Watson Manor Investigations (Watson Manor Mystery Series Book 3)

by Ronald S. Craig

  "Was the driver's door open?"

  "No, but the window was rolled down to swim through."

  "We hope you're right. Thank you, Jason."

  "I'll call you in the morning following our second search. Good night sir."

  "Good night," Walker said closing his phone. "Every indication is that Charlie got out of the truck."

  They all watched as the rescue boat turned and headed slowly away. The lights on the deck went out, but the search lights continued scanning the surface on the water. When the search lights were turned off, Jenny said, "Let's go home."

  Chapter 26

  The next morning Jenny woke up on Charlie's side of the bed. After tossing and turning most of the night she found his pillow to be her only hope for even an hour of sleep. The sun was just rising when she showered and dressed. To reinforce the hope she couldn't let go of, Jenny packed an overnight bag with a change of clothes for Charlie. She went into their guest bedroom and paused a moment watching Julia and Timmy asleep in the bed. She hated the thought of waking them and moved quietly out of the room. She checked on Madison who was also peacefully asleep. Leaving a note on the kitchen table, she grabbed the bag, her keys and purse and pulled the front door closed behind her. The drive back to Seaside was only fifteen to twenty minutes, but she needed to be there.

  *****

  The rumbling sound of the diesel engine woke Charlie. The cave was no longer a tomb of darkness due to a faint light coming from the entrance. He could see how big the area was and there hadn't been a need to crawl the night before for a dry place to sleep. As he approached the light at the entrance, the cave floor opened up to seawater. Six inches below the rock wall twenty feet directly ahead of him, was an air gap between the wall and the ocean. The light green water between him and the far wall showed him clear passage out. He dove in and surfaced six feet away on the ocean side of that cave wall. Charlie realized the large gray wall in front of him was the hull of the ship that woke him.

  He glanced to his right and saw there was only the cliff wall, no shore to swim toward. Turning left didn't offer anything either. He spotted a cable in the water twenty five feet away and followed it up to the end of an overhanging crane arm. The water below the cable was becoming darker and when the tailgate of his truck broke the surface a small wave headed toward him. He could see the tinted side window where the crane operator would be and started splashing and waving one arm to get his attention.

  Charlie watched as his truck continued to be pulled out of the water and continued to splash and wave. A large amount of water poured out the driver's window and Charlie was losing hope when he watched the front grill of his truck move out of the water. He knew shouting would never be heard and, with the strength he had left, kept splashing and waving. The front of the truck was ten feet out of the water and moving toward the ship when it stopped and swung slightly on the end of the cable. Then the truck was moving back toward him and dropping again.

  He looked back at the crane operator's window and saw an arm waving. Beside the crane another man was standing on the edge of deck holding the handrail with one hand and a bullhorn in the other. "Get in the back seat."

  Charlie waved back and treaded water with renewed energy. The truck was submerged with the rear door handle a foot above the surface. He was able to open it easily and swim-crawled into the back seat, then pulled the door closed again.

  Jenny opened the construction gate and drove to the concrete edge that Walker had found the night before. She got out, looked directly below where she was and saw divers swimming back toward the rescue boat. To her left she saw Charlie's truck being lowered behind a Black BMW that was already on the ship deck. She turned back to see if the divers were pulling something behind them. They were close to the surface and she felt relief there wasn't a body bag in tow.

  Straps were being attached to Charlie's truck to secure it while people moved around on the salvage ship's deck. The rescue divers were back on the boat in front of her and it was turning toward the salvage ship. Horns were blaring between them sounding like opposing football team fans at homecoming. Then the salvage ship was turning also and her heart sank, they're giving up, she thought. She went back to her car and pulled her cell phone out of her purse. Frustrated, she hit a speed dial button.

  "Chief Walker?"

  "They're giving up…"

  "Where are you Jenny?"

  "On the cliff, watching both boats leaving. Have you heard anything, Chief?"

  "No, not yet. I'll call Jason and call you right back."

  She hit end call and held her phone in both hands, like it weighed fifty pounds. Hope was fading and her eyes leaked tears. She noticed a voice mail symbol on her phone window. Following a deep breath she pressed it.

  "Jenny, I'm ok. I borrowed the Captains cell phone and we should be back at the commercial docks in Monterey in thirty minutes."

  She hit play again and her body shook as the emotional release exploded from inside her. She didn't know if they would hear her or not, but she held the car horn down for a full minute. The salvage ship was turning out of the bay toward Monterey and returned two short horn bursts. Her phone rang "Charlie?" she shouted.

  "No, but they have him and he's ok Jenny!" Walker told her.

  "He left a voice message, I know he's alive."

  "Seems to me, you knew that last night," Walker said laughing with his own relief.

  "Well, knowing and hearing his voice are two different things. I have some calls to make."

  "Sorry to steal your thunder. Edwards is on the phone with Julia as we speak. Bring Aquaman by the Department on your way home. This is one story I've gotta hear!"

  "If that story doesn't solidify your faith in God, my friend … Charlie and I'll see you in an hour." She put the phone down and drove to the Monterey Harbor.

  Jenny was standing on the dock as the rescue boat made a final turn to enter the slip. Three deck hands pointed to the salvage ship that was passing behind it. The salvage ship honked twice and Jenny took off running down the dock to catch it. She reached the security gate blocking her path and pressed the intercom button. "Hello," she said.

  "Seems we're in a new line of salvage," the voice on the intercom said as the gate buzzed. "Come on in."

  She was met on the inside boardwalk by a man in a suit and a young woman photographer. "Jenny Watson?" the man asked.

  "Yes. I'm Jenny Watson."

  "Hello, I'm Walter Evans, VP of Monterey Salvage and this is Penny Williams. I hope you don't mind if we take some photos of you and your husband."

  "Mr. Evans," Jenny said laughing. "Charlie and I will pose for your calendar next year!"

  They were both caught off guard and shared her laugh. "OK, he'll be de-boarding over this way." She followed them as the salvage ship pulled into the dock. She watched the stair case being moved to the side as others were tying the large ropes to deck mounted cleats.

  Charlie waved from the deck at the top of the metal stairway. His hands and arms were bandaged, but his broad smile allowed her to continue breathing. He started down the steps never breaking eye contact with her. She wrapped her arms around him the moment he stepped onto the dock.

  Without moving out of his embrace with her head against his chest, she asked, "I'm not hurting you, am I."

  "No, Jenny," he said and she squeezed tighter. "Breathing is getting difficult, however."

  She released him and backed up a few steps. "I brought you clothes. I thought you'd be soaking wet."

  "Like my new Monterey Salvage souvenir shirt?" he asked turning like a model. "My new friends …" He stopped realizing what she had said. "You brought me clothes … not knowing."

  "These nice folks," Jenny said pointing to Evans and Williams, "want a few photos of their latest catch-of-the-day."

  Charlie laughed and then his expression turned serious. "Eden?"

  "She and Emily are at the manor. They sedated her at Marina Press."

  Charlie's truck was be
ing lowered onto the dock at the back of the salvage ship. "If we could get a few more photos by the truck, that would be great," Williams asked. They followed her there and a dozen more photos were taken.

  "I realize you just washed your truck, but the car is outside and I'm driving," Jenny said. They walked in silence along the dock and she held a small area of exposed skin on his arm between the bandages. She couldn't resist and stopped several times along the way to share the comfort of his embrace.

  On the drive to Marina PD Jenny turned and smiled at him. "I need to warn you, the Chief has labeled you 'Aquaman'."

  Charlie had been deep in thought and turned to face her. "I'm sorry, Jenny, what was that?"

  "I said the Chief has labeled you 'Aquaman'. Are you OK? Should we have you checked out at the hospital?"

  "No. I just tore up my hands crawling up the rocks. These bandages make it look worse than it is. Emily is thirteen, not twelve. Lacy let it slip."

  "When I first saw Emily with your nose and those deep blue eyes, there was little doubt in my mind."

  "I guess I hung onto the deception… to avoid complicating our lives."

  "What are you thinking, Charlie? That beautiful young lady is a precious gift, not a complication, and she's welcome in our lives."

  "I've tried coming to grips with everything. Now anger and guilt are in the mix. Why didn't she try harder to find me?"

  "God has a plan. Hey, if she had, you'd have missed out on the best thing in your life, mister!"

  "Can't argue that, I didn't mean it like that. I don't question that you and Madison are the best things in my life. The thought this could come between us scares the hell out me."

  "I'm going to tattoo, TOGETHER on your forehead, reminding you doesn't seem to help. And together, this gift will enrich our lives. I do give Eden credit, misguided maybe, but I think she loved you enough not to hold you back in college."

  When they walked through the front doors at Marina PD, everyone stood for a round of applause and were cheering. Mayor Laurie Gayle was there and joined in the celebration.

  "Thank you, Mr. Watson for bringing this tragedy to an end!" Mayor Gayle said. "I think a citizen's citation is in order."

  "Thank you, but knowing it's over is all we need," Charlie said. "I'd shake your hand, but…," he said holding his bandaged hands up that brought a laugh from the group.

  "I'm sure you and Chief Walker have a lot to discuss, so I'll leave you to it. I'm so grateful to not need a protective escort anymore with the Hansen's discovered and gone." She shook Jenny's hand and patted Charlie on his shoulder. "Thank you again for resolving this." Then she turned and walked out the door.

  "Aquaman," Walker said, smiling, and pushed his large office chair into the center of the squad room. "Have a seat and take us through this."

  "I warned you," Jenny said, "and knew this was coming so I didn't press you for the story on the way here."

  Charlie sat and summed up the story for the group and the official police record. He paused at the end. "It was like being in slow motion when the truck left the cliff. The high beams were on and seemed to be racing my fall down the cliff wall. I was spread out across the front seat just watching the fall through the windshield. The wind was knocked out of me, I don't know how long after hitting the water it came rushing in the cab. The truck lights were on under water for just a moment, but showed me where I needed to go. I swam into the wall and followed it up. When I broke the surface and could breath, total darkness. I called out and it echoed back. I knew I was in a cave and crawled away from the water as far as I could and slept. The ship woke me, hours or days later I couldn't tell." Edwards hit stop on the recorder.

  "I'll send a copy to Seaside PD for you Charlie. Hopefully they won't need you to come in, but it happened in their jurisdiction, "Walker said.

  "That's remarkable. Eden thought she was pursuing a completely different story and blew our case wide open," Edwards said.

  Jacque gave Charlie a huge hug. "You promise me, you will never put us through this worry again!"

  "It wasn't by choice, Jacque," he said, kissing her cheek.

  "Charlie, we found the print and embossing plates at Marina Press for the Union Electric stock certificates. We have a search warrant coming to tear their residence apart. You got them my friend," Walker said.

  "The license photos were not the Hansen's and we're still looking to identify them. They would have been involved redeeming the stocks, so they're not random people and we're hoping when we search the Hansen residence we'll find the link," Edwards reported.

  "What about Assemblyman Mitchell?" Jenny asked.

  "I called Andy, Captain Becker this morning to find out if Mitchell knew Steve Hansen. He never met Hansen. All his instructions were relayed through email from Sentinel, and meetings there, but only his voice over a speaker phone."

  "I wonder if Steve Hansen's voice is on a phone greeting at Marina Press," Charlie asked.

  Edwards got up and went to the evidence locker. He brought back a two-line office phone and plugged it in."It just occurred to me, Mayor Gayle was in those meetings also. Surely she has spoken with Steve Hansen, the editor of our local paper?" Edwards hit the "Greeting" button.

  "You've reached the Marina Press…" Edwards hit stop when Debbie Hansen's voice greeted them.

  "Still a good thought Charlie."

  "That recording may still be useful, Walker said. "I have an email from Kathryn Foster, the CEO of Union Electric. The missing supervisor, Paula Baker is in custody in San Francisco. She is cooperating and indicated she was contacted by a woman initially and had spoken to her several times to confirm the stocks were still un-redeemed before redeeming the frauds. She could ID Debbie's voice."

  "We leave these loose ends in very capable hands," Charlie said. "Right now, I've got to talk to an insurance man about my truck."

  "And the hit and run on Eden's car," Jenny added.

  "I didn't run! I just accidently backed off a cliff."

  "Have your agent call me," Walker offered. Charlie and Jenny said their goodbyes and she drove them to Watson Manor.

  Chapter 27

  When they pulled into the parking lot at Watson Manor and parked, Jenny said, "Eden feels tremendous guilt for this so go easy on her."

  "I don't blame her for this, that's crazy!"

  "I know that Charlie, I'm talking about your undisclosed daughter."

  "She's waiting for something. Should I let her pick the time and place?"

  "No, with everything else she's dealing with, let her off the hook about Emily," Jenny answered.

  Julia gave Charlie a big hug when he reached the front porch. "Timmy doesn't know …. I can't even say it myself without crying again. I told him you were in a car wreck for now," she whispered in his ear.

  Timmy came running through the front doors. "Sorry you crashed your cool truck, Uncle Charlie." When he released hugging Julie, Timmy's eyes widened. "Are you really hurt?"

  Charlie squatted down and smiled. "No Slugger, just some scratches is all. Give me a couple days and I'll be pitching to you again."

  "We got to spend the night here, it was really fun!"

  "Julia, thank you so much. Sorry for the note, I had to…"

  "Jenny don't be silly, we're family for God's sake."

  Charlie stood up and looked directly at Eden in the doorway, with an arm around Emily beside her. He never saw Eden so pensive before. Her eyes were shifting between his and the bandages with a face struggling to smile. His face lit up with Jenny's words "a precious gift" and he said, "Thank God you are OK, Eden." He move in to hug her and shushed her attempt to convey sorrow and guilt. "I am perfectly fine, Eden." He didn't need to squat down, but turned to face Emily. "You, young lady, should be very proud of your Mother for finding the bad guys and leading me to them."

  "Mom kinda told me a different story."

  "I'll bet. She doesn't go for that spotlight stuff. This porch is great, but we have a really nice place on th
e inside and I could go for a cup of coffee."

  The tension was broken and Eden offered to get that cup of coffee as they all moved inside. Jenny pulled him away from the group that was moving toward the dining area. "Use the office. I'll check on Maddy and take the other two over for a milkshake."

  Charlie was opening the Watson Investigations office door as Eden brought two cups of coffee. Jenny had both Timmy and Emily very excited across the lobby beside the milkshake blender.

  She followed him through the door. "Charlie, I need to tell you how sorry and how grateful I am for your saving my life!"

  Charlie sat down on one end of an eight foot couch, "Have a seat. Julia said it best, we're family, Eden."

  "But…"

  Charlie cut her off. "Please, I need to say this." Eden sat down on the other end of the couch and took a sip of her coffee. She glanced at him turned to face her then looked away. "The moment I saw you that first time in your office … something exploded inside of me. I've been trying to gather the pieces ever since. Eden, I've loved you half my life." Eden set her coffee down, turned on the couch and found Charlie's eyes. He notice tears forming in her eyes, but had to continue. "Yesterday, when I left your office, I wasn't searching for the first love of my life… I was searching for family, searching for our daughter's mother."

  The tears continued as they sat in silence. Charlie reached for a box of Kleenex off his desk and handed them to her. "Family Eden. I don't have the answers and I wish the love I feel for you was that for a sister, but that is … my only available expression of it."

  "I've wanted you to know that you have a beautiful daughter so many times," she said pausing for a breath. "I decided I would tell you after you finished college, I couldn't hold you back with a family. I met a man, I told you a mistake."