Chasing Suspect Three (31 page)

Margo fired without hesitating.

All three of them jumped at the blast. The
last sound Claudia ever heard.

Sandy screamed in surprise, “My God, you
pulled the trigger.”

Claudia staggered and collapsed to the floor.
Margo swung around. She pointed the gun at Sandy. She fired again.
Sandy lunged for the gun on the floor, twisted, and fired back.
Margo’s entire body seemed to be shaking as she fired again. But
she was falling backward, and her third shot hit the ceiling. Blood
instantly spread across her blouse.

Sandy was still on the floor when she saw the
apartment door slam off its hinges down into the room with a crash.
She pointed the gun with both hands before she saw Chip bound into
the room with his gun drawn. She dropped the gun and stared wildly.
“Good God, what have I done?”

He quickly scanned the room then knelt beside
her. She was sobbing. He said, “You okay? Were you hit? Are you
okay?” Martin was right behind him. “Stay with her,” Chip said and
went over to where Margo was lying. He kicked the gun away from her
hand and holstered his own gun. He took his radio and called for
assistance and an ambulance. “This one should make it. I can tell
from here that blonde over there is gone. That’s Claudia isn’t
it?”

When she realized it was Martin, she grabbed
him. “Margo fired. She didn’t need to do that.” She tightened her
arms around him. “I did something horrible. I don’t know why I did
it. I said all those horrible things to her. I don’t know where it
came from. I never thought she’d fire that gun.”

“You’re all shaken now. We’ll talk about it
later.” Martin held her. “You’re safe, Sandy. You’re alive and
safe.”

“So loud, so loud. My ears are still
ringing,” she said as he helped her up.

“Are you sure you’re all right,” his voice
was just as shaky.

“She’s in shock,” Chip said, as he came back
and gathered her into his arms. “Martin, check Claudia for a
pulse.” He reached down and touched the barrel of the gun at her
feet. “This is warm. Did you shoot both of them?”

“Not sure...I don’t remember. Everybody was
screaming at everybody. Are they both dead? I hope they’re not
dead. Chip, can you save them?”

She looked around at the scene. Margo was
lying in blood along the wall. Claudia was lying in blood in the
center of the room. A pile of blood-spattered cash and a vacuum
cleaner were on the floor between them. The apartment door was
lying flat on the floor surrounded by splintered pieces of wooden
door frame. At the opening where the door used to be, stood a young
man with wild red hair and a wide-open mouth.

Chip saw him. “Who the hell are you?”

“I own this place. I live across the hall.
Who’s going to pay for this?”

Chip pointed at him and ordered, “You! Lock
all the building doors and stand guard. Don’t let anyone in except
police.”

“I want to know who’s going to pay for this.”
Then he saw the bodies sprawled on the floor. “Oh God no, Claudie!”
He started into the room.

Chip blocked him. “Go back to your apartment,
sir. Martin, get him out of here.” He helped Sandy over to the
sofa. “You’re in shock. Just relax. You’ll remember
everything.”

“How about that gun, Chip? How about that?”
She was speaking rapidly. “I saw that gun...on the floor. Just like
the one you showed me at the range. I knew if only I could get to
that gun—.”

“You fired only one round,” Chip said
inspecting the revolver. “I told you if someone’s coming at you
with a weapon, to keep pulling the trigger.”

“Don’t scold me. It’s coming back to me now.
I’m responsible for murdering two women.”

“You fired just one shot. It hit the brunette
in the shoulder. She’s losing blood, but they’ll save her. You did
what you had to do.”

“I remember...okay, here’s how it went. I
never dreamed Margo would actually shoot. It seemed so wrong, I
just thought she’d never do it. She shot Claudia—who was waiting
for the chance to shoot me. Then Margo turned the gun on me. The
gun I used, that one there, was already on the floor. What kind is
it? I want one of those babies.”

“You’re not only safe you’re damn lucky.”

She saw Martin come back over, and she spoke
as though she had just awakened, “What are you doing here?”

“I thought I’d surprise you with a Café
Grande. When I didn’t find you parked near the spa, I guessed you’d
be over here parked out back watching the place. I saw your car. I
came into the hall, heard the yelling, and phoned Chip.”

“I almost got lost, Chip. I wanted so badly
to prove Margo was innocent. I was all over the place. The women
were in it together. Claudia masterminded everything. She’s the
type to have other people do her dirty work. I’ll tell you all
about it. And you’re innocent Chip. The diary was a total phony.
You didn’t do any of those creepy things. You’re just a nice,
normal guy who is great in bed.”

“You’re in shock, babbling nonsense,” Chip
said. “I want you in the emergency room fast.”

Martin interrupted, “I’ll get her dress. It’s
over there on the floor.”

“What?”

“Your dress.”

“Geez Louise,” she said looking down. Martin
went over near Claudia’s body and retrieved the dress where it
fell. Blood was spreading across the floor but hadn’t reached
it.

As she was tying the dress around her, she
said, “I always think more clearly with my clothes on.”

Martin said, “I kept trying not to look at
you.”

“Thank you.”

“More or less.”

“It’s okay, Martin.”

“Congratulations,” Martin said. “You
successfully defended your first murder client. You proved Margo
innocent of murdering John. Of course, she’s a conspirator as far
as the money is concerned, however that’s another case.”

“Conspiracy is minor,” Chip said. “Don’t
forget she just killed Claudia—that’s murder, and fired at
Sandy—that’s attempted murder. But you closed them down, recovered
the money, and aided the FBI investigation. I’d say you had a very
successful first big case as a defense lawyer and as an
investigator.”

“So now I must give back the ten thousand
cash in my safe.”

“Sorry about that,” Chip said. “That cash had
to be from the drug batch. You did all this work, almost got
killed, and didn’t make a dime.”

“Oh, but I did. The ten thousand dollar bank
check I cashed came from Claudia’s business account. I had refused
cash. That money was legit. I can keep it.”

“Well, you finally chased down suspect
three,” Martin said. “You found him in the morgue and discovered
where he lived.”

“Not so, Martin. No one will ever find the
Richie Grant we were chasing. He was never in the morgue. He
resides only in a very private place. I have a long and interesting
story to tell you about Margo and her special lover, Richie.”

Martin said, “I can’t help worrying about the
huge problem you still face. The FBI is going to yank you in front
of a judge. You’ll be forced to reveal who gave you the name,
Gerardo Diaz, or you’ll go to jail.”

A broad smile crossed her face. “I now
realize there is only one way to get myself out of that trouble. I
simply must go ahead and disclose the person who gave me his
name.”

“Sandy, what are you saying? You must be in
shock. You can’t do that.”

“I feel sorry for her, Martin, but she got
herself into this mess. And I’m not going to go to jail for her. I
hate to do it, but they are forcing me to reveal the person who
gave me the name Gerardo Diaz.”

“Sandy, shut up. Don’t do this. You can’t
give her up!”

“I am forced to admit it was Claudia Mertens.
She told me it was Gerardo Diaz. She identified him and gave me his
name. I’ll swear to it. No one else was involved.”

“Claudia? How did she know the name?”

“Geez Louise, how do I know? Why don’t you
ask her? She’s lying right over there.”

The End

* * * *

By Emily Dickinson

Wild Nights! Wild Nights!

Were I with thee,

Wild Nights should be

Our luxury!

Futile - the Winds

To a Heart in port,

Done with the Compass,

Done with the Chart.

Rowing in Eden!

Ah, the Sea!

Might I but moor

Tonight in Thee!

American poet, Emily Dickinson (December 10,
1830 – May 15, 1886) was born in Amherst, MA. She never married and
apparently led a solitary life. Biographers are unclear as to the
source of the romantic passion revealed in her poems. Critics now
consider her a major American poet.

About the Author:
Rod Hoisington has a
background in education and business and lives in Florida where he
devotes full-time to his compulsion to dig into the souls and lives
of fictional characters.

One Deadly Sister
is the first novel
in the popular Sandy Reid mystery series. Followed by
The Price
of Candy, Such Wicked Friends, Chasing Suspect Three
and
Alive After Friday
.

To check out all the books
in the Sandy Reid mystery series:
CLICK
HERE!

Four Star Mystery Novel Rating

She doesn’t carry a gun but then neither
does a pit bull ~

An almost-too-clever young law student
reluctantly attempts to rescue her estranged brother caught up in
woman-trouble and a murder charge in a hostile Florida town. He
isn't looking for trouble, but doesn't have a clue about women, and
gets seduced and framed, leaving the sister in an ever-increasing
entanglement of deceit, double-cross and danger.

Four Star Mystery Novel Rating

Passion makes fools of us all ~

An old acquaintance interrupts Sandy Reid’s
law studies and gets her seriously involved in unraveling the
mystery of a body on a Florida beach. Sandy uncovers the identity
of the prominent Congressman who gave the beautiful hitchhiker a
ride to Florida and confronts him. Now that the naked body has been
discovered, he risks having his misdirected passion exposed and his
reputation and prosperous way of life devastated.

The almost-too-clever young law student must
solve the mystery surrounding the unidentified dead woman on the
beach, unscramble a related child kidnapping that the mother won’t
report, and clear herself of a murder charge that threatens to
destroy her dream of becoming a lawyer. Along the way, she
discovers she has fallen victim to a sensuous passion of her
own.

Four Star Mystery Novel Rating

Sometimes your friends are more dangerous
than enemies ~

Sandy Reid stumbles over a potential
client—shot between the eyes. She believes the murdered woman is
asking her to find the killer. How else to explain the mysterious
spot of blood Sandy later discovers on her own hand? Then a friend
kills himself. Or was it a second murder cleverly disguised as
suicide? Now with two people dead, Sandy can’t resist getting
involved and is drawn into a plot that stretches out to national
ramifications. At the last moment, she discovers her gutsy scheme
to entrap the killer is more dangerous than expected and must play
out exactly right for her to get out alive. The third book in this
fast-paced mystery series.

Four Star Mystery Novel Rating

Some decisions are deadlier than others.
~

Being kidnapped is only the start of Sandy
Reid’s problems. When an extortion plot strikes close to home,
she’s forced to come up with a world of money to save her
Significant Other—that’s the bad news, there is no good news. Does
the feisty young lawyer call for questionable help from the Feds,
or go with her own gutsy instincts? Either choice has deadly
consequences.

Once again her hard-headed nature beats out
the risks and with sidekick Martin she’s off on a gripping whirl
around sun-drenched Palm Beach County, Florida; including
confronting an sexy stranger who’s easy to brush off until the gun
comes out, a cheating wife who gets more action than she can handle
and a Barbi Doll beauty who would never jump into bed with just any
couple who asks. Meanwhile, must straight-laced Martin resort to
seduction to discover the critical secret of the attractive woman
who already has two murdered men in her past?

All this because a pair of shadowy characters
make the biggest mistake of their lives when they target Sandy, in
this romance-splashed women-sleuths mystery.

To check out all the books
in the Sandy Reid mystery series:
CLICK
HERE!