He nodded as I passed, and it was at that moment that I recognized him as the officer who’d put me in handcuffs. What a difference a couple of days makes, huh?
I parked my car on the side of the dirt road and made the long walk down to the beach. I eventually saw Alana standing beside a woman I recognized as one of the department’s medical examiners.
The drowning victim was a few feet away on his back. His long, wet hair was partially covering his face. There were several other surfers nearby, and they were being interviewed by two uniformed police officers.
“Hey there,” I said.
“Hey, Poe. Thanks for getting here as quickly as you did,” Alana said.
“Hey, Doc,” I said.
“Good to see you again,” she said.
“We keep running into each other in these lousy circumstances, don’t we?” I asked, and I smiled.
“Unfortunately, yes,” the medical examiner said.
“Do you ladies still think it was an accidental drowning?” I asked.
“We found swelling on the back of the head,” the medical examiner said.
“Maybe he hit his head on the surfboard or even a rock in the sand,” I said.
“Maybe, but there’s also bruising on his neck and shoulders,” Alana said.
I turned and looked at the surfers being interviewed.
“Did they see anything?” I asked.
“No, they’re the ones who found the body. Take a closer look at him if you don’t mind,” Alana said.
I kneeled beside the victim and looked at his face. The sun was just starting to rise so it was easier to get a good look at him. I’d met the man before.
“This is Daniel Davis,” I said.
“We found his vehicle right before you got here. This is the same man you interviewed yesterday?” Alana asked.
“Yes, that’s him,” I said, and I stood. “You know he didn’t drown. That’s why you called me out here.”
“No, he drowned all right. The question is, did someone help him,” Alana said.
I said nothing. Instead, I stepped away from Alana and the medical examiner. I looked out toward the ocean…an ocean that had just claimed the life of Daniel Davis.
“Are you all right?” Alana asked as she approached me.
“I got him killed, didn’t I?”
“How do you figure?”
“He panicked after Foxx and I met with him. He called whoever put him up to pretending to discover the body. They figured it was only a matter of time before the police got him to admit the truth.”
“That’s all probably true, but this isn’t your fault. Daniel Davis put himself in jeopardy when he agreed to lie to the police,” Alana said. “But maybe we both have this wrong. Maybe this is just a drowning. It happens all the time.”
“The day after I talked to him? Kind of a big coincidence, don’t you think?”
“It is, but sometimes these things do occur. It doesn’t mean there’s a coverup.”
“You’re going to tell Detective Parrish about this, aren’t you?” I asked.
“Of course. I’ll let you know what he says.”
“Is there anything else I can do here?”
“No.”
“I can’t just let this go and chalk it up to an accident,” I said.
“I know. That’s why I got you out here. I better go check on those interviews with the surfers. I’ll talk to you later.”
I looked back at Daniel Davis once more before making the walk back to my car. I knew in my gut that his death was connected to Eric Ellis. It had to be.
22
Maui Animal Center
It was still early in the morning when I left the beach in Pe’ahi, but it wasn’t too early to see an acquaintance of mine. Her name is Apikalia and I’d met her during my interactions with the Maui Animal Center. As a reminder, that’s the place where I adopted Maui. I frequently donate the fees for my investigations to the center. I do this for a couple of reasons. The first is that I don’t need the money. The second is even more obvious. I want to help the center.
After a particularly large donation, Apikalia, who serves as the director for the center, offered to rename the facility after me. I politely declined. The name The Rutherford Animal Center didn’t have a good ring to it. Instead, I asked her to name the place after its more famous former resident, my dog, Maui. So, the facility kept the name the Maui Animal Center. There are only three of us on the island who know who it’s truly named after: me, Apikalia, and Alana.
There’s a fourth person or living creature – my dog. I told him the facility was named after him once I got home from meeting with Apikalia. The pooch was not impressed. If memory serves, Maui rolled onto his back and went to sleep after I delivered the exciting news. I sensed that he was still offended that someone had decided to drop him off at the center in the first place, although that person’s loss was my gain.
I knew from prior conversations with her that Apikalia arrived at work around six in the morning. I phoned her on my way home and asked if I could swing by the center to ask her a few questions. The place had doubled in size since my first visit years before. I was delighted that my donations had made such a significant impact, and I made a mental note to send them another check when I got home.
I swung into the parking lot and was thrilled to see that they’d redone their main sign. It now featured a photo of my dog’s face beside the name the Maui Animal Center. I parked my car and walked over to the sign. Then I took a photo of it with my phone and texted it to Alana.
“I
