Raven: A political thriller (7 page)

Don got serious and looked sternly at her. “I promise whatever is on
this,” he said while holding up the flash drive, “won’t go any further than me.
And I’ll return it immediately if it’s nothing pertinent to the case.”

“I trust you,” Mrs. Maxfield said with a look that was one of relief.

Mrs. Maxfield reluctantly let Don take the flash drive. She had been
frustrated with the investigation into her husband’s disappearance. It was like
everyone was dragging their feet and didn’t care anymore. She knew the longer
he was gone, the worse the scenario might be. Ellen was desperate to breathe
new life into the investigation.

Chapter 11

The maid quickly walked Don and Fred out of the mansion, thankful
their stay was not that long. They stood on the porch and glanced around the
grounds.

There was a fresh smell to everything. The Magnolia trees were almost
in full bloom, but the rain last night had left a lot of the blossoms scattered
about the freshly cut lawn. There was a distinct citrusy scent in the air that
was so unmistakably clean and fresh smelling that even a busy city couldn’t
take it away.

Fred turned to Don, who still had the flash drive in
his hand.

“What are you going to do with that?” Fred asked.

“Have Charlie take a look at it. I wouldn’t even know where it goes in
a computer.”

“That’s what I thought,” Fred said as he laughed and walked over to
the squad.

Don put the flash drive in his jacket pocket. He took out the pack of
cigarettes, quickly put one in his mouth, and lit up as he slowly walked over
to the squad and got in.

As Fred climbed into the passenger seat, he looked over at Don. “You
should quit. Those cancer sticks are killing your brain cells.”

“It’s all I have left in life.”

“Maybe you should start thinking about that life.”

“Now you’re sounding like Maggie,” Don said as he took a long drag on
his cigarette and held it in for the longest time before exhaling. He then
turned to Fred and asked, “Got any suggestions?”

Fred glanced at his watch and then turned finally to Don, “Yeah, go
back to square one I guess.”

“Where’s that?” Don asked.

“Her place. Somebody was looking for something. You may have scared
them off, then again...” Fred started to say and then stopped.

Don just waved his hand for Fred to stop. “All right!” Don snapped. “I
got the message. Square one, it is.”

It was early afternoon, and Don knew the lab guys should be finishing
up at Raven’s house by then. He was curious if they’d come up with anything but
figured he would have gotten a call letting him know if they had.

As they pulled up to Raven’s house, a few of the neighbors peeked out
their windows, as they seemed to be curious about all the activity. The yellow
crime-scene tape only added to their inquisitiveness. Raven’s untimely death
had made the early morning edition so everyone was aware that something bad was
amiss. But no one had the nerve to come over to ask what was going on. At least
not while Don and Fred were there.

They quickly got out of the squad and walked up the path to the front
porch. Once they entered the living room it was clear the lab men were about
finished with their work, as they were packing their cases. Don walked up to
one of the technicians, his tag said Jack. Don had never seen this group
before, so he wasn’t sure just how much information he’d get out of them just
then. He opened his suit jacket so the detective shield was clearly visible
before he started asking any questions.

“Find anything?” Don asked.

Jack just turned to Don. Before answering, he glanced at the shield
quickly and then turned to the other tech, who was finishing up in the living
room. Jack just shrugged indifferently.

“The place was wiped clean,” he said as he shut his case and then took
off his gloves.

“What do you mean?”

“The outer surfaces have been wiped clean, just what I said,” he
snapped, not knowing how much clearer he could say it for the two.

Jack pulled out a slip from the case and handed it to Don. “We found
this on the dresser upstairs.”

Don stared at the slip from Merry Maids. It was a bill for cleaning
services.

“So she hired them to clean up the place?”

“Looks like it. But they forgot the laundry chute.”

“What did you find?” Don asked, while the excitement in his voice was
clearly noted.

“There were a couple of bloody towels. Not her blood type either.”

“You check with Schmidt already?” Don asked.

“Yeah, we figured he had her body.”

“How much blood are you talking about?”

“Major bleeding, that’s what I’m talking about.”

Don looked again at the Merry Maid bill. “They were here Monday
morning.”

“Yeah.”

“Maybe she had a friend who cut themselves.”

“With that amount of blood, you’d think stitches were required.”

“You sure?” Don asked.

“Trust me. I know a bleeder when I see it, and this required
stitches.”

Don turned to Fred and shook his head. He knew what he had to do now.
He was going to enjoy this interrogation. The fine doctor may have felt he had
one up on him, not realizing that evidence was left behind. Now he would have
some explaining to do.

“Maybe we better get Dr. VanBuren down to the station.”

“He’s not going to like this,” Fred said.

“And your point being?”

Don had one of the mischievous smiles across his face that he got when
dealing with someone who thought they had the upper hand. He pulled the card
out of his pocket and handed it to Fred.

“Call him and set up the meeting,” Don said as he glanced at his
watch. “My turf this time. Tell him to meet us at the station house at four,”
Don ordered and then turned back to Jack. “Anything else I should know?”

Jack shrugged. “No.”

Don walked past Jack and into the living room. He glanced up at the
portrait. Fred walked up behind Don.

“Maybe they’d sell it to you.”

Don turned suddenly to Fred. “Very funny!” he mustered up to say.

Don just turned and stalked off. As much as he so desperately wanted
the portrait, he knew in the end it would only destroy his sanity because every
day he looked at it, it would be a reminder of how violently her life ended.
And there was nothing he could do to make it right, other than catch the person
who did that to her.

* * *

Dr. VanBuren sat in the interrogation room with Mr. Leslie, his
attorney, for nearly an hour before Don made his presence known. The dirty
walls were covered with the grime of the years of criminals who sat in that
very room. Once Don entered the room he sat on the other side of the table. He
set the folder down. He wanted to open it so that Dr. VanBuren could see what
remained of his daughter. He wanted to see the pain in the old man’s face. He
wanted to cause excruciating pain like he felt in his own heart. But he knew he
dare not, for fear he would be taken off the case. For that reason he kept the
folder closed. Right now he had to work on getting Dr. VanBuren to trust him.

The long mirror that filled the far wall hid Fred and the Chief, who
wanted to watch Don in action. Don had one of the highest closure rates in the
station house, and others sought out his strategies for getting people to talk.

“Well, do you have anything you want to tell me?” Don asked, finally
glancing up at the two.

“My client doesn’t have to answer that,” Mr. Leslie snapped. He was protecting
his client, as attorneys do when they come to the interrogation room. And
judging by Mr. Leslie’s demeanor, this wasn’t the first time he had been there.

“I want to know who he stitched up at his daughter’s house last
weekend?”

Mr. Leslie motioned with his hand for Dr. VanBuren to be silent, but
Dr. VanBuren just shoved his hand aside. There had been too much riding on this
to stand in silence any longer. Right now he feared for the Senator’s life. And
given what happened last night, he wasn’t so sure what they were doing was for
the good of all. He just wanted it all to end. He didn’t care what they did to
him because he didn’t report a gunshot wound to the authorities.

“It’s got to end. Willie was seriously hurt,” Dr. VanBuren snapped.

“Senator Maxfield?” Don asked.

Fred suddenly leaned forward as he watched Don’s expression and the
relief on the doctor’s face. Mr. Leslie was clearly the only one upset by this
revelation as he tried to get the good doctor to be silent. But it was useless
at this point.

“Yes, I stitched Willie up last Sunday. He was shot in the side.”

Don looked at him through the eyes of a seasoned interrogator. “Do you
realize what you’re saying?”

“Mr. Leslie quickly whispered into Dr. VanBuren’s ear. Don could only
guess what he was telling his client.

“Yes, I should have reported it to the police.”

“Why didn’t you?” Don snapped.

“Raven convinced me they didn’t know who to trust.”

“Where is the Senator now?” Don asked as he stared at the doctor.

“I don’t know. Raven said she would take him someplace safe.”

“Do you have any ideas?”

“I thought maybe our summer home on Diamond Lake. But I’d only be
guessing. They aren’t answering the phone.”

Don had a puzzled look on his face, not believing what he had just
heard. That the good doctor just left his daughter with the injured Senator,
knowing that there were people trying to kill him. And, in fact, did in the end
kill his own daughter.

“What were they involved in that could be so dangerous?” Don snapped.

“Willie and Raven were working on something together. It had nothing
to do with national security. They assured me of that.”

Don couldn’t believe Dr. VanBuren’s words. Granted, national security
might not be at stake here, but the fact still remained that what they were
involved in must have been pretty dangerous to have people willing to kill to
keep the two of them silent.

“He was on the run,” Dr. VanBuren said. “Maybe I should have done
more.”

“Your daughter’s dead, Doctor. It’s about time you start trusting
someone.”

Dr. VanBuren was about to say something but caught himself. He turned
to Mr. Leslie and stared at him a moment and then turned back to Don.

“What was I to do? I had no idea.”

Fred walked into the room. He realized that time was being wasted.
Once he was in the room he looked at the doctor.

“Where is this lake?” Fred asked.

Fred knew if they were going to put an end to this, they would have to
get to the Senator before someone actually succeeded the next time. It was
clear that the Senator and Raven separated at some point, and that got her
killed.

“It’s about twenty miles from here. I’ll write down the directions,”
he said.

Don slid the pad of paper to the doctor and then tossed him a pen.

“I only hope we’re not too late,” Don snapped.

The doctor looked up at Fred and realized for the first time the
severity of the situation.

Chapter 12

 
With not getting any real
sleep last night Don had a hard time staying alert on the half-hour drive to
Diamond Lake. Fred, on the other hand, didn’t really know what more to say to
Don about the case or the problems he was having dealing with his fixation with
the victim.

The doctor’s directions were easy to follow, and once Don pulled up to
the garage he was anxious to get this part of the investigation behind him. He
had little hope that they would find anything, let alone find the Senator holed
up here. But it was clear it had to be checked out.

The cottage, if that’s what you wanted to call it, was bigger and
better looking than most people’s primary dwelling. Don guessed that a
caretaker took care of the grounds. Even with the good doctor being retired,
Don didn’t think he had the kind of spare time to spend keeping up the two
places, given the size of each. The shrubs were beautifully manicured, and the
lawn looked freshly cut. Don liked the smell of a freshly cut lawn.

Don and Fred walked around to the back porch, which faced the lake.
The furniture was all wicker and was highly varnished to protect it from
adverse weather. And judging by the size of the place, Don figured it had to
have at least three, if not four, bedrooms.

Fred turned and glanced down the full expanse of the lawn to the lake.
There was a boat house to the left of the property and, judging by the size,
there had to be a large inboard boat housed inside because the doctor didn’t
look like the twelve-foot-fishing-boat type person.

Don walked up the steps to the porch and tried the door, but it was
locked and no way in.

Fred turned to Don. “Now what? he asked.

Don reached in the hanging pot and came up empty. It was then he
noticed a rock in the rock garden that didn’t seem to fit in with the others.
He bent down and picked it up and laughed to himself when he saw the hidden key
in the carved-out rock. As he opened the door instinct took over. They both
unholstered their guns in unison and then slowly walked through the door. They
had the doctor’s permission to come out there, but neither was taking any
chances given what had happened at Raven’s house earlier that day.

Fred followed Don through the front room. It was on the other side of
the porch and had a wall of glass facing the south side of the house
overlooking the lake. It was a comfortable room, and Don guessed it was where
they entertained a lot given the homey feel to the room.

Don walked into the kitchen and stared at the dishes in the sink. The
table in the far corner hadn’t been cleaned off. He walked over and held up the
plates. The food appeared fairly fresh. Don set it down and then walked up to
Fred.

“Looks like he cleared out in a hurry,” Don said and then turned and
stomped down the hall.

When Don got to the first open door he stopped suddenly and turned
back to Fred. He wasn’t going to get caught off-guard again.

“Maybe the good doctor had something to do with it,” Fred added as he
hurried to keep up with Don.

“He said he wasn’t answering the phone.”

“I’ll bet he finally got through.”

Don slowly edged his way through the open door. When he was on the
other side he glanced inside the room. He reached in and turned on the light
and then walked into the bathroom. Once inside the room he noticed the bandages
in the wastebasket, along with an empty bottle of Midol. Don picked up the
bottle and showed it to Fred.

“Our boy was with someone.”

“This whole thing is getting complicated.”

If the Senator was indeed with Raven at the cottage, why did they
separate? It was clear the Senator was injured. It made more sense for the two
to stay together. It bothered Don because their separating may have been what
got her killed. If only, he thought to himself and then quickly put that
thought out of his head, because it was driving him crazy to think about how
differently things would have turned out.

After checking out the four bedrooms, it was clear that two of them
had been used recently. Don walked back into the front room, followed by Fred.
He stared out at the dock at the bottom of the yard. His breathing was becoming
labored. Don then turned and walked through the porch and out of the house. It
was frustrating because they were always a few steps behind.

* * *

Don was glad to be back at the station house and, if all went well, he
would be calling it a day shortly. He would not be letting Fred convince him to
do the night on the town gig, no matter how much he wanted to bond. Slowly Don
walked through the rows of desks that filled the large room. Once he got to his
desk, he unholstered his gun and locked it up. Don then took the flash drive
out of his pocket and walked over to Charlie, who was the go-to person when it
came to computer issues in the department. Don turned to look at Fred locking
up his gun too and then motioned him to come over. Don was glad to be settling
in for the day. He was tired of all the chasing they had done and looked
forward to going home in a little while.

Don walked over to Charlie’s desk and handed him the flash drive.

Charlie glanced up. “The Chief said you had something for me.”

“So can you tell me if there is anything useful on this thing?” Don
asked.

Charlie stuck the flash drive into the computer slot and waited for it
to load. Don just watched the screen intently. Once the menu came on the
screen, Charlie maneuvered the cursor and started to pull up the documents, but
nothing made sense. He turned and looked up at Don.

“It’s all encrypted?” Charlie said.

Don looked puzzled as he turned to Fred, who just shrugged his
shoulders, and then he turned back to Charlie. “What do you mean?” he said.

“Unless you give me the code, your flash drive is useless.”

“Can’t you fix it?” Don asked.

Fred was in back of Don shaking his head. He needed something to keep
him awake. “I’m getting a cup of coffee, you two want one?” he turned to Don
and asked.

Don shook his head in frustration. Charlie just looked up and said,
“Why not, we’re going to be here a while.

Don turned back to Charlie and just stared at him for the longest
time. He had hoped to call it a night shortly. One more cup of coffee wouldn’t
hurt.

“Whoever developed this, didn’t want anyone else viewing the
information.”

“That’s great,” Don snapped. He was about to kick the waste basket but
then caught himself.

Fred walked up with the three cups of coffee in hand. He handed Don
one cup that he carried between the other two and then took a sip out of the
one in his right hand while setting the other one on Charlie’s desk.

“We still have the Senator,” Fred said.

“We’ve been two steps behind the bad guys ever since this case
started. Fat chance of finding him alive, unless he decides to turn himself
in.”

The Chief glanced up from his desk when he saw Don and Fred standing
by Charlie. Then quickly the Chief got up and walked out of his office. He
motioned to Don and Fred. The expression on the Chief’s face was not that of a
happy camper.

“My office,” he mouthed.

Fred turned to Don and then quickly whispered, “Now what?”

Don slowly took a sip of his coffee and then walked over to the
Chief’s office, followed closely by Fred. This was like being called into the
principal’s office. When the door was shut the Chief turned to them.

“They found the Senator,” he said without emotion.

“Found him? Where? How?” Don asked, not giving the Chief time to even
respond.

“Rest area off the Interstate. Some tourist reported a man passed out
in one of the stalls.”

“Is he dead?” Fred asked.

The Chief stared at the two men standing in his office and then
quickly answered, “Put it this way, he should be.”

“Where is he now?” Don asked.

“Mercy General, under a John Doe.”

“This makes two attempts. What makes you think he’ll be safe?”

“Because, I say he’s safe,” the Chief snapped and then pointed to the
two. “Understand!”

“Who do you have on it?” Don asked.

“Hansen and Babcock.”

“Good men.”

The Chief walked around his desk and sat down. “Glad you approve.”

Don took a gulp of the coffee and then set the cup on the desk. The
Chief just glanced up at them.

Don quickly asked before the Chief could speak up. “What do you want
us to do now?

“Solve this before more people die.”

Fred stepped forward between the two. “Charlie is working on a flash
drive the Senator had hidden in his briefcase.”

“Does anyone else know he had it?”

“No,” Don said.

“Make sure Charlie knows to keep quiet about it. The fewer people who
know what’s going on, the better we’ll get ahead of this in the end.”

Don looked at the Chief and asked, “What are the Senator’s chances.”

“He’s still in surgery. Won’t know for another few hours.”

“We must have missed him by minutes.” Fred said, shaking his head in
frustration.

“Was there anybody else reported with him?” Don asked.

“There was too much activity for anyone to see anything. Besides you
know the old adage,” he said and then paused while looking curiously at Don.
“Do you have something?”

“No, not really. Just a gut feeling.”

Fred interrupted the two. “Don thinks he was with someone at Diamond
Lake,” Fred said mockingly while looking at Don. “Hell, that pill box could
have been left there three weeks ago.”

Don glared at Fred for a moment and then snapped, “I hardly think Mrs.
VanBuren needs Midol anymore!”

“Who do you think was with him,” the Chief asked.

“How in the hell should I know,” Don snapped and then quickly turned
to Fred with a look that could kill.

Fred nodded and then added, “I think Don is hoping that the daughter
is still alive.”

“Then whose body is in the coroner’s office?”

“I don’t know,” Don said.

The Chief laughed a moment. “Well, if believing she’s still alive
helps you catch the criminal, then so be it. Just don’t screw this one up!”

Don gulped the last of the coffee and then tossed the empty cup in the
trash. He turned and glared at Fred but didn’t say anything more. He was
clearly not happy at what Fred said to the Chief just then.

Don walked over to his desk and sat down. He contemplated what to do
next. It was useless to go to the hospital. As long as the Senator was in
surgery he wouldn’t be able to talk. It would be a while after surgery before
the Senator would be able to communicate to anyone.