A/N - Thanks Judithya88 for the catch, corrections made. Subjockey
Chapter Nine
"Here's something odd," Sheriff Perkins said, bringing Chip's attention to the kitchen drain board. He stopped to yell over his shoulder, "Frank, I want prints in here too."
"You got it," the forensics officer said from the other room.
"There are two coffee cups here," Perkins continued, explaining the oddity he had discovered.
"One for Lauren, and one for Lee," Chip surmised a bit perplexed at what Perkins was talking about.
"I don't think so," he said, using a ball point pen from his shirt pocket to turn both mugs around for Chip to see lipstick prints on both mugs. Chip was just about to suggest that Lauren used two mugs when he leaned down to examine the lipstick stain on the white ceramic mugs. His eyes tightened in realization and blew a breath out.
"They're two different colors," he realized as Perkins nodded in agreement.
"The personal effects in Mrs. Crane's purse were inventoried to include just one lipstick tube; so who was here beside Lauren Crane?" he asked rhetorically.
"A second woman?" Chip queried, more confused than ever. "Is there any other evidence there was more than one woman here? And if so, where is she now?"
"Frank," Perkins said, calling the forensic officer into the kitchen. "I need complete prints on both the mugs," he said pointing to the drain board. "And I'm going to want an analysis on the lipstick stains, looks like different colors to me."
Frank nodded. "Yeah, me too," he agreed and started to work as Sheriff Perkins tilted his head in an invitation for Chip to follow him outside.
Perkins turned on his flash light, sweeping it across the dirt driveway and sighed disgustedly. "There's just been too much traffic with all our coming and going," he noted, looking over the two SUV units, plus the car the Forensic Officer arrived in, along with the coroner's wagon out front of the cabin.
"You think there was another car here?" Chip asked incredulously.
"If there are two sets of finger-prints in there, then yeah, I think someone else may have been here."
"That stands to reason, but who? If there was, Lee certainly didn't have a clue," Chip replied.
"Tom," Frank called from the front porch, interrupting their conversation.
"What have you got, Frank?" Perkins said turning back to the porch with Chip beside him.
"Strangest thing; one set of clear prints on the mug with lipstick shade-one; no prints on the mug with lipstick shade-two." Frank waited to let the facts sink in as Perkins nodded.
"One wore gloves; one didn't," he answered to Frank's affirming nod.
"Yeah, and did you notice?" he asked to Perkins' raised eyebrow urging him to continue. "One mug had cream residue on the bottom, the other didn't," he announced proudly, spotting another clue that the drinkers had two different tastes in coffee. "But here's the kicker," Frank continued, "the prints on the knife and along the hallway wall don't match the prints on the mug."
Perkins slapped a friendly hand on the back of the forensic officer in a job well-done fashion while issuing his next instructions.
"All right Frank, have the coroner compare Mrs. Crane's lipstick to the one in the purse as well."
"Right," Frank answered, heading over to the coroner's wagon as Perkins raised the cowboy type officer's hat from his head to wipe the brim with a handkerchief.
"This case just got a whole lot messier," he admitted.
"I agree," Chip answered, very concerned about the unexpected turn of events.
"I think we've done what we can here," Perkins decided. "Frank does good work, he'll make sure he's got all the evidence he can dredge up. I think what we need now is a court order to open that safe deposit box. Come on, Chip, let's go wake up a judge," he said as the two moved to the Sheriff's SUV determined to get to the bottom of the new mystery of just who else was in the cabin with Lauren Crane.
VTTBOTS
"Nelson," Harry greeted, taking the incoming call in the privacy of Jamie's office.
"Admiral, it's Morton."
"Hello Chip, what's your ETA?" he asked, anticipating he was on his way.
"I'm afraid I can't say just yet, Sir. We've made a disturbing discovery that I need to see through."
Harry leaned over, his lips pursed with concern. "Go on."
"We believe another woman was in the cabin with Lauren."
"Another woman? What have you got?"
"Circumstantial evidence I'm afraid, but we found two coffee mugs sporting two different shades of lipstick; one coffee drinker took cream the other didn't. Only one set of prints though, one mug was clean, as if she wore gloves. Sheriff Perkins and I are heading to see a judge about a warrant to open the safe deposit box. We're hoping Lauren left some clues there, I'm pretty sure she didn't let Lee in on the fact that she had it."
"Very well, Chip; Lee believes she wasn't after Intelligence, but the possibility of another person in the cabin is indeed disturbing. ONI may not be ready to let go of the idea just yet, after all. Keep me informed."
"Aye Sir. Any change in Lee's condition?"
Harry took a deep breath in, before answering. "The venom is very toxic, he's having a rough time of it, but Jamieson assures me he will recover," he answered honestly, knowing that Chip deserved to know.
"Aye Sir, tell him to hang in there. We'll get to the bottom of this," Chip assured. Like Harry, he was better off working the problem than sitting and worrying.
"Very well," Harry replied, hanging up and thinking through the new revelation. He checked his watch, noting that it was nearing 0500 and decided to talk with Lee, before calling ONI.
VTTBOTS
Harry entered the treatment room, just as Jamie stepped away from his patient. Lee looked out to the world, the ventilator was still mechanically pumping air into his lungs, but his face appeared to be completely relaxed. Jamie nodded toward the door for Harry to join him in the hall.
"Did something happen?" the admiral asked, his concern ratcheted up high.
Jamie raised a hand to dispel his apprehension. "On the contrary, I administered another dose of antivenin and I think we're finally starting to see progress. The muscle paralysis in his legs and arms is starting to release, and there's a good chance he'll be breathing on his own soon. I administered a light sedative, he'll be out for about four hours; I'll make my decision regarding the intubation and ventilator then. In the meantime, Admiral, I want you to get some rest in; I'm going to do the same. It won't do Lee any good for either of us to keel over from exhaustion," he added kindly.
Harry raised a hand to his forehead, rubbing lightly and conceding the point. "All right Jamie, I'll take the sofa in my office; call me if anything changes," he added, silently relenting to his need to sleep.
"Aye Sir," Jamie answered, recognizing the clear order in Harry's voice, then smiled weakly. "I'm very encouraged, Harry," the doctor said, breaking the formality of their ranks to speak as long-time friends.
Harry nodded, accepting the encouragement before tilting his head toward Jamie's sofa. "I expect you to follow your own orders, Doc."
"I will, Sir," he assured.
Harry headed for the door and paused, turning back to add, "We think there was someone else at the cabin, Jamie. I'm going to have to talk to Lee as soon as the ventilator is removed."
"Aye Sir, as soon as its safe," the doctor qualified to Harry's agreeing nod, before opening the door and leaving silently.
VTTBOTS
Chip downed the rest of his coffee just as Sheriff Perkins exited the judge's chambers. Fortunately, they hadn't had to wake the judge after all. By the time they drove back to the sheriff's office and the necessary paperwork was finished, dawn had broken. It was a respectable 0700 when Perkins had entered the chamber, an hour later he exited with the warrant in hand.
"Got it!" he beamed proudly, "now it's just a phone call to the SBPD and the long drive to get there."
Chip broke a small smile with his eyes twinkling mischievously. "I hope you don't get air sick Tom, because you're about ready to get introduced to flying… Seaview style."
Perkin's brow rose instantly. "The Flying Sub?"
Chip nodded toward the door as Sheriff Perkins sidled up next to him, barely resisting rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
VTTBOTS
They had lost some time having to drive back to the airstrip, but once in the air the ride was a relatively short one. Tom had indeed, almost lost his cheese Danish when Chip executed a short take-off, steep angle of attack lift off, but managed to work through the discomfort enough to speak comfortably.
"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" he accused jokingly.
Chip chuckled, "Sorry Tom, I'm just anxious to get to the bottom of this."
"It was fun," Tom conceded, waggling his eyebrows and allowing himself to enjoy the ride.
The short reprieve of good-natured fun quickly passed however as Chip turned contemplative, using the excuse of flying to hide his deep concern. Not being by Lee's side was extremely difficult, but he felt that this was the best way he could help his best friend. He knew that if their positions had been reversed, Lee would stop at nothing to get to the facts. They traveled at a reduced cruising speed well below Mach; even so, the amazing aircraft covered the distance in a little less than an hour.
"NIMR, this is FS-1; I'm approximately fifteen minutes out; requesting clearance for surface docking."
"Clearance granted; dock detail standing by to assist."
"Aye, FS-1 out."
Perkins leaned over, studying the horizon with a slight scowl. "What landing strip are you aiming for?"
"Don't need one," Chip replied with a side glance.
"You mean…?"
Chip smiled. "Hold on to your cookies, Tom. You're about to see why she's called a flying sub." With that he drastically changed the angle of attack and descended.
Chip was too busy flying to notice Perkin's white knuckles on the arm rests, and to his credit, the Sheriff managed the ride down without a sound. Once FS-1 hit the water Chip leveled her off, taking the submersible underwater until they cleared the break water before surfacing to taxi across the water to NIMR's above ground sub pen. Once they reached the dock, Chip made the necessary radio transmissions and began the shut-down routines.
"How are you doing over there?" he asked, flipping switches and turning knobs.
"Wow!" was all his passenger could say, before he started chuckling. "That was some ride!" he added enthusiastically to Chip's understanding grin.
"Glad you liked it," Chip replied, unlatching his harness and swiveling the chair around.
Perkins followed suit adding, "In the words of my eight-year-old son, 'Can we do that again?'"
Chip grinned, but it soon faded as the seriousness of their task hit once again. He headed aft, lowering the ladder and ascending to open the hatch. The deck crew was busy securing FS-1 as Chip guided Perkins toward the end of the dock, where Chief Sharkey was waiting with a car.
"She's all ready for you, Mr. Morton," Sharkey reported, regarding the NIMR car he had procured for the Exec.
"Thanks Chief, Sheriff Perkins and I will be heading out directly. Any news on Captain Crane?"
"The last I heard he's doing a whole lot better, Sir."
"Thanks Chief," he added, taking the driver's side as Perkins slid into the passenger side. "Next stop, Pac Coast Bank and Finance," he announced, making a U-Turn and heading for the security gates.
VTTBOTS
"Okay Lee, cough," Jamie instructed; extubating the breathing tube from his patient's throat. "That's right, you're doing fine. Just breathe normally," he encouraged.
Lee nodded, grateful that he was breathing on his own, even though the process had exhausted his already weary body.
"Very good, Lee," he said smiling, pleased with his progress and hoping that they had averted a possible case of pneumonia since his patient was intubated for less than twenty-four hours.
A nurse stepped in and offered him water through a straw, which he took readily, offering a small smile for her help.
"Only a short visit, Admiral," Jamie instructed as Harry stepped closer to the gurney. "He needs all the rest he can get."
Harry nodded as the treatment room cleared.
"How are you feeling?" the admiral asked when they were alone.
"Better," Lee answered, his voice dry and rough.
"I know you're not really up for this, Lee, but I'm going to need some information from you."
Lee nodded and Harry continued.
"Chip and Sheriff Perkins found evidence that there was someone else at the cabin." Lee's brow tightened as Harry spoke. "We think there was a second woman there."
"I only saw Lauren," he said hoarsely. "At one point I thought I heard another woman…" Harry's mouth pursed at this new information as Lee continued, "but I thought it was just Lauren… she was playing with my mind again."
"What do you mean?" Harry hated to have this conversation just now knowing that Lee's throat was sore from the intubation, but it couldn't be helped.
"She spent a significant amount of time and effort…" he stopped to swallow as Harry waited patiently, "trying to convince me she had a split personality. She was good, Harry. I didn't believe it at first… but she had me completely snowed for a while. I actually felt sorry for her; she convinced me that she was the weaker of two personalities," he scoffed, berating himself for being fooled, "told me it was her alternate personality, Lisa, that murdered the other men. I know it sounds incredible, but I believed her until she revealed that there never was a Lisa." He stopped to swallow and take a breath, as Harry reached for the water, offering him another drink. When he was finished, he continued wearily. "She admitted that she had no other motive, but sport… she got a sick high from seducing men into marrying her and then getting away with murder seven times. She bragged that she never did it the same way twice that she had gone through three aliases."
Harry nodded. "ONI is already working on that angle, but why did she come after you with the knife when she had already envenomed you?"
"She was keeping her distance from me until the paralysis set in, I needed to get her close enough to subdue her; so, I pushed her over the edge. I told her I used her, and that the authorities were on to her." He coughed, his voice becoming rougher from overuse at this point, but he continued on, needing to talk about what happened. "It worked, but in the course of the struggle I was kicked off the bed, the next thing I know, she was leaping for me with the knife ready to plunge. I deflected her grip and rolled over on top of her, that's when she got the gut wound." Lee stopped, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Harry reached over to place a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Go on, Lee," he urged quietly.
He swallowed and continued. "I knew we both needed help, I told her to leave the knife alone to keep from bleeding out. I couldn't walk, so I dragged myself into the other room where she said there was a phone. Then I heard something behind me… she was coming at me with the knife… she had pulled it from her gut… blood everywhere. She was wild-eyed… a maniac even… she couldn't even walk straight, but she was determined to end me. I don't know; it was like she couldn't take not succeeding. Anyway, that's when Chip came in. He gave her every chance to surrender, but she wanted me dead more. She lunged at me, and I heard a shot; I don't know where it came from. The next thing I know, she was laying there dead."
"And you're sure you never saw anyone else?"
"No one."
"And what about the second voice you heard, what did she say?"
"Something about turning me over to her and that Lauren had had me long enough. I really thought it was an interrogator, later she convinced me it was Lisa, her second personality."
Harry blew an incredulous breath out and shook his head. "This is extraordinary, Lee. I don't think I've ever heard anything like this."
"I know," he answered, "it's been hard not being able to talk about it, and I keep dreaming of her coming after me again… paralyzed and not able to defend myself."
"Give it time, Lee," he said, repeating his earlier advice.
"What now? How do find out who the other woman was and why she was there?"
"Chip and Sheriff Perkins are on their way to view the contents of the safety deposit box…"
"Sir?" Lee interrupted.
"Lauren had a safety deposit box key hidden in her purse." Lee scoffed, never having a clue that she had one as Harry continued. "We're hoping she left clues for us to follow. In the meanwhile, the forensics team is going over the cabin with a fine-toothed comb. We have Lauren's prints on file; we've already sent them over to the crime lab up north. Hopefully, they can find another set of prints for us to work with. At any rate, we have to consider the possibility that she lied to you about her motives."
"It doesn't add up, Harry. She thought she had the upper hand on me, there was no reason to lie to me when she believed that I would be dead soon."
"I don't know, Lee, but until we can prove who the second woman was, we can't be sure she didn't have another motive."
Lee nodded wearily, silently cursing the fact that with everything he'd gone through, he still hadn't been able to clear Rod's name.
"I think you'd better rest now, Lee. I promise I'll keep you up to date on the investigation. Right now, the most important thing is your recovery," Harry admonished gently.
"Aye Sir," he replied, allowing his eyes to close to avoid eye contact with Harry; he was more than disappointed in himself for letting Rod down.
VTTBOTS
A Detective from the Santa Barbara Police Department accompanied Sheriff Perkins and Chip since they were out of Perkin's jurisdiction. Once the bank manager examined the warrant, she produced the safety deposit box. Both Chip and Tom wore rubber gloves to preserve potential finger prints, and opened the box carefully.
"Whew," Perkins said with a whistle at the wad of one hundred dollar bills they pulled out first. "That's a lot of traveling cash," he noted, placing it into the plastic evidence bag. Underneath, they found three passports, along with old driver's licenses from different states under different names.
"That should help find the aliases," Chip noted, thumbing through the driver's licenses and noting that she had a passport to match each driver's license. "It looks like she was ready to leave the country in a hurry."
Perkins continued working down the pile, finding deeds to various properties, all owned free and clear and all under the same name, an obvious alias. He thumbed through them, dropping one in particular on the table in front of Chip.
"Recognize that one?" he asked rhetorically.
Chip nodded; it was the deed to the cabin, under the name Lisa Davenport.
"There's some pictures down here," Perkins said, "recognize any of them?"
He placed them on the table one by one, each was picture of Lauren with a different man. He didn't recognize the first two pictures, but leaned over as soon as Tom laid down the third one.
"That's Rod, her husband before Lee."
Perkins nodded, he had two more pictures in his hand, but interrupted the process when he saw some odds and ends at the bottom of the box, one of which was another safety deposit box key to another bank. He picked it up. "More evidence I'd guess."
"I think you're right," Chip agreed, as Tom placed it in yet another evidence bag held out by the SBPD Detective.
Perkins laid down another picture in front of Chip, this one was with Lee. He was lost in thought, considering just how close his best friend had come to becoming another victim of the black widow. He shook off the unpleasant thought, turning his attention to Perkins who was examining the last picture while swearing under his breath.
"What is it, Tom?" Chip asked, his brow furrowed in question.
Tom dropped the last picture onto the table for Chip to see. "Did you know about this?"
"No," Chip answered, pursing his bottom lip. "And I know Lee didn't either."
"This adds a whole new wrinkle," Perkins added.
"That's an understatement," Chip deadpanned, as the two shocked men took in the realization that Lauren Crane had an identical twin sister.