Chapter 37
37
The sun barely peeked over the historic Easton green when, across the parking lot, the bullpen was filled with detectives and deputies. Their gazes were riveted to the screen on the wall as Aaron showcased the photographs showing the suspicious acts of the men in the boat.
“Damn, they were just at the corner in the shadow,” Hunter growled. “Brad and I were going to start on these today.”
“Don’t kick yourself,” Colt said. “You needed to start with her most recent pictures. Belinda was simply looking at photographs that meant something to her and stumbled across this.”
“I’ll send this to the state forensics and have them run it through their enhancement programs. Should get it back soon because that’s not so labor intensive,” Hunter said.
Colt nodded and then looked at the group. “I’m calling Ryan based on what we’ve seen here. I’d like his people to get into the water and see if they can find evidence of what went over the side of the boat.”
“You think drugs? Contraband? Stolen goods?” Brad asked.
Aaron asked. “Making a drop of some kind and didn’t need the water to be deep so that somebody could come along and pick the stash up? Then they realized somebody was watching them?”
“No way of knowing until we have the VMP bring it up, and that’s if they can find it.”
Aaron felt his heart leap, thrilled that Colt was not waiting around but was pushing forward with what Belinda had found. “As soon as that gets set up, can you let me know, Colt? I’m sure my brother will want to be in on that, and I’d like to be at the harbor when they come in to see what they found.”
“That’s fine by me,” Colt agreed. “I figure when they come in with whatever they found, you, Sam, Hunter, and Brad will want to be there. But just remember, you can be there because this affects Belinda, but I can’t have your hand in it.”
Aaron dipped his chin. “Understood.”
Two agonizing hours dragged by as he stood on the VMP dock in Baytown Harbor. His gaze was fixated on the undulating water before him, and he could barely contain his churning emotions as he waited to hear back from Andy.
Ryan had gone out with Andy, Jose, and Callan, the latter having experience with the Coast Guard before starting work with the VMP. Andy had plenty of diving experience in the Navy. The retrieval mission wouldn't be easy despite the relatively shallow waters near the breakers.
Joseph, a fellow marine police officer, stood alongside Aaron, maintaining radio contact with Ryan. “Alright, received, sir,” Joseph affirmed, then relayed the update to the rest of the group. “They’re on their way back. ETA fifteen minutes. He said they’ll bring what they found.”
Restless, Aaron clenched his fists, and his pacing halted for a moment. “He didn’t say what it was?” Aaron bit out, anxious to know.
“Sorry, man. It’ll be better if all this is handled, officially, by the book.”
Aaron nodded but bristled at the enforced wait.
Sam clamped his hand on his shoulder and gave a squeeze. “You got this,” Sam said.
The minutes seemed to crawl by, but finally, the VMP vessel came into sight and made it into the harbor. Not wasting time, Aaron strode purposely toward the docking vessel and immediately locked his gaze on Andy. Turning his attention to Ryan, he watched as the marine police officers climbed onto the dock carrying several large plastic evidence bags.
“Please, tell me what you found,” he implored.
The four detectives gathered on the dock, along with the marine officers, and they peered into the bags, anticipation thick in the air. As the contents were revealed, Aaron’s frustration surged. One bag contained a twenty-five-pound weight from a gym set with a rope tied through the center on one end and the other dangling.
“They were throwing away gym equipment?” Aaron asked, incredulous.
“Bro, here’s the other bag,” Andy said.
As he stared down at the other plastic evidence bag, his chest depressed as the air rushed from his lungs. “Holy shit.” He barely registered the other curses coming from the detectives as they stared at the object in the bag. One brown, leather men’s shoe—the mate to the one found on William Gaston’s body when it washed up on the shore. His mind raced. With so many thoughts blending together, it was difficult to pull them apart and process each one.
Sam’s voice cut through the haze of shock. “Those two men in the boat were dumping William Gaston’s body less than a mile from where he washed up. That means the murder of William Gaston is now tied into the attempted murder of Belinda.”
Several hours later, Aaron thought he was going out of his mind. The shoe was conclusively a match to William Gaston. Cora declared the bruising around his ankle to be consistent with the type of rope that was on the weight. They were waiting on the enhanced photograph from the state lab. And now, they were postulating the possibilities.
“Could’ve been someone local. They came across William, tried to rob him, ended up killing him, and then needed to get rid of the body. His wallet was missing, and that could uphold the theory of a robbery,” Brad said.
“What about the timing?” Sam asked. “We know he stopped at the gas station at noon seven days ago. His car went across the CBBT that night at almost eleven p.m. Belinda’s Kiptopeke pictures were the next morning. Then one day later, his body washes up. Two days later, Belinda is shot. Two days later, her apartment is broken into. It may be desperation but with some forethought.”
“Not drugrunner MO. They would kill and then leave the body dumped somewhere. Not row out into the bay and dump the body. That takes time and specific effort. And it’s not expeditious,” Hunter said. He speared the others with a hard look. “There were other ways someone could have disposed of the body.”
Aaron nodded. “It’s one thing for a guy out in a boat to see a woman standing on the beach taking pictures. But how did he identify her? How did he know where she lived? This is not some local person unless they recognized her.”
“How long was she at Kiptopeke Park?” Colt asked.
“She got there before dawn,” he replied. I was running along the beach about an hour later. We met up, sat, and talked for at least an hour, and then I walked her back to her car. Even then, hers was the only car in the parking lot. She drove me to where I left my car.”
“Someone could’ve had time to dock that boat anywhere in an inlet, drive to Kiptopeke, see her car in the parking lot, and assume it belonged to her. They could’ve even followed her back to her place,” Hunter said.
“He may have wanted to kill her then but saw you with her,” Brad said.
“Hell,” Aaron cursed under his breath, glaring at Brad.
Brad winced. “Sorry, man. I’m not trying to be insensitive.”
Aaron scrubbed his hand over his face. “No, I know you’re not. Everything is just too fuckin’ close to home.” He shot a look up to Colt and quickly added. “But I want this. This is tied into William’s murder.”
“Have you completely ruled out the Malroneys having anything to do with this?” Hunter asked.
He and Sam exchanged a look, and he had the grace to shrug. “As much as I want it to be someone we can get our hands on quickly, I can’t see how it was the Malroneys. They have a security camera outside the front of their house. William didn’t go to their house. We’ve checked their weapon. It doesn’t appear to have been fired in a long time, and when it was tested, it wasn’t a match for the bullet that hit him.”
Sam added, “No one else in the area had any dealings with William that we can find. We’ve looked at his emails and phone and text records.”
“The Malroneys don’t fit the profile,” Hunter insisted, shaking his head.
Colt nodded but added, “Keep looking, even at them. Not everyone is what they seem.”
“Bergstrom,” Colby called out. “We’ve got your man!”
Aaron lifted his head and looked at Colby as a lance of adrenaline hit his chest. “Bellini?”
Colby nodded, a wide grin on his face. “Just got a call from a deputy on traffic patrol. Tried to pull over a speeder, but he took off.”
“Shit, did he evade them?”
“The sergeant radioed back that the car was now stopped, and two deputy cruisers had him pinned in. They ran his tags and Maryland license and up popped James Bellini. I’ve already told them to bring him in for questioning.”
Hunter twisted around. “I want his vehicle searched.”
Colby nodded and picked up his phone to give instructions.
As soon as James Bellini was brought in, Aaron headed down the hall with Sam at his side. “Go slow. Colby and Sheila have turned it over to Hunter and Brad. They’ll take the lead in case this does have anything to do with the attempt on Belinda’s life. Don’t mess up the county prosecutor’s case.”
Aaron forced his feet to slow, allowing Hunter and Brad to move ahead, but his blood fired as soon as he landed his gaze on the man. Dark hair. Dark eyes. Dark hoodie. “He looks a helluva lot like the man in the boat staring at Belinda,” he growled.
“Yeah,” Sam muttered, his voice hard.
The man protested but he was arrested for speeding and evading the police. It was the perfect charge to get him into the station. Walking up to the deputy, Aaron offered a clap on the back. “Good work, Marcus.”
“Car is registered to him. Name is James Bellini from Baltimore. I knew you were looking for him, and his lead foot brought him right to us.”
James was processed and put into a holding cell while the detectives checked his information.
Hunter looked at Sam. “We need to get George Haskins in. I want to see if he can identify this is the guy who shot at Belinda.”
Aaron called out to Marcus and his partner, Elizabeth. “Go pick up George Haskins. If he’s not sober, bring him in and start dumping coffee down him. If we’re lucky, he’ll be sober! I want to see if he can identify this guy.”
“You got it,” Elizabeth called out, and she and Marcus headed out the door.
Hunter, with the patience of a man who’d worked undercover for over a year, waited calmly while Aaron paced the halls. Brad and Sam looked at him with sympathy but managed to pull off a steady demeanor.
Just when he thought he would lose any semblance of professionalism, Elizabeth popped her head into the room. “We’ve got George Haskins with us, and you’re in luck. He’s sober.”
The other detectives chuckled, but Aaron simply let out a heavy sigh of relief. Standing, he looked at Colt. “I know, I know. I can’t even be behind the glass where George is.”
Hunter clapped him on the back. “Don’t worry. Sam will take care of him while Brad and I have a little chat with Bellini.”
Fifteen minutes later, while Hunter sat with James Bellini, who belligerently stayed silent until his attorney arrived, George stood behind the two-way mirror and nodded. “Yep, that’s the man. That’s the man I saw out in the boat. The one who fired his rifle into the wedding crowd.”
Aaron felt the air rush from his lungs as he watched on video from a camera in the room. Now they had Bellini… but who the hell hired him?