by Cindy Bell
“Did he try to talk to you, Samantha?” Eddy asked when he caught up to her.
“It doesn’t matter,” Samantha avoided his gaze. “I want to go enjoy the flower show.”
“I found out some very interesting information. Our pal, Ryan, the young and promising husband-to-be, just got out of jail, Free Bank State Prison,” Eddy said as Walt joined them.
“FBSP,” Walt said with recognition. “The acronym on his shirt.”
“I think they supply their own clothing to the prisoners usually, don’t they?” Samantha asked.
“Some do.” Jo nodded.
“What crime was he in for?” Samantha’s mood perked up.
“Fraud. Apparently, Ryan was involved in one of those get rich quick schemes, you know the pyramid type. Well, people lost a lot of money to him, and he went to jail for two years for it,” Eddy said.
“Huh, so Ryan gets out of jail, and gets on a train to go to propose to his girlfriend. What if she rejected him?” Jo asked.
“What do you mean? He didn’t even have the chance to ask.” Samantha shrugged.
“That we saw,” Eddy said.
“What do you mean?” Samantha asked again.
“He could have called her and proposed. Maybe when she turned him down, he didn’t want to live anymore. Maybe the piece of material in the railing wasn’t even from his shirt.” Eddy frowned.
“No, Eddy that’s not possible,” Samantha said.
“Just because we want to see a murder here, Samantha, maybe we were wrong. Now that I know Ryan was a recently released criminal, it changes things. He was probably going through the elation of being free, and thinking that he was going to have the perfect life. Then his girl turns him down, he’s crushed, he’s a little drunk. Maybe he jumped, maybe he fell.”
“Eddy wait, that’s not why it’s impossible. It’s impossible because he couldn’t have called his girlfriend. I tried many times and there was no reception on the train. How could he have called her?”
Eddy raised an eyebrow. “I’m sure there was a way. Maybe he just happened to try when there was reception or maybe he e-mailed her.”
“There was no internet either, besides I doubt a guy like that is going to e-mail his proposal, he was determined. He would want to at least hear her voice.”
“You may be right, I’m not one to know much about the matters of the heart. What I do know is that Ryan is not the good kid we thought he was. He might have some enemies on the train.”
“Good thought,” Samantha said. A cab rolled to a stop in front of the four. Eddy reached out to open the door for Samantha, but before she could get inside Eddy caught her eye.
“Remember what I said about Peter. I’ve got a bad feeling about him.”
Samantha searched his eyes. “I will.” She slid into the cab.
Chapter Nine
The ride to the coffee shop was a short one. It was located right beside the entrance of the flower show. While Jo and Walt ordered, Eddy and Samantha set up shop at a corner table.
“We know that Ryan did his time at Free Bank State Prison.” Samantha pulled out a notebook and opened it up on the table.
“Unfortunately, I don’t have any contacts there to find out much about him. It’s a little out of my reach,” Eddy explained.
“Well, lucky for us nothing is out of my reach.” Samantha smiled. “I just need a few minutes and we’ll know what Ryan ate for breakfast and when he took his naps.”
“Really?” Eddy raised an eyebrow. “I must say your contacts are impressive, Samantha.”
“It comes from years of begging, threatening and in some cases bribing people to help me on stories, Eddy. I don’t think there’s a prison that I don’t have a contact in.”
“I guess that’s something that you should take pride in.”
“It’s going to get us our answers, right?” She began dialing a number on her phone. While she talked on the phone, Jo and Walt joined them at the table with coffee and muffins.
“That smells so good.” Eddy took one of the cups of coffee as Samantha hung up the phone.
“Okay, so this is what I found out. Ryan was let out early for good behavior. He was a model prisoner with no disciplinary issues.”
“So basically, nothing?” Eddy frowned. “This guy isn’t giving us a clue to go on is he?”
“Well, not nothing. I did find out the address he gave when he entered the prison system. It’s not far from here.”
“So, I guess we should go there.” Jo sipped her coffee.
“No way, you are not missing the flower show.” Samantha took her cup of coffee and looked at Jo across the top of it.
“I think a murder investigation is a little more important than a flower show.” Jo took a bite of her muffin.
“I agree.” Eddy narrowed his eyes. “The longer we wait to follow this up the more likely that any information we could find will be gone.”
“That’s great. So, you and Walt can get a cab and go check the address out, while Jo and I go to the flower show.”
“Oh.” Eddy shrugged. “That’s fine with me. Walt?”
“Sure.” Walt picked at the wrapper on his muffin.
“Won’t you guys be disappointed to miss the flower show?” Jo frowned.
“Uh, no.” Eddy grinned. “Not at all.”
After they finished their breakfast the four stood outside the coffee shop to finalize their plans.
“Okay we will make sure that we keep in touch.” Samantha checked her phone to be sure that her ringer was on.
“I’ll let you know if I find out anything.” Eddy tucked his phone into his pocket. “Just remember that whoever the killer is, might be at the flower show. Keep your eyes open.”
“We will.” Jo smiled. “Let’s go, before we miss the first exhibit.”
Samantha waved to Eddy and Walt then followed after Jo to the entrance of the flower show.
***
“All right, Walt, let’s track down this address and find a cab.”
“Not another one. If I get home without contracting some disease I will be amazed.”
Eddy smiled at Walt. “Normally, I think you’re overreacting a little when it comes to the germ thing, but cabs are one thing I can agree with you on.” He stuck his hand out to hail a cab. As he looked towards the road he saw Peter on the sidewalk. He was walking towards the entrance of the flower show. “Maybe we should stay with the girls.” Eddy started to lower his hand just as a cab pulled up next to the sidewalk.
“Eddy, Samantha and Jo can handle themselves. It will only offend Samantha if you keep hovering over her.”
“Oh, you know so much about women now?” Eddy frowned.
“I don’t know about women, but I know that Samantha is a fully capable, intelligent, experienced woman who will have no trouble navigating the likes of Peter Wilks. Now, let’s do our part and let them enjoy their flower show.” Walt sat down in the cab. Eddy looked towards the entrance of the flower show once more, then slid into the cab beside Walt. He stared out the window as the cab rolled away from the flower show. He hoped it wasn’t a mistake to leave Samantha alone with Peter.
Walt gave the address to the driver.
“That’s a short ride.” The driver started to pull away from the curb. Walt sneezed right behind the driver.
“Oh wow, really? Do you think you could cover your nose? I don’t want to be exposed to your germs!”
Walt’s eyes widened. Eddy tried not to laugh.
“I’m sorry, it was unexpected, of course. I have a wipe if you’d like one.”
“That’s all right, just keep your germs to yourself.”
The ride to the address was short, just long enough for Eddy to send a text to Samantha.
Peter is at the flower show, use caution.
When they reached the address she had not responded yet.
Eddy put his phone away and then stepped out of the cab. He handed the driver the payment then turned towards the house.
There were two cars in the driveway of the small rancher. The yard was tended and the house had a fresh coat of paint on it.
“Do you think it’s his parents’ place?” Walt studied the house.
“I’m not sure. I didn’t check into who owns it. I guess we’re about to find out.”
“Do you want me to wait?” the driver asked.
“No, but I’ll give you a call so you can pick us up if you’re still in the area when we need you.”
The driver nodded and handed him a card. Once the cab pulled away Eddy and Walt headed up to the front door of the house. Eddy checked his phone one last time and then knocked on the door. The door swung open to reveal a petite young woman with a smile on her pink lips. Eddy didn’t know what exactly to expect, but this was not it.
Eddy and Walt introduced themselves. “We’re looking for information about a man who used to live here,” Eddy said.
“Do you mean Ryan?” She narrowed her eyes.
“Yes, how do you know him?” Eddy asked as Walt looked past her into the house. He could see that it was very neat. He also noticed boots at the back door, and a baseball cap hung on a hook on the wall. He doubted they belonged to the small woman before him.
“Look, I already know he’s dead. The cops were here to inform me because he never changed his address with the prison system. So, if you got your wires crossed and think you need to tell me again, don’t bother.”
“That’s not exactly why we’re here.” Eddy slid his hands into his pockets. The woman was obviously not broken up over Ryan’s death, but he wanted to know who Ryan was to her. “We’d like to know if you can tell us anything about your brother.”
“My brother?” She laughed. “He wasn’t my brother. He was some stalker who wouldn’t take no for an answer, and the only thing that I can tell you about him is that I’m glad he’s dead. He did us all a favor by taking care of the problem himself. So, if you expect me to shed a tear, you’ve come to the wrong place.”
Eddy leveled his eyes on hers. “So, you must have been his girlfriend?”
“I was not his girlfriend. We dated for a little while, then he got arrested. I would never be with a criminal. I had no idea what he was up to. The cops questioned me up and down because they thought I was involved, but I wasn’t. Ryan got it in his head that he could scam rich, old ladies for millions, and he did. When I met him he was rolling in cash and claimed it was honest money. When he went to jail he started sending me letters and trying to call me all the time. I told him I didn’t want anything to do with him. He sent me letters saying that he couldn’t live without me, and that he would make sure we were together. Honestly, the freak scared me.” She lowered her eyes for a moment. “When I heard he was getting released, I was afraid he was going to show up here and do something to hurt me. Then he called and left a message the day before yesterday saying he was getting the train and going to come see me. He acted as if I should be excited.”
“So, you had no feelings for him at all?” Walt raised an eyebrow.
“Only hatred. He kept interfering in my life, even from jail. He found out about Cory.” She looked over into the living room as a tall, burly man walked into it. “Who is my fiancé, and he tried to cause me trouble by sending Cory letters. He wrote these horrible things about how I was cheating on him with Cory and that when he got out of jail he would make it clear who I belonged to. Like I’m some kind of object. I’m a person, you know?”
Walt’s gaze fixated on the man that stood a few steps away from Leila.
“Of course. Well, the reason we wanted to ask you some questions is because there’s some concern that Ryan did not commit suicide,” Eddy said.
“What do you mean?” Her eyes widened.
“I mean, there is some evidence to support the fact that he might have been murdered.”
The woman’s face drained of color. She looked over at Cory. Then she started to close the door. “I don’t want to answer any more questions. You guys aren’t even cops, are you?” She pushed the door closed. Eddy knocked again, but she did not answer. He could hear the two arguing inside the house, but he couldn’t make out what they said.
“Well, she’s a real sweetheart.” Eddy shook his head. “Sounds like Ryan was a little off his rocker.”
“Eddy, that man in the house, he was on the train.”
“What?” Eddy looked at Walt. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. He had scabs all over his hands. Remember? He was picking them on the platform. I won’t forget that for years.”
“So, Cory was on the train with Ryan.” Eddy smiled a little. “Sounds like this may turn out to be a bit of a love triangle.”
“If Cory knew it was a murder it didn’t look like he told his fiancée about it, though. She was shocked to hear it might not have been suicide.” Walt tapped his finger against his hip. “I think we’re going to need more than just the two of them being on the train together to prove this.”
Chapter Ten
The flower show was in full swing by the time Samantha and Jo got there. Samantha wiped the back of her hand across her forehead. It wasn’t too hot, but the sun was bright and she sweated easily.
“Why don’t I get us some lemonade?” Jo pointed out a vendor cart. “You look like you could use something to cool you off.”
“Sure, that would be great.” Samantha leaned against a railing that surrounded one of the exhibits. As she scanned the crowd she thought about the text Eddy had sent. He saw Peter enter the flower show. So, where was he? She and Jo had been to a few of the exhibits. She did one more sweep of the crowd, then caught sight of the woman that had dropped her suitcase on the platform. She stood in front of someone and appeared to be quite upset. Her shoulders shook, her hands flailed, and she shifted from one foot to the other. She remembered seeing her rather upset outside Ryan’s room before they searched it. Was she just always drunk and upset?
Samantha shook her head and started to look away when the man she spoke to stepped to the side. Right away she recognized Peter. He stared at the woman with a stern expression and poked one finger into the palm of his opposite hand as he spoke. To Samantha it looked like he was explaining something, or trying to get his point across. The woman shook her head and turned away from him. Peter turned and walked away from her. For a moment Samantha considered going after him, but now she was more curious about the woman. Why was she talking to Peter? She recalled that when the woman stood in front of Ryan’s room Peter walked down the corridor towards her. Was his intention to meet with her then? Samantha walked across the path to the woman.
“Excuse me, my name is Samantha. I noticed you talking to that man. Is he upsetting you?” Samantha offered the woman a tissue.
“No, it’s not him. I’m Sandra Banks. That name used to mean something.” She accepted the tissue and dabbed at her eyes. “He’s only tried to help, but I fear things are beyond help now.”
“What do you mean?” Samantha studied her.
“I know you look at me, and all you see is a drunk loser. You should have seen me five years ago.” She sniffled. “I had everything. I made a lot of money, I married a man I thought I could trust, and I thought I was set for the rest of my life. Instead, I had everything stolen from me. Every last penny.” She rubbed the tissue under her eyes.
“That’s terrible,” Samantha sympathized.
“I thought, he would pay, the man who took everything from me. But he didn’t. He got out free to live his life and be happy. He never had to suffer the consequences. While I am ruined.”
“I’m sorry that happened to you, but surely there’s some way to improve your situation. There’s always the chance to start over.”
“No, not now I’m afraid. Now it is far too late.” She sighed and looked at Samantha. “I can see that life has given you plenty to believe in. But for me, life has taken everything. I don’t have hope anymore. Look, I’m even prepared to speak to strangers about it. There’s no hope for me.”
<
br /> “Is there someone you could talk to about the way that you’re feeling?” Samantha leaned closer to her. “You shouldn’t be alone like this.”
“Maybe not. But I am. Don’t worry, I have no intention of doing myself harm. I am not that brave.” She blew her nose and wadded up the tissue. “Please, don’t waste another thought on me. My time has come and gone, you still have time left.” She turned around and walked away from Samantha. Samantha considered following her, but she knew that the woman didn’t want to talk anymore. Her mind focused on one tiny detail that the woman said. She believed the man who had stolen from her was going to pay. Was it possible that she meant Ryan?
“Here you go, one ice cold lemonade.” Jo held the drink out to her. Samantha accepted it with a smile.
“Thanks Jo.”
“Were you talking to that woman again?”
“I was. I need to make a quick phone call, Jo, is that okay? I can meet you at the next section.”
“All right.” Jo’s gaze lingered on her. “Anything I can do to help?”
“No, I just want to check something with Eddy.”
As she walked towards the next exhibit, Samantha pulled out her phone. She dialed Eddy’s number.
“How are things blooming?”
Samantha was startled by Eddy’s question. She broke into a smile. “How clever. I wish I could say beautifully, but I have a question for you.”
“Shoot.”
“When you found out the information about Ryan did it include the name of his victim?”
“Yes, it did.”
“What was it?”
“Give me a second. Yes, here it is. Sandra Banks was the victim. There were others but she took the largest hit and also drew her friends into the scheme with him. At first the police considered that she might be involved in the crime, but when they saw she had invested nearly all of her fortune into the scheme they no longer suspected her.”
“I think we might just have our killer. The woman on the train who was standing near Ryan’s room before we broke into it is Sandra Banks.”