The Dead Rogue Read online

  Maybe a little more so now.

  Chapter Two

  Working was a marvelous distraction, Veronica discovered. She loved how combing over case details took her mind right off wandering back to her unwanted visitor last night. The buzz of the police station, the random chirps of the insistent phones, the clatter of voices in various conversations all muffled together kept Veronica’s mind good and clogged—with no room to dwell on herself. She fed off the diversions, thriving in the hectic environment of police work.

  Veronica tore her eyes from the computer screen when her partner sat a cup of coffee down on her desk. She glanced briefly at it and then up at Merritt with a short nod.

  “Thanks,” she muttered, returning her attention to the computer and the open case file on her desk. The sweet face of Amelia Mason stared back up at her from an enlarged photo of a high school yearbook. Amelia had been the head cheerleader, valedictorian and prom queen. That was two years ago—before she went missing. Veronica had an eerie suspicion that this girl was not just missing, she was dead. It had been six months since anyone had heard from her. No cell phone activity. No credit card or bank account activity. No social media updates. Nothing. In this day and age, if a twenty year old girl didn’t use a phone, something more significant had to have happened to her than just falling off the grid.

  All the reports stated that she went to work one night and never came home. The restaurant she reportedly worked at said she never showed that night. In fact, she hadn’t even been scheduled. So she was lying about her whereabouts for some reason, Veronica just knew it in her gut.

  Veronica hadn’t officially been assigned the case, but some of its dynamics had interested her enough to make her pick up the lead and look into it. The main thing that piqued her interest was that Amelia had been ‘seen’ with Senator Dwight Ross at a couple low-key occasions. And she had been spotted (though not at his side) at one big fundraiser a very short period before she went missing. She had not been publically photographed with him at any occasion, but Veronica had heard from a reliable source that Amelia might have been Ross’s mistress. The senator denied any and all association with the young girl, naturally. After all, he was happily married with two children of his own. His image was spotless, just as one would anticipate it would be considering Ross had his eye on a presidential candidacy in the future.

  “Lieutenant okay this case with you?” Merritt questioned, sitting down in front of her at his own desk. He sat his coffee by the phone and leaned back in his chair as he looked on at his partner.

  Veronica glanced up at him briefly taking in his usual well-kept appearance. He was in his late twenties, with dark auburn colored hair trimmed neatly and a clean-shaven face covered with freckles. He wasn’t unattractive with his straight nose and square jaw. Those deep brown eyes of his were looking thoughtfully at her as she shook her head in response.

  Alexander Merritt was a good guy and he was a good partner. But he was fresh to the detective world and still doubted himself too much. And he always buttoned his shirt up all the way to the top even though he never wore a tie. For some reason this detail irritated her a great deal. That and he always tended to err on the side of caution instead of leaping when his gut insisted. Veronica figured it was the chief’s plan to partner them up so she could shake those nerves loose and help Merritt meet the potential he had hidden inside himself. Personally, she didn’t like babysitting a grown man. It just pissed her off.

  She didn’t say anything to his question and thankfully he didn’t ask any more. Veronica was considering a visit to Amelia’s parents’ home. She hadn’t spoken to them since she’d been looking into the case; she had only read information they’d given during initial interviews. She had the names of a best friend and former boss, but no addresses for them. She hoped maybe a visit to Amelia’s mother might get Veronica a better lead in which direction to go. Since her lieutenant hadn’t okayed this case with her, she had to be careful not to dig too deep and draw attention to what she was doing on the side.

  She took in a sip of coffee and deep breath of air before sitting up straight in her chair. She needed to talk to the parents for sure, but she knew what an officer knocking at their door would do. It would stir hope and she didn’t want to cause them any more grief. She wanted to be able to have something to bring to them, but so far according to previous reports, every lead had gone stale.

  Deciding it would be best to talk to the parents despite her reservations, Veronica searched through the file for their address. She was just about done when the phone on her desk rang. She picked it up with her left hand while jotting down the address with her right.

  “Covey,” she answered.

  “V’ronica, my dear!” the familiar voice of Elgie Hoard sounded on the other end of the line.

  “Elgie, never a pleasure,” she stated, dropping her pen and looking across the desk at Merritt. He was grinning at her, clearly recognizing the voice of the friendly on the other line. Merritt was sharp enough to know that Veronica both liked and disliked the informant, Elgie. Not that she’d ever spoken such emotions aloud, but Merritt obviously picked up on her behavior each time the CI called the station looking for her. It wasn’t that Elgie wasn’t useful, but more along the lines that he liked to call with unimportant info when he was running low on smokes. She rolled her eyes at Merritt and cradled the phone impatiently. “What can I do for you?”

  “Naw, now you should ax me what can I do fo’ you.” He turned the question around. “Thought I let cha know I gots dibs on yo’ boy.”

  Veronica’s eyes narrowed. “Yeah?”

  “Yeah,” he confirmed.

  She waited for a beat and then shook her head. “You gonna tell me or just keep breathing heavily into the phone like some psychotic stalker?”

  Elgie’s raspy laugh sounded on the other end. “What cha gonna gimme if’n I tell ya?”

  “The usual, I assume.”

  Another laugh followed by a long wheezy coughing spell. When he was finished hacking up his lung, he said into the receiver, “He just finished wif da ninth hole down at da Spades golf course.”

  “Elgie, you sly son of a bitch, how’d you even get into The Spades?” Veronica asked bemusedly. The Spades had become the new Country Club for high-profile golfers and others around the western Tennessee area.

  Elgie laughed again, saying proudly, “I gots my ways, missy, I gots my ways.”

  Veronica rolled her eyes. “I’ll meet you there with the usual in twenty minutes,” she informed.

  “You bring an extra and I’ll even get cha a cart to chase em’ down wit,” Elgie offered.

  “Deal,” she said before hanging up. She folded the file over on her desk and shut her computer down before gathering her cell.

  “Where are we going?” Merritt questioned, standing when she did.

  Veronica looked across the desk at him and shook her head. “We’re not going anywhere. I need you to wrap up that robbery on Second Street.”

  Merritt’s eyes widened with shock. “That misdemeanor? Come on, Covey!”

  She shot him a stern look and he backed down. “I should be back by lunch,” she informed. She thought she heard Merritt mutter something about not being her ‘lap dog’ as she walked out, but she let it slide. She felt a twinge of guilt for using her partner to cover her other actions. Yes, she wanted him to finish that case because the lieutenant was expecting a full report on it by this afternoon and Covey had nothing to report on. She told herself it was good for Merritt to get into the swing of being a detective on his own without having her hover like some mother hen. If he couldn’t figure out a gas station robbery, then he needed to go back to patrolling the streets.

  She dismissed any other thoughts about Merritt as she got in her vehicle. She made a pit stop at a convenience store on her way and then headed straight for the course.

  It truly was a beautiful day for a round of golf. She herself hadn’t played a game in years. It was hard to sa
y if she missed the game or just the time spent with her father. Veronica and her older sister had been born well after their father’s second half of life. He was old enough that people often mistook him for her grandfather. But she hadn’t cared about any of that when she was a child—there was simply no one else who measured up to the man she had loved and adored for the short sixteen years she knew him. To this very day she could hear his voice of reasoning inside her mind. Although she had been young when she lost him, Veronica had learned more from him than anyone else. He was still teaching her new things and guiding her with his wisdom all these years later.

  She sighed heavily when she put the car in park and wondered why her father seemed to be on her mind so much lately. There was never a day that passed she didn’t think of him or remember some valuable piece of advice, but this felt different. This felt like something more. She wondered if her intuition was trying to tell her something or give her a warning.

  Shaking her head with the sheer insanity of her own notions, Veronica parked in behind the cart maintenance area and grabbed the Seven Eleven bag from the passenger’s seat. A cool spring breeze met her when she stood from the sedan. It felt amazing on her skin and a flash of longing for the crisp Northeastern weather she grew up around washed over her. She took in a deep breath of the fresh air and shut her door, announcing her arrival.

  Right on cue, Elgie poked his head out from the side door of the large metal building with a wide grin on his dark face. He certainly wasn’t someone she would be seen out with under normal circumstances. He wasn’t a well-kept man to say the least. His long, lanky frame sauntered from the building casting dodgy glances over his shoulder—a habit he developed while running the streets and dealing drugs since his youth. His bony fingers flicked the bud of a smoked cigarette to the side and he blew out his last lungful of smoke. Although he was in his fifties, poor health from poor choices had aged him immensely. Today he wore dirty gray pants cinched at the waist with a frayed belt and a semi-clean button-down polo with the name Spades monogrammed on the left breast pocket. He had a tan ball cap over his coarse, thinning hair and it was pushed up enough she could see sweat beaded on his brow despite the cooler temperature.

  “Miss V’ronica,” he greeted with a nod of his head.

  “Elgie,” she acknowledged watching as his coal-black eyes swept her from top to bottom then back up again. It was hard not to smile at his complete lack of shame.

  “You sho’ lookin’ good, girl. You been workin’ out?”

  She cracked a small smile and shook her head, turning her eyes out over the greens. “Nothing more than usual, Elg. Chasing bad guys.” Veronica certainly wasn’t an ugly woman, but she didn’t try to flaunt her assets while working. She had dressed very appropriately today in black slacks and a white button down chiffon shirt tucked in neatly at the waist. As always, her long, dark hair was French braided down her back with only a few loose strands broken free from the wind dancing around her face. Her clear, sea-foam green eyes were shielded behind a pair of Aviator sunglasses, but they certainly didn’t miss the way this older man was lustfully gawking at her.

  Tired of wasting time and being undressed with Elgie’s eyes, Veronica opened the bag and held out a carton of Marlboro cigarettes. It was even more comical for her to see the old man’s eyes light up brighter than when he was admiring her body. Priorities, she thought with some chagrin.

  “Damn, V, you done hooked me up real good!” He let out a low whistle and gladly took the goods, giving the box the once over as if he were afraid she’d opened it and took half the packs for herself. She stifled a laugh when he ran the box under his nose and took in a deep breath to savor the scent of the tobacco.

  “I was feeling generous,” she said quietly, but his quick glance back up at her did not go unnoticed. Elgie looked like he wasn’t much of a thinker, but the mind inside that filthy disguise was still pretty sharp. She’d known him for years and he had managed to keep his nose clean for a while. He had done time on several occasions before officially cleaning up his act and holding down a couple of low paying jobs here and there. The golf course had been a surprise to her, but she felt a little pride toward his efforts nevertheless. He was probably one of the best informants she had ever befriended. She was sure no one else blended in better than him.

  “You mus want dis one bad, don’t cha?” he accused, his greasy face twisting into another smile.

  She set her jaw and said nothing to his statement. Yes, she wanted to nail this suspect to the wall. She wanted justice for the poor girl Veronica was sure he murdered and some closure for the poor tortured parents left only with memories of their little girl. “Where’s my promised cart?” she inquired.

  “Dis way,” he replied, tucking the carton protectively under his arm and gesturing for her to follow.

  She dropped the plastic bag from the convenience store into a trashcan beside the door and walked into the shaded area. Elgie nodded toward a freshly washed cart and gave her a wink.

  “Shined it up fo you and er’thang.”

  “I’ll bring it right back when I’m done,” she assured as she sat down and knocked the gear into reverse. She pushed on the accelerator and the battery powered engine whined to life.

  “Don’t smoke all those at once, K?” She offered him a small smile and he tipped his hat at her with a sheepish grin.

  Veronica calculated in her mind how long ago it had been since she got the call. Elgie had said Ross was on his ninth hole, so given the time frame he should be finishing up on the twelfth or thirteenth by now. She flipped the scorecard around so she could see a map of the course and which way she needed to go. Once she had a good idea, she turned the cart toward the fairway and headed out.

  She was standing in the tee box of the twelfth hole when she heard the sound of a cart approaching. She had her hand on her hip, looking over the fairway when the engine stopped and the sound of golf clubs clanking rang through the air.

  “Are you lost, miss?” called a deep voice.

  Veronica was slow to turn, deliberate in her measured smile. “No, just waiting on you.” She watched as the senator and his posse approached her. Ross was probably around five eleven with a medium, stocky build. His dirty blonde hair was politician perfect even in the gusty morning breeze. She bet if she poked at it, it might shatter into pieces. His skin was a smooth tanned color, a combination of unnecessary vacations and possibly a bronzing lotion. He wore a crisp white golfing shirt and pleated shorts with striped golfing shoes. He looked like someone walking out on the set of a photo shoot rather than a man out for a relaxing round of golf with friends. Truthfully, she wasn’t sure friend was a real word in his world. She watched as two men dressed casually in black slacks and polo shirts flanked Ross, eyeing her cautiously.

  She pushed her sunglasses up on her head so she could finally look the senator in the eye. She had waited a while for the opportunity to get him alone. If one could really call this ‘alone’ considering he had two body guards and an awkward caddy lagging behind.

  “Do I know you?” Ross’s dark eyes narrowed in thought as he spoke.

  “My name is Detective Covey,” she introduced, lifting her shirt slightly so that her badge was revealed where it was hooked on her belt. She watched as the senator’s bulldogs started to take a step closer, but a quick flick of his wrist held them back. Her eyes never left the Ross’s as she said, “I was hoping I could ask you a couple of questions.”

  Ross’s expression changed from intrigue to something more solemn. “Concerning?”

  “Amelia Mason.”

  Ross blinked a couple of times his expression blank. “I don’t know that name.”

  Veronica figured as much. About the time she opened her mouth to speak, she heard another cart approaching the hole. She swallowed hard when she saw who sat in the seat. The mayor got out of the passenger side and called out to Ross.

  “Damn it, boy! I thought I could keep up with you. I guess I was wrong.” T
he gray-haired man was chuckling to himself, his protruding belly bouncing with the motion of his laughter and the shuffling of his feet. It was quite disturbing really in that snug-fitting golf attire. Veronica forced herself to keep down the coffee she drank earlier.

  Much to her surprise, a third cart came winding down the path after the mayor’s.

  Crap, she thought. This wasn’t going at all like she planned. As she glanced to see the latest company, she was surprised to see the senator’s wife dressed the part in khakis and a pink polo shirt. Her shoes were as crisp white as the visor perched atop her salon-perfect dark hair. Everly Ross was the perfect senator’s wife with her timid demeanor and wide doe-like eyes. Those big eyes were looking cautiously, if not a little warily, in the direction of her husband now. Yes, it was definitely the senator’s wife, no mistaking her now. Veronica would recognize that sweet face anywhere. Everly was often photographed at Ross’s side in every major event outside the senate. Veronica felt a twinge of pity for the woman still seated on the golf cart. Did she have any clue what her husband was up to? Or was she one of those wives who turned the other cheek to look at the money side of the marriage?

  Now wasn’t the time to analyze the dynamics of an intimate political relationship—Veronica wasn’t sure she’d ever have enough time for that.

  As Veronica turned her eyes back to the mayor, she realized his face had lost all its amusement when he saw there was an uninvited guest at their party. He stopped beside the senator and gave Veronica a hard look.

  “Veronica,” he greeted with a curt nod.

  “Mayor,” she said back with a bemused smile. The mayor had a way of always regarding her as a meddlesome irritation. His mousy eyes were narrowed and his ruddy face was harried as he spoke after drawing in a labored breath.

  “What brings you to the course today?” he asked stiffly.

  Veronica turned her eyes back to Ross, but didn’t answer. He was looking nonchalant as he reached in his bag held next to him by a nervous young man and grabbed his desired driver. He walked toward Veronica with purpose, stopping just inches in front of her. Now that his back was to the group, his face took on a hardened look of barely bridled anger. Her eyes were twinkling with the challenge and she reached up to tuck back a loose strand of hair blowing across her face as she waited eagerly for his words. Emotions were what caused people to slip up. She needed a reaction from him. Anything to fuel the fire against him.