by Faizal Rahim
“Typical you I suppose. So where are you bringing me?” Shirley nudged at Morris playfully.
“I should be the one to ask you that question. It’s your car. I will just sit at the passenger.”
“That’s surely going to make you lose points with me. Though it’s my car, I expected you to offer to drive.”
“Hey… it’s your car… your responsibility. I don’t want to be responsible in case anything happens.” Morris raised his hands in a backing off motion.
“Morris!”
“Ha, relax Shirley. I am just kidding. Where you want to go? I am your driver for the day.”
“Hmmm, let’s go to Steaks & Wine restaurant. I love the ambience there and they have live jazz music.” Shirley suggested to Morris and got into her Ford.
“Thank God I bought my credit card.”
Shirley laughed at what Morris said. Morris and Shirley drove out of the basement carpark and turned the corner. As they turned the corner, the black Chevrolet was still at the same position.
CHAPTER FORTY SEVEN
ROSSI PARKED HIS CAR OUTSIDE a supermarket located at Timber Town. He checked through the receipts. The supermarket produced the highest number of product receipts that were suspected to be purchased for epilation process by a single person.
Rossi entered the supermarket and looked around. There were more than twenty aisles in total. Each aisle had products stacked up in huge shelves. Each aisle had numbers and categories of the products that were placed in the shelves. As he was looking around, a staff walked up to Rossi.
“How can I help you sir?” The lady asked Rossi. The lady was in her mid forties, plump and short built. She looked at Rossi and was instantly attracted to him.
“Yeah, I would like to speak with the In-charge.”
“I am the supervisor here sir. You can speak to me, I would be glad to provide service to you.” The lady flirted with Rossi.
“I am Chief Detective Rossi. This is my badge. I have some receipts with me. I want to look at the CCTV footages for the date reflected on the receipts.” Rossi handed the receipts over to the lady. The lady looked through the receipts.
“Follow me sir.” The lady brought Rossi to the security room which was unoccupied.
“No staffs here?” Rossi asked the lady.
“The security guys are used at the entrance. No one will enter this room. Only I have access to this room.” The lady adjusted her uniform to get Rossi’s attention.
“Alright, then please proceed to show me the footages. I have to be going soon.”
“Can’t you stay longer?” The lady asked and came near Rossi.
Rossi stared at her.
“I meant do you need me to stay with you?’ The lady changed the subject.
“No. I can manage on my own. I will look for you when I am through. Thanks.” Rossi walked to the door and opened it for the lady. The lady reluctantly left the room. Rossi closed the door and locked it from the inside.
Rossi went through the footage. He patiently watched the footage. After a few minutes, Rossi saw what he was looking for. A tall and well built man was pushing a trolley towards the cashier. He was wearing a cap which covered his face from being seen. He was wearing a sweater and jeans. As the man turned left and right to look at how long the queue was, Rossi noticed that there was a word written at the back of his sweater. Rossi clicked pause on the footage and zoomed in on the frame. The word written on the man’s sweater was ADIDAS. Rossi immediately knew that he was staring at suspect. Suspect was wearing the same outfit as he wore at Club Nightwolves. Rossi tried to zoom in on suspect’s face but suspect’s cap blocked his face from being seen. Rossi continued with the footage and saw suspect paying the cashier in cash for the items that he bought. The footage showed suspect walking out of the supermarket and he was no more in sight.
“Damn!” Rossi was pissed that he could not see the suspect’s face. Rossi took out a blank CD and burned the footage of suspect. He walked out of the supermarket without informing the Supervisor. Rossi decided not to call Shirley and inform her about the findings. He decided to visit the other two shops before deciding on his next move.
CHAPTER FORTY EIGHT
“SO YOU ARE SAYING THAT Michael Jordan would not have won the championships if it wasn’t for Scottie Pippen?” Shirley asked Morris in disbelieve.
“That’s right Shirley. It was a team effort. MJ would not have achieved it without his team mates. Scottie was the best partner that he had and at times Scottie outshone MJ.” Morris cut a large portion of steak and stuffed it into his mouth.
“If that’s how you are looking at it… what about Dennis Rodman? He was a strong player too.” Shirley gave her point of view.
“That’s my point. MJ didn’t win the championships on his own.” Morris told Shirley.
“Alright, have it your way, I am not going further with this.” Shirley raised her hands in surrender. Shirley checked her mobile to see if there were any calls or messages from Rossi. There was none.
“Will you keep your mobile away? You have been looking at it for every five to ten minutes.” Morris told Shirley.
“Sorry Morris. Grumpy is out on the case. I just want to know what is happening.” Shirley was apologetic about her actions.
“I am sure Grumpy will call when he needs you. Here let me keep the phone for you. No more checks on your mobile.” Morris took Shirley’s mobile away from her and kept it into his pocket.
“So how’s work going for you?” Shirley asked Morris.
“What do you mean?” Morris asked while taking a sip from his wine glass.
“I meant do you want to stay in Patrol? You don’t want to ask for posting?”
“What’s wrong with Patrol?” There was a change in Morris’s voice. He clearly felt unhappy with how Shirley sounded about Patrol.
“Hey, I am not saying…”
“I know what you are trying to say Shirley. You detectives always look down on us patrol guys. You guys take us for fools. That is something I really despise. You detectives think that you guys are the best in the business. Well let me tell you, you guys are totally wrong about it. If you guys were so smart, why have you not cracked the case yet?”
“You’re taking it personal Morris. You know I never looked down on you.”
“You never looked down on me because you knew me. What about the other guys in Patrol? I know for sure, you don’t even give them a second look.” Morris was raising his voice now.
“You know what? I am sorry for starting this conversation.” Shirley folded her arms and stared at Morris.
“Shirley, I am sorry. I just got worked up. I was being an ass.” Morris lowered his voice and tried to calm things down.
Shirley let out a huge sigh. She looked at Morris and said, “I am sorry too Morris. I didn’t know that you thought I was looking down on Patrol. I just don’t like people not doing their job well. Be it from Patrol or any other department in the Force. Anyway let’s leave it at that and finish our meal.”
The two of them quietly ate their meal without saying a word to each other. After some time, Shirley remembered something that Rossi told her. She wanted to ask Morris if he knew anything about it.
“You wouldn’t happen to know someone called Cambria, would you?”
“I’ve never heard that name before.” Morris seemed puzzled.
“Cambria Tyson. She is one of the victims from my case. She was a trainee with the Force. Do you happen to know her?” Shirley wished that Morris knew her. It will help her a lot in the case.
“No Shirley, I don’t recall anyone by that name. Was she really from the Force?” Morris asked her.
“Based on what Grumpy has gathered, the victim was a trainee with the Force. She went missing around the time you and I were going to get posted.
” Shirley informed Morris.
“Not a clue.” Morris shrugged his shoulders.
“What was the name of the girl you were dating? I knew you were seeing someone during training.”
“I dated more than a few during training days. As you know, I am a very good looking person and everyone wants a piece of me.”
“Except for me.” Shirley reminded Morris.
“Yeah, except for you. I received countless rejections from you. I just could not understand how you could say no to me. I am the best thing that can happen to any girl’s life.”
“Oh gosh… you are so full of yourself, aren’t you?”
“I am just a confident man. I knew you would say yes to me eventually.” Morris replied.
Shirley smiled at Morris without saying anything. Shirley took a sip of her wine and placed it on the table. She looked at Morris and said, “I really treat you as a good friend Morris. I always knew you had feelings for me. I just didn’t want to acknowledge it and hurt ourselves in the event something happens. You are someone I can truly call a friend. I don’t want to lose your friendship by saying yes.”
“We can always give it a try right? What makes you think that our friendship is going to be affected? Why don’t you see it in a more positive note? For all you know, our friendship might be strengthened by our relationship. All I am asking you is to give me a chance Shirley.” Morris replied with conviction.
“I am not sure if I am ready for it.” Shirley rested her cheeks on her hands.
Morris reached out for Shirley’s hands and held them. He squeezed her hands gently and rubbed her hands tenderly using his thumb.
“You can take your time Shirley. I won’t rush you into a decision but bear in mind that I will still be the same old irritant.”
“I think I am used to that by now.” Shirley giggled.
CHAPTER FORTY NINE
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE is no footage from the CCTV?” Rossi questioned. Rossi was at his second location. The moment Rossi came to the location, images of Aisha lying in a pool of blood came to his vision. The second location was a shop at Lagoon Villa. The shop was situated a few hundred metres away from the entrance of Lagoon Villa. The shop’s exterior was designed in the shape of a famous museum. Lots of amateur painter’s artworks were placed at certain portions of the shop. When Rossi asked the owner of the shop to let him view the CCTV footage, the owner replied him saying there were no footages.
“There is no footage man.” The owner told Rossi again. The owner was a medium built man in his thirties, tanned skin and with black hair. He was chewing on his bubble gum while he answered Rossi. The man had a thick accent when he spoke. Easterner, Rossi told himself.
“Then what about the CCTV camera placed all over the place?” Rossi was losing his patience with the owner.
“Those? They are there to be used as deterrence. I have so many people coming into the shop to buy stuffs. Surely I want to warn them of the consequences if they ever took my items without paying right. Do you know how expensive it is to have a surveillance system?” The owner was chewing his gum away.
“How do you keep track of the people coming in for purchases?”
“Why must I keep track? I am having just a small shop. I accept cash. They pay me for my stuffs and they leave.”
“Do you have any staffs working for you? I need to talk to them.”
“Man, you are joking right? Hiring staffs will make me spend money. How can I afford to pay the rent if I hire staffs?” The owner replied chewing the gum away.
Rossi got hold of the owner’s shirt and pulled the owner towards him. Rossi stuck his fingers into the owner’s mouth. The owner was making sounds of discomfort. Rossi took the gum from the owner’s mouth and stuck it onto the owner’s forehead.
“You can’t do this to me. I am going to sue you for this.” The owner pressed his mouth to check if there was any blood.
Rossi walked over to the owner. The owner used his arms to protect himself. Rossi threw his name card on the floor.
“That’s my name. Sue me if you dare. Next time you talk to me, you better not chew any gum at my face.”
CHAPTER FIFTY
MORRIS AND SHIRLEY WALKED DOWN the streets, admiring the brightly lit neon lights radiating from the office buildings, apartments and shopping malls. Both of them were sharing their experiences and the encounters they have had during their job.
“It just seems like we just got posted to our units recently. Time sure flies.” Shirley told Morris.
“That’s right Shirley.” Morris acknowledged. As both of them were walking quietly, Morris held Shirley’s hand. Shirley looked at Morris and gave him a smile. Shirley held back Morris’s hand in return. Both of them held each others hands and walked down the street in silence, enjoying the moment together.
Both of them finally reached Shirley’s apartment building. Shirley looked at Morris and said, “Looks like I have to get my car from the restaurant tomorrow morning before I go to work.”
“Don’t bother about it Shirley. I will take the car for you. I will park it at the basement before I go back home. Sorry for the trouble.” Morris apologised.
“There is no trouble Morris. Thank you very much for the wonderful evening. I really enjoyed the time we spent together.”
“Thank you Shirley for accepting to go out with me. I will truly cherish the moments.” Morris told Shirley. Morris inched himself towards Shirley slowly and apprehensively. Shirley noticed Morris coming towards her and she lowered her head to the floor, holding her hands together. Morris inched even closer to Shirley and his breathes made some strands of Shirley’s hair sway. Shirley was breathing deeply in anticipation. Morris used his hands and gently raised Shirley’s head with her chin. Shirley looked at Morris and closed her eyes. Morris gave her a gentle kiss on her lips. Morris kept giving Shirley soft kisses and held her in his arms. Shirley kissed back Morris softly. Soft kisses between the two of them became long and wet. Both of them were in each others arms and were kissing passionately.
At the corner of the street, the black Chevrolet was still parked at the same place and a faint knocking sound was coming from the car boot.
CHAPTER FIFTY ONE
SHE WOKE UP FROM HER sleep, opening her eyes. The coldness was making her shiver wildly. Something was wrong. She could feel it but could not put her mind to it. She could not move her limbs even though her mind commanded them to. She realised that her eyes were tied with cloth so tight that the back of her head was hurting. Her wrists and ankles were hurting with abrasion and skin tear from the robe tied to restrict her movements. Now she knew why she could not move her limbs. Slowly, her senses came back to her. She knew where she was. She was tied up to a chair and completely helpless. Not even her clothes were spared to protect her modesty. It was not the coldness that was making her skin shiver. It was fear. Fear of not leaving this place alive. Fear of not being able to save another life. Another life she knew was going to be lost in a few hours or minutes even. Fear of not fulfilling her promise. Fear of being totally helpless. She could hear the girl sobbing. Only God knew what was going through the girl’s mind. She wanted to tell the girl everything was going to be fine but her mouth would not open. She knew talking to the girl was not going to change the situation. She had to talk, that was the only way she could get both of them out of this place. She had to talk. Communicate with the person responsible for this. And she knew for sure that he was sitting somewhere in the room keeping a close watch on them. Feasting his eyes on them and thinking of all the unimaginable things he was going to do. She could hear his breaths becoming deep and heavy like a hungry lion awaiting its prey. She had to talk. Communication was the only weapon she had against him. She had to talk but now was not the time. She needs to wait for the right time. Waiting, a dangerous game she had to play…
CHAPTER F
IFTY TWO
SHE COULD STILL HEAR THE girl sobbing away, afraid to even think of the horrible things waiting to happen to the girl. She knew she was not spared either. She knew she was staring at the same fate as the girl. She knew he was deciding on who he wanted to choose first. She just hoped and prayed that he will choose the girl first.
The girl was struggling violently to free herself from the ropes tied to her hands and legs. Each time the girl tried to free herself; the ropes only got tighter and were tearing away at her skin.
“Help! Somebody please help. Help!” The girl screamed out her lungs. No answer from anyone.
“Please safe me. Help. Somebody please help!” The girl screamed till her lungs hurt and her throat went sore.
“Shut the fuck up bitch!” He howled at the girl, his voice echoing through the place. The girl went silent in fear. He gave out a long and low laughter.
He went towards the girl and stood by her side. He looked at her with desire and placed his hand on her shoulder. The girl tried to move away from him but his grip only got stronger on her. Slowly he inched his hands towards the girl’s chest. The girl gave out a painful cry.
“You enjoy that, don’t you?” She called out to him. There was no answer.
The girl gave out another painful cry.
“Fucking coward. That’s what you are. Prying on helpless girls.” She hoped he will take her bait.
“Well, looks like someone is playing the stalling game. Keep talking to me and hope that help is on the way. Well you can be sure that no fucking bastard is going to come here for rescue. This isn’t the fucking movies. No one knows this place.” He bellowed and continued, “Since you want to play the stalling game, I’ll play along. You can watch me at work and prepare yourself. Once I am done with her, you are next. Trust me; I will enjoy with you the most.”
He walked over to her and ran his fingers along her lips. She almost bit his fingers. He laughed and took off her blindfold. The release of pressure from the blindfold made her feel giddy. She could feel sharp pains banging on her head. She looked around and saw a metallic bathtub at the corner with a heater attached to it. She could see water being boiled in the bathtub. Beside the bathtub, she saw items such as cornstarch, sugar and honey. She knew those were the items used for epilation and he has already started the process. She looked at the girl, who was also without her clothes. The girl’s blindfold was still on her. The girl sat there panic stricken with bruises on her chest. She looked at him standing in front of her without his clothes, smiling at her and scanning her nakedness with his eyes. She felt a deep sense of rage building within her. She did not even know if anyone will come to their rescue. She knew she had to hope. She knew he was going to pay for all that he has done. She looked at him in the eyes and uttered the words, “Fuck you Morris!”
