Sage Advice to Cover Up a Murder! (Outer Banks Baker Mystery Series Book 2) (6 page)

It had been one of the worst days of his long career with the Kill Devil Hills police department. Ever since Cory dropped the bombshell this morning about the poisoned bread found in the gullets of the dead seagulls, he had felt ill. Most of the day he spent waiting. Mostly he waited on forensics to complete their tests. Cory apparently kept a lot of Mr. Hawkins’ things from Oregon Inlet. None of which the young detective had told his partner or his boss about. The chief was furious with him, and with Jason for not knowing about it.

The chief had only agreed to open the case quietly so as not to alert the news press or incur the wrath of Mrs. Hawkins. However, that idea was blown to bits when the Channel 9 news crew showed up with blaring lights and a loud reporter demanding answers. He trusted that no one in the department had notified the media. No, this was Joey Hawkins’ way of manipulating the department to step up their game. The chief cursed the man as he instructed his assistant to schedule a department press conference for later that afternoon.

That wasn’t the only reason to fling curses at Mr. Hawkins’ son. By midday, a nerdy looking man in his thirties arrived bearing a pocket protector, large briefcase, and a FBI badge. Joey had sent him there to conduct his own evaluations of the evidence. “Just the headache I need,” the chief fumed, “a Fed getting in the way.” He barked at Cory to find the agent suitable office space to conduct his investigation. What had been ruled death by natural causes was now a media circus complete with a know-it-all Federal agent. Early retirement was looking good to the chief about then.

The press conference went about as well as could be expected. The chief informed the public that some evidence had come to light that ‘may’ indicate Mr. Williams Hawkins did not die of natural causes as had been previously ruled. He announced that the lead detective on the case was Cory Bronson and that he would be working closely with Mr. Elijah Young, a FBI agent on assignment from Washington, DC. The information that the FBI was now involved triggered a storm of questions that the chief gladly passed along to Cory. The astute young reporter from Channel 9 piped up to ask why the senior detective, Jason Payne, was not the lead on the case. Both the chief and Jason cringed. The chief did not want it known to the public that the detective was dating a probable suspect so he claimed “No comment.” Actually, the rest of the press conference questions were answered either as “No comment” or “We cannot comment at this time due to this is an ongoing investigation”. Cory seemed to enjoy the three ring circus which he’d started. Jason knew this was the young cop’s chance to shine. He just wished he didn’t have to do it at his lady love’s expense.

It didn’t take long for the news to spread about the investigation. The news stations had covered the press conference live. Within half an hour, the phones were all lit up. Finally, the chief instructed his assistant to either direct calls to Detective Bronson or to just let it go to voicemail. There was one call he had to take though – the call from Mrs. Sophie Hawkins. The widow was highly displeased with the course of events. Her ear-splitting rampage was heard throughout the office as the chief had to place the receiver down on his desk. Her shrieking was so painful he could not hold the phone to his ear. As she ranted, the chief rubbed his throbbing temples and choked back two more Excedrin for his headache.

Jason thought the chief’s day couldn’t possibly get any worse. He was wrong. The Johnson’s attorney, Peter Andrews, stopped by for a visit. Although he considered it peculiar for the man to be interested in the investigation, he shrugged it off. Nothing about this case made any sense anyway. Jason couldn’t hear what was being said in the enclosed office, but he could see the exasperated look on his boss’s face. Cory even remarked how extraordinary it was to have such an eclectic group of people interested in Mr. Hawkins’ death. The younger detective certainly seemed to be enjoying himself with all the fuss swirling around the department now. Jason thought sarcastically to himself, “Will serve him right when it comes out Mr. Hawkins did die of natural causes.”

Just as Jason was about to leave for the day, his partner rushed over to his desk. Cory had spent the majority of the afternoon with the FBI guy, Elijah Young. They had taken over the forensics lab and ran tests of all the items still in police custody. At some point, someone would have to reclaim the items that were already given back to Mrs. Hawkins. Jason vowed that someone would not be him. Without so much as a word, Cory yanked Jason away to the lab. Once the door closed behind them, he excitedly explained that they had discovered how the birds, and probably Mr. Hawkins, were poisoned. Grinning from ear to ear, he held up a brown paper bag with the label, “Kill Devil Delicacies”, emblazoned on the front. Considering Jason’s girlfriend owned and operated the bakery, Cory should have been a tad more couth about his announcement. At this point, the young detective was beyond caring. He finally had the proof to show everyone that he was right all along. The bread was poisoned. The seagulls died from the poison. Therefore, Mr. Hawkins likely died of the poison as well. He was right! That was all that mattered to him.

Jason asked the FBI agent to corroborate Cory’s pronouncement. He simply nodded ‘yes’. Agent Young then suggested they allow him to finish his report so they could all go into the chief’s office together with their findings. Jason inquired if there were any other findings. Cory and the agent both nodded excitedly. Fingerprints were obtained from Mr. Hawkins’ cell phone. The elder detective was curious how they were able to analyze fingerprints on the phone since they had given it back to Mrs. Hawkins already. Cory at least had the good sense to hang his head a little in shame as he admitted he had taken the fingerprints off the phone and a beach chair before Mrs. Hawkins had taken the deceased man’s belongings. Jason groaned at the audacity of his partner, but honestly he wasn’t surprised anymore. “So whose fingerprints were on the items?” he asked. Agent Young replied that both the phone and the chair had prints that belonged to Logan Jones, the nephew of the woman who owned the bakery that had provided the poisoned bread.

After arguing with his boss for over an hour, Jason admitted defeat. Although the chief thought it was preposterous that Melissa and/or Logan had anything to do with Mr. Hawkins death, he had a duty to the Hawkins family to pull them both in for questioning, at the very least. Jason would remain on the case for the time being, but would not be allowed to be present during their respective interviews. Detective Bronson was already on his way to pick them both up. Jason could only imagine the horror they would feel being interrogated about yet another possible murder. He personally took it upon himself to call Logan’s parents to let them know what was happening. John David Jones was not pleased his son was in trouble with the Kill Devil Hills police department again. Jason assured him that it was simply for questioning since Logan had found the body of the dead man. He promised to have Logan call him when he finished up with the detective. The father gruffly said “Thanks” and hung up the phone.

Melissa and Logan were indeed shocked to be brought in for questioning…again. It was déjà vu of last summer completely. Logan was taken to a separate interview room where a representative from Social Services waited to be with him during questioning. Melissa was angry. She should be the one sitting at the table with Logan. She was technically his guardian while he was in town. Her brother had even seen fit to send her legal documents giving her authority over Logan’s well-being during his visits. She could legally seek medical help for him, authorize an operation, or anything else a parent could do for their child. Not being allowed to support her nephew seemed ridiculous.

“Excuse me, Detective Bronson,” Melissa began, “I believe I should be in the interview with my minor nephew.” At the scowl on his face, she continued, “If that is not possible, then I insist that he not be asked anything until my attorney can be here with him.” She’d learned from last summer. When they had initially been questioned about the death of Mrs. Stevenson, they had been entitled to have an attorney present. This time, she intended to make sure of it.

“Mrs. Maples, we just have some routine questions about Mr. Hawkins’ death. Logan found the body, so we need to speak with him. It’s simply a routine procedure,” Cory tried to assure her. She wasn’t to be fooled though. They had interviewed Logan immediately after he found Mr. Hawkins’ body. As she recalled, he had been held up a long time answering their questions that day. They already had his statement. This was something more. Melissa was fiercely protective of her nephew. This time she insisted on either being in the room when he was questioned or having their lawyer in there with him. Detective Bronson relented. They did legally have a right for the presence of a lawyer. He ushered her over to his desk so she could make a call.

Melissa noticed Jason was nowhere to be found. “Shouldn’t he be here?” she wondered. The other end of the phone line rang twice before a husky female voice answered, “Janice Littleton, Attorney at Law, how many I help you?” Melissa filled her attorney in quickly and hung up the phone. With a smile, she informed the detective that her lawyer was on her way. The young woman’s office was just a few blocks away. In just a few minutes, Janice Littleton stormed into the precinct looking for her client. After the fiasco last summer, she was on guard for any shenanigans from the cops to railroad her client. She particularly despised Jason’s former partner, Larry Reynolds, for the way he treated Melissa and Logan. She wouldn’t allow Jason’s new ‘punk’ partner to follow in that grumpy geezer’s footsteps.

Janice greeted her client with a big, warm hug. She muttered under her breath, “What the devil is going on this time?” Melissa shook her head sadly and rolled her eyes. While she had waited for her attorney, the chief had come out of his office to explain that Jason had been sent home because he could not have anything to do with the interview since he was close to Melissa and Logan. However, he did hand her a note from Jason. It indicated that he was sorry he couldn’t be there to support her, but knew she would understand the reason. He also wrote that he contacted Logan’s father already. “Your brother was not thrilled to hear from me, of course. But I assured him that I would take care of you and Logan,” the note read. Trying not to appear disappointed, Melissa shrugged and tucked the note into her jeans pocket.

With the arrival of her attorney, Melissa was escorted to an empty interview room. They were allowed a few moments to converse before Janice ordered her to not say a thing while she went into the adjacent room to be there with Logan. “Not a problem,” Melissa stated.

Logan had been left in the tiny room with the Social Services representative. He appeared fine physically, but shaken and confused otherwise. He didn’t understand why the cops needed to talk to him again. A few moments later, Detective Bronson entered the room with a glance over at the two-way mirror. Janice really wanted to roll her eyes at the brazen young cop. He clearly made a mistake calling in Logan and Melissa to question them about the death of Mr. Hawkins, who everyone knew died of a heart attack or something. Cory took a seat across the small table from the teenage boy and his attorney. He had a manila folder in his hand which he opened, along with a clear plastic bag containing a cell phone.

Cory began, “Logan, do you know why we brought you in today?” Logan shook his head that he didn’t. The detective continued by asking if the boy heard that the death of Mr. Hawkins was now being investigated as a suspicious death. Logan shrugged his shoulders. He had heard, but he didn’t understand what it had to do with him. The young man even asked the detective point blank why they needed to talk to him again. They had his statement from earlier. Nothing changed since he spoke with them that day. His attorney interjected that the detective better have a good reason for needing to question her client again. Otherwise, the boy should be allowed to go home.

The detective looked behind him at the two-way mirror again. “Detective,” Janice stated, “please make your point or stop wasting my client’s time. If you need to consult with your cohort behind the glass, then please do so.” In response, Cory laid the plastic bag with the cell phone on the table and asked Logan if he recognized it. The boy nodded and answered that it was Mr. Hawkins’ cell phone. The detective then pulled out a piece of paper from his folder. He informed Logan that it was a report from the forensics department. “Can you get to the point, officer?” Janice requested irritably.

“We found two sets of fingerprints on the phone. One set belonged to Mr. Hawkins, of course,” the detective replied. “The other set of prints belonged to Mr. Logan Jones. Now, son, how did your fingerprints get on Mr. Hawkins’ phone?” Well, that was quite simple actually. The teenager repeated his story from the first time he told it when he found Mr. Hawkins at Oregon Inlet. Logan grabbed the phone to call 911. He stated that he found it next to the dead man’s body.

“Alright then, I believe that may be in your earlier statement,” the detective concurred. “However, can you explain how your fingerprints came to be all over the beach chair?” he asked as he showed the boy a picture of it. Logan explained that when he first arrived at the beach, he saw the beach chair was being washed out to sea by the waves. He saved the chair and then went to find its owner. That was when he discovered Mr. Hawkins lying in the sand.

Detective Bronson then showed Logan and Janice pictures of a dead seagull. “Did you happen to notice there were several dead birds scattered along Oregon Inlet that day?” he asked. Janice was bewildered by the strange question. The boy stated that he hadn’t noticed. He was, after all, rather spooked after finding Mr. Hawkins not breathing and without a pulse so maybe they were there. He just didn’t pay any attention to it at the time.

Janice had reached the end of her patience with the detective. He was asking questions to which he already knew the answers. Now he was showing disgusting pictures of dead seagulls. “What, may I ask, do these dead birds have to do with my client?” she asked. That was when Cory dropped the big news. There were several dead seagulls along Oregon Inlet that day. He proudly announced that he had bagged the birds on a hunch. Janice and Logan resisted the urge to roll their eyes at that nugget of news. The detective’s blue eyes flashed as he revealed the kicker – the birds had all died of poison. The attorney and the teenager both looked at him blankly. Finally, Janice broke the silence. “So what?”

Cory stood up and excused himself for a moment. He came back in shortly thereafter with another clear plastic bag. He placed the bag on the table. “Logan, do you recognize this?” he asked smugly. The boy’s eyes grew big. Janice also noticed the bag’s contents and understood. Logan nodded. “Can you tell me what that is, son?” the detective continued. Logan nodded again. He saw similar items just about every day. It was a brown paper bag from her aunt’s bakery. It even had “Kill Devil Delicacies” written on the top in overly dramatic cursive. Cory continued, “Forensic tests confirmed that the same poison that killed the birds was also in the loaf of bread in this particular bag.” The young man and the attorney could connect the dots. The cops, at least this cop, believed that Mr. Hawkins also ate the bread and that was what killed him. Apparently, it was too much of a coincidence that bread from his aunt’s bakery was poisoned and he happened to find the body. Detective Bronson didn’t seem to believe any further explanation was needed as he ended the interview at that point.

Janice exited the interview room after instructing Logan to keep his mouth shut. The boy was highly agitated that the cops would dare think he or his aunt had anything to do with the death of Mr. Hawkins. Considering how much Aunt Mel loved all animals, especially birds, it was preposterous to think she would do anything to endanger or kill the birds. She loved birds! Birds fly and her late husband loved to fly. He didn’t want her upset if the stupid cop showed her pictures of the poor feathered creatures. The attorney assured him everything would be fine as she went to discuss the situation with Melissa before she was questioned.

Melissa was evidently concerned about what had taken so long with Logan. She wanted confirmation that he was okay before she would listen to anything Janice had to say. Once the attorney filled her in on what transpired during Logan’s interview, Melissa was shocked; silent. Detective Bronson didn’t give her much time though. He burst into the room ready to grill her as well. The interview went much the same as the earlier one, minus the questions about the cell phone and beach chair. She answered as best as she could:

• Yes, she recognized the paper bag. It was from her bakery.
  
• Yes, her bakery did sell the type of bread listed on the label – lemon sage bread. It was one of her specialties.
  
• No, she had no idea how bread from her shop would have been poisoned.
  
• No, she had no knowledge of poisons other than what to spray around the house to keep the extra-large spiders from getting inside.
  
• No, she didn’t sell the bread directly to Mr. Hawkins. His wife always bought bread from her, usually once a week.
  
• No, she didn’t recall if Mrs. Hawkins had purchased bread that week. She could check the receipts though.
  
• Yes, she knew Logan planned to fish the morning in question at Oregon Inlet.
  
• No, she had no idea Mr. Hawkins retired earlier that week.
  
• No, she did not know Mr. Hawkins would be fishing at Oregon Inlet that day.
  

Cory questioned her for over an hour. She answered precisely the same every time he repeated a question. Melissa was just as puzzled how a loaf of bread from her shop came to be poisoned. That just didn’t make any sense. After she promised to turn over her business receipts for the last six weeks, the detective informed her that she was free to go. He added that she shouldn’t leave town in the near future though. Janice escorted Melissa from the interview room and grabbed Logan on the way out. Frustrated and bewildered, the trio headed over to Janice’s office to discuss the strange case. The attorney was more than a little concerned about her client and friend. Melissa and Logan were just as perplexed. Sadly, they knew their only source of information that could help them figure things out was Jason. Being a cop though, Melissa knew he would be unable to discuss the case. She and Logan were on their own.