What's Left is Right: Book two of The Detective Bill Ross Crime Series (21 page)

It was a freezing cold February day. The burial ceremony was scheduled for mid-afternoon to ensure that it would be completed before sunset. The remains of Achak Muguara, Alyana Parker and Mike Muguara had each been wrapped in a Comanche Indian blanket and then placed in separate coffins. The site chosen by the tribal council was close by the grave of Cynthia Parker in the Post Cemetery at Fort Sill, near Lawton, Oklahoma. It was within sight of the Chief's Knoll where many of the great chiefs of the southern tribes are buried, including Quanah Parker.

It was bitterly cold, and the assembled funeral party dressed accordingly with heavy coats and scarves to protect them from the wind that gusted across the plains. A place of honor by the graveside was reserved for Gavin McMullen and for the representatives from the tribal council and the elders. Gavin had his arm around Antonella Aguilar, who looked very frail and had a Comanche blanket wrapped around her. Chief Dunwoody, Tommy, Bill and Marie stood together with Yolanda and Julian Hernandez. Claudette and Saul Weiss had flown over from Germany and they stood alongside Bill. Bill handed Claudette the silver money clip that had belonged to Mike Muguara and kissed her softly on the cheek.

The three hearses navigated their way through the cemetery and slowly pulled alongside the gravesite. Eighteen young Comanche men stood ready, six for each coffin, and they performed their duty with honor and respect, carrying the caskets to the graveside and lowering them into their final resting places.

Throughout history when great chiefs were buried, oftentimes young braves would cut off a lock of their hair and place it with the chief. At the end of the burial ceremony and before the earth covered the caskets, Gavin McMullen stepped forward. He took out a knife that he had brought with him for this final tribute and he cut off locks of his hair and placed one on each coffin. He then stretched out his arms wide and held them up into the air and looked to the heavens. Gavin McMullen-Muguara spoke with the spirits. They were all there stretching back to the time when the buffalo roamed the plains: Peta Nocona, Quanah Parker, Buffalo Hump and Chief Muguara of the Penateka. Gavin McMullen-Muguara spoke with them and asked that they watch over his family as they made their journey to the other side.

A hundred yards away, up on the hill by the Chiefs Knoll, a solitary figure stood unseen by the other funeral attendees. When the ceremony was over, Joe Nichol quickly left and headed back to the airport.

I have a surprise for you but you’re going to have to trust me,” said Bill Ross.

Tommy had invited Bill and Elaine over for dinner. After the burgers, Tommy and Bill were sitting together on Tommy’s patio watching the sun go down while Elaine, helped by Claire, cleaned up in the kitchen.

“Okay, I’m in,” said Tommy, “So tell me what you have in mind.”

It had been an intense few months and they had just returned from the burial ceremony in Oklahoma and were ready to draw a line under the “Burning Cross” case.

“We’ll set off early Friday morning and drive down to Houston. That’s all I’m prepared to say at this time, but you should plan to be gone Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights and be back in Austin on Monday. Claire will be staying over the weekend at
Mimi’s house
. Where we’re going will be cold, so pack accordingly,” said Bill.

~

The day of the trip arrived and Tommy had packed as instructed, and he and Bill set off early in Bill’s SUV for the drive to Houston.

“The first stop is to see Martha and Jacob Goldman and to buy them lunch at the deli on Market Street. We would never have made the breakthrough on the Burning Cross case without their help. I have everything arranged and they’ll meet us at the deli,” said Bill as they approached the outskirts of Houston.

After a nice lunch of borscht, latkes and cheese blintz, they said their goodbyes to the Goldmans and headed over to the Woodlands to have coffee with Yolanda and Julian Hernandez. Yolanda and Julian had also attended the burial ceremony of Mike Muguara and his family in Oklahoma, so Tommy and Bill had thanked them for their help when they met up with them at the ceremony, but Bill felt that it would have been rude of them not to at least stop by for a coffee since they were already in Houston.

“So now where are you taking me?” said Tommy as they pulled out of the Hernandez’ driveway.

“Okay, I guess I should tell you now, we’re off to Boston. I have two tickets for the playoff game between the New England Patriots and the Indianapolis Colts. I know you hate the Patriots, but I also have another reason why I want to make the trip to Boston, so I thought we would make a weekend of it and take in the game,”

~

The United flight touched down at Logan Airport on time at 9:30 p.m. Eastern and they grabbed a cab to their hotel. After check-in and a quick nightcap in the bar they went off to bed.

~

Bootsy Brogan’s pub still smelled like a mixture of disinfectant and wood polish. Kathleen from Waterford was in her normal place behind the bar when Bill and Tommy walked in just before noon on Saturday morning.

Joe Nichol was seated at his normal place at the far corner of the bar, and he barely lifted his head when Bill and Tommy pulled up a stool next to him.

“All right?” said Bill, staring straight ahead.

“Just fine, and you?” replied Joe with barely a glance in Bill’s direction.

“This is my son, Tommy Ross.”

“Aye, I know who he is, you awe right son?” said Joe Nichol; no handshake. just an acknowledgement of Tommy’s presence.

Bill ordered Joe another Guinness, one for himself and one for Tommy. Kathleen delivered the dark rich beer to them. They each stared at the three pints as they settled, anticipating the enjoyment that lay ahead when they had that first fully satisfying mouthful of the rich ale.

After a couple of mouthfuls of beer enjoyed in the silence of the moment, Bill launched right in to what he had to say.

“So it all turned out as you planned, Joe.
You set us up and used us!

You suspected that if you had tried to follow the trail to the killers of Mike Muguara, you could have ended up dead just like him.

“You
took the backup hard drive from Mike’s storage unit before we got to it first.
You
used a custom program to clean the laptop.
You
put the crumpled piece of paper in the back of the desk knowing full well that we would find it and track down what lay behind the cryptic clues that you left for us.

“You
tracked our progress, and when you called me the night before the assassinations. I had thought that you were calling from Boston, when in actual fact you were already in Austin, where
you
had set up for the assassinations the following day.

“After the hits,
you
popped the hard drive in a shipping box addressed to me and had the courier pick it up at the front desk of the Hilton, where you were staying under the name Jimmy Martinelli. Yes, I checked the guest register.

“The only thing I haven’t figured out is how you managed to carry out the three hits. I timed how long it might take you to get from the place where we found the rifle at the courthouse to the holding cell building. It’s possible to do it but it’s a push and there was no room for error or you would have missed the chance to take out Pepe and Jimmy.”

Bill Ross paused, took another mouthful of beer and waited for Joe Nichol’s response. It took a few minutes and was short and to the point.

“You have a great mind, Bill Ross. Wish I had thought of doing all of that, it might have been fun!”

“I didn’t expect you to admit it, Joe, but perhaps someday you might tell me how you did it and got the timing just right. I made this trip in the hope that you might tell me, but with the clear expectation that probably you would not. I do have another task I want to accomplish while I’m here with you, however.”

Bill reached down and pulled something from the backpack he had brought with him. He put the bottle of The Glenmorangie Pride ‘78 on the bar in front of them.

“Now, that’s possibly the best single malt that money can buy. I was hoping that you, Tommy and I might spend the rest of the day consuming the contents and toasting the life of fallen comrades. I have cleared it in advance with the owners of this fine establishment.”

Only then did Joe Nichol turn his head and look Bill Ross straight in the eye. There were tears running down his cheeks when he said, “Now, that would be my honor, Bill Ross.”

They broke the seal on the ‘78, undid the cap and threw it in the trash. Kathleen and Sean O’Driscoll appeared with crystal glasses that were kept behind the bar for special occasions. Three full measures of the golden elixir were poured.

“To fallen comrades!” said Bill.

The glasses were raised and they each closed their eyes as the whisky warmed them with each swallow.

They shared the contents of the bottle as planned, and by mid-afternoon a three-piece Irish band arrived to prepare for the regular night’s festivities. Bill walked over to the young men and asked them to play a tune. The two fiddles and the Irish bodhran stood in readiness for Bill to lead them off. Tommy knew what was coming as he had heard his dad sing “The Parting Glass” many times. The song was written in Scotland in the early 1600s by an unknown hand and was sung in Scotland and Ireland at the end of an evening or at funerals before Auld Lang Syne, written by Robert Burns, took its place.

Of all the money that e’er I spent

I’ve spent it in good company

And all the harm that ever I did

Alas it was to none but me

And all I’ve done for want of wit

To memory now I can’t recall

So lift to me the parting glass

Good night and joy be with you all

If I had money enough to spend

And Leisure to sit awhile

There is a fair maid in town

That sorely has my heart beguiled

Her rosy cheeks and ruby lips

I own she has my heart enthralled

So fill to me the parting glass

Good night and joy be with you all

Oh, all the comrades that e’er I had

They’re sorry for my going away

And all the sweethearts that e’er I had

They’d wish me one more day to stay

But since it falls unto my lot

That I should rise and you should not

I’ll gently rise and softly call

Good night and joy be with you all

By the time they all had reached the third and final verse, every single person in the bar was on their feet, holding their beverage of choice high into the air and blasting out the lyrics like their lives depended on it. It was an appropriate tribute. Aye, that it was.

~

When they had regained their composure and the band had received their customary beverages in thanks for their efforts, Joe turned to Bill and slurred, “So what are you plans for tomorrow, Bill, after you and Tommy sober up?”

“Oh, I have two tickets to the Patriots playoff game at Gillette Stadium.”

“I’m going to the game myself. I have a friend who has one of those fancy sky boxes. I do some work for him from time to time. Let me make a call and see if it would be okay for you and Tommy to get into the box with me.”

Joe left to make the call and returned a few minutes later.

“Everything is set. He would be happy for you both to be his guests in his box. Give me your tickets and I’ll get Sean to sell them in the bar later today.”

~

Sunday morning was painful. They both struggled with intense hangovers. They ate a late breakfast, and after a quick nap headed out to meet Joe outside Gillette Stadium. He was standing in the parking lot waiting for them.

“Everything good?” asked Joe as they headed in through the concierge lobby of the stadium to the main elevator to the skybox area. A very well-dressed young lady handed them a glass of champagne as they exited the elevator.

The box was huge, and with Joe leading them they headed in the direction of two men who stood with their backs to them, surveying the field below.

“Robert, I’d like to introduce my two friends I talked to you about yesterday.”

Tommy Ross almost dropped his glass of champagne!

Robert Kraft, the owner of the New England Patriots and the chairman of the Kraft Group, stood in front of him, and by his side his son Jonathan, president of the New England Patriots.

“Glad you could both could join us,” said Robert Kraft. “Please help yourself to whatever you need and enjoy the game!”

“You have very interesting friends, Joe,” laughed Bill as they headed in the direction of the sumptuous buffet.

~

They were on the United Airlines flight back to Houston the following day.

“When did you know that it was Joe Nichol who carried out the assassinations dad?”

“My sense was that something didn’t quite fit beginning at the storage locker that Mike rented in Houston. Claudette had told me that Mike was manic about data protection, keeping everything on an external hard drive and not even trusting the Cloud.”

“We found the laptop in the storage locker but no hard drive, and then we found a piece of paper stuck at the back of the desk. A piece of paper! Why would someone so paranoid about data security write stuff down on paper? Didn’t make any sense. It was too perfect, just like the sign next to the burning cross. Someone was deliberately trying to manipulate us; in this case it was for good reasons.”

“If he left us this clue on paper, why did he do that? Why not just leave the hard drive? I concluded that there was stuff on the drive he didn’t want us to see, well, not right away. He wanted us to concentrate on the list of cryptic clues, but why?”

“When the hard drive arrived by courier after the assassinations, the pieces began to fit. The person who had sent us the drive had either extracted the surveillance files from a single hard drive that Mike used, or there was more than one drive. Either way, this person had taken the hard drive from the storage unit because in the video that he left with Bob Corbin, Mike told us that the hard drive was in the storage locker. Other than Mike, who knew about the storage locker? Joe Nichol of course!”

“I concluded that Joe had a plan. He wanted us to concentrate on finding out for sure who had killed Mike Muguara. The drug and human trafficking business was secondary to him and he didn’t want us to be distracted by the surveillance videos of Colinas Verde Ranch. He wanted us to focus on who killed Mike because he had planned all along that he would kill the person or persons responsible.”

“It was when I thought about the sequence of events that it all fit. The phone call to my house the night before the assassinations that I thought wrongly had been made from Boston. Then the killings, followed immediately by the delivery of the hard drive, that’s when I knew that Joe was behind this. When I checked the guest register at the hotel and found the name Jimmy Martinelli, I knew then for sure.”

“I checked and double-checked the timing of the shootings. That’s the part that still doesn’t quite fit. He could have done both, but the timing would have had to be perfect, He would have needed a motorcycle.”

“I ran the sequence of events myself, and Joe is fitter than me so my guess is that he would have been a bit faster. I knelt in the place in the parking garage next to the courthouse where I speculated he had knelt to shoot Garrison McMullen. I simulated the shooting, got up and ran down the stairs to the motorcycle that I rented for the test. I chose the same day and time as the original shootings to try to get the most accurate traffic conditions, and I rode the bike to where he had set up for the second shooting. I had about four minutes to catch my breath, steady myself and take the shots.”