Last Chance Harvey-Part 14 (Blogophilia 35.11)

One of the downsides of police work is waiting. Chasing crooks might be one percent of the job. The rest of it is split between paperwork,meetings and waiting. Like now. Ray and Angela sat shotgun in the black Crown Vic, staring at the monument basking in the autumn sun. Something dug against her back. A quick pull on the back band of her bra made it go away. The quiet became too much.

"You sure the C.I. said the Chicken?"

"Yeah." Ray was glancing at his phone, a ruse to keep anybody from realizing they were working.

If nothing else, the statue was unique. A bronze chicken perched atop metamorphic limestone. The blue and black veins in the marble alternated, giving the stand a hypnotic look. Poultry Park was the official name, but ot the locals it was The Tomb of the Unknown Chicken. A fitting tribute to the industry keeping the place alive. She thought the thing was stupid. The money spent on the thing could have funded a reading class for immigrants or something. Of course, she wasn't from around here.

Another wild goose chase? It had been almost 20 minutes since they got there. It wouldn't be the first time in this investigation. When they got the first contact from Florida, a guy referred them to a dock up by Shanghai Harbor which turned out to be a dead end. Fool us once doesn't apply to cops. Each lead has to be resolved, right or wrong.

"Did you even catch the guy's name?"

"It was a woman." Came the irritated reply. "Said her name was Karen and she knew both Harvey Lloyd and Corrine Shiffer."

"What else?"

"She knew where her body was."

Angela’s eyebrows went up. "Any idea what she looks like?"

"Said she looked like five miles of..." Ray looked up as a battered Dodge pickup truck pulled beside them. "This may be her"

The creature who looked like an escapee from a haunted house poured out in the afternoon sun. The best salon in town couldn't work a miracle here. The hair matched the marble on the statue, only the streaks were deliberate. There wasn't enough tequila in the world to make a pass at her. But Ray knew the zipper on the potato sack she wore would drop if one were made. He looked at Angela, who just shrugged.

Lighting a cigarette, she walked up to the side of the unmarked car. Letting down the window, Ray gagged. Guess she didn’t believe in showers.

"Karen?"

The woman fidgeted a little, eyes darting up and down the sidewalk. The voice showed the years of hard living.

"Yeah. Sorry I'm late." Taking a drag. "Dang truck wouldn't start."

"Hop in. We have the air conditioning on."

With a nod she snuffed the cigarette on the bottom of her flip-flop and climbed in behind Ray. A bottle of water was offered and accepted. Angela would be the lead in this interview. Women responded better to her soft touch. She waited until she was comfortable before beginning. Angela leaned over the seat and shook her hand.

"I'm Sgt. Angela Lopez and this is Det. Williams who you spoke with."

"Karen Hardaway"

No eye contact. Angela noted it and continued.

"I understand you have information concerning Corrine Shiffer?"

Karen looked at the Chicken for a moment, trying to decide if she had made the right decision. After about five seconds she replied. "Yes, I do."

"When was the last time you saw her?"

"Alive?” Karen took a quick sip. “About six months ago down at the Marina. She was crying and her eye was swollen."

Angela nodded. "Did she say anything about who might have done that?"

"No, but I know it was that asshole boyfriend of hers. The guy who stole all the boats."

"Harvey Lloyd?"

"Yeah. Bad news, that one." Another drink. "Wasn't surprised he turned up dead."

"Did Ms. Shiffer say anything to you when you saw her?"

"Not really other than she was leaving town, going to Fort Lauderdale."

Ray piped in. “Did she say why?”

“Going to work on a boat down there.” Karen smiled. It was obvious what she meant.

"And you never saw her after that?"

No, but later I was walking past Lloyd's boat..."

"The Last Chance Harvey?"

"That's the one" She gazed at the bottle. "It sounded like they were fighting. I'm not one to pry, but I heard Cor scream. About five minutes later, the boat started up and pulled out of the dock." She paused. "Neither she or the boat was seen again."

Angela and Ray looked at each other. You never knew what you were going to get in these things. Ray looked over the headrest at the disheveled mess.

"Any idea where the boat ended up?"

"I heard Harvey sunk it at the entrance to Naked Lady Cove. Anyway, the other day I was out there with a my friends Patty and Kip to party and we saw two guys with scuba gear looking around."

"Did you recognize either of them."

"Yeah, Jerry Herrington. He works at Waterworld Marina. The other one I think goes by Jim."

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Topic-Dave Coon

Pic-Gerard Villegas

Pic guesses. Zipper (in blog), Flirt, Appetizer, Affair, Mutual desert, Let’s dance, Happy.