Murder in the Forest, Chapter 21
Jareau looked at her new acquaintance, trying to memorize every detail of his appearance without appearing to be studying him. He must not be alerted to her suspicions…
Her suspect was about five feet eleven inches, with dark hair going gray at the temples. She estimated his age as being in the early to mid 40's, and he was trim and looked in good condition, a man who hiked or worked out in a gym, she thought. His eyes were brown, and they were also disturbing. If the eyes are truly the windows to the soul, this soul was troubling. She sensed a feeling of dominance and confidence, aggression likely if Bamka was pressed too hard or if his vanity was aroused. The eyes were large, dark, and suspicious. As a female, she also sensed that he was presumptuous in his dealings with women. She shivered inwardly, hoping that the emotion didn't show.
"Hello," she said politely, as if glad to have his assistance. "You do have a really nice store, although hardware stores aren't places where I usually spend a lot of time admiring the layout or décor." She smiled to take any possible sting out of the words. Just a typical woman, with a female attitude about hardware stores…
She turned and he had to follow to continue looking at her face. But Jareau wanted to be able to look behind the merchant and see her partner, Rossi, as he bargained with the salesman in the axe department. She caught his eye and Rossi gazed coolly at Bamka, no doubt memorizing his dress and appearance before he hefted two hatchets as if deciding which he preferred.
Jareau and the owner talked for awhile, she telling him that her husband and she were thinking of moving to Elk Pass and if they did, would undoubtedly become customers of the store.
"For now, Dave just wants to buy an axe in case we get lost in the woods and we want some vacuum bottles, like Thermos or similar things."
"Well, pretty lady, let's stroll over to the vacuum bottles and we'll take care of that while your husband shops. Does he use axes a lot, camp much? What business is he in?" Bamka tried to sound casual and just curious about a new customer.
Oh," lied Jareau, "He's an architect. We're from Seattle, but he's retiring next year, and we want somewhere quieter, without the hassles and racial strife of big cities. And Dave likes to fish and we heard this was a good place to settle. Most of what we'd need is probably here, and none of what we're trying to leave behind. Tell me about Elk Pass. I guess that you've lived here for years?"
And so it went until Rossi came over and showed Jareau a Gransfors Bruks small forest axe that he'd bought. He explained that he'd also bought a couple of Fiskars camp axes, basically just long-handled hatchets. He wanted an axe for both of their cars and one for their home.
"The salesman got another, older, guy to sharpen them. I figured that's worth three bucks a head. The Gransfors came plenty sharp. Ought to, for the price."
He joined his "wife" and the salesman in small talk, trying not to reveal too much about them or say anything that he'd have to recall later to keep his story straight if they met Bamka out of his store.
Finally, the axes were ready and with a couple of one-quart Stanley and smaller Nissan vacuum bottles added to their purchases, they bade Bamka farewell, Rossi praising his store and the obviously wide selection and courteous service. Bamka rang the sale personally, giving the agents a free canvas shopping bag with the name of the store on it. He made a point of telling them that the bag would normally cost $1.50, looking Jareau over appreciatively as he mentioned this generosity.
They were no more than out the door than Jareau breathed a sigh of relief. "That man gave me the creeps. How did you feel about him? I think there's a good chance that he's one of the kidnappers. Even if he's not, he must favor pretty rough sex, demeaning to the women he gets. I felt naked under his gaze. Could you tell that I was feeling creeped out. Like, especially when we passed that display of chains? I hope he sells chain mainly to people wanting to secure their bicycles!"
Rossi said that she had done well, seeming like a bored wife, but still happy to be on vacation and learning new things about Elk Pass and attentive to the sales talk that Bamka had trotted out to sell the vacuum bottles.
"I did like the way you stood beside me and took my hand," he admitted. "You could have just been wanting comfort because he made you uneasy, but it came across mainly as affection. I think we make a good couple. Right, dear?"
"I married you mainly for your money and the fact that you can cook better than I can," she teased back. "What next? We need to tell Hotch and Sheriff Ford what we discovered, and see if they ever got the phone records back about where all Bamka has been for the past week or two. I hope Ford got the subpoena for that okay. Hey, be careful with those axes. What are you going to do with them when this case is over? Give them to friends for Christmas, so they can chop firewood for their fine homes where you live, Mr. Rich Guy?"
Rossi chuckled. "Nope, JJ, I'm keeping them and leaving one at home and one in each of my cars. You never know when one may be needed, and I do go fishing and camping and traveling sometimes. Can't wait to try that expensive Swedish one on firewood, too, although it's a little light for heavy routine chopping. I have a bigger axe at home for that. But it'll cut firewood for camp and do other useful things that I'll describe, if you want. Remind me later to stop in a grocery store and get some dish detergent to clean the new vacuum bottles. I do want to use them around town and if we go to the woods. I want to get some food and soft drinks for the trunk, too. I don't fancy eating those GI field rations that the Seattle office gave us if I can buy better. I wonder how Seaver and the others are faring with that new body out where the couple who found the remains think they saw Bigfoot tracks. "
"That'll be a fascinating turn of events, whatever killed that poor guy," conceded Jareau. "Hey, Dave? Can we go by a burger place or an ice cream store on the way back to the office? I could do with a snack. Which is funny, really, because that guy Bamka made my stomach uneasy."
"Sure," said the older agent. I just hope they got those phone records. I feel like I'm standing in one place and walking in circles as far as getting anywhere with this case. We need a break."
But the phone records didn't provide much of a break, although Ford now had partial results. He met the agents in the conference room and they sorted out where the calls had come from. They were researching who Bamka had called on his cell phone, his home phone, and that in his office at the store.
Deputy Hso was studying the map on the wall. "Sheriff?" he queried. "I think I've computed where the recordings on those girls' phones may have been made. What do you know about the old Miller farm? It's remote enough to hold captives there, and it has several buildings. We should probably drop by and see what's there, like maybe two terrified blondes?"