Kentucky Murders: A Small Town Murder Mystery (20 page)

“Don’t worry about that now,” said the sheriff. “If you’re ready, we have to get you to the hospital.”

Wait, thought Zack. If Tommy really didn’t take the mone
y
then it hit him. Of course! It all fit.

The sheriff turned to walk around to the driver’s side, when Zack called out, “Sheriff.”

The sheriff stopped at the front corner of the car and turned to Zack.

“Tommy didn’t take the money, did he?”

“What the hell you talking about, boy?” The sheriff stepped out and faced the group at the back of the car. His eyes narrowed.

Zack, getting weaker, continued. “When you searched Max’s house after we took him away, you found the money. I remember that Max’s bed, where the money was hidden, was made up tight when I shined the light on it that night we found him. Yesterday, when I came here, it had been stripped by you. You know, now that I think of it, that day Kate and I went to your office and told you about the stolen money, I never said where it was hidden. But later, I think you mentioned about it being under the mattress.”

The sheriff said nothing. He only stood listening.

Zack struggled to get it all out before he lost consciousness. “You weren’t going to arrest Tommy or anyone else. You hoped we’d buy the drifter/thief theory because that would account for the missing money, and you would be in the clear.”

The sheriff’s hand moved to his revolver.

“Also, Sheriff,” continued Zack, “
you
murdered Max.” That made Tommy’s head jerk toward Zack. “When Kate and I went to visit Max at the hospital the night he died, I heard the fire exit door at the end of the hallway close. I think, but probably won’t be able to prove, that that was you leaving the scene. You didn’t want Max to recover. The investigation might have continued and eventually you would have been exposed as the one who stole the money. You couldn’t have that. You just wanted this to all go away. Max had been improving and then, all of a sudden, he died. You gave yourself away when you showed up in the parking lot to pay your condolences only a short time after he died. There’s no way you could have known that quickly that Max had died, unles
s
” Zack paused from the pain. “Unless you were the one who killed him.” Pain gripped him.

Kate spoke up. “You know, Zack. He pretended to have a bad radio when Mrs. Pollard and I were trying to contact him from the station to come out here. Then, later, he used it to call the deputy, no problem. Also, I think he intentionally missed the turnoff the first time. He’d been out here enough times to find the road in broad daylight. He was stalling. I think he
wanted
Tommy to kill you.”

“You can’t prove any of this,” said the sheriff.

“It will be easy enough to check to see if anyone at the hospital notified you about Max dying. I don’t think they did. And, what if the deputy got a warrant to search your house? I bet he’d find a wad of money.”

At that, the sheriff drew his gun and pointed it at them. “If you hadn’t come along, none of this would have ever happened.”

“But it did,” said Zack. “Because of Tommy’s arrogance and your greed. Not because of me.”

The deputy had stood silent, listening, his hands out to his side like an Old West gunfighter ready to draw.

After a long sigh, the sheriff’s shoulders slumped, and he spoke. “Deputy, I want you to draw your weapon.”

The deputy hesitated, looked at Zack and Kate, and then back at the sheriff.

“I said, take out your gun and point it at me.”

This time, the deputy obeyed, his hands shaking.

“I should have known better,” said the sheriff. “All my lif
e
” His words trailed off, then started again. “I gave my life to this damn county. I’ve been the sheriff here for more than twenty years! I cleaned the town drunks’ puke off my cruiser’s back seat, delivered two babies, and have been shot at least a dozen times. But when my wife got sick, no one raised any money to help pay her medical expenses. Few people even called or came over to see her. Now I’m broke and alone. All of our plans for a wonderful retirement died with her. How do you think that feels? I was searching Max’s house and found the money. I thought, oh hell, why not? When I called the hospital, they said he was in bad shape and might not make it through the night. I didn’t think he’d need the money. In a few years, I retire to a lousy three-hundred-a-month pension and Social Security. This was my chance to get back a little of what this county owes me. Now look at this mess.”

Zack fought to stay awake. He strained to hear.

“I didn’t want to kill Max, but I had no choice. I can’t go to jail. You would never have let this go, Taylor. You’d have kept pushing and pushing until someone eventually found out I took the money. Why couldn’t you just let it go?

“Deputy, in three seconds, I’m going to pull this trigger. If you’re smart, you’ll pull yours first. One.” He paused.

“Please, Sheriff, don’t make me.”

“Two.”

“Shit,” said the deputy.

“Three.”

Nothing happened.

“Hell, I knew you didn’t have the balls, deputy” The sheriff raised his gun barrel and put it under his own chin. He squeezed the trigger.

Zack saw the sheriff fall just before he passed out.

Epilogue

He blinked open his eyes once and then shut them again. Seconds passed while he tried to ignore the light that filtered through his eyelids. After a few minutes, he lost the battle and opened his eyes. The ceiling above him came slowly into focus. Where was he? What time was it? What day? He turned his head. A hospital. Then Zack remembered the woods, Tommy, the shotgun, and the sheriff.

“Well, look who’s back,” came an unfamiliar female voice. “We were wondering when you would wake up.”

Zack turned in the direction of the voice and saw a pretty nurse, probably in her forties, standing next to his bed, looking down at him.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

He started to sit up, which he regretted immediately. A pain that dimmed his vision bolted through his shoulder. Why couldn’t they give him more drugs? He looked down at his bandages, being careful to move only his neck. “Hol
y
” He sighed.

“It’s going to hurt for a long time,” she said. “You should be glad you feel pain at all. The doctor said a few inches to the right, and you would have never survived. But they always say that, don’t they? At least in the movies.”

“That’s great news,” he said in a jokingly sarcastic tone. His mouth was dry, and, sensing it, she lifted a cup of water with a straw to his lips. “How long have I been out?”

“Two days. Kate has been here the whole time.”

Zack quickly searched the room, flipping his head from side to side. “Where?”

“No, she’s downstairs right now. I talked her into going to the cafeteria. She hadn’t eaten all day.” She reached down and held his wrist while looking at her watch to check his pulse rate. With her close, Zack smelled her sweet perfume. She then turned to walk out and looked back, “I’ll let her know you’re awake.” She disappeared into the corridor.

Zack lay in the silent room, looking out the window, and he figured it was late afternoon. It was all over. He couldn’t believe it. His friend was avenged, Tommy was behind bars, and the sherif
f
well, he had chosen his own ending.

Minutes passed until finally the door cracked open, and Kate poked in her head.

“Come on in,” he said.

She jumped inside and ran toward the bed, a broad smile on her face. “Thank God,” she said and kissed him. “I’ve been waiting.”

“That’s what the nurse said.”

“How are you feeling?”

“I feel like I’ve been shot and unconscious for two days in a hospital. My shoulder’s killing me, and I’m as weak as a baby. Besides all that, I’m fine.”

“Stupid question.”

Zack started to shrug, then shuddered when the pain hit. The shudder brought even more pain, so he held his breath, gritted his teeth, and lay as still as possible until the pain subsided. “Forgot,” he whispered.

“I wish there was something that I could do,” said Kate, wrinkling her forehead.

“You could call the nurse back and have her increase my pain medicine.”

Seconds passed in unnatural silence.

Kate spoke up. “Before they increase your meds, which will probably put you to sleep, I want to talk.” She paused, and then continued. “Before, I really wanted to get out of Michaeltown. I couldn’t wait. But now things ar
e
different. Since I met yo
u
” She went silent and looked down, avoiding his eyes.

“So what are you going to do now?”

“I don’t want to stay here for the rest of my life. I mean, eventually I want to see other places, you know, maybe live out west or something.”

“But?” he asked.

“Well, you see, I always thought that the reason I wasn’t happy was because I was stuck in this town and limited to this experience. But, I’ve realized that I wasn’t happy because I had lost hope for my future. The chance for a college degree passed and left me with a go-nowhere job and a dead-end relationship with Tommy. But then I met you. And you breathed life into me again. I now realize it has nothing to do with where I am; it has everything to do with hope. You give me hope that the future could be bright, and that happiness is possible. I know it sounds cheesy, but that’s really is how I feel. I’ve been saving money over the last few years, while working at the diner and living with my parents. There’s this little house for sale that I’ve got my eye on. It’s a couple blocks from my parents. I’m going to buy it!”

“Really? You know, I’ve been thinking about getting another place myself. That hotel room’s kind of small.” He smiled up at her. “You wouldn’t consider having a roommate, would you?”

She leaned over and threw her arms around him. “I was hopin
g
”

“Owwwwwww!”

She jumped back. “Sorry. Forgot, too.”

Zack figured it was time to start acting like a grown-up and to stop avoiding commitment. Contemplating his future with Kate, he thought about how ironic the last month had been. The big city boy had a new beginning in a small town.

“Can you give me a little time to recover?" He looked down at his bandages.

“You got it,” she said, smiling.

They sat there holding hands for several minutes; neither of them felt a need to speak, just being together and safe was enough.

Finally Zack broke the silence. “Kate, would you do me a favor?”

“Sure, what is it?”

“Would you find me some paper and a pen? I’d like to write a letter.”

She tilted her head, confused.

“Did I ever tell you about Mrs. Wilson?”

Part II

Retribution

Six years later…

Prologue

Zack rubbed his eyes and rolled over in bed, shaking off a dream. He squinted toward the clock radio on the side table which proclaimed 12:33 in red digital numbers. The phone rang again. “What the hell?” he murmured as he switched on the bedside lamp and scooped up the phone.  “Hello?”

“Sheriff?  It’s Harold.”

“What’s going on, Harold?” He swallowed and cleared his dry throat. “Is there a problem?”

“Yeah, sheriff.  Sorry to wake you, but I figured you’d want to know.  I have a 187 out here off Riker’s Road at the old Kennedy farm. Two victims. Neighbors heard shots about thirty minutes ago. No sign of the suspects.”

“Ah…okay.” His mind was still in a fog after being awakened so suddenly. “Who’s there now?” He rubbed his eyes some more and cleared his dry throat again.

“Just me. I called dispatch and Sally’s sending backup. Joe should be here any minute. She also contacted Rachel to come and document the crime scene. I told her I’d call you.” Rachel had been added to the force two years earlier. She was their accident and crime scene investigator.

“Okay, secure the scene and I’ll be there as soon as I can.  Have Sally call in whoever’s on standby tonight. And be careful. The perps may still be in the area.” Zack hung up and swung his legs out of bed.

The other half of the bed was empty. He had been sleeping alone in the guest room, again.

He stood and went to the bathroom.

Within a few minutes he had splashed water in his face, gargled, and gotten dressed. He walked down the hallway and paused at his son’s open doorway. He entered Jimmy’s room and walked up to the bed where his son lay, softly snoring, covers kicked down around his feet. Zack pulled the blanket up and covered his four year old. He bent down and kissed him on the forehead before leaving the room.

At the other end of the hallway was the master bedroom. He walked up and leaned his head into the room.

The dark silhouette of his wife Kate sat up in bed and looked at him. She flipped on the side table lamp.

“Who was on the phone?”

“Work. There have been some murders. I have to go.”

She sat there looking at him for a long fifteen seconds. Finally, she said, “Better get going.” She flipped off the light, laid down, and rolled away from him.

“I’ll… I’ll call.”

He turned and walked down the hallway.

Chapter 1

The previous morning

He pulled up the collar of his work shirt and shivered. He should have put on a jacket before going behind the service station for a smoke. Damn days were getting colder. He wished he could move somewhere warmer.

“Get your lazy ass back to work!”

Lee turned just as his boss spit a brown glob of chewing tobacco on the dirty blacktop.

“I didn’t have to hire a convict, ya know. And I don’t expect you to take a damn smoke break every hour.”

“I’m comin’.”

“You got two oil changes and a set of tires waiting. If you want to keep this job, don’t let shit stack up! Let’s go!” He turned and went around the corner of the building. “Damn convicts.”

“Yeah, like I want to keep this shitty job anyway,” called Lee. He walked around to the front, but instead of entering the garage, he continued past the building, beyond the gas pumps, to the phone booth, and stepped inside. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a piece of paper, slipped a quarter in the slot, and dialed.

The phone rang once, twice and then, “Hello?”

“It’s me.” Lee looked back at his boss who was staring at him through the glass window of the office, his face turning red.

“I decided to take the job.”

“Okay. Any questions?”

“It’s twenty grand. Right? I need five thousand up front. The rest when I deliver the girl.”

“Agreed.”

The mystery man told him where he’d find an envelope with the down payment.  Once he took the money, they had a contract. No backing out.

Lee hung up the phone and walked toward the front glass door of the station. When he entered, his boss was standing there staring at him, looking like he would explode.

“Take your piece of crap job and shove it up your dirty ass.” Lee removed his clip-on name tag and threw it on the floor at his feet. He turned and walked out.

“I’m calling your PO. You’re going back to prison!” He followed Lee outside while yelling at him. “You better not walk away. Get back to work!”

Lee opened his truck door and climbed inside. He looked back at his ex-boss, whose arms flailed in anger as he continued to yell out threats.  Lee spat out the window and pulled away.

Chapter 2

Later that day

What have I gotten myself into?

Zack stood in the empty hallway of the high school which was lit at the far end by the late afternoon sunlight angling through the windows, bouncing off the shiny tile floor and student lockers. He paced one way, then the other. Finally, he took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He opened the auditorium door and entered.

Only a few people in the crowd began to clap at first. Then as the others saw him, the clapping and cheering filled the room as he approached the stage.

He looked out into the crowd and saw most of the townspeople and many others from around the county who had supported him and had come to celebrate his victory. Zack thought about that day six years earlier when he left the expressway, looking for gas and food. Less than six months later he had married Kate, Michaeltown’s most eligible bachelorette. Now, he found himself about to become County Sheriff.

He was amazed at all that had happened in such a short time. But, he also wondered if the responsibility he was about to accept was what he really wanted. After his first few years of working at the local factory, with a pregnant wife to take care of, he had gone to the community college.  He’d been unsure of what to study, but he knew that only having a high school diploma would limit his opportunities. Thinking back, he remembered sitting in a Wednesday night English 101 class when he saw the brochure pinned to the bulletin board. That night he decided to major in Criminal Justice. Then his Associate degree had led to his job as a deputy on the County Police force.

The county had gone through three sheriffs in six years. With the murmur of a new election season stirring, the Mayor and several other area leaders had asked him out to lunch. He still remembered the mayor’s words.

“Zack, we like you, so we’ll come straight out with it. If you’ll run for sheriff, we can almost guarantee your victory. Hell, with our support and the lack of competition, it’s a done deal.”

And they were right; Zack had won by a huge majority. Now, he was not only responsible for his family’s welfare, but for 12,894 county residents, too. What had he gotten himself into?

He stood off to the side of the stage while the mayor introduced him, telling a story similar to the one going through Zack’s head.  He looked out into the audience, packed with his loyal supporters, the voters who had put him into office. 

His wife, Kate, stood in the front row. She didn’t smile but shot him instead a look of, “I’m still pissed at you.” They’d had another fight. Kate’s hands rested on Jimmy’s shoulders, as he waved excitedly at his father.

Zack looked at his beautiful wife and tried to remember the last time they’d made love, or even laughed together. The past few years had been hard. First, he’d gone to school at night while working full time; then, she’d gotten her degree while he watched Jimmy during the daytime and worked second shift. It seemed like they hadn’t spent much time together, just the two of them, in years. Then when things had begun to settle down, the election began. Elections led to parties and parties involved alcohol consumption. Soon after, the fighting with Kate had begun. He remembered how much in love they’d been.…

“And without further ado, let’s hear from our new sheriff!”

Zack stepped up to the podium as the clapping and cheering filled the room.  He motioned for them to quiet down as he adjusted the height of the microphone and cleared his throat.  “Thank you. Thank you everyone.  Please sit.  I promise I won’t be long.”

The crowd shuffled to their seats and the hushed voices died down after a minute or so.

“I want to thank all of you for coming here tonight to help us celebrate, and for your support during the election.  I can’t believe I’m standing here as your new Sheriff.  If it wasn’t for my lovely wife Kate,” he nodded toward her and the crowd buzzed, “I may never have become a member of your community six years ago. I’ve gone from love at first sight, to county sheriff.”  The crowd stirred with hushed laughter and comments like “
Oh, how sweet,”
from many of the women.

Zack looked at Kate and when their eyes met, she looked away. She half-smiled for the crowd.

“But seriously, I accept the challenge of being your sheriff.  I will do my best to keep this town and county a safe place for its citizens.  I look forward to serving you all and seeing each of you around the county. Thanks.”  He waved to the crowd.  “Refreshments are served,” he called out with a smile as he left the stage and began shaking hands.

Zack worked the crowd. He small-talked with the high school principle, paid his respects to the local church pastor, and shook hands with each of the city officials.

Jimmy had come over to Zack and was standing patiently at his side hugging his leg as his father worked the crowd. Zack glanced over at Kate who was also being congratulated by the town’s people. She looked up briefly and their eyes met. Then she looked away again. Zack turned and faced the mayor and several of his cronies.

“Let’s go to my house and have a proper celebration, Sheriff.”

His alcohol induced red nose told Zack what the mayor meant by a proper celebration.

“I, well… I have Kate and Jimmy with me.”

“Bring her along. She and the wife can entertain each other. Your boy can take a nap in the guest room if he gets sleepy.”

Kate appeared next to Zack. He looked at her. “The mayor has invited us --“

“You go ahead if you want. I’m taking Jimmy home.”

“See, Zack.” The mayor slapped him on the back. “You’ve got permission from the boss.”

Kate gave him a disgusted look, took Jimmy’s hand, turned and walked away. Jimmy looked back at him with sad eyes until they disappeared into the crowd.

Three hours later Zack, drunk again, got a ride home from a deputy. He passed out alone in the guest room. 

Chapter 3

Outside the bug-stained windshield the moon
floated above the blacktop road that appeared to unravel before them. He looked up at the moon’s grey continents and dark craters, standing out to his naked eyes as if magnified by a telescope. Its eerie light turned the scene ahead into a black-and-white movie. He watched a dark cloud drift across the sky and slowly obscure the moon’s glow. Out beyond the headlight beams, the grays turned to black. Lee let off on the accelerator.

He wondered if blood would appear black under this dim light. Soon, they would know.

He slowed the truck and pulled up close to the trees lining the gravel shoulder. He cut the ignition and killed the lights. The low-hanging tree branches wrapped the truck in a strange darkness, making him feel like they had entered a tunnel. Cool air brushed his elbow as he cranked open his window. Slowly, the noises of the night filled the emptiness.  

Are we really going to do this?
Lee’s hand shook as he reached up and unsnapped the plastic cover of the dome light and removed the bulb.  He took a deep breath into his tight chest, held it for several seconds, and slowly exhaled.

“Are you ready?” he asked his partner, Donnie.

“Let’s do it, man.”

Lee felt a trickle of warm sweat run down the back of his neck. “Don’t do anything stupid.” 
No mistakes. Not tonight
. “We follow the plan. Okay?”

Lee looked over at that this moron who’s actions could determine his future. “I didn’t have to bring you in on this job, Donnie.  Don’t make me regret it by screwing this up. I mean it.”

“Don’t worry, man. I’m cool. I got it!”

Lee reached down and grabbed the wooden stock of his 12 gauge pump shotgun. As he opened the door, he smelled the lingering scent of sweet gun oil.  Donnie got out on the passenger side holding a double-barreled shotgun in his hands.  When he closed the door a little too loudly Lee shushed him and whispered, “Quiet!”

Their eyes slowly adjusted to the low light; objects appeared like ghosts around them, and slowly came into focus.

They moved through grass covered with a layer of fallen leaves, making it feel like damp shag carpeting beneath their boots. Keeping to the shadows, they worked their way along the boundary of the plowed fields and trees, parallel to the house, where their prey slept.  The old-style white farmhouse sat at the end of a long straight gravel driveway running through an open front yard. A covered porch fronted the building and wrapped around the far side. The house and yard occupied about two acres of at least thirty acres of mostly open farm land. Several large oak trees stood out front, one in the back, and a barn stood off to the right rear. Thick woods lined the edges of the fields. Across the road more plowed acreage held fall crops of pumpkins or Indian corn.