Rip Tide by Robert F Clifton (small books to read .txt) 📕

or two stood face to face with Katherine Hedly, a member of the Nautilus Beach Police department. “Hi, come on in”, said the police woman.

Qwen entered the room and saw two men sitting, one on each twin bed. A tall, older man stood with his back towards the windows. “Hello.

Sergeant Phillips am I right?”, he said, turning around.

“Yes”.

“I'm Captain O'Neil. Allow me to introduce you to the rest of my crew. The young lady who let you in is Katherine Hedly. The guy sitting on the bed near the door is Jim McIntyer. The other guy is Sergeant Joe Donnely. As you can see Captain Wallace has set us up in adjoining rooms, 708 and 710. These people will be next door monitoring and taping any conversation I might have with Martha Hanes. The trick is to get Mrs. Hanes into this room. Right now I'm pretty certain that she will show. What I'm going to do is hint at the prostitution angel. I expect her tonight to question me all about Amalgamated Energy. That's what Wallace is interested in at the moment. Something to do with insider trading. So, if she brings it up that's what I can find out for him.

Now, as far as you are concerned. You and I have to appear as if we have had a little tumble in the sack. Katy here will see to you. And after wards if you have any questions, just ask.”

Katherine Hedly looked at Sergeant Donnely. “You have to get up”, she said to the man.

Donnely got up and after he did Hedly pulled back the covers

on the twin bed. “Would you come here please Sergeant Phillips?”

Qwen walked to where the police woman stood. As she did Katherine reached up and touched Qwens hair. “This might hurt, sorry”, she said as she yanked and removed several strands of henna colored hair.

“Ouch!”, said Qwen.

Katherine Hedly placed the red hairs on the pillow. “Hopefully this will appear as though you were here and you enjoyed it. Did you bring makeup with you?”

“Just what's in my compact and lipstick”.

“Good, I'll rub just a touch of the pancake makeup on the pillow for the same reason”.

“Smart, a great idea”, said Qwen.

“Thank you. Now, we're going into the next room and test our equipment. You and the Captain can have a conversation. We'll see if you're coming through loud and clear”, said Hedley .

Qwen took a seat in one of the two chairs that matched the small table in the room. Along the side of the chair she unpacked then repacked the suitcase. “I don't want Erica noticing that none of the costumes had been moved”, she said to O'Neil.

“Nice to see that you're on the ball. So what do you do in Cape May?”, asked O'Neil.

“Sex crimes, domestic wife abuse, some juvenile work”.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes, but at times it gets boring. That's why I'm glad to being assigned here”.

“Hey, that's the business. You can go for weeks with nothing, then the next thing you know you're up to your armpits in work. Eight hour days turn into twelve hour days. Meals turn into greasy spoon offerings.

You drink gallons of coffee and if you smoke you can go through a carton of cigarettes in two days”.

Sergeant Donnely entered through the connecting door. “The bug's working great Cap. We're all set when you are”, he said.

Forty five minutes later O'Neil said, “ Qwen, nice meeting you. Hopefully I'll see you again after tonight, particularly in court after we bust this group”.

“Same here Captain. Just let me mess up my hair a bit before I leave. Someone might be checking on me”.

“Be careful”.

“Yes sir”.

At nine fifty five p.m. Captain William O'Neil also known as Donald Trainer answered the knock on his hotel room door. Before he opened it he said in a loud voice, “Coming”.

The three police officers in the adjoining room pushed the START button on the tape recorder. At the same time they heard Martha Hanes say, “I'm a few minutes early. I hope you don't mind”.

“Mind? I was looking forward to it”, O'Neil replied.

Martha glanced at the unmade, rumbled bed. “And how did your private show go? Well, I hope”.

“Let's say everything was satisfactory”.

“Good, now you mentioned a drink and conversation. What would you like to talk about?, said Martha as she sat down on the other bed.

“You're my guest. You pick a topic and eventually I'll turn it back to you and me and us”.

Martha gave a little giggle then said. “Well, alright, for starters you can tell me all about your business'

“Here I am in a hotel room far from home with a beautiful blond and she wants to talk about my business”.

“I think I already told you why I don't do two private shows a night”.

“Yes you did. But, you did say you would give me your card along with your telephone number”.

“I sent it with Qwen. She must have forgot to give it to you. If you really need it. I could give you a private demonstration here tomorrow”.

“I'm checking out in the morning”.

“Let me think about an alternative. Now, tell me all about, what is it, Amalgamated Energy?”

“Yes, not too much to tell. We started with solar panels. That went over big. Then we played with wind turbines. That's going well and now we're thinking about wind farms in the ocean and maybe wave and tide action all of witch produces electric energy”.

“From the way you talk you company is financially sound”.

“It is. We started small, but I expect that we will be offering public stock real soon”.

“Where are you located?”

“The company is located in Youngstown, Ohio”.

“I thought you were from Pennsylvania?”

“I am. I live in New Castle, just over the state line. Now, I've told you all about me. When do I get to see you in action?”

Martha Hanes opened her pocketbook and removed a business card. Turning it over she took a pen and wrote a telephone number on the back. “Here's my card. You have until noon tomorrow to check out. I'll be available to meet you at my home after one. That is if you're still interested in seeing what I have to offer”.

“Tomorrows Sunday”.

“Do you want to go to church or see me?”

“Won't your husband mind me being there?”

“He'll be out, either at his office or playing golf and even if he wasn't, he still wouldn't mind”.

“How nice”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter Ten

Private Show

 

At nine o'clock in the morning of Sunday, September 3, 1978 members of the Nautilus Beach Police Departments Vice and Major Crime Squad all met in the large conference room. Captain William O'Neil opened the meeting. “I want to go over today's operation. As you know I'm going to make contact with the Hanes woman. I'll be wearing a bug.

Sergeant Donnely and Detective McIntyer will be outside in the unmarked van taping my conversation. If everything goes right and we do make a bust, Detectives Katy Hedley and Carol Myers will enter and proceed to watch Mrs. Hanes.

What I want to check on now is the warrants. We have two. Am I correct?”

“Yeah, one for your squad one for mine. Yours will be served first.

That warrant issued gives you the right to search and seize any evidence related to prostitution. My warrant is for any evidence in relation to the Harris murder. I'll hold my warrant in reserve until such time I know what you have found. Then, I'll go from there”, said Wallace.

“O.K. so far so good. Now, I'll call the Hanes woman at about one fifteen. Hopefully, she'll want to see me and set me up. When I talk to her on the telephone our conversation will be taped here at headquarters. Once the meeting is arranged I'll play the dumb tourist who doesn't know his way around the island. Then, I'll arrive at her place in a taxi. That then should help convince her that Donald Trainer is a legitimate businessman. The arrest and execution of the search warrant should be like any other prostitution arrest that we've made in the past. Once we have an exchange of money and her voice on tape accepting both the cash and proposition along with the removal of clothing Sergeant Stiles and Detective McKenna will enter and I'll make the arrest. Any questions?”

“Yes, at this time we're thinking that any sex act performed is either sound recorded, video taped or both. That could mean that one or more people are in that house at the time”, said Stiles.

“Very possible. That's a chance we have to take. If taping is being done the equipment is either upstairs or in what we think is a lower room that we spotted when we looked at the house and photographed it. If you look at the photo's you can just make out the glass window pane'. O'Neil replied.

“What's more important is that if there is anyone else in there they might try to destroy the evidence, meaning the tapes”, said Wallace.

“ Let's hope in the excitement they don't”, said O'Neil.

“To be sure when we enter two people take the upstairs, two the lower room”, said Wallace.

At exactly one fifteen in the afternoon, Captain O'Neil dialed the telephone number on the back of the business card that Martha Hanes had given him. While her number rang O'Neil adjusted the suction cup and wire attached to the receiver he was holding in his hand. He then pushed the RECORD button and waited. “Hello?”

“Martha?”

“Is that you Donald?”

“Yes”.

“How nice. I was thinking that you had changed your mind”

“Why would I want to do that? Are we still on for this afternoon?”

“Just as soon as you get here”.

“I'm on my way”.

“Do you know how to get here?”

“No, but I'm sure the cab driver will know”.

“Alright, I'll wait. Is there anything special you might like?”

“Hey, I can think of a lot of things I might like”.

“Silly, I'm talking about refreshments”.

“I'm still concerned about your husband. I don't want him walking in on us”.

“I've already told you. Don't worry about him”.

“O.K. if you say so. Now, tell me once again, what's your fee. If I have to, I'll stop at an ATM machine”.

“I think I quoted you a price of five hundred dollars an hour. That's for a regular. Anything else you have in mind I'll let you know before it happens”.

“Hundred dollar bills O.K.”?

“Fine”.

“I'm on my way. Bye”.

O'Neil hung up the receiver and removed the wire. He ten turned to those in the room and said, “It's on gang, let's go, time to do it”.

Twenty minutes later a Shore Points Taxi stopped in front of a gray stone, two story home located at 1340 Bayview Ave. O'Neil got out of the cab and stood waiting for a receipt after paying the fare, just as any businessman would. As the cabby drove off Captain O'Neil walked up several steps and then along the concrete walkway. As he was about to step on to the porch the front door opened. “Hello Donald. I've been waiting for you, come in”, said Martha Hanes.

Captain O'Neil walked through two large glass panel mahogany doors into a white marble floor foyer. To his immediate right was a black,

wrought iron and mahogany rail that led up a spiral staircase to the upper floor. Several feet a way an identical stairway led to a lower level. “An excellent location for a control room”, he thought. All of the walls were white, matching the white marble floor. As he followed Martha Hanes into her living room he walked past a small anti-room. In front of that room two tall, white marble columns stood along with a statue of what appeared to be some Egyptian god.

“This is quite a place you have here Martha”, he said.

“Thank you. It isn't much, but it's home”, she replied as she took a seat on the couch. O'Neil took a seat away and in front of her.

“Now, Donald, as nice as you are I'm afraid that we must talk money. I always like to get