Eli's Town Read online

  “What do you think?” he asks as I lower the camera. “Did that look like a guy who's about to die in...” He checks his watch. “Now? It's noon, and we both know what happens in Tulepa at noon every day.” He turns and looks toward the convenience store. “Do you think he's dying in there right now, clutching his chest and flailing around while his eyes roll back in his head? Wanna come with me and take a look?”

  “I'm not saying someone isn't going to die,” I reply cautiously, trying not to sound like I'm chicken, “but there's no way you can guess who it'll be.”

  “Then let's go see.”

  Realizing that he's just trying to play me, that this is some dumb attempt to get me to agree to meet him tonight, I place the cap back on my camera. I'm stalling, trying to think of a good excuse to get out of the situation.

  “I don't have time to play games,” I tell him finally, trying as hard as I can to sound like I'm not fazed by the way he keeps digging at me. “Believe it or not, some people actually have things to do instead of hanging out on street corners bugging anyone who walks past.”

  “Fine,” he replies, “if you wanna be a pussy, go ahead. But if it turns out that Alfred Packer is the one who drops dead today, you have to meet me outside Eli Denton's house at midnight. Deal?”

  I shake my head.

  “I don't get a reward for my brilliance?” he asks.

  “I'm not betting on a man's life!”

  “Then bet on whether or not I'm a genius.”

  “No deal,” I mutter, hurrying away. Figuring I should find a new spot that'll allow me to watch the police station, ready for when that woman comes out, I can't help glancing toward the convenience store. I know there's no way Jordan could have guessed who'll die next, but I still feel a little freaked out by the fact that he tried. Crouching down, I keep my eyes fixed on the police station's front door and I try to force myself to think about the task at hand. Maybe I'm blowing things out of proportion, but I can't shake the feeling that the strange woman is here for some specific reason. After all, she's the first stranger I've seen in Tulepa since...

  Well, since forever.

  Chapter Seven

  Holly

  “And I'm telling you,” he replies with a sigh, “that you don't have any grounds to report your uncle missing!”

  “Then where is he?” I ask.

  “Beats me.” Getting up from behind his desk, Captain Lucas heads over to the counter on the other side of the room. “I don't keep tabs on everyone who lives in Tulepa, but from what you've said, it sounds like you and your family barely know your uncle at all. If you've dropped into town unannounced and he's not at home, that doesn't mean he's missing, it just means he's got a life! Or would you prefer it if he sat around all day, just in case someone showed up?”

  “It's not like that,” I reply, trying hard to keep my cool with this asshole. I swear, he doesn't even talk like a cop at all; if it wasn't for his badge, I'd be starting to think he's just some local who happened to wander in here before I arrived. “I don't understand why you're not taking this more seriously.”

  “He's not a puppy,” he replies. “You can't tell him to stay and then expect him to be in the same place a few years later.”

  “So you haven't heard anything about him at all?”

  “Such as?” He pours himself a coffee and conspicuously fails to offer one to me.

  “Have you at least seen him about?”

  He sighs again. “I've bumped into him occasionally,” he mutters, sounding as if he's tired of my questions. So tired, perhaps, that he'd even lie to get me out the door. “I can't tell you when, because I don't happen to remember, but until you walked in here a few minutes ago, no-one had mentioned Eli Denton to me in a long, long time.” He checks his watch, and for a moment he seems lost in thought. Whispering something under his breath, he turns his back to me and pauses for a few seconds, before heading to a nearby door. “Now excuse me for a moment, won't you?”

  “But if -”

  “I have things to do,” he says firmly.

  “I'm not leaving this room until you take this seriously.”

  “Then wait here,” he says with another sigh, as if his irritation is about to bubble over. “Just... I'll deal with your concerns in a moment, but I have to do something first.”

  Left alone, I look around at the bare walls and try to think of something else I can do to help Eli. I know there's a chance that I'm overreacting, and I really hope that's all it is, but at the same time I can't shake the feeling that something is very wrong here. Pulling my phone from my pocket, I bring up Karen's number and try to call her, only to find that the static disruption from earlier seems much worse now and I can't get a connection at all. I try a couple more times, with the same result.

  “Great,” I mutter. “Looks like I'm cut off from the rest of the world.”

  Checking the time, I see that it's 12:03pm. I've already spent three hours looking for Eli and I'm no closer to finding him.

  A couple of minutes later, with Captain Lucas having still not coming back from the other room, I make my way over to the door and look through. I know I shouldn't bug him, but I figure the guy seems to be deliberately wasting my time, as if he's hoping I'll just give up and leave. To my surprise, however, I find that he's standing by the window with his hands resting against the wall, and he seems to have just stopped doing anything at all, almost like he's been switched off. I wait, assuming he'll hear me and turn this way, but after a few seconds I realize that his body looks to be trembling slightly.

  Hoping to get his attention, I clear my throat.

  Nothing.

  “Um...” I pause for a moment, feeling a little uncomfortable. “Sorry to disturb you, but I was wondering if you know why the phone signal around here is so bad?”

  No reply.

  “I can't pick up any wireless connections either,” I continue. “What's the best way to get a call out of town?”

  I wait again.

  Silence.

  “Are you blanking me?” I ask incredulously, but he still doesn't reply. It's almost as if he thinks he can just ignore me completely and I'll go away. “I don't have time for this,” I tell him finally, “so I'm gonna go find my uncle, okay? And I don't know who I have to complain to about the way you run this place, but I promise you I'll find out and make sure you're disciplined. Got it?”

  I wait.

  Nothing.

  “This goddamn town...” I mutter, turning and heading back across the office, heading to the main door. Just as I'm about to go out, I stop and sort through my bag, and a moment later I hear footsteps nearby.

  “Ms. Denton?”

  Turning, I see that Lucas is watching me from the doorway.

  “I'm sorry,” he says, sounding a little flustered but with a faint smile on his face, “I must have zoned out. What did you ask?”

  “Zoned out?” I reply, shocked by his attitude. “You downright ignored me.”

  “I didn't, I'm sorry...” He pauses. “There's nothing I can do unless your uncle has been missing for twenty-four hours, so my recommendation would be for you to keep looking and then if you haven't found him by lunchtime tomorrow, come back and we'll see what we can do.”

  “Do you have any idea where I should start looking?” I ask.

  “Not a clue.” He smiles. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

  “Actually, I have a question about the phones,” I reply cautiously, holding mine up for him to see. “It seems to have stopped working, and I tried a payphone at the hotel but it would only connect local calls. I really need to get in touch with my sister and let her know what's happening.”

  “Huh.” He pauses. “Oh, well yeah, that's how it is around here, I'm afraid. Something to do with the mountains and the weather, we have regular periods when it's real hard to get in touch with the outside world.”

  “You do?”

  “Is that so weird?”

  “Well...” I pause for
a moment. “I mean, it's the twenty-first century so... Yeah, it's kind of odd.”

  “I'm not a technical man, Ms. Denton,” he replies, “so I just rely on what I'm told by people who understand that kind of thing. Mayor Truman has been working on some kind of deal with the companies involved, but we just don't have the money to make them care, not here in little old Tulepa. I'm sure if you wait a little while, though, your fancy cellphone will start working just fine. Of course, you could also just head on your way and I'm certain your phone'll be fine once you're out of town. Nine or ten miles should do it.”

  “I can't leave until I know my uncle is safe,” I say firmly. “Why does everyone seem to think I can walk away without seeing him?”

  “Because you can?” he replies, raising an amused eyebrow. “Do you really have to start caring right now? Seriously?”

  “Whatever happened in the past,” I reply, “I'm here today, so that's what matters. And I will see him.”

  “Here's the thing,” he continues, coming over to me and then stepping past, heading to his desk. “Why don't you just leave me your number? I'll get Eli to call you as soon as he shows up, I swear. And he will show up, I guarantee it. Give him a day or two and he'll stroll right into town as if nothing much has been happening at all.” He pauses, as if he's waiting for me to accept his offer, and then finally he sighs again. “Why do you even care, anyway? Everyone knows your family doesn't give a damn about Eli.”

  “That's not true,” I reply, surprised by how direct he's being. “Of course we care about him -”

  “Then why didn't any of you ever come to see him?”

  “Because -”

  “He told me, you know,” he adds, interrupting me. “He told me one time how you all just forgot about him, how you left him here to rot because you all think he's the weird member of the family. That's right, isn't it? Old Eli's the freak, the weirdo... If you ask me, the way you all treated him is disgraceful.”

  “You don't -”

  “And I doubt you can make it up to him now,” he adds firmly. “It's too late.”

  I open my mouth to reply, but to be honest I'm not quite sure how I'm supposed to defend myself. He's right, at least in part.

  “I guess old Eli can be a tricky customer sometimes,” Lucas continues. “I guess he doesn't quite fit in with the rest of your family, he's not easy to get along with and he doesn't dish out bland smalltalk. Not everyone can be like you fast-talking, fast-thinking folk who sit around acting like you're all so smart. Well, maybe Eli's smarter than you realized, huh?” He pauses. “So you all just dumped him and paid no attention, even though he always sent Christmas cards to each of you. How long's it been since anyone came by to see how he's doing? Five years, maybe? More?”

  “There was a mis-communication,” I stammer. “We each thought someone else was coming to -”

  “Like a duty?” he asks, interrupting me again as his anger grows. “Like a job that no-one wanted to do? And now one of you finally bothers to come, and you immediately start throwing a panic attack just because poor old Eli isn't right where you left him. Seems to me, you're just looking for him so you can make yourself feel like a good person.” He pauses. “Even if you're not.”

  I flinch at that description. Not just because it hurts, but because deep down I know that he's getting at the truth.

  “I'm here now,” I say finally, forcing myself to stay calm, “and I can't go back and fix how things were before, but I can at least make sure I check on him today. No matter how hard anyone tries to persuade me otherwise, I'm staying in Tulepa until I see Eli for myself. I have to -”

  Suddenly the door bursts open and a woman steps in, her face filled with panic. “Captain Lucas!” she stammers, ignoring me completely. “You've gotta come! It's happened again!”

  He immediately checks his watch, before grabbing his coat. “Who is it this time?”

  “I just went into the convenience store and found him,” she replies. “It's Alfred Packer. I think he's dead!”

  ***

  “I can't be sure of the cause,” Doctor Conyne says as he pulls a sheet over the old man's face, “but right now, if I had to make a guess, I'd say...” He pauses, staring at the body as if he expects the answer to leap out at him. “I'm gonna say this was an old-fashioned heart attack.”

  “Well, that's too bad,” Lucas mutters, removing his cap and setting it on the counter. “I remember Packer from way back, he was a good man. He'll be a real loss to the community. Didn't have any kids, either, so I don't know who'll take over the store. Still, I'm sure we'll come up with something.”

  “I was in here earlier,” I tell him. “I talked to Mr. Packer, he seemed absolutely fine.”

  “He seemed fine?” Lucas asks with a smile. “Well, that's a real useful observation, Ms. Denton. I'll make sure to add it to my report.” He grabs his notebooks and writes something down. “A stranger passing through town,” he says after a moment, reading each word as it's written, “opined that the deceased seemed fine earlier.”

  “I'm a doctor,” I reply firmly. “Believe it or not, subtle signs can show up before a heart attack strikes.”

  “That's the way of it sometimes,” the doctor replies, already starting to close his medical bag. “He could have been feeling fit as a goose right up until a few seconds before it started, and then he was gone. God bless his soul.” Getting to his feet, he makes his way over to Lucas. “I'll take a proper look at him this afternoon, of course, but I don't expect to find anything particularly surprising. Alfred mentioned chest pains to me a few months back, it seemed to be nothing but I guess his heart might have been playing up for a while.”

  “Might have been playing up?” I ask, shocked by his attitude. “What are you talking about? An elderly man came to you reporting chest pains. Didn't you run any tests?”

  “I listened to his ticker, but -”

  “Don't give me that,” I mutter, pulling out my purse and then holding up my I.D. for them both to see. “I'm a doctor, I work at Grove Carrington Hospital in New York and I want to come in on the autopsy with you.”

  “Autopsy?” Doctor Conyne sighs. “Listen, young lady, it's perfectly clear to me that this man died of a heart attack. There's no need to go cutting him up. It's not respectful, not unless it's absolutely necessary.”

  “Please tell me you're joking,” I reply.

  “Looks like a heart attack to me,” Lucas mutters, adjusting his belt before turning to me. “Around here, we don't go cutting people up unless there's a reason.”

  Pausing for a moment, I realize that these guys seem to be making a point of not doing their jobs. At the same time, there's no way I'm going to let them fob me off, so I guess I need to be forceful.

  “I've seen the level of healthcare people receive in this town,” I tell Conyne. “Broken fingers left untreated, rotten teeth... It's almost like these people don't have a doctor!”

  “I'll try not to take offense,” he mutters.

  “Either I come and assist with a full autopsy,” I continue, “or I'll go straight to my car, drive to the next town, and let them know that the police force in Tulepa doesn't seem interested in carrying out its legal duties.” I pause for a moment, hoping they'd don't call my bluff; after all, I know I'm overstepping my authority here, but at the same time I feel as if maybe I can make a nuisance of myself and force them to help me find Eli. “I'm not saying anything suspicious is going on,” I continue, “but I want this man's death to be investigated properly.”

  “Jesus,” Lucas mutters. “Ms. Denton, you can't -”

  “Actually I have an obligation,” I reply, interrupting him. “By law, if I suspect a death isn't being investigated, I have to intervene and ensure that proper procedure is followed. If I don't, I could go to jail.” That's a lie, of course, but I still figure it might help me to get their cooperation. Plus, there's no way a blatant lie like that should work, not if either of them are competent at their jobs.

  “How a
bout 3pm?” Conyne asks, clearly annoyed. “Ordinarily I'd be the one performing the procedure, but on this occasion I'm willing to take a step back. If that's really something you want.”

  “I'm happy to observe.”

  For some reason, this suggestion seems to make him a little twitchy. “No, you can take full control. I'll just watch from the sidelines, so to speak.”

  “Fine,” I reply, realizing that it's too late to back out now. “I'll come to your office a little before three, so we can talk over the case before we get started.”

  “This all seems very unnecessary,” Lucas mutters, looking back down at the body on the floor. “A lot of trouble-making, if you ask me.”

  “Then maybe you can think again about my uncle,” I reply, still hoping to use the situation to my advantage. “The longer I have to wait to see that he's okay, the more chance there is that I'll be a pain in the ass.” Feeling as if my pulse is racing, I turn and head toward the door, before glancing back at them. “All I care about is my uncle, and I want to make sure he's okay. Still, while I'm here, I might as well be useful.” I turn to Conyne. “See you at three.”

  By the time I'm outside the convenience store, I feel as if my heart might be about to explode. I've never, ever made a stand like that before, but those two guys were really starting to bug me with the way they acted like everything was fine. I can't shake the feeling that they know something about Eli that they're not letting on, so hopefully I can shake them out of their little routine and force them to open up. That Conyne guy was definitely way too quick to write off the store owner's cause of death, so I figure maybe they'd rather help me find Eli instead of having me poking around. Heading toward the hotel, I tell myself that everything is going to be fine so long as I just stay calm.