Murder By Misdirection

by Debra Snow

  “That could take hours!” Max whined.

  “Up to forty-eight hours, Mister Martin. But that is what happens when you are found at a crime scene with a possible murder weapon in your hand. End interview.”

  Pro dutifully hit the button to end the recording of the session.

  “See,” Elisha said to her daughter. “Your father had nothing to do with that man’s murder.”

  “Mom, Max’s job is deceiving people. He could be lying right now,” Pro said, as she pressed the button, which set off the buzzer as Chu and Mark Jeffries left the room.

  “I can’t believe you’re saying that about your father.”

  “Albert Floss stole his big illusion? I have known people to kill for a lot less,” Pro said, and headed to her desk. “Now you should leave, and I’ll call you when Max is released—if he’s released.”

  Elisha looked troubled. “I didn’t know you still had so many resentments towards your father.”

  “Toward the man who abandoned me?” Pro said and turned to her computer, ignoring her mother. “Yeah, quite a few.”

  Chu was talking to Mark. “We have to keep him in holding until we get the forensic report and see what the DA says.”

  “I understand,” Mark replied. “I’ll contact the DA as well.”

  As they spoke, a uniformed officer opened the door from the outside and brought Max out, cuffing his hands behind him.

  Chu turned to face Max. “Mister Martin, we are putting you in a holding cell by yourself. Please do not attempt any more escapes, or I’ll lock you in your cell naked like Houdini.”

  This made Max smile. “Detective, I am surprised you know that Houdini did his prison escapes like that.”

  Chu didn’t smile. “I’ve been partnering with a woman who knows a lot about magic and I finally know why. We can handle things much faster if you don’t pull any tricks. Do we have an understanding?”

  “Of course, detective.”

  Elisha rose. “Pro will call me when you’re released, and I will come by for you, Max.”

  “Great,” Max said as he was led out of the room. “Thanks, Pro.”

  Pro shook her head and looked at the report on the screen she had to fill out. “This is going to be a long day.”

  4. Passe-Passe

  Hours later, Pro and Tom returned to the precinct from another call they’d received—a robbery gone wrong at a bodega a few blocks away. The owner defended himself with his legal firearm, and the robber, a shaky drug addict with an illegal pistol, ended up dead.

  “I guess it’s better that the perp got shot instead of the owner,” Pro sighed as she walked into the bullpen.

  Chu nodded. “Uniforms confiscated the owner’s firearm until all the evidence is finalized. It helps that he had a working camera pointed at the cash register.”

  “At least Mister Paulo could keep his business open,” Pro said, referring to the owner by name. “He was shaken up pretty bad. The last thing he needed was to be thrown into holding.”

  As they walked up the stairs, they saw a crowd around the processing desk where suspects went to turn in their belongings before being locked into holding. Pro and Chu heard laughter and applause.

  “What the hell is going on?” Pro said as they approached.

  “I have no idea,” Chu responded. “You find out. I’m going to get the report started.”

  Chu headed for the bullpen as Pro got closer. A circle of policemen and women had formed, and in the middle, taller than those around him, was Max. He wore his black velvet coat again and looked every bit the magician. He manipulated what appeared to be a large copper penny, only it was the size of a silver dollar. The collection of cops looked on in amazement.

  “Of course, all you have to do is keep your eye on it,” Max said as he appeared to grasp the coin with his right hand and hold it aloft. “No, I said watch it!” he chided, as he showed the right hand empty and the coin stood up at the tips of his left fingers.

  “See, if you watch, you’ll know it goes right here,” Max explained, and he appeared to palm the coin as he placed it back into his left hand.

  “No, it’s in your right,” a young woman in uniform said. She was a short African-American woman, who wore bright-red lipstick and worked traffic. She pointed at Max’s right hand.

  “See, you don’t trust me,” Max chuckled as he showed the right hand empty and opened his left fist to expose that the coin truly had been in there. He grabbed the shiny object with his right hand and held it out for the woman who had spoken. “You can look at it if you want,” he said and opened his hand, but the coin was gone.

  This drew laughs from the crowd and one officer muttered, “Damn!”

  “But, it’s actually right here behind my knee,” Max pointed out, as he leaned forward to retrieve the coin from behind his leg. “It would help if it were bigger.” With that, the dollar-sized coin was gone, instantly replaced by a much larger shiny coin, the size of a beverage coaster. The large penny appeared to be far too big for him to even hold in his hands, and the assembled officers clapped and cheered.

  Max bowed his head, held the large penny high, and said, “If I was truly a magician, I would vanish this!” As if on command, there was a flash of fire in his hand and the coin had disappeared.

  “What’s going on?” Pro bellowed over the noise and applause. “Why isn’t my suspect in holding?”

  The man behind the desk had been laughing along with everyone else. He became instantly serious. “Sorry, detective, word came down to release him. We returned him his possessions, and one of the guys recognized him from TV.”

  The woman officer drew close to Max and smiled. “I thought seeing you on television was amazing, but, wow, right here in front of us, I can’t believe it.” She pulled out a piece of paper that had a phone number scrawled on it. “I like what you do with your hands. Maybe you could give me a private show.”

  Max smiled a winning smile. “I would be delighted.”

  “Oh!” Pro snarled, and moved between them. “Go back to your duties, officer. This man is old enough to be your grandfather.”

  With a sultry glance at Max, she moved away, as he took a look at the number in his hand.

  Pro grabbed his arm and pulled him down the hall. “I can’t believe you…”

  “Hey, I’m single,” Max defended.

  They moved to a corner of the room as she hissed, “And you are embarrassing me.”

  “I saw no harm in entertaining the officers,” Max responded. “And that girl—Trudy, her name badge said—”

  Pro grabbed the paper from his hand, crumpled it, and threw it away. “For God’s sake, you were making goo-goo eyes at Mom this morning—”

  Max smiled. “Your mother is a fine-looking woman.”

  “And you are a bigger pig than I ever realized.”

  “She gave the number to me. I didn’t ask for it,” Max assured with a shrug. “Also, crumpling it up didn’t help. You know I can memorize almost anything with one look.”

  Pro fumed. “If you phone that officer, I swear—”

  Max put his hands up defensively. “I have no intention of calling her. You need to calm down.”

  “Calm down!” Pro shrieked, and then glanced about and lowered her voice to a whisper. “Since you showed up, my life has been turned upside down.”

  “I’m sorry, Prophecy.”

  “Pro!” she argued. “Call me Pro, dammit.”

  “Honey, I was released on my own recognizance, but I have to turn in my passport by tomorrow.”

  “Uncle Mark did his voodoo?”

  “And the evidence backed up my story. But it’s nice to hear you call him ‘Uncle Mark.’”

  “It was a slip of the tongue,” Pro muttered.

  “I’m just waiting for your mother. I promised to take her out to dinner.”

  Pro stopped dead. “What?”

  “It’s the least I can do for her having to leave her office and come over here,” Max said breez
ily. “What’s good in the area? It’s been a long time since I was in New York.”

  Pro’s mouth opened and closed like a fish, and she gave herself a quick shake. “This better not be a date.”

  Max smiled broadly. “It’s two old friends having dinner. Plus, as a responsible parent, I want to talk to your mother about the career path you’ve chosen.”

  Pro stared at him. “You want to…what?”

  “Well, homicide,” Max frowned. “I don’t know if it’s the best choice. I want to talk to your mother about some ideas I have that could fast track you to becoming a lieutenant. Did you know that the mayor is an old friend of mine—”

  Pro held up her hand and slowly balled it into a fist as she struggled to regain control. “Max, you need to stay out of my life.”

  “But, pumpkin—”

  “Don’t call me that,” she spat. “And stay away from my mother! She’s been vulnerable ever since Dad died, and I don’t want you taking advantage of her.”

  “Stepdad,” Max corrected.

  “The dad that didn’t try to mess up my life, how’s that?” Pro announced triumphantly. “Now, you’ve been released. Do me a favor and leave.”

  For a moment, Max’s eyes appeared wet as he looked into her blue eyes the same shade as his own. “If that’s what you want, Pro,” he muttered sadly.

  “Yes, that’s what I want,” she grunted. Then she turned, fully intending to walk away.

  Coming down the hallway was a woman walking with a familiar gait. It took Pro a moment to realize it was her mother. She wasn’t sure how she’d filled her day, but Pro realized it must have been spent getting a makeover. Her hair was set in a new style, her makeup, something Elisha always prided herself on, was now flawless. She wore a black dress that hung on each curve as if it had been painted on, and a black wrap with red roses embroidered on it lay on her shoulders.

  Pro stopped and her mouth fell open. She glanced back at Max to see him wearing the same open-mouthed expression, and noted that her mother’s eyes never even went to her but were focused on Max like a laser.

  Elisha strode past her daughter, who noticed that the older woman had given up her comfortable shoes and was wearing heels that made her an even more imposing figure.

  Max moved to her without hesitation. “My God, ‘Lisha, you are astounding.”

  “Flatterer,” she said as she took a quick spin to show off what had to be a new dress.

  “No, I mean it. You looked great this morning, but now! I cannot find words to describe you.”

  “The mouth falling open did it for me. ‘Bout time someone made you do that instead of the other way around,” Elisha said, and for the first time noticed Pro. “Oh, hi, honey.”

  Pro did her fish impression a second time as she tried to wrap her brain around her mother’s transformation. “Mom…?” she finally blurted.

  “Shall we go?” Max said, taking the opportunity to head out.

  “We should. Remember Patsy’s?”

  Max looked at her with glee. “Do I ever!”

  “It’s still there, and I made us a reservation,” Elisha suggested.

  As they walked past Pro, her mother gave a wave and said, “See you later, honey.”

  Pro watched her parents as they headed for the stairs and shook her head in disbelief.

  “They make a handsome couple,” Tom Chu said, suddenly at her side.

  Pro turned to him with fury in her eyes. “Don’t go there,” she groaned, as she made her way back to her desk.

  5. Professor's Nightmare

  Early the next morning, with two cups of designer coffee in her hands, Pro got off the elevator near her mother’s apartment. She had grown up in the simple West End Avenue abode and could recall playing up and down the hallways as a child.

  When her mother married Joe, he had moved in with them and it had been just the three of them. Although Elisha had been disappointed that her marriage to her second husband had been childless.

  Nevertheless, Joe threw himself into raising Pro like she was his own and adored her as she grew. He taught her self-discipline and knew how to be there when she needed someone to lean on, and to back away when she needed to spread her wings.

  Pro stopped in front of the door, put the coffee cups on the floor, and unlocked the apartment with practiced ease. She picked up the cups and pushed the door closed with her hip as she walked in.

  Bringing her mother coffee was a Saturday ritual they had held onto ever since Joe’s passing. It was a chance to catch up, talk, and spend time together. Between Pro’s police duties and Elisha’s work as a designer, they often didn’t have a chance during the week.

  “Mom!” Pro yelled, and as usual headed toward her mother’s bedroom to bring her the coffee in bed.

  She pushed the door open to find her mother sitting up with the blanket pulled up to her neck. “Pro?” she exclaimed wide-eyed.

  “Yeah,” she said, and approached with the two cups, amused by her mother’s behavior. “Why you covering up? Did you have a hot flash and pull off your bedclothes or something?”

  Pro froze as another shape moved in the bed just beyond where her mother lay.

  Max’s head sprung up, his hair tousled and standing up in odd places. He smiled, a bit bleary-eyed. “Pumpkin? I hope that’s coffee.”

  ∞∞∞

  Pro sat at the small kitchen table and took another sip from her cup. She was still shaking. The uncontrolled rage wanted to burst out of her and strangle the bastard who had sired her.

  Her mother finally came out in a nightgown and robe, then sat tiredly across from her.

  “How…could…you…” Pro stammered.

  “What do you mean?” Elisha said, and reached for the coffee. At first Pro seemed unable to unclench the hand from her mother’s cup. “You gonna give it to me, or do I have to pry it from your cold, dead fingers?”

  Pro released the cup, and Elisha took a much needed sip.

  “How could you? In the bed you and Dad shared—”

  “And me and your father before that,” Elisha said. “Look, it’s been a long time since I’ve been with a man, and it is none of your business who I sleep with.”

  “But, that—that—”

  “Careful, he is still your father.”

  “How could you dishonor Joe that way?”

  Elisha looked at her daughter sympathetically. “Oh, honey, I would never dishonor your stepfather. He was a good man. But he’s the one who died, not me.”

  “But with—” Pro gestured hopelessly.

  Elisha grinned in spite of herself. “This was the one thing your father and I never had a problem with.”

  Max came into the room, tying the belt of a ratty robe as he entered. “Hey there!”

  Pro jumped to her feet. “That’s Dad’s robe!”

  Max looked at it. “I saw it behind the door, and I thought this was better than coming out in my underwear.”

  “It’s fine,” Elisha assured.

  At the same moment Pro commanded, “Take it off!”

  Max looked from one woman to another, and then at the robe he was wearing.

  Elisha stood up herself, her eyes not leaving her daughter’s. “This is my home, and I say he can wear it,” she said in a menacing tone.

  Max moved his head from one to the other as if he was watching a tennis match, but neither woman gave an inch.

  “Anyone for waffles?” Max attempted. “Or did the waffle iron become Joe’s as well?”

  Elisha folded her arms, her eyes daring her daughter. “No, it’s still in the kitchen.”

  “If you know where that is,” snapped Pro.

  “I know it will be a good place to hide,” Max muttered and hastily headed past the table and into the small kitchen.

  “You’d best back off, honey,” Elisha growled.

  “He doesn’t belong here,” Pro returned icily.

  “He does if I say so.”

  “I could cut up some fresh fruit,” Max
shouted from the kitchen. “Anyone care for that?”

  Elisha took her index finger and slid Pro’s cup toward her. “Now you sit down and drink your coffee, and be a polite young lady before I spank your ass.”

  “Huh,” Pro huffed. “You never hit me as a child.”

  “Well, you never behaved like this. You are not too big for me to knock you down.”

  Pro slowly sat as she fought a desire to shake her mother violently.

  Elisha stood up straight and lowered herself into her chair. “Fruit sounds nice, Max.” She returned her eyes to her wayward child. “You want fruit?”

  “I want you to stop being a doormat to that man.”

  This made Elisha smile. “Oh, honey, how little you understand me. And you really don’t know your father at all.”

  “Maybe if he’d stuck around a little longer…” she seethed.

  “Honey you’ve got to let it go. Max did the best he could by us both. But all you see is what he didn’t do.”

  “No, I was lucky enough to have a real man in my life—”

  “And Joe adored you. But if you could only see how much you are like your father.”

  Pro leaped to her feet again. “I am nothing like him!”

  Elisha smiled up at her daughter. “Personality-wise, you are exactly like him. All fire and hot. However, he’s cooled down, mellowed. It wouldn’t hurt you to calm down some too.”

  Pro slowly returned to her seat, just as Max came out with a plate of fruit. It was not only cut in bite-sized pieces, but each of the slices had been artistically cut into shapes. They resembled animals, flowers, and even a rather impressive elephant.

  Max placed the fruit down and Pro stared at it. An unbidden tear suddenly came from her eye.

  “Do you like it, Pro?” Max beamed. “I used to cut them like this for you when you were little.”

  Pro stared up in disbelief at her father, jumped up again, and ran to the bathroom as she stifled a sob, slamming the door as she went.

  Max sighed. “She’s a hard nut to crack.” He sat at the table and picked at the fruit.

  “Made herself hard because she thinks she has to be,” Elisha said and offered Max her cardboard cup.