Return to Murder

by John Osipowicz

  “I probably won’t unless I find out she’s a murderer.”

  “That can ruin the best of relationships.” They both laughed.

  This time Todd again paid the bill, and they left the restaurant. On his quest to capture Brumfield, he had spent only a tiny fraction of the Lottery money. He still was going to donate most of it to some worthy cause.

  The restaurant had valet parking. Todd gave the kid his ticket, and he and Carrie waited.

  “It’s been great spending time with you, Carrie,” Todd said.

  “I’m glad you said the little brother thing. You grew up a long time ago, and I didn’t realize it. And I might also be giving Houston a call soon.”

  The valet seemed to be taking longer than usual. “My car is old and dusty,” Todd said. The kid’s probably not able to see it. Ah, there it is now.”

  Carrie walked around to the passenger side. Todd opened his driver’s door, but instead of the kid getting out Todd was pulled inside with his face hitting the steering wheel.

  “We meet again, Todd.” It was Nathan, and it could be the same gun Todd saw in the museum that was now pressed against Todd’s temple. Nathan turned to the passenger side. “Stay there for a second, Carrie, honey. If you decide to scream or run I’ll blow your brother’s brains out. And, Toddy, old fellow when I get out of the car if you try anything funny, Carrie’s life will be a thing of the past. I’m going to get into the back seat. You both get in just like you normally would, and let’s go for a drive.”

  It all was accomplished in a few seconds and Todd began driving down the driveway out to the main road. The restaurant was on the far South side, and at the moment they were headed toward the Chicago Skyway leading to the Indiana and Ohio toll roads.

  “Just so you’re aware of this, Nathan, we’re starting to go away from the city. It’ll be further to drive back so you can turn yourself in to the police. You might get tired riding all that way.”

  “This isn’t the time for jokes, Todd. These last few days I’ve been dodging the dragnet that’s out for me, but riding some of the slow transportation I’ve had to take, I’ve had time to look up stuff all about you, little brother.”

  “Don’t call him little brother,” Carrie said.

  “Shut your face, girl. We’re going to find a nice secluded spot in the country and dispose of baby brother. Then you and me will continue our party.”

  Todd was beginning to go up the ramp to the Skyway. “Nathan, if it’s true what you told me that you haven’t killed anyone, and you turn yourself in you will not get a life sentence.”

  “Who are you kidding? Kidnapping will get me at least twenty to twenty-five. I’ll be a decrepit old man when I get out. I’m taking this way. Running away. I have enough money to be able to hide for a long time. Carrie, you can hide with me, but if not, then I’ll be alone just like I always have been. No problem.”

  Todd had gotten to the top of the Skyway. He could see the lights of Chicago in the distance back where they had come from. He had noticed that Brumfield had not put on his seat belt. Todd caught Carrie’s eye and pointed down to her belt. She nodded.

  To keep Nathan distracted Todd decided on a topic close to home. “From what I’ve found out, Nathan, I guess your mother and you shared quite a bit, especially around bedtime.”

  “Youi filthy cur! I should blow your brains out right now.” During that tirade, Carrie clicked her belt shut.

  “You leave my mother out of it. She was just doing what she thought best.”

  The car was now approaching the downward slope that would eventually lead to the first toll road. This was the highest point of the Skyway and the fastest speed of the car. It was now or never.

  Todd accelerated the car another few yards and then turned sharply toward the guard rail.

  “What the hell are you doing?” came from the back seat.

  Todd pressed the accelerator to the floor to give the car another burst of gas. They hit the railing hard. Todd was thrown forward but his belt held. Something whizzed past his head. It wasn’t a bullet, but the gun itself as Brumfield without his belt holding him first hit the roof and then bounced against the headrest sending him to the floor. Carrie’s belt also held.

  The gun had hit the windshield and dropped straight down onto the dashboard. Todd grabbed it and started to turn toward the back seat. However, Nathan had recovered, and was out the door. For a few seconds Todd couldn’t get the seatbelt open, but then he did. “Stay in the car, Carrie,” he said.

  The car behind Todd had narrowly avoided hitting him but now there was a cacophony of horns as cars jammed up behind the wreck. By this time, Nathan had begun running the other way, but he quickly saw the futility of going anywhere. Todd saw him climb up on the railing.

  There was no threat thrown out by Nathan. There was no language like, Don’t come any closer or I’ll jump. There were no words at all. Todd knew for certain that Nathan was going to end his life.

  Todd sprinted like he had never sprinted before. Nathan turned and looked down. That delay gave Todd a few extra seconds. He leaped toward the railing as Nathan began to fall. All Todd was able to grab was an ankle, but he held on.

  “Let me go!” came the words from down below.

  Yes, Todd could simply release the man. He didn’t know how many women Brumfield had raped earlier in his life. But then Todd thought of what Carrie said about getting Nathan some help. She was right. The man for most of his life had kept it together. Maybe he could be rehabbed. If not, it was still a human life that Todd could not take on purpose.

  Todd managed to get his other hand on the other ankle. He started to pull up. Nathan was not an overly big man, but it was dead weight facing straight down. Todd felt his hands slipping. Suddenly there were people behind him, two guys, who each grabbed under his arms and began pulling him backwards. It took a few minutes, but Nathan was finally back on the bridge.

  “Why didn’t you let me go?” he said sitting there propped up against the grating.”

  “Because you might actually be worth something, and I’m not referring to money.”

  In the next second Todd panicked. Where was the gun? It wasn’t in his pocket.

  “Are you looking for this?” his sister said in the sweet sarcastic voice that only she was capable of. She handed him the gun.

  CHAPTER FORTY THREE

  Ten minutes later an ambulance and a police car were at the scene. Todd showed the cop his credentials and told him what had happened.

  “Are you telling me you chased this dude all the way from Philadelphia?”

  “Not quite. I’ll explain it all when we get to the station house.”

  It took much of the rest of the night to get it all cleared up with the Chicago PD. Carrie had gotten a ride to her condo by another arriving cop to pick up her car, and after Todd filled out all the forms and gave all the depositions she drove him back to her place.

  He fell into the guest bed with all his clothes on and woke up ten hours later. He smelled bacon and eggs. He staggered into the kitchen. There was Carrie with an apron on at the moment scrambling the eggs. A rasher of bacon was on the table alone with a pile of toast.

  “How about ten or twelve cups of black coffee to go along with your meal?”

  “When was the last time you cooked breakfast?”

  “I think about twenty years ago when I had to help dad one time when mom was sick in the hospital. It’s like riding a bicycle. You never forget.”

  “What time is it?”

  “Almost noon.”

  “Why aren’t you at work?”

  “I decided to sleep in a bit. Marci is coming to pick me up?”

  “Why is your secretary driving you to work?”

  “I don’t have a car anymore.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Oh, I do have one on order. I called this morning but they can’t deliver it for three days.”

  “What about your car?”

  “I
t’s not my car anymore. It’s your car. There’s the paperwork on the dining room table. I signed it already. All it needs is your signature.”

  “Carrie, it’s a brand new Mercedes.”

  “It’s not brand new. It’s a year old. The hub caps are getting dirty. It’s about time I get a new car. Happy birthday, Todd.”

  “It’s not my birthday for another six months.”

  “I’ll call you up then to wish you a Happy. The car has its own phone.”

  The hug lasted a full minute.

  A day later Todd proudly drove his almost new Mercedes back to Calypso and his room over the General Store. Sure enough there was Clem Blessing sitting on the porch again.

  “Haven’t seen you around much,” Clem said.

  “Been in Chicago, seeing my sister.”

  “How do people live in a city like that? I’d get worn out going to work one day.”

  “That is true. Not too many people there can go to work one floor down and then sit on their porch most of the day, like you do.”

  “They just don’t know how to live the good life.”

  “Anything happening here in Calypso while I was gone?”

  “Nope.”

  “Same old town.”

  “Yep.”

  Todd started to head for the side stairs to go up to his room. Clem suddenly got garrulous, coming up with a complete sentence, or at least a complete phrase. “Some action lately in South Bend, though.”

  “What’s been happening there?”

  “That chemical company that polluted our water having trouble there. An EPA group says they’re polluting the river in that town now. There’s talk that charges are going to be filed.”

  Clem seemed plum tuckered out by his unusual outpouring of words and lapsed into silence. Todd headed for his room upstairs.

  Todd had not followed up his first interviews with that company’s officials. They had good reason to want revenge against Ma Blessing because she was instrumental in getting them thrown out of Calypso. Walt Fosdick had also testified against them. Todd sat down on his bed and got out his notes about the Arista Chemical Company. He remembered most of the discussion with Granville and Mencken, the two men in charge. However, he came across a fact that made him stop reading. Those two officials were put in jail for less than a year before a trial technicality got them out. Todd had never noticed before the date that they entered jail. It was May 10th.

  Sure, maybe it was a coincidence, but since their life had ended on that date, they could have decided to end the lives on that same date of the people who put them there. He was going to talk to both of those men again.

  It was Sunday, and they would not be at the office. Possibly this was a better opportunity to get them at home in a less defensive mood. Todd would grab a meal-to-go at McDonald’s and then head out to South Bend.

  Todd’s phone directory told him that CEO Robert Granville lived on Angela Boulevard, which Todd discovered a little over an hour later was only four blocks from the Notre Dame campus. The homes on that street looked to have been built 60-70 years ago during the housing boom in the country. Number 519 was a two-story brick colonial. Clem would have loved the wide front porch. There were four rocking chairs there at the moment. He could have his choice.

  Todd rang the front doorbell. A freckled-faced kid in his teens answered the door. “Is your dad in?” Todd asked.

  “My mom handles everything,” he said. “Ma—someone at the door.”

  A tall lady with a florid face came to the door carrying a large knife.

  “Ma’am, I don’t mean any harm,” Todd said backing away a couple of steps.

  She smiled. “I wasn’t meaning you any harm. I was just cutting the Angel Food cake I baked for the church social later this afternoon.”

  “I just wanted to have a word with your husband.”

  “Come in, please. I’m Bethany. Robert’s upstairs taking a nap, but I have to get him up soon, anyway. Come into the kitchen while I finish the cake.”

  Todd sat at the table while the lady expertly cut the pieces and wrapped them for individual choice in a few hours. “I’ve come to talk to Robert about this water pollution thing,” Todd said.

  “Yes, it’s happening again. Ever since that woman in Calypso caused all that trouble we’ve had nothing but problems.”

  “Ma Blessing, you mean?”

  “Yes, she certain wasn’t a blessing to our household. Almost every day Robert talked about her and not very kindly. I didn’t know my husband could get that upset; he was close to violent. Then one day he told me she had died. He felt so relieved. Well, this cake is ready. I’ll go up and get Robert.”

  Robert was not as welcoming. “You get out of my house, Henson,” were his first words. The man’s golf game must have become limited lately because a pale face had replaced the deep tan Todd had seen the last time. It looked like the CEO had also added a few pounds where it was most noticeable, in the neck and tummy areas.

  “I hear you’re doing a good job polluting the St. Joseph River along these parts,” Todd said.

  “You have the nerve, coming into my house and shoving accusations down my throat.”

  “Mr. Granville, I’m leaving. However, I’m still investigating the Blessing and Fosdick murders. If you had anything to do with those killings, I will prove it and put you in jail.”

  “Leave. Right his minute.”

  Todd had noticed that the young kid who had first opened the front door, had lingered in the adjacent dining room, overhearing both conversations. As Todd was going down the sidewalk back to his car, the kid caught up to him.

  “Wait a minute, mister.” Todd stopped and turned around. The kid seemed to have something wrong with one eye; it was more discolored. “I heard you talking to my mom and dad.”

  “Do you know anything about that water pollution issue?”

  “I know my dad’s company back in our other town was accused of poisoning the water. I don’t want it to begin all over again.”

  “What would begin again?”

  When we were in that other town and dad’s company was in trouble, he and my mom argued all the time. They’re starting to do that again. Yesterday my dad grabbed her. I thought he was going to hit her, but he didn’t. Those late night meetings will start again, I bet.”

  “What kind of meetings?”

  “They were with that other guy from work, Mencken. He has sneaky eyes. I’ve never liked him. They would meet late at night. They also would argue and a couple nights they woke me up. The second night I came down to tell them to be quiet. They were so into what they were talking about that they didn’t see me. This Mencken guy was saying something like, We have to get rid of her, and my dad was agreeing. I didn’t know who they were talking about, but I didn’t like the looks on their faces. If you can, stop this from happening again. I just want a peaceful home.” The kid ran back toward the house.

  Todd went back to his car and got in. He pulled away, but stopped a block further where he could still see the house and driveway. So Granville had some night sessions with Mencken. They were both united against Ma Blessing. It didn’t mean they necessarily killed her, but they were well aware of whom they had to stop.

  Todd turned off his engine and slid down a bit so he wouldn’t be seen. He wanted to determine if Granville would do anything after this latest pressure was put on him.

  Todd had to wait only fifteen minutes. There was a car coming out of Granville’s garage. Todd didn’t think the man was going to the store for milk and eggs, so he followed him. He tailed the Audi into the nearby city of Mishawaka. It was not a neighborhood of estates, but the house still looked like they had ample space, and for sure there were big lots. Granville pulled into 932 Sycamore Lane, and walked into that house without knocking. Todd waited five more minutes, but Granville did not emerge. Todd looked up that address, and sure enough it was the home of Stuart Mencken.

  Todd from his vantage point saw an open dining room win
dow. Possibly he could catch a wisp of their conversation if they were in that room.

  Todd went through a neighbor’s yard two doors down and then approached the Mencken house from the back. He crept up to the dining room window and sat down below it with his back resting against the house. First there was silence, but then he could hear voices. It seemed they had just come into the room. They were at the dining room table.

  “Stuart, we’re in big trouble again. Bridgewater on City Council is not going to quit until he hangs us out to dry.”

  “We should try to handle it like we did in Calypso. Robert, let’s call in McGuire. He’ll take care of things like he did with that old biddy a couple years ago.”

  “I don’t like his methods.”

  “Yes, but he got the job done. He doesn’t fool around. It’s always the kill-shot. The other person doesn’t know what hit him.”

  “I suppose you’re right. That cop was over to visit me an hour ago. He’s not going to quit.”

  “Maybe we should do something about him, also.”

  “McGuire could handle that one, too.”

  “I think he could. I’ll give him a call.”

  Todd snuck back to his car. Again on his Smart Phone he looked up the name McGuire in South Bend. There was a Vincent McGuire and a Barry McGuire. Barry was listed as a plumber. It didn’t say what Vincent did for a living, but there was an asterisk after his name, a signal that there had been some kind of legal action against him. This new feature of the phone let the viewer know this man might be a business or even a person risk. Todd clicked under the asterisk, and was shocked at what he read. Three years ago Vincent McGuire had been released from prison after serving nine years for attempted murder.

  CHAPTER FORTY FOUR

  Todd had to act quickly to prevent another murder. He checked last week’s editions of the South Bend Tribune, which gave a detailed account of the allegations that the President of City Council, Neddy Bridgewater was leveling against Arista. Besides charging them with criminal negligence he was maintaining that they knowingly were polluting the water, endangering the lives of the population near the river. If people died, he said, he was going to charge the two principals of the company with homicide.