“I’d sure like to stop doing that. What do I call you?”
“Mike.”
“Mike it is.” Winter waited.
“Odd you never mentioned you had Styer’s DNA.”
“You never asked.”
“That’s fair. I thought I owed you, so we’re taking care of the details on this one.”
“When have you not?”
“We also know you moved a friend of ours in the SUV. Took a while to figure that one out.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Of course you don’t. You know, we could use someone like you.”
“Work’s too hard, it’s dirty as hell, and I don’t like your management.”
“We have new managers now,” Mike said.
“Yeah, but you keep getting them from the same sewer.” Winter stood. “Try not to burn your mouth on that coffee, Mike. If we’re done?”
Mike opened his hands and nodded. “Call if you need anything.”
“I won’t.”
Winter used his crutches to walk over to where Hamp was performing magic for a bald child in pajamas.
Winter placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Let’s you and me go upstairs and check in with the girls.”
“First, my big finish,” Hampton said, standing.
Winter waited, smiling as Hampton Gardner seemed to pluck two playing cards from thin air, placing one in each of the child’s small hands.
The child laughed, and his parents applauded.
The Great Mephisto put a hand to his stomach and bowed deeply.
129
It was three o’clock sunday afternoon when Alexa finally showed up in Winter’s room. “Hey, kiddo,” Winter said.
He turned off the TV. After the initial smile she’d been wearing evaporated, his antennae came out. She put the two manila envelopes she was holding on the table beside his bed.
“Is everything okay?” he asked.
“Not really. I turned in your rental, and your gun’s in one of these envelopes.”
“They released my gun?”
“Nobody’s interested in keeping it since the shooting isn’t going to generate any inquest. The FBI and Homeland are handling the incidents. You know the ‘official’ statement drill. Massey, when you think about this, just remember that you did good. Real good.”
“You all right?” Winter asked her again, trying to get at what was weighing her down.
“Well, there’s something you need to know. When I was at Brad’s earlier, a deputy came in with Jacob’s coat from the wreck. There was a recorder in the pocket that was damaged and didn’t work. I put the tape into another mini and it worked. You need to listen to it. I put another cassette into the damaged machine so they won’t know I took it.”
“What’s on it?”
“Troubling shit. No one else has heard it. I’m headed to the airport, since I’ve been ordered to join an investigation in progress. I’m going to turn this over to you. You decide how you want to handle it and let me know. I know you’ll do the right thing.”
She gave him a gentle hug and kissed him on the cheek. He saw that her eyes were filling with tears. She moved to the door and smiled weakly.
“Massey, if it weren’t for a few people like you, I’d have written the world off a long time ago. Sometimes I just want to turn in my badge and go live on the side of a mountain.”
When she left the room, Winter turned his attention to the envelopes. He reached over to the table and lifted the manila envelope that had Gardner written on it.
He took the end of the red string and unwound it from the plastic disk, then poured out a pocket mini-recorder.
Winter pressed the PLAY button. The tape began with Jacob’s voice telling the date of the day he was murdered. That was followed by a confession, a surreptitiously recorded conversation with Leigh, and the unmistakable sounds of his flight from the house, which had ended with his death and the recorder’s destruction. As Winter listened, he felt like a trapdoor had swung open beneath him.
Before he closed his eyes, he had listened to the tape three times, and still had no idea how he was going to use the information.
130
Leigh Gardner turned and smiled when Winter walked into the room where Brad Barnett lay in bed, a bandage encasing the left quarter of his head. His left hand was locked with Leigh’s right.
“Look who’s here, Brad,” Leigh said.
“Massey,” Brad said, smiling crookedly. His voice was no more than a low rasping. “Leigh told me that German bastard clipped you. Sorry I wasn’t more helpful.”
“He chewed on me some.” Winter shook Brad’s free hand gently. “You look a lot better than the last time I saw you.”
“Since you were injured in the line of duty, Tunica County has your medical expenses covered. Whatever you need.”
“We owe you everything, Winter,” Leigh said.
“I asked Leigh to marry me,” Brad said.
“I think it’s the meds talking.” Leigh giggled, squeezing Brad’s hand.
“Bullshit,” Brad declared. “I didn’t really believe it, but you were right about that bastard,” Brad said, meaning Styer. “Daddy never had a chance.”
“I was lucky,” Winter said. “And I had Alexa.”
“It’s over now,” Leigh said, frowning. “We bury our dead, help the wounded as best we can, and life goes on.”
“That’s that farmer realism talking,” Brad said. “Leigh’s a rock.”
“Yeah,” Winter agreed. “That she is.”
The door opened and Cynthia came bouncing in with a soft drink in her hand. She patted Winter’s shoulder playfully as she passed him, went to the bed, and kissed Brad’s cheek. “How you feeling, Pops?” She looked at Winter and her face lit up. “God, is that ever weird or what? I grew up in the same town with Brad and never knew he was my daddy.”
“Where’s Hampton?” Winter asked.
“Gone to spend the night with an old friend of Mama’s,” Cynthia said. “She works as a volunteer at the zoo. He’s helping her feed animals or some happy shit.”
“Cyn!” Leigh snapped. “Language.”
“Sorry,” Cyn said, shrugging.
“I brought you something,” he said, handing Leigh the envelope. “These are Jacob’s personal effects from the accident.”
“Thanks,” she said, dropping the envelope unceremoniously into a shopping bag beside her chair.
Winter’s cell phone rang. He opened it and put it to his ear. “Yeah, Billy. Leigh’s right here,” Winter said, handing Leigh his phone. “He needs to talk to you.”
“Yes? I can be at your office in an hour. Address?” she asked. “Yes, Winter can show me. Cynthia too? Sure, I guess so.”
Winter put the cell phone into his pocket and spent the next fifteen minutes making idle conversation with Leigh and Cynthia. He had thought it would be more difficult.
131
Winter directed leigh to a large three-story building in downtown Memphis that housed Lyons, Battle, Cole amp; Vance, where a dozen attorneys were growing steadily richer.
Winter, Leigh, and Cynthia stepped out of the elevator. Through the glass-enclosed elevator bank, Winter spotted Billy Lyons standing in the reception area talking to a young man dressed for golf. When Billy saw them, he ended the conversation, strode across the space, and opened the door for the trio.
“How’s the leg?”
“Stiff and sore.”
“The ribs?”
“They’re fine as long as I don’t inhale.”
“I hate to rush things, but can we sign the papers? We need to get back to Brad,” Leigh said pleasantly.
“Of course. My office awaits,” Billy said, leading the way.
After Billy closed the door to his office, he indicated the conference table and they all sat down.
“What exactly are these papers about?” Leigh asked, looking from Billy to Winter. “I thought everything was done. And w
hy did you ask that Cyn come?”
Winter leaned forward. “Billy is here as your attorney to advise you. After I tell you a few things, you can ask his advice,” he said.
“Or you can hire another lawyer if you choose,” Billy added.
“That’s going to be up to you,” Winter said.
“What exactly do I need an attorney for?” Leigh asked. Her face had been captured by a steely frown.
“We’ll talk about that,” Winter said. “First you need to hear this.” Winter took out the recorder and placed it on the table in front of him.
“What’s that?” Cyn asked, looking confused.
“This was in Jacob’s coat pocket when he was murdered.”
Leigh didn’t say anything, but the color drained from her cheeks.
Winter snapped on the machine and sat back.
“This is Jacob Gardner,” the murdered man’s voice said, authoritatively. “I am making this recording because I think it is prudent for me to have an ace in the hole. It has occurred to me that after this business venture is done, and Leigh does not need me, I will be out in the cold, or worse. I have good reason to believe she’s covered her ass nicely and that I will be fed to the wolves. A year ago, I discovered that a foreign corporation was buying land adjacent to a section I was foolish enough to have signed over to my ex-wife as collateral for a loan to repay people I had fleeced. There is no way to sugarcoat that, as it is a fact. Leigh has the evidence to prove that as well as other things that would discredit me. When I approached her and attempted to get the land back so I could sell it and regain my financial independence and dignity, she refused. When I discovered that the corporation buying the land owned the Roundtable, I did some research and found out that they owned only high-end resorts, with one exception-the Roundtable. I was convinced they were planning to build another large resort and that my land would be worth a fortune due to its proximity to the resort. This was before I learned from Albert White that my parcel was the sole remaining property in the middle of the whole shebang. I decided there was enough money to go around. Since Leigh was suspicious because I wanted the land back, I knew I had no choice but to bring her in. Leigh’s father knew-”
Leigh reached out and turned off the machine. “This is crap,” she said angrily. “Jacob was insane.” She stood up. “He never once told the truth in his life. He is trying to make me look guilty of something. This is some sort of revenge in case he got caught!”
“We should listen to the rest of it,” Billy said.
“Come on, Cyn. We’re leaving,” Leigh said. “Nothing Jacob Gardner said is worth anything. He never told the truth in his miserable life.”
Cynthia stood.
“You’d be right,” Winter said. “Except for the fact that he recorded a certain conversation. You can walk out if you like, but if you do, you’ll force me to turn this over to Brad.”
Leigh and Cynthia sat.
Winter turned the machine on again, rewinded a little, and Jacob continued. “Leigh’s father knew Albert White from his younger days when he needed a favor done in West Memphis that involved getting his brother out of a possible assault on a whore. He almost beat her to death. For a fee, White framed someone else and Leigh’s uncle walked. After that, her uncle sold Leigh’s father his interest in the plantation for a pittance because Leigh’s father had the goods on him.
I finally leveled with Leigh because she wasn’t going to sell back the land to me. I had quit gambling, but Leigh and White suggested that I lose a lot of money to the casino and other casinos. Albert got ten grand up front, which Leigh paid him, against a percentage of the sale price for his help in getting RRI to pay top dollar. He got me a large line of credit at the Roundtable and two other casinos, and we made Pierce Mulvane think I owned the land they needed. Albert correctly figured they would buy up my other debt from the competition, and pressure me to swap the land for them. When they did that, I admitted that I didn’t actually own the land, and that I would have to convince Leigh to sell it. Then Leigh would play the heavy-which is no big stretch-and they would have to pony up really big bucks for it. White and Jack Beals kept us informed as to what was happening inside the casino since those people aren’t above using unpleasant means to get what they want, and did we ever have what they wanted. With White on the inside, we thought we could stay ahead of them and be safe.”
Winter was watching Leigh’s and Cyn’s face as they listened, but neither gave anything away.
“Everything was going along fine until the casino manager and people above him felt the pressure. Albert said they were bringing in a professional to help out and he didn’t know who that was. Some mystery man from Europe. They already had a cold-blooded killer-this Tug guy-so we figured this other guy was gathering information. They asked White to supply someone to help the new guy, so White sent Beals in. I believed everything would work fine right up until the babysitter got shot, which nobody knew was going to happen. Beals was helping this new guy and keeping Albert informed, but this guy told Beals shit, and according to White, the guy killed him. Since I didn’t fully trust White, Cyn would double-check White’s information from Beals. She knew him from when he was a deputy, and she was sixteen, when he stopped her for reckless driving and she had weed on her. My daughter, never one to keep her legs together, fucked Beals to keep from getting in trouble, and from then on she’d meet him for a quickie every now and then. I found out about it when she was staying with me, but figured it wouldn’t hurt to see if she could help, pump Beals on the side to make sure White was staying honest. She agreed. Call it insurance. That was between me and Cyn, and I thought it best Leigh didn’t know.
“White didn’t know anything about the babysitter’s killing. Then Beals got killed, and White was freaked, but the money held him tight. That and a threat to tell Mulvane what he’d been doing for us. They’d have killed him for that and he knew it. I tried to get Mulvane on tape admitting to having Sherry killed, but he took the tape. Hell, he was probably recording me. If they were willing to kill Sherry Adams-and I know that Leigh was more likely the actual target-they’ll kill me. Maybe White is playing both sides. I can’t trust anybody, especially based on Brad’s actions, and what Leigh’s been telling him. Now Mulvane’s guys have Cynthia and if little Miss Barnett isn’t killed, she’ll back Leigh up. I sure as hell don’t trust those two. Leigh’s been talking to Barnett and his buddy and lying to me about what she’s telling them sure as I’m sweating. I certainly don’t believe she’s just playing them to see what they know and what they’re up to like she said. She’s one conniving bitch, so I’m making this to cover my own ass.”
Winter stopped the tape recorder.
“It’s all lies. He was jealous of Brad because he knew I loved him. He knew Cyn wasn’t his daughter, that I was pregnant with Brad’s child when we got married. Can’t you see? I love Brad. I’ve always loved him.”
“Jacob was a total loser,” Cyn added, her voice rising to a petulant whine. “He ruined everything he could get his hands on. He was a totally selfish asshole. If he’d had his way, the plantation would have been lost, along with everything our family has held on to. He’s lying about everything. My mother is totally innocent.”
Winter waited until she finished speaking.
“Say I’m willing to believe that you do love Brad, Leigh. That doesn’t change the fact that you and Cynthia, to some extent, are directly or indirectly responsible for every death that is connected with this.”
“Even if Jacob were telling the truth, nobody could have foreseen that anybody would be harmed,” Leigh said. “And I can’t believe you are playing this in front of Cynthia. It’s too cruel for words. She was a victim of that Beals creature. He raped her. She was a child.”
Winter decided to blend Leigh’s claim with the truth he suspected. “I have her cell phone records and Beals’s too. The text messages they traded are very interesting. Cynthia may have been initially victimized by Beals, but she didn’t r
eport the assault, and she kept right on meeting him until very recently. Cyn’s car was in that barn when it blew up.”
“I lied about where I got kidnapped, but not by who. I didn’t know that man.”
Winter pounced. “You drove out there.”
She nodded slowly, chewing her fingernail.
“Should I get the call record so you can see it and refresh your memory?”
“Yeah, I got a message to meet Jack, but he wasn’t there and that man you shot kidnapped me.”
Winter picked up the recorder and fast-forwarded to one of the numbers he had filed in his memory. He had doubted there would be any reason to play the tape in its entirety, and it was best they didn’t know everything that was on the tape. The secretly recorded conversation began with Jacob’s voice.
“This is out of control. Brad and Massey grilled me like a criminal. I don’t give a shit what you say, they know things they had to have gotten from you, Leigh. They aren’t getting it from talking to Albert White. If you think I’m going to take the blame for this pile of shit while you walk away rich, you’re fucking nuts.”
Leigh’s voice said, “Hold yourself together, Jacob. Cynthia is going to be all right as soon as we do the deal. Why would I be telling them anything that would threaten you? It’s paranoia. Brad and Massey are just fishing. Ignore it. Just keep your shit together, your mouth shut, and we’ll be out clean with a lot of money. Don’t forget who it was turned the couple of hundred grand you would have settled for into millions.”
Jacob said, “People have died. More could.”
Leigh came back. “You think I don’t know that? We’re going to have to live with Sherry’s blood on our hands.” Leigh was crying. “It was that Mulvane who did that. You do what you’re told or you will go to jail.”
There was the sound of Jacob hitting Leigh, and of Hamp running in and calling Jacob a bastard.
Winter clicked off the machine.
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