Sunset 4: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #7
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About this ebook
In 1962 the quiet, and seemingly innocent, activities at the Humboldt Motel in this small West Tennessee town went unnoticed and unchallenged. Besides, a little booze, a little gambling and maybe an occasional ‘lady of the evening’ never hurt anyone, right?
Then one fall night after a football game, things began to come apart. It seemed that everything was not how it should be, or at least, how it appeared.
Unfaithful housewives, a football coach fixing game scores, a crooked private detective and eventually a murder, would bring exposure to ‘SUnset 4’. And that was something its operators didn’t want.
Carson isn’t involved in the investigation, but it seems everyone thinks he is. Protecting a friend, he tries hard to ignore things that are simply not right. Finally, he follows instinct and tackles the innocent and the guilty in ‘SUnset 4’.
Read more from Gerald Darnell
Carson Reno Mystery Series Please Don't Wake Me Until It's Time To Go Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
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Titles in the series (20)
Horse Tales: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #4 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPrice of Beauty in Strawberry Land: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMurder in Humboldt: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKiller Among Us: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsthe Crossing: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #6 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsthe Everglades: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #5 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFingerprint Murders: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #10 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDead Men Don't Remember: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #9 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSunset 4: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #7 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsthe Illegals: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #8 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDead End: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #13 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJustifiable Homicide: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #12 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMurder and More: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #14 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsReelfoot: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #11 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMurder my Darling: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #17 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCarson Reno Mystery Series - The Early Years: Carson Reno Mystery Series Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCarson Reno Mystery Series - The Beginning: Carson Reno Mystery Series Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLack of Candor: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #18 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Innocent Stranger: Carson Reno Mystery Series, #20 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMurder, Mystery and Mayhem: Carson Reno Mystery Series Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
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Book preview
Sunset 4 - Gerald Darnell
––––––––
A Carson Reno Mystery
Written by
Gerald W. Darnell
SUnset - 4
Copyright © 2012 by Gerald W. Darnell
ISBN: 978-1-4626-3953-3
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews, without written permission from the publisher.
cr press
Gerald W. Darnell
carsonreno@msn.com
The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real person, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Be sure to check out Carson Reno’s other Mysteries
Murder in Humboldt
The Price of Beauty in Strawberry Land
Killer Among Us
Horse Tales
the Crossing
the Everglades
the Illegals
Dead Men Don’t Remember
Fingerprint Murders
Reelfoot
Justifiable Homicide
Dead End
Murder and More
––––––––
For the Readers
––––––––
During the 1950’s and into the middle/late 1960’s the telephone prefix for this small West Tennessee town was SU4 – appropriately named SUnset 4.
The telephone prefix SU4 translated to 784 for modern use and remains the same today.
Description: smallerCast of Characters
Carson Reno - Private Detective
Rita - Hostess Starlight Lounge
Marcie – Peabody Hotel Operator
Andy – Bartender Down Under
Mason ‘Booker-T’ Brown – Head porter Peabody Hotel
Nickie/Ronnie Woodson – Owners Chiefs Motel and Restaurant
Florence (Flo) – Waitress at Chiefs
Tommy Trubush – carhop Chiefs
Jack Logan – Attorney /Partner
Leroy Epsee – Sheriff Gibson County
Jeff Cole – Deputy Gibson County
Scotty Perry – Deputy Gibson County
Elizabeth Teague – Airline Stewardess and friend of Carson’s
Mary Ellen Maxwell – Humboldt Socialite and owner of Maxwell Trucking
Judy Strong – Vice President of Maxwell Trucking
Gerald Wayne – Owner Wayne Knitting Mill
Nuddy – Bartender Humboldt Country Club
Larry Parker – Chief of Detectives Shelby County
Joe Richardson – Associate Drake Detective Agency
Steve Carrollton – Head of Memphis Mafia family
Dr. Harold Barker – Gibson County Coroner
David Kelly – Vice President Wayne Knitting Mill
Sandra Kelly – Vice President People’s Bank, wife of David Kelly
David Kelly, Jr. – Son of David and Sandra Kelly
Brenda Kelly – Daughter of David and Sandra Kelly
Carrie Weekes – Sister of Sandra Kelly
RA (Robert) Taylor – Head Football Coach Humboldt High School
Bruton Smith – Attorney in Humboldt
Manard Shackle – Principal Humboldt High School
Trevor Malone – Truck Driver Maxwell Trucking
Jean Malone – Wife of Trevor Malone
Munro Chalmers – Private Detective
‘MoMo’ Murphy – Mafia Associate
Jimmy ‘clean hands’ Sweeny – Mafia Associate
Tom Longwood – Owner Humboldt Motel
Marlon Crow – Owner Humboldt Truck Stop
Richard P. ‘Dick’ Valentine – Former Humboldt Police Chief
Danny Mayfield – Operative Humboldt Motel
Frankie Longwood – Tom Longwood’s brother.
Raymond Griggs – Humboldt Police Chief
Tony Bailey – Deputy Humboldt Police Department
Captain Chip Falstaff – Tennessee Highway Patrol
Sheriff John Ramsey – Sheriff Davidson County
––––––––
Description: smallerDedication
To my lovely wife, Carol Ann, who somehow manages to put up with my writing and me.
Contribution Credits
Elizabeth Tillman White
Judy Steele Minnehan
Mary Ann Sizer Fisher
Nickie Scruggs Lewis
Material Credits
Humboldt Public Library
Gibson County Historical Website
Courier Chronicle
Libby Lynch
––––––––
FORWARD
In 1962 the quiet, and seemingly innocent, activities at the Humboldt Motel in this small West Tennessee town went unnoticed and unchallenged. Besides, a little booze, a little gambling and maybe an occasional ‘lady of the evening’ never hurt anyone, right?
Then one fall night after a football game, things began to come apart. It seemed that everything was not how it should be, or at least, how it appeared.
Unfaithful housewives, a football coach fixing game scores, a crooked private detective and eventually a murder, would bring exposure to ‘SUnset 4’. And that was something its operators didn’t want.
Carson isn’t involved in the investigation, but it seems everyone thinks he is. Protecting a friend, he tries hard to ignore things that are simply not right. Finally, he follows instinct and tackles the innocent and the guilty in ‘SUnset 4’.
––––––––
It is possible that infidelity has made me what I am today. Not a rich man - it does, however, provide me with rent money and the satisfaction of providing a service to those in need.
Carson Reno
Gibson/Madison/Crockett County of West Tennessee
Description: man_holding_gun_and_rose_silhouette_crf01312Life is cheap – make sure you buy enough
Carson Reno
Introduction
To everyone’s knowledge and observation Sandra Kelly had the perfect life and family. After a failed first marriage to her high school sweetheart, she had met and married David Kelly, an Executive Vice President at Wayne Knitting. Together they had two children, David Jr., 17 and Brenda, 15. Both were excellent students and very active in Humboldt High School extra-curricular programs. David Jr. was the star football quarterback and Brenda was a cheerleader - both always recognized as ‘Most Likely to Succeed’ in their classes.
Description: Wayne Knitting MillsWayne Knitting Mill
Sandra was a Vice President of People’s Bank, and she and David’s social circle was the rich and elite of Humboldt. Their main street home was recognized as one of the most beautiful in town, and an invitation to one of their many parties was an absolute necessity for one’s social standing.
Description: peoples bankEverything was perfect – or so it seemed.
~
During football season, Friday’s activities were already planned. For home games, David and Sandra were always first to their reserved seats and normally the loudest as they cheered David Jr. and the Humboldt Rams to victory. After the game football parties at the Kelly home were always open for the players, band members and cheerleaders to stop by and share in the celebration. Afterwards, the adults had their own party – often lasting into the early hours of Saturday mornings.
This Friday started and ended like most others. David Jr. and the Humboldt Rams had beaten the highly ranked Milan Bulldogs. The celebrations were perhaps a little louder and the participation more exciting, but it finally ended with the last partygoer leaving the Kelly residence shortly after 2 AM.
As it sometimes happened on late party nights, Sandra had retired early. This allowed the men to relive the evening and drink without worrying about their manners or speech. David would always bunk in the guesthouse, leaving Sandra to sleep without being disturbed. The kids had made it home at midnight, meeting their curfew. That is the way this Friday ended.
Saturday mornings were reserved for Sandra’s special breakfast. She would wake early and prepare her famous blueberry pancakes, sausage, biscuits and gravy for everyone. It was a family ritual.
At 10 AM David wandered into the kitchen looking for some relief with a cup of Sandra’s coffee and an early biscuit before David Jr. and Brenda got them all. The kitchen was empty. No coffee, no pancakes, no biscuits and NO SANDRA.
Thinking she had slept in, he made coffee, grabbed an extra cup for Sandra and headed up the stairs to their bedroom. This would give him an opportunity to tease her about oversleeping.
The bedroom was empty. It wasn’t just empty, but evidently the bed had not been slept in the night before! Nervously David searched the house – spare bedrooms, the kids’ rooms, the den, the living room – everywhere. Sandra wasn’t there – she wasn’t in the house.
In the garage he found his car, David Jr.’s car and his deceased mother’s car, which would soon become Brenda’s car. Sandra’s car was missing. Sandra was missing. Sandra had disappeared!
Our story starts on the previous Monday.
Description: Humboldt Motel 3––––––––
Rumors
Sandra’s parents, Gary and Shirley Weekes, divorced when she was only four. After the divorce, she and her older sister, Carrie, lived with their mother. Their father immediately moved to Memphis, and within months simply disappeared – all contact was lost. There were no letters, no phone calls, and no birthday cards – nothing. It was if he had never existed.
Their mother struggled to keep the rent paid and food on the table. She was never able to give the girls what other kids their age had. Her job at Brown Shoe was hard and the pay poor. She was gone much of the time, and Sandra and her sister were spending more and more time with their maternal grandmother.
Eventually her struggles as a single parent took its toll. When Sandra was 15, she came home from school one day to find her mother dead on the kitchen floor. Dead from a heart attack – she was only 45.
It was hard, but their grandmother managed to raise Sandra and Carrie through the difficult adolescent years. She lived to see them both graduate from high school but died just before Sandra’s 19th birthday.
Sandra and Carrie were close, but nothing alike, in looks or personality. Sandra had dark hair, golden skin and had always been taller than other girls her age. Carrie was much shorter and smaller. Her hair was a dark auburn color, and she had a milky skin tone, the kind that doesn’t like long exposure to the sun. Sometimes in their ‘sister’ moments, they wondered if they really were sisters. They joked often about one of them being adopted or maybe having a different father!
Sandra married her high school sweetheart and Carrie moved to Memphis where she married a mechanic and found work as a waitress. At first, Sandra and Carrie talked often – sometimes every day, but as time passed, their communication became more infrequent. Life got in the way of their sibling relationship. Sandra’s nasty divorce from her high school sweetheart, her hasty marriage to David and finally the kids – Sandra and Carrie grew further apart. Eventually the communication stopped. Sandra had not spoken to Carrie in over ten years and hadn’t seen her in almost twenty.
All of that all changed five days ago.
~
It was a cold, but bright November day in West Tennessee. An early frost had already stripped the trees of their leaves - fall and football were on the mind of most everyone in this small community. The call came into Sandra’s office at the bank. It was Monday, just before lunch.
Hello, Peoples Bank,
Sandra answered. This is Sandra Kelly. How may I help you?
Sandra, this is Carrie,
a weak voice replied.
Who?
Sandra questioned.
This is your sister. Your sister, Carrie,
she answered with a still weak voice.
Sandra said nothing. Shock had robbed her of speech, and she could only stare at her office wall.
Sandra, this is your sister, Carrie. Are you still on the line?
She asked with a little stronger voice.
I’m still here,
she managed to say. But is this really you? Is someone playing a trick, because it isn’t funny!
This is no trick. It is really me, and we need to talk.
Carrie’s strength was now coming back in her voice.
Talk? I’m not sure why. I mean - I haven’t heard from you in over ten years, and now we need to talk? Where have you been? Why haven’t you called?
Anger was replacing Sandra’s shock.
Please don’t yell and don’t be angry. I’m in trouble, and I don’t know where to turn. You’re my sister, and I won’t/can’t ask anybody else for help.
Carrie’s voice was still shaky.
Help? Trouble? Why haven’t you called me in the past ten years?
Sandra’s anger was coming out.
Just meet me, and I’ll tell you all about it. Can you do that?
Meet you? I don’t know. Where the hell are you?
Sandra was biting her lip.
I’m in Humboldt. Can you meet me?
Humboldt!
Sandra screamed as she slammed herself against the back of her desk chair. You’re in Humboldt?
Yes. Can you meet me?
Sandra didn’t answer; she just stared at her office wall. They’d had a tough life, but they were sisters. In fact, Carrie was all that remained of her family. Yes, she would meet her and would help however she could. Maybe they could be sisters again and put what was left of their broken family back together. Whatever trouble she was in could be fixed; it couldn’t be that bad.
Yes, Carrie, I’ll meet you,
Sandra finally said. Where and when?
Meet me tonight at the Dairy Bar – 8 PM. Park at the car wash next to the Dairy Bar, and I’ll come to your car. Eight o’clock and please don’t tell anybody and don’t bring anyone with you. Okay?
––––––––
Okay,
Sandra replied. Her shock had come back.
Carrie hung up and was gone as quickly as she had appeared.
Sandra spent the next hour staring into space and trying to make some sense out of this phone call. Nothing worked. She left the bank early, faking a headache and headed home – she needed a drink and time to think.
Sandra said nothing to David or the kids and did her best