Page 97 of Lost Hours
“This might be a long shot,” he said, “but our team shoots at Gunner’s Haven to keep our firing skills up.”
Where was he going with this? She looked up at him. “And?”
“Has Osborne ever mentioned going there? If so, we could get information about the type of gun he likes to shoot. Maybe it’s chambered for the same caliber as the bullet that killed the mayor.”
Mina thought back to her conversations with the doctor. “He’s never mentioned shooting at all. In fact, he seems adverse to weapons of any kind. But I can call them.”
“Got their phone number for you,” Hayden said, working at lightning speed. He shared it.
Mina dialed and half hoped no one would answer.
No such luck.
“Gunner’s Haven,” the man said.
“This is Sheriff Park.” She steeled her brain to think of this as a lead like any other lead in the investigation. “I’d like to speak to someone who knows about your membership list or regular customers.”
“I’m the manager,” the man said. “Roger Springer. I can help you.”
She swallowed and forged ahead. “I’m hoping to learn whether Dr. Lawrence Osborne from Seaside Harbor is on your membership role or if he’s a regular shooter.”
“Oh, Larry, yeah,” he said fondly. “He’s a regular all right. Been a member here for years. I always found it interesting that a man who served as a medical examiner wouldn’t be anti-gun. But he’s a real enthusiast and comes in often.”
Mina’s heart sank. Could he really be their killer? It was seeming more and more like it. “Does he have a favorite weapon?”
“Say.” His tone rose. “What’s this about, anyway?”
“Just following up on a few outstanding items,” she said, trying hard to sound off-hand when her gut was as tight as a pair of handcuffs. “Do you think he has a favorite weapon?”
“Hmm.” Silence followed. “I guess I’d have to say he fires his Glock 9mm more often than anything, but he really loves his HK MP5.”
“So a submachine gun. And the ammo he uses for that? Anything special?” She held her breath and hoped he didn’t mention copper-jacketed bullets like the one found at Becca’s house.
“His go to is +P ammo, but it’s a bit more expensive, and he doesn’t waste his money on exclusively firing those here at the range.”
“Doesn’t the ammo change the way the weapon fires?” she asked.
“Yeah, but knowledgeable shooters like Larry will shoot primarily the less expensive ammo to familiarize themselves with their weapon. To get a track on where the firearm is shooting and its general ‘feel’. In other words ‘sight in’. Then they close their shooting session with several rounds of the higher pressure ammo to ensure they have the feel and sight of the better rounds.”
“So in other words, he would do both.” She thought for a moment. “Any way we can retrieve the bullets fired or casings ejected from his weapons?”
“There might be some in the trap from his last time here, but they’d be mixed in with others. No way I could tell you which ones came from his weapon.”
She figured that was what he would say, but she still had to ask. “Do you know when he was there last? And did he bring his MP5?”
“Well, let’s see. Yeah. Yeah. The last time he was here, he fired the MP5, but which day? I dunno. Last week though. I’m sure of that. If it’s important, I can go back through the records and see when he signed in.”
“I’ll let you know if we need the information. Thank you for your help.” Mina hung up and reluctantly shared the results of her call. “With that additional information, I have no choice but to consider Dr. Osborne a suspect in the murder of Mayor Sutton and the abduction of his daughter.”
“I’m sorry, Mina,” Nolan said. “I know you care for him and have worked with him for some time. It’s got to be hard to think he could be behind any of this.”
She lifted her shoulders, trying to make it seem like this wasn’t a big deal to her, but it was. She never imagined someone she respected so highly could possibly do something like this.
She turned to El. “Call Abe. Share our details with him and have him get an emergency warrant to search Dr. Osborne’s house and cabin. Until they come in, I want you and Ewing to watch his place. Nolan and I’ll take the cabin. No one moves in until we have eyes on him.”
“Do you honestly think he’s our killer?” El asked. “I know several factors point to him as being our prime suspect, but still, he’s a respected member of the community. A member of our crime-fighting team. So he could very well be innocent.”
“As Nolan said, so could Knox Anderson, and he’s behind bars.” Mina rested her hands on her hips. “We can’t treat Dr. Osborne any differently.”
