Chapter 20
“The person was on foot?” Mercedes asked.
“Yes ma’am. At least as far as I could see. Course, they coulda parked somewhere and walked.”
“Someone called in an anonymous tip to the police this morning, saying that a gun used in a shooting down by the river was in our dumpster.”
“I heard something about a man’s body being found down by the river on the news the other day,” Cool Bones said. “Why would the gun be in our dumpster?”
“Because I was the one who found his body,” Mercedes said. She didn’t go into detail and Cool Bones didn’t ask. “What time did you say this happened? Were you able to tell if the person was a man or a woman?”
“It was around 3:00, maybe closer to 3:15 this morning, right after the bar closed. It was too dark to see anything. I’m sorry Mercedes. I wish I could help. I best be goin’ on to my practice. If I think of anything else, I’ll let you know.” Cool Bones tipped his hat, trekked down the steps and out the door.
Mercedes watched him leave. What if the killer grew suspicious when Mercedes suddenly left town and Autumn joined the group?
What if Jon Luis hadn’t connected the dots? What if he told his publisher what he was working on? Still, Luis had a reason for hiding the draft in his storage unit, more than likely because his apartment had been ransacked.
Mercedes wandered into her bedroom and plopped down in the chair. She slid the manuscript out of the plastic bag and spotted a small oblong object she hadn’t noticed before.
“What is this?” She tipped the bag upside down and the small object fell into her hand. It was a USB flash drive. Mercedes’ fingers trembled as she wiggled the device into the USB port on the side of her laptop and clicked to open the drive. Her eyes scanned the list and she found a folder named MIS Manuscript.
Mercedes double-clicked on the heading and Jon Luis’ manuscript popped up on the screen. She studied the online manuscript. It was identical to the hard copy she’d been reading, except for the cover page. It listed the publisher as Live Oak Publishing.
She grabbed her phone, tapped the camera icon and scrolled through the pictures she’d taken of the books by JL Cordele they’d found in Jon Luis’ storage unit. The publisher listed on those was The Batton Group.
“Why didn’t I think of this before? Jon Luis began writing under another name and at the same time, switched publishers.” Mercedes set the phone on the desk and typed Austin Crawford, author.
The majority of Austin’s books were published under Crawford Publishing Company, except for a non-fiction book, featuring tips on how to research local history. It was published under Garnett Publishing and Mercedes vaguely recognized the name.
Carlita popped her head inside Mercedes’ bedroom door. “I’m back.”
“Great,” Mercedes said. “I’m just doin’ some more research.” She began researching Cricket’s books, all published under Learner Crafts Publishing and another publisher Mercedes didn’t recognize.
She moved on to Tom Muldoon. There were several pages of thriller/suspense books written under his name and most were with a major publisher, Barnette Book Group. Tom’s newest book, The Last to Fall, was ranking well and published under the name Tom Muldoon with no publishing credits. She clicked on another of his books, Fight the Calm, and almost hit the floor when she spotted Live Oak Publishing on the second page.
“It’s Tom,” Mercedes leaned back in her chair as she stared at the words. Tom and Jon Luis had used the same publishing company. Had Tom murdered Jon Luis and set Mercedes up? If so, why?
Mercedes opened a second browser and typed in Warren Paulson, Savannah, Georgia. Several old news articles popped up about Paulson’s case. One article reported he’d gone missing and was presumed to have died in a boating mishap.
“I’m missing something,” Mercedes groaned. She began to study the online manuscript, all of which was identical to the handwritten one, minus the notes Jon Luis had jotted on the side. At the very bottom was a single, additional paragraph that she missed on her first scan of Jon Luis’ draft book.
Warren Paulson wasn’t murdered and he didn’t die in a boating accident. Follow the money.
“Follow the money,” Mercedes said. “The money that Warren Paulson was paid for selling satellite information to the Russians. What happened to it?” She slid out of the chair and wandered over to the window, staring out into the courtyard. “If I had a bunch of money, I might invest it, stick it in an overseas bank account or…buy property.”
She darted back to her chair. Mercedes’ fingers flew over the keyboard as she searched the Board of Assessor’s website for property owned by Warren Paulson. The site listed a property with several acres and a single family home, purchased by Warren Paulson several years ago.
At the bottom of the sheet was an additional link and Mercedes clicked on it. It was a quitclaim deed. The property that Warren Paulson purchased changed hands and was now owned by Tom Muldoon!
Mercedes’ mind whirled. Why would Warren Paulson deed his property to Tom Muldoon unless… “Oh my gosh!”
“Ma!”
