Under the Moonlight collection

by MaryAnn Kempher

  She squawked and shooed the bird out of the cage. Then both animals turned and looked at Curt and Daisy, and up they went, the monkey climbing back into the vent, and bird flying through it.

  “If I hadn’t seen that with my own eyes,” said Curt. “I wouldn’t have believed it. Come on!”

  He took Daisy’s hand and they rushed across the store and toward the back entrance. The first thing they saw outside was the monkey and Cockatoo, both sitting on the hood of a small pick-up truck. Beyond that, they saw a familiar face under the streetlight.

  Daisy rushed toward the man. “Uncle Charlie?” she asked. “What are you doing?”

  It was clear what uncle Charlie had been up to— especially when the monkey pushed the Cockatoo toward the door of a crate that sat on the hood of the truck.

  “I, uh…” Uncle Charlie’s face turned red.

  “Shame on you Uncle Charlie, stealing from your own family”

  Uncle Charlie couldn’t look either of them in the eye. “I’m sorry Daisy…I was desperate.” He held his hands up in the air, and looked up at the sky, exclaiming, “Birds are not loyal creatures! I feed them, love them, and as soon as their wings get long enough, they leave without a backward glance.”

  Daisy wasn’t swayed. “You could have asked me, you know. I would have been more than happy to share them with you, or find you some of your own.

  “What do you want to do?” Curt asked. “Should I call the police?”

  “The police?” Daisy said. “Of course not. Uncle Charlie all you had to do was ask. You didn’t need to send Gladys into my store in the middle of the night...I was worried sick. I didn’t know if an intruder was coming into my shop in the middle of the night, taking the animals.” She shook her head. “I’d rather have a stranger stealing from me.”

  “You won’t tell your mother, will you? Or Burt?”

  Daisy tapped her toes, her brow kinked as she slowly came to her decision. “No, I won’t tell.”

  Uncle Charlie smiled. “Thank you.”

  “There’s a condition, though,” Daisy said. “In order to pay for the birds you’ve stolen, I want you to help my father with his animal act. I can’t think of a better way for you to repay your debt.”

  Uncle Charlie nodded. “Sure. I can do that.”

  Daisy was the one smiling now. “Good.”

  Curt was more than a little confused as he watched this unfold. Was the Sunset family super crazy, or super cool—or a little of both? He watched Daisy remove her cap and run her hands through her pink strands. She was lovely.

  I could get used to this kind of crazy, he thought.

  Daisy helped Uncle Charlie get the Cockatoo into the cage and load it into his truck. Gladys sat in the passenger seat of the pick-up.

  “This makes four birds. Will that be enough?”

  “Do you think I could have a few parakeets, just in case?”

  Curt’s eye’s widened at Uncle Charlie’s boldness. Daisy, however, seemed unfazed by the request.

  “Of course. You never know when you’ll need extras.”

  ***

  Nene Albright glanced back and forth between the ceiling and the watch on her wrist. It was late, nearly two in the morning, and her stomach was growling. She got up, put her robe on, and walked to the kitchen. Opening the refrigerator, she frowned. None of the leftovers from dinner looked good, and she was in no mood for another carrot or celery stick. She thought about the refrigerated display case downstairs, filled with cookies and brownies. I’ve been so good. What will it hurt?

  She hoped to avoid a lecture from Gaga, so peeked into her room before leaving the apartment. Snoring like a freight train. As usual. She knew it would take a natural disaster to wake her sister.

  Nene quietly opened their apartment door and snuck downstairs. As she neared the landing, she could hear noise coming from Jack and Curt’s office. She knew Jack had been working long hours, on a murder investigation, but two in the morning was late, even for him.

  She’d just stick her head inside and tell him to go home and get some sleep. But she was surprised to find the office dark when she opened the door.

  What in the world? she thought. Am I hearing things?

  She stepped inside, feeling her way toward the light switch that was further down on the wall. Suddenly, she saw a bright light and felt crushing pain in her head. She couldn’t focus. She staggered and grabbed for something to steady herself, but again felt the thundering pain and then nothing as her vision went black.

  ***

  Jack looked at the clock in his car. It was so late now, and the adrenaline rush he’d gotten hours earlier after seeing Pike had worn off. Thoughts of crime scene photos and notebook entries floated through his mind and he played with the idea of stopping at the office for one more look. It was on his way home...it wouldn’t be out of his way at all. As he drove past the office and prepared to turn into the parking lot, a wave of fatigue rushed over him. Instead of turning, he just kept driving home.

  Thursday morning, Jack called Curt’s phone but got no answer. He’d hoped to let him know that before coming into work, he planned to stop by Scott’s bike shop and pick up the seat bag for Candy’s bike. He knew he should take it to Yvonne, and he would…but only after he’d had a chance to examine its contents. The delay wasn’t entirely because of his desire to look through the bag, though. He dreaded seeing Yvonne after what had happened the last time they were together. He couldn’t help thinking about it…sure, he’d been tempted, but who wouldn’t have been? She was a beautiful woman in fabulous shape, but she hadn’t been thinking straight at the time—and likely still wasn’t. Her judgment was clouded by grief.

  He was sure she probably regretted her behavior and he wasn’t in a hurry for an awkward conversation.

  He hadn’t dated Candy long, but even during that time he was aware of how attractive her mother was. After they’d stopped dating, he’d pondered the possibility of asking out Yvonne, but it somehow had seemed wrong to move from one woman to her mother, especially in such a short time frame. So nothing had ever happened.

  When Jack pulled up in front of Scott’s bike shop, he was relieved to see that it was open, considering that it was barely nine o’clock. Alex was standing behind the counter holding a hand mirror when Jack entered.

  “Hey, Alex,” Jack said.

  “Hey, Jack.” Alex put the mirror down. “Just checking out my new beard…what do you think?”

  Jack strained to see the stubble on Alex’s face. “How long have you been growing it?” he asked, expecting the answer to be “a day or two.”

  Alex beamed proudly. “Almost a month now.”

  Jack tried not to smile and was relieved when Scott appeared from the back office. “So,” asked Scott, “…what do you think of Alex’s new porn star look?”

  Jack smiled, but didn’t answer.

  “You here for the bag?”

  “Yep.”

  Alex picked the mirror up. “Hmph…porn star,” he said, more to himself than Jack or Scott.

  Scott dug it out from beneath the counter. “Looks like a fanny pack,” Jack said.

  Scott nodded. “I thought so, too. Just so you know: Nosy butt over there looked through it.”

  “Hey, I put everything back where I found it though!” Alex protested.

  Jack scooped up the bag and headed for the door again. “I’m sure it’s fine, guys. I’ll see you later.” The door chimed as he walked out, hoping nothing had been lost or misplaced.

  “Hey,” Alex told Scott, now that they were alone again. “I was thinking…

  “Uh oh…” Scott said, smiling.

  “I really want to know who’s pregnant— Katherine or Sophie.”

  “Me, too. But we’ve been over this.”

  “I was thinking…what if we leave the test somewhere out in the open? Maybe so the not-pregnant one can see it?”

  Scott looked confused. “I don’t get it.”

  “If Sophie knows i
t’s not hers but thinks it’s Katherine’s, Sophie will congratulate her, and we’ll know. And if it’s Sophie’s, Katherine will congratulate her instead.”

  “Wait a minute…you still have the pregnancy test?” Scott said incredulously.

  Alex opened a draw, took out the test and set it on the counter. “Of course. That could be my kid…or my niece. Or nephew.”

  “That’s disgusting!” Scott said. “Get that thing off the counter!”

  As if on cue, Katherine and Sophie walked into the store at that very moment. Alex hurried to put the test back in the drawer.

  “What are you two up to?” asked Katherine. “Looking all flustered and suspicious.”

  “Nothing,” said Scott. “We’re up to…nothing. What are you two up to?”

  Katherine smiled. “We’re going to get coffee.”

  “Real or decaf?” asked Alex.

  “Real,” said Katherine. “I’ve fallen off the healthy eating wagon, at least where coffee is concerned. I can give up a lot of things, but it’s just inhumane to expect me to give up my coffee.”

  Alex and Scott looked at each other, as if another piece of the puzzle had just slid into place.

  “What about you, babe?” Alex said to Sophie.

  “What about me?” Sophie answered.

  “Do you think you should give up caffeine, too…for the sake of your health?”

  “No way. Why would I ever do something like that?”

  Scott and Alex shared another look.

  “Okay, you two…spill it,” Katherine said. “What’s going on?”

  Alex opened the drawer and brought out the pregnancy test.

  “Oh my God!” Sophie said, turning excitedly toward Katherine. “You’re pregnant?”

  “What? No!” Katherine answered. “I’m not pregnant…are you?”

  “Um…no.”

  “Well, one of you is,” said Scott.

  Katherine gave Scott an exasperated look. “Don’t you think I’d know if I was pregnant?”

  “I don’t know…would you?”

  Katherine rolled her eyes at Scott. “Pretty sure I’d know.”

  “Well,” said Alex, “If you’re not pregnant,” and he looked at Sophie, “and you’re not pregnant…then who is?”

  Sophie and Katherine looked at each other and smiled.

  ***

  Jack had gotten so little sleep the night before, he was tempted to drive home and go to bed instead of heading into the office. He was in no state of mind to deal with what might be waiting for him after his failed stakeout. A confrontation with Pike was something to be avoided, for now.

  From a distance, he saw the flashing lights. As he neared the building, he saw that a police car and an ambulance were parked near his building. He was alarmed to see Nolan, who usually only worked homicide, standing at the entrance. His car screeched to a halt as he jumped out and rushed to Nolan.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Calm down, Jack,” said Nolan. “I’m only here because I was nearby on another case when the call came in.”

  “What’s happened? Is Curt all right?”

  Just then a paramedic appeared in the doorway pushing a gurney. Nene Albright was lying on it. Jack ran to her side.

  “Is she okay?” he asked the paramedic.

  “She’s had a pretty good blow to the head, but her vitals are strong.”

  Curt came outside. “I found her when I came in this morning,” he said. “She was in our office. Don’t ask me why she was in there. I don’t know.”

  Jack watched as they put Nene into the ambulance.

  “That’s not all, Jack.”

  “What else?”

  “The office has been ransacked.”

  “Is there anything missing?”

  “Can’t tell. It’s a total mess.”

  Gaga Albright came outside, clearly upset. “What was she doing downstairs?” she asked absently.

  “I’m going to drive you to the hospital, Ms. Albright,” Curt said. “I’ll make sure you get to your sister.”

  Jack put his hand on Gaga’s shoulder. “I’m sure she’s going to be all right.”

  Gaga shook her head. “You don’t know that. She’s not a young woman anymore. You didn’t see the side of her head, her hair matted with blood. Someone hit her very hard. If I find out it had anything to do with the break-ins at our store...”

  “Let’s go Ms. Albright,” Curt said, his hand on her back as he guided her toward his truck. “We can beat the ambulance if we leave now.”

  Jack looked to Nolan for answers. “Tell me what you know, please.”

  “I heard the call come over the radio, at approximately 0730,” said Nolan. “When I arrived, Officer Cansen here was already on the scene.” Nolan turned toward Cansen and said, “This man,” referring to Jack, “is a former detective. Just tell him what you told me.”

  Officer Cansen looked nervous. Jack sympathized. “Is this your first assault case?” he asked

  “Yes sir,” Cansen answered. “Mostly I’ve been working traffic control.”

  “How long you been in?”

  “Graduated from the academy in June.”

  “Pretty new, then.” Jack smiled, hoping to put him at ease. “So what happened?”

  “I arrived on the scene at approximately 0735. There was a man outside.” Cansen looked at his notepad. “He identified himself as Curt Noble. He took me inside, where I observed an elderly woman unconscious on the floor. Mr. Noble informed me that an ambulance had already been called.”

  “Is there a reason why haven’t you closed the crime scene?” Jack asked.

  Officer Cansen looked flustered. “Umm…no. Sorry, sir.”

  “It’s the first step…you might want to remember that next time.”

  “Do you want to go take a look?” Nolan asked.

  “Yeah, thanks,” Jack answered.

  Jack went into the building, with Nolan in tow. He slowly opened the door to his office and peered in to survey the damage. Both desk chairs were turned over; the few pictures on the wall had been taken down and thrown aside. The coffee pot was broken, the shattered glass spread all over the floor. He rushed to his desk and yanked open the middle drawer, relieved to see his notepad and the envelope of Candy’s crime scene photographs still inside, he took them out. So they weren’t looking for these.

  He thought for a second that it could have been the same neighborhood kids who were likely breaking into the bakery. But a voice in the back of his mind whispered, Pike. He didn’t want to believe that, either. But it made more sense than anything else.

  “The crime scene guys are here,” Nolan told him. “You know the drill.”

  “Thanks, Nolan. You’ll keep me updated, right?”

  “Sure.”

  Jack followed Nolan outside, got in his car and started the engine. Nolan knocked at the window.

  “I was wondering…ah,” Nolan said. He paused. “About the investigation.”

  Jack wouldn’t be telling Nolan anything he’d concluded—not without solid evidence to offer. As things were, Jack didn’t have much more to go on than what Nolan had given him. All he had was the beginnings of a theory.

  “I’ve got nothing new to tell you,” said Jack. “Sorry.”

  Nolan stood as Jack backed up and drove toward St. Mary’s hospital as fast as he could.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Jack turned into the hospital parking lot, a pit of worry in his gut. He’d only gotten a glimpse, but the side of Nene Albright’s head looked bad. After consulting the information desk, Jack took an elevator up to the third floor. When the doors slid open, he found Gaga and Curt sitting in the lobby.

  “Any word?” he asked as he neared them.

  Curt made worried eyebrows. “We’ll be right back, Ms. Albright.” He stood and steered Jack a few feet away. “It doesn’t look good,” he said. He cleared his throat. “She was hit hard, twice.” He looked over his shoulder at Gaga, then back at Jack
. “She might not make it. A priest has been called.”

  “Oh, man,” said Jack. “I can’t believe this.”

  “She’d been on the floor for at least six hours,” he shrugged. “Things might be different if she’d been found sooner. There’s really no way to tell for sure.”

  Jack thought back to the evening before. He wondered if Nene had been lying on the floor when he’d driven by and decided against going inside to do a little more work. He didn’t want to think about it.

  He walked over and sat next to Gaga. She seemed like a different woman. He was accustomed to the gruff, almost to the point of rude, formidable woman. Not the woman who sat next to him now, hunched over, so old and frail-looking.

  “I’m going to figure out who did this,” he told her.

  Gaga said nothing.

  Jack began mulling over possibilities. If Pike was behind it—if he thought the break in would scare Jack off—he was mistaken. If anything, it made Jack more determined than before to get to the bottom of whatever was going on.

  A priest arrived. He whispered something to Gaga and they, including Curt, walked toward Nene’s room. Gaga looked at Jack as she passed, her face slack and filled with obvious pain. She turned away quickly, but he had seen her tears.

  Gaga Albright was crying, and of all people, her tears were more than Jack could take.

  ***

  After a few minutes, Curt returned. He was pale.

  “Is she?” Jack asked.

  “She’s still alive, barely” Curt said. “They’ve put her in a medically induced coma.”

  “Will that help?”

  “It’s giving her a chance at least. Did Nolan let you back into the office before you left?”

  “Yeah, for a minute.”

  “Anything missing?”

  Jack shook his head. “Doesn’t look like it.”

  “Another warning?”