Square Snapper (Detective Inspector Burgess) (12 page)

In fact, Nana had two good reasons. One was to tell him that there had been five heroin-related deaths during the night and more were expected over the weekend. She had heard from a lady in her church who worked in Emergency at the hospital. Burgess suspected that “Church Lady” must be one of Nana’s prime sources of information for she seemed to be more on top of events and developments than either the government or the police combined. The second topic was to let him know that she had heard (the source was undisclosed) that Jacintha Brangman was the niece of Eugene Brangman, the plumber, whose sister had moved to Atlanta and been murdered there when Jacintha was about twelve years old. That could explain the unusual career choice and the fact that Jacintha had not grown up on the island. Burgess was grateful for this bit of information. He knew he’d better tread carefully and wait for Jacintha to bring it up.

“Thanks, Nana. If you ever want a job in Serious Crimes, just let me know. You could head up the intelligence division!”

Nana cackled in delight. She loved to be at the forefront of the latest news. She would never classify herself as a gossip but just as someone who was on top of events in her community. In fact, Nana would never speak ill of anyone. Her love of information was limited to facts, rather than commentary on this and that. Burgess appreciated the fact that she was neither a gossip nor one of those people who spread malicious rumours. In his line of business, rumours could waste a lot of precious investigation time, sending the police down wrong paths and making often innocent people’s lives thoroughly miserable.

“Leon, I just thought you should be aware of this as I know you two are meeting up today. By the way, I want to give you a few dollars for when you go to the Stock Exchange.”

Nana was referring to the Crown & Anchor games. Cup Match is the only time that public gambling is allowed on the island and it takes place in a huge marquee where tables have been set up especially for the occasion. Bermudians refer to it as the “Stock Exchange” where they go to win or lose according to their luck. Nana hoped that her grandson would be able to parlay her few dollars into something a little more substantial.

“Sure, Nana, I’d be happy to. Right now, I’d love some of that coffee I smell brewing.”

“Sure, honey. Let me get this kitchen cleaned up for you too. You had a good time last night and you deserved it. You boys’ve been working way too hard and it was good to see you all having some fun. Now, that Pamela is perfect for Archie. You make sure he treats her like the lady she is… and smart too! The same goes for Jacintha. A beautiful girl, Leon. I know her uncle quite well.” Burgess had to admit that Nana was a class act. He recognized the tacit warning in that last sentence to make sure he treated Jacintha well so as not to have any negative reflection on Nana and the rest of the Burgess clan!

“Oh, you can be sure of that.” He took his coffee and headed for the shower. Nana could hear him whistling and smiled to herself. Her grandson had fallen hard for this one! She hoped that Jacintha would be everything he hoped and determined to find out as much about her as she could. Only the best would do for her Leon.

Parking was well organized at the Somerset Cricket Club and the police were very much in evidence. Detective Inspector Burgess recognized several from the uniform division and several more in plain clothes. He also saw some colleagues from narcotics who had their dogs with them. That was always a good deterrent. He knew that, all told, there were about a hundred of them keeping an eye on things and this was in addition to the security that the cricket club had hired. At the gates they went through the metal detectors, something that had become a necessity a few years before due to some youths carrying machetes inside their pant legs as well as a range of smaller knives. The recent law on carrying bladed weapons, which could instantly land you three years in jail, had cut down on a lot of this kind of behaviour. Cup Match was one event that usually went off with only minor incidents, mainly due to drinking and some dope, and for the most part was a family event with booths and stalls of food and drinks, face painting and activities for the kids.

People had already taken their seats and the game was under way. Burgess knew that he would get a beer tossed over his head if his team did not win. Archie would see to that. He hoped that this year he would have the pleasure of pouring it over Archie instead. He and Jacintha wandered around greeting friends and acquaintances and sipping their sodas in the heat. Burgess was glad he was not working at this year’s event. He had been so involved in the murders that he had been spared the duty. It had been a while since he had had the opportunity to soak up the atmosphere and watch a little of the cricket. He was pleased to be seen escorting Jacintha around. He noted the approving looks of some of his friends as they appraised her. She really was a beautiful woman and totally oblivious to the effect she had on men. He found that refreshing and her lack of guile was something that he found appealing. She seemed to be so at ease in her own skin. As a companion, she was interesting, easy to talk to and a good listener. He found himself opening up to her as he never had before. People generally found him quiet and somewhat reserved until they got to know him. He liked to get the measure of a person before he became their friend and, in his line of work, he came across a lot of people out there who were all style and no substance. He was careful, therefore to choose his friends wisely and knew that some might consider him “standoffish.” He really didn’t care.

“Hey Buddy, over here!” Burgess and Jacintha turned to see Archie and Pamela sitting in the stands. Pamela was wearing a pin of light and dark blue ribbons to show she was a St. George’s fan. Fans of Somerset had dark blue and red ribbons. Some were tied on antennas of cars, others wore them pinned to their clothes or hats and still others wore the team colours to show their support. Brightly coloured umbrellas were everywhere. Many sat with straw hats, baseball caps or brightly coloured handkerchiefs tied around their heads and some of the older crowd carried small battery-operated fans. They were all prepared for the searing heat that August can produce and ready to enjoy the day.

Over in the corner of the grounds were the tents where the Crown and Anchor tables were set up. The heat inside must have been over 120 degrees. If was stifling. People were mopping themselves with hand towels and slapping on Sea Breeze cologne to cool off. The effect was only momentary but it was better than nothing. Burgess and Jacintha decided to have a flutter on behalf of Nana. After a short time they left, having lost all of Nana’s money.

“I’ll have to make up some tall story that I won and give her back her money and then some!” said Burgess.

“It’s the only way,” agreed Jacintha. “Otherwise you’ll never live it down! Come on, let’s go and get a fish sandwich or something. I’m hungry.”

They wandered around the grounds in search of a stall that sold codfish cakes just content to enjoy the fun. Even though their jobs exposed them to the ugly side of Bermuda’s society, today for once all thoughts of that were banished as they enjoyed the best of what the island had to offer. Both knew that they needed this respite from the criminal side of life otherwise they would probably end up in therapy. Jacintha, courtesy of Nana, already knew she had five more cadavers waiting for her and God only knew how many more after the weekend. She therefore intended to enjoy every moment of today in the company of this extraordinary man for whom she was developing quite an admiration – and God knew that Jacintha was not an easy woman to impress.

Chapter 24

Despite the warning about the drugs, seven more addicts had been poisoned over Cup Match. Jacintha’s biggest problem was storing the bodies and the hospital was going to have to keep some of them in a refrigerated truck. She hoped the press would not get wind of that because she was stressed enough without having to deal with the likes of Johnny McCabe and his camera crew.

Her cell phone rang and her spirits lifted as she heard Burgess’s calm greeting.

“Hi, Buddy. Yes, it’s a zoo down here. The one good thing about my job is the clients don’t complain! The administrative staff is going nuts but we’ve managed to get a refrigerated truck that we can use. Yes, the hospital’s public relations department is going to handle all of that with the families.”

Burgess could hear the anxiety in her voice. “If it’s any consolation to you, the Jamaican wants to cut a deal. Seems he’s very worried he’s going to end up very dead in Southwall and wants to get deported back to Jamaica! I am hopeful we can get some very good evidence from him.”

“That’s great news. I am so glad we had such a wonderful weekend because I have so much to do here today, I hardly know where to start.”

Jacintha suddenly felt that she could cope with anything now. Detective Inspector Burgess, for his part, was having trouble focusing on the investigation. His mind kept replaying parts of the weekend in his head. The phone on his desk served to interrupt his reverie and the voice of the superintendent sent his mood into a nosedive.

“Yessir, we’re working on that right now. Our suspect is apparently willing to talk and we can perhaps find out how this drug got on to the island and how much of it there is.”

“Well, get on it and keep me posted.”

“Yessir.” Burgess wiped his head with his handkerchief. The superintendent would be the death of him. How did such an idiot ever reach that position of power? He had renewed respect for his boss who normally had to deal with him. Since the detective chief inspector had gone off the island for cancer treatment, the task of liaising with the superintendent was now fully on Burgess’s shoulders. He put the superintendent in the same league as Williamson. Either one of them was equally capable of cold-bloodedly stabbing him in the back.

His phone rang again. It was De Souza. “We’re going over to the hospital to interview Ja’von Williamson. You want to be here?”

“Sure, I’ll be right there. Which ward? The surgical one?”

“Yes, Cooper Ward. He’s got the corner room they reserve for ‘special’ guests. We’ll wait for you. Waiting’ll make him sweat anyway!”

Burgess grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair and swung out of his office, eager to get away from his desk and hopeful that they could get some meaningful information from the Jamaican.

Several floors below Cooper Ward, dressed in her morgue greens, Jacintha was bending over the naked body of a young female drug addict. From the clothes she had been wearing when she was brought in, she suspected she might have been a prostitute, however, with the modern way of dress nowadays, she knew that that was not always the case. Jacintha assumed nothing. If the girl had been attractive, that was certainly not the case now. Her mouth was drawn back in such a grimace, teeth bared, that she looked horrific. There was dried spittle around her cracked lips and her hands were balled into tight fists, evidence of the pain she had suffered during the convulsions that must have wracked her body before death. Her skinny arms bore the marks of years of drug abuse. Her wasted body looked so thin and vulnerable. Jacintha felt a wave of sadness wash over her.

Austin, the pathologist’s young assistant, was busy organizing the tools for the autopsy. He glanced across at his boss, noticing the resignation in her body language. “It’s amazing, isn’t it? Ya know, what man can do to man.”

Jacintha was momentarily taken aback by Austin’s profound remark. Normally, he was the lighthearted member of the team, taking death and violence in his stride with an apparent insouciance that Jacintha envied. “You can say that again. What kind of person would deliberately poison the heroin? It doesn’t make any sense.”

Outside, there was the sound of a scuffle beyond the double doors. They both looked at each other as they heard the policeman posted outside shouting at someone to leave the building or face arrest. Austin raised his eyebrows to Jacintha as he placed scalpels and saw on the tray next to the girl’s body. “I bet that’s a member of the press,” he commented.

Jacintha pursed her lips. “I just hope it’s not a family member angry that their loved one is in a refrigerated van. They seem to think that we’re being disrespectful but, really, what difference is there to a refrigerated van and a drawer in the morgue?”

“I hear you“, agreed Austin, placing a plastic cap on his head and pulling on a rubber glove with a theatrical snap. “Besides, what choice do we have? I’ve never known the morgue to be so full.” He took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. “I‘m ready when you are.”

“Okay, let’s get going.” Jacintha was all business. “We’ve got a long day ahead of us. I’d like you to do the sewing up. I think you’re getting really good at it.”

“Thanks. I actually enjoy that part and I‘m going to get a lot of practice…” The last part of his sentence was lost to Jacintha as he powered up the saw in a distinctly Rambo-like gesture that made Jacintha smile.

Greeting the uniformed policeman sitting outside Williamson’s room with a pleasant “How ya doon?” Burgess went in. Williamson was sitting up in his hospital bed, damaged leg resting outside of the sheet, the remains of his lunch on a mobile table across his lap. The sun poured in through the window and Burgess noticed for the first time that the Jamaican had an Asian look around the eyes. He wondered if he had some Chinese blood. That might explain the snake tattoo winding up his neck. That was more like something you would see from a member of a triad. He noticed the thick muscles in his neck and upper body. Deon White never had a chance in a fight with someone with such upper body strength. The Jamaican, whose leg was heavily bandaged after his surgery, was obviously not enjoying captivity. He was on edge and the vein in his neck was pumping. It made the snake tattoo undulate. It almost looked alive. Burgess wondered if that had been planned or if it was an accident. In any event, he could not take his eyes off it; he found it quite repulsive.