“Just had a meeting with Carlson,” she said.
“Yeah… Jeff and Robert told me about that,” he said calmly. “I’m really sorry.”
“Too little, too late,” she said ruefully, “I should’ve driven the car that day.”
“Whoa,” Jason raised his hands in the air, “You think all of this happened because of me. I still believe it was your wrong instructions that led to this mess. I said sorry about you getting fired from the case, not for some imaginary mistake that I made.”
“You already know that I’ve been fired from this case?” Kiara asked with surprise.
“Yeah... they told me everything. They even told me about some of your earlier cases where you had trouble following Carlson’s orders.”
Kiara looked angrily at them. “Yeah, and what about them following all the orders and still failing to solve half of their cases? And, they are going to fail this time too.”
“What do you mean?” Jason asked with surprise.
“We’ve been busting our butts on this case for the last two weeks. We have all the information about all the suspects. By the time they come to know anything about Niklas or Jannik, it’ll be too late,” Kiara explained and gave a faint smile. “They’re going to fail spectacularly.”
“Well, I don’t think so. I told them everything and have shared all the documents too,”
Kiara closed her eyes in angst. “You fool. Why did you do that? Couldn’t you have waited till Carlson ordered us to do that?”
“He already did,” Jason said with surprise, “You don’t know? He told me to assist them with the case and help them with all the information that I have.”
“What?” Kiara shouted.
“Yes, and we’re going to the field in fifteen minutes,” he said while looking at his watch, “They’ve no issues in taking me to the field. I even get to drive.”
Kiara knew what he meant. However, there was no point arguing with him.
“Okay,” she said tersely.
“See you,” Jason said and left.
Kiara kept looking at him until he joined Jeff and Robert in the cafeteria. She buried herself in her chair. Carlson had not only taken her out of the case, but he had also removed Jason as her partner. It only meant one thing - that she was not going to get another case soon. Otherwise, there was no point in taking Jason away. Jake’s case also looked to take some time meaning the wait for a new case could even become longer.
That reminded her that Jake hadn’t come to the office yet. She pulled out her phone and dialed his number.
“Hey Partner,” she said.
“Well… well. Someone found time for us mere mortals,” Jake replied though it felt his voice was coming from a distance.
“Where are you?” Kiara asked.
“Halfway to Staten Island,” he said, “Visiting the victim’s home.”
“Oh... okay,” Kiara said in a low voice, “When will you be back?”
“Around three, I guess,” he said, “What happened?”
“Nothing much. Just got fired from the case,” Kiara replied.
“What?” Jake asked with surprise and then paused for a moment, “So, your cover is blown after all?”
“No and that’s what’s making me mad,” Kiara said and looked around her desk, “I think someone pressurized Carlson to get me out of their way.”
“Why would he agree to that?”
“I don’t know,” she said, “Anyway, you get your work done. I’ve at least a month to ponder over this.”
“You’re confusing me. I’ll speak to you in the afternoon and please don’t do anything stupid in the meantime. If he doesn’t want you to meddle in the case, leave it alone. Another case will come soon, and you will forget about this. Okay?”
“Yeah... don’t teach me how to work in this department. I’m senior to you by two years. Remember?”
“I’ll forget if you let me do so,” Jake replied, “Anyhow, see you in a bit.”
“Bye,” Kiara said and disconnected. She looked at the phone screen for a moment and then towards the cafeteria. She could hear Jason’s chuckles loud and clear.
“I’m not only the worst employee; I’m the worst mentor too,” she said to herself and threw the phone in her bag in frustration.
While Kiara was fighting her inner demons and Jake was about to start the investigation from a new angle, Ryan had already reached the hardware store from where Donald had bought his tools. It was a small store at the corner of the street and from the look of it; the business didn’t look good.
As Ryan entered and looked around, one of the salesman greeted him with a smile.
Ryan showed his badge, and as the smile evaporated from the salesman’s face, Ryan’s face lit up with a mischievous smile. It was the first time he got a chance to flaunt his badge and that too when alone on an investigation.
“Where’s the manager?” he asked.
“Come with me,” the salesman said in a low voice.
“Play it cool,” Ryan said to himself as he walked behind the salesman.
“Hi Daniel,” he said, “This is Agent Davis. He has some questions for us.”
Daniel got up at once, “Questions about what?”
“Remain seated, Mr. Clarke,” Ryan said while looking at the nameplate. Daniel obliged immediately. He gestured the salesman to leave who was too eager to get out and left in a second.
“What’s this all about?” Daniel asked with a faint smile “Is one of our employees involved in some illegal activity?”
“Oh… no… no,” Ryan said immediately and pulled out his phone from his jacket pocket. “Mr. Clarke, this hacksaw was bought from your store on the 23rd of last month. I just wanted to know that how many of these you sold in the last two weeks and who bought them.”
Daniel took the phone from Ryan and looked at the Saw. “Is this a murder weapon? Looks clean to me.”
“It’s not a murder weapon, but it matches the one used in the case I’m investigating,” Ryan replied tersely to avoid any further discussion.
Daniel dialed a number from his desk phone while still looking at the picture.
“Yes… any idea who was handing the billing counter on 23rd of last month?” he asked and paused for a second, “Okay… send him in.”
“The cashier is in the second shift, but the salesman who handles the cutting tools section is available. He may have some idea who bought this saw, since this type of hacksaw isn’t in demand these days. If someone made a specific request for this, then the salesman would definitely remember the face.” Daniel said.
“What do you mean by ‘not in demand’?” Ryan asked.
“Well, this kind of cross cut teeth doesn’t cut properly at the edges. They were pretty popular around twenty years back, but now there are much-improved versions, and frankly very few people use anything manual these days.” Daniel said and looked at the door, “Oh… here comes Jim.”
Jim was a young boy, barely into his twenties. It was perhaps his first encounter with law enforcement, and that showed in his nervous demeanor.
“You… you called?” he asked while looking alternately between the two.
“You were in the shift on the 23rd of last month,” Daniel said and handed over Ryan’s phone to him. “Do you remember who bought this?”
“Yes, of course. How can I forget? It isn’t even on the display. I had to fetch it from the storage room,” Jim said while still gazing at the photograph. The nervousness had all but gone.
“Let’s back up a little,” Ryan said. “How did you even know that the buyer wants this if it wasn’t on the display? Did he describe what he wanted? I mean did he make a specific request for this particular saw?”
Jim nodded and came near Ryan. “See, this hacksaw is not popular these days. No one uses them anymore.”
“Yeah... he told me that already,” Ryan said irately. “Answer my question. Did the man who bought this made a specific request?”
“Yes, he sho
wed me a picture on his phone,” Jim replied and paused, “But, it wasn’t a man. It was a young kid… around my age or maybe a couple of years younger. Yeah… he looked young for his age.”
“Are you sure?” Ryan asked with confusion. He took his phone from Jim and shuffled to Donald’s picture. “Did this man accompany the boy?”
Jim looked carefully at the phone screen and then shook his head. “I have never seen him.”
“Did you see where the boy went after buying the saw? Did he go out and speak to someone or anything peculiar that you noticed?” Ryan was trying everything, but this surprise had derailed his entire plan.
“He came around five in the evening. It was a busy hour. I didn’t notice anything,” Jim replied.
Ryan gave it a thought for a moment. “Anyone else who might have purchased a similar saw in recent past?”
Jim looked at Daniel and was about to say something when he stopped mid-way. “No… no one. In fact, we only have a couple of pieces left, but no takers.”
Ryan found something amiss. “Are you sure?” He asked firmly.
“Yes,” Jim replied at once and looked at Daniel. “Can I go now? I have to load a few items in my section.”
Daniel looked at Ryan, who nodded. As soon as Jim left, Daniel too got up.
“I hope all your doubts are cleared now. Do let me know if you need any other information. The last thing I want is to be on the wrong side of the law,” Daniel said while taking out one of his business cards from the drawer of his table.
Ryan took it and kept it inside the jacket pocket “Thanks for the co-operation.”
Daniel smiled and opened the door for Ryan.
Ryan came out of Daniel’s office walked to the front door, but he wasn’t completely satisfied. He turned around and walked to one of the salesmen.
“Where is Jim?” he asked.
The salesman pointed to the aisle on his left. “He just went that way.”
“Thanks.”
Ryan kept looking around the store while walking. It was much smaller than he had anticipated, and the buyer knew that such a small store won’t have any CCTV cameras. But, there was another thing that the buyer knew – that he’ll get the long discontinued saw here. It meant only one thing.
“Hey, Jim,” Ryan called out softly, but it started Jim. A large box full of nails fell from his hand scattering the nails all over the floor.
“I’m sorry,” he said and started collecting the nails. Ryan kept his bag aside and helped him.
“Don’t worry. I got it,” Jim said while avoiding eye contact.
“No, that’s fine,” Ryan said and looked at him. “What happened inside Daniel’s office that made you rush out?”
“What are you saying?” Jim asked with a nervous smile.
“You were about to say something. Weren’t you?” Ryan asked, “You were afraid of saying it in front of Daniel.”
“No. There is nothing like that,” Jim replied as he took the nails that Ryan had collected and put it in the box. He got up and kept the box on the shelf.
“Are your sure? There is absolutely nothing that you know which is making you nervous?” Ryan asked firmly.
“What makes you feel that I am nervous?” Jim asked without any confidence in his voice.
“You put the nails in the tools section,” Ryan said and pointed to Jim’s left. “I think you wanted to place it there.”
Ryan’s words made Jim shiver with fear. He hurriedly took out the box, put it on the right shelf, and then turned to Ryan.
“It’s just that I don’t want to get involved in anything. I… I haven’t done anything wrong,” he said while looking around.
“You have my word,” Ryan said and patted on Jim’s shoulder. “All this is off the record.”
Jim came near him.
‘Perry was the cashier that day when this kid came looking for the saw. Perry is an old employee. Daniel is not only the manager; he owns this place too. His father used to run it, and Perry has worked here since then. He is old and hasn’t taken good care of himself. Daniel can’t fire him because of Perry’s relationship with his father. Perry takes a lot of days off, and that’s why he isn’t there today.’ He said while pointing at the other cashier.
“What does it have to do with my case?”
“It has a lot to do with it, in fact,” Jim said.
‘You asked me if anyone else had bought the same saw recently. I asked the same thing to Perry since he has been working here for decades. I found it strange that someone asked specifically for a product that has been long discontinued. Perry told me that we haven’t sold this stuff for last seven or eight years, and even he was surprised to see a buyer.”
“What did you say?” Ryan interjected.
“Seven or eight years,” Jim replied.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m, but you can check with Perry too.”
“That’s Okay,” Ryan said. “What else did he say?”
“He said that the guy who had come the last time was middle-aged with long hair and wore thick glasses,” Jim said. “Perry wanted to ask the boy about it but feared to lose the customer. Daniel is strict in these matters, and if he comes to know that our service is making us lose customers, he goes mad. Perry is in dire need of money and didn’t want to risk that.”
“I understand. Though, it would’ve been better if we had a lead on the boy,” he said and paused. “Anything else?”
“No, that’s it. I hope I’m not called for any further discussions,” Jim said and looked into Ryan’s eyes.
“That won’t be needed,” Ryan replied though he knew it was not his call. Ultimately, Jake was going to take all the decisions.
Jim kept looking in Ryan’s direction until he stepped out of the store.
The visit hadn’t helped Ryan get any answers – in fact; it had confused him even more. He knew Donald had bought the saw on that day – he had the picture of the saw with the date written on it. But, why did he use a kid to buy it?
Also, there was a great chance that the killer had bought the same saw when he had attacked Donald seven years back. There were two contradicting theories. The first one put Donald under the cloud while the second one pointed at someone else’s involvement.
The only good thing to come out of his visit was that now he was sure of the murder weapon. It gave him some confidence as he looked for a cab.
While Ryan had made some progress, Jake was still trying to make up some ground in his investigation. As expected, James Reed lived alone and according to the landlord, he didn’t have any known family members either. Prior to Jake’s visit, the local cops had screened the whole building. The landlord didn’t seem happy about it. He gave James’s apartment keys to Jake and refused to co-operate in any other way.
It was a one-bedroom apartment with minimal furnishings. The living room had two old chairs and a small TV in one corner gathering dust for quite some time. The open kitchen had a few unwashed dishes that made it difficult to breathe. There was nothing else in the whole kitchen that could draw Jake’s attention.
He walked to the bedroom and was surprised to find it empty. Jake saw marks on the floor indicating the furniture had been moved out recently. He sat down and looked at the marks carefully.
After analyzing the marks on the bedroom floor, he opened the bathroom door and peeked inside. Just like the kitchen, even the bathroom had a foul smell.
Jake came out immediately and walked downstairs. He knocked at the building owner’s door.
“Mr. Oliver, can I ask you just two questions?” he asked as soon as the door opened, “And, I promise, I would never disturb you again.”
“Just two questions?” Oliver asked.
Jake nodded.
“Okay,” Oliver gave his consent.
“Did you notice anything out of the ordinary with James Reed in the last month or so?”
“Only that he hadn’t paid the rent for the last three months and that he prom
ised me to pay the money on the day he died. I’ve told this umpteen times, but no one wants to pay me. Everyone wants to know about James’s problems, what about mine?” Oliver said, “I even tried to rent it out, but who would wish to move to a house that is continuously under police scrutiny. Can you help me with the money or are you going to tell…”
“Mr. Oliver… I got your point. I’ll see what I can do,” Jake knew he was not going to get much from here. “Just one last question. Where have you moved the furniture from Mr. Reed’s house?”
“The same question every time… I’ll also give the same answer,” Oliver said irately, “A new tenant has leased the third-floor apartment. I’ve given the bed to him. I can do that, or even that is illegal these days?”
“I’m not talking about the bed,” Jake said calmly, “I’m talking about the chest or the box that was lying near the bed; towards the window. You haven’t done a good job with removing the marks.”
Oliver looked blankly at Jake, who knew his guess was right. “Where is it?” he asked firmly.
“See, I… I don’t want to get into any trouble. As soon as I heard about James, I knew I wasn’t getting the rent he owed me. The box was the only thing that he owned. The rest of the furniture is mine. I thought of selling the box and recovering some of my money.” Oliver said while sweat drops glistened on his forehead.
“Have you sold it?” Jake asked.
“I was about to, but then the cops started visiting frequently. So, I thought of waiting for some more days,” he said ruefully.
“Great. Where is it?” Jake asked.
“In the storage room downstairs,” Oliver said in a low voice.
“Let’s go there,” Jake said and stepped aside. Oliver took a cue and walked downstairs.
Jake was disappointed by the look of the box. It was quite old and looked as if carved by someone as a home project. He looked at Oliver, who pulled out a bunch of keys from his pocket and then fumbled his way into opening it.
“There is nothing in it,” he said and then realized that he shouldn’t have said that. “I... I’ve opened it just once out of curiosity… not to look for something valuable.”
Davenport Mysteries 04-Loose Ends Page 7