Sugar And Spice And Not So Nice

by Janet McNulty

  Chapter 8

  We sat around the computer wondering what to do next. Now I knew why Rachel didn’t run off to the police right away. Yet, I also knew that we couldn’t keep this.

  “We need to go to the cops,” I said.

  “Are you crazy,” yelled Greg. “That was a cop that killed that girl.”

  “I know,” I said, “But we can’t keep this video. We need to tell someone in authority. With this video that detective will go straight to jail.”

  “Didn’t you mention a detective that thought the entire case was handled poorly?” asked Jackie.

  “Yeah, Detective Shorts,” replied Greg, “He was the only one on the force that was outspoken about the entire affair. He pursued the investigation on his own for a bit, but without any more evidence, he had to let it go.”

  “Well, I think we have the evidence he needs,” I said. “We should give him a call.”

  Before we could do anything the screech of tires peeled the air. Greg glanced out the window. “That’s my car,” he yelled and tore out of the apartment. His heavy boots pounded the floor in the hallway as he ran to the parking lot. Jackie followed after him leaving the door wide open.

  I took the memory card out of my computer and held it in my palm. A noise out in the hall caught my attention.

  “Jackie?” I poked my head out.

  Without warning a great weight crashed into me knocking me to the floor. A hand reached for the memory card that had flown out of my hand. I lunged for it. A sharp smack across my cheek sent me flying again. I gasped as a steeled toe shoe rammed into my stomach. The assailant snatched the memory card and dashed out the door. I heard his footsteps fade as he disappeared.

  “Mel!” Jackie leaned over me. She and Greg helped me up.

  I breathed deeply several times to get my breath back. “He took the card,” I said.

  Greg pulled out his phone and called the cops. He and Jackie helped me to the couch.

  “What happened?” asked Rachel reappearing.

  “Where were you,” demanded Greg.

  “I went after the car,” said Rachel. “But I lost the thief.”

  “You should have stayed here,” scolded Greg, “Someone attacked Mel and took the memory card with our only evidence of your murder. Because of you—”

  “Stop,” I interrupted, “It’s not her fault. Rachel, you might want to leave. The cops will be here soon.”

  Rachel nodded in understanding and vanished.

  A knock sounded at the door. The cops had arrived rather quickly. “You called about a break in,” said a guy in uniform.

  “Yes,” said Greg.

  “Excuse me,” said a man in a suit. He was tall with a well-defined body shape. The man obviously worked out. “Detective Shorts,” he said introducing himself. “I’ll handle this,” he said to the guys in uniform. He walked over to me and inspected the bruise forming on my cheek. “Name?”

  “Mellow Summers, but everyone calls me Mel,” I replied.

  “Do you need a paramedic?” he asked.

  “I’ll be OK,” I said.

  “Mickey,” he called a female officer over. “Take pictures of her bruises. I’m sorry ma’am, but we have to for evidence when we catch the intruder.”

  I sat still and allowed Mickey to take pictures of my cheek and my stomach. I had more bruises than I originally thought.

  “Now,” said Detective Shorts, “Tell me what happened.”

  We relayed how someone had stolen Greg’s car, for which the police put an APB on. I explained that Jackie and Greg ran out to the parking lot to chase the car thief leaving me alone in the apartment. Afterward, I gave a detailed account of the guy that broke in and knocked me around before leaving.

  “Can you describe him?” asked the detective.

  “No,” I said, “He was dressed in black and wore a ski mask.”

  “Height?”

  “About yours.”

  “Build?”

  I thought a moment. “I’d say about average build. He was strong. But like I said, with the mask, I didn’t get a good look at him. It happened so quickly.”

  “Did he take anything?”

  “The memory card,” the words were out of my mouth before I had a chance to stop it.

  “Memory card?” quizzed Detective Shorts.

  “Yes, that’s what the guy took,” I said.

  “Seems odd,” said the detective. “Most thieves go for jewels or things of value. Why would he take a memory card?”

  “I don’t know,” I replied and glared at Jackie and Greg to remain silent. “I never got a chance to look at it.”

  “Where did you get this memory card?”

  “I found it on campus in the computer lab,” I said.

  “By itself?”

  I figured there would be no fooling the detective, but I didn’t want to tell him what was on the card because without it, how could I prove it? “I was at the computer lab on the campus,” I said, “When I had to get something from the filing cabinet there. That’s when I noticed something sticking out of the carpet behind it. I picked it up and it was a phone. The phone was dead so I figured the memory card within it would tell me whose it was. So I brought it here to plug it into my laptop.”

  “You have a laptop and you were at the computer lab on campus,” said the detective.

  “Yeah, I needed to email someone and we don’t have the internet hooked up yet. And I don’t like carting my computer around,” I replied. It was true enough. I hated taking my laptop out of the apartment and we hadn’t gotten the internet hooked up. Detective Shorts seemed to have bought the story.

  “You had a break in before haven’t you?” asked Detective Shorts.

  “Yes,’ replied Jackie, “We came home soon after moving in and there was stuff everywhere.”

  The detective made notes in his notepad. His expression remained unreadable. “All right, Miss Summers. We’ll put an APB on the car and put a description out on the intruder. However, since you can’t give me many details we may not catch him. I can have a patrol car drive by here for the next few days. If you remember anything, don’t hesitate to give me a call.” He handed me his card.

  The police left after they finished taking pictures and dusting for prints. I knew they’d never find the guy. He was a professional who wanted only the memory card.

  “I guess we’re at square one,” said Rachel appearing from thin air. Greg and Jackie both jumped. Being used to her comings and goings I barely noticed her.

  “Not quite” I said, “We now know who killed you. We just need to prove it.”

  “How do you propose to do that?” asked Greg.

  “We’ll just have to follow Detective Reiss and Professor Vincent. I’d like to know what the connection is between the two,” I replied.

  “Are you crazy?”

  I looked at Greg. He thought I was nuts. Perhaps I was. “Look,” I said, “We have to do something. Those two have gotten away with murder and rape. I want to know how they know each and what they are involved in. We’ll have to have cameras with us at all times and if we can get something, then we’ll take it to Detective Shorts.”

  “And what if he’s crooked?” asked Jackie.

  “There has to be at least one honest cop in this town,” I said.

  “How are we going to follow them and stay on top of our responsibilities?” asked Greg.

  “We have a ghost,” I said. “Rachel, do you think you can keep tabs on them?”

  “Certainly.” Rachel jumped at the chance.

  “Follow their movements and find out their routine,” I said, “And if we’re lucky, we might be able to catch them on something.”

  Jackie filled my shift the next couple of days at the Candle Shoppe so that I could take it easy. I appreciated it. Greg stopped by often to check up on me. I thought it was really sweet.

  When
I finally went back to work, I was glad to find that nothing had changed. The Candle Shoppe was not busy, which didn’t bother me. I busied myself restocking some shelves and arranging the displays. The bell above the door rang and in walked Greg.

  “For you,” he said handing me a red rose.

  I took the flower. It smelled wonderful. I gave him a hug.

  The bell above the door rang again. Seven guys walked in all dressed in leather. I recognized them immediately as the bikers that I had stood up to at Zappy’s. My blood started pounding.

  “You,” said the tall guy whose nose I had broken. “You broke my nose.”

  “That was a while ago,” I said, “And you deserved it.” I could have kicked myself for that remark. Was I trying to get myself killed?

  “Not many people stand up to me,” said the guy, “But you did. You got guts. I like that. My name’s Tiny.” He held out his hand.

  I stared at him. Tiny? He was anything but tiny. I took his hand not wanting to offend him. “Mel,” I said introducing myself.

  “Well, Mel, I came down to apologize for my behavior,” said Tiny, “I normally don’t act like that. It took guts to do what you did. You now have a friend in this town.”

  I wasn’t sure if I was grateful or frightened. I certainly was not trying to make friends when I broke Tiny’s nose.

  Tiny noticed the fading bruise on my cheek. “Someone hit you? Did you beat her,” he turned on Greg. Tiny picked him up as though he weighed nothing.

  “No, please,” I pleaded. “He didn’t do anything. Someone broke into my apartment when I was home a few days back. He was nowhere around when it happened. And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mangle my boyfriend.”

  Tiny eyed me a bit before putting Greg down. “You should take better of your woman. Who was it?”

  “Unfortunately the guy was all in black and wore a ski mask,” I said. “The cops said they’d put a description out, but were less than hopeful about catching the guy.”

  “The cops are useless,” said Tiny. “Hey, Sombrero,” a really tanned guy with tattoos all over his arms stepped forward, “Put the word out. Anyone know anything about a break in at Mel’s is to tell us right away.”

  Sombrero left to carry out his orders.

  “I don’t like people messing with my friends,” said Tiny, “We’ll find the guy. He’ll never bother you again.”

  “Thanks,” I said. I didn’t want to know what Tiny had in mind.

  “What’s going on here?” Mr. Stilton came out of his office. He looked at all of us. I had no way of explaining seven bikers in the shop. Fortunately, I didn’t have to.

  “We’re here to buy some stuff,” said Tiny. He snatched the first thing closest to him. It turned out to be a heart shaped basket with romantic candles and perfume all tied with red and pink ribbon. It didn’t go with his leather, spikes, and tattoos.

  I covered my mouth to keep from laughing. The others followed suit, each snatching the closest thing off a shelf. They went to the counter and I rang up the purchases. Mr. Stilton watched as I took their money and put it in the cash register.

  “Let’s roll, boys,” said Tiny as they all left.

  “I better go,” said Greg giving me a peck on the cheek.

  I went back to rearranging the displays when Mr. Stilton walked up behind me.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah,” I said, “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  “I heard about the break in,” he said. He took the big round candles out of my hands. “Take the rest of the day off,” he said, “I can handle the store. Fridays are usually slow around here.”

  I thanked my boss and grabbed my things. Greg met me outside holding all the stuff that Tiny and his friends had bought. “What—” I began.

  “Tiny gave me all this and told me to take you out for a very romantic evening,” said Greg answering my unspoken question.

  The roar of motorcycles grabbed my attention. I glanced over and saw Tiny and his pals. He winked at me as they rode down the street.

  “Of all the people to make friends with,” said Greg, “You just had to befriend the only biker gang in this town.”

  “I didn’t mean to,” I said weakly.

  “Don’t sweat it,” replied Greg, “It could prove useful.”

  I kissed Greg good-bye and told him I‘d meet up with him later. I decided to grab my camcorder from my car and go back to the college. I had a video assignment to do and wanted to get some filming in. My topic: college student life.

  I stood just outside the student center with my camera going. After interviewing a bunch of other people eating their lunch, or just relaxing, I figured I had enough to do something with it. I knew this wasn’t Oscar winning material, but it would do for my class assignment. I just hoped that Professor Vincent would forget about the incident in the computer lab.

  And speaking of Professor Vincent, I noticed him pop up on the LCD screen of my camera. Curiosity got the better of me. I zoomed in. He fidgeted as he stood in a secluded corner. His manner told me that something wasn’t right. He clearly did not want to be seen or bothered and he was obviously waiting for someone.

  Detective Reiss walked into my screen. Intrigued, I zoomed in even more. What were they up to? The two talked a bit and then exchanged brown packages. I had watched enough CSI and detective shows to know that this couldn’t be good. I continue filming their exchange. It only lasted a couple of minutes before both parted and went separate ways. Odd, I thought.

  My gut told me that they were up to no good. I pulled out my cell and called Greg. He answered on the first ring. “Greg,” I said, “I need you to distract Professor Vincent.”

  “What?”

  “I just filmed him and that Detective Reiss exchange something. Vincent is headed back to his office now. I need you to get him out of it so I can search it.”

  “Are you crazy?”

  “Do you want to know what he’s up to or not?”

  “OK, OK,” relented Greg. “Give me a moment.”

  I dashed into the building that housed all of the teacher’s offices. Thankfully, there was a ladies room right outside Professor Vincent’s office. I waited near there. Greg showed up a few minutes later.

  “You want to tell me what this is about?” he asked.

  “Haven’t time,” I replied, “I just witnessed him and Reiss exchange packages. Vincent took it into his office just now. If I can get a look at it, we might be able to find out what those two are doing.”

  Greg sighed, but agreed that it might work. He went into Vincent’s office. I listened just outside the door as the two talked. Greg pretended to have a problem with the assignment and wanted Vincent to follow him outside. Despite his pleas, the professor refused to bite. Frustrated, I knew that if he didn’t leave the office soon, I would miss my window of opportunity. I spotted a fire alarm and figured it was now or never. I pulled it and ran to the ladies’ room.

  Instantly, the hall filled with people evacuating their offices and heading for the exit. I peeked out the door waiting for the hallway to empty. I watched as Professor Vincent and Greg left.

  I slipped out and pretended to go with the crowd, hanging back a bit. When I reached the office door, I took a quick survey to make certain no one saw me. The door was unlocked. I snuck in closing it behind me. I only had minutes and headed straight for the desk.

  Drawers opened and closed as I searched for the package. I hoped he didn’t have time to hide it someplace. I found a drawer that refused to budge. Locked. It had to be the one. Sirens echoed in the distance coming nearer. I gritted my teeth and ripped a bobby pin from my hair. I silently thanked Jackie for teaching me how to pick a lock as I put the pin in the key hole. Click. I pulled the drawer out.

  Within sat bags of white powdery stuff. I knew they had to be drugs. I found the brown package he had carried ea
rlier. Quickly, I opened it to reveal more. I opened one and tasted it. Drugs all right.

  The sirens stopped right outside the building. Shoot! I took out my camera and turned it on. Hurriedly, I snapped pictures of the stuff and slammed the drawer shut. I ran out the office. Heavy boots sounded in the stairwell. I darted into the ladies’ room again. They searched the offices at the far end first. When no one was looking I seized my chance and dashed to the other exit hoping no one was there. I ran down the stairs and out the door into the sunlight slipping in among those gathered around the scene.

  I pretended to be just as curious as everyone else as the firemen did their job. After a few minutes the fire chief declared it a false alarm and allowed people to go back inside. I followed the rest of the crowd as it dispersed staying clear of Professor Vincent. I went back to the student center and found Greg waiting for me.

  “Did you get it?” he asked.

  I pulled out my camera and showed him the pictures I took.

  “This is great,” said Greg, “Now we can take it to the cops.”

  “And say what, exactly? That I broke into his office and illegally got this? I want more evidence. So far all I’ve got is assumptions and circumstantial stuff.”

  “You sound like a regular lawyer,” said Greg.

  “Think about it,” I said, “We may be able to get Vincent on possession of drugs, but Reiss can still deny everything. He can claim anything was in that bag. Besides, I want them for Rachel’s murder.”

  “You’re taking this personally,” said Greg.

  “Well, yeah,” I replied, “They got away with two deaths.”

  Greg put his hand on my shoulder. “You are a unique person,” he said, “Just don’t do anything to get yourself killed.”

  I kissed him good-bye and ran off. The drive back home was quick and uneventful. I dumped my stuff on the couch when I got back in the apartment. Putting my sleuthing on hold, I settled down to do my homework.

  The homework went rather quickly, despite being boring. A few essays to write, one film edited. I especially took out the bit with Reiss and Vincent. Except, this time I made a backup copy of it. It was dark by the time I finished my schoolwork.

  I stretched my muscles. At least now I’d have the weekend to relax. Jackie and I managed to get the entire weekend off. She walked through the door moments later.

  “Where were you?” I asked her.

  “Oh, here and there,” she said, “I decided to go for a bit of a drive and explore the surrounding area. How was your day?”

  I reiterated my capturing of Reiss and Vincent on my camera. Jackie gasped when I told her about sneaking into Professor Vincent’s office and what I found. “We need to find what that Detective Reiss is up to,” I said.

  “I guess we could follow him,” said Jackie.

  “That’s an idea.”

  “Hey,” said Jackie, “I just remembered. Tomorrow the police station is having an open house. They didn’t call it that, but as part of their public relations they are doing tours. We could go and somehow slip away.”

  I smiled at Jackie. “Look at you. You’re turning into a regular Nancy Drew. But how are we going to sneak around without getting caught?”

  “Your boyfriend has a cousin that works there,” replied Jackie.

  I had to hand it to her. She did think this out. Maybe it would work.