The Second Storey

A Story by Carter

Grey , a counselling detective , faces another twisted death. What happens next is for you to find out.....

Grey was fiddling with the evening daily , apparently he found something “wonderful” in some fishing competition being held down near Camford. Ann could see the heading clearly. “LASSO THE FISH”.

‘Seriously , can you not just read the news and let it go ?’

‘It seems that I cannot’, replied Grey.

Ann frowned and fixed her mind on the work at hand. She was cataloguing the important numbers that they might need and other not-so-important ones. After ten minutes or so, Grey put down the paper and suddenly said, ‘Yes’.

‘What?’, asked Ann.

‘You should put your name in the important portion.’

‘Wha-, How did you know’?

‘Well, you finished your job a couple of minutes ago, looked up to see if I had finished, wisely refusing to disturb me you opened your cell, checked something; then stopped, looked at the book. Thus I inferred you were thinking if you should put it in, then you flipped the pages between the Important and Not-so-important; stopped , looked up at me , seeing I have finished , you were going to ask and I answered before you could.’

‘Are you sure you were born on Earth and not from any other planet?’ , chuckled Ann , giving back Grey’s phone.

‘Well, even if I am, you are not going to leave me, are you?’

‘Nope’

‘Guessed so.’

‘Anyways , check your phone to see if I have done it correctly or not’.

At this moment there was a knock on the door. Ann opened it and ushered in the visitor. The visitor was wearing a tee and blue jeans, and by the looks , looked a gentleman; but Grey knew , looks can be deceptive.
‘You are Mr. Grey, counseling detective. Right?’

‘Touché . And who do I have the honour in speaking with ?’

‘ Well , no honour, Mr. Grey, I am a plumber, well I have a business of plumbing . My name’s Rochabild Smith.’

‘So Mr. Smith , I hope you have some problem coz my bathroom doesnot require your expertise at the moment.’,beamed Grey.

‘No, its just that they say I have murdered someone’

‘WHAT?’ shrieked Ann.

‘Aah, that’s nice predicament for a fellow.’ lighting a cigar ‘Well who are they , dear Sir , and what’s your say about the murder. Speak up, we maybe losing precious time’

Ann was obviously still not acquainted with meeting with strangers who talk only about murder.

Mr. Smith took a cigar from Grey’s proffered hand and started.

‘I made quite a name in plumbing and started a business. I occasionally still went to some households , who had helped me from the first, otherwise my workers use to go. So one of them was Mr. Van Reising. He was a retired judge , 57, divorcee with a son. He had a weak heart condition and could not see so well. The only way I was connected to him was that he had loaned me 3K for starting my business. Last day he called me around 9 in the morning and asked to come to his flat of Ashkot Complex in the Hind community. He lived in the second storey. When I arrived in the vening , he said there was some problems with the hot water. I took to my work. It took around two hours and by the time I left it was 8. There was some occasion outside so quite a many kids were bursting firecrackers. I signed at out the gate and went to catch a bus. I reached home had dinner and went to sleep. Before going to sleep, I saw that I had left my tools at his house.Today morning, I went there. The complex was crowded and suddenly I saw Dash ,Mr. Reising’s son, waddling towards me. He held my collar, shouting and accusing me of killing his father. I somehow battled him and took off, baffled beyond my senses. After spending an hour at the station I remembered your name in catching the serial killer in Calcutta and came straight to you. Please Mr. Grey , help me. I did not kill him. I did not even know what happened’

Grey looked long and hard at him and then said ‘ You look honest enough to him, so when you left you saw he was alright. And’

‘No I did not.’

‘What?’

‘I did not see him. In previous occasions he had asked me that whenever I had finished my job , I would go without any disturbance.’

‘Hmm.. And did you repay his loan?’

Mr. Smith’s face went dark. ‘ No , I did not. I was planning to , but did not have enough.’

‘Did he pester you about it?’

‘No , he asked me to pay whenever I could afford.’

Suddenly Dexter barged in. ‘ Guessed so, Grey . Knew he would turn up here.’ ‘What in the god’s name , Dexter ?’ said Grey. ‘ Not now my friend , you’ pointing at Smith ‘ Stand up and show me your hands.’

‘Mr . Grey , please tell him , I did not do anything.’

Dexter was not buying a thing. ‘You are under arrest for the murder of Mr. Van Reising. Anything you say shall and will be used against you,’ cuffing him.
Grey held his hand. ‘ Don’t worry, I take your case. I would see the end of it.’ The constables took Smith away.
Grey told what he has heard from Smith.

‘Now Dexter , I hope you won’t mind me poking around.’

‘Grey , I won’t but it’s a simple case not even a glimmer of mystery. The body was found lying in the his bed, sleeping. Well , his hon tried to wake him up but he did not respond, he was taken to a hospital where they said he died of a stroke, but the doctor found a prick in left arm , a small piercing or cutting , raw . They suspected foul play. So they notified me. I went there in the morning, looked at the body in the morgue, okayed it for being burned , looked at the room, and was checking the house when in the bathroom I found a bag lying. I checked it, it had plumbering equipments but it also had a syringe. So I sent it to the lab and asked the son if he knew any plumber of the name R. Smith. He told me , and also gave a description and also mentioned the fact that he owed his father 3K. See, Grey perfect motive , situation, as in the evening, except the single maid who saw Smith leaving hurriedly, there was no one else him. Case closed.’

‘Dexter , tell me , will you kill for 3K ?’

‘It does not matter Grey. Some do.’

‘Maybe there is an explanation to the whole course of the event other than the presumed one.’,offered Ann.

‘Anyways, happy Hunting, Grey.’

‘Hmm, I will go down at noon.’

‘Oukay’ and Dexter stomped out.

‘So’ standing up , Grey said ‘ Do you think that the man is innocent ?’

‘Ye-..’ Ann stopped. She knew Grey by now. ‘ Well , not much data to go into inferring with’ offered Ann with a mischievous smile.

‘See learning is not impossible. Now , off you go to your work.’

‘Nooooo- I am staying today to go with your investigation.’

Grey just gave a stern look. ‘ Okay , urgghh.’ moaned Ann. ‘ But you gotta tell whatever you do the whole day at night when I return.’ Grey smiled.

At noon , Ann was having her tiffin ; when she called Grey to see how the investigation is going. ‘ Heyy’

‘Not in a good mood’, came the cold reply.

‘Why so?’

‘I cleared Smith’s name. His footprints were clearly marked in every part of the house he said he went but not one was found near the sleeping room; moreover the syringe came negative for the poison ‘Tetrodotoxin’. The poison is one of the quickest and swiftest in delivering death. One touch of it with your flesh will result in death. But , now I don’t know what to do. There was no one in the house, that’s verified. So what happened ? Where did the injury come from ? And the injury mark is eerie too. A longitudinal strip of cut. They thought the victim fought and thus it happened, but there was no evidence of physical fight. Neither any part of his house came positive for the toxin. I don’t care about the who much but I want to know how ? How ? Urghh.’

Ann tried to calm him. ‘ You know you people are not considering a vital fact.’

‘And what’s that?’, asked Grey, angrily.

‘He was a judge, he is bound to have enemies. Is not he?’

A little bit silence and the phone disconnected. Ann knew she had touched a cord. Her phone pinged. She could not help but smile.

The sms read - ‘ Always the dullness of the fool is the whetstone of the wits.’

She knew it was meant as a compliment.

Ann returned home at 8:30 at night. She half expected Grey to be back , not after picking up a scent; but what she found when she entered , gave her a jolt of surprise. The lamp was dimmed, and Grey sat in his arm chair ; puffing out smoke , he looked as if a storm has blown over him.

‘What the hell did you get yourself into?’ cried Ann , running to him.

‘Not now. I have a midnight adventure , so if you want in , get some sleep; the pizza is in your room.’

Ann went to her room.

It was around 11 when Dexter pushed out Ann from her state of sleep. Ann did not expect him there so it gave her a shock. Nevertheless , she came out to find Grey the same when she left.

‘Dexter and Ann, this man is going to be dangerous. He is reckless and will do anything without a remorse. So if you, you know’

‘No chance’ " ‘Hell no’

‘Ok then, let’s go’

They came out quietly. Ann had a flashlight in her hand and the bulge on both the men’s coat showed their weapons. The quickly crossed the road and went down the pavement. ‘ So what’s going too happen ?’ , asked Ann.

‘We are going fishing.’ Grey beamed. Ann and Dexter sighed. They went past the plaza , entered the Trinity park and stood by its gate , concealed by the shrubberies.
‘That’s Ashkot.’ Grey said pointing forward. ‘ When is the constable is going to leave , Dex ?’

‘He should have left by midnight and it is 12:10 now. Look there he goes.’ The saw a man clad in the professional uniform walk towards the Lion’s pub. ‘So what now ?’

‘Now , we wait’

‘Grey sometimes your little tantrums are straining on my nerves. How could you expect me to fight if I don’t know what is I am fighting against?’ , asked Ann.

‘You are not to fight. Just wait and see.’

‘I expect you told him’ pointing Dexter.

Grey winked. ‘ Only who we are catching’.

‘Urgghd’

‘Ssh’- Grey raised his hand. A light was coming out of the complex. It was swaying to and fro ; a kerosene lamp. A figure appeared. He was covered with a shawl. He crossed the road and went past them. He went a little more in the park and then sat at a bench. At length he stood up , and took out something from under his shawl and placed it on the ground. Doing that , he picked up the kerosene lamp , readying himself to smash it on whatever was on the ground. Then what happened was a little blur to Ann. Somehow , Grey had crept up to the man all the while and at the moment he was going to throw the lantern , Grey took it from behind and said something that sounded like ‘ A little too warm for a bon fire , eh monsieur ?’

Ann ran fast to the place where all was happening. She saw the man in cuffs , groaning , clutching his torso. She looked at Grey and saw he was alright. He was looking at what was on the ground. She went to him and saw that the things were a bottle , a fishing hook and a cord.

‘ I think you forgot your way, the lake ain’t this way ; but Dexter won’t you a be sweetheart and take Mr. Delcotte to the lake.’

The man snapped at Grey.

‘With pleasure, Grey, with pleasure’ Dexter pulled him away.

The next morning Dexter , Smith , Ann were all sitting , patiently , for Grey to speak and at length he did.

‘Who or the motive never bothered me and truly the problem was never worthy enough until I could not find how. I did my rounds and made sure that the house was vacant till the son returned at 8. The maid was down seeing the fireworks. The lividity of the body had shown he died by 7. So what did happen ? Now , the already muddy water became more so when I saw the photograph of the injury. It was a horizontal strip , just that. What possible could live that ? I interviewed members of the flat , but in vain. Not exactly in vain , I met the current champion of the ‘ LASSSO THE FISH ‘ competition. Now , Everyone said that the victim was quite person and had no trouble. I was obviously thinking of tearing my hair in agony. At that moment someone called me and gave me glint of hope, a path which we did not go. Ann said that we never considered the fact that the man was a retired judge , so he was bound to have enemies. She did not exactly help me but narrowed my search. As I came out of the complex , looking for a internet café , I saw a bunch of kids playing. Sensing that they may be the same one who were bursting crackers , I asked them if they saw anything. At length one of them said that he saw the victim standing in the balcony of the second storey , with his hands outside the railings. He was watching the fireworks when suddenly he shrieked and held his hand and went in. Now , the victim must have thought that a burst of crackers might have injured and when he felt a little dizzy he went to just lie down. The thing about that poison is it deadens the tongue and lips, and induces dizziness and vomiting, followed by numbness and prickling over the body, rapid heart rate, decreased blood pressure, and muscle paralysis. The toxin paralyzes diaphragm muscles and stops the person who has ingested it from breathing. So he dies. Now , I knew exactly what happened but still I did not know how. I gave the child a candy and went to the café . There I searched about the judge’s career. He had an exceptional career , delivering justice and was a favorite among his peers when a single incident tainted his career. He had condemned a man to gallows when there was clear doubt of his involvement but the judge said he was sure about the guilt. Well , he retired soon after. With a sigh I was going to close the page when I catch the glimpse of the man and I thought I had seen him somewhere and as soon as I saw the name it was clear. The man was the twin brother of whom I met in Ashkot , living just above the victim , Mr. Xavier Delcotte. Within a moment all was clear , remember Ann that article I was reading, about that competition. In there , they had to catch the fish by lassoing the cord and then throwing it, letting the rope go forward ; for a moment if you held on to it tightly it will swing back like a pendulum and then reel it in. Now , Mr. Delcotte was its champion and as I found out about him. He was a professor of marine biology who had an world renowned collection of fish in his home in India. The only stint he had with police was when he was a teen when a boy had thrashed his brother. He nearly broke the other boy’s arm. My case was complete. He had every chance to get the toxin as it can be found in the body of the puffer fish, he loved his brother dearly and the way he killed was what he was champion in. I contacted the owner of the complex and he confirmed that Delcotte had moved to complex only a month ago. He had gone there to kill the man who was responsible of his brother’s death. That night , he had seen the victim standing in the balcony. The poison was with him and he coated the hook with it. Though he knew that the victim can’t see well, he took his time and did the lasso thing from the third storey balcony. He hit and the victim shriek and went in. He could have gotten rid of his belongings then only but he heard no commotion from downstairs and feared that the man might have not died. The next morning he came to know that he had succeeded. But there was police everywhere , though baffled , but if they see a man leaving , with a kerosene lamp, fishing cods, and a bottle they might suspect.

Knowing all this , I laid my plan. I told Dexter to go over to the colony and tell that Smith have been arrested and that the constable will leave by mid night. It had the desired effect. He came out in the park , covered by a shawl, laid the incriminating evidences and was about to throw the kerosene lamp on them. At the point I took his lamp, he was furious and ran after me but before he could take a step Dexter speared him down. Anything else ?’

‘Thank you , sir. Thank you very much.’ Said Smith , leaving.

‘Beat me again , eh Grey….. No worse feelings though’ , Dexter shook hands with Grey and left.

Grey sat down by Ann. Ann was looking at the evening daily.

‘Today there is a n article about a man who have thirteen wifes in five different countries and has fathered over a couple dozen. Wonder what case you might solve with this.’ winked Ann.

Grey’s reply was cold. ‘ Well , we never know …. One can never know….’

© 2014 Carter

Author's Note

Would love both +ve and -ve criticism :)

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New Theory

Nice story there, you wasted no time to jump directly into the story which was really great. I would like a little more descrition of Mr Grey, it would be really nice but thats just my opinion. Rest the story had an aswesome pace.

Only advice to you is I felt the rhythm of the prose was sometimes askew. Your vocabulary is really great in places and then there are places where it seems the energy went down a little, although the story and the idea were raging like an unstoppable river.

Great start dude, don't stop writing.