Bicycle Shop Murder by Robert Burton Robinson (fiction novels to read .TXT) đ
- Author: Robert Burton Robinson
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âHey, Tenorlyâwhat are you doing here?â
Greg needed to swallow, but he didnât want to gulp.
âNeed a loan so you can buy some more of that Bach music, or whatever it is you teach?â
âUh
yeah, something like that.â
Cynthia jumped in. âMr. Tenorly is thinking about buying his own building.â
âWow. There must be a lot of mommas making their kids take piano. Good for you, Teny.â
Had Troy Blockerman just accidentally misspoken his name? Or had he decided to coin a derogatory nickname for him. Teny or Tin-ee or âtin earâ: one who has a bad ear for music. Was Troy even smart enough to come up with that?
âOkay, Iâve gotta go demolish a house.â The grin on Troyâs face looked like that of a devious five-year-old about to put a frog down his sisterâs dress. âI love my job! See you tonight, Honey. Later, Teny.â
And Troy was goneâwithout showing the least bit of concern about leaving Greg alone in the room with his beautiful wife. Greg didnât know whether to feel relieved or insulted. As soon as Troy was out of the hallway, Greg closed the door.
âYou shouldnât have come here.â She seemed only mildly upset with Greg.
âI know, but I had to see you.â He had to see her because yesterday she had made him feel like a teenager, and he really wanted that feeling again.
âItâs okay, I was going to call you anyway. Troy is planning to bulldoze the rest of the jury into seeing things his way. Just like he rips a house apart or knocks over trees with his heavy equipment. Heâs going to force the jury into a quick guilty verdict.â
âBut we havenât even heard all of the testimony yet.â For the moment, Greg was forgetting he was not supposed to discuss the trial with anyone. âHe canât do that.â
âOh yes he can. Heâs always bullying people to get his way. The last time we bought a new car he had the salesman in tears.â
Greg still remembered how Marvin Manly had unmercifully bullied him in high school. He should have just stood up to Marvin. Why had he let himself be pushed around like that?
Not now, he thought. He would go as a knight into battle against the fire-breathing dragon. A âfight to the deathâ for the beautiful princess. And, of course, for justice.
âI promise you I will stand up to him. If thereâs even a hint of reasonable doubt, I will fight Troy all the way. I will not back down.â
Cynthia smiled.
A warm, electric chill rippled through his body. Yes. He would prevail. Greg said goodbye and walked out of the bank without ever talking to Cynthia about the abuse.
Now he was on a quest.
*
A couple of hours later, a few blocks away, Arabeth Albertson was with her optometrist.
âAccording to our records, your last exam was 18 months ago,â Dr. Phillippi said.
âI couldnât remember. But I knew I was seeing okay.â
âYour vision has not changed at all. You donât need a stronger prescription. Youâre close to 20/20 in both eyes with your current glasses.â
âI thought so. That lawyer tried to make the jury think I couldnât see well enough to see what I saw. But I can. And I did.â
Moments after Arabeth Albertson drove away from the doctorâs office, Amy Cinderside, a temporary secretary, stepped out the back door for a smoke break and a phone call.
âYeah, she just left
She passed the eye exam with flying colors
Now, when do I get the rest of my money?â
It was 10:30 pm and Arabeth Albertson was sitting in her favorite chair, watching the local news. More road construction in Longview. She instinctively glanced over at Arty to see his reaction to the story. But Arty wasnât in his chair, and had not been for some six years. Still, she couldnât break the habit, and didnât really want to. She liked to pretend he was still there, grimacing over some political candidateâs remarks or complaining about taxes or the weather.
Arty and Arabeth had only one child, which had been their plan. Arty had wanted that child to be a boy. His heart was set on having a son named Andy. So, when Arabeth found out she was having a girl, she suggested they go with the name Andie. One look at little Andie erased all of Artyâs disappointment. The fact that Andie turned out to be somewhat of a tomboy came as no surprise to anyone, considering all the fishing and athletics Arty had thrust upon her. She always wanted please her daddy, and she always did.
By the time Andie went off to college, she had grown into a very attractive young lady. Arty could not have been prouder. They had tried to hide their devastation when, soon after college, Andie moved to Seattle with her new husband. It was always the highlight of their year when Andie and John and the kids visited at Christmas or during summer vacation. She prayed she would never get Alzheimerâs and lose her wonderful memories. There wouldnât be much left to live for without them.
If the weatherman was right, tomorrow was going to be a sunny day. A nice day for a drive to the courthouse. A perfect day to make that smart-aleck lawyer look like a fool. She might have been old, but she knew what she had seen that night. And the killer was not going to get away with it!
Sam and Dorothy had been longtime friends to Arty and Arabeth. Andie had a ball working for Sam one summer, learning how to fix bikes. She was 14 years old, and didnât mind getting her hands greasy.
Arabeth was a member of the Neighborhood Watch group on her street. It was an older neighborhood and most of the citizens were over 65. But if a criminal thought he could take advantage of them just because of their ageâhe would be sadly mistaken. Most of their homes were equipped with alarm systems. Many carried pepper spray and some even owned a gun. They had a slogan: If youâre not quite ready your Maker to meet, Then donât come messing âround Mulberry Street.
Jay Leno started his monologue. She clicked the remote to turn off the TV. Jay Leno and David Letterman were both humorous occasionally, but she preferred reading a book after the news. She was near the end of a good Mary Higgins Clark. Couldnât wait to find out what was going to happen to the hero.
But, where was Marie? She should have been back at Arabethâs feet by now. Her old feline friend had a little passageway at the bottom of the kitchen door, so she could go in and out as she pleased. But the cat never stayed out for very long. Arabeth realized that Marie had gone out just as the news was starting at 10:00. Then she heard a faint âmeowâ, which seemed to be coming from the back yard.
Arabeth grabbed her cane and walked through the kitchen to the back door. She could hear Marie clearly now. She turned on the back light and looked out the kitchen door window. She couldnât see anything but the steps and part of the sidewalk. Maybe she should consider replacing that 40-watt bulb with something brighter. And the window needed to be washed.
She opened the door and could barely see Marie in the distance, near a tree. The cat seemed to be trying to come to Arabeth, but for some reason, she couldnât. Maybe she had gotten herself tangled in a fallen branch. Arabeth rarely ventured into the back yard at nightâbut this was an emergency.
She began to make her way very carefully down the stairs with her cane. But when she lifted her left foot to take the second step down, it tripped on something. What was she tripping onâshe had studied the stairs for any obstructions before starting down. She tried to catch herself, but it was too late. Down, down she went, as in slow motion. She held her breath, knowing that the impact of the sidewalk below would be bone-crushing. It was.
She felt something pop in her lower back. Her right kneecap disintegrated into the concrete. Somehow, her head had avoided the pavement. A second later, she understood how. Her head had landed on her left arm, which felt like it was broken in several places.
Now what would she do? There was nobody to help her. The neighbors were likely already asleep.
She saw a shadow. Then there was a dark figure leaning over her. The lone source of light, the 40-watt bulb, was at his back. An angel of mercy. She attempted to reach out to him, as though she would have been able to stand up if she just had a helping hand.
But instead of taking her hand, he placed his hands on the sides of her head. What was he doing? Then he pulled her head up off the sidewalkâhigher and higher, until she thought her neck would break. He slowly turned her head to the side and then slammed it down on the concrete as hard as he could.
She felt excruciating pain, and then
nothing.
It was Wednesday, 9:05 AM. Greg Tenorly and his eleven fellow jurors were in their places. He tried to forget Troy Blockerman was sitting three seats away. The prosecutor, the Assistant D.A., and the defendant and his attorney were at their respective tables. Everyone was waiting for Judge Ragsdale to appear.
A young woman walked hurriedly into the courtroom and whispered something to Angela Hammerly. By the time the woman made her departure, all eyes were on her.
The bailiff shouted, âAll rise. Court is now in session. The Honorable Judge Rayburn Ragsdale presiding.â
Unlike some judges, who rushed to the bench in an effort to minimize the showiness of their entrance, Judge Ragsdale moved slowly, almost majestically, to the bench.
No sooner than everyone sat down, Angela Hammerly said, âYour Honor, sidebar?â
The judge motioned for the two attorneys to come to the bench. Greg strained his above-average hearing, but only caught bits and pieces, which he could not assemble into anything coherent. Judge Ragsdale seemed very disturbed by whatever Ms. Hammerly was saying.
As the lawyers returned to their seats, the judge said, âThe Court is saddened to have to inform you that Arabeth Albertson, who testified in this courtroom yesterday, was found dead this morning in her back yard. A neighbor discovered her body. Apparently she tripped and fell down the stairs sometime last night.â
Kyle Serpentine wasted no time. âYour Honor, with all due respect, in light of the fact that the prosecutionâs only witness is not able to complete her testimony, and the fact that her testimony is the only evidence submitted by the District Attorney, I move that all charges against my client be dropped.â
Angela Hammerly was holding up a piece of paper. âYour Honor, we have the report from Mrs. Albertsonâs eye exam yesterday. Her corrected vision was excellent. And we know that she was wearing her glasses on the night in question. So, she would have had no problem seeing the defendant.â
Judge Ragsdale said, âMr. Serpentine, your motion is denied. The jury has already heard the bulk of Mrs. Albertsonâs testimony, andââ
ââbut, Your Honor, I wanted to do a demonstration for the court to check her vision in low light. Older people have more trouble seeing at night.â
âItâs not a good practice to interrupt me when Iâm speaking, counselor. You would do well to remember that.â
âYes,
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