“Maybe.”
“If that’s the case, and you found the body here, maybe the biting didn’t happen here.” I would rub my chin if I weren’t wearing gloves.
“Biting, eating,” Diego mutters.
One thing’s for certain, this crime is not an ordinary one.
***
We investigate the scene as much as we can. We’ll have to return when the sun’s out, and we have the place all marked off. I call around and have a few officers stay at the scene to make sure no one tramples it, and the rest of us head to the precinct.
We go over the crime scene photos, trying to make heads and tails of what happened. Marlon, bless him, takes on the task of notifying the next of kin.
I’m on pins and needles. Something is eating away at me, and I can’t sit here waiting any longer, and I head to the morgue. Diego offers to come with me, but I shake my head.
Henrietta is singing, bobbing her head as she examines the body. I have to tap her shoulder to get her attention.
“Do you want me to saw off your finger?” she complains. “Why are you here? I’m not nearly done yet.”
“I know you aren’t. I just—”
“What’s that on your finger?” she shrieks. “I take that back. I’ll saw off that finger in a heartbeat. That sapphire is on fire! Wait. That’s your left hand.”
“Yes, Henrietta.”
“You’re engaged?”
“Yes, Henrietta.”
“How big is your wedding party going to be?” she asks suspiciously.
I laugh. “No idea. I’m a little bit trying to figure out what happened to Yoshi here.”
“Oh, yes. Yeah, I guess a dead body does put wedding plans on hold.” Henrietta sighs and shakes her head. “So inconsiderate.”
“It’s not Yoshi’s fault he was murdered!”
“Not him. The murderer. Couldn’t he have waited until after the wedding?”
“We don’t have a date yet,” I inform her.
“I know you. You two just started dating, and you already live together. You two move fast.” Henrietta lifts her gloved hands. “I’m not judging. Just sayin’ is all.”
“Yes, well, we’ve known each other for years and—”
“You don’t have to explain yourself to me, but I’m right, aren’t I? A short engagement.”
“We did briefly talk about August twenty-fifth, but nothing’s set in stone until we can find a place for the reception. As for the wedding size, I do think it’ll be small. I have no idea about the wedding party.”
“I thought you might just have a matron of honor.” She eyes me. “Sam, right?”
I nod and open my mouth.
“Sam better not mind if I help to plan the bachelorette party.”
“I don’t need a—” I start to protest.
“Poor Yoshi, listening to us blab and blab. He wants us to figure out what happened to him, don’t you, Yoshi? Let’s see…”
“What killed him?” I ask.
“As near as I can tell…” Henrietta removes the sheet covering the lower half of the body.
I cover my mouth with my hand. Normally, I don’t get squeamish, but that huge bite out of his inner thigh…
“He bled out,” I assume.
“Yes, he did. Something a vampire would never do, of course.”
“There aren’t any fang marks,” I point out.
“You’re right about that.”
“Can you do any dental impressions?”
"From flesh? Not likely, but I took pictures just the same. The teeth are mostly straight, though, so I don’t think that’ll help us determine the perp.” She pats Yoshi’s arm. “I am so sorry this happened to you, honey. You deserved better.”
“Did you know him?” I ask.
“Yoshi? Personally? No, but what does that matter?” Henrietta sighs. “I really want you to find his killer and quickly.”
“Why? Because of the wedding?” I grin.
Henrietta shakes her head and then almost smiles. “Well, yes, for that, but I have a feeling the killer is going to kill again and soon.”
“Why do you think that?”
“Because the killer’s meal was interrupted. There’s no doubt in my mind that we’re looking at a cannibal.”
“Awesome. So we might have a man-eating serial killer on our hands. That’s just fantastic.”
“At least it’s not fang-tastic,” Henrietta says.
I wince, wave, and head back to the others in the corner that SIU dominates.
Diego smiles wanly at me. “Did you learn anything?”
“Just that we need to find the perp ASAP.” I lift my chin. “You guys have any luck?”
“It might be nothing, but there’s been a rash of robberies lately,” Marlon says.
“What is the guy stealing?” I ask.
“Anything and everything he can get his hands on. Honestly, the guy just seems greedy.”
I wrinkle my nose. “Are we certain it’s the same guy?”
"From eyewitnesses, that seems to be the case," Angelo says.
“What’s he look like?” I ask.
“That’s just it.” Diego crosses his arms. Whereas Angelo and Marlon are sitting at their desks, Diego is leaning against them. “The eyewitnesses have only seen his shadow.”
“Because that’s helpful.” I roll my eyes and pull out my chair.
“His shadow is said to look monstrous,” Diego adds.
“Ah. But of course. Why not? First, we have a cannibal. Now, we have a monster running around who likes to steal things. Why not?” I throw up my hands.
Once again, there’s bedlam in Bethlehem, but with us on the case, hopefully, there will be peace on Earth again and soon.
Chapter Three
Hours later, I’ve gone home, got a few zzz’s, showed, and returned to the office. I’m waiting for Angelo so we can investigate the crime scene again, this time with the sun serving as a third partner.
My hand goes to my pocket, and I remove my cell. My thumb hovers above the screen, and I call Blake for the Hell of it.
To my shock, it rings and rings. Of course, there’s no answer. Then…
“If you have this number because I gave it to you, you know what to do. If you have this number because of nefarious reasons, I should have you know that I have a very particular set of skills. I’m not an actor in a movie, but I will find you and kill you and all of that jazz. So, leave a message if I actually will want to hear from you, and if I don’t… Actually, I probably don’t. Clarissa, you really need to start sending me a paycheck.”
Beep.
Tears fill my eyes, and I hang up. My throat grows tight, and I’m so choked up. Hearing Blake’s voice again… Having him call me out specifically… He’s always had to have the last word.
Oh, man, do I miss him. I would’ve loved to have him at the wedding. For some reason, I think he would’ve planned an amazing bachelor party for Diego. Not that Blake would’ve been the best man. I don’t know how Diego’s going to pick someone. His family is huge. How can he pick just one?
Hmm. Is someone paying for Blake’s phone? Or has his month not run out? I don’t know.
Angelo arrives a few minutes later, and we head to the crime scene. We find the dragged marks from the body, but they don’t lead anywhere. No tire marks, nothing. It’s as if the body just dropped out of nowhere.
We spend hours searching all over, and there’s not a shred of forensic evidence of any kind. No thread, no hair, no fibers. Nothing. It’s as if a ghost just dropped Yoshi here, but a ghost doesn’t have teeth. At least, I don’t think a ghost can bite a body like that. I have to think ghosts are real, though, given everything that is.
By the time lunch rolls around, I call up Diego. He’s taking point on the robbery angle, so he said we’ll meet up for dinner.
Again, I make a phone call, this time to Samantha. She’s free at least, and we head over to a diner for lunch.
The letters swim on the me
nu, and I grimace.
“Aren’t you hungry?” Samantha asks.
I sigh and shake my head.
“Is it because of Blake?”
I shrug and toss the menu onto the table. “I don’t know. I just… I’m trying not to believe in signs.”
“What kind of signs?”
“Well, I asked Diego to marry me.”
Samantha beams.
“You knew!” I accuse.
“Diego might’ve told me.”
“What? Why would he tell you before I could?”
“Probably because he assumed you already told me.” Samantha cocks her head to the side. “Why didn’t you tell me as soon as you two became engaged?”
“Maybe because it happened late at night in the cemetery—”
“Only you.” She bursts out laughing.
“Hey, Mom and Dad were there. Kinda. As much as they could be.”
“Okay, that is sweet in a spooky way. Totally fits you. Go on.”
“And then there was the body.” I drop my voice to a hushed whisper.
“A… Wow. The news isn’t talking about that at all. Geez.”
“We’re trying to keep it on the down-low.”
“Why? Because…”
“We don’t want copycats,” I mumble.
She lifts her arched eyebrows. “Are you—”
“Can I take your order?” the waitress asks.
“I’ll have a grilled chicken wrap, broccoli for the side,” Sam orders.
Always healthy food for that one. Normally, I would tease her about it, but I don’t have it in me right now.
“And you?” the waitress acts, shifting toward me.
“Ah… the same.”
“That makes it easy.” She beams and walks off.
I put my menu behind the display stand with condiments and heave a sigh. “It’s not a fun case, let’s just say.”
Samantha nods. She’s had her own brush with the supernaturals, not in a good way at all, and I try to shield her from that kind of stuff as much as I can. Thankfully, after the angels decided not to kill me since Marlon would be my guardian angel, there hasn’t been much of anything going on here.
Until now.
It’s not as if the angels left all that long ago. A few months ago. Man, has my life been one whirlwind after another. Right when I thought it might be turning around, nope! Surprise! Now, there’s something new, and I have no idea what it is.
And no Blake to turn to.
Samantha’s eyeing me with a strange little smile on her lips.
I tilt my head and narrow my eyes. “You’re waiting for something, aren’t you?”
“Maybe.” She winks. “Well?”
“I guess. Yes?”
She bursts out laughing. "So you can ask Diego the big question, but you can't even ask me point blank about being your matron of honor? And after I took you out to a fancy place for dinner the night I asked you to be my maid of honor!" Samantha shakes her head at me.
I shrug. “It’s still a yes, isn’t it?”
“Yes,” she grumbles. “It’s still a yes. So. An August wedding. It’ll be hot.”
“It’s hot now.”
“Yes, but it’s the end of June. Big difference. Somewhat. I think we should go camping in the mountains.”
“Henrietta wants to help plan the bachelorette party, if that’s why you’re mentioning camping.”
"It was her idea, actually."
“Wait. So Diego and Henrietta both spoiled you?”
“Yes.”
“I only just got engaged less than a day ago? Is nothing sacred anymore?”
“Actually, marriage is sacred, and therefore, so is spreading the news about them.”
“You’re ridiculous.”
Samantha beams. “Yes. Maybe.”
Suspiciously, I appraise her. Her skin is glowing, and she looks radiant. Her hair is shining more than normal, and there's just something about her that is… not off. Different. Something's different.
“Girl, are you pregnant?” I ask.
“What?” She blinks a few times. “I… I don’t think so.”
“Would you be able to tell considering you’ve never been pregnant before?” I point out.
“I mean, it’s possible. We haven’t been trying to, but we haven’t been trying not to either.” Samantha rubs the back of her neck and then beams. “Well, I want to be, now that you’ve mentioned it. If I’m not, I’m going to talk to Leo and see what he thinks about trying. Oh! Did I tell you my news?”
“What news?”
"An author saw a picture of our wedding and wants to have a photoshoot done of the two of us for a series of her books!"
“Wow! That’s amazing! Maybe you can add modeling to your resume then.”
“But if I am pregnant, we should have the shoot rather than later,” she murmurs.
“First, maybe you should pee on a stick.”
The waitress brings out our food, and Samantha digs in. She eats precisely half of it before she covers her mouth and pushes her plate away.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, smirking. “Feeling nauseous?”
“It doesn’t taste right,” she murmurs.
I shrug and take a big bite of my wrap. “It tastes delicious to me, and I don’t normally like spinach wraps.”
She stares at her plate helplessly. “What if I am pregnant? What if I can’t eat chicken? I eat chicken almost every day!”
“Turkeys are fed up with your foodism against them,” I say, trying to sound stern. “They feel most appreciated when they’re eaten so…”
"And you say I'm ridiculous." Samantha grins, her face no longer looking quite as green.
“You know, if you are pregnant, maybe camping—”
“If I am, I’m only a few weeks along. Not more than a month. There’s no reason for me to stop exercising, and I’ll be careful. I always am. I’ve never once had a serious injury during any of my training.”
“Okay, okay.” I hold up my hands.
“You don’t like the idea of camping. Don’t worry. It won’t be a traditional camping trip. You’ll have a blast.” She eyes me and bites her lower lip.
“What is it?”
“I was wondering if you want me to invite Mercedes.”
“Go ahead.”
“You really don’t hate her anymore, huh? You and Mercedes both were so gone over Marlon.”
“I honestly think that’s because he’s…” I trail off and then recover with “…such a great guy.”
“He is, but he’s all alone.”
I shrug. “I get the impression he doesn’t think he needs anyone.”
“No one needs to be with a guy or a girl to be complete no matter what the movies suggest, but still, to love and be loved… He’s missing out.”
“Some people are bachelors for life.”
“I know. I just don’t understand it.”
“You don’t have to worry about being a bachelor,” I tease her.
“Yes, yes.”
I eat the rest of my food, and Samantha picks at hers. She does eat the rest of her broccoli at least.
As I grab the check, I heave a sigh. “I really don’t want a party.”
“It’ll be fun. I promise. You don’t have to worry about half-naked guys or any of that, and when we drink, we don’t get drunk. Not that I’ll be drinking even if I’m not since I want to become pregnant, but it’ll be great. You deserve this. Don’t worry about the party. Don’t even worry about the wedding.”
“Um, with us getting married in two months, I do kind of need to get on top of that.”
“Yes, but you have a case, and there will always be another case. Let me know what you want, and I can start to find options for you to help save you time.”
“You would do that?”
“Of course! I’m your matron of honor after all!”
“But I didn’t do anything like that for you,” I protest.
“I also had more time an
d didn’t ask. You don’t have to ask because I’m psychic, and I know you need help. And I also know you won’t ask for that help, so I’m just going to. Okay?”
“Okay. Love you, Sam.”
“I know you do.” She beams. “What you need to focus on instead is your honeymoon because that’s for the two of you.”
“Oh, I don’t know…”
“Don’t even start,” she warns.
“You just said so yourself that there will always be another case!”
“And there are other detectives and officers who can handle them for a few weeks. You should really take a month off. Go to Europe. See all of it.”
“A month!”
“Yes.”
“You’re delusional.”
“I just want you to take some time for you and Diego,” she says softly. “I know you lost a friend recently.”
I hang my head. With the new case, unfortunately, the funeral’s been pushed back, but at least there’s a date for it now—a week from today. I dread going, but I will be there.
Can we solve this case before then? I sure hope so.
“I think we should have the party this weekend,” Samantha announces as we leave the diner.
“Are you crazy?”
“No, but I know you. If we have it closer to the wedding, you’ll find a way to make some kind of excuse to not have it. So. This weekend. Got it? Pack light but for the weekend.”
“The weekend? A party—”
“The weekend,” she says firmly.
She climbs into her car and drives off. I just stand there, shaking my head.
My phone rings, and I answer.
“Clarissa? Another body has been found.”
“Where, Diego?”
“South Mountain.”
“I’ll be right there.” I hang up. As I climb into my car, I call Samantha. “Hey, about that camping trip…”
Chapter Four
Samantha is furious with me, and I get it, but even she can’t argue with me when I mention how it would be irresponsible for her to go out camping when there’s a murderer on the loose and she might be carrying precious cargo.
So no bachelorette party now or ever if I have my way, but for right now, I’m off to examine the body. It looks just like the first except that this one has been eaten even more.
“Nobu Gima,” I murmur, looking at the victim’s driver’s license.
A Cursed All Hallows' Eve Page 132