What the…Eric grabbed it and slipped his finger under the lip. Todd must have expected that Eric would end up here at some point. Inside were a key and a tri-folded piece of paper. Eric smoothed the latter out and realized it was a handwritten letter. He sat in the desk chair to read it.
Eric,
If you’re reading this, then you must know or are getting closer to knowing that it’s over for me. What I was involved in thirty-three years ago has haunted me every day of my life. I can no longer live with it on my conscience.
Eric stopped reading as anger fused through him. He didn’t know what he expected to read next, but it wasn’t the words on the page.
And if only it were enough, I’d confess and pay the price. I’m already living in a prison. But I’m not the only one involved, who carries the weight of a woman’s death.
We took money to look the other way, to modify eyewitness statements, to destroy Susan Crawford’s vehicle immediately, to conclude the accident resulted from poor road conditions. But there was another vehicle involved. Something you probably found out by now. You never did a half-ass job, Eric. You might even suspect some other things, but the evidence is just blurred enough you’re unsure. I always told you to trust your gut. Trust it now.
You might not know what else we have done, what further unspeakable thing. I still find it difficult to lay this bare on the page.
I’ve tried to justify my actions over the years to myself by saying I wasn’t in this alone, that I wasn’t the only corrupt cop that day. Dean Finley was in on this with me. He was someone who I had looked up to, who I answered to. He was my sergeant. But I had a young family and needed money. Doing what I did put Jessie through college. But carrying around this secret took a toll on my marriage. It made me bitter and distant. I pushed Molly away because I didn’t want to live with myself.
If Todd were in front of him right now, Eric would shake him out of frustration. All of this so he could pay for his daughter, Jessie, to go to college? Eric put his eye back on the page.
The key is for a safe deposit box. Number 3235.
As Eric read where it was located, his mind spun out of control. All of this felt surreal.
You’ll find everything you need in there to make the case stick against me and Finley. Please trust me, that despite how it must seem, I have not run away, but I am prepared to face the consequences. I left you this in case I don’t make it that far.
And just like that the letter ended. No signature or signoff.
A cold sensation poured over his neck and shoulders as the last sentence played on his mind. It sounded as if Todd feared retribution. Was it from Dale Kramer? The man they suspected had killed before? Even if Todd didn’t know Kramer’s identity, he had to surmise the Hansons employed someone to do their bidding.Was that behind his warning to me?
Eric called Medina. When he answered, Eric blurted out, “We have a problem.”
FORTY-THREE
10:30 AM
Medina was arranging for a search warrant for the safe deposit box but refused to do a trace on Todd’s phone or issue a BOLO on him. Eric was also to stay away from Finley for the time being. Even though Eric shared the contents of the confession letter, Medina preferred to put his hands on what was in the box before taking further action. While Eric waited for the approval, he drove to Travel Safe with his hopes high.
When he entered the auto rental, there was a customer at the counter being helped by a woman in her late fifties. Her brown hair was clipped back, and she acknowledged Eric with a smile.
“If you go around the side, Steven will be there with the truck,” she told the customer. “He’ll go over the vehicle and give you the keys. Thank you for choosing Travel Safe.”
The customer passed by Eric and gave him a warm smile.
“You’re the detective, aren’t you?” the woman from the counter said. “The one looking for that old rental agreement?”
“That’s me. Detective Birch. You’re Carly Knox?”
“The one and only.”
“Were you able to find the paperwork?”
“I haven’t looked yet. I was wondering if you’d come back with a warrant.”
Eric should have seen that request coming and been prepared for it. He’d blame the situation with Todd for messing with his mind. “I haven’t. Is that going to be a problem? If so, I can get one. I just figured since it was so long ago…”
Carly smiled and batted a hand. “I’m just messing with ya. Thirty-three years was forever ago. Now if it was about a recent rental, I would insist. Let me go into the storage room and see what I can dig out. You watch the store?” She grabbed the note that Jodi had written, then chuckled. “I’m just joking. The chime will let me know if a customer comes in.” She winked at him before she took off into the back.
Interesting woman…At least she was finding joy in life. More than he could say for himself at the moment. Last night he’d grasped a bit of that. But joy came from being in Sandra’s orbit. There was just something about her, how she saw into him and understood him. She brought him to life, even when the job sometimes threatened to destroy him.
He stood there waiting for fifteen minutes before Carly returned with a thick folder in her hand.
