Murder at Thumb Butte (31 page)

“
You sure Mary forged those letters?”

“
She only let me see them briefly. Said she had to get them back before they were missed. They were written on quality paper, but not stationery like a Boston Winslow would use. Yep, they’re still workin’ as a team. A damn good one. They hunt confidence men and they know all the tricks.” He paced a bit more before adding, “We need to work this in two steps. First, we get Jeff free, and then we convict Carl and Mary. Maggie, do you have a key to the Schmidts’ room?”

“
No. They need to answer my knock before I’m allowed into their room.”

“
It doesn’t matter. I can still get in. Steve, go tell Castle everythin’. Maggie and I are goin’ to search their room. Those letters are the only piece of hard evidence. Maybe she didn’t destroy them.”

“
If she destroyed the letters, how do you intend to put them behind bars?”

“
No choice,” McAllen said. “We’re goin’ to have to con them.”

_{Chapter 46}

I grabbed my lapels and snapped my new suit coat taut. The tailor at Goldwater’s had done a fine job. When dressed in a suit, I carried a Remington .38 pistol under my arm in a shoulder holster of my own design. The tailor had done a nice alteration that almost completely hid the gun. As I looked at myself in the mirror, I felt I would be welcome in the toniest establishment in New York City. My hair was neatly trimmed, my shirt was so white it almost sparkled, and my maroon silk tie went perfectly with the dark brown suit.

I was ready. I hoped
we
were.

McAllen, Castle, and I had worked feverishly over the last two days to prepare for the trial. McAllen, of course, could find no trace of the letters. In fact, he couldn’t find any blank stationery in the room. Mary had evidently destroyed everything. With no physical evidence, we were dependent on Mac Castle’s skill.

When I came downstairs, Mrs. Cunningham smiled before saying, “Mr. Dancy, you cut a handsome figure in that suit. This is the big day for your friend. I wish you luck.”

“
Thank you, Mrs. Cunningham.” I looked at John, who was studying the floor. “Do you have that room ready, John?”

“
Yes, sir. Ma, I gotta get over to the livery to fetch Mr. Nelson’s horse.”

“
Go then.” After John had run out the door, she asked, “What’s going on with you and John?”

“
Nothing, as far as I know. He’s a fine boy.”

As I turned to leave, she said, “Mr. Dancy, I apologize, but if your friend is convicted, I’m still going to charge you for that extra room.”

I turned back. “Thank you for reminding me.” I handed her five dollars. “Please prepare the finest meal you can—for the entire house. It’s a celebratory supper, and my friend, Mr. Jeffery Sharp, will be occupying that room this evening. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I want to hear the opening arguments.”

As I walked across the square to the courthouse, I noticed new leaves sprouting from the trees. There was a special green in spring, a lighter, more iridescent color that seemed to darken in only a few weeks. I loved the color as a boy because it meant summer was near, and that meant playing outdoors with friends all day long. Even as an adult, I felt good spotting the fresh green of spring on the trees.

My reverie was broken in the courthouse lobby.

“
Mr. Dancy?”

It was Jonathon Winslow.

“
Yes, Mr. Winslow?”

“
I didn’t recognize you.”

“
Nor were you meant to; I’m in disguise.”

“
Is that a joke?”

“
Not if it didn’t make you laugh. Are you coming to the trial?”

“
Later, after I finish a couple errands for the governor.” He waited until some men passed us on the stairs. “You are going to restrain yourself from writing that letter?”

“
I will … unless your parents had anything whatsoever to do with the murder of Campbell.”

“
What? That’s a terrible thing to say. I can assure you, they did not.”

“
I’m not as sure as you appear to be.”

“
What does that mean?”

“
It means they had reason to want Campbell out of the way of your grand career in our nation’s capital. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to get upstairs, and you have errands.”

I left before he could reply.

I sat next to McAllen, Maggie on his other side. Carl and Mary Schmidt sat directly behind us. The courtroom was packed, with people standing along the back wall. A murder trial was free entertainment, and this one promised to end with a hanging. Sharp looked at us from the defense table and gave us a wink. Exactly on the hour, we all stood as Judge Carter entered the courtroom.

The opening statements were as expected. Blanchet droned on, explaining that the evidence was extensive and irrefutable. Castle had warned us that he was going to be bland because he didn’t want to give away his strategy in the opening act.

Blanchet called six witnesses to testify that Sharp went into a rage that afternoon, not only knocking Campbell to the floor, but also hitting two other customers who were trying to break up the fight. Each testified that Sharp threatened to kill Campbell if he ever saw him again. From the testimony, it sounded like an all-night brawl instead of two punches that lasted only a few seconds.

The next prosecution witness was Captain McAllen. He testified about where he and Earp had found the body and the position of the rifle. Next, Constable Earp repeated McAllen’s testimony and then described Sharp’s arrest. He also told about the pine needles found on the stairs and stuck to Sharp’s boots.

What came next was somewhat of a surprise. Blanchet had hired a lawyer in New York to take depositions from several of Sharp’s business associates. Blanchet submitted them into evidence and then read them with a bit of dramatic flair. The business associates meant to defend Sharp by painting Campbell as the offending party, but instead of helping, they established motive by showing that Sharp’s anger was probably justified in his mind. Blanchet also had depositions from people in Nevada and Colorado. They painted Jeffery Sharp as a violent man.

The prosecution rested just before the noon break. The jurors filed out quickly. I guessed that they thought Sharp was guilty and the trial would be over before supper. I hoped that only the second supposition was correct.

Sharp was returned to his cell, and the three of us went over to Castle’s office for lunch. Sandwiches, nuts, beer, and a root beer had been brought over from the Palace. Before long, we were all eating.

“
Do the Schmidts have any inkling of what’s to come this afternoon?” Castle asked.

“
Maggie?” McAllen gave the question to his daughter.

“
Pa gave me a stethoscope to listen to their conversations through the wall. I can hear everything they say. Unless they know I’m listening, they still believe you will present Blanchet as the murderer. They sound cocksure.”

“
You gave her a doctor’s stethoscope?” Castle asked incredulously.

“
She has the room next door, and she’s a reliable observer.”

“
But you turned your daughter into a spy.”

“
She’s a darn good detective, not a spy.”

“
The difference?”

“
A detective finds criminals. Spies pry into the business of people they don’t like.”

“
What do we do if Carl or Mary leave the courtroom?” I asked.

“
A constable will take care of that. If they try to leave the building, they will be detained in the judge’s quarters.” McAllen took a large swig of beer. “Relax, Steve. The trial’s the easy part. If you want to worry, worry about what comes after.”

_{Chapter 47}

“
As my first witness, I call Captain Joseph McAllen, of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency.”

McAllen sat in the witness chair. His stoic expression and relaxed posture said he was at ease being in court.

“
Mr. McAllen, you testified about finding the body of Elisha Campbell. Was that the end of your investigation?”

“
No, sir.”

“
Explain to the court what you discovered in your further investigations.”

“
The lack of blood indicated that Campbell had not been shot at the location where the body was found. I searched the grounds along the trail back toward town and found a bloody horse harness that had been used to drag the body from another location.”

Castle entered the harness into evidence and allowed the jury to examine it.

“
Did you find the actual location of the murder?”

“
I did. The abandoned barn outside of town. It’s about halfway between town and where the body was found. There was a bullet embedded in the back wall of the barn that matched the caliber of Mr. Sharp’s Winchester.”

“
Drawing on your investigative experience, can you recreate the scene for us?”

“
It appears that when Campbell entered the barn, someone was behind the door. When Campbell moved into the barn, that person shot him in the back of the head. This would keep the blood spray and pooling in the dirt, where it could be covered up.”

“
What does that indicate to you?”

“
That the murderer understood investigative procedures.”

“
If Mr. Sharp murdered Mr. Campbell, can you think of any reason why he would want to move the dead body?”

“
No.”

“
How many shots had been fired from the rifle?”

“
Two. The evidence indicates that one shot killed Campbell at the barn, and the other shot drew Constable Earp and me to the site, where we found the body.”

“
Why might the murderer fire that second shot?”

“
So the body would be found immediately. The murderer probably knew that Constable Earp lived a short distance away.”

“
If Mr. Sharp murdered Mr. Campbell, can you think of any reason why the defendant, Mr. Sharp, would want the body found that night?”

“
No.”

“
To your knowledge, did Mr. Sharp know where Constable Earp lived?”

“
No. He had just arrived in town that afternoon.”

“
Can you think of a reason why someone else might want the body found that night?”

“
Yes. If someone framed the defendant, then they would want the body discovered right away to connect the fistfight to the murder.”

“
Objection!” Blanchet had leaped out of his seat. “That’s unsubstantiated speculation.”

“
Sustained,” Judge Carter ruled.

“
Why are you in Prescott?”

McAllen told the court about his team’s being hired to investigate the series of swindles perpetuated by Campbell. He then described the methods used by Carl and Mary Schmidt.

“
Did both of the Schmidts remain in Prescott all the time?”

“
No. Carl Schmidt made frequent trips to Wickenburg.”

I sensed rather than saw movement behind me. Then I heard Mary Schmidt’s harsh whisper.

Castle asked, “For what purpose?”

“
Originally, to interview Henry Wickenburg, who had been defrauded as well. Later, he went to Wickenburg for recreational purposes.”

“
Could you tell the court about the four men who tried to kill you in the shooting across the street?”

“
Two of them were the Cody brothers. The other two were their friends. They came from Wickenburg, where they were known as the Cody bunch.”

“
Had you ever seen or heard of them before?”

“
No. To my knowledge, they had no reason to threaten us. They were apparently hired to kill us.”

“
Did you investigate Carl Schmidt’s activities in Wickenburg?”

“
I did, through an associate. Carl Schmidt did his best to throw our investigation off course.”

For ten minutes, McAllen explained the entire sequence of events surrounding Carl Schmidt and Wickenburg. During his testimony, I twice heard Carl try to get up to leave, but Mary kept him in place with a stern whisper. Since I didn’t want to turn around, I watched the jury. Both times, the sudden motion drew their attention.

Castle resumed his questioning.

“
Captain, what do you make of all that?”

“
You mean you want my opinion?”

“
Yes. As an experienced investigator, what might Carl Schmidt’s actions mean?”

“
First and foremost, Mr. Schmidt is hiding something. He went to elaborate extremes to mislead my associate. In my opinion, Mr. Schmidt was trying to hide the fact that he hired the Cody bunch to gun us down.”

Although the conclusion was obvious, there was an audible gasp in the courtroom.

“
What motive could he have to take such heinous action?”

“
To cover up that he had killed Elisha Campbell and set up Jeffery Sharp to hang for the crime.”

“
What reason could he have for killing Campbell?”

“
He had a reason, but I am not directly privy to that information.”

“
Who is?”