by S F Bose
“Any problems finding us?” I asked.
No, the map and directions you left with Chief Durand were fine,” Haas replied and smiled. “I parked back by a Mini Cooper. Is that okay?
“That’s perfect. You’ll have dinner with us later?” I asked.
Haas looked sad. “I wish I could, but my orders are to remain outside. I have food and coffee for later. Another officer will be here at midnight to relieve me.”
“Okay,” I said. “You’re sure you’ll be warm enough?”
“Absolutely. I’m all layered up and this jacket is very warm. Don’t worry about me. Is it okay if I walk through the cabin?”
“Sure thing.”
Haas checked the bedrooms and scanned the kitchen and living room. Then he went to the sunroom. I watched him check the back door. When he started lowering the blinds, I helped him. When we returned to the living room, he closed and locked the inner door.
“Do me a favor and stay out of the sunroom. Too much exposure even with the blinds down,” Haas asked. I agreed.
We traded cellphone numbers, in case we needed to contact each other.
“I can get coverage outside?” he asked, checking his phone.
“Yes, if you’re not too far from the cabin, you’ll get the boosted signal,” I assured him.
“Okay, lock the door behind me, and don’t let anyone else in.”
“Will do,” I said. He nodded, opened the door, and went back outside. I locked the door and looked at Finn.
“I feel like I’m in prison,” he said and went back into the living room. I had to agree with him.
Chapter 55
At 2:30, I called Finn into the kitchen. I had laid out a spread of sandwiches, potato salad, coleslaw, potato chips, soda pop, and water on the counter. He looked at the food and said, “I was going to say I’m not hungry, but I’m famished.” He made a plate with a little of everything and sat at the small kitchen table.
“Me too. Skipping lunch will do that to you,” I agreed, sitting next to him. “You’re not a vegetarian are you?”
“Heck no, I love meat. This is perfect,” he said, popping a chip in his mouth. I bit into a salami and provolone sandwich. We ate in comfortable silence for a while. I noticed he was trying to look at my watch, so I checked it for him,
“2:30 p.m.”
He clicked his tongue. “This is torture.”
“We should know about Sweet soon,” I replied
Finn swallowed a forkful of potato salad and shook his head. “I don’t think Sweet did it. I’m betting on Fletcher tomorrow.”
I doubted Damian was the killer but didn’t want to start a debate. I shifted to a new subject. After sipping some soda, I glanced at him and asked, “You think Sherrie is the one?”
Finn focused on his potato salad and wouldn’t look at me. “I think she could be. We need to be together in a more normal relationship to answer that question.”
“I can understand that.”
“So, are you and Sam together?” He snuck a look at me.
“What? No! We just work together.” I was surprised at Finn’s question.
“Too bad. Sam’s a nice guy. You two seem to have…a natural chemistry.”
I nodded in agreement, thinking about Sam’s warm eyes, Cupid’s bow lips, and sense of humor. Then I stopped nodding and shook my head in the negative. “We have business chemistry,” I said quickly and felt my face warm.
Finn looked at me and smiled. “Are you with someone else?”
I sat back, drank some soda, and dabbed at my mouth with a paper napkin. I saw Nate’s smiling face in my mind’s eye and sighed. “There was someone special in Virginia, where I worked, but he was killed on the job.” I avoided looking at Finn because I didn’t want to see any sympathy.
Finn sounded surprised. “I’m really sorry. Was he with the police?”
“No. He was…I can’t really talk about the details. It’s complicated.”
Finn nodded. “So that’s why you came back home?”
“Yes. It was hard being out there…expecting him to come through the door or around the corner any minute. I quit my job and came home. Well, technically I’m on unpaid leave, but I’ve definitely quit.” I sniffed and gave him an angry look.
“We’re both a mess. I hate you a little less” Finn gave me a serious look. Then he smiled and I laughed. He reached out to squeeze my hand and I patted his.
While Finn took care of the dirty dishes, I returned some untouched sandwiches back to the refrigerator.
Then I settled on the couch with my Kindle, reading the latest Susan M. Boyer mystery. Finn checked his phone and then paced. He circled the living room, his bedroom, and repeated the path, over and over. Finally, he opened the inside back door and went out into the sunroom. He sat in one of the chairs and I relaxed a bit. The blinds were all down in there. He’d be okay.
At 3:00 p.m., my cellphone rang and Sam’s name popped up on the screen. I heard Finn jump up in the sunroom.
“Hi Sam,” I said.
“Hey Liz. How are things on your end?” Finn stood just inside the sunroom door watching me like a hawk.
“Good. We’re settled inside and Officer Haas is outside.”
“Haas? Haas. Oh! Tall guy, blond, looks like ex-military?” Sam asked.
“That’s him. What’s going on there?”
“We’re all set up at Founders’ Park. Madison sent two deputy sheriffs in plain clothes and a detective. Hopefully, Sweet won’t know any of them.”
“Where are you?”
“In a panel van parked on Mystic Road across from the Gazebo.”
I could picture his location. He was across the street from the park and southeast of the Wall. “Did they give you body armor?”
“Did they ever. It deters bullets, knives, and small children.” I could hear the smile in his voice.
I laughed. “Okay, be careful. Call me when you know something.”
“Will do. You be careful too. You didn’t kill Finn yet, did you?”
“No, I did not!”
Sam was chuckling as he hung up.
I filled Finn in on the conversation. He looked even more frustrated and started pacing again. I went back to my book.
***
Later, Finn settled into one of the easy chairs across from me. He stretched out his legs, and surfed the web on his cellphone. I was lying on the couch, reading my Kindle. Then I heard a loud thud outside toward the back of the cabin.
I leaped up and unholstered my Glock. Finn stood and when he saw my gun, he pulled out the Kahr. I ran to the bedroom and pulled on my parka. Then I ran back into the living room.
“Finn, I’m going out back. Lock the outside door behind me and come back in here. Then lock the inside door and hunker down away from any windows. Got it?” When Finn hesitated, I barked, “Got it?”
Finn jumped. His jaw clenched and he nodded. I looked at him sternly. “Whatever you do, Finn, don’t shoot me when I come back in.”
His eyebrows shot up. “I won’t. Just holler that it’s you.”
Finn had left the door between the living room and sunroom open. I crouched and moved through the door and squatted in the sunroom. Finn was behind me. Because of the closed blinds, I couldn’t see out the windows. I dropped to my knees and scooted to the inner door. After unlocking it, I gave it a hard yank and it opened. I pulled it halfway open and saw that the screen door was unlocked. I looked back at Finn and nodded. Then I pushed through the screen door in a crouch and slipped outside as quietly as I could. The sky was cloudy but there was still good light outside. I heard Finn swear as he pushed the wooden door shut behind me. I waited until I heard him turn the lock.
Scanning from left to right, I didn’t see Haas or anyone else in the clearing. I moved left and circled the perimeter of the cabin, looking for intruders or anything out of place. I also flicked my eyes to the nearby woods, looking for any movement. When I reached the back of the cabin again, I shouted,
“On your right,” he bellowed and I lowered my gun. He came out of the woods on the right and quickly closed the distance between us. He held his gun at his side and looked worried.
“Did you hear it?” I asked.
“Yeah. I did a circuit and didn’t see anything. Then I heard something in the woods and went to check. The snow is too fluffy for tracks.”
I nodded. “A critter maybe?”
“Maybe a raccoon or opossum foraging.”
“Yeah or a squirrel,” I agreed.
We both looked at the crabapple trees. No furry faces looked back. I started to relax and holstered my gun.
“Okay, I’m going back in. If you want any food or hot coffee, just call or knock. Sam called and said they were in position.”
“Will do.” Haas holstered his gun and checked his watch. “3:40 p.m. Almost show time.” We exchanged quick smiles and he disappeared around the side of the house.
I was going to knock on the screen door, when I saw it was ajar. Most of the screen doors were old and some were warped. I opened it and knocked on the back door.
“Finn, it’s me,” I shouted. Seconds later, he yanked the door open. He was smiling and talking on his cellphone.
“Finn is that Sherrie?” I asked. When he nodded, I said, “Hang up!” Finn was talking fast and quietly into his phone as he retreated into the living room. I didn’t see his handgun.
After pulling the screen door shut, I closed and locked the back door. Then I hurried into the living room.
“Finn!” I shouted. He clicked off the call and fell back on the couch, glaring at me.
“I just wanted to talk to her.”
“Where’s your gun?”
“In my pocket,” he replied and I felt rising anger.
“Did you tell Sherrie the truth about where you’re staying?” He looked away and then back.
“I just told her again that I was helping the police and would see her tomorrow. I hated lying to her. You didn’t help any with your shouting. I had to tell her you were the manager for the project.”
“Did she believe you?” I sat on one of the easy chairs.
“I’m not sure.” Finn rubbed his beard with one hand.
I shook my head and lowered my voice. “Finn, it’s not just your life we’re trying to protect here. There’s Haas and me to think about.”
Finn’s mouth opened and then clamped shut. “I’m sorry,” he finally said.
“Don’t call her again, Finn. Please. There are too many ways our location can be compromised.”
“All right Liz,” he said loudly. “Message sent. Message received. I hate you all over again!”
I jumped up. “Well I hate you even more,” I snapped backed.
We glared at each other. My hands were on my hips and I narrowed my eyes as I stared him down. After a minute, his lip twitched, I fought back a smile, and suddenly we both broke out into hysterical laughter. I sat down on the chair again, laughing until I was gasping for breath. When I looked up, Finn had slid to the floor in front of the couch and was wiping his eyes.
“God, I needed that,” he said with a bright smile.
“Me too.” I patted my face. My cheek muscles hurt after all the laughing.
Chapter 56
The laughter was short-lived. By 4:45 p.m., Finn and I were pacing at opposite ends of the living room. I kept looking at my watch and then at my phone to see if I’d missed a message. I opened the front door to get some fresh air and saw the fading twilight. Soon it would be pitch dark outside. Why doesn’t Sam call?
“Crap,” I muttered, going back inside and pacing some more. Finn sat in one of the easy chairs, head in his hands.
Then my phone buzzed. I fumbled as I clicked to messages. Finn jumped up and rushed over to me.
“It’s a text from Sam. ‘Got him. Will call shortly,’” I read. Finn took my phone and read the text message for himself.
“So it was Sweet?” He sounded disappointed.
“I guess,” I replied. “I wish he had just said ‘Got Sweet,’”
Storm clouds darkened Finn’s eyes. “Why make it easy on us?” he complained and handed the phone back to me.
Sam didn’t call until 5:50 p.m. when Finn and I were raiding the refrigerator.
“Wait…I’m putting you on speaker so Finn can hear.” Finn and I sat at the kitchen table with my phone between us.
“Okay Sam, what happened?” I asked.
“We thought it was a bust. By 4:30 p.m., Sweet still hadn’t shown up. Then a black Chrysler 300 roared by and screeched to a stop on Mystic Road ahead of us. Just stopped in the middle of the road.”
“Sweet?” Finn and I both asked.
“Yeah. He jumped out and reached in for something. At first, I thought it was a rifle. Fortunately, one of our guys in the park called it as a baseball bat. Sweet entered the park swinging it up and down. We got out of the van and trailed him.”
I frowned. “I thought the Madison guys were going to take him down.”
“It was a judgement call to go in with them. It was almost dark and he looked revved up. We didn’t realize until later that he was drunk as a skunk.”
Finn and I looked at each other.
“As he got closer to the Wall, he started screaming about the low-life scum and how nobody took advantage of him and lived to talk about it. Then he said he planned to pulverize our guy at the Wall.”
“With a bat?” I asked, looking at Finn.
“That was his plan, but again he was drunk.”
“What happened then?” I asked.
“Two plainclothes officers identified themselves. Sweet stopped and swung the bat at them like he was trying to hit a homer. Then he started running full-bore at Stan, our guy at the Wall. The plainclothes officers chased after him. When Sweet wouldn't stop, one of our guys finally tackled him from behind. It took two men to keep him down on the ground and Stan to cuff him.”
“I’d imagine the alcohol didn’t help,” I said.
“No, it didn’t. He was really sauced,” Sam agreed. “So after they read Sweet his rights, I went back to the Chrysler with Stan. He gloved up and searched the car. Guess what he found?” Sam asked.
“Booze?” Finn guessed and winked at me. I grinned.
“Even better. He found a Sig Sauer P226 wrapped in a towel in the glove compartment. A silencer was wedged in back of the Sig so that it wouldn't roll around.”
I was stunned and relieved. “Really? The murder weapon?”
“We won’t know until it goes through ballistics. Matt Durand said he’s going to see if he can somehow expedite the testing. We were both excited about the gun.”
“Did you get a chance to talk to Sweet?” I asked.
“We did. He was in the back of a patrol car by then. Stan and I went over and showed him the pistol and suppressor. Sweet denied it was his gun or silencer. He said he’d never seen them before. Then he screamed that the police were framing him.”
“Isn’t that kind of weird?” I asked. “He goes to a meeting with a person he probably thinks is a blackmailer, brings a bat, but no gun. Does that seem right to you?”
“Liz, I’m amazed he could stand up and talk, much less make logical decisions. It’s a pure miracle he didn’t crash his car on his way to the park,” Sam replied. “We found an empty whiskey bottle in the car and some empty beer cans.”
“Oh, I just remembered that Sweet was already slurring his words this morning when Finn called him. He’s probably been drinking all day,” I said.
“There you go,” Sam agreed. “There was something else. When we were standing near Sweet, I mentioned Justin Church’s name to Stan. When Sweet heard his name, he went on a major rant. He said he was glad Church was dead. Said he screwed him on a business deal that would have made them both a lot of money. Hoped he burned in hell.”
“Then we’ve got our guy,” I said and suddenly felt very tired.
“I think we do,” sa
id Sam.
“Wonderful. Then it’s over. Can I leave now?” Finn asked.
“Finn, would you mind spending the night? We have a spare room in the coach house. I’m exhausted and don’t think I can drive,” I said.
Finn started to object and then he caught himself when he looked at me.
“Oh God, sure Liz. You do look terrible. Actually, I’m beat myself.”
“It’s the stress. The adrenalin is leaving your bodies. Stay there and relax for the evening,” Sam said.
“Okay. I’ll go out and touch base with Haas. Thanks, Sam. I’m glad we got him and no one got hurt.”
“You and me both, kiddo. Your mother is going to be so happy! Talk to you tomorrow,” he said and the connection dropped. Kiddo?
Finn got up and patted my shoulder on his way to the living room.
I sat looking at the phone. I was filled with relief and exhaustion. My mother would definitely be happy, but I didn’t care about that as much as I might have a week ago. Finding the killer of Justin Church would hopefully give Peter and Martha peace of mind. They both could start to heal. That made me very happy.
Chapter 57
I tried calling Haas on his cellphone but the call went through to voicemail. After searching in the kitchen for a flashlight, I remembered I had a small tactical flashlight in my bag. It was just five inches long, fit in my hand, and threw a long beam. After pulling on my knit hat, parka, and shooting gloves, I called out to Finn,
“I’m going to go find Haas.”
“You want me to come with?” Finn called back from the living room. He must have stretched out on the couch because I couldn’t see him.
“No, I’ll do it.”
“Good,” he said and we both laughed.
When I stepped out on the front porch, the cold air hit me like a wall. At least there wasn’t any wind. I went down the porch steps into total darkness and stopped to let my eyes adjust. When I looked up at the sky, I couldn’t see any clouds or the moon. Must be a new moon. That would explain the almost complete blackness.
I turned the flashlight on and the LED light cut a path through the darkness. I went to my right, around the west side of the cabin, sweeping the ground with the flashlight.