Ghost Detectives Bk. 01: Discovery

He wanted to see the location where the abduction would take place and an hour later he was parking his car in the next street, caution being the operative word in case his car was identified when questions were asked after the event. Walking down the street he passed the house, noticing a bike against the wall which wasn't in the video, but that meant nothing. The roof tiles were a different colour. No chimney but one clearly displayed on the video, a hedge to the left of the property but in the video a wooden fence painted green. The deeper he looked the great the differences; he walked into a nearby cafe and ordered a coffee and a meal and sat to think what it meant.

He had studied mirror realities, multi and bubble dimensions, but where James had been couldn't be a mirror reality or it would show the exact same characteristics and this wasn't the case. He had overlooked something. A mirror means that what is looked at is the same without deviation. The other dimension didn't fit into any of the theories that were expounded in the technical journals, still, it was the case that what happened in the other dimension, or something almost similar happened in his a few weeks later. There was no deviation; hold on a minute, he said to himself, the train attack almost certainly was a location deviation, but his thought processes soon hit a brick wall, the mirror had over a longer period reasserted itself. The only difference, location change, but others had died at Waterloo that would normally have lived, then it hit him. He had the answer all along he just needed to let the fog in his mind clear. There could be profound differences in location, people, buildings, even hills or mountains providing none of it altered the timeline of history. What happened in the interim was unimportant providing the end result was the same.

That evening he discussed what he had learned as the three sat around the kitchen table to plan where they went and how they intended to handle the Sandra Ellis murder. John letting them know that he was meeting up with Courtney the following day for lunch and how he intended to play his part in gaining her confidence. Carolyn had also accepted an invitation from Simon for dinner on Thursday the following week. The rest of the evening was given over to watching television and ordering a Chinese takeaway accompanied by a bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pap.

Twelve thirty the following day saw John waiting for Courtney to turn up at the La Trattoria, a chic discrete Italian restaurant just outside of town. He waited for over twenty minutes and started to accept she may not turn up when he saw her walking through the front door waved and walked towards the table.

"Held up, sorry, free now for most of the afternoon."

"Drink?"

"Gin and tonic, please," venturing her best killer smile at him.

He called the waiter, her drink soon arrived and they ordered their meal. She knew what she wanted without looking at the menu, scallops in a dill sauce, asparagus with a side salad. He a fish cutlet in an parsley sauce with vegetables of the day and a bottle of Joseph Drouhin, Puligny-montrachet Premier Cru Les Folatières."

"I'm impressed, John, you have style."

"The way you look only the best will do."

"My inhibitions fall from high when drinking wine."

He smirked giving her a wicked wink. "I'll be at the bottom to catch you."

"I hope you can hold me falling from that height, I may well bounce quite a bit and wriggle even more." Her words thickly coated with sexual innuendo.

John, not to be outwitted, kept with the imagery. If you wriggle too much you may wriggle out of your clothes and end up falling onto something hard."

"I think we should change direction and bring the conversation back to respectability," giggling like a schoolgirl caught looking at a playgirl magazine.

They chatted generally, nothing too heavy or controversial, covering politics, her work with the law courts, his work within astrophysics, in which she showed a keen interest, and asked him if she could accompany him the next time he stargazed. He spent the next twenty minutes explaining the cosmos making it as interesting as possible and believed her interest was more than superficial but needed to change the subject without appearing to probe.

"Your turn now, you must preside over some interesting cases. The excitement must be palpable. Murder, rape, debauchery, fraud, divorce and all that stuff."

"I haven't done a lot with divorce for quite some time, or fraud come to that."

"What about that serial rapist, the one local to us, he was caught a few months back. Did you have anything to do with that."

"Hasn't come to trial yet, but I am not involved."

"It's kind of your brother to help my sister in her research with this guy Ellis. She has had a few meetings at the prison with him and it irks her to pretend she has any empathy with the guy, but where needs must... You know what I mean? She's even taken her husband along a few times."

"I've not met her husband, he seems a really nice guy from what I know of him." Fishing for his feelings.

"All right, I suppose, we get along of a sort. As marriages go, she gets along with James about as well as I do. Carolyn lives quite an independent existence. He plagues her all the time to have another child, but to date, she's shown little interest. I know he's not very happy about her procrastination, still, that's life. I shouldn't be saying this, it shows disrespect against my sister and I'd don't want to give you that impression, we are close, very close." Telling her exactly what she wanted to hear.

"It seems to me as if James is the problem."

"Don't take offence but can we change the subject." He had made his point and she'd got the message he wanted her to hear, now he needed to focus on the real reason he invited her to lunch. "Let me pour you some more wine. Now, where was I?"

"The Sandra Ellis murder."

"Of course, if this goes well Carolyn may even write a book about it but that would have to come after his conviction. I know you'll have to be circumspect with what you say until after the trial, I'm assuming you'll be involved." Testing again for her to admit she knew Sandra Ellis.

"No, I mentioned it earlier," she answered brusquely.

He gave her a disarming smile. "Must be the wine, I forgot."

"I am not involved and I'll be having nothing to do with it, why should I?"

"Good, so you can talk freely with Carolyn. She's more than impressed with you and mentioned she intends to invite you for lunch soon."

Her grin wouldn't have shown any broader if she had just won a Ferrari. "I'll look forward to that and wait for her call."

Mostly everything so far had been preamble, now he felt it was the time to kick home. "I know you brother is representing him so what's his take on the murder?

"I think it's a given that he's guilty."

"No doubt about that."

"As far as my brother is concerned the case is all but over."

"The last time Carolyn spoke with me she said he was pleading his innocence and said he would fight the charges."

She sneered. "Not any more, he's pleading for mercy."

"Have you ever spoken with him?"

"No, and I never intend to."

"The murdered woman, being local," keeping his voice light as if mentioning a throwaway line as an unimportant afterthought, "I was wondering, have you ever spoken with her? She was heavily into charity work and I know you do a lot there yourself."

She looked at him weighing up her reply and her body language closed. "May well have said hello to her in passing but can't actually recall holding a discussion with her. I might have at some charity event. These events are all show with cameras always on the snap, so never say no."

She's clever, he thought, and lying through her teeth. Thinking he now needed to ease up a bit, "I wouldn't mind getting involved in a charity or two, any ideas?"

Her face brightened. "I sponsor three, you can join one or all three."

"You just may have found a financial donor and helper. Carolyn would be interested in helping also, let me have the information and I'll give it to her. Does your husband sponsor the same charities?"

"Yes, but I have a similar relationship with him, it seems, as your sister has with her husband from what you said earlier."

He guffawed and frowned, "like that, is it? Glad I'm still single."

"You have a girlfriend I assume."

"A leading question. Let's just say I have a few friends with benefits and leave it at that. I'm definitely more the benefit type than the married type."

"John, I think we'll get along fine."

"I hope so, we seem to sing from the same sheet."

"I think our song will sound the same. We've been here for most of the afternoon and I must be getting back."

"Are you free for lunch sometime next week? I'd ask you out to dinner but I don't want to sound overtly formal."

"Ring me, dinner next week will be fine."

"Sounds like a plan, dinner it is."

The following Monday, Carolyn returned to work at the Commissioner's office and was given the task to assess the type of people who give warnings of catastrophes together with her own team of profilers and back up staff. On Carolyn's second day Courtney arrived saying she'd had an appointment close by and wanted to invite her out to lunch this Friday.

"Love to but I can't make this Friday. I work Monday to Wednesday, sometimes Thursdays. This is only my second day back after taking compassionate leave. I'm not working a week this Thursday, say 1pm at La Trattoria; John said he took you there and he had a brilliant afternoon."

She beamed at her. "He told you?"

"Tells me everything, and you are meeting up for dinner next week."

"Only as friends, are you comfortable with that?" she answered a little too quickly.

"More than comfortable," giving her a knowing grin. "Go for it, he's fit, virile, and quite the lover so I've been told and it helps he's quite a looker. I think the term is called male arm candy," dashing her a little wink. "I must get back to work, see you next week."

Courtney tittered as she walked away and whispered. "Can't be having you thinking that way. I'm a married woman, giving her bottom a little wiggle."

"You and me both."

That Friday morning was the day for the three to take stock of how, or even if, they were to go forward. With everything that had happened, one slip would be all it took for the stack of cards they were building to come tumbling down.

"How are you going forward in handling Courtney," asked James feeling a little left out of the loop.

"We are meeting next Tuesday and I'll play it by touch."

"From what I can see, she wants to do a lot more to you that just touch."

"Sis, I think you are also in her frame. She's almost certainly bi-sexual. I could give her what she wants from a male perspective, I'm free, single and horny."

"You might go there, John, but Carolyn is defiantly not going anywhere near until I'm sure there is no danger," James voiced a sharp retort as if placing a lid over his wife's head.

She burst out laughing. "I do like a forceful man."

"You've picked the right husband, I can assure you of that."

"Anyway, I'll have one hell of a job wearing condoms." Even James couldn't keep a straight face, and despite the early morning, he asked if anyone wanted a stiff whiskey. It wasn't long before tears formed in their eyes from all the laughter. James brought over three glasses of whiskey and after taking a few sips they settled down to resume what they were there to achieve.

"Our first, and most pressing problem is to protect ourselves as we move forward, so far we've been lucky. I have been researching different surveillance equipment and there's a lot out there. I will handle all that side of things, and James, before you go into the other dimension again, you need to be properly equipped. Passport, disguise, I mean a convincing one and genuine money. I know you say it's the same as here but it's not. I have compared your video against our reality and the differences are subtle but quite profound. Being caught in the other dimension and questioned will be equal if not worse than being caught in this one."

"Hold on a minute, we haven't agreed if he's ever to go back there, or how we are to go forward here."

"Hello, I'm still here in case you fail to notice."

"Alright, I know we must prove the Ellis case and stop the child abduction."

"The child abduction is a week this Tuesday around 4pm so we need to be around there at that time and we need to plan how we intend to handle it."

"The simple answer will be to give the mother a warning."

John shook his head. "That will just postpone it until a later date, that is, providing she takes notice. The only safe outcome is for the person to be caught and for that to happen we need to be there."

"From what you said earlier, that holds its own problems. We can't risk being seen or even admit we were anywhere near. It'll mean I will have to change my schedule taking the Tuesday off work, not being there will stand out like a red flag."

"I agree, James, I will have to handle it and we need alibis as a fall-back position as well as disguises."

"If the worse comes to the worse and they check, and they surely will if the abduction goes forward, they will trace our car being in the area. The same goes with a hired car. They are looking for us and are already into minutiae. The only safe way to travel is using public transport, and I agree with John, under disguise."

John smiled. "Ironic, they have placed you with looking for you, and you are hiding yourself inside yourself, a spy combination made in heaven."

Carolyn's lunch with Courtney went ahead as planned, their conversation innocuous to an outsider looking in, just two friends enjoying each other's company, but behind her eyes, Courtney was surreptitiously flirting, sounding out Carolyn and moving her slowly along to the next stage in her planned seduction.

"You're meeting with my brother this week. I think it's this week but I haven't seen him for a few days," she lied.

"Friday, we are meeting for dinner." Carolyn stirred her coffee a little. "How does your husband feel about it?"

She shot her a look. "He feels nothing, he doesn't know."

"Best way, husbands are such fragile creatures, what they don't know can't hurt them."

"Your husband, does he know you are with me today?"

"Of course, two friends having a natter over lunch and you are helping me with my project. We can meet as often as we both wish without any problems. Talking about my project, I think the murdered woman was having an affair despite the lack of evidence, what's your take on the case?"

She snapped her body back as if in pain. "Whether she was or wasn't makes not an iota of difference, she's dead, he killed her, cut and dried."

"I know that, I just want to understand why she told him and handed him the trigger for him to kill her. It could be she was having an affair with a woman."

Courtney shifted her body stance, her movement not lost on Carolyn. "Does it make a difference?"

She needed to move Courtney back into her comfort zone. She smiled disarmingly. "Not a bit, I've had a few girl on girl encounters myself, found them rewarding, even had a threesome once but I can't remember much about it, too much wine. Never mentioned it to James and never will, he's as straight-laced as they come from the old school and that suits me fine. You should try it."

Her demeanour relaxed as if a valve had been opened relieving pressure. "l've already worn that tee shirt and I still wear it when the mood takes me."

Carolyn smiled coquettishly, then pulled back as if shocked at her own presumptuous behaviour. "The temperature in here is getting far too hot," fanning herself with the menu. "I think we should close this route down."

"Yes, I suppose," Courtney hesitated, "I have two friends I'd like you to meet, one is a doctor, the other in the police force and both are big on the charity circuit.

She couldn't help herself. "Do you think they knew or met the Ellis woman?"

Courtney's eyes widened. "Not sure, don't think so," she stuttered. "I'm just thinking you'll like them and I'm sure you'll get along with them."

"Set up a lunch sometime, best if you can make it a Friday."

"Consider it done."

"Invite John along as well if you like."

"I think we'll keep this just between us girls. You've had a few meals with Simon, what's going on there?"

"He's helping with me with the project. James is also involved in helping and has met with him." Time to put another spike in the game. "Next time we meet, I will suggest a dinner with the four of us. What's his wife like?"

"We're not that close. She's alright," her voice, lacklustre and flat. "She's not that enthusiastic about anything really."

"I think she'd jell well with James that has the makings of a good night. She'd delivered enough mixed messages and it was time to close the lunch down. They walked out of the restaurant to the carpark together. A little peck on the cheek from Courtney and they left each other, Carolyn to go home, Courtney to meet at her flat with Debra and Jennie.

Chapter Ten

Tuesday just after 2.30pm, John and James stood a few houses down from 54 Maple Street where the abduction was about to take place. They'd donned work boots, gloves, yellow trousers and coats, with their company name and telephone number embossed in black, front and back. Large official looking badges with their pictures prominently displayed enclosed in a transparent waterproof frame hung from their necks, helmets on their head wearing glasses, with John wearing a false beard.

A closed tool box stood on the floor next to a small square gazebo erected on the pavement in front of which stood a theodolite mounted on a tripod pointing down the street, the theodolite being a video camera covering the house and street. The telephone number displayed was linked to an untraceable burner phone, linked to an answering machine stating the company name with an apology for the inconvenience saying the company is holding a training afternoon and we will get back to you as soon as possible, in an emergence please phone... that would transfer the caller directly to another burner phone on John's person and he would take the call and alleviate any concern of the caller. John had planned this deception and was leaving nothing to chance.

The road was not very busy, a few cars passed, two people walking their dogs stopped to talk with them asking what they were doing. John had his answer at the ready having done his research, saying that because the houses were built near a flood plain, they were under contract to survey the area to ascertain the best location to build another flood culvert.

Near to 3pm the road became busy as school children arrived home, some walking but most ensconced in their parent's cars. They refocused the video to have a clearer view of the front of the house. Now they could only wait.

A few children played in their gardens but the garden under surveillance remained empty. Eventually two children came out of the house. John noticed the bike against the wall. The mother sat on the front step while her two children happily played in the garden. The stated time of the abduction was around 4pm and it was creeping nearer to that time as the mother stood up and went into the house followed by her eight-year-old son, leaving the girl alone in the garden. A blue car came into view at the far corner of the street and drove past the house to the other end, turned, and drove back the way it came, turned again at the top of the street and parked.