{"id":731,"date":"2011-09-21T01:33:19","date_gmt":"2011-09-21T01:33:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fanagrams.net\/blog\/?p=731"},"modified":"2011-11-15T10:12:51","modified_gmt":"2011-11-15T16:12:51","slug":"chapter-2-clean-plate-club","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/2011\/09\/chapter-2-clean-plate-club\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 2: Clean Plate Club Murder Mystery"},"content":{"rendered":"

Prior and subsequent chapters are posted in the murder mystery category.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I met Penny at a Starbuck\u2019s near the dreary complex of cinder block dorms at <\/span>Santa<\/span>Teresa<\/span>University<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>On the phone, her baby doll voice made her sound like a timid child.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>But in person this was one tough chick, heavily tattooed with multiple piercings of her brows, nose and lips. As she talked, I could also see the glint of a large stud in her tongue.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI just know something has happened to Dessa,\u201d she said.\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWe are room mates \u2013 and she has been missing for over two weeks.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>She would never take off without telling me,\u201d Penny said with an unexpected crack in her voice. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat makes you think that?\u201d I asked.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWell Detective Grimes said that you would not be bothered by this, but we were really partners.\u00a0 <\/span>Before she left, she told me that she was going to invite her parents for dinner.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>That was a big step for her.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I think that she was scared of them, you see\u2026.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Her voice trailed off.<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I was sure that Charles had deliberately omitted this intriguing tidbit, knowing that I liked to be surprised by the sudden twists and turns that spiced up a case.\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cDid her parents know about your relationship?\u201d I asked, girding myself for the response.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey knew we were room mates, but beyond that\u2026\u00a0 <\/span>I met her mother once and it wasn\u2019t surprising that she instantly hated me \u2013 she is one of those society types, you know, and I am well \u2026\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>She shrugged her shoulders to accentuate the obvious.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cHave you heard of Sam Todd the developer \u2013 that\u2019s her father.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Sure I knew him – a deep pocketed developer who had a two year battle with environmentalists to fill in one of the last canyons on the outskirts of Santa Teresa.\u00a0 <\/span>His wife was a fashion icon on the boards of cachet museums, operas and ballets.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>She came from old money, but tattered old money, the kind that needed a refresher every now and then from people like Sam.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cI am so frustrated,\u201d said Penny.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>They told me that Dessa was taking a semester off, but I don\u2019t believe it.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>They are holding a reception at their house for her brother Goddard.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>He is a photographer and the reception is for his new show.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>They won\u2019t let me in, that\u2019s for sure, but you could go, it\u2019s technically open to the public.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Dessa and Goddard are very close, and if Dessa is not there, I will know something is wrong. \u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWere you and Dessa having trouble before she disappeared?\u201d I asked.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWell I don\u2019t think so, but I wanted to take our relationship to the next level and that might have spooked her.\u00a0 <\/span>She really didn\u2019t want her parents to know, and I don\u2019t blame her, but at some point you have to be honest with yourself, you know what I mean?\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I know what you mean, but I also know that honesty can be destructive.\u00a0 <\/span>It can require timing otherwise honesty just brings out the worst version of yourself.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Penny shoved her chair back and grabbed her purse and cell phone.\u00a0 <\/span>She stared at me with glistening eyes.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cI don\u2019t need this,\u201d she snapped.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cGrimes said that you would be cool.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I really loved her you know, and if you can\u2019t handle our relationship, then you are the worst version of yourself.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOkay, wait a minute, Penny,\u201d I said.\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cI really don\u2019t like sermonizing either, but I just need to know that jealousy or revenge is not on your agenda here.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I\u2019m not going to be your agent who marches up to her parents and tells them that their daughter is a lesbian for shock value alone.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Dessa needs to tell them, not me.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Do you understand?<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I refuse to shatter lives unless it is absolutely necessary.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>So tell me, what makes you think that Dessa has truly disappeared?\u201d I said.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWell, for starters, but nobody has seen her around campus.\u00a0 <\/span>There was an important regional fencing meet last Saturday, one that she would not want to miss since she is the top fencer.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>She doesn\u2019t go to classes much, but she never misses fencing.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>What\u2019s really weird is that nothing is missing \u2013 her car is still in the parking lot, her purse and wallet and cell phone are in the apartment.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>That\u2019s what makes me really worried.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>If she had just gotten in her car and taken off, well then it might have something to do with me.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Penny slumped back in her chair, but her hands were shaking and she was hugging herself.\u00a0 <\/span>I tried to think of some way to dispose of this case.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I didn\u2019t want to get involved in a tawdry lover\u2019s quarrel, but I would also have been worried if my room mate had totally disappeared.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cOkay, Penny, here\u2019s what I will do.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I will go to the reception tomorrow and quietly check things out.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>If Dessa is there I will just mention that you would like to hear from her.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I cannot do anything more than that.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>If she doesn\u2019t want to talk with you \u2013 well broken hearts are not my m\u00e9tier.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThanks, Ms Blue.\u00a0 <\/span>I just really want to make sure that she is alright,\u201d she said as she nodded, \u201cjust make sure she is alright, believe me I don\u2019t really want to cause any trouble.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>How much will this cost me?\u201d<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It was strange to see such a tough looking girt snivel and dab her eyes with a napkin.\u00a0 <\/span>Penny seemed genuine and I liked her.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWell Penny, I have always wanted to see Skye Isle, so I\u2019ll go to the reception on my own.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>If there is more work to do after that, we can discuss it, but if Dessa is there then there is no more work for me.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>And my name is Liza Blue, but please call me Liza.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I handed her one of my newly minted business cards, which sadly listed only my name and not my father\u2019s.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\nFollow Liza Blue on: \"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>Share: \"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"reddit\"<\/a>\"pinterest\"<\/a>\"linkedin\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Prior and subsequent chapters are posted in the murder mystery category.   I met Penny at a Starbuck\u2019s near the dreary complex of cinder block dorms at SantaTeresaUniversity.\u00a0 On the phone, her baby doll voice made her sound like a … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-murder-mystery"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7iVc8-bN","post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=731"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":956,"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731\/revisions\/956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fanagrams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}