Act Normal, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 9

by William Manchee

do you think I'm off the hook?" he asked.

  "Well, I wouldn't say that. I'll know more after I talk to Richard Francis. It just depends on what he's uncovered since the last time we talked to him. There isn't anything I need to be worried about, is there?"

  "What do you mean?" Stanley asked.

  "You haven't forgotten to tell me anything, have you?"

  "No. No. I've told you everything that is relevant."

  I hated it whenever a client used the word relevant. It meant they were hiding something. "You let me decide if something is relevant. I need to know everything."

  "I've told you everything," Stanley insisted.

  I didn't press the issue, but I wasn't convinced he had told me everything. I just wondered what he had left out and if it would turn out to be important. I prayed it wouldn't.

 

  19

  The Rub

  Stan Turner

  The next day Tehra and I were the first to arrive at the office. I had told her on the way in that we'd have to postpone her move by a week since I had to file a chapter 11 for the Stover’s. I could tell she was disappointed but she didn't complain. I had explained to her how Ben and Alice Stover had been good clients over the years and that I had to help them out in their time of need. She said she respected my loyalty and wanted to help.

  Later, from behind my desk, I said, "You can come if you want, but it's not going to be very exciting. I'm going to be hold up in Ben's office gathering information about his company. I'm sure you could find something more interesting to do here in Dallas. Maybe you could do some shopping. I promise I'll help you move next weekend."

  She was seated in a side chair across the desk from me. She leaned forward. "No. I'd rather be with you. I don't know anybody and it's lonely on the weekends. Besides, you'll be tired when you come back Saturday night and shouldn't be driving alone."

  Her logic was impeccable and I certainly enjoyed her company, so I didn't resist further. I was learning a lot about Tarizon and I wanted to learn more. I guess it was a way to feel closer to Peter.

  "Okay, then. I'll pick you up in the morning at seven. We've got to be there by nine."

  She smiled, seemingly satisfied that she'd got her way, and then her face turned serious. "I've been studying the Wenzel file," she said, "and I was wondering what you were going to do to prove her innocence."

  I shrugged somewhat amused. "Good question." Tehra had figured out exactly where we were on the case—nowhere. I was clueless as to what I should do next. She smiled sympathetically.

  "Any suggestions?" I asked hopefully.

  "Well, you could find an alibi for Charlotte."

  "I've tried that," I replied, "but until they found Jill's body we didn't even know the time frame needed for an alibi."

  "But now you do. Charlotte wasn't there when Jill died, you know that, so all you have to do is find out the time of death and prove Charlotte was somewhere else."

  "Okay, that makes sense. I guess we need to go talk to the medical examiner again and then get our client in here to see if she can help us figure out an alibi."

  Tehra smiled. I was quickly learning that she was one smart alien. "So, is everyone on Tarizon as smart as you?" I asked.

  She laughed. "Not necessarily any smarter, but the people on Tarizon get a far superior education."

  "Do they?" I asked.

  "Yes. With the help of powerful mind-stimulating drugs and advanced computer technology, learning is fast and efficient on Tarizon—usually just six to eight months to get the equivalent of a college education."

  "Whoa! Don't tell my kids that. They'll all want to go to Tarizon."

  She smiled. "No, they wouldn't. At least not now with the conditions that exist there. It's a world struggling for survival."

  I shook my head trying to imagine what it must be like living in a constant haze and not being able to see the sun. I wondered how Peter was doing there. He was in a domed city, I knew that, so he could at least breathe. Was he happy? He seemed to be in the brief film clips I'd seen, but they were carefully selected, I was sure. Tehra must have sensed my worry. She sighed.

  "Thinking of Peter?"

  I turned and looked at her. "Are you physic too?"

  She nodded. "Maybe, a little."

  I laughed. "Jesus. A woman who can read my mind. That's scary."

  "I can't read your mind, but I'm trained to sense your moods. What can I do to make you feel better?"

  I considered her question for a moment and then replied, "I saw a clip of Peter in a restaurant with a judge and his daughter. I was wondering where they were and who the girl was."

  "Oh. That must have been Counselor Garcia and his daughter Lorin. The restaurant probably was in the capital city of Shisk."

  "Shisk?"

  "Right. It's in Turvin, in the province of Soni."

  "Hmm. Did you say Garcia? That's—"

  She laughed. "Yes, another Earthchild. What can I say?"

  "It’s just an impossible situation to know Peter is out there but realizing I'll never see him again, at least in person."

  "You don't know that. If you serve faithfully, they may bring Peter back or let you go visit him."

  I frowned. "Do you really think that, or are you just trying to make me feel better?"

  I wasn't stupid. I knew her loyalties were to Tarizon and she'd tell we whatever I wanted to hear. Besides, Kulchz or one of his men was probably listening, so even if she wanted to be honest, she'd have to be very careful.

  She sighed. "Come here and sit next to me," she said softly. Our eyes met and I felt myself being drawn toward her She smiled wryly and patted the side chair next to hers. "Come here. You're all stressed out. I'll give you a rub."

  "A rub?" I said amused at the term.

  "A massage. You know what I mean. I'm very good at it. You'll feel much better when I'm done."

  I shrugged and got up. My shoulders were quite tight and I could feel the beginnings of a headache coming on." I walked over slowly and sat down next to her as commanded.

  "Close your eyes, take a few deep breaths, and try to relax," she said as she got up and maneuvered herself behind me. Her hands moved quickly over my neck and shoulders. The tension began to melt away as she worked seemingly effortlessly to beguile every angry muscle into submission. I almost moaned it felt so good. My head was beginning to clear and in just minutes I was feeling like a new man, then I heard footsteps. I opened my eyes and looked toward the door. Jodie's mouth was wide open. I stood up and smiled.

  "Jodie. Good morning!" I said trying to hide my embarrassment. "Tehra's gives a hell of a massage if you ever feel stressed out." Jodie shook her head and walked away.

  I looked at Tehra and rolled my eyes. "That felt really good, but I guess this isn't the place to be getting a rub."

  She gave me a wink. "This weekend I'll give you a proper one when we are alone and there won't be any interruptions."

  Her promise stirred a part of me that had been dormant for months. I went back to my chair and sat down trying to conceal my excitement. "Okay, that sounds promising," I said wriggling in my chair, "but I doubt we'll have much of an opportunity for that at Ben Stover's office."

  She shrugged. "Don't worry. We'll find the right moment."

  I raised my eyebrows and looked away. She stifled a laugh and tried to look serious. Finally she said, "I'll go see if I can set up an appointment for you to see the medical examiner."

  I nodded. "Good idea."

  Tehra left and went back to her work station. I wondered what Jodie was thinking. Would she think I was sleeping with Tehra? I sighed. Shit! Why had I let her give me a massage. How stupid could I have been! Jodie would go straight to Paula to gossip about what she'd seen. Now, if Paula didn't already suspect something, she'd definitely be convinced of it. That would really piss her off because she'd been trying to seduce me for years and I'd managed to resist her. I wondered if I'd be able to resist Tehra.

  It wasn't long before
Tehra was back proudly announcing that the Hunt County Medical Examiner had agreed to see us at 3:00 P.M. that afternoon. That was perfect since it would give us all morning to work on the chapter 11. We had lots to do since several motions had to be filed immediately after the bankruptcy case was opened. We could get drafts of those done before we had to leave for Greenville. It was about an hour to Greenville from Dallas so if we left at 1:00 p.m. that would give us time to get there and then get some lunch before our meeting.

  About mid-morning, while we were in the midst of our work, Paula looked in on us. She'd obviously talked to Jodie as she had an icy look on her face. I smiled and asked, "Hey. How's the case going?"

  When Paula hesitated, Tehra got up and excused herself. Paula sat down in her place next to me. I was afraid I was about to get a lecture, but Paula restrained herself. Instead she began giving me a rather detailed account of her and Bart's progress on the Chester Brown case. I was impressed.

  "That's great. So, with a little luck you'll have your man off the hook."

  "Maybe, if he's not hiding something," she said and then recounted her fear that he was.

  "He may not be. You never know. He may just be the paranoid type. A lot of people are like that. They can't imagine a day going by without some sort of trouble and they are always fearful of retribution for even the tiniest of transgressions."

  "So, anything new on Charlotte's case?" she asked. I told we were going out to meet the medical examiner. She said she knew him and he'd be open and candid with me. Then she changed the subject.

  "So, what's the real story with Tehra," she asked. "She's not just an intern. You don't