Page 66 of Hidden Hero

Jeremy and Pete retreated to their vehicle as Jed typed on his phone. Once inside, Jeremy adjusted the sideview mirror to keep an eye on Jed’s car as it eased onto the road behind them.

Pete broke the silence first. “He’s awfully cooperative, don’t you think?”

Jeremy frowned, his gaze fixed on the road ahead. “Too cooperative. Either he’s innocent or thinks he’s clever enough to pull something over on us.”

Pete grunted in agreement. “We’ll see how clever he is once we start asking the hard questions.”

They arrived at the sheriff’s department and escorted Jed into a conference room. They indicated the chair for Jed to take while Jeremy and Pete positioned themselves on the other side of the table.

Jeremy slid a recorder onto the table. “We’ll ask you a few questions, and this session will be recorded.”

Jed’s expression brightened, his enthusiasm almost unnerving. “Exciting! I’ve never been interviewed by the police before, but I’ve seen plenty of cop shows.”

Jeremy kept his face neutral, masking his unease at Jed’s enthusiasm. “We understand your mother used to provide transportation for the elderly in the community—to appointments, bingo, meetings?—”

Jed cut in with a grin. “And grocery shopping! She loved helping out.”

Pete’s expression didn’t change. “And when she stopped, you took over?”

Jed nodded solemnly. “My mother has always been selfless. After she retired from the law office, she wanted to give back to the community. But as her eyesight worsened, she worried about driving others even though she was still perfectly fine behind the wheel for herself. I stepped in so her friends wouldn’t be left in a bind.”

Jeremy leaned forward slightly, his voice steady. “Before last year, did you drive anyone else in the community?”

Jed hesitated, his smile dimming slightly. “No, I didn’t. I feel bad about that now, but it’s never too late to start doing the Lord’s work.”

Pete seized on the phrase. “The Lord’s work?”

Jed straightened in his chair. “Helping those in need. I’m able-bodied, have a job that allows me to pay my bills and be comfortable, and had parents who taught me to do the right thing. I helped my father when he went into hospice and died two years ago. And now, even though my mother is fairly independent, I try to spend as much time with her as possible.”

Jeremy tapped a pen against the table. “We have your permanent address listed as Norfolk. Is that correct?”

“Yes, I have an apartment there. I work shifts at the docks, which gives me weekdays off to come over here and help out.”

Pete’s voice hardened slightly. “Do you ever receive payments for these services?”

Jed’s eyes widened. “Payments? Never! These people live on limited incomes. It wouldn’t feel right to take anything from them. A few of them have tried to press five or ten dollars in my hand to pay for gas, and I have refused it every time. My pastor always said that we shouldn’t profit from helping others.”

Jed’s eyes continued to bounce between Pete and Jeremy as they continued their questions. “What do you do at the docks?” Pete asked.

“I work for facilities maintenance. I work shifts, often the evening shift of three to eleven. That means I start at three in the afternoon and get off at eleven at night.” He shrugged and smiled.

Jeremy nodded. “And what does your job entail?”

“Cleaning. I have two buildings I work in mostly. One is the Employee Management building. The next one is where the company offices are located. I like the Employee building the best. I have the ship workers to talk to when they come in for breaks or their locker rooms.”

“So you spend several mornings on the Shore with your mother and drive others when they have called her. Then she keeps a list of who she transported.” When Jed nodded, Jeremy pushed a sheet of paper across the table. “Is this list up to date?”

Jed scanned the sheet. “Yes, this looks right. I don’t bother keeping track of who I transport. I never saw a reason, to be honest. But my mother was so used to keeping records that she continues to do so. She’s the one they call, and she keeps the schedule.”

“So if someone called you directly, you would tell your mom so she could put it on the list?”

“I don’t give out my number so someone can call me directly. With my full-time job, my boss doesn’t like us to receive calls or texts during our working hours. So my mom lets them call her, and then she’ll tell me. She also has my work schedule, knows when I’ll be over on the Shore, and can let them know if I’m unavailable.”

Jeremy smiled. “It sounds like your mom is a good secretary for you.”

Jed chuckled while nodding with enthusiasm. “My mom is wonderful. I know what she’s doing is a huge help to some of these people. And by allowing me to assist, I feel good about myself, too.”

Jeremy’s tone was conversational but probing. “A few people on this list have passed away recently—Helen McCarthy, Robert Stewart, Henry Miller, and Fred Rudolph.”

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