Seaside Secrets (9 page)

Early the next morning when Suzie woke up she found Mary was already awake and making coffee.

“
Mary, they didn't haul off all of that garbage yet, did they?” Suzie asked.

“
No, it's still in a pile on the side of the house,” Mary replied as she fixed their coffee. “Why?” when she turned around with the two mugs of coffee she found that Suzie was gone. Suzie was digging through the garbage bags. She could recall carefully placing the glass bottles she had found in the living room into the trash bags to make sure they didn't break. She found them fairly easily.

“
What are you doing?” Mary asked with growing concern.

“
This is what I think happened, Mary,” Suzie explained as she held up the beer bottles. “I think that Harry saw Thomas and Samantha walk down to the water. I think he took photos of what he thought was going to be a romantic evening. I think he took photos of them arguing, and then much more than that. I think Thomas killed Samantha because she threatened to leave him and expose him, and I think Harry saw it all,” she frowned as she carried the bottles back into the house.

“
I think that when Harry took the photographs to be printed as proof, the clerk in the store spotted what was on the photographs and alerted Thomas, that's why all of the photos weren't printed. Before Harry had a chance to print them again, Thomas stopped by with some beer. At this point, after witnessing such a horrific crime, I think Harry was terrified of the man. So, when Thomas insisted on him drinking one of the beers, he probably did. He had no idea that the beer was poisoned. That's why Thomas was so bent on having this place bulldozed. He wanted to make sure that any evidence was turned into rubble,” she shook her head as she wrapped the bottles in plastic bags. “But I bet Dr. Rose can pull something out of these bottles that will show just what poison was used.”

“
You should take them to the station,” Mary insisted. “I would go with you, but I have to wait for Kent to fax me some paperwork. I managed to hook up the computer and the internet so I could receive it and print it. If I don't get it back to him today this is going to drag on forever.”

“
It's fine, it's better if you stay here where it's safe,” Suzie said sternly. “Don't leave the house unless you text me. Until we get all of this figured out we could be at risk.”

“
I'll be careful,” Mary promised. “You be careful, too.”

“
I will be,” Suzie hugged her friend tightly then hurried to the car. She wanted to get to the station and find out if Jason had found anything on the flash drive.

***

When Suzie walked into the station she found Jason leaning over a man's shoulder at a computer.

“
Hi Suzie,” Jason said as he straightened up. “Sorry, but we didn't find anything yet. Looks like the drive was wiped clean somehow. What's that you have there?” he asked curiously as he looked at the plastic bags.

“
Just something for Dr. Rose,” Suzie explained.

“
She's out for the moment, she'll be in by ten though. This is Carter, our IT tech,” he added as he patted the man's shoulder. Carter was too busy staring at the screen to greet her.

“
Oh yes,” Carter muttered as he scrolled through the computer screen. “I found it,” he snapped his fingers and laughed shortly.

“
Found what?” Suzie asked as she leaned over his shoulder.

Jason rested his hands on the desk on the other side of Carter and leaned in closely as well.
“What is it?” he asked in a more gruff tone.

“
Well, you see people think when they delete things, that they just disappear, but that's not the case. A copy of whatever they have deleted usually remains, as is the case here,” he added as he clicked the mouse. When he did, photographs began to populate the screen.

“
Oh no,” Suzie gasped as she saw the images before her. “Thomas was with his wife that night on the beach, but not for a romantic evening,” she shook her head. The images revealed that Thomas had actually struck his wife very hard over the head with the bottle of wine he had been carrying. Then he let her body be washed away by the sea. Suzie thought of her uncle taking those photos. “Uncle Harry must have been horrified,” she murmured.

“
He knew there wasn't time,” Jason said quietly as he stared at the screen. “He knew there wasn't time to get down there to help her, so he made sure he had evidence instead. All this time,” he growled as he stood up straight. “I trusted that man more than my own father!”

“
Jason, it's not your fault he fooled you,” Suzie tried to calm him as she met his eyes. “You were hurting, and you needed someone, there's no shame in that.”

“
There is if the man I turned to is also my father's murderer,” Jason countered as he snatched up his hat and began walking towards the front of the police station.

“
Jason, where are you going?” Suzie called out with concern.

“
I'm going to arrest the mayor,” he replied sharply. Suzie ran to catch up with him and made it to his side just in time as he reached his patrol car.

“
Jason wait, don't you think it would be better to send someone else?” Suzie pleaded. “What if he knows that you know?”

“
I'll be fine, Suzie,” he assured her and started the engine of the car. “I wouldn't let anyone else put the handcuffs on that man.”

As Suzie watched Jason drive away she felt a subtle sense of relief despite the chaos of the last few minutes. She was glad that Jason
finally knew that his father had been trying to be a better man than he had been in the past. He had stuck his neck out in an attempt to right a wrong, unfortunately he had suffered for his attempt. She only hoped that Jason wouldn't put himself in a similar position. Suzie was still thinking about this when she pulled into the driveway at Dune House. She walked up onto the porch and called out as she walked in the door.

“
Mary, I'm here, sorry it took me longer than I expected...” she was suddenly silenced by the presence of Thomas standing beside the fireplace. Her purse slipped off her arm and fell to the floor.

“
So glad you could join us, Suzie,” he said and gestured to the chair across from the fireplace. Suzie noticed Mary sitting in the opposite chair, her eyes wide, and her lips drawn tight with fear.

“
What are you doing here?” Suzie asked with growing animosity.

“
Oh, can't I just drop by for a visit?” Thomas asked with a shrug. “I just wanted to see the progress you two have made. I must say it's pretty amazing. It's a shame no one else is going to see it,” he added as he used the poker he held in his hand to stir the ashes in the fireplace.

“
What are you talking about?” Suzie demanded. She hoped he didn't know what they had discovered.

“
You know, I thought to myself, these two ladies they're not going to find anything. They'll lose interest and move on. So, imagine my surprise when I discovered that you had been doing a little investigating, Suzie?” he laughed a little and shook his head. “The thing about small towns, is that you can't keep secrets. Especially from the mayor. I own just about every person in this town, and I will do anything it takes to make sure that my secrets are kept. Yours however, are public knowledge,” he stirred the ashes again. “Sit down, Suzie.”

“
I'll stand,” Suzie replied and stood beside Mary's chair. “I want to know what all this is about.”

“
I know you went to the bank, I know that you took those photos to the library, I know that you had Carter analyzing something at the police station. I know,” he said in a cruel tone as he stepped closer to her, “that Jason is on his way to arrest me. Can you imagine that? Me? I've been nothing but caring to that boy, and this is how he repays me.”

“
I wouldn't call killing his father caring,” Suzie replied through gritted teeth. She held his gaze steadily. She was determined not to let him see how terrified she was.

“
Try proving it,” Thomas suggested with a chuckle. “Good ol' Harry died of a broken heart. Isn't that poetic enough for you?” he asked. “The old man could have passed away in here and rotted for years without anyone noticing, least of all his son. So really, was it so tragic for me to take a life that was being wasted?”

“
You're a terrible person,” Suzie said flatly as she crossed her arms. “You're so smug, thinking that you got away with two murders. But you haven't got away with anything.”

“
Two?” Thomas narrowed his eyes sharply and took a step closer to her. “By the time I'm done here, honey, it's going to be four.”

With that he picked up some rope that was
laying in a pile behind him.

“
Mary, come on, we have to get out of here,” Suzie said in a hiss and reached for her friend's hand. Only then did she realize that Mary was tied to the chair by her ankles.

“
What are you doing?” she asked with horror as she turned back to Thomas to find he was trailing gasoline in a circle around the two chairs. When he put the gas can down, he pulled out a gun he had tucked in the back of his pants. Suzie's heart was racing. He pointed the gun at Mary.

“
Get in the chair, or I do this now,” he said sharply. Suzie knew that the moment she was tied up in the chair there would be no hope of either of them escaping, but she couldn't leave Mary alone.

“
Don't do this, Thomas, think of your career,” Suzie spoke quickly. “Think of spending your life behind bars!”

“
I don't need to think about either,” he barked back. “I did what I had to do. Samantha was going to leave me. She was going to tell the world about my illegal dealings. How would it make me look to have my own wife saying these things about me? What do you think that would do to a wholesome image like mine? If your uncle had just stayed out of it, then none of this would have happened,” he pointed out. “But he didn’t, so now, it has to happen. Sit down,” he commanded her sternly.

Suzie reluctantly sat down in the hi
gh backed chair. She grabbed onto Mary's hand as Thomas wrapped the rope around their wrists and around Suzie's ankles.

“
Look on the bright side, ladies, at least you won't be going alone. And, in the future this will be the sight of a resort,” he smiled up at them. Suzie was startled by how ruthless he was. She knew no amount of pleading would stop him. She tried to think of a way to escape, but with her heart racing and her mind spinning, she couldn't think of a single thing.

“
Please, we won't say anything to anyone,” Mary promised as she squeezed Suzie's hand.

“
If only I could believe that,” he sighed and pulled a pack of matches out of his pocket.

“
Stop!” Jason shouted from the door that Suzie had left open. He had his gun drawn and was aiming it straight at Thomas. “Drop the matches,” Jason demanded.

“
Sure, just let me light them first,” Thomas chuckled and began fumbling with them.

“
Don't do it, I will shoot you,” Jason warned him as he stepped closer.

“
You're not going to shoot me, Jason,” Thomas rolled his eyes. “Are you forgetting that I've seen you bawl your eyes out over your poor father? I know you, kid, you're not going to shoot...”

The sound of the gun being fired was so deafening that at first Suzie thought it was an explosion. She looked up in horror, expecting to see Thomas slumped over on the floor. Instead she saw him cowering close to the fireplace. He had dropped the matches. The bullet Jason fired was lodged into the wall just above where Thomas' shoulder had been.

“You're under arrest,” Jason declared as he moved closer to him.

Outside Dune House sirens and tires squealed as patrol cars arrived to back up Jason. Other officers rushed in to handcuff Thomas, but Jason stopped them.

“I want to do it,” he said firmly. Once the mayor was in custody and had been taken out of the house, Jason walked over to Suzie and Mary who had stepped outside onto the porch.

“
How did you know that he'd be here?” Suzie asked as she and Mary gulped down the fresh air that came from the sea. Having been so close to being killed was enough reason to savor every breath.

“
I was driving over there, when I remembered that Thomas paid for all three of the desk sergeant's kids to go through college. It seemed generous at the time, but the more I thought about it, and what we'd learned about Thomas, the more I wondered if it was a way to get information out of the police station. Then I thought about what Thomas would do if he knew that you two had found those photographs. Of course, after finding out about him killing his wife I knew what he was capable of, so I thought it best that I come back and check on you,” he sighed and shook his head. “I'm so glad I did.”