Better Late Than Dead: Episode 7

This is episode seven of the novel Better Late Than Dead. It is the 7th book in the Rich Larsen Adventure Series. An episode will be posted every Monday and Friday. However, it can be purchased on Amazon in the Kindle or paperback versions.  

Rich has returned to the home he ran away from six years earlier. He’s back living with his parents, hoping to make amends for the pain he caused them. Two years have passed since returning home. That’s where this story begins. 

Episode 7

Morris walked into the newspaper's entrance. The two deputies took a couple of steps toward their police car. Rich did not move. The deputies stopped, and one of them motioned for Rich to come along.

“What’s going on?” Rich asked.

One deputy walked back and faced Rich. “Your mother and father are dead.”

“What!” Rich said.

“They are both dead.”

“A car accident?” Rich asked.

“That’s all I can tell you right now,” the deputy said. “Please come with us.”

They drove to the sheriff’s headquarters. Rich sat in the back of the cruiser. He stared. His thoughts were numb. What I heard cannot be true, he thought.

The sheriff’s headquarters sat behind the county courthouse. It did not match the majestic-looking courthouse. It had been constructed of brick very quickly shortly after the turn of the century. On one side stood a two-story county jail, and on the other side was the motor pool and parking lot. They were constructed of cinder block.

They parked on the street in front. The deputies walked Rich through the front lobby and down a hallway to an interview room. Two detectives in white shirts and ties came in. They sat across the table from Rich. One man was older and pudgy. He didn’t bother to remove his fedora. The other was young, fit, with black, wiry hair and a dark beard.

“I’m Detective Bevins,” the older man said. “I’m Detective Grillo.”

“This is a murder, isn’t it?” Rich said.

“What makes you think that?” Bevins asked.

Rich stared at the wall between the two men. He did not comprehend what Bevins said. To him, it was just a human sound with no meaning.

“Mr. Larsen,” Bevins persisted. “What makes you think it is a murder?”

“I’m sorry,” Rich said. “What was that?”

“What makes you think it is a murder?” Grillo said.

“I’m sorry, Detectives, but I need some time.”

“Time for what?” Bevins said.

“My God, man! I just found out my parents were murdered!”

“We never said that,” Bevins said.

“Two detectives told me fifteen minutes ago that my parents were dead. I asked if it was a car accident. They said nothing. They brought me here. I’m stuck in a room, and two detectives come in. I’ve covered murders, and I’ve covered accidents. Accidents, the deputies would have told me. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to be alone.”

“We’ll give you some time,” Bevins said.

The detectives stood and left the room. Rich buried his face in his hands and cried bitterly.

Half an hour went by. Bevins and Grillo returned. Rich’s swollen eyes and red face looked up at them after they sat.

“How did it happen?” Rich asked.

“We were hoping you could tell us that,” Bevins said.

Rich’s chest tightened. He breathed rapidly. “There’s only one thing I know,” Rich said. “I didn’t know they were dead until about an hour ago.”

“Suppose you tell us where you were last night?” Bevins asked.

“Do you have some sort of alibi?” Grillo asked.

“I checked into the Hill Crest Motel at about 8:00,” Rich said. “I got into work about half an hour late. All of this can be verified.”

“Were you at your parents’ home last night?” Bevins asked.

“We had supper together,” Rich said.

“And when did you leave?” Bevins asked.

“I left around 7:30.”

“You went straight to the motel?” Bevins asked.

“I drove by the Gables,” Rich said. “They had the No Vacancy sign on.”

“Do you own a gun?” Grillo asked.

“No,” Rich said. “As I said, I’ve been around this type of stuff before. Before I give you any more cooperation, I have to have a lawyer present.”

“That doesn’t look good,” Bevins said.

“Detective Bevins, Detective Grillo, with all due respect, if it were you in my seat, you would have called a lawyer long ago.”

“There’s a phone in the hallway,” Grillo said.

Better Late Than Dead: Episode 6

This is episode six of the novel Better Late Than Dead. It is the 7th book in the Rich Larsen Adventure Series. An episode will be posted every Monday and Friday. However, it can be purchased on Amazon in the Kindle or paperback versions.  

Rich has returned to the home he ran away from six years earlier. He’s back living with his parents, hoping to make amends for the pain he caused them. Two years have passed since returning home. That’s where this story begins. 

      

Episode 6

Rich stayed the night at a motel. He overslept and arrived at the newsroom at 8:30. He sat in his chair, and the phone rang immediately. He picked it up.

“Larsen.”

“Larsen, this is Briggs. My office now!” he snapped.

“Let’s make it in fifteen minutes,” Rich said casually. “I have a couple of ideas I want to put on paper before I forget them.”

“Now!”

“I’ve been doing now for two years.” Rich hung up.

Briggs bolted from his office with a paper in his hand, straight for Rich’s desk. Rich casually looked up and returned to typing. Briggs slammed the paper on Rich’s desk. Rich continued to type.

“What did I tell you to do yesterday?” Briggs bellowed.

The newsroom suddenly became quiet.

“You don’t remember?” Rich asked sarcastically.

“Don’t play stupid games with me,” Briggs said. “What assignment did I give you?”

“First of all, stupid games are probably the only ones you can understand, and secondly, you sent me to the sheriff’s office to interview him on the proposed upgrades to the county jail.”

“What did you write about?”

“Well, as I recall, I was able to cover all the renovations and what it would cost. And I think I did quite well in explaining why the renovations were needed. I highlighted that all surrounding counties had undergone renovations and that our county was falling behind. I think I did a really good job in highlighting how the sheriff’s department continues to serve the community with diligence and professionalism.”

“But then you go and write that the sheriff said, as far as he was concerned, Tillman Township can rot. And there’s nothing out there worth protecting. That is irresponsible reporting.”

“No,” Rich said, “that’s a quote, and he never said anything was off the record.”

“Of course, he didn’t say anything,” Briggs said. “He trusts us.”

“I think having the trust of our readers is significantly more important,” Rich said.

“This paper makes decisions for the community every day,” Briggs said. “We run this town.”

“Your hubris is barely palatable,” Rich said.

“Listen, Sheriff Morris is our man,” Briggs said. “We put him where he is, and we intend to keep him there. No two-bit beat reporter is going to go rogue on us. You get that.”

“It doesn’t sound like Morris is the newspaper’s man; what it really sounds like is that we are Morris’s newspaper.”

“Morris is on his way,” Briggs said. “I want you in my office when he gets here. And have the best apology you can muster. Get on your knees and grovel if you have to.”

“How did he find out about it?” Rich asked.

“It was leaked to the radio station,” Briggs said. “If they report it and we don’t, it will look like we’re holding out, not doing our job to inform the public.”

“Then we should run it,” Rich said, “because it’s the truth.”

“It’s already been stopped,” Briggs said. “It was a joke. And that’s what you’ll tell Morris when he gets here.”

“He won’t see it as a joke,” Rich said. “He said it. It’s a quote.”

“You be ready with that apology,” Briggs said.

“Not gonna do it,” Rich said.

“Clear out your desk,” Briggs said. “You’re fired.”

“I’ve given you a special gift,” Rich said. “Cherish it. You’ve wanted those words to pass through your lips ever since I arrived. How does it feel?”

Briggs smiled smugly. “It felt really good.”

“When you get back to your office, take a peek out your window and into the parking lot. Note my Jeep. It’s fully packed. I’m leaving. So, I quit.” Rich smiled. “What a wonderful conclusion. We both leave satisfied. But mine is just a little better than yours. Wouldn’t you agree? Because I orchestrated the whole thing.”

Briggs stared and quivered. Rich stood. He pulled a pen from his pocket. “This belongs to the newspaper.” He tossed it on the desk.

Briggs stood motionless. Rich walked around him. Rich smiled as he walked down the steps.

Sheriff Morris and two deputies met Rich just outside the door to the newspaper’s parking lot.

“Larsen,” Morris said, “go with my deputies.”

“Why?”

“They’ll explain.”

New Book: Better Late Than Dead Available On Amazon

 The latest serialized novel, Better Late Than Dead, is now available on Amazon in a Kindle edition or paperback. This is the eighth novel in the Rich Larsen adventure series.

This novel begins with Rich Larsen's life two years after returning home. He ran away from home 9 years earlier. Seven of those 9 years are in the previous 6 Rich Larsen adventure series.  

Starting this past August 15, two episodes of Better Late Than Dead are published each week. Thus taking 45 weeks to complete online. The book can be purchased now, rather than reading two episodes a week, which would take nearly a year to complete. 

Here are the titles and links to the previous Rich Larsen books;

The Desperate Summer of '62

The Id and The Odyssey

Sailing Beyond Beyond

Odyssey In Paradise

Ere The Ghan and After

African Escape

The Pilgrim's Return