Cause for Murder (2 page)

When Sam's voice brought her out of the deep fog, she jerked her head around. “I didn't catch what you said. Guess I drifted into another world."

Sam chuckled. “You hungry? I could use a bite to eat."

"Sure."

"Hope you like hamburgers. There's a little place up the road that makes great ones. I always stop on my way home."

"I'll eat anything."

They pulled into the small parking lot and went inside. As they carried their food to a corner table, three fire trucks sped by with their sirens wailing. A few minutes later, several patrons came in speaking loudly about the fire a mile up the road and how they'd all been turned back.

Sam got the attention of a young man. “Excuse me. Did you say there's a fire up the way?"

"Yeah. It's not bad yet, but the smoke is so thick you can't see the road ahead, so they're turning everyone around and not letting them through."

"Oh, great,” Sam said. “Did they give you any idea when they might open it to traffic?"

The fellow shook his head. “No, but I think, unless the wind comes up, they'll have it out within an hour or so."

Sam nodded. “Thanks."

They finished their hamburgers and tossed the debris into the trash container. Back outside, they stood by the truck and watched the sun being blotted out by the smoke darkening the sky.

"Sure doesn't look good,” Sam said, looking skyward. “Wonder if we should wait it out, or take the long way around, which would mean going back toward school and picking up 299 to Interstate 5. It will add a few hours to the drive."

"It's up to you. You're the driver."

"Your Mom expecting you at any certain time?"

Maryann shook her head. “She doesn't even know I'm coming."

"Oh.” Sam opened the driver's side door and reached under the seat for his cell phone. “Well, I better give Jennifer a call. She'll be worried if I don't show up before dark.” He glanced at the screen. “Uh oh, I've already missed two calls. Hell, I've got a ‘low battery’ message. I've got to charge this thing. Then let's hope I can get a signal in these hills. If not, would you search around and see if you can spot a pay phone.” He hopped inside the cab, removed the charger from the glove compartment, and plugged it into the lighter. He had to start the truck and hated to burn the high priced octane, but decided it'd be worth it.

Maryann smiled to herself as she walked toward the side of the building in search of a telephone booth. At least she'd have Sam to herself a while longer.

Hawkman needed to get out of Jennifer's way since she appeared edgy over not hearing from Sam, so he decided to go mow the lawn. He felt concern, but realized with Sam coming over Highway 96, he might not be able to get a good signal for his cell.

After he finished, he stored the mower in the garage and brushed off the loose grass from his boots. When he entered the house, he noticed Jennifer had moved to the computer and sat staring at the screen with a frown.

"Something wrong?” he asked.

"No. I'm just having trouble focusing because I can't get Sam off my mind. He should be home any moment."

"Now, honey, you know kids. Time means nothing to them. Remember his last trip? He should have headed back to school early afternoon, but hung around here until dark. A long drive at night doesn't seem to bother young people. Who knows, he might not have even left yet. He could be saying goodbye to all his buddies for the summer and they're jawing the hours away."

She let out a sigh. “You're right. But I can't reach him on the cell and that bothers me."

"If he's driving on that mountainous road, there's a possibility he can't get a good signal. Give him time."

Hawkman crossed the room and turned on the television. A bevy of flames leaped across the screen. The newscaster reported a forest fire in their local area and because of low visibility due to the smoke covering State Highway 96, traffic had been turned back in both directions. The fire had been contained and the road would probably reopen in the next two hours.

"Ah, ha. Here's the problem,” Hawkman said, pointing at the screen. “Sam can't get through. He'll have to either wait it out or turn around and go the long way. Since kids don't normally listen to the news or weather, he probably didn't know a thing about this fire until he got there."

Jennifer left the computer and stood beside Hawkman as they viewed the scene. “Oh, my word. Well, I guess I better give him a couple more hours before I panic."

Hawkman put his arm around her shoulders. “I think that's a good idea."

About that time, the phone rang and she raced to the counter. “Hello."

"Hi, Jennifer. This is Sam. Sorry I didn't call sooner. My cell phone is charged to the max, but I can't get a signal. I'm calling from a pay phone. Don't have a lot of change, so can't stay on but a couple of minutes. We ran into some difficulty and won't be home for awhile. They've shut Hwy. 96 down because of a smoky fire. We're almost to Happy Camp so I think we'll just wait it out since we're halfway home."

"Hawkman and I heard the news.” She frowned. “You said, ‘we'. Is there someone with you?"

"Yeah. Maryann Parker.” He lowered his voice. “Her dad died."

"Yes, we read about his death in the paper. Would she like me to call her mother and tell her about the delay?"

"No. She said her mom didn't expect her."

Jennifer grimaced. “Really?"

"I gotta go. Don't wait up. We're safe, but have no idea when I'll be home."

"Glad you called. Drive carefully."

"Okay, bye."

After hanging up, she turned toward Hawkman. “How odd."

"What?” Hawkman asked. “I assume you were taking to Sam."

She nodded. “Maryann Parker's with him, but he said there's no need to call Lilly because she doesn't know her daughter's coming home.” Jennifer furrowed her brow. “Don't you think that's peculiar under the circumstances?"

"Yes. Obviously, Sam didn't give any explanation."

"No. I've a suspicion Maryann stood within earshot."

Sam stuck the remaining change from the phone call into his pocket and strolled toward Maryann. “See a theater around? We could kill a couple of hours watching the latest release."

Maryann rolled her eyes. “You must be kidding. We're in the middle of no man's land. This hamburger joint is the only place within miles. We can count ourselves lucky it's here."

Sam laughed. “You're right. At least we won't starve. Well, how do you want to kill a few hours? Have a deck of cards on you by any chance? We could play a little poker. Or some other game. I know girls aren't to crazy about Jacks or better."

"Sorry. I only packed the bare essentials."

"I noticed you only had one bag. Are you going back for summer school after the funer ... uh, after you've visited for awhile?"

"I haven't decided. My roomies are staying, so my apartment is secure. I noticed a stranger at your place. Did you lease for the summer?"

Sam thought it curious Maryann had noticed, as Dan Williams had only been there since last night. “Yeah. I'm taking a rest. Gonna play awhile, then hit it again in the fall. This is the first time I haven't attended a summer session. Decided I needed a break."

They meandered toward the pickup and Sam kicked a stone with the tip of his cowboy boot, sending it sailing across the parking lot. He pointed toward the direction of the fire. “Looks like the smoke's thinning. One thing about that barricade the police set up, we can see it from here. As soon as they remove it, we'll be able to leave."

"Yeah, but they're not real swift on stuff like fires,” Maryann said. “They're overly cautious and we could be here for hours."

Sam nodded. “Well, we could take off and go the long route. It's up to you."

She shook her head. “I'm in no hurry."

Resting his arms on the rim around the bed of the truck, Sam stared at her. “Why? Aren't you anxious to get home to your mom? Don't you think she needs you right now?"

She threw back her head and laughed. “Comfort my Mom. Is that what you think I should be doing?"

"It seems the most logical thing."

She shot Sam a look he couldn't decipher. He decided it fell somewhere between evil and mean.

"Oh, Sam, you're so naive,” she giggled. “My Mom's probably rejoicing to have that man out of her life. More than likely, she's drunk with happiness."

He felt his cheeks flush and gritted his teeth. This woman made him very uncomfortable. “Tell me, did you ever meet your real father?"

"Several times."

"Do you like him?"

She shrugged. “He's all right."

"Tell me about the man."

"Not much to tell. He came from one of the Shasta Indian tribes. A big man with a yummy physique. Broad shoulders, bronze skin and long black hair.” She took hold of a strand of her own. “This color. All in all, a really nice looking guy. He probably would have made a much better father than I had."

"Did you get to be with him much?"

"Not until I got older.” She opened the truck door and hopped upon the seat, hanging her feet out the side. “When my old man decided I definitely wasn't his, he could have cared less where I went or what I did. So I had a lot of freedom to roam. That's when I met my real Dad."

"How'd you meet him? Did your mom introduce you or what?"

She laughed. “It's a crazy story. When I was fourteen and old enough to stay by myself, Mom always took off on a Wednesday, but never told me where she went. We had this old station wagon and it always had a bunch of empty cardboard boxes and stuff crammed in the back. So I found a good hiding place under one of them behind the rear seat."

"Oh, no!” Sam said, slapping his forehead. “I bet you got into a heap of trouble."

"Actually, I thought the same thing when the wagon finally stopped and I sneezed, giving away my hiding place. It scared me to death when this big bare chested Indian man, wearing a pair of slim legged Levi's and cowboy boots, lifted up the box. He reminded me of those covers you see on the front of Romance novels. Standing next to my Mom, he seemed huge. If she hadn't been there, I'd probably have screamed."

"So what happened?"

"He took hold of my arm and helped me crawl out of the car. Then he gently laid a hand on each of my shoulders and looked into my eyes. ‘You're very lovely. You shouldn't hide under a box.’”

Sam cocked his head and stared at her. “Is that all? You mean he didn't scold or hit you?"

Maryann twisted a piece of her hair between her fingers and shook her head. “Nope. Of course, later, my Mom gave me hell for hiding in the car. And warned me not to tell Burke or he'd beat us both."

"Did she tell you the Indian was your real dad?"

"No. In my young mind, I figured Mom just bought supplies from him, as he gave her a box of dried beans and vegetables. At that time, it never dawned on me it could be anything else."

"So when did you learn?"

Maryann stared toward the sky. “Let's see, it must have been the next year. A few days after my fifteenth birthday. Burke came home real late in a drunken stupor. I could hear Mom screaming at him from my bedroom. When she lit into him for not being around for my birthday or giving me a present, it developed into a heated argument. He carried on about how that ‘damn little squaw wasn't his and he didn't have to give her a gift'. He went on to say, ‘no daughter of mine would have long black hair and skin as brown as toast'. That's when it dawned on me.” She lowered her head and sighed. “I remember getting up and examining myself in the mirror. I knew then, Burke Parker wasn't my father."

"That must have been quite a shock."

She nodded. “It threw me a bit. But being older, I started putting two and two together. The next day, when Burke left the house, I cornered my mother and she told me the story about how she fell in love with Madukarahat, my real father."

Sam frowned. “Madukarahat?"

"Yes, I call him Maduk. His name means giant."

A black and white patrol car caught Sam's attention as it stopped in front of the roadblock. He pointed toward the highway. “Looks like they're removing the barricades. Let's get on the road.” He dashed around the rear of the truck and jumped into the driver's seat.

Maryann slammed the door and put on her seat belt, grinning. “There,” she said, patting the buckle. “Now you don't have to scold me."

Sam smiled and turned the ignition. “At least we didn't have to wait too long. We should get home by dark, if we don't have any more delays. Continue your story about discovering your father,” he said, pulling onto the road.

"Why do you want to know about all that stuff?"

"I think it's interesting and it gives us something to talk about."

"If you really want to hear it, but I can guarantee it's not exciting."

"I'll be the judge. Now, tell me. Did your real dad know all along you were his daughter?"

Maryann sighed and nodded. “Yes. He wanted to introduce me into the tribe at my birth, but Mom wouldn't hear of it. While I was still an infant, she'd take me with her when they met in secluded spots. She said he'd just sit and rock me for a solid hour without saying a word. Once I got older, she stopped the visits, afraid he might take me away."

"Did he ever find out how Burke treated you and your mom?"

Maryann took a deep breath and stared out the window.

Sam shot her a quick glance when she didn't speak for several moments. “Sorry, maybe I'm trodding where I shouldn't."

"Yeah, I think so. I don't want to talk about it any more."

"Understand. Want to talk about school?"

She stuck out her tongue. “Not really. Why don't you tell me what your plans are for the summer."

"I'm going to fish, shoot digger squirrels, take Pretty Girl hunting and, go bike riding with Richard."

She put up her hands. “Wait, hold it. Who's Pretty Girl? And Richard who?"

Sam laughed. “Pretty Girl is Hawkman's falcon. Richard Clifford is the deaf boy who lives up near Topsy Grade."

"Now I remember how Hawkman got his name. Has he always had a falcon?"