The Past Life of Jane Scott (A Wild Cove Mystery Book 4) Read online

  LAURA GREENE

  THE

  PAST LIFE

  OF JANE SCOTT

  A WILD COVE MYSTERY

  Copyright © 2020 Laura Greene – All rights Reserved

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Also by Laura Greene

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  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  Seven days have passed since Charles Hendry's death, and Jane Scott is preparing to leave Wild Cove once and for all. She hasn't told her friends. She hasn't told her colleagues. Despite this, she is convinced that leaving the town behind and starting afresh somewhere else is the only thing to do; she just has to choose the right moment. Her relationship with Jack is gone, and much of her time in Wild Cove has been punctuated with tragedy after tragedy. She yearns for the simple life and, although Wild Cove had promised this initially, that simplicity has been taken from her with ease.

  Life is what happens to you while you're making other plans, is something Jane increasingly agrees with. The lyrics are from one of Jane's favorite John Lennon songs, and until now she hasn't truly believed things are that out of her control. She previously believed deeply in the power to fix any problem with faith and ingenuity. At a low ebb, she now wonders if it will ever be possible to fix her life in the town. Now, her plan is all about empowering herself. It is about taking a chance on something new. She has done it before; maybe this time it will work.

  Her plan is to hand in her notice as sheriff at the end of the week and then work for another month while the town votes for a replacement. Jane will put Deputy Morris forward as her preferred choice. He isn't always the most subtle, but he knows the town inside and out and the people like him. He's also proven himself a capable law enforcement officer in the months Jane has known him. She hopes that the town will listen to her recommendation, but after that, she’ll be gone. Where to, she doesn't know yet. Perhaps she will do the same thing Lila Hendry has done and head to a big city away from the mysteries and complexities of a small town. However, the last time she lived in a big city in Willow County her world came undone, so her destination remains unclear. That is still to be decided. What Jane does not realize, however, is that life truly does have other plans in store for her, and those plans are of a malevolent kind, waiting in the shadows for their moment to be revealed.

  The first moment when Jane realizes something is amiss is on a Tuesday afternoon as she drives through the sun-kissed streets of Wild Cove. Though the tragedy of the Hendrys was concluded only a few days ago, the townsfolk have returned to their daily lives quickly. What else is there to do? But as Jane's mind sifts through the possible destinations for her new life, static comes over her patrol car radio, followed by the equally crackled voice of Leon Bernstein, the dispatcher on duty for the day.

  “Uh... Sheriff?” come his unsure tones.

  Shaken from her thoughts, Jane picks up the radio receiver with one hand and replies, “Yes, Leon? Go ahead.”

  “I... I think you better listen to Wild Cove Radio.”

  Jane was expecting a call about a local disturbance or another trip to Hemlock Street to solve a dispute between the Rileys and the Jeffersons – who have an ongoing war about the size of the fence between their properties. However, she was not expecting to be told to listen to the local radio station.

  Wild Cove FM is a small station, and the only reason it keeps going is because of a benefactor who continues to support it even though it isn’t profit-making.

  “The radio? Why?” asks Jane, puzzled.

  “I think you better just listen, Sheriff.” Leonard sounds worried and he never sounds like that. His monotone nature usually leaves him on an even keel.

  Jane senses something is wrong, and when she switches her dial to the local radio station, she finally realizes what that is.

  “Scott is a fraud...” comes the radio voice of DJ, Bill Carpenter. “I repeat; Sheriff Jane Scott is a fraud.”

  Jane racks her brain, trying to figure out what she could have done to be considered a “fraud.”

  The voice on the radio continues, “Sheriff Scott has been running this town as she sees fit. She's been pretending to be our angel, when really, she's the devil. She probably framed Sheriff Williams so she could get his job!” He pauses for a moment. “Looks like we've got a caller on line 6. Go ahead, what's your beef for today?”

  The voice is a familiar one. It is Susan Dern's mother, Rose. “You listen here, Bill Carpenter, Sheriff Scott saved my daughter, and she's the best thing to...”

  There’s a click as Bill Carpenter hangs up on Rose Dern. He continues his rally once more, spewing venom about the sheriff over the airways. “Sheriff Scott was probably involved in the disappearance of Susan Dern. And let's not forget, it was Henry Wright who came to her aid. She didn't even solve the case herself! But...even if you want to paint the sheriff as a hero, I've got some bad news. Four residents of Wild Cove have come forward telling us that they have had to pay the Sheriff protection money, or she will shut their businesses down. Other bribes are rumored, and I'm certain once all of Jane Scott's dirty laundry is out, this town will do all it can to remove her from the sheriff's office.”

  Jane breaks out in a cold sweat. Sure, she’s about to quit her job, but she doesn't want anyone to think she’s crooked. If she wants any chance of picking up a job in another police force, she has to lay these terrible rumors to rest. Stopping dead on Mayflower Street, Jane reverses her car and heads straight for the radio station. As she does, she feels the prying eyes of the townsfolk through their windows, whether real or imagined. The gossipers are going to have a field day with this, Jane thinks, as she pulls up outside the radio station building.

  The building itself is three storeys high, with a large neon light at the top, lighting a grimy sign that has seen better days. Back when radio was always profitable the station was a beacon to locals, but in recent years, the producers at the station have opted for shock jock tactics in a vain attempt to boost their numbers. As those numbers have declined, so too has the upkeep of the building.

  Jane walks up the few steps in front of the building and pushes through the glass double doors. As she does, she is greeted by the on-duty producer, Gareth Murphy. Gareth is in his early twenties, and looks like he rarely goes outside into the sun. His blond hair is a mess of tangled curls, looking almost as panicked as his pale face.

  “Sheriff!” he says, rushing over. “I... I don't know what he's doing. Did you hear?”

  “I heard, all right,” Jane replies, trying to remain calm. “I thought I should come here and meet these accusations head on. If I'm going to be tried in the court of public opinion, I should mount a defense.”

  Gareth shakes his head
. “I want you to know that I did not okay this story. I don't even know what he's talking about. Residents coming forward? I haven't received any calls about this.”

  “Where is he?” asks Jane.

  “He's in Studio 3 on the top floor, but I can't get in! He barricaded me out when I went to the bathroom. My boss is going to kill me for leaving the booth while on air!”

  Gareth leads Jane up the stairs, which are lined with grubby red carpet, until they reach the doors to Studio 3. Through the glass, Jane can see DJ Bill Carpenter. A man in his 50s, cleanly shaved with slicked back gray hair from another time. On the end of a pointed nose rests thick, black-rimmed glasses, and sweat is pouring down from his forehead.

  Jane waves through the glass, and when she does, Bill looks up. What little color was remaining in his face immediately drains. He stops ranting into the large microphone in front of him and looks intensely at the sheriff.

  “It's okay, Bill, you're not in trouble,” Jane says loudly through the glass. “I'm just...”

  “That glass is soundproofed,” Gareth interjects.

  But Bill Carpenter seems to understand. A strange look comes over him, one of deep pain and regret. He then leans down underneath his recording desk and reappears with a large piece of electrical cord in his hands. He quickly slips out of the recording booth and to a window, which he climbs out of, up towards the roof.

  “My word!” exclaims Gareth, “He's not going to kill himself is he?”

  “Is there another way to the roof?” Jane asks forcefully.

  Gareth leads Jane to another set of stairs. She rushes up the steps and then through a heavy metal door. The bright sun blinds her momentarily. As her eyes adjust, she sees that she is now on the flat roof of the radio building. Standing on the edge is the figure of Bill Carpenter. He has already tied one end of the electrical cord around a metal part of the radio roof sign. The other end he has fashioned into a noose, and is in the process of tightening it around his neck.

  "Bill," Jane says, approaching slowly. "Please don't do this. We can talk about it; you're not in trouble."

  “Don't come any closer!" Bill shouts, standing on the edge of the building, just a footstep away from oblivion. In the bright sun, the sweat on his face glistens and his skin takes on a sickly pallor. His chest moves up and down quickly as his breathing continues rapidly.

  “Please, Bill." Jane holds her hands up and motions him to come away from the ledge. "Take that cord from around your neck; you've got a wife. Think of her and all the pain you'll cause her if you do this."

  "I am thinking about my wife!" Bill looks down to the street below, where a few passersby have now noticed him standing on the edge of the roof and are looking up, curiously.

  "Whatever is on your mind," says Jane, "we can talk about it. I can help you. It's never so bad that you should take your life. That's a gift to you; it's not yours to take.”

  “It's too late for all that. I just can't take any of this. I'm sorry they dragged you into it, Sheriff.”

  “Who?”

  “Robert Roe,” come Bill's words. He then leaps from the rooftop, screaming as he hurtles towards the ground. The cord snaps around his neck several feet above the street, pulling his body with a jolt. The onlookers beneath cry out in disbelief at what they've just witnessed, as Bill's motionless body now swings from the radio building like a pendulum.

  Jane rushes to the edge of the rooftop. As she does so Gareth, Bill's producer, appears from the roof door, responding to Bill's scream as he is leaping.

  “No!” Gareth shouts, running to Jane's side.

  Between the two of them, they pull at the taut cord, heaving back the black electrical cord in hope.

  “Keep pulling,” says Jane, breathing heavily as she struggles with the weight at the end of the cord.

  Finally, they pull Bill back up onto the rooftop. Exhausted, Jane feels for a pulse. But she knows it is too late. A bloodied bone sticks out from just under Bill's jaw line. His neck was broken by the force of the cord snapping back.

  “Tell me he's going to be okay,” says Gareth, looking on in utter horror.

  Jane stands up, looking at the body before turning to Gareth. “I'm so sorry, Gareth. He's gone.”

  Gareth collapses to his knees, his head in his hands.

  Standing on the rooftop looking out over the town, Jane takes a moment to process in her mind what has just happened. She has seen so much pain in her time in Wild Cove. Yet she is still here, still standing; for the meantime at least.

  “Why did he do this?” Jane contemplates under her breath.

  “He's always been a high-energy kind of guy,” reflects Gareth, standing up but not able to bear looking at the body. “I think that's why he was successful early on in his career. I mean... Things haven't been going well with the station's numbers. I thought he might be manic, but I never thought he'd take it this bad.”

  Jane looks once more at Bill's lifeless body, the electrical cord still wrapped around his neck. “Maybe it was something else. Someone else...” She thinks of the last words spoken by Bill Carpenter: “Robert Roe”. It’s a name she knows well, and it means that someone from her past is directly involved in Bill's accusatory last radio broadcast... And his fateful leap from the roof.

  Chapter 2

  “You're suspended indefinitely, pending full investigation,” says the County Commissioner, eyeing Jane suspiciously.

  Jane feels there is an irony about this meeting. She is sitting at her sheriff's desk, though on the other side from where she would normally be seated. The County Commissioner, Carl Romain, has never bothered to show his face in Wild Cove ever since Sheriff Williams' arrest. He and Williams were the best of friends, and so Romain distanced himself as soon as the extent of Williams' crimes became known.

  This shows how bad the situation was. For Romain to come to Wild Cove when he is still receiving heat for his connections to Sheriff Williams? This has taken something of grave importance.

  “That's fine, I was going to...” Jane starts saying before being cut off.

  “And don't leave town, whatever the hell you do!” Romain is raising his voice, the pencil mustache on his top lip trembling with anger. “There's going to be a full investigation, and if you leave, it's like you've admitted guilt. Stay in Wild Cove, as you're going to be asked a lot of questions from Internal Affairs and possibly even the FBI.”

  “The FBI?” Jane says, surprised.

  “Yes, the FBI...” Romain starts to whisper. “They're back in town. That Agent Ross is still investigating this people trafficking ring he suspects is active in the area, and the last thing I want is for him to think the town sheriff accepting bribes is anything to do with that!”

  “I've never accepted a bribe in my life,” Jane protests, loudly. “And I have never forced residents to give me kickbacks to protect their businesses. If you'd spent one second getting to know me, you wouldn't even question that.”

  Romain rubs his brow, anxiously. “Look, you might not believe this, but I respect your history. You took down a corrupt group of cops in Willow County, and it nearly ended your career. Then, you came to Wild Cove, finding that the sheriff was just as corrupt... It's no secret he and I were friends, but I respect that you had to take him down. If I'd known about it, I'd have done it myself.”

  “And yet you're throwing me under the bus because of the broadcast Bill Carpenter made on the radio?”

  “No...” Romain leans back in his seat. “I swear to you, if you haven't done anything wrong, you'll be back in your own job. But...”

  “There's always a but...”

  Romain laughs nervously. “If you've done anything that's considered inappropriate, this investigation will uncover that and you will be removed from the sheriff's office completely. Like your predecessor you'll be thrown in jail, and you'll never work in law enforcement again.”

  “Well, that's comforting.” Jane stands up, pulls her badge off and puts it on the desk between herse
lf and Romain. Then, she does the same with her work-issued revolver and keys to the station.

  “I'm sorry it's come to this, Miss Scott. I really am.” Romain picks up the belongings and puts them in his suit pockets. “I'll contact you as soon as I know more. In the meantime, I advise you to keep a low profile around town, and to stay out of Agent Ross' way. That guy has a reputation for being unstoppable when he smells blood.”

  Romain offers his hand as a parting gesture, but Jane refuses to take it. If he’s not willing to have her back and fight in her corner, she will be less than civil. Turning, she leaves the office and walks down the hall.

  As she passes an open doorway, a familiarly robotic voice sounds. “I hear you're under investigation...”

  Agent Ross emerges from the briefing room he so regularly commandeers. Dressed as he always is in a black suit, white shirt and black tie, he enters the hallway and looks at Jane for a moment. It’s as if he appeared from the shadows as soon as Romain mentioned his name back in the sheriff's office.