by Kieran York
“Nope.”
“How about complicit with the murder of Alec?”
The sheriff answered, “As far as the murder, narrowing it down, Verner has an alibi. He was in surgery. But perhaps while his patient was being put under, the doctor made a sprint to kill Alec. It’s a ten-minute hike. Probably not easily done. But he could have hired a hit. Both Austins are physically able. It, however, would have been more in keeping, as far as either one’s demeanor, to see Larry perpetrating it. He could have easily set up the rope barrier, tripped Alec, bike fell, and then Larry hiked down to club the bejesus out of Alec.”
“And so, they could have all together feared a reprisal from Alec, and had a motive to kill him. And they all knew it was going down.”
“I agree. But Lyn, I’m just not feeling it.”
Lyn laughed. “It had to be somebody. Alec didn’t kill himself.” She took a sip of coffee.
“Admittedly, he was reckless, but I don’t think he drove himself over the cliff.”
“Returning to the senior abuse case, it is going swimmingly. Fraud, the Rick Durant forgery. That is solid. But who among the trinity can forge?”
“Good question,” Royce responded.
“I’ve personally been in contact with both Rhonda Smith and Amber Kerr. And I’ve spoken with Daisy Barnaby a few times. What a great character!” Lyn joked, “I wouldn’t want to match wits with that woman. Glad she’ll be testifying for the Prosecution.”
Grinning, Royce agreed, “She’s one of the most impressive women we have here in Timber County.” It angered her to think someone drugged Daisy. “Although this teacher had enhanced life, educated, and provided for so many other minds – hers was betrayed.”
“This case has really got you.”
“Yes.” Royce’s jaw tightly clamped. “Many of these folks have been imprisoned. They were undoubtedly frightened to say anything. They were probably terrified that there could be a worse place. From the victim’s POV, it was perhaps the only stop-off. They were harnessed to reprehensible mistreatment and fear.”
“You’re thinking of your Gran?”
Looking at the ceiling for moments, Royce then said softly, “Yes. These women helped all women. Yes, a small mountain school. Yes, a woman married to a volunteer lawman, and she gave birth to a man that became a sheriff. Both women law abiding, and always encouraging youth. And emboldening females to become their dreams.”
“I know your Gran is a wonderful woman. And Daisy sounds astounding.”
“One time she took her class on a field trip. There were about a dozen of us there. We hiked up to sit on a huge rock. I can remember one small girl. She never liked high places. Miss Daisy said, ‘All of you sit around her, and make her feel brave, and safe.’ As we protectively circled the girl, she actually did begin to enjoy the view. And her newfound courage.”
“That’s something the child probably has remembered through her life.” Lyn fondly spoke, “Providing lovely memories – it doesn’t get any better than that.”
Royce concurred, “Yes. When we got back down from sitting on that rock, one of the kids asked if we were going to the meadow to learn about wildflowers. Miss Daisy said that we had just learned the real lesson of life. ‘Always take care of one another,’ she repeated.” Royce’s eyes began to flood. “And these people inflicted her with living in a comatose state. They drugged her lovely mind.”
Lyn reached for Royce’s hand. “They’re going to pay for it. We may not get them on Capital Murder One. But we’re going to strip them of their power. And the Center. And put them away for as long as possible.” She sat up. “It is going to be difficult. I’m sure all three can afford a superb team of attorneys. We’ll get them.”
“But exactly how?”
Lyn’s expression was confident. “At times there needs to be deconstruction, to construct something good. When we arrest the three, they will all go down on Medicare fraud, eldercare financial abuse, and physical abuse. Those three will have lawsuits from every single one of the patients and their families that were injured. Basically, they will all be culpable, and they will all become part of a class action lawsuit.”
Royce leaned forward. “Do you believe they’ll be locked? Not a hand slap and a party prison?”
“In my estimation, they should get a lengthy sentence. And they’ll be sued. That will take big capital.” Lyn pursed her lips. “The Center’s few stockholders, about six of them, will lose minimal amounts, but they will remain both stockholders for the new corporation, and have stock redistributed. Unfortunately, your friend Gwen is one of those stockholders. She is in full agreement with the decision. So are the other stockholders.”
“Gwen?” Royce was shocked. “Gwen never said anything to me about it.”
“We just talked this morning. I explained things. Told her it was confidential, so probably that’s why she didn’t tell you. When I found that she was on the board, I contacted her immediately. She said she was always too busy to be at meetings, and figured the others were overseeing it. She stated that the stock she owned was minimal. We discovered everyone was doing the same thing. So, the Austins, and Verner were free to do as they liked. Little to no oversight.”
“Gwen never ceases to amaze me,” Royce snickered.
“Because she owns stock?”
Royce’s laugh continued. “No, because she didn’t inform me that you two talked.”
Lyn made a groaning sound. “I’m sure you’ve been left out of plenty of loops, Sheriff.”
“Anything more?” Royce quizzed.
“Gwen told me that you’d mentioned a nurse that has some financial skills. We’re going to need the entire bookkeeping system – all the financials worked. I think there’s a way of keeping the continuance of care, and transitioning the Center. Gwen suggested we have Rhonda Smith and Dr. Norman Nilson. They could oversee both the care of patients, and the charging system. They are honest and trustworthy. Naturally, there will be medical and financial advisors also working on the rebuild, from the agencies.”
“I talked with Gwen about both Rhonda, and Doc Nelson. I guess I’m only one loop behind the two of you.”
“Royce, what really matters – the loop that counts – you need to get your heart in a loop with Hertha. If you’re not communicating with the woman you love, you’re behind in what matters.” Lyn stood. “Now, I’m going down the hall and chat with my new best friend, D.A. Mike, and you might want to check out the animal hospital.”
As Lyn walked to the door, Royce couldn’t help but believe Lyn Evans was an amazing woman. The sheriff was too proud to return to the animal hospital. It seemed too soon.
***
“We may just have a fraternization problem.” Nick smirked, as he entered Royce’s office, and plunged into the chair opposite her.
“Terry and Sam?” Royce spoke knowingly.
“I can tell these things,” Nick insisted. “The way they’re acting. Hey, I see the signs. They are blinking, enormous, multicolored signs!”
“Okay, take your pick. We’ll permanently assign one to your office, and the other I’ll take for Timber.”
“Royce, you’re the sheriff. You pick. I like them both.”
“Terry lives in Crystal. She’s yours.”
“So, you get joy boy?”
“It makes it easier for both them. Sam lives in Timber.”
“Okay, fine.” Nick burst out laughing. “Just tell Beverly that you decided.”
“Nick, Bev wouldn’t care who you have working with you. You’re just lucky that you’ve got a wife like Bev.”
He grinned. “I couldn’t survive without her.”
“I’m sure you couldn’t.”
“Talking about women. How’s your ex doing?” he pried.
“Lyn is scheming with the D.A. This is going to be a fiasco. But Lyn will have it falling into place.”
“Speaking of jealousy, is Hertha jealous about Lyn being here?”
“I’m not certain sh
e cares. But even if she would, there would be no reason for her to worry about Lyn.” Hesitating, she inquired, “Anymore on the Seth search?”
“The guy’s body is petrifying. If he is alive, he’s not anywhere around here. Royce, we’ve had everyone searching. I know you don’t like this, but nobody thinks he’s alive. And we’re too damn busy with petty crime to be wasting time to find him. I know you’re worried about the freeze coming up. If he’s out there he’ll ice up. But no one has spotted him. We’ve looked everywhere. No traces. We’ll dig his body out next spring. That’s the only way we’ll ever see him again.”
“You’re probably right. We need to call off the search. We’re going to need all our badges working with what will be happening with the Center.”
“Exactly.” Nick got up to leave. “Shall we let the lovebirds in on their new assignments? Terry and Sam got under one another’s skin. What do you think Sam sees in her?”
“What do you think Terry sees in Sam?” They both spurt out a chuckle. “They do make a cute couple,” the sheriff said.
“They do.” Nick left quietly.
Royce considered that probably meant that he completely approved.
***
Looking toward the skies, Royce could see the weather’s fierceness easing across the north-western quadrant of the sky. An early snow had been predicted as autumn progressed. Undoubtedly it would be a light snow, then autumn would continue with its bright sunny skies.
Before going back to the Sheriff’s Department to change from uniform to civvies, and check on what Lyn and Mike had been doing, Royce stopped off at High Country Animal Hospital.
Hertha was chatting to a patient’s mom about the little Yorkie’s ear cleaning and nail trim. Royce and Chance waited until the woman left. Then Hertha came around the counter and gave Chance a hug. “Good girl, Chance,” she crooned to the German shepherd.
“I just dropped by to see how the kids were. Hertha, we need to behave like adults and not bicker in front of them.”
“I know.” Hertha forced a smile. “When I saw Molly, she said the same thing.”
“She really enjoys the kids. Are they ready for their field day?”
“They can’t stop talking about it. I haven’t taken them skiing. I thought this winter would be a perfect time for them to learn to ski. I’ll start them out with cross-country, then take them up to the lifts. But the field trip will be great. About a dozen in their class are going. They’ll get to ride the lifts up and then back again. That will get them used to it when I take them.”
“They’ll love riding the lifts. Always great to get out of school. What about the driver? Have you had any more problems with that mouthy racist?”
“We’ve had our regular driver since that one day. Not all people are bad. I know the kiddos are experiencing some of the bad. But many of the children are kind. The main problem is that the bullies frighten the children that would like to be friends with Vannie and Antero.”
Royce sighed. “I wish I wasn’t so busy with the cases going on. I’d take the kids up skiing, or hiking.”
“Anything new?”
“Lyn Evans arrived earlier. She’s with Mike. They’re lining up their ducks.”
“If Lyn’s here, there’s no need for me to ask you to have dinner with the kids and me.”
“We’ve already planned…”
“You don’t need to explain, Royce,”
“Hertha, we’re going to order in pizzas and work together. There will be Mike, his assistant, Lyn, and me.” Royce scratched her face a moment. “Not that you care. Since I don’t take care of the children when they’re in my company. Why would you care who I have dinner with?”
“I don’t.”
Royce turned rapidly. “Come on, Chance.”
***
Lyn was on one end of the long conference table, and Mike was on the other. They had stacks of papers strewn across the table. Royce took a chair next to the assistant. The D.A.s had prepared various papers, and placed them in order.
“I feel a little useless,” Royce chided. “I have no idea how this goes.”
Lyn joked, “Eat the free pizza and get a lesson in law.”
As Mike and Lyn chatted back and forth, Royce listened carefully.
Lyn commented, “No employee has been convicted of assault. Or even formerly accused. The nurses, orderlies, aides, no one has been accused. That may be a problem.”
Mike countered, “Yes, but some of the patients probably didn’t want to even tell the staff if they’ve been mistreated. They often don’t know who they can trust. And the residents like Daisy Barnaby were given drugs – sleeping medication. When they said anything, they were just dosed up again. I don’t find it a problem that they didn’t report.”
“However,” Lyn added, “we have a great many disturbing cases. Deputy Sam Dawson has a list of infractions with photos. There was a need to intervene, but if the patients weren’t telling their nurses, the nurses and orderlies needed to be very careful in reporting without a patient complaining to them. Right, Royce?”
Royce answered, “Actually, a couple of nurses did believe something was going on, but they didn’t see it. And without the patient’s word, they felt helpless. They knew patients were being put in restraints, and controlled. But they were told it was for the patient’s benefit. In some cases, it may well have been. We now have reason to question all that. The disabled were vulnerable. The patients were exploited financially, but the floor staff had no idea because they weren’t privy to the financial billing.”
Mike offered, “Some of the financial abuse was never seen by patient or family. When family handed everything off to the Center – that was it. If there was a breach of conservatorship authority, no one would ever know. Guardianship was rarely checked. Assisted living facilities aren’t always careful about charges. Lots of defalcation is going on. And Silver Wilderness was rampant with violations.”
After Royce had listened for an hour, she found it painful. She would look at the case references printed on the pages in front of her. She was seeing nothing but anguish on the pages. Finally, she stood. “I think I’m going to call it a day. Tomorrow will be busy. I want to get Chance home.”
“Are you okay,” Lyn questioned.
“Fine.”
“I’ll be staying up at my apartment. I’ll call you when I get home.”
“I’ll be at Gran’s cabin.”
“It will be okay,” Lyn encouraged. “You’ll do what you need to do. And we’ll do the rest. We’re going to let the world know we care what happens to our seniors.”
“Thanks, Lyn. Thanks for being here.”
Royce walked out into the dusk. Inhumanity that she’d witnessed over the past twenty years was eroding her trust. The remnants of evil had been encoded on her heart. She had such lofty convictions when she began as an enforcer. Now, it seemed as if she was only wadding through a quagmire of crime. The faster she and her fellow enforcers fought to contain criminality, the faster evil seemed to run. Her mission had been to protect. How could such awfulness be so near? A place where human beings were vulnerable. It was never under suspicion.
Not until a brave woman walked through a range and fought for her homestead. Daisy’s faint voice screamed out as she was in the shadow of the mighty Silver Wilderness. She stood sturdy, and courageous. And that would turn corruption upside down. It would un-end it.
Transcriptions from the emails on Alec’s computer gripped Royce. She recalled reading one notation that Eileen had written to Alec. She said not to worry about being caught. The old folks were like cash cows. Royce thought, they call our senior loved ones cash cows.
Chapter 21
Royce and Mr. Sunshine, Deputy Sam Dawson, had chatted about his being permanently attached to the Timber Sheriff Department.
“We’re still all in this together,” Sam chortle. “Aren’t we?”
“That we are. It’s just really a formality to take care of any foreseeable pr
oblems.”
“Right, Sheriff. Do you want me to go back out to the Center?”
“No, were standing down from that situation until we get things in place. We don’t want to show our hand. There could be miscues, so we’re holding our cards. Maybe you can shadow me until something comes up. I want to go over to Gwen and Nadine’s house. Check in with their guest.”
“Me, too? I mean, I do know that the probability of Daisy Barnaby being holed up there is ninety-nine out of a hundred. And we aren’t supposed to know her whereabouts.”
“Come on,” Royce motioned with a mock gruffness. “She’s a very small woman, and she is barely visible.”
Sam’s gulped his laughter. “Got it, Sheriff.”
The two and Chance went to visit Gwen in the home. Nadine was at The Timber City Times. She was watching after the office. Although their small weekly newspaper’s found subscriptions dwindling, they were adding more Crystal news. And they still were very busy with local stories. The story of Seth had been a search for the senior citizen. The news story of an investigation of Silver Wilderness Center was not mentioned. No gag order was needed. Gwen and Nadine took their journalistic training on the streets. They understood the danger. They would not break a story that might endanger the public in any way.
Entering the house, they saw Gwen and Daisy seated on the sofa. Gwen was comforting Daisy. “Come in, have a seat.”
“What’s wrong?” Royce asked.
“It would have been my cat’s ninth birthday today,” Daisy explained through her tears.
“What happened to her?” Royce questioned.
Gwen answered for the sobbing woman. “When they took Daisy away, the Center promised that they would drop the cat off at the neighbor’s home, or to Hertha’s clinic, where she’d be safe. Everyone knows the local animal clinic was always where lost animals are taken. But the Center didn’t take care of Betsy, as they promised. We think they just opened the door of Daisy’s home and let the cat out.”