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Ralph threw up his hands. "Now wait just a hot minute! You're saying I've gone around and stolen a bunch of family albums from the residents of Seaside?"
"That's EXACTLY what I'm saying," said Stan, getting his handcuffs out.
"You don't even know if they have been reported stolen," Ralph pointed out.
"He does have us there, boss," said Fred, conceding the point.
"And we called you to report the break in," Ralph continued. "Why would I report a break in if I was trying to hide stolen goods?"
"I am up for a promotion," Stan stated, "and I'll not have some two-bit huckster try to distract me from my sworn duty."
"Two-bit huckster? Stan, I will remind you I was catching you stealing stuff from my dumpster when you were a teenage child. Now quit this nonsense and figure out what's actually going on!"
Stan backed off, his face flushing red with embarrassment. "You won't report that, would you? Statute of limitations and all..."
Ralph waved him away. "No, I'm not going to report you. But I'm also not going to let you go arresting me with this cockamamie story you've concocted. You find out if anyone has had anything stolen and you tell them to come down here and get their stuff because I sure as heck ain't going to pay to have it hauled off to the dump." He motioned around the room. "Now, since nothing is missing and there is no criminal hiding, I'm going to have to tell you gentlemen to get out so I can get back to my show." He explained to me, "It's the national ballroom championships on PBS."
"Ooo! I'm watching that, too!" said Fred, excitedly.
"It's Natasha and Dimetri’s year," Ralph informed him.
"That's what I've been saying." Fred checking his watch. "We still have time."
I'm not sure if Stan was more irked that there was no criminal, or that Fred and Ralph had taken a united front on the dance competition, but Stan decided to take out his frustrations on me. "I thought you said that this wasn't a hoax." Stan waved his finger in my face. "False reporting is a crime, Comber, and you're walking a very thin line."
"Someone did break in and dump some stuff in the middle of his storeroom," I pointed out.
Stan glared at me. "Don't go distracting me with facts." He waved at Fred. "Come on. If I missed Jerome and Gennifer’s performance for nothing..."
He and Fred walked out. I heard Fred mutter, "This is Dimetri's year..."
Ralph walked over to a window by the fire escape. I heard him mutter something under his breath about idiots. The window was open just a crack. "Well, this is how he must've gotten in," he said. He fixed the broken latch with the wire hanger and gave an exhausted groan as he walked past the stack of stuff. "More junk to get rid of."
I placed my hand on his arm. "We'll find out who this belongs to. And if not, keep it here for Granny."
Ralph shook his head and headed back down. "Well, if those fools find whoever broke in, I'm gonna tell them they should have taken something instead of leaving something."
But as he left, I suddenly heard a noise. I turned back and the wire holding the window closed had popped off and the glass was open again. I walked over, curious. There was nothing there. I refixed it extra tight.
"Must've been a ghost..." I muttered.