MacMillan Wharf

MacMillan Wharf: Chapter Sixteen

MacMillan Wharf: Chapter Sixteen

by Richard Gifford

Shane nudged the Lady J into her slip at MacMillian Wharf. Annie could tell that he was annoyed that he had to return to the dock before finishing his work, but she didn’t care. She needed to find out what happened to Mary Ellen.

They hadn’t spoken since they started to head back in an hour ago. Shane was grumbling about wasting his day and fuel and only pulling a handful of lobster traps. Once he ran the engine up to full throttle, any conversation was impossible. Anyway, what was there to say? Annie felt that she had been tested and that she failed miserably. Shane, obviously, didn’t sense this, or worse yet, if he did, he didn’t show a hint of compassion towards her.

As soon as the hull of the boat bumped against the crinkled fire hose nailed to the side of the floating dock, Annie sprang over the gunwhale and started up the gangway to the pier.

“Annie, wait a minute. Where are you going?”

“I’ve got to go see if Mary Ellen is OK.”

The stranger smiled and said, “Call me Tom.” “Want me to come with you?”

“No, I’ll be all right by myself.”

“I’ll call you later.”

“Whatever. I’ve got to go.”

Annie was quietly fuming to herself as she bounded up to the pier. “Want me to come with you…” she muttered to herself. “Of course I do, jerk! You’re my boyfriend and I just got someone killed. Jesus, what am I doing with him?”

Annie stormed through the crowd that had disembarked from the ferry. All around her were people greeting each other with hugs and handshakes. The only thing Annie could think of was getting to Mary Ellen’s house as quickly as she could. Tourists rolling suitcases and chatting on cell phones jostled her as she made her way down the wharf.

Annie bumped into a middle aged woman with a close cropped mullet and tattoos on her arms.

“Hey, watch it!” the woman snarled.

“Sorry,” Annie said meekly. Turning around, she didn’t see the suitcase at her feet, and before she realized what was happening, she had the brief sensation of flying before landing hard on the hot concrete roadway.

Annie’s head was spinning as she lay there. A crowd of people stood around her, staring, until she heard a man’s voice with a deep Scottish accent.

“Are you OK?” the stranger asked as he extended a hand to help her up.

“Yeah, but I feel like a complete idiot.”

“That was a nasty fall. Are you sure you’re not hurt?”

“I’m fine, thanks. Ouch! Oh, my knee!”

“You’re bleeding. Come on, let me help you over to that bench.”

“That’s very nice of you, really I’m fine.”

“It’s the least I can do. Anyway, it would be ungentlemanly to leave you bleeding in the middle of the street after all.” With one arm around Annie’s shoulder, the stranger helped Annie hobble over to a bench under a shade tree. 

“I’m Thomas. Thomas Lawrence. And you are?”

“Annie MacAlister. Thanks for your help, Mr. Lawrence.”

The stranger smiled and said, “Call me Tom.”

“But I heard a gunshot over the phone, I know I did.” “OK, Tom.”

For the first time since she fell, Annie actually looked at the stranger who helped her up. He was handsome, trim and fit, with silver hair. She’d never been attracted to older men, but there was something vaguely Sean Connery about him that she found mesmerizing.

Angus recognized her name instantly. He’d read about her on the Whale Center website. Luck favors the prepared mind, he thought.

“Where were you going in such a hurry, Annie?”

“I’ve got to go see a friend. I think she needs help. Oh, hey, officer!”

Annie waved to a pair of Provincetown police officers riding by on mountain bikes. They wheeled around and stopped abruptly before her and Angus Black.

“You all right Miss? Your knee looks pretty bad.”

“I think so. Do you have any bandages?”

“Sure, hold on.”

Officer Roger Davenport put down the kickstand on his bike and unzipped a black bag hanging under the seat which contained, among other things, a first aid kit for situations like this one.
“What’s your name?” Officer Davenport asked as he kneeled on the pavement to attend to Annie’s wounded knee.

“Annie. Annie MacAlister.”

“You’re Annie MacAlister? Hey, Chief Souza is looking for you. He wanted to thank you for your help this morning with Mary Ellen Johnson.”

“Thank me? I thought I got her killed.”

“No way, you saved her life.”

“But I heard a gunshot over the phone, I know I did.”

“Well, that’s true. You kept her talking on the phone long enough for the chief to take her down with a beanbag. She was raising the gun to her head when he did it.”

“A beanbag?”

“Yes. It’s a beanbag about two inches square, fired from a shotgun. It hits with a lot of impact, but doesn’t usually do any permanent damage.”

“So, Mary Ellen’s OK?”
“She’ll be sore for a while, that’s for sure. Maybe a broken rib, but she’s not hurt otherwise.”

“Where is she? Can I go and see her?”

“I’m afraid not, Miss. She was taken to Cape Cod Hospital for treatment and she’s being held on charges.”

“Charges? What charges?”

“For now, it’s illegal possession of a handgun. I really can’t tell you any more than that. But, I’m sure the chief can fill you in on the rest. Anyhow, he wants to thank you for your help. OK, that looks better. How’s your knee feel?”

“Better, thanks. Listen, officer, I’m glad Mary Ellen’s OK, but is she being charged for Linda Hanscomb’s murder?”

Officer Davenport sighed, “Like I said, I can’t tell you any more. I’m not even sure myself what’s going on. But if you call the chief, he might be able to say.”

Angus was standing over the two, absorbing every word of the conversation. He was also re-evaluating the objectives of his mission.

“Annie,” he said, “why don’t you let me buy you a drink while you rest your knee for a little while?”

“That sounds like a good idea,” said Officer Davenport “Go and relax a bit. You’ve had a tough day.”

Annie thought about it for a split second. She wasn’t in the habit of letting strangers buy her drinks. He seems like a nice enough guy for helping me, and my knee is still throbbing. Besides, Mary Ellen is fifty miles away in the hospital, and there isn’t anything she could do for her now.

“Okay. Just one, though.”

“Ah, that’s the spirit.” Angus extended a hand to help her up.

“How about over there?” Annie pointed to the Surf Club at the end of MacMillan Wharf. She knew it was on the expensive side, but it had a nice view of the harbor, and she also knew Shane would never see her there.

“Looks fine. Come on, now, let me help you.”

“Thanks Tom. You’re very kind.”

“It’s the least I can do,” Angus smirked.

Angus escorted Annie across the street and held the door for her when they arrived at the Surf Club. The cool blast of air conditioning produced a wave of goosebumps on Annie’s skin. The restaurant was still busy from the summer lunch crowd, but they found a table for two in the corner near the window. Angus held her chair as she sat. Quite the charming gentleman Annie thought.

“So, what brings you to Provincetown?” Annie asked.

“Just a weekend holiday. Plus, there’s a friend of mine over here I haven’t seen in a while.”

“Oh, a friend. I understand.”

“Ah, I know what you’re thinking. It’s not like that. He’s just a business associate. Anyway, if I were gay and in Provincetown for the weekend, why would I be buying a pretty lady like you a drink?”

“Good point,” Annie said blushing.

A waiter appeared at the table. “Hi, welcome to the Surf Club. My name’s Adam, I’ll be your server. Can I get you started with drinks?”

“I’ll have a Grey Goose martini with a twist.” Angus replied confidently.

“Fabulous, and for the lady?”

“That sounds good. I’ll have the same.”

“OK, can I see some ID please?”

Embarrassed, Annie retrieved her driver’s license from the back pocket of her shorts.

“Perfect,” said Adam, first scrutinizing then handing Annie back her license “I’ll get those two Grey Goose martinis right up for you.”

“Thank you very much,” Angus turned his gaze back to Annie. “Now what’s this about a murder?”

“Oh, it’s awful. My supervisor at work was found murdered yesterday. It looks like she was strangled, then thrown in the ocean from a boat. I actually found her and helped drag her on board. I didn’t know it was her at first, she was so bloated.”

Angus feigned compassion. “That’s terrible. Do the police have any idea who did it?”

“Her girlfriend’s been arrested and I bet they’ll charge her with the murder. I didn’t think she did it at first, but she’s just gone nuts since Linda died. She tried to kill herself this morning. That’s what that cop was talking about.”

“Sounds like she couldn’t live with the guilt.”

Annie thought about this for a moment, then replied, “No, I guess she couldn’t.”

“Here are your martinis.” The waiter placed the drinks on the table. “Can I get you two anything else?”

Angus looked across the table at Annie, who was staring blankly out the window. “No. That’s all.”

“OK, enjoy.”

“Here’s to old friends and new friendships.” Angus offered.

They clinked glasses.

“Oh, that’s strong,” Annie said with an exhale.

“But smooth. So tell me Annie, what do you think happened? Was it a lover’s quarrel that got out of hand?”

“I don’t know. Linda’s office was ransacked that night. I talked to the Chief of Police here, and he thought it looked like a break in at first.”

“Maybe the girlfriend, what’s her name?”

“Mary Ellen,” Annie replied as she took another sip.

“Maybe Mary Ellen wanted it to look that way to cover her tracks. Besides, what would anyone want from her office? Was there money there or something?”

“Oh no. No money. We work at a whale research program. Money’s the last thing we’d have lying around. Linda and I were working on a project that could stop oil and gas drilling on Stellwagen Bank, just offshore of Provincetown.”

Angus was intrigued by her words. “Interesting. How would you stop it?”

“Well, the area around Stellwagen Bank is the primary feeding ground for many species of whales, including the North Atlantic Right Whale. They’re the most endangered whale in the world. The best we can estimate, their total population is between three and four hundred in the world.”

“That’s all?”

“Yeah, that’s it. So anything that can be done to save their feeding habitat is crucial for the survival of the whole species.”

“How does this affect oil and gas exploration?” Angus realized that he was getting exactly the information he wanted from her.

“Stellwagen Bank is a shallow area of water. The construction and ships that would be needed for exploration there would pretty much guarantee fatal collisions with whales. Every right whale that gets killed just brings the entire species closer to extinction. The Endangered Species Act says that you can’t knowingly disturb or threaten any endangered animal.”

Angus decided to play dumb to see how much Annie knew. So far, it seemed like she knew quite a lot.

“Is there that much oil out there to make it profitable?”

“There probably is. The Canadians are already drilling for natural gas off of Nova Scotia. Apparently, there’s enough there that they’re building new drilling rigs.”

“Well, Annie. This is all very interesting. I see you’ve finished your drink, would you like another?”

“No, thanks, I really should get going. I haven’t been home since yesterday and I need to talk to the chief about Linda’s murder. You know, now that I’ve been talking to you, I really don’t think that Mary Ellen killed her.”

“You don’t?” Angus asked with some alarm.

“No. I think whoever killed Linda wanted to stop this report from being filed. She was supposed to go to Washington, D.C. in a few weeks to present the findings to the EPA. We were hoping that they would enact a permanent ban on oil and gas exploration in the entire Gulf of Maine.”

Angus could feel his palms begin to sweat. “So you’re suggesting some kind of conspiracy with the oil companies? Come on, now. You can’t be serious.”

“Exactly. That’s exactly it. I just have to find a way to prove it now. Oh, thanks Tom. Thanks for everything. I’ve got to go find Chief Souza.”

“With your knee like that? Let me call my friend and he can give you a ride. He needs to pick me up anyway.”

“Oh, thanks, but I’m OK, really.”

When Annie stood, her feet felt a little unsteady on account of the martini and her injured knee.

Angus left $25 on the table to cover the two drinks. He followed her to the door, thinking of a way that he could capture her without causing a scene. He felt a twinge of guilt. She seems like a nice, if naïve, girl, he thought. It’s a shame really, but she needs to be silenced too.

Annie stepped out into the brightness and heat of the midday August sun. As she did, she saw Juicy Freeman running by with a large backpack and a ten-foot aluminum pole.

“Juicy, what’s going on?”

“Hey, Annie mon. We lookin’ fo’ you. Bruce say there’s a whale stuck in fishing nets off Truro. We’re headin’ out now. You comin?”

Annie had been out on a few whale entanglement rescues this summer. There had been many others, but Linda Hanscomb and Bruce Waters were on the first response team. Now without Linda, they were shorthanded.

Without hesitation, she answered, “Yeah, Juicy. I’m coming. Tell Bruce I’ll be there in a minute.” Turning to Angus she said, “Well Tom, that’s what I’m here to do. It’s what Linda would want. Thanks for the drink, but I’ve got to go.”

The smell of citrus and vodka hung in the air as she kissed him lightly on the cheek. Angus was speechless. He was not used to affection, especially from someone he was planning to kill.

“Right, well, um, good luck then.”

“Thanks Tom, I’ll see you around. If not, enjoy your weekend.”

“I’m sure I’ll see you again,” Angus muttered as he watched Annie hobble as quickly as she could down MacMillan Wharf to the Whale Center’s rescue boat. “Sooner than you might think.”

Read it from the beginning:
Table of Contents