by Jason Deas
“Can I ask you just a couple more questions?”
“Of course.”
“I know this is difficult, but I am trying to figure out, assuming this Brother Jim character is responsible for this, how he picked her.”
Robert’s eyes puffed up and streams of tears began crawling down his face again.
“I’m sorry,” Benny said. “I know this is difficult, and I don’t want to open up your wounds again, but this is necessary.”
“It’s OK. I’m sure it was the website. I told her it was a bad idea, but Erin wouldn’t take no for an answer. She knew the bikinis she was designing were creating a lot of buzz, and she felt they might catch the eye of one of the big designers out there somehow. Erin watched a lot of reality television shows and held fast to the idea that someone could get famous overnight with the right kind of luck.”
“I see.”
“I was basically living with her in her parent’s condo and I was usually the one who got the mail. She started getting lots and lots of mail from guys all over the country. I don’t know what they thought—like she would just up and leave to go to them or invite them to come to her. I guess there are more freaks out there than I care to know about.”
“I imagine these same types of guys were contacting her through email as well?”
“Oh yeah. She sometimes got more email than she could actually read. Some of them were just disgusting perverts. The police went through her computer and all her emails.”
“Did she receive any gifts in the mail?”
“Some.”
“Like what?”
“A lot of drawings. Bracelets, earrings, things I guess guys thought she would think were romantic.”
“Anything strange?”
“Yeah. This one person sent her at least four different packages with these really weird… I don’t even know what I would call them.”
“Describe them to me.”
“They were boxes full of braided snakes.”
Chapter 21
Rachael made plans to meet Azim at a diner he sometimes liked to have breakfast at before heading home and going to bed. The exterior of the Finer Diner looked a little suspect in Rachael’s eyes as she approached in her rental car. As she inspected the building, waiting at a red light from a good distance away, she thought it vaguely looked as though it might have been a gas station at one point. Sure enough, when she pulled into the parking lot, there was a different color of concrete where she imagined the gas pumps used to be. The old service bay doors still remained, painted a glimmering silver, and she wondered if they opened them during the day for fresh air when it was cool enough.
As soon as Rachael entered the restaurant she inspected the floor. She had decided on the way inside, if there were any oil or gas stains remaining, she would just have coffee and pick up something to eat at a later time. Stunning hardwoods stretched from wall to wall and Rachael relaxed. Paintings, photographs, reliefs, and mirrors filled the walls. The owner obviously loved the arts as the paintings seemed to be originals, the photographs were signed, and the reliefs were, without a doubt, one of a kind. The collection of different mirrors took Rachael’s breath away as she marveled at the number and uniqueness of each one. Rachael stood in awe.
“First time here?” a waitress asked, sneaking up beside Rachael.
“Yes. This place is amazing.”
“Thank you. I’m glad you like it. Your party is already waiting for you, Ms. Martin.”
Although Rachael’s show won the ratings almost each and every night for her time slot, it still took her off guard at times that most people recognized her and knew her name. Rachael’s unassuming nature, instilled in her from her beginnings in Sweet Palm, Mississippi, still remained. It happened to be a great part of her charm and success. Rachael could suck you in with modesty and good nature and then blindside you with hard hitting questions and intelligence.
“Follow me,” the waitress said.
Rachael followed her to the back of the restaurant to find Azim sitting at a booth well out of earshot from any of the other tables. It did not look like it was even part of the regular dining room, it was so far removed. Azim waited with two cups of coffee and a newspaper he folded and put away when he saw Rachael approaching.
As Rachael sat, the waitress asked, “Would you like me to get your guest a menu, Mr. Uddin?”
“Please.”
“And anything else?”
“Would you like juice with your coffee, or water?” Azim asked.
“No, thank you. Just the coffee is fine.”
The waitress hurried away.
“Why didn’t they ask you if you wanted a menu?” Rachael asked. “Do you come here so much you just get the same thing, know the whole menu, and get special seating?”
“All of the above,” Azim said, smiling.
“You own this restaurant, don’t you?”
“You’re very good. Yes I do. The strip club is for the money and this one is for the love of food and art.”
“The place is packed,” Rachael said, looking around at all the full tables. “I would have to imagine you make a profit here.”
“I do,” Azim said humbly. “When I first opened I did not. Word spread that the food was excellent and the atmosphere was eclectic, and slowly we built a clientele of loyal customers.”
“Sounds like good business,” Rachael said, as her menu arrived.
As she studied the menu, Rachael kept saying, “Yum,” and “yummy,” and “mmmm. This all looks amazing. Peanut butter crunch French toast!”
“It’s good.”
“Eggs Benedict, hash brown and cheese egg pie. Oh my goodness.”
“All of the croissant breakfast sandwiches are delicious as well.”
“What is your suggestion?”
“Do you like bacon?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Then I would highly suggest the stuffed French toast. It’s made from homemade bread, stuffed with bacon, scrambled eggs, your choice of cheese, and more bacon. All dipped in an egg batter and fried to a delicious dish. We also have twenty-four different kinds of syrup.”
“Sold.”
After ordering, Rachael asked, “So why did you want to see me?”
“I wasn’t totally honest with you the first time we met. And I wasn’t honest with you about what I had found either.”
“OK.”
“All of the girls have a locker in the back of the club. Josephine had one too, of course, but I was afraid if you opened it you might have found she had a boyfriend or something and it would have broken my heart.”
“Did the FBI or the police open the locker?”
“No. I lied to them and told them I had already cleaned it out and there was nothing but a few different costume changes in there.”
“What was really in there?”
“I don’t know. I want you to look.”
“OK.”
“If she has a note from a boyfriend or something, I want to know, I guess, but I just want you to tell me. I don’t want to read it myself.”
“God,” Rachael said. “You really had it bad for her.”
Azim got control of his emotions and ordered two more cups of coffee.
“When the waitress walked away again, Rachael asked, “Why didn’t you offer her a job here?”
“I did.”
“Not nearly the same amount of money she would make at the club, right?”
“True. I offered to pay her more than I pay my manager to be a waitress here and she declined. She didn’t want to take advantage of me. That is the kind of good person she was.”
As they waited for her food to arrive, Azim talked about how beautiful Josephine looked in the costumes he chose for her. Rachael could see the adoration on his face and hear it in his voice.
Rachael’s eyes went wide when her plate arrived. She dug right in to her stuffed French toast. It more than lived up to its billing. She had picked the pure maple syrup from
Quebec, and it was injected into the interior of the French toast creation as well as served on the side in an extra dipping bowl.
“I have something else that might interest you,” Azim said.
“OK.”
“Are you still in contact with Benny James? I’ve seen you on television with him before, but it has been awhile.”
“I am.”
“A lady came by the other day asking questions about him.”
“Who was it?”
“I don’t know?”
“Oh, I bet I know who it was.” Rachael thought it was probably Jessica. “Tall, long black hair, too skinny, big chest—probably fakes.”
“No. I’ve become sort of an expert in fake breasts,” Azim said. “That was not her at all. This girl was mid-thirties, short brown hair, just past her ears, and a fairly flat chest, and on the shorter side.”
“Not who I was thinking of at all. What did she want?”
“She wanted to know if Mr. James had been by asking questions about the investigation and if so, what I had told him. I told her he had not. I could tell she didn’t believe me and after asking a few more times, getting the same results, she left in a huff.”
“Interesting,” Rachael said.
“I can pull the surveillance tape if you’d like to see what she looks like.”
“Yeah. When I come by to open the locker for you, could you have it cued up and ready?”
“Sure. Can you come by tonight at ten?”
“No. The show ends at ten, but I could make it by eleven or so tonight.”
“Great.”
“Wait a minute,” Rachael said, realizing what she had agreed to. “Did I just make plans to visit a club full of naked women?”
“You sure did,” Azim said smiling.
Chapter 22
Before leaving the Bradenton Beach area, Benny drove across the Sunshine Skyway Bridge a few times to get a feel for the structure. In Benny’s mind, the heavy traffic would have made it impossible to push or throw someone off the bridge during daylight hours. He wondered what the flow was like after midnight and into the early hours of morning. The early hours were most certainly when the murder happened.
On his way back to the eastern side of the state, Benny dialed Ted on his cell phone. He had been warned by Jessica to stay away from him. Although Benny could not get into any trouble with the law for associating with him, he didn’t want Ted to be disciplined because of his actions. Benny had some questions to ask him and hoped to make good on his promise to make him dinner.
Ted didn’t say hello. “I thought you promised me Sloppy Joe’s?”
“I was thinking I could come over and make those for you tonight if I won’t get you into any trouble.”
“You won’t get me into trouble,” Ted promised. “Jessica already called, wondering if I’d heard from you today. I was able to say without lying that I had not. She’s having to take her boss out to dinner tonight, so tonight would actually be perfect.”
“Great. I’m about an hour away. I’ll swing by the grocery store and be there in an hour and a half at the most. Need anything? You sound sober.”
“I am. I have to work tomorrow so I’m only drinking a twelve pack. If you want anything it’s BYOB.”
“Seriously?”
“As a heart attack.”
“OK, buddy.”
“And if I beg you to go out and buy me more beer, say no.”
“You got it.”
“You promise?”
“I promise. I will not go out and buy you more beer.”
Benny arrived at Ted’s house almost exactly an hour and a half later with groceries in hand. He knocked and heard Ted yell out that the door was not locked.
Benny made his way to the kitchen, where he found Ted sitting at the table doing a crossword puzzle.
“Is this your idea of a good time? A twelve pack of beer and a crossword puzzle?”
“I can’t do them on liquor nights,” Ted said. “They help me relax.”
“Don’t you think the beer helps with that?”
“The beer relaxes my body and the puzzle my mind.”
“You are a complicated man, Ted.”
Benny pulled the ground beef out of the bag and Ted pointed to a cabinet where Benny found a skillet to brown the meat. From a different bag, Benny removed the seasoning mix, bread, and a package of frozen tater tots. He turned the dial on the oven to heat it up. From a last bag, Benny pulled out a tall boy Budweiser.
Like radar, Ted’s eyes shot up from his crossword puzzle and he said, “Is that for me?”
“No, this is mine. You already have twelve.” Ted’s face sank. Benny reached back into the bag and pulled out another tall boy and said, “This one is for you.” Ted’s face lit up and Benny just shook his head and smiled.
Opening the two tall boys, Benny handed one to Ted and said, “Cheers!”
“Cheers,” Ted echoed.
“Are you sure I’m not going to get you into any trouble?”
“No, you’re not. After I hung up the phone with you I made a couple of phone calls and double checked that Jessica was having dinner with our boss.”
“Why is she the one following me? And why is someone following me?”
Benny slit open the ground beef and dropped it into the black skillet. From what looked like a wide-mouthed vase sitting next to the stove he pulled out a wooden spoon and divided the meat as Ted spoke.
“Well, not to blow smoke up your ass or give you a big head, but the agency knows your track record and they would never say it, but they’re afraid you might solve this case and make them look bad. They seem to think by watching you that they might figure out a little of what you’re thinking or on to and hopefully catch this guy before you do.”
Benny pulled a cookie sheet out of the same cabinet where he found the skillet, tore open the bag of tater tots, and poured half the contents onto the metal pan. Both men took long pulls from their beers.
“And, you’re going to love this,” Ted said. “If you repeat this, even to your little TV girlfriend, I’ll kill you.”
“I swear I won’t.”
“Pinky swear,” Ted said, sticking out his pinky toward Benny.
“What are we, ten years old?”
“This is serious stuff. If you tell anybody, especially your TV girlfriend, I’ll know.”
“Her name is Rachael,” Benny said, grasping Ted’s pinky in his own.
“Say it,” Ted said.
“I pinky swear.”
Benny opened the can of Sloppy Joe mix and poured it in with the ground beef as he waited for Ted to continue.
“Jessica got caught doing some digging on your TV girlfriend.”
“She did what!”
“You pinky swore,” Ted said. “Don’t you forget that.”
“Who caught her and why would she do that?”
“Seems she has a thing for a certain former FBI agent and doesn’t like his new girlfriend.”
“You have got to be kidding me. Why didn’t they just pull her off the case and put her on something else?”
“Because she is actually a pretty good agent who has invested a lot of time with this case. It’s more or less like a week long punishment, and then they’ll put a rookie back on the detail. Do you think you can keep your mouth shut about it?”
“Yes. I did the pinky thing.”
When the oven timer rang thirty minutes later, Benny pulled the potatoes out of the oven and made Ted a plate with two sandwiches and a mound of tots. Benny looked in the refrigerator and, by some non-pizza miracle, found a bottle of ketchup. Benny made himself a plate and sat down.
As they ate, Benny sipped on his Bud. Ted had finished his and drank two more twelve ounce cans.
Toward the end of the meal, Benny said, “Let me tell you the two things I’m confused about in this case.”
“OK. I’m sure they’re the same two things the FBI is confused about.”
“One,” Benny s
tarted, “there seems to be absolutely no information about Brother Jim. No pictures, nobody knows him, he’s like a ghost.”
“That’s the way the Reverend wanted him to be. Have you had the privilege of meeting with your client at his office?”
“No. The Reverend was going to fly me there, and there was a problem with his plane, so we just met on the plane.”
“I’ve been there and it’s creepy. If I was classifying it, I would put it in the category of a compound. The word cult would be right there too.”
“I’ve watched his church on television and it looks normal,” Benny said.
“The day to day operations of that place are a far cry from the show they put on for the television cameras. Make up a reason to go there. It will change your way of thinking. There’s almost a military presence surrounding the property. And don’t get me started on the employees.”
“Tell me.”
“One word—zombies.”
“You’re exaggerating.”
“I’m not. They all wear the same uniforms that reminded me of…”
“Roman soldiers?”
“No.”
“The twelve disciples?”
“No. They were more like Star Trek meets roller derby.”
“Really? I will definitely make up a reason to visit. Did you get to see Brother Jim’s room?”
“Jessica did.” Ted tilted his head back and finished another beer.
“Great! That means I’m going to have to get her to tell me about it or get the Reverend to let me take a look myself.”
“He wasn’t happy about it and pitched a fit.”
Switching gears, Benny said, “The other mystery is the girl who got away. What happened to her?”
Ted got up and walked to the refrigerator. He opened it, pulled out a beer, and drank what Benny thought to be more than half before sitting back down.
“The local police really screwed that one up,” Ted said. “They questioned her for hours. She was very detailed in her statements and they had no reason to believe she was making anything up. A few days later, they had some follow up questions for her and went to the address she had given them after failing to get her on the phone, and it was an empty apartment.”