Falafel Jones - Max Fried 02 - Payback's a Beach

by Falafel Jones

  Torres handed me a pair of gloves. “Put these on and follow me, but don’t touch anything.”

  I gave him a puzzled look and he said, “If the boat shifts and you grab something for balance, I don’t want you leaving prints.” After we entered the boat’s cabin, he said, “Now show me where you found it.”

  I led the way to the cabinet in which I saw the fish net and reached to open it. Torres grabbed my wrist and said, “Wait a minute.” He opened the door and we both peered inside. The cabinet was empty and he asked, “You sure this was the one?”

  “Yes, positive. She must have moved it after I saw it.”

  I followed him as he walked the perimeter of the master stateroom and he said, “Wow, from the outside, I’d never guess how nice it could be in here.” He opened a second door to reveal the bathroom and then opened the medicine cabinet. He reached inside, pulled out an aspirin bottle, and opened it. He shook a pill out into the palm of his gloved hand and smiled, “Roofies.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes.” He returned the pills to the bottle and secured it inside a clear plastic bag.

  I followed him out to the cockpit and onto the dock where he waved his evidence bag at Fitzpatrick and said, “Roofies.”

  Fitzpatrick pulled his handcuffs from his belt, climbed on the boat, and arrested Maddie for illegal drug possession.

  Torres asked her, “Where’s the fish net?”

  Maddie said, “I’m not saying anything. I want a lawyer.” Then she indicated Ed with her chin. “But not him.”

  Torres asked Ed, “Does she have any other personal space in the club? Maybe a storage room or something like that?”

  “Yes, ” Ed pointed to a wooden cabinet on the dock next to Maddie’s boat. “Each slip comes with an equipment box plus members and guest are assigned a locker in our health club.”

  Torres said, “Fitz, call and extend that warrant to the box and the health club.” Fitzpatrick stepped away to call for the health club warrant.

  Ed nodded, “You need a warrant for the health club but not for the equipment box. Ever since some bozo stored a leaking gas container in one, the lease agreement has granted the club discretionary access.” Ed pulled his key ring from his pocket, opened the lock, and stepped back.

  Torres leaned in and examined the box. He ran his hand around the inside feeling the top, bottom, back and sides. “Empty.”

  Fitzpatrick returned from his call and put his phone in his pocket, “All set, Leon.”

  Torres nodded, “McCarthy, show me the locker.”

  I followed as Ed led Torres and me into the yacht club and down a hall until we came to a sign, “Women’s Locker Room.” Ed stopped and turned to face us. “We can’t go in there until it’s empty. I’ll call someone.” He pulled out his cell phone and dialed.

  Torres said, “Tell them to bring a bolt-cutter in case we need to cut the lock.” Ed nodded and made his call.

  When he finished, the three of us stood there, stared at the locker room, and waited until we could enter. I had to jump out of the way when the door flew open and a red haired woman came out. She stopped and looked at the three of us, one at a time.

  “Wow,” she said, “Mona was right. She said that if I want to meet men, I should go to a health club.” She held out a hand palm up. “And look at you three. So, tell me, do you all do this stage-door Johnny thing together on a regular basis? You know, where you wait outside the door for women?” She placed a hand on Torres’s shoulder. “You’re nice.” She smiled at him. “I wouldn’t have minded meeting you inside.” She took hold of his wrist and examined his latex gloved hand. “Oooo, kinky.”

  Torres stammered and pointed down to his belt where he wore his detective shield. The woman smiled at him and said, “Thanks, Hon, I wanted to check it out but I didn’t want to stare and make you uncomfortable.” She stepped back and looked down at Torres’s crotch. “Verrry nice, oh and you’re a cop too.” She patted his cheek and grinned. “Betcha got a big gun, too.”

  Ed said, “I’m sorry about the confusion, Miss. The detective is waiting for the locker room to clear out so he can conduct some police business.”

  She looked disappointed and said to Ed, “And who are you Mister Buzzkill?”

  Ed responded, “My name is Max Fried.”

  The woman harrumphed and flounced away down the hall.

  Another woman wearing a tool belt passed her in the opposite direction and came up to greet Ed, “Hi, Commodore, Jeanie said you needed someone to clear the ladies?”

  “Yes, Debbie, please.”

  Debbie entered the locker room and a few moments later held the door open for us. “It’s all clear.”

  Ed said, “This way. Jeanie said Maddie’s locker is number 22.”

  We found Maddie’s padlocked locker and Torres looked side to side. “OK, where’s the bolt cutter?”

  Debbie leaned in towards Ed and whispered, “We don’t use a bolt cutter. Members complained about broken locks.” Her whisper was louder than Ed’s normal voice.

  Ed said, “What? They cost like what? Five bucks?”

  “Yeah, but it’s not the money. The members don’t like the inconvenience of having their stuff unsecured and they really don’t like going to the hardware store or WalMart.”

  “So, what do you do when you need to get into a locker?”

  Debbie slipped something out of her pocket and showed it to Ed. “Padlock shim.”

  “So use that. Why are you whispering?”

  “Shims are illegal. They’re ‘burglary tools’.” She nodded towards Torres. “He’s a cop.”

  Torres said, “I don’t care how you do it. Just open the damn locker.”

  Debbie bobbed her head in understanding and placed a slim metal sheath around the padlock shaft. Once she had the shim in place, she pressed down and the locking mechanism released the shaft. She removed the open padlock and handed it to Ed.

  Torres opened the locker, reached inside and pulled out a four-foot long fish net. “Got it.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  We formed another parade but this time we reversed our path back to Maddie’s boat. She sat handcuffed on the dock against a pylon while Fitzpatrick loomed over her. She looked up as we approached and Torres waved the fish net at her. “I found your net.” He hefted it and said, “It’s pretty heavy, heavy enough to do the damage we saw on Fisher’s head.”

  Maddie said nothing and looked away from Torres.

  “So, what happened? You drugged his booze so you could sneak up, whack him on the head, and toss him overboard?”

  Maddie looked back at him with a defiant stare. “That lying drunk deserved it. He led me on and dumped me but I didn’t kill him. All I did was drug his booze. I wanted him to pass out and wake up in the middle of the Atlantic without any gas.”

  “But we know you passed his boat in the inlet. You have his net.”

  “I cruised down with Bucky, but his boat is faster than mine so I was a few minutes behind him. When I got to the inlet, I looked for Bucky but only saw one other boat. As I came closer, I saw it was Drew’s boat drifting in the channel. I thought he probably drank himself into a coma and I wanted to see it. I wanted to gloat but when I boarded the Amante, all I saw was blood on the deck. I didn’t even see Fisher on the boat.” She shrugged, “I decided to look for Bucky’s gold, and I tripped over the fish net.”

  “Did you look in the cabin?”

  “No, the fish net was in my way so I picked it up. After I saw how heavy it was, I realized I must have found the gold he bought with the money he stole from Bucky. I took it and left.”

  Torres twisted the rubber handgrip off the net handle and a thin gold cylinder slid out into his hand. He pushed it back into the hollow handle and replaced the grip.

  “OK, let’s go to the station and you can make your statement there.”

  Fitzpatrick helped Maddie to her feet and led her into the clubhouse. As they walked through to the parking lot out fron
t, the redhead from the health club watched. When Fitzpatrick approached with Maddie in handcuffs, she winked at him and said, “Now, that’s kinky.”

  Ed and I watched as the police took Maddie and left. After a few moments of staring after cars that were no longer in sight, Ed said, “I didn’t hear them arrest her in connection with Fisher’s death.”

  I said, “Maybe they’re going to wait until they have a look at the murder weapon? How long do they have?”

  “There’s no statute of limitations on murder but if she’s guilty and they let her go now, she’ll flee. We need to attend Maddie’s arraignment.”

  “Why?”

  “So we can find out the charges against her.”

  “Can’t we find that out some other way?”

  “Not as quickly. It’s public record but it won’t be recorded anywhere we can get the information as quickly as we can by being there when her plea is entered.”

  “Let me guess. I’ve got to get up early tomorrow, don’t I?”

  Ed lit a cigarette and blew smoke out the side of his mouth. “Pick you up at eight. This time, eat first.”

  I wondered how Maddie’s arrest would affect Brenda’s situation. Was their case against Maddie strong enough that they would leave Brenda alone?

  The next morning, I was showered, fed, and dressed by 7:57 am. Ed pulled up just as I finished putting my dishes in the dishwasher. I think I surprised him by getting to his car before he could open his door. I slid into the passenger seat and he gawked at me. “Who are you and what have you done to Max?”

  I put my finger to my lips, “Shhh. Don’t tell anyone.”

  Ed raised an eyebrow as he backed out of my driveway. “No one would believe me anyway. How’s Mariel?”

  “Don’t know.”

  “You don’t know?”

  “Last time we spoke was last night.”

  “What’d she say?”

  “I love you but don’t wake me up on your way out.”

  We arrived at the courthouse and got through security just as the bailiff called the first case. Ed and I took seats and I watched a young A.D.A. with a wispy mustache charge a young man with a DUI and driving without a license. The judge took the man’s plea, set his bail and then the bailiff called Maddie’s case. Maddie stood and scanned the faces of the people sitting in the gallery. When she fixed her gaze in one spot, I followed it and saw Bucky in a back row, corner seat.

  The judge, a 50-ish woman with short blond hair said, “Appearances?” The small, white haired, lady on Ed’s right placed her left hand on his forearm and whispered, “Oh, don’t you just love Judge Simmons. I think she’s the best.” Ed turned to the lady. He looked surprised. She smiled up at him, patted his knee, and said, “Haven’t seen you here before.” Ed’s mouth dropped open.

  The A.D.A stood at the prosecutor’s table for what was likely to be the second of many times that day and stated his name for the record. “A.D.A. Knott for the people.”

  A handsome, well-dressed, older gentleman approached the defendant’s podium with Maddie at his side. “Alfred Helmsley for the defense, Your Honor.”

  Ed whispered to the lady, “Oh? Do you come here often?”

  She beamed at him and wiggled the top of her cane in her right hand. “I haven’t heard that line in years.”

  Without looking up, the judge wrote something down and said, “Quiet in the gallery. Mr. Helmsley. Do you waive the reading?”

  “Yes, Your Honor.”

  The old lady ducked her head down between her shoulders for a second, smiled at Ed and then placed her finger vertically on her lip.

  The judge made another note, looked up, and said, “Madison Bouleveau, you are charged with one count of petit larceny punishable by a fine of up to $500 and or up to 60 days in jail. How do you plead?”

  “Not guilty, Your Honor.”

  The judge made another note and then said, “Madison Bouleveau, you are also charged with possession of a schedule 1 controlled substance. This is a third degree felony punishable by a fine of up to $5000 and or imprisonment of up to five years in a state penitentiary. How do you plead?”

  Maddie swallowed so hard, I could hear her gulp. “Not guilty, Your Honor.”

  The judge made another note and said. “Bail?”

  A.D.A. Knott said, “Fifty thousand dollars, judge. The defendant is a New York State resident with no local address.”

  Helmsley smoothed his tie with his palm. “Your Honor, Ms. Bouleveau is a snowbird. She has been spending her winters in Florida, here in Volusia County for over 20 years.” He turned to face the prosecutor. “Since before Mr. Knott started kindergarten.”

  The judge looked up. “That wasn’t necessary, Mr. Helmsley. She has a local address?”

  When Helmsley stated the address, the judge turned from him to look at the young A.D.A. When A.D.A. Knott said nothing, the judge said, “You don’t recognize the address, do you?”

  Knott looked embarrassed. “No, ma’am.”

  The judge smiled. “Maybe you will later in your career. That’s the Coronado Yacht Club. Mr. Helmsley, does your client have use of a boat?”

  “Um, yes, Your Honor.”

  The judge said, “Bail is set at $50,000. Defendant will surrender her passport and is ordered not to leave United States waters. Next case.”

  Ed and I left the courtroom for the hall and I asked him, “Now what?”

  “Well, a couple of things don’t make sense.” Ed noticed some people standing in earshot and motioned me over to a bench facing the courtroom door. We sat and he said, “Petit larceny is theft of an item worth less than $300. That gold rod has to be upwards of 500 thou. More importantly, they didn’t charge her with murder or even attempted murder. Hell, they didn’t even charge her with manslaughter. I don’t get it.” Ed nodded towards the courtroom door. “Let’s wait for Helmsley.”

  “You know him?”

  Ed gave me his “Are you kidding me?” look and I realized, of course he knew him. Ed knew everybody, especially if they had money and or influence. As I thought about it, I was surprised he bothered to spend any time at all with me.

  Ed reached into his pocket for his cigarettes and fumbled in the pack to pull one loose. I pointed to his hands and said, “Ed.”

  “What? Oh.” As he put the package back into his pocket, Helmsley and Bucky exited the courtroom. Bucky handed Helmsley an envelope, which quickly disappeared inside Helmsley’s expensive looking suit jacket. The two men spoke to each other, shook hands and then Bucky pulled out his cell phone.

  Helmsley apparently noticed Ed on the bench because he walked over to him and reached out his hand. “Edward McCarthy. It’s been a while but then, I haven’t been down here for one of these in years. The associates handle these types of things for me.”

  Ed stood and shook his hand. “So why are you here?”

  Helmsley grinned. “When a big client wants a small favor, who am I to say no?” Helmsley turned to me. “You made a great choice selecting Mr. McCarthy here. If anybody can get you off, it’s him.”

  I said, “I didn’t do anything.”

  Helmsley smiled at me. “Of course you didn’t and Ed will find a way to prove it.”

  Ed said, “As much as I’m enjoying this confusion, Max isn’t my client. He’s a PI.”

  Helmsley looked at his watch and I could see the Rolex logo. “Really? How nice for him. I’ve got to get going but it was good to see you again, Ed.”

  “Sure. Oh and good job in there.”

  Helmsley brightened and no longer seemed in a hurry to leave. “Oh, you saw me work?”

  “Yes and I’m impressed. How’d you get that charge reduced to petit larceny? That gold rod had to be worth several hundred thousand.”

  Helmsley laughed. “It certainly would be if it were solid gold.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “That rod isn’t worth more than $250. It’s made from lead and only thinly plated with gold. Cheap gold at that.”
>
  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Helmsley took off leaving Ed and me in the hall. I didn’t get it so I asked Ed, “Why would someone hide a fake gold rod on Fisher’s boat?”

  He shrugged. I wanted to shrug it off too, but I couldn’t. I just can’t leave things alone when they don’t make sense. I speculated. “Maybe someone wanted to smoke out a thief?”

  Ed said, “If that’s the case, it would be likely that Fisher planted it there.”

  “Yeah, or maybe somebody stole Fisher’s gold rod and wanted to delay discovery of the theft.”

  “Or maybe it’s a red herring.”

  “Red herring?”

  “Yes, maybe there never was any real gold rod. Maybe Fisher put Bucky’s money elsewhere and used the gold plated rod as misdirection.”

  “Gee, I guess we’ll never know.”

  Ed looked past me down the hall. “Bucky doesn’t look upset.”

  I turned to see Bucky putting his cell phone back in his pocket. “Why’s he still here?”

  “Probably waiting for Maddie. I saw him give Helmsley an envelope. My guess is that Bucky paid for her legal fees and posted her bail.”

  “Let’s talk to him. See if he says anything that might explain the rod.”

  Bucky must have seen us looking his way because he waved as we walked over. We shook hands all around and he looked like he was actually happy to see us. I’m not used to that and I certainly didn’t expect it from Bucky. I was the one who led the police to Maddie.

  Bucky shook Ed’s hand and without letting go said, “I’m glad to see you, Ed.” Bucky pulled Ed closer, lowered his voice, and said, “I’ve got some business for you. Can’t discuss it here.”

  Ed said, “Sure. I’m happy to help.”

  Bucky released Ed’s hand. “Still have that office off of Flagler Avenue?”

  “Yes.”