by Ann Mullen
“Randy and I will take the first one on the list,” Frank said. “Billy and Jesse can check out the second one and Cole can have the third.”
“I’ll call my brothers and see which one is the closest to the last one on the list.”
“Are you and Randy familiar with the area?” Cole asked Frank.
“No, but I’m sure Claire is. She lived with her mother in Dogwood Valley for a few months. I’m sure she has some familiarity with the general area, don’t you, Claire?”
“I know enough to be of some use. If we get lost, we can always call Billy or Cole.”
She started to cry again.
Cole walked over to her, put his arm around her shoulder and said, “I promise you we’ll find your mother.”
“How can you promise that, Cole?” Claire cried. “We don’t know where to look and we don’t even know what kind of car that crazy killer woman is driving. We have no clues.”
She shrugged off his attempt to comfort her and walked over to Randy.
Billy came over to me and said, “What is on your mind, `ge ya? I can tell you have thoughts. You must share them with me. We will not let this woman get away.”
Billy’s accent took on the characteristics of his Cherokee language as it sometimes does when he’s extremely worried.
That worried me.
“I just want my mother back!” I said, holding back my tears as long as I could. Finally, I couldn’t hold them any longer. “I’m sorry,” I said as I sobbed. “I can’t stop crying.”
Billy wrapped his arms around me and said, “Cry later, `ge ya. Let’s go find your mother.”
His words shook me, yet gave me the courage to get it together. I stiffened up and turned to face everyone.
“You heard the man. Let’s get this posse on the move! Let’s get out of here right now!”
Billy and the guys put their heads together to decide who would go where to check out the addresses on the list.
As I stood by the kitchen counter, I looked up and noticed that the rain had stopped. Since night was setting in, it took me a while to realize that the thunder had also stopped and the storm had passed.
I was just about to open my mouth to speak when I looked through the front windows of the living room and saw the flashing lights of an ambulance followed by three Greene County police cruisers heading up the road.
“Look!” I screamed, pointing to the front window. “I say we follow them!”
I grabbed my purse and headed for the back door.
“Come on, Billy! We’re going after those cop cars!”
“Wait…” he started to say when Claire butted in.
“We don’t have time to waste on a wild goose chase,” Claire yelled to me. “Somebody probably had a heart attack or something. Just wait a minute, Jesse.”
“Not likely,” Cole said. “Sheriff Hudson…”
Before Cole could finish his sentence, his cell phone rang. He snatched it up and responded.
The voice on the other end came through loud and clear. Sheriff Hudson had found a body in the basement of Kansas Moon’s house.
Claire and I just about knocked everyone down trying to get out the back door.
Chapter 30
Claire and I were running around in circles, crying hysterically when Billy came up to me, grabbed me by the arm and shoved me up into the truck. Randy grabbed Claire and the two of them jumped into the 4Runner with Frank. Cole was in his cruiser heading out the driveway. He turned left in the direction the sheriff had taken earlier.
It was a mad dash by all of us to get to Kansas Moon’s house and I rambled the whole way.
Billy sat slack-jawed. He had his foot to the pedal and was concentrating on the road.
The rain started up again and this time it had the intensity of a gale-force wind. Visibility was almost impossible. Billy slowed the truck down.
“What are you doing? Go faster!”
“It’s too dangerous, Jesse. It’s raining so hard I can hardly see the road.”
“I don’t care!” I yelled. “Go faster!”
Billy reached over and put his hand on the back of my neck and said, “Stop, `ge ya. You’re out of control. You’re going to have an anxiety attack.”
I slid close to him and clung to his leg as his hands clenched the steering wheel. His muscles tightened with each passing second.
“If your mother knew you were riding in a car without wearing your seat belt, she’d have a fit.”
I let out a soft chuckle and said, “Are you kidding? I’m the one who’s always giving her a hard time about not wearing her seat belt. Usually, I have to tell her a gruesome story to get her to put on the belt. I swear it’s like banging my head against the wall. She’s so stubborn sometimes.”
I cried softly all the way to Kansas’ house.
We could see the flashing lights in the distance before we reached Kansas Moon’s house. When we got there, we pulled in off to the side behind Cole and the rest of the Greene County police cars. The 4Runner pulled in behind us.
An ambulance had backed up to the entrance of the house and medical personnel were running around.
Sheriff Hudson was standing out in the pouring rain, shouting orders.
I heard a dog bark.
I kept telling myself that I needed to go look for Athena. Why hadn’t I listened to my own words earlier?
Billy and I looked at each other and then jumped out of the truck.
Athena, muddy and covered with yard debris, came barreling around the side of the ambulance and ran straight up to me. She jumped up and dug her muddy paws into my jeans. She jumped back down, turned around in a circle and then jumped back up on me. She barked like a maniac. Finally, she turned and ran back to the house.
Billy and I ran after her, fighting our way through the pouring rain and the darkness that was only lit by the flashing lights of the police cars and the ambulance. Sheriff Hudson and his deputies held flashlights, but they were of little use in the blowing rain.
Claire was standing on one side and Billy was standing on the other side as they brought the body out.
I took off and ran toward the two EMTs, but wasn’t fast enough. Sheriff Hudson stepped in front of me, blocking my path.
The two EMTs carried the covered body on a stretcher as they wrestled with it trying to make it down the rickety steps of the porch to the opened doors of the ambulance. One of them slipped and almost lost his footing.
“Is that my mother?” I screamed. The rain and the wind drowned out my words. “Is she all right? Speak to me! Tell me something!”
Sheriff Hudson leaned over and spoke loudly as he tried to talk above the blowing wind and rain. “Yes,” he said. “She’s…”
Athena’s bark was so loud I couldn’t make out what the sheriff said. She jumped up and put her paws on the stretcher. Her barking was nonstop until Billy grabbed her by the collar and held her back.
“Are you trying to kill me?” a weak voice under the black plastic said. “I can hardly breathe under this thing.”
“It’s to keep you from getting wet,” one of them said.
My heart pounded in my chest at the sound of her voice. My mother was alive!
As soon as they shoved the stretcher up into the ambulance, Mom pushed back the plastic cover and tried to sit up. The interior lights of the ambulance gave us a glimpse of the faint smile on her bruised and dirty face. She looked pale and drawn.
Claire and I stood there in shock, and cried until they were about ready to close the door.
“Wait a minute!” I yelled. “We’re coming with you!”
I looked back just for a second and caught sight of Sheriff Hudson. He had a smile on his face as he winked at me. I looked over at Billy and Athena—their eyes said it all.
I ran to the ambulance, jumped up and fell to my knees beside my mother. I grabbed hold of her tiny hand and held onto it. Claire followed. She sat on the seat by the door and shivered until I stretched out my hand to her.
She dropped to the floor beside me, and we both cried together. We were so glad to have our mother back.
As the EMT closed the doors, I looked out through the glass into the murky night and saw Billy, Cole, Frank, Randy and Sheriff Hudson standing in a circle with their heads together. They were huddled together with their arms raised over their heads as if to cover themselves from the downpour as they talked. They were planning their next move, I was sure of that, but I couldn’t think about that right now. This was one time I was going to let the men handle the situation. They could go out and chase down the bad guy—or woman in this case—but for now, I was going to give up my private eye status and concentrate on my mother. Her well-being was all that mattered. The rest would work itself out.
Sheriff Hudson and his deputies, along with the help of the Blackhawk boys, Randy Morgan and Frank Trainum, would capture the Middle River murderer and put her behind bars where she belonged. As sorry as I was for the people Naomi Kent killed, I was so glad that my mother wasn’t one of them.
I watched the dreary, rainy scene fade in the background as the ambulance made its way down the road en route to the hospital. It finally dawned on me that I hadn’t said a word to anyone. I just jumped up in the ambulance and left. I didn’t take the time to hug Billy or give Athena a pat on the head. I didn’t even say thanks to Sheriff Hudson.
Sheriff Hudson—his face stuck with me as we rode down the bumpy road. My mind drifted back to the minute when he stepped in front of me. I was sure that the body they were bringing out was my mother, and that she was dead. That awful feeling still lingered, and I was sure it would for some time to come.
The EMT inserted an I.V. into the top part of Mom’s hand and then hung the fluid bag on a metal post attached to the stretcher as I talked to Mom.
“You’re going to be fine, Mom,” I said, teary-eyed. “Everything is okay now.”
“That woman is a killer, Jesse,” Mom said weakly. “She took me to my house, tied me up and then left me alone. I don’t know where she went, but before I could get lose, she came back. She beat me.” Mom’s lip started to tremble. “It was so awful. I was afraid I was going to die.”
“You’re safe now,” Claire said. “She’ll never hurt you again.”
“After she beat on me, she blindfolded and handcuffed me and then forced me into my van.”
“Is that when she took you to Kansas Moon’s house?”
“I didn’t know whose house it was. She dragged me to that horrible place and shoved me down the stairs to a basement filled with all kinds of critters. I couldn’t see very well, but I could feel the cobwebs. I felt like things were crawling all over me. Something bit me on the leg.”
“Don’t try to talk,” the EMT said to Mom. “Just let us take care of you.” He looked down at me and said, “Your mother is going to be all right. She’s safe and in good hands, so you can sit back and relax.” He motioned to the seat behind us. He looked back at Mom and asked, “Which leg was it?”
She pointed to her right leg.
Claire and I backed up out of his way and sat on the bench seat along one side.
The EMT checked out Mom’s leg and said, “It looks like a spider bite. Does it itch?”
“Yes,” Mom said.
“I’m sure it was a harmless spider. If it was a black widow, you’d be sick by now, and if it had been a brown recluse, the area would be inflamed. I wouldn’t worry. Just keep an eye on it.”
I laid my head back and closed my eyes. I was emotionally drained. I had never been this close to tragedy. I’d known others who had lost a loved one at the hands of a killer, but I had no idea of the impact it could have. Losing a loved one in such a horrible manner has to be one of the things nightmares are made of. I was just thankful my mother was going to live! If it hadn’t been for Sheriff Hudson and Athena, Mom would not have been found!
Once again, Athena had proven herself. She had sniffed out Mom like a hound dog after a coon. She was a true hero… and so was Sheriff Hudson!
When I first met Sheriff Hudson, I had few, if any, dealings with the police, and wanted to keep it that way. But then I went to work for Billy, the two of us started butting heads with the local sheriff.
However, my opinion has changed. Folks talk about the cops as if they’re a bunch of hard-asses with a gun and a badge, and for a long time I felt that way, too. But I don’t anymore. I no longer put the Greene County Sheriff’s Office in the same category as those officers who do their jobs and don’t give a rat’s butt about the people they’re supposed to serve. Now I realize how lucky we are to have someone like the sheriff and his men out there patrolling the streets, making it safe for the citizens of Greene County. I’ll sleep better at night knowing I can count on them to do their best. When I moved to Charlottesville, I worried about Mom living alone, and it might take me a while to put my fears to rest after this, but at least I know she has the sheriff and his men to look after her.
I made up my mind that I would let Sheriff Hudson know how much I truly appreciate what he did for our family. From now on, I wouldn’t give him a bunch of grief and I would try to behave myself. He deserves my utmost respect. It’s just too bad that I didn’t realize this until now. They say it takes a tragedy to bring people together. I guess they are right.
After what seemed like such a long ride, we finally made it to the hospital. The EMTs hustled about doing what they were trained to do. They took Mom to the emergency room and made sure she was in safe hands. Then they turned and headed out to save someone else.
As I stood and waited for someone to help us, I looked out through the glass doors of the hospital and noticed that the rain had stopped. The storm had moved out.
The hospital was a madhouse. There had been an accident on Rt. 29 involving three cars and a transit bus and the injured were steadily coming in. Some were on stretchers, and some walked in assisted by others. Interns attended to patients as quickly as they could. UVA Hospital knew how to keep it together in a crisis. They were definitely professionals. I was amazed as I watched them in action. Even with that many people in the ER all at once, they managed to treat everyone in a timely manner. With all the madness going on, we still only had to wait about ten minutes.
Mom was checked and double-checked. She was examined, poked and x-rayed, until I was sure she was going to get up and walk out of the hospital. However, the broken ankle she sustained had to be taken care of before that happened.
Claire and I were waiting in the hall while Mom was taken in for another x-ray. She had hip pain and the doctor thought it might be a hairline fracture. Either way, Mom most likely would get a night’s stay.
As we waited, Claire and I reminisced about Mom, Dad and other things in our lives. We talked, trying to pass the time, until I looked up and saw Billy coming around the corner. He was followed by Randy, Frank and Cole. All of them had a look of relief on their faces.
I ran to Billy, threw my arms around him and hugged him tightly. I also hugged everyone else, including Cole. I stood by Billy and said, “I’m so glad to see you. Mom’s going to be okay! I was so afraid…”
“All is well,” Billy said. “You need not worry.”
“What happened?” Claire asked as she stood by Randy and held onto his hand. “I can see it in your eyes, Billy. Somebody died. Who was it?”
“Nobody died,” Billy said. “That look you see is the look of exhaustion. I’m beat.”
“What about Naomi Kent?” I asked. “Has she been found?”
“Not yet,” Cole replied. “But we have every available deputy out looking for her. It’s only a matter of time before someone finds her.”
“What if she gets away?” Claire questioned. “She’s sneaky. She could slip right through your fingers. Look how long she’s gotten away with her crimes and avoided capture.”
“So far, we could only link her to the death of June Robinson, the body found in the trunk of the stolen police cruiser,” Cole said.
“I bet some
one’s going to be in the doghouse over having their cop car stolen,” I joked. “How did she manage to pull that one off?”
“We don’t want to go there,” Cole replied and then went back to what he was saying. “On the way over here I got a call from Sheriff Hudson and he said they lifted a print from the steering wheel of Daisy Clark’s car that belongs to the Kent woman. So now we can tie her to the murder of Alice Aikens.”
“What about the other woman in the club, Harriett Shifflett?” I asked.
“That’s a suspicious one,” Cole replied. “She was killed with arsenic, yet we can’t find a drop of the poison at her house. Her husband probably is innocent like he claims. We think now that maybe the Kent woman was involved in her death as well. All we need is hard evidence. The sheriff is doing another search of Kansas Moon’s house.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Naomi Kent had been staying with Kansas. When Rupert Hawkins’ dog went missing, he filed a complaint swearing he saw Kansas snatch up a dog one day. The dog wasn’t Rupert’s dog, but the point is, if Kansas snagged someone else’s dog, he probably snagged Rupert’s dog. That was his theory. He also said he saw a woman in Kansas’ truck, and from the description he gave us at the time, we now believe it was the Kent woman. We’ll have him look at her in a lineup as soon as she’s caught.”
“A thought just occurred to me,” Claire said. “Mom said that Naomi Kent forced her into Mom’s van.”
“So…”
“Where’s Mom’s van now?”
“In the hospital parking lot,” Jonathan said, out of breath as he came around the corner. “Daniel and Robert are searching the hospital.” He looked over at Billy and said, “I tried to call you on your cell phone.”
“I turned it off,” Billy replied. “You know the hospital has strict rules about that. Other than hospital personnel, only the cops are allowed cell phone use in the hospital.”
Jonathan looked at Cole and said, “I called Sheriff Hudson. He said he’d alert CPD. He also said to tell you that they found a bottle of arsenic in the basement at Kansas Moon’s house.”