Lost a Home

Sitting at my desk, filing the last of my cases I finished not too long ago. It wasn’t a big case. Just a cheating spouse case. Pays the bills. It is all anyone wants from you in the private sector. Most of the exciting stuff is handled by those who follow district lines and have a boss. I feel like neither of us are appreciated by the general public if they even think we exist. And we aren’t paid well. People always want information but the ones in need can never pay and the ones who never like to.

I do this because I can’t do anything else. Too rude to be in customer service. Too refined for construction. Creative enough to think outside the box but not enough to be an artist. It helped me figure out how people thought. How I could get ahead of them even though I was starting out steps behind them. Trying to catch up and beat them at their own game. If I wasn’t so blinded by justice I would have probably been a better career criminal.

The green hotel light came beaming through the window marking the end of my personal shift. I only started closing the doors at this time because that light started giving me a headache. I didn’t seem to miss out on any business. I was just up and doing paperwork anyway. Nobody bothered me when the streetlights came on anyway.

Besides the fact that it got me out in time for the happy hours at the bar I liked to hit. Just as I grabbed the glass knob to my door I heard a knocking coming from the other side. Quickly but silently I walked over to my coat hanger in a corner of the office and put my coat back up to stage it for the little theater I was going to put on for whoever was at the door.

“Come in,” I yelled through the portal. “It’s unlocked.”

Denny walked through. “Hey, Frank. Have you thought about the case I asked for help with?”

“I thought it was someone important.” I ribbed back at him. “I put my coat up to make it look like I was just leaving and everything.”

“We both know it is a surprise that you wouldn’t be at the bars already.” Denny joked back. “Besides, what is so important going on for you right now? Did Mrs. Danaby get caught cheating again? I swear they are making you a part of their night play antics at this point.”

“It does feel that way sometimes. It is almost like she works it for the camera like she knows she is being watched. Not for whoever she is with. But that isn’t who I was tailing. Just some side piece who didn’t know she was seeing a married man.” I wasn’t happy about it. Though if people get their relationships under control all of a sudden I would be pretty much out of a job.

“Come on. Let’s get a drink and talk about this case. I need someone to bounce off some ideas. Someone who would know something.” He took that last jab at me as I followed him out putting my coat on after I locked the door.

Sitting there in my favorite dingy bar, we were sharing a good dark Irish beer. The lighting was just strong enough to mask our faces to people outside of earshot. It was the biggest reason I liked this place. Plenty of people were trying to hide who they were and what they were doing. I solved many cases here. And only one of them led to an arrest in this bar. The owner didn’t like that. Wasn’t allowed in for a couple of months.

Denny shuffled some papers over to me. They were disorganized in a folder. “You expect me to go through this?” I asked, trying to sound offended. “Can’t you give me the cliff notes?”

“Do you already know who it is?” Denny asked.

“How do I know who it is if I don’t know what it is about?” I asked even though I had a good idea it was from a case he was struggling with from a week ago. Something about a small series of homicides that are related to some stabbings that have been happening around the area. He was missing most of the information since some other stabbings might have been linked if they were in the same district. This guy kept them far enough apart and in such a large berth of the city area that it was harder for them to link these deaths.

He let out a sigh. “Look man these stabbings have been…”

I cut him off. “Look, reach out to some of the other precincts about their stabbings. They might have some more information for you. Maybe things might not be so hard for you.” I gave him the playful smile that might have been heavily shadowed by the poor lighting.

He took back his papers. “You’d be a great addition to the force. You’d help take a lot of crime off the streets, Frank.” It almost looked like he was disappointed in himself for trying again. And to be honest I was starting to consider it. “He doesn’t want to hire you as a contractor or consultant. In fact the chief doesn’t even want me talking to you until you get your own badge.”

“I know, buddy.” I said as I finished the last of my drink. “And I think, between you and the economy, I might have been talked into it.”

“Drinks are on me tonight.” Denny finished his right behind me.

“Thanks,” I said as I walked out into the green and blue lights of the city enveloping me from the doorway into the outside world.

By

Stephen Donnelly