Minute-Man

By R. T. Waters

A ‘sleepy’ New England town is ‘rocked’ to its core when police report the rape and murder of a young woman and claim that evidence found at the scene belongs to a young man that resides in the town. His claim to have no knowledge of the crime, even though he is unable to explain how his bloody fingerprint and a piece of

• Language: English
• Publisher: URLink Print & Media, LLC
• Release date: Sep 9, 2019
• ISBN: 9781643677958

R. T. Waters

R. T. Waters is a retired production control manager in the field of printed fabrics and has resided in Brooklyn, New York, for most of his life. He has attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC, majoring in Textile Science, and enjoys American and world history as hobbies.

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

A NIGHT TO FORGET… OR REMEMBER?

The new 1991 Ford Escort continued at a speedy pace within the left land of this almost deserted highway. As the woman in the front passenger seat fidgeted with the plastic air direction control located on the right side of the dashboard she quickly succeeded in re-directing the path of the cool air flow onto her face. Then, in an agitated sounding voice she said to the driver, Where can they be, John?

The elderly gent sitting next to her replied, You know the old saying, they’re never around when you need them.

I was feeling a bit faint but the air on my face is helping.

Take deep breaths, it shouldn’t be too much longer before we locate them.

She was just about to follow his suggestion, then did exactly the opposite by spouting out a nervous, breathless sounding, Over there, John! Near that alcove, do you see them?

Yes, yes, take it easy! I’ve got to drive up a bit further before I can cross over to their side of the highway. Then I’ll be able to reach them in a jiffy!

Please try to hurry!

The car continued another quarter mile ahead before turning into a half circle land that dissected the center median and thereby allowed vehicles to reverse direction on this highway. Once this exercise was completed, John directed the car into the confines of the right side driving lane and continued onward.

Where are they, John?

Hidden behind that upcoming clump of bushes, if I’m not mistaken.

Sure enough, as soon as he turned off the right side of the main roadway, directly in front of a large clump of bushes, the police squad car he had been seeking could be seen.

The police vehicle, with its two occupants, had positioned themselves here, laying in waiting…our of sight to any north bound Mario Andretti wannabes deciding to speed to Boston, some thirty miles up this Massachusetts roadway.

The two officers were definitely surprised to see a car approach their believed to be hidden position, not realizing that it had been seen by someone traveling southbound.

As the two elderly visitors exited the Escort, the doors of the squad car opened. Then, Officer Patton, who had been sitting behind the steering wheel, joined his partner, Officer Kendall, in exiting the vehicle.

The elderly lady yelled out to them from a short distance away.

Better get going toward Oak Hollow…Right away! There’s a gang fight going on a short distance before the exit!

Patton matched her high decibel level as he shouted back, Which side of Route 15?

Your side…the North side!, was voiced by the old gent. The woman then added, there’s a white convertible car on the shoulder…just before all that wooden construction on the side of the highway! The commotion is going on about thirty to forty feet to the right, near where the forest of trees begins on this side of the roadway!

Patton kept the loud conversation going as he said, How many individuals are involved?

She replied, Ten or twelve…I think!

Once more, Patton spoke out loudly, I’ll need your names and address, as well as anything else the two of you noticed…such as weapons…kind of attire?

There was a momentary pause in the conversation as the couple began to converse with each other. It was the old gent’s turn to speak.

We are John and Emily Baker, residing at 112 partridge Lane in Hillside! Can’t say anything about possible weapons, they were too far away to see!

Just then, his wife nudged him and whispered into his ear. He seemed a bit perturbed as he told her, Well, tell them!

She yelled out, Lotsa white! Everyone was wearing white undershirts and white pants too!

Patton hand motioned her to inform them both that he had noted the information supplied by them. He had the engine running in the squad car almost immediately and with Kendall strapping himself into the passenger seat the car sped off. The old couple waved to them and Kendall waved back. Patton activated the siren and the spiraling light from the roof top lamp that resembled a bubble gum machine.

Kendall was busy talking into the car’s radio microphone, notifying headquarters as to what the Bakers reported. His nervousness was easily evident to his partner by the continuous spray of saliva that could be seen hitting not only the microphone but the dashboard and inner windshield glass as well. Upon breaking off radio contact he asked Patton, ‘Am I forgetting anything?"

Yea! Wipe all that saliva off the windshield. These wipers only work on the outside of the glass!

Before Kendall actually reached the glass with his hankie, Patton said, Only kidding, kid. Stay cool.

You know, headquarters didn’t say anything about back up being sent for sure. Shouldn’t we definitely have some?

Patton thought to himself, ‘The kid’s right. Here I am just one year from my pension and with my luck some idiot on drugs will get me right between the eyes!’

Patton became verbal again.

Tell Daddy we definitely want back up…ASAP! There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be covered in blue at a time like this.

Their vehicle was only a half mile from the intended destination when both men spotted the white convertible mentioned by Mrs. Baker. Then, after hearing from home-base that back-up was still another fifteen minutes away, Patton said, Son of a bitch!

Now with the car only a mere quarter mile from the white vehicle, precipitated the free flow of nervous perspiration from both men, Take your gun out and stay alert, kid!

Kendall fumbled with the removal of the gun, but only momentarily. As their squad car came to a full stop, directly behind the white car, both men had their revolvers in hand. With the ignition now turned off, a total silence engulfed the area. The two of them stepped out of the vehicle, carefully, their ‘38’s’ primed and loaded. As they visually scanned the darkness around them, Kendall spoke.

Looks like whoever was here is gone!

You could sense a sigh of relief by his tone.

Stay put, kid. I need to get a spotlight into those dark areas where the flat ground meets the trees.

Kendall found it increasingly difficult in having his brain inform his legs to stop shaking as he attempted to peer through the pitch blackness.

Patton had already reached under the driver’s seat and taken out a high-intensity, battery powered searchlight. Since lampposts were 120 feet apart in this area, the strongly emitting light source they produced could not match the super intense illumination provided by the hand held lamp Patton was readying for use. As he directed the bright light in a slow, methodical inspection of the outlying area, both mens eyes continued to fix their focal points on exactly where the light went. Patton took a moment to wipe off the moisture that had built up on his brow, then continued his inspection. Kendall remarked,

Maybe…nothing really bad happened.

His partner would have liked nothing better than to immediately be able to quickly confirm Kendall’s words as fact but something, call it an innate sense, told him that this was not meant to be. He knew that no one would leave this beautiful car unattended, with the soft top removed from view, unless that person had been forced to. Kendall chirped,

Maybe it was a bunch of Hari Krishna’s’, they all wear white."

Patton shrugged and remarked, Does your mother know that she has an idiot for a son? His searchlight continued the laborious task of illuminating this vast area…a few feet at a time. The serene peacefulness began to lull them both into a far more relaxed mood than when they arrived. Not realizing he was partially mimicking Kendall’s earlier remark, Patton thought to himself,

‘Maybe the group were interconnected in some way with the driver of the vehicle and drove off in another car to get gas… or something.’

His police trained brain quickly erased that ridiculous thought and had him concentrating intently on the original job at hand. Kendall was twitching like someone who needed a lavatory…real bad. In direct contrast, Patton was almost statuette in appearance, the only give away that he wasn’t, being the slow, sliding movement of the searchlight that continued to encapsulate small amounts of footage every second or two. Kendall was actually admiring the moon above when Patton’s excited voice rang out.

I see what appears to be a body on the ground, near that big tree!

Kendall began shaking as if he had Parkinson’s Disease. His mouth was open but emitting no sound. Patton left the searchlight on, resting it on the hood of the squad car and pointing directly at his find. The area of importance was approximately forty feet to his right, using the squad car’s mid-body section as a base starting point of side to side measurement. Add to this another forty five feet of distance to where the trees began to mass, directly across from the right side of the squad car, gave a fairly accurate idea as to the location of the object in question.

Throwing caution to the wind, Patton began running aloud a straight line course toward the still undetermined object. As he ran, he realized that he’d be better off by flicking on the small flashlight clipped to his belt as he palmed it with his left hand, leaving his right hand free to keep his revolver ready for action if need be.

Kendall’s path toward the object was more of a circular one that curved from left to right. He then came to a halt abruptly, about thirty feet left of Patton’s ending position. He stood motionless near a four foot high bush that was quite dense with growth. The green and brown mass measured about six feet in length and flanked Kendall evenly on both sides.

Patton, had by now, confirmed the fact that the object was a human body. It belonged to a young woman with blonde hair that he estimated to be in her ‘early 20’s’. She was seemingly fully clothed but either dead or unconscious. Her attire consisted of a silky blouse, leather skirt with metallic patches, and leather shoes that also looked to contain metal bits. Like it or not, the outfit looked expensive. She lay there with the right side of her face nestled on the ground as he searched for tell-tale signs of physical injury. He couldn’t find any. In fact, except for her not being in a conscious state, she could have been mistaken for someone taking a leisurely nap.

Being the experienced policeman that he was, Patton was careful so as to not move her in any way. He then yelled out toward Kendall,

Go back to the squad car and tell ‘base’ we’re going to need medical assistance! I’ve got a young woman here who is either dead or unconscious!

Thinking Kendall would act on his words, he returned his full attentiveness to the girl. He wished he had not faked his way through the triage training he was sent to on more than one occasion. Had he attended, and absorbed some knowledge from it, perhaps he would have more confidence in ascertaining if she had a live pulse. Another thought then occurred to him and he removed the shield-shaped badge attached to his shirt before placing it face-up on the ground, directly under the girl’s nostrils. This was followed by the pointing of his flashlight at the badge. He paid special attention to finely buffed portions of mirror-like metal on the center portion, looking for the fog that breath would bring forth from the girl’s nasal cavities. The cloudy mist appeared immediately and brought forth a huge sigh of relief from him. Once again, he yelled out to Kendall,

She’s definitely breathing!

His next task would be to get a blanket out of the trunk to wrap her in for warmth. As he trotted back to the squad car, his peripheral vision noticed Kendall’s back positioned towards him. Patton wasn’t aware of the fact that Kendall had not moved one iota of ground since arriving at the bush and believed, therefore, that his requests for medical assistance had been acted on. Upon reaching the vehicle, he heard chatter on the car’s radio and broke into the conversation momentarily.

This is Patton. We are still waiting for back-up and what’s the ETA (estimated time of arrival) for the ambulance we ordered for the girl?

A bewildered dispatcher then replied,

This is the first I’m hearing that you need an ambulance. And did you say it’s for a girl?

What are you, on drugs behind that desk? Kendall called in about an unconscious girl…didn’t he?

Not this office. Maybe he accidently dialed his mommy instead.

Well, get me an ambulance…pronto!

Will do.

Patton mumbled to himself,

‘I don’t know what’s wrong with this kid. Everyone at headquarters thinks he’s a ‘wuss’ and I’m beginning to believe they’re right.’

With blanket in hand, he ran first to the girl…laying it on her…then headed for a confrontation with ‘mommy’s boy’. Standing next to Kendall now, he yapped,

Why didn’t you call in the information I gave you, stupid? Kendall hadn’t heard a word. Before Patton was about to begin a verbal assault, he glanced at the patch of ground directly behind the bush Kendall’s eyes were fixed upon. An immediate chill ran along the length of Patton’s spine, all the way from his lumbar region to the cervical portion located in his neck. There, exposed by the light of a nearby lamp-post, lay a young woman with dark hair who appeared to be of similar age to the other one. Patton’s verbal utterance was only three words long but chilling in tone.

Oh my God!

The words served as a catalyst in bringing Kendall out of the stone-like funk he had been in. Quivering, he said, Who could do such a thing?

Demonic animals, that’s who!

Kendall was visibly shaking now, as he displayed a dizzy-like unsteadiness while he made his way to a nearby tree. He began to vomit up all the remains of his six o’clock meal, consumed more than three hours earlier.

Perhaps it was the eighteen plus years of seniority that Patton had over his junior partner which kept him from heaving up his guts. Or possibly it was just that he had learned from experience to force himself to swallow hard when the taste of stomach residue rose to his throat, thereby sending it back down his throat.

The reason for all this intestinal volatility was understandable when one realized that the girl was fully naked, her head resting in a pool of blood that trailed up to a crushed nose and mouth. In addition, she was purple-ish in areas of her arms, neck, legs, chest and stomach. The large indentation in the forehead area, just above her left eye, could very possibly have come from the large softball size rock that lay near her. Her eyes were open wide in a terror-like stare that most of us have only seen in horror movies like Frankenstein.

Patton saw no need to employ his light and mirror routine on this young woman. As he told Kendall to call in for the homicide and forensic boys, Kendall replied,

Make sure they do a sweep of this whole area for the animals that did this!

Kendall’s tone, replete with well placed anger, told Patton that he had his partner back again. Upon completing their tasks, the two of them heard the sound of a siren increasing in loudness. This led Kendall to state,

I think our back-up is here.

The car connected to the siren came to a stop near their squad car and when the two men inside it exited and approached Patton, he said,

You two Johnnie-come-latelys really took your sweet ass time in getting here!

Patton’s observation was correct on two counts. The delay…and the fact that both men were named John. Since Patton was the ranking member on site he directed the two men to do a full sweep of the area, criss-crossing the various interconnecting roadways, and further informed them about the ‘lotsa white’ description given by Mrs. Baker concerning the gang of ten or twelve individuals.

The two officers quickly returned to their car and sped off into the night. After a few minutes, the sound of multiple sirens could be heard screeching through the silence. Two new vehicles arrived at the roadside shoulder, with one being the EMS medical van and the other a 4-door grey sedan that just oozed with the look of an unmarked detectives car.

Patton directed the two EMS men to the two bodies using a pointed finger on each hand to guide their route. Kendall ran alongside with them, mentioning that one was dead and the other still breathing but unconscious. Four men had exited the sedan and consisted of two forensic specialists and two homicide detective types. They were named Lt. Cody and Sgt. Wexler. Cody would be running this operation and Patton all but ignored Wexler, concentrating his full attention to Cody. Patton then decided to ignore Cody…but only for moments as he called out to Kendall.

Kendall, give these two forensic men your assistance! The two men knew Patton, and he them. They gave a nod of ‘thanks’ to him before moving into the field of play. Patton now was ready to give Cody his undivided attention.

The forensic men were busy going from the two young women’s areas to the white convertible. Using yellow police tape they proceeded to enclose what they deemed to be the complete crime scene area. In the meantime, Patton was giving Cody all the details as he remembered them, starting with the Bakers and carrying on through to the condition of each of the two young women. After about fifteen minutes, Wexler checked on the results, if any, the two ‘John’s’ had come up with regarding their sweep of the areas highways and byways. He walked back to where Cody and Patton were, having come from the radio in the grey sedan, and said,

It seems as if these ten or twelve hooligans just disappeared into the night. Drew and Harrick haven’t come up with anything as of yet. I told them to keep at it and check with the other towns units to see if they come up with anything.

Cody replied, Good work, Sarge.

The two forensic men were now by Cody’s side and one of them, a specialist named Carleton, handed Cody a driver’s license who’s photo was confirmed by Patton as being the blonde, unconscious girl. Even though he was no longer holding the license, Carleton said,

Her name is Jill Jameson, age 21, residing at 15 Monarch Court in the town of Oak Hollow.

Cody sarcastically replied, I can read.

The EMS boys will see to it that her parents are contacted and directed to ‘County’.

That would be County Hospital, the only one in Bretontown.

What about the other one?

Couldn’t find anything, Lieutenant.

Did EMS confirm that she was dead?

Carleton nodded in the affirmative.

When I get to the hospital, perhaps the Jameson girl’s parents can shed some light on who she is. Who knows how long their daughter is going to be unconscious. She is still fully unconscious…right?

Up until the time she was loaded onto the van, Lieutenant. Cody looked at the other forensic man and said, what tidbits do you have for me?

We have some blood splatter drops near the blonde girl’s position and about a quart near the dead girl’s position. Plenty of foot print indentations that we will make molds of and oh yes…this.

He handed Cody a small zip-lock, transparent bag that contained a piece of white fabric that measured ½ inch wide and 2-1/4 inches long. Cody inquired,

What do you make of it?

I’d say it’s a belt loop that came off a pair of white jeans.

Could it belong to one of the girls?

I doubt it. It’s location was near the blonde’s position and she was wearing a dressy outfit. As far as the dead girl, nothing in the form of apparel…and I mean nothing, was left behind.

Cody said, You two guys stay here with Sgt. Wexler and make sure we don’t miss anything. And that car needs a total dusting for prints before you have it towed into the police pound. Wexler asked,

I can reach you at ‘County’ if something develops?

Cody nodded ’yes’ and said,

Which one of you two guys has a Polaroid photo of the dead girl? I want to show it to the Jameson girl’s parents to see if they can I.D. her.

Flipping through an array of photos, Carleton handed a specific one to Cody while stating, This one relates to the side of her face that was least damaged.

Cody proceeded to initial the receipt from Carleton needed him to sign regarding evidence. He then headed to the sedan for the drive to the hospital. Wexler and the forensic men would be stuck here until at least midnight, for that would be when the next team of forensic specialists would arrive to work through the night. Cody wasn’t ever involved in forensics but you don’t become a police lieutenant in homicide without a talent for covering all bases during an investigation. He knew the crime scene sat smack, dab at the edge of a mountainous terrain which would have a steep cliff not very far within the nearby forest of trees. Therefore, before entering his car, he yelled out to the men left behind,

Make sure any forensic people entering that area of trees realizes there’s an edge of a mountain to avoid!

He noted that the men did in fact hear him when Wexler sent him a lazy salute with his hand. As he drove off, Wexler spoke to the others.

We’re the whole show, men. No reinforcements until midnight.

That would be when the grave yard shift began. It was an apt description.

The rolling gurney was being wheeled out of County Hospital’s Emergency Room which was located on the main level. This mobile hospital bed was a highly maneuverable vehicle in the right hands and its driver was a male orderly that handled it through stops, starts, and turns as smoothly as could be expected. Also accompanying the patient filled device was a nurse and a neuro specialist named Dr. Aronson. Having a definite liking for sports cars he marveled at the way the orderly drove this go kart…of sorts. Once they entered the elevator at the end of a long corridor, the nurse informed the operator,

Fifth floor, Jose!

Extensive examinations conducted in the ‘ER’ had resulted in the finding of no damage to either the brain or body of the young Jameson woman, who’s body occupied the gurney on a trip to a patient’s room. Her unconsciousness was of concern at the present time but Aronson, as well as Dr. Petri who was the neurology department head, were confident that she would awaken soon. This reasoning was largely based on the fact that the state-of-the-art equipment recently donated by a wealthy female benefactor from Bretontown had been used to evaluate the girl. In fact, modernization of the complete 5th Floor was also paid for via a grant from this generous woman who was now in the care of a posh retirement home for the elderly. The only proviso she had insisted on was that all renovated patient rooms on the 5th floor must display one wall mounted ‘Christ on the crucifixion’ cross.

The unconscious girl had been placed in Room 5A and lay on her back, securely strapped down for her own protection in the event she awakened in an agitated state or displayed said agitation while still unconscious. Her parents were at the hospital but had not, as yet, been allowed to see her. Dr. Aronson had assured them that she was found to have no physical injury to her person…and none mental as well, based off the information garnered from the new equipment that involved brain scans. Mr. and Mrs. Jameson fidgeted nervously as they waited in the visitors lounge at the other end of the floor.

As Aronson proceeded to make notations in Jill Jameson’s medical chart he was standing nearest her feet. Then, suddenly, the attending nurse called out, Doctor! She’s awake!

Aronson quickly placed the chart in the holster at the end of the girl’s bed, then hastened to her side. The nurse followed his lead, approaching from the other side of the bed.

Nice to have you back, Ms. Jameson. I’m Dr. Aronson and this pretty lady to your left is Nurse Ruiz. You’re at County Hospital and were brought here from the highway where your car was found at the side of the road. Remember?

The young woman looked to be a bit disoriented and then applied physical pressure to a strap holding her down, just below the area of her breasts. Before Aronson could get her to relax the tension she was applying to the belt, she blurted, Where’s Melissa?

In response to the loud tone of her voice, Aronson spoke in a low one.

Melissa is downstairs and I will get more information for you in a few minutes, but first I need to ask you a few questions.

He changed the subject by adding, Your parents are down the hall and we should be able to bring them in quite soon.

Still talking in a loud tone she replied, Is Melissa alright?

Aronson didn’t enjoy avoiding the full truth but his inner doctor’s brain was trained to do what he felt was best for the patient. His voice became more assertive and a bit louder than normal as he said, Where were you and Melissa going in the car. Home?

Looking confused she replied, In the car? We were at the club…and…oh! We did leave in the car…I think.

It was clear that her recollection of events had been compromised by something. Aronson thought it to be ‘shock.’ He then asked, Do you remember anything after the two of you left the club?

A sad look took hold of Jill’s face as she shook her head ‘no.’ Her strength seemed to leave her as she wilted in the bed, releasing all tension she had been applying to her restraints. Then, just the opposite occurred. She was struggling with all the strength she could muster with regard to the straps and thrashed her head and neck from one side to the other repeatedly. The nurse asked, What should I do, Doctor?

Get my bag…over there on the chair. We’ll have to sedate her. Hurry!

She rushed to the chair, grabbed the bag and was now next to him, having already opened it. Aronson hadn’t noticed the nurse’s return, for he was pre-occupied as he concentrated his attention on Jill’s facial muscles. She looked as if something was terrorizing her, and Aronson noticed that as her head jerked left and right, the eyes remained fixed on the wall directly across the room. Attempting to follow the path of her stare, he deduced that the only thing on that wall was the ‘Christ on the cross’ plaque. In order to see if his ‘Sherlock Holmes-like’ hunch was correct he instructed Ruiz to cover the plaque with a towel that sat on a nearby chair. Many Latin people are extremely ‘God fearing’ individuals and this explained why she had to make the ‘sign of the cross’ with her hand before she placed the towel over the plaque.

Jill calmed down almost immediately and Aronson now knew he had deduced correctly. Looking at a bewildered Nurse Ruiz, Aronson calmed remarked, We won’t be needing that sedation kit right now. He then attempted to find out from Jill the reason she was so uncomfortable looking at the cross. Her reply was, I don’t know. It just makes me very nervous.

We won’t concern ourselves with that right now. You remain here with Nurse Ruiz and I’ll see about getting permission for your parents to come visit.

As he began leaving the room, Jill meekly said, Tell Melissa, I’m alright. She’s such a worry-wart.

The words sent a chill down Aronson’s spine. Sure, he was a true professional in every sense of the word but we all have emotional limits. He was just somewhat better at masking his feelings than most of us.

Aronson made his way down the long corridor and as soon as he reached the visitors lounge a petite woman was in his face. We’re the Jameson’s! Please take us to our daughter! She is alright, isn’t she?

I’ll take you to her directly, but first let me say that she has no physical damage and is awake. Jill is having difficulty remembering events after she and her friend Melissa departed from a club they had attended. Do you two know the full name, address and phone number of this Melissa?

Mrs. Jameson replied. Of course. Our families are the best of friends.

Mr. Jameson interjected, Is Melissa here also? Is she alright?

Aronson held up a finger that constituted a request for patience. I’ll explain as best I can…everything I know. Jill and another girl were found on the shoulder of a desolate roadway and neither of them was conscious….

Mrs. Jameson interrupted excitedly. They were in an automobile accident?

Aronson help up that finger again, adding the words, No! they weren’t in an accident but please refrain from interrupting until I’ve explained all I know.

Mr. Jameson took hold of his wife’s hand and nodded in an up and down motion toward his wife. She nodded back after taking a deep breath. Aronson continued.

"Jill was rushed here and, as I mentioned previously, was found to have no physical damage to her person.