“Denton Hollingsworth.”
“Yes, Mr. Hollingsworth, this is Detective Emerson Lake. You wanted to speak to my partner and me about the murder of Adam Chandler?”
“Mr. Nyung has asked me to file for guardianship of Kei Lien Chandler on his behalf. He claims she is under hospital care with no one to speak for her and unable to do so herself. Although she is an adult, he claims her mind is that of a child. An abused one at that.”
“The murder of her father is an ongoing investigation. As far as this young woman not being able to speak for herself, well, that isn’t up to us. I think you need to speak with the hospital staff and have a psychiatrist evaluate her.”
“I know, Detective Lake, I’m merely asking you if Mr. Nyung is a threat to her or in some way involved in this investigation.”
“Mr. Hollingsworth, I’m sure you’re very aware that everyone is a suspect in an open case…until they’re ruled out. Now, if there are no more questions, we really need to get back to work.”
“Thank you, Detective. I left my card with the officer at the Cromwell Police Station. If there is anything you can think of that may help with this matter, please contact me.”
As Lake hung up, he turned to Reese, “What do you make of this new twist?”
“I think he probably just wants to make sure Minh wasn’t a suspect.”
“I suppose, but what did he think we would say about an ongoing investigation? Yes, I think Mr. Nyung is a safe bet to care for her, but I can’t rule out anyone either.”
“I know, but he had to try to get some info, I guess. Either that or his stuffy sounding name doesn’t match his degree.” They both chuckled for a second.
“Seriously, someone does need to take care of that young girl. She is a mess for sure.”
Denton Hollingsworth made arrangements for Kei Lien to be evaluated right away. The hospital assured him their findings would reach his office within 24 hours. He also reminded them that he needed a full report on her physical condition as well as mental to take to the judge. He already had a court date set up for Wednesday at 3pm. They had two days. The hospital staff agreed to have all of it ready. The last thing any hospital needs is a lawyer on their doorstep, especially with reporters all over the place. Hollingsworth hoped this would go smoothly and not turn into a pissing contest between him and the hospital administrators.
Chapter 57
Teresa Kelsey had gone to great lengths to give her husband the sendoff she wanted, not the one he deserved. Arrangements were made for the viewing to take place from 4-8pm at the funeral home with a full U.S. Army color guard at his side. She thought that would be a nice touch. He was a veteran after all. An American flag would be draped over his coffin and sprays of red white and blue flowers would surround him. Mrs. Kelsey, grieving wife of the beloved Sergeant, dressed to perfection, including a black veil to cover her face. She loved pomp and circumstance. An overstuffed, high-backed armchair with blue satin fabric would be easily accessible if she felt faint. She had asked the funeral director to place Sergeant Kelsey’s obituary online so no one could say they didn’t see it. It was a long and over the top listing of his accomplishments.
Mrs. Kelsey arrived at the funeral home in high fashion. Limousine and all. One thing she did not count on was no one showing up to pay their respects. Word had spread throughout the city that the Sergeant was suspected as one of the men that raped a young woman, even if there was no real proof yet.
“How did this happen?” she yelled at the funeral director. “Why is no one here?”
He didn’t know how to answer except to say, “Maybe they will show up a little bit later. It is very early, Mrs. Kelsey. Some people work and like to eat dinner before they attend these things.”
She didn’t say a word. Just strode over to her throne-like blue satin chair and sat down with a huff. Lace hankie at the ready. She nodded to the soldier standing at her husband’s side. There wasn’t much else she could do. Around 5:30pm a few people walked into the funeral home, mostly to catch a glimpse of the show going on rather than paying respects. Teresa Kelsey was gracious as they walked past his casket and offered her their condolences. They were mostly patrons of the hotel and café.
When calling hours concluded, Teresa exited the funeral home to find a crowd of about twenty people waiting for her outside. For a brief moment she thought they came in honor of her Martin. How wrong she was. It was mostly reporters throwing questions at her fast and furious. The rest were angry Cromwell residents that wanted answers about his involvement with Adam Chandler’s daughter. They encircled her. Vehement questions shot at her like bullets from a gun. She was scared and enraged all at the same time. She felt as if she were suffocating. She became dizzy and tipped slightly to the right, grabbed the handrail, and slumped down onto the funeral home steps.
“Please leave me alone!” she pleaded.
Sitting there on the cold stone step, all she could think was this is the thanks I get? All the hard work I put in to give him a proper sendoff was for naught. No accolades. Just berated by the press.
Buoyed by her fury, she boosted herself up, directed the funeral director to close the doors and pushed through the crowd. She hopped into the back of her limo and it sped away. When she arrived at her hotel, she told Randall she didn’t want to be disturbed. She took the elevator to her suite, kicked off her shoes, grabbed a bottle of Scotch and a few pills from the bar cart.
Chapter 58
Andrew Kelsey was worried for his life. What little there was of his life anyway. He became increasingly aware he needed to do whatever the detectives wanted him to do. He started with giving the sketch artist at the police station a description of the man he saw at the cemetery. He told them approximate age, his height and guessed at his weight. He remembered the color of his eyes. A very pale green. A color he had never seen before. They were sunken deep into his skull. “You could see the evil in those eyes. That’s something you can’t draw on paper.”
As Andrew was continuing his description of Tim Cole, he heard one of the Jade police officers talking about a report of an accident. A taxi was found flipped over on Old Route 19. The driver was dead. His throat had been cut. No one else was found in the vehicle. Andrew’s skin began to crawl. He knew who did this. He could feel it.
“Detectives,” yelled the officer. “You’re not going to believe this, but the taxi cab was registered to a company in Cromwell. We have the I.D. on the driver from his license. We’re checking now to see who his last fare was and where the pick-up point was located.”
“Holy shit,” exclaimed Lake. “Okay, I want every available law enforcement on this guy. We have a description. Let’s get it out there! It looks like this guy is on a roll. Nine murders so far.” As he was barking orders, a flood of anxiety washed over him, and he began to sweat. His breaths were becoming shorter. He was pacing the squad room wringing his hands. Reese grabbed him and pulled him into the men’s room when everyone else scattered.
She first checked to be sure no one was in the two stalls. She sat him on a wooden bench and looked straight into his eyes.
“You need to breathe, damnit, or you’re going to have a heart attack. Your blood pressure must be through the roof. I think you should see a doctor.”
“Not now, Reese, I’m fine. Really, I am. Just too much caffeine causing me to shake a bit. You know how that goes. Law enforcement go-to and I go to it too often. I can’t believe all of this is happening so fast. We now have nine bodies. Nine! It could’ve been eleven if you count the two of us. What is this guy’s problem?”
“Besides being a lunatic? Now drink some water. No more coffee today, damn it, or I’ll shoot you myself. Got it? Also grab a protein bar or something of nutritional value. Jesus, I don’t have time to babysit you.”
Reese had no clue that the love of her life was having anxiety attacks. The case, no sleep and having his ex-gir
lfriend covering the story; it was all a dangerous combination.
Reese contacted Allen Manning to fill him in on the latest. “I want all officers on alert.”
Allen filled her in on the commotion at the Sergeant’s funeral.
“Shit. One of us should have been at the service.”
“I was, but it wasn’t pretty. I was just headed over to the hotel to check on Teresa when you called. I’ll let her know you were thinking of her.”
“You do that and thank you, Allen. Try not to let her know you’re lying.”
Allen wanted to laugh out loud but restrained himself. “Will do.”
Allen left for the hotel not really knowing how to approach Teresa Kelsey. He almost felt sorry for her, but on the other hand she really was a pain in the ass with her ‘I’m better than everyone else’ attitude. He pulled into the hotel garage and drove to the second level before finding a spot to park. That wasn’t all he found. An ambulance with no plates was sitting semi-hidden in a corner. A light blue minivan blocked the one side. The garage wall the other. Allen was puzzled. That isn’t one of our ambulances. Why would it be here in the hotel parking garage? There was no city or county name on the sides. Just the word ambulance. After snapping a photo of the vehicle, he walked down to the first level and into the hotel entrance where he saw Randall working the front desk. At that moment, it hit Allen like a bolt of lightning. He knew where he recognized Randall.
The night he sent Teresa to the hospital with the paramedics, Randall was one of those paramedics. Allen hadn’t paid much attention at the time, but it was all coming back to him now. It was definitely Randall. Trying to remain calm, Allen approached the desk.
“Hi Randall. How are you? Is Teresa doing better?” He was doing his best not to sound any different than usual. He needed this guy to trust him.
Randall replied, “I’m very sorry ,Officer Manning, but Mrs. Kelsey is resting and asked not to be disturbed. She gave me strict orders. Is there something I can help you with?”
“No. Just tell her I was checking in on her and if she needs anything to just call. She was pretty upset after the viewing. Oh, and by the way, has anyone tried to bother her? More reporters? Anyone?”
“No, I’ve been trying to keep an eye out for her.”
“Thanks Randall, I’ll be in touch.”
Allen was on the phone with Detective Lake before he even got out of the parking garage.
Chapter 59
Minh Nyung was trying to be helpful to his son and the young woman lying in a hospital bed. It wasn’t easy, for sure. His main goal right now was to see to it that Kei Lien was well represented in this case. Her care would be dealt with very soon. He hoped anyway. There was not much conversation between Minh and Daniel throughout this entire scenario. Only when needed.
Today was needed.
“I feel like a lost soul sometimes. What am I supposed to do next? I really don’t know what I should do for her. Or, if there is anything, I can do for her? How the hell did I get so mixed up in this girl? Woman? Whatever you want to call her.”
“Daniel, do not worry. I have hired an attorney. Supposedly the best in his field. His name is Denton Hollingsworth.”
Daniel immediately lashed out at his father. “Do you honestly think I had anything to do with the murders of Mr. Chandler and the Sergeant?”
“No, I do not. I hired him to look into having Kei Lien evaluated. When the mental health practitioners are finished questioning her, we will get this attorney to convince the judge to give us legal guardianship. Deal?”
Minh’s son took a deep breath and choked back a few tears before responding. “Deal.” It had been many years since he and his Dad did a fist bump, but now was the time for one.
Minh’s phone rang just at that moment.
“Mr. Nyung? Denton Hollingsworth here.”
Minh wished this guy would just say its Denton and not sound like an overpaid jerk.
“I’ve set up a time for the judge to hear reasons for this guardianship request. I will be at the courthouse around 2:30pm on Wednesday. I will meet you there. Hopefully he will be able to decide quickly. I can pick up the evaluation papers at the hospital on Wednesday morning. They assured me they would be ready.”
Minh thanked him for calling and said he would be there.
“Dad, what are we getting ourselves into? We don’t even know this girl. How do we know she isn’t the one who killed her father? Or anyone else for that matter?”
“Daniel, I don’t know the answers to much of anything, but there are two things I am certain of. One…this poor girl, woman, has been badly abused for most of her life. That much I know. And two…I know she lived a short distance from our own home, and we did nothing to help her. The entire town did nothing to help her. Someone should have stepped in when they heard her repeatedly sobbing, but no, we all looked the other way. The school system should also have intervened when she stopped going to classes. So, even if she did kill her father, we are all guilty of something.”
Chapter 60
Tim Cole had taken a short nap on the hill that overlooked the cemetery. It was quiet. Slight breeze. Blue sky. For a short period of time, he felt like a normal human being and part of this town that he used to call home. Why, he thought, did my own family think I needed to be put in that awful place? The place where they wired your head and then flipped a switch to give you pain in your brain. Pain in your brain. That’s funny sounding, he thought. It rhymes. It was time to go. As he stood up and gazed around ,he noticed flowers on a headstone at the bottom of the hill.
“I wonder who those flowers were for? I saw that guy put them on a stone, but didn’t get a good look to see if I knew him.”
Tim liked talking to himself. Why wouldn’t he? There was no one else to talk to that would understand anyway.
“I’ll head down to see. My family could have been buried here if they just would listen to me.”
He walked down the hill, carefully looking around to make sure he wasn’t being followed. “How is this possible?” he wondered as he reached the grave with the flowers. Tim Cole didn’t know whether to laugh or be afraid. He stood there with his mouth open re-reading the name on the stone. “Huh? The woman buried here has the same last name as the Sergeant we just killed. How is that possible? I don’t understand.”
Fear began to take over. The twitch he developed after shock therapy all those years ago returned. This time with a vengeance. He quickly reached in his pocket to look for his phone. He wanted to call the Boss to find out what to do next. The phone wasn’t anywhere on his body. The top of the hill he thought. I’ll bet it fell out of my pocket when I took a nap. He turned around to head back up the hill as a man in a trench coat with a woman at his side approached him.
“Tim Cole? My name is Detective Lake. Cromwell Police Department. This is my partner Detective Clayton.”
“I know who you are, detectives.” Tim didn’t know what else to say. He just stared at the two of them.
“We would like to have a few words with you.”
“About what?”
“About where you were on June 9.”
“I think you already know that I live in Cromwell. That’s where I was until yesterday. I came here for a visit. I used to live here years ago. I think you already know that as well. Am I right?” he growled.
His eyes were now focused on the pretty detective. Eyeing her up and down. He gave Reese a huge grin, baring all his teeth. His twitch getting worse the more he spoke. He loved using his eerie voice on people. He would talk like this to the staff at the psych center once in a while. It was fun to watch them squirm.
Reese was un-nerved by this guy and kept her hand close to her gun.
“Is there something you think I did? Are you accusing me of something? Am I under arrest for something or are you just on a fishing expedition?”
> “No,” Lake chimed in. “You are not under arrest. We would however, like you to come to the police station to ask you a few questions.”
“Really?” Tim was starting to enjoy this little back and forth stuff. He didn’t really have many conversations with people. At least not with ones that were alive. So, this was fun for him.
“I can meet you there in a few hours. I need to find a ride. I have no car.”
“No car?” asked Reese. “How did you get here from Cromwell?”
“I took a cab.” Tim Cole never even thought that he might have just implicated himself.
“We can drive you, Mr. Cole. When we are through with our talk, we will have someone take you wherever you want to go. Is that all right with you?”
Reese was being extra polite. More flies with honey and all that.
“Okay, I guess.” He was a little shyer now instead of arrogant. He stood firmly in place, but his hands were showing signs of sweat as he started to sway back and forth.
“Reese, you drive, I will sit in back with Mr. Cole.”
“Why do I have to do the driving?” Reese knew the routine.
“Because I said so, that’s why. Women.” he scoffed. “They can be such a pain in the ass at times.”
Tim Cole responded with a snort that came from the back of his throat. “I know. They want to be the ones giving orders all the time.”
Once at the police station, Tim Cole was placed in a room with no windows, just a mirror. He could feel himself being closed in like so many times before. Detective Lake came in and had asked him if he would like something to drink.
“Coffee would be good.”
“You know I could use a cup as well. Let’s see what happens when I ask my partner to fetch us two coffees? How do you like yours, Mr. Cole?”
“Delivered by a woman,” he remarked. “Cream. One sugar.”
“You got it.” Emerson opened the door and ordered Reese to get them both coffees.
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