Deadly Institution

by Holly Copella

  Jacey was silent and uncertainly looked down at her chest. She groaned softly. Shelly was barely an ‘A’ cup and Jacey was a solid ‘C’ cup.

  “I’m sure you have something I can wear.”

  “You’re welcome to stop by and look,” she replied. “I hope you’re planning on getting some good stories at that party. I didn’t realize you were invited.”

  “It was last minute,” Jacey informed her. “Speaking of that, I was hoping you could entertain the girls while I’m out tonight.”

  “Sure,” Shelly replied and a deep sigh was heard from the other end. “It’s not as if I was invited to the party.”

  “I heard they’re boring anyway,” Jacey remarked. “I’ll drop by in an hour.”

  After Jacey hung up the phone with Shelly, she heard movement from downstairs. She again looked out the window and saw the girls still running the hose over their horses. Jacey slowly stood from where she sat on the bed and walked toward the bedroom door. There was another, more distinct sound. It sounded as if it came from the kitchen. Jacey held her breath as her heart pounded roughly. She looked around the bedroom and hurried to the closet. The shotgun had long since been removed and placed in the gun cabinet--another one of Uncle Russell’s brilliant ideas. Put the guns in the locked cabinet. Never mind if you need one when you’re upstairs. Jacey snatched a baseball bat from the corner of the closet. She hurried toward the bedroom door, slipped into the hallway, and quietly crept down the stairs. She carefully avoided the two steps that usually creaked and approached the kitchen. Jacey heard the distinct sound of a knife being removed from the knife block. She clutched the bat in sweaty hands and held her breath. She slowly looked around the corner and into the kitchen. Jameson cut his sandwich at the kitchen counter. She released her breath, rolled her eyes, and muttered softly to herself. She stepped into the archway as he turned around. Jameson jumped and nearly dropped his sandwich from the plate. He let out a startled gasp then relaxed and groaned.

  “Don’t ever sneak up on a man with a gun,” he announced firmly.

  She realized he hadn’t even made a motion for his gun. She doubted if Jameson had ever drawn his weapon in his nine years as a deputy. Usually nothing ever happened in their little town. Although there was that one time--

  “After last night, I’d think you’d announce yourself before prowling around my kitchen,” she remarked sternly.

  “Oh,” he said then smirked sympathetically. “I wasn’t thinking. You’re out of mayo.” Jameson sat at the table and ate his dry sandwich. “Besides, I thought you were in the barn with the girls.”

  Jacey leaned against the counter. “No, I had other things to do. I still need to find a dress for tonight,” she informed him while frowning. “I’d really hate to buy one for just one night.”

  Jameson stared at her with some confusion then tilted his head. “You’re going to the institution party?”

  “Yes, Maxwell suggested I attend and--” she stopped herself and considered not mentioning Asher. She didn’t feel like getting into another debate about Asher. “--and I thought it was a good idea. I thought I could write an article on it.”

  “Maybe you could have, but Brenda’s attending that party tonight, from what I’m to understand,” he informed her. “She’s not going to give up that story without a fight.”

  Jacey tilted her head with a curious look. “I wonder why Shelly didn’t tell me Brenda was going.”

  “Probably because she wants to be able to choose her story,” Jameson said while snorting a laugh. “Say what you will, but Shelly’s interest in friendship ends when it comes to money.”

  Jacey smiled wryly. “Maybe I’ll just have a good time instead,” she replied.

  Jameson laughed in a way that mocked her. “You? Somehow I can’t imagine you enjoying yourself at some formal affair with a bunch of scientists, doctors, and politicians.”

  She shrugged with a knowing smile. “It all depends on the company you keep.”

  His brow raised sharply. “Oh, are we anticipating a certain scientist’s attention?”

  “Maybe,” she replied and remembered her promise to dance with Maxwell.

  It was going to be a great evening for her just to see Asher enjoying himself, but Jameson would learn of Asher’s invitation soon enough. She felt they were getting off subject.

  “So have they found the guy who murdered Roseanne?” she asked, swiftly changing the subject.

  “Well,” he said with a depressed sigh, “we’re checking a couple of possibilities, but there’s nothing to really go on. Just about everyone in this town is in bed by midnight,” he announced. “No one saw Roseanne being abducted. There weren’t any fingerprints in her apartment, well, other than those you’d expect to find. Nothing really around the scene of the crime either. The area had been so trampled throughout the day by fairgoers that we couldn’t really find anything useful.” He considered something and appeared more enthusiastic. “But we do have an approximate time of death. She was murdered early yesterday morning. Considering the coroner’s comments on her time of death and the time at which the vendors were setting up, we estimate she was murdered sometime between five and six Friday morning.” He sighed deeply, finished his sandwich, and wiped his mouth with a napkin. “According to the coroner, she was killed with a scalpel. Her throat had been slit and there was a symbol carved into her body.”

  Jacey’s head tilted, and her eyes narrowed. “The same as the murders ten years ago. Hal Burgess?” she questioned. “But that’s impossible. If he’s even alive, there’s no way he’d return to this town just to murder Roseanne.”

  Jameson shrugged. “I’m with you on that. I’m still convinced Asher did him in anyway, which makes me wonder if someone had an ax to grind with Roseanne, or if someone was just trying to make a point.”

  “If she wasn’t killed until early Friday, where was she all day Thursday?” Jacey asked.

  “I think she was hidden within the institution,” he said with a deep sigh. “If I’d only searched more thoroughly, maybe I would’ve found her before any of this happened.”

  Jacey gently rubbed her chilled shoulders. The thought was horrifying that they may have been able to prevent a murder and that she was so close to witnessing something. “What about the killer?” she asked. “Does everyone just assume it was Asher, or is there some actual police work involved?”

  Jameson glared at her and frowned his disapproval. “We’re taking this very seriously, Jacey. We’re not going to arrest someone according to the popular opinion poll.”

  Jacey lowered her head. “I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m just worried about the accusations. You know how this town thinks.”

  “Yes,” he replied then stood. “I may have my opinion of what happened to Hal Burgess, but I don’t intend to let that dictate how we proceed with our investigation. Besides, Asher has Monroe on his side. He’ll see that justice is served.”

  “And besides,” Jacey continued as if she hadn’t heard a word he’d said. “Asher couldn’t possibly have abducted Roseanne on Thursday night. He could barely even walk, let alone carry a woman from her apartment.”

  “Yes, Dr. Talbert informed us it would’ve been difficult for Asher to have overpowered her,” Jameson replied simply. “Her ex-husband was with a girlfriend an entire state away at the time.” He placed his dirty plate in the sink and probably didn’t even consider washing it himself. “Dr. Talbert was at young widow Glease’s from early Thursday evening until Friday morning the day Roseanne was killed, and her best friend had been out of town all week with her husband. The only one left would be her sister, who lives several hours away. She was at home with her husband and never left the house.” He inhaled deeply. “Once we eliminate those closest to her, it could have been anyone for any reason. Roseanne was a bit flirtatious. There could’ve been a man in a bar not from around here. Some one-night stand. Perhaps even one of Dr. Talbert’s patients.”

>   “Or someone who knew Roseanne lived alone and would be a good target to make their point, possibly framing Asher at the same time.”

  “There’s no evidence that anyone’s attempting to frame Asher,” Jameson said firmly.

  Jacey was still considering the phone call Asher received, which would have put him in the institution at the same time Jameson received his anonymous phone call to search the place. If he had discovered Asher there, uninvited, he probably would have searched the place with great care and would have found Roseanne. Asher would have been arrested, but Roseanne may have been found alive. She hated even thinking about it.

  “Have you checked Jill’s alibi?” Jacey asked as she leaned against the sink near him. “She has mental problems in her family, and she’s willing to go to any length to keep the place closed. I think she’s capable of killing to get her way.”

  “She doesn’t have an alibi. We already checked on her for that very reason,” he announced. “We’re smarter than we look.” He flashed a smirk. “At the time of the abduction and the murder, she was by herself, sleeping both times, like myself and a majority of the town.”

  Jacey nodded. “That includes me too.”

  It seemed more plausible than ever that they were locked in those rooms to prevent them from seeing Roseanne’s abductor carrying her to some secluded location within the institution. The thought frightened Jacey. Perhaps last night’s break-in was actually Roseanne’s killer tying up loose ends. If he suspected they saw something--? Jacey suddenly shuddered. She didn’t even want to think such things.

  Chapter Nineteen

  The fair was less crowded despite it being a Saturday. Attendance would spike toward late afternoon. By evening, it would be crowded once again. Most of the afternoon patrons were from neighboring towns. Jacey walked with Monique and Coleen through town, being most of the roads were blocked off for the fair. As they approached Town Square, they noticed the scientists’ stand was gone. There were broken eggs lying in the area where the stand had been, telling Jacey they were needlessly attacked by Jill’s disciples. It was going to be a tough road ahead convincing people that the new institution would help their town while Jill was promoting fear and anger. Monique and Coleen looked at the broken eggs then each other and frowned.

  “Those poor guys,” Coleen said sadly. “They’re just trying to feel welcomed, and this town is treating them so badly.”

  Jacey frowned and shook her head. “Sometimes I think Asher has the right idea by avoiding this place. I never knew quiet people could be so cruel.”

  “And the guys at the institution are really nice,” Monique added. “Well, except for Angela. She’s a bitch.”

  Jacey glared at Monique.

  Monique smiled with a tiny laugh. “Oops.”

  Jacey glanced at her watch and sighed. “Okay. Let’s meet back here around one. That should give you plenty of time to meet Professor for your ride.”

  Both girls nodded. Jacey gave them some money then walked across the closed off street to the press. Monique and Coleen immediately headed for the nearest hamburger stand. They each got a hamburger and shared some fries. While sitting on a bench in the center of town, Monique pointed to an alleyway.

  “Doesn’t that go past the murdered woman’s apartment?” Monique asked.

  Coleen shrugged. “I don’t know. Jameson said something about the alley near the press.”

  Monique slowly stood and strained to look down the alley in the distance.

  “If you’re so curious,” Coleen announced, “we could take a walk that way.”

  Monique nodded. Both girls ate their food while walking along the blocked roads in town. They passed the new statue with its bright, yellow police line around it.

  Coleen shivered. “Gives me the creeps,” she said softly then ate a fry.

  “Do you think Jill did it?” Monique asked curiously. “Or Asher?”

  “I don’t know,” Coleen replied and stared at the statue as they passed. “Someone wants to shut down the institution, that’s for sure.”

  “Or at least make it look that way,” Monique informed her. “Maybe someone just hated Roseanne, and they’re using the institution as an excuse.”

  Coleen chuckled softly. “You sound like a detective in a novel.”

  They approached the alley as they finished their hamburgers, tossing their garbage into a nearby garbage container.

  “I think Jill’s batty enough to kill,” Monique replied.

  “But would she?” Coleen asked with a curious stare. “She’s put the fear of a curse into a lot of people. Someone may have killed Roseanne out of fear.”

  “True,” Monique replied.

  They walked down the alley and saw a car near the gates to a ground floor apartment. They approached the black station wagon with its back door opened and several boxes piled within it. Both casually peered inside one of the boxes and noticed some medical books. They heard sound from the back gate to the apartment. Dr. Talbert approached them while carrying a box filled with personal items possibly belonging to Roseanne.

  “Afternoon, girls,” he said with a pleasant smile.

  “Whatcha doing, Dr. Talbert?” Coleen asked while glancing at the box with a curious look.

  He appeared saddened then sighed. “Putting Roseanne’s belongings into storage until her sister can get here to sort through them,” he informed her. “Her sister didn’t want to pay an extra month’s rent on the apartment, and the landlord isn’t very understanding.”

  “Wants to rent it out right away, huh?” Monique asked with a raised brow.

  Dr. Talbert snorted a laugh and placed the box in the back of the station wagon. “Something like that, I suppose.” He leaned on the side of the car and eyed them. “How’d you two like to make ten dollars each?”

  They looked at each other and then at Dr. Talbert. “We could use money for fair games,” Monique replied. “What do you need?”

  “There’s at least twenty more boxes inside the apartment and I need to drop these off at my garage,” he informed them. “I’ll never get them all loaded myself before my next appointment. I didn’t anticipate it taking this long.” He studied both girls. “If you could seal some boxes and pack the rest of her books while I drop off these, I’d be grateful.”

  “We can do that,” Coleen chirped happily.

  Monique smiled slyly. “Yeah, we’d be happy to help.”

  “Great. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes,” he said. “I have to get my appointments finished early. I have a party to go to at the institution.”

  “Oh, Jacey’s going there tonight too,” Coleen said.

  “And several very prominent people,” Dr. Talbert added.

  “Yeah, naturally we were invited, but we’d have to wear dresses,” Monique replied while making a face.

  “Oh, the horror,” Dr. Talbert teased then grinned. “It’s an important evening for me. I want to open a clinic in the next county. Support from some of the attendees would be a great help.”

  “We’ll have everything packed before you return,” Monique assured him and rocked on the balls of her feet while grinning.

  They watched him drive away then hurried into the apartment with a mischievous agenda. The apartment was mostly cleared and more than twenty boxes were piled throughout the kitchen. The girls poked and sifted through the open boxes.

  “What are we looking for?” Coleen asked.

  “Anything that could point to her killer,” Monique informed her while poking through her own box. “We’d be in luck if she’d kept a diary or something.”

  Coleen laughed softly. “That doesn’t happen in real life--just in the mystery novels. Besides, wouldn’t the police have confiscated anything of real use?”

  “Don’t ruin my fun,” Monique remarked while opening a fancy little bag that resembled a clutch purse. She looked quizzically inside then suddenly gasped and tossed the bag to the floor. “Oh, shit!”

  Coleen saw the horrified look o
n her friend’s face then eyed the bag lying on the floor. “What is it?” she suddenly cried out. “Is it a severed finger?”

  Monique remained frozen and shook her head. Her eyes remained wide and fixated on the bag. “I think,” she gasped, “I think it was a man’s--you know.”

  Coleen was now shocked. “It’s a severed penis?”

  “I think so!”

  Both stared at the bag a moment and appeared uncertain what to do. Coleen removed a spatula from her box, bravely took a step closer to the bag, and slowly opened it with the spatula. She suddenly gasped then hesitated and stared a moment longer. She uncertainly tilted her head and poked inside the bag.

  “It’s fake,” Coleen informed her friend then straightened.

  Both made faces and exchanged looks.

  “Who’d want something like that?” Monique suddenly asked.

  “I don’t know,” Coleen replied while shaking her head. “Seems a little twisted to me.”

  Monique cringed and carefully picked up the bag with the tips of her fingers and dropped it into the box. She appeared sickened and shut the box.

  “We’ll ask Jacey about it later,” Monique replied then looked at her friend with all seriousness. “We better be careful. There’s no telling what other gross things we might find.”

  Coleen nodded with the same concerned look. After ten minutes of useless searching through boxes, they entered the living room and frantically packed books from the bookcase into an empty box. The bookcase was all that needed to be packed. As Coleen removed the last book, an envelope slipped out and fell to the floor. She picked it up and appeared curious. Monique saw her with the envelope and approached.

  “What is it?” Monique asked.

  “I’m not sure. It’s sealed, but there’s no address on it,” Coleen replied.

  Monique removed the envelope from her and held it to the light from the window. Coleen glanced at the front cover of the book she held.

  “Sins of a Nurse,” Coleen said then giggled. “I wonder if it’s a dirty love letter.”

  “We’re about to find out,” Monique remarked and opened it. She removed the copied note in cutout newspaper letters. Monique read, “I know what you did. If you don’t want the police to find out, place ten thousand dollars in a brown paper bag in the barrel of the cannon Friday at midnight.”