Detective John

CHAPTER 3

Next morning, John left for the bank. Reaching there, he was immediately summoned to his Boss’s office.

“Look at me! Look! Who do you think you are? How dare you, a mere stock manager, threaten and intimidate people in my name? You have brought shame to my reputation! Say it! Can’t answer me, can you? Since you can’t, get out…get out of here! Get lost! You’re fired! Get lost!” The Boss screamed and threw whatever was in the office towards John while he got scared and ran from the office with his belongings.

When John came out of the bank, he saw that Ryan was standing with his car parked on the roadside. John ignored him but Ryan was not having it.

“Manager John, you lost your job so soon?” Ryan asked sarcastically and John turned around.

“The Daily Newspaper said that I was a murderer. They said I scratched the victim’s car and I also used my Boss to intimidate the victim. My Boss was so mad that I was fired immediately.” John exploded.

Hearing his outburst, Ryan laughed wholeheartedly but tried to control it when met with John’s deadliest glare and said “You better not offend a reporter, especially a reporter working in a tabloid.”

“That stupid girl! She’d better not let me see her again; otherwise, I’ll…” John trailed when Ryan warned “Let me remind you. Talk whatever you want, but don’t do anything. Otherwise, the next day your body will be found at the bottom of a river.”

“Then relay to her that I wish for her to be single and alone forever.” John said and was leaving when Ryan stopped him.

“Help me handle the cases. I will pay you the consultation fee. I will pay whenever a case is solved.” Ryan proposed.

“Sorry, but I’m not interested. All murder cases are full of negative emotions. Blood, Revenge, Conspiracy and Killing. It’s too gloomy. And I don’t want to be forced to do what I don’t want to do.” John replied.

After that, John left for home. When he returned, he saw that there was a power cut and his landlady was sitting on the sofa who actually came to collect the rent.

“Sister, give me some more time. All my money was spent on my stocks. That politician took so much money from me.” John requested to his landlady.

“Little John, you can pay your rent later, but at least pay your utility bills.” The landlady said smilingly.

“Rest assured. I will find a job soon. Please help me pay the utility bills and I will pay you back.” John replied and the landlady rolled her eyes.

Suddenly, the lights came and someone knocked at the door. John opened the door and saw Lily standing there. The landlady welcomed her into the house while John just stood there shocked.

Then, the landlady said pointing at Lily “She is the new tenant I found to share the house with you.”

“What is this? How can you do that? Do you know what she did to me? Besides, what rights do you have to let her move in?” John complained.

“I am the landlady. I have the right to ask her to move in, and I also have the right to kick you out. You can pay me the rent now, or you can think Lily for sharing the rent with you so that you won’t have to live in the streets.” The landlady said without giving any attention to John’s pleas.

“Mr. John, I hope we can be good roommates.” Lily said smugly.

On the other hand…..

There were a bunch of people sitting in a circle for a meeting.

“The British shouldn’t have been allowed to work in the concession zone from the beginning.You know it’s all your fault, don’t you?” Someone said.

“So, what if it is? At least he broke the case. No innocent people have been wrongly accused.” Another one defended.

“If the case continues to be investigated, more things are sure to come out sooner or later that will implicate us. That will anger the people, and the British will take the opportunity to infiltrate.” One of them panicked when another one said “Don’t worry, they don’t have the skill or the courage, for that matter.”

At that time, another one entered the meeting and whispered to his Boss “Sir, it’s all taken care of.”

“The entrepreneur is dead. Let’s put this case on the shelf for now. I want to find a new agent for the business as soon as possible. In future, you all need to be careful. Mr. Robert (Lily’s Father) appointed this inspector who cracked the case successfully.

We cannot put our reputation or even our lives on the line just to make a little bit of profit. We need to be careful about that! This is my first….and last warning to everybody. Okay?” The Boss warned everyone.

Next morning in John’s house……

Lily was cleaning the carpet when John said “What is the smell? Don’t you feel tired cleaning the carpet so early in the morning?”

“There will be mites on the carpet if I don’t clean it. My skin will be allergic.” Lily said while scrubbing the carpet.

“It’s so pungent. Close the door. Don’t disturb my breakfast.” John ordered.

John sat at the dining table with his breakfast when Lily snatched a piece and ate it. She moaned and said “You are a good cook.”

“Aye…When I eat, please don’t talk to me.” John said clenching his teeth.

“Do you think that I am a little annoying?” Lily asked sadly.

“Not a little. A lot.” John replied.

“I didn’t mean to make you unemployed. First of all, you used to be suspect of the murder. Right? You also did scratch a car. And you did intimidate others with your Boss’s reputation. Since those things are true, as a reporter, of course, I had to…..had to report what really happened. If it were you, you wouldn’t let me get away with it, right?” Lily asked innocently and John sat there helpless. At that time, Ryan too entered the house and sat at the dining table.

“Brother Ryan? The house warming party is not today. Why are you here?” Lily noticed him and asked.

“I am here for him.” Ryan said pointing at John. “Mr. John, there is a case that needs your help.”

“Sorry, I don’t have time. I have to go out and find a job.” John said.

“So busy? I will pay you.” Ryan replied in return.

“I want to find a proper job.” John argued.

“How about twenty silver dollars?” Ryan asked. John looked at him, quickly move forward and asked “How do I get paid?”

“If you solve the case, you get it. If you solve it in a day, you make yourself a sweet deal.” Ryan said.

“Pay me per day. Three silver dollars a day.” John bargained.

“That won’t work. Did you take me as an i***t? If you deliberately drag it for a month, I have to pay you ninety dollars.” Ryan caught John’s politics.

“Don’t worry about that. Within ten days, I will definitely solve the case.” John assured when Lily asked “Man, you haven’t been to the scene yet. Where’s your confidence from?”

“You will pay me by the day even if I can’t solve the case. Otherwise, you can go find someone else.” John said to both Lily and Ryan to which they finally agreed.

The trio reached the crime scene when Ryan started elaborating the situation “Sometime between midnight and the early morning hours today, a tram full of women workers in a textile mill disappeared into thin air at this intersection. Both the tram and the people on it. My boss is a shareholder of the tram company, so we have to solve this case quickly. If we cannot find the passengers, the company will lose a lot of money as compensation.”

At that time, John smelled something and asked “What is that smell? It’s not like firecrackers. It is so pungent.” “In front of the crime spot are the bell tower and residential buildings on three sides. How could the tram disappear under the eyes of everyone?”

There were many people surrounding the area when one lady answered “There was a dense fog here last night. You could see nothing. I live in that building from where I can see the whole area. ‘Last night I heard the tram just stopped halfway on the track. But when I opened the window, I couldn’t see anything clearly outside. I could hear all kinds of weird sounds : thudding and banging and howling of some beasts. It was scary.Then the fog dispersed, but the tram disappeared.’ She said.”

After hearing the lady, John was inspecting the area murmuring “Such big footprints. Tyrannosaurus rex?” Ryan heard and asked him about that.

“An extinct prehistoric creature. Gigantic and Brutal. In the age when they existed, they had no natural enemies.” John answered.

“How likely is that?” Ryan asked.

“Zero. A tyrannosaurus rex weighs several tons. It’s impossible for them to step on the bituminous street without breaking the road.” John said.

“A deceptive trick.” Ryan guessed.

“Yes. The pavement, tram track, and footprints of the scene are all just staged scenery. Someone deliberately planned it.” John said determined.

Ryan nodded and said “Such a large - scale operation needs a lot of people to cooperate. If they just wanted to h****k the tram, it wouldn’t be worth the effort. So I think it should not be a simple k********g case.”

“And the tram passengers are all workers from their night shifts. Their family wouldn’t be able to pay the ransom.” John said thinking.

Lily was taking pictures of the area and the people when an old lady screamed at her “What are you doing? I didn’t say you can film me! You are taking a picture of me!” Lily laughed and said “Auntie, this is not a camera. This is an artifact for exorcism. I am here to subdue monsters.”

“Then, where were you a few years ago? The old lady asked.

At the same time…..

John asked Ryan “Did Lily major in literature?”

“Business.” Ryan answered.

“Then, why would she choose to work as a reporter?” John asked getting curious to which Ryan said he need to ask her.

“What happened back then?” Ryan asked the old lady.

“Oh, that. Let me tell you. Three years ago, someone died at this very intersection. That man was an alcoholic. He was very drunk that night, got confused, and wandered around on the street. Somehow a wire fell down from the above. The man couldn’t even make a sound and died on the spot. When he was found, his body was already stiff.” The old lady explained.

“Was it a cable of the tram that fell off?” Lily asked.

“It was! That foreign thing! Let me tell you! Such evil things have destroyed our place. During the ancient times when we used wagons, we were okay for hundreds of years. Ever since these devils came, fear has spread throughout people living in our place which had been so good. What a devil’s deed!” The old lady exclaimed.

Ryan laughed and asked Lily “Would you like to check who she is talking about?”

“He was forty years old when he died. No family members. He made a living by collecting and selling scraps. After he died being electrocuted, the tram company buried his body.” Lily said.

“How do you know that?” John asked Lily surprised.

“All the news in the newspaper within the past ten years is all in my brain.” Lily said smirking.

“You really have a lot of time to spare.” John mocked giving her a thumbs - up.

“Ok…enough. John, come with me. We need to go to the power station to get them back to power and resume the tram service as soon as possible. If this goes on, it will escalate to a public event.” Ryan said and together they went to the power.

John was looking around the office and said “Is the power company so rich? This curtain is made of velvet. It is imported from France. They are so pricey.”

“People don’t nicknamed them electricity tiger for no reason.” Ryan said.

“This sofa is made of Italian calfskin! It takes six months to ship this to Britain. When the President comes, can you put in some good words for me?” John asked Ryan.

“Why? To look for a job? You don’t like solving crimes?” Ryan asked.

“Solving crimes is just for making a living. I still prefer a life where I just suit up and do nothing but have coffee and read the newspaper in my office.” John said arrogantly.

After sometime waiting, the President of the power company came. “I’m sorry for keeping you waiting for so long, Officer Ryan. I just came out from a board meeting.”

“It’s all right. President, I’m here for one reason. I hope you can restore the power supply as soon as possible. Consider it a personal favor. This matter really can’t be delayed. After all, there are thousands of people who need to take the tram to commute everyday.” Ryan requested and the President agreed while smoking.

“I don’t understand, why would anyone like to smoke cigars? It’s just looking for pain.” John asked.

“This is a handmade cigar. This is the Brazilian Royal Gift Box. The best tobacco in Cuba. This is the only box in the whole of Britain. Ohhhh……By the way, I found out the schedule. I’ll send someone to repair it as soon as possible to restore the power supply.” The President answered.

John and Ryan reached the police station and saw that many families of the deceased were protesting in front of the station. Ryan tries to handle the situation while John saw that Lily was instigating the people in the protesting parade and informed Ryan.

“Those families need an explanation. You as law enforcement cannot evade your responsibility.” Lily said.

“Who’s evading responsibility? Do you think I want to drag out this case? The longer it takes, the more money your father will lose. Will it kill you to grow up, Lily?” Ryan replied angrily. After that, nobody talked.

“What will we do now? We don’t have any clue, not even a direction to solve this case.” Ryan asked frustrated.

“Well, I have one clue.” John said smugly.

So, what do you think? What is the clue that John found out? And where are those female workers and even the whole tram that disappeared. Share if you like it and follow me to stay tuned.