David Baldacci - The Last Mile

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 movements. Lots of bad things were happening. Hell, there were so many explosions in Birmingham they started calling the place ‘Bombingham.’”

“How was the bombing here accomplished?” asked Decker.

“Dynamite.”

“And no one saw anyone place the explosives?” asked Jamison.

“Apparently not.”

Decker said, “In the information your office earlier provided to Agent Bogart it was said that the church was actually under police surveillance because of threats made against the church pastor, who had marched with Martin Luther King Jr. on numerous occasions. And the pastor had also joined in a lawsuit against the city of Cain and the state of Mississippi for discriminatory acts under the Civil Rights Act.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Decker said, “So how could someone plant a bomb large enough to blow up a church and kill fifteen people when the police were watching the place and no one sees them?”

Pierce simply shook her head. “That’s anyone’s guess.”

“We need more than a guess,” replied Decker.

“But it was so long ago, I don’t see how you can find a definitive answer now.”

“Well, in the Birmingham case they finally prosecuted some of the men for the crime many years after the fact. So maybe we can do the same here. Can you tell us about Thurman’s father, Travis Huey?”

“What about him?”

“His politics.”

“He was a good man. Did right by the state.”

“I meant what was his position on the Civil Rights Act?”

Pierce frowned. “I have no way of knowing that.”

“I would assume if he was governor and then the U.S. senator from Mississippi during the 1950s and beyond that his politics leaned more toward George Wallace than Hubert Humphrey?”

“I really couldn’t say. I never knew him.”

“But assuredly there must have been histories written about such a prominent man.”

“Look, if you’re asking whether Mr. Huey was a racist, I will just say that, based on my limited knowledge, he was a man of his time. And a states’ rights man.”

Decker said, “Does his son share those views?”

“This is not the 1950s,” replied Pierce.

“The problem is not everyone seems aware of that,” said Decker.

“If you want to know about Thurman Huey’s beliefs, I suggest you take it up directly with him.”

“In Mr. Montgomery’s arrest record, only part of which we’ve seen, does it note where he was arrested?”

Pierce looked down at the file and sifted through a few pages. “Yes, it does.”

“And how close was that location to the church?”

She seemed to stiffen, as though she had finally connected the dots in her mind. “Um, well, it actually seems that it was only a few blocks away from the church.”

“And is it possible that the officers who were guarding the church were also the ones pursuing and then arresting Mr. Montgomery?”

“I have no way to determine that.”

“You have the arrest report and the officers’ names were surely on it.”

“Yes, but I don’t think there’s any way to determine which officers were watching the church at that time.”

“But it’s possible that they were one and the same?”

“Anything is possible,” she replied sharply.

“And what was the explanation given at the time as to how the bomb was planted and detonated while the church was supposedly under police protection?”

“I’m not sure any explanation was ever given, because no arrests were made. It seemed that folks assumed whoever did it slipped past the officers somehow.”

“And the officers’ testimony regarding their whereabouts at the time?”

“There was nothing in the file about that.”

“But if they did pursue Montgomery and arrest him, that means the church would have been left unguarded, correct?”