by Rhea Wilde
“Eva Lynch,” he said. “Says here that you’re a private investigator.”
I didn’t respond to him.
“Not much on your record except for a reduced charge here. Says you were arrested for intent to solicit drugs. You were a minor though, so the charges were dropped in favor of a few years probation. Nothing else on the record about you. You’ve done a good job of laying low.”
“That was more than a decade ago. I served my time for the charges. Not to mention they were bogus to begin with…”
“I’m just reading what’s in your file, Miss Lynch. But it is curious.”
“Curious? They gave me probation for drugs. That’s a light sentence. You know why? Because I’m not a drug dealer. I wasn’t then. I’m not one now.”
“In your opinion. If you ask me, you’re still a person of interest. So, yes, it is curious.”
I slowly rolled my head back forward and opened my eyes.
“What do you want?” I said. “You think I killed the man in the alley?”
“I just want you to answer some questions. That’s all.”
“That’s it, huh? So you sit me down in your interrogation room and handcuff me to a table?”
“You were there when we found the body. You’re a suspect.”
I leaned forward across the table and stared right into his cold, beady little eyes. His face was apathetic, which made it that much more frustrating.
“You know, people talk about the New Gardens PD,” I said. “They talk about how incompetent you guys are. There are so many unsolved crimes in this city and the criminals don’t stop because they know that they’ll get away with it. But you know what I do when I hear it?”
“What’s that?”
“I ignore it. I say to myself, ‘don’t listen to them, Eva. The police are doing a good job.’ Now I realize that maybe those people are right. Maybe you really are incompetent.”
“Miss Lynch, we’re simply just trying to get to the bottom of this.”
“So am I. You think I’m stupid enough to show the cops a dead body that I’m responsible for?”
“Maybe you thought you’d get away with it.”
“Or maybe I just found the body and the police happened to find me at the same time. Really inconvenient if you ask me.”
“Miss Lynch, the police received a phone call about a disturbance fifteen minutes prior to you being found. Does that have anything to do with you?”
I gritted my teeth and let out a frustrated sigh, turning my attention around the room. I was looking for some kind of weapon so I could stab this idiot in the neck.
“I’m not stupid enough to sit around for fifteen minutes to wait for the cops to show up,” I said.
“Have you had anything to drink tonight, Miss Lynch?”
He stared hard at me. My jaw still clenched, I shifted my eyes toward the woman who had been standing there quietly this entire time.
“Who are you?” I said to her.
“Don’t mind me—”
“Oh, I think I will mind you. I shouldn’t even be talking to you but the idiocy in the room is so blatant.”
“Miss Lynch—”
“Don’t Miss Lynch me. You two don’t even have the decency to introduce yourselves. You guys are so desperate that you’re willing to detain an innocent bystander.”
The two of them looked at each other. After a moment, the woman nodded to him. The idiot in front of me cleared his throat, straightening his crooked tie to little effect.
“My name is Detective Jared Holmes. This is Prosecuting Attorney Penny Graves. Are you familiar with a Michael Preston?”
“No,” I said as I shook my head. “Who’s that?”
“He’s the dead man you found.”
“Okay. I don’t have anything to do with it. Are we done here?”
“Miss Lynch, are you aware of the… situation in this city?”
“Situation?”
“There’s a been an increasing number of reports of missing people.”
“I’m aware. What about it?”
“Michael Preston was one of the people reported missing.”
It was the first time tonight that anything made sense. John wasn’t completely lying. With the body being found just outside of the club, there had to be a connection between Owens, Preston and Sinful.
I looked down at the table and pondered over the facts.
“What happened?” I said. “How did he die?”
“We won’t know until the autopsy report comes back. But the doctors say the tracks on his arm indicate it was likely a drug overdose.”
“An overdose. That means I’m innocent and you have to let me go.”
“Not necessarily. You or someone else could have injected the drugs into his system. Forensics hasn’t finished collecting evidence.”
“Look,” I sighed again. “I found the body. That doesn’t mean anything.”
“What were you doing at the club tonight, Miss Lynch?”
I laughed at how absurd the situation was becoming. All I could do was shake my head at him after another reminder of how bumbling the police were.
“That’s none of your business, detective. There were hundreds of people at that club. Are you gonna question them, too?”
“If that’s what it takes.”
The woman standing in the shadows of the room stepped forward. I narrowed my eyes and got a better look at her. She looked like she was in her late-thirties. She had one arm wrapped around her clipboard. No ring on her finger. She looked like the kind of woman who had her job and not much else to keep her going.
“The police are conducting an investigation,” she started.
“A pretty bad one,” I muttered.
“…There’s an on-going investigation regarding the disappearances,” she continued. “Right now, we’re gathering evidence. But we may have narrowed things down. If you have anything to add, please tell us. Your information may be vital.”
“All right. I do have some information. You wanna write this down.”
I motioned for her with my free hand. She pulled out a pen and held it up to her clipboard.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Write this down,” I said. “It’s very important. Make sure you get every word.”
“Okay. I’m listening.”
“All right,” I said as I exhaled a deep breath.
I leaned forward across the table and looked right at her.
“Blow me.”
I gave her a smug smirk and sank back into my seat. It wasn’t very funny but the alcohol I had convinced me it was. Penny rolled her eyes at me and took a step back while Detective Holmes just sat there, his arms crossed.
“Listen,” he said. “If you have any information—”
Before he could finish, the door swung open. The sound of heels clicking against the ground echoed through the tiny chamber. The woman marched forward next to me then spun around on her heel, looking at the two people who held me captive.
“My name is Mya Cunningham,” she said.
“Can we help you, Miss Cunningham?” Holmes asked.
“I’m Eva Lynch’s lawyer. Don’t say another word, Eva.”
I looked up at the woman and laughed quietly to myself, a smile finding its way onto my lips.
“You’re detaining this woman without proper cause or suspicion,” Mya continued.
“She was at the scene of a crime,” Holmes said. “We have every right to detain her.”
“Circumstantial evidence, detective. Are you pressing charges or is my client free to go?”
The room fell silent. Penny and the detective both looked at each other.
“Are you pressing charges?” Mya repeated, her voice more forceful than the last time.
Without saying another word, Detective Holmes reached into his pocket and pulled out a key. I watched as he unlocked the cuff from around my wrist. My arm free, I raised my hand up to rub my wrist that had been grating against the
metal.
“Finally, some sense,” I sighed.
I got up from my seat and followed Mya out of the interrogation room. Just before I left, Detective Holmes called out to me.
“We’ll be keeping an eye on you.”
“Of course,” I responded. “You guys are too stupid to be tracking down the real bad guys in this city.”
I walked with Mya to the front of the police station. Some of the officers at their desks glanced at us but they didn’t do anything. There was nothing they could do. Everybody knew there was no reason for me to be there in the first place.
As soon as we got to the front of the police station, Mya reached forward and wrapped her arms around me. She squeezed me tight like she was my parent and I was a child who’d just return from summer camp. When she pulled away from me, she smiled at me like the old friend she was.
“What have you gotten yourself into this time?” she asked.
“I’ve never gotten myself into anything. I’ve never needed your help before.”
Her eyes widened at me, a slight smile curling onto the corner of her lips.
“You’ve definitely been drinking. It’s been awhile since I’ve had to do something like this for you. It must be big.”
I’d known Mya ever since I first came to New Gardens, when I started serving my probation. I was fortunate the first friend I made in the city was a defense attorney. She’d been there whenever I ran into trouble working on cases. It was never anything serious but it was nice to have her on my side.
Even though she was older now, she still looked the same to me as she did back then. She was a good-looking brunette who looked like she belonged on some television show. Her hair always looked like she just came back from the salon. And her make-up was subtle enough to let you know she would have been just as attractive without it. She was wearing a pair of slacks and a dress shirt. It seemed like the typical outfit lawyers like her wore.
“When did you find out?” I asked.
“I get a list as the people come in,” she said. “Being a public defender means I’m always needed.”
“Even at this time of night…”
“Even at this time of night. When I saw your name come up…”
“What?”
“I kind of rolled my eyes and laughed to myself.”
“You and me both.”
“I figured it was a mistake.”
“Well, it was definitely a mistake,” I sighed. “You know I would never get caught-up in something so dramatic. Not again…”
“So… what were you doing then?”
Her eyes shifted up and down like she was examining me. It was only then that I remembered the outfit I was wearing.
“It looks like you were having a good time?” she said, a ridiculous grin on her face. “You on a date?”
“No,” I said as I shook my head, trying to hide the embarrassment she was trying to pull out of me. “It’s for a case.”
“Is it the abduction case?”
The smile on her face had disappeared.
I’d known Mya since I was a teenager. I could tell her anything. But even now, I struggled to find a way to hide it from her.
“Eva…”
“All right,” I sighed. “It’s the abduction case. How do you know?”
“It’s not a big secret. Lee Taurus has hired nearly every private investigator in the city to work on the case.”
“That many, huh?”
“Taurus is known for his philanthropy. This isn’t any different. The number of disappearances is only increasing, despite what the media might lead you to believe.”
“What about the police? Are they any closer to finding out what’s going on?”
“Your guess is as good as mine. But I know that this is serious.”
She leaned forward and whispered into my ear.
“I know I can’t stop you from doing this. Just be careful, okay?”
I kept my arms at my side as she squeezed me tight once again. When she pulled away from me, the same proud motherly smile she just gave me was still there.
“When I heard about the bounty Taurus put up, I knew you were involved,” she said.
“Well… It was hard to turn down.”
“Are you having any trouble? Do you need money?”
“I’m getting by. You know I would never borrow money from you—”
“I know you wouldn’t. That’s why I’m asking you and I’m offering it to you.”
“No. I’m not gonna borrow money from you. I’m not that desperate. Things are fine. And once this case gets solved, I’ll be more than fine. They just found that body and they said it was connected. I’d say that I’m getting closer.”
“Don’t make me worry about you.”
“I’m not the one making you worry. You are.”
“Yeah, I suppose that’s true. Oh, before I forget…”
She reached into her pocket and pulled out my cell phone.
“Next time you’re detained, don’t let them take this from you,” she said as she handed me my phone. “Don’t say a word. Just let them cuff you and wait for me to come. You got it?”
“I don’t plan on being arrested again but with these cops, you never know.”
“That’s what I’m here for… It’s pretty late, Eva. Let me drive you home.”
“No, it’s all right. I know you’re busy. I’ll just take a cab.”
“…Okay.”
She remained smiling at me. I gave her a half-smirk before leaving the police station. As soon as I stepped outside, a gust of the warm night air hit me. My head started to spin slightly, the alcohol now rushing through my blood.
I stood outside of the police station and waited for my cab to arrive.
My phone vibrated. I turned it toward me and read it. It was a message from John.
“Found something. Meet me at your place.”
Chapter 7
JOHN
“You have to watch over him… Keep him safe… For me…”
“Damn…”
There was no sign of Eva. If something happened to her, I couldn’t risk calling her or sending a message.
I had to hope that she would eventually make it back to her apartment on her own. From what I knew about her so far, she was resilient enough to deal with any adversity she might have run into.
I took a cab back to her apartment. The door was slightly ajar but the lights were off inside. I moved slowly as I pushed the door in. When I did, Eva quickly sat up on her couch.
“You left your door open,” I said as I locked the door behind me.
“Sorry, dad. I’ve had a lot on my mind. Besides, you said it’s safe. Nobody’s gonna come in. Not at this time of night.”
“You can never be too sure.”
I took a seat in front of her. I watched as she shifted on her couch. Her eyes were reddened from the alcohol she had earlier and I wondered if she had all of her wits about her.
I took a seat on the chair in front of her desk and took off the shirt she gave me. It was so small that I practically had to rip it off.
“I hope you’re not going to be needing this again,” I said as I held the shirt up.
She stared at me, her eyes examining my body with a half-drunken stare.
“Eva?”
“…What?”
“The shirt.”
She shook her head slightly and blinked to seemingly regain her focus.
“It’s all right,” she said as she swiped at it then tossed it aside to the ground. “I never cared much for the shirt or the guy who owned it.”
Her head fell back and her face pointed toward the ceiling. I couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her.
“It looks like you had too much to drink tonight,” I commented.
“I was just trying to blendin, okay?”
“Were you drinking the whole time I was gone?”
“No. As a matter of fact, I was trying to get some work done and get some information.
”
“What happened exactly? I tried looking for you but you were gone.”
I put on the old shirt I wore when I first met her. I couldn’t help but notice Eva eyeballing me in her slightly drunken state.
“I was having the time of my life,” she groaned.
“Were you? Find someone to keep you company?”
I gave her a smirk. She wasn’t in the mood to smile back at me though.
“No, it’s not what you’re thinking. I had a little run-in with the police.”
“The police?” I said, my eyebrows raised. “What—”
“Nothing happened. It was just a misunderstanding. I found a dead body and they thought I was the one who killed him.”
“You… found a dead body?”
“Those assholes at the club threw me out—”
“They threw you out?”
“That’s not the point,” she interrupted me. “The point is that I stumbled into the back alley. I found someone. He was one of the people reported missing. Said he probably died of a drug overdose.”
I nodded then took a deep breath before exhaling it through my nose.
“I think that confirms something is happening at that club,” she said.
“It does. I found even more confirmation.”
“You did?”
I leaned forward toward her as I pulled my cell phone out.
“I don’t know whose office it was but I managed to take a couple of shots of these documents,” I said.
I stood up and took a seat on the couch next to her. She leaned over against me as I held my phone to her. Her eyes narrowed as she examined the screen.
“What is that?” she said.
“It’s a shipping manifest.”
“But what is it? That doesn’t seem out of the ordinary.”
“Look closer,” I said as I scrolled the pictures with my finger. “It’s not just equipment. There’s another document with supplies.”
“What does it mean?”
“This equipment is used for manufacturing. There’s no reason for someone to have commercial grade equipment. And with all of the other supplies, these are the ingredients for—”
“Drugs.”
She glanced up at me with her eyes wide.
“If you found that at Sinful, that means… Maybe they’re planning on using the club as a place to distribute.”