Tangled

by Uc Amalu, Jr

CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Jay walked through the station house doors and

  spotted Ben sitting at his desk, the telephone glued to

  his ear and a fed up look on his face. A small laugh

  escaped him, he knew just how frustrating it was trying to

  pry information from some uninterested receptionist or

  witness over a phone. He continued across the room and

  pulled the chair away from his desk, seating himself he

  leaned back in his chair and put his hands behind his

  head.

  "So you’ll fax me copies of the bar and restaurant tabs?"

  Ben looked up from his papers and rolled his eyes at

  Jay. "And they definitely stayed from the seventeenth to

  the nineteenth? Can you fax me their check in and out

  times also?"

  Jay made the shape of an L with his finger and his

  thumb and held it up to his forehead. Ben nodded his

  head and continued with his phone call.

  "Okay, okay… That would be appreci-ated. Thank you. Ok,

  sure. Bye."

  The receiver made a loud clunk when Ben slammed it

  down on the cradle. His eyebrows raised and his lips

  pursed with frustration. Just when he thought his people

  skills were develop-ing for the better, he comes across

  somebody who makes him want to scream abuse down

  the phone line. He directed his attentions back over to

  Jay and saw the amused look on his face.

  "Don’t be a smart ass, Jayy or I just might send you

  down to Bayside to have a nice little chat with her, I’m sure

  there are no words to describe her lack of intelligence!"

  "That helpful, eh?"

  "Helpful! I’d be surprised if the woman even remembers

  my name, let alone what I phoned her for."

  "So what’s the deal with Bayside any-how? New lead?"

  Jay asked.

  "Nah, not really. Just covering all my bases, leaving no

  stone unturned… you know the drill." Ben slipped the

  sheets of paper into a cardboard jacket on his desk and

  then returned to his conversation. "So, did you get

  anywhere with our friends down at the Wellness Clinic?"

  "I sure as hell did… I even got a name for our Jane Doe." A

  proud grin tugged at Jay’s lips, the excitement bubbling

  within him was about to explode.

  "No kidding? Gees Jayy, that’s fantastic. So who was

  she?"

  "Twenty-one year old Kylie-Anne Saunders. No next of kin

  known as yet, but now we have a name for her we can run

  her details through the computers and see what we come

  up with."

  Jay pulled his notebook out and thumbed through it,

  jogging his memory of all the details he’d written down.

  "Apparently, she was a client of good old Dr. Sugars,

  scheduled in for a scrape out next week, or so Marla told

  me."

  "And what did you think of her? Odd?"

  "I believe we have found the Ice Queen of Showsdale! Cool

  and collected but definitely not impenetrable."

  "Don’t tell me you cracked her?" asked Ben, more

  impressed with each detail Jay was feeding him.

  "I wouldn’t say cracked, but melted for sure. A few more

  visits and I am positive I could crack her, though." He said,

  as if he was under the impression that Ben was offering

  him a challenge. "Gotta take these things steady, steady,

  catchy monkey," he went on.

  "Kudos where they’re due Jayy. Well done," said Ben, his

  hands clapping the air in mock applause.

  Carrying on with the game of station house charades,

  Jay leaned forward in his chair and took a bow. "Thank

  you, thank you…"

  "So what else did you get from them? Anything of value?"

  "Basically they gave me a run down on their procedures,

  yada, yada, yada…" Jay thumbed through his notebook

  some more. "There is one thing Ben, I don’t know that it

  means anything, so don’t go getting all flippity over it."

  "What is it?" Ben interrupted him.

  "It’s about Anna."

  "Anna? What has she got to do with any of this?"

  "Like I said, it’s probably nothing but being the thorough

  detectives that we are…"

  "For God’s sake, Jayy, would you just spit it out!"

  "She was the counsellor for both vics."

  Jay stared at Ben, waiting to gauge his reaction.

  "And?"

  "And she may have some vital informa-tion for us, she

  was inside their heads, pokin’ around and listenin’ to their

  dirty little secrets. If anyone knows about these girls, it’s

  probably her."

  "Bloody hell, Jay. She’s a counselor, not a psychiatrist."

  "Yeah I know that. All I’m sayin’ is that she may know

  something that could help us figure this whole mess out.

  I figured you might wanna handle this one?"

  Ben bit his lip and sucked air back through his teeth; he

  picked up a pencil and began tapping it loudly against his

  desk.

  "Look, Ben, if you ain’t up to it…"

  "No, I’ll do it. Just give me time to work out the best way

  to approach her on this, would ya, Jay?"

  "Sure thing buddy, just don’t leave it too long."

  "Yeah, I understand." Ben threw his pencil down and

  shook his head, not looking forward to the task he had

  been set. "I’ll drop in and see her tonight, how’s that

  sound?"

  Jay understood what he was asking him to do and he

  knew it was not an easy thing to expect of him, but he

  was a detective and his personal life had to come second

  when he was working in that capacity. "Great! Glad we

  have that sorted.

  ‚Getting back to the Ice Queen and Dr. Sours," Jay

  steered the conversation back to the Wellness Clinic, "I

  have to agree with ya, I think they’re hiding something."

  "Any ideas on what?"

  "No, but I am sure as hell that whatever it is, it runs deep.

  I do know that the good Doctor is cracking under the

  strain of questioning though. She lost her composure

  during question-ing and basically ordered Marla to tell me

  whatever I wanted to hear. By the time I had finished down

  there today, I got the feeling that Marla wanted to spill her

  guts big time. Wouldn’t be surprised if I get a phone call

  soon." Jay threw his notebook on the desk. "But time

  will tell I guess."

  "I guess," sighed Ben, his mind still preoccupied with

  Anna.

  "How bout you? How was your visit to the number

  cruncher’s? I bet that was a barrel of laughs?"

  Ben was a million miles away; Jay knew what he was

  thinking. "Earth to Ben, come in Ben…"

  "Huh, what? Sorry Jay, where were we?"

  "Focus man," said Jay, wondering whether it would have

  been better to have kept his mouth shut and spoken with

  Anna himself. No, that would have felt like he was going

  behind Ben’s back. At least this way the cards were all on

  the table and they both knew what was going on. They

  were a team and needed to work together if these

  murders were ever going to be solved. He trusted Ben and

  knew that he would do his job, he was an A class detective
/>
  and Jay knew that he would take it all in his stride. The

  timing was pretty crappy, with Anna wanting the divorce

  and all. Unfortunately homicide causes inconvenience and

  there was nothing could be done about it. The cold, hard

  fact was that Ben needed to pull himself together and get

  on with his job. And his life, Jay thought.

  "Yeah, the accountants," Ben switched back on. "It turns

  out that Tessa was having an affair with Laura Beaumont’s

  husband, Donald."

  "Wow, did ya get the juice?" Jay’s enthusiasm peaked.

  "Not much juice to it, really. Laura found out about the

  affair, confronted her husband, he ended it and life goes

  on!"

  "Do either of them look good for her murder?"

  "I’m pretty confident Laura had no part in anything, but

  her husband I’m not so certain about. The way he came

  barging in here earlier screaming and jumping up and

  down at me about upsetting his wife with my questions?

  He’s got a pretty good temper on him."

  "Gees, what a hero. First he screws around on his wife and

  then he jumps down your throat for causing her

  problems! What a chump."

  "They’ve both got a fairly rock solid alibi though. They were

  at an accountancy conference in Bayside. If you can take

  notice of the nitwit I was on the phone to just before, they

  were there all weekend. She’s supposed to be faxing me

  receipts of their room and restaurant charges."

  "So, where does that leave us?"

  Ben shrugged his shoulders and began toying with his

  pencil again. "Right back where we started, I guess."

  "We seem to be great at working out who didn’t kill em,"

  Jay said.

  "Yeah, now all we gotta do is rule out the other ninty-nine

  point nine percent of the population and we’ll have our

  killer."

  "That’s if he doesn’t die of old age first!" cried Jay. "He

  could end up like the zodiac killer… a mystery forever."

  "We’ll find our killer, Jayy. We just got to keep digging,"

  Ben tried injecting some positivity into the topic.

  "Digging? I’ll be a damn archaeologist by the time we dig

  this bugger up."

  Ben was unable to hold his laughter back.

  "What’s so funny?" Jay asked, staring quizzically at Ben.

  "I just had a really amusing mental image of us at the age

  of sixty with a pick axe and shovel, fossicking around in a

  bare stretch of desert." A broad grin was plastered over

  Ben’s face.

  Jay soon joined in laughing and their frustrations were

  overridden with a new zest for the case.

  "Augie send you that report yet?" asked Ben.

  "Yup, still waiting on the tox and trace results to come in,

  but so far it’s looking nearly identical to Tessa Hunt."

  "Was he able to determine the weapon used to mutilate

  her?"

  "Not a hundred percent, sure. But he’s betting on a

  surgical instrument of some description, possibly a

  scalpel."

  "Oh great, our perp is graduating to better and sharper

  instruments. Just what we need to hear."

  "What are ya talkin’ about?" asked Jay.

  "Well, Tessa was cut up with some sort of serrated blade,

  the patterns indicated that. There were ridges present on

  all the incisions they weren’t smooth and clean."

  "Just what we need, a killer who is stepping up his game

  and two cops who can’t even catch him in his infancy!"

  Jay scoffed. He yawned and stretched out his arms

  before slapping them down on his desk. "So how was

  your head this morning?"

  "Not too bad actually. I was expecting far worse. How

  about yours?"

  "I sure didn’t feel like no blooming flower in spring time,

  I’ll tell ya that much," a smile appeared on Jay’s face.

  "So what are you smiling for?" asked Ben, his eyes

  lighting up.

  "Remember that cute waitress?"

  Ben nodded. "No way! You didn’t? Again?"

  "I sure as shit did, buddy." Jay’s boast echoed through

  the station house.

  "You charmer. How did you manage that? Last I saw of her,

  she called you an asshole and stormed off."

  "This boy just got the moves," purred Jay, using his best

  homeboy accent. "Trouble is…"

  "What?" Ben asked a little too quickly.

  "Well… I think I might actually like this chick."

  "Really? And how did you come to that conclusion?"

  "I didn’t ask her what her name was."

  "And that means you like her? How?" Ben seemed

  confused as to his logic.

  "Ya see, if I really don’t care to much about a broad, I’ll ask

  for her name and number so I can call on her again,

  y’know. As a casual fling, something to fall back on."

  "Go on" said Ben, his interest mounting.

  "But with the ones I really like, I don’t get the details off

  em. That way I can’t use em. Do ya see what I’m

  sayin ,Ben?"

  "Sorta."

  "Bugger ya man, I care about em enough to not wanna

  use em for sex is what I’m getting’ at!" Jay looked away

  from Ben, embarrassed about putting his feelings on

  display like that.

  "Oh, yeah. Now I understand." Ben stared at the floor for a

  second before asking, "So what are you going to do about

  it?"

  "What do ya think I’m gonna do about it?"

  "Buy her some flowers and go see her?"

  "Not likely," cried Jay. "I’m gonna head back to Bluey’s

  and show her what she’s missin’. That’s what I’m gonna

  do."

  "Great," said Ben. "I’m not entirely certain that your

  approach will be a success. But then I didn’t think you

  would have gotten her into bed last night either, after the

  way you had insulted her to begin with. I wish you the

  best of luck with that little endeavour Jayy. Go get em

  tiger!"

  Jay smirked a little and shot a playful wink Ben’s way.

  "Thanks buddy. Trust me, when she sees me walk into

  Bluey’s tonight, it’ll knock her socks off."

  "I’m sure it will be." Ben said, looking as though he was

  trying his best to hold back his laughter. "I can just

  imagine the reception you are going to get from a woman

  you insulted, picked up, slept with and the left this

  morning without so much as asking for her name, let

  alone her number! I think you’re on a winner there Jay,

  good luck."

  "It’s in the bag, Benny boy!" Jay chuffed.

  Rising from his chair, Ben stretched out his arms and

  said, "It’s been a long day, think I’ll get going."

  "You ok, Ben?" Jay asked. "I didn’t mean to be to heavy

  with you before… about Anna, I mean."

  "Yeah, I’m fine. Just a lot going on you know. I’ll get to

  Anna, just trust me on this one alright, Jayy?"

  "Sure thing," he smiled at him and leaned forward in his

  chair.

  "You heading off to Bluey’s then?"

  "Pretty soon, just got a phone call or two to make, then

  I’m outta here. See ya tomorrow then?"

  "You can count
on it." Ben waved and walked out the door.

  Jay watched him leave the room and head down the

  hallway. When he was out of sight he turned and picked

  up the phone.

  "Yeah, patch me through to Intel would ya?"

  "Hey Paula, how are ya, darl? It’s Jayy. Listen, I need you

  to run a check for me. It’s a hush job and I need you to go

  as deep and as far back as you can. If it’s hidden, find it, if

  it’s sealed… unseal it. You catch my drift?"

  He looked behind him again to make sure that Ben was

  nowhere around. He didn’t want him coming back in,

  right in the middle of his probing around. Satisfied that

  the coast was clear, he returned to his phone call.

  "The name’s Jameson, Anna." Jay spelled the surname

  out so as there were no mistakes. "That’s right, no I. If you

  find any-thing, anything at all call me on my mobile would

  ya, darl? Yeah, yeah… I owe ya one. Understood. Now

  remember, this is just between you and me, right? You’re

  a real sweetheart, Paula, thanks. When can ya have that for

  me? Excellent, talk to ya then."

  Jay replaced the phone on the cradle and flopped back

  in his chair, his gut telling him he was onto something.