Eleven:

Breaking in was significantly easier since I had a key to the back door. I even managed to squeeze myself through without being caught on camera. All-in-all, a rather spectacular feat. There is a subtle artform to sneaking and snooping. Humans might be trusting if you appear to belong where you are, but overall, our species is very territorial by nature, therefore it makes my job very colorful.

Sally’s house was furnished a lot colder than one might expect given her warm personality. That immediately led me to believe she was not the one who did the decorum. Her husband seemed to control the space with a rigid cold masculine grasp that could nearly asphyxiate Sally Anne. Part of me was amazed he had not forced her to completely quit her job. Peter Grimshaw seemed to be a complete pig, and I’d yet to even begin my investigation proper.

Right away, I noticed a rectangular clearing in dust on a desk in the study where a PC was supposed to have been. Peter must have talked to his cop brother and taken some advice. I could likely assume my search was going to be very shallow, just with this discovery. However, there were things I could do to make this worth my time, namely planting myself a little bug so I might be able to keep tabs on Peter, possibly catch him slipping up and divulging criminal conspiracy information aloud.

I’d brought four tiny listening devices that looked almost like a piece of tape. The devices used were microscopic, hard to discover, and even harder to spot once they were placed. The age of obvious surveillance devices was long over and even if a girl was supremely broke, she never skimped on her toys!

I scanned the office room, and I found a nice patch of textured space near the fan, but far enough that it would not become an issue if it were turned on. I moved a chair carefully, and I stepped up, and peeled my first device from the tab, and carefully coaxed it across the bumpy textured surface of the ceiling.

After that, I moved the chair back and I began to do a cursory inspection of the room, searching for hidey-hole or any place one might stash their loot. I found a gun safe hidden behind a painting as if out of some spy movie. Most detectives know to check paintings these days, it’s a very tiring place now.

I tried sally’s birth date first, but the light blinked red. On a whim, I tried the subject’s birth date, and the safe clicked open. Note to self, the subject thinks more of himself than anyone else. He is potentially narcissistic and thought for himself is the first thing he seems to consider. This could make guessing combinations a lot easier for me but did not give me a good feeling as to what it might mean for the course of this investigation. Extreme narcissism is hard to combat or negotiate with. Outside a bullet to the brain. Unfortunately for me, I was well over my current allotment of free shootings for the month. If I shot this man, I would be buried by his brother and all the cops so eager to do the shoveling. Maybe if I’m extremely lucky I can get him into a CCTV frame holding a gun on me, then I could drop him without fear of legal reprisal. Without such dumb luck, I was going to have to play this one very carefully. Thankfully, I have more settings and modes than smash and blast.

I scanned the bathroom and discovered a hidden box of condoms in a compartment beneath the sink. I doubted very much that these were for Sally Anne, since they were married, and Peter Grimshaw seemed too possessive a man to use contraceptives with the woman he married. I would have to ask her about this since it was hardly a money shot, but I might have stumbled over the first sign of adultery. Call it a gut thing or maybe just call it an obvious leap, since they were hidden so thoughtfully out of her reach.

After rifling through the drawers, a bit more and snapping some shots of the condoms in question, I moved on to the master bedroom. Even the room was extremely masculine, like a man-cave as much as anything else. All sense of individuality and personal identity flowed one way towards Peter.

Most of the women I meet seem to be a lot more accepting of conformity than I am. I could never imagine allowing anyone, much less a man, to break me of my need for self-identity.

“Yo, you need to go, someone is pulling up.”

Tomoki spoke across the com suddenly. He’d been extremely silent for a while now. I quickly stepped onto the bed, and I placed another strip bug above the bed closer towards the crux of the wall.

Then I prowled back through the hall, and into the kitchen. My heart rate jumped at the sudden possibility of danger lurking just beyond the front door. I gently eased the back door open and faced away from the camera as I rushed off into the night. Regret filled my heart, regret that I’d not been able to do more than plant two listening devices. Also, regret that this scumbag had a detective brother feeding him plays that would make my job more difficult. Beyond everything else, regret that I was going to have to find a new angle of approach for this case.

Right now, I knew one thing, that the husband’s guard was up too high to come at him anything resembling straight-up. I was going to have to back up and build two separate cases for Sally Anne, the alleged attempted murder, and now potentially grounds for her divorce. If I could confirm the condoms were not for them together, then I could begin to break apart Peter’s life and figure out where he did lower his guard, and whose bed his boots have been under. Being patient, compiling extensive evidence while hiding my client was the smart play. Now, I just had to hope I could keep Sally Anne from going restless through the process.

Usually, I could find pay-dirt on most any civilian relatively quick, but they usually have no idea they are being stalked. In this case, Peter was more like stalking a predator in the wild. The game becomes a test of wills. Peter very likely wants his wife dead, so he will eventually tip his hand enough for me to slap my cuffs on him. The only alternative would be if the mob catches up with us first. Thankfully, for now, I have Shen’s assurance that they will not find us.

“Hey, come out the right side, and run down the block. I will pick you up once you turn off this street.”

Tomoki told me, and I hummed in agreement.

“Almost like you’ve done this sort of thing before.”

I mused to him, and he seemed to become silent on the other end.

“My job requires attention to detail.”

That is all he finally said once he decided to speak further.

Paranoia nipped at my heels as I lightly jogged my way out of the ally and down the street. Part of me kept screaming inside as if expecting someone to look out and intuitively know I didn’t belong here. Being an intruder tends to place a lady on high alert. Even if she were confident in her skills at running under the radar in most places.

“I’m coming around the block now.”

I told him, and in the next moment, I caught sight of Tomoki’s idling SUV. With the mix of the black of night and the midnight of the SUV, we were relatively invisible before I climbed in, and we pulled off, driving down the block before Tomoki hit the headlights. You might think some or most of this is over-kill, however, both of us know a lot about what will pop if someone reviews surveillance coverage. No small portion of my time is spent reviewing videos and staring looking for any detail to jump out at me. Knowing how to obstruct just such connections is a priceless talent to have in the information and detecting trade. I might not sell my services to big brother or sister like most private detectives, but a girl certainly still finds plenty of reason to be wary.

“Did you get anything?”

I waggled my hand in response and I grinned at Tomoki.

“Only time will tell really, but I think I may have a thread to begin unraveling.”

He seemed to burn with curiosity, and I was tight-lipped with the details because Tomoki ultimately worked for another. I knew his interests were ultimately only going to extend helping me for as long as his employer permitted. Shen did not like to share his things with others, this I knew. Part of me was still reeling that I was even crawling into the sack with Shen in the first place. He could very well kill me if I manage to bungle his job or he could alternately decide to pressure me further into a relationship with his business. Mob bosses do not ditch human resources simply because they don’t like working for them. More often than not, freedom is an illusion, something comforting to keep us comfortably numb to the rampant manipulation and other various means of exploitation we face in our lives. Sometimes I even think I sound too paranoid, but then I look through my lens at the lives of the rich and depraved, then my caution is well warranted.

“What’s your next move?”

Tomoki asked, and I said, “Take us home, James. We’re going to start digging online, then we will move this operation into its next phase. Plus, I believe your boss should have that list of demands rounded up soon. We’re going to be sifting through a lot of paperwork all tonight. You better stop off at the nearest Starbucks since Shen is covering all food and drink expenses.”

Tomoki’s eyes gleamed in amusement as he looked at me and nodded.

“You’re either a very brave or very stupid woman to be so cavalier with Shen san.”

While shrugging I sassed, “One has to be both of those to even consider a gig as fucked up as mine. It comes with the territory. A saner version of me would have been a corporate lawyer or something equally as boring and over-paid. Instead, I take nudes of cheaters and help little old ladies find lost kitties. All for peanuts.”

I said, somehow managing to not whine at all despite the negative statement.

“You’re really selling me on this whole PI gig, huh?”

Tomoki joked in a sarcastic tone, and I chuckled and smacked his chest playfully.

“You did all right tonight kid. If you ever decide yakuza life is not for you, you could always be my first apprentice.”

I said, my tone was light, but the offer was even more serious than I realized now that it was uttered. Perhaps I saw a slight masculine reflection of myself in Tomoki. Someone talented smart on their feet, and completely alone in the world. If by a twist of fate, I had met someone like Shen when I was younger, perhaps my life would have fallen down one of those similar rabbit holes? However, I was always a sucker for a lost cause, because even as jaded as I am, there is still that small whisper inside me hoping to make the world right, if only by a single life.

“Drive on James, we have so much work ahead of us for the night.”

I said, and Tomoki frowned and said, “What is with this ‘James’ business?”

I chortled and shook my head vaguely as we rolled on towards the southside.