one for the team.”

  “Very funny, Mother. It’s about time you took one for the team, like found your own.”

  I wanted to try to reason with Martha, but who could blame her? Instead I suggested, “You could always just take your pepper spray. I’d hate to lose a potential witness. We might need him at a later date.”

  “Why are you trying to pimp me here? You saw him. He’s so—”

  “Your age,” I finished for her. “You can’t keep dating younger men forever.”

  “Let her be,” Eleanor said with a giggle. “Let her have her fun. She’ll be our age before she knows it.”

  Martha wrinkled her nose. “No way am I dating men my age unless they look like Johnny Depp.”

  “I was just kidding. I wouldn’t want you to meet that vile man for drinks or anything else. Besides, I think he’s married.”

  “Aren’t they all?” El said. “He acts just like most of the married men I know.”

  “Did know, you mean. You’ve been off the market for a while, dear. At least since you began dating Mr. Wilson.”

  “How true you are. I just wish he wasn’t gone now. It gets pretty lonely when you don’t have any male companionship.”

  “Companionship?”

  “Of course. Why else did you think I was dating him?”

  I’d rather not say, but she was right. I missed Andrew too. I sure hoped he’d come back from New York. He was always good to have around when I needed legal advice, which might come in handy when Hal was arrested.

  ***

  When we got back to the camper I let Mr. Tinkles out and he shot off like a rocket—or as fast as a weenie dog could go.

  “Oh great!” El whined. “You let him run away.”

  “I did no such thing. All I did was open the door. Maybe he’ll find his way home.”

  El gasped. “I can’t believe you. I told you he was an orphan.”

  “He’s a dog, not a child, El.”

  Her bottom lip trembled and it broke my heart. “He was just
like the child I lost. The one who lives God knows where ignoring the fact he has a mother.”

  “There, there, El. I’ll help you find him.”

  Leotyne wobbled over to El and handed her a tissue. “Don’t worry. I can use my crystal ball to find your dog.”

  I opened my mouth to say something, but closed it again when the gypsy gave me a hard stare. El and I joined Leotyne in her trailer. Inside, the walls were covered with mauve, ornate rugs. Centered in the room was a table, and on the table, a huge murky globe atop a gold base. We each sat on a chair and Martha rushed inside, taking another. “I wouldn’t miss this for the world,” Martha muttered.

  Leotyne dressed completely in black. The tattered edges of her dress touched the top of her pointy shoes. She raised her hands and motioned over the top of the globe like she was conjuring up a spirit! I wrinkled my nose at the stench of incense that she had burning on an opposite table.

  Glitter inside the globe floated up and spiraled around, floating to the bottom slowly, and as it did, Leotyne spoke, “Magical globe. Where has the dog gone?”

  It was all I could do to suppress a laugh at how ridiculous this all seemed.

  Leotyne fixed her eyes on the globe and cackled in delight. “He’s at the beach, but someone is trying to take him! You must hurry!”

  El leapt up and ran out the door with Martha in hot pursuit, but Leotyne grabbed my arm with a bony hand, stopping me from following. “You must be careful. You’re in danger.”

  I tugged my arm away. “By who?” I demanded.

  “The man is coming for you.”

  My eyes widened in disbelief and I ran from the trailer in terror. On another case, Leotyne had insisted the devil was coming for me, and he was. I almost died in the attic of the Butler Mansion. Was this yet another ranting of a mad woman, or was she trying to warn me in her own way? I didn’t have time to contemplate this right now. I had to catch up with El and Martha before either of them got into trouble. Had Mr. Tinkles really found his owners, or was someone really stealing him? While weenie dogs weren’t a top breed, they sure were cute in their own stubby legged way.

  I walked onto the beach and sure enough, none other than Mrs. Barry held Mr. Tinkles! “What is the meaning of this?” I asked Mrs. Barry.

  “Give me back my dog, sign stealer!” Eleanor shouted.