Mystery: Double Cross - The Davenport Mysteries (Suspense novel series of adventure mystery books and Crime mystery thrillers)

by V. S. VASHIST

  “Yes, we can very well have it now,” Robert said and looked towards the mirror. George called another officer and gave the instructions.

  “Can they do that?” Burt asked his lawyer, who could not answer.

  “Let me answer that,” Robert said with a renewed confidence. “You were going out of the country and could not explain why. Also, the contacts that you were going to meet were found to be forged. That’s enough for us to issue a search warrant.”

  Burt covered his face in his palms. He did not know what to do. Kiara looked at Robert who gave a faint smile. Burt’s confidence had been shattered to pieces. It was just a matter of time when he was going lead them to the mastermind, Kiara thought. She looked at her watch. It was almost ten, the time for Jake to make his move.

  Jake went directly to meet Rebecca, as planned by Kiara.

  As he waited for her, he kept thinking about how he was going to ask questions. He had not seen her since the day he was poisoned. Preparing for an interrogation was way easier than facing the suspect in person when the suspect meant something to you.

  His heart sank a little as the door opened. He looked at her clothes and her gloomy face as she was escorted to the opposite end of the table. She did not look like he remembered. It was as if she had turned into some other person, someone from whom life had taken away everything. She was not able to look into his eyes. Guilt was written all over her body language.

  “How are you?” Jake asked softly as she sat down. “You look a bit different in that hair.”

  She looked at him with surprise. She had expected hatred, but Jake was looking at her with a smile.

  “You know, I’m off this case. I am here just to see if you are doing fine,” he said while gazing into her eyes.

  “I … I am fine,” she said in a frail voice. Jake felt a shiver as he heard the voice that had given him the best two days of his life.

  He took a deep breath. “I know you have nothing to do with the murder or the theft of the antiques. I believe in you. Do you believe in me?”

  Rebecca nodded. “How can you behave so normally in front of someone who betrayed you? Why are you here, Jake?”

  “I know everyone thinks of you as a criminal and frankly speaking, they have reason to believe that. But I know who you really are. I am here to help you. But to get you out of this situation, I need to know what you know.”

  “As I said, I only helped Brendon as this was his last assignment. I didn’t even know what he did before the marriage,” she reiterated what she had told earlier.

  “It’s hard to believe that and even the judge will find it difficult to believe. We’ve checked your records. You met Brendon first time in a bar downtown. That bar is notorious for being a meeting point for criminals. How did you end up there?”

  “I was new to the city. The bar was near to my college. One day, we friends went there for a drink not knowing about its reputation. Brendon offered a round of drink to all of us. I went to thank him. As we talked, I got to know about him. He told me that he was a painter. His clients were some of the bigger names in the city. He even showed his work to me on his phone. I was really impressed as any young girl would be. He was good-looking and creative and looked to be doing great in his career too. What was there not to like about him? The next day, I went there alone, just hoping that he will show up. To my surprise, he was already there. We started talking when he confessed that he also came there hoping to see me. After that, we started meeting daily. It went on for three months before we got married. And as I told you earlier also, in those three months, he never did anything that was suspicious.”

  Jake felt a streak of pain pass his heart listening to her love story. “But, there are no signs of any struggle in the apartment. Even the broken window pane doesn’t tell if it was broken from inside or outside,” he said harshly. Her praise for Brendon had not gone down well with him.

  Rebecca’s face turned red. “You are accusing me of killing my husband?”

  “I am not. The crime scene is,” Jake said and paused. He knew he did not want the discussion to go in this direction. “I am sorry if I have hurt your feelings. My point is that if the case prolongs without any progress, the fingers will start pointing at you.”

  “But, I saw them killing him,” she said with tear-filled eyes. “I told them to take my life and spare his. How could anyone even think that I could do that?”

  Jake pressed her hand. “I am really sorry. I didn’t intend to hurt you. But I need something that will support your story.”

  “I don’t have anything. I didn’t even know who they were,” she said softly.

  “What about the Chief?” Jake asked.

  “Both times when he called, I was not at home,” Rebecca said while wiping tears off her face.

  “Do you know what he said to Brendon?”

  “The first time he wanted to know about the package that the police had caught.”

  “What did he say?” he asked further.

  “He warned Brendon of dire consequences if he did not remove all the traces that could lead to him,” Rebecca said. “Brendon told him that the shop owner was in a coma and that you … you were suspended for a month because of that.”

  “So, you knew that I was off the case. Why did you try to kill me, then?” he asked the question that was bothering him since the day she had vanished.

  Kiara knew the question was going to come sometime and the fear showed on her face.

  “Don’t worry. It’s nothing personal,” Jake assured her.

  “It was not the Chief’s plan. It was Brendon’s,” Rebecca said and looked down. Jake was in a state of shock. He kept staring at her in disbelief.

  “He got startled when he came to know about you following us. The discussion with Chief was only a one-way street. We did not know how to approach him. He had to take a decision by himself. The Chief had already threatened him once. He knew if he doesn’t take your life, the Chief would take his.”

  “But, you reduced the dose. Why?”

  Rebecca looked at him for a moment. “I am not a murderer. I couldn’t do it. In fact, I was even against poisoning you. We had a big fight over it. But, there was no way out. Finally, I had to do it.”

  Jake was right. The night before the poisoning, she was arguing against it with Brendon.

  “Time is up,” a voice came from behind. Jake looked at the guard and heaved a sigh.

  “Let me know anything that comes to your mind.”

  Rebecca nodded and got up. Jake kept looking at her as the guard escorted her.

  Rebecca stopped for a moment as the door opened. She turned around and looked into Jake’s eyes. “Forgive me,” she said with great difficulty.

  “I’ve already done that,” Jake mumbled as she stepped out. He kept thinking about Rebecca, knowing that even if he tried to convince himself about her innocence, the law was never going to forgive her.

  Robert had a large team; still it took more than half a day for the search to finish at Burt’s farmhouse. The whole place was full of old, precious relics. Separating legal and illegal ones was a big task. However, the hard work did not go waste as by lunchtime, he had enough evidence to take the case to the next level. Not only did he find his illegal stash, he also found the list of Burt’s clientele and the record of his past transactions. By evening, a lot of renowned names were getting summoned. This caused a stir in the media circles. Robert could not believe his luck. He was sure of getting promoted finally.

  Jake and Kiara were sitting in the cafeteria, looking at the news that showed Burt’s farmhouse, and were speculating about the people involved with him.

  “Any calls from Robert?” Jake asked while munching the sandwich.

  “He’s a bigger fool than what we ever thought. By now, the real culprit would be out of the country,” Kiara said. “I called him five times. He’s even left his phone with some junior officer.”

  “No point in calling him again then. We can use this t
ime on doing some search of our own,” Jake suggested.

  “What do you mean?” Kiara turned towards him.

  “I’m sure this case is ruined. The whole blame will come down to Rebecca. But I feel she’s innocent.”

  “Can you come to the point?” Kiara raised her brow.

  “Need to check few things about this guy, Brendon,” Jake said. “Maybe we could get some clue that she was not involved.”

  “I don’t get it. Are you still in love with her?” Kiara asked.

  “No. But I believe she’s telling the truth. Just want to make sure an innocent person doesn’t get harmed,” Jake reasoned. Kiara knew Jake still had feelings for her. Besides, they had to find some new angle to the case. Whatever work she had done in the last few days was already ruined by Robert.

  “What’s the plan then?” she asked the pertinent question.

  “We should go down to the bar they frequented,” Jake suggested. “There must be people who knew him before her.”

  “Your idea’s great but the place is notorious for its brawls.”

  “Don’t be a chicken. As you always say, time is of great essence.”

  “OK … Let’s go.” Kiara nodded. “I am going because of the case and not because you called me chicken.”

  “I know,” Jake said with a chuckle. Kiara punched him on the shoulder.

  “Let’s take your bike,” she said. “I’ll drive.”

  Jake shook his head and threw the keys at her. Robert had ruined all their efforts. Kiara and Jake both knew it, but then they had not expected much from him either. They knew that if they had to find something significant, they had to find it from where it all started.

  Robert was standing in front of the main gate of the farmhouse. His orders said that he could not share any information with the media. But, the look of them fighting each other to get a glimpse of what was going on inside made his day. Three renowned businessmen, two sportsperson, and a senator were already pulled in the scandal. It had become a high-profile case as Robert wanted.

  Robert’s phone vibrated as he was about to turn around. It was from the station. He thought of ignoring it but answered it with a heavy heart.

  “I told you not to disturb me!” he yelled.

  “Sorry, sir. Just received some letters for you,” a voice came from the other end.

  “They can wait till morning. Don’t call me again!” he shouted and disconnected the call. As he was about to put the phone inside the jacket pocket, he noticed missed calls from Kiara.

  Let’s meet tomorrow at station. Need to get this sorted out first, he sent a message and walked inside.

  Kiara parked the motorcycle and looked around. It was around half past six, but the area was completely deserted. There was a line of old buildings opposite to a park that looked as if no one had looked at it for years. It was surrounded by a fence that had been cut at places.

  “That’s our place,” Jake pointed at the end of the road. A neon sign reading “The Blue Mills” stared back at them.

  “You carrying you gun?”

  “Yeah,” Kiara came out of her thoughts. “This place looks shady.”

  Jake looked at her. “Don’t worry. As soon as we feel something is up, we will take a hike.”

  Kiara nodded. “Let’s go, then. Time is of great essence.”

  Jake smiled and followed her.

  Kiara had to show her badge to get past the bouncer. He did not like that though, and followed them inside. Once in, he bolted the door from inside. Kiara felt a bit nervous but Jake gestured her to remain calm. They walked towards the bartender, who was busy setting up his place. Though it was early, a few souls were already half drunk. Each one of them looked like a criminal, with the scars and tattoos firmly at place. Some of them had the same tattoo—allegiance to the same gang. There was another group arguing at the corner booth. But as soon as they saw all the bouncers surrounding Jake and Kiara, they went silent. A couple of them tried to leave but were told by the bartender to remain seated.

  “What do you want?” the bartender asked in a coarse voice. By now all bouncers had taken out their guns.

  “We don’t want any trouble. Just a few questions and we’ll be on our way.”

  “That I have to decide,” he said and told one of his men to screen the two. He checked them both and took Kiara’s gun, making her even more nervous.

  “Don’t think we are alone,” Jake said. “If you do anything, the whole NYPD will be knocking at your door. If you help, I promise we will go away without making a noise.”

  “You threatening me?” the man said while moving his hand across his bald pate.

  “No, I’m just saying that you listen to us first and then decide if you want to help,” Jake said without blinking his eyes. His confidence was unnerving Kiara, who was ready for a fight anytime.

  “What do you want?” the bartender asked while gesturing his men to get aside. One of them took a table near them while others left. He kept watching Kiara and Jake.

  “We want some information about a couple of your regulars—rather, old regulars,” Jake asked.

  Bartender’s expressions changed suddenly. “I knew you would be coming someday. You want info on Brendon and Rebecca, don’t you? Forget it. You won’t get anything here. Leave now.” he said and turned around. The bouncer came to them.

  “I know your license is due for renewal next month. I hope you don’t have any trouble with that,” Jake said and got up.

  The bartender looked at the bouncer, who obliged by taking Jake’s neck in his grip. Jake tried, but the bouncer was too strong for him. Kiara knew there was no point in fighting. She walked to the bartender.

  “He wants to save her. She’s being charged with Brendon’s murder. We believe it was someone else. But, we will need something to support that,” she said urgently. By now Jake was choking under the grip.

  The bartender thought for a moment. “Leave him.”

  The bouncer went back to his position and folded his arms. Jake looked at him with anger while moving his fingers across his neck.

  “I don’t like him,” the bartender said. “You do the talking.”

  Kiara nodded. “We heard that Brendon was a regular here?”

  “Yeah, both of them were regulars here. Rebecca grew up in the neighborhood and Brendon also used to live here few years back,” he said in a low voice.

  “But, Rebecca said that she came here for the first time around six months back with her girlfriends,” Kiara said with surprise.

  The bartender was a bit surprised too. He gave a faint smile. “She must be telling the truth then.”

  Kiara looked at Jake and then at him. “Please help us here.”

  He looked around. “Will need few Benjamin here. The information looks worth that to me.”

  Kiara looked at Jake, who gave his consent. There was no other choice.

  Kiara took a hundred-dollar bill and placed it under one of the beer mugs.

  “Rebecca has been coming here since the bar opened ten years back. All of us know her. This dude, Brendon, he moved here six months back. He never interacted with anyone. He always kept to himself. One day Rebecca approached him. That’s the first time I saw him speaking to anyone. They left immediately. A week later they came back together and since then, they’ve been inseparable.”

  “Did they bring anyone else here?” Jake asked.

  “No, they always came together and took that booth.” He pointed at the booth near the backdoor.

  “What did he do for living?” Kiara asked. “We know now that he was into some illegal activities. But what did he pretend to you guys?”

  The bartender gave a smile and looked at the beer mug. Kiara grunted and put another bill under it.

  “The first time I saw him, I knew he was one of the knuckleheads. Even Rebecca knew it. She asked me about him before approaching him. I told her to stay away from him. These artists, they get attracted towards the bad boys as a moth to fire,” he said
while putting the bills in his shirt pocket.

  “What did you say?” Jake asked.

  “What happened?” Kiara looked at Jake.

  “No. You said she’s an artist,” Jake asked again.

  “Yes, and a good one. Her paintings looked like the real deal to me. She never took my compliments seriously though,” he said with a grin.

  Jake got up immediately. “When did they leave the neighborhood?”

  “About three months back, more or less,” he replied thoughtfully.

  “Can we have our badge and the gun?” Jake asked hurriedly. “And thanks for all the help.”

  Kiara could not understand what was happening. She took the badge and gun from the bouncer and walked towards Jake, who was already near the door.

  “Next time, ask politely or you will lose your neck,” the bartender shouted. “And give my best to Rebecca.”

  Jake ignored his words and came out.

  “Hey! Will you stop and tell me what is happening?” Kiara shouted.

  Jake stopped and waited for her. “The chest that you found in their apartment was empty, right?”

  “Yes,” Kiara said.

  “She removed the paintings that were inside it.”

  “What paintings?”

  Jake turned towards her. “She told me that Brendon was a painter and that’s what drew her towards him. Besides, he never told her what he did for living. She kept thinking of him as an artist, till the day they married.”

  “In reality it’s the reverse. She was the painter and approached him first. Why would she do that?” Kiara said thoughtfully.

  “She told me that the chest was meant for keeping his paintings.”

  “She removed all the paintings before the police came because they were hers and most probably they were originals worth millions,” Kiara said thoughtfully.

  “Yes, and maybe they were ordered by someone. Maybe the Chief,” Jake said while taking out his motorcycle keys. “I saw her work at Lake Sivan. Anyone can get fooled by her work.”

  “You believe that she replaced the originals at Natalie’s house with the fake ones.”

  “Natalie thinks that only her jewelry has been stolen,” Jake said and gave a smile. “Wow! She keeps fooling me, and I’m always ready.”