Oh Henry, How Could You?

Spring 2016

MYRTLE CHITWOOD AWOKE with a start. She heard a noise, not one of her creatures stirring, but strangers in her space. She knew they were after her riches. There would not be any way to find the treasure. She had hidden it where no one would ever think to look. As she climbed out of her bed, she could see the light in the distance bobbing up and down and moving from side to side.

Climbing over the pile of clothing that surrounded her bed she then stepped over papers, books, and belongings. She ascended onto the mound of purses, shoes and other things that did not have a place. She crawled around the corner to the bookcases where she crept through the pathway.

All of a sudden, she fell into a hole. Myrtle did not remember a hole in the floor between the bookcases. She had difficulty standing. As she attempted to get to her feet, she heard a cracking noise. Looking up to see the first book tumble onto her she tried again to climb out of the hole. The books were falling faster and harder. The bookcases crashed upon her. Myrtle Chitwood knew no one would come.

Chapter One

KALI WINTER’S CELL phone rang. She pulled up on the reins of her palomino mare. The person calling was her husband, the sheriff. Kali sighed before answering. Chris did not like her riding alone, especially, where she rode this morning. She hoped that he would not ask her location.

Hi Honey.

Kali, where are you? I have a dead body and need you here to investigate the scene.

She wondered what had put him in a bad mood. He was okay when he left the house this morning. I’m out riding. What’s happened?

Do you remember Myrtle Chitwood?

"Isn’t she the school librarian?

Was. Myrtle's dead. I have no idea if it’s natural, accident or foul play, but I need you here now.

I can be there within an hour.

No, I need you here as soon as possible. Don’t worry about cleaning up. You can take a shower later. You’ll need to anyway. Also, make sure you wear your boots. This place is horrific.

Chris hung up and texted Kali the address. She could not understand what made her husband so upset. Kali loped her horse back to the ranch, walking the animal the last half mile. She did not know if Hank, their hired help, would be there. If he were not, then walking would help quicken the cool down of Sammie, her horse.

The Crossings is a county in the western part of Texas. Two set of railroad tracks split the county into four sections – North, South, East, and West Crossings. It is located where the Plains look onto the Chihuahuan Desert. The name originates from an Indian name, which translates to trails that cross here, Indians, and cattle primarily used the trails. Founded after the Civil War by cattle barons, in the past seventy years, the large ranches had been broken into smaller parcels. At its height, the population of The Crossings was twenty-four hundred. In the last five years, the population had dwindled to half.

With the area being in the middle of nowhere, corruption sprung up without anyone noticing. Wes Bradley had taken advantage of this and before anyone realized he had his ring of corruption in place. Bradley’s henchmen enforced the violence while the former local law enforcement looked the other way for a share of the money. Prostitution, drugs, and stealing land ran rampant, thus making Bradley incredibly wealthy and powerful.

Approaching the barn Kali saw Hank cleaning stalls. Scout, Kali’s faithful mutt, came running up to meet Sammie and Kali. Hank greeted Kali as she dismounted.

Hi, Hank. Do you know Myrtle Chitwood?

Sure, she is the school librarian. Why?

She’s dead.

Oh no. What happened.

Don’t know yet. I’m on my way to her house now. Something at the scene has put Chris in a bad mood. I thought you might be able to tell me a little more about Myrtle. So I know what I am walking into.

Hank thought for a moment before answering, Myrtle never let anyone know where she lived. Sometimes if someone had to give her a ride, then Myrtle would meet them a mile away from her home. You know like if her car broke down.

Why didn’t she want anyone at her house?

No one could ever figure that out. But, Myrtle sure was an advocate for those school kids. If any of them got themselves in trouble, Myrtle would bail them out and or fight for them. Either way, she was right there.

Hank looked into the barn for a moment then said, I just can’t believe she’s dead. Who’s going to stand up for the kids now?

Kali agreed and smiled. Hank had a good heart and looked for the best in people.

You know Kali, Maggie’s trial starts next week.

Yes, I know.

Maggie MacDonald, was a resident, accused of murdering Wes Bradley, an unscrupulous man who tried to ruin The Crossings with his corruption.

I may not be able to be here to take care of things. I’m supposed to testify.

Hank, don’t worry about the ranch. Chris and I can take care of things. If not, I’ll call my family for help. No problem.

Kali’s family owned a large cattle ranch in another part of the state. Her father made his money from cattle and oil, preferring animals to oil.

I just don’t know how things are going to go with the trial. Maggie didn’t do it.

Hank, you keep saying that, but you never said what happened.

I’m sure it will all come out at the trial next week.

Kali nodded. She hoped that Hank was not the one who had pulled the trigger. The trial for Bradley’s murder, scheduled to begin next week, was going to be extensive. She remembered the background of the situation. Someone shot Bradley before the FBI could arrest him for his corruption. Five people, known as the Fab Five, stood over his body as Chris, Kali, and Buck arrived at the Bradley estate. Buck was a longtime friend of Chris who had asked for Chris’s help in fighting corruption.

The town thought, and hoped, that Bradley’s murderer would go free. No one found a weapon. Last fall, Maggie MacDonald’s motel, The Cheap Sleeper, burned down after two people died there. In the course of the fiasco, someone accused Maggie of killing Bradley. She has been sitting in jail since last fall.

Kali told Hank to put Scout in the house if she became a nuisance. Then Kali grabbed her shoulder bag, locked up, and headed for Myrtle Chitwood’s home.

Kali arrived at Myrtle’s house where there appeared to be a commotion. The sheriff and Deputy Toby were talking to three people, who she assumed might be the family. The two women yelled at Chris while the man stood quietly. Deputy Toby looked as if he were ready to pounce if anyone of them made a move towards his boss.

She parked her Camaro next to the sheriff’s truck. Kali noticed people from the health department. Doc Drake, The Crossings medical examiner and town doctor directed the workers and other deputies. All were dressed in PPE’s, or known in the trade as personal protective equipment. Not quite hazmat outfits, but she would not have been surprised if the county had hazmat gear, they would have been wearing it. Kali could see horrible reactions from several people. Including Buck who was a veteran of crime scenes.

She could not understand the protective gear and the people’s faces turning green through their masks. The outside of the house and the yard were immaculate. Beautiful roses of pinks, reds, and oranges surrounded the white house. The outside of the house had been painted within the last year. The black shutters glistened as they caught the sun. A white picket fence surrounded the yard with more rose bushes inside it. Most of the yards in the area were crushed rock or left as the high desert with sage sporadically located throughout the yards. Myrtle’s front yard had a beautiful, lush carpet of green grass covering the whole area.

Kali admired Myrtle’s gardening ability. She wondered what secret Myrtle utilized for her gardening. Kali smiled thinking it must be the fertilizer. She walked toward the house where Buck, another deputy and Chris’s longtime friend, met her.

He took his mask off and said, Let me warn you, Chris is not in a good mood.

Yeah, I know. What caused it? He was fine when he left the house this morning.

Before Buck could answer, Chris walked over to them. He muttered something about ungrateful, spoiled brats.

Turning to Kali, And before you go into that house make sure you are covered from head to toe. Doc is worried about Bubonic Plague and Hanta Virus not to mention other diseases.

At this moment Jimmy, another deputy and one of the dispatchers, drove into the yard. He got out of the car and immediately walked over to Deputy Toby and the three people. Jimmy, who was finally working in the field again after being restricted to a dispatcher, knew Myrtle’s family. The previous sheriff had punished Jimmy when he accidently shot that sheriff in the ass while cleaning his service weapon.

Chris continued, Jimmy went to school with Myrtle’s children. Maybe he can deal with all their bullshit.

Kali asked, I thought Jimmy had the day off to help his mom.

I had to call him in to deal with Myrtle’s children.

Buck looked away knowing Chris used a sharper tone of voice than he should have.

Kali’s eyes widen. And you are mad at me why?

Chris realizing his mood was showing muttered something about it not being her fault. He walked away. Buck and Kali stared at him as he headed toward his truck. She turned back to Buck.

What the hell’s going on?

He met with the prosecutor this morning. When we got this call, they both left Chris’s office angry. Don’t know what happened, though except the attorney slammed the door when he left the building.

Just great. It must have been about the trial next week.

After Kali had dressed in her protective gear, she and Buck approached the house. Next, to it, the workers were piling large plastic containers. About thirty of them. Kali looked at Buck who explained that they needed to clear a pathway to retrieve Myrtle’s body. The plastic containers held the contents of the floor.

Confused, Kali asked, What do you mean?

She’s a hoarder.

No way. Look at this house and yard. It’s immaculate.

Buck held up a hand to stop Kali. Wait until you see the inside. It tells a different story. You’re not going to believe it. Night and Day.

Sure enough, when Kali approached the door, her stomach began to turn from the stench. She could not isolate what she smelled in addition to human waste. Walking into the front room, Kali saw the pathway the workers had cut out to access Myrtle’s body. They used a chainsaw to cut through the floor of the room, which consisted of the compacted garbage that had been trampled down over several years. The dissection of the pathway’s wall exposed Myrtle’s life shrunk into garbage and animal skeletons.

Chapter Two

KALI WALKED INTO the sheriff’s station. Lizzie, the part-time receptionist, waved as she talked on the phone. Lizzie graduated high school two years earlier, a local girl, who worked at the station while going to a community college nearby.

Lizzie hung up the phone and said to Kali, That’s horrible about Mrs. Chitwood. I couldn’t believe it when the call came in this morning. She was nice. If anyone had a problem, they could always talk to Mrs. Chitwood. Her eyes became watery when she mentioned the phone call.

Kali said, I’m sorry for your loss. I didn’t realize what a good-hearted person she must have been. I only saw her at the town meetings. She could be quite animated on certain subjects. Both women smiled at that comment.

Anyone that had a problem could go to her. She never judged or criticized. Kids with problems such as trouble in school, grades, problems at home, pregnancy, or just about anything she would help them.

Did you say pregnancy?

Yep. Mrs. Chitwood even helped my friend, Susie, with her abortion. Well I mean she drove her to Planned Parenthood in Albuquerque.

What about Susie’s parents?

Oh, Lizzie hesitated. I don’t think her parents know. I wasn’t supposed to say anything.

It’s okay. I am just trying to get a better understanding of Mrs. Chitwood.

Lizzie sighed. It was our junior year in high school. She didn’t want the child because she had been raped.

Kali interrupted, Lizzie, didn’t anyone do anything about the rape?

Miss Kali, no one knew anything about the attack. Susie didn’t report it and if she had they probably wouldn’t have believed her.

Why?

My friend Susie was, how do you say, loose?

Kali shook her head. Who raped her?

Realizing that she might have said too much, Lizzie quickly asked, What does that have to do with Mrs. Chitwood’s death?

Kali paying attention to the defensiveness in the young woman’s voice, said, Lizzie, I’m just trying to piece together what happened and who would want to harm her.

My friend Susie didn’t have anything to do with hurting Mrs. Chitwood.

I didn’t say or think she did. I am just trying to figure out what Mrs. Chitwood might have been involved with; it might have gotten her killed.

Lizzie looked at the papers on the desk and began organizing her filing. Finally, she asked, Do you know what happened?

Not entirely, but we are working on it.

The front office of the sheriff’s station had an open concept. In front of the four desks, a counter separated them from people coming in the door. A hallway led past the reception area with a conference room on the left and the sheriff’s office on the right side. The sheriff’s office had windows that overlooked the front area and a private bathroom for the sheriff’s use.

Chris came out of the bathroom as Kali walked into his office. Before he could speak, she said, Do you want to tell me why you were so bitchy earlier?

I will as soon as Buck gets here.

She glared at him.

"Kali, it involves all three