“Knock it off,” Tori snapped. “And the answer is... both.”
Flint grinned again. “Hey, look on the bright side, at least you helped the Chief finally learn how to yell again. Those anger management courses he was taking surely wasn't helping him any. You did the Chief a favor, Arnold.”
Tori lowered her hands, growled at Flint, picked up her fork, and threw it at him. “And I guess I'm giving his dry cleaners good business, too, you jerk.”
Flint dodged the flying fork. He began to tease Tori a little more, when the cell phone in Tori's green purse rang. “Better answer that,” Flint said.
Tori rolled her eyes. “Better not be a telemarketer,” she said, then snatched her purse up off the table and fished out a purple cell phone. She gave Flint a Not-A-Word look. “It's the Chief,” she told Flint, as she read the incoming call number.
“Toss it here,” Flint said.
Tori handed Flint the cell phone. “I hope he's still not mad.”
“Yeah, Chief,” Flint said, answering the call. Spitting the toothpick in his mouth out, he listened to Chief Cunningham speak. “Be at the station in twenty minutes?... Sure thing... What's up? Sure, I get it. Twenty minutes.” Flint ended the call and passed Tori back her cell phone. “Chief wants to see us.”
“I'm fired,” Tori mumbled under her breath.
“You're not fired,” Flint said as he stood up. “Arnold, I regret to say this, but the Chief actually has hope for you. Now come on.”
“Really?” Tori perked up. “Hey, that's great news. I mean, I know I'm still a little green and all, but it's like you said, I'm coming along.”
“Just pay the bill,” Flint said, putting on a gray overcoat.
“Me? But... you... oh, fine,” Tori complained. Standing up, she slapped on a white rain jacket and walked up to the cashier stand. “You guys really need a buffet,” she told a young Chinese woman. “How much is the damage?”
“Forty-two dollars and twenty-nine cents,” the young Chinese woman said, picking up a white charge ticket. “Detective Flint likes our food.” She smiled at Tori.
“Forty-two? Flint!” Tori yelled.
Flint paused at the front door. “Arnold,” he said, popping another toothpick in his mouth, “let this be a learning lesson for you. Always claim dutch before going to a Chinese restaurant with me.”
“I'll claim a hammer upside of your head,” Tori grumbled. Pulling out her credit card, she watched Flint walk outside. “Paybacks,” she promised.
Outside, Flint walked to his car, allowing the falling rain to wet his hair and face. Looking toward the west, he stared at the Pacific Ocean. The waves were powerful, crashing down onto the shore with an angry motion. A few brave surfers were riding the waves, some making it, some wiping out. But soon, Flint knew, watching darkness begin to steal the daylight away, the night would run the surfers back onto dry land. Hoping the rain would last through the night, Flint allowed each rain droplet to strike his face and refresh him. Whatever Chief Cunningham wanted, he thought, had to be something simple. A peaceful night awaited him, or so he hoped.
*****
“No way,” Flint objected in a stern tone. Leaning against the inside door, he shook his head at Chief Cunningham. “Chief, I'm not going to babysit a spoiled brat who thinks the red carpet is meant only for her.”
Chief Cunningham understood Flint's frustration. Sitting on the edge of his desk he tossed a quick glance at Tori. She was sitting in her normal chair, staring at him with anxious eyes. “Relax,” he told her. “The coffee stain came out of my suit.”
“Oh, good,” Tori said, releasing a deep breath.
“Flint,” Chief Cunningham said, feeling exhausted from a long day, “Haley Frost - if that's her real name - is an up and coming actress singer type that is very popular on the big screen right now. Someday this young woman will fizzle out, but until she does the studio is going to make as much money off of her as possible and she is going to ride her small wave of fame as long as possible. Until then, we have to protect her.”
“Do we know who is sending the death threats?” Tori asked. Expecting to be barked at for asking a question, Tori was relieved when Chief Cunningham focused on her question as a professional.
“Not yet, detective,” he said. “That's your job. I want you and Flint glued to this young woman.”
“Good grief,” Flint said. “Chief, I think it's better if me and my partner stick to the streets.”
“Nothing doing,” Looking down at his tired gray suit, Chief Cunningham shook his head. “Flint, I could put anyone on this detail, but I want you and Arnold. Is that clear?”
“Why?” Flint insisted.
Chief Cunningham stood up, walked behind his desk, and sat down. “Haley Frost is the niece of a friend of mine back in New York, okay. I owe the guy for saving my life once. He called me and asked for a favor. I told him I would put my best man... and woman... on the job.” Chief Cunningham paused, his face softening. “Guys, do this as a favor for me.”
“Of course, Chief,” Tori said. “We're a team.”
Flint blew out a long stream of air, feeling himself caving in. “Yeah, we're a team. You got a file on her?”
Chief Cunningham smiled. Reaching down he picked up a brown file marked Confidential. He tossed the file to Tori. Instead of Flint snatching the file away from her, like he would have done a few months before, he walked over to her and began reading over her shoulder.
Tori realized that she was an in-person now. Feeling a sense of pride and relief, she went over the file with Flint. “Pretty girl,” she said. “Age, twenty-one. Blonde hair. Looks like a modern-day Lana Turner.”
“I was thinking the same thing,” Flint said. After reading the two letters holding the death threats he asked, “Who is this girl's agent?”
“Uh... let's see,” Tori said, searching for the information. “Ah, here we are. Mandy Garland.”
“Chief, where is our princess right now?” Flint asked.
“At her house up on Brown Canyon road. I have a blue and white at her house waiting for you two to arrive.”
“Is anyone with her?” Tori asked.
“Many Garland,” Chief Cunningham answered. “Listen, you two, there are a lot of psychos out there that go nuts over young, pretty actresses. I don't need to remind you two to use extreme caution as at all times. Your safety is my concern.”
Tori bent down and patted her ankle. “I'm careful, Chief.”
Flint patted his service gun resting on a brown holster sitting against his right hip. “You're not thinking the person sending the death threats is a nerdy sixteen-year-old kid who the cheerleaders make fun of, are you?” he asked, reading the concern in Chief Cunningham's eyes.
Chief Cunningham shook his head. “All fan mail sent to Haley Frost never reaches her personally. The letters with the death threats written on them were found in her personal Post Office box. Which means whoever is sending the death threats knows her personally.”
Flint walked back the office door and leaned against it. “Arnold--”
“I'll get the names of everyone Haley Frost is acquainted with, besides those already on the list in this file,” Tori said. Standing up, she tucked the file in her purse. “Chief, is she dating anyone?”
Chief Cunningham shook his head. “Not that I'm aware of. But check into it.”
“One last thing,” Flint asked, “when did this girl arrive in Los Angeles? And what did she do in New York before getting out here?”
“She was performing in some small plays back in New York,” the Chief said. “She was noticed by a talent agent, and relocated to Los Angeles a few months ago.”
“Got it,” Flint said. “Ready?” he asked Tori.
Tori nodded. This was going to be her kind of case. Any case that pushed her closer to the studios she clung to. Not that she would give up being a detective to become a movie star, though, right? Tori smiled as she walked out of Chief Cunningham's office.
; Well, she thought, maybe.
Flint nudged her with his elbow. “I know what you're thinking,” he told her, “knock it off.”
“A girl can dream.” Tori smiled and nudged Flint back.
Flint sighed. “I'll ask for your autograph later.”
After driving up into the wet Canyons, Flint slowed down as he pushed his car up dangerously winding roads. Watching the windshield wipers fight with the rain, he leaned forward on the steering wheel in order to see better. “Rain really picked up.”
“I checked the weather on my phone,” Tori said. “That tropical storm from Mexico is moving over us. The weather report said the storm is stalled, so we might see this rain last a couple of days. It's already flooding in some areas.”
“I wasn't even aware a tropical storm was in Mexico,” Flint said, easing off the gas pedal. Slowly passing homes tucked away in the canyons hovering over Los Angeles, Flint focused on his driving. “Some of these homes cost more than those mansions down on Mansion lane.”
“I know,” Tori said, staring out of the passenger window.
The canyons were wet, dark, and deadly. Down below, Los Angeles was glittering in the wet night like a dying ship being pulled under a deadly wave. Tori felt these thoughts attack her mind, and a shiver ran down her spine.
She looked over at Flint. Good old, Flint, nothing ever bothered him. No sir, not Flint.
“The killer could be hiding anywhere,” Flint warned.
So much for good old reliable Flint. “You really know how to make a woman feel safe, Flint. And besides, the person sending the death threats isn't a killer... yet.”
Flint glanced at her. “Anyone sending a death threat is already a killer in my book, Arnold. Now listen to me, whoever the killer is, he or she could have killed Haley Frost by now. The killer could be playing a sick game. Everyone, and I mean, everyone is a suspect, are we clear?”
“I understand.”
“Arnold, people can sweet talk candy from a toddler. I'm not saying you're gullible, but you need to train your mind to be critical of everyone, not matter who they are,”
Tori didn't take offense to Flint's words. In all honesty, she was gullible. When someone was nice to her, she felt the need to believe that person was innocent. Knowing that her partner was simply trying to build her detective skills, Tori nodded. “Thick skin, got it.”
“It's more than having thick skin, though,” Flint said. “It's the ability to read people like a book. Sometimes it takes a while to get through a book, though. So never draw a conclusion until you read the very last page. The writer can always have a surprise ending waiting for you.”
Tori looked back out of the passenger window. “Lila Crastdale seemed so sweet at first, didn’t she? A little insane, maybe, but harmless. But she wasn't harmless, was she? No one is harmless.”
“That's right.”
Staring out at the dark canyons, Tori felt another chill run down her spine. “Hey, Flint?”
“Yeah?”
“When we get the time, take me to the shooting range and teach me to shoot, okay,” Tori said.
Flint glanced over at her again. “You okay, Arnold?”
“I'm fine,” Tori said, “but if a killer ever comes at me and I can't shoot straight, I won't be fine. I'll be dead.”
“You're learning,” Flint said, pushing his car higher up into the canyons.
When they reached the designated address, he spotted a cop car parked in front of a gray metal gate standing guard at the entrance of a concrete driveway. Rolling down the driver's side window, Flint eased up to the cop car. “Anything?” he asked a bored looking young man with short black hair.
The young man, sitting in the cop car, shook his head. “With this rain, who can tell? I made two patrols around the house, but if anyone is hiding out there, I can't spot him.”
“What's the code to the gate?” Flint asked.
“First, you need to call Mandy Garland and let her know you're here. She'll buzz you in,” the young man said, reaching out his hand and handing Flint a piece of paper with a phone number scribbled on it. “Well, if it's okay, I'll take off now.”
“Take off,” Flint said. Rolling up the driver’s window, he handed Tori the piece of paper. “Give Mandy Garland a call.”
Tori took the piece of paper, read the phone number, and made the call. “Yes, this is Detective Flint and Arnold. You're expecting us and--”
“What?” Flint asked.
Tori shrugged her shoulders. “She hung up on me. Kinda rude.”
Hearing a loud metal click, Flint nodded at the gate. “Gate's opening. Let's go.”
Carefully, Flint drove his car down the concrete driveway. At the end of the driveway sat a beautiful, two story, Swiss style home, surrounded by a yard that had evidently been designed by a very expensive landscaping company. Parking his car next to a black BMW, Flint began to count all the outside flood lights attached to the roof of the house. “Did you bring your sunglasses?” Flint asked.
“Could there be any more lights?!” Tori said, shielding her eyes.
“Come on.” Flint opened the diver's side door, crawled out into the rain, and slowly walked up to the front door.
Tori reached into the backseat, grabbed a white umbrella, and followed Flint.
Before ringing the front door bell, Flint studied the landscape. “Fence surrounds the yard, but anybody can get over a fence like that. The fence is for design, not security. Later, you and I need to walk around the entire perimeter and familiarize out minds with every inch of ground.”
“Do you think the killer is out there in the darkness?” Tori asked, looking around.
Flint shook his head. “Not tonight,” he said. Reaching out his hand, he pushed a glowing white button dug in next to a thick, expensive, wooden door.
Seconds later a tall, thin, bony lady in her late fifties snatched open the door. “Well, it's about time,” Mandy Garland snapped.
“The weather slowed us down,” Flint said, looking up in the rain. “Can we come in?”
Tori quickly took in the woman's outfit. Mandy Garland was wearing a black business dress that hung over her bony body like a burial cloth. Creepy.
Catching Tori staring at her, Mandy rolled her eyes. “Come in.”
Instead of walking into a brightly lit foyer, Tori bent down, drew out her gun, and pointed it at Mandy. “You're dead,” she said in a serious voice.
Mandy's eyes went wide with fear. “What... what is this?”
“A warning,” Flint told Mandy. “You opened this door to two complete strangers. Either one of us could be a killer, or maybe both of us. From this point on, you open the door to no one, is that clear?”
Mandy watched Tori bend down and put her gun back in the ankle holster attached to her ankle. “I...” she began to speak, but then grew angry. “How dare you?”
Tori straightened up and looked Mandy straight in the face. “You're alive, but you could have been killed. You do as we say, is that clear?”
Mandy huffed and walked away.
“Good,” Flint congratulated Tori. “I'm impressed.”
Tori closed her umbrella, allowing the rain to strike her hair. “Ladies first?” she asked.
“Ladies first,” Flint said, nodding at the doorway.
Tori smiled and stepped into the foyer, which reminded her of a museum. “Wow,” she whispered, shaking the rain off of her umbrella.
Flint stepped into the foyer, closed the front door and locked it, and then began shaking rain off of his overcoat. “Not bad,” he said, looking down at an expensive marble floor and then raising his eyes up to burgundy walls holding expensive artwork. “Lot of money.”
Tori took her eyes to a staircase. The staircase was lined with a plush red carpet. Seconds later she saw a beautiful young lady walk down the staircase wearing a delicate pink, long sleeved dress. “She's lovely,” Tori whispered to Flint.
“If you say so,” Flint replied, unimpressed.
Before Haley Frost reached the bottom of the stairs, Mandy reappeared with two large men wearing black suits. Both men looked real mean and super tough. “I told you to stay in your room,” Mandy told Haley in a soft, caring voice.
“I'm hungry,” Haley said. Spotting her bodyguards, she shook her head. “Really, guys,” she said miserably, “I'm just going to the kitchen. A girl can make herself a sandwich, you know.”
“Our job is to protect you,” one of the bodyguards said in a flat, robotic voice.
“Bars over all the windows, a new security system, all of those flood lights... What's next, a vault for me to sleep in?” Haley complained.
“Dear,” Mandy said, taking Haley's right hand, “someone is making death threats against your life. We have to take every precautionary measure possible in order to protect you.”
“I know, I know,” Haley said. “Can I at least have a sandwich?”
“The chef has almost completed dinner,” Mandy assured her.
“Chef?” Flint asked.
Flint's question seemed to bother Mandy. Turning from Haley, her tone changed immediately. “Chef Roger's is in the kitchen. Please, don't shoot him, detectives. He's an old man,” she said, in a deeply sarcastic voice.
“Knock it off,” Tori said, in a tone that clearly told Mandy that she was walking on dangerous ground. “Lady, you better zip your lip or take a hike. Our job is to protect Ms. Frost, not to take any of your bad attitude. We can make you leave at any time, is that clear?”
Flint folded his arms and watched Tori.
Mandy was outraged. “I will not leave and if you--”
“If you dare interfere with our duties I will arrest you,” Tori said, “and that is a promise, lady. We were sent here to protect Ms. Frost, and my partner and I will do so at all times. And if you interfere with our duties, I will slap handcuffs on you before you can go whine to your lawyer.”
The two bodyguards grinned at each other. It was clear they didn't like Mandy Garland either.
“Is anyone else in the house?” Flint asked.
Mandy stared at Tori with hot lava eyes. “No.”
“Go get the chef, please,” Tori ordered Mandy. “I want everyone where I can see them.”
Detective Flint Box Set: A Detective Story Box Set Books 1-3 Page 14
