Page 45 of South of Nowhere (Colter Shaw #5)
45.
Time Elapsed from Initial Collapse: 15 Hours
What a time…
Noah’s flood, a nearly dead family, a missing girl from an overturned Camaro, a shot-up disaster response worker and now a horrific explosion at a mine. And not down a shaft, which had happened once before.
But in an office.
Awful…
A terrible accident.
Or a terrible murder.
Hanlon Tolifson was reflecting that the CHP was darn well going to have to pry investigators and Crime Scene loose and get them down here from the Olechu barracks.
Sitting in the command post, he was presently on hold, waiting for a captain to come back on the line and respond to his request.
As he waited, he reviewed his performance during the Test so far.
And was satisfied. He gave himself a solid B.
This was important.
Confirming, for certain, that he would take on the job of police chief of the incorporated village of Hinowah, California.
He liked the work.
Liked the puzzle solving, the protecting the innocent. The respect.
And that gun thing too. He liked the way it sat on his hip, how it felt in his hand, the idea it was always there…
Clint Eastwood, Kevin Costner, Yellowstone .
The command post was now less wet but more breezy, a wind coming up from the north, blowing in the direction of the Never Summer’s flow. He occasionally peeked out, looking south, feeling that creepy sensation on the back of his neck at the thought that Eduardo Gutiérrez’s shooter—the man nicknamed Bear—was still free.
Colter Shaw was here, along with his sister, both on their phones. Colter had said they didn’t need to be concerned with Fiona Lavelle. She was all right, but not to say anything to her fiancé, if he called. He had not gone into details. But that was okay with him. One less thing to worry about.
Sergeant Tamara Olsen was on the other side of the levee with her two corporals, Williams and McPherson. Could they get those bomb curtains here soon?
All of that to think about.
Ah, Gerard Redding…The sight in Workshop One had been described by Hugh Davies, the mining company’s operations manager, as “unimaginable.” There came muffled sounds after that. And he believed Davies was crying. Then, likely, puking.
Debi Starr and TC McGuire were present at the mine, taping it off as a crime scene and making sure people stayed clear.
“Mayor?” CHP Captain Diego Rivera was back on the line. “Okay. Here’s what I can do. I’m getting our bomb squad people in from Sacramento. And two Major Crimes folks, one of the rotating teams. They’re outta Oakland.”
Neither very close.
“Uh-huh. And I’m just kind of wondering when.”
“I told them to prioritize it.”
“Okay. But, like I said, I’m just kind of wondering when.”
“Hold on. It’s Sacramento.”
No click. Just silence. His eyes went to Dorion Shaw. Tolifson had long ago retired “DRB,” as being not only disrespectful but unfair considering that her iron-lady approach was saving lives. He decided that as chief he would need a bit more of that edge, like her. More police stuff to work on. Like his quick draw and boning up on the California Penal Code.
Rivera was back. “Five, six hours. Probably less.”
No, probably more, Tolifson thought. This was not sour cynicism, just a realistic thought given that as a mayor of a small town he had become familiar with how slowly the gears of state government ground when you were in the bush league.
“Well, we’re thinking it’s not an accident. That means there’s a perp somewhere out there.”
Rivera: “Could’ve been a gas explosion. Happens a lot in mines.”
“Gas? It was in a laboratory. Nowhere near a shaft.”
“They have gas in labs.”
“Not this one.”
“With the storm, Mayor, it’s a busy day. As you can imagine. They said secure the scene. They’ll be there as soon as they can.”
“Well, Captain, the site is secure. Nobody’s going anywhere near where it happened—and could, maybe, happen again, which is why we really want somebody expert to take a look. Secure isn’t the issue. The issue is finding out what the heck is going on here.”
“You know what happens, Han.” A pause. “Not with you of course, necessarily, but somebody . They go trooping through the scene, evidence gets messed up. The lawyer at trial gets the defendant off.”
Tolifson didn’t like the “necessarily.”
Looking toward Dorion and Colter Shaw, he called, “He’s saying secure the scene. They’ll get some people here as soon as they can.”
She asked, “How soon is that?”
“He doesn’t know.”
Dorion’s face darkened and she approached, hand outstretched for the phone.
It looked like DRB was back.
Good.
She asked, “Who?”
Tolifson smiled as he handed it to her and whispered, “Captain Rivera, CHP.”
She took the phone.
“Captain, this is Dorion Shaw. I own Shaw Incident Services. I’m running response with Chief Tolifson.”
He liked the way that sounded.
“We have a situation maybe you can help us with…It’s the press. They’re becoming a problem.”
Press? Tolifson wondered.
She listened. “Well, I don’t know who called them. But a couple of the reporters are asking why there’s been no police response to a suspected high-explosive sabotage on the levee and now what appears to be related incidents. A wounded response worker and an IED death. They’re wondering if it’s being taken seriously in Sacramento. Now, I’m on your side, Captain. I know how strapped you are. I want to help you out. Is there something I can tell them about the delay in your response…Yes, I understand there’s flooding in Fort Pleasant. A newswoman brought that up, and well, fact is, her reporting is that it wasn’t so bad. Now she’s onto the explosion at the mine. She’s doing a story for the nightly news. I wish we could preempt that.”
Go get him, DRB.
“A solution? Well, I’m thinking we could have the town officers here do a preliminary. We’ve got good people. I’ve seen their credentials…Yes, I’m sure that’ll keep the reporters happy. That’s part of our job at Shaw Incident Services: press relations. Always good to have them on our side…All right.”
She handed the phone back.
“And she is who again?” Rivera asked bluntly.
“She’s a consultant.”
“Consultant.” As if the word was synonymous with venomous snake. “You’re green-lighted to work the scene. Just be sure you preserve every damn bit of evidence. Custody cards for every molecule of skin and bone.”
“Will do, Captain.”
He disconnected before the man added more qualifiers or changed his mind.
“Thank you,” he said to Dorion.
Tolifson now hesitated, realizing he’d just gotten what he’d asked for. The chance to spend time in a place that would be horrific beyond his imagination.
Molecule of skin and bone…
He found himself staring at the levee.
Then he heard a voice behind him. “Mayor.”
It was Colter Shaw speaking.
He turned.
“Dorion told me you got the okay to start investigating the Redding bombing on your own.”
“That’s right.”
“For what it’s worth, I’ve done demolition investigations as part of my job. I know you probably want to run the scene yourself, but if you don’t mind, any chance I could do it? I know what to look for, and it’ll cut the time down considerably.”
A frown. “Well, now, Mr. Shaw, Colter, you’re right I’d rather do it myself. But if you think it’d be better for the case, I’ll stand down.” He shrugged. “We all have to make sacrifices for what’s best.”