“What do you mean?” Kiara asked while Donald looked at him with confusion.
“I’ll explain,” Jake said. “What’s your financial condition now?”
Donald hesitated. “After the incident, I had to leave my job and live in hiding. What do you think?”
“You’re broke, and that’s why they visited you again because you fit the profile now – old, without money and depressed with life,” Jake said with a smile.
“It’s not nice to laugh at someone’s poverty,” Donald protested.
“I’m not laughing at that. I’m laughing at missing such a crucial point,” Jake said while rubbing his hands.
“What’s on your mind?” Kiara asked.
“I have a theory – the people who attacked him thought that he fit the profile. However, during the attack they found that they were wrong. They left him half-dead. I don’t know why they want to kill people with such specifications – it’s a ritual or whatever. But, it raises two questions that will help us find them.”
“What questions?” Kiara asked.
Jake was about to say something when Donald started shaking his head.
“I’m not sure if that was the case. How did they suddenly come to know about my financial condition after cutting me open? That can’t be the reason they spared my life,” Donald asked. “And, even your third criteria didn’t concern me that time.”
“What criteria?” Jake asked.
“I was full of life. I had no issue whatsoever with anything or anyone,” Donald said and looked at Jake. “What’s your theory now?”
“My theory depends on your answer to my question,” Jake replied.
“What question?”
“Do you love your life now?”
“What?” Donald said immediately, “I… I mean it’s not as good as before, and you guys are to be blamed for that. A person who was secure both professionally and financially is declared insane. He loses his place in the society. How would he love his life?”
“Exactly my point. They visited you again because you fulfill all the criteria now,” Jake said firmly.
“I don’t know what you are saying,” Donald said and looked at Kiara.
“Why are you looking at me?” she asked. “It makes perfect sense to me.”
Jake came closer. “Did you tell someone about your condition recently?”
“What is there to tell?” Donald smirked. “Whole world knows how miserable I am.”
“You’ve been miserable for the last seven years. But, your attacker came to know recently. Otherwise they would’ve approached you earlier,” Jake stressed.
His words made Donald think about something.
“I only go to the Harry’s supermarket for groceries and other stuff. I don’t talk to anyone except Harry. He is a talker, but I’ve never responded to his questions. That’s why the whole town thinks that I’m a lunatic,” Donald said ruefully.
“You go outside the town sometimes like you went to purchase the saw?” Jake prodded.
“Even then, I don’t talk much to anyone, but…” Donald said and stopped mid-way.
“But?” Jake asked.
“Nothing… I haven’t told anyone,” Donald replied with nervousness.
“You definitely have,” Jake said, “You tell me, or I’m going to project you as the murderer. We have the murder weapon. The whole city police know your face after the slip you gave us yesterday, and you know pretty well how we can add or delete things from our reports.”
“And, media is always hungry for such spicy news,” Kiara added.
“Look, I didn’t tell anyone on purpose. But, I live alone. Sometimes it's weeks before I talk to anyone. Perry, the cashier, is an old acquaintance. That’s why I took his help. We met after a long time, and that’s when I told him everything,” Donald said and noticed that Jake was looking at Kiara, “Don’t you dare think that Perry did this… He is a nice guy. He would never hurt anyone.”
“That we’ll decide,” Jake said, “Apart from him do you have any names that knew your condition?”
Donald shook his head. “Then we have to check with Perry,” Jake said and looked at Kiara, who nodded. “Maybe, Perry told someone.”
“Don’t disturb the poor guy,” Donald pleaded.
Jake didn’t bother to reply and left the room at once. Kiara looked at Donald one last time and followed Jake.
“What’s on your mind?” Kiara asked as she reached Jake’s desk.
“The phone call was routed through a server in Europe. I’ve no lead and the night is going to make life difficult for Ryan,” Jake said, “I was listening to your conversation with Donald. It is our best chance. I know that I’ve crossed paths with the killer and the killer planned this whole thing with Donald only after this meeting of ours. That means the killer came to know about Donald’s condition only after knowing about the investigation from me. I haven’t met anyone whom I told about Donald. Only Ryan, you and Ron knew about it. Ron can’t be suspected, as I know him for years. He is stupid but not a criminal.”
“Maybe, after you met the killer, he followed you and found about Donald,” Kiara said.
“I was also thinking about it, but I’m sure if someone followed me, I would’ve noticed,” Jake replied.
“Possible, but if the killer is so meticulous; maybe he hired someone who is really good at it,” Kiara tried to put her thoughts together without challenging Jake’s capability.
“Or, maybe he took help from someone who knew about my plan,” Jake said and looked at her.
“An insider’s job?” Kiara asked with a raised brow.
Jake nodded and got up. He pulled his jacket from the back of his chair and walked to the main door.
“I’m getting confused here. Who could do this?” Kiara asked with confusion, “Only you, Ron and Ryan knew about the case.”
“I’m clinging to all the threads that are coming my way,” Jake turned to her. “All I know is that the killer wanted to lure me into his den. Ryan was caught by mistake. Right now, I want to speak to Perry. I’m hopeful of getting something from him. If not, then I’ll explore something else. It could be anything internal or external.”
“Okay, let’s go.” She knew there was no point in arguing with Jake. He was desperate, and that was affecting his thinking.
“I don’t know… how can I remember everything?” Perry said shaking his head.
“You have to remember,” Jake said firmly, “The only reason you’re not sitting with Donald in a cell is because I’m hopeful you won’t lie to me this time. You’re equally responsible for this mess.”
“What mess?” Perry asked and looked alternately between the two of them.
“My partner…” Jake said, but Kiara stopped him.
“Just try to remember if someone was standing near you or Jimmy when Donald gave you the instructions,” Kiara asked this time.
Perry thought for a moment. “Donald took us aside. I don’t think there was anyone around.”
“Okay… Did you tell anyone about Donald’s condition?” Jake asked.
“I… I might have told my wife about it. Donald and I have been friends for long time. I tell my wife everything about the people we know,” Perry said defensively.
“This is going in loops,” Jake said in frustration, “We can’t just keep asking people whom they told about Donald.” With that, he walked away from the counter.
Kiara was still in her thoughts. “Has your wife made some new friends?
“What?” Perry asked.
“Is she meeting new people or maybe some new neighbors?” Kiara explained.
“No, I don’t think so,” Perry replied, “We don’t socialize much.”
“It is indeed a dead end,” Kiara mumbled and looked at Jake who was equally frustrated.
“Why do you want to know if we told someone about Donald?” Perry asked as they were about to leave.
“What?” Jake said. “It’s nothing.”
“I�
� understand Donald has done something wrong, but he is a nice man. I know him for years. We used to be neighbors. We know everything about each other. The last few years haven’t been kind to him. So…”
Jake walked to him. “What did you say?”
“We know each other from a long time as we were neighbors,” Perry repeated.
Jake turned to Kiara, “Let’s go. We need to visit Travis Nelson again.”
“What’s happening?” Kiara asked as Perry looked at Jake with confusion.
“Will tell you on the way,” Jake said and walked to the main door. Kiara followed suit.
Perry kept looking at them until they stepped out. He shook his head and went back to work.
CHAPTER 11
“Perry was right,” Jake said as they entered the main street. “Donald has shielded himself from the whole world, but he told everything about his life to him because he wanted to tell it to someone to get it out of his chest. And, you share everything with someone whom you can trust; someone who is known to you for a long time.”
“And, how is Travis linked to it?” Kiara asked.
“He isn’t, it’s his assistant,” Jake said, “She has been his assistant for last ten years. She was with him in Arizona when Donald was attacked. She used to sit next to James Reed and when I spoke to her, she knew every detail of his life – everything about his financial condition; his mental state and I’m sure she is the one who told him about Travis’s decision to fire him. It must have pushed him further, and I’m sure she must have offered him money luring him to the place where he was attacked.”
“She would’ve expected that cops would approach Travis, but she wouldn’t have thought that she might be questioned too. That must have startled her, and that’s why she said the negative things about Travis. And, we were right – she wasn’t aware of Donald’s whereabouts. But, the investigation must have alerted her. She would’ve followed you or put someone on your trail. You want to confirm something from Travis before getting hold of her?” Kiara said.
Jake looked at her, “I’ve met her. She is old and weak. She must be having a network of people working for her. I have to know everything about her before taking any steps towards Ryan’s safety.”
“One thing is still not clear to me,” Kiara mused, “Even if you questioned her, she was still safe as linking her to this case was not that straightforward. Why did she plan to attack you? It has made her even more visible to us. She could’ve remained low profile just as she has done all these years.”
“I know we don’t have all the answers. All I know is that something made her panic; something that’ll take us to the end of the case. She believes that I know something that will help me crack this case.”
“What could it be?” Kiara asked.
“I’ve gone through our conversation multiple times but haven’t found anything,” Jake said and pointed at the building to their right. “I hope Travis Nelson leads us to that.”
“You think he’ll entertain us after the previous visit,” Kiara asked.
“If he listens to me for five seconds, I’ll make him co-operate,” Jake said.
“Don’t,” Kiara shook her head.
“I’m not going to lift even a single finger,” Jake said as the car came to a halt.
The whole area was covered in darkness. As they walked, Jake wondered how long the night was going to be and if he was going to fulfill the promise, he made to Ryan’s father.
Travis Nelson opened the door this time. He was startled to see Jake.
“Do you have a warrant?” he asked at once.
Jake gave a faint smile. “No, instead we have a good news for you.”
“You found the murderer?” he asked with wide eyes.
“We have, but we need your help to firm up our case,” Jake said.
“My help?” Travis asked with surprise.
“Can we discuss it inside?” Jake asked.
Travis opened the door completely and stepped aside.
“Thanks,” Kiara said as they entered. Travis ignored her and walked to Jake.
“Do I know the murderer?” he asked with surprise.
Jake nodded.
“Who is he?” Travis asked with surprise.
“It’s she,” Jake replied.
“Who?” Travis asked with eagerness as they sat down.
“Martha, your assistant,” Jake said. Travis was shocked. It took him a few moments to compose himself.
“Martha?” he asked with surprise. “It’s not possible. I know her for ten years. I… I don’t think she is capable of committing such a heinous crime. Besides, she is not physically that strong.”
“That’s why we think there are more people working with her,” Jake replied, “She uses her age as an advantage. Everyone trusts her because of her age and she uses that trust to lure the victims.”
“I still can’t believe… I spoke to her in the evening, and her behavior wasn’t different from any other day,” Travis said in disbelief.
“Has she taken any holidays recently?” Jake asked.
“She goes for a health check-up once in a while. I don’t remember if she has ever gone on a long vacation, and that’s one of the reasons she has been working with me for so long,” Travis said.
“Who else lives with her?” Jake asked.
“Her husband died a few years ago. She has a son, I guess,” Travis replied.
“Son?” Jake asked in surprise, “Have you met him?”
“Once or twice during office parties,” Travis said, “I still can’t believe she may be involved in this. She is a caring lady, and everyone in the office is fond of her.”
“Then why did she panic seeing me?” Jake asked.
“What?” Travis asked.
“Nothing. Any idea if she is into some rituals or something like that?” Jake asked.
“Well, she is a spiritual lady, but I don’t think she is into any of that. Frankly… I don’t know much about my employees beyond the interactions we have at the office.”
“Yeah, I know that,” Jake smirked and looked at Kiara, “Not getting anything here.”
Kiara nodded, “I think we should speak to her directly.”
“You’re right,” Jake said and looked at Travis, “Can you give us her address? I hope you have that with you.”
“Oh… sure,” Travis said sheepishly and walked to his bedroom. His wife had come out by now.
“What happened?” she asked. “Why are they here again?”
“Oh... nothing. They want Martha’s address,” he said and went inside the bedroom.
“Martha?” she asked with surprise.
Jake noticed that and thought for a moment. “Mrs. Nelson,” he said and walked to her, “I understand that Travis is her boss, so she may not have opened up to him, but you must’ve talked to her during the office parties or otherwise.”
“Well, she is known to us for a long time, and she calls here for confirming Travis’s schedule whenever he has meetings outside the office. We end up talking about what’s happening in our lives - nothing beyond that.”
“Anything else?”
She shook her head. Travis had come out by now. He handed the slip with Martha’s address to Jake and looked at his wife. “What happened?”
“Oh… he was asking if I knew anything about Martha,” she replied.
“I am afraid; she wouldn’t know much about her. She only calls to check my schedule and that too during office hours. We never socialize with Martha beyond that.”
Jake noticed something. He gave it a thought. “She never calls beyond office hours?”
“No… and our office hours are long. So, there is not much time left after that either,” Travis replied.
“And, she calls from which phone – her cell phone or the desk phone?” Jake asked.
“The desk phone naturally. It’s an official call,” Travis said with confusion. “Where are you going with it?”
“Nowhere,” Jake said and loo
ked at the paper. “Mr. Nelson, can you write down Martha’s personal number as well.”
“Sure,” Travis took the paper and walked to the side table. He took out his cell phone and scrolled down for Martha’s number. He noted it down and gave it to Jake.
“Anything else?” he asked.
“Thanks, Mr. Nelson,” Jake said with a smile, “You have been of immense help. I believe we’ll not disturb you again.”
“I hope so too,” Travis said.
Jake turned to Kiara, “Let’s go.”
“Why are you so excited?” Kiara asked as they stepped out of the elevator. “You’re going to check Martha’s call data record. That’s why?”
“That and I’ve found the reason for Martha’s nervousness,” Jake beamed.
“Seriously?” Kiara asked as they walked to the parking. “I didn’t hear anything alarming up there.”
Jake turned to her as they reached their car.
“I’ve been thinking about my conversation with Martha for days, but I’m only thinking about what we discussed and nothing beyond that,” Jake said. “She wasn’t nervous about me questioning her. She was nervous about me checking James’s desk.”
“But, you said there was nothing there?” Kiara asked in confusion.
“They had cleared the desk, but one thing was still there – the desk phone,” Jake said with a smile. “We checked James’s call data record assuming he made all the calls from his cell phone, but we missed out on the calls made from his desk phone.”
“That’s why you wanted to know which phone Martha used to call Travis?” Kiara asked as she understood Jake’s point.
“Yes,” Jake replied with a smile. “Martha was worried about that – not about the questioning.”
“I hope you’re right,” Kiara said.
“We’ll know that in a while,” Jake replied, “And, I’ve another idea too. We should check if the camera footage has something on her after we left Alliance Insurance’s office. I saw her stepping out of her seat as soon as we left.”
“Great. Where are we headed now?” Kiara asked.
“We have to split up,” Jake mused, “I’ll drop you at the division and then I’ll go to Alliance Insurance’s headquarters. It’s late, but I believe you can get the call data record for Martha’s number. Right?”
Davenport Mysteries 04-Loose Ends Page 17