Evil in Hockley (19 page)

“What else?”

“George will be furious, me and another
man. Good. Let them all talk.”

They sat at a picnic table outside and
ate their sandwich. Delphi could only eat soft foods due to her
fragile dentures.

“Know anything about Jarrod’s
death?”

“Only that he died.”

“Anything about the weeks
before?”

“He was still seeing Shelley. But he
didn’t spend much time there. Folks saw him in Shelburne more often
than at Joe’s place.”

“He had friends in
Shelburne.”

“None that claimed to see him much. I
mean he was there twice a week yet he wasn’t at anybodies place I
know of.”

“Surely someone must have seen his bike
or car somewhere.”

“Nope. Like I said no one I know of.
They saw him pass by is all.”

“Know anything about Joe
Sharky?”

“Books full. I can write one of them
trilogies on him.”

“Anything new?”

“Well if you’re asking around the time
Jarrod was killed Joe was expanding at the time. Word has it he was
looking for new dealers to expand. Found some too, I
heard.”

“Anyone I know?”

“No names. Just that for a while
strange faces were in and out.”

Harry almost fell off the bench.
Shelley saw one of those strange faces and could identify
him.

“Anything else you know of,
Delphi.”

“Nothing you don’t already know about.
Shelley and Karma are gone but then I hear they’re staying at your
place with you and Sandy. Joe don’t like you much. Won’t say no
more about that. You can handle yourself, always could.”

“Thanks Delphi. I got to
run.”

“Bye Harry, thanks for the meal and the
talk.”

Harry left wondering who Jarrod was
seeing in Shelburne and who Shelley had seen at Joe’s
place.

When he got home he saw that Sandy’s
Chrysler was gone. He went inside and found a note on the counter:
all three women had gone shopping in Orangeville. There was still a
half litre of rum in the cupboard so he mixed a shot with some
cola. He’d have gone to Shelburne and checked with his and Jarrod’s
friends verifying what Delphi had told him. That would be a foolish
waste of time as she would have triple checked every statement she
heard. She would want to know who Jarrod was seeing and if she
couldn’t determine that with her one million contacts on the street
and on Facebook then what chance would he have?

He sipped at his rum and cola wondering
what his next move would be when his cell buzzed. It was Sandy’s
caller ID.

“Hi Sandy, what’s up?”

She was crying.

“Shelley’s been hit. Karma and I are in
Emergency.”

“Hit? How? Where?”

“Shopping plaza. She was hit by a
van.”

“Sandy, I’ll be there in ten
minutes.”

“Okay. Bring Shelley’s health card.
It’s in the top drawer of your desk.”

She was still crying when he hung up.
Harry knew that to get the right story he’d have to drive there and
talk to Karma. When Sandy was upset she talked in circles and she
was clearly upset.

He parked in the pay parking lot then
raced to the Hospital Emergency door. He found Sandy and Karma
hugging each other and two police officers nearby. When he
approached Sandy rushed and hugged him.

“She’s dead. They declared her dead,
Harry.”

Harry started to shake and his knees
almost gave out. The woman had fought hard to stay alive and was
now dead. He almost didn’t believe it but looking into Karma’s
teary eyes he knew it was true. He felt tears running down his
cheeks as well.

Harry fought to clear his mind. He
handed Sandy over to Karma. The two police officers stood near pens
and notepads in hand.

“Are you related to the
deceased?”

“No officers, just a
friend.”

They asked him a few more trivial
questions probably so they’d have something to write in their
report. Harry finally got to Karma.

“What happened?”

“We were outside the grocery store in
the mall. Sandy and I took the bags to her car. We told Shelley to
wait on the curb. We’d pick her up in a minute. When we got near
the car we heard the roar of an engine, turned, and saw a van head
straight for Shelley. The bastard went up on the curb and hit
her.”

“A man was driving?”

“Yah, but he was too far away. If I saw
him again I might recognize him. Maybe not. I don’t know Harry. And
before you ask the plate number like three other cops have already
done, it happened so fast neither of us had time to think much less
get the plate. It was a windowless white van. That’s all we
know.”

Harry knew Joe’s men were watching and
following. They must have known Sandy was in a position to talk so
they killed her. For something she couldn’t remember. He walked
back to the police officers and asked,

“Any idea who the driver
was?”

They looked at each other as if
deciding whether to answer or not then one said,

“The sergeant is talking to the doctor.
You’ll have to ask him.”

The sergeant finally approached and the
officers introduced Harry. They told him Shelley was staying at his
house.

“He wants to know if we have any idea
who the driver was.”

The police sergeant said,

“We’re not releasing any names but he’s
a man known to us. We caught him impaired twice in the past. He has
a good lawyer so he’s still driving but after this not for long.
The van was parked in his garage with the victim’s clothing and
blood on the right fender. We’ll be charging him with vehicular
homicide and half a dozen lesser charges. One will stand up, mark
my word. A pretty young girl like that.”

He shook his head.

Harry asked,

“When will you release his
name?”

“As soon as he’s charged.”

“Can you call me and let me know. Maybe
there’s another connection. An old boyfriend or an acquaintance
with a grudge. One of my friends might know. The officers have my
cell number.”

“That can be arranged and if you have
anything to add please let us know immediately. We don’t want this
guy getting out on bail if there are further charges to be
laid.”

Harry asked Karma,

“Can you drive Sandy home? Are you okay
enough for that? I can make two trips if you’re not.”

“I’m alright Harry. I can drive. It’s
only ten minutes away.”

Harry drove to the LCBO on Broadway and
bought a litre of rum then to the drug store and picked up more
cola and pain killers. Sandy would be better off drunk tonight.
Being intoxicated doesn’t resolve problems: they’re waiting when
you get sober but she would be better off dealing with this
tomorrow after the impact mellowed. He knew that Sandy would have
rushed to help Shelley and she’d seen first hand the trauma steel
on flesh would cause.

That evening was like a wake, “Do you
remember when,” theme. Harry was amazed at how close the three
women became, Sandy and Karma united in a quest to save Shelley.
And then Shelley hampered by blindness tried to be their equal.
Harry had a drink but he was waiting for a phone call and a name.
After six in the evening he downed three rum and colas in a few
minutes. He’d had enough of the day.

Chapter 35

The name Harry was given by the police
was “Kyle Perry.” It had already been released to the
press.

“Ever hear the name Kyle Perry,
Karma?”

“No, not that I can
remember.”

“Sandy?”

She was still hung over and not quite
thinking clearly but after a minute said,

“Nothing here.”

“I’ve go to go see
somebody.”

Harry drove to Hockley village and
searched for Delphi Crow. He finally found her in a neighbour’s
yard. As soon as she spotted him she said goodbye and they went to
the picnic tables in back of the general store.

“The name Kyle Perry. Know
him?”

“Oh yah, a loser with a capital “L”. He
did contract work for Joe Sharky. Not like killer contract, but
outside maintenance. A boozer and a loser, I call him.”

A tie in to organized crime but then
the police would know. The problem was proving Sharky ordered a
hit. The way Harry saw it Perry was already up for two drunk
driving charges. He probably needed money for lawyers so Joe
approached him and pledged his support. That is if he did Joe a
favour.

It would be difficult to prove
vehicular homicide if they couldn’t prove intent. Perry’s lawyers
would argue that he was driving carelessly while under the
influence. They’d claim it was an accident with no more criminal
intent than if a seventy-five year old woman got behind the wheel,
had a sneezing fit and killed a pedestrian. The lawyers would claim
Perry was an addict and should be placed in a rehab program, not in
jail.

Harry had seen too much of that crap so
he joined the forces where he felt he could do some good. He was
shielded from the daily bias of the law and order machine. The
military had its own form of justice based on simpler
principles.

“You still with us Harry?”

“Yah, Delphi, I’m still here. Just
thinking what a crappy world we live in. You heard about Shelley’s
hit and run?”

“Yes I did, poor girl, blind and all.
She wouldn’t have seen it coming.”

“No but she would have heard
it.”

They were silent for a moment then
Delphi said,

“I’ve been a gossip all my life. I know
what people do and how they think. For instance: why wouldn’t
anyone know where Jarrod went when he drove to
Shelburne?”

“You got me? I’ve been trying to figure
that one out myself.”

“Because he went where no one could see
him. Like a place in the country.”

“You might have something there. What
about using your deductive reasoning to give me a
location.”

“Hah, I’m not that good.”

“Thanks again Delphi. I’d better go
home and check on the girls.”

Harry drove home with more information
to sort through. He’d have to draw a map to sort it all out. He
decided that’s exactly what he would do. Lay out a big sheet of
cardboard and pencil in the details and a timeline.

Both women were doing what women do
when they’re depressed; clean the house. They both flipped when
Harry brought in the giant cardboard box he picked up at the local
convenience store. He told them what it was for so they cleaned a
spot in his office for it. He leaned it on a table then taped it to
the wall.

In pencil he marked the first event
Jarrod’s accident. The next sequence: Fight in bar, Drowning
attempt at reservoir, Lenea and John Dean, Shelley and Tony as
victims, and so on down the line to Shelley’s murder. The cardboard
was full of pencilled in squares that seemed more complicated than
the actual events. If one followed it through it did give one a
timeline of events and questions that needed answers. No matter
which way you approached the problem number one was where was
Jarrod going in Shelburne and number two was who did Shelley
see?

Harry stood back and looked at the
events searching for a clue, something he missed. Sandy and Karma
could you go out and get me a bottle of Morning Mist
perfume.

“I’ll go,” said Karma.

“No Karma, you and Sandy stay together
from now on.”

“What’s up,” asked Sandy.

“Something Shelley said earlier on.
That Jarrod smelled of Morning Mist perfume.”

Sandy raised her brow.

“You know, perfume smells different on
every woman and then add on the factor that she leaves a scent on a
guy, well you get the idea.”

“I know but at least I’ll be able to
tell it from Aqua Ocean or something like that.”

They left so Harry sat down and stared
at the chart. He got up poured himself a drink, and another until
he had a light glow on. He wanted to know if he would see things
differently, drunk the way some writers claim they do. It wasn’t as
coherent to him as when he was sober so he let his mind
wander.

He imagined Joe Sharky’s expansion as
Delphi had told him. He pictured Joe moving his operation south and
running into biker territory. He bought some drugs off bikers but
there’d be a fight to the death if he ever sold in their territory.
That left east to Alliston and maybe Barrie, north to Collingwood,
and west to Shelburne.

Ding Dong. Another piece of the puzzle
so he marked it on the chart. Did Jarrod get in the way of drug
trafficking? Was he seeing someone close to the trade? No, nothing
he came up with made sense. Nothing but dead ends drunk or sober.
Tomorrow, after he got the scent of Morning Mist, he’d go to
Shelburne and sniff every female he could find.