CHAPTER 2

Matt signed the check and handed it over to the banker. "Congratulations, Houston. It's all yours. What are you going to do with it? Expand your ranch?"

"Not exactly." The cowboy put the receipt into a folder. "This is going to be CJ's project – but I would appreciate it if you would keep quiet about it."

"Sure, sure. How is she doing?"

"Fine – got twins due in late September."

"No…and you've already got a little girl don't you?"

"Yes sir and we just adopted a fifteen year old boy a few weeks ago."

"Well congratulations again!"

"Thanks. Guess I better get moving. It was nice to see you again." The two shook hands.

"You let me know if there's anything else I can do for you."

"Yes sir." Matt settled the white straw hat back on his head as he and Hoyt walked out to the truck. "You ready to do some more fishing?"

"Sure." They headed back toward the ranch when Matt's phone rang. "Hey Chuck."

"Howdy. How's the fishing? Catch any more Studebakers?"

"Funny."

"How would you feel about doing a little work while you're here?"

"I did that yesterday." Both cracked up. "What do ya need?"

"Sheriff Martinez thought you might like to follow up on the Oliphant case."

"So now she's getting you to do her dirty work?"

"Somebody's gotta do it…and besides - you do work here."

"Uh huh. I'll be down there in a few minutes." He hung up and looked at Hoyt. "Want me to drop you off at the ranch? You can take the boat out."

"Nah. I'll just tag along. Who knows? Maybe I'll transfer down here. I kind of like it."

"Are you serious? You do realize that it ain't all catfishin' and Studebakers."

"Yeah, I know. Things are just…I don't know…a little more relaxed here."

"Uh huh." Matt turned around and in a short while they were at the Sheriff's Department. After getting Michael a visitor's pass they went into the squad room which had been changed since Matt's last visit. Rows of cubicles were neatly arranged. Looking around for Chuck and not seeing him, the PI let out a whistle and a hand shot up into the air three rows over. "Some things never change I guess." Snickering he led the way over to Chuck's desk.

"What we've got on it is in here." The detective handed him a folder. "How are you, Michael?" The two shook hands.

"Good – how about you?"

"Fine."

"If y'all are done with the pleasantries…" Houston looked around. "…where's my chair?"

Grinning, Chuck pointed behind his friend. "If it was a snake it woulda bit you in the butt." He gave Michael a wink as Houston turned to find a desk with a nameplate on it reading "Det. Sgt. Matt Houston".

"Ooookay wasn't expecting that." He walked around, shot a look at Chuck and then looked under the desk and inspected the chair before sitting down. "Gotta make sure you didn't booby-trap it."

"Ha ha! You said booby!" Chuck cracked up and Hoyt just shook his head.

"Are you sure you two aren't related?"

"Just been a bad influence on each other for thirty years." Matt kicked back and put his feet up on the desk. "Is there a chair Michael can steal?"

"He can have mine…" Chuck stood and stretched. "Gotta go get DNA samples from family members of the folks in the Chevelle. See ya later."

"Alright." Matt flipped open the file and began reading, most of the information a repeat of what he had found out the night before. "Ah hah…the driver was shot with a .38…the bullet was recovered from the dashboard." He continued reading. "The ME also says that both victims were male…and the passenger was likely stabbed. There are striations on two of his ribs that appear to be from a knife." After finishing the report he flipped through the pictures that had been made of both victims as well as the car, a puzzled look on his face.

"What?" Michael leaned forward and took the folder that Matt held out.

"The passenger was stabbed…the driver shot in the head. How many people do you know of who drive after being shot in the head?"

"Good point. So there had to be someone else in the car."

"Unless the driver shot himself after they went in the water."

"Murder-suicide."

"It would sure help if we knew who the other victim was. I wonder…" He sat up to the desk and began working the keyboard. "…who else might have gone missing around that same time?"

"Good idea. I wonder if there is anyone who could tell us more about what was going on back then?"

"Maybe." Houston looked around as he heard a printer come to life somewhere nearby. Following the sound he retrieved the print out and went back to the cubicle. "This is a list of all the unsolved missing males from that time." He sat down and looked at the list, thinking for a minute before picking up the phone. "Hey there – have you got a minute? Good. How's your Great Uncle Ferris doing?...Uh huh. Think they would mind a couple of visitors? I'd sure appreciate it. 'Bye." Standing up and stretching he reached for his hat. "Ready to take a ride?"

"Sure." Michael replaced the chair and followed his friend outside to his truck. "Where are we going?"

"Chuck's mom's house. His great uncle lives with her. He was a Ranger back in the 40's and 50's." They drove to the little house not far from the Houston ranch and exited the vehicle. "Ole Ferris is a hoot."

The door to the screened in porch opened as they went up the front walk. An attractive lady in her sixties gave them a smile. "Mattlock, how are ya hon?" They hugged.

"I'm just fine and I believe you're getting prettier every time I see you."

"Still a smooth talker. Who's your friend?" Matt introduced the two. "Any friend of Matt's is always welcome here. Y'all come on in – Ferris is waiting for you." They entered the surprising coolness of the porch where four ceiling fans were circulating the air. Down at the far end a man in his 80's was watching a baseball game on TV. "Ferris, you've got company."

Looking up Ferris Wylie saw who was there and gave a chuckle. "Houston, is that you under all that fuzz?"

"Yes sir it sure is. How are ya doin'?" The pair shook hands.

"Finer 'n a frog hair split four ways. Chuck tells me you and CJ finally got hitched and had a young'un and got a couple more on the way. 'Bout time you wised up."

"Yes sir, we did." He went on to tell the old Ranger about Tomás.

"Kicked it into high gear on the family front – damn good thing. Sit down."

After introducing Michael and spending a few minutes talking over old times, Houston asked what he knew about Oliphant.

"I know plenty and none of it good. Saw his Studebaker on the news last night."

"Can you tell us what was happening about the time Tank disappeared?" Houston took a sip of the iced tea that Charlotte Wylie had brought to them.

"Ole Tank was up to his ears in all kinds of mischief – booze, hookers, numbers, loan sharking, and a nifty little plant named marijuana. Now back then a fella could probably handle one or two of those enterprises without leaning too much on hired help, but Tank was a greedy SOB. He had the final say-so on things but after he married Lydia Stuttgart his mind was on more than business."

"How did they meet?" Michael spoke up, now intrigued by the cold case.

"Hah! The night her father had two choices: either hand her over to Tank for a wife to cover his gambling debts or take a bullet to the head."

"So the arranged marriage from hell…" The PI shook his head. "I see now why Lydia wouldn't have minded being a widow."

"What about Magowsky?" Michael accepted a refill of tea.

"Miles was smart. He was on his own from the age of twelve and learned how to make a buck hustling. Oliphant took notice about the time he was seventeen and brought him into the operation. Within a year he was second in command. Now when the deal with Lydia happened more than a few folks noticed that she was awfully fond of Miles and rumors spread quick but Tank ignored it. Most folks assumed that the two of them were behind his disappearance but there wasn't any proof. Not long after that they took a trip to Mexico and got married but it wasn't legal here in the states. Miles ran the show until he got busted in 1974 by the Feds. He served some time behind bars but got out in '85. Gotta give him credit – he hid most of the money somewhere. Lydia wasn't hurting for cash while he was away."

"And they're still married." Houston nodded. "So he hasn't been popped for anything since."

"Not a thing." Ferris yawned.

"There were two folks in that car – one was shot with a .38 in the head and it looks like the passenger was stabbed. I've got a list here of men who were reported missing around that time. Would you see if any of the names ring a bell?" He handed over the printout as Ferris adjusted his glasses. Tapping on the page he nodded.

"Thomas Braun…" The former Ranger went on down the list. "Leonard Smithson." Handing it back to Matt he went on. "Braun and Smithson were both working for Tank. Rumor going around was that Braun took a trip down to Mexico and got killed in a bar fight; but Smithson – not a clue. Houston, you just might be on to something. Back then we didn't particularly care where they had gone: we were just glad they were."

"Can't say as I blame you." He finished the tea. "I sure appreciate the help."

"Anytime. You give CJ a hug for me, ya hear?"

"Yes sir. Y'all take care."

Back out in the truck Matt pulled out of the drive and headed toward his own house. "Let's grab some lunch and see what we can dig up on Braun and Smithson."

With Madre Rosa taking the day off, the two sat down at the kitchen table as they dug into some sandwiches and read through what could be found on the two men. Houston logged into the department's website and pulled up records on both men. Thomas Braun was forty two years old at the time of his last arrest in 1951 and had a record dating back to 1922, when at the age of thirteen he was nabbed while delivering a truckload of liquor, which due to the Prohibition laws of the time was illegal. He was put into reform school and escaped two years later. His next arrest was in 1926 on an assault and battery charge. It was noted in the file that he was rumored to be working for Oliphant in his loansharking enterprises as a leg breaker in 1944, and then in 1950 he seemingly had been promoted to what the officer making the note referred to as "fourth banana". Matt snickered at the description. The last arrest in 1951 was for a drunk and disorderly that earned him thirty days in the county jail. That was the end of the file.

After popping the last of his sandwich the PI looked up Leonard Smithson. "Says here Smithson worked for Tank over ten years before he ever did any time. He was basically in charge of the numbers racket. Hmmm…but that isn't what he got busted for: he got caught with a bottle of bootleg whiskey in a movie theater." He continued reading. "This guy was pretty smart. They could never get enough evidence on him to prosecute for the numbers. The whiskey arrest was the only time he ever got picked up. His mother reported him missing in March of '54."

"That's unusual – how old was he at the time?"

"Thirty eight…" Matt leaned back and took a long swig of root beer. "So the question is, do we (a) go talk to Miles and Lydia, or (b) see if either Smithson or Braun still have any family around who might be willing to give us a DNA sample?"

"Those are the only two options I can think of…maybe try the DNA route first?"

"Okay. Let's see what we can find. Looks like a trip to town to check out hatching records." He gave the cop a smirk as he picked up the plates and went to the sink, rinsing them before putting them in the dishwasher.

After passing through the security gates at the end of the driveway they turned left and headed toward the city. "Ya know… if Miles or Lydia – or both – were behind Tank's disappearance any jail time would likely be a death sentence." Houston looked at Hoyt who nodded thoughtfully.

"But if the killer is still alive – no matter who it is – it'll be a death sentence."

"True."

Matt drove down to the Vital Statistics office and after showing his badge, he and Michael were led back to one of the offices by a short gray haired lady who tapped on the doorframe.

"Melissa? I've got a Detective Houston here who needs to find some possible birth records." She led the pair in and the face of the woman behind the desk lit up.

"Detective Houston? I thought you were a private investigator?" She came around the desk and gave Matt a hug. "It's so good to see you!"

"Well I sure didn't know you worked here. Michael Hoyt – meet Melissa Kelly…or maybe not." He laughed as he saw the ring on her finger.

She extended her hand to the cop. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Michael. And it's Reed now. Come on in and have a seat." Sitting down once again she looked at Matt. "So you finally came to your senses. I heard at the last reunion that you and CJ were married and expecting."

"We were…" He handed across his phone with a picture of CJ, Catey, and Tomás and explained the addition of the fifteen year old, and then with a big smile told her about the twins.

"I'm not a bit surprised. Well good – that' how it should have been a long time ago. Jeff and I have twin girls." She turned around her monitor showing a picture of the girls. "They're eight now."

"Wow! Congratulations."

"Thanks. Now…" She pulled the keyboard over. "…what can I do for you?"

"We need to see if two men were ever listed as fathers on any birth certificates."

"Do you have any idea of when?"

"Most likely in the 1930's or '40's."

Melissa whispered across the desk. "That was you on the news last night with Tank Oliphant's car! I told Jeff that was you!"

"Yep, the two men we're wondering about worked for Tank. Thomas James Braun, DOB 03/37/1909 and Leonard Eugene Smithson DOB 10/19/1923."

"Ooh this is exciting!" She began the search.

"Michael…" Houston turned to his friend. "You know – we don't even know for sure that that was Tank in the car…we all just assumed."

With a surprised look on his face the lieutenant nodded. "Yeah…the sheriff seemed to think it was him, but we really don't know yet."

"I need to…" The deputy stopped and then looked at his former classmate.

"Don't worry – I'll see if Oliphant was ever named." She beamed at the pair. "I've never been in involved in a murder before."

Hoyt spoke up. "Most sensible people aren't." He and Matt both chuckled before there was a bright flash of light outside and the lights in the building suddenly grew brighter before going completely out.

Melissa gave a surprised squeal and all three jumped. The heavens opened up and the rain began pouring down.

Pulling a lighter from his pocket as he stood, Houston flicked it and the small flame brought a little light to the office. "You okay?"

"I think so…thought my heart had stopped for second there." The rattled woman stood and felt around in the bottom drawer of the desk, removing a large candle that Matt lit. "Just think: all those years I dreamed of Mattlock Houston and candlelight!" All three cracked up. "This is going to slow down our murder mystery, though."

"Well, they've been dead all this time – I don't reckon a little longer will bother 'em too much."