Tie Died by Carol Dean Jones

Author:Carol Dean Jones
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: C&T Publishing

Chapter 27

Sarah tried calling Detective Shields the next morning but got the same cryptic response from the officer answering the phone, so she decided to go ahead and talk to Detective Gabriel. As it turned out, he wasn’t available either, but she was able to leave a message. An hour later, Detective Gabriel returned her call.

Sarah was actually relieved to speak with him. He had always been pleasant with her and never made her feel like a criminal. She didn’t learn anything about Andy’s case. He did tell her, however, that they were broadening the investigation beyond Cunningham Village. “You mean it was not necessarily someone here?” Sarah asked eagerly.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“That’s a relief. You can’t imagine what it’s like to be suspicious of your friends and neighbors.” She asked about Detective Shields and was told he would be away for some time; Gabriel would be directing the investigation for now. She wondered what that was about but didn’t ask.

Darrell Gabriel was a tall, slender officer, probably in his late thirties, with chiseled features. He never liked his first name and was always called Gabriel on the job and Gabe by his friends. He had moved to Middletown two years ago from New York where he had worked homicide for most of his career. With a young family and little time to spend with them, he had searched for a vacancy on a small town force. When he was contacted by Chief Walker of the Middletown Police Department, he immediately knew this was what he and his family needed.

Middletown didn’t have a homicide unit, as such, and rarely had a homicide. He hoped to spend more time with his family, and in his job, he hoped to actually be of service to the community. On his first week, he had helped Tim from the fire department release a cat stuck in a storm drain. “This is more like it,” he had said to himself that day with a smile.

He was pleased when the chief decided to partner him with Mark Shields. The two men got along well and had much in common. Shields had worked homicide in Boston for thirteen years and seemed to be enjoying the less hectic lifestyle of Middletown. Shields had moved to Middletown several years before when he married Margaret. Margaret’s family founded the town in the 1800s and owned most of the businesses. Margaret enjoyed the benefits of old money and refused to leave the family mansion in Middletown. Mark got a job with the local police force despite Margaret’s objections. She felt it was unseemly for him to hold such a position.

The two men worked well together and complemented one another’s skills. Dividing up the workload was always congenial. But after the first few months, Gabriel began to notice the alcohol. At first, he had the fleeting feeling he smelled alcohol on Mark’s breath in the morning, but he decided it was probably left over from the night before. He knew Mark always stopped for a drink or two on his way home.

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