Homicide at the Hospital

by Susan Harper

  “What’s going on?” Veronica asked.

  “It’s Monte,” Dawn said. “He’s in trouble. Big trouble.”

  “What kind of trouble?” Felicity asked.

  “Edgar’s dead, and they just arrested Monte for homicide.”

  Chapter 4

  Felicity and the rest of the bridal party practically bolted into the Senoia police station once the limo arrived in the parking lot. They were all still dressed in their white bridesmaid t-shirts and pink shorts, so Felicity was admittedly embarrassed to be seen by Chief Morgan in her short shorts that, in her belief, she had very little business wearing at her age. Nevertheless, she was able to quickly cast that aside because this moment was certainly about finding out what happened to Monte.

  The group rushed up to the front desk, Dawn’s voice squealing and hardly intelligible, all speaking over one another and making the station’s late-night receptionist jump. “Um…I’m sorry, why are you ladies here?” the man behind the counter asked, and they again all started talking over one another in their frantic states.

  Chief Morgan appeared around the corner, and he spotted Felicity. “Ladies, calm down!” the chief shouted over the group. “Miss Overton, Jack told me you were on your way. He and Jefferson are at the holding cells speaking with Monte.”

  “What happened!” Dawn practically shouted.

  “You must be the bride,” he said, nodding at her shirt that very plainly said Bride across her chest.

  “Chief,” Felicity said firmly. “Please, what’s going on? Why is Monte in jail?”

  “Edgar Uldrige was found dead at the hospital earlier this evening stabbed to death,” the chief began.

  “And, what, you arrested Monte because Edgar fired him!” Dawn shouted. “Edgar’s fired plenty of people!”

  “No, Miss,” the chief said. “We arrested your fiancé because he was found at the scene of the crime covered in the man’s blood. And, the fact that Edgar fired him recently is certainly a potential motive.”

  Dawn looked like she was going to faint. “Can we please go speak to Monte?” Felicity asked, gripping Dawn’s shoulder.

  As she was making the request, Jack and Jefferson appeared around the corner. “Jack,” the chief called. “Take the man’s fiancée around to see him. She’s got five minutes.”

  Jack nodded, and Dawn gripped Felicity’s hand. “Come with me,” she said, and the chief nodded his approval for Felicity to tag along. Jefferson remained behind, filling in the women on what he knew while Felicity and Dawn followed Jack toward the back of the station.

  “They really found Monte covered in Edgar’s blood?” Felicity asked as they walked.

  “Yeah,” Jack grumbled, seeming a bit shaken up himself.

  “What has Monte told you?” Dawn asked.

  “Not much,” Jack said. “I think he’s still in a bit of shock. Chief is going to interrogate him once they get him some clean clothes.”

  They rounded a corner, and Dawn covered her mouth when she spotted Monte sitting alone inside a jail cell. She hurried over, and he leaped off the bench where he had been sitting. The man looked positively mortified. Felicity stood behind Dawn, taking in the scenery. Monte’s t-shirt was coated in a layer of dried blood. “What happened!” Dawn cried. “Monte, are you all right?”

  “I’ve been better,” he said, and Felicity noticed that Monte had some bruising around his lip.

  “Tell us what happened,” Felicity said firmly. “They’re only giving us five minutes.”

  “You have to help me,” Monte said, looking directly at Felicity. She did have a reputation for being the group’s problem solver.

  “Tell me what happened,” Felicity said.

  “You know I’m a cop, right?” Jack grunted, not appreciating the way Monte had bypassed him for his plea for assistance. Felicity nudged him, letting Jack know it was not the time for petty jealousy.

  “I went to the hospital to clear out my desk,” Monte said. “I didn’t do it the day I was fired, and I wanted it to be taken care of being the wedding next weekend. I saw Edgar, and he walked me to my desk. He wanted to make sure there wasn’t any hard feelings kind of thing. Told me he was looking forward to the wedding and wished me luck with the deejaying. It was friendly. Nothing happened, I swear. I loaded up a box and brought it to my car, and then I realized I had left my cellphone sitting on my old desk. When I got back, I saw Edgar slumped over on my desk. I thought maybe he had had a heart attack or something, and I hurried to move him so that I could start CPR. I was going to phone in the ER and have a doctor rush over, but when I moved him, I got his blood all over me. That’s when Trevor and Lisa walked in, they’re some other nurses from that floor, and they jumped to conclusions. Trevor knocked me out, and when I woke up, the police were placing me in cuffs.”

  “Aw, man, Monte,” Jack said. “Okay, don’t worry. We’re going to figure this out.”

  “We’re supposed to be getting married next weekend!” Monte wailed. “I’m going to be spending our wedding behind bars if something isn’t figured out soon!”

  “Forget about the wedding, Monte!” Dawn hollered. “You could be going to prison if we don’t get this straightened out!”

  “We will figure this out,” Felicity said. “I promise, Monte. Tell me, did you notice anything about the crime scene that you could tell me?”

  “Only that whoever stabbed Edgar got him several times in the chest and stomach. At least eight or nine times,” Monte said.

  “Anything else?” Jack asked.

  “Um…the stab wounds… I’ve seen a few different stab wounds working in the ER on occasion,” Monte said. “Definitely a smaller blade, like a pocketknife or a switchblade.”

  “I can’t believe this!” Dawn started to sob. “Chief Morgan knows you, Monte. You’ve helped Felicity and Jack on a case before. He knows you wouldn’t kill anyone.”

  “He’s just doing his job,” Monte said, but he sounded anxious. Monte was skittish, and Felicity couldn’t blame him in the least.

  Chief Morgan appeared from around the corner. He sighed and said, “Okay, that’s enough. We need to get him booked.”

  Dawn started to cry. She gave Monte a quick kiss through the bars, and then they all followed the chief back to the lobby. Dawn wound up sitting on the bench out front by Veronica and Brittany, each of whom took one of her hands. “I should call Monte’s parents and let them know what’s going on,” she said and went digging around for her cell phone. She called both Monte’s parents and her own, and she sounded like a frightened teenager who had just wrecked her first car when she talked to her mother. Her mother promised to come get her from the station.

  The group seemed to unanimously agree that they would wait it out with Dawn until someone arrived to take her home; she was certainly not in the condition to drive herself. Veronica went outside for a bit to send the limo driver home. Her bachelorette party is certainly going to be memorable, Felicity thought and shook her head.

  Jefferson stood by her, giving Felicity a slight nudge to pull her attention from Dawn. “What are you going to do?” he whispered.

  Felicity sighed. She wanted to focus on her shop, but somehow the insanity of her small town kept getting in the way. She certainly was not going to walk away from Monte and Dawn. This was personal. Somehow, though, it always got personal. “Something,” she responded.

  “What are we going to do?” Dawn moaned. “We’re supposed to get married next weekend! Monte is in jail! What if he stays there? What if we can’t get married? What if he goes to prison? What if we can’t clear his name?”

  “We’re going to do what we can,” Jack assured her. “We promise.”

  “Felicity, Jack, Jefferson,” Dawn said. “You three have solved crimes like this before together, right? You three could figure out what happened, I know you can.”

  “Ahem,” Chief Morgan chimed in. “Jack, you’re off the case.”

  “Let me guess…” Jack moaned.

&
nbsp; “Sabbatical,” the chief said. “You are too—”

  “Too close for this one,” Jack said. “Why do you even keep me here, Chief, if you never let me work any cases? I started studying to be a detective after I started working here, but I never get to put it to use unless I’m working on the side with two party shop owners! We live in a small town, Chief. Every case is going to be personal!”

  “Jack, calm down, or get out,” the chief warned.

  Jack took a breath. “Chief, you have to let me work this case.”

  “No, Jack,” the chief said.

  “He’s just going to do it behind your back anyway,” the officer working the counter said with a snort. “He always does, and then you wind up shaking his hand for the good job he did. Let him work the case, Chief.”

  Oh, dear, Felicity thought, knowing the officer had meant to stand up for Jack but that this was going to greatly backfire.

  “You know what? You’re right!” the chief exclaimed, his face turning red. “Jack, if you go anywhere near this case without my say-so, I’ll have your badge! And I mean it this time!”

  Jack’s shoulder’s slumped. He should have kept his mouth shut, Felicity thought and shook her head. The chief spun on his heels and headed toward his office, slamming the door.

  “Great,” Dawn groaned. “Now what?”

  “Sorry, Jack,” the officer behind the desk said, and Jack made a rather crude gesture in his direction.

  “Don’t worry,” Felicity said. “Jefferson and I are still on it.”

  Jack frowned. Brittany smiled in his direction. “You’ll survive, Jack.”

  Felicity was fairly certain that Jack was not going to take the chief’s threat seriously; there was little doubt in her mind that he would still be working the case, but that made her anxious. Jack had always been a hothead; it was one of the main reasons they didn’t work out all the way back in high school. She didn’t want Jack to get fired, but she also knew there would be no talking him out of working the case with her and Jefferson.

  Dawn’s mother eventually arrived, but she was hesitant to leave regardless. She wound up speaking with Chief Morgan alone in his office for several minutes. She also got several recommendations for lawyers before her mother was at last able to drag her out of the station for the night.

  It was late, and as much as Felicity was eager to get started on looking into things for Monte and Dawn, she knew there was not much she could do at that hour. She hitched a ride home with Jefferson, and the two of them were quiet on the drive. There was a lot hanging over their heads. They needed to find out what happened to Edgar and do it fast in order to salvage the wedding which was just a week away.

  Felicity tried to prepare herself for the next day. “We’re going to have to hit the ground running on this one,” Felicity said to Jefferson when they arrived home.

  “I know,” he said. “Whatever you need me to do, I’m here.”

  “Good,” Felicity said. “Get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day.”

  Chapter 5

  Felicity and Jefferson arrived at the shop at about five-thirty the following morning, several hours before the shop actually opened, but they weren’t there for party planning. Jack and his partner Patrick arrived shortly after, and they locked the doors behind them. While Patrick was dressed in uniform, Jack was in his typical t-shirt and jeans that he wore when he was off duty. “Patrick’s going to be heading into work after this,” Jack said, plopping down on one of the lounge couches that were set up in the front of the shop. Everyone else joined him. Jack had a scowl on his face when he spoke. “I can’t believe chief pulled me off another case. I’ve been taking courses online. He knows I want to be a detective, but every time it’s a little close to home for me, he pulls me off the case and tells me to stay home.”

  “I’m starting to think the chief has it in for you, Jack,” Patrick said. “You know half the guys at the precinct know Monte through you and Felicity. It’s personal for all of us, not just you. He just thinks he’s got to keep you on a tight leash.”

  “He said something about having me transferred,” Jack said angrily. “I’ve wanted to be a cop since I was a senior in high school.”

  “After you screwed up your football scholarship?” Jefferson asked, and Jack shoved him slightly.

  “Yes, jerk,” he said. “After my football career went down the drain, I decided I wanted to be a cop. But it sucks! Especially when the chief decides he doesn’t like you. Last year, he took me off half of my cases.”

  “Are you really taking online college courses?” Felicity asked.

  “Yeah, why?”

  “Just doesn’t seem like something you would do,” Felicity said.

  He sat upright, as though he was quite offended by this. “And why is that?”

  “Because you’re an idiot,” Patrick joked.

  “Whatever,” Jack moaned. “Forget you guys.” He took a breath. “Forget about the chief for a minute. You guys know I’m not stepping down.”

  “You better watch it,” Patrick said. “Chief sounded pretty serious this time about you backing off.”

  “It’s Monte,” Jack said. “And, you’re going to help me anyway, aren’t you?”

  Patrick rolled his eyes. “Not like the chief gave me much of a choice. I’m no detective, and he put me on the case with a couple of idiots who don’t know what they’re doing. They need to call in an actual detective.”

  “Let’s get down to business then,” Felicity said. “Patrick, what do you know?” She had with her the famous Overton sleuthing notebook. She kept detailed notes whenever she worked a case, and it helped her to keep everything straight.

  “Not much,” Patrick said.

  “Are there any other suspects lined up yet apart from Monte? Does Edgar have any sort of criminal history we can look into?” she asked.

  “No suspects yet, but we’re working on that. He does have one pretty sketchy thing in his criminal record, though. He was arrested for beating up a prostitute a while back,” Patrick said, and Felicity’s eyes narrowed.

  “Are you serious?” she asked.

  “Charges were dropped,” Patrick said, “but they often are with cases surrounding prostitutes. The women’s pimps normally pressure them into backing off. Don’t want to hurt business. Other than that, his record is pretty much spotless.”

  “Beating up a prostitute is not exactly a small act of delinquency, Patrick,” Jack said.

  “I know that,” Patrick said. “All I’m saying is that it’s a little weird to have such a spotless record apart from something that serious. People tend to work up to that sort of thing.”

  “If he’s the type to do something like that, he has probably done some other seedy stuff he just never got busted for,” Jefferson said.

  “Apparently, the rumors Monte had mentioned were true then,” Felicity said. “He had told us his wife left him because he had taken a hooker home with him once.”

  “I believe we have some suspects or at least some people of interest then,” Patrick said. “The ex-wife and the hooker.”

  “How about we divide and conquer?” Jack suggested.

  “I think you and Patrick should handle the prostitute,” Felicity said. “Where is she at?”

  “Somewhere in Atlanta is the last record we have of her,” Patrick said. “But, I have some connections that will probably help.”

  “That’s right, you used to be a big shot Atlanta officer,” Jefferson said with a laugh. “Then you transferred to Senoia.”

  “Don’t remind me,” was all Patrick had to say on that subject. “Let me pull up the ex’s information for you then, Felicity.”

  “Hold on, am I going to get stuck at the shop again?” Jefferson asked.

  “That is why she put your name on the building,” Jack said and winked at him.

  Patrick went over to the shop’s desktop computer and looked up Edgar’s ex-wife’s information. “You think you can handle interviewing h
er?” Patrick asked Felicity as he printed off the woman’s information.

  “You know, she has done this before,” Jack reminded him. “Probably more than you at this point. You’re not a detective.”

  “Technically speaking, no one in this room is,” Patrick griped. “With Felicity having taken investigative journalism courses, she’s probably the most qualified.”

  “Hey!” Jack wailed. “I’m taking courses online right now for detective work, remember?”

  “Yeah, but you’re averaging a C-minus in one of them,” Patrick said.

  “As in the other two!” Jack snapped. “Jerk.”

  Patrick laughed and glanced in Felicity and Jefferson’s direction. “He’s such a whiner, isn’t he? Glad I get to play with the original detective trio today.”

  Felicity smiled. “Yeah, I guess Jack, Jefferson, and I are part of the original team-up, huh?”

  “Exactly how did two party planners and a small town cop become the local sleuthing whizzes?” Patrick asked.

  “That’s a long story,” Jack said. “But if we’re going to be driving all over Atlanta looking for a working girl, I guess I’ll have time to tell it to you, huh?”

  “Joy,” Patrick said, clasping Jack’s shoulder. “Let’s get going. I want to be off Main Street before Chief spots me with you. If you want to work the case, fine, but I’m not going to get in trouble on your behalf. Chief doesn’t need to know I’m dragging you around with me while I’m looking into things, got it?”

  “I don’t want to get you in trouble either, Patrick,” Jack assured. “Let’s go. Good luck speaking with the ex, Felicity.”