The Case of the Angry Mountain
Chapter 20
20.1
Otto watched his master's friend. Something was wrong. He could sense that the man was anxious and worried. His master was in trouble. Otto could sense it. He hoped this friend was taking him to his master in this rolling kennel. Otto pawed at the cage door and whined.
Sgt. Ed Brown looked over at the dog. "Easy, boy, we'll find him." Ed petted the dog on the head. He glanced down at the speedometer. It seemed it was taking him forever to get to Dylan Demaris' house. His instincts screamed at him to floor the vehicle. Unfortunately, Ed knew it would be suicide to do so on this mountain. He would end up at the bottom of it and that would not do the chief and Perry any good, not to mention himself. He had no choice but to take his time getting there. Maybe the chief was rubbing off on him. He wanted to arrive at Demaris' place yesterday. Ed reached over and petted the panting German Shepherd and guided the Jeep around the mountain curves.
20.2
Ironside slowly reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his service revolver. Rolling over he positioned himself on his back. He pointed the gun at the larger of the wolverines. It was dark and the wolverines were black. He knew his chances of killing both of them before they attacked would be slim in the daylight but in the pitch dark with only the full moon behind his targets, it would next to impossible.
The beasts snarled and bared their teeth. Ironside knew from his insatiable thirst for knowledge, having read about them, that they were perhaps one of the most vicious animals alive. He had to make sure he killed the first one or he would not have a chance in hell of surviving an attack from two of them. Silently and without the slightest movement he waited for the moon to light up the head of one of the wolverines. He watched as they stood there, waiting and snarling. He wanted to blast away at them but his police instincts told him to wait. Make the most of the first shot.
The wolverines started to make their move and just as Ironside had hoped, the moon lit up the head of the larger animal as it leaped into the air toward him. The detective pointed the gun at the head of the beast and pulled the trigger. It yelped and fell to the ground. In an instant, he turned his weapon toward the other wolverine… but it was not there. Ironside looked left and right but the wolverine was nowhere to be seen. He didn't like it. No longer in front of the moon, he would not be able to see the black animal until it was too late. He waited, nearly holding his breath, anticipating it to come from either the left or the right… but which would it be? If only he had tried to keep better track of it. No, he could not have taken his eyes off the other wolverine. He had to kill it to survive.
Ironside waited. He worried about Perry. What if the animal went past him? Perry would be unable to defend himself against it. He had to get to Perry. But if he tried and the wolverine was close by, it would surely attack when his back was turned.
Ironside was torn. He did not want to leave Perry unprotected. Since he had not heard a sound out of him since his fall, he could be seriously injured. He could need help. But if the wolverine had not left, then he had already surmised what it would do.
Ironside could not wait any longer. He had to get to Perry. He heard a rustle to his left. So that is where it was. At least now he could plan a strategy. He had to draw the wolverine to him. He picked up a rock and threw it in the direction he had heard the noise. He heard the animal scramble and then settle again. Again, Ironside picked up a rock and threw it in the direction he believed the animal moved. This time he had hit it. It yelped and moved again.
The chief became silent to listen if there was any movement to his left. He could hear it coming toward him. Ironside waited for what would prove to be an ugly confrontation.
20.3
Lt. Carl Reese turned off the motor of the truck, got out of the vehicle and walked up the steps to the cabin. Paul Drake followed him and knocked on the door. It was opened immediately and the two men were greeted by Katherine and Della.
"Thank God you are here," Katherine said.
Paul looked at Della and knew something was wrong. He had worked with Perry a good many years and he had learned to read Della better than he could ever read Perry. "What's wrong, Della?"
"Robert and Perry are in trouble. They are not back yet," she told him.
"The chief probably thought of something else and he and Perry are checking it out. I would not worry about them. Both of them can take care of themselves."
"Not this time, Mr. Drake," Katherine said. "They need help."
Paul looked at Katherine and back to Della. Carl's casual attitude about his boss had made a turnabout. "Tell us from the beginning and don't leave anything out."
Between Della and Katherine, they relayed the events as they had unfolded. They told them about Ed's arrival and his memory recovery.
"Alright, you ladies stay here. We are going after them. We will meet Ed at Demaris' place. Don't worry, we will find them. Try not to worry, Chief Ironside is very resourceful and from what I have seen of Perry Mason, he is no different. They will watch out for each other," Carl said.
"Don't worry, Beautiful, we will find Ed and between us, we'll find them." Paul kissed her cheek and left the cabin with Carl.
20.4
Ed arrived at Demaris' place. He pulled out the rifle Captain Groman had given him. Opening the back door of the Jeep, he removed two bullet-proof vests. After removing his coat, he put on the vest. He took the other one and then called Otto to him. The Shepherd was anxious to start. Ed had a difficult time holding him still long enough to get the vest in place on the dog. Once he accomplished the deed, he put his coat back on, grabbed the flashlight and headed toward the house. Otto bounded out in front of him with his nose to the ground.
Sgt. Brown followed the dog, who ran up the stairs and sniffed and whined. His tail was wagging wildly and the Shepherd began barking.
"Okay, boy. He was here. We have to find him. Otto, search!"
Otto sniffed the porch and then jumped down to the ground completely missing all of the steps. The sergeant followed him down the steps and turned his flashlight on the dog. He did not want to lose sight of him as he knew the dog would become engrossed in the chief's scent and would move much faster than he was capable of.
Otto went around to the back. He started digging a hole. Ed joined him and shined his flashlight on the spot the dog was digging. The earth was fresh. Perry must have been digging here. Possibly, they found something that would put their lives in further danger. Ed encouraged Otto to move on. The Shepherd went back to sniffing the ground. He found another spot that had been freshly dug up. This time Otto did not spend much time there. He moved on and headed toward the woods.
"Otto, halt!" Ed shouted. Otto stopped, whined and panted. Brown went over to him, patted his head and said, "I just want to leave Carl and Paul a way to find us." He pulled out a package of yellow sticky notes and a pen and wrote "follow the yellow brick road." He placed the sticky note on a tree with an arrow pointing up and used a thumbtack from a box of them he had brought with him. He turned the flashlight from the tree back to the dog. "Alright, Otto, search!"
Otto took off into the woods. Only this time the Shepherd must have sensed that Ed could not keep up with his pace as he kept circling back… checking on the detective's whereabouts.
As the dog turned, Ed would stop and place another sticky note on a tree with an arrow or instructions on which way to go. As Ed was sure would be the case, Otto was tracking the chief's scent. What Ed did not understand was why they were headed deeper into the woods. They had been following the curve of the road but gradually moving deeper. That is what the killer would want them to do. Ed shined the light into the forest and caught a glimpse of Otto who was turning again, only this time back toward the road. Ed hurried to keep up with him. His side hurt and his energy was draining. He knew he was not in shape for this, nevertheless, he had to find the chief and Perry before it was too late. The killer would compensate for his condition.
20.5
The wolverine ran toward its prey, its teeth bared and snarling. Ironside waited until it was close enough that he could make out its form. Since he could not see much more than that, he fired his gun at it, once. The animal cried out but it did not stop it. It leaped through the air and landed on Ironside's chest. It tore at his gun arm and the detective lost control of the gun as he yelled out in pain. The chief grabbed the animal by the neck with his left hand and pushed backwards, trying to keep it from his throat. He doubled up the fist of his right hand and slammed it into the wolverine's head. It slowed it down only for a moment as it continued to go for the detective's throat. Ironside continued to struggle with it. He tried adjusting his body, to make it harder for the beast to bite him but he failed as the wolverine tore into his shoulder. Ironside again cried out in pain. It knocked his right hand free of the animal's neck. The back of his hand hit the ground and again a severe pain shot through his hand as it hit a rock.
The chief had dug so deeply into the fur on the neck of the animal with his left hand that he no longer knew where his fingers ended and the wolverine's skin began. The beast was only inches from his throat. He could feel the warmth of its breath and its salvia was dripping on his face. Ironside turned his painful right hand around and encircled his fingers around the rock. As he picked it up, his shoulder screamed out in protest and his fingers threatened to drop the rock on his own head. Through sheer force of will, he held on. He drew his hand back and swung with all his might, slamming the rock onto the wolverine's head. It dazed the animal long enough for Ironside to repeat the process again. Blood from the wolverine sprayed into his eyes. It didn't matter as he could barely see the animal attacking him.
The wolverine was yelping and trying to pull away from the crippled detective but he dug his fingers even deeper into its fur. It was not going to get away to attack him again. Ironside drew back the rock and slammed it into the head of the wolverine time and again until the animal went limp. Shoving it off of his body, he continued slamming the head until he felt the skull crush. Only then did he stop and drop the rock.
He laid there, waiting for the adrenalin to subside. His right shoulder pained like hell and he was sure he had broken bones in his hand. His left arm, though not injured as badly still pained from the bite of the wolverine.
After a couple minutes he rolled back over on his belly. Trying to see down the incline, he called out, "Perry! Perry! Answer me!" Nothing. All he heard was the rustle of the leaves on the trees caused by the wind.
Soaking wet, injured and exhausted, Ironside pulled his crippled body over to the edge of the incline. He turned around to attempt to go down feet first. He began to question the decision as naturally he could feel nothing with his feet or legs. He pushed himself further down the incline when all of a sudden he stopped. Since he could not see or feel, he had no idea what had stopped his downward progress. He moved to his right. That turned out to be a mistake as it was another drop-off. Ironside fell over the edge and landed with a crash on his back. He laid there unable to move when he heard someone moan. That was not just someone! It was Perry! He forced his painful body to roll over and he began crawling in the direction of Perry's moaning.
"Perry! Where are you? Perry!"
In a weak voice, Perry called out, "Over here!"
Ironside used the sound of Mason's voice as his guide. "Keep talking to me so I can find you! That should not be hard for a lawyer!"
"Shut up, Bob, and get over here!"
Ironside stopped as he found Perry. "Are you alright?"
"My knee is bad, Bob. I don't think I can walk on it now. It pains like hell. What about you? Are you okay? How'd you get down here? That second drop-off is a dilly."
"I got down here the same way you did except I didn't fall initially. Not until I hit that second drop-off."
Perry grabbed his brother by the shoulder… simply in reaction to knowing they were both alright. Ironside winced in pain and grunted. "What's the matter, Bob?"
"I ran into a couple wolverines. I got the first one but the second one nearly got me."
Perry pulled his hand back. It was wet and sticky. "I'd say he did get you. Your shoulder is bleeding."
"So is the other arm and I think my right hand is broken." He gave Perry a rundown on the attack by the wolverines.
"If you think PETA is going to love me, they're really going to love you. I killed the wolf with one knife to the head. That is more humane than beating the thing's brains out."
"Careful, Perry, I still have the rock," Ironside responded. They both chuckled.
"Bob, how are we going to get out of here?"
"Well, between us, we have one good leg. I don't see how we can go any further," Ironside admitted.
"I don't know about you but I have had just about all the vacation I can stand. I don't get this beat up in court."
"I hate to admit it but I would much rather let Sister Agatha torture me in therapy."
"I have a suggestion. Let's take the next vacation in your office and play poker. We could not possibly get into any trouble in a building full of cops." Perry sat in the dark and rubbed his painful knee.
Ironside looked at Perry. "Have you ever heard of Jimmy Chard?"*
Both men laughed but immediately turned serious. "We have to find some way to protect ourselves," Perry said.
"From what? The killer or the elements?" Ironside asked, sarcastically. "Obviously, we can't move through these woods in the dark. Problem is... our killer is somewhere near and now we don't even have my gun to protect us. I dropped it when the wolverine attacked me. Even if we did have it, there would only be a couple rounds left anyway."
"We have to look around for something we can use as a weapon," Perry suggested.
"How do you plan on doing that when we can't see two feet in front of us?"
"What do you suggest we do then?"
"Do you still have your pocket knife?"
"Yes, it is in my pocket," Perry answered. "Why?"
"Because right now it is the only weapon we have. By now Carl and Paul are looking for us."
"Even if they are, how are they going to find us? You said yourself that the killer is close by. The only thing we have going for us is that Paul and Carl will probably figure we would stay close to the road."
"You are forgetting one important asset, Perry. One that will lead Carl and Paul directly to us."
Perry grinned when he realized what he was talking about. "Otto!"
Ironside grinned back at his younger brother. "We have to find a way to protect ourselves until Otto can locate us."
"Let's hope he doesn't send anymore wolves in," Perry said.
Ironside nodded. He certaintly did not want to deal with any more vicious animals. Sitting here waiting for Paul and Carl was not a strategy but with the shape both he and Perry were in, he did not have another option. Perry was right. They had to find a way to hold off the killer until Otto could find them.
20.6
Ed stopped and leaned on a tree to catch his breath. His side ached and his head pounded. The steady drizzle had his clothes soaked through. He shivered with the chill of the wind reminding him the trauma his body had already been put through. Trying not to think about it, Ed concentrated in going after his boss and his brother. The sergeant pointed his flashlight in front of him. Otto had gone on ahead. Ed took a deep breath and called out, "Otto!" The German Shepherd came bounding back to him.
Ed patted the dog on the head and then pushed his body away from the tree. Otto grabbed his hand, careful not to sink his teeth into Ed's skin. He began pulling on Ed's hand and whining. His tail was swishing back and forth.
"What is, boy? Is the chief nearby?" Ed allowed the dog to lead him through the woods. This time Otto stayed close to the young detective. Head down, panting and tail wagging. Ed knew they were closing in on Perry and the chief.
20.7
Perry helped Bob sit up and leaned him against the tree. He shifted his weight to his right leg. The pain shot from the knee and throughout his leg. Mason dropped beside Ironside and groaned.
"Your knee is that bad?"
"It's not good."
"You should have had it checked out after the quake. Now, I bet you will have trouble with it right into old age."
There was a rustle in the woods in front of them. Both turned sharply toward the sound. Ironside whispered. "Get out that knife but keep it concealed."
"That is not an animal," Perry said. "It would not be that noisy if it was after us."
"Very good, Counselor," a voice called out from within the forest. A flashlight shined brightly and Deputy Kyle Bailey stepped out of the woods. "Good evening, gentlemen. How is your hike in the woods going?"
"Never had a better time," Ironside snarled.
Bailey laughed. "You should have gone home after the earthquake hit. You both would have lived a longer life. But before I kill you, you have something that belongs to me and I want it back."
"We don't have a clue what the hell you are talking about, Deputy," Perry said.
"Come now, Mr. Mason. You know fully well what I am talking about. It is that box that you put in Chief Ironside's hand just before you started dragging him through the woods. Don't mess with me, gentlemen. I don't have time for this and neither do you. Your people will be out looking for you when you don't arrive back at the cabins. Now there is not a lot of chances that they will find you in the dark but it is not a chance I am willing to take. I will make you a deal. If you turn the box over to me, I will kill you quickly. You won't suffer. Otherwise I am going to allow my pet to tear you to pieces bit by bit until you decide for yourselves to end your miserable lives." He whistled and a wolf came out of the woods and stood at the side of Kyle Bailey.
"Trained wolves," Ironside sneered.
"That's right, Chief Ironside. Dylan was a son of a bitch but he sure could train those wolves."
"You sent the one that attacked us, "Perry surmised.
"That's right, Mr. Mason. He was not one of my favorites. He had an independant streak in him. I hate that. Don't you? Anyway, I sent him in to see how you would handle him. Very clever having him attack you, Chief and Mr. Mason killing the wolf with a knife. Whose idea was that? Let me guess, it was yours, wasn't it, Ironside? I was hoping you would have to empty that gun of yours but you killed Cherokee without it."
Ironside looked at him with eyes as cold as ice. "Sorry to upset your plans."
Bailey chuckled. "No, you're not. But it doesn't matter. Those wolverines were an expected surprise. Can't train those bastards. They are too vicious. Dylan tried. One of them damn near killed him. After that he switched to wolves. Not much different than a German Shepherd and we didn't have to buy the wolves. Just catch them."
"Which one of you killed Gail Smith?" Ironside asked.
"I nominate Demaris," Perry said.
"Very good, Counselor. You are correct. The bitch would not sell no matter what we tried. She shot one of the wolves, threw the dead squirrels on Dylan's porch and caught the rats." He began laughing. "She dumped them in Dylan's truck. You should have seen the look on his face when he opened the door to his truck."
Mason and Ironside were not as amused by Kyle Bailey's story. "So Demaris killed her," Mason said.
"Yea, Dylan killed her but not before we got her to give us a sample of her signature. Tom made sure that signature appeared on the deed she signed over… after she was already dead!" He began laughing again. "Of course Tom had to be forced."
"That would explain why none of her belongings were removed," Ironside remarked.
"Very good, Chief. That is why I had to burn the house down. Again, you should not have been nosing into things that are none of your business."
"Why were you acquiring property on this mountain?" Perry asked.
"I guess there is no reason not to tell you since neither of you are going to be leaving this mountain alive. You are aware marijuana is being legalized in more and more areas of the country?"
"Medical marijuana," Ironside corrected. "It is a mistake but yes, we are both aware of it."
"Well, Dylan and I wanted the property to grow marijuana. He had already set up a huge market for it. Of course," he laughed, "most of it would not be sold for medical purposes."
"Of course not," Perry said.
"Why do it on this mountain? Why force people to sell to you? You could have bought land elsewhere," Ironside questioned.
"Because elsewhere we would have been watched closely. Up here, only Tom would be watching us and he is a moron. He thought that Dylan was buying the land for legitimate reasons. When Dylan killed Gail, then Gates knew he would be implicated in the murder so he could say nothing about what we were doing. If he did, he knew he could be charged as an accomplice since he and Dylan had started a consulting business together and it was directly linked to that business. He never would have convinced a court that he wasn't involved. Dylan and I had him right where we wanted him.
"As far as forcing them to sell," Bailey laughed. "We did not pay any of them one dime. We got something on them. Then we threatened to expose them unless they did as we told them."
"You stole their land," Ironside said disgusted.
"Stole is a very harsh word. Let us just say they paid for it with their sins," Bailey grinned.
"What about the others? You killed them as well?" Mason asked, already knowing the answer.
Bailey bowed. "Yours truly. With you getting closer all the time, I could not take the chance that they would talk. So, I simply made sure they will never tell what they knew. Just like you will never tell what you know."
"And the notes between you and Gail?"
"Well, you might say I tried to romance the property out of her. I convinced her that I loved her and I even warned her it would turn out badly if she didn't cooperate. The dumb bitch would not listen. You know the rest."
When Ironside and Mason said nothing further, Bailey grinned. "Aren't you going to ask me who killed Dylan and why?"
"No," Ironside said.
"We already know," Perry finished for his brother.
"Well, that about covers it. Now, I want the box."
"You don't really think we are going to give it to you, do you?" Ironside growled. "You will kill us as soon as we do."
"I will kill one of you and turn the wolf loose on the other until you tell me where it is. Be reasonable. You are both going to die. How quickly and how painfully depends on you."
"Go to hell, Bailey," Mason said.
"Well, Chief, since I figure you would never tell me even if the wolf tears you from limb to limb, I'll take my chances with Mason." Kyle Bailey raised his weapon and pointed it at Ironside.
20.8
Ed Brown continued through the woods. Otto would take off, disappear and circle back to be sure Ed was following him. Brown was exhausted. He worried that by the time Otto located Mason and Ironside, he would be of no use in their defense. His strength was being drained with every step he was taking.
Still he kept going. He had been through too much with the chief to let anything happen to him. Robert Ironside would certainly not allow anything to happen to him if the situation was reversed. He had proven that once again as he protected Ed when he lost his memory and when he had been shot.
Brown, who had been tiring, picked up his pace. Otto appeared out of a clearing. He ran back to Ed, circled him and ran out in front of him. The Shepherd stopped and sniffed the air. He became very excited, whined and took off on a dead run.
Ed had no doubt what it meant. Otto had located the chief! With his weapon drawn and ready, Ed Brown followed the Shepherd.
20.9
"I have no more time left. Your people will be along shortly. Goodbye, Ironside."
From out of nowhere, Otto leaped into the air and attacked Deputy Bailey. He clamped his jaw down on Bailey's gun arm and shook his head back and forth. Bailey screamed in pain. He shouted something to the wolf and it sprang into action. It leaped on top of Otto sinking its teeth into the back of his neck.
Perry got up. Dragging his bad leg, with his knife in hand, he headed toward Otto to help him.
With the help of the wolf, Bailey had regained control of his gun. He pointed it at Mason. Before he could get a shot off, gun fire sounded behind them. Deputy Kyle Bailey dropped to the ground.
Otto and the wolf remained in a furious battle. Another shot fired and the wolf dropped dead. Otto immediately ran over to Ironside, licking him in the face.
Ironside spotted Sergeant Ed Brown coming toward them from another direction. He shook his head and waved him off. Ed quickly stepped in behind a tree.
Sheriff Tom Gates walked toward the two injured men. "Are you guys alright?"
"We are fine," Perry said.
"Speak for yourself," Ironside grumbled.
Lt. Carl Reese and Paul Drake came running to the scene with weapons drawn.
Sheriff Gates holstered his weapon upon seeing the two detectives. "We are going to need help getting these men to a hospital."
"I'll call Captain Groman," Carl said.
Ironside motioned for Carl to come to him. Paul caught the gesture and walked over to Gates, keeping his attention off Ironside.
"Ed is out there. Let Groman know he needs to pick him up separately. Tell him I suspect Ed cannot walk any further so he makes arrangements to come directly here for him. And have him taken back to the hospital. He is over there." Ironside glanced at Gates and then pointed to where Ed was concealed. "I will keep Gates busy while you tell Ed."
"Are you thinking what I am?" Mason said.
"We go to court and clear Milt tomorrow," Ironside replied. "That is if you can make it to court."
"I'll make it even if I have to go in a wheelchair," Perry said.
"You won't be using mine," Ironside said.
"Neither will you."
Footnotes:
*Refers to the Ironside episode "One Hour to Kill" in which Ironside must defend himself in his own office where a young man who blames Ironside for his brother's death, removes everything in his office that he could use to defend himself, disconnects the phone and tells Ironside he has an hour to live.