The Dunn Deal

by Catherine Leggitt

  Kingfisher’s big head bobbed up. All eyes turned to stare at me. “You sure she isn’t wearing a wire, Colter?”

  Colter looked puzzled by my sudden outburst.

  I laughed. “Don’t be silly. I wouldn’t know how to use anything that complicated—”

  A bullhorn blasted the silence. “This is a raid. All hands in the air!”

  With those words ringing in my ears, Detective Rogers rushed out of the tunnel, pistol pointed at the group. Behind him, Deputies Wright and Anderson with four other officers I didn’t recognize fanned out to surround them.

  Confounded expressions turned to disgust. Colter, Bodhi, Frank, and the tall man raised their hands high in the air.

  Detective Rogers aimed his pistol directly at Colter. “Surrender your weapon!”

  Colter unsnapped his holster. With two fingers, he extracted his service revolver.

  Rogers grabbed it and stuffed it into the back of his belt. “Anyone else packing?”

  The tall man gave up a black military pistol. Frankie and Bodhi shook their heads.

  Constance Boyd swayed to her feet like a damsel who’d just been rescued from the dragon. She looked as if she might swoon at any moment. “It’s about time you got here, Detective. This ordeal has been intolerable.”

  I rolled my eyes. Too melodramatic for my taste. She got to sit in a cushy chair the whole time. How’d she like being trussed up like a rotisserie chicken?

  While Detective Rogers and two of the officers held the captives at gunpoint, Deputy Anderson snapped handcuffs on Frankie; Deputy Wright locked Colter’s wrists behind his back. Two of the other officers put handcuffs on Bodhi and the tall man. That accomplished, Detective Rogers inclined his head, signaling to someone else in the mine shaft. I squinted into the darkness. Jesse jogged toward me with Ed and Zora Jane at his heels.

  A gasp escaped. We all spoke at the same time.

  “Are you all right?”

  “How did you find me?”

  Jesse kissed me before tugging at the rope. “Let’s get this off you.”

  “Did they hurt you?”

  “Where’s Molly?”

  Bending toward me, Zora Jane grinned. “I used the night scope to guide us through the tunnel so we wouldn’t be seen. Thank God you left it in my car.” For the first time, I noticed the Taiwanese night-scope binoculars hanging by their sturdy leather strap around Zora Jane’s delicate neck. Talk about a perfect accessory!

  I rubbed my chaffed wrists now freed from their bonds. “Yes. Thank God.”

  Jesse pulled me to my feet. I looked with relief into his loving eyes. He lifted me off the ground and swung me around. I never thought I’d be so glad to see him again. I threw my arms around his neck and squeezed hard, hoping I’d never have to let go. But I had so many questions. I pulled away after a moment. “Did you find Molly? How’d you know where to look for me?”

  Zora Jane smoothed my hair. It must be a sight. “Jesse called Detective Rogers. They’d already found your Jeep in the parking lot and knew Colter had taken you.”

  Detective Rogers looked pleased. “Baxter uncovered Colter’s involvement with Satori. He found out they were importing illegal weapons and ammunition. He knew about their drug manufacturing too. That’s why they killed him. We’ve known that much for a long time. Just needed proof. Had to smoke them out into the open to see who else might be involved.”

  “I told them about the sliding boulder door at the Star Mine.” Zora Jane smiled. “Luckily, I had the night scope in my car.”

  Detective Rogers’s expression became stern. “We also got the oddest intermittent signal from Baxter’s radio. Don’t know how the battery could have lasted so long. That part’s a puzzler.”

  I knew how. My fingers touched the radio in my pocket. I had turned it on. No green light, but they got the signal. That had to be God. Someday I’d have to explain this puzzle to Detective Rogers.

  Right now, his reprimand was in full gear. “I told you to let us complete this investigation without your help. You have acted in a foolish manner and could have gotten yourself killed. I ought to charge you with something for your own safety. I doubt that your husband would object if I did.”

  I hung my head, trying to look contrite. He had a right to reprimand me. “I am sorry. I was wrong.”

  Jesse’s expression mirrored the one on the detective’s face. “Rest assured. This girl is hanging up her amateur sleuth hat. Permanently. Even if that means I have to put her under house arrest. Got any of those anklet things I could rent?” He grinned and tightened his grip on my shoulders. “You’ll never have to worry about her again.”

  I stroked Jesse’s dear face. “Locking me in the house won’t be necessary. I’m retiring, once and for all. I can’t imagine there would ever be another murder close to home for me to get involved in anyway. Two is all anyone should ever have to deal with.”

  To prove my good intentions, I told them about the photograph which I didn’t have anymore. “I’m sure Colter took it when he brought me here.”

  Colter squirmed and grumbled. “I have the right to an attorney.”

  But Rogers emptied Colter’s pockets right then and there. Out tumbled the crumpled photo. Then I had to explain how I found it.

  Jesse frowned. But Detective Rogers inspected the words stenciled on the wooden crates, shining his stainless steel flashlight to illuminate the words. He let out a low whistle. “Yes, siree. These boxes came from South America. With those labels, we’ll have no problem establishing the illegal sources. We have more than enough to prosecute these yahoos now.”

  Just then, I remembered the general. “Oh my goodness! We’ve got to get out of here. The general will be along any minute.”

  Detective Rogers threaded the rope Kingfisher used on me through the handcuffs of the four captives and handed the end to Deputy Anderson. One of the men pulled candles from the tall stands in the circular chamber to light our passage through the tunnel. Tugging their captives behind them, the officers trudged toward the exit.

  Constance, no longer the center of attention, had been pacing and gesturing, looking quite impatient with our lengthy exchange. When we moved out of the chamber, she flounced to the head of the pack, muttering about no one taking her pain seriously. Detective Rogers dipped his head when she passed, turning to wink at us. Jesse, Ed, Zora Jane, and I trooped along at the rear, our feet following the light of Ed’s flashlight. Jesse put his arm around my shoulders while we walked.

  Lit by flickering candles, the mine shaft spread before us bit by bit.

  “But what about Molly?” I repeated. “Did she find her way home?”

  Jesse chuckled. “Amazing dog, that girl. Some man found her wandering out on Highway 20. He read her tags and phoned me. Good thing we put on those heavy-duty tags. I picked her up on my way to the sheriff’s office.”

  Joy swept over me like a tsunami. My Molly was safe!

  Jesse continued. “But why didn’t you use your cell phone? You do have it, don’t you?”

  I looked away. “It’s in my purse in the back of the Jeep. It’s probably not charged anyway.”

  Jesse lifted my chin toward him so he could see my eyes. He shook his head and laughed. My lack of technological skills must frustrate him. It frustrated me too.

  “Anyway,” Jesse continued. “Molly’s fine. How’d you get her out?”

  I told the story of the dog cages, even though it meant enduring another lecture about my reckless choices.

  By then, we’d navigated the length of the mineshaft and approached the boulder door which Detective Rogers had wisely left open in case a quick escape became necessary.

  Detective Rogers drew his revolver again and moved to the doorway to peek into the dark night. Constance shoved him aside in her rush to be the first out.

  Detective Rogers ordered, “No, Miss Boyd—” But before he could complete his sentence, hands from outside the tunnel grabbed her and pulled her roughly away.

  Con
stance screamed.

  In an instant, the line of officers drew back, weapons drawn, shoving the prisoners together against the wood braces of the mine walls.

  A stern voice outside the entrance shouted, “We’ve got Miss Boyd! Send out your captives and we’ll release her.”

  Detective Rogers boomed back. “No deal, General. We’ve got you surrounded. There are deputies down the hill waiting for you to make your move.”

  My eyes focused on Detective Rogers. Please God, let that be true. He had called the man “General.” Did he already know about him?

  Jesse backed me against the wall and moved in front to shield me. I peeked around his side to see what would happen next.

  “You’re bluffing,” the stern voice called. “You’ve got seven, no more than ten, deputies inside. You couldn’t get more without me hearing about it, not for a rescue of this magnitude. I’ve got a whole regiment with military weapons out here. Don’t make me order them to storm this tunnel. There will be a lot of casualties. You don’t want that.” The voice sounded familiar. Could it be that I knew the General too?

  Rogers answered without hesitation, “We called in reinforcements from Placer County. You know procedure. Didn’t you notice we didn’t leave a guard outside the entrance to the tunnel?”

  Could there be a regiment of soldiers coming to our rescue? Did Rogers anticipate this last standoff with the general?

  While I strained to hear the answer from outside, Rogers pulled his radio off his shoulder and spoke into it with authority. “We’re at the entrance. Oliver has Constance Boyd. Proceed with caution.”

  I sucked in a deep breath. Oliver? Did I hear that right? Did he mean Deputy Oliver? I shook my head hard, hoping to clear the cobwebs. Couldn’t be. Deputy Oliver and Baxter were long-time friends. But wait a minute; he said this guy knew procedure so he must be a deputy. Now I’m really confused.

  Jesse and Ed murmured to each other.

  A muffled undertone of grunts and groans continued outside as if Constance struggled against her assailants. Probably someone held a hand over her perfectly shaped mouth.

  I pulled Jesse’s shirt and whispered, “Is he saying that Deputy Oliver is the general?”

  Jesse whispered back, “Did you say General?”

  Outside in the darkness, a scuffle could be heard and then Constance Boyd screamed, “Let me go immediately, you brute!”

  A slap preceded a thud as if someone had fallen hard to the ground. I winced.

  Constance growled, “How dare you!”

  The stern voice bellowed. “We’ll kill her right here if that’s what you want, Jerry.”

  Jerry? Jerry Rogers? The “G” on his name badge could stand for Gerald. Could these two be acquainted? Maybe it really was Deputy Oliver. Deputy Oliver, Baxter’s friend. A wave of sadness washed over me.

  Detective Rogers shouted, “What do you want?”

  Wasn’t an army of law enforcement personnel about to converge on Deputy Oliver and his soldiers? What difference did it make what Oliver wanted?

  “What’s he doing?” Jesse whispered as if he’d heard my thoughts.

  “Stalling for time,” Ed answered.

  Oliver yelled. “Send out Bodhi, Colter, De la Peña, and Johnson. NOW. Before I lose patience with this woman.”

  Rogers yelled back. “How do we know you won’t take the woman anyway?”

  Constance objected. “You can’t use me for a hostage. I will not go with you.”

  Oliver laughed. “I’d be doing all of us a favor to get rid of this tyrant. You’ll have to trust me not to. Send my men out and be quick about it. I’m losing patience.”

  We all started talking at once.

  Detective Rogers held up one hand. Without turning toward us, he whispered, “Stay down. Out of the way. The reinforcements should be in place by now. There may be gunfire.”

  “So there really are deputies waiting out there?” I whispered, but got no answer. What if Oliver’s soldiers outnumbered them?

  We strained to listen, but only heard nighttime noises.

  I jerked in surprise when a hailstorm of gunshots broke the silence.

  Jesse threw me to the ground and covered my body with his. His chest heaved with heavy breaths.

  Bullets zinged into the boulders outside. I dug my fingers into Jesse’s arm. He whispered, “Don’t move.”

  The officers must have attacked Oliver and his soldiers if he’d brought any along.

  Who’s doing all that shooting? I couldn’t tell whether Deputy Oliver and Constance had taken cover. Maybe they hadn’t. What if they’d been shot?

  As suddenly as the gunfire started, it stopped. For long seconds inside the mine, I couldn’t hear anything but my heart tattooing my chest.

  Suddenly, Deputy Oliver rushed the doorway, dragging Constance in front of him for a shield. One of his arms circled her neck with his gun protruding from behind one shoulder.

  Constance shrieked, “Let me go!”

  “Call them off,” Deputy Oliver shouted. “Or I swear to you, I will shoot her.”

  Candlelight glittered off Oliver’s pistol leveled at Miss Boyd’s head. I heard the click when he cocked the gun.

  Frozen by fear, I held my breath.

  Out of the shadows, Zora Jane hurled herself into them with the force of a football tackle, knocking both to the floor. In that instant, Detective Rogers and the other officers sprang into action, grabbing Miss Boyd and shoving her out of harm’s way. Ed helped her off the floor and led her a safe distance away from the fracas. Detective Rogers hauled the bewildered Deputy Oliver to his feet and none too gently relieved him of his firearm.

  In an instant, order and quiet returned to the mine shaft. Dizziness spiraled in my head from trying to follow the action. I shook it away and stared at Zora Jane. I’d never seen her move so fast. Who’d have thought such a fashionable woman could be capable of speed like that. “What on earth possessed you to tackle them?”

  She grinned from a doubled-over position where she’d bent to catch her breath. “Not bad for an old lady in high heels, eh?”

  Ed slapped the leg of his plaid golf pants and howled with laughter. “Woman, you never cease to amaze me.”

  I turned to Detective Rogers. “How’d you know Oliver was involved?”

  Detective Rogers smiled. “Something he said the day of the funeral. He said he was at the office about five when Baxter took the call about going to the bar. I was there at that time and Oliver was already gone. He couldn’t have known about that call unless he’d actually made it himself.”

  In the entrance to the tunnel, a voice boomed, “Detective Rogers, have you secured the area?”

  “Affirmative. I have Oliver and the others,” Rogers answered. One of the officers handed him handcuffs which he clapped on the wrists of the handsome all-American Deputy Oliver who scowled and hung his head.

  I regarded him with amazement. The general. He’d been behind this fiasco all along. How could that be? Snippets of his kind words at Baxter’s funeral flashed to mind. How could he say those things and not really care? His duplicity ranked at the top, the very worst kind, betraying a friend. No wonder he didn’t help me when I begged him to.

  A Placer County deputy stuck his head into the entrance. His lantern flooded the mine shaft with light. “Guess you don’t need our help then.”

  Detective Rogers grinned and yanked his captive toward the doorway. “Thanks for the assistance. Couldn’t have done it without you.”

  The other officers led four disgruntled Satori leaders into the night to their awaiting fate.

  Constance Boyd regarded Zora Jane with wide eyes. “I don’t know how to thank you. You risked your own life to save me. You didn’t have to do that. Not after the way I treated you.” She shook her head slowly.

  Zora Jane straightened. In the glowing light from the lantern, their eyes met and held. “You know what the Bible says, ‘Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his fr
iends.’ That’s in the book of John speaking of the sacrifice Jesus made because of His great love for us.” She smiled. “I consider you my friend because God loves you.”

  Truly, love of God radiated from Zora Jane’s countenance, melting my heart with its heat. I turned to see whether that love would penetrate the hard heart of our national television star as well.

  Eyes glittering in the candlelight, Constance Boyd beamed her Ultra Brite smile and extended one perfectly manicured hand. “Please, my friend. Tell me more.”

  The day I decided to join the search for Baxter Dunn’s murderers, I cooked a bubbling Swiss steak for dinner.

  This recipe came from my mother, an excellent cook.

  Mom’s Swiss Steak

  1/2 C. all purpose flour

  1/4 C. bell peppers, minced

  1/2 tsp. salt

  1-2 cloves garlic, minced

  1/2 tsp. pepper

  1 can diced tomatoes

  1/2 to 1 tsp. garlic powder

  Dash Worcestershire sauce

  1 to 2 lb. round steak - 1 inch thick

  1 bell pepper (seeded and cut in rings)

  Enough oil to brown meat (olive or canola oil)

  1 head onion (sliced in rings)

  1/2 C. minced onion

  1-7 oz. can (or 1 pkg. fresh) mushrooms, sliced

  Trim fat off steak. Mix together flour, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle one side of meat with half the flour mixture and pound in using meat mallet. Turn meat and pound in remaining flour. Cut into serving pieces.

  Heat the oil in a skillet and brown meat over medium heat, about 15 minutes. Add minced onion, minced bell pepper, and minced garlic the last few minutes of browning. Cover tightly and simmer 1 hour. (Add small amounts of water if needed to keep from sticking.)

  Place onion rings, pepper rings, and sliced mushrooms on top of steak; mix Worcestershire sauce with canned tomatoes and pour over all. Cover tightly and simmer 30 minutes or until tender. Great served over egg noodles.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  Support systems function well based on two criteria: the character of the individuals who fulfill the role and one’s ability to lean on support when needed. This second book in the Christine Sterling Mystery series was written faster and easier because I learned when to ask for help and how to accept the assistance given. In his grace, God provided ministering angels along the way to assist and encourage just when they were needed. Without these angels, this book would remain unfinished.