Blood Red Sundown: Evil Begins (19 page)

“THIS GUY HAS
got to
be stopped, Lon. That lady and all the others did not deserve to die like that.”

They stopped at Lon’s desk still concerned that there
had been no breakthrough to go on by the coroner’s autopsy report.

“A watch or a ring with DNA possibly on it is the closest
we have to a clue. There can’t be more than 500,000 such rings in Santa Barbra.
The one thing we do have working for us Anne is his newly acquired sexual desires.
Sex may be his downfall. Sex usually means DNA.”

The chief knocked on the window and waved for them to
come to his office.

“What did you come up with at the morgue? I need to hear
something with facts not conjecture.”

“Well chief, we know he wears jewelry. We have a profile
report coming in and it should give us a better picture of what we are dealing with.
I know you want more, but until he makes a mistake it’s all we have. We’re interviewing
a computer expert today. He has been going through the hard drive of Marie Radford’s
lap top. He’s able to go back in her erased files and emails and with luck something
may tie it to someone on the other end of the communication.”

Senator Radford recognized the concerned look on his
secretary’s face as he entered the office.

“I do
not
want to overstate this senator, but
I feel it is my place to warn you, that you are falling behind on your senatorial
duties. There is correspondence to answer and your computer is loaded with work
that needs to be completed.”

He stood over her somewhat perturbed at her tone, but
realized she was right. He had neglected his official role as senator for days.
He remained calm and smiled at her when she continued.

“You need to accept or reject requested speeches at various
organizations. In short you have neglected your office. I know you have been through
some rough times, but getting back to work will help ease your mind.”

Nodding in agreement and with a polite thank you he turned
and entered his office and began digging through papers and telephone messages.
He arranged them by priority and began to eliminate them one-by-one. Many were merely
responding to messages on an answering service. Some were from constituents needing
to vent their concerns about his handling the vote on some insignificant bill. He
listened and conceded to their concerns and hung up.

Marge came into the office, “There’s a detective on the
line for you Senator.”

“Thank you Marge. Please close the door.”

Hesitating while he gathered his composure, he picked
up the phone.

“This is Senator Radford, detective. What can I do for
you?”

He relaxed when he heard the voice of the female.

“Sorry to bother you Senator, but we need to meet with
you one more time. Would you prefer your office or your home?”

“I will be leaving very shortly for home if you want
to meet me there.’

“Let’s say one hour. See you then.”

Leaning back in his chair he pondered their intentions,
but convinced himself not to get flustered over a minor thing like officers simply
doing their job. There is nothing to worry about. He looked at the framed picture
on his desk.

“You’ll be there Mother? I will need to feel your comforting
way around me to deal with the angry emotions I may feel and need to hide.”

He looked up to see Marge standing in the open doorway
with a concerned look on her face.

“I hope everything is alright Senator. You sounded troubled.”

He assured her everything was fine. She turned and closed
the door both confused and worried about who he was talking to.

Sitting at his desk staring at the name plate Senator
William Radford, III he knew he had become too lax in his very important duties.
Marge was right in chastising him for his negligence. He changed his mind-set and
determined he was now on a new course as Senator. Checking the desk for anything
he may have overlooked, he rose and walked out of the office.

“Good night. Marge. I will not be in tomorrow.”

“I NEED TO
make up my
mind on the guilt or innocence of Senator Radford, Anne. I have decided he had nothing
to do with the serial killings, but I can't seem to convince myself that he isn’t
hiding something. Two things are bugging me. First, I’m not convinced that he didn’t
kill his wife and top that off with the mother-son incest thing.”

She waited for his next critique of the senator not wanting
to change his chain of thought. “I hate that this man is in such a powerful position
and I have these doubts about him. I need something concrete to appear to satisfy
my mind that I’m wrong.”

“It sounds like you have at least decided to stay on
the fence about him until it is settled through our investigation.”

“Listen, Anne, I need your complete support in this interview
with him. I’m going to try and get him into a corner, and see if he reacts like
I think he will. We’re going to come at him from several directions. If you want
to play good cop, that’s fine, but keep the pressure on and follow my lead. If he
comes through with satisfactory answers and behavior, I’ll back off.”

“Don’t worry Lon I’m all-in with you on this. Standing
there at the morgue and looking at that last woman lying there on that gurney has
broken any need for sympathy for someone’s feelings. I want to rid the world of
this SOB at any cost.”

“Glad to hear that you’re at least open to consider the
senator as a potential. Grab a hand recorder and the Beth Radford file and let’s
head over to mama boy’s palace.”

The look by Anne made him regret he had said that after
asking for her support.

“If we leave now we should arrive at the estate about
the same time as our boy.”

When they pulled through the open gate they saw Senator
Radford standing with an elderly lady apparently in a very intense conversation.

“Who do you suppose she is, Lon?”

“I never paid any attention to her at the funeral, but
I can assume she was the lady that walked out of the church next to the Senator.
I remember her face was covered with a black veil. She seemed to disappear after
that.”

As they continued around the circle drive they saw the
woman turn and walk away around to the side of the house. Coming to a stop just
short of where the two had been standing, the senator seemed irritated. Unlike his
normal polite greeting he walked to the door waving for them to follow.

“He seems to be in a rather unfriendly mood, wouldn’t
you say, Anne? He definitely is not wearing his usual phony smile.”

Anne laughed at him in such a way as to say, well you’re
decision to give him a chance didn’t last long, and continued out of the car.

Shaking his head at her continued protective attitude
toward the man, he followed her as she walked to the open front door.

“Come in detectives. Go right on into the den to your
left and I will be with you shortly. I have something I need to attend to that will
take about five minutes.”

At the top of the stairs he turned and looked down to
see that they had done as he had directed and then continued on to his mother’s
room. Opening the door slightly he peered in. She was lying on the bed.

“William! Who are the man and woman downstairs?”

“It's the same detectives that were here the last time.”

“Be very careful. They will try and trick you. Stay strong
and remember that I'm here waiting for you.”

She held out her arms and he leaned over and kissed her.
At the door he turned back and smiled and left the room.

STEPHANIE WAS LAUGHING
as she ran to her car with Hobo in pursuit for their daily trip to the shore. He
stopped short and stood staring and making low growling noises toward the side of
the house. Stephanie walked back and picked him up gently and looked around to see
what was causing him concern.

“What’s wrong boy? You’re making me nervous again.”

He continued to struggle trying to get free as she was
placing him in the front seat and when she closed the door he immediately scratched
at the side window wanting out.

She searched carefully around the area as she fastened
her seat belt. She could see nothing that should cause his obvious anxiety as he
continued to jump back and forth between the front and back seats of the car.

“What’s wrong with you? What is it you sense?”

He continued to whimper and paw at the side window. As
she pulled from the curb, he jumped to the back seat and then back to the front
and lay down on the seat, but he continued to whimper until they had turned the
corner and were out of sight of the house.

He watched them disappear and had become concerned when
the dog became aware of his presence close by. He then stepped out of the high bushes
along the side of the house and walked along the line of shadowed shrubbery to his
parked car. He knew where she was headed.

“You can’t hide. I know where you’re going,” he said.
“It’s just a matter of time.”

Stephanie, unaware of having been observed, arrived at
her destination and pulled into her usual parking spot. The sun was about rear view
mirror high on the horizon which told her she had about half an hour until it set.
The sky was a mixture of orange, yellow, and red and a hint of purple splayed above
the blue of the ocean and surrounding the reddish hue of the sun. Magnificent, was
all she could think. Hobo’s whimpering, brought her out of her thoughts.

“Okay boy, we’re out of here.”

As always when she opened the door, the dog lept out
and ran ahead. She was taking her time walking down the incline and for the first
time since discovering this spot she felt a pang of fear come over her. Her instinct
was asking her, “Should you be here alone?”

As she arrived at the water’s edge she remembered she
had forgotten to lock her car and her purse was in the back seat. So, she walked
back up the hill to the car. As she neared the car ready to push the automatic lock
she eyed a white piece of paper protruding from the driver side wiper.

“Strange, I didn’t notice that being there when I arrived.”

Somewhat reluctant to know what she was going to see
she withdrew a one page note folded in half.

“I KNOW WHERE YOU GO” is all it said.

An internal voice told her to
get your dog and
leave this place.

It resonated within her and she called out to Hobo who
came running. As she was backing out she glanced back at the beach area and noticed
a man standing looking out over the horizon. He remained there as she left the area.

Was it a coincidence that he was suddenly there? Did
he write this note, is he stalking me?

Her new found fear made her realize she needed to talk
to the detectives about her situation again. She periodically glanced over at the
open note on the consul and it made her uneasy.

WHEN THE SENATOR
finally
entered the den he walked over to a chair turned and motioned for them to sit.
As he took a seat he began smiling at Anne.

“I guess I should apologize for keeping you waiting detectives,
but then I'm sure you’re aware that I’m not thrilled with your being here. I’m also
sure you have your reasons. So, let’s get this over with. How can I be of assistance?”

“I guess we should likewise apologize to you Senator
for this inconvenience, but then again like you said, it’s our job. You’re the surviving
husband of a woman that was murdered and I know a learned man like yourself must
realize that the spouse is always the first suspect. Now that we both have expressed
our positions, I suggest we begin again.”

“Fair enough Sir,” he responded in a smugly defiant way
sitting back in the chair and again smiled at Anne.

She took the lead to prevent her partner from angrily
responding to the senator’s obvious attitude shown in his last response.

“Senator, I think you should know we have just returned
from Sutcliff, Nevada.”

“You went to see Beth? Why would you do that? It makes
no sense as she has been out of my life for years. What kind of fulminating information
did she provide you, detective?”

He was obviously rattled or irritated and not talking
in his usual slow, careful style.

Lon looked over at Anne and smiled with a
I’ve
got him smile
.

“Before we begin to answer that question Senator I’d
like to know what fulminating means. I collect words and I’d like to be able to
use it in the future.”

“It means detective, to provide vicious, verbal attacks
about someone. Does that describe your conversations with the former Mrs. Radford?”

He was obviously uncomfortable at the thought of Beth
Radford talking to the two of them and Lon seeing a weakness in his protective armor
beginning to surface watched him shift nervously in the chair. He intended to keep
him worrying about what in particular she may have disclosed about their married
life.

“She did give us some interesting revelations we need
to discuss with you.”

“Oh, I’m sure she did.”

“We didn’t find her overly vindictive toward you Senator,
Anne interjected taking the lead back from Lon. In fact, I would say she seemed
respectful of your senatorial position and was most concerned at the news of the
death of your wife. I found her quite a personable and caring person.”

“How did your mother die,” Lon asked abruptly, hoping
to catch him off guard.

The look on his face went from concern to deep contempt
and flushed with dislike for Lon.

“What does my mother have to do with anything we are
discussing? She died, and that is all the information you need to be concerned with.”

“I’m afraid not sir. I have every right to question you
on every minute portion of your life in order to get to the bottom of the murder
of your wife. If a subpoena becomes necessary that can be arranged.”

They watched the redness wane from his face and he settled
back in the chair.

“I understand detective, I guess the news about Beth
entering the equation upset me.”

“You remember the question, how did your Mother die,
let’s start there.”

“The night she died, she called me from a bar and I could
tell she had been drinking heavily. I told her to wait there and I would come and
drive her home. However, she convinced me she could drive the short distance to
the beach location and would wait for me there. I have to live with the fact that
I gave in allowing her to drive that car.

“When I arrived at our arranged meeting place and she
was not there rather than wait I continued on thinking she may have decided against
driving in her condition. I saw a fiery glow in the sky ahead over the tree tops
and as I neared the source I saw that it was a car totally engulfed in flames. I
approached and worked my way closer and realized it was her car, but it was no use.

“Was an autopsy or any form of identification done on
the body?”

“No? There was no need, I knew it was her car and remember
she had left the bar to meet me at the beach site.”

“I guess you’re right, but it must have hit you hard
as close as you two were.”

Anne looked sharply at Lon, as to say, be careful, don’t
go too far. He got the message and back peddled a bit to cover his meaning.

“I mean to say you lost your father in a terrible manner
and then to experience it again with your mother must have had an impact on you.”

He simply nodded yes, looking away from them Lon assumed
to hide his anguish.

“You mentioned a spot where you were going to meet her.
Is that the spot where you met the Doctor?”

“It is. Mother and Marie both loved to go there and watch
the sunsets. We would sit there for hours. Sometimes there was conversation and
other times we sat quietly and just took in the beauty of the day’s end.”

“In our first interview, Senator, you said that on the
night Marie was murdered, you went to our special place. Were you talking about
the same site?”

“Yes.”

“How would you describe the relationship between your
mother and Beth Radford?”

“It was amicable. They tolerated each other, but Beth
always in her quiet way intimated that I favored my mother over her.”

“Why do you suppose she felt that way?”

“I highly appreciated my mother’s opinions both in my
political career and even more in my personal life. She often traveled with me on
business trips and quite naturally Beth felt that it should have been her with me.
In short, I would say she was jealous and yes resentful toward our close relationship.
I resented her constant accusations and asked her to leave and take her blatant
suspicions with her.”

“You mean she accused you of incest?”

He looked surprised at the question, but answered.

“Yes, detective, since you have been talking to Beth
apparently about this, yes she insinuated that.”

“I see. What about Marie, did that subject ever come
up?”

Lon watched the man’s facial reactions as he carefully
structured his answer to the question. He was very uncomfortable discussing this
subject and Lon felt he was close to showing his Jekyll and Hyde routine but maintained
his control.

“I loved Marie, detective, but Mother was very convincing
that she was not right for me. She thought Marie had a side to her that would eventually
be unfaithful and based on what just transpired I see now she was right. To further
answer your question, Marie never once mentioned anything about my relationship
with my Mother being a problem.”

“We’re having her computer checked for this on-line affair
you say she was having. I want you to understand completely that we have a computer
expert tracing the messages back to the other party. We’re hoping it leads us to
her killer.”

Anne noticed the eye twitch and his look of disdain as
Lon talked about the computer affair. He didn’t like that last bit of information,
she thought. She noted it in her log and put a big star by it to remind her to tell
Lon later.

“Are you on some kind of leave from Washington Senator?”

“Yes, they gave me special permission to remain here
in Santa Barbra. If there is an important bill brought before the senate I will
travel to the chamber and cast my vote.”

“Tell me about your relationship with your father.”

The look that overtook the Senators face was to become
a defining moment in Anne’s opinion of him. He totally ignored the query and she
watched his face reflect immediate pain, then anger, and finally hate. This must
be the hidden side Beth Radford was referring to, she thought.

She looked over at Lon who was totally locked in on the
Senators facial reactions. It was as if the senator was trying to balance some unwanted
memories that had tilted negative with the mention of his Father.

“I’m sorry, detectives, I really am, but I refuse to
answer any further questions. You are getting into areas of my life that do not
concern you and have nothing to do with the murder of my dead wife. So, I will show
you out.”

His face and demeanor continued to display anger as he
spoke.

“That won’t be necessary, Senator. We can find our way
out. Thank you for your time and we’ll be in touch with you if we uncover anything
of importance in your wife’s case. Good evening sir and please call us if you think
of anything that might help our case.”

He stood and watched them leave the den not bothering
to follow them waiting for the front door to close. The anger he had been able to
hold in now boiled to the surface. He picked up a vase off the table next to him
and threw it across the room. Just as it was shattering across the hallway floor
the front door opened and Lon stepped inside.

“One more thing Senator, my partner has some issues with
certain aspects of your story and would like to ask you a few more questions. Time
wise it’s not urgent you understand. You can stop by the station or we can come
back. Let us know,” and he closed the door.

“Got him,” Lon said to Anne as he walked back to her
at the car and described the object being thrown incident.

“I’ll drop you off at the station partner, then I’m going
home to see my family. I know you’ll miss the past few days of our sleeping together
out in cowboy land, but I have certain responsibilities that must be attended to.”

“Do you ever get out of that fairyland you live in? Besides
that, I keep telling you to be solicitous in what you ask for.”

“Great word, I have to assume it means the careful word
you are constantly throwing around. Solicitous, wow, get in the car while I add
that to my vocab collection.”

They continued their exchange of witty digs at each other
right up to their arrival at the station.

“See you tomorrow partner and don’t forget the doughnuts.”

She walked up to the entrance smiling at the exchanges
shared between them and the obvious mutual admiration they held for each other.

Lon’s driving time was filled with thoughts of what he
would face at his home in the night ahead. He knew Tad would require his attention
either at the basketball net or in a game of some type at the kitchen table. Ally,
will require every detail of the trip to Nevada from him. He knew she would want
a description of the senator’s ex-wife’s appearance and what she was like in detail.
Was she the cause of their marital breakup or was he? That’s just a beginning, he
knew, of what was coming before she would be satisfied that he had given a complete
description of the trip.

Tad was sitting on the porch reading a book and was excited
when he saw the car pull into the drive. He jumped off the porch, tripped head first
on the grass, got up laughing, and continued running to the car.

“Hey Dad, glad your home.”

“Thanks Tad, it is good to be home. Nice slide by the
way. Hey let me say hello to Mom and I’ll whip you in a game of one-on-one.”

Ally stepped out on the porch. She waited for him to
step up and take her in his arms.

“Was it a worthwhile trip, Lon?”

“Let’s say, I definitely strengthened my suspicious position
on the senator. He’s as big a jerk as I had predicted, Ally. But forget him. How
are you, sweetheart? Did anything special happen while I was gone?”

“Hey Dad, games on.”

“Hold on son, I need to spend a few minutes with your
mother. Let’s go inside.”

“Ally, I want you to be extra careful. I know the odds
are with you, but I want to know that you’re always alert to the possibility of
running into this guy. Do you understand?”

“I have developed a detective wife’s mentality, Lon,
so I’ll be fine.”

“Great, let me play a quick game with our son and I’d
love to spend some special time with you.”

She smiled seductively in agreement to his meaning.