A Field of Poppies (24 page)

John frowned. “Really? Did they say who?”

“
I believe Caulfield Industries. There were no flowers to speak of the night Mr. Caulfield came by the viewing room. I suppose he was concerned there would be none. It was quite considerate of him.”

Poppy stifled a gasp. This was going too far. First the pension, picking up outstanding bills for Mama’s care and the funerals, and now this?

“
Yes, considerate,” Poppy echoed.

John frowned at her, but said nothing.

“
Well, thank you for your kindness, Truman,” John said.

“
Yes, of course. I’ll see you both tomorrow at the church.”

They left the funeral home in silence and got into John’s truck before they let feelings fly.

“
What is going on with Caulfield?” John asked.

“
I don’t know, but I’m beginning to feel like he views us as his personal charity case, and I’m trying not to be insulted.”

John grinned. “Easy, sister. Let the big man throw his money around if it makes him feel better. It’s just one more bill we won’t have to worry about.”

“
Whatever,” she muttered.

John glanced at his watch. “I missed lunch and now it’s after 4:00 p.m. How about we go by The Depot and have an early dinner?”

“
We have all that food at the house.”

“
So, we’ll take it to the church tomorrow.”

Poppy almost smiled. “I’ve never eaten at The Depot as a customer before.”

John frowned. “Then it’s about damn time you did.”

Her smile went viral. “Yes, about damn time.”

John winked, started the truck and headed uptown.

****

Vic Payton was trying to smooth the ruffled feathers of a cantankerous diner when he saw Poppy and John walk in. Anxious to seat them himself, he ended the conversation quickly by comping the customer’s food.

“
I’m sorry you were disappointed by the meal, Mr. Wyman. Please consider this our treat.”

The diner frowned, but Vic could tell that was what he’d been waiting for. He smiled, patted the man on the back and then made a u-turn and headed for the front.

“
Hello, Poppy. John, it’s good to see you again. I hope you’re here for some food. It would be my honor to treat you both to a meal.”

“
That’s not necessary,” John said.

“
I know. That’s why I want to do it,” Vic said. He grabbed a couple of menus and then flashed a brief smile at Poppy before he led them to one of the tables with a good location.

He seated Poppy, then smiled as he handed her the menu.

Poppy felt a little obligated to converse, even though she didn’t want to. Without thinking, she picked what she thought would be a safe bet.

“
Have you and Michelle set a date yet?”

“
We’re no longer engaged,” Vic said. “I’m lucky I didn’t get fired in the process.”

“
Oh, my gosh. I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” Poppy said.

Vic shrugged. “I’m not sorry. It was a mistake from day one, and you have nothing to apologize for. Now, I’ll send a waitress right to your table. The fish tonight is salmon and the rib-eye steak is the Chef’s special. Poppy can attest to the quality of both. Enjoy.”

He walked away, leaving John in no doubt as to why they were getting a free meal.

“
He’s still got a thing for you,” John whispered.

Poppy frowned. “Sssh! For Pete’s sake, Johnny!”

John shrugged. “So, what’s good here?”

Glad he’d dropped the subject, she began pointing out things that she knew he would like. By the time their waitress appeared, they were ready to order.

As luck would have it, Jewel was their waitress. Instead of her usual rancor, she appeared anxious to please.

“
Good evening, you two.” Then she paused. “Poppy, John, I’m very sorry for your losses. I just wanted to say that before we started.”

“
Thank you. We appreciate it.”

Jewel smiled and took their orders. “I’ll be right back with your drinks,” and left.

“
She’s nice,” John said.

“
No, she’s not,” Poppy said, and then laid her napkin in her lap.

John grinned. “Wow, sister. Don’t be shy. Tell me what you really think.”

Poppy shrugged. “I work with her, remember?”

“
Yeah, I get it. Different story if I wasn’t here, right?”

“
She was an eternal bitch to me the day Mama and Daddy died and then found out afterward what happened and felt guilty. The guilt has yet to wear off, but it will.”

He frowned. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you didn’t like where you worked.”

“
I like the place. Workers come and go. Some are nice. Some aren’t. Maybe she’ll leave.”

“
I’ll write Santa about her,” John said.

Poppy’s eyes widened. “You remember that?”

“
I always wrote to Santa about the kids who were mean to you at school. I think the process should still work.”

Poppy reached across the table and laid her hand on her brother’s arm.

“
I love you, Johnny.”

The trust in her eyes was difficult to see. When he thought about what a burden she’d carried all alone, it was a miracle she was still talking to him.

“
Love you, too, honey.”

Vic watched from across the room, wishing it was him she was reaching for, and then looked away. Some things were too painful to bear and being in love without having the feelings returned was nothing short of hell.

****

Mike and Kenny returned to the precinct. They needed the list Harmon was gathering on Sunny Robert’s classmates but he was still scrambling with some of the addresses. While they waited, they filled Lieutenant Green in on where they were in the investigation including Mike’s sighting of Prophet Jones.

“
You know we’ve been looking for Prophet Jones? So, I think I finally saw him today,” Mike said.

Green’s interest shifted. “Where?”

“
Under the Little Man bridge.”

“
Under it?”

“
I think so. He was on the bridge and then I saw him bolt off and head down toward the river. It’s been years since I’ve prowled along the riverbank, but I’m thinking there are places up under it where someone could hide.”

“
I’ll send a car and a couple of officers to check it out.”

Mike grinned. “Good. If he’s there, it will be their car and not mine he contaminates.”

Green chuckled. “Yeah, stink is one thing. Vermin is another.”

Kenny shuddered and scratched his head. “Makes me itch just talking about it.”

Mike continued his briefing. “In the meantime, I want to go back over the hospital tapes. Maybe now that we know more, we’ll spot something new.”

Green nodded. “If we find Prophet, I’ll let you know.”

They left the office.

“
So we’re off to the movies again?” Kenny asked.

Mike nodded. “I want both of us watching the same film at the same time. Two sets of eyes and all that.”

“
Agreed,” Kenny said. “I’ll set it up if you’ll get snacks. I’m starved.”

“
Why is it that my donation to the party costs money and yours doesn’t?”

Kenny smirked. “I assure you that never occurred to me.”

Mike rolled his eyes. “Like hell. Sweet or salty?”

“
Both,” Kenny said. “Something chocolate and any kind of chips.”

“
Back in a few,” Mike said, and headed to the break room as Kenny went back to Evidence to pull the tapes.

By the time Mike had drinks and snacks in hand, Kenny was ready and waiting.

“
Knock yourself out,” Mike said, as he slid two bags of chips and a couple of candy bars toward his partner.

Kenny caught the cold can of Pepsi Mike slid toward him, ignoring the wet trail of condensation it left on the table.

Mike popped the top on his Coke. “I’m ready.”

They settled in, making separate notes as they watched who came and went through the hours before Jessup Sadler’s arrival, then paid even closer attention when Sadler, himself, first appeared on the scene.

Mike licked nacho cheese powder off his fingers and then pointed to the screen.

“
Pause this a minute, will you?”

Kenny nodded. The screen froze with Jessup Sadler in mid-stride as Mike continued.

“
Okay, knowing what we know now about the daughter not being
his
daughter, watch his demeanor. See the stoop of shoulders and the drawn, sad expression on his face. It’s no longer just about his wife’s health. And, we also know they had a confrontation at the hospital.”

“
But we don’t know for sure if Helen gave him a name,” Kenny said.

“
Yeah, okay,” Mike said. “I was just thinking out loud. Play the rest and we need to pay particular attention to who leaves the floor ahead of him, although it’s my feeling that he was only rushing because he had a name and was going in search of him. Not that he was following someone in particular.”

Kenny hit Play and opened his last candy bar.

Mike stretched his legs out in front of him as he watched, trying to look at the footage with new eyes. Every glance Jessup made, every person he passed, they made note of. After he went into his wife’s room, they later saw the nurse emerge who’d reported the fight they’d been having. From the expression on her face when she exited, it was obvious she’d been upset.

Once Kenny glanced at his watch, then hit pause and went to the bathroom. Mike took the time to check in on Harmon to see if the list had been completed.

“
Hey, Harmon, it’s me, Mike. How’s it going?”

“
I’m running one more check through military files and then I’m through,” he said.

“
Military?”

“
Yeah,” Harmon said. “I’m pretty sure we’re going to have one name that’s since been deceased while in service and another one still serving Uncle Sam and due for retirement this Christmas.”

“
Then we can certainly rule them out as possible shooters,” Mike said. “Anyway, I know you’ve heard this before, but I need it ASAP.”

“
This is one of those cases where I sure don’t mind doing extra leg work. Losing both parents on the same day in such startling circumstances must be hell on the rest of the family.”

“
Pretty much,” Mike said, remembering Poppy Sadler’s look of disbelief. At that point, Kenny returned. “Hey, gotta go. Thanks for the update.”

“
I’ll be in touch,” Harmon said.

He disconnected. Kenny hit Play, and they slipped back into view mode. About an hour later, they caught sight of a man passing by the camera and Mike hit Kenny’s arm.

“
Pause it. Isn’t that Caulfield?”

Kenny squinted. “Yeah, I think so. But his kid’s on that floor, remember?”

Mike nodded. “Okay... resume.”

They watched for another ten minutes before Jessup Sadler came out of his wife’s room. Again, they took special note of his demeanor.

“
He looks pissed,” Kenny said.

“
Yeah, I think you’re right. Do you think she told him?”

Kenny shrugged. “It’s hard to say. He could just be angry because she didn’t. Or it could be because he finally found out who fathered the girl he thought was his.”

“
There he goes toward the elevator. You can see it at the end of the hall. Oh hell! Wait. Someone’s getting in the elevator. Look at Sadler! He’s running.”

Kenny paused the tape. “But is he running to catch the car, or catch who’s getting on?”

“
Can you tell who it is?” Mike asked.

Kenny rewound it, then they watched it again, but the view was still blurred and he never turned around.

“
What do you think?” Kenny asked.

“
It’s impossible to say if Sadler was running toward the man or the car. Don’t we have video of him exiting the building?”

“
Yeah, hang on. It’s this one, I think,” Kenny said. He fast-forwarded it to the right timeline. “It’ll be right around this time. Too bad it was dark and raining so hard, it makes the images blurry.”

Within a few moments they made the same mistake they’d made before. “There he is,” Kenny said.

“
No. It’s not. Remember, we did this before. It’s someone else, remember?”

Kenny leaned closer. “Oh yeah. I said then he looked familiar.” He hit Pause and then studied the image on the screen. “I know who that is. It’s Caulfield, isn’t it?”

Mike leaned closer. “We saw him earlier on the floor. I guess he was leaving, too.”

Kenny frowned. “So, he’s obviously the guy who got on the elevator just ahead of Sadler because he gets all the way to his car and drives off before Sadler makes it to the parking lot. See, there he is, running. Again, we assume because of the rain, but what if it’s not?”

Mike shook his head. “We could make suppositions all day, but until we have solid evidence to tie one thing to another, this gets us nowhere.”