Irreconcilable Differences

"Lee, have a seat. How have you been? You don't come around to visit us much any more."

"Not too bad, Vic. Nah, I have a lot of friends here, but I'd rather not become known as one of the old geezers that just can't leave the job behind."

He nodded knowingly. A lot of retired cops just can't stay away from their old office. Consequently, they become a pathetic and unwelcome burden when they hang around.

"Lee, I wanted to talk with you about Frank Wilson's computer. Or more accurately, what we found on it."

I waited. Since I didn't yet know all the details of what the forensic analysis of the computer had turned up, I didn't want to give away what I had done to learn of its contents. When I said nothing, Vic continued.

"We found some interesting material on it. Something that leads us to believe that Wilson may have been involved in some kind of sexual activity outside his marriage. The divorce papers your client filed cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the divorce. We also know that you were following Wilson. Did your surveillance turn up anything of a sexual nature in his conduct? Did you ever see him meeting with any women?"

Be careful here.

"Vic, why are you asking about Frank's sex life? Now that he's dead and his death was accidental, what's to be gained by digging into something that might only hurt his wife?"

"Well, it's true that the Coroner signed him out as 'accidental,' but the forensic on the computer hinted that he may have been engaging in sexual conduct for profit. Were you aware he had a bank account in the Cayman Islands?"

My answer was evasive.

"I'd like to know more about that. His wife would be entitled to the proceeds from that account, wouldn't she?"

"Unless the money was the fruits of a crime, she might. But you still haven't answered my question."

"No, I had no specific knowledge of any illegal banks accounts anywhere. But I would like to give Sherry Wilson's lawyer whatever information you have so she can try and recover some of it for Sherry."

He nodded.

"When we went through Wilson's belongings, we found what looks like a lock combination on a small piece of paper in his wallet. Do you have any idea what that combination might be for?"

"Sure. Sherry said they have a safe at home. She has the combination herself, so she can tell you if that's what it's for. The other possibility is the storage locker Frank was renting. Were you aware of it?"

He shook his head. "What can you tell me about that?"

After explaining that I had followed Frank to the rental office, I had determined that Frank had been renting a locker there. I gave him the number of the unit and told him that when I went to the unit, I had seen a combination padlock on it. That, of course, was the truth, just not the complete truth.

"Do you have any idea what was in the rental locker?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I had asked Sherry, but she didn't know anything about it. She seemed surprised that he was renting a locker since they had plenty of storage space at their home."

Vic was getting close to asking questions that would force me to possibly lie to him.

"Vic, I've got to get going. Sherry Wilson and Lynne Davenport have asked me to meet with them at Lynne's office in Freeman Lake at 10:00 a.m. By the way, when would you like to talk to Sherry Wilson?"

"There's no big rush since his death was apparently accidental. But we do need to find out what she knows about the Caymans bank account and any business ventures Wilson may have had on the side. The bank stuff is probably going to be scarfed up by the Feebs. Good riddance. Unless, of course, Stony would authorize my travel to the Caymans." He laughed easily.

"Yeah, fat chance of that. I'll ask Lynne to give you a call and set up another meeting with Sherry. Lynne will want to be there, of course."

After a congenial good-bye to Vic, I left and headed for Lynne's office.

I arrived a couple minutes before 10 a.m. Incredibly, Simon Seville was parked outside Lynne's office. Apparently this dolt had not got the word that his client, Frank Wilson, had died. I saw no harm in having a little fun at Simon's expense.

I approached Simon's car in its blind spot. He never saw me coming. I put my face right next to the glass on the driver's side and slapped the top of the car very hard with my hand. Coffee and powdered sugar doughnuts exploded like a covey of quail.

Simon, flushed with anger, rolled down his window.

"What the hell are you doing, Williams? You could've given me a heart attack."

"Simon, I'm sorry. What are you doing here?"

Simon was never known to think quickly.

"I've got a meeting inside with my attorney," he answered in a self-satisfied voice.

"Fine, so do I. Let's walk in together. Who's your attorney?"

He sputtered like a wet Roman candle on the Fourth of July. I decided it was time to put him out of his self-created misery.

"Sherry Wilson's already inside, Simon. Of course, you know that since you've been following her since the morning of September 6."

I thought he was going to stroke out on me right there. The human face is capable of turning several shades of red, but I think Simon just found another one.

"How did you know...?"

"I'm the one who gave Frank Wilson your name and number. And Simon, you may want to brush up on the local news. Read the Fightin' Creek Press occasionally. Your client, Frank Wilson, has been dead since early Saturday morning."

Simon Seville's face went from Delicious apple red to pasty white in under a second. He scrambled for his cell phone, no doubt to try and call Frank Wilson to ask him what? "Are you dead, Frank?" What a boob.

I walked into the building and up the stairs to Lynne's office. The cute secretary with the drop-dead legs barely concealed by her miniskirt had already ushered Sherry into Lynne's inner office. She just motioned for me to go in. No smile, no flash of leg this morning. Nuts!

Lynne and Sherry both greeted me. Sherry was still distraught, though much better than Saturday or Sunday. She looked as if she had not slept enough.

I recounted my conversation with Vic Gilbert at the Sheriff's Office. Lynne said she would call him and set up for him to meet with her and Sherry. Lynne went over the details of the trust Frank and Sherry had established in happier times together. Frank's life insurance policy named Sherry as the sole beneficiary. It was a relatively modest policy; she would receive about $400,000. Frank may have forgotten about the policy since he was having the premiums deducted automatically from their checking account. Sherry would also receive all his personal and real property.

When it came to the hidden account in the Caymans, Lynne was less enthusiastic. She felt that once the FBI and Customs and IRS dug into the account, it would be highly unlikely that Sherry would see much if any of the $825,000.

Then Lynne got down to the business of dealing with the videotapes Frank had made. At least, the one's we knew about.

"We need to turn the tapes over to the Sheriff's Office," she said. "Even though Frank is gone, it is very clear that Lori Lee, his secretary, was a conspirator in making them. Now, making the tapes of adults engaging in consensual sex is not illegal, nor is copying and distributing them for profit. But the labeling on the Sharon Donovan tape, dated September 18, 2000, suggest that tape was made before she could legally consent. That means that if Lori Lee and Frank knew Sharon was not yet eighteen, they were committing a crime. Possession of that tape, if it's accurately dated, constitutes illegal possession of child pornography. So, Lee, you and I will deliver the tapes to the Sheriff's Office. You haven't looked at all the tapes, is that correct?"

I nodded in agreement.

"All right. I'll explain that you fished the tapes out of the dumpster after following Frank and that you had simply stored them in your safe. We'll explain that you have not viewed the tapes, but that some of the labeling suggests the tapes may be evidence of a crime. Do you agree?"

What choice did I have? And of course, Lynne was right. The best thing to do was to surrender the videotapes and let the Sheriff's Office follow through on any criminal prosecution. Since Sherry had not even been aware of Frank's movie making career, she would not need to attend the meeting. Lynne would simply give Sherry's sworn and notarized statement to that effect to the Sheriff's Office.

Sherry was dismayed that Sharon Donovan's pre-eighteen tape, if that's truly what it was, would ever surface. But Lynne pointed out that Lori Lee was clearly every bit as much of a sexual predator as Frank apparently had been and that in any case, the Sheriff's Office forensic examination of Frank's laptop computer had no doubt revealed to them the emails between Sharon Donovan and Frank Wilson. Lynne felt it was better to turn the tape over to the Sheriff's investigators and consign Lori Lee to the manure pile of sexual offenders in prison. Lynne's thought was that Lori Lee would probably plead guilty to some reduced charge and that the tape and perhaps even Sharon Donovan's name would never reach the public eye. Sherry agreed.

Lynne prepared the statement for Sherry to read and sign in the presence of Lynne's secretary, a notary public. The three of us left Lynne's office together. Sherry went to her home. Lynne and I went by my office to pick up the videotapes. Then Lynne called Sheriff Stony Holmes from my office. She explained briefly how I had obtained the tapes, how I had put them in my safe without viewing them, and how we wanted to turn them over to the Sheriff's Office.

Stony was not pleased that I'd had the tapes for nearly three weeks and had not informed his investigators. Lynne explained that the tapes had been acquired in connection with a divorce proceeding and that it was only after Frank's death that they became potentially relevant in a criminal investigation.

Lynne and I drove to the Sheriff's Office to surrender the tapes. When we arrived we met with Stony Holmes and Vic Gilbert. Both were still mildly upset with me for not surrendering the tapes earlier. I assured them that I had not viewed the tapes and therefore had no first-hand knowledge of their contents. That was, of course, a slight deviation from the precise truth. I had looked at enough of the Sharon Donovan - Lori Lee tape to suspect what was going on. But I had not looked at any of the other tapes, and I refused to speculate on the record about what they might contain, if anything. Of course, by this time, investigators had obtained a search warrant for Frank's storage locker and had seized all of its contents.

Stony told us what we already knew: That the locker contained videotaping equipment. He surprised me, though, when he said that in addition to several new blank miniDV tapes, investigators had also found a tape in the camera.

I tried very hard not to change my expression. I had forgotten to look in the camera's tape well for the tape Frank had made of the most recent session between Cassandra Donovan and Lori Lee. Both Stony and Vic were staring at me, perhaps looking for some reaction. I hoped that I revealed none.

Lynne asked what was on the tape. Stony did not want to describe it in detail, but said that it implicated both Frank Wilson and Lori Lee in the manufacture of sexually explicit videotapes. They had not yet identified the woman in the tape with Lori Lee. But they would.

Lynne pointed out that if the equipment was Frank's, it rightfully would be part of his estate and would ultimately need to be given to Sherry Wilson. Then Lynne asked point-blank if Sherry Wilson were a suspect in any criminal activity. Stony indicated she was not, however he could only address state offenses. If the feds' investigation of Frank's offshore bank account disclosed that she was culpable in tax evasion, they would no doubt prosecute her. But, he opined, his investigators had found no indication that she even knew about the account, let alone benefited from it.

Lynne asked if we were needed any longer. Stony shook his head, "No," and we left.

On the way back to my office, I asked Lynne how she intended to deal with the conduct of federal judge Nancy Carpenter. Lynne looked at me as if she hadn't even heard my question. I've seen that look before. Don't ask.

[Three months later]

Every day I scan the online editions of the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles times, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, and the Idaho Statesman from Boise. On the front page of the Statesman, about half way down the page, was an article announcing the unexpected resignation of Judge Nancy Carpenter from the Federal District Court of Idaho. The announcement said that she was undergoing treatment for an undisclosed illness and that in addition to resigning from the court, she was also discontinuing her law practice. There were several laudatory comments from her illustrious colleagues in the Idaho Bar Association, all wishing her well and hoping that her health would be restored. Nice work, Lynne!

About two months ago, the Donovan's, Tom and Cassandra and their daughter, Sharon, sold their house down the street from Sherry and moved to Woodland Hills, California. Rumor has it they've started their own film production company.

Shortly after Frank's death and after being interviewed by the Kellogg County Sheriff's Office, Lori Lee disappeared from the area. Last week her body was found in a car near Mount Wilson in the Angeles National Forest just north of Los Angeles. She had been shot six times. No suspects were specifically identified, however the Los Angeles county grand jury had indicted her on charges of trafficking in child pornography. Speculation was that some of her business partners might be concerned about what she would reveal if offered immunity from prosecution. The investigation into her death continues.

Sherry Wilson is still a librarian at the Kellogg County library. I tried my best to get her to come into my investigation business as a full partner, but the library is her career. She did agree to work for me as a contract investigator under my agency license. And the tape we made of Cassandra Donovan and Lori Lee together, the tape we could not reveal to the Sheriff? Well, Sherry and I get together occasionally to review that tape and relive that Thursday afternoon at the Stateline Motel. She seems to enjoy seeing them together as much as I do. Sherry and Lynne Davenport have become very close friends. And since Frank's expensive video-making equipment was returned to Sherry as part of Frank's estate, we are all considering putting it to some good use. Privately, of course.

Life goes on in Fightin' Creek where the local time is still fifty years ago.