Murder At Zero Hour

by Paul Westwood

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  It was supposed to have been a nice and quiet evening at home. My current home being the an old warehouse that I had personally converted into apartments. I, of course, had kept the entire top floor and left the space underneath empty so I wouldn’t be bothered by the worst impulses of humanity: noise. The other units brought in a tidy income though I purposefully kept the rents low enough to keep out the neuvo-rich. Instead, the building was populated with artists, workers, and a mish-mash of hustlers and conmen. They were the type of people who kept to themselves and weren’t always asking questions about the landlord above. Instead they were quite happy to get entrance to such a secure building at an affordable price. And considering the area we lived in, D Street Avenue in Las Vegas, a little safety went a long way.

  I was sitting on the sofa with my legs up on the footrest and half a Gimlet at my elbow. On my lap was a tablet. I was scrolling through a map app, trying to find the best way to drive out of this town. July was coming, which meant the hottest part of the year. A vacation was due, and I was entertaining the thought of taking my car on an extended tour of Oregon. I really didn’t want to leave - I liked this town - but I was overcome with a feeling of restlessness. I had been bored as of late, which often happens in my line of work.

  In the corner of my eye, I saw the graceful movement of Melodie Glass, who was working on some new dance moves. She had come over for the privacy and the fact that I had a large space to practice in. The massive JE Labs speakers and Mark Levinson electronics were an additional bonus. The high-reved pop music sounded dismal to my ears, but she seemed to enjoy the fidelity as she stretched and contorted her dancer’s body into moves that only can be done by top-level gymnasts or professional strippers. She was the latter sort.

  Melodie was pale with long black hair, smooth skin, and a face that revealed an Asian ancestor. She was skinny but well-endowed on top – work done by a good plastic surgeon – and had the well-muscled legs of someone who moved all day for a living. She was wearing a faded black leotard with red legwarmers. Her hair was pulled back and kept in place with a hair clip. Though taller than your average woman, she was still a few inches shorter than myself.

  She was working her body hard. If I had installed a stripper pole, I’m sure she would have been sweating even harder. But instead, she was practicing her floor routine, the gyrations meant to keep the dollar bills coming. With the stiff competition in Vegas, the men and women who made their living at exotic dancing, Melodie made sure to stay in shape and keep her dances fresh. Even with the air conditioning running at full blast, there was a slight odor of perspiration. From the track lighting above I could see a gleam of sweat on her exposed skin.

  I put the tablet down and took a sip of my drink. Lime juice mixed with gin had a wonderful way of sharpening the senses. As I drank, I saw Melodie stop. She went over to the CD player and turned off the power, sending a momentary thump through the speakers. I frowned, knowing that something serious was on her mind.

  “Devon?”

  “Yes?” I replied as I set my drink back down.

  She took a step closer. “Is it true what people say about you?”

  “What do people say?”

  “That you help people in need.”

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been called charitable.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  I gave her a half of a smile. “Yes, it’s true that I help those who can’t help themselves. Of course there has to be some profit in it.” I vaguely pointed at the luxury furnishings and the expensive rug at our feet. “This sort of stuff doesn’t come cheap. I am, after not, not running a charity here. But there are some rules to the game. The first, of course, is that I won’t go killing for money. The second is that I won’t harm the innocent, though the latter is questionable since I have never met anyone who is truly innocent.”

  “You’re the most cynical man I’ve ever met,” she purred.

  “I prefer the word experienced. But I did not earn my money by doing anything that is unethical – within the confines of what I consider ethical, that is.”

  She leered at me. “That leaves a wide range of possibilities, honey.” She instantly turned serious again. “Maybe you really could help a friend of mine. Her name is Cleora Kinney. She’s a co-worker of mine at the Pussycat Lounge. She’s only been there a few days and anyone can tell that she isn’t cut out for the life. But I do know that she needs help and I can’t think of anyone but you.”

  I scratched my chin in thought. After a few moments of this, I said, “I wasn’t exactly planning to be in town for very much longer. Anyway, I’m not hurting for money right now.”

  “This is something interesting.”

  “What is it?” I asked, taking the bait.

  “Last night, after our shift was done, we got to drinking and talking. After a few beers she opened up and told me everything. We’re talking a lot of money here.”

  “A few thousand dollars? A hundred thousand?”

  “Maybe it would be better if you would talk to her yourself. I would hate to tell you the wrong thing and have you turn down the job. She can explain it better than I can.”

  “Now you’ve got me interested.”

  She closed the space between us with a few sultry steps – all hips and doe-like eyes. It was a good performance that got my heart racing, even though I knew the act was as false as a street bought Rolex.

  She said, “That’s the point, honey. She’ll be here in a few minutes.”

  “What?”

  She reached over and ran a hand through my hair. “Don’t worry, you’ll like her. Everyone does.” She then sauntered off, showing her backside to good effect. She went back to the stereo, turned the CD back on, and began to dance to the rhythm of the music.

  I returned my attention to the Gimlet. I took a drink and tasted nothing. I was too busy being angry with Melodie to notice the flavor. I put the glass down and tried to return my attention to the map on the tablet. But the route I had chosen instead blurred and disappeared from my vision. Instead I busily thought of the possibilities: a changed will that left the poor girl out of a sizable estate, a drug dealing boyfriend, or some stolen merchandise that she knew about. Dancers like that were always making friends with rich men who wanted to share their wealth. What could be different with this woman?

  The door buzzer went off. It was just barely audible over the thump of the music. I got up off the sofa, threw Melodie a nasty smile, and went to unlock the steel reinforced door. After that, it was a walk to the elevator that I had specially modified so that it took a code to access my two floors. As an extra precaution, the door leading to the staircase was locked with thick doors at the floor levels. With the wired alarm system I had installed myself, no one could get inside without me knowing. In case I was out of the building, I had a computer setup to send an email to my cellphone. This may all sound rather paranoid, but when you do my type of work, a little caution goes a long way.

  The door to the elevator opened. I got inside, selected the ground floor, and waited impatiently as I was taken slowly down. In the entryway, I saw a young blonde waiting behind the door. The glass of this entryway was reinforced with chicken wire. The wood was thick and old, an original part of the warehouse. With a flourish, I opened the door and let her in.

  “I’m Cleora,” she said as she offered her hand.

  “Devon Pierce,” I replied. We shook. “Come right this way.”

  In silence, we rode up in the elevator. There I studied her. In profile she looked good. With small features, she looked more like a teenager than a woman who works the stage for a living. Her nose was straight and the color of her eyebrows matched the color of her blonde hair. She had honest to goodness freckles, blue eyes, and a page boy haircut. She was wearing a shapeless top and a black skirt that went down to the knees. Long white socks and tennis shoes a
dded to the school girl effect. The calves had the muscled tone of a dancer. I could see why men would like her, but there was also a coldness there that would be hard to penetrate.

  “Come right this way,” I said as I opened the door to my apartment.

  She went in and let out a gasp. It’s a common enough reaction when new visitors see the wood floors, plush rugs, the paintings on the brick wall, the gleaming stereo, and the Herman Miller furniture. The entire effect was that of stylish modernity and was a far cry from the ghetto streets a few stories below us. This was my hideaway from the world and only trusted souls were allowed into the inner sanctum. Part of my annoyance with Melodie was giving access to her friend iwithout my permission. But if you can’t trust your friends, than who can you trust?

  “Are you a drug dealer?” Cleora asked.

  Seeing the arrival of her friend, Melodie stopped the CD player. I noticed that this time she had done it correctly by using the buttons. She said, “No, and he’s not part of the mob either. He’s just a rich bastard.”

  I could see that this answer did nothing to clear up the confusion. I added, “I’m not that rich. But I do like to live comfortably. As for my income, I consider myself as a sort of an investor. This building, for example, used to be a warehouse. I provided apartments for the people of this neighborhood and in the process built a place for myself that I found comfortable. I also have other interests that meet my financial needs.”

  “But why this neighborhood? You could be living big in Summerlin.” That was a more swank part of town.

  Melodie answered, “Devon here isn’t like other people. He likes to associate with conmen, junkies, and strippers. He thinks normal people are boring.”

  I nodded. “And their lives are rather boring without the sort of problems I find interesting. Perhaps I could help you.”

  Melodie said, “Cleora, why don’t you tell Devon here all about your problem. I’ll go shower and change.” With those words, she went down the hallway and went into the bathroom. The sound of running water was immediately heard.

  It was obvious that Cleora was feeling uncertain, so I went over to the bar and fixed her a drink. While I was pouring out the vodka, she sat down at the stool and waited until I was done. She gratefully accepted the screwdriver, taking a tentative sip.

  She said, “I don’t feel right being here. I mean what can anyone do for me?”

  “I don’t know anything about your situation so I can’t possibly answer your question. But we could start at the beginning.”

  Cleora gave me a shy look, an honest to goodness inside view at the real woman underneath the veneer of the armor she must have developed in her line of work. I could see why Melodie said that this girl was not cut out for the job as an exotic dancer.

  She finally said, “Okay, but this is going to sound a little crazy.”

  “Try me.”

  “My real name is Amy. Cleora is my professional name – everyone uses it except my sister. You see I was an army brat. That meant I never had a real home. Instead my family traveled from base to base. Five years ago, when I was eighteen, I got pregnant. This happened over in Henderson.”

  This was a suburb that southwest of Las Vegas.

  “We were living in a little ranch home in a neighborhood Luckily my old man was off on his first tour in Afghanistan when I found out I was going to have a child or else there would have been hell to pay. The father of the baby was a boy named Timothy King who was an awkward kid I went to school with. There was nothing ever serious about us, instead we were just friends who liked to fool around. I don’t know where he is now. I really don’t care. So I had a little girl. She’s named Madison. She’s the only reason I came to you. I want her to go to college. I want her to have the things that I never had.”

  I nodded and didn’t say anything. Now that she was on a roll there was no stopping her now.

  “My father Bill Kinney was a captain in the Special Forces, doing some type of work for the government. It was all hush-hush, you know, top secret. We were never rich, that’s for sure. But somehow when he was sent over to Afghanistan, he must have discovered some way to make money. I don’t know what it was or how he got it back to the States, but that’s not important. I know it had to be illegal, whatever he did. I mean they don’t hand out free cash to soldiers, do they? But he was a hard man who thought he was the toughest thing on the planet. The older he got, the more he had to prove himself. A week after he returned from his final combat tour, he went out to the bar. He got into a fight with a younger man - some tough college football player. It must have been a lucky punch, because apparently my father just folded up like a house of cards when he got hit in the side of the head. He never regained consciousness. He died two days later.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  She gave a shrug. “That was two years ago. I wasn’t that sad at the time. And I’m not exactly grieving now.”

  “How did you find out about the money?”

  “When Bill came back, he couldn’t keep it a secret. He told my mother and my sister Kim and I that we were going to be rich soon. He also told us that we couldn’t tell a soul. He made us promise.”

  I pursed my lips together. “Did your father tell you the source of this new found wealth?”

  She shook her head and took another sip of her drink. “I thought he was making it up. Not that he was the sort of person to lie, but he came back from the war a changed man. He was a drunk.. He was abusive toward my mother. He threatened my little girl. I thought he was telling us lies about the money to keep us happy.”

  I was skeptical now. “What made you change your mind? I mean one day you don’t believe him and the next you’re suddenly sure that there is a fortune just waiting for you.”

  “I’m getting there. Eight months ago a man named Keith Miller came to the door. He ended up staying with us. He claimed to have known my father over in Afghanistan; that they had served together in the Green Berets. He was just out of the army and looking for a job. My mother let him stay with us until he could get back on his feet. I wish she had thrown the bum out on his ass.”

  The sudden venom caught me by surprise. But before I could say anything, she continued on, her jaw tight and unyielding.

  “Keith said he knew my father well. He said they had spent two tours together. He had no family and nowhere to go. At first he seemed so kind. He was good with his hands and really helped around the house. After a few weeks, he even got a job as a bouncer at the club I worked at in Henderson. He isn’t a big guy but he’s got muscle. I’ve seen him fight and toss out some real tough guys. I admit that it felt good to have someone strong around. He seemed to like me and my daughter quite a lot. And with my mother sick with lung cancer, my sister and I really needed him.

  “In the end I fell in love with Keith. We might as well have been married, that’s how close he was to me. He seemed to be a good man. And when mother died, Kim quit job as receptionist so she could take care of her two sons from a former marriage and my daughter. It was up to Keith and I to bring in the money. Things were tight and I was glad for all the help I could get from him. But there was some strange quirk about Keith that became quite bothersome. You see he loved to talk about my father. I thought he was just waxing nostalgic about an old comrade, wanting to know Bill’s habits: where he liked to visit, or where my dad hunted, or what kind of work he had done around the house. Keith also took a real keen interest in gardening and found some excuse to dig up most of the yard. I didn’t pay any attention to this until the day that he left.”

  “It sounds like he was looking for something,” I commented dryly.

  She took the final sip from her glass. The ice cubes were all melted. I also noticed that the water in the bathroom was off and Melodie hadn’t come out yet.

  “Whatever it was, he found it,” she said. “One day I awoke and Keith w
as gone. He only took his personal stuff and never showed up at work. This two months ago. To be honest, I wasn’t all that surprised. I knew that he wasn’t that good for me. But there was one strange thing that really got me shook up. In the back of that house was a patio that wasn’t much larger than one of your rugs. It was made with old flagstones. One of them had been removed. Underneath was a hole that contained a scrap of canvas that was olive green. I can tell you that it didn’t take too many leaps of the imagination to put the pieces together. Something, perhaps that money my father talked so much about, had been hidden there.

  “I was angry as hell. I thought I would never see Keith again. I had to quit my job at Henderson and come to Vegas to get a better paying job. But just last week, after I had gotten out my shift at my new job at the Pussycat Lounge, I was driving home. I saw him outside of the Sands casino, pulling some breezy redhead out of a new Lexus with temporary tags. She looked high maintenance and much too rich for a man like him. Before I could find a parking spot, the two of them disappeared inside. I searched around the casino but didn’t see them. I ended up camping in the lobby. It was an hour later when he came out with that woman. Like a fool, I ran after him, demanding all sorts of explanations. He practically ran away, dragging that bitch with him. They hopped into that car and took off. I ran to my car and started following them. Two blocks later, he dropped her off at the entrance of a ritzy condo called Eastgate. After that, I lost him in the traffic. I think he knew that I was following him.”

  “And you think he found the money that your father hid? Perhaps he just shacked up with a new woman.”

  Cleora actually blushed. “I can tell you that Keith isn’t the type who can a snooty woman fall for him. He’s different – uneducated and good with his hands. He’s no gigolo.”

  I let out a small sigh of exasperation. “It’s a general observation of mine that woman of all classes aren’t particular when it comes to a man’s background. If they like what they see, then they’ll try and get him.”

  “You don’t know Keith. He’s a brute. And I’m not just saying that out of hatred. He can be tender and even sweet, but there’s an anger inside of him that is downright scary. I have the scars to prove it. No woman in her right mind would be with him long. As I said, I was glad when he was gone. I also got scared that he would come after me, once there weren’t any witnesses around. He can be cruel if he think he’s been wronged. I’m glad that I left Henderson.”

  “You no longer live with your sister?”

  “No, I share an apartment with one of the girls from the Pussycat. It’s easier that way. I send my extra money back to my sister, who is busy taking care of my daughter, and visit them on the weekends.”

  “Would you like another drink?”

  She shook her head. “No thanks. So will you take on my case?”

  “I’m not a private detective. Let me give it some thought and I’ll get back to you.”

  Cleora dragged a cellphone out from the heavy purse that was still slung over her shoulder. “Would you like my number?”

  “That won’t be necessary at this time. I’ll contact you through Melodie.”

  After that, I walked her down to the front entrance. I waited until she got into her car – a beat up Kia – and drove away. Deep in thought, I went back to the apartment. Once the door shut, I could hear the Melodie humming some unknown song. The sound was coming from the bedroom. I went there, walking gently on the sides of my feet.

  “Hey,” I said through the half-open door.

  “Why don’t you come in?” Her voice was low and filled with desire.

  I took a few steps inside. With the gauze curtains across the windows, the room was dim. I could just see the Stickley bed and matching side tables with their Tiffany lamps. Lying on top of the bed was Melodie. She wasn’t wearing anything at all except for a smirk. The look suited her quite well. She was propped up on a pair of pillows, her long black and wet hair leaving a dark stain on the cotton. There was no extra fat on this specimen, only toned but shapely muscles that only accentuated her natural curves. She wasn’t shy about me looking either, but we had our fling in the past so there was nothing new that Melodie could share with me.

  “So what do you think of my new friend?” she asked. She said the words casually as if we were talking on a street corner.

  I sat down on the edge of the bed. “I like her. It appears that Cleora has led a tough life. But she still managed to find her way through. That proves she’s got her head on right.”

  “I like her too. So will you help her out?”

  “I’ve got to think about it. There is a lot I need to know before I can even began to find out what was stolen from her.”

  “So do think really think that this Keith character did find something that her father buried in the backyard?”

  “It seems plausible. Bill Kinney served in Afghanistan. To me that means poppies, opium, and heroin. With all the supplies being ferried back and forth, it wouldn’t be that hard to smuggle some drugs into the country. You know as well as I do that it is a quick and dirty way to make some money.”

  Before I could react, Melodie grabbed my arm. I did not resist as he pulled me closer, guiding my hand to one of her perfectly formed breasts. That plastic surgeon really was a genius. But before my fingers touched the ruby hardness of her nipple, pulled back, easily breaking her grip.

  “Damn it, Devon,” she said sourly.

  I rubbed my chin and stared into her dark eyes. “You know as well as I do, Melodie, that the game is over between you and I. Anyway, I thought you had a new boyfriend.”

  “I do,” she said nastily as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up.

  “Hold on, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

  “It’s too damn late,” Melodie spat out. She ran out of the bedroom and into the bathroom where she slammed the door with enough force to make the internal walls shake. She was a strong girl.

  I went back to the living room. There I began to paw through some records that were tucked inside a bookcase. I found a Handel record. I went over to the Goldmund turntable, turned it on and, after turning a few knobs, had some glorious baroque music pouring elegantly out of the speakers. I stood in front of the stereo and listened intently, trying not to think of what could have happened in that bedroom. Don’t get me wrong, I liked Melodie quite a bit and felt like a fool for turning her down, but I also did not want to rekindle that old flame. Before we had broken up, things had gotten complicated. I was happy to be friends with her and didn’t want anything more than that – or so I told myself.

  When she finally came out of the bathroom, Melodie was dressed in her street clothes: a miniskirt, a red sleeveless top, and a pair of high heels. Her damp hair was twisted into two long braids. A plastic grocery bag containing her workout clothes were in hand. She looked shyly at me, unable to meet my eyes. This was so unlike her that I felt a moment of pity.

  “A fight with Angelo?” This was Melodie’s boyfriend, a small-time hustler who I personally disliked. Of course I generally didn’t cotton to anyone who sold cocaine.

  She nodded. “It was a bad one. I was just trying to prove something to myself. I’m sorry.”

  “It’s no problem.”

  “I wish things had worked out between us. If they did, I wouldn’t be stuck with Angelo. He can be such a bastard sometimes.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “So can I. Things weren’t always smooth sailing between the two of us.”

  She frowned, her eyes misted with tears. “Angelo is my Keith. They both take advantage of women who are in need. But I can’t help myself. That’s why I feel so strongly about Cleora. You have to do something for her.”

  “I’ll have to think about it,” I said. “Come on, let’s get you home.”

  I escorted her down to her car, a new Mini Cooper. A chaste kiss on the cheek a
nd I sent her on her way. I watched the taillights recede into the maze of traffic. I could already feel the heat of the day slowly start to give away to the chill of the desert night. It would take hours of time but it was inevitable. Around me were the sounds of civilization: people talking, the thud of a car door shutting, and the low rumble of an airplane flying overhead. But I was far away from all of that. Instead I was thinking that I needed some time and space to forget. And only then could I make a decision.