Chapter 36
A little while later, other police officers arrived and had the scene secured with both ends of Montvale Street barricaded. They removed all the neighbors out of their homes and placed them on the other side of their nearest barricades.
Agnes rubbernecked with some of her neighbors by their nearest barricade.
They watched while two ambulances were allowed to pass through the barricade at the other end of the street.
They watched while the ambulances stopped, and two paramedics rushed out of each ambulance. The rushed over to the rear of their ambulances, opened the rear doors and removed a gurney.
Two paramedics rushed their gurney over to the driver's side of the Hornet where the door was opened.
They carefully removed Bernard or Hud Hudson from behind the wheel. They carefully placed him on the gurney.
Hud moaned in pain while the paramedics rolled the gurney over to their ambulance.
Marvin walked over to Hud's gurney and stopped the paramedics from putting him in the back of the ambulance.
Hud looked up at Marvin. He was in pain but still alert.
"I going to read you your rights," Marvin told Hud.
Hud looked up at Marvin and did not utter a word.
After Marvin read Hud his Miranda rights, Hud just nodded that he understood them.
Marvin motioned for the paramedics to put Hud's gurney into the ambulance.
The other two paramedics went to the passenger side where that door was also opened. They checked out Wendy and verified that she was dead.
They removed her out of the car and placed her on the street.
A police officer walked over and placed a blanket over Wendy's dead body.
The paramedics then reached inside and carefully removed James.
James moaned in pain while the paramedics placed him on the gurney.
The two paramedics rolled James over to their ambulance.
A police officer walked over to Marvin with Hud's two suitcases in hand. "Found these in the trunk of his car. One has clothes inside, and the other has bundles of cash," the officer told Marvin.
"Place them in my car."
The officer nodded he understood and walked off to Marvin' car.
Down at that one barricade, Agnes and the rubberneckers saw Wendy's covered body in the street. They immediately knew she was dead.
"I worked for the doctor that performed plastic surgeries on Hud and Ester back in thirty-five," Agnes told the neighbors standing by her.
Some of the neighbors rolled their eyes with her statement, thinking Agnes was mistaken and a little delusional.
The news reporters from the nearby towns now arrived with their camera trucks. They started setting up their camera for live coverage of this historical moment.
The four paramedics closed their ambulance doors then rushed around to the cabs.
The paramedics drove the ambulances off toward one of the barricades.
The police opened up the barricade and let the two ambulances through for their journey to the hospital.
Over at the Hudson, Marvin had that old lockbox on the trunk. He curiously opened it and peeked inside.
Another officer looked over Marvin's shoulder.
Marvin reached inside the box and removed the leather satchel.
He opened up the satchel and saw many diamond and rings inside.
"Probably too late to return those to their respectful owners," the police officer that looked over Marvin's shoulder said.
Marvin nodded in agreement while he reached inside the lockbox and removed a large vanilla envelope.
He opened it up and emptied its contents. The remaining seven old black and white photos landed on the hood of the Hudson.
He scanned through the nine photos.
Marvin picked up a photo that showed Hud, Jack, Willie, and Harold cleaned their sub-machine guns and Colt 45s on the kitchen table. Ester stood by the sink with an apron around her waist while she peeled some potatoes.
Marvin set that photo down on the hood. He gathered up the remaining photos and shoved them into the envelope. He shoved the envelope and the leather satchel and shoved them into the lockbox.
He removed the piece of paper and glanced at the fives names and locations that were all crossed out.
"That's a little strange," Marvin said while he looked at the piece of paper with the names and locations.
Marvin then removed the thicker vanilla envelope from the box.
He opened the envelope and dumped its contents onto the hood of the Hudson.
Marvin and the police officer saw numerous identification cards for "Jimmy Peabody," "Elmer Brown," "Abner Murray," "Kent Osborne," "Mickey Clinton," and "Bernard Sanders."
Then he saw driver's licenses for a Jason Winston and a Betsy Lawrence, both from Woodland, Arkansas.
"What's with the driver's licenses? Old fake identities?" the police officer asked Marvin.
"That's what I'm thinking," Marvin replied then he gathered up the identification cards and dropped them in the lockbox with the envelope. He closed the box.
Another officer walked up to Marvin. "Detective, Sergeant Carter called and stated he had an earlier call about two guys digging at the grave of a Jim Peabody earlier. One wore some type of police uniform, while the other man was older. They drove off in an old green car."
Marvin glanced back at the ambulance.
"Thanks," Marvin told that officer who then walked away.
Marvin walked off to his car with Hud's lockbox in hand.
Another police officer walked up to Marvin. "Detective, we found this in the trunk of that old car," he said then held up an old potato sack. "I don't know if this has any meaning," the officer added.
Marvin took the sack and looked at it. "You just never know," he told the officer then placed the lockbox and potato sack in the trunk of his car.
Down at the barricaded end of Montvale where Agnes rubbernecked with her neighbors,
A reporter from Evansville stood in front of his cameraman with a microphone in his hand.
"Just a little while ago, they took away old public enemy Hud Hudson away in an ambulance. Just like his criminal past in the thirties, Hud and his partner in crime Ester Walker had their last gun fight with police. Hud survived, Ester, did not," he said.
Another reporter from St. Louis stood in front of his cameraman.
"We just learned that police believe they shot famous public enemy Hud Hudson and killed his partner Ester Walker. Apparently, these two criminals were not killed back in thirty-four in that house explosion, as what the history books make you believe," he said.
Back at the Gibsland Police Station, Cindy waited in a chair near the front desk. She looked worried to death about James and prayed that he was not dead.
Sergeant Vick Carter worked at the front desk, and he also waited for word on the outcome with Montvale Street.
His desk phone rang.
Cindy jumped startled in her chair over that sound.
"Gibsland police department. Sergeant Carter," he answered the call then listened to the caller.
"Thanks for the update," Sergeant Carter replied with a smile then hung up his phone.
He looked over at Cindy. "You're husband's okay. He's at the hospital for a checkup to make sure," he told Cindy.
Cindy looked relieved. Then her eyes well up, and her hands shook.
She got up and rushed out to the door.
She rushed to her car so she could head to the hospital to check up on James.
The next morning arrived, and Agnes drove her 1962 Rambler to the Gibsland Police Station.
After she checked in at the front desk, she walked into the Detectives Room.
Marvin worked on his report from last night's incident when Agnes walked up to his desk.
He glanced up at her. "Yes, ma-am."
"I'm Agnes Moore and live on Montvale Street," she said.
It took a few seconds for her name to register in his head. "Yes, ma-am."
Agnes sat down in the chair by his desk. "I worked as a nurse for Doctor Albert Harvey many years ago. Back in January 1935, I assisted Doctor Harvey while he performed cosmetic surgery on Hud Hudson and Ester Walker," she said then opened up her purse and removed the four black and white photos.
She placed them on the desk and slid them over in front of Marvin. "Here's proof," she said.
Marvin grabbed the photos and saw the before and after shots of Hud and Ester.
"Thanks," he told her with a smile. "Can I get a statement from you?"
"Sure, I feel safe now," Agnes said and did not look scared anymore.
Marvin opened a desk drawer and removed a Witness Statement form and grabbed a pen.
He started jotting down the information Agnes provided.