The Last Lies (Kate Murphy Mystery Book 1)

by C. C. Jameson

  After she was satisfied with her rough map—she’d recorded every possible detail her report would contain—she closed her notepad, returned it to her breast pocket, and then headed back to her patrol car to open the trunk. Searching through the tiny evidence kit she kept, she found a small plastic bag then dug out the tissue she’d placed in her pocket, dropping the bullet into the bag and sealing it as per protocol.

  She closed her trunk just as Animal Control finally arrived.

  Kate took in a deep breath and headed their way, passing a little girl on a tricycle, her mother next to her, shouting encouragement

  Will that be me? Is this what my life could turn into?

  The girl smiled at Kate as she passed her, her baby teeth spaced out in the front of her mouth.

  Dentist fees for another person. And clothing. A baby would be a lot more than an extra mouth to feed. I would have to buy diapers, and lots of clothes as the kid outgrows them.

  She hadn’t bought any new outfits for herself in over a year.

  How could they even afford to buy clothes and diapers for a kid? Hospital bills—

  “Afternoon,” said a short, tanned, curly-haired man in dark overalls as he opened the tailgate of his truck.

  Kate snapped back to reality. “Good afternoon. Cat’s all yours.”

  “Is that why you’re here?” asked the man whose nametag read Jerry.

  “A woman reported it using 9-1-1, and I was instructed to file a report about it. Crazy if you ask me,” Kate said.

  “Yep! But we’ve certainly picked up a lot of dead animals lately.”

  “And by a lot you mean…”

  “I mean we’re used to roadkill and the likes, but these past few weeks… I’m the supervisor at Animal Control, and I’ve had to hire two more guys just for these. Heck, I’m here doing pick-ups ’cause two ain’t enough, but the city didn’t approve more than that.”

  Kate let that sink in. She hadn’t realized the problem was that widespread. The news had mentioned some of it, but not the full story. The frequency definitely explained why the mayor was upset, though.

  “Can I ask if they’re limited to one area of the city?” Kate asked as she followed Jerry to the orange tabby’s carcass. He carried over a shovel and a black plastic bag.

  “They’re not in just one neighborhood. Before this one, I was up around Jamaica Pond to pick up dead ducks. Before that, I was at a golf club for dead pigeons.”

  “Today?”

  “Yep,” he said. “Since you’re here, would you mind holding the bag open for me?”

  “Of course,” Kate said, doing her best not to inhale the nasty smell.

  She brought the bag close to the fly-infested carcass, and, with a grating sound, Jerry swiftly picked up the cat from the gravel area where it lay and then dropped it in the bag, stirring up flies, some of which grazed Kate’s face.

  As she flung one hand to push them away, she unintentionally wafted the odor toward her nose, which made her want to puke.

  But she couldn’t. Not right now. Not in front of Jerry, the Animal Control guy. Not in front of the small crowd that hadn’t yet dissipated.

  So, she did the only thing she could do. She swallowed her own puke back, but it didn’t go unnoticed. At least not by Jerry.

  “Okay there, Officer?” he asked, mocking her.

  She smiled as best she could. “Can’t say I’m a fan of the dead cat smell.”

  “I don’t know anyone who is. Just be grateful it’s not a dead skunk like the one I picked up yesterday.”

  A couple of hours later, after her shift officially ended, Kate made a brief stop by Gisele’s Salon. She parked nearby then walked in front of the salon’s large windows to scope out the scene. Kate spotted a young Asian woman with dozens of facial piercings behind the front desk. Around the receptionist worked not one but two busty bleached blondes: one was painting an elderly woman’s roots, and the other was clipping away the tips of a young brunette’s long strands.

  One of them could be Bower’s blonde one-night stand, but hair color and breast size didn’t mean anything conclusive. Kate wasn’t going to waltz in there and ask them if they’d recently slept with one of her colleagues—that would have been way too inappropriate, especially when she couldn’t even think of a time when Bower would have had access to her notepad. So, Kate used the opportunity to walk into a nearby store and pick up Tic Tacs instead.

  Purchase in hand, she headed back to the station where she once again ran into Julia and her Thermos.

  “Officer Murphy, can I interest you in a cup of tea?”

  “No, thank you, but I’ve been meaning to ask you. What’s in it?”

  “It’s just a healthy blend of peppermint, Yerba mate, and South African red bush tea.”

  “Ah, thanks. Maybe tomorrow. Gotta run,” she said before walking into the locker room.

  From the second she stepped in, Kate’s gut told her something was amiss.

  First, it was Zhou that avoided eye contact when she gave him a head nod. Then, Johnston acted strange, too. He’d gradually increased his small talk toward her lately, but not today. He looked at the floor instead of greeting her. He closed his locker door and then walked right by her without looking at her.

  The closer she got to her locker, the stronger her gut screamed something was wrong.

  What’s going on here?

  And what’s that smell?

  “Hey, Murphy! Fun day today?” Bower asked with an overly happy tone as she got ahold of her lock and started entering her combination.

  “What do you want?” Kate said, not at all amused as she concentrated on steadying her churning stomach.

  Seriously, what’s that smell?

  “Heard you worked on a real important case.”

  “What do you mean?” she asked as she opened the locker, releasing a potent dose of the bad aroma into the room, and making the half-dozen officers still present explode with laughter around her.

  As Kate looked in, she recognized the matted orange fur resting at the bottom of her locker, flies buzzing around it.

  “Fuck! Not cool, guys!” Before she could say anything else, her stomach reacted, so she ran to the large bin filled with used paper towels.

  While she puked out her guts, a string of bad jokes and puns echoed around her. Most had to do with the dead cat, but some were aimed at her. She didn’t catch them all, but the words “as dead as your career” and “desk duty where you belong” reached her ears.

  Once she ascertained she was done puking, she unfolded her body from over the garbage can and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

  “Bower. I know this was you. Fuck, man… You broke into my locker and planted the same dead cat you made me waste my time on? Forget about infringing on my privacy. Putting a fucking carcass in here is a health code violation! You better get that thing out of my locker now, or I’m reporting you.”

  “Come on, Murphy. Can’t you take a joke?”

  “That’s no fucking joke. That’s harassment!”

  “Fuck you, Murphy. If you want to be part of the team, you gotta play along. I’m done helping you.”

  And with that, he left, taking along his buddies who continued to giggle under their breath. Zhou made fake puking noises at her as he walked by, pushing her toward her open locker.

  And then the empty room fell silent, save for Kate’s quiet sobs, which she managed to get under control within a minute or so.

  Fucking Bower!

  Since she’d joined the district, in addition to the various small pranks she’d fallen for, Kate had also heard tales of other officers receiving their official welcome by Bower and his friends. This tiny detail told her that the asshole hadn’t played this particularly tasteless joke just because she was a woman, but…

  And why do the rest of them always team up with him? They can’t all be disrespectful assholes. Are they all afraid that not following his lead will land them on the receiving end of his pranks? />
  For fuck’s sake, they’re cops!

  They should know right from wrong, no matter if the most senior patrol cop’s the biggest bully on earth!

  After wiping her tears, she called Animal Control and requested the carcass be picked up from the station. Then she found the janitor and begged for a garbage bag, so she could dump the carcass in there for now to reduce the nasty smell and confine the stupid flies.

  Assessing which scenario would prove less damaging to her reputation and her likelihood of promotion, she decided against reporting Bower’s shitty actions. While his pranks had no reason to exist in the workplace, she knew better. The police force was still mostly a man’s game. Her supervisor was a guy’s guy. He liked Bower. She didn’t have real proof that he was the one who’d done it. She’d be creating a shitload of reports and paperwork.

  And most importantly, Bower’s payback would be intolerable. The man had no shame. And he had lots of friends on the force. She wasn’t just fighting against him. He’d been working here for what, fifteen, twenty years? She’d have the entire district against her.

  If getting the one shitty call for the cat today was an indication, her career in this district could get a lot worse, and fast.

  Kate had to admit it. She didn’t fit in. But fuck them. Fuck them all!

  Well, maybe not Johnston. Could he have been against the idea? Was this why he’d left the locker room before she became the laughing stock?

  Can I just get one part of my life to work right now? One tiny fucking part? Is it too much to ask?

  At least Bower and his stupid buddies will probably blame the carcass for my barfing.

  She caressed her flat stomach and realized she wouldn’t be able to keep it hidden for long. Her petite but strong figure would start showing at some point.

  But for now, her secret was still safe, thanks to a stinky dead cat.

  Talk about a shitty silver lining.

  Jerry was the one who came for the dead cat. Again.

  At first, he was confused, but he soon understood the crappy prank that had been played on Kate.

  “I don’t have time to deal with stupid jokes like these. I’ll find out what fucker released that carcass to one of your officers instead of disposing of it, and I’ll report it on my end. This,” he said, lifting the bag and pointing to it, “is just not cool.”

  Feeling a little better from Jerry’s parting comments, Kate showered and changed into her civilian clothes, which still stank of the dead cat, even though she’d aired them out while she showered.

  She was just about to leave the station when her phone beeped.

  A new text message from Matt had come in.

  Your uncle called.

  Is everything alright?

  Don’t know.

  Call him.

  Thanks.

  Still at the station but heading home now.

  Do you need me to pick anything up?

  A minute passed without a response.

  Screw it. I offered.

  But then she hesitated. If Matt texted her while she was driving, and she missed it, he wouldn’t be happy.

  She decided to call Kenny now instead of later.

  “Hey, Katie! How are you, darling?” he said as soon as he heard her voice.

  “Great, how are you? Matt told me you called the house.”

  “Sure did. I just wanted to see if you’re still coming over to play cards with me tonight.”

  “Of course. It’s Tuesday! Why wouldn’t I?”

  “No, I figured you would, but”—he paused, swallowing hard enough for Kate to hear it—“I need your help again. Could you lend me a few dollars to cover my utility bill? It’s due tomorrow. I know I ask a lot of you these days…”

  Kate shook her head as she absorbed his request.

  Where am I going to find extra money now?

  “How much do you need?” she asked.

  “I know I’m a burden on you. But their rates went up again. I can cover some of it, but I’m shy two hundred to cover the rest of my bills.”

  “Two hundred?!” Kate exclaimed.

  He exhaled loudly on the phone. “I know. It’s a lot. My health insurance didn’t cover my pills this month. I had to pay for them upfront. Maybe they’ll pay me back. I don’t know.”

  “It’s okay. It’s okay,” she repeated. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll… I’ll find a way. See you in a few hours.”

  “Yes, and I can’t wait to hear what you’ve been up to, Katie. You know how much you mean to me.”

  “I know. I’ll see you tonight.” She hung up.

  Two hundred dollars? Shit.

  She looked at her phone again to see if Matt had replied.

  Finished the soap in the shower.

  No more TP either.

  She texted back.

  I’ll pick those up on my way home.

  After stopping by Target, she crossed the road to her bank’s ATM.

  She entered her PIN, and then requested her balance on the screen.

  $153.28.

  Shit.

  And it wasn’t her latest $4 purchase that was to blame.

  She retrieved $140 from her checking account since the machine only dispensed twenty-dollar bills.

  Where the heck would she get the other $60 from?

  Would Matt mind if she took it out of their joint savings account?

  Better not do that.

  They had agreed that their joint-account money would be used for a down payment on a house. That’s why each of them put $200 per paycheck in there. They were approaching their two-year anniversary. One hundred and four weeks, so that would be… $20,800.

  Wow. Hard to believe. But nice.

  They may soon have enough for a down payment if they kept it up.

  Kate tried to think of another way to get money. Maybe she had enough pocket change in that jar on her nightstand?

  Probably.

  But she knew she hadn’t paid her Visa card yet, and her paycheck wouldn’t arrive for another two days…

  Fuck it. I’ll deal with it then.

  After a quick and mostly silent meal with Matt, Kate headed out the door with a bag of coins in her purse, dressed in leggings and a light sweatshirt.

  Her uncle was at the door within a second of her ringing the bell. His thinning gray hair was neatly combed, and the ends of his thick mustache curled up when he greeted her.

  “Katie! So glad to see you, come in!” he said, hugging her then clearing the way into the old home’s entry hall.

  Pictures of him with his wife, Lucy, when she was still healthy covered the walls next to more pictures of her with a wig to cover her balding head after she’d begun her chemo treatments. A good portion of the portraits also featured Kate, after they’d adopted her.

  She’d made happy memories here.

  Funny how the years had gone by. The teenage girl she used to be had experienced horrible things, but Kenny and Lucy had made sure she’d grow up like a regular child. She had been loved and cherished. They’d done a great job. And thanks to them and her psychiatrist, she’d started to feel like a normal human and the feeling had stuck around. Well, most of the time, anyway.

  “How have you been?” Kenny asked as they sat in the living room. “Here, put on a pair of slippers.”

  Kate recognized the brown and orange Phentex slippers Lucy loved to make and sat down to slide them on over her socks. While the old slippers weren’t pretty, they were comfortable and reminded her of better times.

  “Before I forget,” Kate said, digging into her purse and taking out her wallet, “I’m really tight financially but here’s what I could take out.” She pulled out seven twenty-dollar bills from her wallet and then handed them over before returning to her purse to dig out a bag of coins. “And I think I’ve got about fifty dollars’ worth here. Sorry, I couldn’t scrape the extra ten dollars. Do you think it will be enough?”

  Kenny hugged her again. “Thank you, Katie. This shouldn’t
be like this. I should be helping you, not the other way around. Your dad’s probably looking down on me now and swearing, invoking our old Irish ancestors and cursing me.”

  “No, no! Stop that. You’ve taken such good care of me over the years. It’s the least I can do, but I’m really sorry I couldn’t find the other ten dollars. Matt’s…”

  Kenny pulled away and stared into her eyes. “What’s going on with Matt?”

  “We’ve been fighting over money a lot lately. I didn’t want to make things worse and ask him if I could borrow a ten from him.”

  “What? That son of a bitch. He’s not treating you right. You know that, don’t ya?”

  “He’s… We’re just going through a rough patch.”

  “Rough patch? You haven’t looked happy in months. Are you sure it’s just a rough patch?”

  Kate raised her shoulders, eager to change topics. “Where’s that deck of cards? I feel like kicking your ass.”

  Kenny squinted at her, making it clear her attempt at a diversion hadn’t worked. But then he got up. “Can I get you something to drink? Decaf coffee?”

  “Sure. That sounds nice.”

  Kenny headed to the kitchen and came back a few minutes later with two steaming mugs, a little sugar container, a tiny cup of milk, a tin box, and two spoons on a tray, which he rested on the coffee table. “And hold on a minute.”

  He looked into his old wooden buffet and came back with a bottle of Irish cream.

  “You bought that?” Kate asked, taken aback.

  “Don’t be silly. The only booze I buy is crappy whiskey, but Maude, that pesky neighbor, brought it over a few evenings ago, along with a batch of these Rice Krispies Treats,” he said, opening the tin box.

  “Want some in your coffee?” he asked, holding up the bottle.