by Lee Strauss
“Ms. Farrell?” The detective prodded.
I stared up at him and answered, “I want to call Marlow Henry.”
I almost burst into tears again when Marlow was escorted into my cell. He was such a welcoming, comforting sight. I sniffled into the tissues that the officer had handed me through the bars. Once I’d talked to Marlow on the phone and knew he was on his way, my defenses collapsed. A torrent of tears let lose and I needed more tissues than the officer had given me. There was an awkward moment where we exchanged his clean ones for my wet ones.
“I’m sorry,” I said to Marlow. “I’m just really emotional right now.”
Marlow lowered himself onto the bench beside me. “I can imagine,” he said. “You've been through a lot.”
I wished I could’ve looked into a mirror before he arrived. I cringed a little knowing my eyes were puffy and my nose an unflattering red. I held my fingers to my face in a vain effort to camouflage it.
Marlow’s knees jiggled against the bench. His eyes moved from my face to the space we found ourselves alone in.
“Nice digs.”
“Yeah, they decided I deserved my own place.”
“Do you know what’s going to happen next?” Marlow asked.
“I’m not sure. I’m going to need a lawyer, but I don’t know how I’m going to pay for that. My parents don’t make that much money.”
“They’ll assign someone to you.”
“I know.” I just doubted how good a state-appointed lawyer would be, especially in this unique situation.
His green eyes filled with sympathy. “Sage, this wasn't your fault.”
“I hit a person and she died, Marlow. She's dead because of me.”
Marlow whispered, “That's not true.”
“What do you mean? How can it not be true?”
“This is going to sound crazy, but hear me out. It wasn’t your fault.”
“How could it not be my fault?”
“Because she’d been teleported and she just happened to land in front of your car. Call it bad timing.”
I didn’t know what I expected him to say, but it wasn’t that. “Teleported?”
“Look…” He shuffled closer and I got the feeling that my already tragic situation was going to get a lot more tragic.
“While I waited for the ambulance to arrive for you, I picked up what I thought was a phone on the road by Crystal Morrisette’s body.” He grimaced when he said body. “I thought mine had fallen out of my pocket somehow, but it wasn’t mine. I touched it, and suddenly I was somewhere else.”
“Somewhere else?”
“Yes.”
“Where were you?”
"I don't know. In someone’s lab. It was dark, but I wasn’t alone. I could see a man there, but only his profile. I thought he would attack me or something, but he only typed on his computer. Then I was back in the forest.”
"Are you serious?”
He nodded. “Super serious.”
“Oh.” That did make me feel better. If what Marlow said was true, there was no way I could’ve prevented this accident from happening. She literally had come out of nowhere. “How do I tell something like that to the police? Even if it’s true—and I believe you,” I added quickly, “it’s not going to help me.”
“You can’t go to prison for this, Sage. We’ll figure something out.” He squeezed my hand. “I promise.”
I loved the feel of his palm in mine and I squeezed back. His concern for me just made my heart long for him even more. I never felt alone when I was with him.
We sat wordlessly, wondering what our next move should be, when, to our utter amazement, in walked Jack Henry.
He grinned through the bars at us like the cat who just ate the mouse. “Hello, Marlow. Hello, Sage. I understand you have a problem.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Marlow
At fifty-one Jack Henry was in pretty good shape, with only a slightly noticeable belly pressing against his belt-buckle. He wore a white cotton shirt under a suit jacket along with an overcoat, and under that, stone-washed jeans. His hair had thinned over the years, but he still had most of it.
He also happened to be my father, though we’d only really gotten to know each other the previous summer, and now he lived with my mom in a middle-class Detroit suburb.
After reassuring Sage not to worry, and that he’d take care of things for her, he asked me to come with him for a drive. I didn’t hesitate to slide into his light gray older-model Buick sedan, though I hated having to make an excuse to Dakota and Zed.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“To see where the victim lived.”
I wasn’t sure what he hoped to find there.
“How did you know, about… everything?” I asked.
“I told you before, I work for a classified organization that monitors unusual activity.”
“You’re saying you have equipment that picked up the guy’s teleportation signal?”
“Something like that.”
The fact that he didn’t even blink at the phrase “teleportation signal” was telling.
“I’d like to hear what happened from your perspective, Marlow.”
I ran through my teleportation story again.
“And you didn’t recognize him?” he asked
I shook my head. “I only caught a sliver of his profile. Average height, typical haircut.”
“Did he see you?”
“It was dark, but he obviously knew I was there.”
“Too dark to see your face?”
I could see in the dark, but it was a mutation and not something other people could do. Now Jack had me worried. Maybe this guy was like me.
“I don’t know.”
Jack let out a sigh.
“How much do you know about Crystal Morrisette?” I asked.
“I know she had a lot of followers on Instagram.”
“Yeah, a lot of the guys at DU followed her.”
Jack chuckled. “Not surprised. She was beautiful. So unfortunate she was killed. We need to find the asshole who did this."
Jack signaled and turned down an alley behind a pawn shop and a burger joint in a run-down, lower-class area of town. These weren’t the kind of streets you'd want to be out alone on in the dark, especially as a woman who lived alone. I was a bit surprised that this was where Crystal Morrisette had lived.
Jack parked his car. A shed to the right looked like it was in use, if you could go by the cigarette butts that were on the ground around it. The windows were dark and there didn't appear to be anyone about. Jack zigzagged up a set of wooden steps located on the back side of the pawn shop and I followed him. He peered into the windows and I nervously glanced over my shoulders to see if anyone was watching us. This was a pretty obscure little alley with mature trees and no sight lines from neighbors to where we were standing.
Jack extracted a pair of latex gloves from his pocket, the blue kind like you see on cop shows on TV, slipped them on and tried the doorknob. It was locked. He glanced at me before removing a set of what appeared to be lock picks. I raised my eyebrows—Jack always was full of surprises. He had us inside Crystal's apartment in less than ten seconds.
“Don't touch anything, Marlow, and I mean anything.”
I slipped my hands into my pockets. I didn’t want to leave my DNA behind in this place and I was nervous about my shaggy head of hair. I'd never been tempted to get a buzz because it was a jocky thing to do but now it suddenly seemed like a good idea.
The late afternoon sun blazed in through the small kitchen window letting enough light into the living area that we could see without needing to flip a switch. Crystal’s apartment sparkled. It seemed that Crystal had been interested in actual crystal. A crystal chandelier hung from the center of the room. There was a matching set of white shelves filled with little crystal ornaments: from stars and moons to birds, squirrels, dogs, rabbits, unicorns, turtles, mice... There was even a crystal alligator.
“We shouldn't be in here.”
“You're only just coming to that conclusion?” Jack said
He fished through Crystal’s dresser and her closet, unperturbed by the presence of female undergarments and private things.
“What are you looking for?”
“I’ll tell you when I see it."
“And if you do find something, what exactly are you going to do with it?”
“That’s up to the higher-ups.”
The higher-ups. Jack was tight lipped about whom he worked for and I knew that was all I was going to get from him. He pulled out his phone and started snapping pictures. "What are you taking pictures of?"
“Anything and everything. You never know what you'll discover when you're examining a photograph later. The mind catches more when the pressure is off.”
Crystal hadn’t been one for tidiness. Her bed was unmade, the bathroom vanity was full of open containers of makeup, and toothpaste spotted the mirror. I decided to wait for Jack in the kitchen and keep a look-out through the window. I noticed there was a clear view of the shed across the alley. It made me curious as to what was in there. What did Crystal see when she looked out this window and the lights were on there?
“We should check out that shed across the way,” I said.
Jack joined me and stared out the window too. "You're right.”
We locked up Crystal's apartment, careful not to move anything out of place, and headed for the shed. I stood guard while Jack tapped on the door, then when nobody answered, worked his magic with the lock picks. He flicked the light switch and handed me a pair of gloves.
“What do you think of all this equipment?”
“Not sure.”
Someone either lived here or at least hung out here. Somebody who liked computers and had access to lab equipment. Whoever it was ate often from the burger joint if you could go by the pile of trash on the counter. Not much else in the room besides an old table and a stained sofa. “Looks like someone is dismantling and on their way out,” Jack said. “Doesn't it?"
“I suppose we really don't know what this space has been used for.”
I examined the computer system and the lab supplies. “Some of these are stamped with ‘Property of DU.’”
“A student, maybe?” Jack said.
I spotted something shiny tucked beside the sofa. I picked it up and showed it to Jack. A crystal owl. “I’ve seen this before,” I said. “Crystal recently posted this as a new gift from a fan.” I knew this because I’d creeped her Instagram feed after finding her dead.
“You think that a fan of hers lived here?” Jack asked.
"I suppose if she lived across the alley she would have encountered the person who stays here."
Jack flipped off the light switch. It had grown dark out in the meantime and we didn’t want to draw attention. I blinked, my eyes not yet adjusted to the sudden darkness, and felt a sense of déjà vu. Jack stood at the door waiting for me. “Are you coming? We should get going before someone sees us."
I couldn’t move, my mind racing. Jack noticed. “Are you okay, Marlow? Is something wrong?”
“I think this is the place. I think this is the place I was teleported to.”
Jack stepped back into the room and locked the door, leaving the light out.
“Okay, walk me through it,” he said.
“When you turned out the light, for a second I couldn't see, but I sensed my surroundings.” I took a step forward and turned on the computer console. “I remember this light sequence. And the smell. I remembered it being stale and sweaty. “I think this was the place.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
The security system had been a smart move on his part. Not only to prevent theft of equipment and ideas, but to record any unusual phenomena. For example, the entry of a trespasser.
The fact that someone knew about him and his work caused him a great deal of stress. Not only because the interloper could steal his ideas and rob him of his rightful accolades, but he could be implicated in the death of poor Crystal.
Poor, poor Crystal.
He hated how she was no longer around to stroke his ego. He missed her curves and wished she were here right now so he could take her.
Crystal’s betrayal had infuriated him, but still he didn't want her to die. He just wanted her to change.
One thing was certain. He couldn't go to prison. Her death was just a big mistake. An accident. He hadn’t meant for it to happen.
He had to protect himself now. He’d been pushed off course and now he was forced to make a correction. He had to eliminate further threats to his rights to property and ideas.
The night vision application on the security camera had caught the intruder’s image. Enough details on the man's face for the face recognition software he’d linked to DU’s registrant file, which he had hacked into. There was a match.
The encroacher’s name was Marlow Henry.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Marlow
I forced down the bile that was surging up my throat, feeling squeamish at the sight of the feline corpse splayed open on its back, and grateful that Brandt Rheinhold, who happened to be my lab partner, had no such qualms. The science track encouraged study in all the sciences including biology, but I preferred the cerebral version of science like math and physics. My stomach never turned while studying atoms, and keeping down my lunch while processing quantum theory was always a safe bet.
My phone vibrated and Jack’s name popped up on the screen.
Jack: I’m heading out to the scene of the accident. Want to join me?
My lip tugged up in a half grin. I’d lie if I said it didn’t feel great to have Jack include me.
Marlow: Sure. When?
Jack: Now. I’m in lot B.
A reason to dodge picking apart cat guts. Hell yeah.
Marlow: On my way.
I whispered to Brandt as I packed my things. “Something’s come up. I gotta run.”
He glanced up from the notes he was taking and scowled. “You’re leaving in the middle of a lab?”
“Sorry man. Can’t be helped.”
The professor was busy assisting a student in the front row, which gave me a perfect chance to leave without notice. Not that she’d try to stop me, but I didn’t want to give her a reason to lower my grade if I could help it.
It took me five minutes to slow jog to lot B. I recognized Jack’s Buick and kept my pace up until I reached the passenger door.
“Hey, Jack,” I said as I caught my breath. I clicked on my seatbelt, and Jack pulled out into traffic. His car smelled of onions, which probably came from a recent burger consumption if the crap on the passenger floor was any indication. I rolled down the window a smidgen.
“So what’s up? I mean, I assume the scene has already been picked over by police and forensics?”
Jack nodded. “Yup. I still want to see it up close with my own eyes.”
“Yeah, me too.”
Jack headed north in the direction of the bush party spot. I wondered what Jack and I would talk about for the next twenty minutes. He wasn’t the type to listen to the radio. Said he needed his mind free to work out his cases. The silence between us didn’t seem to bother him. I scrubbed my palms nervously. My knees jiggled like they had a mind of their own.
Jack glanced over. “You dancing to a song only you can hear?”
“Oh. No.” I pointed to my ears. “No ear buds.” I kind of wished I had them with me now.
Jack’s mouth pursed, like he was holding in a grin.
“How’s Mom?” I asked. I’d worried that he and my mother were moving too fast when Jack moved in this summer, reclaiming his spot as my mother’s husband and my father. But my mom had adjusted well. I’d never seen her
so happy in all my life as she was now. I, on the other hand, found it difficult to hand off my role as “man of the house,” after holding the title for seventeen years. I was happy to be back to DU and leaving the long-lost lovers alone to rekindle whatever it was that needed rekindling.
“She’s good.” He smirked and arched a brow. “Really good.”
That bile response I had in the lab resurfaced. No kid, no matter how old, wants to know about their parents’ sex life.
He continued, “But she misses you. You didn’t call last weekend.”
“Yeah, sorry, I forgot, with all that happened this week. I’ll call her.”
“Good.”
Jack had taken the highway that circled around the west side of the campus and signaled off onto some side street that led to the same forest road you could get to if you cut through DU.
More dead space. I pretended to be enthralled with the wall of spruce trees along the side of the road. If I lowered my window I could stretch out an arm and slap a branch.
“How’d you end up with that cute little girlfriend?”
My gaze darted to Jack. Was he asking me how Dakota and I got together, or how it was possible someone like me could snag a cute girlfriend? I was going to assume it was the former.
“We met at a coffee shop. She was in line in front of me and I asked her the time. She caught me out because it was obvious that my phone was in my front pocket. I bought her coffee and we made plans to meet up again.”
“Really? Smooth move, Marlow. I’m impressed.”
I grinned. “Yeah, I guess it was pretty smooth. It worked anyway. We’ve been together for four months.
Jack hummed.
“What?”
“Nothing. I’m just wondering where Sage fits in.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m no Cupid, but I’ve seen the way you look at each other.”
“We’re just friends.”
He eyed me with suspicion. “Okay. If you say so.”
