Out of the Fog

By J. Carl Goodman

Harvey England, a retiree age 74 who is widowed with no children, returns home from a good day meeting with and helping college students majoring in engineering. He feels very poorly and is just wondering if he should call someone when he collapses and remembers no more. Five months later he awakens, comi

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Book Writers
• Release date: Aug 30, 2023
• ISBN: 9781088298169

Book preview

CRITICAL POINT!

The Third Novel with the Team

J. CARL GOODMAN

[e-mail]

[www.jcarlgoodman.com]

Critical Point!

Copyright © 2023 by J. Carl Goodman

All rights reserved.

LCCN: 2023907348

ISBN: 979-8-35-387300-6

All the content used in this book belongs solely to the author. No part of this shall be reproduced, sold, or transmitted in any medium by the third party except after the author's approval.

Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Names, characters, and places are products of the author's imagination.

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to those who literally put their lives at risk to both prevent and solve crimes against our seniors. Their skills, knowledge, courage, and persistence help to give many of us peace of mind and closure. As crimes against the senior population increase, so does our need for these fine professionals. Thank you!"

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Foreword

PROLOGUE

Chapter 01 | CHRISTMAS PLANNING AND ACTIVITIES

Chapter 02 | IT'S A SUNDAY, BUT IT'S BUSY!

Chapter 03 |FIRST HOLIDAY SHOPPING TRIP!

Chapter 04 | THE BOYS' SECRET TRIP!

Chapter 05 | PARTY PLANNING

Chapter 06 | PARTY FAVORS!

Chapter 07 | CELEBRATION!

Chapter 08| THE NEXT DAY

Chapter 09| CHRISTMAS EVE!

Chapter 10| MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Chapter 11 | TRIP TO THE HOUSE AND A LIST!

CHAPTER 12 | A WEEK OF SHOPPING!

CHAPTER 13 | THE FIRST DAY SHOPPING …A WIN!

CHAPTER 14 | SHOPPING FOR A WEEK?

CHAPTER 15 | NEW YEARS EVE!

CHAPTER 16 |TRAGEDY!

CHAPTER 17 | TIME WILL TELL!

CHAPTER 18 | TORY'S AMAZING HEROICS!

CHAPTER 19| WHAT A WAY TO CELEBRATE 2021!

CHAPTER 20| WALT, TORY, AND THE ILLINOIS STATE POLICE!

CHAPTER 21 | THE VIDEO IS EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY!

CHAPTER 22 | AT THE SCENE!

CHAPTER 23 | CRITICAL POINT!

CHAPTER 24 | HARV IS BACK!

CHAPTER 26 |HARV LEARNS WHAT HAPPENED!

CHAPTER 27 |CRIME SCENE EVIDENCE!

CHAPTER 28 |MONDAY'S VISIT TO SEE HARVEY!

CHAPTER 29 |PUTTING THEIR HEADS TOGETHER!

CHAPTER 30 |CRITICAL CONVERSATIONS!

CHAPTER 31 | ANSWERS AT LAST?

CHAPTER 32 | NOLAN DOES HIS WORK!

CHAPTER 33 | THE HUNT IS ON!

CHAPTER 34 | GETTING CLOSER AND CLOSER!

CHAPTER 35 |GAINING MOMENTUM!

CHAPTER 36 | NEW DISCOVERIES!

CHAPTER 37 | EXTRACTING THE INFORMATION!

CHAPTER 38 | WHAT THE DEEP-DIG FINDS!

CHAPTER 39 | THEY CONVENE!

CHAPTER 41 | GETTING THE GOODS!

CHAPTER 42 | IS THERE EVIDENCE???

CHAPTER 43 | RILING HER UP TO GET THE GOODS!

CHAPTER 44 | THE CALL THEY'VE WAITED FOR!

CHAPTER 45 |WATCHING NOLAN'S GOOD WORK!

CHAPTER 46 | GIL HAS BEEN HARD AT WORK!

CHAPTER 47 | WALT TAKES HIM DOWN!

CHAPTER 48 | TORY GETS THE NEWS!

CHAPTER 49 | MAKING HARVEY HAPPY!

CHAPTER 50 | HARVEY'S REHAB; TORY'S NEW BEGINNINGS!

CHAPTER 51 | HARVEY IS RELEASED!

CHAPTER 52 | UNTIL THE TRIAL!

CHAPTER 53 | THE HOUSE MAKING PROGRESS!

CHAPTER 54 | THE INVESTIGATION MOVES ON!

Chapter 55 | MARCHING TO PEORIA!

Chapter 56 | SURPRISE OF SURPRISES!

Chapter 57 | FINISHING TOUCHES ON GROUNDHOG DAY!

Chapter 58 | CRED PACKS!

About The Author

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

It simply amazes me the number of people who help and are necessary to make each book successful!

First of all, and typically, my grateful thanks to my wife of over 54 years, Becky, for her support and continued help in developing and naming characters!  She is the humblest and most giving person I know!

Also, I would like to thank my adult children, Todd and Sara, for their support and encouragement.

Again, great thanks to Wendell Amos, Walt King and Janice Keebler for the use of their likenesses for the covers. 

And, most of all, for the readers who have been willing to purchase my books, enjoy them and post fine reviews. 

I have learned that it's very difficult for a new author to find commercial success, but my readers and even fans have helped so much.  I certainly hope that Critical Point is a story that you enjoy and that draws you in!  I really don't want you to lose sleep because of my books, but the words, I couldn’t put it down, are the most meaningful praise I can receive.

Lastly, of course, to our seniors who have set the example, made our country great, and have taught us about hard work, personal responsibility, integrity, openness, saving, self-discipline, giving and helping others! It is also this generation of responsible people who end up during their golden years helping their adult children, taking care of grandchildren (even to the point of raising them), volunteering to help others and their communities, and doing all this while spending their health and treasure for others.  I am in awe of them!  That is why I keep writing!

A final thanks to you all.  You are very special to me!

Foreword

Senior folks matter! When cruel people scam them out of their money (savings, investments, checking accounts, pensions, and social security), the chances of repayment are slim to none! There are many opportunities, laws, and organizations to help, but they are chronically understaffed and underfunded.

Beyond the illegal conduct that hurts so many seniors, service providers can be unprepared, sometimes uncaring, and even incompetent. In fact, agreements to care for a senior that cause the loss of their assets do not make the agreements illegal. Service providers who choose this noble and necessary profession are easily overwhelmed by the size of their responsibilities. Emotionally investing in each person's situation would ruin the best of them! There is even a term used for this state. It is called Compassion Breakdown. In fact, it is a condition well-known to police officers who regularly deal with those who have been mugged, beaten, raped, and abused. In order to handle their cases with objectivity and evidence, they must avoid becoming emotionally involved. It would make them less effective and ruin their lives!

Scams are so common! Today (7/7/21), about an hour ago, I returned from running to the post office to mail a book, and as I entered my wife's gift shop, Cabin Treasures, a customer had just read the poster about Out of the Fog. As a head cashier for a major building supplies store, she relayed that a woman approached her to buy a large and expensive order. She provided a credit card, obviously not hers, for the purchase. She said she had permission to use the card belonging to her sister. The store refused the card, and as the woman left angry, the manager called the police. They managed to apprehend her in the parking lot. The woman worked at a senior living home. She had a notebook with names, credit card numbers, bank account numbers, social security numbers, and other information about the people in her care!

For this book's Foreword, rather than dwell on those who require much care and may be less able than their former selves, I will approach it from the standpoint of able seniors, willing and capable of doing an excellent job and wishing to remain in the workforce. The population of older Americans is projected to grow more quickly than the population as a whole. The Census Bureau estimated about 36% of the U.S. population was 50 or older in 2020, and that share is projected to grow to about 40% by 2050. Older Americans are also working in larger numbers than ever before. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of Americans 55 and older either working or actively looking for work has more thandoubled since the 1990s, with about 37 million older Americans in the workforce as of March 2021. Age discrimination leads to older workers being laid off, not hired, or not promoted in disproportionate numbers. The 2020 study, "a joint project from AARP and The Economist Intelligence Unit," found that pushing older Americans out of the workforce costs the economy billions each year. Those losses could rise to trillions within the next few decades. In fact, a recent article by NextAvenue.org stated;

If 40 million Americans were suffering from the same severe problem, you might think it would be the subject of considerable media attention, a host of government programs, infusions of business capital, and a hot topic of the national conversation.        

That is what I thought several years ago when I began researching the reality that "nearly half of all people over 55 — one in seven Americans—had no money saved and risked heading into poverty or certainly into dire conditions" that would make their lives desperate for decades to come.

The effects of age discrimination are evident in older Americans' outcomes in the job market. The AARP study included an analysis of pre-pandemic unemployment data. It found that, on average, men over 50 who lost their jobs spent about five more weeks' unemployed than men under 50. Women over 50 had unemployment stints on average a whopping 13 weeks longer than women under 50. That suggests it's harder for older workers to find new jobs than their younger peers.

Age discrimination is costly. The AARP study estimated that the U.S. lost $850 billion in 2018 because of the lost economic activity from older workers being stymied in their careers. They project this could increase to nearly $4 trillion in lost GDP by 2050. The loss of knowledge can be crippling to an organization! How is their knowledge saved and passed on as many adult workers reach retirement age (10,000 per day in the U.S.)? There are now firms that specialize in knowledge capture to help organizations retain the knowledge of those with decades of experience. It's not uncommon for organizations to reinvent at much cost, lost institutional knowledge! Many retired seniors have even wished to stay more active in their professions for a long time.

Why should such excellent people either work full-time or nothing? Wouldn't a part-time work transition prior to completing retirement when the person's excellent knowledge could be captured and retained make sense?

Let's think about our formidable, smart, knowledgeable, and capable seniors and how much they can help us move forward!

PROLOGUE

On Friday, December 11, 2020, Harvey went to pick up Tory at about 8:45 a.m. for breakfast. She was ready for Harv and immediately let him in when he rang the bell. She grasped his hand as he put it gently on her shoulder and was obviously pleased to see him. It was very cold as Harv walked her to the car. He had left the Edge running to keep it warm. With a little help, Tory moved from her chair to the passenger seat. Harv put her chair in the luggage compartment and joined her in the front seat. As they drove to Baytowne, they began speaking of the upcoming Holidays and coming up with ideas. They agreed that they'd get Walt involved in the conversation. When they arrived, Walt had the batter for French toast ready and was cutting up cantaloupe melon. Tory hugged Walt as a greeting and mentioned that she hadn't had French toast in ages. 

Walt chuckled as he said, Well, you will have some this morning! As they enjoyed Walt's treat, they talked about their plans for Christmas. They just talked about ideas and threw out their thoughts,

Harv said, Let's get a little organized here. Let's talk about when and where to shop, what we want to see and do, and who we want to be with!

Tory jumped right in. She was a natural organizer! She stated, Let's start with want we want to do. I know the C-U Symphony has a wonderful Christmas concert, and I would like to go. Any other requests? 

Walt interjected, I'd like to go to the Christmas parade. They both looked at Harvey, wondering what his preference would be. He said he'd like to attend the University's Christmas choral concert. They all decided to find the dates and timings and go together. 

Tory then asked, Are you guys up for some entertaining? Both Harv and Walt nodded their heads questioningly. Tory went on. We have many friends we should have over. Nolan and his wife Helen, Skitch, Brenda Williams, Charlene, Ted Hame, J.B. James, Andrea Carlin, Neil Goldman, and even friends from Wildstone Carmel. Both men were a bit overwhelmed.

Harv said, My apartment isn't big enough!

Walt commented, Maybe they'll let us use the main event center for Baytown. It's large, beautiful, has a kitchen, fireplace…it would be great for entertaining! And it would provide great memories for our friends in Carmel! Let's see if we can do it!" 

Yay, chimed Tory.

Harv was on the phone with Marilyn immediately. Marilyn was, as usual, pleased to speak with him. When asked about using the gathering room, she said, That's what it's there for! And very few people ever use it. You'll have to pay the $150.00 cleaning fee. When is it available? Harv asked. 

Marilyn responded, Both the 21st and 22nd, Monday and Tuesday, if you want it. 

I'll let you know real soon, said Harv. He then turned to the others and told them what he had learned. They both nodded their heads and smiled. Which day? asked Harv. They all agreed on Tuesday, December 22. Tory was already on the phone with Janice in Carmel. 

Once she hung up, she told the boys, Janice will drive her van and ask Joe to drive. Janice will pass along our invitation to the others. 

Walt asked, Which others? 

Tory laughingly responded, I guess whoever she wants to invite! We'll just have to know beforehand. 

Harv was back on the phone with Marilyn reserving the room. Marilyn asked him how many people would be coming, and Harv responded, I don't know yet, but it could be many! 

Marilyn suggested, With a big group, you may want to hire a caterer so you can enjoy and interact without trying to do it yourself. Harv took note and thanked her. 

While speaking with Tory and Walt, they agreed to hire a caterer. Tory said she had heard that The Round Barn Caterers were excellent, but they should also speak with others. They decided that they would call providers this afternoon. After all, they didn't have lots of time. They also realized that it would be a big event if everybody came! By this time, Harv was all in! The money was not an issue, and it would provide a wonderful time for their friends! 

Harv mentioned, "Ya know, guys, with the place taken care of and getting a caterer lined up, I'm not worried about that. But if we have Janice, Fontaine, Joe, Abigail, Gil and his wife Penni, Dennis, DeMarcus, Del, Ann, Shimsong, and maybe even Maxine, Leticia, Tom, Tia, etc., finding accommodations will be difficult. 

Walt interjected, It's good to include them, but Maxine, Leticia, Tom, Tia, and others may not be able to come if they are on the work schedule. 

Tory said, We should invite them anyway. 

After agreeing, while Tory called caterers, Harv called Marilyn and invited her and her husband to come. It would be very nice. She agreed. Next, he asked her if there were any accommodations for their friends from out of town. She said she'd think about it. Harv then took a chance and called Wildstone Champaign. When the phone was answered, he told the receptionist who he was, and she immediately recognized his name. He asked to speak with the new administrator, and as he held, he wondered who it would be. As the person picked up, she answered, This is Chris Shaw. May I help you? Harvey asked if she was the new administrator, to which she answered in the affirmative. Like many others at Wildstone Champaign, Harv identified himself, and she knew who he was. 

She joked, Am I in trouble already? 

Harv was very informal and said, Certainly not with me. 

Ms. Shaw told Harv to call her Chris, which he did. They conversed briefly about his tragic experience, and she was genuinely interested in how he was doing. His comments were all positive. Harv then explained that he was calling to ask if she might know of any accommodations for his holiday visitors. He explained that it would be for just one night on December 22 and that his visitors would be coming from Wildstone Carmel. Chris seemed surprised that Harv knew so many from another Wildstone facility, so Harvey just said they had been visiting there and met some new friends. Chris said that she might be able to come up with some help. She explained that the residents of Wildstone often had family and friends who would come to visit, and those with one-bedroom or studio apartments didn't have room for guests. They had established several rooms that could be used temporarily by visitors or their guests. She told Harv she'd check to see their availability and give them special rates because they were Wildstone residents.

Harv thanked her.

As they closed the conversation, Chris said, I'll let you know by tomorrow afternoon. And please come and meet me. I really want to get to know you. 

Harv agreed as he said, Let's start at the Christmas Party! Please come and bring your significant other! 

Chris Shaw agreed. Once he was off the phone, he told the others about the conversation. They were hopeful.

Chapter 01 | CHRISTMAS PLANNING AND ACTIVITIES

It was going to be a very busy season! The Team was going to go to the Living Christmas Tree celebration, the C-U Symphony Christmas Concert, Christmas tree shopping, and subsequently decorating Harv's apartment. And then there was the Christmas Party planning. On this Saturday morning, Chris Shaw, Wildstone Champaign's new administrator, called to tell Harv that they have ten rooms available for the night of the 22nd, each with a private bathroom. A couple of them could accommodate two people if necessary. Harv was very pleased, and The Team went to Wildstone the morning of the 12th to meet with Chris Shaw. She was a very pleasant, smart, and articulate woman, and their friends at Wildstone Champaign were happy with the decision to appoint her as the Administrator. It was good to meet her. That information helped The Team organize the party and invite their friends from Wildstone Carmel right away!

In addition, they had to sit down together and make some decisions on purchases for the new house, paint colors, window dressings, appliances, etc. Many other purchases like linens, towels, appliances, tableware, and kitchen and bathroom accessories would be determined by the colors and furniture they chose. There were also many tools to purchase, and Tory thought she'd leave that to the men …well, maybe! While they still had time and weren't limited to getting it all done by Christmas, it would be fun to shop for the new house. While they were all excited, Tory was constantly planning, dreaming, and looking forward to the new adventure! They had already talked about deciding on furniture soon, so they would have plenty of time if it had to be ordered. It often took weeks, if not months, to order custom furniture and fabrics!

They decided over lunch that day who would be invited to their soiree! Invitees would include Gil Swensen and his wife Penni, Nolan and his wife Helen, Skitch and whoever he invited for the evening, and from Wildstone Champaign, Brenda, Glenda, Linda, Chris Shaw, John Moran, Jason, Charlene, Neil Goldman, and Anrea Carlin. In addition, they would invite Tia Lang, Melanie, Tom, Leticia, Maxine, and their friends from Carmel. Because of the fast-approaching date, they decided to call immediately and follow up with invitations. They would ask some of their friends in Carmel to take on some of the responsibilities for notifying others. They also noted that people could bring their significant others but kindly RSVP with their names.

Walt said, This could be a major event as they discussed their party! Tory agreed, saying, "Maybe we should contact the U of I and find a string quartet to play for the evening. Both Harvey and Walt immediately agreed! Walt decided he would call the Music Department at the University to start looking.

They decided to make the calls right after they finished lunch. It went surprisingly well. After speaking with Tory, both Joe and Janice in Carmel agreed to invite the others on the list. Harv called Nolan, who agreed to contact Skitch, Melanie, and Tia. Harv called Jason, John, and Brenda. Tory called Chris, Charlene, Linda, and Glenda. Walt called Neil and Andrea. He then started searching for a good string quartet. It was a very busy but rewarding afternoon. Everyone sounded excited, and Walt received some excellent recommendations from the Music School at the U. of I. He felt he could find someone by Monday or Tuesday. He was really led to the Walden String Quartet due to their reputation.

They all felt very good about their accomplishments this particular Saturday. Once they took a deep breath, they decided to go take a look in detail at the gathering facility at Baytowne. Harv called Marilyn, who said she'd meet them there in a few minutes. The Team bundled up for the cold and took a walk across Baytowne to their main room. Tory had a heavy blanket over her lap in the wheelchair. Marilyn was there waiting for them. The room would be perfect! It was large and open, with wonderful furnishings for a gathering. Leather couches, chairs, tables, and other furnishings would provide seating and space. The beautiful gas fireplace would certainly add to the ambiance. At the front of the room was an area around large bay windows that would be perfect for the quartet. Toward the back of the area and to the right were a full kitchen and a very long bar for serving food and drinks. The other wall was glass, allowing a view into the outstanding fitness center with drapes that could be closed. There were restrooms available too. It would work out well. The Team agreed on the room and had them add the $150.00 fee to his rent. Now, they would have to engage the quartet, hire a caterer and get confirmation from