The Bridge (Para-Earth Series) (26 page)

             
“Which could be used almost anywhere,” Julie nodded.

             
“Exactly,” Peterson agreed, “However, on the day Paul Chase died you were keeping an eye on him correct?”

             
She nodded, “He was in bad shape.  Poor guy could barely stand.”

             
“How sure are you about that?”

             
“I’m positive. I’ve got degrees in Physical Therapy and Sport Medicine,” she told him.  “If he was faking, it was damn convincing.”

             
“What time did you arrive at his place?”

             
“About 2:30 in the afternoon,” Julie told him.  “I headed over as soon as Ronnie called me.  He couldn’t have been alone for more than half an hour.”

             
“And did you leave him alone at any time?”

             
“Yeah, I came here to tell my story about being nearly run down by those kids.  Then I spent an hour or two talking to the sketch artist.”

             
“Paul Chase was killed during that time over at the Impound Yard,” Ronnie sighed.

             
Cassie put a hand on Julie’s and smiled reassuringly.  Then she turned to Chief Peterson and said confidently, “Alex was with me on the terrace when I spotted the girl down at the bridge.  And I watched him head down there.”

             
“For how long?”

             
“I waited until he reached the girl and helped her out of the stream,” Cassie answered.  “What about her?  She can probably tell you what happened afterwards and how long they were together.”

             
“We’re working on that,” Roy told her. “Unfortunately, Alex never got her name which is making her hard to locate.”

             
“Check with my Uncle Jason,” Julie suggested.  “He knows all the teenagers who hang out around there.  Hell, you should ask him if he saw Alex.”

             
“Good idea,” Roy made a note of that and stood up. “Well, that’s all I have for now.”

             
“Were we of any help?” asked Julie.

             
“Some,” Roy answered, “You did give us some leads to pursue.”

             
Sighing Julie stood up, “Well, if you found any of Alex’s fingerprints on the doors leading into the morgue, keep in mind he was there with Ronnie the day those kids died.  Apparently he set off an alarm when he pushed on the doors to go inside.”

             
Peterson suddenly turned to Veronica and asked, “Is this true?”

             
Ronnie nodded, “Yes, he insisted on coming with me after seeing how upset I was about what had happened.  Only the alarm had nothing to do with him pushing on the doors.  That just turned out to be a coincidence.  But we were close enough to the alarm itself, the sound made him collapse.  See he was coming down with something and it had already gotten into his inner ear, according to Doctor Wells who checked him out there on the spot.  After that I took Alex home and asked Julie to come and keep an eye on him, while I went back to the scene of the crash.  You already know the rest.”

             
Julie watched as the chief’s face suddenly relaxed and sighed, “Well, that clears up that piece of confusion.”  Then he turned back to her and said, “I was wondering why we only found his prints on the outside of the door and nowhere else.” 

             
Behind him, Julie saw a look of relief on Veronica’s face. 

             
“Thank you,” Peterson continued and stood up, “Now if you’ll excuse us, I’d like to talk with second-in-command about the investigation.  If either of you remember anything else, you can call either one of us.”

             
“We will,” Julie assured him and led Cassandra out of the room and back the way they’d come. 

             
“It sounds like Veronica’s back on the case,” she smiled once they were well out of earshot.

             
“Yeah, I was glad to hear that,” Cassie nodded eagerly and then said, “Are you free this afternoon?  If not, I can drop you back off at your place.”

             
Julie eyed the girl curiously, “What did you have in mind?”

             
“I was hoping you could introduce me to your Uncle Jason,” Cassie replied innocently.  “Since I’m buying the Graham place I’d like to meet the man who’ll be taking care of the grounds.”

             
Julie smiled.  She was really starting to like this girl. “And I was just about to ask if you could drop me off over at his place so I could visit with him.  Let’s go.”

              Veronica stared at Wells’ notes as she listened to the message he had left on Roy’s phone.  It sounded incredible.  But, if any of it was true, this would explain what happened to Alex both at the Morgue and at the bridge last night. 

             
“Okay, Rookie, what are your thoughts on all of this?” asked her boss, watching her from across his desk. 

             
“If human tissue is affected by this ‘mystery mineral’, that could explain the confusion in the time of death for those two kids.  But, causing hallucinations?  I don’t know.  I was standing right next to Alex the first time he collapsed, and I wasn’t affected.  Neither was Wells or his assistant as far as I could tell.”

             
Leaning back in his chair Roy said, “I have a theory about that.  What if some people are more prone to these vapors?  Like some people are more sensitive to chemical cleaners than others.”

             
Veronica thought about this.  It made a sense in a way.  Alex might be one of those who were more sensitive.  Or did his psychic talents leave him more vulnerable to the vapors effects?

             
‘He says he has psychic abilities. Where’s the proof?’
part of her brain pointed out.  Having a copper’s mind could be annoying at times.  And she quickly dismissed the thought.  Alex knew her in ways no one ever had before.  And he had let her experience what he felt for her.  There was no question that he was gifted.

             
Picking up the report once more she said, “If he’d been resistant to the fumes, then what happened last night?  He sounded terrified.”

             
“The prolonged exposure finally got to him?”

             
“Have we heard anything from the lab?”

             
Roy ran a hand through his graying hair.  “Only that they’re still running tests.

             
Apparently, no one’s ever seen anything like it before.  But they did tell me one thing.  The fact that its concentration in the water is so high, leads them to believe it’s been in the stream for some time.”

             
Veronica’s eyes narrowed, so this was why he wanted to talk to her alone.  Carefully she spoke, “You mean it would have been in the water when Rachel disappeared from the mansion sixteen years ago?”

             
He nodded.

             
Keeping her emotions in check, Ronnie asked, “Those human tissue samples that were found, do we have any idea how old they are?  Or who they might belong to?”

             
“No,” Roy got up and walked over to her chair. “There’s not enough to make a formal identification yet.  And as Wells mentioned in his report, we might have a mass grave on our hands.”

             
She stood up, “We’d better talk to Jason Cloudfoot and let him know about this.  I’m guessing the fumes must be focused around the stream itself, otherwise he probably would’ve seen or experienced something by now.”

             
“Or prolonged exposure made him immune,” Roy pointed out.  “In either case, I’ll tell him when I see him this afternoon.  I’m sure he’ll help keep the kids away.  God only knows how many of them saw things and thought they were having a bad drug trip.”

             
“Good,” Veronica nodded, “Anything else?”  

             
Roy paused and looked at her for a moment.  She could see the worry in his eyes as he said, “Ronnie, I know you’re hoping that we’ll find her but…”

             
“Unless we find her corpse, I’m going to keep believing Rachel’s still out there somewhere,” she told him stiffly.

             
After a moment he nodded and said, “Fair enough.”

             
Feeling a little awkward, Veronica decided to change the subject. “What about the manor itself?  Should we keep it off-limits for the time being?”

             
Roy shook his head, “Alex was doing all right inside the building.  And Miss Elliott wants him to help her plan some renovations, so I think that area is safe.  But, let’s keep it to just those two and our people for the moment.  And tell them if they’re going to visit the place, to inform you or someone here at the station first.”

             
Ronnie agreed whole-heartedly and left.  As she headed down the hallway, she began to wonder once more if her long standing practice of keeping Alex out of  investigations was a good idea or not. 

             
Upon reaching her office, she settled in behind her desk inside and pulled out the sketch of the girl Julie had seen.  The image looked very much like Rachel.  If it was her, then where had she been all this time?  And if it wasn’t, what happened?  Could she have been another victim of those strange fumes and fallen into the water?

             
“No,” she murmured, “Please God let her still be alive.  I have to know what happened to ‘our’ baby.”

              Half an hour later, Cassie found herself in the middle of the most amazing collection of Native American artifacts she’d ever seen.  It was even more impressive than the one she’d seen at Julie’s home.  And to make things even better, she was sipping a cup of delicious homemade tea while listening to a tale of Seneca lore. 

             
“A young brave had been out hunting all day, but the light was fading so he found a clearing and settled down to rest,” rumbled the storyteller’s voice. 

             
She had been in awe of Jason Cloudfoot from the moment they were introduced.  Tall and commanding, the man had an air of peace and spirituality with his surroundings that commanded respect and attentiveness.  So she was all ears as he continued the story.  

             
“During the night, he was awoken by chanting and music unlike anything he’d ever heard before.  He went to investigate and spotted a group of people wearing animal skins dancing and chanting around a large fire.  He watched and listened for a while, then went back to his own camp and fell asleep once more.  But a short time later he awoke again to find the animal-skinned people standing over him.  They told him that they knew he’d witnessed their ceremonies and for that he should be killed.  So they took him back to their camp.  But instead of killing him, they spent the rest of the night teaching him their dances and chants, as well as the many uses of certain plants.  When morning came and when the sun began to rise, the young brave witnessed an incredible sight.  The people he had spent the night with slowly turned into the animals whose skins they wore.  For you see, they were not humans, but the spirits of the woods.  And they had taught him their magic and the ways of the Great Spirit.  With his newfound knowledge, he went back to his people and became the first Shaman,” he finished with a smile.

             
“Oh, that was great,” exclaimed Cassandra.

             
“He knows a bunch more,” Julie told her.

             
“Which I taught you, child,” her uncle pointed out.  “You were always a good listener, better than my sons.”

             
Cassie looked around at the headdresses, clothing, tools, that surrounded them.  “Didn’t they want to learn about all of this?” she asked.

             
Jason nodded, “Oh, they did, but the attractions of the modern world were much greater.  But, don’t worry they know their duty.  When I retire, they will take over and care for the grounds.”

             
“Especially since you’ll be right here to make sure they do a good job,” Cassie smiled.  “You see, a little bird told me this place has been in your family for generations and I want to see it stay that way.  So as soon as I finish buying the estate, I want to put the title for this house and the land it’s on in your name.  You’re family has cared for this land and the estate for so long, I figured it was time someone showed their appreciation.”

             
Jason looked questioningly at his niece who held up her hands and said, “Hey, all I asked was for her to let you stay on.  I had no idea she had all this planned.” 

             
Then Julie turned to her and added, “But I’m really grateful for it.”