Trial By Fury

Showing great restraint, I waited until Je

"It wasn't just a man. It was a man and a woman."

"Tell me about them."

She paused. "He was tall and black. He had a sort of purple shirt on. And high-topped shoes."

"And the woman?"

"She was black, too. Very pretty. She's the one who wrote the check."

"What was she wearing, did you notice?"

"One of those big fu

"Fu

"It had an arrow on it that pointed. It said Baby."

I had seen a sweatshirt just like that recently. At Darwin Ridley's house, on the back of his widow, who never went to his games, not even statewide tournaments.

"What color was her shirt?" I asked.

"Pink," Je

It was all I could do to sit still. "What time was it, do you remember?"

"Sure. It was just before we left. Mom brings me over as soon as I get home from school and have a snack. We're at the store by about four-thirty or five, and we stay for a couple of hours. That way I catch people on their way home from work."

"So what time would you say, six-thirty, seven?"

She nodded. "About that."

"Je

Je

Across the table from me, Sue was looking more and more apprehensive. "What's all this about?" she asked. "This isn't that case that was on the news today, I hope."

"I'm afraid so."

"I don't think I want Je

"Je

Je

"I believe he's the man you sold all those cookies to," I told her.

"And now he's dead?" Her question was totally matter-of-fact.

"Somebody killed him. Late Friday night or Saturday morning."

Kids have an unca

I've suspected for years that kids watch too much television. That question corked it for me, convinced me I was right. The problem was, it was closer to the truth than I was willing to let on. I already knew Joa

"It's not likely it was his wife," I said, waffling for Je

"I hope she didn't do it," Je

"What do you mean?"

"The man was in a hurry. He seemed angry. He kept looking at his watch and saying he had to go. She said he should go, that she'd pay for the cookies and leave them in his trunk."

"Did she?"

Je

"Crying? Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Je

"What happened then?"

"After she put the cookies in one car, she got in another one."

"What kind?"

"Brown-and-white car, I think."

"And did she leave right away?"

"No. She sat there for a long time, leaning on the steering wheel, crying. She finally drove away."

I turned to Je

She shook her head. "I must have been in the car, studying. When Je

"What about the check?" I asked.

Sue answered that question. "I turned it in to the cookie mother yesterday. She said she had to make a deposit this morning."

I made a note of the cookie mother's name and number. For good measure, I had Je

"I certainly hope so," I said.

"And can I tell the kids at school that I'm helping solve a murder?" she asked.

"Don't tell them yet," I told her. "I'll let you know when it's okay to say something."

Je

"You bet they can," I told her. "You'll grow up to be anything you want to be. I'd put money on it."

Sue Griffith got up. Je

"Thanks for buying all those cookies," Je

Je

I never did remember to buy the coffee. The coffee or the MacNaughton's, either.

I called Peters as soon as I got home. "Guess what?" I said.

"I give up."

"Joa

"I thought she didn't like basketball."

"We've got a Girl Scout who says someone who looked like Joa

"She wrote a check?"

"That's right."

"So what do we do now, Coach?" Peters asked.

"I'd say we take a real serious look at the Widow Ridley and find out what makes her tick."

"Starting with United Airlines?"

"That's as good a place to start as any."

"How about the neighbors?"

"Them, too."

Peters hesitated. "What would she have to gain, insurance maybe?"

"It wouldn't be the first time," I replied.

"I've never dealt with a pregnant murder suspect before. The very idea runs against the grain."

"Murder's against the grain," I reminded him. "Pregnancy's no more a legal defense for murder than Twinkies are."

Peters hung up then, but I could tell it still bothered him. To tell the truth, it bothered me. Joa

I kept coming back to the bottom line. Joa

Just thinking about the next day made me weary. I stripped off my clothes and crawled into bed. I wasn't quite asleep when the phone rang.

"How's it going, J. P.?"

"Maxwell Cole, you son of a bitch! It's late. Leave me alone. I've got a job to do. I don't need you on my ass."

"Look, J. P., here I am calling you up to lend a little assistance, and you give me the brush-off."

"What kind of assistance?"

"You ever heard of FURY?"

"What is this, a joke?"

"No joke. Have you ever heard of it?"

"Well, I've heard of Plymouth Furies and ‘hell hath no fury.' Which is it?"

"It's an acronym, F-U-R-Y. The initials stand for Faithful United to Rescue You."

"To rescue me? From what?"

"J. P., I'm telling you, this is no joke. These people are serious. They're having their first convention in town this week. They're up at the Tower I

"So what are they rescuing? Get to the point, Max."

"They're white supremacists. I interviewed their president today. No kidding. They want blacks to go back where they came from."

"Jesus Christ, Max. What does all this have to do with me? I need my beauty sleep."

"They said it's possible one of their members knocked off Darwin Ridley."

"Send me his name and number. I'll track him down in the morning."

"J. P…"

"Get off it, Max. You know how this works. Some kooky splinter group claims responsibility for a crime and manufactures a whole armload of free publicity. Don't fall for it. And don't complicate my life. I've got plenty to do without chasing after phony suspects who are playing the media for a bunch of fools."