Tarizon: Desert Swarm Read online

Chapter 30

  The Fixer

  Captain Winslow wasn’t a detective by any stretch of the imagination. He was a fixer and very good at his job. He’d been working on projects for General Thornton for nearly twenty years and had lasted that long because he followed two simple rules—do exactly what’s asked of you and don’t ask questions. When General Thornton told him he was being transferred to the Criminal Investigations Command, he was surprised due to his lack of experience in that type of work, but he quickly realized why he’d been picked for the job. There was some weird stuff going on that would totally freak out the public if it got out. Although he was curious as to what was happening, the truth was not material. He had to come up with a plausible explanation that would satisfy the locals and the media.

  Less than a week after he’d been assigned to the case he called a news conference at the Bat Mountain Site to announce he’d solved the four murders. The news conference was held on the ridge above the site. Along with the pilgrims and media who were permanent fixtures on the ridge there was Deputy Lawson, the medical examiner and locals from Death Valley Junction and Shoshone. Jack, Dolly, George and Cindy were also there and Agent Sanders was watching from the hill a half mile away.

  Captain Winslow cleared his throat. “Ladies and gentlemen, I have called this news conference this afternoon to give you some good news. After an intense investigation of the four recent murders, Colonel Martin of the United States Army, Randy Perkins of the Park Service and Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Hanson and his wife, Amanda, I am proud to advise you that we have solved the murders and all but one of the perpetrators are in custody.”

  There was a collective sigh from the crowd and then people began clapping. When they were done, Captain Winslow continued, “I guess it’s just human nature that when extraordinary events occur, there are always greedy people who try to capitalize on them. Unfortunately that’s what happened here at the Bat Mountain Uplift. One man tried to claim that this simple geological lift was somehow a cathedral being built by God to announce the Second Coming of Christ.”

  There were shouts of protest and disapproval from the pilgrims in attendance. Several MPs moved in front of Captain Winslow to deter any of them who might decide to rush him.

  “Well, as wonderful a phenomenon as that would be, it isn’t what’s going on here. This morning Reverend John Little was arrested along with Paul Barnes, Lizzy Arnold, Emma Lane, and Susan Lane. Bruce Talbert remains at large but we expect to have him in custody soon.”

  There were more shouts of outrage and many of the pilgrims appeared to be on the verge of rioting. Several Sheriff’s deputies stepped up to support the MPs.

  “We believe we have the evidence to prove that these five individuals conspired to kill the four victims I mentioned earlier. We were able to piece together the events that took place over the last few weeks to a large extent due to two undercover officers who infiltrated the congregation of the Church of the Living Desert. These individuals gathered evidence and elicited details of how the murders were carried out by these participants.

  “It was a complicated plot but I’ll try to summarize it for you. After the Bat Mountain Uplift was discovered, as you know, Reverend Little immediately tried to claim it had a religious significance. When Colonel Martin restricted Reverend Little and his church from the site, he wanted to find a way to get rid of Colonel Martin and strengthen his contention that God was constructing a church in the desert, so he ordered his driver and body guard, Bruce Talbert, to kill Colonel Martin, but make it look like it was the act of God.

  “Talbert bragged to one of our informants about how he and Paul Barnes had gone to a cave on Bat Mountain where they knew many bats lived during the day. They took with them gunny sacks and a chemical sedative for the purpose of capturing several dozen bats they planned to use to murder Colonel Martin. So, they filled a portion of the cave with gas and then picked up the sedated bats and put them in their gunny sacks.

  “That night, after Colonel Martin had turned in for the night, they came in from the north, where no sentries were posted, went to his tent, injected him with a drug that induced a fatal heart attack, and doused him with a scent that agitated the bats. Then they put the sedated bats on his cot and sealed up the tent. When the bats woke up from their sedation, they went berserk due to the scent and their confinement. So, it appeared at first that the bats were responsible for Colonel Martin’s death and Reverend Little claimed that these were the legendary Lone Pine Devils straight from the depths of hell.”

  The crowd stirred at the picture being painted by Captain Winslow. When the crowd quieted, he continued, “Reverend Little and the other co-conspirators had the same motive for killing Randy Perkins. That is he continued to place restrictions on Reverend Little’s access to the Bat Mountain Site and this was hampering his efforts to become the guardian of God’s Cathedral. So, Reverend Little ordered Talbert to kill Randy Perkins but this time it had to look like the Cathedral had killed him. So, Reverend Little enlisted the help of another member of his flock, Molly Munson, who called Randy and requested some samples of the wall for an exhibit at the Death Valley Museum. We don’t believe Miss Munson was a co-conspirator in the murder but rather an unwitting participant. Talbert then kept watch until Randy came out to collect his samples. He watched as Randy repeatedly hit the wall until several chunks had been broken off, then he snuck up from behind and knocked him out. To make the murder look like the work of the wall, Talbert staked Randy’s hands and neck down with wire and then twisted each strand causing them to bleed. After a significant amount of bleeding, he then concentrated on the neck, tightening it until he was dead.”

  There were shouts of disgust and outrage from the crowd.

  “After Randy was dead, Talbert removed the wires to make it look like the wall had reached out and killed Randy Perkins for his brutal attack and his interference with God’s work. But it wasn’t God’s work. It was clear and simply the act of one man acting on the orders of Reverend Little.”

  “So, that explains two of the murders, but why would Reverend Little want Deputy Hanson dead? This was perplexing to me as well, until I learned of the comments Deputy Hanson had made to Reverend Little during a meeting between Colonel Martin and Congressman Joel Stephens weeks earlier. At that meeting Deputy Hanson expressed his opposition to anything that would bring more attention to the Living Desert Cathedral as the Sheriff’s office was already having trouble dealing with the influx of pilgrims to the site. No doubt Reverend Little wanted to make an example of the deputy for daring to oppose him.”

  “So, after Randy Perkins’ death, Talbert and Barnes went out to Deputy Hanson’s home, held him at gunpoint and told him to lock the family in the bathroom. Then they knocked him out, closed all the windows, and turned on the gas on the stove. They knew that when enough gas had escaped, the thermostat would eventually ignite it. Apparently, Mrs. Hanson was able to break the window in the bathroom and get the children out of the house, but the window wasn’t big enough for her to escape.”

  There was a collective sigh from the crowd.

  “Now, for those of you who still have any sympathy for Reverend Little, let me say this. Emma, the woman in the wheel chair who supposedly was healed by touching the wall of the Cathedral, is a Hollywood actress who was paid $2,000 to put on that performance.”

  There were cries of outrage.

  “So, that’s it. We will now be turning over the case to the U.S. Attorney’s office that will be prosecuting all those that we have mentioned for these heinous crimes.”

  The crowd buzzed with the revelation and Captain Winslow smiled with satisfaction. He’d delivered again and he knew General Thornton would be pleased.