Nowhere to Hide (32 page)

“
Who owns it now?”

“
He still does, but it’s not Gravely Enterprises anymore. It was SGE for a while, but that was sold to Grave Construction, which is now defunct and taken over by Florida Sunshine, Inc. Looks like Crystal Shores is now called Woodland Estates, and it’s owned by Empire Builders.”

“
So you found a bunch of companies, all owned by Stuart Gravely?”

“
Yep. Each time he sold the property, he changed the name of the development.”

“
I have a witness who said he wasn’t going to call it Crystal Shores anymore.”

“
Well, the thing is, according to what I can get out of this machine,” Peterson said and stroked the monitor almost reverently, “is that he’d get a batch of investors, string them along and then change the name of the property and get another batch. He’s selling the same land over and over.”

“
Shit,” Graham said. “Okay. What about this?” He explained the fires and the bald eagle nests to Peterson, and the man’s eyes went from droopy to round. He clicked through more databases and gave another low whistle.

“
No Environmental Impact Survey filed. Not under the land itself, or any of the other names. He couldn’t start building without one, and with active eagle nests on the property, it’s doubtful he’d get what he wanted. But then, maybe he never intended to build.”

“
Well, I can see lots of people with a motive to do in Mr. Gravely,” Graham said. “But he seems to be doing fine.”

“
Not financially. Unless he’s hiding his money in another dummy corporation I have yet to find, he’s barely making ends meet. There were at least half a dozen other projects he didn’t make a dime on. This guy’s good at moving money, but not very good at hanging on to it.”

“
So if an investor with any smarts went out to the property and saw the eagle nests, it could be the end of this scam.”

“
That would be my guess. Gravely’s the one with the motive to get rid of the nests.”

At the sound of his name, Graham turned. Schaeffer stood in the doorway with a petite brunette wearing a black pantsuit.

“
Harrigan, this is Detective Louise Carpenter, Gainesville Police Department. Detective Carpenter, Deputy Graham Harrigan. I’m sure you’ll get along fine,” Schaeffer said with a smile, then left the room.

The woman extended her hand. “Call me Lou. I hear my Townsend case might hook up to something down here.”

Graham took her hand, noted the confident handshake. He thanked Peterson and motioned Carpenter toward his desk. “What happened to Vasquez?”

“
I’m his partner, and he’s tied up. Afraid you’re stuck with me.”

“
I’m sure that won’t be a problem. What can you tell me?” He dragged a chair from a nearby empty desk and she sat down. Her eyes were deep chocolate brown, large and intelligent looking. Simple pearl stud earrings peeked from beneath her short-cropped hair. She opened a briefcase and set a file folder on the desk.

“
Frank Townsend, in addition to being a grad student, had a small consulting business on the side. He did basic land surveys, identified flora and fauna, especially endangered and threatened species, for Environmental Impact Surveys. His records show he did a job for Gravely Enterprises in Port Orange about a year and a half ago.”

“
Nothing recent?” he asked. Over a year ago wouldn’t help him much.

Carpenter gave him a wry grin. “Nothing on paper, shall we say? But his bank account shows he was making extra money, and we dug a little deeper into his computer files. It appears he was playing a bit of CYA.”

“
Covering your ass is usually a wise thing.”

“
It sure helped us on this one.” She pulled a piece of paper from the file folder and handed it to Graham. “Turns out, his surveys for Gravely have been more on paper than on site. He’d look around enough to show he knew the habitat, but didn’t actually get down to the nitty-gritty of formally documenting what lived there.”

He scanned the page. A letter from Townsend to Gravely admitting he’d been willing to write reports without actually doing the surveys in the past, but he was pretty sure he’d noticed bald eagle nests at Crystal Shores, and that was a line he wouldn’t cross.

“
And this one was sent about a week or so before the estimated time of death,” Carpenter said as she handed him a second page.

Another letter saying simply because there were no active nests listed on the property didn’t mean there weren’t any there and he was going to double check to be sure.

“
The call Townsend made to Gravely was from his cell phone. From somewhere near Crystal Shores,” she said.

“
This would indicate Gravely knew damn well what was going on.”

“
I agree. I plan to drop in on Mr. Gravely. You’re welcome to come along.”

He handed the detective the papers and gathered his own paperwork. Before he’d put it away, he was called to the phone. Carpenter nodded in understanding when Graham took the call. After hanging up, he summarized the call for Carpenter. “That was the ME. The dead body has been identified as Jeffrey Walters, my missing person. They recovered the bullets from the body. Thirty-eights.”

“
Can you check it out with ATF and see if Gravely owns one?” Carpenter asked. “I’d like to make a quick pit stop.”

“
Sure. Down the hall on the left.” He watched her leave. Her stride was professional, purposeful, but there was no denying she was female. And he didn’t give a damn. He logged into the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms database. Stuart Gravely owned a thirty-eight caliber Smith & Wesson.

Carpenter came back. “Get anything from ATF?”

“
He owns one. Think we can get a warrant?”

She chuckled. “I wish. We need to make him a suspect first. Let’s talk to him, see what we can get.” Her expression turned serious. “But your body? Don’t you have to notify next of kin? God, I hate doing that.”

“
I thought I’d wait until after we talk to Gravely. Walters has been gone for weeks and the aunt isn’t worried about him. She swears he’s on a business trip, so a couple of hours shouldn’t make too much of a difference. His stepdaughter’s in Ocala. I’ll let Marion County know and they’ll take care of it.”

“
Let’s move.” She flashed him a smile. No dimple.

“
It really was Jeffrey?” Colleen asked and took the phone to her couch. “Shot and dumped?”

“
Yep. Dental records confirmed it. Thanks, by the way. Knowing his dentist saved a lot of time.”

“
And since he’s dead, you shouldn’t have to worry about how I got his dentist’s name. As a matter of fact, now that he’s dead, nothing I did can come back and bite you.”

He ignored the layer of sarcasm in her tone. But he accepted his relief that she was right.

“
Who do you think did it?” she asked.

“
I’m leaning toward Gravely, although he seems to have the least motive for wanting Jeffrey dead. He admitted dealing with Jeffrey, showed us the contract where he bought the land. Their business was over. But the Gainesville cops say he’s lying through his teeth about Townsend. The two of them definitely did business.”

“
Who else has a motive?” Colleen asked. “Kimberly? She needs money.”

“
Once we get our hands on Jeffrey’s will, we might have a better idea. Speaking of wills, I’m going to have to notify next of kin. Doris seems to be his nearest blood relative. As long as I’m in the neighborhood, I can stop by afterward. We said something about dinner.”

“
I have some errands to run. I should be back by four.”

“
I’ve got a few more things to do here and then I’ll head to Doris’. I should be done right about then.”

Colleen hung up the phone and surveyed her food supply. If Graham was dropping by, she definitely wanted to have more than cereal, eggs, and yogurt on hand. She kicked up her grocery list and started on her route.

When she’d finished, it was three-thirty, and she couldn’t help but smile when she turned the corner and saw Graham’s Jeep by the curb. She started down the driveway, catching a glimpse of Graham, his long stride carrying him down the path toward the main entry. She pictured him being kind and supportive as he told Doris of her nephew’s death. Damn, but she’d hated death notifications. That was one part of police work she’d never miss. For a fleeting moment, she contemplated offering to go with him, to offer support for Doris, but the thought was short-lived.

Graham must have heard her car, because he stopped, turned and trotted toward her. Delaying the condolence call, no doubt. She stopped at the end of the drive and started unloading her bags.

He stepped behind her, his aftershave creating a flutter of desire. He nuzzled her neck. “Need some help?”

“
I thought you were supposed to be telling Doris about Jeffrey.”

“
I don’t suppose you’d like to tag along? Normally a chaplain accompanies us, but he called to say he was delayed, and I didn’t want to put it off any longer.”

She groaned inwardly. Until she met his gaze and saw the plea for help and all resolve evaporated. “Why me? I’m not official.”

“
But you’re a woman, and compassionate, and I’m sure Doris will appreciate your being there.”

“
I suppose. If nothing else, I can call some of her friends if she falls apart. But you’ll owe me. Big time. Help me get these groceries inside.” She started for her door.

Graham followed, carrying the rest of the bags. “Small price to pay.”

She grinned. “That’s not the payback I had in mind.” Inside, she moved toward the refrigerator. Stalling for time, she said, “Let me get the perishables put away.”

Together, they walked up the drive and across the footpath to Doris’ front door. She watched Graham pull himself to his full height, square his shoulders and arrange his face in an expression of sympathy.

The doorbell chimed and quick footsteps approached. The door opened and Doris’ blue eye appeared from behind the chain.

“
Hello, Colleen,” Doris said. “What can I do for you?”

It dawned on her that Doris probably couldn’t reach the peephole to see out. Graham had positioned himself beside Colleen, out of Doris’ line of vision. Great. Now she was going to have to initiate the conversation.

“
Doris, Deputy Harrigan is here with me. We need to talk to you. May we come in?”

The door shut, Colleen heard the chain being released, and then Doris pulled the door open. “Is this about Jeffrey again? I told you, he’s in Alabama. This isn’t a good time to talk.”

Graham moved over. “I’m afraid this is important, Mrs. Walters. May we come in?” Without waiting for an invitation, he stepped into the entryway. “I think we should sit down.”

Doris shuffled over to the couch, muttering, “Important. Pah! Do, this, do that. It’s always important.” Colleen sat beside her, and Graham lowered himself to one of the easy chairs across from them. “I’m afraid I have some bad news, Mrs. Walters. A body was discovered in a construction site, and it’s been identified as your nephew, Jeffrey. I’m sorry for your loss.”

Doris took off her glasses, held them up to the light, then replaced them without cleaning the lenses.

Colleen took the woman’s hand in both of hers. At that, Doris looked frantically around the room, as if Jeffrey might appear and prove them wrong.

“
I’m very sorry, Doris,” Colleen said. “Would you like me to call one of your friends?”

Doris seemed to have shrunk to half her size. “No. He’s in Alabama. I have to keep the computer on. He’s in Alabama.”

Graham leaned forward. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Walters. With your permission, we’d like to take Jeffrey’s computer and some of his files. That might help us figure out what happened.”

Colleen picked up motion from the hall.

“
Don’t move,” a male voice snapped.

Time stopped. Her heart beat against her ribcage. Her mouth went dry. Sweat pooled under her arms. As if in slow motion, she watched Graham leap from the chair, one hand at his holster. Colleen threw herself over Doris. Saw the muzzle flash. Heard a shot. Then another. The familiar roaring sounded in her ears, the disembodied feeling. She clenched her fists, digging her nails into her palms.

Feel the pain. Get back. No more zoning out
.

The world refocused. Stuart Gravely knelt in the hallway, clutching his midsection. Blood oozed from between his fingers. Where the hell had he come from? Three feet from her, Graham lay on his belly, arms outstretched, his gun by his hand. She calculated the distance between her own fingers and the Glock, then to Gravely.

“
Please. Please don’t shoot.” She dropped to the floor, her hands over her head, in what she hoped was a cowering posture. Her voice, squeaky and tremulous, didn’t require any pretending. “I won’t say anything. I promise. Don’t shoot.” With each plea for mercy, she inched forward, keeping her body between Gravely and Graham’s Glock.

Fighting to keep from hyperventilating, she reached the weapon. Gravely raised his. Colleen grabbed the gun, rolled and fired at Gravely. She saw a look of shock cross his face before he slumped to the floor.

“
Doris! Call 9-1-1!” Colleen half-crawled to Gravely and secured his weapon. She turned and saw Doris, still lying on the couch where Colleen had left her. “Doris!” The woman stared into nothingness, but Colleen could see her breathing. Damn, she wasn’t going to be any help.

Colleen bent over Graham’s body. A thick red pool oozed from beneath him. The metallic smell of blood drove her down the path to the Bradfords’. She fought back. She could do this.

“
No!” She felt for a pulse. “No! Damn it, Harrigan, you can’t do this to me!” She forced herself to be silent as she prayed to feel a sign of life at his carotid. Faint, but it was there.