Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

Between the roadside attack and the time it had taken to change the tire, forty-five minutes had been added to the journey. It was close to four-thirty in the afternoon when Declan and Charlie pulled into the parking lot of the RCMP detachment in Drumheller. Before they left the car Charlie asked, "So what are we going to tell the police?"

"The truth."

"All of it?"

"All of the truth is such a…philosophical concept. Let's give the bare essentials. We found the computer, we were attacked today and we don't have the computer anymore. We'll bring in the shot-up tire as evidence. They may be able to run ballistics on the bullet I suspect is inside near the rim."

"And how do you know there'll still be a bullet inside?" Charlie asked.

"One entry hole. No exit," Declan said as he hauled the wheel out of the trunk. "I noticed it when I was changing the tire. You know, for a car that you claim to be your own, it seems strange that I was the one doing the dirty work."

Charlie smiled then reached over and squeezed Declan's biceps. "That's because you're the one with the necessary tools."

Declan grinned and shook his head.

They entered the front door of the RCMP Drumheller detachment building and walked up to the officer on duty. He looked up from the notes he was scribbling and said, "How can I help you?"

"We have a four o'clock appointment with Sergeant Kaci Bowen," Declan announced.

"You're a bit late, aren't you?" the officer said, sounding annoyed.

Declan hoisted up the wheel from the Beast and rested it on the edge of his desk. "Ran into a bit of gunfire on the way in."

Declan dropped it back onto the floor.

The officer made no comment as he picked up the phone.

"Yeah. Your four o'clock is here." He looked up at Declan and asked, "Names?"

"Declan Hunt and Charlie Watts."

The officer went back to the phone. "Yup. It's them. And from the looks of it, they brought you a gift."

He hung up. "You and your spare can wait over there," he said, pointing with his pen to a couple of seats off to the side.

Once they were seated, Charlie leaned over and whispered, "Do we tell them about the contents of the computer or about anything else we've found out?"

"Like I said before, just the essentials. Let me do the talking. I'll play it by ear and use the ‘client confidentiality' line if I have to."

"Does that really work?"

"Not really. A wise-assed old man once told me ‘Cop trumps private-eye every time.'"

"Your dad?" Charlie asked.

"Oh, yeah," Declan said, just as the inner door opened and a woman wearing a navy jacket and grey slacks entered the lobby.

"Mr Hunt?" she said, extending her hand.

"Sergeant Bowen," Declan said, standing and shaking the officer's hand. "This is my assistant, Charlie Watts.

"Mr Watts," she said and nodded. "And this is…what is this?" she asked pointing at the wheel.

"There's a story," Declan replied.

"I bet there is. Follow me."

Declan, carrying the wheel, and Charlie with his hands in his pockets, followed her to an office at the back of the main floor. She took a seat in an aged, duct-taped office chair behind her desk, and Declan and Charlie took the two chairs facing her.

"Coffee, gentlemen?"

"Love some. Thanks," Declan said.

Charlie followed with his own "Yes, please."

She stepped out of the office, and walked across the hall to a high-tech coffee maker. As she pressed a few buttons and the machine started to spew brown liquid into cups, Declan glanced at the paperwork spread over her desk. He saw a file labelled ‘Tull, Malcolm. Hoodoo House'.

"Maybe I should help her," Charlie said, then left the office.

Declan turned to see Bowen trying to juggle three cups of hot coffee. He heard Charlie say, "Please. Let me help you with those."

Atta boy.

As they came back into the office, Bowen said to Charlie, "I couldn't live without this stuff. I'm sure my stomach must look like a sieve by now."

Charlie laughed, then passed a cup to Declan.

"Thanks," he said.

She edged her way around the desk and started, "So, before I ask you for the computer, I just want you to know why you've been called in here today. It appears we've both been looking into an incident that happened just under two weeks ago at Hoodoo House involving the suspicious death of a man named Malcolm Tull. I can't give you details of the investigation, but one of the loose threads that we've been trying to track down is Tull's missing computer. Last night, the house was broken into by someone who attacked the young boy who lives there. From what I understand, you've met the boy Henry?"

"We have," Declan said.

"The assailant said he was looking for a computer. We're working on the theory that this is the same computer that had been in the possession of Malcolm Tull. When we interviewed Henry last night, he said that there was a private detective who was also looking for the computer—that would be you—and apparently, you found it. Now, for obvious reasons, we're interested in finding out what in the world was on it that would interest a person badly enough to cause him to break into a house and threaten the life of a child. So what can you tell me?"

"What you've said is about right," Declan confirmed. "We were hired by Malcolm Tull's editor Sinclair Yamada to locate the computer, which supposedly held Tull's final manuscript on it. We found the computer yesterday."

"Good. You've saved us a lot of time then. I need to see the computer so that we can look at the contents."

"We're more than willing to comply with your request except for one slight problem," Declan said.

"Is this where you explain to me why you've brought me a car wheel instead of the laptop I requested?"

"Basically, yes," Declan said.

Sergeant Bowen nodded. "Go ahead, I can't wait to hear this one."

Declan explained what had happened on their way to Drumheller, giving details of the highway ambush, being forced off the road at gunpoint, the direct threat to his and Charlie's lives, and finally the shooting of the tire, everything as it actually happened.

Sergeant Bowen smiled. "That's the most imaginative variation on ‘the dog ate my homework' that I've heard in my entire career."

Declan leaned forward and patted the tire. "Sergeant, I present to you evidence of our story. Inside this wheel I think you'll find the bullet that was fired by the biker in order to prevent us from following them. That's all I've got. Ballistics will find it, I'm sure. They may be able to even match it to a gun on record."

"Or match it to your own gun, Mr Hunt? I know that you're licensed to carry a firearm. You were issued it after you left the police force because of active threats to your life. It's in our files."

Charlie threw Declan a wide-eyed glance. "I didn't know that."

"Surprise!" Declan said.

"Did you use your weapon against your attackers today?" she asked.

"I use it only on rare occasions when I think someone's life may be in danger. Otherwise, it sits in the safe at work, which is why I didn't have it with me today."

Sergeant Bowen stared at Declan. "If this crazy story is true—and it's wild enough that it might be—is there any chance that one of the men on the bikes was a tall, burly guy with a dark bushy beard? Because that's the way the boy described his attacker last night."

"No," Declan said. "The only one with a bushy beard was a blond. He seemed to be the one in charge. He had a helmet with a silver lightning bolt on it. But they may have been associated with the man you're describing."

Sergeant Bowen opened the Hoodoo House file and made some notes. Declan and Charlie sat quietly, sipping their coffees, glancing at each other.

"Okay, now, when the computer was in your possession, were you able to find what you were looking for?" she asked.

Declan decided it was easier at this point to lie. He shook his head. "The computer was password protected. Charlie was in the process of trying to get through the system's security in order to locate the missing manuscript, but he wasn't able to."

Bowen looked at Charlie and asked, "Is that something you're good at? Cracking passwords?"

"Obviously not good enough," Charlie answered, shrugging his shoulders.

"We have nothing to share with you right now," Declan continued, "but if we find anything that might be of use, we'll turn it over to the RCMP."

"Good," she said.

"Out of curiosity, with regard to the death of the Tull guy, do you suspect foul play?" Declan asked. "I'm just trying to assess the level of danger that my assistant and I might be facing."

"I can't say much at present. Now, getting back to your adventure, can you provide me with a complete description of the guys who threatened you?"

"Sure," Declan said and proceeded to describe them in as much detail as he could, which mostly connected to height and facial hair, since they had all been similarly dressed in biker leathers, goggles and helmets.

Sergeant Bowen typed up the description as Declan talked. When it was done, she printed it off, and Declan looked at the one-page report and signed off on it.

"I'm not sure if you want the tire," Declan said, "but the bullet in it might be of use. If you do examine it, I'd like it back when you're done. Those are expensive."

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt. Sit tight. I'll get you a receipt for the tire. In the meantime, I'll get them to put out a call to any cars on the road to be on the lookout for these bikers," she said, holding up Declan's description.

She took Declan's signed statement in one hand, picked up the wheel in the other like it weighed nothing and left the office.

The moment she was out of sight, Charlie reached over her desk and spun the Hoodoo House file around. He opened it, and used his phone to photograph the top two pages of the file. He closed the folder and rotated it back, taking his seat just before Sergeant Bowen returned.

"So, stay in touch and let me know if you hear any more about the computer," she said, handing them each a copy of her card. She gave Declan the receipt for his wheel. "I'll give you a shout when you can pick it up."

As she escorted them back to the front entrance, she asked, "So, are you fellows heading back to Calgary?"

"We have a meeting with the editor at Hoodoo House later today," Declan replied. "I don't think he'll be happy to learn that we lost the computer. We were planning on turning it over to him, but it's a matter for the publishers and the police to deal with now."

Declan and Charlie walked back to the Beast.

Declan said, "Thanks for playing along when they asked about the files on the computer. Speaking of files, grabbing those photos was a fast move on your part."

"I hope you didn't mind," Charlie said.

"Mind? I was impressed."

As Declan pulled the Beast out of the parking lot, Charlie called up the images he had quickly captured on the phone and started to read.

"This is interesting. It appears that the coroner has a good idea of what killed Malcolm Tull."

Declan said, "What did you find out?"

Charlie said, "Not so fast. I want to look at it more thoroughly. Why don't I share it with you once we get to Hoodoo House? I think everyone will find it very, very interesting."