Читать книгу Jewels On Tiger Island - Catherine Pickren - Страница 10

Nassau County, Florida Sheriff’s Department

The sheriff and sergeant in the skiff, followed by John’s boat, arrived at the Fernandina Beach city dock around six o’clock that Sunday. John, Mary, Lucy, Logan, and Prince piled into the sheriff’s car and were immediately driven to the Sheriff’s Office.

At the Sheriff’s Office, located in Yulee, Florida about eleven miles from Fernandina Beach in Nassau County, Sergeant Joe Haddock, who constantly blew smoke-rings from a pack of unfiltered Camels, quizzed John, Mary, Lucy, and Logan individually. Prince found a cool place to lie down in the waiting area. John went first for the inquisition, followed by Mary, Lucy, and Logan, respectively. Each of them gave verbal and written statements in a small room with no windows. A long worn-out fold-up table containing two ashtrays full of cigarette butts, and four fold-up chairs were situated haphazardly around the table. The three of them were asked the same questions. Why were they on the island? What did they do while on the island? How did they discover the buried body? Their answers were the same, and after about forty minutes or so with each of them, Sergeant Haddock seemed satisfied that they were telling the truth. Sergeant Haddock told them all to sit in the waiting area while he talked to the Sheriff.

Sergeant Haddock went inside the sheriff’s office without knocking, and closed the door behind him. Moments later, both Sheriff Earl Benson and Sergeant Haddock came out together.

The Sheriff spoke in an authoritative and gruff manner. “At the moment, you are not suspects, but I hope that none of you will discuss this with anyone. We wouldn’t want to get things spread that there is a killer somewhere in Nassau County who is preying on young women. Anyhow, the press will get the word out on what was found soon enough. You probably will be sought by the press for information, but all of you have to promise me, for your own protection, as well as for finding justice for that poor woman, that you will not make any statements or have anything “leak-out” that could prevent them from solving this murder. Is this an agreement?”

Reality was starting to set in, and all four of them knew that what the sheriff said made sense. They agreed they would not talk to anyone, other than themselves, about what they discovered on Tiger Island, Florida.

It was around eleven o’clock that evening when the four of them, and Prince, got back to Fernandina Beach. Needless to say, they were totally exhausted and shaken up by their experience. The Sheriff’s Office had everyone’s cell phone numbers, as well as their home phone numbers and contact information, so they promised them that they would call them if anything developed, or if they needed any additional information.