Chapter34 Hopkins' Niece

"Lloyd, do you have a few minutes?" "Sure, Mike. Come in and have a seat." The deputy enters the office, closing and locking the door behind him. "Just so no one comes barging in and disturbs us. Do you mind, Lloyd?" "No; it's fine." After the deputy sits, Sheriff Faulkner teases, "What's this; you're not going to put your feet up, Mike?" Deputy Hopkins laughs, "No, Lloyd…considering our new working arrangement with each other, I think we're beyond that point at this stage; don't you?" The sheriff laughs, "I reckon so, Mike. So, what's on your mind?" "Are you still planning on bringing Madame Chybovsky out to the Lazinski place tomorrow?" "Yup." "I don't get it; why?" "For the same reason I agreed to have her do her routine down in Galveston…so no one gets hurt." "What do you mean?" "When you're dealing with a clan like the Nieverro's…or, in this case, the Steinman's…you realize that they'll do whatever they have to do to protect their own interests; even if that means hurting innocent people like the Lazinski family. As it is, I do believe Delilah's been murdered to keep their secret safe." "So, you think Senator Steinman has something to do with all this?" "I do. Let me tell you something, Mike; politically powerful folks like the Steinman's don't take too kindly to the rest of us knowing their private business…and, especially their faults and weaknesses." "And, that's what you thinks happening?" "Yup; and, I'll tell you why. It started when Beth was looking up articles about Chelsea's suicide and didn't find anything about Tommy's death. She asked me if I thought it was odd…which I did after giving it some more thought…so, I decided to delve a little deeper myself into her suicide. Guess what I found out?" "What?" "Mike; with the exception of those articles about her apparent suicide, I couldn't find any other article, or mention of, Chelsea in the papers. And, I couldn't find anything at all about Tommy." "Okay; and?" "And; Mr. Phillip Montgomery Steinman made it a point to be in the spotlight. Hell Mike, there was an article in the local paper about a 15 pound bass he caught on one of his fishing trips…yet, there's no mention about Chelsea or Tommy even being born. An event like that, overlooked by the press? An opportunity to be in the spotlight once again for good ol' Phil? I seriously doubt it, Mike; especially since I found articles about his other three childrens'...including our illustrious Senator Jack…births and their accomplishments over the years." "So; what do you think, Lloyd?" "I think there was something about those two kids that embarrassed ‘ol Phil; and, he did everything he had to do to keep it hidden from the public. And, the family's still trying to cover it up ‘til this day." The deputy asks, "Even if that's the case; what do Chelsea and Tommy have with what's going on at that house?" "Well, that there's what we need to find out. And, it sure as hell won't be an easy task considering." "Considering what, Lloyd?" "Considering that whatever information I got on the Steinman's came from what was written in the papers. I couldn't get my hands on any kind of official documentation; records like birth certificates and such…they're not accessible. It seems our good friend the Senator has a strong-hold on his family's records; and, I couldn't have them released. But, I still have a source or two that may enable me to wrangle up some information on them." "Yeah, well I have my sources too; and, I've touched base with a couple of them recently…and, I think you're right about Delilah being murdered and her sister taking her place." "What did you find out, Mike?" "Evidently, the so called therapy and medication she told you about was an understatement to say the least. According to my sources…which I've found to be pretty damn reliable over the years…Delores Wedgeworth spent the last eleven years in a sanitarium out in Portland." "Really?" "Really…and, it gets even better." "This Texas jack-rabbit is all ears; go ahead." "Turns out Delores was in that same sanitarium up until about two weeks or so ago; then, transferred to the Rolling Meadows Sanitarium, right here in Rhode Island." "No shit!" "Hold on, Cowboy; here's the clincher. That particular sanitarium is run by one Dr. Robert Christopher Steinman…Senator Jack Steinman's brother." "Then, I reckon that song's right, Mike…it sure is a small world after all." "Lloyd, I have a proposition for you." "Go ahead." "Since you're still planning on bringing Madame Chybovsky over to their house tomorrow; I'd like to go with you." "I don't see a problem with that; but, why?" "The thing is, Lloyd; I'm bringing my niece with me. Madame Chybovsky's a fraud, and will be a total waste of time out there; we both know that. But, I think Cindy may be of some use." "Now, don't tell me, that your niece is a bona fide psychic?" "Actually, my niece is a bona fide, professional hair stylist. However, she's been tested and proven to have real psychic ability; unlike our Madame Chybovsky." "Is that a fact?" "She's even helped the Boston Police Department on a few of their cases; and, had great results." "So, how long has your niece had these psychic abilities?" "Pretty much her whole life;" the deputy explains, "they're not really sure what causes it…but, some of the researchers at a couple of testing sites came up with a theory. Personally, I don't know if it's the reason or not; but, I guess it kind of makes sense. My sister was expecting triplets; but, at some point near the end of her second trimester, two of them died. Her doctors were afraid to try to remove the other two, being that Cindy was still alive and developing; so they let her go almost full term before deciding to do a cesarean. These researchers think it's possible that since multiple birth siblings tend to have a propensity of having psychic abilities…like ESP between themselves…they feel that Cindy may still have some sort of connection with her other two sisters on what they refer to as the ‘other side'. In some ways it sounds like a stretch; but I suppose it's plausible. Regardless, she's been able to connect with the spirit world before on different occasions; so maybe she could help us." "Now I reckon it couldn't hurt. Like you said, we aren't going to get very far using Madame Chybovsky. By all means Mike, bring your niece with you tomorrow."