Deadly Connections
Page 16
“What type of individual is drawn to these groups?”
“There’s a blurring of lines between militias and Christian fundamentalists, those who think the Apocalypse may be at hand, and they’re preparing for that. Militia members believe the government is getting out of hand. Frequently, they include law enforcement personnel or ex-cops. A lot of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan join, and they bring their military training. And it’s generally men who join. Obviously they’re going to want guns and be strong supporters of the Second Amendment.”
Some of this matched what I knew about Gary Pickett. “Do any of these groups indoctrinate their children into the militia?”
He leaned forward, hands on the desk. “Not as such, but I’m sure family members hear some things about a particular group’s activities.”
“What about criminal backgrounds?”
“Depends on the man. And speaking of criminality, there is that element in some groups. Of course, some militias denounce breaking the law or using violence, but others definitely cross that line. The crimes are usually related to weapons or explosives, and the more serious crimes are often about plotting to blow up a building.”
“Do you know of groups that resort to crime for money? Or that might kidnap children for some reason?”
A frown formed. “Some militia groups have been condemned for detaining migrants at the border until border security arrived, but that’s the extent that I’m aware of.” He tipped his head, curious. “I hope this doesn’t mean we have an issue with one of these groups? I haven’t heard about anything yet.”
“I don’t know that.”
“I suppose you could have a group that resorts to criminal activity in order to profit, but that would be something new to me. These groups aren’t about money; they’re radically ideological about what they see as a dangerous infringement on their rights.”
“What about racism?”
“Yes, that’s a part of it, at least for some militia groups. Some group leaders condemn racism, but that doesn’t mean the individuals within a group aren’t racist. However, there have been problems of late with attacks on Muslim groups.”
“Whoever is perceived as the latest threat gets targeted.”
“Yes,” he agreed sadly.
“How did you develop your knowledge on militias?”
“It started out as something I covered in a history class on late-century political trends. Then it led to a whole course on the history of right and left wing groups and militias. Through my own research, I’ve come into contact with law enforcement, and I’ve even had members of these political groups and militias talk to me. It’s been eye-opening, to say the least.”
“I’ll bet.”
“If you’re interested, call Special Agent Mike Crozier at the FBI. I’ve gotten to know him over the years. He keeps tabs on some of these groups, and he shares with me what he can.”
“That’d be great.”
He rummaged in a drawer for a notebook, then grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down a number. As he handed me the paper, he glanced at a clock on the wall. “I have office hours now, and I’m afraid we may be interrupted by some of my students.”
I was politely being dismissed, just as he would one of his students I imagined. I stood up and thanked him for his time. “It’s been very educational.” I handed him a business card. “If you think of anything that might be helpful in my investigation, I’d appreciate a call.”
“Sure.” He stood up, leaned over his desk, and took the card. “It’s been a pleasure. And if you hear more about the Colorado Citizens Militia, I’d appreciate hearing about it.”
“Absolutely.” I walked out the door, mulling over what I’d learned.
Chapter Twenty-Five
When I got back to my desk, Ernie was on the phone. I sat down and logged onto my computer.
“Yeah, that’s right,” Ernie was saying. “If something else occurs to you, give me a call, okay? Thanks.” He hung up, then swiveled his chair around to face me.
I checked my email, then pumped my fist. Tara had sent a report of Gary Pickett’s internet history.
He cocked an eyebrow. “I can see the look in your eye. What have you got?”
I began scanning his internet searches. “There it is,” I said excitedly. “Gary has been looking at the Colorado Citizens Militia, a local militia group here in Colorado. Now we have the proof.” I sat back and looked at Ernie. “I got quite the education from Professor Wilder. I had no idea how many of these groups are around, or how they operate. It’s crazy.” I kept my eyes on my monitor as I talked. “We knew Gary has an interest in militia groups, I just didn’t know for sure if it was this one.”
“What’d the professor tell you?”
I gave him the scoop, then told him about my conversation with Charlotte Hall at the gallery. “And Charlotte said that lately Eklund had been interested in politics and right-wing groups. I’d be willing to bet there’s a connection between Gary Pickett and Eklund. I asked Gary if he knew Eklund, and he denied it. Was he lying?”
He sat back and chewed on his cigar. “You think Ivan Eklund is involved in the same militia group as Gary Pickett?”
“Don’t forget John Merrick.” I took a pencil and fiddled with it. “It’s possible. Except that Eklund was talking about right-wing groups, not necessarily militia groups. And I don’t know whether any of them are actually involved in a militia group, per se.”
“True.”
“Hang on,” I said, then pulled out the paper with Mike Crozier’s number on it. “Wilder gave me the name of an FBI agent who has tracked some of these militia groups. Let’s see what this guy has to say.” I grabbed my desk phone and dialed. When a man’s deep clipped voice answered, I identified myself. “Professor Wilder at DU suggested I give you a call.”
“He’s a good man and knows his stuff.”
“Yes he does. I was wondering if you have any information on the Colorado Citizens Militia.”
“This pertains to an investigation of yours?”
“It seems to.” I told him about Logan Pickett, then everything I had so far on Gary Pickett and John Merrick.
“That is interesting, and I’m afraid I might disappoint you. I don’t have a lot of information on the Colorado Citizens Militia. We’ve been keeping tabs on that group now for over a year, but so far, they seem to be lying low. They’ve got a website, which I’m sure you’ve already looked at, with some basic information, but unlike many other groups, they don’t have much of a social media presence. I haven’t heard of anyone in the group itself plotting anything criminal, although some of the individual members have been arrested for burglaries, DUIs, and other misdemeanors. At this point, I’m not aware of any rogue members doing something illegal. Are you?”
“I’m not sure,” I said. “Do you know of a member in the Colorado Citizens Militia who has dark hair and a handlebar mustache? He’s a big, burly man.”
“He doesn’t sound familiar. I’ve not personally met any of the guys in the group, though.”
“I’ll have to keep looking then.”
“You better make it fast, unless you want to go out of state.”
“What’s that mean?”
“From what I hear, the group may be relocating soon.”
My ears perked up. “Where?”
“Idaho is the rumor. I guess Colorado’s not to their liking anymore.”
“Interesting.” I thanked him for his time and hung up. I looked at Ernie. “The Colorado Citizens Militia might be heading out of state.” He tipped his head at me. I thought back through conversations I’d had with Audra and Gary Pickett. “Audra said Gary didn’t think she was a good mother, and I got the sense she thought Gary might’ve been capable of taking Logan from her. If Gary is part of this militia group, and the group is leaving the state, maybe he plans to relocate with the group. That’d be a reason for him to kidnap Logan, if he wanted his son with him instead of Audra.”
“I won’t do that for sure until I know who the killer is. But–” I thought for a second, picturing Audra in my mind. Her grief and pain seemed so visceral. “I don’t see her killing Logan. She had Latoya Anderson around her house, both the night of his kidnapping, and each day since then. We know from the autopsy that Logan likely died within hours of being found. It would be hard for her to keep him hidden from Latoya that whole time. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but it would’ve been difficult to keep his body from being discovered.”
“She could’ve drugged him.”
“True, but we won’t know what Logan might’ve had in his system until we get the toxicology report back. Have you talked to the CSI team?”
“Yeah. From what I can tell, there isn’t a thing in that alley that helps us.”
“Too bad.” The pencil was back in my hand as I mulled things over. “Let’s go back to Gary Pickett. He and Merrick both seem to have a connection to the same militia group. What does that have to do with the murdered boy? Did Merrick kidnap Logan for Gary?”
“What about Eklund? Did he take the boy, and Gary found out, and the militia group killed Eklund?”
“Interesting theory,” I said. “Eklund kidnapped Logan, had his fun with him, then killed him?”
“Right.” Ernie didn’t say anything else.
I grimaced and tossed the pencil down. Ernie stared thoughtfully at his laptop as I continued scrolling through Gary’s internet searches. Then I sat back, frustrated. “What is Gary holding back?”
“Huh?”
“Gary is lying through his teeth. He’s downplaying the fact that he broke Logan’s arm back in California, while he was in the Marines, and that he and Audra had a domestic dispute. And he won’t say a word about this militia group. If he knows something about his son’s disappearance, wouldn’t he tell us? Unless he’s involved somehow, or the militia group doesn’t want him to talk to us.”
“Why would they care, unless they’re involved too?”
“Exactly,” I said. I tapped a finger on my desk. “If Gary kidnapped Logan, he had to have had help. He’s also smart enough to know he needs an alibi.”
“Who is the girlfriend, Kristi Arnott?”
I nodded and looked at my phone. “Spats should call me if he talks to her.”
“If someone else does the dirty work and snatches Logan, Gary looks innocent. He’s there helping look for his son.”
“Right.”
“What if Eklund isn’t a pedophile? How else might he fit into this?”
I mulled that over. “Maybe Gary masterminded the whole thing. What if he knows Eklund too, and he got Merrick and Eklund to work together to kidnap Logan, then Eklund kept Logan at his house.”
“What about Eklund’s girlfriend? If she was around his house, how does he keep the kid quiet?”
I went back over my conversation with Rachel Connelly. “The last time she’d seen Ivan was Friday, and they went to her house. She did say he’d been busy over the weekend.”
“He didn’t want her there because he had the kid with him?”
“That’s a possibility.”
“And as we’ve said before, something went bad, they kill the kid and put him in the dumpster behind Eklund’s house,” Ernie said, then pinched his face. “It’s a stretch.”
“Stranger things have happened.” I let out a heavy sigh.
“You’re leaving out one thing. If Eklund was helping Gary, why does Eklund commit suicide?” Thought lines formed on his brow. “What, he’s feeling guilty about the kid, so he offs himself?”
I shook my head. “My feeling is he didn’t commit suicide. We’re waiting on the autopsy, but I’d doubt that they find gunshot residue on his hands.”
“He was set up?”
I shrugged. “That’s a working theory of mine. We need more on Eklund.”
“I’m getting what I can from his neighbors.”
“When were you going to tell me that?”
He smirked at me. “You’ve been doing all the talking.” I threw the pencil at him. “Don’t get your hopes up,” he said as he dodged it. “A lot of them are impatient with me, since they already talked to Oakley’s team. When I try to tell them I’m looking at his death from a different angle, they don’t seem to care. Anyway, the most intriguing thing I heard was from a neighbor who lives a few blocks away. She saw Eklund arguing with a woman.”
“When was this?”
“The neighbor wasn’t sure, but she thought about a week ago. She said Eklund and the woman were standing in his yard. He was pointing at the woman, and he seemed pretty angry. She said that wasn’t like Eklund, that he was always very nice.”
“Who was the woman?”
“The neighbor didn’t know.”
“Description?” While he told me, I checked my email.
“She was taller with dark hair. The neighbor didn’t recognize her.”
“That sounds a little like Audra.”
“Could be.”
“Tara sent me a file on Eklund’s internet history too. Do you have time to look this over? I’m going to work the Gary angle more.”
“Yeah. I need a break from talking to neighbors.”
“I’m emailing it to you now. See if you can find a connection with him and the Colorado Citizens Militia as well.”
“Sure thing.” He opened the file. “I’ll search ‘militia.’ And there you go.”
“What?”
“You found something already?”
Ernie nodded. “Yeah, Ivan visited a site about militia groups a week ago. Coincidence?”
I gave him a sideways smile. “We don’t believe in coincidences.”
“Yeah, but we don’t have anything to show that any one of the three killed the kid, remember?”
I put my head in my hands for a second. “No, we don’t.” I narrowed my eyes. “I think it’s time to shake some trees and see what falls out.” He gave me a funny look. “It’s time to talk to Merrick again.”
“You need to be careful with him. He’s smart enough to know you’re on to him, and he could be dangerous.”
“Merrick and Gary are both lying to me. I don’t like it when people lie to me.”
“Yeah, I know, but I should go with you. Both of those men could be dangerous.”
My phone rang before I could answer. “It’s Heather Neville.” I swiped at the screen and greeted her. “Thanks for returning my call.”
“I’m sorry we’ve been playing telephone tag.” She had a higher voice, sounding a little rushed. “I travel a good bit, and I’m in meetings a lot. And I’m afraid I have another one shortly, and then I’ve got to head to Golden.”
“I just need a moment of your time.”
“I’m already late. Can you meet me at Caribou Coffee at Colorado Mills? Say, in thirty minutes? I’ll have a little time then.” I agreed. “I’ll have a black computer bag, and I’m in a gray suit. I’ll see you soon.” With that, she ended the call.
I turned to Ernie. “Heather can meet me in half an hour. Then I’ll talk to Merrick.”
Ernie grimaced, not happy that I wasn’t listening to him. “You know I don’t usually worry about you, but maybe I should go with you.”
Ernie and I have been partners for a long time, and sometimes he worries about me. At times I didn’t mind, but now was not one of them. I could take care of myself. He looked at me askance. He wasn’t going to let this go.
“Nothing’s going to happen.”
“You’re probably right,” he said. “Call it a gut feeling I have.”
“I’ll talk to Heather,” I said. “Then if you want, meet me at the gun range and we’ll talk to Merrick together. Would that make you happy?”
He smiled. “Yeah, it would.”
I grabbed my keys and headed for the door.
Chapter Twenty-Six
I
arrived at Caribou Coffee with enough time to purchase a cup of coffee and a bagel. I ate the bagel, a late lunch that was a repeat of breakfast and not entirely satisfying, but I didn’t have time for more. I sipped some coffee while I waited for Heather Neville. The pick-me-up was good. I had just finished when a woman in a smart gray business suit strolled through the door, her heels clicking on the tile floor. A black computer bag was tucked under one arm. Her gaze darted around the room, then fell on me. She walked over and sat down across from me, all business.
“You’re Detective Spillman?”
I nodded. “Thanks for meeting me.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t meet sooner. My schedule is crazy.”
“What do you do?”
“I provide support for a proprietary software system. We work with accountants and small businesses. I travel to company sites, both here in Denver and the western US.”
“Sounds interesting.”
“Trust me, it’s not.” She pointed at my cup. “Do you mind if I get something?”
“Go right ahead.”
She left her computer bag with me, went up to the counter, and returned a few minutes later with a drink topped with whipped cream drizzled with caramel. “I’ll pay for this with extra time at the gym, but it’s worth it.” She drank a bit, then wiped her upper lip delicately with a napkin. “You want to talk to me about Audra, right?”
“You two are friends?”
“Best friends.” She set her glass down and tugged at her suit jacket, trying to pull it tighter around herself. “It’s such a scary thing, having your kid disappear like that.” She threw her fingers up. “Poof. And he was gone. Then when Audra called me and said Logan had been killed, I couldn’t believe it.” Her voice cracked, then she quickly controlled her emotion. “I can’t lose it when I have to meet a client soon.”
“Do you have kids of your own?”
She glanced toward the line of people waiting to order, then back at me. “A daughter a few years younger than Logan. If something happened to her …” She left the rest unsaid. “Audra’s devastated, of course. I was out of town over the weekend, and I’m glad Latoya was there for her.”