“I thought that too. People get nervous whenever the police are calling about anything even if the call is to let them know they won the lottery.” Mandy said.
“Yes, over the years, police and trouble have been put together, like a horse and carriage, and people have a hard time separating them.” Fred said, a little gloomily.
*****
Meanwhile, Jeffrey dealt with some hard reckoning. He got into this situation to make easy money on the side. But now as a result of this, two innocent people had died. First Karen, killed by that skunk Mikey. Jeffrey knew very well he still loved Karen, and it hurt him she died because of something he dragged her into. She didn't deserve to die. He didn't care what guy she went out with, she figured whatever relationship would pass and he would get another chance to rekindle his relationship with her. Now that was never going to happen. In addition to this, perhaps the syndicate was considering killing another innocent person, Cynthia. If they hadn't done so already.
Cynthia had nothing to do with this, and he felt terrible she had to be a victim. She did nothing wrong, she wasn't a part of these activities, and now she may be dead, because she visited Karen's apartment to get her things. This was not what he had signed up for. What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive, Jeffrey remembered from a poem back in grade school. To find out what had happened, Jeffrey called his contact with the syndicate. After a couple of rings, no one answered. He left a message to be called back. Not a good idea to leave incriminating statements on somebody's voicemail.
Chapter Twenty
Mandy tried the first phone number she came across, Cynthia's mother.
“Hi Mrs. Donofrio, my name is Mandy, I work with Cynthia. I tried reaching Cynthia today and for some reason her phone keeps going to voicemail. We have a question about one of the animals. If by chance she calls you, can you tell her to give me a call? Here's my number.”
“Did she go to work today?” Mrs. Donofrio asked.
“They're doing renovations, so the place is closed, but a client wanted to know something regarding her cat's diet and we didn't have an answer. I know she would.” Mandy said.
“I see. Well, if she calls, I'll let her know you called and to contact you.”
“Thanks Mrs. Donofrio, I appreciate it.” Mandy said and hung up.
After she hung up, Mandy thought 'Well, she hasn't called her mother, but apparently, that's not so strange, there was no panic in her voice. Apparently my explanation of the business closed temporarily was enough to qualm whatever concerns she may have had.'
She tried two other numbers, one disconnected and the other one just had a voicemail response. Fred came out after a little while to ask how her progress was going.
“Any luck?”
“So far, no. I called the mother, she hasn't had any communications with her and the other two numbers are from another time in her life, and neither of them worked, although the voicemail worked for the second one.” Mandy said.
“Well, not knowing the woman, it doesn't give us much to go on. This investigation has been nothing but frustration. No leads, just dead ends.” Fred said, exasperated.
“I hope something terrible hasn't happened to her.” Mandy said.
“Me too Mandy, me too. Listen, there's not much else to be done with this. I suggest the following: Why don't you call Jill and ask her to stay with you tonight? I figured two people are better at fending off danger than one. You also have Roger, and I hope he gets into attack cat mode. Cause you'll need him stoked in case anybody tries to do you harm.” Fred said.
“Yes Roger instinctively knows when something is wrong, but that's not such a bad idea, getting Jill to stay tonight. I hope she's free. But once I explain things to her, she'll come over no matter what.” Mandy explained.
“I have faith in Jill. I'm sure she'll be there. Meanwhile, when you go home, you let me know if you see the black car again. I'll ask around and see if I can borrow a rookie from the police academy to stand guard at your place. Can't make any promises, but we don't have the manpower here. But if someone in a police uniform is standing sentinel, they're more likely to deter someone from trying something.” Fred said.
“Well, I'm going home and hoping for the best. Maybe the fact I've been seen riding with you will deter whoever it is from following me.” Mandy said.
“Yes, let's hope that works.” Fred said.
Mandy left station and headed straight home as fast as her wheels could take her. For a moment she thought the car was following her, but she could have been mistaken. She got home quickly enough. No sooner was she in the house that she called Jill.
“Hi Jill.”
“Hi Mandy, what's up.”
“Listen, I don't want to startle you, but something has happened to Cynthia. She's not at home, there's no phone contact, and the spa hasn't heard from her. I got Fred to investigate it, but we found nothing so far. I'm pretty sure I'm being followed by a black car for the last couple of days. Now, in light of Cynthia's disappearance, I'm afraid they're after me too. Who knows what's really happening, but I wanted to ask you to come over. Fred suggested we would be able to fight off an intruder better than if I was all by myself. Also, I have Roger here, and you've seen him in action when he senses danger.”
Jill came over very quickly as someone used to getting up and going.
“Jill, I'm so glad you came over so soon.”
“Well, there was no traffic, so it was easy.”
“This is getting crazy, but everything started the day we went over to Karen's apartment. Whoever did this may think Cynthia might be able to identify the person ransacked the place. But I was there too, and I wonder if they think that I saw him too?”
“What about this black car?”
“Well, I'm not sure if it's my nerves or if someone is truly following me. Fred thinks I did the right thing calling him about the car. But I got a look at the guy driving the car and coincidentally, a similar looking guy was walking around Cynthia's building. That's when I really got scared.”
“If you were to see this guy again, could you identify him?” Jill asked.
“I only saw him from the back. He wore a dark suit, had salt and pepper hair and was tall, he looked nothing like Allen. He reminded me of George Clooney.” Mandy said.
“Well, looking at the bright side of things, this may be a guy who has a crush on you and has been following you until he gets up enough nerve to talk to you. And he sounds like he's good looking.” Jill said, half kidding.
“Listen, this is not the time I need a stalker, whether he's interested in me romantically or just up to no good.” Mandy said upset.
“Well, just lightening the mood. Listen, we're ok here. We have supplies, Roger will leap into action if anybody tries anything. He's now guarding three females, including his lady love.” Jill said jokingly.
“I feel very safe with Roger around and Fred said he's checking to see if there's a police rookie available to stand guard.”
“Did you give Fred the notebook?” Jill asked.
“I forgot with all the excitement of today. However, I will follow your advice and say I found this I forgot about it. I'll feign ignorance as to what it is. Here's another interesting tid bit. Fred and I went to the spa looking for contact information for Cynthia. Jeffrey actually looked concerned over Cynthia's disappearance and had no idea she'd gone missing. Which led me to wonder, suppose Karen used the spa behind Jeffrey's back, could that be the reason she got killed?”
“If that's the case, whoever tore apart her apartment was looking for the notebook. Which then bring up the other question, what if both she and Allen were engaged in the criminal actions? What if he killed her not because of her flirting but because she attempted to double cross him and he thought with her out of the way, the whole process would be easier?” Jill speculated.
“That's what I thought earlier, as I left Cynthia's apartment. That's why he disappeared. Not only is he running away from the murde
r, but whoever he's mixed up with is after him because the book can incriminate both him and whatever criminal organization he's involved with. He's got trouble on both sides, the cops and the money laundering operation.” Mandy said.
“Well, that explains the possible motive. I'm sure once you give the notebook to Fred, he'll be very happy and it may start giving him something to chase after. But in the meantime, Allen is missing in action and now Cynthia is missing too. I'm hoping she's missing and not dead yet, and somehow we get to her.
“Even though we still have no idea where she is, Fred might shed some light on the situation by contacting the phone company though. He could get her phone records and track all the calls she's made which may give them a lead as to where she is.” Jill said.
“Let's hope so.” Mandy said dejected knowing full well Cynthia could already be dead.
*****
Meanwhile, Cynthia found herself in an almost pitch black room with a bit of light coming in from under the door. She didn't know if it was day or night, or how long she had been there. She had been tied to a chair with her feet tied, her arms tied, and the knots tied very tightly, to the point where she couldn't move. She tried to call out but someone had put tape over her mouth. How did she get into this situation? Who did this? Was this being done to her because she might have identified the person in Karen's apartment? Could she be the next person to be murdered? Why was this guy killing us? What did we do that was so wrong?
Cynthia felt scared and helpless as the tears flowed down her face. For now, she was still alive. She wondered how much longer that would last.
Chapter Twenty One
The next day Mandy was fraught with worry. She had not heard back from Cynthia. As a matter of fact, no one knew anything regarding Cynthia, she was still missing in action. Luckily, they received no surprise guests during the night and no black cars lurked in the background. Mandy had looked through the window several times during the night. In her imagination, she thought that her follower might be lurking outside, black car parked nearby. But much to her relief, nobody came by the house. The cats sat on the sofa and were having a conversation.
Roger said “Well, how do you like the place so far?”
Lana responded “It's very comfortable and I feel very much at home here. The problem in my life right now is, I'm at the spa a lot of the time and it's just not comfortable there, I'm in a cage all night. Then, when I'm home, my owner doesn't interact with me a whole lot.”
“I'm fortunate in that way. Mandy plays with me and takes me to the park often. It's great running around and chasing birds.” Roger explained.
“I have to say, you have a pretty sweet deal here Roger. I wish my owner was as involved with me as yours is with you.” Lana said.
“Not knowing other cats, I didn't know if this was normal for other cats.” Roger responded.
“Well, I don't know what's normal. When I left the shelter, I thought I was headed for great things, but I actually I had more interaction with the people there, even though I was waiting to be adopted.” Lana said, a little disappointed.
“Let's hope your owner let's you visit me here regularly. That will be fun.” Roger said, enthusiastically.
“I certainly hope so. Lana responded.
“Let's go by the window, I want to show you where I watch birds.”
Roger and Lana went over to the window and Roger was showing her the highlights of the backyard.
*****
Meanwhile, Mandy and Jill were recounting their experiences of the evening before.
“Well, I'm glad that you came over, even though, it was probably not necessary.” Mandy told Jill.
“Hey, it's ok. This is still a serious situation. We're fortunate that nothing is happening to us, but what about Cynthia? Something has definitely happened to her and I hope that she doesn't wind up the same as Karen.” Jill said.
“I completely agree, I don't like this one bit. We had planned to do a Tarot card reading and it's been complete radio silence from her. Something is very wrong here, I hope it's not what I think it is.” Mandy said.
“Well, Fred hasn't shared any stories on finding bodies, so it's either a good sign, or the murderer did a good job of hiding the body.” Jill said.
“Let's hope that the person who took her is still holding her.” Mandy said.
Roger and Lana sat on the sofa, comfy as can be.
“One thing is certain, in my next life, I'm coming back as a cat. Look at those two. Not a care in the world and both relaxed and comfortable.” Jill said.
“Yes, the cat life is a life to be envied. Even dogs get around more. Not these guys. They sit around for hours. I'm going to take Roger for his exercise, otherwise, he's going to get fat.” Mandy said jokingly.
“Lana has to be careful too, or she's going to gain a couple of pounds as well.” Jill said laughing
“Yeah, when you put food in front of these cats, they eat as though they haven't seen food in years.” Mandy said.
“I'm going look at the notebook. I got an idea last night and want to explore if I can break whatever code they used to hide the people participating.” Jill asked.
“Sure, hey, two heads are better than one.” Mandy said.
Mandy procured the book where she had hidden it.
“Here you go. Wear these gloves. I've been wearing gloves so as not to get my fingerprints mixed up with whoever else's are on there.” Mandy said.
“Good thinking. We don't want them coming back to us later, saying that we screwed up whatever finger prints covered the notebook.” Jill said.
“Tomorrow I'll give the note book to Fred, and it will be out of my hair. Let them figure out what it is and who it belongs to.” Mandy said.
“Yes, the less involvement, the better. Of course, unless we figure out who the people represented in the book are and we can help Fred. He'd appreciate that.” Jill said.
“That continues to be a challenge for me, so if you figure it out, then we have a reason to explain why we held onto it for so long. However, I'm no closer to solving it than the first time I saw it, so be my guest and try to discover who those initials pertain to.” Mandy said.
During this back and forth, the phone rang.
“Hi Mandy, it's Fred, I wanted to make sure you're alright.”
“Hi Fred, thanks for calling. No, last night was uneventful, and I'm happy to say that the only sound other than ours came from crickets. Whoever is following me apparently only does so in the car. Still no communication from Cynthia. I tried calling again, but it goes right to voicemail.” Mandy said.
“We're investigating if anyone saw her in the last twenty four hours, but so far, I come up empty handed. This is the most frustrating case I've ever worked on. I'm still in the dark regarding Karen's murder and now nothing on Cynthia. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that there are professionals behind this, but why? Unless these two got themselves mixed up in something that we are not aware of, it doesn't make sense. Did Cynthia mention her extracurricular activities?” Fred asked.
“No, she just shared with me her unhappiness with her job, speculating what to do with her life, blowing off steam after recent events, which is understandable. But nothing that resembled a deep dark secret that she wanted to share with me. I had a reading scheduled with her, but here again, a simple general reading, not for focusing on trouble areas.” Mandy said.
“Well, call me if she reaches out to you, and I'll tell you if I come across anything.” Fred said.
“Will do Fred. Thanks for everything.” Mandy said.
They hung up and Mandy spoke with Jill.
“I gotta admit, it pays to be friends with the police chief. You definitely get attention that you wouldn't get otherwise.” Mandy said.
“Well, I think also your recent meetings with him regarding his work have been therapeutic for him. He's a good guy, and this is his way of saying thanks too.” Jill said.
“Yeah, he's doing better these days.
He's taking singing lessons and doing things for himself which are positive. But don't mention the singing unless he brings it up. I don't know if this something he's hiding, or if he wants it generally known. Although he did say that his teacher has the students give a mini concert at a local bar/club. So, maybe he wants to announce it then.” Mandy said.
“Oh, I'd love to go see him perform.” Jill said.
“Me too. Well, I'll keep you posted when it actually happens.” Mandy said.
Mandy looked around the room and noticed that Roger and Lana were over by the window. Mandy thought that this would be a good time to take Roger out for a walk.
“Jill, can I ask you to take care of Lana for a little while? I want to take Roger to the park and so he can get in his exercise and running. I'm sure Lana won't give you any problems. I'd love to take her, but if something happens to her, I'll never be able to explain it to her owners.” Mandy asked.
“Sure.” Jill said. “I'm sure you miss walking around town with him, and if there's anybody following you, Roger is as good as an attack dog, if anybody tries to get frisky.”
“Yes, I definitely feel safer having Roger with me during this time.” Mandy said.
“So yes, no problem, go to the park, I'll study the notebook and look after Lana. Not that it looks like she needs much taking care of, she's either sitting on the sofa or sleeping.” Jill said jokingly.
“She really is a mellow cat.” Mandy replied. “Well, I'll be back soon.”
Mandy got herself together and spoke to Roger.
“Roger, guess what? We're going to the park to play!”
Murder at the Pet Spa Page 13