Case of the Murdered Lovers Ch. 06

"Jack comes over, he and Marie are having sex, and really going at it..." I said, adding the salacious remark to needle everyone's sexual thoughts and fires, "and then the killer walks in... knowing what he is going to find and what he is going to do about it. Marie of course is not expecting her husband or anyone else.

"So as I looked at the whole case, it fit well.. if only we could break that damned alibi. I started putting myself in Joe's head, thinking of ways Joe could create a situation where he was in two places at once: someone on the videotape at the bar, and someone killing his wife. I suspected he'd kill his wife himself, not leaving that to the chance of failure by another.

"And this is where we got our second bit of luck: Joe Arruzio got too cute by half. He thought he was being clever when he had his name change and adoption story all ready to go. That story was true, but he made a huge mistake showing me that birth certificate. I don't think he counted on us digging that deep into it. Also, maybe he thought we would not think about or be able to get protected adoption papers.

"It looked like he was explaining away the problem of his childhood not seeming to exist, but he had let the cat out of the bag without realizing it... because as we looked further, that's where I found out that Joe Arruzio was one of twin boys and that his brother had been adopted by someone else. And even if they weren't identical twins, which they were, I now had someone who could possibly be on the tape portraying Joe while the real Joe was committing the crime. Last but not least, I also had the name of the brother: Johnny Arugula."

"And you didn't worry about this, shall we say, extracurricular investigation into adoption papers coming out during the trial, should you have arrested Arruzio?" the Chief growled.

"No." I replied, grinning. "I figured I'd cross that bridge when we came to it. And since you asked, we did come across Arugula's name in the Arruzio drug deals, so investigating him and then finding that he was Arruzio's twin would've probably happened anyway." The chief did not appear very mollified.

I continued, "Anyway, about this time, we were all distracted by the noise of Jack Burke and his relationships. That kept Steven Ikea out my way and on the wrong scent, but it put pressure on my building case, because I needed to find Johnny Arugula -but- had to be quiet about it so that Arruzio would not realize that I was onto him. If we could find Arugula, just the fact he looked like his twin brother would put a serious dent in the alibi, but I really was hoping we could find Arugula and get him to talk, to turn State's evidence and reveal the whole plot.

"But Johnny was not easy to find, and in fact we failed to find him in time, which was unfortunate for him. Meanwhile, we discovered that Arugula had done drug deals right about the time of his brother's financial problems... and on top of that, Arugula had been an actor in theater plays, meaning that he could easily cast a performance in a bar, portraying his brother on a videotape."


"Oh, of course!" Britt Maxwell said. "So that is why you were so happy when Myron found those press reports. I was there and had no idea why that was important."

"Yes." I said. "It's easy to find things like that once one knows what to search for in the first place. That's our problem as police: we're asked to find the right clues while not even knowing what we're looking for nor if what we find is good or bad information. Just look at that whole sidebar with the Olivets..."

"I think it's damn fortunate for the Olivets that you solved this case when you did." Laura interjected. "I interviewed them yesterday, and there's some serious stuff there. It might have been too easy for Ikea and Sanders to convince a jury that either of them had cause to kill Jack Burke."

"Let me ask this." Tanya said. "Why did Joe kill Johnny? I was thinking it was to make it look like Joe was dead and so he could disappear into the ethers, but why did he feel he needed to do that, as he didn't know his alibi was broken yet?"

"Good question, very good question," I answered, "and to be honest I don't have an answer for that, as we never got to talk to either one of them. But I can guess this: Arugula was in a bad position; only he knew the truth and only he was a danger to Joe. Yet he was already shooting off his mouth about his good fortune... we know that from an informant... and it's possible that he could've asked for more money from Joe.

"Either way, Joe saw that his brother couldn't be trusted, and so he killed him also. He might have pre-planned to kill Johnny as soon as possible, and did so quickly after leaving President Wellman's home here in Town and driving back to the City.

"Of course, it might have been other reasons. They could've just had an argument and it escalated. Joe might have gotten wind and thought his alibi was breaking down, maybe heard a leak that we were looking for Arugula, and so he tried to fake his death, as you just said.. My gut suspicion is Arugula's big mouth or premeditation. Anything else?"

"Yes," Melina said, somberly. "Do you think Arruzio killed Jack on purpose also? Or was Jack just in the wrong place at the wrong time?"

"I have to believe that he meant to kill Jack as well as Marie." I said, and saw Melina's face fall. Teresa also looked down at the floor. "And the reason for this is his telling Marie he wasn't coming home, so that she would call Jack over that night. I think he wanted to kill them both, and set it up to make that happen. There may have even been a built-in back up plan: if caught, he could say he shot them in a fit of rage and avoid a more serious criminal charge. That's just a guess, but I think he wanted to kill his wife and her lover."

"How did Joe find out he had a twin brother if he was adopted as a baby?" Sally Wellman asked.

"I have no idea." I replied. "His adoptive mother might have told him, he might have stumbled onto it or found it through research at any time after learning of his original birth name. I really have no idea how long he knew his brother existed or if they knew each other... though Joe definitely knew Johnny when he was doing his shady financial deals and tapped into Marie's trust fund... because Johnny was arranging his drug deals for him."

"Was Jack Burke blackmailing any of the women he made tapes with?" Hugh Hewitt asked.

"None of them would talk to us, so I have no idea for sure. I think a lot of these wives were simply trying to keep their husbands from finding out that they were having sex with Jack Burke, and THAT was the reason they wouldn't speak with us, so we can't assume anything there. We never found any money caches or bank accounts or anything that might suggest Burke was bringing in money, so I tend to doubt it without something more coming in to confirm it." After a pause, I asked "Anything else?"

"Just one thing." Tanya said. "Bettina Wurtzburg." There was a general murmur at the mention of the brutally raped reporterette's name.

"Yes." I said, pausing a moment. "I don't want to sound callous, but that was probably a side issue to the Arruzio case. Someone overreacted to all the press publicity, or they thought something else might come out and wanted to stop it.

"The attack itself was a hired hit on Bettina and Ikea, and it looks like my nephew Ned is in the hit-for-hire business. I think Bettina was the target and Ikea was just the source; the perps didn't know who that source was until the attack.

"As to who ordered the attack," I added, my voice lowering and becoming harsh, "that is a loose end, but I'll be cleaning it up shortly." I looked straight at Laura Fredricson as I said it. She did not meet my glance, but stared uncomfortably at the floor.

"What about that Wurtzburg report about that girl named 'Ivy'?" Cindy Ross asked. "The one where you said it wasn't a police leak?" I loved Cindy Ross, but sometimes I wished she'd keep her damn mouth shut, I thought to myself.

"Yeah, that's another side issue, and not related to this case at all." I said. "And it's an area that would be a total waste of our time and resources to attempt to pursue." I looked hard at Cindy, but she just didn't take the hint.

"So you know what that's about?" she asked, persisting.

"No, Cindy, and I don't want to know what that was about." I said. "I'm not going to do someone else's dirty work for them, and neither should you." Cindy finally started getting the hint to drop that line of inquiry. I don't think anyone else in the room caught on, though I was deeply aware that two persons in the room besides myself knew that full story all too well.

*Brrrrinnngg!!!*

Teresa's cell phone rang and she answered it. "You'll have to excuse me. I need to go." she said, practically running out of the room.

"Me too." Officer Feeley said. "I'm returning to duty tonight." He made his goodbyes, then followed Teresa out the door.

"Yes, it's dark and about time for this old man to go home and hit the hay." Chief Griswold said, getting up. "I'll see everyone Monday morning." He came over and extended his hand to me, which I shook.

"Damn good work, Detective." Chief Griswold said. "I'm envisioning something also: a Lieutenant's bar... and in your very near future."

"Thank you, sir." I said, almost meekly, as everyone murmured assent. Wow, Lieutenant!

With the tension of the discussion of the case now fulfilled, the party began devolving into quiet conversations. Not surprisingly, a tremendous sexual tension was beginning to fill the air. Melina was the first to act. She got up and came up to me and took my hand to pull me up.

"I'm glad I married such a brilliant man." she declared. "I'm claiming wifely privilege, and delivering your well-deserved reward personally. Everyone please continue the party, and there are spare bedrooms for you." With that, my wife led me out of the room to the master bedroom.

"Well, so much for that." Laura said wistfully, and then walked up to Hugh. "Speaking of rewards, I've been wanting to reward this war hero for a while. Come on, soldier." Hugh quickly got up and followed Laura.

Things happened quickly after that. Tanya and President Wellman disappeared, then Sally Wellman straddled Fred Dixon, who was sitting in a chair. "I can't wait to find out how a young Federal agent lays pipe." she said huskily, lowering the straps of her bikini to reveal her breasts to him. As Dixon began sucking Sally Wellman's melons , Cindy wordlessly walked over to Britt and took her hand, leading her out the door leading to the upstairs bedrooms.

------------------------

Early the next morning, Saturday, I woke up. Melina was lying next to me in bed, sound asleep. I remembered the night before. Melina had fucked me about as passionately and hard as she ever had in our years of marriage after thanking me for finding Jack's killer and avenging his death. Those were the first words spoken of what hung silently between us, all that had happened with Jack Burke... both years before and in the last few months.

I got up out of bed and put on some jeans and a t-shirt. I quietly walked around the house, checking up. It was an interesting tour.

In the next bedroom, I quietly opened the door to find Cindy and Britt lying under the sheets, Britt spooned warmly in Cindy's embrace, both sleeping. I quietly closed the door and continued down the hall. What greeted me next was stunningly hot.

Tanya Perlman was lying on her back on the bed, her shapely legs wrapped tightly around President Wellman. He was on top of her, steadily pumping his large cock into her cunt with relentless, powerful thrusts. Tanya looked like she was about to come apart and just explode in orgasm as Wellman fucked her with deep intensity. He was aged but was still an impressive collection of muscles, and he had surprising stamina as he fucked the lovely younger woman into sheer ecstasy.

I watched Wellman tirelessly fuck Tanya for several minutes, realizing from the look in both of their eyes that there was something special going on between them. They were not fucking, they were making love. I tore my eyes away and moved on.

Sally Wellman and Fred Dixon had found a blanket and were wrapped up on a sofa together in the basement room. I wondered where Laura and Hugh were, and saw movement on the patio, outdoors. Looking out the basement door window, I saw Hugh lying on a poolside deck chair, with Laura on top of him. Both were naked in the chilly air, and she was vigorously riding him. I saw his big eight inch cock sliding wetly and deeply in and out of Laura's vagina, her cuntlips clinging to his organ as she slid up and down his length, her fine asscheeks loudly slapping his thighs each time she impaled herself on his turgid meat. Hugh was kneading and sucking Laura's big tits as they copulated.

The sight of beautiful Laura riding a big cock combined with the memory of Wellman and Tanya making deeply passionate love had me aroused. I returned to my bedroom. Melina was asleep, lying on her stomach with a pillow under her belly. Her luscious ass was raised slightly, mouthwatering, inviting. I was iron hard as I slid onto the bed and mounted my wife, lying on top of her, feeling her firm asscheeks pressing into my groin as my cockhead searched for her slit.

"Mmm, lemme sleep." Melina murmured. I said nothing but finally the head of my bare cock found its target, and I pushed down, sinking my meat into my wife's warm, wet cunt. She was wet enough and quickly lubricated even more as I began to gently pump in and out of her, again enjoying the feeling of her magnificent ass pressing into my abs and groin. God! it felt so good!

"Mmmf... sleep..." Melina mewled. I just continued pumping her, exulting in the heat and wetness of this rare bareback fuck of my wife's slick slit. I knew that she was pregnant and that my sperm would be of no value in fertilizing her eggs, but I thought about her getting knocked up, which led to thoughts of Laura being pregnant with my baby. As always, the thoughts added steam to my strides and I began to thrust more deeply and powerfully into Melina.

I fucked my wife for well over ten minutes in this position. She did not move much, but dozed as I enjoyed the pleasures of her pussy's tight fit around my hard male meat. I did not care if she moved around or not, but simply enjoyed the pleasure for myself, the pleasure of fucking a woman's cunt. God, life was good....

Finally, I felt my nut rise and the pain build. I began driving into Melina with shorter, faster thrusts, pushing my groin into the sweetness of her incredible asscheeks.

"Uhhhh..." I groaned as the first spurt of semen burst out of my cock and deep into my wife's sodden twat. I pushed hard into her asscheeks as my next pulses of ejaculate shot into her. Finally, I was spent, both mentally and physically, and I withdrew my cock from Melina's vagina and collapsed onto my back on the bed next to her.

After catching my breath and resting a few minutes... okay, half an hour... I got up and showered and went down to the kitchen to cook everyone breakfast. Laura was already there getting things started.

As Laura and I swiftly worked together to get the big breakfast prepared, I had no way of knowing at the time, but that wonderful coupling I'd just enjoyed minutes before would be the last time that Melina and I would have sexual intercourse as a married couple.

Part 25 - Tying Up Loose Ends

Oh, think that's the end of the story? Nope, not by a long shot. I had a loose end to tie up. And on Bettina Wurtzburg's behalf.

It was early Sunday morning, not quite 7:00am as the door to Laura Fredricson's office opened and Henry R. Wargrave stepped into the room.

"I came as soon as I got your message--" he said, then stopped short. It was not Laura but me sitting in her chair behind her desk. Comfortable chair, too, but I didn't have time to notice. I was dealing with a very, very dangerous adversary.

"Come in, Mr. Wargrave. Have a seat." I offered, my hand in my pocket. Wargrave slowly walked up to the desk and peered at me.

"It's a dangerous habit to finger loaded firearms in one's pocket." he said. I smiled, taking the gun out of my pocket and laying it on the side shelf of the desk next to the chair, my hand not drifting far from it.

"True enough." I said. I was dealing with a Master here, and I knew it. I was nowhere near this man's league, and even if he did have erectile disfunction, he was still a very powerful man... power I could feel reaching out to me across the desk. I was very glad I had the gun within reach. This was not a game for the weak.

"I was expecting to see Dr. Fredricson." Wargrave said. "She texted me to come."

"No, it was I that texted you." I replied. "We have a serious issue to discuss, Mr. Wargrave. Please, have a seat."

Wargrave complied, sitting in the chair opposite the desk. "Congratulations on solving the Arruzio case." he said. "I was shocked when I heard about Joe, but I was even more impressed how you unerringly drove to the Truth."

"Thank you." I said. "And that is what I want to talk to you about." I straightened up in my chair a little bit. "Mr. Wargrave, I really do not appreciate people ordering gang rape attacks on reporters and police officers in my Town. I do not appreciate it at all."

"Oh, you think I had something to do with that?" Wargrave replied, his eyes steely and cold. "I'd love to see you try to prove it."

"I'm sure I could find the evidence if I really needed to." I said. "The Government keeps a lot of phone records these days. One day all that is going to become public and then there'll be a huge scandal..."

After a pause, I then added, "But I am not interested in proving anything in Court, Mr. Wargrave. What's done is done, but having a female reporter raped is crossing the line. I don't want that line crossed again, or... I might just have to cross a few lines myself."

Wargrave's face hardened. "Do you have any idea just who you're talking to? Do you think your little crowbar is any match for what I can bring to the game?" I willed the spasm of fear down; I certainly did know that I was dealing with a billionaire, a man with deep connections in this Town, this University and, much worse, with elements of the Federal Government that I did not care to think about. Wargrave had made his billions in illegal arms trades on behalf of the Central Intelligence Agency. I was playing an extremely dangerous game, but I was willing to roll the dice and play it.

"I know who you are, Mr. Wargrave. Which is why we're having this friendly conversation in private and in the only room in this county that I am sure is not bugged, and not at the police station." I said.

"At the same time, I don't care who you are or about your billions or who you deal with. In this town...MY town, Mr. Wargrave... I don't expect to see people brutalized for just doing their jobs. It... irritates me." I stared flatly at Wargrave, hoping that he couldn't read the quaking fear in the pit of my stomach.

"You are a brave young man." Wargrave said, his head slightly nodding. "Okay, I hear you. I'll continue to protect the interests of this great University, but I'll acknowledge that it's your Town, and County, your rules, and will keep well within the lines... as long as you continue to do the excellent job you are doing, of course."

"I appreciate that." I had won, and had just been told to take my win and go home. But I wasn't done. "There is one other thing... the person who you hired for that attack. I want to find my young nephew Ned. Where can I find him?"

"Like I said," Wargrave said. "I did not hire him, and while I understand your desire to apprehend him, I cannot help you there." I knew he was telling the truth, that he must've used layers of intermediaries and that Ned was only the last in the line.