Chapter 9
It was now Saturday morning.
Kent got up around eight, took a shower, got dressed, and headed out of his motor courtroom.
He walked back down to the diner for breakfast.
When he entered the diner, he noticed it was packed with Warner Robins folks. So Edith had to seat him at the counter at the rear of the diner.
After his French Toast breakfast, Kent left the diner and headed back to his motor courtroom.
He paced around his room and got nervous about this afternoon. “I have to stop her from meeting with Grant,” he said while he walked back and forth by the black and white Zenith TV. “I’ll call her. Tell her not see him tonight,” he said and thought that that was a great idea. “If she asks why, I’ll tell her that,” he said but didn’t know the rest of his response. “I’ll tell her that,” he said again and pondered what to tell her. Then his eyes lit up. “I’ll tell her that, Grant’s married and he’s cheating on his wife,” he said and thought that would work.
He rushed to the room door and went outside.
He got halfway through the parking lot and thought about this idea again. He stopped dead in his tracks. “That won’t work. She’ll find out he’s not married, and they’ll just meet another day, and I can’t stay here in fifty-seven forever,” he quietly said then turned around and headed back to his motor courtroom.
He stopped when his eyes lit up with another idea. “I’ll call Colonel Abbott. I’ll tell him about Grant having sex with his daughter. That’ll work. He’ll get furious and pound on Grant and forbid his daughter to see him,” he said and believed that was his only choice. “No dead girl, then my daddy won’t be arrested for murder. It’s perfect!” he added, and the more he thought about that idea, the more he thought it was the perfect plan. “Why didn’t I think of this before?” he said rushed off toward Route 12 and rushed down the shoulder of the road toward the diner.
It wasn’t long before Kent arrived at the phone booth at the Shell gas station all out of breath.
He deposited a dime into the payphone and pressed the zero button for the operator.
“Operator,” she answered the call.
“Yes, I need the phone number for a Colonel Abbott at Robins Air Force Base. He lives on base,” he said into the phone.
There were a few seconds of silence. “I’m sorry, but I’m not locating a number for a Colonel Abbott. It must be unlisted,” said the operator.
“You gotta have his number,” said Kent.
“I’m sorry, but unlisted numbers cannot be given out,” said the operator. “Is there another number you need?”
“No ma-am,” said, and he hung up the phone.
Kent moped away from the Shell station and moped his way down Route 12 heading back to the motor court.
He went back inside the room and moped while he sat on the bed.
After fifteen minutes of moping, he laid on the bed and soon fell asleep.
He had a dream…
In his dream, Kent was standing on the front porch of Meyers’ cabin.
All of a sudden, a ghostly image of Angie faded into view in front of him. “Why didn’t you save me?” said Angie’s ghost with sad eyes.
“I wanted to. I really wanted to,” said Kent.
“You didn’t save me. You didn’t save me,” cried out Angie’s ghost with sadder eyes.
“I tried! I tried?” cried out Kent.
“I’m dead,” cried out Angie’s ghost. “I’m dead,” she said then the ghost started to fade away.
Back to reality…
Kent tossed and turned in bed. “I tried! I tried! I swear I tried, Angie” he cried out in his sleep. He woke up and glanced around the room in a daze.
He saw the alarm clock on the bedside table. It was now three that Saturday afternoon, and he knew it was that time again.
He thought about calling the police. But would they believe me? He thought. If Grant and Angie didn’t show up for some strange reason, then he could be arrested for making false calls. Sunday could be the actual day. He thought. He knew his only choice was to film this crime and leave the film cartridge by the front door of the police station.
He got out of the bed and walked over to the dresser drawer. He opened up the drawer and removed the Bell and Howell movie camera case.
Kent left his room at the Motor Court and walked through the parking lot and headed down the shoulder of Route 12 with the Bell and Howell movie camera case in hand. “Take two,” he jokingly said, trying to put humor into this messy situation to calm down his nerves.
Thirty minutes passed, and Kent walked down the dirt road and headed to the bushes where he hung out yesterday.
Five minutes later he had the Bell and Howell movie camera out and again nestled in the same spot in the bushes. He nuzzled the camera case back at the bottom of the bushes.
Kent nestled down behind the bushes.
The woods were again quiet while waited at this hiding place.
He heard the sound of a pistol being fired way off in the woods. It was a faint sound, so he knew it wasn’t a threat. Then he recalled how his father was targeting practicing in the woods on this Saturday evening. He smiled as that was actually a sweet sound to hear.
Ten minutes had passed.
Kent almost fell asleep, but the sound of a car driving down the dirt road woke him up. He glanced around the bushes and saw a green four-door nineteen fifty Chevrolet Bel-Air driving down the dirt road and headed straight for Meyers’ cabin. He saw nineteen-year-old Derek Allen behind the wheel and his secret lover nineteen-year-old Bobby Gentry in the passenger side of the front seat.
“Just like Derek’s confession,” said Kent when he saw the Bel-Air drive and park behind the cabin out of view from the clearing. “That explains why Grant didn’t see them.”
Behind the cabin, Derek and his partner Bobby got out of the Bel-Air.
They and rushed inside the cabin through the back door, unaware Kent was hiding in those bushes.
Down on Route 12, Grant drove his T-Bird with Angie in the passenger seat. She wore a white blouse, black Capri pants, and black flat-soled shoes with her small black purse in her lap.
There was a little tension in the air inside the T-Bird.
“Where are we going?”
“Someplace private so we can talk about this,” said Grant. He glanced over at her and knew he had to get out of this mess. He wanted to offer up his plan to her in private.
He drove his T-Bird down Route 12 with a smirk while Angie glanced at him with love in her eyes.
After five additional minutes of waiting and swatting away more bugs.
The faint sound of that gunfire way off in the woods ceased, and Kent knew his daddy was finished.
Then came the sound of another car driving down that dirt road. It wasn’t long before he heard the car brakes.
He turned on his Bell & Howell film cameras. He was ready.
He heard the car engine turn off.
Two car doors opened and closed.
Grant and Angie stood by the T-Bird. Grant scanned the area and saw nobody was around. He felt safe.
Grant held Angie’s hand to give her a false sense that he cared.
Kent peeked around the bushes and saw Grant’s T-Bird parked in the clearing.
He saw Grant in civilian clothes and Angie in that her white blouse and black Capri pants with black flat-soled shoes. The same clothes he saw in that photo in that crime book back at the MIT library.
He discreetly watched them walk holding hand farther into the clearing closer to the woods.
They stopped, and Grant glanced at Angie’s eyes.
Kent looked in the viewfinder and repositioned the camera to have Grant and Angie in view.
“Why do we have to talk way out here?” said Angie.
Kent started recording on the camera.
“This is where we met on numerous occasions for privacy. Besides, we can’t afford to have anybody listen in on our delicate matter,” said Grant and he glanced around the area and felt confident the coast was clear and he didn’t see any cars parked at the cabin. Besides, from that angle of the clearing, the trees blocked out the cabin from view.
“Now Angie, are you sure you’re pregnant?”
“Oh, I’m sure. I haven’t had my period for two months now. And I’ve been throwing up in the mornings.” “And I learned what that meant in biology class.”
Grant wanted to kick himself in his butt for himself for getting in this mess. “Did you tell anybody about this?” said Grant and he started to sweat being nervous, Colonel Abbott already knows.
“No. No way. My girlfriends would blab it to the whole school and town. Nobody knows. I swear.”
“Are you sure?”
“Cross my heart and hope to die,” she said, and Grant believed her.
Grant thought about his situation for a few seconds. “Maybe we can find a doctor up in Macon that can, you know,” he said.
“Know what?” said Angie, not following where he was going with this.
“You know, you could get rid of the baby,” said Grant, and he looked dead serious. “I’ll pay for it, of course.”
Angie’s eyes widened. “Abortion? I’m not going to get rid of my baby!” she said, rubbing her stomach. “No way!” she said and looked upset with his suggestion. “You’ll have to marry me. That’s the only answer,” said Angie said always wanted to be an Air Force Officer’s wife.
Grant quickly thought of another way out while his blood started to boil. His eyes lit up with an answer. Should I do that? He pondered. Grant thought about her answer. “Well, I’m not going to marry you,” he said, sounding dead serious.
Angie wasn’t sure she heard him correctly. “Did you say you’re not going to marry me?”
“That’s right. I’m not going to marry you.”
Angie got furious. “You have too! You got me pregnant! And daddy will insist, as soon as he finds out. He’s not going to have a bastard grandson.” “Besides, you said you loved me!”
“I only said I loved you so I could get you naked under the sheets,” he said then paused for a few seconds. “Plus, how do I know you weren’t fucking one of the guys on the football team.” “Hells bells, you’re so easy I bet the whole football team fucked you in the locker room,” he said in the heat of the moment.
Angie got fire in her eyes with his comment that she was a slut. She slapped Grant hard across his right cheek.
Grant was furious, and he slapped Angie so hard it knocked her on her butt.
Grant looked at Angie down on her butt on the ground. Should I? He pondered. But if I don’t? Colonel Abbott would soon discover his beloved daughter is pregnant. He’ll pressure her to identify the father. Colonel Abbott will kill me if I don’t marry her! He thought. He felt this was his only option to be free. I can’t marry her! Then he racked his mind with ways to be clear of this plan. I need a patsy. He thought for a second. But who?
His eyes lit up. Yes! He knew the perfect patsy he could frame. After all, his wife refused his advances over the years. Plus he knew that the Warner Robins police department was too inept with solving a murder. And the evidence he’ll plant will ensure Colonel Abbott will believe without a shadow of a doubt that his patsy was his daughter’s killer. I can’t do that. He thought about chickening out.
Angie stood up and faced Grant with fire in her eyes. “I’M GOING TO TELL DADDY YOU GOT ME PREGNANT AND WON’T MARRY ME. HE’LL HAVE YOU IN AIR FORCE JAIL!” “FOR THE REST OF YOUR STINKING LIFE!” she screamed out, and it echoed in the woods.
Grant knew Colonel Abbott will use his influence to make sure he spent time in Fort Leavenworth with a dishonorable discharge. His life would be ruined, and that made his blood boil. “SLUT!” he yelled and reached out with his hands and grabbed Angie by her neck. He squeezed her neck.
Kent had it on film, but the cartridge was all used up. He quickly opened up the camera, removed that used cartridge and set it down in the dirt. He immediately installed a new cartridge and went back to filming.
“HELP!” Angie yelled out. Grant tightened his grip on her neck. “Help!” she strained out the words again, but his grasp started to cut off her air supply.
She had enough strength to start punching at Grant’s face. He ducked her mediocre punches and squeezed her neck harder. “Help!” Angie cried out in a low whisper and started to feel weak.
Kent couldn’t take it any longer, as he remembered that sweet girl that gave him a ride on Thursday and their short talk yesterday. “STOP!” he yelled out.
Kent bolted out from behind the bushes. “STOP! STOP! STOP!” he yelled.
Grant, with his hands around Angie’s throat, looked to his left and saw Kent bolting after him. Where the fuck did he come from? Grant thought and loosened his grip around Angie’s neck.
Angie felt his grip loosened, so she swung and punched Grant upside his head. Grant dropped Angie when Kent was a foot away.
“Kent!” said Angie the second she saw him.
“Kent?” said Grant wondering how Angie knew this stranger, and that made him even more furious.
Kent didn’t have any time to react when Grant’s fist hit him hard in his forehead catching him by surprise. His vision went black, and he dropped to the ground passed out.
Grant glanced down at Kent and knew he wasn’t a threat. He noticed that Angie was gone. He glanced around the area and saw her running into the woods. He saw Kent, and that gave him an idea. “Perfect!” he said then gave chase after Angie.
It didn’t take Grant long to catch up with Angie.
He tackled her to the ground.
He flipped her over on her back. He pressed his knees into her shoulders, pinning her to the ground.
“Let me continue what I started,” he said and gripped his hands around Angie’s neck. He squeezed so hard she couldn’t scream. She was losing air in her lungs.
It didn’t take long for Angie’s body to go limp, and her soul left her body.
Grant was satisfied that Angie was no longer a threat to the Playboy lifestyle he loved.
He glanced back and saw Kent was still passed out. He got off Angie and picked up her body in his arms.
Grant walked Angie’s lifeless, limp body back to Kent and dropped her near him.
He proceeded to rip off her white blouse, black Capri pants, bra, panties, and removed her shoes. She was now bare ass naked. He smiled at her recalling those two moments, he had hot sex with her here at Meyers’ cabin a few months ago and once in a room at the Peach Tree Motor Court. On that motor court night, Grant instructed Angie to wear sunglasses and a scarf over her hair. He told her it made her look sexier, and she believed him.
He ran back to his T-Bird and didn’t notice four peering eyes that spied on him from the woods. It was Derek and Bobby. The two remained hidden out of view and quiet and also afraid of Grant, as they knew it was their boss who just murdered a young girl.
Grant started up his T-Bird and turned it around and drove off down the dirt road.
He stopped a little way down the dirt road, got out, and found a broken tree branch with leaves.
He rushed back with the branch and wiped away his tire tracks from his car.
He continued eliminating any evidence all the way down the dirt road until he got to the end. He tossed the branch into the woods, jumped back in his T-Bird.
He made a right turn onto Route 12 and raced in a northerly direction.
Five minutes had passed, and he pulled over to the right and stopped at that Shell gas station located down Route 12 from the Peach Tree Diner.
He got out and used the payphone in the phone booth near the road, leaving his T-Bird running.
He deposited a dime into the phone and made a call.
“Warner Robins police department,” said forty-eight-year-old Officer Mickey Malone answering the call.
“Ah, yes, I was down by the old Meyers’ cabin off route twelve. I saw a guy strangle a teenage girl. I think he was trying to kill her,” said Grant disguising his voice to make it sound gay.
“Did you say Meyers’ cabin? Off route twelve?” said Officer Malone.
“Yes. Please hurry! He might kill her any second,” said Grant in his disguised voice.
“What’s your name? And why were you down at Meyers’ Cabin?”
“I was hiking, and I can’t tell you my name. He might kill me!” said Grant and he sounded scared then he hung up the phone and rushed out of the phone booth and back to his T-Bird with a smirk.
He got back in his T-Bird and was satisfied; nobody saw him use the phone.
Grant felt confident he was in the clear while he raced his T-Bird down Route 12. He was headed up to Macon.
A few minutes later, Derek’s green Bel-Air drove out of that dirt road in a hurry and made a screeching turn onto Route 12.
Derek drove with Bobby in the passenger seat, and they were scared.
Derek drove his Bel-Air down Route 12 and headed back to the Air Force base. His Bel-Air was about a quarter of a mile behind Grant’s T-Bird.
At the Warner Robins police department, Officer Malone and his partner thirty-six-year-old Officer Peter Smith raced out of the police station.
They ran over to the nineteen fifty-one black and white Chevrolet Bell-Air squad car.
Officer Malone got behind the wheel while Officer Smith sat in the passenger side of the front seat.
Officer Malone started up the Bell-Air, slammed it into reverse, backed up the car, and screeched off through the parking lot.
Officer Malone made a screeching turn out of the station parking lot almost hitting a green nineteen fifty-three Hornet.
Officer Malone raced the Bel-Air squad car down the street with the red bubble gum rooftop light flashing.
The two officers were excited yet nervous about what they will find at Meyer’s cabin. They wanted to keep the siren off so the killer wouldn’t have ample time to escape.