The officer working the front desk was just polishing off another glazed donut when the detectives walked in. Wiping the glazed icing from his lips, he started in with a sarcastic remark, “And how may I help two of Hot Springs’ finest?”
Like all the others, he was aware of their gay orientation, and though not bold enough to say it to their faces; he considered them queer, with all the ramifications the word carried in his small-town mind.
“We need to see the report made on the Simon Teel shooting,” Detective Smith stated, noting the sarcastic overtone.
“Comin’ right up,” he said picking through a stack of reports. Locating the correct one, he gave it to the detective.
“Thank you.” Donny and Angel proceeded down the corridor and into the homicide department. Nearing his desk, Donny became aware of his desk chair missing. Looking around the room, it was nowhere to be found. Angel now noticed it missing, and gave a quick scan of the area.
“What’d ya do with your chair, sport?” she asked.
Laughter from the hallway gave way to suspicions that some of the other detectives were jerking his chain. He decided not to take the bait, and leaned up against the side of his desk, facing Angel, who was sitting back in her chair.
“Want me to kick their ass for ya?” she asked in a serious manner.
“No, they want to play games, like little children. Best thing to do is ignore it. Otherwise, they’ll just get worse.”
“That might be your attitude, which is fine with me, but they fuck with my stuff, and somebody’s getting’ a black eye. You remember that old saying, ‘The bigger they are, the harder they fall?’ Well, my old man said, ‘The bigger they are, the harder you hit’em.’ Those pot-bellied bigots want to start some shit, fine with me. I’m ready to kick ass,” she said giving a finger in the direction of the laughter.
Donny listened, but decided not to get into a debate on how to best deal with rednecks in the department. He continued reading over the officer’s report of Teel’s shooting.
“So, what’s it say?” Angel asked the impatience evident in her voice.
“Says about 5:40 am, Nora Teel heard breaking glass coming from the kitchen door. She went to investigate, at which time she saw a man’s arm reaching through the broken glass trying to unlock the deadbolt. Running to her bedroom, she retrieved her revolver, a .38-caliber Smith and Wesson. As she left her bedroom, she was confronted by her son, Simon Teel, who had escaped from the mental hospital several hours earlier—“
“How did she know he escaped?” Angel interrupted.
“Doesn’t say,” he answered.
“Go on,” Angel said as she waved her hand.
“Says he yelled obscenities and told her he was going to kill her for putting him in the nut-house. He advanced on her with a claw hammer, which she stated he raised over his head and charged her. She screamed, and then pointed the gun, at which time he turned and started to run. She states she fired one shot, the blast frightened her, and she dropped the gun. She then ran to her bedroom and dialed 911 and reported the attack. She stayed in her room until the police units arrived. Officer’s Drake and Manchild were the first to arrive on the scene. They found the kitchen door open, the glass knocked out. Simon Teel was found lying on a bed, on his left side facing the wall. He was unconscious, and the officers called for an ambulance at that time. One entry wound was found on his upper back region. Nora Teel was found in another bedroom down the hall.” Donny finished his summation of the report.
“That’s interesting; you think there’s a possibility the .38 is the same one used on Butler and Lerner?” Angel questioned.
“I think it’s time to visit Sean Meyers down at the lab.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
The detectives maneuvered through the corridors, passing several fellow officers on their way. A few snickers and odd looks were sent in their direction. Donny remained professional, yet Angel couldn’t refrain from flipping the bird to her counterparts as they passed.
Arriving at the forensics lab, they found Sean peering through a microscope.
“Sean, might we have a moment of your time?” Donny inquired.
With a slight turn of the scope’s larger knob, he stepped back from it. “Take a look, Donny.”
“And just what would I be looking at?” He asked closing one eye as he leaned in for a peek.
“That my dear sir is the slug that was removed from a Simon Teel, over at the medical center. Guess what? It’s a perfect match to Linda Lerner’s gun,” Sean stated with great pride.
“I think it’s time we talk with Nora Teel,” Angel suggested.
“I think you’re right,” Donny said following her to the door.
“Wait!” Sean yelled.
“What?” Donny asked returning.
“I have the results of the other evidence we processed; you want it?”
“Let’s hear it,” Angel answered.
“The claw hammer didn’t have Simon Teel’s prints on it, only his mother’s prints were found on it, and he wasn’t wearing gloves. Also, the glass in the kitchen door wasn’t broken from the outside in, it was broken from the inside out,” Sean reported to the detectives.
“So someone made it appear he had broken in, when in fact, he hadn’t,” Donny noted.
“Yeah, makes sense, seeing how the hammer didn’t have his prints on it,” Angel agreed.
“Anything else to report, Sean?” Donny asked.
“As a matter of fact, yes, your boy Simon had a bad case of powder-burns at the impact site. Which means—“
“Which means his mother couldn’t have shot him from a distance as he was running from her. She, or whoever, must have been right up on him, with the gun barrel almost touching his back. Correct?” Angel asked.
“Correct, Detective,” Donny responded.
“One thing more,” Sean broke in. “I received the phone records you guys wanted on that James Butler and Linda Lerner. So I also took the liberty of requesting, in your names, the records for that Nora Teel. I figured since the gun matched the earlier shootings, you’d want them as well.”
“You know, that’s breaking the law, my sneaky little friend, but you’re right, we’d like to see those as well.” Donny spoke half-seriously.
“Who cares if he broke the law, what’d you find out, spunky?” Angel blurted out.
“Well, nothing unusual on the first two, but that Nora Teel, she made a call just forty minutes before she called 911, to Andrew Crawford.” Sean said.
“How long did they talk?” Donny asked.
“For ninety-three seconds.”
“Very interesting indeed, thanks Sean, but next time, let me know what you’re up to first,” Donny chided.
“Sure, sorry dude,” Sean said not making eye contact.
“You think Nora could shoot her own son?” Donny asked Angel.
“Maybe, maybe not, but I do believe an old, burned-out priest could.” She answered.
“A man of God?” Donny said with a perplexed look on his face.
“He’s as close to God as I am,” she sneered.
“So, your theory is…?”
“Ah, I see it this way, Simon shows up, Mom takes him in and once he’s in bed, she calls her boss. The Father comes over and shoots him, then makes it look like he broke in. Has her say he was enraged and tried to kill her. The good Father had access to Lerner’s gun in her office; he could have taken it, shot Butler, than replaced it in her desk easy enough. Then later, he shot Lerner with it and kept it. And now, got called, came over and shot Simon with it. Then concocted this lame story Nora told. It’s plausible,” Angel stated.
“What’s his motive?” Donny asked.
“How should I know, it’s just a theory. You got a better theory?” she asked a bit agitated.
“Well, maybe Nora did shoot her son.”
“What was her motive? What was her motive for shooting Butler and Lerner?” she asked.
“I’m just speculating, hell; maybe they both killed the other three. And don’t ask what their motive would be, I don’t know.” Donny said now agitated himself.
“Let’s bring Nora Teel in for questioning, see if we can break her down. And while she’s here, let’s have your buddy Sean give her a paraffin test to see if she’s fired a gun recently,” Angel offered.
“The paraffin test is old news; we’re high-tech now. Sean uses that neutron activation analysis device. Suppose to find even the tiniest traces of gunpowder imbedded in the skin.” Donny corrected.
“Well whoopee, let’s use the fancy machine,” Angel said rolling her eyes.