A Field of Poppies (34 page)

She was still standing by the van when he drove away. The part of her bent on revenge needed to see Amelia Caulfield come out in handcuffs. She wanted the cold-hearted killer to know who’d been part of taking her down.

****

Amelia watched her son leave without a qualm. The sooner Justin realized this was the way of the world, the better off he would be. Blackmailers got what they deserved. She smoothed a hand over her hair, brushed a fleck of lint from the front of her blue dress, and then started to go back to her room when she heard the sound of footsteps – many footsteps – coming up the hall. She paused. Moments later a half-dozen policemen walked in, followed by two officers in plain clothes.

“
What is the meaning of this?” she cried.

Mike flashed his badge and took the warrant out of his pocket.

“
Amelia Caulfield, we have a warrant for your arrest.” He began to cite the Miranda warning, which shocked, then enraged her. She began shouting over his voice, demanding to be heard.

“
What is this about? Are you people out of your minds? I’ll have your badges for this!”

“
You’re under arrest for the murder of Jessup Sadler.”

All the color faded from her face. “I don’t understand. How-“

“
Your son was wearing a wire. We heard everything.”

The handcuffs around her wrist were shocking, but it was the distinct click they made when they locked that sent a wave of panic throughout. This was happening. It was really happening. She’d been betrayed by her own flesh and blood.

“
I demand the right to call my lawyer. I need to call Graham Ring.”

“
You’ll get a phone call... after you’re booked and jailed.”

****

Lillian reached the kitchen only to find it empty. The police officer frowned.

“
Where is he at?” Chandler asked.

“
Probably in his room. I’ll show you.”

She led the way to the servants’ quarters and knocked on the first door.

Oral answered quickly, making Lillian think he’d been waiting.

“
Yes?”

Lillian pointed to the officer. “The police are here. They want to talk to you in the library.”

All the color faded from Oral’s face. For a moment Lillian thought he might pass out, but he seemed to gather himself and just nodded.

“
Yes, of course,” he said.

Lillian scurried back into the kitchen as Newton came out of his room. He gave the officer a brief nod. When Chandler’s focus momentarily shifted, Newton hit him squarely in the nose with his elbow. The cop dropped, unconscious to the world with his nose crushed against the side of his face.

Oral rolled him over onto his side so that he wouldn’t choke to death on the blood, then headed for the library with a military-swift stride.

By the time he reached the main hall he could hear Amelia’s voice shrill with anger, then panic. He quickened his pace. He already knew what he needed to do. No matter the cost, he would not let her suffer.

When he strode into the room it was to see Amelia in handcuffs and begging. Rage swelled. Disgrace! Utter disgrace to treat her in such a manner. If he saved her, there wasn’t much time.

“
Let her go!”

His voice rang out, startling everyone, including Amelia, as they turned toward the door. It was all he needed.

“
You’re not taking her anywhere!” he shouted.

From the corner of his eye he saw three uniformed officers coming at him. His arm came up.

Mike caught a glimpse of the weapon in Newton’s hand.

“
Gun!” he shouted, and was reaching for his own when Newton fired one shot into Amelia Caulfield’s head, hitting her right between the eyes. Then he swung the gun beneath his chin and pulled the trigger. He was dead before her body hit the floor.

The silence after the gunshots was startling. It had happened so quickly. Even though parts of Amelia’s brains were on the wall where she’d been standing, Kenny knelt to check her pulse.

“
She’s dead,” he said.

“
So’s this one,” an officer said, who’d checked Newton’s pulse as well.

“
Well shit,” Mike said, looking around for the officer who should have been with him. “Somebody go look for Chandler.”

Two of the officers took off out of the library on the run.

Kenny eyed the two bodies. “Now that’s what I call true devotion. Save her the embarrassment of facing the world as a murderer, and save the county the cost of a trial.”

One of the officers was back.

“
Chandler’s down.”

Mike’s heart sank. “Call for an ambulance. Kenny, call the M.E. and tell him we’ve got two to pick up.”

He reached for his own phone. It wasn’t supposed to have happened like this. He hit redial, then waited for Lieutenant Green to answer.

“
This is Green. Are they in custody?”

“
No sir. They’re dead. Newton came to the library with a gun. Before we could stop him, he shot her and then himself. We had an officer with Newton. Unknown to us, Newton took him out then came after her.”

“
God damn it, Amblin. This isn’t going to look good in the papers.”

Mike thought of Poppy. “Then you give the papers the hook you want to sell. The P.D. solved the murder of Jessup Sadler. In the process of arresting the killers, one killed the other then shot himself. You can mention names at the end of the damn story, rather than at the first. A killer is a killer, no matter what the pedigree.

Chapter Twenty

The moment Poppy heard shots she jumped back inside the van. Her heart was pounding as she grabbed her phone and dialed John’s number. He’d been uneasy about letting her go on her own and this wasn’t going to make it better.

“
Hello? Poppy? How did it go?”

“
Justin got his mother to admit she’d sent her bodyguard to follow Daddy and kill him.”

“
Oh my God, so Dad really did go there? Why?”

“
He wanted his job back. He said if they didn’t give him his job back he was going to tell everyone Justin was my father, which in her mind was grounds for murder.”

“
Did they arrest her?”

“
I don’t know what’s happening. Everyone went inside a few minutes ago and that’s when I heard gunshots. I’m outside in the van.”

“
I’m going to come get you.”

“
No. I am hearing more sirens, which means it’s about to become a madhouse here. There are already police cars all over the place. If more are coming they wouldn’t let you get near, even if you came. I’m not in danger.”

“
I don’t like it,” John said.

“
The other police are here. I’ve got to go.”

She disconnected before he could argue, then sat down on the floor in the far corner of the van and waited for Mike to come find her.

****

Justin drove straight back to the office apartment and told his secretary, Frances, that he was not to be disturbed. His head was pounding and there was a knot in the pit of his stomach. As soon as he got inside, he called Graham Ring.

“
Hello.”

“
Graham, it’s me, Justin.”

“
Justin! How are you?”

“
I’ve been better. I want to give you a heads up about something. My mother and her driver, Oral Newton, were arrested for the murder of Jessup Sadler.”

“
What? You can’t be serious?”

“
I wish I wasn’t, but I am. She admitted it to me and the police heard it all.”

“
I’ll get down to the jail as soon as I can and let you know what’s happening. If they set bail, I’ll soon have her out.”

Justin swallowed past the knot in his throat. “Don’t bother. Do what you have to on her account, but I’ve washed my hands of her.”

He disconnected, then sat down on the sofa and put his head in his hands. The lump in the back of his throat was so big he couldn’t cry. This was a nightmare that kept getting worse.

A few moments later, his cell phone rang. He started to let it go to voicemail then noticed it was from Mike Amblin.

“
What?”

Mike sighed. “I have bad news.”

“
I don’t see how it could get any worse,” Justin snapped.

“
We sent an officer to get Newton out of his room. He took out the officer and went to the library on his own. I’m sorry, Mr. Caulfield, but he shot your mother and then himself. They’re both dead.”

Justin inhaled sharply. The carpet pattern beneath his feet was suddenly going in and out of focus.

“
I did not see this coming.”

“
Neither did we. I’m very sorry for your loss.”

“
Thank you for calling.”

He dropped the cell phone onto the sofa then leaned back and closed his eyes. He was numb. Maybe tomorrow he could cry for his mother, but not today. Today he was in mourning for Sunny and the man who’d loved her – the man who’d needed his job so badly he’d been willing to beg for it, only to die at his mother’s hand.

She was reaping a bloody harvest of what she’d sown.

****

The elegant grandeur of the Caulfield mansion had undergone a rude transformation with EMTs and crime scene techs traipsing in and out.

Lillian was in something of a state. She kept trying to sweep up after the people coming and going while keeping track of where they went, as if she was afraid they were going to carry off the family silver. She stayed diligent right up until the two body bags were wheeled out on gurneys. Knowing Amelia and Newton were inside sent her into a decline. Kenny sent an officer to escort her to her room and told her to stay there until they were gone.

The good news was, except for a broken nose and a slight concussion, the officer Newton downed was going to be alright. The EMT remarked it was fortunate for Chandler that he’d fallen onto his side or he might have drowned in his own blood before he was found.

It was also noted that Amelia Caulfield never knew what hit her. Mike kept going through the sequence of events in his mind, trying to figure out what they’d missed. It wasn’t until Kenny showed him what had popped up on the background check they ran on Oral Newton that gave Mike the answer.

They’d seriously underestimated the man. Not only was he ex-military, but he was ex-Green Beret. Had two meritorious combat medals from Vietnam, and done a stint in a psych ward for PTSD. Then thirty-something years ago Adam Caulfield hired him to be his wife’s bodyguard and driver. That explained his skill and his aim. It didn’t make them feel any better but it was something to add to the report.

When the Medical Examiner finally arrived, Mike turned the crime scene over to him and headed outside to check on Poppy. He glanced at his watch and could only imagine what she’d been thinking. It had been over forty-five minutes since they’d gone inside for what was supposed to have been a simple arrest. Who the hell could have seen this coming?

He paused as he exited the house, but didn’t see her. There were police units at the bottom of the drive and more stringing crime scene tape, but no sight of Poppy.

He headed to the van at a lope with the sun in his eyes and a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. The day had already gone to hell and he needed her to be okay. He’d told her to stay in the van but he hadn’t expected her to comply.

Then he opened the door and breathed a quiet sigh of relief. She was sitting on the floor in the back of the van, hugging her legs with her head down on her knees.

“
Hey, Poppy.”

Her head came up. She was pale as a ghost, but her voice was surprisingly calm.

“
What happened?”

He stepped up in the van and headed toward her. “It didn’t go well. Newton surprised us. He shot Amelia and then himself.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. “Are they dead?”

“
Yes.”

Then just as quickly, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Are you going to hide what happened or is the truth going to come out?”

The insult was harsh and unexpected – after all they’d been through together she still didn’t trust him.

“
Hell no, we’re not hiding anything. Your father’s murder has been solved. It will be noted as such to the media and the general public.”

“
I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean that the way it came out,” then she began to shake. “I heard the shots. I didn’t know what happened. I saw an ambulance take someone away and then they carried two more out in body bags. You didn’t come back.”

Quiet tears suddenly slipped down her cheeks.

Mike reached down and pulled her up into his arms. Her hands snaked around his waist and when she hid her face against his shirt, he tightened his grip. He kept telling himself that he was simply offering her comfort, but the truth was he seriously liked it.

“
I’m sorry you were scared,” he said softly.

Poppy shuddered.