Yari stopped for a breath before he continued. “The Army’s pleadings were supported by a declaration from Major Jarvis in Fort Benning. The psychiatrist claimed the type of battle fatigue Lockhart suffered from produced hallucinations, and that Lockhart likely thought he was still in combat and had to defend himself against an imaginary enemy. His declaration argued that depression and those images sometimes caused soldiers to take their own lives. He also said that Lockhart was in psychological treatment, a veteran’s therapy group.”
“Countering that position, the State argued that Lockhart’s body was found on Georgia County property, outside of the base’s jurisdiction.”
“But here’s an interesting point. The State’s argument was supported by a declaration from detective Gabe Morrison that a preliminary toxicology report suggested drugs were present in Lockhart’s system at the time of death. Morrison contended that, based on his years of investigations, there was a sufficient suspicion of foul play to warrant a full autopsy and investigation. He didn’t go into detail on the evidence, but said his toxicology evidence came from a liver biopsy and blood samples taken at the scene shortly after Lockhart’s death.”
“The good news is that the judge ruled in favor of the State of Georgia. So now Gabe Morrison has jurisdiction over Lockhart’s body. The base has gone quiet after the court’s decision, and I haven’t seen or heard anything more about the autopsy.”
Wade responded. “I was able to make a connection with Morrison through a detective friend in New Orleans. I haven’t actually spoken to Morrison yet, but I wanted to ask a favor.”
“Sure. Anything I can do.”
“I want to set up a secure phone patch for a call to Morrison from Alabama. Can you arrange that?”
“Not a problem. Just call my number from a pay phone. I’ll set up the secure patch in such a way that you can be sure no one else is listening from anywhere.”
“How can you be sure?”
“Look, buddy, you’re on my turf now. I not only have access to both sides of the secure lines, but the conversation will be encrypted going both ways, using my own encryption software. The government doesn’t even have the latest version of my program yet, so no one will be able to break that encryption code. I’ve tested it on all my smartest buddies here at the NSA. Why are you so concerned about a secure line?”
“Let’s just say I’m concerned. I think this issue is much bigger than we ever thought, and somehow I feel that either Fort Benning or other intelligence agencies may be involved — including possibly my own. ”
“Really? When do you want to call Morrison?”
“I’ll call tomorrow at one o’clock my time.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
The payphone a block from the college on a shaded side street seemed like a perfect place for the call.
“Hi, Yari. I’m ready for the Morrison call.”
“Give me a minute to set it up. When you hear a dial tone, just dial.”
“Do I just feed the payphone?”
“Nope. All taken care of. You don’t need to do anything. I’ve already overridden your payphone line and taken it out of service for government security purposes. For the next two hours, this payphone can’t be used for anything but your call.”
“I didn’t know you could do that.”
Before Wade got Yari’s answer, he heard the dial tone and dialed Morrison’s number.
“Morrison here.”
“Detective Morrison, my name is Wade Hanna. I’m a friend of Jake Pisano in New Orleans. I understand you’re working on the James Lockhart case?”
“That’s correct. I was expecting your call. I’ve known Jake for quite a while and worked with him on several cases. He’s a top-notch detective.”
“He says the same thing about you.”
“What can I do for you, son?”
“I’m an intelligence officer who was involved in a training exercise at Fort Benning. Lockhart was part of those training exercises. My team was involved in a shooting incident just before Lockhart’s death. I don’t know if my involvement can help your investigation, but Jake suggested that I share with you some of the information I know about Lockhart. There may be some sensitive pieces of this information that could involve Fort Benning or my employer that might be important. I’m also concerned that I or my men don’t get dragged into this situation.”
“I see. I’d like to hear what you have to say. I can promise you now that all of our conversations will remain confidential.”
“I appreciate that. I would rather have our conversation in person, if you don’t mind.”
“Where are you located?”
“In Greenstone, Alabama.”
“There’s a small town called Manchester, Georgia, just across the Alabama state line. It’s where Highways 278 and 27 cross. On the main street there’s a great restaurant called the Red Squirrel Café. I’ve known the owners for many years. It will be safe for us to talk there. I’ll leave from Fayetteville, but it’s a much longer drive for you.”
“That’s not a problem for me, sir.”
“Good. Then let’s meet at 11:00 in the morning on Friday.”
“That works for me.”
After finishing his call with Morrison, Wade called Yari back to let him know he had a meeting set up with Morrison.
Yari had been busy in the meantime with further updates on the Lockhart matter. “I’m doing more work on this CID guy David Mashburn. It appears this guy knows his way around the intelligence community. He spent most of his time in foreign posts, including Vietnam. He speaks several languages. He first served as a medic in Vietnam before going into Army intelligence. I don’t really remember him in our training group.”
“Interesting about Mashburn’s background. Do you remember when Lockhart confronted us that evening at dinner in the mess hall?”
“Yes.”
“Mashburn was the guy standing behind Lockhart, who got him calmed down before they decided to move to another table.”
“So that was Mashburn. Oh, yeah, I remember him now.”
That evening Wade and Megan spoke.
“How was New Orleans?”
“It was great. My father’s doing well and has gotten over his apprehension about moving to a condo. He actually likes the idea now. I saw a few old friends, and that was pretty much it.”
“Have you given any thought to your incompletes? You know I’m still in charge of getting you graduated.”
“Yeah, I spoke to my professor about the make-up exam, and got it scheduled for next week. I’m starting on my two papers and should have them finished in a week or so.”
“What else do you have planned?”
Wade was still too cautious to confide in Megan about the Lockhart matter. He wasn’t going to tell her about Morrison. The first thing that popped into his mind was his meeting at the Red Squirrel Café.
“I’m going squirrel hunting this weekend with one of my friends. I’m leaving early Friday morning and will be back late Saturday.”
“How do you hunt squirrels?”
“My friend Rich has a mountain cur hunting dog named Rufus.”
“How does a dog hunt squirrels?”
“With one sniff, Rufus can not only tell you that a squirrel is in a particular tree — he can also tell you the time the squirrel came and left. If he barks, the squirrel is still in the tree, and if he makes a high-pitched whimper, it means he left. This louder the sound, the longer he’s been out of the tree.”
Megan laughed, thinking this was one of Wade’s country jokes. “What do you do with the squirrels if you get any?”
“Eat them, of course. Haven’t you had squirrel sauce pecan? It’s a great delicacy in the South.”
“It doesn’t sound like something I would order at a restaurant.”
“You can’t order squirrel in a restaurant. I’ll fix it for you the next time we’re together.”