by BJ Bourg
The ride came to a complete stop and he stood to release the security bar. I waited patiently while the current riders got off and new ones took their places. Once the swing began to move again, Bart settled back into his chair.
“So, who did Chester argue with?”
“It was Joel…our boss.”
The little bastard lied twice!
“What did they argue about?”
“Well, from what I heard, Joel accused Chester of flirting with his wife. He said something about Chester offering her some homegrown marijuana in exchange for sexual favors. It’s kind of Chester’s thing. Some people say weed is the gateway to harder drugs, but Chester says marijuana is the gateway to—”
“Okay,” I said, interrupting him. “Let’s get back to the argument. Where’d this take place?”
Bart shot a thumb over his shoulder. “It was outside of Joel’s trailer, long after the fair was closed. I think they had both been drinking. A few crew members were there, too, and they were all just hanging around talking about the day. Someone said Chester asked to use the bathroom in the trailer and he was inside for quite a while, so Joel went to see what was taking him so long. There was some yelling and hollering inside and they rushed in to hear Joel making the accusation.”
“Joel told me everyone got along well with Chester,” I said. “He even told me he didn’t believe Chester touched that woman.”
Bart cocked his head to the side. “That’s strange, because he sure accused Chester of being a pervert Friday night.”
“Who all witnessed the incident?” I asked.
“Oh, I don’t remember. There were a few people talking about it later that night and on Saturday, but I didn’t really pay attention to them.”
“Do you know where Joel’s at right now?”
“I haven’t seen him in a while—since about lunchtime, I believe.”
I nodded, thoughtful. Joel was quite the liar, but was he also a killer? And would he kill someone for simply propositioning his wife? I thanked Bart and headed for Joel’s trailer. It was where I’d found him last night, so it was as good a place to start as any.
As I walked through the maze of trailers and rides, heading for Joel’s place, I felt a sense of urgency growing deep in the pit of my stomach. While I knew I had to hurry and find the killer, I also knew mistakes could be made if I rushed the investigation, so I tried to suppress the feeling.
I finally spotted Joel’s trailer up ahead. A woman was sitting in a folding chair near the doorway. I almost didn’t recognize her with her clothes on, but finally realized she was the nude woman who was in the trailer last night. According to Joel she was his wife, but I already knew he was a liar.
“Hello, ma’am,” I said, nodding.
The woman was holding a cigarette between the fingers of her left hand while she tapped away at the screen on her cell phone with her right hand. She looked up from what she was doing and studied me for a long moment. “Aren’t you the policeman who came by last night?”
“Yes, ma’am.” I looked around, but didn’t see Joel anywhere. “I was hoping to have a word with your husband.”
She flicked burnt ash from the tip of her cigarette. “He’s around here somewhere. He said he had to make a money run, but he should’ve been back by now. He makes one every couple of hours.”
“Does he have a cell phone?”
The woman frowned sarcastically. “Doesn’t everyone?”
“Do you mind giving me his number?”
“I’ll call him for you, but he doesn’t like anyone giving out his number.” The strap on the woman’s shirt had slid off her shoulder. She shrugged it back in place while calling Joel. After holding the phone to her ear for a few seconds, she finally spoke. “Joel, that cop fellow from last night is back. He said he needs to talk to you. Right. Okay. Sure.” She slid her thumb across the screen to end the call and went back to playing on her phone. Without looking up, she said, “He’ll be here in about ten minutes.”
“Thank you.” I watched her for a bit, then asked if she knew Chester Raymond.
“The guy who died?” She nodded. “I met him a few times.”
“I hear he propositioned you the other night. What night was it again?” I snapped my fingers, pretending to try and remember.
“It was Friday.”
“Right, Friday. What exactly happened?”
“Well, he came in to use the bathroom and I was sitting on the sofa watching TV. When he was done using the bathroom, he stopped on the way out and began talking about his fiancée. He told me he’d met her at one of the fairs and he asked me to guess how he met her. I didn’t really care, so I just said he met her on one of the rides. He told me I was wrong and that he met her out in the parking lot. He said he was hiding behind a large truck smoking a joint when she turned the corner and caught him. Instead of freaking out, she asked for a toke.” She shook her head. “Can you believe that? That’s how they met and fell in love…over a joint.”
“What happened after he told you all of that?”
“Oh, he then proceeded to tell me how good he was at…you know, sex and stuff. I told him I wasn’t interested and that he needed to leave. I mean, he’s like way older than me and gross, so I wasn’t the least bit curious. He then proceeds to pull out a joint and asked if I wanted a toke. He said he’d let me have one if I met him out by the ride later that night. He said it was homegrown and the best weed I’d ever smoked. I laughed and told him that bullshit wouldn’t work on me.” She shrugged. “That’s it. Joel walked in and threatened to kick his ass and he left. The next thing I know, he’s dead.”
The woman didn’t seem a bit bothered by the fact that the man her husband threatened was now dead. She wasn’t even a little curious or suspicious.
“Did it ever occur to you that Joel might’ve killed Chester?”
She stared at the tip of her cigarette and thought about it for a moment. “You know, come to think about it, Joel did threaten to kick his ass.”
“Yeah, so, do you think he might’ve made good on that promise? Do you think it’s possible Joel killed him?”
After a long moment, she snapped her eyes away from the cigarette and shook her head. “Nah, I don’t think Joel’s got it in him.”
“But you can’t know if he did it or not, because you weren’t with him, isn’t that correct?”
“I mean, I can’t tell you what he’s doing right now because I’m not with him, but I’m pretty sure he’s not off killing people. Just like I don’t think he killed anyone last night.”
I looked over my shoulder. Still no sign of Joel. “Who owns this trailer?”
“We do.”
“Do you mind if I search it?” I had her full attention now.
“Why would you want to search it?”
“Just to see if there’s any evidence that might clear him of the murder.”
“Wait—what do you mean by clear him? Is he a suspect or something?”
“It looks that way, but I can probably eliminate him by making a quick search of the trailer—”
“Ain’t nobody searching my trailer!” boomed a voice from behind me.
CHAPTER 20
Thirty minutes later…
“Well, did you develop any new leads?” Susan asked when I opened the door to the autopsy room.
The Chateau Parish Coroner, Dr. Louise Wong, was bent over Chester’s body. She didn’t look up when I entered, but she mumbled a greeting.
“Hey, Doc,” I said, and then turned to Susan. “Turns out, Joel Baker got into an argument with Chester on Friday night, but he refuses to talk about it and he won’t cooperate. His wife acknowledged the fight and I think she was about to let me search his trailer when he walked up.”
Susan raised an eyebrow. “How’d that play out?”
“He said no one was searching his trailer. When I tried to question him about the incident, he said he wasn’t talking without a lawyer. When I asked him to call his lawyer, he sai
d he didn’t have time for that and he wasn’t talking about it anymore. He said if he wasn’t under arrest, he was going inside to have sex with his wife.”
After rolling her eyes in disgust, Susan chewed on her bottom lip like she did when she was deep in thought. I knew what was going through her mind. If Joel did kill Chester and he refused to cooperate, this case could drag on for weeks, months, and even years. Since the killer had struck from a distance and hadn’t come in contact with the victim or the portable toilet, there was no evidence to link him or her to the scene. There were no shoe impressions in the rocks, no surveillance videos, no witnesses…nothing but one shell casing.
“What are we supposed to do now?” I was glad when Susan finally asked the question, because I thought she was going to chew her lip completely off if she didn’t stop soon.
“I requested a nationwide criminal history check on Joel, so I’ll see what that turns up. I also asked Takecia to keep an eye on Joel to see if he makes a move. I’ll relieve her later tonight and watch him until morning. Once they pack up the caravan and leave, there’s not much we can do about him.”
I didn’t like letting a murder suspect leave town, but without probable cause to arrest him, there was nothing I could do. Since there was no evidence suggesting he killed Chester, it was just as likely that he hadn’t done anything at all. I’d always operated off the principle that it was better to let a guilty man go free than to wrongfully incarcerate an innocent man, and, while it wasn’t always easy, I had to honor that code.
I moved closer to the autopsy table and watched as Dr. Wong packaged seven small lead projectiles into separate containers. They were badly damaged, but it was clear they were most likely .22 caliber bullets. We signed the chain of custody forms and she handed me the projectiles.
“I’ll have my report done by mid-week,” Dr. Wong said, “and I’ll get my secretary to hand-deliver it to the police department.”
I thanked her and followed Susan out into the parking lot. After a quick hug and kiss, we parted ways. I headed for the fair while Susan went home to check on the residents at the battered women’s shelter she ran down the private street from our house.
I was just parking in the now dark and empty grassy lot where the shooter had stood hours earlier when my cell phone rang.
I lifted it to my ear, wondering who was calling at this hour. “This is Clint.”
“Clint, it’s your sister.”
A smile spread across my face at the sound of Crystal Montana’s voice. I still felt a little weird about having a sister, but I was getting used to it. “What’s up, Sis?”
“Mom”—the word sounded awkward rolling off of her tongue—“called and said the wedding might be off. That’s all she would say. It sounded like she was crying. Is everything okay between you and Susan?”
I began laughing. “Yeah, everything’s fine. Susan’s mom must’ve told her we were in the middle of a case and that if we didn’t solve it we weren’t getting married.”
“Wait…are you serious? I took vacation time to come down there. If this thing doesn’t happen, I’ll be screwed out of five days.”
I wasn’t in an optimistic mood, but I tried to sound sure of myself. “We’ll solve it in time, don’t you worry. We’ve got the guest room downstairs ready for you and your family, and Garvin can have the living room.”
Although Garvin Montana was my biological father, I couldn’t bring myself to call him Dad. It just didn’t sound right.
“And what if you don’t solve it in time?” Crystal asked. “Will you still get married and go on your honeymoon? I mean, are you allowed to do that?”
I sighed. “Sure, I can do it, but I wouldn’t…I won’t.”
“Clint Wolf, you’d better make damn sure you solve that case,” she warned. “And if you don’t, you’d better do whatever you have to do to get your ass on that ship and marry that woman. I know your job’s important, but you’ve got to put your bride first sometimes—and this is one of those times.”
I knew she was right. She continued talking, but her voice was a low murmur in the background of my subconscious mind. I was busy working on a backup plan. When she finally stopped talking and asked if I was still there, I apologized and told her I had to go.
“You told me to go solve this case,” I explained, “so that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
CHAPTER 21
I stepped out of my truck and strode across the dark field. I had received a text message from Takecia earlier telling me where she had set up surveillance, and I headed in that direction. Stars sparkled above and seemed brighter than usual, thanks to the utter darkness that surrounded me. Every now and then I heard a door slamming or a voice calling out in the distance, but, for the most part, the fairgrounds had been reduced to a ghost town.
Having worked the fair for a couple of years, I knew the place would be bustling with activity at first light. Some of the crew would begin tearing down the rides, while others would pack up the trailers, and still others would close up the mobile concession stands. Within hours of daybreak, they would be gone—as though they’d never been here—and we wouldn’t see them again until next year.
I slipped between two of the rides, keeping to the darkest shadows I could find, and made my way to a patch of tall grass at the edge of the lot where the carnies had set up camp. The clump of weeds where Takecia had bedded down was thirty yards from the nearest trailer. She moved over as I dropped to my knees and crawled the last few feet to her position. I could feel the cold dew soak through my pant legs.
Takecia pointed toward Joel’s trailer when I reached her position. She leaned close to me and whispered, “He’s inside. He came out a couple of times when workers knocked on the door to talk to him, but, other than that, he hasn’t moved.”
Before disappearing through the grass, she handed me the binoculars I’d loaned her earlier. Once she was gone, I settled into a comfortable kneeling position and lifted the glass to my eyes. That familiar yellowish light still shone from the dirty window over the door. I scanned the other trailers, but all seemed quiet. It was going to be a long night, but I didn’t mind. I needed time to think about this case. Somewhere, there had to be a piece to the puzzle that would help bring more of the picture into view, but where would I find that piece? I went over everything that had happened thus far, retracing my every step and going over every statement I’d taken, but I came up dry.
I glassed the trailer again—for the hundredth time—but nothing had changed. Everything looked exactly as it had the last time I—
Wait a damn minute!
I turned my binoculars toward the first trailer on the opposite end of the field and noticed a shadow that hadn’t been there earlier. The only thing I’d seen when I first looked there was a shadow in the shape of a trashcan and another in the shape of a small barbecue pit. This shadow was different. It was human, and it was moving toward the back door of the trailer.
I dialed my binoculars back a little to allow more light to gather, and I sucked in my breath as I watched how the figure moved. It was Patricia Raymond, and I was certain I saw the shape of a shotgun against the white siding of the trailer.
What the hell are you doing out here?
Whatever it was, it wasn’t good and I had to stop her before she did something stupid. I shoved the binoculars over my shoulder and began crawling painstakingly through the field toward Patricia, stopping periodically to raise my head and make sure she hadn’t heard or seen me.
She was focused intently on where she was going, so it gave me a bit of an advantage, but not for long.
She had low-crawled through an open area and was nearing Joel’s trailer when she stopped dead and lifted her head as though she was testing the wind with her nose. I froze. She’d either heard me or seen me, or she’d detected something else. I was within twenty yards of her location and figured it would be impossible for a person to smell another human from that distance, but what if she possessed some
uncanny ability to do just that? What if her years living in the swampy wilderness had honed her senses to the point of being animalistic?
Moonlight painted the area in an eerie blue hue and I felt exposed. Patricia hadn’t turned in my direction yet, and I was starting to think she must’ve heard something else when she suddenly whirled around and leveled her shotgun in my direction.
“Whoever you are, you’d better show yourself and you’d better do it quiet-like,” she hissed, “or I’m going to light you up.”
“It’s me,” I said quickly, but quietly, lifting my hands so she could see they were empty. I was growing tired of her pointing guns at me, but it was clear neither of us wanted the carnies to know we were among them. “Clint Wolf.”
She shot a quick glance over her shoulder to make sure no one in the trailer had heard us, and then she rushed toward where I waited. “What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I could ask you the same thing,” I countered. “It’s my job to be here, but you’ve got no reason at all.”
I could see her frown against the glow from above. “This is the trailer my father was staying in while he worked here,” she explained.
“How do you know that?”
“Dickie would always come with him on Thursday afternoon to get settled and help set up the rides. Father would bring him back home Friday afternoon, then return to finish out the weekend.” She let out an audible sigh. “I wanted to collect my father’s things and bring them back with me.”
I didn’t believe her for a second. I reached out in the dark and touched the barrel of her shotgun. “And what’s this for?”
“Protection.”
I glanced toward Joel’s trailer, but all was still quiet inside. I turned back to Patricia. “Were you planning on breaking in to get your dad’s stuff? That would be a felony.”
“Of course not,” she huffed. “What do you take me for—some kind of idiot? I was going to make sure things were safe and then I was going to knock on the door like any civilized person would. Now, if they refused to return his property, well, that’s a different matter.”