[Lady Justice 26] - Lady Justice and the Cat

by Robert Thornhill

  The old man grabbed the woman and they crouched behind a tree.

  A moment later, the old man produced a 9mm, and the old woman was flashing a .32 revolver.

  “Jesus, Jake!” Marcus wailed. “They got guns!”

  Jake fired, striking the tree. “Quick, get in the car.” He fired once more and slipped into the driver’s seat.

  As he pulled away, they heard the shots and the rear window shatter.

  “Damn!” Jake muttered. “The streets just aren’t safe anymore. Everybody’s got a gun!”

  In the rear view mirror he saw the old-timer pull out his cell phone.

  I was at the checkout stand when I got the call. It was Dad.

  “Walt! Two scumbags just got away with your cat!”

  “Whoa, Dad. Slow down. What are you talking about?”

  Bernice and I were just coming back from Starbuck’s when these two goobers came out of the building with Clarence in a cat carrier. I tried to stop them, but the guy pulled a gun.”

  “Jesus! Are you two okay?”

  “Yeah, we’re fine. We got off a couple of shots ourselves. Busted their back window.”

  “Hang tight. I’ll be right there.”

  As soon as I was in the car, I dialed Kevin. “Meet me at the apartment and bring your rubber ducky. Two guys stole Clarence.”

  “Meet you there!”

  On the way home, I thought about Dad and Bernice firing at the fleeing cat-nappers. A few months ago, the two of them took a concealed carry class and got their permits. Now Dad walks around with a shoulder holster and Bernice has a .32 strapped to her ankle. I could only imagine what the neighbors thought as the geriatric Bonnie and Clyde battled it out with hooligans right in the middle of Armour Boulevard.

  Kevin and I arrived at the same time.

  Not wanting to attract undue attention, Dad and Bernice had gone to Dad’s apartment.

  “Shoulda shot out their tires,” Dad said, after retelling their harrowing escapade.

  “I’m just glad the two of you are safe,” I replied. “Can you give me a description of the car?”

  “I can do better than that,” he replied with a grin. “I can give you the license plate.”

  “Good work!”

  I called Ox. “I need you to run a plate for me. Two guys just stole Byron Forsythe’s cat. I think this might be the break we’ve been looking for. If they want the cat, they might just be the ones who iced its owner.”

  “Actually, I’m on my way to your place right now. We got a call that shots were fired near your address. I don’t suppose this has anything to do with your cat-nappers?”

  “Uhhh, yeah, that was Dad and Bernice. They exchanged gunfire with the perps before they drove off.”

  “Holy crap! The guys at the precinct will get a big kick out of this. See you in a minute or two.”

  Ox and his partner, Amanda, arrived and took Dad and Bernice’s statement.

  “I’ll call you as soon as I get an ID from that plate,” Ox said. Then he turned to Dad and Bernice. “You two need to be careful. If either of you had shot a bystander or caused property damage, we’d have a big problem.”

  “Hey, they shot first. What were we supposed to do, just duck and run?”

  “Just sayin’, be careful.”

  After Ox left, Kevin and I went to my apartment. As soon as we opened the door, I noticed a strange odor.

  “Smell that?” I asked. “Smells like ether or something.”

  “Chloroform,” Kevin replied. “They used it on the cat.”

  Then it struck me. “Those same guys were in here yesterday. Clarence didn’t run away. They took him. He must have escaped somehow and found his way home. That explains the missing tea towel. Maggie asked about it, but I don’t pay any attention to towels. They probably used it to corral the cat. He must have given them a real fit, so they brought the chloroform today. Those jerks have been in my home twice. I gives me the creeps.”

  “Maggie will have a fit when she finds out.”

  “And she’ll really be pissed that her cat has been taken --- for a second time. Hopefully, if we can get an address from Ox, we can locate Clarence with that rubber ducky of yours.”

  “Got any Arbor Mist?” Kevin asked. “There’s nothing to do until we hear from Ox. Might as well chill out.”

  “That was a close one,” Marcus said, as they pulled into the parking lot of the veterinary clinic. “Those old geezers were pretty good shots.”

  “Yeah, but we got what we were after. Grab that carrier and let’s find out what’s on that microchip.”

  “Is he dead?” Dr. Greely asked, looking at the still body in the carrier.

  “No, we just doped him up. This is the one that caused the ruckus yesterday and ran away. Can you read the chip in his neck?”

  “Sure, I’ll get my reader.”

  In a moment, he was back. “This is strange,” he said, looking at the dial.

  “Strange? How?”

  “These chips usually give the pet’s name, the owner’s name, a phone number, and information about his vaccinations. I have no idea what all of this is.”

  Jake looked at the reader.

  38.965618 -94.576214 13 45-56-17

  “That is weird. I’ll copy it down.”

  When he was finished, he handed the paper to Marcus.

  “This mean anything to you?”

  Marcus shook his head.

  “Well, we’ll figure it out. Thanks, Doc. We appreciate your help.”

  “So what now?” Marcus asked, as they drove away.

  “Let’s go back to the apartment, get on the computer and try to figure this thing out. Forsythe’s journal said the information on the chip would tell us where he hid his treasure. Those numbers have to mean something. We just have to figure out what.”

  By the time they reached Jake’s apartment, Clarence was beginning to stir.

  “Bring him up, but don’t let him out of the cage,” Jake ordered.

  Jake booted up his computer and opened Internet Explorer. In the Google search box, he typed the first number in the sequence, 38.965618, then hit the ‘enter’ key.

  He scrolled down the list of search results.

  “Nothing here that will help. No! Wait a minute! Here it is!”

  Marcus looked at the screen.

  Identify Results

  maps.jocogov.org/aims2/identifypropfeature.asp?id=IF241231-3033...

  Latitude/Longitude (DMS), 38° 57' 56.2", -94° 47' 6.6". Latitude/Longitude (DD), 38.965618, -94.785153 (Requires Google Earth). Lidar Elevation (3/06), 978.1 ft.

  “That’s it!” he exclaimed. “And look! There’s the other number. They’re latitude/longitude coordinates!”

  “It says you need Google Earth,” Marcus said. “Do you know what that is?”

  “Of course. I’ve got it right here,” he said, tapping some keys.

  “Now, all I have to do is type in the coordinates and it will give me a location.”

  He typed again.

  “Bingo! Got it! It’s one of those storage places. 8901 Troost. Now the rest of the numbers on the printout make sense. I’ll bet the #13 is the storage unit and the other three numbers are the combination to a lock. Marcus, we just might have that loot in our hands before the day is over. Let’s go!”

  “What about the cat?”

  “We’ll leave him here. We can dump him after we get that money.”

  As they headed to the storage lot, they failed to notice the black van that had been following them for the past two days.

  CHAPTER 7

  Kevin and I had just polished off a second glass of Arbor Mist when Ox called.

  “Got a name and address on the car your geriatric Bonnie and Clyde shot up. It’s registered to a Jake Whitfield. Looks like he’s got an apartment in the nine hundred block of Tracy.”

  “Great! Are you and Amanda available?”

  “At your beck and call.”

  “Kevin and I will meet you there in
twenty minutes.”

  Ox and Amanda were already there when we pulled up in front of the building on Tracy.

  “We cruised three blocks in every direction,” Ox said, “but no car with a missing back window.”

  “Probably not home,” Kevin said. “Let’s see if there’s a cat on the premises.”

  He started tinkering with the dial on his rubber ducky.

  “Got him! Strong signal. Clarence is definitely in that apartment.”

  “Amanda and I will take it from here,” Ox said, pulling his weapon. “You guys hang back.”

  With Ox leading the way, we climbed the stairs to the second floor.

  “2B,” Ox whispered, pointing down the hall.

  After Ox and Amanda had taken their places on either side of the door, Ox knocked.

  “Jake Whitfield! Kansas City Police. Open the door!”

  Silence

  He knocked and called out again.

  “I’m not hearing any movement inside,” he said. “I don’t think anyone’s there.”

  As Kevin and I approached, we heard a tiny “Meow” from inside the apartment.

  “That’s Clarence!” I said. “At least we’ll get our cat.”

  “He’s there, all right,” Ox said, “but we have a problem. We don’t have a warrant. We can’t just go busting in.”

  “No,” I replied. “YOU have a problem. We don’t. I know you and Amanda would get your butts in a sling if you went in without a warrant. Kevin and I are private citizens and those jerks have my cat in there. We’re going in. It would probably be better if you and Amanda weren’t here when we do.”

  He gave me a long look. “You’re gonna do this aren’t you?”

  I nodded.

  He turned to Kevin. “You got your lock picks?”

  “Does a fat dog fart?” he replied.

  Ox sighed, “I don’t suppose there’s any chance of talking you out of this, so be careful. Don’t get caught. Call and let me know what you find.”

  “Will do,” I replied. “Now scoot before somebody sees you.”

  As soon as Ox and Amanda were down the stairs, Kevin went to work on the lock.

  I heard a ‘click.’ “Piece of cake,” he said, opening the door a crack and peering inside.

  “Nobody home,” he said, motioning me to follow.

  Clarence was in his carrier on the kitchen counter. Seeing me, he rubbed against the side of the carrier and I could hear him purring from across the room.

  “Looks like the little guy is glad to see you,” Kevin observed.

  I stuck my fingers through the carrier and rubbed his ears.

  “Looks like we hit the jackpot,” Kevin said, pointing to the kitchen table.

  On it, were a lap top computer, a knapsack and a journal.

  “Bingo!” I said, examining the backpack. “Byron Forsythe was written on the flap in indelible ink. Looks like we’ve found our murderer.”

  Kevin was reading the journal. “And this explains why they wanted your cat. Listen to this. It says here that Forsythe planted a chip in the cat, and on it was the location where he hid what he’s calling his ‘discovery.’ It also states that the other implant was a VHF transmitter. The guys that whacked Forsythe read this and tracked the cat to your place.”

  “Maggie’s real estate sign in the yard. That’s how they knew where to look.”

  “They’ve had Clarence long enough to get the information off that microchip,” Kevin said. “I’ll bet they’re after the loot right now.”

  “Then we’d better get busy,” I replied. “We passed an animal hospital on the way over here. Let’s get Clarence over there, pronto.”

  I grabbed the cat carrier and Kevin locked the apartment.

  The animal clinic was on Truman Road about ten minutes away. Thankfully, the vet wasn’t that busy.

  “What can I do for you?” he asked.

  “Uhhhh, well, we found this cat running loose in the neighborhood,” I lied, “and we think he might have a chip implanted that would give us his owner’s information. Can you read the chip for us?”

  “Sure, bring him on back.”

  “This is most unusual,” he said, looking at the scanner. “I’ve never seen one like this. Take a look.”

  38.965618 -94.576214 13 45-56-17

  I copied the information and placed Clarence back in his carrier.

  “This helps a lot,” I said, “Thank you so much. What do we owe you?”

  “Not a thing. I’m just happy to help, but I don’t see how that information will lead you to the cat’s owner.”

  “We’ll figure it out,” I said, hurrying out the door. “Thanks again!”

  When we were back in the car, I handed the note to Kevin. “Can you make anything out of this gibberish?”

  He studied it for a moment. “We’re looking for a location, right?”

  I nodded.

  “Then these first numbers must be coordinates. Longitude and latitude. That would give us the location. Depending on where that turns out to be, I have an idea about the rest of the numbers.”

  “So how can we turn those numbers into an address?”

  “On the computer. There are free programs where you can plug in these numbers and it will give you the address.”

  “Really? How do you know this stuff?”

  “Private investigator for thirty years. Remember? Let’s stop by your place, drop off the cat, and fire up your old Toshiba.”

  When we arrived at the apartment, Maggie was there.

  “You found him!” she exclaimed, grabbing the carrier.

  “I guess you talked to Dad,” I said, sheepishly.

  “I certainly did,” she replied sternly. “Why didn’t you call and tell me what was going on? I had to get the story second hand from your dad and his bimbo. Did they really have a shootout with the cat-nappers?”

  “Sorry for not calling,” I replied. “We’ve been a bit busy tracking and rescuing your cat. And yes, Dad and Bernice shot out their car window.”

  “So tell me what happened. Where have you been?”

  “We’re kind of in a hurry,” I said. “Can I tell you later? We uncovered some important information about Byron Forsythe’s murder and we need to get it to Ox.”

  “Well, okay, but you must promise to tell me everything later.”

  “I promise.”

  Maggie took Clarence out of the carrier and headed to the kitchen. Kevin and I went straight to my office.

  “Liar, liar, pants on fire,” Kevin said.

  “If I had told her we were going after the guys who shot Byron Forsythe, she wouldn’t have let us leave the house. And it wasn’t exactly a lie. We’ll be giving the information to Ox --- eventually.”

  I booted up the computer and Kevin took over.

  “Here’s the website,” he said, punching some keys. “Now I’ll just enter those coordinates --- there it is! Got an address. 8901 Troost. It’s one of those storage rental places. Now the rest of the numbers make sense. The #13 is the storage unit number and the 45-56-17 is the combination of the lock to get inside.”

  “We’d better get going,” I replied. “They’ve got a huge head start.”

  “What are you going to tell Maggie?” he asked.

  “I’ll leave that up to you,” I said, hurrying out the door. “She’s your sister!”

  “Oh hell no! She’s your wife!”

  “Be back in a while,” I yelled as we went out the door. “We’ve got a couple of errands to run.”

  I was hoping she’d be so busy with the cat, we wouldn’t be missed.

  “There it is, just up ahead,” Jake said, pointing to the storage facility. “In just a few minutes we’ll have our hands on D.B. Cooper’s long lost cash.”

  “I can’t believe this is really happening,” Marcus replied, rubbing his hands. “We’ll be rich! We’ll actually be rich!”

  They drove slowly up and down the aisles looking for #13.

  “There, on the left,�
�� Marcus said.

  Jake stopped in front of the unit and the two of them ran to the locked door.

  “Hurry!” Marcus wailed. “I can hardly wait to see inside.”

  Jake fumbled for the scrap of paper with that held the combination.

  “Here we go --- 45-56-17.”

  The lock popped open and together they raised the door.

  They gasped as the sun light illuminated the interior.

  There it was, the treasure they had killed to obtain, but it wasn’t what they were expecting.

  “Geeze Louise!” Marcus groaned. “I was hoping to find a satchel full of cash.” He gave the safe a tug. “Holy crap! That thing must weigh a ton! What are we gonna do, Jake?”

  Jake tested the safe. “It’s heavy all right. Let me think. You and I can’t lift it, that’s for sure. We’ll get a refrigerator dolly from that rental place and come back for it.”

  “That won’t be necessary, amigos,” came a voice from behind them. “We’ll take it from here.”

  They turned and saw three men with guns standing in the entrance to the unit.

  “Hector!” Jake exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”

  “Following you, of course. I can’t imagine you were naïve enough to believe I’d buy your phony story about needing my VHF receiver to find a lost pet for a friend. You’re not that altruistic. You’re a crook. I figured if we followed you, you’d lead us to something big, and it looks like you have. It was fun, though, watching your adventures with el gato.”

  “El gato?”

  “The cat, dumb ass. I’m sure there’s a very interesting story how he led you here, but frankly, I’m not interested. All that matters is that you found it.”

  “Uhhh, yes we did,” Jake stammered. “Thanks to your receiver. Now that we’ve found it, we’d be happy to share it with you.”

  Hector laughed. “Would you now? How generous of you. I suppose if we hadn’t shown up when we did, you would have brought me my share later.”

  “Sure, Hector. That was our plan all along, wasn’t it Marcus?”