Found: A Matt Royal Mystery Read Online Free Page A

said, switching gears.
    “Ken took the elevator downstairs, and I was standing on the balcony overlooking the parking lot watching him go. He was getting into his truck when the man in the Jaguar drove into the parking lot and said something to Ken. He walked over to the car, and the driver shot him in the forehead and took off.”
    “Did you notice from which direction he came on Gulf of Mexico Drive?”
    She was quiet for a few moments, thinking. “No. In fact, I’m not even sure he came into the parking lot from that direction, from GMD.”
    “There’s no other way to get in, is there?”
    “No. As I think about it, he may have been parked in the lot when I first saw his car.”
    “Do you remember where he was parked?”
    Ann was quiet again. “His car was moving when I first saw it. He was coming out of a parking space and driving toward Gulf of Mexico Drive when he stopped and called to Ken. I don’t think I noticed which parking space he was in, but I think he was backed in, facing GMD. All he had to do when he saw Ken come out was drive forward. He just stopped, shot Ken, and drove off.”
    “What did you do after the shooting?”
    “I had my cell phone in the pocket of my sweater and I immediately called 911 and asked for an ambulance. I told the operator about the man in the Jaguar and that he took off north on GMD. I heard a siren almost immediately. I guess it was the officer chasing the Jaguar. One of your young officers told me about the man going off the bridge.”
    “Can you describe the man in the Jaguar?”
    “No. I didn’t get much of a look at him. I don’t think I saw anything except an arm coming out of the window.”
    “Why did Mr. Goodlow come to see you today?”
    “He wanted to show me some snapshots he’d come across that were taken shortly after the war. They were of a group of young people, most of whom are dead now. I think Bud Jamison was the only one still alive.”
    “Do you know Mr. Jamison?”
    “Oh, sure. He’s involved in the history projects. He’s lived in Cortez since the war. He and Ken Goodlow were the best of friends. Bud’s going to take this hard.”
    “Do you have an address for Mr. Jamison?”
    “No. But I can give you his phone number.”
    J.D. wrote the number in her notebook. “Can you think of any more friends of Mr. Goodlow who might be able to shed some light on his murder?”
    “I’m sure he has a lot of friends in Cortez, but Bud Jamison will be able to tell you a lot more than I could.”
    “Did anyone know Mr. Goodlow was coming to visit you today?”
    “I doubt it. He called a few minutes before he stopped by. Said he was in the neighborhood and had some old pictures he wanted to show me.”
    “Anything else you can think of that might help us?”
    “No, but I’ll call you if anything comes to mind.”
    J.D. thanked her and left. The medical examiner’s van that had been in the parking lot when she arrived was gone. The crime-scene people were packing up, getting ready to leave. She walked over to one of them. “Hey, Loren,” she said. “Find anything?”
    “Hey, J.D. Just a casing from a nine millimeter. Probably from the slug that killed the old guy.”
    “Not much to go on.”
    “There’s a security camera up there.” He pointed to the corner of the building. “The manager gave us a disc with the footage from all day. We’ll go through it. Never know what might turn up.”
    “I’ll want to look at that as soon as possible.”
    “I’ll make a duplicate and drop it by the station this afternoon.”
    “Did you find any photographs? Old ones?”
    “Yeah. There was an envelope in the car that had some pictures in it. We left it there. The people back at the lab will have them.”
    “I’d like copies of those as soon as you can get them.”
    “Not a problem. I’ll get some copies made and bring them with the surveillance CD.”
    “Thanks, Loren. See you later.”

CHAPTER SEVEN
    I declined another beer. I had missed my