A Ton of Gold (Crystal Moore Suspense Book 1) by James R. Callan

Author:James R. Callan [Callan, James R.]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub, mobi
Publisher: Pennant Publishing
Published: 2015-09-13T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 35

Outside, Crystal and Mark talked for a few minutes before getting in their cars. Mark said he believed Eddie Ray was on the run. His only question was why. Did he run because he was afraid of Joe and Al, or because he was afraid of the police? Was he more involved with the arson and Bessie's death than he admitted?

“I don’t know,” Crystal said. “Looks like he left awfully fast. If he’d left for any of those reasons, he could have waited and talked to JT first. And surely he would have taken some clothes.” She pushed a stray lock of hair back behind her ear. “From what Luis said, it sounds like a spur of the moment thing.”

“What little contact I’ve had with him, I have to agree with JT: he wouldn’t have left Luis unless he had no other choice.”

#

On the way home, Mark stopped at Ninfa's for dinner. Usually, an empanada could coax him out of a poor mood. Tonight, it didn't help at all. Even the peace and quiet of his house didn't lift the gloom. The more he thought about it, the more he felt Crystal's logic was on target. But why now?

It hit him like a charging bull. Somehow, Joe and Al must have seen Mark with Eddie Ray last night, or at least heard about it. Maybe they thought Mark was a policeman. Whatever they thought, they picked Eddie Ray up to get some answers. If he gave them the right answers, they'd probably let him go. If not, well, they'd killed one person already.

#

It was after ten when he opened the thick packet of notes JT had given him. One thing became clear immediately: she kept careful records. The detail amazed and pleased him.

She had searched for every mention of gold in the entire database. The number would have discouraged most people. She eliminated over half by discarding any that talked about trains. Then she limited the stories further, demanding some mention of a wagon. Eventually, she had the list down to thirty-one.

Next, she had the computer analyze each story to determine its major characteristics. The computer produced a list of five that matched closely enough that it concluded they had their roots in the same incident—the same piece of folklore.

One version suggested the gold may have been part of the treasure the notorious gentleman pirate Jean Lafitte took from Spanish ships. A full page of JT's notes indicated she had researched some of the historical accounts of Lafitte. Highlighted in yellow was a sentence about the pirate capturing a sizable shipment of gold. Fearing that the Mexican army would come after it, he sent it to St. Louis for safekeeping. At the end of the account JT had printed in capital letters, "IT NEVER ARRIVED IN ST. LOUIS."

Mark shook his head. It was amazing she had gotten any IRS work done at all. At the end of this section of notes, Mark found a page listing nearly two-dozen characteristics. Beside each one was a number.

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