Rusty Logic

by Robin Alexander

  Ben Hoskins was dressed in a pair of shorts and a yellow polo shirt. He still had on his golf shoes and stood outside talking to a reporter for the local paper. He glanced at Kirsten as he said with a smile, “I keep this town clean, and like I told you, there would be a quick resolution to this peeper matter.” When he finished speaking with the reporter, he waved Kirsten over. “Let’s go inside and talk.”

  There was nobody in the building, so when Ben unlocked the main door and allowed her inside, she stopped biting her tongue. “You have the peeper?” she said, barely able to keep her tone even. “Is there some evidence that cropped up that I haven’t been made privy to?”

  “Noah broke into one of Chip’s vehicles. He was caught by a video camera mounted in plain sight on Chip’s house. People just want to hear good news, that’s what I gave them today. They don’t really care if it’s the truth. I’ve already told the arresting officers not to discuss any details of the case even with their families. I expect you to do the same and personally call any off-duty staff that I haven’t already spoken to and give them that message.”

  Kirsten folded her arms. “You just hung that boy out to dry for something we’re not sure he even did. He’s being judged in the court of public opinion right now, and you know around here that’s a big deal.”

  “He’s a shitbird, Kirsten. He’s been nothing but trouble. Whatever he gets, he brought on himself. This peeper business is over. I expect you and your whole department to back up what I say, you hear me?”

  “I’m not gonna perpetuate a lie or cover up any new evidence I find just to make you look good. That’s not my job.”

  Ben laughed, but when he spoke, his tone was harsh. “Your father never spoke to me that way, and as sure as I’m standing here, I am not gonna take it from you. I’ve got a town full of upset paranoid people. My mother won’t even stay at her own house. By your own admission, you don’t have anything, so this guy is a phantom, a scary story, that’s all it is. I’ve built my reputation on the low crime rate and safe living in this town. I am not going to let that be damaged by some horny rotten kid that’s been a piece of shit since the day he was born. This meeting is over. Now go and inform your people of what I said, and if I hear anything contrary, your dad will come out of retirement in a heartbeat.”

  Without a word, Kirsten walked out of the building distraught, not over the confrontation, but because some of what Ben had to say made sense. She began to wonder if the feeling churning in her gut was clouding the facts and she was overreacting. The only high side to all of it was that with Ben’s propaganda, the peeper—if he existed—might be comfortable enough to make another move. Hopefully, her people would catch him before he took his voyeurism to the next level.

  *******

  When Rusty returned from the boat ride with Kirsten, Stella met her in the driveway before she could fully get out of her car. She had found a sale at a nursery in the next town and handed Rusty the circular. Rusty didn’t bother going back into the house and went shopping. Stella met her again as soon as Rusty returned home.

  “Achmed, you went wild.” Stella watched Rusty unload several huge pots, bags of planting dirt, fertilizer, and verbena in every color.

  “I got you half a dozen fresh birds since your flamingos have faded a bit,” Rusty said as she pulled them from her trunk.

  Stella looked like a child on Christmas morning. “Six,” she squeaked. “You know, no one appreciates the beauty of a flamingo anymore. You don’t see them in a lot of yards these days, and they’re downright hard to find. Now don’t get offended, but I’m not gonna put these out all at once. Someone might be tempted to steal them when I’m away from home. I’ll just replace my current birds as they die.”

  “All…all right,” Rusty said wide-eyed as Stella bear hugged her hips.

  “You’ve done me a solid favor, Achmed. Now I’m gonna help you plant all these flowers in your pots. Hoist those bags of dirt, let’s get busy.”

  Rusty hauled everything over to her section of picket fence, then she and Stella arranged the pots. Once the dirt was in, Stella showed Rusty how to remove the plants from their containers, break the root ball, and arrange them in the potting soil. Rusty found the work surprisingly enjoyable.

  “How come you ain’t married?” Stella asked.

  “I haven’t had time for that, and besides, it’s only just become legal for me.”

  Stella looked up from her planting. “You’re one of those?”

  Rusty figured this was the point where her new friendship with Stella would take an ugly turn, but she nodded anyway. “I am.”

  Stella shook her head and pulled another verbena from its container. “You people are springing up faster than the weeds in my flowerbeds. Who knew there were so many of you? I suppose you and Kirsten are dating then.”

  “No, we’re just friends.”

  “Good, keep it that way. She’s an idiot.”

  Rusty sat back on her haunches. “You’re kidding, right?”

  “I’ve known that girl all her life. She’s dumb as a post, and you can do better.” Stella winked. “Find yourself a pretty woman.”

  “I find Kirsten very intelligent and engaging to talk to. I really don’t understand why you would say that about her.”

  “And homely. That child hit every branch in the ugly tree when she fell out. Not even that smart little haircut of hers does her any favors.” Stella shook her head. “Poor thing.”

  “She’s a very attractive woman. What’re you—you’re playing me, aren’t you?”

  “Okay, you might be the dumb one. Pretty but slow.” Stella nodded. “Now I know you think she’s cute and smart. You probably wouldn’t have admitted that if I asked for your impression outright.”

  Stella was right. Rusty wouldn’t have freely offered that information. She’d noticed Kirsten’s looks, but her mind had been so occupied with all the changes going on inside her that Rusty hadn’t spent time mulling Kirsten in that way. “She’s a good person,” Rusty said and went back to work.

  “She is, and I figure she’s interested in you because she comes around here a lot.”

  “I can’t get involved with Kirsten because I’m not going to be here for long. When my…vacation is over, I’ll have to go back to Baton Rouge. I have a condo and a business there.”

  Stella stopped working again and stared at Rusty as though she was insane. “You came here for a vacation? You don’t know how to get to Florida or the Grand Canyon?”

  “I just wanted a quiet place to unwind and get my thoughts together.”

  “Achmed, I’m a skilled detective, even though I don’t have any legitimate training. I’ve watched enough cop shows to know how the game is played. And I can tell that you’re lying. Why are you hiding in Ancelet Bay?” Stella held up a finger. “If the truth doesn’t come out of your mouth, you can bet I’ll find it elsewhere.”

  Rusty sighed and wiped at the sweat forming on her brow. Her story tumbled out of her mouth. She admitted having a heart attack, being a workaholic, and having what she termed her mommy issues. Stella made herself comfy in the grass and listened to all Rusty had to say without interruption.

  “So there you have it,” Rusty said with a wave of her hand. “I’m a messed-up human being, which is another reason I can’t get involved with Kirsten.”

  “You ain’t no different from anybody else. We’ve all got issues in some form or another. Don’t be too hard on your departed momma, though. She raised you by herself and worked outside the home too. I don’t imagine she had a lot of energy to spare. I brought up three kids, and though I had a husband, I often felt I was doing the job all by myself.”

  Stella picked at the dirt under her nails. “You do the best you can, but you make a lot of mistakes. One day, they’re just running around in diapers tearing up everything, and it seems like the next, they’re gone and busy with their own lives. They don’t show up again unless it’s for the holidays or when you get stuck in a storeroom
with no windows and no tools to pry your way out, and you’re declared missing for twenty-four hours.”

  Rusty’s brow shot up. “You got locked in your storeroom?”

  “Not mine. I could’ve jimmied that lock in a heartbeat. I was on a surveillance mission at a rental house across town. Nasty people making drugs. Anyway, I was there doing recon, and someone came out unexpectedly, so I went into the storeroom attached to the garage, and that bastard locked the door. The only thing in that room with me was a tarp and a bucket of paint. I had nothing to work with. That was also the time I learned to always keep my cellphone on my person,” Stella said and patted her pocket. “There was a sink in there, and I was able to get water, but I was forced to relieve myself in the paint bucket. It took me a long time to get that beige ring off my bottom. I spent the night in there, and the next afternoon, I heard kids playing, so I yelled until one of them heard me and came to the door. Kirsten and my son showed up a little later and boosted me.”

  “You could’ve been killed by a meth head, you realize that, right?” Rusty said.

  “Yes, Kirsten and my son made that point crystal clear.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Mona arrived at Stella’s house just after dark and gave her the inside scoop she’d learned from Tal, which echoed everything Ben Hoskins had to say. “So the peeper case is closed, and we can rest until the next mission comes along.”

  Stella pursed her lips and steepled her fingers as she thought for a moment. “You’re telling me Noah was caught peeping at the Wales’ place?”

  Mona nodded. “That’s what Tal said.”

  “Chip is a divorced bachelor, ugly as sin, and he ain’t dated a woman in years. He’s got two boys living in that house with him, so what exactly was Noah peeping at?”

  “Well, I don’t know,” Mona said with a blank stare. “Tal has said from day one he’s the peeper, though. Maybe it wasn’t anything sexual, he might’ve been looking in windows to see if anyone was home so he could break in.”

  “Kirsten obviously didn’t feel that way because she told us not to go out at night. If she’d suspected that Noah was up to his usual mischief, she wouldn’t have done that. Then there’s creepy Tom.” Stella shook her head. “I don’t think we should just close the book on him. He’s not paying Achmed any mind, so maybe we should step up our surveillance and tail him.”

  “Honey,” Mona began in a gentle tone, “do you think Tom Portman is the peeper because his name is Tom? You know like…peeping Tom?”

  “No,” Stella said indignantly. “He’s a fifty-something, unemployed single man who lives with his momma. That’s the profile of a pervert, I saw it on TV.”

  “You know my feelings on that,” Mona said firmly. “The role of caregiver is a full-time job. Other than your profile, we have no reason to suspect that Tom is up to anything nefarious.” She sighed. “And as much as I’ve enjoyed spending time with you in the evenings, I can’t keep up with this nocturnal schedule. I haven’t been able to do any housework, shopping needs to be done, and laundry is piling up.”

  Stella didn’t want Mona to try to convince her not to pursue Tom and decided to play it cool. “You’re probably right. I’m going off on one of my tangents brought on by the TV. You go on home and do what you need to do. I’ve got some things to catch up on here too.”

  *******

  Rusty chewed her gum and paced around her kitchen. Stella had unknowingly triggered something when she forced Rusty to view Kirsten in a different light. Logically, it was foolish to get romantically involved with Kirsten, but something strictly sexual was steadily gaining steam in Rusty’s mind. They were both single with needs and dealing with stressful things. What better way to burn off that tension than to light up the sheets? She wasn’t sure how Kirsten would react to such a suggestion, so she decided to do a recon mission of her own and picked up her phone.

  “Hey,” Rusty said when Kirsten answered. “I just wanted to check on you since I didn’t know what you were rushing into this morning.”

  “Political bullshit,” Kirsten said with an edge.

  “Oh, I thought you were going to tell me something exciting. Um…have you eaten?”

  “Actually, I was just trying to decide whether or not I wanted to get back into the jambalaya.”

  “Well, look, you bought me breakfast this morning and you took me on a boat ride, so I think I should buy you dinner,” Rusty said as she paced around.

  “Okay, you wanna go to Troy’s?”

  “I have no idea what that is, but sure. What’s the dress code?”

  “If you wear anything more than jeans or shorts and a T-shirt, people will stare,” Kirsten said with a laugh. “It’s super casual, but they have good food.”

  “What time do you want me to pick you up?”

  “I can be ready in thirty minutes.”

  Rusty smiled. “I’ll see you then.”

  *******

  Kirsten felt almost self-conscious when she opened her front door and Rusty looked her up and down. “What’s wrong? Don’t my clothes match? I thought jeans went with everything.”

  “You look fine—great.” Rusty waved a hand at Kirsten’s button-down shirt hanging loose. “I like that color blue, it brings out your eyes.”

  “Thanks,” Kirsten said and closed her door. “It’s not a big place, and if you want a table where we can actually talk, we should go now.”

  “All right. You smell nice,” Rusty said as she followed Kirsten down the stairs.

  “I bathed. What’d you do today?”

  “Stella gave me a circular for a nursery that was having a big sale, so I went and bought a bunch of stuff. When I got back, she and I planted some flowers.”

  Kirsten whirled around with a smile. “I told you—are you looking at my butt? Is something on my pants?”

  “I…uh…no. I just like the jeans. Where did you get them?”

  Kirsten turned and continued down the stairs. “I’ve had them so long, I can’t remember. I told you you’d make a friend for life with Stella. I’m surprised she didn’t try to offer you a bird.”

  “Actually, I bought her a half-dozen of them, they were on sale,” Rusty said as she opened Kirsten’s door.

  “Now you’re on her Christmas list, and everybody gets her homemade fruitcake.”

  “Yum.”

  Kirsten frowned up at Rusty as she settled into her seat. “You eat that?”

  Rusty laughed and shut the door.

  “Should I be concerned that every eatery in this town looks like a bait shop?” Rusty asked as she looked around.

  “It’s rustic,” Kirsten said with a laugh. “Hey, I’ve been to Baton Rouge often. It’s not riddled with a lot of fine dining establishments, either.”

  Rusty gazed at the menu. “What do you suggest?”

  “The pan-seared grouper is delicious, and the fish is fresh. Their steaks are great too. Oh, and order the sensation salad too, you won’t be disappointed.”

  The server arrived with their drinks, then took their orders. “I went with your suggestion on the fish, and if I don’t like it, you’re in trouble,” Rusty said with a smile.

  Kirsten gazed at Rusty for a moment and didn’t crack a smile. “I need your insight on something that I’m forbidden to discuss. Will you give me your word you won’t tell a soul?”

  “You have it,” Rusty said with a nod.

  Kirsten had requested the table in the back corner of the dining room, and no one was seated near them yet. She looked around and kept her voice low. “I’m struggling with facts and my instincts.” Kirsten explained everything she’d been looking at in the peeper case, then the discussion she had with Ben Hoskins.

  “I left his office feeling really stupid because maybe I am making a big deal out of nothing, but I have this nagging feeling that I’m missing something very important. I spent the rest of the day calling police departments in surrounding areas to see if they’d had any peeping incidents. None of them did ex
cept for a little town sixteen miles from here called Rodney. The chief there said over the past year, they’ve had a rash of odd incidents. Window screens removed, patio chairs left in front of windows, the same thing happening here. What makes them different, though, is an elderly man called the police after he observed someone standing at his neighbor’s bedroom window. It was dark, he really couldn’t describe the person, but what caught his eye was the glow from the cigarette the person was smoking. By the time the cops got there, the peeper was gone. The second incident was more disturbing. A woman whose air conditioner had broken was trying to sleep with her bedroom window open. She said she laid awake a long time because it was hot, and she heard something. First she saw a shadow on the wall, then she looked at her window and realized the screen was gone. Her only weapon was an air horn she used to chase away stray dogs, and she grabbed it and squeezed the trigger, hoping to scare the guy away and alert her neighbors. It worked.”

  Rusty’s brow rose. “That sounds to me like he was planning on doing more than peeping that night.”

  “My gut tells me this is the same guy, and this has been going on a long time. That incident with the air horn happened last month. I think the thrill of just watching is getting old, and he’s ready to graduate to other things.” Kirsten scrubbed at her face. “Am I just grasping at straws to be right and prove my dad and Ben wrong? Is that what’s driving me, or am I really on the tip of an iceberg?”

  “First, let me say it’s astounding that you can dedicate this much time to a peeping Tom. Ancelet Bay really does have a low crime rate.” Rusty rubbed her hands together. “I’m mentally dividing everything into sections, so my Rusty logic can be applied. This is what I do when I’m working on an issue. An energy drink usually helps me focus.”

  “Eat salad instead,” Kirsten said when the server arrived.

  Rusty didn’t seem to notice the plate being set in front of her. She continued to rub her hands together and stared off into space. The server had left them and been gone almost two minutes before Rusty spoke again. “Why do you say you have no evidence? You’ve told me of at least four incidents you’ve looked into.”