Fallacy (Detective Jade Monroe 3)

by C. M. Sutter

  Clark interrupted, “Yeah, because he didn’t have any eyes.”

  “Sorry, Lieutenant.”

  “All right, everyone, let’s get busy. We have a couple of hours of work to do yet today. Check out the foot doctor angle and local missing persons. Update Horbeck and Jamison when they get in too.” Clark slapped his hands together. “Let’s go.”

  Chapter 8

  “Perfect, just perfect! Your hair turned out exactly like I had planned. Now we’ll move on to the next step.”

  “What’s that, Mama?” Mandy asked after staring at her shoulder-length blond hair in the bathroom mirror for five minutes.

  “Get the laptop computer and bring it here. I’ll show you what our mission is all about. I got a sign, you know, and you should both feel honored.”

  Mandy elbowed Mariah and shot her a dubious glance as she pushed back the chair. “From who… God?”

  “I saw that, and yes, from God. Who else? It’s our duty to obey, young lady. Now bring me that computer.”

  Mandy went upstairs and returned a few minutes later with the laptop from her mother’s bedroom.

  “Here we go,” Alice said. “Plug it in behind the table, then bring us all some iced tea.”

  Mandy rose once more, weaved the computer cord behind the table legs, and plugged it in to the wall socket. She went to the refrigerator and poured three glasses of tea.

  Alice powered up the computer and let it run through the several updates it needed. A wide smile spread across her face when the home screen popped up. “Now lower your heads so I can sign in.”

  The girls did as they were told and waited while Alice’s fingertips tapped at the keyboard.

  “Okay, you can look now.”

  “What’s this?” Mariah asked. A questioning frown furrowed her brows.

  “Your daddy died because of this vile company. This is the site he used to meet his girlfriends.”

  “A dating website owned by a company named Unhappilyhitched Inc.?” Mandy stood up.

  Alice grabbed her forearm and pulled her back down on the chair. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  “I don’t want any part of this.”

  “You’ll do exactly what I say. You know what your daddy told you. Anyway, blame him. He was the one that betrayed our family, making us suffer like this. He skated by five years ago, and he was overdue to get what he deserved.”

  “But Daddy didn’t—”

  “Let it go, Mandy,” Mariah warned.

  “Anyway, you girls are going to help me find justice for all the women whose husbands are using this site. Those men will pay for their sins, every one of them.”

  Mariah sucked on the straw, slurping her tea until it was gone. “I’ll do what you want, Mama. Daddy told us to do whatever you said.”

  “That’s right, honey, now go pretty up. I’m putting pictures of you on this website. We’re going to lure those evil men out and publicly humiliate them. Their wives will thank us in the end.”

  Mariah clapped her hands. “Can I put on makeup too?”

  “Yes you can. We’re doing God’s will, and he said it’s okay. Now hurry up.”

  “What about Mandy?”

  “You both look the same, honey. I only need pictures of one of you.”

  Mariah happily trotted off to her second-floor bedroom.

  “What’s wrong with you, girl? Cat got your tongue?” Alice asked.

  “No, Mama, I’m fine.” Mandy stared at the dirty cracked linoleum covering the kitchen floor.

  “Good, because I need both of you to help out. When Mariah comes down, you’re going to take the pictures.”

  Chapter 9

  “Apparently there are only four podiatrists in North Bend.” I looked at the clock and realized we had thirty minutes until they would all be closing for the day. “Why don’t we work on them tomorrow along with a few churches in the area? That alone could take a full day.”

  “Sounds like a plan. Clayton is checking on city- and countywide missing persons.” Jack jerked his chin toward Clayton, who was talking on his phone.

  “Where did Billings go?” I asked.

  Jack looked around and shrugged.

  Clayton hung up and answered my question. “He’s downstairs checking to see if forensics found anything on the clothes.”

  “So are there any missing-person reports for the last week?”

  “Sorry, Jade, but no.”

  I remembered my cell phone had been in my purse since I left the house. It was still on vibrate. I pulled it out. “Crap!”

  “What’s wrong?” Jack raised his brows and stared at me.

  “With all this going on, I totally forgot I even had a phone today. It was Amber’s first day of school, and she was pretty stoked. I told her to text me to let me know how it was going.”

  “And?”

  I laughed. “And she did, about five times. As far as she knew, I had the day off. Guess I’m buying dinner.”

  “Oops, your bad.”

  “Uh-huh. Luckily I have an understanding sister. I think she’s figuring out how this job works by watching us.”

  “Yeah, and I can see the pride in your eyes. You’re more like a mom than a big sister to her, you know. Amber looks up to you, Jade.”

  “I’ll second that,” Clayton said.

  “Thanks, guys. I’m so proud of her. You should hear my old man. I can almost see the twinkle in his eyes when he talks to us on speakerphone. Anyway, I’m heading out. I’ll be in early in case any of you want to get out of bed before seven a.m. to give me a hand pounding the pavement.”

  Jack groaned. “I’ll be here at seven thirty, that’s a promise.”

  “Good enough. See you boys in the morning.” I stopped in the lieutenant’s office and told him he should head out too. He looked as though he needed some downtime, but he waved me off.

  “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.”

  “Yeah, won’t we all?” I walked out of the bull pen, said good night to Bob Kennedy, one of our evening dispatch operators, and headed to my car. I called Amber as I drove. “Hey, Sis, you haven’t eaten yet, have you?”

  “No, but where have you been all day?”

  “I’ll explain that over dinner, my treat. Let’s go somewhere quiet. How about the Washington House? Want to meet me there in fifteen minutes?”

  “Sure, but I have to change clothes first. See you in a few.”

  I parked my car and took the footbridge over the Milwaukee River that ran through town. A public parking lot sat behind the retail buildings on Main Street, and the space I snagged was only a block from the restaurant. I thought back to the day Jack and I had lunch there before my birthday. A lot had happened since then. Jack and I had been shot or maimed in one fashion or another. Every day before work, I counted my blessings and said a prayer for our department’s safety.

  I grasped the handrail and walked up the old brick steps of the beautiful, historic Washington House. As I entered the darkened foyer with the flocked-velvet wallpaper and faux kerosene chandelier, I wondered how many people and fascinating stories had passed through those doors in the last century. It took me back a hundred years. What was North Bend like back then and who was sheriff? Was there a lot of crime then too? I took a seat on the antique oak bench next to the hostess stand and saw Gabi, the hostess that I remembered from the day I was there with Jack. I waved to her, and she waved back. She probably didn’t remember me, but the gesture was nice. The front door opened, and Amber stepped in. I saw her squint while her eyes adjusted to the different lighting.

  I stood up. “Hey, Sis, I’m right here.”

  She looked over and grinned. “Feeling guilty, huh?”

  “Absolutely, and I’m sorry. I’ll explain later, but first I want to hear about your day.”

  Gabi greeted us and led Amber and me to a nice table by the window facing Main Street. She told us the dinner specials, took our drink order, and left.

  “So how was school?” I asked o
nce we both relaxed with a drink in front of us.

  Amber had an Irish coffee, and I had my favorite, a Scottish Ale.

  “I know I’m going to love it, Jade. The criminal justice class is so interesting. It doesn’t hurt that I have a few handsome classmates too.”

  I chuckled at my sister. I’m sure her age played a factor in what was important to her. “Amber, if you’re serious about becoming an FBI agent, you’re going to have to keep your eye on the prize.”

  “I know, I’m just being cute.”

  “Well, that you are. Anyway, tell me more.”

  “Okay, I’m taking public speaking, sociology, and political science classes too.”

  “That’s a full load. Are you sure you’re up for all of that?”

  “Of course I am. I’m only going to work at Joey’s on Tuesday and Saturday nights starting this weekend, and he’s okay with that. Joey knows how important my classes are to me.”

  “I’m so proud of you, honey. You have to finish this last year of school, then you still need three years of experience under your belt before you can apply at the FBI academy. You have a long road ahead of you.”

  “I know, and I’m going to love every minute of it.”

  The waitress came by and took our dinner orders.

  “I’m starting the alkaline diet,” Amber said proudly. “It’s so much healthier for you.”

  “I hate to burst your bubble, hon, but you’ve already messed up. That drink you’re sipping on—the coffee and alcohol?”

  Amber looked down at the hot, creamy beverage she had been sipping. “Yeah, what about it?”

  “Not working. There’s whiskey, coffee, sugar, and cream in that drink. None of them are allowed in the alkaline diet.”

  “Seriously?” She wrinkled her nose.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Fine, I’ll search for a different healthy diet tomorrow that still allows vices.”

  I chuckled. “Good luck with that.”

  The waitress returned fifteen minutes later with our meals. I happily ate my pasta primavera, garlic bread with dipping oil, and salad. I watched as Amber ate her dry gluten-free bread and nibbled on her vegetable platter. She didn’t look happy.

  I explained to her what consumed my day. Since we were eating, I didn’t go into great detail. After our meal, we went home, drank a bottle of wine, and discussed Amber’s future aspirations.

  Chapter 10

  “I have emails from men asking me sexy questions, Mama. What should I do?” Mariah sat at the kitchen table after dinner and gnawed on her cuticles.

  Alice paused the game show she and Mandy were watching. The wooden kitchen chair screeched against the floor when she pulled it out and took a seat next to her daughter.

  “Answer them, of course, but let me take a look first. Uh-huh, filthy pigs. They’re definitely going to hell, and we’re going to speed that process up for them. Mandy will help lighten your load. These men have no idea there’s two of you—we’ll rid this earth of their sinful bodies twice as fast. Go ahead and make dates with at least two of them this week. That way we can repent in church on Sunday. We’re going to introduce all of them to Daddy’s wonderful workshop.”

  Mariah wrung her hands. “But Mama, these guys are old—like, forty.”

  “Yep, I guess that’s the magic age when they start cheating. That’s okay, sweetheart. You girls aren’t going to be spending much time with them. They’ll come here to pick you up for dinner, then I’ll take care of the rest.”

  Mandy reluctantly took a seat at the table and peered over her sister’s shoulder. “They’re gross, Mama.”

  “Don’t you never mind what they look like. They’ll look worse by the end of the night.”

  A wicked laugh from Alice caused Mariah to laugh too.

  “Go ahead and pick one, Mariah. Mandy, you too. Hurry up and send off a response so we can start making plans. We need to straighten out the workshop too—your daddy sure made a bloody mess in there.”

  Chapter 11

  I slapped at the alarm clock on the nightstand. The buzzing made me want to throw the aqua-blue retro-style clock across the room. Someday I’d remember to set the alarm to a light, soothing elevator-music station instead of a loud, jarring buzz, but then I’d probably sleep through it, anyway. It seemed as if the night was only an hour long, but squinting through the slits I called eyelids confirmed it was actually six thirty. Last night, Amber and I stayed up later than I had thought we would, but she deserved the public version of how my planned day off went to hell. I wasn’t going to give her the bloody details, and that was information the press wouldn’t be privy to, either.

  My eyes burned from the light pouring through the window directly across the room. I was still getting used to having an east-facing bedroom, and I would often forget to close the blinds at night. I grumbled as I rolled out of bed and zombie-walked to the bathroom. The hot shower would feel wonderful, but maybe a cold one would wake me up faster.

  The automatic feature of my coffeemaker was a godsend. Each morning, after my shower, I would float down the hallway, following my nose to the fragrant scent of freshly brewed coffee. Last year, after much fanfare from my mom, I went ahead and bought everything necessary to grind my own beans and use the single-cup, cone-shaped ceramic coffee dripper to make the best cup of coffee known to man. She swore it tasted like coffee from heaven itself. For me, speed was more important. By the time I’d have one cup ready to drink with all that fussing, I could have downed two and been working on my third. I appreciated her suggestion, but now the single-serve supplies were tucked away in the cabinet above the stove. I needed my minimum of two cups at home and a full cup in my travel mug to drink during my drive to work.

  Amber banged on my bedroom door and yelled that she was off to school and that Spaz had already been fed. I yelled back through the echo of my shower stall for her to have a nice day and I’d see her tonight at dinner. I turned off the shower dial and stepped out to a warmed bath sheet. The simple pleasures in life were what I was all about, and a warm towel did it for me. I slipped on my robe, cinched the belt, and headed to the kitchen for cup of coffee number one.

  Afterward, back in my bedroom, I thought about what the day might entail and slid the wooden hangers across the closet pole, looking for the right outfit to wear. I needed to dress for being outside in the heat and walking a lot. Flat, comfortable shoes and a sleeveless top would be perfect. I pulled out a tan summer blazer with matching pants, then found a sleeveless white cotton blouse to wear underneath the jacket. Once I was dressed and my second cup of coffee was filled and sitting on the bathroom counter along with a toasted bagel, I slicked back my damp hair and secured it in a ponytail with a tortoiseshell barrette. After a pat of powder here and there, blusher brushed across my cheeks, a light coat of mascara, and a final primping, I was good to go. I brushed my teeth, put on lip gloss, fed and kissed Porky and Polly, grabbed my gear, and headed into the garage. A quick slap at the switch on the wall and the overhead door lifted to a sun-filled, hot day.

  Habit forced me to check the orange digital clock on the bank a block from the station. It read seven fifteen. I glanced at my car’s clock—seven fourteen. I frowned and reached to reset it, but it went to seven fifteen a second later. I left it alone. A long line of traffic coming into town prevented me from turning left. I lowered my visor even though I sat relatively high in the seat, being five foot nine. Facing east, the sun came right through my windshield.

  A car blasted its horn behind me. Trying to be more patient these days, I resisted flipping them the middle finger since I couldn’t turn left yet, but when I checked my rearview mirror and saw it was Jack, I flipped him off, anyway. I squealed my tires and punched it. Now he could sit first in line at the oncoming traffic.

  Jack turned in and parked right as I reached the steps at the entrance to the sheriff’s department. I’d wait and give him a little ribbing.

  “Sleeping behind the wheel?”


  “What is that supposed to mean?” he asked when he caught up to me.

  “You could have gotten through when I did, but I understand. At your age, you have to err on the side of caution, right? Don’t want to forget which is the gas and which is the brake. You do know that happens with old people pretty often.”

  He chuckled. “Who put a nickel in you this morning?”

  “This is my normal. You’re never here early enough to see it. I will admit, I’m impressed by your promptness, though. Give me some knuckles.”

  “Whatever.” Jack punched knuckles with me. “I think you’ve had too much coffee.”

  “Nah—there’s never enough.”

  We noticed Kyle taking the steps to the lower level when we entered the building.

  “Hey, Kyle,” I called out.

  He stopped and looked back. “Jade, Jack, good morning.” He pointed upward. “I was updating Clark on the vic’s clothing.”

  “Anything?” Jack asked.

  “Not really. The clothes are typical of any department store in the US. You know, brand name on the shirt tag but the other side shows it was made in Taiwan. Actually, the cloth of the shirt and pants was faded and weak, meaning the items had been washed a lot. The clothes he had on had to be at least five years old. Sorry.”

  “Yeah, thanks anyway. We’ll likely be on the phone or meeting up with people for most of the day.”

  “I know you spoke yesterday of meeting with podiatrists.”

  Jack nodded.

  “I’d add dentists too. The man wore dentures, so he had a dentist somewhere. Talk to Lena and Jason about getting a photo of him. She may be able to smooth out his facial injuries with her software program. Closed eyes make identifying people more difficult, but still, a picture could help.”

  “Are they in yet?”

  “Yep, Lena is.”

  “Thanks, Kyle.” I turned to Jack. “I’m heading down to see what Lena can do. How about starting the coffee?” I gave him the best seven thirty in the morning smile I could muster up.