“At any point did Eagle McBeth threaten Oakley during that argument?” Wolf asked.
“No, sir. If anything, it was the opposite way around. Oakley doesn’t go through a day without threatening one of us.”
“Does he ever harm you?” Rachette asked.
“No. Not really.”
“How about anybody from town?”
Sexton looked up, thinking about it. “No. He was pretty good ever since we came down to Dredge. He used to get in fights all the time up in Jackson, though.”
“You told us Oakley went down to the cut to start his nightshift after the argument,” Wolf said.
“That’s right.”
“And what did you do?”
Sexton shrugged. “Went to bed. I was beat.”
“And did you hear or see anything after that?” Wolf asked. “Anybody coming down into the mine?”
Sexton stared at the table, lost in thought.
“Mr. Sexton?”
“No, I didn’t see or hear anybody coming down into the mine. I mean, there’s always so much noise. Could have been somebody came in and I wouldn’t have noticed. If there’s not a lot of noise at night, then something’s wrong. Then I get woken up to fix things. Noise means peace and quiet for me.”
“But you didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, is what the sheriff is asking,” Rachette said.
“No, sir.”
“And then the next day?” Wolf asked. “Tell me about your Saturday.”
“Woke up. Made some coffee. Went outside.”
“What time?”
“Like, seven.”
“And then what did you do?”
“Saw Eagle was already up, over at the plant looking at the riffles. The place where the plant catches the gold. That’s when he launched into his idea to fix the wash plant. And then we started our weekend of trying to turn around our operation. I could tell Eagle was pretty shaken up about the argument the night before. He seemed…subdued, but determined.”
“So, what did you do?” Wolf asked. “What was this plan of his?”
“We changed out the riffles to a bigger set. Changed the drop angle of the chute. Dialed back the water pressure.”
“And that all took place at the wash plant?” Wolf asked.
“Yeah.”
“So who did that work?”
“Me.”
“Just you.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And what did McBeth do?”
“He got to work bringing up the dirt from the cut.”
“And what, exactly, is the cut?” Wolf asked.
“Where we get the pay, the paydirt. Where we take the overburden off the top, so we can get down to the ground that holds the gold. We cut into the ground to get to the pay. The cut.”
“Ah. Thanks. I get it now. And Eagle was the first to go down there Saturday?”
Sexton shrugged. “Yeah. The only one to go down there Saturday.”
Wolf nodded. Rachette wrote some notes.
They sat in silence for a beat.
Sexton looked like he wanted to say something.
“What is it?” Wolf asked.
“I’m just thinking about how you asked if I heard a noise that night.”
“Yeah?” Rachette said. “And?”
“And I just keep thinking that…well…I’m pretty sure I would have heard a gunshot. With all that noise going on, I still think a gunshot would have woke me up. It would have been out of the ordinary. But, not a gun with a silencer on it. I’m not sure if I would have heard that.”
“Okay,” Wolf said, unsure what the man was driving at. “What makes you bring that up?”
“Because Chris had a gun with a silencer.”
Wolf and Rachette looked at one another.
“It was a whole project that him and Koling did last year. They converted a solvent trap into one. I helped them with the threading.”
Rachette continued writing, keeping his eyes on the page.
“You didn’t find it in his trailer?” Sexton looked between them.
“How many guns did Chris Oakley have?” Wolf asked.
“Two Glock 21s. One with a factory barrel, and the other he swapped out with a threaded barrel.”
Rachette folded his arms. “How many guns do you have?”
“Just the one.”
“Name it, please,” Rachette said.
“Glock 21.”
“And Koling?” Rachette said.
“Same thing. Glock 21.”
“And McBeth?”
“Glock 21. Same thing.”
Rachette leaned forward. “And that’s all the guns. No more suppressed models? No more hunting rifles, or AR-15s?”
“No, sir.”
They sat in silence for a while. The man looked like his pulse was low. Like if he closed his eyes he would have been asleep.
Wolf pushed his chair back. “Thank you for coming in to talk to us, Mr. Sexton. We’d appreciate it if you’d stay accessible and not leave town, in case we have more questions.” Wolf nodded toward Rachette, who pulled out a card and handed it over. “And if you think of anything else important, please don’t hesitate to give Detective Rachette a call. His cell number’s on that card right there.”
Wolf opened the door and let him pass through.
When Sexton had exited the observation room, Yates joined their huddle, arms crossed in front of him. “Why didn’t McBeth mention this suppressed weapon when you asked him about hearing noises Friday night?”
Wolf shrugged. “That’s a good question.”
“I called Mary Ellen Dimitri,” Yates said. “She didn’t answer her cell number, so I called the Motherlode Casino, where she works in the cocktail lounge. They say she didn’t show up to work today.”
Wolf cocked an eyebrow. “And Hammy?”
“No answer on his cell phone, either. And here’s an interesting fact. Parole work papers have him employed at the same Motherlode Casino. Supposedly in the restaurant.”
“The same casino Mary Ellen Dimitri works at?” Rachette asked.
“Yep.”
“You said supposedly,” Wolf said. “Why does he supposedly work in the restaurant?”
“Turns out he hasn’t been working there for the last two weeks. He quit.”
Wolf led them out of the observation room and into the hallway.
The big miner named Koling sat on one of the chairs in the hallway leading to the squad room. He was looking up at Sexton, talking in a hushed tone. They both stopped talking at the sight of Wolf, Rachette, and Yates.
Wolf checked his watch. It was only 11:05 but it felt like the afternoon with all the talking they’d been doing.
“Let’s get this over with, I’m hungry as shit,”
