Three Dog Day (17 page)

“
Yeah. Mr. Big Detective here wants a con … fess … ion,” Dory drawled out the word. “Not likely,” she added, and Rob glowered.

The sheriff intervened. “How about we let Detective Nichols off the hook for the moment, Detective Fuller? We have a copper pipe case and a murder to solve. And it just occurred to me that Wayne Nichols is now truly chief detective, since your promotion.” Wayne had always been referred to as “chief detective,” due to his years of seniority.

Wayne gave Ben a grateful look. “Before we start on the murder, I have a question. Miss Dory, what's going on with you? Have you lost your appetite for blueberry donuts?” He had noticed her surreptitiously pushing the box away.

“
Mr. Pretentious, our uppity new detective, is just trying to make me fat,” Dory said. “I have been suggesting celery sticks, peeled carrots, and granola bars for staff meetings. So far, despite George's pudginess, I have no takers.” The rest of the staff avoided her eyes.

“
I'll take you up on it, Dory,” Wayne told her. “I'm trying to lose a few more pounds.”

“
Okay, people.” Ben redirected once more. “Besides Mike Clifton saying he might have seen the victim at his brother's place, what else has anyone found on our floater?”

“
Not much, boss,” Rob said. “He's not in the system, as you know. George and Cam haven't come across any missing persons reports, and the hospitals haven't treated anyone with stab wounds within the time frame.”

Ben sighed. “I'm going to call Dr. Estes later and reiterate my request to narrow down the window on when this guy died. Did you turn up anything, George?”

“
I did,” George said, looking rather pleased with himself. “At Meeker's—the hunting and fishing supply store closest to where the body was dumped—I found out that Jerrod Clifton purchased a new deer rifle and hunting knife last fall. They don't keep legal records on knives, but he bought the knife the same day. Both items were on the receipt. The knife was the same model we were looking for, the six-inch ceramic blade Boker.”

“
George, that's just excellent.” Ben shook his head. “Exceptional work. You've linked the murder weapon to Jerrod Clifton. Now, if we could just find him, we could wrap this one up.”

“
Nice going, George,” Dory said. Rob patted George on the shoulder and Cam shook his hand.

“
Okay, turning to our other big case …. Rob and I talked this over on my way in. He and I have agreed that we'll do a stakeout at a big historic house that's about to go to auction. The copper pipe thieves have been very active in removing copper pipe from foreclosures and auctioned properties as well as new builds.”

“
Since we talked earlier, Sheriff, I spoke with Captain Paula at the East Nashville post. They've had half a dozen reports and already have two detectives on it. She'd like us to butt out of the case and turn our reports over to her men. They're putting security cameras on a dozen different warehouses in the city where they think the pipes might be stored. I told her I'd check with you.”

“
Wayne, what do you think?” Ben asked.

“
Hell, no,” Wayne said. “The Yancey theft occurred in Rose County. That's our jurisdiction. If they'd found a cache in any of the Nashville warehouses, they would have said so. They don't have a primary location yet. It could even be in Rose County. I'd go ahead with the stakeout.”

“
Right. I'll call Captain Paula and tell her we're proceeding to follow the leads here in Rose County.”

Ben turned to Deputy Gomez. “Cam, how are you coming on that search warrant for the Clifton property? Did I tell you that Mae found some copper pipes in the garage at the Clifton place? It was also the site of the puppy mill where Dory found the knife. I'd like a look inside that house. The side door to the garage was open when Dory and Mae were out there so we can do a careful search now, including fingerprints. As soon as we get the search warrant, we can go through the house. Our cases might just be coming together.”

“
When the search warrant comes through, who do you want to take the lead on that?” Rob asked.

“
You and George can go out there and have a look as soon as we get a warrant. Let's try to find any paperwork about who buys his pit bull puppies and for what purposes. I'm thinking Clifton must have had a regular buyer, and it wasn't an individual looking for a pet. He had too many pups there to rely on the pet trade. You could also start checking with local veterinarians.”

“
I agree with the sheriff,” Wayne said. “We need to pursue the puppy angle. There had to be a reason our victim was on the property. It probably has to do with the dogs. Find out if the local veterinarian practices know anything.”

“
Wayne, do you want to start checking out those leads?”

“
No. I think I'll just stay here today. I have a conference call with the attorney for my foster mother this morning. I want to work this case with you guys, but I still have things left to do.”

“
Anything on the BOLO we have out for Jerrod Clifton?” Ben asked.

“
Nada, boss,” Dory said.

“
Let's get an APB out on him, too. And Dory, can you get Ray Fenton and his mother to come into the office? I'd like him to look at some mug shots. Cam, pull anybody who's been convicted of animal trafficking in the last few years for the kid to see. Dory, tell the others about your feeling about the kid who turned in the puppy mill.”

“
Okay. The day of the ASPCA raid, when the rag and knife turned up, Ray wouldn't look at the material. It might have just been squeamishness, but I got a funny feeling. Ray Fenton had been going over there every day to feed the dogs. He might have seen something.”

“
Okay, let's bring him in. What turned up on the house to house, George?” Ben asked.

“
No luck, Sheriff. It's all big farms in that area. Everyone's all spread out. We left a second citation on the front door for Jerrod. Want me to go back out there and see if anyone's turned up yet?”

“
Okay,” Ben said. “In fact, I'll go with you. I'll get Hadley from the lab to go with us to do prints from the garage. Just hang on a minute.” Ben left the room with Wayne and followed the big man to his office.

“
What's up with not wanting to investigate? That conference call sounded like an excuse,” Ben said as soon as they were alone.

“
It's not over yet, Ben.” Wayne's voice was bleak. His shoulders were hunched and he rubbed his nose. He tried to control his voice by clearing his throat. “The problem is that the attorney for the Abused Women's Commutation Project says that lifers aren't usually eligible for parole. The parole board takes no action on their applications, even when there is a case for compassionate release. There's something else. My little brother Kurt was murdered by my foster father. As it stands, his death is listed as murder by ‘person or persons unknown.' I have the evidence that Aarne killed him, but if I turn it over, I'll have to serve time.”

Ben didn't say anything for a moment. Then he rubbed his forehead and said, “God, Wayne, you can't serve time. Gen pop would be a nightmare with you being in law enforcement.” Wayne didn't respond. “Plus, your career would be over.”

There was a long awkward silence before Sheriff Bradley said, “As your boss, I have no say in it, but if you'd like to talk to me about that evidence, I'm here as a friend.”

The men stared at each other in silence. Wayne looked away, cleared his throat, and then glanced back. Taking a shaky breath, he said, “I appreciate that, Ben. I've always known that there are no clear victories in law enforcement, just battles. But having a friend”—he hesitated—“a friend who has your back in this battle we keep waging … it's the only victory there is in our business.”

Ben shuffled his feet. His lips twitched into a lopsided grin. He turned quickly and left the room.

Wayne was breathing hard. If it was the only way to nail Aarne Outinen as Kurt's killer, he might have to ask their lab people test the gun for fingerprints. If he did, he would be violating every police rule governing the handling of evidence. But unless he could get Aarne listed as his brother's killer, and free Jocelyn, the guilt would never leave him. He walked on the edge of a razor.

G
rabbing a coffee while assiduously averting her eyes from the siren lure of the gleaming donut box on the conference room table, Dory went back to her desk. She felt quite proud of herself. She had nailed Mr. Presumptuous Fuller, who thought he was so high and mighty, and raised the dietary standards of the office to boot. Ben had asked her to get an All-Points Bulletin out on Clifton and make an appointment with Ray and his mother to come into the office for an interview. However, she decided to call the ASPCA first.

“
ASPCA,” the bored teenaged voice answered.

“
May I speak to Mr. Gunderson? This is Dory Clarkson.”

“
Hang on.”

Dory inspected a nail that was chipping and kicked her heels off under her desk until the man picked up.

“
Gunderson.”

“
Good morning, Mr. Gunderson. It's Dory Clarkson. I'm calling to find out whether Mr. Clifton has contacted you?”

“
No such luck. As I told you the other day, we obtained a court order to put all of the dogs into fostering—all of them but Big Daddy. We couldn't get anyone to take him, so we're keeping him here for the moment. Going to run him through the database.”

Dory wondered what sort of database there was for dogs. “Can you hold a hearing if the owner doesn't show up?”

“
No. We have to wait three days for him to show. If the owner doesn't appear in that time, and the animals have been abandoned, we can seize them. Did the sheriff issue a citation?”

“
Yes, he did, and a second one yesterday, but Mr. Clifton hasn't contacted our office yet. We've had a BOLO out for several days. This morning the sheriff asked me to get an APB out too.”

“
We presented the ASPCA case to the prosecutor's office for further evaluation. I argued for prosecution on the basis that the animals were abandoned. They agreed.”

“
If Jerrod Clifton shows up, I'll let you know. Please let me know if he contacts the ASPCA.”

“
Will do. And … Miss Clarkson? You know I wish the press would just keep their noses out of our business, but our attorney said I had to turn over the names of the people who are fostering the puppies. They'll be contacting Miss December. I thought I'd let you know so you can warn her.”

They said goodbye. Dory sent Mae a quick text to let her know she'd be contacted by the press; then she called Ray's home phone number. When the shaky voice of his mother answered, she said, “Mrs. Fenton?”

“
This is she.”

“
This is Eudora Clarkson from the sheriff's office. I'm calling to schedule you and your son to come into the office.”

“
Oh dear.” The woman's voice was so soft Dory could hardly hear what she was saying. “I don't drive anymore and Ray doesn't have his license yet.”

“
That's no problem. We can come and pick you up. I'm just trying to get a time when you both could come in. Would tomorrow morning work for you? Around ten?”

“
Why do you want to talk to me? I don't know anything. I have multiple sclerosis, and I'm in a wheelchair.”

“
I'm sorry Mrs. Fenton, but Ray is a minor, so a parent has to be with him when we talk to him.”

Dory heard the woman catch her breath.

“
What do you want to talk to him about?”

Dory had a niggling feeling that Ray Fenton hadn't even told his mother about the knife discovered on the Clifton property. She lowered her voice and spoke slowly, “Mrs. Fenton, did Ray tell you that we found a knife buried on the Clifton property?” There was a long pause. She heard the woman coughing.

“
No. I didn't know,” she whispered.

“
Yes, and a body was found nearby in the river. There was no identification on the dead man and we're hoping that Ray can tell us who he is. We just want him to look at some photographs.”

“
Do you really need me?” She sounded frightened. “It's okay with me if he comes in alone. I'll sign something giving you permission if necessary.”

“
In that case, we'd like to talk with him today. Could I have one of the deputies come by your house and get your signed permission? Once we have that document, would it be okay with you if we go by the high school and pick him up?”

Ray's mother agreed and Dory clicked off the phone. She was going to ask Wayne Nichols, their chief detective, to use some of his finely tuned skills to get the kid to tell them everything he knew. And Dory was determined to be in the interview room with them.

The phone rang a few minutes later and Dory picked it up, absently saying, “Sheriff's Office.”

“
Dory, its Evangeline,” her friend said, breathlessly.