Tanya didn’t look convinced, “But why would he be making payments from his personal account? Hasn’t he been accused of “stealing from the company”?
“Your guess is as good as mine. I have no idea what’s been going on, and why are these payments circled? Who circled them? Was it Coons or was it Ellen? Maybe she was doing her own investigation.”
Tanya nodded, “That’s possible. She did have something to tell to Aria. She probably found some information, right? Maybe she suspected something after Coons murder and decided to investigate. Or maybe she already knew before.”
They heard a creak and stopped talking. Sanjay realized he had no idea where Clark was, “Wait here. I’ll see where Clark is.”
Tanya’s attention was back on the file and she simply waved at Sanjay, who quietly went out of the room.
A few steps away, there was a door in the opposite wall. It turned out to be a bathroom. He kept moving; there were two more doors in the hall. One probably led to the attic and the next one was another bedroom, probably the guest bedroom. The door was ajar, Sanjay stood there for a few seconds, listening. He could only hear some creaking of the floors. “Clark?” he said, opening the door wide. He saw Clark bent down over a few files.
“Whaa..?” Clark suddenly stood up.
Sanjay thought he looked guilty. “What is that? Have you found something?”
Clark hesitated, “Uh … No… no I haven’t found anything.”
Sanjay looked suspiciously at him and then at the files on the floor.
Clark cleared his throat, “Oh! These? Nah, these are just documents for this house. I was going through them to get to know more about the house and its value… um… yeah, I haven’t found anything else.”
Sanjay walked inside and grabbed one of the files from the floor. As Clark said, the papers were documents related to the house.
“This is probably a guest room. So, it was mostly neat and tidy with extra towels and stuff in the closets. I found these in the drawers.”
Sanjay looked at him, “Clark, are you sure? Is that all that you found?”
Clark raised his eyebrow, “Wait, what? Why wouldn’t I tell you if I found anythi…”
Just then a scream startled them, “What the hell!!” Clark exclaimed.
“That’s Tanya!”
They both raced out of the room and before they reached the first bedroom, Tanya came out looking scared.
“What? What is it?”
“I am sorry! I am really sorry. I shouldn’t have screamed!” She looked worriedly at both of them.
Sanjay stepped into the room to check, “There is no one here. What happened?!”
“There … there was a mouse… a really big one… it came out of nowhere…” Tanya stammered.
“Oh God Tanya!” Clark glared at her.
“We have to get out of here, right now! Hurry!” Sanjay said, grabbing his backpack from the room and tossing the files inside. “Quick!”
Tanya led the way downstairs and put on her mask. They reached the back door and stopped. “Wait.” Sanjay said. Both him and Clark put on their masks too. Sanjay peered from the window to check if the coast was clear. “Let me get out first. Wait for my signal before coming out, okay?”
They both nodded.
Sanjay quietly made his way out and looked around. The yard was almost covered with the trees, so there was no chance of the neighbors seeing anything. He carefully walked towards the garage and looked around. There didn’t seem to be anyone around. Hopefully no one heard the scream. He thought to himself. It’s past midnight now. Everyone’s asleep and probably didn’t hear anything. He walked a few steps back and signaled Clark and Tanya to come out.
They walked out silently, one by one, out to the street in different directions. At the end of the street, they took off their masks and as planned earlier, walked through different streets and made their way towards Sanjay’s car. Sanjay reached the car first and waited for the other two. His heart was pounding and he was hoping no one saw them.
Within five minutes, he saw both Clark and Tanya walking towards the car. He quickly started the engine and the second both of them were inside, he started heading towards his own apartment. “All good?”
They both nodded.
The car ride was silent. The three of them were lost in their own thoughts. Now that they were safely out of Ellen’s house, Sanjay couldn’t help but wonder about Clark’s reaction. He was definitely looking guilty when Sanjay had walked into the room. Why would Clark react like that if the only thing he was looking at were some files about the house? Sanjay knew Clark was a real estate agent. Of course, he wouldn’t resist looking at the details of the house. But that reaction? Was that normal? What was Clark hiding?
He glanced at Tanya from the rearview mirror. Was that scream actually because she got startled by a mouse, or did she want us out of the house before we found something useful? They had found that file but it was only Coons’ bank statements. The police had already gone through it and declared he had been stealing from the company. But why were those particular payments circled?
It was probably worth checking out. He suddenly remembered the USB he had found. There has to be something on it. Why else would it be hidden like that? He contemplated whether or not to tell Clark and Tanya about it. He decided against it. He wasn’t entirely sure if he could trust them. They had been acting strangely, especially Clark.
He still couldn’t understand why Clark reacted that way. Or was he being paranoid? Sanjay frowned. Maybe he is the one overthinking everything about the two of them. Maybe the case really is messed up and the two are really trying to help. Sanjay gave his head a little shake. Things are already crazy. This is not the time to lose your head. He snapped at himself. Focus. All the suspicion needed to be put to rest for now. He decided to do a little bit of investigation on these two just to be sure. He parked on the street opposite his apartment building and they all got out.
“Do you think this was all a waste of time?” Clark asked, looking at Sanjay and then at Tanya.
Tanya shrugged, “Not really. I’m not sure.”
“So did you guys find anything?” Clark inquired.
Sanjay answered, “We saw a file. But we are not sure if it is of use or not.” He tried to keep it as vague as possible, but Tanya blurted out, “It’s Coons bank statements and there are a few payments circled. Each month for an entire year…”
“What does that mean?” Clark seemed intrigued.
“Well…” Tanya started, but Sanjay pitched in, “Really not the place to talk about this out here on the street. I’m not sure what it is, but we will have a look at it later. It is best that you guys head home now. We’ve done enough for one day.”
“What! We are not going to check the file out right now?” Tanya looked questioningly at Sanjay.
“It’s late. We’re all tired. It is best to start afresh in a couple days.” Both of them stared at Sanjay for a while but didn’t argue. They said their goodbyes and walked over to their cars, gave each other a quick wave and sped away, each engrossed in their own thoughts.
Sanjay watched both cars turn at the end of the street and disappear. He raced up the stairs and towards his apartment. He couldn’t wait to check what was inside the USB. It could hold all the answers. He struggled a bit with the door, dropping his keys in his haste. Once inside he dug out the USB and opened up his laptop.
“Hurry up!!” He snapped at the laptop as it loaded.
He popped in the USB and waited for it to load. What would he find inside? Emails? Financial documents? Bank account details of the people involved in this? Maybe Coons had a list of names of people!
A window popped open and Sanjay sighed. He should have known. The USB was password protected.
Chapter 5: A Friend
The metal door open with a loud screech, startling Aria. She groaned; her eyes still shut. She was lying on her stomach on the thin bed, no idea how many days had passed by. She s
at up on the bed and blinked. She could only see a silhouette of the guard.
“Get up!”
Aria rubbed her eyes. “Why?”
“You are to head back to your cell. Your isolation time is up.”
“Oh!”
She slowly got up from the bed. She had no idea what day it was, what time it was, or how long she had been in this room. The guard led her up the stairs. Aria took a deep breath. She couldn’t believe she would ever be this relieved to see the prison corridors! “What time is it?”
“Breakfast! Off you go. You have work to do after that.”
Aria made her way to the dining area, the loud chatter from the hall overwhelmed her for a few seconds. For days, she had only been in silence, with a few occasional screams from other inmates. She gave her head a little shake, took a deep breath, and proceeded to get into the line for food.
“Hey!”
Someone called out from behind. Aria turned. There was a black girl standing behind her, who nodded at her, “That was some fight!”
Aria looked at her, confused for a few seconds then realized what the girl was talking about. “Well, yeah!” She shrugged and proceeded to get her food. The inmate serving gave her a nod and what looked like a half smile. The other one added some extra potatoes on her plate with a wink. Aria looked suspiciously at her and turned around to find a place to sit. She immediately noticed Karen waving at her from the far corner of the room. Aria made her way there and sat down opposite Karen. There were a few other inmates sitting on the table, who nodded at her too.
“What’s with everyone today? No one ever paid much attention to me before today, except to maybe beat me up.” She asked Karen, who chuckled.
“Don’t you see? It was the fight. Rachel is a tough piece here. No one has ever tried to take her on before until you did. Aaaaannnd you actually beat her good!” She grinned broadly at her.
Aria rolled her eyes, “I thought they would hate me more now.”
“Nah! Now that you have shown that you are a toughie, they want to be in your good books. See? They wouldn’t want to be on your bad side. People have been treating me better, just because I am your cell mate.” She grinned.
Aria snorted, “Well I’m glad. I actually have you to thank. I wouldn’t have been able to fight if it wasn’t for you. By the way, how long was I gone? I lost track of time.”
“About five days I would say. Rachel is still not out though. Not sure how she will react once she is out. I suggest make the most of her absence and get some people on your side.”
“Yeah.”
“Oh! And I talked with my dealer about you. She is open to a meeting. Said she might be able to arrange things for you.”
Aria perked up. “Yeah? This is great. When can I meet her?”
“I will arrange it and let you know.” They finished their food and everyone started heading out of the hall to do their jobs. Aria sighed as she remembered she had a lot of toilets to clean. She made her way towards the usual meeting spot of her unit and opened the door.
“Ah! There she is.”
They were all looking at her. Aria noticed some of them were giving her an appreciative nod while others were looking at her with daggers in their eyes. She realized a few of Rachel’s friends were in this unit too. Great! She thought to herself.
“I’ll be off with the bucket and mop; just tell me which toilet I have to wash today?” Aria asked.
“What?” the woman with the clipboard chuckled. “You are on yard duty today. You just got to tend to the weeds, clean up, throw away trash and all that. We are planning to plant some plants there. But it is a mess. So, it needs to be prepped first.”
Aria raised an eyebrow, “So, I am off bathroom duty? I thought that’s what newbies do?”
The woman smiled, “Yeah. Until they prove themselves otherwise. Plus, there have been some more newbies coming into prison now while you were in isolation.”
Aria didn’t say anything. Well, seems like things are getting better for me here. She thought to herself as she did the yardwork that day. She was relieved that she didn’t have to clean the stinky bathrooms anymore. She felt sorry for the one who now had her job. Her thoughts turned to what Karen said about setting up the meeting with her dealer. Aria was hoping to get hold of a cell phone so she can be in contact with Clark. She wanted to know what the three of them have been up to and if there was any progress. She didn’t want to get her hopes up but she couldn’t help but think there might be light at the end of this nightmare. Any small detail might help her case. She decided to give Clark a call today.
As soon as she got free, she made her way to the phones. Fortunately, she had got there early and there wasn’t a line. Only one inmate was talking in a slow, low voice with her back towards Aria. She picked up the phone and dialed Clark’s number. It kept on ringing and he didn’t accept the call. He is probably at work or busy. Aria thought, disappointed. She placed the phone back and then picked it up again. Thought for a few seconds and dialed a number. Within a minute the call was received.
“Omg Aria!!?” came Tanya’s voice at the other end.
Aria’s eyes instantly filled with tears. She hadn’t spoken to her best friend for such a long time.
“T! How are you?”
“Forget about me. How are you? Are you okay? Omg! Aria you have no idea how much I miss you. I am so sorry. It kills me that I can’t do anything right now for you.”
Aria wiped her tears, “I know. I miss you too. I am… well I am doing okay considering where I am.” She chuckled. Tanya forced a laugh too. She couldn’t even imagine what her friend must be going through.
“How come you haven’t visited me, T?”
Tanya hesitated, “Well … I didn’t know if … if you would want to see me. You know after everything. I wasn’t… you don’t know how much I wanted to. I keep asking Clark and Sanjay how you are doing. I just … I don’t know.”
“You and Clark are getting along now, finally? All it took was for me to get to prison?” Aria joked.
“Well, he and I have reached an understanding.”
“Yeah he told me. Thank you so much for not giving up on me… I am so grateful the three of you are still working my case and…”
“Wait, what? How did you know? You weren’t supposed to know. Uggh! Clark told you, didn’t he?”
Aria rolled her eyes, “Why wasn’t I supposed to know?”
Tanya sighed, “Because we didn’t want to tell you until we actually had something.”
“It’s okay, Tanya. I know what a mess I am in. I know it would probably take a miracle to get me out of here.”
“No. I am sure that we will find something. We are trying our best…”
“Tell me everything. Please. What have you guys looked at so far?”
For the next few minutes, Tanya filled her in about everything the three of them had been doing to help her case. Aria listened silently until Tanya started tell her about Ellen’s place.
“What!!!” Aria exclaimed and then lowered her voice, “You guys broke in to her place? What is wrong with you?”
Tanya chuckled, “We are very committed to getting you out of there honey.”
Aria shook her head and sighed, “Please don’t get yourself into trouble over me. Don’t be stupid, okay?”
“Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry.”
“Did you find anything?”
“Not sure. There was a bank statement of Coons’ account with some payments circled. We are going to look into it. Might be the money he was transferring. We think Ellen might have found something. It was too late that night to go through it, so we are going to meet in the next few days to try and make sense of it.”
“Okay. But did you find out about the guy who was stalking me?”
“No. There is so much footage and that guy was smart. It looks as if he knew where the cameras were and made sure to hide his face.”
“That reminds me, you know Diaz had a guy who was looking into
it. He might have found something. Oh! she was also trying to get a hold of the emails Coons sent me. Remember? The emails that were deleted?”
“Omg! yes! Ariaaaa! I thought that was a dead end but if Diaz was already going after that lead, maybe her guy found something but since she has been missing… he is probably just sitting on the information. We are going to try and find him, okay? You don’t worry. We are doing our best.”
Aria smiled, “Of course, T. I know and I am grateful!”
“Okay. Aria. I hate to do this to you but I gotta run. Whitney is glaring at me from her office.”
“Oh. She has taken over the department, I am guessing?”
“Yeah. She has been running a really tight ship.”
“Well, okay. I will let you go. And Tanya?”
“Yeah?”
“Please do come and visit me… you know, whenever you have the time.”
“Yes!!! Aria. I will come see you soon. You take care of yourself, okay?”
“You too. Bye!”
Aria hung up the phone in the phone booth. Her heart suddenly felt lighter. She turned around and bumped into someone.
“Watch it!” she snapped, looking at the inmate who had her back turned. Her clothes looked crisp and new. Probably one of the new inmates.
“You watch it!” the inmate snapped back as she turned around. The voice sounded familiar.
Aria looked at the new inmate and her eyes grew wide, “What the hell are you doing here!?”
It was Kelly!
The read-haired woman Aria shared the bunk bed with when she was thrown into the prison. She had seemed intimidating to Aria, but she was still the first inmate she got to know. Aria had realized there is always more to a person than the first impression they make. Kelly had stabbed her boyfriend to death when she caught him trying to get close to her daughter. She had refused to tell the truth to her lawyer because she saw her daughter getting scared of her. Kelly had turned herself in and had made up her mind never to reveal the truth about what actually happened to save her daughter to give her a better future.
Capital Crime (An Aria Raymond Thriller Book 2) Page 5
