7. Confusion

Mary Anderson calls Pam at 9:00 Monday morning. It’s July 22 and still in the mid-summer heatwave. Mary says, “I hope I’m not calling too early, Pam.”

“Oh no, I couldn’t sleep in with this heat. I’m already on my second glass of iced tea. It’s too hot to paint so I’m sitting on the porch hoping for some breeze. Are you at work?”

“Yes, at least it’s cool here with the air conditioning. I need to talk to you privately, Pam. Can you meet me for lunch at the Harbor Deli?”

“Yes, I’ll be there at noon, Mary.”

“Thank you, see you then,” Mary concludes.

Mary arrives at the Harbor Deli a few minutes after noon. Pam is sitting in a back corner away from anyone. Mary joins her and says, “Thank you for meeting me, Pam.”

The waitress comes and takes their lunch order. As soon as the waitress leaves Pam asks, “Is everything alright at the Courthouse, Mary?”

“Not really. Everyone is talking about Glen Lund’s murder. I don’t think anyone is working. Word is the medical examiner reported Glen was murdered someplace else and dumped at the picnic site. He didn’t have any drugs in his system so the sheriff believes a packet of cocaine found with his body was planted. They have a lot of suspects but no evidence. The gossip is the sheriff is focusing on Tom Eyre for some reason. That’s what I need to talk to you about. Part of the reason has to do with Glen’s funeral on Sunday. Trudy’s a longtime friend. She is struggling with the loss of Glen and the funeral upset her even more. Her nephew, Tom Eyre, couldn't attend Glen’s funeral because Sheriff Ericsson threw him in jail Saturday. The sheriff is threatening to keep him there until he cooperates. Trudy is close to Tom because they are nearly the same age. He’s her older half-sister’s first child. I am in the middle because Tom’s wife Sally is my cousin. She knows Tom’s innocent but doesn’t know what to do. There’s some history the sheriff doesn’t know. If he finds out he’ll be doubly convinced Tom’s guilty. I don’t believe for a minute Tom killed Glen, but I don’t know how to get the sheriff off Tom’s back either. That’s why I need your advice.”

“What’s the history the sheriff doesn’t know, and why would it make the sheriff believe Tom’s guilty,” asks Pam.

“It all goes back to before any of us were married. Trudy, Sally and I were friends. Sally was dating Glen, I was dating Bert, and Trudy had a party. She invited her date, some guy from Oscoda I’ve forgotten, Tom, who didn’t have a date, Sally and Glen, and Bert and me. Sally always liked the bad-boy types. I don’t know why she bothered to date Glen; being the quiet gentleman, he wasn’t her type. She met Tom at the party, who was pretty wild when he was young. It didn’t take her long to dump Glen and take up with Tom. Sally married Tom only to learn bad boys don’t make good husbands even after they settle down. Anyway, Glen and Trudy started dating and soon got married. The problem was when Tom mistreated Sally she’d go to Glen for sympathy. Being the gentleman he was he provided it. Knowing Sally she would have tried to get Glen to sleep with her. I doubt that she succeeded but I can’t be sure. Before long Trudy caught on and threw a fit. Glen never saw Sally again according to Sally, but Sally and Trudy stopped being friends. There are rumors that Tom accused Glen of sleeping with Sally when he was mad at Glen because Glen raised the tax assessment on their farm. He could be right, although as I said, I doubt it. Another reason Trudy is so upset is she learned somehow that Ralph Hess says Glen was supposed to meet him at 1:30. Glen left after church about 11:00 telling Trudy he’s going to Ralph’s. No one knows where Glen was around noon. Trudy thinks Sally could have had another fight with Tom and asked Glen to meet her like old times. She doesn’t want to say anything to the sheriff because she’s embarrassed about what happened years ago and is afraid it’ll come out.” 

Pam says, “Wow, that’s quite a story. I can see how our bumbling sheriff would make it into something he could use against Tom. Are you convinced Tom is innocent?”

“Yes, Sally called me Saturday evening after she learned the sheriff put Tom in jail, all upset of course. I went to see her Sunday after she visited Tom. Tom told her Deputy Wilson questioned him about where he was at the time Glen was killed. He wouldn’t give Wilson a straight answer and that’s why Sally thinks the sheriff is after Tom.”

“If Tom didn’t give Wilson a good alibi I’m sure the sheriff would believe he’s guilty and go after him. Sheriff Ericsson acts on gut instinct rather than evidence. Did she say why Tom wouldn’t tell Wilson where he was?”

“Yes, they were out of meat and low on money as usual, so Tom poached a deer. He was home butchering the deer at the time Glen was murdered. There’s an abandoned farm shed behind the trailer park. Sally said Tom butchered the deer there out of sight of anyone. The problem is, he has been caught poaching before. The DNR officer told him if he’s caught poaching again he’ll lose his rifle and go to jail. Sally and Tom are just getting by. They can’t afford to lose Tom’s pay for a month. Now you see why Sally’s upset. I don’t know how to get Tom out of this mess. That’s why I wanted to talk to you. You always analyze situations logically and see logical answers.”

“Has Sally considered hiring a lawyer to defend Tom?”

“Yes, but they can’t afford a lawyer.”

“Oh, yes you said they’re hard up. I suggest you try this approach, Mary. There’s a new young lawyer in Pineville. His name is Karl Katz. He’s trying to build up a new practice here. I suggest Sally go see him. Go with her if you can take time off. Tell him Tom needs legal representation but can’t afford it. Ask if he’ll do it pro-bono. Tell him if he does you’ll make sure Mary Jane Bloom knows of his good deed. If she writes a favorable story it’ll help get him known. If he agrees, Sally can tell him the fix Tom’s in. If he knows Tom’s innocent he can get Tom released since the sheriff has no evidence beyond his gut feel. If he represents Tom he can treat Tom’s poaching as privileged information. He doesn’t have to bring it up.”

“That’s worth a try, Pam. Sally and I should have thought of that. We’re too upset or too close to the problem I guess. Thank you for meeting me for lunch and listening to my story, and thank you for your good advice.”

6. Chaos in the Investigation

 

Sheriff Ericsson arrives at his office a half-hour late Wednesday morning. He says a grumpy good morning greeting to Sue and goes straight into his office. Sue brings his first cup of coffee and says, “It looks like we’re in for another hot day. Were the rumors at the Corner Bar last night helpful, Sir?”

“Not a bit. Some saying he deserved being shot for setting tax assessments too high and others speculating one of the people he and the mayor cheated did it. Just what you’d expect from the crowd that hangs out there. I thought maybe Mary Jane Bloom’s column would have stirred up something new, but I doubt if any of the Corner Bar customers bother to read her columns.”

“The calls you expected started coming in already, Sir. How do you want me to handle them?”

Take this list of names I got from the mayor, add Tom Eyre’s name, and tally how many callers accuse each of them. Keep a second list of each caller’s name and who they accuse. Until I get the medical examiner’s report there’s nothing useful I can do on this investigation. Has Wilson come in?”

“Yes, he stuck his head in first thing and asked me to tell you he hasn’t run into Tom Eyre yet. Then he went on patrol.”

“Okay, that’s what I’m going to do for the rest of the day. If the medical examiner’s report comes in call me on my cell phone rather than my patrol car radio. I don’t want to tip Mary Jane Bloom off. I’m sure she or someone at that paper listens to police radio calls on a scanner. I’ll be back about 4:00 to see if we’ve learned anything from the calls.”

“Are you planning on lunch at the Dinner Pail?”

“How did you guess? I can taste that pecan pie already,” the sheriff replies with a smile as he gulps the last of his coffee and heads out the door.

Sue is cleaning the Black and Decker coffee maker’s vacuum carafe the sheriff insists she uses at 4:30 when the sheriff returns. She says, “How was the pecan pie, Sir?”

“Delicious, as I expected. Do you have the two lists I requested?”

“Here they are. I doubt you’ll find them helpful. I received more than a dozen calls. None of the nine people on the list got more than one accusation. Tom Eyre didn’t get any. The others sounded to me like someone trying to get another person in trouble out of spite.”

The sheriff scans the list carefully then says, “You’re right, Sue. The accusations against people not on the list of nine are all old news. Some spiteful people in our village take every opportunity to get someone they have a grudge against in trouble. I hoped we might get some direction from callers, but this isn’t helpful at all. You didn’t call so I assume the medical examiner’s report didn’t come yet.”

“No, Sir.”

“I’m going home. Maybe tomorrow will be a better day. Good night, Sue.”

“See you tomorrow, Sir.”

Thursday morning the sheriff is finishing his first coffee when Sue comes into his office with papers in her hand. She says, “Here’s the medical examiner’s report, Sheriff.”

“Finally!  Thanks, Sue. Don’t disturb me until I’ve studied this.”

Half an hour later Deputy Wilson comes into his office and says, “Sue says you have the medical examiner’s report. Anything surprising? What about the white packet? Was it narcotics?”

“Nothing surprising, Wilson. Lund was shot somewhere else and dumped where we found him. Something about lividity tells him that. I hope you didn’t waste time looking for a shell casing with a metal detector at the picnic site.”

“Oh, no, I forget you wanted me to do that. What else did the report say?”

“The shot hit his heart as you guessed. No bullet found in the body, it went completely through. The report says the gun must have been a 9mm or bigger to go all the way through Glen. Not a 22 or 32 caliber then. Not a high-velocity bullet from a rifle because it would have damaged the heart more. It had to be a handgun. The killer was close to Glen when he shot him. The report says power residue on Glen’s shirt suggests four to six feet.”

Wilson interrupts, “The killer shot Glen with a 9 mm. Did I forget to put that in my report?  I found a 9 mm bullet in the backseat of Glen’s car. I figured it went through Glen and stopped in his suit jacket lining. It probably fell out during the time the killer moved the body.”

“Yes, you forgot to put that in your report. You had a lot of useless information but not that critical information.”

“Sorry, Sir, what else did the examiner say?”

“The white packet contained cocaine. The examiner didn’t find a trace of cocaine or any other narcotic in Glen’s body. I’ve been trying to think about how this helps, but all it does is confirm what we thought. Glen was killed somewhere else and perhaps the killer tried to make it look drug-related by leaving the cocaine packet. We can’t prove the packet wasn’t dropped by someone else using cocaine at the picnic site. The fingerprints on the packet were smears, nothing useful. Oh, the time of death was between 10:00 and 1:00 on Sunday. Since Glen left the church at 11:00 he must have been shot between 11:30 and 1:00.”

“What about suspicious fibers? Did the examiner find anything like that?”

“No, Wilson, you’ve been watching too many cop shows on TV.”

“Maybe, where does this leave us, Sir?”

“It leaves us right where we were. We’ve got a body, a crime scene, far too many suspects, and no useful clues pointing to any suspect.”

“What do you want me to do, Sheriff?”

“The only thing we can do is check alibis for the nine people on our list of suspects. Keep looking for Tom Eyre and see if you can learn where he was around noon on Sunday. Keep it casual as I suggested before. As far as the other eight, let’s find out where each of them was around noon. No reason to be subtle with them. We’ll try to eliminate suspects one at a time. I’m still hoping the column in the Weekly Journal will provoke someone to give us something useful.”

“Okay, Sir. I know where to find a couple of the people on this list. I’ll check their alibis while Sue is getting the addresses of the others. What are you going to do, Sir, if I may ask?”

“Nothing until alibis eliminate most of these suspects. Then I’ll grill the remaining ones.”

“What about asking the Weekly Journal to put a notice out asking anyone who saw Glen or his car after church last Sunday to call you and tell you where they saw him?”

“Hmmm, yeah, that may be worthwhile. Mary Jane Bloom is likely to call me before she writes her column for next week. I’ll ask her to help. Maybe she won’t be so critical if we ask for her help. On second thought, no. If I ask her for help she’ll make it look like I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t trust her to write anything favorable about me.”

Deputy Wilson is waiting for the sheriff when he gets to his office Friday morning. The sheriff says, “Good morning, Wilson. Why are you waiting for me?”

“I ran into Tom Eyre in the Corner Bar yesterday evening. I struck up a casual conversation and worked it around to what he was doing around noon last Sunday. I acted friendly and casual, but when I asked if he had a good Sunday he got evasive. He got a suspicious look, threw some money on the bar, and left hurriedly. I didn’t learn anything about his alibi other than he doesn’t want to talk about that time on Sunday.”

“Good job, Wilson. That sure makes it look like Eyre doesn’t want us to know where he was or what he was doing at the time of the murder. Bring him in first thing tomorrow if he doesn’t work Saturdays. I’m going to grill him. He has a temper. Maybe I can use it to rattle him and get him to say something that connects him to Glen’s murder. I’ve used that technique before. Do you happen to know if Eyre owns a handgun?”

“I do. He has a 9mm Luger; his dad brought it back from the war. He had it at the gun range once when I was there practicing with my service pistol. Beautiful gun, wish I had one.”

“Okay, no alibi and a gun that’s probably the murder weapon. Lugers are 9 mm aren’t they? That’s enough for me, bring him in tomorrow morning.”

“Okay, Sheriff, I’ll pick him up early.”

“Good, now go back to checking the alibis of the other eight suspects.”

5. Speculation Begins

Pam pushes an overstuffed chair back to make room for a card table in the living room of the old Lafave farmhouse. She lives here now, since retiring from the Grand Rapids police department and returning to Pineville. Looking at the old chair belonging to her husband’s grandparents brings back memories.

She grew up across the road and spent many happy days playing with Billy or in the Lafave kitchen with Billy’s mom and Grandma Lafave while waiting for her mother to come home from work.

Pat and Larry Lafave, her in-laws gave her the Lafave family farm after Billy died of a heart attack to keep it in the Lafave family. She kept the old furnishings of Billy’s grandparents. They brought her comfort; partly because she wanted to live a simpler life and partly because they brought back good memories that eased her grief.

Pat and Larry Lafave lived with Larry’s parents until Billy’s senior year in high school. Larry took a job in Lansing so Pat could have a place of her own. Billy gladly stayed with his grandparents to finish high school and continue dating Pam. Pam and Billy married after college and moved to Grand Rapids for jobs. She retired because she didn’t want to continue dealing with the dark side of people without having Billy to talk to about her day’s work. 

Pam enjoys being back where she grew up, where she can’t smell the air and sees a friend or two every time she goes to the IGA, the bank, or the Post Office. She sets up her art studio in a back bedroom of the old white farmhouse where she can look across the fields to the woods and river where she and Billy played. Her art, a vegetable garden behind the house, and renting out the farm fields to neighboring farmers keep her busy as her grief evolves to memories.

Doctor Arra, her family’s doctor when she was growing up, collected things connected with American frontier history. The doctor left his home, the attached medical clinic, and his collections to Pineville as a museum. George Citron, the chairman of the board of directors of the museum invited Pam to help to catalog the doctor’s collections when he learned she liked old things. There she met Rev. Penny, who introduced her to the Pineville Art Society, Sam Weiss, who invited her to join his bridge group, Peter Brown, the local plumber, and Mary Anderson, Sam’s bridge partner. 

After a few years she knew she was ready to move on with life. She dated George Citron for a while until he dumped her for a younger blonde. Some months later, when Sheriff Ericsson couldn’t solve George’s baffling murder, Pam led the other board members in investigating and catching George’s killer.

 After solving George’s murder Pam intended to return to her quiet but busy life. It didn’t work the way she intended. After the rush of investigating George’s murder faded, Pam felt something was missing in her life.

She talked to Rev. Penny about her feelings after church one Sunday. He suggested she might still need to serve even if she didn’t want to be a detective anymore. He had several suggestions for how she could fulfill her need without having to deal with criminals. She chose to be a mentor for the children needing help with reading and new math at the Pineville Elementary School. The smiles and hugs she got from the kids she mentored thrilled her and fulfilled what she had been missing. She had to admit being with the children made her wonder about her choice not to have children. She decided she’s had a good life and she wasn’t going to start second guessing her life decisions now.

Pam doesn’t find another relationship after George Citron. When she wants dinner out or needs a companion for a social occasion she asks the gay harbormaster, Harrison Cook to accompany her. They share a common interest in art and enjoy meals at their favorite Italian restaurant without the sexual tension of a date. These occasions are the only times Pam wears any makeup besides lipstick. She wore makeup regularly until she became a cop. She wasn’t quite sure why but she preferred no makeup when she was wearing her police uniform. Going without makeup other than lipstick became a habit she continues after retiring. She feels it fits the more natural life she wants. She wouldn’t wear lipstick except her lips have accommodated to it and chap if she doesn’t.

It’s Tuesday and Pam’s getting ready for her bridge group to arrive for their biweekly game. It’s so hot she’s wearing a summer dress instead of her usual jeans and a paint splotched T-shirt. She’s made an apple pie and chilled a jug of wine for dessert when they pause after two rubbers. ‘Sam’s going to love this pie’ she thinks, recalling how the old history professor loves pie. There’s the sound of car tires crunching gravel in her driveway so she goes to the front door to welcome the other three players.

Mary Anderson, the blonde computer expert who manages all the county records at the Courthouse comes in first, looks around, and exclaims, “Hi, Pam. I love the old furniture in this room. Do you know how old these chairs are?”

“A hundred years at least, Mary. You know I love old things. Visit me sometime when we aren’t playing bridge and I’ll show you Grandma Lafave’s other glorious things.” Then she turns to Sam Weiss and says, “Hello, Sam, you've shortened your beard.”

“Yes, it's too hot this July to have it long,” Sam replies.

“Just don’t shave it off, Sam. I think your white beard gives you the distinguished professor look,” says Mary.

Seeing Mary still admiring the old furniture Pam says, “Sam, would you set up the card table while I get the chairs from the closet?”

When Pam gets back with two chairs Erin O’Shea, the fourth for the bridge arrives and greets everyone. Pam says, “Hi Erin. Would you please get the cards, tallies, and a pencil from the drawer in the end table while I get the other two chairs?”

“These tallies are beautiful, Pam. They look like woodcut prints. Did you make them?” asks Erin.

“Yes, there’s an old printing press at Doc Arra’s museum. It inspired me to try woodcuts. I made the woodblocks and printed them using the press at the museum,” replies Pam. Then she adds, “It’s a perk of being on the museum board. That’s where I learned Mary and Sam like to play bridge.”

Erin says, “You sure have a busy life, Pam. Monday nights at the Art Society, Wednesday nights at the museum, and our biweekly bridge game on Tuesday nights.”

“Yes, and Thursday afternoons mentoring at the elementary school. I’ve become the busy widow of Pineville. I don’t miss working. I’m happy with my art, mentoring, enjoying all the old things of Grandma Lafave’s in this house, and Doc Arra’s collections at the museum, plus bridge has been a passion since college. Erin, you look tired tonight. Is everything okay?”

“I am tired. All-day long everyone talked about Glen Lund’s murder. Hearing the same things over and over got to me. Mary, what was it like at the Courthouse?” asks Erin.

“Ghastly. There were long faces everywhere. Many people didn’t like Glen because of his job as the tax assessor, and his shady land deals with the mayor, but he was well-liked by his co-workers in the city and county offices. We’ll miss him,” replies Mary.

Sam says, “I didn’t know him other than by my tax assessment letters, but I hate to see anyone murdered. Pam, do you think our bumbling sheriff will be able to handle this murder?”

“I hope so, Sam. I have enough to do without getting involved in another murder case. I want to enjoy my retirement and activities without the distraction of another investigation.”

Erin injects, “Mary, what is the speculation at the Courthouse on who murdered Glen?”

“Mixed opinions, some are convinced it’s someone who lost their home due to Glen increasing their tax assessment. Others are equally convinced it’s someone who feels cheated by one of the mayor’s and Glen’s crooked land deals. I think it could even have something to do with the city’s financial problems. What if Glen uncovered something fishy in his new role as Assistant Treasurer? The sheriff will have a long list of suspects.”

“The column in today’s Weekly Journal by Mary Jane Bloom is going to fuel more speculation. The column insinuates Glen Lund had enemies all over town and beyond,” offers Sam.

Pam says, “In my experience a murder like this creates an opportunity for people to harass anyone they are at odds with. I haven’t read this week’s Journal, but if Mary Jane Bloom’s column is like you say, Sam I expect the sheriff will get many calls suggesting he investigate someone. His suspect list will be even longer if he doesn’t know the callers well enough to know who is giving him useful information and who is trying to get even with someone they don’t like.”

Erin says, “Sue Johnson, the sheriff’s secretary, says the sheriff prides himself on knowing the people in our county well. He tells her that’s what it takes to be a successful sheriff here.”

“It’ll surely help in this case. It will be even better if he follows basic criminal investigation methods. Remember how he questioned Violet Green and Jolene when he suspected them of Carson Crenshaw’s murder? He tried to intimidate them into confessing when he had no evidence,” Pam replies.

“How would you approach this case, Pam?” asks Sam.

“Oh no, you’re not going to get me started, Sam. Let’s play some bridge,” says Pam

After completing two rubbers of bridge the group takes a break. Pam serves the apple pie and offers wine or coffee. Everyone takes wine. Erin then says, “I know we should talk about something else, but I can’t get the murder off my mind. Mary, has any news leaked from the medical examiner? One of my customers said she heard Deputy Wilson say drugs were found with Glen’s body. The medical examiner could tell if Glen was using drugs couldn’t he?”

Mary responds, “The rumor about drugs circulated the Courthouse all day long. Nothing official came from the medical examiner. He will certainly test Glen for any drugs after what Deputy Wilson is saying. I expect he’ll take a couple of days being thorough. From knowing Glen at work and church, I can’t believe he ever used drugs, even in college.”

Seeing they’ve all finished their pie, Pam picks up the empty plates and says, “Let’s play another rubber before it gets late.”

 Everyone quiets and turns back to the bridge game.