by M. D. Archer
“And according to the lady in the organics shop, the man was probably in his thirties, with dark blond or light brown hair, and average height. Average-looking all round. Doesn’t make it easy to identify him, does it.”
Jane shook her head and gave Leo a weak smile. “If only he had a big scar down the side of his face or something.”
“Maybe an eyepatch?” Leo added.
“And a parrot on his shoulder.” Her smile widened. “That would really help, right?”
“Yeah, cos there’s not much else to go on.”
Leo had already explored the internet as much as he could but hadn’t made any progress in figuring out who she was. There were no news reports of missing people. He’d even searched for car crashes and any kind of accident, but there was nothing.
Jane suddenly turned to Leo. “What if it’s really bad?” Her voice shook. “What if the thing I can’t remember is so bad that my brain has shut it out. What if it’s better I don’t know?”
SOPHIE EASED HER DOOR shut and looked over the top of the car at Paige. “But what are we going to do?” she whispered.
“We’re going to go see who it is. Obviously.”
“But what if we catch him and he, uh, gets aggressive?”
Paige smiled and pulled a long, thin, cylindrical baton out of her bag. She whipped it down and it extended by about a foot.
Sophie’s eyes went wide. “What the—”
“The female detective on Hard Sun has one.” Paige tilted it left and right. “Awesome, right?”
“Umm. Do you know how to use it?”
“You hit people with it. What’s to know?” Paige jogged across the road.
“Paige,” Sophie hissed taking off after her.
“It’s for self-defence,” Paige hissed back over her shoulder.
They crept toward the front of the house, keeping low. “Let’s go down the other side,” Paige whispered.
Crouching even lower, they both made their way down the side of the house to the back. They huddled at the edge of the house and peeked around the corner.
There, standing on the back deck and looking into the window, looking almost as if he owned the place, was a tall figure with dark hair. When he turned, Sophie clapped one hand over her mouth. “Oh my god. It’s Josh Spencer.”
11
A little over a month ago, during their short-lived corporate gig, Paige and Sophie had worked with Josh Spencer, the head of HR. Josh had at first been delighted with S & S Investigations, but when Sophie rejected his romantic overtures, things had turned sour.
And then it got worse.
Sophie uncovered a KiwiSaver scam happening right under Josh’s nose, and as a result, he’d lost his job. At least, that’s the way he saw it. According to Josh, the whole thing was completely Sophie’s fault. Sophie knew this because he’d said as much in person and in several angry emails. While Sophie had suspected she hadn’t seen or heard the last of Josh, she’d hoped she was wrong.
But he here was, apparently stalking her look-alike half-sister.
As Paige and Sophie huddled together by the side of the house, half-crouching, Josh suddenly lurched off the back deck and disappeared into the night.
“Where did he go? Did he see us?” Sophie whispered.
“I don’t think so.” Paige shook her head. “Is this a coincidence?”
“Can’t be.” Sophie, her hands shaking with adrenaline, messaged Hannah.
Do you know someone called Josh Spencer?
Hannah replied almost immediately. That’s my ex.
Sophie showed Paige her phone.
“Holy crap. Definitely not a coincidence.”
You were right. We saw him outside the house. Gone now.
Photo evidence? Hannah replied.
Sorry. Too quick.
What now?
“What now?” Sophie said to Paige.
“Tell her we’ll meet her tomorrow to discuss options.”
“But what are the options?”
“We’ll figure it out.” Paige gave Sophie a small smile.
Sophie texted the message. Almost immediately the back door swung open. Hannah appeared as a silhouette in the doorway, backlit by the light from inside.
“I guess we’re talking to her now,” Paige said.
As Paige strode up to the door, Sophie stayed where she was, unable to make her legs move.
Paige planted her hands on her hips. “Did you know?” she demanded.
“What?”
“That we have a history with Josh? Or more specifically, that Josh had a thing for Sophie?”
Hannah’s eyes went wide. “They dated?”
“No. Sophie rejected him.”
“I had no clue.” Hannah shook her head then looked over at Sophie, still motionless by the tree.
Paige glanced at Sophie as well, then frowned. “Listen. Sophie and I need to talk about this and what it means, so we’ll catch up with you later. But for now, you’ve got your answer. Yes, you have a stalker and yes, it’s your ex. We’ll touch base soon.” Paige nodded firmly and retreated down the path. She grabbed Sophie’s arm on the way and dragged her all the way back to the car.
AS SOPHIE DROVE, PAIGE glanced at her, wondering what to say.
There was no point in asking her whether Hannah was lying about knowing about the history with Josh. She knew this because of the gobsmacked look on Sophie’s face. The look Sophie got when her pre-frontal cortex had taken a holiday and her analytical, rational, making-sense-of-information faculties had gone bye-bye. When she had only her primal decision-making faculties left. The ones that direct you to run away or to fight someone. Or in Sophie’s case, act like a statue.
“Soph, are you okay?” she said finally. Sophie lifted her shoulders. Paige sighed and got out her phone. She opened a search engine, and for a few quiet minutes, tried to find something about what Josh Spencer had been doing since he’d been fired.
“Based on Facebook and his LinkedIn profile, Josh doesn’t have a new job,” Paige said into the silence.
“I think so,” Sophie said.
“Huh? Do you mean you think you’re okay?”
Sophie nodded. “I’m shocked, but weirdly, I’m also not surprised. After those emails he sent. He was so angry.”
“Do you still have them?”
Sophie shook her head. “I deleted them. Stupid.”
“Maybe Leo could recover them?”
“Maybe.”
“I’ll ask him tomorrow.”
Sophie turned a little to glance at Paige. “What do we do now?”
“We wait to see if Hannah can find some extra money to pay us, and then if she still wants us to, we’ll photograph Josh in the act and deliver the evidence to her. It’s up to her to go to the police.”
Sophie bit her lip. “Is that it? I mean... is our history with him relevant?”
Paige lifted her shoulders. “Josh is a creepy guy doing creepy things. What’s the mystery?”
“There’s no mystery, it just... Hannah seemed to genuinely like him and when we met him, he seemed nice enough at first.”
“I thought you were wary of him from the beginning.”
“Well, yes, but I can understand why Hannah thought he was okay.”
“How did they meet? Josh hit on you, got rejected, and then starts dating your doppelganger? It can’t be a coincidence.”
“I know.” Sophie cast a worried look at Paige. “What if he targeted her because of me?”
Paige rolled her eyes. “Not everything is about you, Soph.”
“I know, but—”
“Even if he was drawn to her because she looks like you, so what? I mean. It’s not your fault.”
But Sophie couldn’t help but feel a little responsible. She’d rejected Josh and now he was stalking her sister.
JANE PACED THE LENGTH of the motel room, one hand clutching her waist and the other at her mouth, biting her nails.
“Please, Jane. It’s going to be ok
ay,” Leo said.
She shook her head, her eyes fixed on the floor as she continued to pace. Leo watched her, helpless. Over the last half hour, she’d started falling apart right in front of his eyes. He wasn’t prepared for this. He didn’t feel quite grown-up enough. He’d already suppressed the embarrassing urge to call his mum and ask her what she would do in this situation.
“Can you come sit and talk with me?” he said finally.
Jane stopped her frantic pacing and eyed Leo for a moment, then nodded once and sat beside him on the bed.
“I work for a psychological investigations agency.”
Jane frowned. “What does that mean?”
“S & S Investigations. Paige and Sophie are the investigators. They both have doctorates in psychology, so they use their skills to figure stuff out. They’re super smart. They’ve already solved a bunch of cases. And Paige did her PhD in brain stuff. She might know something about memory.”
Jane’s eyes went wide. “Really? She might be able to help me recover mine?”
“Maybe. We definitely should ask them to help.”
She bit her lip.
“We can go tomorrow. I’m sure they can fit us in. They’ll make time.”
“Okay,” she agreed in a small voice.
Leo’s shoulders dropped with relief.
“I don’t want to be alone. I know it’s getting late, but can you stay? Can we watch a movie or something?”
“Of course.” He went over to turn on the TV screen. “If there isn’t a late movie playing, I can stream something.”
“I don’t care what it is, I just need a distraction. I can’t be alone with my thoughts right now.”
Leo flicked through the channels until he found one that looked like a movie. A man and woman were walking along some city street, having an intense conversation. “Is this okay? I don’t know what it is.” Leo frowned at the screen.
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s watch this.”
“You’re sure?”
Leo studied Jane’s pinched face. He waited until she nodded, giving her okay, then returned to the bed, the only place they could both see the TV. They sat side by side perched on the end, the light from the screen flickering in front of them.
After a few minutes Leo pulled out his phone, intending to message Paige and Sophie and ask them what time he could bring Jane to the office, when next to him Jane whimpered.
His head whipped up.
“No.” Her lip trembled as she pointed to the screen.
The scene with a man and woman walking and talking had disappeared. In its place was something that could only be described as a bloodbath. A man with a frenzied expression wielded a knife, while a terrified woman flinched in terror.
“Oh, crap,” Leo said.
She clutched his arm. “Turn it off, please.”
Leo lurched off the bed to shut off the screen, then returned to kneel at her feet. “Are you okay?”
She shook her head, her eyes still downcast. “All that blood. Leo. It’s... it’s as if I...was there.”
“The doctor said your other, older injuries could have been sustained in a car accident. Maybe that’s what you’re remembering? A bad car accident would be traumatic.”
“I don’t remember anything about a car. But I do remember fluorescent lights. A dark room with a flickering fluorescent lighting. And... and...” she swallowed. “I was tied to a bed.”
Leo gasped. “Really?”
There was no doubt about it, he was totally out of his depth.
“But that’s not the worst part. It’s...” She raised her troubled eyes to meet his. “I remember screaming at someone. I remember being so angry that I... Leo, the blood. All that blood. I think I might have killed someone.”
12
Tammy lurched upright when she saw Geoff enter the café, busy with the morning rush. She waved at him, then glanced left and right as if to check no one had seen her. Geoff strolled over, seeming to move slowly on purpose, as if trying to make a point to Tammy.
“Sit down. Quickly,” she hissed.
“Is this really necessary?”
“They’re onto us, I’m telling you,” she whispered.
Geoff rolled his eyes and signalled at a passing barista. “Short black, please.”
“Order at the counter,” the harassed-looking young woman replied with a tight smile.
“Really?” Geoff complained. He looked around, as if there might be another, more accommodating barista nearby. Or perhaps another solution that would result in him being delivered coffee. Finally, he pulled himself off his seat again and joined the queue at the counter. Tammy kept vigil at the table, her eyes furtively darting from the counter to the door, then across the interior of the café. She couldn’t believe how relaxed Geoff was acting. Not after what they’d done. Not after that woman from S & S Investigations kept calling her to demand an interview.
But how did they find out, Tammy wanted to know. She’d looked up the agency online and saw that they boasted, in addition to psychological expertise, an associate who specialised in IT and cyber-crime. So maybe he’d hacked their computers and seen the damning document.
“Calm down, Tam. You’re being ridiculous,” Geoff said once he returned, plopping down into the chair opposite.
“I’m not. You’re not taking this seriously.”
Tammy’s phone, sitting on the table, suddenly started vibrating angrily. She looked down at the display, then turned panicked eyes to Geoff. “See? That’s them now. They know. They figured it out and we’re going to jail.”
PAIGE SHOOK HER HEAD as she entered the S & S Investigations conference room.
“No answer from Tammy. I’ll have to try again later. Leo, you’re up,” she added.
Leo stood, scratched his head, and bit his lower lip. He looked from Paige to Sophie, back to Paige again.
“Just say it, Leo,” Paige said finally, throwing her hands down. “You can’t keep standing there opening and closing your mouth like a fish.”
“First you have to promise you won’t tell Roman. Or anyone from the police.”
“What have you done?” Sophie said as a curl of unease washed through her stomach. He’d been so secretive and weird recently and then this morning he’d shown up out of the blue with something important to tell them.
“Not me, it’s uh, my new friend. She, uh, Jane, has a problem.”
“Leo. Spit it out,” Paige said.
And so, Leo finally told them about Jane. About finding her on Mt Albert Road, about her memory problems, and finally, her disturbing dreams and worrying suspicions.
“Why isn’t she here with you now?” Paige asked.
“She’s too scared to leave the house. She’s scared about what she might have done and who might be looking for her. The whole thing has freaked her out.”
“Understandably,” Sophie said.
Leo suddenly reached in his pocket and pulled out his phone which was vibrating with a call. “Jane, Hi. Are you okay?” he answered. He listened for a moment. “Sure. I’ll be there in ten.” He disconnected. “Sorry, that was her. She’s got an appointment with the neurologist and she wants me to go with her.” He looked from Paige to Sophie with wide, earnest eyes. “You’ll help? You’ll see what you can find out? Paige, can you help her get her memory back?”
“Amnesia isn’t exactly my area—”
“We’ll do our best, Leo,” Sophie said. “Check in with us tomorrow.”
“And don’t forget we still need you to help with the locked room case,” Paige called out as he disappeared through the door. Leo grunted in reply.
“I’m surprised you’re not more excited about this amnesia mystery,” Sophie said, helping herself to more coffee.
Paige lifted her shoulders. “I guess. I never really clicked with amnesia as a topic.” She scurried over to the whiteboard
“But the whole woman shows up with no memory, isn’t that like a standard investigator plotline? I thought you
’d...” Sophie trailed off as she took in Paige’s expression.
“Plotline?”
“Uh...”
“I mean yes, it’s kind of intriguing, but she was probably just in a car accident and has short term memory loss. And until Leo brings her here there’s nothing much we can do, right?”
“I guess not.” Sophie moved across to turn on the fan that stood in the corner. The whiteboard was Paige’s favourite thing in the office, but the two oscillating fans were Sophie’s.
“We could ask Roman to match her photograph to a database?” Paige offered.
“Hmm.” Sophie wasn’t thrilled at the idea of once again being thrust into Roman’s presence. It was hard enough not to think about him when he was miles away, let alone working on a case with them. “Leo was pretty adamant about not contacting the police.”
“It’s kind of a wild story, eh?”
“As in, too wild?” Sophie said, returning to her seat. “She could be faking?”
“We should definitely consider it.”
“But what’s her angle? What would be the point? To get... what...out of Leo? I’m pretty sure the only thing Leo has to offer is his heart, and I’m also pretty sure he might have already given it to her.”
Paige rolled her eyes and nodded in agreement, then looked thoughtful. “Maybe not to get something from Leo, but to get out of something. Leo said she’s got injuries and she’s been having disturbing dreams, right?”
“And?”
“So, what if this is setting the groundwork for an insanity defence plea.”
Sophie widened her eyes. “You really think?”
Paige shrugged. “It’s what I would do if I had to murder someone.”
Sophie let the comment land in silence, eyeing Paige as she waited for her to explain herself.
“What?” Paige said eventually. “You never thought about the circumstances in which you might have to murder someone and how you’d dispose of the body without getting caught, etc?”
“You have?”
“Stop looking at me like I’m a psycho. It’s a normal thing to do.”
“Is it, though?”