The Traveling Corpse

by Double Edge Press

  Before leaving home, Annie had eaten only a banana and drank a glass of fresh orange juice. She squeezed the oranges which had just ripened that month from their own back yard tree. She didn’t eat more breakfast, suspecting that Verna would have a treat for them. Hopefully, it would be one of Verna’s homemade blueberry coffee cakes still warm from the oven. Annie was disappointed, no homemade coffee cake, but fresh doughnuts were a treat too.

  Verna reported that Von said that people in the doughnut shop were buzzing, full of talk about Jiggs’ death and also about the missing person report on Twila Thompson.

  “Were they putting the two events together?” the ever-practical Barb asked.

  “He nevah mentioned anything about that.”

  “This place will be in a turmoil when they do! Ya can jest count on that, fer sure,” DeeDee said with emphasis.

  “Something’s bothering me,” Annie told her friends, “and I can’t figure out what it is.”

  ‘What’s botherin’ ya?”

  “Don’t you think the Sheriff’s deputies will tie up the loose ends now?” Barb questioned.

  “I’m not sure. Maybe they wouldn’t even know to question this.”

  “What? Question what?’

  “Well,” Annie continued, “Why was Jiggs helping Karl? Or, do you suppose it was the other way around?”

  “That’s a good question. A $64,000 question,” DeeDee said.

  “Remember when we made out this list?” Annie pulled the folded yellow-lined sheet out of the pocket of her jumper. “DeeDee saw a man pull a body from behind the air-conditioning unit early last Wednesday morning. She said he was big and had bushy hair. We all thought it was Karl. But, it could have been Jiggs wearing a toboggan to cover his baldhead.”

  “That’s right!” DeeDee exclaimed. “It could have been either Jiggs or Karl. If ya put me on a witness stand, I could not swear which one it was.”

  Annie continued, “And here’s another thing, we figured that Twila must have gone to Old Main to meet with Karl. Let’s review what we know and what we can surmise: If Twila drove all the way back here that day from Sanibel Island, it would have had to be noon or early afternoon before she arrived in BradLee. That’s over a three hour drive—maybe four. The early Bingo session starts at five p.m., but some of the players come long before that. They feel lucky if they can sit in the exact seat each week; so some of them come an hour early and play cards to pass the time. Barb and I always get there by 3:30 to make the sandwiches. Some of the other volunteers start at least by 3 p.m. So, if she were killed in Old Main, it had to be when no one else was in the building. Let’s say that Twila got there to meet with Karl around two o’clock and that she and Karl were the only ones there. That’s when he may have accidentally killed her.”

  “So how does Jiggs fit in this puzzle?” Verna asked, “He had to be involved in it from the first, don’t you think? Otherwise, why would he have been out there digging last night?”

  “The way things have turned out, I think Verna’s right. It looks like Jiggs had to have been there,” Barb said. “Let’s try this idea; say he and Karl were both there, meeting with Twila. Suppose Jiggs is the one who accidentally pushed her.”

  “Oh! That makes sense,” Annie jumped in, “Then it was Karl who had to help Jiggs, not the other way around. If he didn’t, then there’d be an investigation into her death that might lead to the whole money skimming bit coming out, and he, Karl, would have to go to jail!”

  “I’d rather go to jail for skimming Bingo money than for murder,” Barb asserted with finality.

  “You’re right, but they must have panicked, and one of them got the idea of hiding her body in the decoration drawer.”

  “It makes sense ta me,” DeeDee said.

  “So the two men were in this mess together. Who knows which one did which?”

  “They only had one golf cart,” Verna pointed out. “Jiggs lives real close to the golf course; he just pulls his clubs ovah with him when he plays, and he walks the course.”

  “That’s good to know. Since Karl’s golf cart is so distinctive, we always thought he was driving it. Maybe it was Karl’s cart, but Jiggs was driving it.”

  Barb raised her eyebrows and said, “Possibly. But we know Karl was driving it last night. We saw him and followed him home, remember? We don’t know if he even knew Jiggs was killed; he might have gotten scared and driven away, just leaving Jiggs there with the body.”

  “Some friend!” snorted DeeDee.

  “Or,” Annie said thoughtfully, “he could have seen the ostrich kick Jiggs. Once that happened, he knew there was nothing he could do so he took off.”

  DeeDee posed a new question, “Do ya suppose he saw the light from Juarez’s flashlight an’ that spooked him?” She looked at Barb and Verna, “Could ya see any light comin’ from the deputy’s flashlight from where ya were watchin?”

  “I didn’t see any light until the car headlights came on. Did you, Verna?”

  “No, but to hide the golf carts from view and still be able to watch the gate, we couldn’t see where Jiggs was digging.”

  Where was Twila’s body during all of this?” Barb wondered.

  “Now, that’s anotha $64,000 question!” DeeDee exclaimed.

  “We didn’t see her body or anything on that golf cart last night beside Karl,” Barb stated. “And we got a pretty good look when he backed up to shut the gate. That night light on the pole was bright enough for us to see the passenger seat. It was empty and nothing was strapped on the back where the clubs go.”

  “Suppose the body had been on the cart, but it fell off, maybe when he was hurrying to get out of there. He might have started up with a jerk and the body fell off, or he could have made a sharp turn and the lurch threw it off,” Annie theorized. “Art and I were so busy watching that ostrich charge that we never looked over in the field. He could have been in plain sight for a few seconds, and we wouldn’t have seen him. Of course, it was pretty dark. I don’t think the deputy looked over there either. We couldn’t take our eyes off that spectacle of the ostrich kicking Jiggs,” Annie shuddered. “It’s a sight I never want to see again as long as I live!”

  “Well,” DeeDee said with disgust, “We’re learnin’ that Karl is basically not a very nice man. He’s scary”

  Barb added her thoughts, “DeeDee’s right about Karl; he’s not the nice man we once thought he was. I think he was more interested in trying to save his own skin than in helping his friend. What about this idea? When he saw Jiggs fall down from the ostrich kick, Karl knew he had to get rid of Twila; so he just pushed the body out, and took off.”

  Her friends looked at her, stunned.

  Verna jumped up from the table and said determinedly, “Barb, you could be right. We need to get ovah there and look in that field instead of sitting here drinking coffee. I think we should go ovah there right now. Maybe we can find something.” She started putting the left-over doughnuts in a plastic bag.

  As DeeDee carried her plate to the sink, she said, “I think that’s a grand idea. I jest hope those deputies will still appreciate us tryin’ ta help some more.” She turned to Annie and Barb, “One of ya girls can ride with me if ya want ta leave your bikes here.”

  “The othah can go with me,” Verna offered. “I’ll leave a note for Von to let him know where we are.”

  “I’d like to leave a note for Art on his golf cart. It’ll be in the parking lot by the Pro Shop.”

  “Ask him to call Brad, please,” Barb said to Annie.

  * * *

  Yellow tape blocked the area around the scene of last night’s accident. The tee for Number Five was off limits. An enterprising Golf Ranger, eager to keep the course open in this very busy winter season, asked the deputy to pull up the men’s and women’s ball markers. He planned to push them in the ground further away to make a new tee. However, Joe Juarez refused, saying, “I’m sorry, sir, but nothing can be moved until the site is cleared by the Sheriff’s Department
.” So, the Golf Ranger drove to the Pro Shop, found a new set of markers, went back, and pushed them into the ground. This kept the fifth hole open for play.

  The yellow tape also ran along the fence where the ostriches and emus were usually penned. When the four senior women pulled up, Deputy Juarez and Sgt. Menendez were both there. The two officers walked over to the senior women. Menendez asked in a kind voice, “And why am I not surprised to see you ladies here this fine morning?”

  “We, ah, we wanted ta see it in daylight,” DeeDee offered as explanation.

  “And this afternoon,” the sergeant said with authority. “I’d like you all to come down to the Department. We need a deposition from each of you and your husbands. You’ve been an important part of solving this crime. We need to get it all down on paper.”

  “But,” Annie hesitated, “it isn’t solved, you know. You don’t have the missing body. And there had to be a body or else why was Jiggs digging that … that grave?”

  “You’re right, Mrs. Andersen. I know there are some big gaps before this case is closed. Since you’ve been right on target all along, got any ideas? We can use all the help we can get.”

  DeeDee looked at Annie. When Annie smiled back, her friend began explaining, “Well, we been talkin’, an’ Annie told ya last night that she thinks both Karl and Jiggs were takin’ turns diggin’. Only one at a time came over here ta dig. Tha other one stayed in tha field. We think he rested and stayed with tha body while tha other one was digging.”

  Annie took over the story, “We mentioned last night that Jiggs and Karl Kreeger were built very much alike. They almost look like twin brothers, not their faces or hair, but their height and bodies. And last night, they were dressed so much alike that in the dark we didn’t notice the difference between them, especially since they both wore knit stocking caps. But, I think I told you that they didn’t move exactly alike. Remember how one man would dig for awhile, then he’d go through the fence? But he didn’t stay there long enough to rest. It looked like he just came right on back and started digging. You know these guys are in their late sixties. Digging is hard work, even in this sandy soil. I don’t think one man could keep it up for half an hour or more without resting. No, it had to be that both of them were digging, taking turns and resting while the other one used the shovel.”

  “Sounds reasonable to me,” Sgt. Menendez nodded and Juarez did too.

  “Can I go in the field?” Verna asked. “The big birds are gone. It’s safe now, isn’t it?”

  “Yes,” Deputy Juarez answered, “Gilly moved them out early this morning. We’ve walked over the land once, quite thoroughly.” He turned to his superior officer and asked, “Do you want to add anything, Sarge?”

  Menendez hesitated a moment then revealed an interesting fact, “I don’t normally share information, but you seniors are so involved that I’ll tell you, in fact, I’ll show you what we found.” She reached in her pocket and pulled out a plastic bag containing a small blue comb.

  Annie’s violet eyes lit up as she said, “That’s just the kind of comb that Karl always carries in his back pocket.”

  “Ya are so right,” DeeDee exclaimed. “That man is so vain ‘bout his wavy hair; he combs it a lot, ‘specially in front of any man who is bald or nearly bald.”

  “I’ll bet it fell out of his pocket during his mad dash out of that field last night,” Barb reasoned. “We know he was in there since we saw him drive out, but if you can prove it’s his comb, then that’s another link tying him to this mystery. Will you be testing it?”

  The officer replied, “We’ll turn it in to the lab. There are no hairs in it, but they may find fingerprints on it,”

  Verna asked again, “May I please search the field?”

  The Sarge answered, “Again, I normally would say, ‘No.’ However, you have contributed evidence before; so if you want to conduct your own search, go ahead. But that big ‘gator just came back. He’s sunning himself in the field. Don’t think you’ll want to go near him.”

  “Oh, but I do,” Verna exclaimed. “That alligatah isn’t going to eat an adult. He won’t bothah anything as big as me.” They all were surprised at the bravery of this plump little woman. “I want to walk in there,” she said pointing to the field. “I need to look around with my own two eyes!”

  Joe Juarez summoned up his courage and asked, “Do you want me to go in with her?”

  “Yes, she should be accompanied.”

  Annie swallowed down her fears and asked Verna, “Do you want us to help you too?”

  “Thanks, but the fewah people trampling down the grass, the bettah. Having Joe go with me will be fine.”

  “Those big birds moving around and being herded out of there probably already trampled the grass,” Annie observed.

  Verna patted Annie’s arm. “You all stay here on this side of the fence. I’ll be fine with Joe’s help.”

  Annie nodded, relieved and filled with admiration for her friend.

  Juarez undid the temporary wires twisted around the cut fence, pushed it apart, and he and Verna climbed through it into the field. Verna took her mission seriously. Looking at the ground, she walked slowly away from the fence and across the field. At the other side, she moved over five feet and very slowly walked back. She continued pacing up and back, up and back. Deputy Juarez stayed close to her, keeping one eye on her, one eye on the big alligator, and one hand on his revolver. He figured they were safer if the two of them were very close together—the larger the mass hopefully would be more intimidating to the beast. Near the pond—and too near the alligator for Juarez’s comfort—Verna squatted down by the fence and studied a large Bouganvillea bush; its trailing vines spread along the wires of the fence. Juarez watched her try to break off some of the thorny plant. Reaching in his pocket, he found his jack knife and offered it to her. She cut off a piece of the bush, held it up and called, “Look! Look!”

  Bending down, Joe saw a few threads of light blue denim material. Verna told him, “These match the scrap of cloth that I found on the air-conditioning unit; I’m sure they do. And, if they do, then we’ll know that that body was here. Right here in this field. It had to be. But,” she hesitated, “where is that body now? It has disappeared again! That body will not stay in one place!”

  After they crossed back to the golf course side of the fence, Joe handed the branch with the denim threads on it to his sergeant. It was evidence to add to that which the four seniors had already collected. Menendez and Juarez thanked the four women for their help and watched them drive away, amazed at the courage and vitality of those older women.

  * * *

  “You do have sharp eyes!” Barb complimented Verna. “It was such a little bit of material; I don’t know how you ever saw it tucked behind those vines! Those deputies had both been over that field before you, and they didn’t find it, and they’re young enough to be your kids if not your grandkids!”

  Her other friends praised her, too.

  Verna answered, “Because they were so afraid of that ‘gator,’ I doubt that they evah got close enough to look at that bush.”

  DeeDee said, “Ya certainly are a lot braver than I am. That ‘gator opened one of his eyes. He was a watchin’ ya.”

  “He certainly was.” Annie agreed. “My teeth were on edge when you were so close to that big animal. Thank you, Verna, for finding another piece of the puzzle, but it still isn’t solved.”

  “You might as well come on back to my place,” Verna offered. “We’ve got more to add to ‘Our Mystery’, and we can finish the doughnuts.”

  “I’ll come,” Annie said, “but, please, don’t tempt me with more food.” As she got into DeeDee’s cart, she asked, “Will you stop and let me change the note I left on Art’s golf cart? The men play 18 holes; so they won’t be finished for a while. I’ll tell him I’m still at your house, Verna.”

  * * *

  As DeeDee sipped her coffee, she said to her three friends, “Do we dare tell anyone else ‘b
out all this? It’s about killin’ me ta have ta keep quiet ‘bout it all. It’s so excitin’, an’ I can’t say a word ta anybody except ‘Our Gang’.”

  Barb took charge, “We don’t know if Annie is safe or not, and maybe I’m in danger too. So, for our sake, I think we should all just keep this among ourselves for a little longer. The world outside may buzz about it, but they don’t know the details like we do.”

  The others agreed, even DeeDee, “Oh, I knew I’d have ta keep it quiet. I was jest blowin’ off a little steam. Ya know that I can keep a secret as good as any of y’all.”

  Annie thanked them, then said, “You know what I think? We should go talk to Twila’s brother and sister-in-law. Is it okay to call them, Verna? To see if they’re home?”

  “Fine with me.” Verna pointed to the phone. Then she added, “It’s probably a good idea for us to go visit them, but let’s practice first how we are going to not let on about Karl’s being in that field. His connection with all this mess is part of our secret.They don’t need to know that stuff yet; so let’s not mention anything about it.”

  Barb praised her, “You are so right, Verna. None of us is to mention Karl Kreeger to the Tuckman’s. Okay?”

  * * *

  Tony and Tilley Tuckman, a couple in their late 70’s, welcomed the four women and invited them inside their double-wide. He was balding and showing the beginning of a paunch above his sagging belt, but his wife, Tilley, was a little woman. Annie marveled that the older woman didn’t seem to be carrying one ounce of extra weight. “How does she do that?” Annie, who struggled with her weight, asked herself. “How can you get to be old and still be thin?”

  At first they talked about the weather and how glad they all were that the temperature was back in the 70’s where Florida residents thought it belonged in the winter months. Finally, the conversation drifted to the missing Twila. “It breaks my heart to think something happened to her right after she moved to BradLee. We thought she’d be safer here than alone in a big Northern city. And, and … she didn’t get to enjoy her retirement at all!” Tilley Tuckman said, biting her lower lip to keep it from quivering. “She’s Tony’s sister; but I felt very close to her. She was more like a sister than a sister-in-law. That’s why we were so looking forward to her moving to our park. Twila didn’t have any children, and we only have one daughter, and she’s way out in Missouri. We thought it was going to be wonderful to have some family living close by. And now… and now,” she covered her eyes with her hands, and Tony put his arm around his tiny wife to support her.