Tracking Evil, a Podcast Pt. 10

Sondra returned, pitcher in one hand, a tray in the other. She deposited both on the table, the tray holding six shot glasses, filled to the brim.

"Drink," Sondra said, placing a glass in front of Arlene. The older woman did so, more because she was happy that Sondra had spoken to her than any real desire for the burning alcohol that hit the back of her throat.

"Again," another shot.

"Again," and the third shot was finished off by Arlene, eyes brimming with tears, her actions mirrored by Sondra minus the reaction to the cheap grain alcohol.

Sondra settled herself in the chair and fixed Arlene with her firm gaze. Aside from being utterly lethal with most firearms, the young woman had a no-nonsense approach to life that some found refreshing, others alarming and off putting. Arlene wasn't quite sure how she herself was going to react to whatever Sondra was setting herself up to say.

"How do you do it?" The question confused Arlene, unsure what 'it' was. She said as much to Sondra who clarified herself.

"How do you live like this? Upholding the law, every day. Watching good people hurt, bad people get away, literally with murder. How do you deal with it?"

It wasn't what Arlene had expected. She'd been ready to defend her actions at the farmhouse, had already mentally prepared a defending statement about how the two men would get away with what they'd done. The fact she'd been drugged would have compromised any eyewitness account, how they would only go on to reoffend and how their boss would remain undiscovered and free to kill again and again. Now she was being asked instead to justify almost twenty years of her life as a cop.

"I don't know. It's the job, it's what I signed up to do." Arlene paused, thinking about it. Sondra wasn't the sort to ask such a loaded question frivolously. It was a serious enquiry, and it deserved a serious reply.

"My dad. He raised me to know right from wrong. To never turn away from a hard task or a hard truth" Arlene continued, "When I joined up, I did it, so he'd be proud of me, but the truth is he was always proud of me. It isn't what a person does that makes them who they are. It's who they are that makes them do whatever it is they do."

"And now? After today?" Sondra slopped beer from the pitcher into their glasses as she spoke.

"I'm no different now than I was yesterday. What I did today was wrong but what matters is I know it was wrong. I'm not offering any lame excuses, I had a hard choice to make, and I made it. Yeah, there was anger involved in it, but if it was all anger then I'd have torn the two of them apart with my nails and teeth. I got the job done and as far as I am concerned, justice was served on those two men. Justice was served on them and its coming for their friends."

Sondra raised her glass, clinking it against Arlene's.

"Good. Just wanted to be sure you knew that as well as I did."

Arlene grinned at her friend, feeling a weight lift from her shoulders. That was what had really been bothering her. How her friends would see her after the killing, not how she saw herself.

"Okay smart ass, I got a question for you now."

"Fire away boss lady," Sondra said grinning widely.

"How do you do it?"

"Me? Well I like it all, doggy, missionary..."

"No, no. Shut up for fucks sake," Arlene said quickly, scanning to see if anyone had heard Sondra's half drunken reply. Sondra quirked an eyebrow at her.

"No, I mean. Well okay you weren't a million miles away. I mean how do you do it, all the sex. You've got a boyfriend but then you are off with other guys all the time as well. How do you separate it? Sex from love?"

Sondra laughed at that. She laughed and laughed, clutching onto the tabletop as she did to avoid falling off her chair. At first Arlene bristled at her response, but Sondra's mirth was contagious, and it wasn't long before Arlene was laughing alongside her.

"Fine," Arlene said as she wiped tears of laughter from her face, "maybe that was a bit too much like a sleepover and braid my hair question but fuck it, it still stands. Tell me."

"Simple, I don't separate it. I love sex and I love the idea of being in love but right now there's no conflict. Destry, he's my Boo and he has a cock like a horse but I sure as hell don't love the guy. What I feel for you, for Erica, for my mom's and for Terrance... that's love. I know what love is, know how it makes me feel, so I know I don't love him. I don't think I ever loved a guy, maybe I never will. But I love sex, love the raw passion of it, love looking around, spotting the guy I know will make my toes curl, my nipples ache and my puss purr like a fucking tiger. That's what I love."

Arlene swirled beer around in her glass as she thought about what Sondra had said. "I miss my husband, especially at times like this. He might not have been the best lover I've ever had but he was one hundred percent the love of my fucking life." She drained her beer, belching delicately afterwards. "Kay, got another one for you. How the fuck do you spot the guy who's gonna make your toes curl?"

That set them both off laughing again. They polished off the pitcher and Sondra crooked a finger at Arlene so that the other woman lent in across the table.

"I look for the guy with the slumped shoulders. On account of all the weight he's hauling between his legs." Sondra looked over at an older black guy leaning against a pillar, watching the game being shown on one of the bar's many tv's. She let out a piercing whistle so that he and half the bar turned to look at her. Waggling her fingers in a coy wave Sondra bellowed out "Hey there Sugar," before collapsing into laughter once more.

....................................................................

The nightclub was full now. Erica had kept her seat by the bar, but she was on her fifth bottle of beer now. Destry had drifted over and back as his work allowed, but even when she was alone, she found herself perfectly content. The patrons were in the main all black, a smattering of white faces among them. That said it still seemed a fairly diverse crowd, she could see some were probably still in high school from their fresh faces, others were on the other end of the scale in age, a smattering of men and women in their mid to late forties at most.

The atmosphere was great even if the live music wasn't top class. By the time the first billed act was into their second song, Erica had reasoned out that the entertainment here tonight was going to be mostly local acts. That explained the crowd as well, a lot of people here supporting friends and family, others just out to enjoy the night. The music made up in volume what it lacked in finesse, and she found herself missing half of what people were saying to her as she was approached.

First a young guy, definitely eighteen years old at the most, had sidled up beside her, spinning out some of the cheesiest pick-up lines she had ever heard. She let him down gently, pointing out Destry and leaving the young guy with the impression that Erica was there with him. He had barely left when two other men, around her age came over. They didn't bother with tired pick up lines, instead they coaxed her out onto the dance floor. Erica whooped and laughed through five songs, moving lithely on the dance floor which was already growing sticky underfoot from spilled drinks. The two guys were experienced enough and just as importantly sober enough to pick up from her body language that dancing was all that was on offer for them. A group of women dancing in a rough circle together drew their attention and as the band finished their set, the men drifted away.

Erica took this opportunity to go use the restroom. Women's bathrooms at nightclubs were always a nightmare in her experience, forever having to queue to get into a stall. Thankfully it was early enough that the demand on the facilities was still light at this point. Finished, she went to check her make up in the mirror before heading back out. Standing beside her at the line of wash basins was a pretty redhaired woman in her early forties. She had her left hand under the tp as was holding it there. Thinking the woman might have injured her hand, Erica asked if there was anything she needed? The woman smiled at the offer, pulling her hand out and working away at her ring finger. A grunt of success followed, and she held out her right hand palm up. An engagement ring and wedding band lay in her hand, which she then transferred to her clutch bag. Erica winced inwardly in embarrassment, but the woman made nothing of it, heading back out to the music with a cheery farewell.

Another hour passed, some dancing, some drinking and Erica finished off her beer, sliding it away from herself along the shiny top of the bar.

"Another?" the bartender leaning forward to check on Erica. She remembered Destry introducing him as Clint.

"I'm good for now," she said, holding up her hand to smother a small burp. Clint grinned, turning to the next customer looking for a drink. The song faded out, the next one beginning a second later. In that brief moment of quiet, Erica heard her phone ringing from inside her small black clutch. She quickly pulled it out to see a missed call from Arlene. The music was way too loud for her to ring her back so she quickly sent off a text saying she would call in a minute.

Erica grabbed her coat, she had left it behind the bar when she and Destry had first arrived. Clint passed it over with a smile. Destry might not have let her wear jeans and a tee out to the club, but he hadn't been able to stop her wearing her black leather bikers' jacket over the dress. She wove through the crowd looking for Destry. She spotted him at the far side of the dance floor, his back to her as he leaned against the wall.

Skipping between gyrating dancers and side stepping the occasional entreaty to stop and dance, Erica crossed the dance floor, appearing behind Destry. She reached up to tap him on the shoulder, the first brief pat he completely ignored, however. Again, she delivered a series of light taps, index finger rapping on his broad shoulder. He turned round and his expression was thunderous with annoyance so that Erica took a step away for safety. Seeing who it was, however, he immediately looked contrite, a look of apologetic embarrassment on his face. Erica could see now that Destry had been in conversation with someone when Erica interrupted him, all she could see was the edge of a figure behind Destry's body.

"Sorry Destry, Arlene is calling for me. I'm just letting you know that I'm going to step outside to ring her back, just in case you were looking for me is all."

"No worries, take your time, I'm gonna be here or over at the sound booth" he replied. Erica nodded and moved to slip back into the crowd towards the exit. She glanced back once, that was when she saw that Destry had been leaning against the wall talking intently with the same woman she had watched hiding her wedding ring in the restroom. As she looked, the middle aged redhead threw her head back in laughter, putting a hand familiarly on Destry's arm as she did so.

Knowing Sondra's own forays outside her relationship with Destry, Erica decided it was better to not get involved, see no evil, speak no evil. She headed outside, swapping a quick greeting to the two doormen whom she had met earlier with Destry. Before calling, Erica put little distance between herself and the entrance to the club, not wanting any staff or patrons overhearing her conversation. There were a few people outside, mostly people escaping briefly to have a cigarette before heading back inside. Leaning against the wall of the club she pulled out her phone, dialing Arlene.

Episode 4: 'Lust, forgetful of future suffering, hurries us along the forbidden path' - Claudian

Between Sondra whirling her onto the small patch of floorboards that passed for a dancefloor in the bar and the three coffees she had managed to consume now that her friend had switched her focus from getting Arlene drunk to getting to know the older black man she had waved at earlier, Arlene was almost sober once more.

That was good as far as getting herself and Sondra back to their motel room from the bar, bad as far as her dark thoughts about the men she had killed that day.

Sondra barreled into the table, almost tilting it over as she lurched from the dance floor. She was leading the older man by the hand, and she wore an infectious if somewhat sloppy grin on her face.

"Eric has invited us back to his place," she said in a conspiratorial whisper to Arlene leaning forward on the table. The black woman glanced behind her at the bemused looking man before turning back to Arlene.

"I think he plans to take advantage of me, now that I'm drunk," Sondra gave Arlene a slow wink, "But I think I'll just take advantage of him instead, fuck him if you get my meaning."

"Loud and clear. My and the rest of the bar all got it." Arlene hopped off her stool, steadying Sondra as she levered herself away from the table. "Come on then, I'll drop the two of you off, collect you in the morning."

Eric's home was only a five minute drive from the bar but it was in the opposite direction to where Arlene and Sondra were staying. Arlene pulled her SUV into the long driveway that led to Eric's house. There was a wide parking area outside the two story timber framed home, a battered yellow pickup truck already parked in front. Eric must have walked to the bar which was a point in his favor in Arlene's eyes.

The two drunk would be lovers clambered unsteadily from Arlene's vehicle, Sondra weaving towards the house at once. Eric hastened to catch up to her, linking arms with her when he did.

"Your friend joining us?" Arlene heard him ask Sondra, looking back to where Arlene remained sat behind the wheel.

"I'm fine, you kids have fun," Arlene called out through the open window of the SUV. She watched as Eric opened the front door, steering Sondra through before following himself. Arlene sat watching the house, enjoying the quiet of the night. She saw the lights coming on inside, through the front window she could see Sondra shuffling through some dance steps before Eric joined her, his arms encircling her waist, head angling down as he bent to kiss her.

Arlene felt a slight stab of jealousy at the ease in which Sondra had followed her desires. To distract herself she put her hand in her pocket to pull out her phone, wanting to set an alarm for the morning while she was thinking of it. She pulled two phones out of her pocket, her own and the one she had taken from the dead henchman that morning. It reminded her of the message that The Hockey Fan had sent. On an impulse she decided to ring Erica, to see what the young reporter thought of the messages. Arlene respected Erica's intelligence and her innovative way of thinking had brought them a long way in the investigation, it might just be she'd have a better idea what to do next.

Holding the phone to her ear she listened to the ringing tone as she waited on Erica to answer. Looking out through the windshield she could see things were heating up inside the house. Sondra and Eric had bought shed their tops, still deeply locked together at the mouth, they were trying to take off one another's pants now.

No answer. Arlene hung up, dropping the phone on the passenger seat. She was about to start up and drive away when she got a text. Erica saying she'd ring back in a minute.

Not wanting to talk and drive, the conversation would be way too distracting, Arlene decided to wait in the driveway for Erica to ring.

In the end almost five minutes went by before her young friend finally rang her back. It took Arlene a few minutes to bring Erica up to speed on the events of the day. Arlene glossed over the killing of the two men and the rigorous interrogation she had employed. She didn't need Erica getting distracted by that right now. Through the phone she could practically hear Erica's brain mulling over what had happened, little "hmms" and drawn out "yeaaahs" as the young reporter ordered her thoughts.

"Kay, sorry you still there?" Erica said.

"Yeah, go ahead," Arlene replied.

"We need something more concrete than messages on a burner phone, we need to identify someone higher up on the food chain, someone like this Hockey prick you met."

"Agreed," Arlene concurred.

"And Trent and Lincoln are still around?"

"Yes, they are staying somewhere close by, not sure where exactly but close enough if we need them."

"I think we do need them, here's what I'm thinking. We know now that there is at least one other person in the area reporting back to this Hockey guy. So, you probably won't be able to sneak around but the guys might. Let's send him a message in the morning, something along the lines of 'Cop is staying in motel, checked her room, found file called Spider Suspect. Took it for you.' Then wait on his reply."

"And what's that going to do for us?" Arlene felt erica was onto something, but she wasn't there yet.

"He will want the file but won't want to risk being spotted collecting it. He might even fear a trap. Organize a remote location to leave it. Somewhere he would see someone approaching from a long way off. That will reassure him. You and Sondra go back to the town, be visible and careful. That will also make him feel safer knowing exactly where you are. Then ask Trent and Lincoln to set a watch over the 'file'. They can take pictures or whatever of the person who comes to collect it and then we can start to find out who is behind all this."

"Well, that sounds great and all but there is one problem," Arlene replied.

"Problem?"

"There is no Spider suspect file."

Erica laughed. "That's easily fixed. I will text you a few names and addresses I remember from the files, actual police suspects in a couple of the murders but ones that don't fit with what we know now. That will be accurate enough that the Hockey Fan won't suspect he is being played."

"Good enough," Arlene said, "send me those names. I will link in with the guys tomorrow and we'll put it in motion."

"Doing it right now, night," Erica said.

"Night," Arlene answered before hanging up.

Two minutes later and her phone beeped once more, the information Erica had promised. Arlene was reading the text when a tap on the hood of her car made her jump in shock, her hand fumbling for a gun she wasn't carrying.

"Hey, hey, sorry, didn't mean to scare you," a young black man said, stepping back from the front of the SUV, hands raised non threateningly. Arlene could see a second teenaged male with him.

"Sorry, just wanted to know why you are parked up outside our house is all," the second male said standing closer.

"Your house?" Arlene asked. "Eric is your..."

"Pops, we're his sons. Jarad and Chance." the first man answered, the second man raising his hand at 'Chance'.

"Oh right, yeah I didn't... where's your mom?" Even as she asked Arlene realized she shouldn't be interrogating two strangers like this, she was too used to wearing the badge and the uniform.

"Fuck knows... I mean God knows, she ran out on us when we was little, over ten years now. Anyways what you doing here?" Jarad appeared to be the older, maybe nineteen or twenty.

"Dropping off your father and my friend," Arlene explained. The two men turned their heads towards the house. Clearly visible, the light in the room shining brightly, Eric was standing behind Sondra who was holding onto the back of a hair. The older black man was whipping his black cock in and out of Sondra's pussy, the black woman rocking back and forth in time to his thrusts. Now that everyone had stopped talking, the faint sound of Eric and Sondra's ecstatic cries could be heard coming from the house.