Dog Gone Lies (Pacheco & Chino Mysteries Book 1) (21 page)

“Oh that’s is so wonderful. I just knew he had died out there. He looks wonderful—thank you so much for taking care of him.” Monica continued to rub and pet the dog, and Bruce wagged his tail as fast as it would go.

After a while Monica and Bruce settled down.

“I appreciate you seeing me,” Ray said. “I know it may be a little confusing that Deputy Clayton isn’t here, but I’ll explain. First, I’d like to introduce you to my associate and business partner, Tyee Chino.”

Tyee was pleased with the introduction and stepped forward to shake Monica’s hand.

“Nice to meet you Mr. Chino. This is my friend, Betty Adams.” Everyone exchanged greetings and they took seats in the casual dining area. A waitress came by to take drink orders.

“First, I should explain why Deputy Clayton isn’t here. While there’s no question that a crime took place in Sierra County, and that would mean that the sheriff’s office has jurisdiction, there are some reasons that we thought it might be best if I met with you before the officers stepped in officially. One consideration is that I’ve met with your ex-husband and he asked me to try to find you.

“Another element in the decision is that Deputy Clayton has made a judgment regarding the current sheriff. They’re both running for the sheriff’s job, with the election in just a few days. Deputy Clayton was concerned that the current sheriff might not be too diligent about pursuing this matter at this time. There’s no evidence linking you to the discovery of Mrs. Richards’ body, so as of right now you’re a missing person. Since you’re an adult, being missing isn’t a crime. There are a lot of unanswered questions regarding what happened, how you were involved, why you left your belongings behind, including your car, and why you haven’t contacted anyone until now. I believe Deputy Clayton thought we might be able to get some answers quicker if we didn’t officially involve the sheriff’s department just yet.”

Ray paused to collect his thoughts. Everyone was listening but Ms. Jackson hadn’t offered any comments.

“Ms. Jackson, you may not be aware that Mike is staying with Luke. I don’t know if you’ve been trying to call him or not, but I know he wants to talk to you.”

“Has his health gotten worse—why is he staying with Luke?”

“Ms. Jackson, I’m deeply sorry to have to tell you this. Your son Ed was killed. He was shot about a week ago in Albuquerque. The police there can only say that it appears to be a professional hit, and they have few if any clues. That’s why Mike is with Luke.”

Monica sat stunned and said nothing. Soon she started to cry. Betty came over and held her for a moment. Bruce put his head in Monica’s lap.

“I’m so sorry Ms. Jackson. If you’d like to wait for a while, we can talk later.”

Monica shook her head. “Let me go to the ladies room. I’ll be back in a little bit.” She and Betty left.

Ray and Tyee sipped their coffee and waited.

The women returned and Monica seemed more composed.

“I’m not completely surprised, Mr. Pacheco. I talked to my son before the incident with Mrs. Richards and he had told me he was in danger. He also told me that I was in danger.”

Monica related everything that had happened from the time she checked into the Hot Springs Inn until the meeting with Ray and Tyee. Ray had some clarifying questions which she answered as completely as she could. When she was done, she seemed to slump and she looked very tired.

“Monica, I know you probably need to rest a little before we talk about what to do next, but there’s something you need to do—you need to call Mike. I know he’s incredibly worried and I haven’t told him that we had heard from you. I wanted to talk to you first and see what was going on. Could you call him now?”

“Yes. You’re right. Could we meet here in about an hour?”

They agreed on a spot to meet and then Monica and Betty went upstairs accompanied by Bruce. Ray and Tyee had lunch before taking a walk along the path by the golf course.

“Do you believe everything she said?” Tyee asked after a while.

“I do. It all rings true and it lines up with the facts we already have. I suppose she could have been involved in the bad stuff with her son, but that doesn’t make a lot of sense. That would almost have to include her ex-husband and I’m a hundred percent sure that he’s not involved in anything.”

“How about the reference to ‘Chief’. Do you think that’s someone in Albuquerque?”

“Don’t know. They were obviously working for someone, and my guess is it was someone local. Of course, that person could’ve been taking orders from L.A. No way of knowing.”

Tyee added his own thoughts.

“Ed Jackson’s suggested to his mother that he knew who was in charge—that sounds like maybe it’s not just some goons. His actions and his reluctance to tell his mother because it would put her at risk suggest something—I’m just not sure what. But he had to know something if they were going to take such drastic measures to shut him up.”

“You’re right, Tyee. If he’d just failed to pay them then it would’ve made more sense to hurt him some and then make him pay the money back by fronting for them with no cut. Or use him in some way that involved a risk in visibility they could not take. Now they have to find a new front man.”

They both thought about the implications and realized they were getting ready to step into a big dark hole with no idea what might happen.

They returned to the lunch area and ordered iced tea as they waited for Monica and Betty.

When the women returned, Monica looked worse. Betty helped her walk into the room and take a seat, with Bruce following behind.

“I talked to Mike. He seems to be in a bad way—I think I need to be there and help him. He said I could trust you completely. He was very complimentary about you, Ray. I’m thankful that you’ve helped him the way you have. He also said that Bruce should stay with you until we get things sorted out—he said he thinks the dog has adopted you. I agreed that made sense if you would agree. Other than that, just tell me what to do and I’ll do it.”

The trauma of dealing with the loss of a child must be one of the most horrible things a parent could experience, and Ray could see the toll it was taking on Monica.

“Monica, I think you should go and be with Mike. Betty, I think you should go home to your daughter. This isn’t over by a long shot, and there’ll be more that each of you will have to deal with, but for now you should be with your families. And Monica, you’ll have to have protection. I know you have no reason to trust law enforcement people right now, but I recommend that you let me contact some people I know in the FBI. I’ll fill them in on what’s happened and what we think may be going on—if that’s okay?”

“I’ll do whatever you say.” Monica seemed defeated, wanting only that Ray would tell her what to do. Betty nodded, looking very sad. Reality had found them and their adventure was over.

“Regarding Happy, I know he’s your dog. I’ll be pleased to keep him until things quiet down, but then he can go with you—that’s his home.”

They formulated a plan. Ray suggested that Betty call her daughter to let her know she was okay and that she’d be coming home. Monica would go with Ray and Tyee back to T or C. Then, the next day, Monica and Tyee would go to Albuquerque and see Mike. Tyee would stay in Albuquerque until Ray could make other arrangements regarding security.

“One last question Monica. When we talked to the police in Albuquerque they said that Ed had said something to the FBI about you having the facts, and that once he got them he would fix everything. Does that mean anything to you?”

“Not at all. He told me he couldn’t tell me anything because then I’d be in worse danger. What do you think it means?”

“Not sure. Maybe nothing—he might not have even said exactly that. I think it’s time we get moving.”

The women departed, leaving Happy with Ray. They needed to make calls, pack, and check out of their room. Betty called her daughter, who was ecstatic to hear from her mother and said she would fly to El Paso to get Betty and drive back to Dallas with her. Betty called and made a reservation near the El Paso airport for herself and her daughter. Betty and Monica took some time saying goodbye, and it was apparent they were each worried about the other.

After checking out and saying goodbye to nearly every staff member at the hotel, they loaded the cars and left.

Monica sat in the back, petting Bruce and talking sweetly to him. Soon they were both asleep.

“Hope I didn’t step out of line saying you’d stay with Monica for security—security was never part of our discussions about this business. I can understand it if that might make you a little nervous.” Ray was speaking softly in order not to disturb Monica.

“It’s okay, Ray. Figured all along it would come up some time. I don’t have your training solving crimes, but I was a boxing champion on the reservation and I’m a black belt in karate. Plus, I’m loaded with charm. So if the bad guys show up, I can beat ‘em up or try and talk them into being nice.”

That got a chuckle out of Ray.

They arrived back at Ray’s cabin in the late evening. Monica had slept most of the way. They unloaded everything and got Monica settled into the guest bedroom.

Tyee said he would return in the morning, but needed to head home and check on some things.

Ray fixed a small dinner for himself and Monica. They enjoyed the quiet surroundings and let the tension ease a little. Finally, Monica couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer. She expressed her gratitude for everything Ray was doing and then she headed off to bed. Ray stayed up trying to decide what to do next. He knew this could be dangerous; for everyone.

Wednesday

When Ray let Happy out for his morning rounds, there was Tyee sitting on the porch.

“Come in, just put the coffee on.”

“Thanks.”

They discussed their plans for the day. Ray said he’d found a note on the door indicating that the new phone line would be installed that day, so Ray wouldn’t have to run down to Big Jack’s to use the phone anymore. As soon as Ray got the new number, he would let everyone know. They also talked about Tyee’s trip to Albuquerque that day and how long Tyee should stay.

“My plan is to talk to Agent Sanchez or Crawford today and fill them in on what’s happened. Not sure how quickly they’ll be able to provide security for Monica, but one way or another there’ll be some backup for you by tomorrow.”

Either there would be some support from the Feds or Ray would be there himself. Ray said he would let Big Jack know about any developments in case he couldn’t get ahold of Tyee.

“Sounds good. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

Monica entered with a smile and a friendly greeting, although she still seemed very subdued. Ray got her a cup of coffee and told her the basic idea of the plan for the day. He said she and Tyee should leave in the next thirty minutes or so and that he would call Mike and let him know they were on their way. One question was what to do about the cars. Monica’s Subaru was still at the Firestone store. He thought it might be best to get her car and take that to Albuquerque, but pointed out that he wasn’t sure if the sheriff had placed a hold on the car or not.

They agreed that it made everything easier if they could get Monica’s car, leaving Ray with his Jeep. They got everything ready and everyone into the Jeep, heading out toward T or C. Mr. Lopez was thrilled to see Monica. He told her that he’d heard she’d disappeared and had been very worried. She assured him that much of what happened had just been a misunderstanding, downplaying any drama. She settled her bill using some travelers checks she still had and retrieved her car. She agreed to let Tyee drive, and they transferred her belongings and some things for Tyee from the Jeep to the Subaru.

They talked about the personal things she had left at the Hot Springs Inn. Ray said he believed they’d had been taken by the sheriff’s department and he thought it would be a major delay to try and get the stuff. She said she didn’t want to deal with anyone right now, so she would retrieve her things some other time. Ray agreed that that was best. He didn’t know what Martinez might do—he might even hold Monica as a material witness to murder. Ray didn’t want to deal with Martinez right now. Since there weren’t any charges or anyone looking for Monica, Ray would just plead ignorance if something came up later.

After Monica and Tyee left for Albuquerque, Ray and Happy went to Big Jack’s. Going around back, Ray found Big Jack on the dock helping a customer fuel up his boat. Ray waved and went into the computer room to call Mike. Mike was pleased that Monica would be there that day and thanked Ray for everything he was doing.

Then Ray checked the messages on the phone. There was one from Crawford, asking him to call any time. Ray returned the call.

“Agent Crawford.”

“Ben, this is Ray in T or C. How are you today?”

“Good Ray, thanks for calling me back. Just wanted to touch base with you regarding the missing woman. I’ve received some information that makes me question some of the things about her son’s death. You need to be careful, and make sure if you find her that she’s protected—my instincts say she’s at risk. Also, you should know that Agent Myers, who heads the Albuquerque office, had some pretty harsh things to say about you—he says you’ve overstepped your authority. Matter of fact, if it was left up to him he might arrest you for obstruction of justice.”