Chapter 7 #2
Colin shook his head quickly. He had known it would be hard to come here and ask Walker for help.
The man walked the straight and narrow, following procedure to the letter and insisting that those under his command follow his example.
In his tenure as head of the division, Walker had cleaned out the ranks, getting rid of deputies who failed to meet his high standards, either by firing them or having them shipped to other offices.
“No, sir, I'm not. I'm asking you to give me access to the information I need to make sure justice was carried out. You of all people know how important it is to get it right.” Colin pointed his thumb at his breastbone.
“I'm the one who handled the review of Beaumont's death.
If my determination that his death was accidental is wrong, then that's the right thing to do in this case.”
“You're personally involved.”
“Exactly. No one cares about this like case I do.”
Walker lowered his voice, his deep baritone like the hum of a motor. “No one could screw it up like you could. You're too close to this one, Mitchell. You have to know when to step back.”
“That's not what you said back then, Graham. You hand-picked me to go to Vermont and investigate.”
“That was a mistake on my part.” Walker leaned forward over his desk, his eyes never leaving Colin's. “You were distraught, demanding to be included in the investigation. Do you remember?”
An image flashed in Colin's memory—a younger version of himself breaking down in this very office upon learning of David's death.
Walker shook his head. “I let my concern for you as a friend impact my judgment. I knew it then, and I allowed it anyway. I'm not going to make the same mistake again, especially if there's reason to believe an error was made.”
Colin dropped his head a fraction, steepling his hands. “You and I go back a long way, Graham.”
“Don't pull this garbage with me, Mitchell.”
“If I had to pick out one person from WITSEC who I knew had my back, it would be you.”
“I'm not doing it.”
“Hear me out. I have a relationship with the widow. She trusts me, and she doesn't trust anybody right now. All we have to go on is what she remembers from that day.”
Walker leaned back in his chair. “I thought you were estranged from the family.”
“Not anymore. She's staying at my house right now.”
“I see,” said Walker, pursing his lips as he stood up and turned to face the cityscape beyond. He sighed heavily. “This view comes with great responsibility.”
“Yes.”
“I won't be looking at it forever.”
Colin considered his words. Graham was sixty-five, and rumors had begun circulating about his retirement.
“Sometimes I think I've been sitting in this office too long.
That I've lost touch with the people we work to protect,” said Graham, shrugging his shoulders and turning back to Colin.
“Your friend's father was my placement. I worked with the family, arranged for their credentials. What do you know about him?”
“Only what David told me. He was an accountant for organized crime who turned on his buddies.”
Walker scoffed. “He was no accountant. They called him the dispatcher. When something—or someone—needed to be taken care of, it was Jerry who sent the muscle to take care of it.”
Colin's eyes grew wide. “Jerry Ahearn?”
Walker nodded.
Ahearn was infamous in WITSEC history. His testimony resulted in the conviction of four of the biggest names in the history of organized crime. While Ahearn himself was associated with more than twenty murders, he had never been present at a crime scene, never been the trigger man.
Colin's voice was barely more than a whisper. “Jerry Ahearn was David Beaumont's father.”
“David Ahearn and his mother Adele went into WITSEC with Jerry in 1975. Adele didn't make it six months before making contact with her family, which resulted in her quick and certain demise.”
“I knew about the mom.”
Walker nodded. “I was there. Overkill. It was a bloodbath.” He turned back around to face Colin. “Adele was beautiful and sweet, a striking woman, a loving mother. There is no greater tragedy.” A sad smile graced his lips.
Colin had heard stories from David about the countless days the boy and his mother spent on the slopes, how she helped him collect rocks in the summertime and leaves in the fall. He knew just how much the woman had been missed.
Walker pinched the bridge of his nose. “Sometimes you know when a person's going to crack, when they can't handle the pressure and follow the rules.
But I didn't see that one coming at all.” Sadness was plain on his features, and he made a rough sound in his throat.
“I would have bet my last dollar that Adele would follow the straight and narrow, that she'd keep herself and her family safe no matter what.”
“But she didn't.”
“No. She didn't. Damn shame, too. I pulled Jerry and his boy out of Connecticut and relocated them to Cold Spring.
Ahearn kept his nose clean for a while, then got busted for drug trafficking, leaving his son a ward of the state.
If your grandmother hadn't stepped forward, he would have gone into foster care at that point.”
“What does this have to do with reopening the investigation into David's death?”
“Jerry Ahearn came to see me when he got out of jail.
He'd been incarcerated in a WITSEC prison unit, so he didn't mix with the general population.
He wanted a fresh start, a new identity.
He felt he'd been compromised, and your grandmother had already put on a funeral for Jerry Beaumont, complete with a headstone. It left him with few options.”
“Why did he think his identity had been compromised?”
“He felt the local authorities in Cold Spring were out to get him. He even accused an officer there of setting up the whole sting that got him arrested, claiming he was framed.”
“What officer?”
Walker shook his head, his gaze unfocused. “It was a long time ago, I don't remember the name. It would be in my notes in the file.”
“Was there any truth to Jerry’s suspicions?”
“Not as far as I could ascertain. I looked at the evidence and I believe he was guilty. I refused to provide him with another placement. He had valid credentials; he could go anywhere he wanted except home to Cold Spring.”
“Do you know where he is now?”
“Not exactly.”
Colin looked at him quizzically.
“John Campbell testified against the same crime ring a few years ago. He insisted Ahearn's back in the fold.” Walker shrugged. “We don't have any direct evidence that supports that claim.”
Stranger things had been known to happen, though if it was true, it was a wonder he survived long enough to ingratiate himself back with his cronies.
“I need to see if David was murdered,” said Colin.
Walker nodded in resignation. “I know you do. What do you need from me?”