by Kelly Shade
With no trust at all, Ryan leaned down with a flashlight in his mouth.
“Nothing,” he murmured.
“Come on, put some effort in it!” Jane teased him.
Ryan rolled his eyes, but he went under the bed when he saw a thin black box. Jane displayed an arrogant smile.
Without a word, Ryan opened the box. There were passports under different names but with Savela’s photo, some cash and a stun gun. They took it and went to question the Super.
“What can you tell us about Alaric Savela?”
“Alek? I didn’t know his full name. Nice kid, always pays on time.” The Super was an old man with a weird accent.
“How did he pay?” asked Ryan.
“Cash, always cash. One time I didn’t have money to give him change. I asked him to pay with a card, but he refused and said the fifty dollars were tips for my good work. I tried to give them back for the next payment, but he didn’t want it.” The man was waving his hands while explaining. “Nice kid.”
“Did he had guests?” Jane asked.
“No, not much,” said the Super, scratching his bald head and staring at the ground. “Only one old guy from time to time. I assume he is his father.”
“Can you describe him for me?”
“Yeah. A tall man, white hair, stiff, you know, tense person. Rich guy.”
“How can you tell?” Ryan said. He did not trust the information.
“White suit, black leather shoes. Cocky walk,” he said shaking his head. “My mother was a tailor. I know what expensive clothes look like. And this guy . . .” he shook his head again.
“Do you know his name by any chance?” Ryan turned to him.
“No, I’m sorry. If there is anything, I can do to help, I’m here,” the man offered his assistance.
“Thank you, sir.” Ryan tapped Jane on the shoulder as a sign they had to go.
In the station’s elevator, they met Nick and Ian holding a middle-aged woman who was fighting them tirelessly. Jane found it hard to hide her smile. She already knew who the woman was_the victim’s wife, Mrs. Adelson. Ian was extremely sad over the fact that Jane was right about the case. When they put the suspect in the interrogation room, Lee and Valdez came back to the office to report to Hunt.
It turned out they found the mistress dead, strangled, in the trunk of her own car. She was tied with the wife’s belt and forced to get in the trunk. The vehicle was found a few blocks away from the motel in a gas station parking area. Mrs. Adelson refused to talk to the agents, but they didn’t really need her info. She was found in her living room, drinking rum. Her shirt was covered with her husband’s blood.
“So I was right, huh?” Jane bragged.
Ian and Nick nodded annoyingly, and Lee tried to change the subject.
“Did you find something?”
“I’ll tell you after I talk to Mrs. Adelson.” Jane stood up and headed for interrogation.
“She doesn’t want to talk. She didn’t even ask for a lawyer.” Nick stopped her at the office door.
“She may talk to me.” Blake lifted her shoulders and looked up innocently.
“Blake, go talk to the suspect; it’s way easier with a confession. Take Gray with you,” Hunt ordered in serious tone. “Then you two come to my office.”
“Okay, boss,” said Gray and went after Jane.
They sat on chairs facing Mrs. Adelson. Ryan was waiting for Jane to talk, but she didn’t. She was just staring at her. Ten minutes passed in silence and Ryan started to get nervous. So did the woman.
“What are you staring at?” Mrs. Adelson couldn’t take it anymore.
“I’m staring at a woman who was betrayed by her husband after so many years. A woman who was working hard to keep her marriage, to keep the house clean, to make delicious meals, to raise the children. Chad didn’t appreciate anything, did he?” Jane spoke with a soft voice.
“No, the bastard only thought about his dick!” shouted the woman with a drunken voice. “Do you know how many hoes he had?”
“He did that a lot, didn’t he? You couldn’t take it anymore. It was disrespectful,” Jane continued.
“Hell, it was!” lisped Mrs. Adelson. “Year after year . . . every time he promised it was the last time cheating, but it wasn’t.”
“And that Russian whore was the worst. He took family money for a prostitute. You couldn’t let him do that.”
“Damn right! He took money from the college fund of our son! He thought I wouldn’t check there!” the woman hit the table with a fist.
“You had to get rid of her, but you knew there was going to be another one and then another. You had to kill the motherfucker. The one that was taking from your kids’ money for his own nasty urges. It was your duty as a mother. You had to protect your children,” Jane raised her voice slightly.
“Of course, I did! You have no idea how good it felt when I busted his head,” Mrs. Adelson laughed, “And the bitch wanted to run! ‘I will not tell anyone, please!’" she begged with her pants down. No, I said, you are coming with me. She got in the trunk by herself.”
“And you strangled her with the belt, right?” Ryan spoke for the first time.
“Hell, I did! She deserved it! No woman should do what she did. Sell your body like an object. The bitch deserved what she got!” Mrs. Adelson stood up, but Ryan pushed her back on her chair.
“I suppose that’s a confession,” Jane smiled at Ryan, and he pretended he was clapping. Blake turned to the woman again. “Well you had divorce as a choice, but you preferred to be called murderer instead of divorced. Nice choice!” she finished sarcastically.
Two policemen went in the room to take Mrs. Adelson into custody and Jane and Ryan returned to the office.
Hunt, Valdez and Lee were discussing the situation with Alaric Savela. Jane could see that they were worried. It turned out, during the time she was speaking with Mrs. Adelson, they were digging up information about the shooter. Unfortunately, they didn’t find anything useful. The guy didn’t own any property, frankly nothing at all. No phone or credit cards or whatever, nothing at all. Hunt offered for Jane to move out of her house until they caught him, but she wasn’t up for the idea.
“I have nothing to worry about,” she said.
“Next time you may not have that luck! If you want, you can stay at my place or Ryan’s.” Hunt continued the tries.
“No, thank you. I appreciate your concern, but I will stay at my home.” Jane jumped in her comfy chair.
“We have nothing on him. How are we supposed to find him?” Nick slid his stool next to Ryan’s.
“I have no idea. I will check the video cameras around his apartment, but I don’t rely on that,” puffed Gray.
“You won’t find him. He is a professional. He stayed at the address for years. Which means he was sure he wouldn’t mess it up. It’s the first time he was caught, and that’s why he ran. He may have committed a hundred or more crimes without being suspected,” said Jane calmly. “I’m sure he is smart enough not to make more mistakes. So don’t waste time on searching a man who cannot be found.”
“So we just give up?” Ian asked in a high-pitched voice.
“No,” answered Jane.“ He’ll be back again! And this time I won’t let him escape!”
“What if he kills you first?” Ryan was distraught.
“Well, you will have to think of a way to catch him then.” Jane smiled.
Chapter 7
Bloody Jewels
It was a quiet day at the homicide office. Everyone on the team was bored and sleepy. Only Jane was looking at the files of the serial killer case. Nobody believed her when she said he was a serial killer, but she knew there would be another victim soon enough. Ryan was making paper planes and throwing them to Nick. Ian was almost asleep at his desk. Hunt wanted to scold them, but even he couldn’t find the point in doing that.
Usually, when the phone rang, it meant there had been a murder somewhere in the city, and the team shouldn’t be
happy about it. But this time the ring saved them from the boredom and misery they had experienced all morning. Even Hunt smiled when he picked up. A minute-long conversation was enough for everybody to cheer up and get to work, but the excitement was destroyed by the bad news Chief Wilson delivered. “Since we have a murder with a robbery, you have to work with the robbery division team.”
The heist was in one of the most expensive jewelry stores in the city. The “Précieux” was an enormous store located in the heart of Los Angeles. Only the wealthiest people could afford to buy there.
After the chief dropped the news and added “Behave,” she disappeared and left the team waiting for the people from the robbery division. Ryan was extremely unhappy, more than the others. His face went even darker when a frowning woman and two men came in.
“Mila Adkins.” The woman, short, dark-haired with glasses and big eyebrows, shook hands with Hunt.
“Connor Hunt,” he said and pointed to the others, “Ryan Gray, Ian Valdez, Nick Lee and Jane Blake.”
“Jane Blake, huh, I don’t believe it!” A blond, muscular man, with cold blue eyes like glass and teeth as white as a toothpaste advertisement. He pushed Mila Adkins out of his way and stood in front of Jane’s outstretched hand.
“Jason Carter, I’m very pleased to meet you finally!” Jane said.
“Hey, obviously you know about me, but I have to apologize for not having any idea who the fuck you are,” Jane said calmly, ignoring his hand.
“I like rude girls; they are the passionate ones,” Jason Carter said and smiled.
“Have some respect!” Ryan was a second away from kicking this guy’s butt.
“Ignore my colleague. I’m Sam Klein, head of the robbery division. Nice to meet you all. We are not very happy about the fact you have to be in on our case, but let’s work together in peace.” This was said by a thin, middle-aged man with a mustache.
“Your case, you wish!” Ian joined the conversation. “This is a murder investigation. It overcomes the robbery!”
“Is that so? The murders were caused because of the robbery! It means we are the leading team. We catch the thieves. You will have your killer, too!” Mila Adkins went savage.
“So three people are dead, and you think the stolen things are more important? I think you have to check your priorities,” Ryan said derisively.
“Oh, we need a checkout? What about you? Who hired a thief to work cases?” Sam Klein’s friendly tone was gone.
Jane was just about to answer.
“Enough!” shouted Hunt. “What are you? Kids? Now, we will all go to the crime scene, and then I’ll assign teams. Teams will be mixed_one homicide detective with one robbery agent. Understood?”
They went quietly. Hunt wasn’t the chief, but everyone listened to him. He was respected by the whole department, and he was in charge if the chief wasn’t there.
Both teams went to the parking lot in silence. Their cars furiously--as if they were in a race--headed to the jewelry store. Ryan and Jane were in one car, and for some reason, he looked more pissed than the others.
“Who they think they are? Suckers with the lowest success rate from the robbery teams in fifty years!”
“That’s why they are so tense, Gray,” Jane said as if nothing was wrong.
“Thief,” Ryan puffed. “The one that they never could catch even if they knew about you.”
“Like I said, they know that. Don’t waste nerves on them, Ryan.”
They arrived. The store was huge and fancy. Well, not that fancy now, when everything inside was broken, and three people were lying dead on the floor. The owner almost ran to them. He had a grim expression and a shaking voice.
“You must be LAPD.”
“Yes, Sir. Tell me what happened?” asked Hunt who came in with the rest of the homicide team. A moment later the robbery team popped in, and they surrounded the owner, waiting for him to explain the situation.
“There were three people. I think one was a woman, but I’m not sure. They went in, locked the door and dropped the blinds. One sprayed the cameras. They knew where the secret camera was.” He couldn’t take a breath. “Urgh! Then they broke all the showcases and put everything in bags. The biggest made me open the safe. They were just about to go when Roy tried to shoot, and the other two people wanted to hide behind the big pot over there, but they killed them,” he almost cried.
“Sir, can you tell us more about the robbers?” asked Ryan politely.
“No. They made us stay on the ground with our faces down. The only thing I saw was they were in military clothes.”
“Tell us about the stolen jewelry and money.” This was the only thing Sam Klein was interested in.
“Diamond and ruby necklaces, rings, earrings, diadems and about fifty thousand dollars in cash. I’ll make a list if you wait ten or fifteen minutes.” The owner now was angry; the sadness and fear were long gone after Klein’s question.
“We have to ID the victims. Take your time to check and make a list. We will be here for the next half hour or so,” explained Hunt and the owner rushed to his assistant.
“Now, take a look at the victims. Then Blake and Carter are working together, Lee with Klein, Adkins with Valdez and Gray with me. We search for the same people, so we go after leads in pairs. People, I want fast work so we can get done with this. Okay?” added Hunt.
The two teams nodded with anger written on each face.
Ian and Nick checked the victims’ pockets.
“This is Roy Pittman, the guard.” Nick pointed at him and continued with the woman. “Alia Rich, she was a customer with . . .” He took the other man’s wallet. “Greg Vaughan.”
“They may be a couple?” suggested Jason Carter.
“No, they are not,” Jane said this quietly, while walking around the three bodies.
“And why is that?” Mila Adkins didn’t even try to hide her dislike for Jane.
“He is gay,” Jane huffed, showing she didn’t really want to explain.
“How do you know?” insisted Adkins with more irritation in her voice.
“This is a foundation on his face. His nails are professionally done in a nail salon. He has nose corrections and his underwear is a thong. As I said gay.” Jane pointed at all these things, but they had to kneel in order to see them.
“Okay, I saw everything except the thong. How do you know his underwear?” Klein asked in a mocking tone.
“He is wearing extremely tight jeans; if he wore boxers, we would see the trace. If you don’t believe me, check,” answered Jane rolling her eyes.
Klein glanced at her, put on a glove and pulled a little at the victim’s jeans. Jane was right. Ryan and Nick sneered.
“Okay, people, after we established the sexual orientation of Mr. Vaughan, can we work now?” Jason Carter wanted to prevent the eventual fight.
“Carter, you are a hundred percent right!” agreed Hunt and gathered the teams in front of him. “Carter, you and Blake go to Alia Rich’s family. Tell them the bad news and ask what she was doing here. Jane, you know what to do. I’m not going to waste time teaching you how to do your job.”
Hunt turned to Ian and Mila. “You two, go to Greg Vaughan’s family. Lee, Klein, learn everything about the guard; he looks suspicious; he may be involved. And I’ll stay here with Gray to check the surveillance videos and to speak with the witnesses.”
Hunt took a deep breath. “See you all in the office in two hours. Okay?”
Everyone agreed and got to their assignments. Ryan looked tense, so Jane patted his back and told him, “We’ll finish with this fast,” and she followed Jason Carter.
“I’m sorry for earlier,” apologized Carter when they got in the car.
“It’s okay,” said Jane coldly.
“I’m truly sorry. I thought you were a joke when I heard homicide hired a thief, but now I see you are a hell of an investigator. On the way here my colleagues told me about your work,” Jason said. His cheeks were red with shame.
>
“Like I said, it’s okay,” Jane said, this time warmer than before. “Tell me the address. Actually just write it on the GPS.”
He did it, and soon they arrived at Alia Rich’s house. The conversation with her family was hard. She was about to get married and was in that store to choose the wedding rings. Mr. Vaughan was her best "girlfriend," as she called him in front of her mother. Unfortunately, they didn’t get any valuable information but had to stay to listen to her mother, father, family maids and future husband’s stories about how perfect she was. Jane wasn’t really empathic, but Jason was actually trying to comfort them. It seemed like ages for Blake when they got out of the house and into the car.
“Good thing you’re not in homicide,” Jane laughed.
“Why is that?” asked Carter.
“You can’t deliver bad news.” Jane was still laughing.
“You say it as if it is a bad thing. I don’t like to see people suffering.”
“No, it is not a bad thing,” Jane said “It means that you have humanity and that is not bad at all.”
“You don’t have it?” Carter lifted his voice a little.
“I kinda . . . Yeah, you can say that.” Jane smiled again.
On the way to the department, they talked about the case without mocking each other. Just before they were about to get off the car, Jason asked, “Look, after we finished that case, do you think we can go out to have a drink or dinner?”
“Let me answer after the case.” Jane wasn’t surprised by the question “And just so you know, I prefer the drink. Don’t really like restaurants.”
“Me too.” Jason was happy even though she didn’t say yes.
The team was gathered at a big table, waiting for Blake and Carter. Apparently, they arrived last, and Gray wasn’t pleased about the fact. He was furiously typing on the two laptops in front of him. Jane pretended she hadn’t seen him and asked cheerfully, “What do you have guys? We have nothing at all, so you are our hope!”
Hunt raised his eyebrows in astonishment. He couldn’t believe Jane and Jason came back without getting in a fight, even more_they looked like they got along.
