by V S Vashist
Kiara shook her head.
Jake nodded. "Daryl Langley was a small time contractor at that time. He had just started out. As I said earlier, the idea of the resort was Ryan Reed's originally. He even hired Daryl who created the first plan. This would have been his biggest break. He had even taken some money on loan to execute the project. But, Roberto delayed the project by blackmailing the Reed's. Daryl went under debt. He, in fact, threatened Roberto on Reed's behalf. Even though the Reed's conceded to Roberto's demands, they did not pay the remaining amount due to Daryl. So, Daryl had a reason to go after Roberto. May be he took a shot at Roberto and missed it."
"Wow! That's something," Uncle Phil said with surprise, "You think he was also here that day?"
"These are all theories. Obviously all four can't be here at that time. We know Uncle Andrew was here, but we have ruled him out. It can't be Dr. Kirk either. So, either Byron Hyde or Daryl Langley has to be the one. Now, who amongst these two did it is anyone's guess."
"Or, maybe we don't have to guess," Kiara said while getting up.
"What do you mean?" Jake asked as Uncle Phil looked at her with surprise.
"If a reaction has helped us to find out the suspects, another reaction can help us to find who amongst them the real culprit is," Kiara explained. Jake thought for a moment and then got up.
"That's why I can't function without you," he beamed.
"Yeah, I know. But, we will need Uncle Phil's help here," Kiara said.
"Of course," Jake said hastily.
"Will anyone tell me what's happening?" Uncle Phil finally interrupted.
Jake looked at Kiara and gave his consent to go ahead and tell the plan to Uncle Phil.
"I only need one promise. You will do exactly what I am going to tell you to do," Kiara said and looked at Uncle Phil in anticipation.
Uncle Phil shook his head, "I don't know what you are up to but if it solves the case, I will do it."
Chapter 8
Guests had started coming out of the dining hall as Jake, Kiara and Uncle Phil came down to the reception area.
"Wait for our cue," Jake told Uncle Phil and walked towards the lobby.
Uncle Phil looked at him while he was scanning people in the lobby.
"I don't know if I can hide my emotions," Uncle Phil was still unsure.
"You will do great. See, Jake is coming back," Kiara said while patting at Uncle Phil's shoulder.
"He is at the other end of the lobby towards the banquet hall speaking to someone on phone," Jake said while looking around, "Go, speak to him before someone else joins him."
Uncle Phil nodded and looked at Kiara who gave a smile.
Uncle Phil took a deep breath and walked towards the lobby. Jake and Kiara hid themselves behind one of the pillars. Uncle Phil stopped for a moment as he approached the other end. Byron Hyde was still on the call, but disconnected as soon as Uncle Phil reached near him. He walked towards the other end.
"So, you still hate me?" Uncle Phil said firmly as Byron went past him.
Byron Hyde stopped where he was. After a moment, he turned around.
"What do you want?" he asked while still not able to look Uncle Phil eye to eye.
"Just your forgiveness," Uncle Phil said and looked at Byron's expression, trying to read something.
Byron's face turned red as soon as he understood what Uncle Phil was saying. It took him few seconds to regain his composure.
"Forgiveness for what?" he asked in a frail voice.
"I know you were pissed when Joseph and Andrew did the bloody nails prank on you. I also know that it was the only reason why you left Chesterfield," Uncle Phil said as softly as he could.
Byron Hyde finally looked at Uncle Phil. He did not know how to react.
"You punished Joseph by ending all ties with him. You already had several fights with Andrew so it was nothing new for you. The only thing that must have bothered you is why I did that to you. You must have thought of punishing me several times. Didn't you?"
By now, Byron had started to sweat. Uncle Phil was still trying to figure out what it meant. Suddenly, Byron's demeanor changed. He gave a welcoming smile to Uncle Phil.
"I had forgiven you the day you got shot. Somehow, I didn't feel the happiness that news should have brought to me. Instead it made me feel bad about myself," Byron said.
"Wait… You said about hearing the news about me getting shot," Uncle Phil asked at once.
"Yeah, I might have left Chesterfield, but I was in touch with several people," Byron said and paused for a moment. "Once I heard about it, I felt so silly about this childish anger towards you that I decided to come back and start afresh."
"That's why you came back around the same time I got shot," Uncle Phil said and looked towards Jake and Kiara. He hugged Byron and gave thumbs down signal to them.
"Oh my God! It's Daryl," Kiara said with astonishment.
"Let's go and catch him before he leaves," Jake said immediately. With that, they ran towards the dining hall.
"I am so glad we had this conversation," Byron Hyde said while holding Uncle Phil's hand.
"I suppose it was long overdue," he said and looked into Byron's eyes, "Why don't you forgive Joseph now?"
"I don't know," Byron shook his head.
"Just give it a try," Uncle Phil patted on his shoulder and started walking. Byron kept looking at him with moist eyes.
Uncle Phil was in a hurry but did not want Byron to get any ideas. He kept walking slowly towards the reception. By the time he reached near the main door, Kiara and Jake were already in the front garden. Daryl was speaking to someone at some distance. Uncle Phil did not want to go out lest Daryl got any hint of what they were up to. But, he did not want to miss out on the action either.
"Can you make this door completely open? It's a big door and old people like me lose all their energies in pushing it time and again," he told the manager who was standing in the reception area. The manager nodded and came out.
As soon as the door was opened, Uncle Phil pretended to have a call on his phone and started walking across the room while keeping an eye on Daryl. He did not know what exactly Jake and Kiara were going to ask Daryl. But, he knew there was no need to know that either. The only thing that mattered was Daryl's reaction and that he could read from where he was standing.
Jake looked at Kiara as they reached near Daryl Langley. Daryl had just finished conversing with the other guest and looked ready to leave when he saw Kiara standing just behind him. He looked at both of them for a moment with confusion.
"Hi Daryl," Kiara said softly.
"Hi…hi," Daryl replied.
"He is my fiancé, Jake," Kiara said with a smile. Jake too gave a smile while cursing Kiara for upgrading him from boyfriend to fiancé.
Jake held his hand out. Daryl shook it reluctantly.
"Well, I know we are not that close, but my mother told me to introduce Jake to everyone. He has already met all of my relatives and close family friends. I just thought that it would be great if he knew all the important people in town," Kiara said in a single breath.
Listening to his praise, Daryl's face lit up. "Yeah, sure. Thomas did tell me about you bringing a date. Though, I did not ask him about it…..anyway, so you also work with her?"
Kiara rolled her eyes thinking of her father spreading the news through the town. Jake took the cue before Daryl could have noticed.
"Well, I heard the legend that you have constructed most of the buildings in Chesterfield," Jake said with every word laced with praise.
"Only some of them. People keep exaggerating," Daryl said with a sheepish smile.
"You are being humble," Jake said and paused for a moment. "What do you think of this resort's architecture? I personally don't like those pointed arches. I believe circular ones would have looked better."
"No.. no," Daryl said at once. "The owner wanted taller and more closely spaced openings. The land here is a bit soft. Circular arches would mean more thrust
at the base. Only pointed arches were the solution."
"Wow! I never knew that. It seems as if you built this structure too," Jake said in admiration.
Kiara knew they had driven the discussion in the direction they wanted as she noticed Daryl's face turning pale.
"No...Jake," Kiara pretended to stop Jake from asking something.
"What happened?" Jake asked her.
Kiara looked at Daryl who was already uncomfortable.
"He was given the contract initially, but it was eventually awarded to someone else. Though, the drawings and designs were done by his architects and… the resort is actually built based on that."
"Oh… then you must have been really angry with Roberto Leon?" Jake asked.
"No.. why would I be angry with him?" Daryl replied immediately.
"I mean, he hired you but did not let you construct the resort even though he used your design?" Jake asked.
"No... no...he did not hire me. I was hired by Ryan Reed," Daryl answered what they wanted to hear.
"Oh... Okay," Jake said thoughtfully, "But, you must be very new to this business that time?"
"Yeah, it was going to be my first big project," Daryl said ruefully.
"So, you must have invested a good sum in hiring people when Ryan gave you the project. But, his backing out must have hurt you financially?" Jake asked.
"No, it's not like that. No one signs a contract without taking half of the payment as advance," Daryl said casually.
"Pardon me, I am really ignorant of the rules of your profession," Jake said sheepishly. "So, could he sell your designs to Roberto without your permission? Isn't it an intellectual property of yours?"
Suddenly, Daryl's demeanor changed. He looked more flustered than before. Jake looked at Kiara and then towards Daryl.
"You could have sued him," Kiara added.
"No...The advance that he gave me was enough to cover the expenses that I incurred in creating the design," Daryl said while looking down.
Jake thought about Daryl's words one more time and his face lit up. Kiara noticed that but was still confused.
"I understand everything now," he beamed.
Daryl looked at him with surprise, "What do you mean?"
"Let me finish," Jake said while making some calculations, "So, Ryan Reed wants to construct a resort here. Now, Roberto was a caretaker who had his makeshift house at the same location. Even if Ryan wanted to construct anything on his land, he could have easily fired Roberto or relocated him to other side of the land. But, somehow Roberto came to know that the land was disputed and the Reed family did not have any proper documentation. Had this news reached the government, they would have taken the whole land from Reed's. Roberto started blackmailing the Reed family. By then, Ryan Reed had already awarded the contract to Daryl. Didn't he?"
"I don't like this discussion and it's getting late," Daryl said and turned around.
"Wait, this even gets better," Jake said and walked in front of Daryl.
"Roberto could not have used the designs even if Ryan would have sold it to him. He would have needed your permission - a legal permission. I am pretty sure; I won't be able to find any such document though. I can go inside and check with the manager,"Jake said and looked at Daryl whose face was covered in sweat. Uncle Phil was noticing everything and was itching to come out.
"But, he didn't sue Ryan, why?" Kiara joined them.
"For the same reason Ryan Reed couldn't get Roberto out of his land," Jake mused.
"You mean Ryan knew some secret about Daryl?" Kiara said with surprise.
"Well, he only came to know of it as a secret post Uncle Phil was shot," Jake said and gestured Uncle Phil to join them.
"I am going to sue you all. And, you Kiara…you trapped me into it," Daryl said angrily though the words were barely coming out of his mouth.
"He did it, didn't he?" Uncle Phil came almost running, forgetting about the limp in his leg.
"I am not going to stand here and listen to your bullshit. I am out of here," Daryl said and walked towards the parking area. It had already gone dark and half the guests had already left. Daryl cursed himself for not leaving early.
"Well, you can leave, but we will again have this conversation tomorrow at the precinct," Jake warned him." And, the first thing that I would want the police to investigate is the secret that Ryan Reed held which made you to keep quiet all these years."
Daryl turned around, "You are clearly bluffing. There is nothing like that."
"Okay, then let me tell what the secret is. If I am wrong then you can walk away and I promise no one will bother you after tonight," Jake said while walking towards Daryl. Uncle Phil and Kiara looked at each other and then followed Jake.
"During one of the conversations today, Uncle Joseph mentioned that Daryl was living in Chesterfield for ages. That means he is not an original resident of Chesterfield. Now my guess would be that he came here sometime in early 80's," Jake said and turned towards Uncle Phil.
"He indeed came around that time," Uncle Phil said with astonishment.
"I am so sure because I believe he owned a similar gun from which the shot was fired that day," Jake said but was interrupted by Kiara.
"That's not possible. It would have come out during the investigation. All arms need to be registered with local authorities," Kiara said. Uncle Phil also nodded.
"Yes, but he didn't register it here. Our country has varied laws regarding owning a firearm. Some states recognize the licenses given by other states while others want you to apply for new one once you move from one state to other. I guess, in his case the first part applies. He didn't have to apply for a fresh license. Also, he may not have updated the local authorities about owning a firearm because he was not sure if he was going to stay long in Chesterfield. Or maybe he would have thought that when his gun would be ready for license renewal, he would get it transferred to Chesterfield. In the meantime, he would continue with his present license based on his earlier address. Am I right or do you still want to leave?"
Daryl did not say another word. He stood there motionless as if life had been sapped out of his body.
"We were thinking that he was here to kill Roberto since he was the one who stopped Ryan Reed from building the resort here. But, we were wrong. He was here to shoot Ryan. Daryl had taken money on loan to hire people for this work and losing the contract meant going into debt. He would have come to know about Ryan's plan to threaten Roberto. Our theory was that he followed Ryan here and thought of killing Roberto and making it look as if Ryan shot him. However, we were wrong. The story was entirely different. The Reed family did want to build a resort here and Roberto indeed came to know about the issues with the land. But, his demands were nominal. I suppose, he just wanted some money. Ryan on the other hand took the matters in his hand and started threatening Roberto who didn't budge either. Even on that day, he was here to threaten Roberto and not to kill him. Killing him would have resulted in investigation which in turn would have resulted in the land dispute coming to light. So, he just wanted to threaten Roberto out of their land. However, this issue with Ryan was affecting one man really bad - Daryl. Though he is telling us otherwise, he was deep in debt. He wanted the project to go smoothly and finish on time. Otherwise he had to pay huge interest. But, Ryan was making it difficult. When he came to know that Ryan was going to meet Roberto, Daryl followed him. His plan was simple - if Ryan got shot, again not fatally, then that would mean Roberto would be held guilty for that. Since, Daryl's gun was not registered here and there was no way anyone could think of his involvement, it would be assumed that Roberto hired someone."
"And, with Roberto gone from sight, the project could start smoothly," Uncle Phil added. Daryl by now had started sweating profusely.
"His plan was foolproof. Had the police caught Roberto, he would have been in no position to blackmail the Reed's. They would have taken the charges back in exchange of him never opening his mouth again. That way the project would have
completed on time and Daryl could have saved his skin from the loan sharks," Jake explained.
"You… You guys can make any assumptions that you want. But it is not going to prove anything. These are all stories and no one is going to believe you," Daryl said in a frail voice.
"And, that brings us to the second part," Jake said with a smirk ignoring Daryl, "Instead of hurting Ryan, he ended up injuring you. He had not anticipated this. Everything went haywire as the plan backfired. Instead of Roberto leaving the land, he increased his demands in exchange of not pressing the attempt to murder charges against Ryan Reed. He not only got the land for resort, he in fact built it as per Daryl's blueprint and that too without paying Daryl a penny. Initially, I thought that maybe Ryan had paid Daryl for that, but he hadn't. And, Daryl here told me that he held the legal rights to the plan, still he did not sue the Reeds for that. It was going to be easy money for him."
"Then why didn't he sue them?" Uncle Phil asked in surprise.
"Because, Ryan Reed knew that Daryl also had the gun with the same make from which the shot was fired. However, Daryl's name did not come up during police interrogation. Ryan Reed put two and two together and found a secret with which he could blackmail Daryl into giving up the blueprints. Luckily for Daryl, he got a contract with the government which bailed him out of his financial troubles. He forgot everything as a bad dream and slowly became the most powerful contractor in the whole state," Jake concluded and put a hand on Daryl's shoulder. "Are you going to deny it even now? We just need to check your gun record and speak to Ryan Reed."
Daryl almost fell down. Jake held him from his arm.