Letters From the Grave
the message from BJ and went out to the car to have some privacy, talking on his new mobile phone. He called the number and waited nervously for someone to answer. He didn’t want to testify and just hoped they had his gold.
“Hello. Can I speak to Officer Arion, please.”
The phone went on hold briefly. “Arion.”
“Ah, Officer Arion, this is Jake Ramsey. You called my work earlier today.”
“Yes, Mr. Ramsey. We tracked you down through your credit card.”
“My credit card?”
“Yes, sir. It was used by a person here in Savannah who has confessed to stealing it from you.”
He’d forgotten about the card he used for online purchases. “Oh, yeah. I suppose it’s my card. Did you verify with the bank that it was my card?”
“Sir. That’s how we found you.”
Jake leaned back on the bench seat, running his fingers through his hair. “All right, so what’s the deal?”
Arion opened a bit. “Do you know a young woman named Callie Murray?”
“That wasn’t the last name I knew her as, but I think I know who you mean.”
“Did she use an alias with you?”
Jake didn’t want to complicate matters any worse than they already were. “What do you mean by an alias?”
“Did the woman you know intentionally use a false name to conceal her identity?”
“What if she did?”
“Sir, I’m prosecuting her case, and I need all the facts.”
“What did she do in Savannah that needs prosecuting?”
“Well, it’s a little odd I’ll admit, but she came into the station and wanted to confess to using a credit card belonging to someone else, intentionally accruing over two thousand dollars for a hotel and for clothing. She said something about wanting to see what it was like to live in luxury for just one day. I guess she did it then wanted to give herself up.”
“So, she charged this amount on my card then came to you confessing it? I guess I could refuse the charges and not have to pay anything since she admits stealing it.”
“Yes, then she’s only defrauding the hotel and the clothing store.”
He thought about it, then asked. “Did you talk to her?”
“Yes, I completed the interview with her just before calling you and leaving the message.”
“So, she came to you right away and confessed?”
“Yes, that’s essentially right. She bought the clothes today and walked down here immediately from the hotel after purchasing them.”
Jake thought before speaking. “What if I gave her permission to use the card?”
Arion answered. “Hum. It wouldn’t be a crime at all, and she’d be free to go from here, except for the other things.”
“What other things?”
Arion elaborated. “Well. She admitted to other crimes outside of our jurisdiction. We would need to inform those authorities before letting her go.”
“Would one of those other crimes be stealing my gold coin collection?”
“Well, I believe it could be, if you’re the victim.”
“I am.”
“In that case, you’ll need to check with your local PD for instructions.”
“Does she have the coins with her?”
“I’m afraid I can’t answer that, but if you check with your PD a bit later, they may give you the information.”
Jake wanted to be sure things happened as fast as possible. “Do you know the Lafayette Police Department?”
“No.”
“Okay, then. Let me give you the person handling the case from this end.”
Jake gave Arion the contact information for Tibbs and asked him to contact him. Then he added, “Ah, look, Officer Arion, when do I need to let you know if I want to claim she stole the card?”
“Well. Technically, she’s confessed to stealing it, so unless you refute that, she’s going to court in the morning for sentencing.”
“Okay, look. You please talk to Tibbs here, and after we’ve talked, I may want to call you back quickly. How can I reach you?”
“You just called my mobile phone. I always have it with me. Use this number.”
“Okay, thanks. Call Tibbs, and we’ll talk later.”
“Ah, Mr. Ramsey.” Jake paused and listened. “One last thought. For what it’s worth, and this isn’t really proper for me to say, but she’s awfully contrite. She actually wants to be punished. I’ve never met anyone anxious to go to jail. She seems genuinely remorseful. So much so that she’s waived the arraignment hearing and wants to go directly to sentencing. I don’t know what to think. She even told me not to get sympathetic because she’s been a liar all of her life. I just couldn’t believe what I was hearing. She really seems repentant and wants to pay for the crimes.”
Jake shook his head slowly, “Look, talk to Tibbs. I’ve got to sort this out in my own mind.”
They disconnected.
Jake went back in to talk with BJ. He needed a sounding board, and BJ was his closest friend. Inside the Ops Center, BJ asked one of the managers that had been the previous dispatcher to listen to the radio, while they went outside to talk.
Jake started, “BJ, I just don’t know what to do.”
“About what, Jake?”
“Callie. Callie just walked into the Savannah PD and confessed to several crimes, including stealing my credit card and, I think, stealing my coins.”
BJ bristled. “So, what’s the problem?”
“I think she’s messed up. I don’t care much about the card, but you know the coins are worth a lot.”
“Did she say where the coins were?”
“I don’t know. The guy in Savannah will only talk to another PD, so I gave him the detective in Lafayette.”
“So, what do you want me to say?”
“I might not press charges on the card if she’s got the coins.”
“What if she doesn’t have ‘em?”
“I guess it depends on what she’s saying. If I can get my coins back, then I don’t care about the credit card.”
BJ was more forceful. “If you don’t press charges, you’ll accept the charges. How much?”
“Sounds like a couple grand.”
“Jake, are you crazy? A couple grand! Let her rot in jail, I wouldn’t let her off if I had to pay two grand for information. If she doesn’t have the coins, do you really think she can help find them? Hell, if I was a crook and she was off on her own, I’d say ‘Sayonara’ and ‘Adios Amigo’ and be halfway to Cabo by now. Unless she’s got the coins on her, in which case the cops have ‘em, then let her rot.”
“All right, thanks, BJ. Good advice, as always.”
Jake patted him on the shoulder to calm him then went to his truck to drive home. You would think it was BJ’s money. On the ride home he tried to think things through. He had options as the injured party. Deep down, he wanted to see Callie as a victim, not a criminal. The evidence all seemed against her. What was this confession all about?
At home, he called Tibbs and explained about the call from Savannah. During the call, Tibbs said he needed to break off because Savannah was on the line. Jake disconnected and went to the refrigerator for a Diet Coke.
A few minutes later, Tibbs called back. “I guess you know they’ve got the girl. She confessed to stealing your coins.”
Jake asked, “Was she alone?”
“I can’t really say. It’s not the Savannah PD’s job to interview her about the coins. We could get her back here when they’re through with her. Then we might learn more.”
“Look Tibbs, she’s only being held there for using my credit card. If it would help with finding the coins, I can drop the charge, and she could be sent here.”
“We’d have to go get her.”
“Yeah, So? You have any bigger cases than this? A million dollar collection is taken. Do you really think it will be hard to get her back here?”
br /> “You’re right. It won’t be a problem. We can send a paddy wagon (slang for police car driving prisoners) to get her.”
“Okay, thanks. We’ll talk later.”
The sun was setting behind the buildings in downtown Savannah. Arion had gone home for the evening. Callie lay comfortably in her orange jumpsuit on the narrow bed in the holding cell. Everything about the cell was done in miniature. The floor space, lavatory, bed – they were all smaller than on the outside. No attempt was made to make it color-pleasing either. She smiled, thinking how apropos this was. It wasn’t intended for her comfort. Oddly though, she felt a kind of peace. The cell bars didn’t just keep her in, they kept predators out. She could handle this for a long time, maybe even the rest of her life. What could be worse than street life, or life running from the law? She didn’t want any of it anymore. Jake had been special to her. He was the only decent man she had ever known. She hurt him and should be punished. She welcomed punishment. She just wished she could set the clock back a few months.
She heard the jingle of the keys hanging on the jailer’s belt. The officer walked up to her door. “Callie, how are you doing? Do you want dinner?”
She hadn’t thought about it, but she hadn’t eaten since breakfast and was starving. “Ah. Sure. Does it come with the room?”
“Well. At least, you’ve still got some humor. Most of our ‘guests’ get pretty nasty in here. It’s kind of a defense mechanism.”
“I don’t see any point in being mean. You’ve all been fair to me. I’m the criminal here. Tell you the truth, I expected everyone to be mean.”
“Oh, we can get tough when needed. So, how about something warm and nutritious? I can’t promise it meets the standards of the Worthington, but it