Human Collateral

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 1The case load at Miles Darien Investigations had increased dramatically over the past six months. Nothing like solving a couple of high profile cases to generate a flow of new business. Particularly considering their scope and diverse nature. The one that received the most notoriety required thwarting a corrupt political party’s efforts to discredit an opponent’s campaign by framing Jack McKay, its campaign manager, for a horrible crime he didn’t commit. In the other, Miles unraveled a complex scheme by a team of arsonists to defraud RightStone, a Lakeview based insurance company. In each case, Miles was the force that exposed the wrongdoing. That string of successes necessitated today’s first order of business: seeking applicants for a badly needed assistant’s position.

Miles began reading some of the help wanted ads on the Lakeville Examiner’s website for help with creating his own. He grabbed a couple of sentences from an ad for a dental receptionist and then posted a reworded version to fit the job he was offering.

That task completed, he turned his attention to the three new cases he had been hired to solve: missing merchandise from a retail store, an identity theft, and finding a potential witness to a car accident.

Just as he began reviewing his notes, the phone rang.

“Miles Darien,” he answered.

“Hello, Mr. Darien.” The caller’s voice was deep and authoritarian. “This is Christopher Chapman of Chapman’s Department Store. We spoke a couple of weeks ago about the rash of unsolved retail thefts at our store. I’m concerned that I haven’t heard back from you about this.” The air of impatience in Mr. Chapman’s voice was unmistakable.

“Well, Mr. Chapman, the good news is I’ve uncovered the ‘how it was done’ part of the case. Someone turned off the surveillance cameras for about ten minutes several times over the past month. Each time between midnight and two am. The question I’m still investigating is the ‘who’.”

“How did you uncover the gap in the camera footage?”

“In reviewing recent footage of each camera, I saw the clock on the wall shown on one of the rooms didn’t match the timer on the camera recording. Unfortunately I could only check the last two weeks as the previous footage had been recorded over. Can you get me a list of all of your employees, former employees, or anyone else who may have had access to the office where the cameras are controlled?”

“Of course. You’ll have it by the end of the day.”

“Thanks. I’ll get moving on the list as soon as I get it.”

Mr. Chapman’s voice had taken a softer, more relaxed tone. “Please keep me posted on your progress. I’m sure you understand that it’s not so much the loss of the merchandise that concerns me. It’s having a thief under our roof.”

“I do understand. I’ll be in touch soon.”

Returning to the other two cases he had been working on, Miles noticed his red email icon showing the number 24 highlighted in white on the top of his computer screen. In the short time he was on the phone with Mr. Chapman, his inbox had exploded with emails from numerous prospective applicants for his assistant’s position. He decided to turn his attention to them, rationalizing that getting an assistant would allow him the time to devote his full attention to his cases.

After reviewing all of the emails, one stood out. Anne Jeffries had been a legal assistant for a criminal defense attorney who was retiring. He replied to her email offering a couple of times the following day for an interview and then turned to his case reviews.

Once again he was interrupted by his phone ringing. This time, he immediately recognized the caller’s number displayed on the screen. It was his boyhood friend, Ryan Duffy.

“Hey, Ryan. What’s up?” Miles asked.

“I’m calling with a request.” There was a definite excitement in Ryan’s voice. “I’m working on a project that’s due in a few days. Once I’ve submitted it, I’d like to come for a visit. I really could use some time away.”

“Not sure. Let me check my reservation log to see if the guest room’s going to be available,” Miles joked.

“I haven’t even given you any dates yet!” Ryan shouted in mock anger.

This type of back and forth had been a mainstay of their relationship going back to elementary school.

“Just let me know your dates and flight information,” said Miles. “I’ll do my best to open up my schedule so we can have some quality time to hang out.”

“Great. Does the need to clear your schedule mean your PI business has taken off?” Ryan asked.

“It really has. Bringing down Randall Davies and his corrupt political cronies was like setting off fireworks.”

“That gives me a great idea for my next article. ‘Gay, Jewish Private Investigator from New York City becomes the go-to detective in Lakeville, Wisconsin. I’m sure the Times will eat it up.”

“Very funny. Listen, I couldn’t be happier that you’re coming. I’ve been working non-stop for weeks. I’m not complaining but I could also use some time off and it’ll be great to share it with you.”

“Perfect. I’ll keep you posted as my travel plans crystalize. Bye.”

Ryan hung up. He had won this round of their ongoing competition as to who gets the last word.

No more stalling, he thought as he returned to the case files in front of him. He had to finish them or there would be no time off to spend with his old friend.