Hard Job

by Jeffery Craig

  He thought about it, but decided he’d better not. Besides, he thought it might take a while before he was ready to know. “No thanks, Mom,” he called up to her.

  “Good choice, Toby Bailey!” She laughed again, and her voice sounded like a million ringing bells. “Now find a better mood to get into and get up out of that chair. There are wonderful things to do!”

  In his dream, she blew him a kiss. As he reached out to catch it…

  …he woke up, and felt better than he had in a long while. He rolled out of bed and stretched, and thought about his dream. After doing his morning business, he went to the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee. He could smell something baking in the oven. After thinking about it for a second, he hopped up on the counter and swung his feet.

  “Toby H. Bailey, get down off that counter! There’s a whole bunch of chairs in here so find one and sit yourself down in one of them.”

  He smiled and sipped his coffee, and then grinned down at his Grams. It wasn’t the sunny grin from his childhood, but would do for now. “Not today. For today, anyway, I’m through sitting in chairs.”

  Grams, thought about swinging her dish towel toward the man sitting on her clean counter, but decided he really wasn’t doing a bit of harm. “What are you going to do today, Toby?”

  He swung his legs a little more, gently hitting the backs of the cabinet with his bare feet. “I think I might go to the park and walk around the pond. I might even skip a few stones.” He hopped down and gave her a hug. “After that, I thought maybe I’d go visit Gramps and Mom. And Geri.” Toby walked to the door, and turned back to the woman watching him from her place by the sink. “Hey, Grams?”

  “Yes, Toby?”

  He almost didn’t ask. “You think you could…fry up some chicken? I thought maybe we could go together and maybe…have a little picnic while we visited.”

  She thought about it as she opened the oven door and pulled out the baking dish. “I guess I can do that, Toby. That’s a nice idea, and we can take some of this cobbler.”

  She smiled as she heard his footsteps down the hall, and thought maybe he was beginning to heal.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Two weeks before her retirement, Melba was invited to tea.

  She entered Green Dragon and the small bells on the door chimed in welcome.

  A moment later, Zhou Li called from the back. “Come on through, Detective.”

  Carefully navigating the space with the use of her cane, Reightman made her way to the doorway hung with wooden beads, and noticed the connecting door to the martial arts studio was open. There was a solitary figure kneeling on the floor, taking items out of various boxes and crates. Continuing to the door leading to the back of the shop, she parted the beads, causing them to sway and brush together with a tiny, rustling wooden clash. She entered the room with the carved dragon table and the four chairs. Seated in one of the chairs, as expected was Zhou Li. In another, not expected, sat Toby Bailey.

  He rose as she entered and offered a welcoming smile. “Hello, Detective Melba. Fancy seeing you here.”

  Reightman noticed his pale blue eyes were shadowed in his drawn face, and underneath them were faint dark circles speaking to many hard, sleepless nights. “He’s finally grieving,” she thought, both sad and relieved by what she saw.

  Madame Zhou looked up from the teapot she was holding and offered her own smile, although it was different than usual. If Melba had to describe it, she’d say this smile blended both welcome, and secrets. “I’m pleased you have joined us, Detective. Please, take a seat while I pour, and then we will all have a little chat.”

  “It won’t be “Detective” much longer,” she replied, taking a seat across from the lady and stowing the cane on the floor beside her. “I’m retiring.”

  “Yes, I heard that was the case,” Zhou studied her gravely before she filled three cups.

  “Why are you retiring?” Toby asked from across the dragon table.

  “I decided other things were more important, Toby.”

  “I hope it wasn’t because of everything that happened.”

  Reightman shook her head to reassure him and banish his doubts. “No, or at least, it’s not the whole reason. I’m retiring because of the things I’ve learned and realized over the last few months. That’s significantly different than retiring because of all that has occurred, I think.”

  “I agree there is a difference, I think you have both learned, and suffered for some of that learning,” Zhou commented as she passed them the cups. “And, so have I. That is part of the reason I asked you both to join me this afternoon. I would like to share what I myself have learned, and tell you what I’m planning to do. And then, I have a proposition I would like to discuss with the both of you. But first, let us sample this tea. It’s a new blend.”

  Reightman noticed the jasmine fragrance she associated with Zhou Li’s tea was much less noticeable in the warm liquid contained in the cup she held in her hand. The flowery scent was still there, but was more of an undernote than anything else. She raised the cup to her lips and took a sip. She took another drink, trying to determine what was in the new, complex blend. She thought she understood the first two flavors in a way she had never understood the jasmine tea, but there was an undercurrent of something which reminded her of…She raised the cup to her lips again, and sipped. The final flavor was almost bittersweet, but didn’t say on the palate long.

  “It’s not bad,” Zhou Li commented, after she had taken her own taste. “But, it is not quite right. Perhaps it needs time in the cup to age and mellow before it will be at its best. We will see.”

  “What’s in it, Madam Zhou?”

  “Oh, just a little of this and a little of that, Toby.” She smiled peacefully, content to hoard her knowledge until it was time to reveal what she knew. “I don’t think I’ll tell you what is in it just yet. I am allowed my secrets.” Zhou took another sip and then put her cup on the top of the table. “Now, let me share what I have learned, and what actions I am taking based on those learnings.”

  Before she could continue, there was a loud crash from the other room, followed by a few angry, mumbled words. Zhou Li tilted her head, bird like, and listened. “My great nephew Jon,” she explained. “He is part of what I will share with you today.” She lifted her cup and drank again, savoring the flavors for a moment. “It opens up a bit more after it cools from the heat of the brewing. Please, try it again and see if you can tell the difference.

  Reightman tasted again, letting the tea slide across her tongue. The tea had changed, and the flavors seemed to blend together more. The bittersweet taste was softer now, more like something which had once been, instead of something still powerful and strong. Something else was beginning to emerge, but she couldn’t identify what it was.

  “I like it better now,” Toby said as he put down his cup. “Before, there was something in it that was too strong for anything else to come through. And, I think I tasted something new, but I don’t know what I think it is yet.”

  “Very good, Toby. You have a talent for this. But, I have always thought you showed incredible promise.” Zhou folded her small hands on her lap and picked up the thread of conversation she’d started before the disturbance in the other room had interrupted her. “To continue with what I want to share, I have learned I am beginning to feel my age. I am perfectly fine,” she assured them, “but I do find myself more easily tired these days. It takes me longer to recover from excitement or stress. I am also finding I am not capable of the same independence I have always enjoyed – especially in terms of transportation. It is becoming difficult for me to drive at certain times of the day. As you might imagine,” she smiled ruefully, “these things are hard for me to admit, and harder to reconcile with how I have always viewed myself. But, I have,” she said with a sigh. “And, I have decided I need help. That brings me to my great nephew, Jon.”

  Zhou took another sip of her tea, and the others followed suit. After the cups had
been returned to the table, Zhou Li continued. “Jon, for reasons I will not share because they are his own, is also learning and admitting things, and is beginning to reconcile himself to what they mean. Between us, we have agreed he will be moving here, to help me with this shop, and with my transportation needs. He will also be opening the martial arts studio next door. He is very proficient in a number of the more respected forms of the martial arts, and I am confident he will make this venture a success. We shall get along well, he and I.”

  “Will he also be living with you, Madame Zhou?”

  “No, Toby, not exactly. Jon will be taking an apartment directly below mine. We will both have our privacy and independence, but will be close to each other if needed. I think that arrangement will serve us both very well. I wouldn’t want to interfere in his life, after all.”

  Reightman hid her smile with another drink of tea and noticed that Toby did the same. They both were familiar with the hesitancy Zhou Li showed when the opportunity to interfere arose. Their eyes met over the rims of the cups in perfect understanding.

  “Before I tell you both about a proposal I have, I would like to ask you each a question. Please indulge me, because your answers are important to me.”

  They both nodded at Zhou’s serious tone. She turned to Toby. “Toby, have you decided yet what you want to do with your life now the spa has closed?”

  “Not yet, Madame Zhou. I have a better idea of what I don’t want to do. I’ve decided not to find work in another spa, because I think I that part of my life is over, at least for now. I’ll fill in if some place needs help, but only on a temporary basis. I think I want to do something which gets me out and about more, and gives me a creative outlet of some sort.”

  “By creative outlet, do you mean design or decoration of some sort?”

  “No, I don’t think so, Madame Zhou. Although I like those things, I don’t think I could deal with people who think they know what they want, but don’t realize it would be awful if it was actually done. I’m not sure what the right thing is yet, but I’m trying to keep an open mind.”

  “Very good, Toby. Thank you for answering.” Zhou turned to Reightman. “Detective, have you decided what you will do after your retirement takes effect?”

  “Other than visiting my family, no,” Melba replied. “I’ll have to find some new employment though – the retirement package for a retired detective isn’t all that impressive. But I haven’t decided yet what I’ll do next.”

  Very good. Thank you for answering my question.”

  There were more sounds from the studio next door, and again, Zhou Li tilted her head to listen. “I think we need more tea,” she said. After she’d finished pouring, she sat back in her chair and studied them both. Eventually she leaned slightly forward. “I have a proposal I would like to present to you both. Please indulge me and let me finish presenting my initial thoughts, and then I will answer your questions. Will you agree?”

  “Of course, Madame Zhou,” Toby agreed.

  Reightman looked across the table and tried to find a clue in Zhou Li’s eyes. Defeated in her effort by the old woman’s inscrutable gaze, she shrugged her shoulders and replied, “I’ll agree to hear you out.”

  “Excellent, then let me share what I am thinking.” Zhou Li proceeded to lay out her thoughts, very precisely. When she’d finished, she sat back in her chair and waited.

  After a moment, Toby looked at Reightman, and then back at Zhou with an incredulous expression on his face. “A Detective Agency, with all of us as partners?”

  “Yes, but I prefer the term “Private Investigation Firm”, Toby. A “Detective Agency” seems very film noir to me, and I never did care for that genre. And yes, we would all be partners, of a sort.”

  Reightman narrowed her eyes, trying to figure out what the old woman had up her sleeve. “How exactly would this partnership work?”

  “That is a very good question, Detective. In the simplest terms, I would propose you and Toby run the agency, while I would provide any help or guidance needed. I would propose we all have an ownership in the venture. You and Toby would have a share equal to twenty-six percent of the business each, and I would hold the remaining forty-eight percent.”

  “Why would you have the bigger share, Madam Zhou?”

  “Another excellent question, Toby. I am pleased you have asked. I would receive the larger share because I would provide the operating capital for at least the first year, and possibly for the second. This will allow you and Detective Reightman to build the business without financial worry, although I will expect you to maintain good financial practices and to watch expenses. I also bring to the table a large number of contacts and relationships which may well prove to be very helpful. The final reason is I propose we repurpose the spa facility into an agency, and I own the building.”

  “You own the building where the spa is located?”

  “Yes, along with several other pieces of real estate around the city, and the state. I also have a few holdings outside of the state.”

  ‘Why didn’t you tell me you owned the building, Madame Zhou?”

  “There was no reason to, until now. I didn’t want it to cloud our relationship, or for it to place added pressure on you as you worked through the things you needed to come to terms with over the last few months.”

  Reightman leaned back in her chair as Toby processed the information. “And what do you see us bringing to the table, Madame Zhou?”

  “Detective, I think the skills you would be bringing into the venture are obvious. Toby’s skills – while not so obvious – are equally important, and useful. He has good business skills, and he has a way with people. While you can teach him much in the area of investigation, he can teach you skills from the areas in which he excels. Over time, you will make each other stronger. I would expect you to each work to support and help each other, of course, but you have been doing so for the last few months – regardless of if you have done so intentionally.”

  Reightman cradled the delicate teacup in her hand and inhaled the scent. “It’s almost too perfect,” she said quietly. “I don’t know what to think, to tell you the truth.”

  “I like the idea,” Toby said, suspiciously, trying to understand what it was he liked. After a moment, he nodded to himself in understanding.

  “Why, Toby?”

  “Because, Detective Reightman, we’ve been doing this kind of work together already, and it worked. Madame Zhou is correct in her summary of the things we both bring to the table. I know we’d work well together, because we’ve done a fairly good job of that so far. I figure if we made it through the last few months, if we stick together, we stand a good chance of making it through just about anything.”

  Melba stared into her cup and thought about the past few months. “Toby’s right,” she realized. “We have been through a lot together, and we managed to come out the other side mostly intact. And in some ways, we may even be stronger than before.” She thought about the story of the phoenix and took another sip of the tea, trying once again to identify the elusive taste. She finally placed the cup down on the table, ready to see if both Zhou Li and Toby were serious about this idea. “I have a few conditions.”

  “I anticipated you might, Detective. Please tell us what they are.” Zhou picked up her own cup and drank.

  “The first condition concerns you, Toby. I want you to do the work to get licensed as a private investigator in this state, and a couple of adjacent states. It will mean a lot of work, but you need to do it if you want to be a real partner in this proposed venture.”

  “I can do that, Detective.”

  She saw the vulnerable eagerness in his eyes and responded gently, but firmly. “I have no doubt you can, but I want your promise that you will. This won’t be a glamorous game, like in the movies, and we need to approach everything professionally.” She remembered all he’d been through, and the worry she’d had for him and added, “You’ll also agree to learn how to defend yourself
so I don’t have to worry about your ability to take care of yourself.”

  “Are you saying I need to learn how to fight?”

  “Yes. I already know that you’re not afraid of much and that you can keep your wits under pressure. You’re also a damned fine shot, but I want you to be able to defend yourself with or without a gun – in any situation I can think of.”

  Toby’s eyes clouded as he thought back to the evening he’d killed a man. “You sound like this is going to be dangerous.”

  She nodded. "It might be, sometimes, and I want to you to be prepared.”

  “Are you going to learn to defend yourself better as well, Detective,” Toby challenged, shooting a knowing glance at her injured knee.

  Melba thought his challenge was a fair one, given that she wasn’t currently at her best. “I’ve been trained, and I’ve tried to keep myself in shape over the years. But, I’ll admit I could use some additional instruction, and I’ll need a lot of work to strengthen my leg and get back as much movement in my knee as possible. So, here’s the deal: we’ll both do what we need to do get into fighting shape and learn the skills we need to protect ourselves, and each other, without leaving any doubt in either of our minds.”

  Toby saw sense in her statement, and was glad she admitted she wasn’t invincible either. “Alright. I can do that.” When she looked at him steadily across the table, he amended his agreement. “I will do that.” She smiled in approval and he grinned back in return. Then, he thought about all the responsibilities of the new business, and added new conditions of his own. “In return, you have to learn the business side of things so I don’t get stuck doing all the paperwork and bookkeeping by myself. And I think we need at least one other permanent staff.”