by Lynn Ambers
The front window of the police station was smashed with tape over the window. This was an older station so it was not as modern and secure as it could be. I immediately thought of David and hoped he was okay.
“What happened?” I said to the crowd around me.
“There was a break in, and a couple of guys were killed,” a lady in a floral shirt said to me in a half whisper.
“Oh my god, I hope it was not my friend,” I said.
“If your friend is a part of a drug ring than the answer to that question is yes, but otherwise no. It seems that these two guys were working for somebody who wanted them to keep their mouths shut,” she said. I wondered, how’d she know that?
Just then I caught Mathew’s eye talking with one of his officers. He shook his head letting me know this was a bad time. I held up the baked goods and he motioned me to walk around the people and sneak in. I knew a police officer would never pass on baked goods.
I walked around and reached for the front door when a hand was put on my arm. I immediately motioned to Mathew who told the officer to wave me in. Gina was sitting behind the front desk busy as ever.
“Hey farmgirl,” she said in a monotone voice.
“Hey Gina, I heard what happened and I know you guys are busy, but I brought you these treats,” I said.
“Oh my god you are so sweet,” she said perking up a bit. “We really need them today. All this commotion.”
“Yeah, heard it was like two guys working for some drug guy or something,” I said.
She looked around and then put her hand up to cover her mouth, “Well I am sure you and Mathew talk and all, yet I’m sure he is pretty tight lipped. We were temporarily holding these guys for the FBI, they were supposed to come get them this morning to take them to Miami. They were part of a suspected drug ring. They were holding these guys for concealed and unregistered weapons. Anyway, someone broke into the front and then the back with high powered tools and got to them. Our guard was hit and dragged out back and tied to a tree while one of the guys went in and tricked the guys to come to the bars.
They did a one two three. She made a slicing motion to her neck. It was a mess to say the least no one was able to get here in time. They spray painted the security cameras so we couldn’t see who did it.”
“Oh my god that is drastic,” I said. I put my hand to my stomach in disgust. “Is David okay?” I said.
“Yes, he is fine,” she said. He said he heard the commotion but pretended to be asleep.
“Oh, thank god. I will come back when things have calmed down,” I said and placed all the treats on the counter.
“Okay hon, thank you for the treats. Come back anytime with more,” Gina said.
Chapter Forty-Four
I immersed myself into working on the farm. I was in the field weeding and bug checking. I thought about how there was one baker dead of an overdose, which I was sure was a cover. Now there were two suspected drug smugglers dead. Most probably from the hands of their kingpin. He had to be afraid they would talk. Mrs. Dalefort was beaten up and a secret message was pinned to her. How were all these things related I wondered.
Maybe Valerie knew something about the drugs. Maybe that is why she was killed. I was getting tired of dead bodies showing up and no repercussions or arrest. I had to shake the whole death thing off me.
There was a connection between Valerie and these guys. Drugs were also a connection. This was Florida after all. There was someone I wanted to talk to keep updated. I also hoped that maybe he could shed light on the situation. I was gonna have to take off for a day or two.
Chapter Forty-Five
I landed in Puerto Rico and then made the drive up to Caleb’s hotel. When I drove around the corner to where the office was, I saw the place all boarded up. I was wondering what this was all about. I still drove forward and parked the car.
I wanted to give Caleb an update on Valerie’s case since he was the only family, I knew of she had. I thought he should know what was going on. I also thought maybe he had some information that might help.
Maybe he knew who this other guy was that Valeria was seeing. Maybe one of the guys from the boat sting was one of her lovers. There were so many questions and not enough answers. I thought maybe I could ask him for help.
Now that I was there. I did not know what to do. I had no number for him or full name. I got out and decided to poke around and see if I could find someone or something to let me know why this place was so desolate and what happened. Did he close the place? Does this have anything to do with the guys getting caught, getting killed? It was all very suspicious or coincidence.
I walked up to the office and yanked on the wood panels. They did not budge. Boarded up anything in the tropics was not unusual. We boarded up all the time for hurricanes coming through. Many people who had more than one house would board up their home in the tropics when they went up north. We were at the end of hurricane season so it didn’t really make sense.
I walked past the front window where I remember the man asking me how long I needed a room for. There was an archway that led to the door to the office. There were two others doors. I didn’t know where they led, but it was so dark in there I could see some light coming from inside the office area.
I tugged on the wood to see if anything was loose. There was nothing. I thought maybe around the back of the building there was a way in. I had no idea what I was looking for, but I figured since I was there.
I walked in front of the front window area again and then around the actual front of the building you see when you drive up. I then jumped the stucco wall that was attached to the building. The back of the office had to be there somewhere.
I found more boarded windows and mostly wall. I did see a board that was loose exposing a bit of a window. That maybe was what was causing the light shining thru the other side. I looked around to make sure there was no one around to see me. The whole place was set back from the road, so I was clear in that respect.
I went up to the loose board and looked at the window. It was one of those ones that pulled up. To my luck, the lock was barely on. I jimmied the window as best I could. It was moving but not enough. I went into my purse and got my hard nail file. I slid the nail file in an open slit near the lock and was able to get a little corner of the lock to push the centimeter needed to free the lock. Success.
I opened the window looked around to make sure no one was coming. I stuck my head through the window. It was an office. I looked around. It was exceptionally clean. There was a computer on a desk. There were also a couple of piles of paper on the desk. There were file cabinets, chairs, and the usual office stuff. Nothing out of the ordinary.
I was at the window and contemplated the worth of jumping through the window. I mean what was I looking for. All I knew Caleb was simply a businessman. Why was my hunch leading me here? I really did not have any other options. I jumped in, but not without difficulty. I got my yoga pants stuck on the frame for a second but thanks to elastic in the material and a small rip my pants freed from the frame. I fell a little forward but caught myself in a handstand on the ground.
I went to the file cabinets and opened a drawer. I looked though the tabs which were in Spanish. It looked like mostly bills telephone, electric, and vendor files for stuff for the hotel.
I opened the next drawer and looked at more files. There were no tabs on these files but just papers in files with different names on them. The papers all had the same return address in common, Responder Labs.
The papers looked like bills for lab work. There were company names and individual names. Why would there be lab bills in a hotel’s office. I kept looking and looked through the other file cabinets. There were only the bills and then a bunch of empty file cabinets.
I tried the drawers in the desk but there were only supplies. I looked around for anything else that might be of help. I looked at the artwork on the wall. It was nice. I noticed a framed photograph on the wall.
I r
ecognized the yacht that was in the photograph. That was Mr. Dalefort’s yacht that he would park at the marina sometimes. Sure, enough there was Mr. Dalefort with his arm around Caleb. It looked like they were at one of the marina’s in St. Bart’s.
How in the heck did Mr. Dalefort know Caleb? Now this was the piece of information that I was looking for. I looked to see if there was anything else in the office that would tell me more. I rummaged through quickly, since now I had an idea of what I was looking for.
I was feeling amazingly comfortable in the office, but I knew I needed to leave. There could be security that might come around. I took a picture of the picture of Mr. Dalefort’s and Caleb with my phone. I looked around to make sure nothing was out of place. I wiped everything with my shirt that might have my fingerprints on it.
I crawled out of the window sideways this time so my feet could touch the ground instead of my hands. I wish I had thought of that the first time around. I was not the best burglar around. That was probably a good thing. I closed the window and wiped off where any of my fingerprints might have been.
I jumped the wall and scurried to my car. I jumped into my car and drove around the roundabout. I drove down the exit side of the entrance. There was a Black SUV driving up the entrance on the other side of the median. The median was full of flowers and bushes. I could not see the driver easily.
“Shit,” I said. The SUV started to go faster. have. I slammed my foot on the gas. Thank god there was a median. I knew they were going to have to swing around that roundabout to get to me. I got to the road and spied in my rearview mirror them just making it around the roundabout speeding towards me. I floored it onto the main road. There was a long line of cars coming right behind me to block them.
It was going to be a while until they could get onto this two-lane highway. I just needed to get to the freeway and back to the airport before they got to me.
“Damn it,” I said. I could see them passing illegal to try to get closer to me. I drove faster and kept my eye on the GPS. Thankfully, I have a fairly good recall of directions. I felt remarkably familiar with where I was going. This was the fourth time I had been driving on these roads.
I could see them gaining on me in my rearview mirror. They were just two cars back now. With all the movies and shows I have watched I imagined machine guns coming out. I just kept driving hoping to get on the highway. I could see another car in the lane of oncoming traffic coming up behind the SUV.
A Puerto Rican cop car drove past me and then swung around a little way down. I saw the lights go on. They rushed up behind the SUV.
The flashing lights disappeared behind the SUV. I could see the highway entrance just up ahead. I looked in the rearview mirror and saw the SUV pull over to the side with the flashing lights following.
I felt relief and immediately slowed down to the speed limit. I went under the bridge and looked at the stopped cars again in the rearview mirror. I took a left and went up the ramp to the freeway and on to the airport. I felt so lucky.
Chapter Forty-Six
I stretched as far as I could in child’s pose hoping to release all the bent-up tension from my Puerto Rican adventure. The brush with the security for the hotel was the second time I had put myself in danger trying to find out about what happened to Valerie.
It was all worth the risk as I now knew David was innocent and no one else was going to find out what was really going on. The answer to the puzzle is there somewhere. I just must put the pieces together.
Angela and I finished up yoga and were walking out to our cars.
“What has been going on with you. I have been trying to call you for the last couple of days?”
“I am so sorry, I ended up going back to Puerto Rico.”
“Whaaat. Why?” Angela said.
“I felt that I should let Caleb know what was going on with the case. I did not know whether he was following it or what. I mean our local newsletter is the only place any information gets out around here. There is no way he would know what was going on in her case. I really felt like he cared a lot for her.”
“I totally understand. So, what did he say?” she said.
“Nothing,” I said.
“Nothing but wait why?” she said.
“He was not there,” I said. “The place was boarded up. I have no other way of getting in contact with him.”
“Why was the place boarded up. That is suspicious,” she said.
“Yes and no, I don’t know. What I did find though is crazy. I found a picture of Mr. Dalefort and Caleb in Caleb’s office in front of Mr. Dalefort’s yacht in St. Bart’s.” I said.
“Hmmm, how in the heck do they know each other?” she said.
“I don’t know, but I am going to try and find out,” I said.
“Wait, I thought you said the place was boarded up,” she said.
“It was,” I said.
“Then how. Don’t tell me you did another breaking and entering?”
“Well…, the board was loose, and the window was almost unlocked.”
“Oh, sounds convenient,” Angela said.
“It was, but the security or something came as I was driving out and I was in a high-speed chase.”
“Please tell me you are kidding.”
“No, I am not, but I was saved by the police.”
“Felicity, please be careful, this sounds like it is getting dangerous. Why don’t you let Mathew and the station guys do all this work?”
“I know, it seemed innocent at first, but now it is getting a little scary. I am going to tell Mathew everything and turn it over to him,” I confessed.
“Please, I know you like excitement but stay safe.”
“I will try. Like I said I am giving all the info to Mathew and hope he can take it from here.
Chapter Forty-Seven
I walked into Mr. Dalefort’s home office. He agreed to talk with me. I had been in the Dalefort house a little too much lately.
“Thank you, Mr. Dalefort, for seeing me. I know you are busy,” I said.
“No worries, I have a tee time at 4:00 pm in Miami so I have some time to kill until the helicopter leaves, “said Mr. Dalefort as if this was normal for every person in America. I am curious have you come to find the easy way to rid your farm of pests,” he said.
I smiled, “Ah no, but I will keep it in mind,” I said. “No, I have come for a different reason. How is Mrs. Dalefort doing?”
“She is better, but she is very mad at me. Something about other women. This would not be the first time. She is trying to help the police with who beat her up. They snuck up on her and avoided the cameras, so we did not get a positive ID on either of the guys that hurt her. Something tells me though you are not here about my wife,” he said.
“Well, I was wondering if you knew Valerie at all. You know the bakery woman who was murdered?”
“You mean the one who committed suicide?” he said.
“She did not commit suicide sir, she was murdered,” I said.
“Oh, I didn’t know that. The word from the rumor mill was suicide, but I don’t pay much attention to gossip in this town that is more Mrs. Dalefort’s thing,” he said.
“I understand, but did you know Valerie?” I said.
“Let see, I’ ve had her baked goods. I’ve seen her around town. A very good-looking woman, yes. I did ask her to go out on my boat once, but she said no. Said something of conflict of interest whatever that means. Why are you asking?”
“Um well, the cops are having trouble finding information about her. I am trying to help. My farm manager is sitting in jail suspected of her murder, but I know he did not do it,” I said.
“Do they have evidence against him?” Mr. Dalefort said.
“They have a planted syringe with his fingerprints on, but the syringe was from a time when my farm manager used to do a little partying with her,” I said.
“Maybe you don’t know your farm manager as well as you think you do.”
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��Oh, no I know he didn’t do it, considering what happened here with your wife sir. I know it is all tied together.”
“It is sad what happened to Mrs. Dalefort but that has to do with my son and nothing with your situation,” he said.
“Your probably right, but you know how our town is nothing like this ever happens. Why suddenly. Why all this bad stuff. The jail killings. Valerie’s killings, and Ms. Dalefort being beaten up?”
“So, what are you trying to say, and how can I help you in the matter?”
“Mr. Dalefort, I was wondering if you knew a man named Caleb Primor?” I said. He walked over to his desk and sat down. He took a moment to respond.
“I don’t know, I might. I meet a lot of people when I work and travel,” he said.
“So that name does not ring a bell immediately?”
“Ms. Krop, I’m not sure what you’re after here, but I can’t tell you about someone that I may have met once in my life.”
“Well let me help you,” I said. I get my phone out and scroll through my pictures until I find the picture of the two men. I walked closer to the desk and held up the phone. Do you know who the man in this picture is?” I asked. Mr. Dalefort moves forward and squints to see the picture.
“Wait a minute,” he said. He picks up his glasses and looks closer. He is quiet for a few seconds and then says,” Oh yeah, I remember him. Caleb, you say his name is. I didn’t remember his name, but I remember meeting him at a bar in St. Bart’s, I think it was near the marina. He loved my boat, so I said, let’s take a picture in front of it. We a had a drink at the bar and talked about boats and that was about it. Nice guy. I think he said he was from Spain but was also a citizen of the US. Not sure, but that was what he said. You know how people make things up,” Mr. Dalefort said and shrugged his shoulders.