Koala Killer Sixteenth Installment

Chapter 5

A clean-cut dark-haired young man with a brush cut was tapping on her window at 6:30AM. He had on a worn yellow polo shirt, khaki Dockers and sneakers. He was the plain clothes detective sent to come with them to the zoo. He had a loaner wheel chair with him. It folded neatly into Cass' rental car trunk.

The Pueblo Valley Zoo had thirteen keepers and one intern, Mari. Their new 'friend", Bill, and her best friend Cass, decided it would be best to check the personnel files first. The three of them ate her scrambled eggs wrapped in tortillas with salsa as they rode to the zoo. Owen got a wee taste of it in his own breakfast, of course, as consolation at being left alone - again.

The zoo opens to the public at 9:00AM normally, but the morning feedings start at 7:00AM. The office staff comes in at 8:00AM, but the personnel and payroll gal, Annie, met them in the office at 7:30AM.

They introduced Bill as their friend and after the usal how-are-yous, Annie laid the files out on the side table in front of her wheechair. She seemed to be smiling and blinking her eyes a lot, especially when she looked at the young policeman Bill.

She sounded businesslike, however, when she said, "There are twenty-four full-time people right now. We make a copy of their photo id when they come on board."

We nodded.

She went on, "I separated the men and women as asked. If you need me I'll be down the hall in the break room drinking coffee to wake up."

Mari started looking through the ten files of men who worked there. She looked at Bill and asked, "Aren't pesonnel files confidential?"

"Not in a murder investigation. We got a warrant," he said succinctly.

"Murder!" Mari blurted out more loudly than she intended.

"Keep your voice down, please. Stan was murdered in his hospital bed. The lieutenant told me you found him minutes after he'd been smothered. I thought you knew. We're fairly certain it was someone working right here at the zoo. So, please keep it down, Ms. Nuclett."

"I'm sorry... I knew he died of course."

Cass came to stand beside her and picked up her hand.

Mari continued, "I didn't know he, he was smothered."

The whole situation was all so terrible. She hadn't thought in terms of murder.

Koala Killer Fifteenth Installment

"Could be I guess,"Mari replied. "Since I didn't see anything but the zoo uniform from the back."

"Now that you've remembered the heavy set man, is the back of this retreating person the right shape? And was the uniform what the keepers wear? Aren't there differences between what different employees wear? Your intern shirt is different from the landscape personnel's for example, right?"

"Yes. Yes, it was a larger person, and probably a man from the way he moved. The uniform was the keepers' too. Why didn't I put these things together?'

"That's part of my job, Mari, excuse me, Ms. Nuclett."

"No, please call me Mari. Everyone does. Except my late mother and Jeannie, who call me Marigold."

"Yes I saw that on your driver's license and passport. Unusual name but pleasant."

"I like it."

"I don't want to put any more stress on you than you already have, but I would like you to go over the events that happened the night before last when you were run down."

She went over the event in detail once more and it made her feel the fear all over again. Cass came to stand behind her chair and was patting her shoulder, and Owen was lying across her feet, by the end of the account. She had twisted a paper napkin almost to shreds.

Lt. Wilson was satisfied, "for the time being," he said, "I can arrange for a wheel chair, Mari. Now, Cass, I'm going back to the zoo, do you want a lift to pick up Mari's truck?"

"Thanks Lieutenant,"Cass answered.

Mari wasn't sure she liked the wheel chair idea. Her self-image was as a strong woman, but hobbling around was awfully painful right now. She'd go along with the program for now.

As they were leaving, the lieutenant made her promise to keep him informed of anything that happened. He said he would have undercover police come with them to the zoo.

When Cass returned with her truck, he got her set up with a pot of tea and she picked up her Dick Francis re-read. It reminded Cass that he'd brought her a book to read. He'd become addicted to the Harry Potter books and had been urging her to start the series. He'd brought the first in the series, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." He told her the fourth book was due out this summer. Her ribs were sore and her ankle throbbed so she took a pain killer and settled down to read. Cass wanted to go shopping for 'domestic necessities'.

Owen wanted to go with him, but it was too hot to leave him in the car, so Cass took him for a nice walk around the block first.

When Cass got back, they settled sleeping arrangements so that he would use her twin bed, since she could prop her ankle up easier using the arms on the couch. Owen took the opportunity to snuggle next to Cass and she had to admit she had a twinge of jealousy over it.

She woke many times during the night with pain and tried to keep her ankle elevated. The next morning she had a lingering memory of unpleasant dreams.

Koala Killer Fourteenth Installment

The next morning, Lt. Wilson knocked on her gate and Cass let him in. Mari heard him introduce himself as her friend who'd come to help her from out of town. She was propped up in her swivel-rocker.

The lieutenant took out his notepad as he sat in the fold-out chair by the card table, where Cass pointed.

"Let's start with your visit to Stan at the hospital, shall we?"

"When I came into his room he was slumped over. When I touched him, he fell further. I called for help. When the nurses came running, I watched for a minute. They asked me to leave. I knew somehow that he was dead. I left. I hadn't seen anything or anyone. I've already told you this."

"No one came out of the room as you were approaching it?"

"I didn't notice anyone."

"You knew the room number?"

"Yes, I got it when I called from home the day you interviewed me in Jorge's office."

"It was on the second floor past the nurse's desk. Did you walk past the nurse's station?"

"Yes, but I didn't stop there. I knew by the number signs that his room was just a few doors down from there."

"So you looked up the hall. What did you see?"

"Someone in a white coat coming toward me."

"Describe the person."
Mari closed her eyes and suddenly she pictured the moment, she said aloud,"A man. Heavy set. His eyes cast down. He had one hand in the pocket of the white coat. He looked up just before we passed. He looked startled. I just nodded an acknowledgement. I wasn't interested in his problem, just wanted to see how Stan was doing."

"That may have been the killer. He recognized you. He thought you might have recognized him, perhaps from the zoo. That's where you were run down. My investigation indicates that Stan was shot with the tranq gun right where you found him; inside the zoo. It's most likely an employee. I want you to keep an eye out at the zoo for the man you saw coming down the hospital hall."

"But I'm on leave."

"You could go back and look through the personnel files, couldn't you, Ms. Nuclett?" I fear that this person will leave the area altogether, as soon as he feels the 'heat is off' so to speak. Right now we're checking on employees who don't show up to work."

"If Cass will come with me..." she answered weakly.

"Of course I will, Mari, we'll get you in a wheelchair for easier mobility and you can give me a behind the scenes tour of the zoo."

"Sure."

Suddenly she wanted to cry. "Buck up Mari," her inner voice told her.

"That'll work," Lt. Wilson continued, "Now, the person you saw making a hasty retreat after watching you at the shed at the zoo, could it have been the same person you saw in the hall at the hospital?"