The Cats that Stalked a Ghost (16 page)

“I did what I should have done when you were stayin’ at the cabin.  I guess I paid my debt.”

“Not a debt, Stevie.  You saved my life.”

“And your cat,” he said, winking. 

“Why is there an officer outside?  What’s going on?”

“I’ve got a court hearing in a few days.”

“Why?  Didn’t Chief London notify you that ballistics on Paul’s gun showed that he shot Ava Franklin?”

“I was relieved to hear my gun didn’t kill her, but I
was
shootin’ at her.  Got lucky, this time, and missed.”

“So, why is there a court hearing?”

“It’s a probation deal.  I’m sure I’ll have to go back to prison.”

“Who’s your attorney?”

“I don’t have one.”

“I’ll fix that.”

“Can’t afford it,” he said gloomily.

“You don’t have to.  I’ll take care of it.”

“I ain’t no charity case.”

“Yes, you are. You’re mine,” Katherine said with tears welling in her eyes. “I’m going to take care of this.”

“Well, I ain’t in the position to argue with a beautiful woman.”

Katherine flushed, then said, “Stevie, Jake’s on his way up.  I wanted to ask you something before he gets here.”

“Brought the other half.  I like that.  What’s your question?”

“I need to know,” she asked slowly, with caution, “what you did with your gun?”

Stevie laughed, then winced. “Ouch, damn pain, won’t go away.”  He changed the subject, “I’d be outta here already if my shoulder hadn’t gotten infected.  The doc has me drugged up.”

Katherine knew he was avoiding the question.  “The chief wants to know who the gun is registered to.”

“I told him.  It ain’t mine.”

“Was it stolen?  Did you find it?  Surely, you know the answer to these questions.”

“Yeah, I found it when I reached in my toolbox for the flip flops.  Then, I remembered Ted had forgotten to take it back.  He helped me carry a heavy furnace into a client’s house.  He’s always packin’.  I told him to put it in the toolbox because I didn’t want the gun to go off while we were movin’ the furnace.  The gun belongs to Ted, and it’s registered in his name.”

Katherine asked impatiently, “But why didn’t you tell Chief London that?”

“Judgin’ by the way you’re gittin’ all fired up, I believe it’s somethin’ I need to do.”

“Okay, Stevie, this explains who the gun belongs to, do you think Ted picked it up, and took it home before the police arrived?”

“Ted booked it back home as soon as he heard the sirens.”

“And where was that?  Chief said there wasn’t a house at the end of the path.”

Stevie snickered.  “I guess I forgot to tell ya.  Ted lives in his Winnebago.”

“A motorhome?  But I remember you telling me we were going to a friend’s house.”

“Did I?  I can’t remember.  I should have said the motorhome
is
Ted’s house.”

“Where do you think he’s parked now?”

“Parked?” Stevie asked with an amused smile.  “I’d reckon he’d be in Alaska by now.”

“Why?”

“Ted’s on probation, too.  I met him in jail.”

Katherine thought,
The plot thickens
.

“I’m kiddin’.  Ted wouldn’t flee the State.  Try looking at the Sanders’ trailer court.  He could be there.  Don’t know.  Besides, it doesn’t matter that the chief can’t find Ted. I know for a fact he doesn’t have the gun, because he left it with me.”

“But, where is it?” Katherine implored.

“You won’t believe it if I told you.”

“Try me.”

“Move closer,” Stevie said. 

Katherine leaned over the bed rail.

Stevie whispered, “A giant crow swooped in and carried off the gun.”

Katherine looked at Stevie and furrowed her brow.  “That’s ridiculous.”

“It’s true.”

“That’s impossible.  A crow can’t carry a gun.  It would be too heavy.”

“A lightweight handgun could weigh as little as a pound.”

“Stevie, please be serious.”

“Okay,” he agreed.  “I swear on a stack of Bibles that what I’m about to say is the whole truth — ”

“Okay, I get it,” Katherine said impatiently.

“Three of the biggest raccoons I’ve ever seen in my life came waddling down the trail.  Paul screamed at them to get away.  Two of them fled into the brush, but one came over and started messin’ with the gun —”

“This is even more ridiculous than the other story.  Stevie, stop!  Why are you
not
taking this seriously?  You can be sent back to prison.  If the chief has the gun, with your prints and mine on it, chances are you won’t.”

“Let me finish,” he said firmly.  “If the chief wants the gun, he can go back to where I was sittin’, which was about two feet from a ravine.  When I yelled at the damn raccoon, he got startled, started to scramble away, and pushed the gun over the edge.  That’s the honest-to-God truth.  Take it or leave it,” he said, his face clouding.

“I’ll call the chief and let him know this information.  Plus, the little ditty about Ted.”

“I’m sorry.  I don’t want to be mad at ya.  Come closer,” Stevie enticed, then he kissed Katherine on the ear.  “Thanks for comin’.  You’re a good friend to me.”

The police officer stepped in, and called time.  “I’m sorry, ma’am, but you’ll have to leave.”

“Thanks, Officer,” then to Stevie, “I’ll try and come back tomorrow to see you.”

“I’ll be here.” He winked.

“And expect a visit from an attorney.”

“Thanks,” Stevie mouthed the word.

Katherine left the room, and looked up and down the hall for Jake.  He was standing several feet from the door, leaning up against the wall.

“There you are,” she said, smiling.

“I thought you needed some time with Stevie,” he said with a glint of curiosity in his eyes.

Katherine hugged him.  “Can we go home now?”

Jake kissed her on the forehead. “Yes, Sweet Pea, but we’ve got to hit a department store and buy a few things for the Foursquare.”

Katherine giggled.  “Let’s see, first thing on the list, sheets that don’t feel like sleeping on a burlap bag.”

“Yeah, Aunt Margie can have her sheets back.”

“We also need to go to the pet store.  The cats want cozy beds and not folded towels.  They’re very particular.”

“How about lunch first?  I’m starving,” Jake suggested.

“Okay, but I need to make some calls while we wait for our food.  But while we’re heading to the Jeep, I need to text Evan.”

“Why?”

“I want to know if a crow can carry a gun.”

Jake stopped and looked at her in amused disbelief.  “I think I can answer that one — not so much.”

“How about a raccoon?”

“Nuts!”

“Raccoons, not squirrels,” Katherine joked.  She proceeded to tell Jake everything she’d discussed with Stevie. 

Jake commented, “There is a hint of truth in what Stevie said.  Sometimes the most ridiculous thing is actually true.”  He hugged Katherine, and helped her climb up into the Jeep. 

Chapter Twenty-five

Katherine and Jake sat cross-legged on the floor of the Foursquare.  Jake’s laptop was positioned on a cardboard box.  Chief London sat on a folding chair close by.  Jake inserted the flash drive in his laptop’s port.

“I found this on the floor of the carriage house,” Jake began. “It belongs to Russell Krow.  Russell must have lost it after he’d taken our wedding pictures.”

“So how’d it get in the carriage house?”

“I don’t know,” Jake said, then looked knowingly at Katherine.  They both suspected Abra had fetched it from the basement minutes before the explosion.  They shuddered to think their Siamese could have been seriously injured.

The chief asked, “Are your wedding pictures on it?”

“No, I don’t think Russell had time to download all the pics on his camera onto his laptop.  Give my computer a sec to pull up everything on this flash drive; there are a lot of photos and videos on it.”

Katherine quietly sat holding Lilac on her lap.  The lilac point had become clingy, and was upset by the change in her routine.  Abby sat underneath the chief’s chair.

“Here we are.  Take a look at this last video. It was shot in the mansion’s basement.  Russell must have set his camera on a tripod or something.”

The chief leaned in.  Katherine looked away. She didn’t want to watch it again.  “Oh, what a sick bastard,” the chief said disgustedly. “Is there audio?”

“No, can’t explain why.  Chief, the video shows the last moments of Judge Hartman’s life.” 

The video ended with a short flash and a black screen.

“Is that it?”

“There’s more, but this is the only thing on here regarding the judge.”

“So, here’s how I see it,” the chief said, running his fingers on top of his buzz cut.  “The judge was fighting him off.  He lifted her into an uncompromising position, threw her against the wall, which forced her neck into a six-inch nail.  The nail punctured her brain stem.  Probably paralyzed and killed her instantly.”

Jake asked, “Did he know the nail was there, and do this intentionally?”

“When the EMT found her, she was wrapped in a rug.  I think Russell was horrified that he’d killed her, and covered her to prevent others from seeing her that way.”

“Sort of like respect for the dead,” Katherine added.

“Looks likes involuntary manslaughter or reckless homicide to me.  Can I trust you two to not say anything?  This is official police business. A warrant has been issued for Russell’s arrest, but he hasn’t been apprehended yet.” 

“Contrary to everyone else in Erie, Jake and I do not have loose lips.  So your secret is safe with us,” Katherine laughed uneasily, then continued, “Actually, I feel I have an interest in this because I was involved.”

“Fair enough,” the chief said, then said loudly, “Gimme that.” Iris had appeared out of nowhere and had stolen the chief’s cruiser’s keys.  She dropped them, looked guilty, then fled to the other room.  He tipped his head back and laughed.  “Stress relief,” he apologized.  “I didn’t mean to show disrespect for poor Judge Hartman, but sometimes it helps clear the air, even if it’s temporary.”

Jake explained, “Chief, there are several videos of Paul Taylor setting fires, and Russell Krow filming them.”

“I should have been suspicious when Russell was always the first one on the scene.  Of course, he was, because he was right there when the fires were started!”

“What about Paul Taylor?” Katherine asked.  “What’s going to happen to him?”

“He’s being charged with the murder of Ava Franklin.  I was there when he was interrogated.  Can you believe he said he shot Ava because of her ‘quote’ big mouth?”  The chief shook his head.  “Also, attempted murder, arson, and kidnapping, to name a few.”

Jake asked, “What was the realtor’s role in this?”

“She was one of Russell’s lovers.  Several of the properties that burned were her listings —”

Katherine interrupted, “She wanted to be my agent on this house.  I’m so glad I said no, or else this place might have been torched.  She had access to the keys to those homes that were burned.”

“Yep,” the chief agreed.  “She’d give the key or lockbox code to Paul, and he did his arson thing.  Russell was an arsonist by proxy.  Quite the threesome, that trio.”

Katherine asked, “I’m still not clear on their motives.”

The chief answered, “Paul Taylor’s son was going to be tried for arson in Judge Hartman’s court.  He didn’t want her as the presiding judge, so with Ava, he concocted the kidnapping of the judge, who would be held against her will, until another judge was found to continue the trial.  He said that Russell gave him money to torch the pink mansion, but when he came to the house, he chickened out, and snatched you instead.”

Katherine shook her head ruefully.  “I could have been in the storm cellar forever.”

“Paul said Ava told him to torch it,” the chief said.  “Katz, I’m happy you escaped.”

Jake added, “Paul was setting fires so everyone would think the police had caught the wrong arsonist.”

“Yes, exactly.”

“So, Chief, this exonerates Stevie Sanders,” Katherine said hopefully.

“I wondered when you’d get to that.  Yes, Stevie Sanders is no longer a person of interest.  We found the gun, thanks to Officer Shepherd.”

“Riley?”

“Yes, Officer Riley Shepherd,” the chief winked.  “It was stuck in a mass of tree roots, in the ravine where Stevie said it was.  Riley didn’t find it the first time, but the second time we went back, he was all over it like a bad case of poison ivy.”

“Are you going to tell Stevie’s Probation Board that?”

“You mean, you want to know if I’m going to the hearing.  Yep, I’ll be there.  I think this boy is tryin’ to go clean, and I want to help him.”

Katherine got up, and went over and hugged the chief.  “Thank you.  This means a lot to me.”

“Well, that about sums things up,” he said, slightly embarrassed.  “I need that USB.”  He pulled an evidence bag out of his jacket.  Jake took the flash drive out of the laptop and dropped it in the bag.  The chief zipped the bag, and returned it to his pocket.  “Oh, by the way, I’ll try my best to get your wedding photos.”

“Thanks. Katz and I appreciate it,” Jake said, getting up.  “Hope you catch Russell soon.”

“I’ll text you,” the chief said, rising.  “I know you haven’t had time to look out the window, with me being here and all, but Officer Troy is sittin’ out in his cruiser, and will be keeping watch on your house until we do make an arrest.”

“That’s good to know,” Katherine said, following the chief to the door. 

The chief turned and said, “Goodbye, cats.”

“Me-yowl,” Lilac belted.

The chief’s cell phone pinged.  He moved to read the text.  “Speak of the devil,” he said.  “Well, folks, no need to worry.  Russell Krow was just arrested at the Indy airport.  He’s being transported back to Erie.  Alrighty, then,” he said, opening the door.  “Take care.” 

Chapter Twenty-six

Katherine drove her Subaru off the highway, onto the long lane of the former county insane asylum.  Slowing down to a snail’s pace, she powered her window down and leaned out, searching for something on her side of the road.

Jake, riding shotgun, asked, “What are you doing?”