Reserved For Murder Read online

  ‘Okay,’ Penner said, motioning at Millar while still holding the gun at her side, ‘Let’s just say that the Chief is involved. And that’s a big if right now. But let’s say he is. Why kill Travis?’

  ‘What do you mean?’ Millar asked.

  ‘Well, we decided Travis couldn’t have killed Jonny and made it look like a suicide by himself,’ Penner said. ‘We figured two people had to be involved, right?’

  ‘Right, so Travis and the Chief.’

  ‘But, if they were in on it together, why would Chief Ravenclaw kill his partner in crime?’ Penner asked.

  ‘Maybe the Chief was worried Travis would crack and talk to us or to Barry once the pressure was on,’ Millar suggested.

  ‘Or, maybe he was pissed that Travis left Sammy alive,’ Grant spoke up.

  ‘You know, that’s one thing that I don’t get with this,’ Penner said thoughtfully. ‘Assuming we’re correct, then Travis knew he was going to have to carry out the attack on Sammy by himself—the Chief was too busy with the feast. He knew he couldn’t pick Sammy up by himself to hang him from the tree, so he pre-cut the branch. Or, maybe he cut it after Sammy was unconscious. Either way, he thought ahead and planned it so that it would look like the branch broke and that’s why Sammy was on the ground,’ Penner continued. ‘But, why didn’t he make sure he was dead? Seems pretty stupid, really. Go to all that trouble and then leave him alive.’

  ‘Maybe he got spooked before he could finish the job?’ Millar said. ‘Remember the bear track we found at the scene? Who knows? What if the bear came around to investigate—scared Travis and he took off?’

  ‘Makes sense to me,’ Penner nodded. ‘If I was out here at night, probably already nervous about being caught, and then heard a bear—I’d be gone like a shot, no matter what I was doing.’

  ‘Maybe it was Jonny,’ a voice said from behind them, causing Millar to jump.

  ‘Barry, you scared the crap out of me,’ Millar said. ‘Did you say maybe it was Jonny?’

  ‘Yeah, I heard what you were saying about the bear,’ Barry said. ‘Jonny’s last name was Two Bears, right? Maybe he sent one of his relatives to help out his best friend.’

  Millar scoffed, but then realized Barry wasn’t making a joke. ‘You really believe that?’

  ‘Sure,’ Barry said. ‘He was a member of the Bear Clan, so he had a connection with the bears in the woods. If he wanted to help his friend, what better way than to send a bear.’

  ‘Really?’ Millar said, unconvinced.

  ‘Detective, you have to realize we have a greater connection with the animal and spirit world than…well, than you. No offence,’ Barry added. ‘All living beings are connected. We believe that even if you’re gone from this world, you can still interact with the living beings. Why else would a bear just happen by? Have you seen or heard a bear since you got here?’

  ‘No, but…’ Millar said.

  ‘Neither have I,’ Barry said. ‘In fact, I’ve lived here all my life, and I have never seen a bear in these woods. But when one was needed, it just happened to show up. I wouldn’t call that a coincidence.’

  Penner had been listening intently to Barry and turned to smile at Millar. She liked to keep any open mind, but she knew he would struggle with this explanation. Millar didn’t know what to say, so he moved on. ‘So, that might explain what happened to Sammy. And if it looked like Sammy might recover, that would explain why the Chief seemed more concerned than relieved that we found him. Or, maybe I’m reading too much into his behaviour. We’re pretty sure Travis was responsible, but who was helping him?’

  ‘Did you just look at me?’ Barry said to Millar.

  ‘What? No. Well, yes I looked at you, but not because I think you had anything to do with this,’ Millar said. ‘I was hoping you might have some ideas, that’s all.’

  ‘Yeah, right,’ Barry said, shaking his head.

  ‘I’m serious. Grant, help me out here.’

  ‘I don’t know,’ said Grant. ‘The way that you swung around and said ‘who was helping him’—kind of looked like you were accusing him.’

  ‘You’re a jerk, you know that?’ Millar said.

  ‘I’m learning from Penner,’ Grant said.

  ‘Don’t involve me. I’m just minding my own business here,’ said Penner. ‘So, Barry, got any thoughts?’

  ‘You know, I feel like it could be anyone and no one,’ Barry said. ‘The Chief’s pretty well liked on the reserve. If someone thought this would help him get the funding he needs to change things for the better…’

  ‘They’d be willing to kill for him?’ Penner asked. ‘That seems pretty far-fetched.’

  ‘Yeah, maybe not kill,’ Barry said. ‘When you say it out loud, it does sound ridiculous. Let me think. You might kill for your family. And he and his nephew are really close.’

  ‘The carver who did the masks in the great hall?’ Penner asked.

  ‘That’s the one,’ Barry said. ‘But, he drove to Ottawa after the feast last night. He had a meeting sometime today with a client about doing a custom carving. As far as I know, he still isn’t back yet.’

  ‘So we can rule him out then,’ Penner said. ‘Anyone else?’

  ‘You know, I can’t really see anyone here killing for anyone, not even the Chief,’ Barry said. ‘Heck, I’m having trouble seeing the Chief killing someone. Are you guys sure he’s involved?’

  ‘Sure? No,’ Grant said. ‘Almost sure? Unfortunately, yes. What about Sooleawa?’

  ‘What? Are you kidding?’ Barry asked in disbelief.

  ‘Well, she lied about the note to cover for him,’ Grant said. ‘They were having a pretty intense talk in the band office this morning. I don’t know, maybe she could be involved.’

  ‘Problem is, we have absolutely no evidence implicating either of them,’ Millar said. ‘Or anyone, for that matter. We should get this gun dusted for prints. I guess we never got the note found on Sammy dusted, eh?’

  ‘No, unfortunately not,’ Penner said. ‘By the time I got to the hospital, Mrs. Greycrow had been given the note by the paramedics. She had handled it so much, there was no way we would have found any prints other than hers.’

  ‘So, anything else we can look at?’ Millar asked.

  ‘Barry, do you know if Travis was left handed?’ Grant asked.

  ‘Left handed? I don’t think so,’ Barry said, trying to picture Travis doing things. ‘Pretty sure he always struck his matches with his right hand. Not sure about when he wrote, though. I know I’ve seen him sign stuff. No, I think he used his right hand.’

  ‘We’re going to have to find out for sure. Any thoughts?’ Penner asked.

  ‘There are probably a couple of videos of him at some of the ceremonial signings,’ Barry offered. ‘Any time the band has to enact anything new, both the Chief and the band manager have to sign the official documents. I know the last several signings have been filmed for social media, so there should be video on the computer back at the band office.’

  ‘So, what are we going to do? Just go log onto the computer and start looking at the files?’ Millar said. ‘That would end up being inadmissible in court—could be considered an illegal search.’

  ‘True—if it was one of us that did it,’ Grant said. ‘But what if someone who had a legitimate reason to log onto the computer just happened on the file.’ He looked over at Barry.

  ‘Me?’ Barry said. ‘I guess I could find an excuse to use the computer in there instead of in the police station. I could unplug a couple of things so the computer at the station doesn’t work.’

  ‘Perfect. So, I think we should start there. I have to head back to Ottawa today, so I can bring the gun and get it checked for prints,’ Penner said. ‘Speaking of the gun, do you know for sure if this is Travis’s?’ she asked, showing it to Barry.

  ‘Not for sure,’ Barry said, looking at the gun in the handkerchief. ‘I think I remember him talking about owning a gun, but I never saw it.’

  ‘Well, I
’ll get the serial number run while I’m at it,’ Penner said. ‘Should be in the system registered to whoever bought it.’

  ‘Do you know when the coroner’s supposed to show up?’ Grant asked Barry.

  ‘They said it would be a couple of hours. Apparently they found the bodies of an elderly couple in town yesterday. They didn’t give me any details, but Dr. Dickinson was doing the autopsy when I called it in. Once he’s done, he’s going to head out here.’

  ‘Well, no point in all of us hanging out here,’ Grant said. ‘But someone has to keep watch over the body. Do you want to stay, or should I?’ he asked Millar.

  ‘Well, I do kind of outrank you—so, technically, shouldn’t you stay?’ Millar said to Grant.

  ‘True, but didn’t the Captain say you were reporting to me out here?’ Grant said with a grin.

  ‘Well, yeah. But…’ sputtered Millar, unable to come up with a rebuttal.

  ‘Tell you what. How about Rock, Paper, Scissors to decide,’ Grant said, glancing over at Penner.

  ‘Alright, seems fair. On three,’ Millar said. ‘One, two, three!’ Millar laid his hand out flat like a sheet of paper. Grant held two fingers splayed apart like a pair of scissors.

  ‘Scissors beat paper. Guess you’re staying with the body,’ Grant said, winking at Penner. She had once mentioned to him that Millar always chose paper.

  ‘Crap,’ Millar said. ‘Fine. Just try to hurry back. And bring a coffee. And something to eat, would ya? Have a safe drive home,’ he said to Penner, giving her a hug.

  ‘Will do,’ Penner said. ‘I’ll let you guys know as soon as I find out anything.’

  Millar watched as they walked back down the trail towards the reserve. He looked around for somewhere to sit. ‘It’s going to be a long couple of hours.’

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  ‘So, do you think I should stop into the band office and say good-bye to the Chief and Sooleawa?’ Penner asked as they emerged from the woods. ‘Or would that be weird? Do you extend pleasantries to someone you suspect may be involved in murder?’

  ‘Good question,’ Barry said.

  ‘It’s up to you, I guess,’ said Grant. ‘It might be a good idea. Make him think we don’t suspect him of anything. Huh, guess we have cell service here,’ he said, pulling his ringing phone from his pocket. ‘Hello?’

  ‘Constable Grant?’

  ‘Oh, hi, Captain,’ Grant said, looking at Penner. ‘Sorry, sir. There’s a lot of static on the line—service isn’t that good here.’

  ‘I’ll keep this short. I just received the results of your sergeant’s exam.’

  ‘Really? Already? I didn’t expect that to come in for another week. So, do I want to know?’

  ‘Well, I thi…’ the call suddenly cut out.

  ‘Are you kidding me?’ Grant said, looking at his phone.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ asked Penner. ‘Why’s the Captain calling?’

  ‘He was just about to tell me how I did on the sergeant’s exam and I lost the signal. And, of course, now I’ve got no service again. I’ll head over to my room and give him a call back.’

  ‘I didn’t know you were writing the exam,’ Penner said. ‘That’s great! You should have told me—I could have helped you study.’

  ‘I didn’t want to make it too public—in case I tanked horribly,’ Grant said, checking his phone again to see if he had cell service.

  ‘How’d you think you did?’ Penner asked as they walked up to the band office.

  ‘Don’t really know, to be honest,’ Grant said. ‘I felt good during it, but started second guessing everything as soon as I was done. Hopefully I can get back in touch with the Captain and I’ll let you know soon. Make sure you don’t leave before I get a chance to say good-bye.’

  ‘No worries. I still have to grab my stuff out of the room,’ Penner said, opening the door to the office and letting Barry walk in ahead of her. ‘I’ll stop by your place on the way.’

  ‘Sounds good,’ Grant said, hurrying off to make his phone call.

  ‘Barry. Detective Penner,’ Chief Ravenclaw greeted them from behind his desk. ‘I didn’t expect you back so soon.’

  ‘Millar’s staying with Travis’s body until the coroner arrives. But I have to head back to Ottawa today, so I just wanted to stop in and say my good-byes,’ Penner said.

  ‘Well, I’m glad you were able to come out and be our guest for a couple of days.’ The Chief rose from his chair, and walked over to shake Penner’s hand. ‘I’m just so sorry you had to be here during these troubling times.’

  ‘Troubling times?’ Penner couldn’t help herself. ‘That’s what you’re going to call them?’

  ‘Well, what else would you call them, Detective?’ the Chief asked. ‘Two people are dead because of Travis’s actions—I’d say that’s pretty troubling, wouldn’t you? I can’t believe your government would send a person like that to work here. Someone so uncaring that he would take the life of a child because he was unable to do his job properly. And then take his own life before he could be tried for his crimes.’

  ‘Whoah. Hold up,’ Penner said, looking at the Chief in confusion. ‘What makes you say Travis was involved?’

  ‘That’s what you’re thinking, isn’t it, Detective? That’s why you and Detective Millar wanted to talk to him,’ the Chief replied evenly. ‘Besides, I found Travis’s suicide note saved on the computer. Seems to me like he confessed to killing Jonny and trying to kill Sammy.’

  ‘Suicide note?’ Penner said. ‘What did it say? Can I see it?’

  ‘Here,’ the Chief said, handing Penner a sheet of paper. ‘I printed off a copy. I assumed you would want to see it.’

  Penner stared at the Chief in disbelief and took the note. She read it once, silently, and then again out loud.

  ‘To my family and friends, I am terribly sorry for what I have done. I was only trying to do the best for this wonderful community, but, once again, I failed. I was never able to get the government funding required to fix the water issues here on the reserve. If this didn’t get the government’s attention, then I truly believe nothing I could do ever would. I can’t live with the feeling of failure. Every thing I did, I did alone. Travis.’

  ‘Sounds like a confession to me,’ the Chief said. ‘Glad I was on the computer this morning and came across it. Lucky, really.’

  ‘Yeah, real lucky.’ Penner couldn’t keep the sarcasm from her voice.

  ‘Speaking of the computer,’ Barry said. ‘Mind if I use it for a minute? The one in the station is acting up.’ He suddenly noticed an empty space on the desk where the computer usually sat.

  ‘Of course—if it was here, but, unfortunately, it isn’t,’ the Chief said, still looking at Penner.

  ‘Not here? Where is it?’ Barry asked.

  ‘When I was working this morning, I came across a virus or something,’ the Chief said, his facial expression unchanging. ‘A rather disturbing file. Sooleawa brought it in to get the hard drive replaced. Due to the sensitive material on the drive, they’re going to make sure to have it destroyed.’

  ‘So, the original file containing Travis’s confession is going to be destroyed. That’s pretty convenient,’ Penner said, looking over at Barry.

  ‘I’d say it’s more of an inconvenience, really,’ the Chief said, shrugging. ‘I really needed the computer to organize my next press conference. Guess I’m going to have to do it the old-fashioned way.’

  ‘You’re really a piece of work, aren’t you?’ Penner said, putting her hands on her hips.

  ‘I don’t know what you mean, Detective,’ the Chief said. ‘As I’ve said before, I’m just doing what I need to do to make sure my people have everything they need and deserve. And, as a matter of fact, it’s working. This morning, after you left, I got a call from the Deputy Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs. Apparently one of her assistants saw the press conference on the news last night. She couldn’t believe that the conditions here were so bad that our youth were
killing themselves. She called it a mental health emergency and a crisis of human rights. She’s sending out a team of engineers next week to see what needs to be done. She was very apologetic for letting the situation go on for so long. So in the end, it all worked out for the best.’

  ‘Really. For the best?’ Penner said, getting furious. ‘Two people are dead, and you say it’s for the best! And, no, they didn’t kill themselves!’

  ‘Semantics,’ Chief Ravenclaw replied. ‘All that matters is we’re going to be getting the fresh, clean water we deserve. We’ve been treated as second class citizens for far too long.’

  ‘Unbelievable!’ raged Penner. ‘We know Travis didn’t work alone in killing Jonny. Nor did he kill himself. And we have a very good idea who else was involved.’

  ‘Oh really, Detective?’ The Chief’s voice lowered and it felt like the temperature in the office dropped several degrees. He took a step closer to Penner, looking down at her. Barry took a step backwards, but Penner stood her ground. ‘I’d advise you to tread carefully, Detective Penner. Didn’t you say Travis shot himself, Barry? Sounds to me like he killed himself.’

  ‘You’re not going to get away with this,’ Penner warned him.

  ‘Detective, you and I both know you have absolutely no evidence to prove that anyone other than Travis was involved,’ the Chief said. ‘And, you can’t even prove that he was. Without the note he wrote—that I found and helpfully gave to you—you have nothing. So, I’m very sure these cases are closed and done with.’

  ‘Once they do an autopsy, I’m sure they’ll find something,’

  ‘Oh, I almost forgot to tell you,’ the Chief said, walking over to Travis’s desk under the window. ‘I called and told the coroner not to bother coming out. When I was going through the computer, I found this,’ he said, handing Penner some papers stapled together. ‘It’s a copy of Travis’s will. Seems like he didn’t want an autopsy—against his religion or something—and he wanted to be buried on our land in a traditional manner, as quickly as possible after his death.’