The Last Mile (Amos Decker 2)

When he hit the fifth result, Decker found something that made him focus totally on the screen. It was an obituary of Nathan Bedford Ryan of Cain, Mississippi, who “left this life” on March 2, 1999.

He had been involved in local politics for thirty-seven years, rising to assistant mayor. He had actually died at his desk from a heart attack. That meant he had been on the job when he had bailed out Charles Montgomery, if it was indeed the same Nathan Ryan, and Decker felt sure it was.

He looked at the bail report again. The name listed was Nathan B. Ryan.

The name on the obituary was Nathan Bedford Ryan, probably after the Confederate general, Nathan Bedford Forrest.

As Decker continued reading through the obituary he stopped on one sentence:

“The deceased had been one of the first on the scene of the church bombing that had killed fifteen people.”

So that’s why Decker’s addition of the word “bombing” had brought this up.

Thank you, Google.

The articles he had read on the church bombing did not list any survivors. So Decker wasn’t sure what, if anything, Ryan had done when he’d arrived on the scene. Perhaps he had just been able to help retrieve bodies.

There was a grainy picture of Ryan. He was obviously white. Thus De

cker wondered why Ryan had been so close to a black church that he had been one of the first on the scene. He imagined that in 1968, Cain would have been heavily segregated.

So Ryan had posted bail for Montgomery.

Ryan worked in the mayor’s office.

Ryan was one of the first on the scene of the bombing.

And five hundred bucks for an assistant mayor in Cain in 1968 was not small change. And thus Decker wondered if the source of the funds had actually come from someone else.

These events had happened nearly fifty years ago. If Decker traveled to these places, would anyone still be around to talk to him about it?

He rose and went in search of Bogart.

After giving the FBI agent a thumbnail sketch of what he’d found, Bogart said, “What do you propose doing?”

“I propose going to wherever we need to go to solve this,” replied Decker.

CHAPTER

56

DECKER, BOGART, JAMISON, and Mars took a turboprop to Dallas and then a nonstop flight to Memphis. From there they were going to drive on to Cain in Mississippi. They had left Milligan back in Texas to oversee the search for Davenport and work with the other federal agents on the attack at the Marses’ old house. Oliver had some casework to finish up and was to join them later.

The drive to Cain took nearly three hours. They had to drive through Tupelo to get there.

“Birthplace of Elvis,” said Jamison when they passed the sign for Tupelo.

Bogart looked out the window and said dully, “At least it’s not raining.”

When they reached Cain, they drove directly to a police station. Bogart had called ahead, and a middle-aged woman from administration who introduced herself as Wanda Pierce was waiting for them. Pierce was dressed in slacks and a dark green blouse and also wore a nervous expression. She led them to a small conference room with a scarred table and banged-up chairs. The walls were cinderblock painted yellow.

They all sat.

“We don’t get, um, many visits from the FBI,” began Pierce awkwardly.

Bogart said, “We appreciate your taking the time to meet with us.”

Decker said, “Can you tell us more about Nathan Ryan?”

She nodded and opened a file she had carried in. “I’ve lived in Cain all my life, and know some of the Ryans. But when Agent Bogart contacted the department I looked Ryan up to get some more details. He worked in the local government here for a long time. He died at his desk from a heart attack. This was nearly twenty years ago.”

“He was the assistant mayor?” said Bogart.

“That’s right.” She looked at Mars. “Wait a minute, aren’t you—?”

“He is,” said Decker impatiently. “Who was the mayor at the time?”

“I thought you were interested in the assistant mayor,” replied Pierce.

“I was. Now I’m interested in the mayor.”

“Why?”

“Because in my experience assistant mayors never do anything without their bosses telling them they can. In this case bail out a drunk named Charles Montgomery.”

“Oh, well, the mayor at the time went on to become a congressman.”

“His name?”

“Thurman Huey.”

Bogart said immediately, “I know that name.”

Pierce nodded. “Mr. Huey is the son of Travis Huey, who was a governor of the state and then went on to the United States Senate in the 1950s and had a very distinguished career.”

Bogart said, “And Thurman Huey isn’t just a ‘congressman.’ He’s the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. Arguably the most powerful committee in Congress.”

“Because it controls the federal government’s purse strings,” added Jamison.

“Yes,” said Pierce. “And it’s rumored that he might be the next Speaker of the House. That would put him number two in line to the presidency,” she added proudly.

“And Thurman grew up here in Cain?”

“Born and raised. The Hueys are political royalty in Mississippi. And they’ve taken good care of us.”

Decker said, “Meaning you get your full share of pork from Washington.”

“Meaning we get our fair share,” Pierce replied stiffly.

“And how old is he now?” asked Decker.

“I believe he’s in his early seventies.”

“So in 1968 he would have still been in his twenties?”

“I suppose so, yes.”

“And he was already the mayor?”

“Well, his father was a real powerhouse. When his son decided to run, I think it was a foregone conclusion that Thurman would win election. No one was going to buck the old man. His political machine was too strong. Thurman could have won election solely on the Huey name.”

“About the church bombing?” began Decker, switching gears. “Agent Bogart told you we were interested in that too.”

“Yes, the Second Freeman’s Baptist Church,” said Pierce. “But I don’t understand the connection between this Charles Montgomery person having bail posted by Mr. Ryan and the bombing.”

“Join the club,” said Decker. “What can you tell us about the bombing?”

“I wasn’t even born when it happened, but it was one of the most horrible events ever to take place here. Fifteen people, including small children, died. The girls were in the youth choir. I think of them singing their hearts out and then that bomb going off. So terrible.”

“And they never caught who did it?”

“No, they never did.”

“Did they ever have any suspects?” asked Bogart.

“I took a look at the files after Agent Bogart made his inquiry. This Montgomery person was never mentioned, if that’s what you want to know.”

“Anyone else?”

“Well, the KKK was around back then. Threats had been made. Other places in the South had been bombed, including that church in Birmingham in 1963. It was right at the height of the civil rights