by J. S. Peck
My concern was that I knew Sally’s death wasn’t an accident. I wanted to make Sophia and whomever else was listening believe that I rarely watch the news and didn’t know much about her death. “I think I heard something about that but I don’t really follow the news that much. What happened?”
“Don’t worry your pretty little head about it. Besides, nothing can be done about that now.”
I didn’t like Sophia making me sound like a dumb bimbo so I answered in a more forceful voice than I would normally use. “Well, I will have to have more information before I can make a decision. Just exactly what will I have to do?”
“Simply act as the hostess welcoming clients into the Lounge and assisting them with transportation when it is time for them to leave. By the way, that is where PUP comes in.”
“Wouldn’t I need to learn more about PUP before I can do that?”
I could see Sophia gathering her thoughts as if a lightbulb were just coming on. “Absolutely you do! That is why you will be working and training here with me for several days before actually starting your job at the Purple Passion Lounge. That way, at least you could see if it’s going to be a fit, right?”
I could easily hear the same voice as before clearing his throat in warning. Of what? I decided then and there I would give this new job offer a try. “Well, Sophia, this is sounding pretty good, especially since I’ll be working with you for a time. I don’t like to start a job unless I know everything about it.”
As I watched Sophia determinedly nod her head in agreement I heard louder clearing of a throat. Neither one of us looked his way. “No problem, Rosalie. That will give us plenty of time to prepare you for your new position. When are you available to begin?”
“How does tomorrow sound?” I gamely answered.
I left knowing there was no turning back now. I was amazed at myself for forging ahead. I’m usually so careful with the choices I make and can be very pedantic about what I involve myself in. In addition, I almost always check everything out with my tarot cards before making a final decision. This time, I hadn’t. Hmmm.
When I arrived home, Sweet Pea was waiting in the living room chair she had claimed as hers for me to come greet her. I don’t know where we had gotten this greeting part so mixed up. Isn’t it the dog’s role to greet her master? Apparently, not in my house. As soon as I suggested a walk, Sweet Pea looked up with a sweet expression, jumped down and raced to the front door.
I was glad to walk with her and take the time to consider what I had just gotten myself into. I knew no good was going to come of this. Yet, my heart beat fast with the idea that perhaps I could be the one to find Melissa’s killer – strangely, something I now desperately wanted to do. Did this have to do with getting revenge for Jeff’s death by beating the police to their own game? Also for exposing them for not always being the protectors of society they were expected to be?
I had to come to terms with how much I would use my psychic ability to help us along in our search for the killer or killers of both Melissa and Sally. After attending the School of Metaphysics, I learned how to both expand and shut off information that seemed to flow to me. I was able to control the number of visions I allowed in and experienced. Also, I had learned how to use my intuition and become better at having a balance between simply living my life and using my tarot cards or other spiritual modalities to validate my thoughts. What was really amazing to me was to learn that for so many of us with expanded intuition, we can much more easily see things for others, than have that same ability when it comes to our self. So, truth be told, I had come to rely on my grandmother more than I probably should or was the best thing to do.
In spite of this, I perched on a small stone wall lining the sidewalk and called out, “Hi, Gram, just wanting to check in with you. Are you available?”
There was a rustling breeze around me. Sweet Pea stopped and looked up at me expectantly. She seemed to know what was going on and lay down at my feet and waited. She had become used to Gram’s visits. “Anything for you, Rosie girl! Or, what I can,” she added with a chuckle, knowing I would understand what she meant.
“Gram, I can’t believe what I have done! There’s time for me to back out if you think it is best. What do you think I should do?”
“My dear, sweet Rosie. You know this has to be your decision. I can’t interfere with your journey and your choices. I will say this, however, you are on quite a ride!”
“Oh, Gram. I know you’re right. I was just hoping…”
“Just follow your heart. Love you,” her words trailing behind as off she went. Knowing our conversation was over, Sweet Pea rose from her spot wanting us to continue our walk.
“Sometimes, Sweet Pea, I sure do wish you could talk,” I said, patting her head, looking deep into her eyes.
I had to laugh because I swear by the expression on her little face that if she could talk I wouldn’t always like what she had to say.
CHAPTER 14
The next morning, not knowing how I was expected to dress, I carefully chose leggings and a top that was in between casual and more tailored business casual wear. I gathered my dark overflowing tresses into a pony tail to control them and headed out to meet Sophia at the PUP office.
I didn’t really know what to expect as far as what we were going to cover for training, but I was curious to find out. Sophia was waiting for me with a smile. I didn’t hear anyone else in the office. No shouts and no clearing of the throat. As she noticed me looking around, Sophia spoke, “Nobody here but us chickens…”
I laughed at the old joke and said, “Good.”
“Before we get started, it goes without saying that our training is confidential. I feel confident by our interview yesterday that I can trust you to adhere to that. So for now, we’ll start with the proceedings for PUP and we’ll see what comes after that. Ready?” she asked.
“Sure,” I answered, aware that this first day was a test.
“Since you applied for the position of PUP driver, you already know some of the rules. Once you apply and are accepted as a driver, your car is inspected to be in proper shape. No “junkers.” Only well-maintained and late-dated cars. Also, we install a tracker so that we are able to locate some of the drivers during off hours when they are not available to drive.” She paused, looking at me intently before adding, “Not every driver is aware of this. If necessary, we are able to override any turned off tracker so we can find out exactly where they are.”
“Ohh,” I said, playing dumb while my brain went wild with this new information thinking if this is what must have happened with Melissa. “Is this something you tell your drivers?”
“Not necessarily. That’s something I decide after their interview with me.”
That, I thought to myself, means after the big noise from the back office has had a chance to spy on the applicant. So much for honesty on her part.
“In your new position at the Purple Passion, you’ll be notified by one of the girls when their party is getting ready to leave. They are trained to check with their client to see if he needs transportation and that is where PUP comes in. Instead of calling a cab company, you’ll have a list of certain PUP telephone numbers to contact. The girls will advise you which one of the numbers to call. These are special PUP drivers who know the routine and who make themselves available to take on the departing client or clients.”
“You mean, I never know who the person is that I’m calling?”
“It’s better that way. Besides, there’s really no need to know because our security guards are the ones to take them and load them into the PUP car.”
Sophia gave a small, embarrassed chuckle and said, “I should say guide them into the PUP car, shouldn’t I?”
Again, I played dumb. I knew what she meant. The Purple Passion got their clients drunk enough so that “loading” them, most likely with an empty wallet, int
o the car was the correct wording all right. “Sounds good,” I said. “What’s next?”
We spent the rest of the day going over the procedures of interviewing potential drivers, paper work needed for that and some other things. After I had filled out my own paperwork for payroll, Sophia smiled and said, “You did very well, Rosie. You can leave now. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
At my confused expression since I had only been there a mere four hours, she added, “Don’t worry, Rosie, you’ll be paid for the full day. Everything is okay. We’re getting along just fine.”
I left PUP’s office feeling exhilarated and more than a little pumped with what I had learned. I could feel my heart pounding with excitement as I realized that between Brian and myself we might be able to nail the killer(s) of Melissa and Sally. At the moment, I couldn’t think of anything that would please me more.
I had a pretty good idea of what was going on at PUP. I needed to talk to Brian about it. My thoughts of him seemed to prompt him to telephone me as I was headed home. “Hey, Rosie, how’s it going?”
“Very fascinating here on my end. How about you?”
“Some interesting stuff with me, too. Let’s get together. How about meeting at Sam’s Roadhouse at 5 o’clock and we can go over it then?”
“Sounds good to me. Just don’t be late!” I added in a warning voice, hating to sit in a bar by myself.
“Never for you,” he added smoothly.
Nothing seemed to rattle him, I thought. So unlike Jeff. Yet, they both pulled at me in much the same way. What was it about them? Jeff had seen the world almost as if it were a book of rules to be followed. Brian seemed to be aware of those same rules but played them out in different ways. I had trusted Jeff explicitly and was devastated to have to live through all the accusations that had been laid upon him by others at his untimely death. I knew psychically those damaging accusations had been false. But, things had happened so quickly to cremate him and close the door on any further possibilities that I never had the chance or the courage to pursue it. Again, I was convinced the Chief of Police was at the bottom of it. Boy, would I ever like to prove it!
When I returned home, I greeted Sweet Pea and gave her a treat simply because, causing her to prance at my feet in appreciation. I headed for the office to type in notes of my first day at PUP so that I wouldn’t forget anything that’d been said.
Afterwards, I checked my e-mails and noticed an odd one. It was entitled BEWARE and made my heart jump. I opened it to find: “Be careful. You are heading into territory that’s dangerous for you. You know what happens then. ”
I clicked on the sender’s address at the top of the e-mail. I read: [email protected], which was scary because there is no such person or any way for me to trace it back to the sender. I felt sick to my stomach for, indeed, I knew exactly what happens. All I had to do is remember Melissa and Sally. I decided to print out the email so that I could show it to Brian.
Why was I so determined to move ahead with our investigation of their deaths? Was it because I had simply sat back and had done nothing to dispel the accusations that were made about Jeff after his death? Especially since I knew he was not guilty of what he’d been accused of doing?
I got out my Tarot cards and shuffled them. It was time to pick my card for the day. I was curious to see what would turn up. I shuffled the cards again. Then I quickly pulled one from the deck – The High Priestess! The card’s meaning was not what I was looking for: “Other people’s advice won’t help here. Stick to your own opinion.” Hmmm. I guess I am on my own then.
As I put this card back into the deck, the Death card poked its head half way out. It seemed stuck there until I gently pushed it back to join the other cards. That’s interesting, I thought. A warning, perhaps? I’d have to be cautious about what was going on around me. I let out a long sigh. I knew I wasn’t responsible for any death if the Death card popped up from my Tarot cards. Yet, why was it warning me that one would occur?
It was time for me to feed Sweet Pea and change my clothes to meet Brian. I was glad that we were meeting, especially in light of the unsolicited email. It was frightening me.
It was amazing to me how much all the new technology took away any privacy for anyone. Even scarier was to know that whatever you researched on the internet could be seen and filed into a category. This caused you to then continually get ads popping up on your computer screen in the same genre as what you had been researching. We had all been fooled by the privacy notices that were there to protect us but hadn’t been able to. It was disturbing to know a few people who knew how to break into a supposedly secure system were able to extract private information and sell it to those who had the potential to hurt us. This has happened within our country on a large scale several times so far. I was sure there would be more to come.
I scolded myself. Just deal with it! I was now in a fitful state and hurried to Sam’s Roadhouse.
I arrived at 5 o’clock sharp and was relieved to find Brian’s car already in the parking lot. As I entered, I shouted a little too eagerly from the doorway, “Hi, Cowboy!”
He looked up a bit surprised to see me so enthused to see him. “What’s up, Sunshine? Come have a seat,” he added cheerfully as he pulled out a chair for me.
He noticed I was a bit out of breath. He studied the worry lines crossing my brow and asked with concern, “What’s the matter?”
Before I’d even sat down, I scrambled through my purse and pulled out the printed e-mail. “Here, read this and tell me what you think.”
As he read it, I noticed Brian frown. He looked up from the paper to ask, “Where did this come from? Was this sent to your private e-mail?”
I nodded yes, and held my breath for what he would say next.
“I don’t like this at all! Did you check to see where it was originated?”
“Yes, [email protected].”
“You know there is no such thing, right?”
“Yes, I know that. But we both know anything is possible these days,” I added with a sigh, recalling my earlier thoughts regarding the internet.
“Okay, just calm down. Let’s look at this logically,” he said, sounding much like Jeff had at times when he was in his policeman mode.
“I’m thinking that most people wouldn’t know that you are looking into the deaths of Melissa and Sally, right? So, it must have something to do with your taking on a position at PUP or the Purple Passion, correct?”
He looked at me, waiting for me to agree. Instead, I was having a vision of a few people gathered around a casket saying, “What a shame. She was so young.” I was trying to see who was in the casket but was blocked from doing so by the same large, rough man that I saw in my vision at the time of Sally’s death.
“Hey, Rosie! Did you hear what I said?” he asked as he shook my arm gently.
“I’m sorry. What?”
“I said that I think it must have something to do with your job at PUP or The Purple Passion. Don’t you agree?”
Intuitively, I knew Brian was right. Someone did not want me there, but why? What didn’t they want me to find out? A headache was beginning to form at the stress of what this email meant. I turned to Brian. “Yes, I agree. We’ll find out soon enough what’s going on, won’t we?”
“Listen! You don’t have to be involved in any of this, believe me. It’s okay with me if you want to bale. In fact, I think you should. We just have to figure out how to keep you safe.”
There was no way I was willing to back out now. I felt more alive than I had in a very long time. More than ever I wanted to see why two young women, girls really, had been killed and their deaths seemed so unimportant to the police. “No, Brian, you can count me in. I want to get to the bottom of it all.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positively sure.” Quick to change the conversation, I added, “Now, please, it’
s time for a nice glass of wine. Let’s just relax. I want to hear all about what’s happening in your world.”
As I sat there, I couldn’t get my latest vision out of my thoughts. I tried pushing it away. I rested my head on my hands to mentally will myself to relax while I waited for Brian to return with our drinks. I was curious to hear what he had to say.
Brian placed wine on the table. We each took a sip, not bothering to toast each other. Instead of him telling me what his day had unfolded, he wanted to know more about my two times at PUP. He was not himself. He was in a very different frame of mind, reminding me once again of Jeff in his policeman mode. He was all business. His questions were direct, and he demanded details of each part of my conversation with Sophia.
I could see the waitress heading our way. As she reached our table, Brian turned and snapped at her, “Not now. I will let you know when we are ready for another.”
The waitress was surprised. The last time we had been here, he had been very friendly, even jolly. I think at first she thought he might have been joking. Brian continued to stare at her and didn’t utter another word. She hightailed it back to the bar area, obviously a bit distressed. I asked, “Was that necessary?”
“Yes, we’ve a lot to cover here. We need to come up with a plan to make sure you are safe. We don’t have time to waste.”
“Just what do you have in mind?” I asked sarcastically.
“I want you to go through everything that happened at PUP today. Don’t leave out a thing.”
After filling Brian in with all that had been said and done, I turned to him. “Well, what now?”
He thought for a moment and said, “We both have iPhones, and we both know how to record on them, right? We just have to make sure to keep our phones on silent mode. Do you keep your phone with you at all times?”
“Unfortunately, and I guess now, fortunately, I do.”