The Cabin in the Sky

"Orlando?" You say, startled. He looks up.

"Just Joe, miss, what can I do for you?" The Chris Pine look alike glances your way and then does a double-take over your shoulder. "Gloria? What are you doing here?"

"Oh shit." says Gloria. "Hi sweetheart." Orlando, or rather Joe, looks at him.

"That's your wife?" Joe asks. He nods, his blue eyes shining in the morning light. "I was wondering where you ended up last night." His face was concerned.

"Uh, well . . " Gloria stumbles.

You jump in, "My name is . . ." you glance down at your detective badge, already in your hand, "Jane Elliot. And I'm a private investigator, I'd like to ask you a few questions."

Orlando brushes his dark curls out of his face. "Sure, me or the architect?"

"I didn't know you were working on an apartment building, sweetheart." Gloria asks. Chris Pine shakes his head.

"No no, this is for their next project."

You look down, the blueprints for "Hotel Murano" spread out on the table.

"Joe - I'll start with you. Gloria, could you take your husband for a walk? I'll have some questions for him when I'm done." The Chris Pine gives Joe a quick, unreadable look and then slides past you out of the trailer. Gloria follows, closing the door.

Joe sits down, brushing his brown curls slightly out of his eyes. You are briefly reminded of exactly what that face looks like when it is filled with pleasure. You push the idea out of your head and focus.

"What's your last name, Joe?"

"Simmons."

"And are you familiar with Anthony Lorsecco?"

Joe shifts uncomfortably.

"Yeah, I know Tony. He's one of our electricians."

"When was the last time you saw Tony?"

"Uh . . . about 4pm yesterday. His girlfriend picked him up from the job site."

"Babs?" You inquire. He looks at you confused.

"I haven't met her, about this tall, skinny as a rail with big curly hair." So not Babs you note. Clearly Tony was a busy man.

"Was Tony a good employee?" Joe looks a bit shifty again.

"Yeah, he did his work."

"No complaints?"

"Well, he was the union rep. He always had complaints although some of them were just the boys spouting off. You know how that is."

"He had plenty of grievances?" Joe shifts a little bit.

"Sure but that's not really my problem."

"Aren't you the foreman?"

"Yeah, but that all gets passed up to Mr. Robertson."

"And how does Mr. Robertson feel about it?" Joe waves his hand absentmindedly.

"I don't get paid to think about Mr. Robertson's feelings. I get paid to build his buildings."

"So tell me about this new project." You gesture towards the Hotel blueprints.

"Well, it's up in Washington State, so some of the guys are going to have to relocate."

"Some?" Joe looks up sharply.

"Well . . . different project, different crew." He explains.

"But you'll still be running it." He nods.

"Was Tony coming up to Washington to work on it?" Joe hems and haws.

"We were still working out the details with Mr. Robertson."

"And the union of course. Does Mr. Robertson ever employ the Pinkertons when things get a little rough with the union?"

Joe stands up suddenly.

"I think that's enough questions for now. I'm afraid I have to get back to work."

"Now, now, let's not be hasty." You lean over the table giving him an amble view of your chest.

"We both know there is more you want to tell me about all this. There's no need for it to be an unpleasant experience."

He sits back in his chair, unable to meet your eyes.

"What are you proposing?" You turn, locking the door to the trailer and giving your hips a little shimmy, very aware of his eyes clinging to your curves.

"We could go back and forth all day, Mr. Simmons." You make your way to his side of the table.

"You could deny things, and I would dig and probe and ask and weasel and investigate, because that's my job . . ." you put your hand on his thigh, feeling his strong leg muscles tensing.

". . . and eventually, I'd find out all there is to know about Tony Lorsecco, and you would be frustrated . . ." you move your hand higher, feeling his throbbing manhood straining against his pants.

". . . and irritated and still surrender your secrets to me." You lean in and whisper in his ear.

"What if, instead, you show me exactly what sort of man you are," your fingernails trace the outline of his cock.

". . . tell me all I need to know, and in return, I will do exactly what you want. What you need. Right here and now."

You throw a leg over his lap and side down. He gives a low throaty moan and buries his face in your chest. You unbutton a few buttons as his lips find purchase on your full breasts.

"Fuck, alright." He gasps. He pulls open your clothes, his tongue tracing circles around your hard nipple.

"Tony was pissed, alright? The new job, the hotel, it was going to be with some local scabs up in Tacoma, all the union guys here were cut out of the deal." He pulls at your hips as you grind into lap, his cock like a bar of steel in his pants.

"Give it to me, give it all to me." you moan back, breathless as he works open the button on your pants, his fingers probing, touching, caressing.

"So Tony goes and talks some shit with some of the boys and word gets back to Mister Robertson. Mister Robertson says this is a special deal, the client has very particular needs."

You stand up, working his cock out of his distorted pants. It's long and thick and hard, just like you remember it. "Oh, Joe, you've got some needs right here." You jack it with long, slow strokes. He groans appreciatively, thrusting into your hand.

"Mr. Robertson says that the client is going to come down here and sort things out if we don't get it handled. Jerry, my architect, starts to panic. So I reach out to a couple guys I know and they put me in-touch with the Pinkertons."

You turn around and drop your pants, bracing both hands on his desk. You turn around wiggling your hips at him. "Keep it coming . . ." He lines up behind you, working your cleft with his fingers until you are fired up, pushing back against his hand, trying to get towards that peak.

"Oh fuck." he gasps as he slides inside you, you squeeze around him, hot and tight. He thrusts into you, pushing you into the table.

"So they go and send a couple of heavies to deal with him. I don't ask too many questions, you know? Oh FUCK!" he shouts as you tighten around him, his thrusts becoming more and more desperate. He pushes you down, frantic, desperate to be inside you deeper.

"Yes, yes, yes, YES!" You cry out, urging him on. His whole body goes rigid.

"AAAAGHHHH!!" he cries out, pumping load after load of hot cum into your depths. He groans, sliding out of your sopping wet pussy, completely drained. He sits back, stunned and overwhelmed.

You gather yourself, pulling up your pants and buttoning your shirt. Finally, when he has caught his breath, you lean in and give him a kiss.

"I'm going to need the name of Tony's girlfriend."

###

You catch up with Gloria and her husband, arguing next to his car near the construction site. They fall silent as you approach but it is clear that neither one is happy.

"Gloria, we're getting close. Want to tag along as we talk to the other woman?" The husband rolls his eyes,

"Yes, Gloria, do you want to go play detective with little miss Samantha Spade?" She shoots him a look of venom.

"Yes, Jane, I would love to. Let's go do that." She stalks over to you as you two head for your car.

"Everything alright?" You ask. She shakes her head.

"He's just not the man I married, and to be honest, neither am I. I'm pretty sure he's sleeping with his intern. He wants a divorce and was threatening to go to Reno for it."

You dimly remember Ryan talking about the legal hoops involved with getting divorced in the 1930s and the Nevada state laws surrounding that but it's hazy at best. You nod sympathetically.

"How did things go with Joe? Did you make him squeal?" You blush.

"Uh, yes I did. It took some hard work but I got the answers I needed."

"So where are we going now? Are we picking up Babs?" You shake your head.

"I talked to my office, Babs is safely there and out of trouble. No, we are going to see Tony's other girlfriend. She may have the answers we need."

###

When you knocked on the door of the girlfriend, Jessica, you already suspected who's face she would be wearing, but Simone's piercing brown eyes are unforgettable. She was wearing a simple red cotton dress and wearing hoop earrings. She gives you and Gloria a skeptical look but flashing the detective badge gets you into her living room where she offers you a cup of tea and sits, patiently, for your questions.

"When was the last time you saw Tony Lorsecco?" At the mention of his name, her eyes flash fiery hot.

"That two-timing asshole?! I hope I never see him again. I hope he jumps in a lake. I hope I see him dead!" Gloria and you exchange a look.

"Well, you can have your wish. He died last night." She gasps and goes pale.

"Really?" she squeaks. "Oh god! Oh Tony!" She bursts into tears. Lots of fire, this one.

"When did you last see Mr. Lorsecco?" Simone nods, gathering her thoughts.

"We went out for dinner, it was a six month anniversary. He was talking up a storm, like he always did, about work but I was happy to have him there. He'd flaked out on me a bit lately and I was worried. I should have been more worried."

She twists a handkerchief in her hand.

"Then one of his work buddies came up." She pauses, "No, not a work 'buddy'" she does the air quotes. "The architect. You know, the one with the pretty face?"

Gloria perks up. "I know him." She says evenly.

"Tony swore at him, said that he was the reason they were all getting kicked off the job. Well, the architect, he got into a shoving match and said, 'just go live with your singer girlfriend!' And stormed off. Now, I'm a seamstress, I have never sang a note in my life, at least not outside of church. So I go into him on that, and the lousy dog confesses. He had the nerve to tell me all about this big tittied singer that he'd fallen for at that jazz club down there. You know the one, where they sing all the negro music?"

You wince at the awkward words from Simone's mouth but she glides on.

"So I told him that we were through, done. I'm nobody's side piece. And I left. I came right home and burned his picture." She pauses for a moment, and looks back at you with wet eyes, "Is he really gone?"

You nod.

"Unfortunately yes. Now Jessica, I'm going to need you to do one more thing for me, to help me solve Tony's murder. I need you to come into my office and identify the man who spoke to Tony, can you do that for me?"

"For Tony, yes. I'll do it."

###

Gloria tried to pepper you with questions but your mind is a whirl as you frantically sketch out instructions on a piece of paper. You made a quick phone call from Jessica's house to get everything ready and now the three of you are headed back to your office.

You can see the lobby is packed before you even open the door to your office. You elbow your way past Aleki, who is leaning against the doorframe nursing a cup of black coffee. He grumbles irritably but you give him a pat and he perches himself gently in a chair in the corner.

"They are all here." says your girl friday. Caroline runs over to you and gives you a big hug.

"Oh thank god you're here." You pull back and search her eyes, looking for recognition.

"Are you still . . ."

"Still what? Under investigation for murder? Yes. The Detective and I had a long chat last night."

She gestures towards Tanya, smoking a cigarette next to the broken door jamb to your inner office.

"No, are you still Caroline?" She looks at you with confusion.

"Yes, are you stil Brenna? I haven't seen a door yet, so I haven't gone home." You look at Tanya, who is watching Caroline with . . . appreciation. Smug satisfaction.

"Did you sleep with Tanya?" Caroline blushes and shuffles her feet.

"Well, it was a vigorous interrogation." You nod, relieved that mystery was resolved.

"Jerry?! What are you doing here?" Gloria gasps. Jerry, the architect who had been lurking in the other room, comes into the main lobby.

"He's here because I want him here." You announce. Joe follows close behind and gives you a lingering, flirtatious look.

"Okay, everybody, listen up. Last night, Tony Lorsecco was murdered and the people responsible are right here in this room." A hush falls over the crowd.

"Tony knew that he was about to be out of the job. Robertson Development was building a big hotel up in Washington State and they were hiring local guys to do it. He was pissed. So he put the pressure on the one guy who knew might be able to change things around. He spoke with Jerry."

Jerry looks down at his feet, shuffling back and forth.

"Jerry had been meeting with him after hours, trying to talk him off the ledge about it but Tony refused to take no for an answer. Jerry tried to find someone who could talk some sense into Tony, and hit upon the singer at the club his wife was so fond of. Once he found out that Tony was seeing the singer, they talked and hatched a plan. An intervention."

You glance back at Jerry, his eyes firmly glued to the floor. "How am I doing here, Jerry?" No response. You press on.

"Unfortunately, Jerry ran into Tony earlier that night, out with a different woman at a restaurant. Seeing his plans foiled, he started an argument with Tony, hoping to dissuade him from pursuing this crusade. He revealed the affair to the other woman, isn't that right Jessica?"

Simone nods.

"So what did you do after Tony left the restaurant? You gave the details about the jazz girlfriend, the union man who wouldn't sit down and who needed a lesson. Tell me Jerry, who did you call?" You vaguely here Caroline whisper "ghostbusters" but you ignore it.

Jerry simply points to Aleki. Aleki looks up from his coffee as everyone stares at him.

"Oh shit." You shrug. "Sorry big guy." Tanya retrieves some large handcuffs from her coat.

"Aleki bashed Tony's head in, but what to do? There had to be something done with the body. So he stashed it with the jazz singer. Now who's idea was that? Certainly not Jerry, that would have just brought more attention, something he desperately wanted to avoid."

Everyone looks back and forth. You relish the moment and then reveal.

"It was Babs. She discovered her boyfriend was cheating on her and had hired me, a private detective to catch him in the act. After all, she had a perfect alibi, a private detective that could attest to her whereabouts during the crime. Aleki called her, she arranged for the stagehands to be out of the way that night before she arrived at the club. After all, the Maitre D told us that there was a trap prepared. We just didn't realize we helped place the bait."

Caroline gasps. Simone bursts into tears. Tanya snaps the cuffs onto Aleki and leads him out of the office. "I'll be back for the other two." she shouts over her shoulder.

You grab Jerry and pull him and Gloria into the next room. This was the most important moment, and it needed to be perfect.

"Jerry, I need you to listen to me. With my legal help, I think you can beat the charges. Beyond that, Gloria here is prepared to sign those divorce papers."

She looks up, startled. "You are, Gloria. I can't get into details, but trust me, there is a great man in your future and you will be happily married for many many years, but not to Jerry."

You turn back to the confused architect. "The only way that this will happen, that you will get your divorce and avoid trouble for all this, is if you do me this favor."

You hand him the instructions that you wrote down in the car. He reads them twice over and looks up.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Make it happen and your life will be back on track."

"I can do that." You glance over your shoulder, the broken frame of the office door has been replaced with an all-too familiar green wood. Yes, the path home. Thank the gods.

"Follow the instructions to the letter, Jerry!" you shout as you grab the doorknob and twist.

The void envelopes you.

THUNK

Your feet land on the hard concrete of the basement floor. The first thing you notice is you are pressed together, shoulder to shoulder, with Caroline, Simone and Pixie. You utter a cry of relief, throwing your arm around them.

"Oh my gods am I happy to see you guys!" you shout. They give an excited laugh and hug back.

"So - I have some questions . . . " says Pixie, but you are already sprinting up the stairs. You race back through Simone's room, into the main living room, the fire still crackling in the fireplace.

You take a deep breath and reach into the Moose's mouth.

Ka-THUNK. A heavy iron key falls out. It's easily the size of your forearm, with a large heart shaped handle and a simple note attached.

"As promised, one Master Key to Hotel Murano. Tell Miss Elliot that she was right. - Gloria Robertson."

TO BE CONCLUDED IN

. . .

THE WORLD BEYOND THE WELL