Penny carried him away before he could see anything interesting, including the dead body. She took him back to the stuffed chairs and sat in the one he had hid beneath. She absently stroked his back. Dupin flexed his claws and stretched out first his left leg, then his right. He put his head down and closed his eyes. If he couldn't eat, he might as well sleep.
As he drifted off to sleep he heard Penny talking on her cell phone. He didn't like her being sad so he purred loudly as he drifted off.
Dupin found himself rudely woken when Penny stood up and put him down on the floor. He shook himself and took a couple stiff steps away before he stopped to clean the nap from his fur.
"Thank you, detective." Penny rubbed her arms. "Did you find anything? Who are those people?"
David reached out and put a hand on Penny's arm. "I thought you might be able to help us with that. You get a lot of people in here, do you feel up to taking a look? See if you recognize them? They don't have any identification on them."
Dupin paused in his cleaning and looked at Penny. If she could lay her ears back or have her fur stand up, he thought she would do so. She took a deep breath and nodded.
"Yes. Of course, if it will help."
David stepped close. "I'll be right there with you. There's something else?"
"Yes?"
"The books in the outside drop, can you tell who checked those out?"
Penny shivered. "Yes, but I'd need a subpoena to release those records. They're confidential under state law. Why do you want to know who checked out the books?"
"A lot of the books we removed had fallen on the body. Others were beneath the body. Anyone returning books might have seen something suspicious or someone hanging around."
"Makes sense, I'll just need you to get a subpoena."
David grinned. "Of course."
"And I'll need the books."
He shook his head. "We've taken the books to examine for evidence. I can get you the barcode numbers."
"That'd be fine."
This all was about as interesting to Dupin as getting his nails trimmed. He stretched out his legs and took a long stretch with a satisfying yawn.
"If you're ready?" David asked, gesturing towards the lobby where the two bodies waited on gurneys.
Penny crossed her arms but nodded. Figuring the most likely possibility of tuna lay in sticking close to Penny, Dupin followed along after Penny and David into the lobby. There lay the dead man and woman in black body bags upon the gurney, with all of the assorted smells of death.
David unzipped the first bag. "Do you recognize him?"
Dupin looked over at Penny. She nodded. "That's Bill Wilson. He teaches over at the high school. Who would want to kill him?"
"That's what we need to find out." David zipped up the dead man's bag and then moved around to the other one. He unzipped it. "Her?"
Penny didn't move from the spot where she stood. She stared for several seconds then took a deep shuddering breath. "Camille. Camille L'Espanye. She works here at the library." Penny brought her hand to her mouth and sniffed. "Camille? Why?"
Dupin stood up and looked at the body bag with more interest. He breathed deep and, yes, Penny was correct. The woman was Camille. She gave him extra cat treats when Penny wasn't looking. And now she was dead too? His fur stood up.
"She had keys to the building." David said. "Maybe she came back for something and interrupted whatever was happening with Mr. Wilson. Or maybe they were together? Do you know if they were dating?"
Penny shook her head. "Camille's ten years younger than him. She's just out of college. I don't think she was seeing anyone seriously."
David made notes in his book. "We'll check on it anyway. Thank you Ms. Copper. If I have more questions I'll let you know."
The detective zipped up the bag and motioned to the people waiting outside. Two men in blue suits came and took away the gurneys. Dupin meowed softly.
Camille dead. That disturbed him. Bad enough he hadn't gotten his tuna and Penny was upset, but killing Camilla? Dupin's eyes narrowed. He wasn't going to wait around for David to try and figure it out. The man seemed well-meaning enough, but he was hampered by being human. His only advantage was the fact of his thumbs but that didn't matter.
Dupin looked up at Penny quietly crying. He had his own human, with her own set of thumbs. She wasn't a cat, but for a human she seemed quiet bright. Between the two of them he felt confident in their ability to find the responsible party.
And then maybe she'd remember to get him his tuna!
Dupin watched the gurneys being wheeled down the sidewalk to the waiting ambulances before he turned his attention back to Penny, standing beside him with tears running down her cheeks.
No tuna. Penny upset. Camille and that teacher, Bill Wilson, dead. Someone had to pay for their crimes and Dupin didn't trust David to figure out what happened. No, it'd be better for all concerned if Dupin and Penny identified the criminal.
First, he needed Penny to get curious.
He knew his human. She loved finding answers. He watched her each day in the library answering questions for the people that came in and out. While her intellect might not match his own — that would no doubt be impossible for a human — she still showed almost cat-like insight. And she had thumbs, the one human attribute that saved the entire species.
David came back inside. "You'll be staying here?"
Penny nodded. "Is that okay? Are you done with—?"
"Yes. We're done. I'm releasing the scene. I can send in a couple officers to help clean up, if you like?"
Dupin meowed and bumped against her legs. He didn't want any more humans tromping all over.
Penny shook her head. "We'll be okay. I'll take care of it. I've got to clean things up. We won't be opening today."
David nodded. "Okay then. I'll get that subpoena for the checkout records and stop by later?"
"Okay. I'll need the barcode list, too."
"I'll have it for you." David turned and left.
Penny looked down at Dupin. "It's just you and me now."
Just the way he liked it. Dupin rubbed against her legs. Penny stepped around him. "Let's go clean up, then."
Dupin ran between Penny's legs into the library. The library smelled of latex gloves and fingerprint powders. He sneezed and stalked closer to the circulation counter. When he got there he padded across the top towards an area covered in fingerprint dust.
"Dupin!" Penny rushed up to the counter and put a hand out in his path. "Don't walk in that! That's all we need, are cat prints tracked all over."
As if he wanted to track that stuff all over and get it in his fur? Dupin sat down and licked one paw to prove his point. Penny put her hands on her hips and sniffled. "It's just so —"
A bright reflection beneath the keyboard caught Dupin's eye. Ignoring the powder he walked through it to the keyboard and fished beneath with his claws.
"Dupin! You're getting dirty!"
He ignored her and tried to get his claws into whatever it was beneath the keyboard. Not for the first time he considered the intangible mystery of why cats didn't have thumbs. His claw hooked onto a metal ring and he dragged out a small brass key hooked to a red plastic tab by the ring on his claw. He shook his paw and the key clattered in the fingerprint dust. Dupin slammed a paw down on the rattling key.
"What's that?" Penny asked. She reached out and Dupin drew back his paw.
She picked it up neatly, pinching the small ring between a finger and her thumb. "What's the book drop key doing here?"
Confident in her ability to answer that for herself, Dupin jumped down from the counter and sniffed around the book bin that had held Camille. The police had gone over the wood bin but they didn't have the benefit of a cat's nose. The bin still smelled of death. It needed cleaning.
Penny lifted the key up in front of her face. "It looks like a fingerprint, in the dust on the plastic tab." She lowered it to the counter and set it down. "We'll have to show that to
David when he comes back."
Maybe so, but it didn't answer any questions right now. Dupin left the bin and sat down to clean the fingerprint powder off his paws. It tasted like ashes and made him sneeze.
"Oh, you poor kitty," Penny said. "Stop licking it! Let me get a rag and we'll get this all cleaned up."
Dupin didn't bother stopping. Penny left the counter area and headed back into the staff room. Dupin realized that this put Penny near the tuna and took off running after her. Unfortunately he realized too late and she surprised him in the doorway holding wet paper towels. Dupin tried slipping around her but Penny caught him. She grabbed his feet and rubbed them with the wet towels. It was almost as bad as being licked by a dog! She finally released him and he headed under the nearby desk where he sat cleaning his drenched paws.
While he cleaned himself Penny busied herself cleaning the counter area, except for the spot where she left the key. She used a spray on the book drop, the sort that made his eyes water, so he stayed back beneath the desk and just watched. Penny noticed the scratch along the side of the bin.
"What happened —?" She sniffled. "Oh."
Dupin rose and strolled out from under the desk as Penny finished cleaning the bin and pushed it back beneath the counter. She looked at Dupin.
"Why would anyone kill Camille?"
Dupin meowed.
Penny smiled. "Okay. You're right. I should be trying to find out something to help David with his case. Like why Camille might have been here. Or why anyone would kill Bill Wilson. I always thought he seemed nice enough. He thought he was more charming than he was, but a lot of men are like that."
Dupin jumped up on the desk and sniffed at the papers there. A red file folder sitting on the desk smelled like Camille. He pushed it with his paw towards the edge of the desk.
"Dupin!" Penny ran over and caught the folder before it fell. "You're acting so strange. Do you miss her too?"
At least he missed the extra treats. People came and went in his life, always had until Penny.
Penny flipped through the folder. "These are Camille's! How did you know?"
Didn't they smell like Camille? It should be obvious, but Penny suffered from the same poor sense of smell as most humans. Dupin arched his back for a scratch but Penny didn't notice.
"The deadline for these financial aid forms is today." Penny looked at Dupin. "This could be very helpful. If she left these forms here, it could explain why she came back to the library last night."
Penny carried folder towards the front desk. Dupin jumped off the desk and followed her to the counter. She put the folder down next to the key. Dupin jumped up on the counter. From the counter it was much easier to look at Penny's face.
He meowed and arched his back again. Penny reached out and stroked his fur. "Good kitty."
Dupin purred happily against her hand. He still wanted his tuna, but scratches were progress. Except then Penny stopped. She tapped her fingers on the counter.
"So Camille comes back to the library to get the folder she forgot. I still don't see how that ties in with Bill Wilson. I can't imagine they were involved."
Dupin sat down and waited.
Penny crossed her arms and stared at the book drop key for several seconds. Then she glanced over at the cleansers she had used on the wood book drop bin.
"I should check the outside drop, make sure it's been cleaned up before anyone puts more books in it." Penny pulled open a drawer on the back of the counter and rummaged in a plastic basket with a good dozen keys, each attached to a bright plastic tag. Dupin yawned. Penny took out another key, a duplicate of the one sitting in that small patch of fingerprint dust.
Penny tossed it in the air and caught it. "Let's do that."
She tucked the spray bottle and a roll of paper towels beneath her arm before heading towards the outside doors. Dupin followed. Before they got to the lobby Penny stopped. Dupin came up from behind and rubbed against her leg and then stopped too. Several people were standing outside the main doors. Penny took a breath and then started walking again.
Dupin trotted along after. Penny went out to the main doors and pushed them open a crack. There were four humans standing outside. A man smelling of sawdust with red cheeks and dark hair stepped forward.
"We saw the police. What was going on?"
The other humans, a red-haired woman, and an older couple came closer. Dupin sat down just behind Penny where he could see everyone. He breathed in deeply. The woman smelled of fire and smoke. It reminded him of the body that had been in the bin, but much stronger. The older couple had smelled almost the same as each other, a dry, powdery, minty sort of old smell like dried leaves.
Penny took a deep breath. "Two people were killed. The library won't be opening today, I'm sorry."
"Killed?" The old woman gasped and looked up at her husband. He put an arm around her. "That's awful!"
The red-haired woman stepped closer. Dupin watched her warily.
"Look, I've just got to pick up something for my class. It'll only take a second," the woman said.
Penny shook her head. "We're not opening today."
The woman moved her hand in a circle as she said, "Look, this is terrible, really. But you know life does go on. Everyone else still has places to go, things to do, and I don't mean to be a bitch but Camille said my book was supposed to be in last week and it didn't come in which meant I lost the whole weekend. Then I get this email saying it's there and I just need to pick it up. You don't even have to do anything, I'll grab it and check it out."
Penny shook her head. "I can't let you in right now. If —"
"Look, how hard is it —"
"You just tell me your name I'll get the book."
The red-haired woman stared at Penny for a second then shook her head. "Look, just forget it. I don't have time for this."
The woman turned and left. Her heels made rapid clicks against the sidewalk as she walked quickly away. Dupin watched her go.
Then the man standing beside Penny shook his head. "Guess she didn't need it that much after all." He held out his hand. "Rod Allan."
"I guess not." Penny shook his hand and let go quickly. "Folks, I'm sorry, but we won't be open today. If you'll excuse me, I need to clean the drop."
"Can I help?" Rod asked.
The old couple started to move away but the old man pulled free from his wife's arm. Both Penny and the man looked up as the older man approached. He had pale blue eyes and very pale saggy skin.
"Lo! Death has reared himself a throne," he said. "In a strange city lying alone —"
His wife tugged on his arm. "Come on Sullivan." She looked at Penny. "He likes quoting. That's about all he can remember these days, are poems and lines from plays."
"It's fine." Penny looked at Rod. "I can take care of this myself. Please, I'd prefer to be alone."
Dupin watched the old couple move off, the woman tugging on the man's arm. Rod moved away a couple steps and rubbed his rough jaw. Dupin waited to see what he intended to say when a police car rolled up in front of the library. Rod ducked his head, stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked away down the sidewalk.
David got out of the police car. He walked past Rod and headed straight towards Penny. Dupin got up and strolled over to Penny. He rubbed against her legs.
"Hello," Penny said, when David reached them.
"Hello again, yourself." He reached into his jacket and pulled out a few sheets of paper. "I've got the subpoena and the barcode list. Are you ready to help me out now?"
Penny took the paper and looked it over. "This looks fine. You just need to know who had these checked out?"
"And any contact information you have. We'll need to question them."
Penny nodded. "In this case I don't see that we have any choice, if it'll help catch the killer."
"It might." David opened the library door. "Shall we?"
"I was going to clean the drop."
"I'm sure my people cleaned it after they were do
ne."
"I don't know about that," Penny shook her head. "They left a mess inside."
Dupin meowed.
"See? Dupin agrees."
David chuckled. "Okay. If Dupin agrees, I stand corrected."
Penny held up a finger. "It'll only take a minute and I'll feel better. Then I've got something to show you inside."
"Okay."
Penny unlocked the book drop, twisted the handle and pulled open the metal door. Dupin peered around into the drop. It still smelled of the dead man, Bill Wilson. Penny reached inside and pulled the bin out. Dupin moved aside, and once the drop was out of the way he went to the opening and looked into the drop. A dark flat shape lay against the side of the drop.
Dupin strolled inside. He went to the thing he had seen and sniffed. It turned out to be a leather wallet that smelled like the dead man. From outside he caught a whiff of the cleansers Penny sprayed on the drop.
He pawed at the wallet. It fell open. There were pictures inside. Dupin took a long look. Penny needed to see this. He meowed and crouched as the drop magnified and echoed the sound.
Dupin turned his head smoothly and looked at the bright opening of the book drop. Two human faces looked in at him. Penny on the right, smiling and on the left the blue-eyed gaze of David. Dupin crouched down and kept his paw on the wallet.
"What is that?" David asked.
"It looks like a wallet. Just a sec." Penny crouched and walked into the drop bent over. Dupin backed off the wallet when she reached for it. "Good kitty."
Penny picked up the wallet and waddled back out. For once she lacked her usual cat-like grace. Dupin wouldn't hold it against her. He followed her out of the drop. Penny straightened and flipped the wallet open.
"It's Bill Wilson's."
David fished in his pocket and pulled out a bag. "I'll need to take that."
"Wait a sec," Penny said.
Dupin couldn't see anything. Very frustrating. He looked around and then jumped up on top of the book drop. He walked to the edge and could finally see what Penny was looking at.
The Murders in the Reed Moore Library Page 2