She grabbed a drink and positioned herself in a corner. She smiled at Flora’s enthusiastic face getting acknowledged by people far bigger than her status. Alicia herself never believed in divination reading, but she guessed Flora must be good at what she did.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” Harry tinkled a glass and Alicia came out of her chain of thoughts. “Allow me to introduce Mr Robert Kripke, our new Chief of Police in town. He is transferred from Bristol.”
Everybody clapped looking at the man standing beside Harry with earl grey hairs and twinkling eyes. He looked like a cheerful old man, contrary to the stern and intimidating personality of his predecessor.
“His beautiful daughter, and my fiancé, Daisy.” Harry announced again in his most charming style. He had been a charmer when it came to public appearances. He got elected as the head of student union every year by majority votes in the college. Not to mention that most of the voters were girls looking forward to hook up with Harry.
Alicia quickly left her place when she saw Harry coming towards her. She found Flora shaking her head while looking at the hand of an elderly gentleman.
“Look. You should not be traveling at all. It is not favorable.” She spoke loudly because the man had a hearing problem.
“Why?” He asked in a loud voice too. Flora made a face as she didn’t like her customers to argue back. Alicia set beside them trying to look normal.
“Last time, you’d told me to travel on my birthday.” The elderly gentleman was not happy with the new development.
“Last time, you were sixty-nine years old. Now you are going to be seventy which means you will be entering the eighth decade of your life. It is completely different from an astrological point of view.” Flora was also irritated.
“An astrologer?” Someone said nearby and Alicia turned to see Mr Kripke standing close to their table.
“What do they say in spirituality? What you seek is seeking you.” He smiled and his white teeth formed a perfect line in his mouth.
“Allow me.” He joined them on their table. The elderly gentleman muttered something under his breath, but dared not say it loudly to the new Chief of Police. He didn’t look pleased with this intervention.
“You are seeking an astrologer.” Flora took a sip from her champagne glass looking at him interestingly.
“Why not? I believe in omens, call me old fashion, but isn’t it a coincidence that I got my first case and I also met an astrologer in the same week,” said Kripke in a cheerful manner.
Flora smiled and pat her hair. Kripke was charming and athletic despite of his age.
“What type of case?” she asked.
“A murder case.”
“In our town?” Flora alerted.
“Absolutely.”
“Give me details.”
“A dead body is found in a bookstore few days ago, and we are struggling to establish his identity. Apparently his fingerprints do not match with our records, and there are no missing person complaints either.” Kripke described the case.
Alicia felt getting punched in the gut. If Flora got to know about the death at her bookstore, her job was over. “We are getting late, Flora.” She tried to interrupt but Flora did not pay her attention.
“In which area?” Flora asked Kripke.
“Netherton.”
“But this is where we live.” It was hard to miss surprise in Flora’s voice. “What is the name of the shop?”
“Bell, Book and Candle Booksellers.” Kripke said taking out a cigar holder out of the breast pocket of his coat.
“Isn’t it the place where you work?” Flora turned to Alicia with eyes wide in amazement.
“Yes.” She managed to speak somehow. Now her whole Sunday was going to waste in the cleanup of this mess.
“Amazing.” Alicia heard Harry’s voice from behind her, but didn’t bother to look back. He came in front of them. “You are working in a bookstore?” he sniggered.
“You must be campaigning to be the next mayor?” Alicia asked sarcastically.
“Not the next mayor, but he can be the next Chief of Police.” Kripke said with pride. “He is my assistant, Assistant Chief of Police of Georgestown.” Looking at her expression, Kripke asked. “He didn’t tell you?”
“This is kismet.” Flora said happily. “There was a murder at Alicia’s place and Harry is a police officer now. You two need to coordinate with each other.”
“I am just an employee and I have already recorded my statement.” Alicia said dryly looking menacingly at Harry who was taking place beside Kripke.
“Actually she is right. You can help us in our investigation.” Kripke took a deep blow of cigar. “We think your boss is hiding something from the police.”
“Hiding what?” she asked thoughtfully.
Harry and Kripke exchanged a glance with each other, then Kripke was the one to speak.
“He knows the dead man.”
CHAPTER SIX
The White Horse
“Here,” Harry showed them on his mobile screen. The photo contained two guys smiling for the camera on a Christmas Eve in a park, one of them was Harry’s cousin she had met before, there were few people visible in the background as well.
“This is our central park.” Alicia recognized the scenery.
“Yes, and now look at this.” Harry zoomed the picture to get the background in focus. The guy with the gloomy face and long black hair was hard to miss. He was easily recognizable due to his distinct features, and the guy, with whom he was standing next to, was none other than the same she had seen earlier this week in the bookstore lying on the floor.
“You think he is hiding it deliberately?” Alicia asked.
Harry said, “We are running all background checks but still we have not established the identity of the dead man which is the biggest road block in taking our investigation forward.”
“By his facial features, we can say that he is from German descent.” Kripke interjected. “But other than that, we are still in dark.”
“How did he die?”
“Strangulated.” Kripke said.
“What was the time of death?” Alicia asked thoughtfully.
“The doctors said he died around eleven o’clock to one on the day his body was discovered.” Kripke said.
“It was noon when I saw the pile of books,” she muttered, “which means he died just few minutes before I reached the store.” She shivered slightly. The idea was uncomfortable to think of, especially when she had to go back to work on Monday.
Alicia looked around to find that most of the guests were gone, except for the elderly gentlemen who was still looking at them furiously, waiting for his turn with the astrologer.
“What do you know about Ken?” Alicia asked Kripke. She wanted to know more about him since the day she set her eyes on him. She knew she felt strongly attracted towards him, but at the same time, she felt intimidated by his silent personality.
“His father died fighting in British Royal Guard and his mother died in childbirth. He has done a course in Hotel Management and he is running the bookstore for last five years. He has an antisocial personality so he doesn’t mix with people mostly,” said Harry.
“If he doesn’t mix with people then how did you get all this information?” Alicia looked at him skeptically.
Harry sighed, “he was raised by the Robinsons.”
“Oh.” It was the only word Alicia managed to speak. No wonder police were reluctant to question Ken directly. If Robinson family was behind him, he was as secure as a Swiss bank account.
“Perfect.” Flora, who was listening to them silently for a while, clapped her hands suddenly making Alicia startled. “So Alicia is going to help you.”
“It is a murder case, Aunt Flora.” Alicia made a mock face of fear. “It is dangerous.”
Flora kicked her under the table and whispered, “don’t call me aunt.”
“Ahem.” Harry cleared his throat. “We were talking about Ken.”
“Yes Ken.” Flora was in super-excited mode. “Alicia can easily keep an eye on him and pass the information to you.”
Kripke smiled affectionately at Flora’s excited face and said to Alicia, “Basically, you don’t need to do much. We only need access to his mobile.”
“But how will I do it?”
“Here,” Harry produced a small plastic bag from his pocket and slid it towards Alicia. There was a round button like, object inside it which was thin like a paper.
“It is a bug.” Kripke informed her. “All you have to do is to put it inside his mobile under the battery. Presto! Job finished.”
“What if he saw it?” She asked examining the object in her hand.
“He would assume it is some kind of sticker part of the factory design.” Harry replied.
“He is not violent. Is he?” Flora asked her with concern.
“No, not at all.” She said slowly. She was feeling a moral dilemma at the moment. On one hand, she was a lawyer and helping the authorities to bring justice to people was her primary belief, but on the other hand, she didn’t want to spy on Ken.
“What are you thinking?” asked Kripke.
“Nothing. I will do it … for you.” She said to the Police Chief. “I would love to help the authorities in catching the killer.”
Kripke smiled at both ladies and said, “As I said, even a meeting with an astrologer can make you lucky.”
Flora blushed deep red on the compliment.
“I don’t see your daughter, Mr Kripke.” Alicia looked around to see why Daisy hade not joined them in the conversation.
“Daisy has to go to London tomorrow so she left early.” Harry replied. Alicia found the reason strange as London was only two-hour drive away from Georgestown.
By the time, the elderly gentleman got his turn back with the astrologer, his temperament had gone sky-high.
————
Life had never been easy in Stone Manor. Getting locked up in this house, a normal human being with normal impulses would either turn into a Buddhist monk or a mass murderer. There was no in-between. Alicia was not sure what she was turning into.
The Sunday morning started with a loud bang near her ears. She opened her sleepy eyes to find Lucy standing near her bed followed by Steve near the stairs of attic.
“There was a murder at your bookstore?” Lucy looked at her as if it was Alicia who did the murder.
“I didn’t know it was a murder.” Alicia replied slowly.
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Steve yelled from the stairs.
“What was I supposed to tell?” Alicia rubbed her head with her fingers which was going to be exploded with their loud voices.
“Nothing.” Lucy shrieked bending on her. “You think you have become old enough to handle everything alone. You think your parents are idiots.”
“I am twenty-six for God’s sake. You are yelling at me like I am sixteen.” Alicia was pissed off. It was not new for her, but getting awake early morning with the yelling, mix with the idea that Flora betrayed her was enough to make her sad. She felt awfully alone.
Flora was enjoying her Apple Cinnamon tea in the kitchen when she attacked her.
“This is how team works?” She took an apple from the fridge and slammed the door back with all her might which created a loud bang. “I always do what you ask me.”
“What did I do?” Flora said with astonishment.
“Why did you tell them about the murder?”
“I did not.” Flora said in anger. “They learnt it from the neighbors.”
Damn.
“You really think I would betray you?” Flora was furious now. Alicia set on the dining table in front of her and smiled.
“In law college, there was a saying: It Depends.”
“Well, at least, the lawyer inside you is waking up finally.”
“I like doing the investigation.” She confessed cutting apple into small pieces.
Lucy came into the kitchen and looked around. Alicia slowly picked a piece and put it in her mouth, looking at her oblivious aunt who was focused on her tea. Alicia started to count in her head, one, two, three, four, five, si….”
Lucy exploded. “You are not going back to that job.”
Alicia widened her eyes at Flora urging her to speak.
“It will not be wise, Lucy.” Flora finally got her non-verbal message.
“Why not?” Lucy spat.
“If she leaves the job immediately following the murder, it would be difficult for her to get a new job. Murder is fresh in the minds of people right now. Give it a rest and she will leave after few weeks.” Flora always talked patiently with her sister.
“She doesn’t need to get a new job instantly. She can stay at home for few weeks.” Lucy crossed arms on her chest. Wasn’t she the same person nagging me to get a job since last four years? And now she wants me to leave it. Amazing!
“In fact I was going to tell you that. She needs to keep the job because my business is not going well.” Flora, who got five new clients just last night, said apologetically. “Alicia might be paying the bills this month.”
The B-word had always been magical in Stone Manor, and when Flora used it, everybody turned to stone, as she brought the biggest pay check in the house. Lucy slowly opened her crossed arms, but her reluctance was visible on her face when she left them alone in the kitchen, aunt and niece smiling at each other like partners-in-crime.
————
In order to put the bug in the phone, Alicia had to stop thinking and get the courage to spend some time with Kenneth Williams. He had offered her his office on the first day but she never utilized that offer. She preferred to sit with Sam on the cash counter or roam around the store inspecting the shelf supervisors whether they were organized or not. She often guided visitors and referred them to the section according to their taste. She had also scheduled all the computer-related tasks in the first few hours of the day when the room was totally to herself.
For the first few days, she kept looking at Ken to take out his mobile so she could pretend to forget her mobile at home and make a call from his cell. Once she got his mobile in her hands, it would be a piece of cake to put the bug inside, but the whole day passed and she never caught him using the mobile.
The next day, Ken entered the store at three o’clock sharp according to his routine. Alicia could literally set his mobile clock with his timing. Today, she had made up her mind to get the job done by hook or by crook.
She had already finished the sandwich she made in the morning to avoid going on lunch, and she had not forgotten to make one for Sam as well. She had not told Sam anything about her conversation with the Police Chief, but she was planning to do so. There was something about Sam which made her trust him instantly. He was reading a book today on productivity hiding it under the cash counter. He had to hide his reading as the supervisors picked at him for that. Ironically, most of them thought that only nuts read books. After cracking her knuckles for a long time, she climbed the stairs to the office with a heart drumming in her ears.
The first floor was as silent as a morgue. They all knew that Ken had a profound resentment with loud noises. Every employee assigned to the first floor had to keep his mobile on silent mode all the time.
Alicia tried to take a peek inside the room before knocking. The blinds on the glass wall were open as usual, but she was still unable to see anything except his hair and his hands, punching the keys on the typewriter. She took a deep breath and knocked gently on the glass door. He looked at the door and nodded. She entered the ice cold room and closed it behind. Without paying any attention to her, he was lost in his world with his black sleeves folded to his elbows. Sometimes the black typewriter, matched with his black hair and black clothes, looked like a part of his personality.
She opened the computer and tried to work on last month’s revenue figures.
“Err, I was thinking about offering box sets to customers.” She looked at him
expectedly. “Like there is a new release by Stephen King of the Bill Hodges Series. We can offer all three books of the series in a set to customers at a special price.”
“That’s a great idea,” he said without stopping, “but we will be taking a cut on the gross profit.”
“The first two of the series are priced at£4.99 and the latest release is£7.49. Our current profit margin is forty percent of cost.”She made calculation, “If we sell them separately, our combined profit would be£5 for all three books, but if we price the box set at£14.99, we would be earning£2.5 per box, but we will be selling more this way.”
“Hmmm,” he said listening to her, “we can roll it on experimental basis. I have never offered box sets before on my own.”
“We can even put some theme on it, like Halloween Deal or, perhaps, Christmas Deal.”
“Nothing wrong in planning ahead. We can have a Halloween Special Sale and put more horror and thriller book deals.” He suggested.
“Yes. That would be a great idea. Even I might buy some of them,” she giggled then stopped. It was the first time she was having a conversation with Ken and she didn’t want to make a bad impression on him. She asked with a serious face. “When was the last time we had a sale?”
“Christmas.”
“Really?” Alicia looked at him in amazement. “People buy books on Christmas?”
“Why not?” He smiled at her. “This is the biggest bookstore outside of any major city in England. People come here not only from Georgestown, but also from nearby towns as well. You just need to pull people out of their homes and they would buy anything, and Christmas is the perfect occasion for that.”
“I still need to learn a lot about people.” She sighed.
“But you were learning about people, why did you leave it?” This was the first time, Ken asked her a personal question.
She bit her lips for few seconds, “I had worked as a paralegal few years ago and they put me to do—clerical work. I wanted to get involved in solving cases, but by the likes of it, I was not going to do it ever. They thought I was good at researching but I could never convince a magistrate in my favor.”
The Killing Scripture (Alicia Stone Series Book 1) Page 5