Shades of Murder

by J A Whiting

  “Never,” Nell said flatly as she rubbed at her eyes. “I would have told you if it had.”

  “This is remarkable. How did you feel when this was happening?” Rob asked.

  “I felt frightened, shocked, dismayed, confused,” Nell said softly as her mind relived the experience of seeing the red-tinted woman in the shop. “For a few seconds, I thought I was losing my mind … or having a stroke or something. I didn’t understand what was happening. I still don’t. Was it a warning of danger? It must have been because something awful happened to her. Could I have intervened? Could I have told her she was in danger?”

  “I don’t know how you could have done that,” Rob said gently. “If a stranger came up to you right now and told you that he could sense danger all around you, would you accept that? Would you think he was crazy? You wouldn’t believe him, would you?”

  “I think I would now,” Nell admitted, “after seeing that woman covered in red. Maybe I would take the man’s warning to heart.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t believe anyone who told me something like that. It’s too farfetched to believe. My point being that you couldn’t have helped that woman. Dr. Forrest wouldn’t have accepted what you told her. So wipe the guilt off the slate. It isn’t helpful.”

  “That’s kind of harsh,” Nell said with a frown.

  “I don’t mean it to be. I know the experience is upsetting. You could not prevent the car from hitting the woman. You need to focus on what you can understand. Let’s analyze the facts and details. Let’s consider what might be done should this happen again. We’ll go at this rationally. Let’s work to figure this out.”

  “Sometimes, your scientific way of thinking can come off as cold,” Nell said.

  “Science is a way to understand the world,” Rob said calmly. “It’s a tool to make sense and order out of chaos. Talk to me about what was going on with you right before this happened.”

  Nell sighed. “I was at the shop with Violet. That was the morning of the big thunderstorm.”

  “Ah, I see.” Rob knew about Nell’s lingering anxiety over storms of any kind. “Were your feelings of fear during the storm stronger than usual?”

  “No, about the same.”

  “Did you go down to the basement?”

  “Yes. The same as always,” Nell said.

  “Did you remember anything new about the tornado?” Rob asked.

  “Nothing. As soon as the storm passed, I went upstairs and went to work in the studio.”

  “Was Iris with you in the basement?”

  “Yes, but Violet doesn’t come down with me anymore. I told her I could handle it without her.”

  “That’s progress then.”

  Nell had to think about that. “Yeah, I guess it is.”

  “So you were alone with the dog in a scary situation,” Rob pointed out, “but you rode it out. What about your vision? Was anything different?”

  “No. I closed my eyes. I could still see colors with my eyes shut, just like always, but they were muted like they always are when my eyes are closed. My vision was the same as it always is. Nothing was different.”

  “How about at the studio? Did you notice anything different about what you were seeing when you were working?”

  “Nothing stood out to me. I didn’t notice anything different. My eyes were tired though,” Nell told the scientist. Sometimes, the young woman needed a break from all the color she could see in the world and so she retreated to a white or cream-colored room, or when that wasn’t possible, she would close her eyes from the overwhelming sensory input and rest.

  Rob’s forehead knitted together in thought and he breathed deeply. “The woman who was killed may have been in some kind of distress. Maybe she was giving off some energy … some energy like the radiation wavelengths of the visible spectrum, and you were able to pick up on that energy and see it as red.”

  Nell stared at the man. “Huh.”

  “You’re very articulate,” Rob deadpanned.

  Nell shook her head. “I understand what you said, but is that possible? Did I notice the woman’s distress and actually see it coming off of her as color?”

  “It’s an intriguing possibility,” Rob said. “It would be interesting to test. Would you be willing to undergo an evaluation to determine if you’re able to see emotions given off as visible energy?”

  Nell’s face hardened. “You know I don’t like being treated like a lab rat.” When Nell was in her late teens, she agreed to testing with several doctors and researchers, and Rob was among them. The experience confirmed the earlier testing done when she was a child. She was a tetrachromat, but the extended research made her feel like a thing and not a human being … like a freak in a circus sideshow act. “You think about what I’d need to do in a testing situation and then I’ll consider it.”

  Rob said, “As you know, most people have three kinds of cones in their eyes. You have four.” Cones were structures that are adjusted to absorb certain wavelengths of light. “The extra cone in your eyes could be giving you the capability to perceive more dimensions of energy. Dr. Forrest’s distress may have created energy that was visible to a tetrachromat. It’s certainly a compelling theory.”

  “Compelling to you.” Nell shook her head. “Strange and terrible to me.”

  5

  Looking over the menus, Nell and Violet sat at a table on the outside deck of a popular restaurant right at the water’s edge. The sun was slowly setting and lavender, pink, and dark blue brush strokes decorated the sky.

  “What a beautiful evening,” Violet said admiring the view. “Tell me what you see,” she said to her sister. Violet enjoyed listening to Nell describe all the colors she saw in the world and tried to imagine what it would be like to be able see millions more shades and hues painting the landscape.

  Nell smiled and attempted to describe what she could see. “What you perceive as lavender, I see as lots of different streaks of colors together … pinks, reds, purples, some red, even some gold.”

  Violet rested her chin in her hand as she gazed out over the ocean and sighed. “Your description sounds like some gorgeous, amazing, wonderland. I love to hear about what you’re seeing.” Over the years, Nell and Violet had described to each other the colors they could see. Nell learned what was visible to her sister and used Violet’s words for colors to explain what she herself was experiencing so Violet might have a better understanding of Nell’s perception.

  “I wish I could see the way you do,” Violet said.

  Nell gave her sister a look.

  “Oh, I know. It can be overwhelming. But for just one day, I wish I could be you.”

  The waiter came by and took drink orders and when he left their table, Violet asked, “Did you see the latest news report?”

  Nell didn’t have to ask what the topic of the article might be. For the past few days, all the news they were interested in had to do with Dr. Pepper Forrest.

  “What does it say?” Nell braced herself for the information.

  “It has a picture of Dr. Forrest and the police ask if anyone recognizes her or if anyone knows where she was staying while here in town, to get in touch with them,” Violet said while passing her phone to her sister. “Here’s a good picture of her.”

  For a second, Nell hesitated and wouldn’t accept the phone. She didn’t want to see the face of the woman who had died right outside of their shop. Besides the small, grainy photograph shown on television, Nell remembered she’d only seen Dr. Forrest’s face in death.

  “Have a look,” Violet encouraged.

  Nell reluctantly took the phone and when she saw the picture of Pepper Forrest, a wave of sadness rushed through her.

  An attractive woman smiled from the phone screen. With ebony hair, fair skin, and bright eyes brimming with warmth and intelligence, Dr. Forrest projected a friendly, outgoing, caring nature.

  Violet searched her sister’s face. “Is she covered in red in the picture?”

  Nell shook he
r head and handed the phone back. “She looks normal. No red at all. The picture is just black and white.” After a pause, Nell said, “She looks like a nice person.”

  “I thought the same thing,” Violet agreed. “So the question is, why would someone want to kill a nice person?”

  A woman’s voice asked, “Who’s a nice person?” Dani stood at their table smiling at the sisters.

  “We didn’t notice you,” Nell said.

  Dani took a seat. “Not surprised. You both look knee-deep in a serious conversation.”

  “We were talking about the murder case,” Violet informed the young woman. “Does Peter know anything more?”

  Dani took a sip from Nell’s water glass. “Peter’s running late. He’s meeting me here. Can I sit with you until he arrives? You can ask him if he has any new information about the professor.”

  “Of course you can sit with us,” Nell said. “Have you heard anything from Peter about the case? Are the police close to making an arrest?”

  Dani rolled her eyes. “No way. They still haven’t found the car that hit Dr. Forrest. The case sounds like a mess. Peter’s been stressed out over it.”

  Violet handed their friend her phone with the picture of Pepper Forrest on the screen. “We think she looks like a nice person. We were talking about who would want to kill her.”

  Dani took a look. “She was pretty. She looks full of life in that photo.”

  “Do the police still think the incident was intentional?” Nell questioned.

  “They do, yes.”

  “Have they found anything in her background that suggests someone might want her dead?”

  “I haven’t heard anything about that.” Dani ordered a drink from the waiter when he came to the table to take the sisters’ dinner orders. “Peter’s careful about sensitive information. I sometimes can put two and two together by what he says and by what he leaves out. I hear him on the phone with the other officers and I can figure out some things from the one-sided conversation.”

  Nell looked at Dani with a serious expression. “Something unusual happened when Dr. Forrest was in the store right before she was hit.”

  Narrowing her eyes, Dani said, “I don’t like the sound of this. What happened?”

  Nell and Violet took turns reporting the details of Dr. Forrest’s visit to the shop, what Nell saw, and what happened when the professor left the store.

  Although Dani was aware that Nell was a tetrachromat, she knew this experience was out of the ordinary for her friend … way out of the ordinary. “What the heck? How could you see that?”

  Nell told Dani about Dr. Rob’s theory that Pepper Forrest was upset or frightened and gave off her emotions in waves of energy that Nell could see.

  Dani didn’t say anything for a few moments. “Is that possible? Someone can actually see another person’s emotional state?”

  “It’s a theory,” Nell said. “Rob is going to do some research on it. He might want to do some experiments with me. I’m not sure if I’m willing to do that.”

  “It would be pretty incredible if you could see how people were feeling. It makes some sense though, doesn’t it?” Dani asked. “There are different kinds of energy. You see more colors than we do. Why wouldn’t it be possible for some people to interpret the energy we might be giving off?”

  Violet leaned forward. “But why couldn’t Nell see energy like that before this woman came into the store?”

  “Maybe the woman had more powerful energy flowing from her,” Dani guessed. “If the professor was concerned for her safety, her emotions must have been in high gear. I bet Nell never met a person who thought someone might be out to kill her.”

  Nell’s eyes widened. “Good point. I never have.”

  Violet said, “I have an idea. I suspect Nell became more sensitive to things after living through that tornado. She feared for her life. Traumatic events can change a person.”

  “My new skill might be a result of both things,” Nell said. “I’ve become more sensitive from being in the tornado and Dr. Forrest was giving off a tremendous amount of nervous energy that I was able to see.”

  Violet began to nod her head in agreement, but then stopped. “Wait a minute.”

  Dani and Nell turned their eyes to the young woman.

  Looking directly at her sister, Violet said, “You told me you thought the car that hit Dr. Forrest was black in color.”

  Nell’s face began to pale.

  “But the witnesses report the car was white,” Violet added. “You saw a different color than what was really there. Why would that happen?”

  “I have no idea,” Nell muttered.

  “It’s simple,” Dani said. “Whoever was driving that car must have been full of fury and had only one intention … to take the professor’s life. The energy the driver was giving off was dark and full of hatred so the car appeared black to Nell.”

  “That actually makes sense,” Nell said with a look of surprise. “Maybe you and Rob should work together to figure this thing out.”

  Dani smiled. “Rob’s lab couldn’t afford to pay me what I’m worth.”

  Violet asked, “Did you tell Rob you saw the car in a color different from what it really was?”

  “It slipped my mind,” Nell said. “He was talking about light energy and the visible part of the light spectrum and coming up with ideas and theories about how I managed to see what I saw. Then he came up with the suggestion that we do some testing and I sort of shut down. You know how I dislike being the subject of experiments. I completely forgot about seeing the car as black.”

  The Bluewater police chief came out to the deck following the hostess to a table in the corner and every person sitting outside eyed him and began to whisper with their dinner partners. The chief was with a slim, fit man about six feet tall with light brown hair and brown eyes.

  Dani leaned forward. “That’s the detective from Boston who came up to help out on the case. Peter says the guy has a lot of experience and will be a great asset to the team.”

  “He’s not bad looking either.” Violet winked at her friend and her sister. “What’s his name?”

  “Michael Gregory,” Dani told them. “I think he plans to speak with everyone who was at the accident scene so he’ll probably be paying you both a visit sometime soon.”

  “Too bad I’m seeing someone,” Violet joked. “He’s pretty cute.”

  “Well, Nell isn’t seeing anyone at the moment.” Dani made eye contact with Nell and gave her a playful little nudge with her elbow.

  Nell shook her head. “I’ve got plenty on my mind right now. I’m not looking for a romantic involvement.”

  “Well, things can change quickly,” Dani said with a grin.

  “That’s for sure.” Nell groaned thinking about her unwelcome new ability and how it showed up out-of-the-blue. Taking a quick glance over to the table where the police chief and the detective were sitting, Detective Gregory caught Nell’s eye and held her gaze for a couple of seconds longer than he should have.

  Feeling a warm flush dart over her skin, Nell broke eye contact with the man and looked away, giving herself a mental shake.

  Oh, no. Not now.

  6

  Standing at the door of the shop, Iris wagged her tail and gave a welcoming yip causing Nell and Violet, who were hanging some new artwork to display for sale, to look over at the dog.

  “Who’s coming?” Nell asked the dog cheerfully and as soon as she spoke the question, Dani opened the door and walked in.

  Iris wiggled and wagged at the blond woman and Dani knelt down to scratch the dog’s head cooing over the friendly animal. “A greeting like this never gets old,” she smiled.

  “What brings you by so early?” Violet asked their friend. “Aren’t you supposed to be at the coffee shop?”

  “I’m on my way, but I wanted to share some information with you.”

  Nell’s heart started to race.

  Dani said, “The police have located t
he car that hit Pepper Forrest. It was in a parking lot at the back of the Burlington Mall. The car was a rental, and the police believe the man who rented it used a false driver’s license and a false credit card. The name on the license was Justin Carr.”

  “Have the police located the man?” Nell asked hopefully.

  “He hasn’t been found. Police ran the information they obtained from the car rental company and the man who leased the car does not seem to have any history. The police have a theory that the man in the driver’s license photo may have been wearing a disguise and he was probably in disguise when he hit Dr. Forrest. If that idea is true, then the driver certainly intended to kill her.”

  “This gets weirder and weirder.” Violet shook her head.

  Nell asked, “Have the police learned anything about the professor that would explain someone’s desire to kill her?”

  “No, and there’s a lot of pressure on law enforcement to solve this mess,” Dani told them. “Peter is straight out. He’s working double shifts. Tourist season is gearing up and the mayor wants the killer found so the town doesn’t suffer an economic downturn when people decide to go elsewhere for vacation.”

  “Are there any leads at all?” Nell questioned.

  “None.” Dani checked the time. “I need to get to work, but I wanted to tell you something else. Pepper Forrest was staying at the edge of town at that really swanky bed and breakfast, the Sandy Rose.” The Rose, well-known all around the country, was a very expensive inn with beautiful period furnishings set on an acre of land and surrounded by extensive lawns and gorgeous gardens. “I know your parents were friendly with the innkeeper. Why don’t you call him and see if you can stop by to talk to him about Dr. Forrest before all the news people descend on the man?”

  “You’re amazing.” Nell thanked their friend for her help.

  Violet hurriedly called the innkeeper, William Mathers, and when she ended the call, she told Nell, “He’s waiting for us. He said we’d better hurry over.” Violet hung the Closed sign in the window and the sisters headed out.