One Damn Fine Truck

That expression? It gave her a feeling that he knew something, although she could not see how.

Worried, Sarah knew she had to act, and she had to do it herself.

What was it that Dennis had told her? Open the valve to the pizza oven, there was a hoist sump inside Darin's shop that would fill with the Propane gas. Plus Darin's shop was well insulated and tight, over several hours it should fill nicely.

Then turn on the igniter, when Darin switched on the power into his shop like he did every morning, it would set off the gas.

She knew he always turned off the power at the main switch to save money, that was his flaw, he was so damned cheap.

She knew Darin had refilled his Propane tank, but it was a much later than he had told her? She knew that because she had snooped and seen the invoice.

That meant he somehow knew, and that also meant she had no other choice now.

She drove down to the shop that Sunday, went inside and checked on the switch to the pizza oven. That would create continuous sparks to keep the oven lit when the power was on.

She made sure it was off.

Then she opened the valve to the oven, and quickly left and went home.

Just like she thought, Darin was still asleep when she slipped back inside the house.

That night in bed, Darin reached for her. Sarah willingly responded, knowing it would be the last time.

It was so good, she very nearly changed her mind.

+++

"Come outside and give me a hand, honey? I need to tow the trailer down to the shop so I can work on it." Darin called out to her.

It was a full hour earlier than normal, Sarah was still sleepy. But she got out of bed to help him.

"OK." Sarah pulled her bathrobe tightly around herself and went out there.

Still in the fog of sleep, and her body still feeling good from the lovemaking of the night before, Sarah did not suspect a thing.

+++

Darin went in to his shop later that same day, he had no plans to do any work at all but he couldn't sit at home and think.

What Sarah had looked like lying there all bloody like that was bothering him even though it had all worked out exactly as he had planned.

Still, he found himself drifting from complete anger at her and that Dennis son of a bitch, and the way she was during the fine times.

The vision of her lying there on the ground just would not leave him. His eyes filled with tears at the thought, but he managed to shake that off.

It was over.

He hopped into the Mazda and drove down to his shop. Sitting in his office, answering phones would take his mind off things.

Darin didn't even notice the white unmarked car that followed him, it parked down the street half a block.

The detective watched as Darin went to the front door and unlocked it. The office lights came on, then through the window he saw Darin go into the rear of the building.

"How in the hell can this silly bastard go to work like everything is normal when his wife was just killed in an accident?" The detective thought, reaching for his notepad to write down the time.

The building exploded with a thunderous roar, glass and debris showered down all over the street, some even landing on his car.

"Jesus Christ!" The detective exclaimed.

+++

The two men sat in the Chief's office down at the station.

"Yea, we can close this one. It is obvious what happened here, when they found the camera in that Darin's guy's truck that pretty much explained it."

"Why did it take so long to find it?" The chief asked.

"The guy was pretty good, the thing looked like it was part of the vehicle, it wasn't until one of the techs found that extra wire from the spare battery that they traced it."

"I can't believe the stupid bastard actually got himself on video, he must have had his head in his ass." One of the detectives muttered.

"Criminals do stupid things, but this one takes the cake." The other one said.

"So you are telling me we have a case of homicide, and these two did each other in?"

"Yep, Chief, that's about it."

"That means it probably was that Darin guy that put the first jerk over the bank, right?"

"Yea, that's what we figure. Even that is on the damn video, except it is all out the back and side window."

"Crazy shit, just crazy. Hey, when is the auction?"

"You mean for the truck? Next Friday, why?" The detective asked.

"That's a damn nice truck." The Chief grinned.

The detective frowned at that comment.

Yea, that was a damn nice truck, he was thinking of bidding on it himself.

Oh, well. He would just have to see how that went.