The Suitcase

by T V Scribner

  Paisley, amused, accepted her apology, "I can imagine how you must feel! I just finished typing my own statement and it took me almost an hour. This has been quite a day!"

  "Why did you write a statement?"

  “Oh? I guess you haven’t heard…believe it or not, Millie, I was there when the body was discovered, and was the first one to check him to see if he was dead!"

  This caught Millie's attention. She stared at Paisley, replacing her quizzical look, with one of interest, instead, "Wow! How exciting! Hey—wanna go out for a bite after work? I've gotta hear all about this!" she said eagerly, as she blew upwards, to fluff her bangs, which were in her eyes, again.

  "Sure, that would be great, unless you’re planning to eat at Ben's Burgers!" Paisley chuckled, and Millie laughed out loud.

  “Good one, Pais!” and her mood lightened.

  Just then, Paisley's phone rang, “Paisley Ingles, may I help you?"

  “It’s Ben here, returning your call. I’m back from my meeting with Detective Boone—it didn't take very long.”

  "Oh, perfect,” Paisley said, "I want to stop by for a few minutes, and meet with you before things get busy at your place…if that’s okay? Besides, I could use an ice-cold Diet Coke,” she laughed, “I never finished the ones served to me earlier!”

  "Yep, that works fine, see you soon,” he said

  She powered off her phone. “Hey, Millie, I'm running over to Ben's Burgers for a while, and when I return, we'll decide where to eat. In the meantime, I'm printing my report, and I'll delivery it to Detective Boone's office, myself,” and Paisley pushed print.

  “Gotcha, Pais,” Millie answered, over the noise of the printer.

  The new nickname amused her. Only Millie, called her “Pais”. She grabbed her things, turned off the computer, put the report in a folder and rushed out of the office. Boone wasn’t in his office when she stopped by, so she set it on his desk, and left the precinct.

  The drive to Ben's Burgers was uneventful, and fifteen minutes later, she parked in front, and was immediately accosted by the aroma of burgers being broiled over an open flame. This served to remind her she had nothing to eat, except Aunt Olga's muffins. Entering the establishment, she observed that a slight air of uneasiness and concern among the employees, still prevailed.

  Ben, a concerned look on his face, brightened when he saw her enter. She took off her sunglasses and put them on her head—as usual. She had a habit of wearing them all day long--either on her nose or her head! When people asked why she left them on her head, she laughed, "Because then, I always know where to find them!"

  Ben greeted her and called for someone to bring a large Diet Coke. It appeared instantly and he handed it to her, with a smile adding, "If you'd like anything else, it's on the house.”

  "Hey, thanks!" She took a long drink to quench her thirst before saying, “Ahh…that's much better, and if it's not too much trouble, I think I’d like a small Ben's Burger—I cant’t resist—it smelled so delicious when I entered from the parking lot.”

  "Done—hey Max!—a small Ben's Burger for Paisley," he yelled to the cook.

  As they walked towards the back, she began, ”Ben, you returned from police headquarters a little while ago, and you've spoken with Detective Boone, but I'd like a chance to ask a few questions myself, before you have to go back to work."

  "Sure, what can I do for you? Come on, step behind the counter here, and we'll go to my office where we can talk privately."

  "Thanks, Ben."

  They threaded their way through the kitchen, where cooks were busy making chicken sandwiches and dumping fry baskets onto trays to be salted. Max handed her the burger she requested, in a red plastic basket with some added fries, as she walked by, and she thanked him, as she continued to follow Ben. Her hands were full with the basket of food and her drink, as they stopped at a small office off the hallway, which led to the cooler and freezer. Paisley, glanced at the cooler, and gave an involuntary shudder, before turning to enter Ben's office. Although the office was small, Ben managed to find a folding chair for her.

  “Have a seat and fire away," he said in a weary voice turning to face her, as he leaned against the edge of his desk, crossing his arms over his chest.

  She took a bite of her burger and had to finish chewing before she could speak, “Sorry, this is so delicious! Getting to the point, I’m sure you answered these questions for Detective Boone, but I want to ask anyway. What do you know about the victim? I have a few questions, too."

  "Here's what I know. Gregore, came here on a work Visa from Russia, and although he'd been in a little trouble with the law, I'm the kind of guy who likes to help others—even give second chances to people who are down on their luck!”

  "Yes, I know what a kind person you are,” Paisley smiled. “However, maybe you were too kind, in this instance."

  “Maybe,” Ben hung his head for an instant, then continued, “but, when he first started working here, he did a great job, but then got in trouble for violating his probation...he was involved in some minor shoplifting. I almost fired him. I had second thoughts when he came to talk to me…he was extremely remorseful. He made restitution, and was very sincere about wanting a second chance rather than be fired, so I agreed to keep him on staff. He is—was—a very capable worker after that, and I had no problems with him, at all."

  Paisley, who had devoured the last of her burger, nodded her head and continued to eat her fries, while listening, "How long did he work here?"

  Ben thought for a second, then said, "A little over six months, I guess? He enrolled at the college as part of his student visa requirements, and was a good student, as far as I know. But, to keep his visa status and parole officer happy, he had to keep his grades up, and stay gainfully employed.”

  "Do you have any idea what happened, or who would do this?"

  He sighed, "No idea...no idea at all. At first, I thought maybe it was a robbery-gone-bad, with Gregore caught in the middle. So, I checked all the registers to see if they'd been tampered with, but I found nothing unusual.”

  “Did you find anything at all, missing?” Paisley asked.

  “Not really, until I went to find Gregore's personnel file to take to Detective Boone. When I first walked in, I noticed things seemed slightly out of place." As he said this, he moved his arm in a sweeping gesture around the room. “As you can see, there's a lot of stuff in here, and I'm the only one who would know if something was out of place. The employees would never be able to tell because, sad to say, I keep a pretty messy office all the time anyway! However, I could tell."

  During his explanation, she managed to finish her fries and pop, before asking, "Did you find anything missing?"

  "No," he answered, “it was just that things seemed a little out of place, so I checked for the important papers, and nothing was missing, as far as I could tell."

  Gazing around the small office, Paisley couldn't deny its appearance was very disorganized. It was as if someone opened a window in the middle of a hurricane, and it had its way with the paperwork! Paisley knew people who functioned perfectly in situations, where their office and desktop always looked like a tornado had passed through, and the stacks of important files and papers, were in piles, with no apparent rhyme or reason, as to their placement. She always marveled at their ability to seemingly find anything they needed in the chaos—Paisley was not one of these people!

  "So, as far as you can tell, nothing is missing?” she repeated.

  "Not exactly, what I did see, was employee files apparently disturbed. I always keep them on top of the printer, and when I came in, some were mixed in with the papers, on my desktop. However, nothing was missing, so I don't see how this has anything to do, with the death of Gregore?"

  "Every piece of information helps," she said, “could it be vandalism? Could Gregore have caught the vandal or vandals in the act, and then they ‘accidentally’ killed him? What was Gregore's last name, again? I forgot what you told me earlier tod
ay." Paisley searched for a waste basket where she could throw her cup and food wrappers away, but didn't see one.

  "His last name was Kamorov.”

  "Yes…now I remember." Paisley thought, for a moment and asked, "Do you recall which files were mixed in the papers on your desk?" She craned her neck to glance around again, for a waste basket, and still finding nothing, gave up.

  "Yes, now that you mention it," he said contemplatively, "one of the files did happen to be Gregore’s!” His face brightened at the recollection.

  "And the other files?"

  “I don't remember, because they were all scattered amidst my other papers, so I gathered them together to take care of later, but I do remember Gregore's file, because I was looking for it to take to the meeting, with Detective Boone. It was on the top of the pile, and I thought, what a coincidence? So I had one of my assistant managers put the rest of the files away, because I was called to the front to handle an unhappy customer."

  Paisley stood to leave, but hesitated a moment, remembering the tiny black flash drive, and reached into her purse to retrieve it, then held it out to Ben.

  "I found this on the floor earlier this morning, and picked it up so I wouldn't step on it...at first I thought it was my chapstick, but obviously it wasn't, so I figured it must belong to you.”

  Ben took it from her. "What is it?” he said, as he rolled it over in his hand.

  "It's a flash drive."

  "What's a flash drive?"

  He stared back at her with a confused expression on his face, and handed it back.

  "It's used to store information from a computer," she informed him, puzzled at his response.

  Looking at her perplexedly, he replied, "For a computer? Nah, I wouldn't have anything like that! I leave all the computer stuff to my wife, who handles everything to do with our business. I don't know my way around computers at all and have no desire to learn,” he held up a hand, “no offense or anything,” and his brow furrowed with concern, his thin lips pursed and his brown eyes, which usually sparkled, exhibited stress, instead.

  "I understand. Computers aren't for everyone. Well, if this isn't yours," she persisted, "would you ask your wife and your employees if they’re missing a flash drive? Please let me know when you find its owner—I’d be frantic if I lost one of mine! Call me as soon as possible if you can, because if I can't find out who the owner is, I'll have another mystery on my hands—and we wouldn't want that!" She laughed.

  "Will do! Thanks for your concern, Paisley."

  "I'll check in again, if I find out anything else, Ben."

  "Please do," Ben said, "our talk was helpful. It would be great if you figured out what happened. Also, please give your Aunt my best.”

  Paisley said she would, and urged Ben once more, to poll his wife and the employees about the flash drive, then starting to leave, she turned to him and pressed her card into his hand, "Call me as soon as you find the flash drive's owner."

  Paisley left his office and wound her way through the kitchen, around the counter, and before she went out the door, threw her cup and burger wrappers in the nearest trash receptacle, pausing to wave at Julia and Jerry, as she continued to her Jeep. Now, it was back to the office to take care of a few more things before going home to change clothes and meet Millie for dinner.

  CHAPTER 9

  Brainerd Paisley and Millie had agreed to meet for dinner at Applebee’s, which was in Brainerd, not far from the precinct, in Pinecrest. Millie arrived first, parked and waited at the door. When Paisley arrived, she greeted her as enthusiastically, as a puppy whose owner comes home.

  "I can't believe how fast you tore into the parking lot Pais—you're gonna get a ticket one of these times!" Millie said, and laughed.

  "Coming from California where everyone speeds, didn't prepare me for the slower pace of a small town—I guess I'm still not used to it?” She said, in defense.

  They entered Applebee’s, and were greeted by the hostess. Paisley noticed her friend had changed from her office attire, into a casual pair of jeans with a muted blue sweater and a light brown jacket. Paisley, still wearing dark jeans from work, had changed her blouse, to a long-sleeved shirt and jeans jacket.

  Paisley always had fun with Millie Adams, who was a year or two older, and also divorced, which gave them something in common. Occasionally, they grabbed a bite to eat or caught a movie. Slightly taller than Paisley, Millie always seemed to be dieting, even though she didn't need to.

  "I have to watch what I eat, or I won't fit in my clothes," Millie reasoned. Her sandy-blonde hair, was worn in a medium bob, with bangs a little too long, giving her face a look similar, on occasion, to an English Sheep dog. She needed to continually fluff her bangs off her face, so she could see.

  The waitress seated them in a window booth, and handed them menus, which they both studied, amidst a flurry of conversations, about the day. Their two personalities meshed well, because they both had a sense of humor, which made office sharing fun, even though their work styles were veery different. Millie tended to be more chaotic in her approach, while Paisley's style was ordered and neat—not a problem, so far.

  Both enjoyed shopping, but lately, since the weather turned milder, they bundled up, and rode bikes. Paisley preferred to run, but Millie didn’t, so they road bikes instead, to enjoy the beauty of Minnesota. The Paul Bunyan Bike Trail, was easy to access, stretching from Brainerd, to Bemidji, which was situated on the northwest border of Minnesota and Canada. They never went far, only an hour or so up the trail, and back again..

  On their last ride, Millie said, "I know a couple of great guys, Pais, and I'm gonna set you up with one of them, so we can double date!"

  And Millie did set her up! However, after one blind date, which didn't go very well, Paisley told her, “Thanks for the help, Millie, but I'm just not interested in getting involved with anyone, right now."

  "All right," she’d said reluctantly, "I'll stop playing cupid—but—I’m not totally giving up, just in case I find a special guy for you!”

  As long as Millie understood, Paisley grinned and said, "Okay, but he'll have to be very special."

  The waitress returned to take their orders. Paisley decided on boneless chicken wings and a side salad, while Millie ordered the Chicken Dinner Special, which included fries, a side salad and mixed vegetables. Paisley smiled to herself as she listened to Millie's order—so much for her diet! The menus were collected and as soon as the waitress left, they continued their conversation.

  "Ahh, it's nice to finally sit and relax," and no sooner had Paisley said that, than here came the waitress again, bringing the Diet Cokes they'd ordered.

  Once again, the waitress left, giving Millie the opportunity to put her arms on the table, lean forward eagerly and say, "Okay, spill it! I want to know everything! What did you see? How did the dead body look, and who did it? I've been waiting all day to hear the details!"

  Paisley grinned and said, "All in good time," loving her chance to keep Millie in suspense.

  "C'mon, Pais!" she whined, "I've been patient—don't keep me in suspense any longer—tell me!"

  "Shhhh!" Paisley cautioned, “Not so loud, people are looking at us,” she said, in a low voice, “and I don't want them to hear what I have to say."

  She scanned the room, and peered surreptitiously, over both shoulders. Having satisfied herself that the diners had turned their attention back to their meals, in a soft whisper, she recounted everything—including what it was like, and how it felt when she first saw the body!

  "I literally switched into clinical mode! It was amazing!" Embellishing the details a tad, to make it sound more gruesome than it really was, she laughed, as Millie listened with rapt attention, and respect.

  "Wow! You handled that situation so professionally!" She loved every minute of Paisley's story.

  Paisley glanced down demurely, "Well, I certainly didn't expect a day like this one, when I woke up this morning!"

  "Oh, it sounds posit
ively exciting—you're a real Nancy Drew!" And as she spoke excitedly, Millie waved her hands around, and almost knocked over her drink.

  Paisley looked around again, to make sure people weren’t looking at them.”Not quite," she laughed, “but thanks for the acknowledgement, and take it easy—not so loud!" She shushed her again. "I think you're getting a little carried away, but the whole thing sure did get my adrenaline going!"

  Their food finally came, and they continued talking about the murder, between bites. "I learned a few things too,” Millie said, “…from the Ben's Burgers employees' statements, which I typed up, this afternoon.”

  “What did you find out?” Paisley paused and looked curiously at Millie.

  “For one thing, someone searched Ben's office—probably the killer—and also, several workers, reported the freezer was ransacked!"

  "What? The freezer was fine when I was in there?”

  “It's true!” Millie said, “Boxes of frozen foods were opened, their contents dumped out, then returned to their containers in great disarray. The flaps were re-closed and the containers put back on the shelves, making everything look untouched!”

  "I can't believe it!"

  “No lie! This came from two of the employees' statements, who were tasked with cleaning the freezer after the investigators gave them the okay.”

  "That's such a peculiar thing to do?" Paisley remarked. "What would some killer be looking for in a fast food place—especially in the freezer—and, in boxes of frozen foods?"

  “I know,” Millie quipped, "maybe he—or she—was looking for some cold, hard cash!" And they both began laughing.

  They dropped the murder talk and indulged themselves by sharing a large, chocolate-covered brownie, topped with a dollop of whipped cream. They decided to call it a night, and go their separate ways. Paisley paid the bill, and they headed out into the cool spring night.

  "Your turn to pay next time," Paisley called out to Millie, as she waved goodbye.