The Alaskan Alibi by Stephen Frost

Author:Stephen Frost
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: FrostMysteryBooks, LLC
Published: 2021-05-24T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter

33

Logan left for Eagle River the next day. The same white pickup came up behind him. How the hell did these guys know he was going to Eagle River? I thought only our office and Chris Branson knew about the meeting.

Logan slowed at the entrance to the trailer park subdivision. The pickup slowed down and dropped back fifty yards. He spotted the word Hamlin on a dented mailbox and pulled into the driveway. A faded 1972 red Toyota Celica crouched in the carport adjacent to the dilapidated remnants of a tin storage shed. When Logan got out of his car, the pickup sped past, its tires churning gravel. Mrs. Hamlin observed the warning shot as she peered out a smoke-stained window.

Before he could knock, the front door opened slightly to reveal a tall, decaying woman in worn house slippers. She clutched a baggy, dingy brown sweater around her thin shoulders. Stale cigarette smoke saturated the trailer and assaulted his nostrils. “Mrs. Hamlin? Barbara Hamlin?”

Barbara Hamlin didn’t waste her time on pleasantries. “Hurry up, get in here. They’re going to kill me.”

“Who’s going to kill you, ma’am?”

Her demeanor softened and her lips curled up in an almost forgotten gesture of friendliness, reminding Logan of someone who’d just sucked the lime after a tequila shot. “Call me Barbara. It’s those nutty church guys. They’re trying to get rid of me before the trial. They’re afraid I’ll rat out the Guidance Panel for what they did to my husband.” Grim-faced, she added, “And your client’s daughter.”

“Whoa . . . okay if I sit down and take some notes?”

“Not in this lifetime! No tape recording. No notes. And if I’m ever in court, I’ll deny I ever talked to you.”

“What are you afraid of?”

“Not what. Who. If what I tell you gets to the wrong people, I’m dead and after you hear my story, you’ll understand, but I want to get this off my chest. Once I’m gone, you can do anything you want to with the information. But s’long as I’m alive, I’ll deny all of it. “Eagle River’s my last stand,” she declared. “I’m tired of runnin’ and hidin’. Those bastards don’t know it, but I’m still pretty good with a gun and a helluva lot stronger than I look.” Cloudy gray eyes scrutinized Logan. “You’re my last contact. I’m sorry, but that’s the way it’s gotta be.”

Logan recognized the futility in pressing the issue. He sat gingerly on what had once been a plush velveteen gold couch. He pushed aside a crocheted afghan, its frayed multicolored squares carpeted in cat hair. He placed his file on the floor to reassure her there’d be no notetaking.

“Okay, why don’t we start at the beginning . . . if you could please take me through it chronologically.”

She settled into a matching recliner across from Logan. It was threadbare with a host of cigarette burns from a millennium of use.

“Okay, then, from the beginning. Hope you got lots of time.”

“I have all the time you’ll need.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.