Chapter 1
It was the first case for Ms. Rae and she wanted nothing more than to help solve this crime. Knowing that she would be working with one of the savviest detectives in Washington D.C. definitely gave her the much needed motivation and the drive to make this happen. It could also do wonders for her new private investigations business. If she is successful with this case, Rae thought, she would surely get more inquiries in the future.
“Just a few more blocks and I’ll be there,” Rae told herself.
Rae’s excitement only made her contemplate more on how Detective Trina Platt would be.
“Will she be brash, is she tall, what will she want me to do first? This is so exciting!” she said almost deliriously.
In just a flip of the moment reality kicked in and the nature of the crime at hand was back into perspective. Rae Hines had been hired as a private investigator by Detective Platt for one reason and one reason only. Detective Platt had not been allowed to investigate the murder of her partner, Blaine Heyworth, herself.
Detective Platt and her partner, Detective Blaine
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Heyworth, had been involved in a romantic tryst for quite some time and—pending the results of the investigation—Platt had been assigned to office duties only. Rae understood this to be a sticky situation and her involvement in this investigation could risk her chances at building on future cases for her company. She would have to be careful to remain neutral and distance herself from the investigation at the precinct for the sake of her new company.
Rae also understood the responsibility was on her to find the evidence that could help Detective Platt solve this case and bring closure to Blaine’s family and friends. Sensing that she was close to her destination, Rae tried not to let her nerves get the best of her. She drew in a long deep breath hoping to shake the feeling developing in the pit of her stomach. Luckily, as fast as the looming fear of the unknown began to manifest within her, she quickly gathered her wits and pulled from within herself the perseverance that had seen her through so many times before. Rae told herself it was now or never. She knew she had to begin her career somewhere and this case was as good as any to make that happen.
Rae found herself enjoying the scenic drive; the surroundings were, by far, more pleasant in contrast to her bustling neighborhood in Georgetown. Rae appreciated the greenery as she drove along Park Rd. Some of the homes in Detective Platt’s neighborhood appeared to be the original wood-frame homes that
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were built during the 19th century. Mt. Pleasant was not a largely populated community and offered its residents not much more than a four-block commercial corridor with rental apartments, condominiums and cooperatives.
“I bet they have much needed peace of mind here though,” thought Rae, “How much trouble can anyone get into? Everyone knows each other no doubt,” she said as she smiled to herself.
As she turned off the main avenue and into the driveway of Detective Platt’s home, Rae beamed like a child and said to herself, “Detective Platt’s home is rather charming.”
The house sat back from the street and was not covered by the dense shrubbery as most other homes on the block were. There was a welcoming atmosphere to this home and Rae felt at ease just for that moment. After pulling into the drive to park her car; Rae took advantage of that moment to also freshen up and come up with an ice-breaker just in case. It was then that Rae noticed the door on the side of the house opening. She sat very still--wondering why Detective Platt had not come to the front door of her home. She was relieved, however, when a hand appeared and motioned for her to come inside. Rae turned the key in the ignition off and breathed in deeply once more as she moved ahead as planned.
As she made her way to the side door, Rae looked
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around with caution and was astonished at the fact that she was even following the command of this mysterious beckoning hand. As Rae approached the open door, she began to visualize a dark silhouette pressed against the wall inside the doorway.The door was then pushed open quickly and the beckoning hand had now become the grip that reached out to guide her inside the house. A soft and gentle voice began to speak to Rae out of the dark corner inside the door,
“I’m so sorry to greet you this way Ms. Hines There is a possibility that we are being monitored so I have to be careful.”
She then motioned for Rae to follow her. Rae found herself being taken aback by the gentle demeanor of Detective Platt. There was a stark contrast between the Detective’s tall, lean, and slightly muscular figure and her gentle and almost hushed way of speaking.
Rae thought to herself, “A black ninja no doubt.”
Moments later she found herself in what was a rather earthy but comfortable sunken den being directed, once again, by the seemingly never ending beckoning hand to have a seat. Rae was now comfortably perched on a plush but sturdy arm chair, eye-to-eye with her potential client.
“I want to apologize again for such an abrupt beginning to our meeting,” Platt stated, “I just want to keep everything as inconspicuous as I can.”
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Rae was relieved at the thought of not having to use any awkward ice-breakers to warm the detective up. Apparently Detective Platt was straightforward and to the point—ready to get down to business.
“No apologies needed detective,” Rae responded, “I was, however, a little uneasy when I pulled up, but given the situation I understand the need to be careful,” Rae informed her.
Seeing that everything was copasetic, Detective Platt began to give Rae more details of what had taken place over the years.
Detective Platt had known her partner, Detective Blaine Heyworth, for nearly eight years. Heyworth had been with the squad in D.C. for two years prior to Trina Platt’s promotion and transfer there.The two became close almost instantaneously. Platt then began to speak on some of the cases she knew Heyworth had worked on; specifically the ones she thought might be of interest to the investigation. Rae listened intently
but she was also made note of the uneasy mannerisms
the detective exhibited, as if she knew someone was in
the room listening to her every word. Based on what Platt had revealed, Detective Heyworth had worked previously in the Shaw district on a project to help cut down on gang violence. Rae gathered, as Platt spoke more on the subject, that she was only speculating her thoughts of Detective Heyworth being targeted and eventually murdered by some members of the gang
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he was investigating. Platt was obviously emotional as she continued to discuss the nature of Detective Heyworth’s murder. Heyworth’s body had been dismembered. His eyes had also been removed and according to Platt, the missing body parts had never been recovered.
Detective Platt begrudgingly let Rae know her feelings on how the investigation was being handled so far.
“Now I don’t want to say the department isn’t doing all that needs to be done,” she stated, “I just feel very strongly that they are overlooking some other possible motives,” Platt stated chidingly. “I knew most of Blaine’s deepest darkest secrets and I also knew most of his fears. He was always looking out for that someone, that unknown person who might have been stalking him. I tried to tell him to go to the Captain with this information but he wouldn’t,” Platt complained.
Rae knew she needed to hear this, needed more details and mostly needed to know all the key people who were involved in Heyworth’s life during the time he was working with this special gang project. Detective Platt’s statement, right now, was the first block of evidence Rae would have to help unlock this mystery. Platt’s statements could lead Rae to vital information that she could share with Platt and Platt could then present that information to her precinct to enhance their efforts in the investigation. More importantly though, Rae knew she needed to be under the radar.
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The last thing she wanted was to have this horrendous murder and any of its components follow her home when she was done. Period.
“Did Detective Heyworth mention anyone in particular—anyone he thought might have been stalking him?” Rae inquired.
While awaiting Platt’s answer, Rae observed the detective’s eyes darting back and forth.
Platt appeared to be searching invisible memory banks for a conversation, or a Freudian slip Detective Heyworth may have made during one of their conversations but she finally concluded, “No...Nothing. He did not want me to have any information for fear that I would be harmed for what I knew,” she revealed.
Rae pondered on what Platt had said and was compelled to inquire further,
“Detective Platt, I know this is a long shot, but by any chance did Detective Heyworth mention who his partner or cohorts were when he worked on this project?”
Rae instinctively sensed she was pushing the Detective hard for this information. However, these facts were imperative and would help Rae to pick up where Platt left off when she was taken off the case.Without Platt’s knowledge of Detective Heyworth’s interaction with the gang members, Rae’s first case could very well
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become a lost cause.
Rae continued to listen intently as Detective Platt discussed detailed information on the project Blaine Heyworth was involved in before they met.Trina Platt held nothing back and this was well noted by Rae, as Platt revealed two more members of her team; Lieutenant Shayla Ross and her sidekick Detective DeWayne Bergman.
Platt began to tell her story, “At the funeral I heard Detective DeWayne Bergman talking about his time with Blaine on that project. I thought this was odd only because Blaine never told me anything about Bergman being one of the people on this assignment,” Platt stated. “I do know that Tommy Plume, our precinct Captain now, was on that assignment. Captain Plume and Blaine were both transferred to this precinct when that assignment ended.”
Rae froze for a mere second when she heard the name Captain Plume; but brushed it off quickly thinking silently, “There is no way that could be my old commander; just no way.” Rae’s attention, however, was quickly diverted back to Detective Platt when she noticed that Platt’s eyes had started to glisten.
“Detective; are you ok?” Rae asked. “Yes,” Platt responded, “I was just remembering how nice Blaine looked in his casket. He always did look good in green,” she reminisced. His shirt, it was
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mint green and his suit was emerald green. Those were his favorite colors,” she said with a slight smile. “I still can’t believe he’s gone. I will find out who killed him,” Platt said with conviction, “He didn’t deserve to die like that. I remember every face at the funeral parlor that day. I believe one of those faces belonged to Blaine’s killer. One of those people killed him and I’m going to find who it was,” cried Detective Platt.
Rae knew that Detective Trina Platt sincerely had the intention to do exactly what she said.
While Detective Platt composed herself, Rae found herself mentally scanning the contents of the room; searching for anything odd or out-of-place.
She quickly began to feel the essence of Platt’s loneliness. There was only one lone photograph on Platt’s coffee table. Rae got up from her seat and walked casually over to the table and picked the photo up.The photo appeared to be that of Platt as a child. She quietly put the photo back in place and walked back to her seat without a word or otherwise. The den itself seemed overtly neat, for a working girl. Especially for someone that worked all hours at any given time of the day. Rae wondered when Platt found the time but quickly let the thought go as she knew this judgment of Platt was unfair and unwarranted.
Rae felt she had given the detective enough time to compose herself and wanted to continue gathering
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facts so she asked, “What exactly was the nature of the project Detective Heyworth was working on?”
Detective Platt, however, had not dealt with the grieving process very well and remained a little distraught. It was enough to hamper her ability to discuss the situation without being emotional. However, Rae thought, she had to try. After a long silence Detective Platt slowly began to revisit with Rae the time Detective Heyworth spoke about the insurgence of gang activity in the neighborhoods of Columbia Heights and Shaw. The program was initiated to deter gang activity in those areas and as far as she knew the program was successful. She talked of how Captain Plume had boasted once of the 90% drop in crime inclusively and stated that this drop in crime was the reason the men assigned were promoted.
“I believe the Captain mentioned this happened between 2003 and 2006,” explained Platt.
Rae did not see how this information was relevant to the case, but kept listening nonetheless and hoping Platt was leading to some facts that were relevant.
“Well, that was quite a feat,” Rae exclaimed superficially, “It’s always good to know that situations such as that end without anyone losing their life,” she quipped without realizing the quirk of fate in her statement.
When the detective did not respond right away, Rae
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took notice of the quizzical look that was etched on her face.
“Something bothering you detective,” Rae asked her?
“Well, yes and no,” she finally responded,“I just had a strange flashback of some events that occurred earlier in the day before the funeral.”
“This is good;” stated Rae enthusiastically, “However, hold that thought please! I need a cold glass of water if you don’t mind.” Rae wanted to make sure she was able to capture all the details of whatever it was Detective Platt was about to reveal without interruption.
“Wow,” Platt declared out loud, “I hope this is not a bad reflection of my hostess skills. I meant to offer you something before we started our discussion,” she said to Rae as she made her way to the kitchen.
Rae couldn’t wait for the detective to leave the room. She walked around the den this time noting the wall hangings and items on the cabinets and shelves. Rae was looking for any evidence of Platt’s life outside of the precinct and anything she could find that would validate her love affair with her murdered partner Blaine Heyworth. Strangely, there was nothing that was obvious.There was only the lone photograph. Rae picked the photo up again to examine it more closely.
“Yes, this is the detective,” she smiled.
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Rae quickly put the photo back where it belonged, rushed over to her chair and sat down just as the detective entered the room.
“Here you go! One glass of cold water for you Ms. Hines—iced tea and some warm bread sticks for me,” Platt chirped. “I brought extra bread sticks in case you wanted to try them.They have garlic and parmesan cheese on them.There is also some fresh marinara sauce for dipping,” Platt said as she sat the tray down on the coffee table next to the photo.
Rae quickly used this move to her advantage. She picked up her water took a few sips and prepared to ask Platt about the photo.
“Well, I think I will have a bread stick or two,” Rae clumsily joked, “You know detective, I couldn’t help but notice the photo of you.That is you, isn’t it?” Rae inquired.
Platt sighed loudly. She was becoming well aware of Rae Hine’s knack for being inquisitive and knew also there was nothing that Rae Hines would miss during an interrogation.
Platt responded nonetheless saying, “Yes, that’s me,” then looked away but not before letting Rae know, “If you don’t mind, I’d rather not discuss anything but this case. I don’t want to forget important details.”
Rae had a feeling this detective was determined to
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change the conversation only to avoid talking about her life.
“I see,” Rae responded but with much disappointment.
Rae took a few more sips of her water. She could not help but to wonder if Detective Platt had just flipped her off. Rae told herself that before this was all over, she would find out why Detective Platt was being evasive about her own past and why she took a job so far away from her family leaving herself so vulnerable. Rae knew this was the case because she was in the same situation. Rae didn’t want to overthink anything but she had a gut instinct that her situation and the detective’s situation did not even compare.
Deciding that for now she will focus only on what Platt had to tell her, Rae turned once more to the detective and attentively asked, “Alright, so what happened that day?”
Detective Platt took a deep breath and began her story.
“I remember standing by the casket paying my respects when someone confronted me, making a very rude statement. I admit, Ms. Hines, that I lost it,” Platt confessed to Rae.”The detective that I had mentioned to you—DeWayne Bergman—well, he kind of intervened. I mean, he stepped in and stopped what was going to be a bad situation. The Lieutenant, Shayla Ross, can be quite vicious and jealous,” Platt affirmed, “She had a crush on Blaine
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and did not hide it. She never let me forget that it was she who had dated Blaine first. Her intention, at that time, was to get Blaine back. DeWayne must have seen something in me that no one else did and he grabbed me to prevent me from making the worst mistake of my life. I broke down in front of everyone. DeWayne comforted me as best he could. I felt indifferent to Bergman’s efforts because I knew Blaine did not trust him and now he will never have the chance to tell me why,” Platt said, evidently deeply saddened by this thought.
Rae, however, did not hear the last words of the detective’s statement. It had been a long time since she heard the music, but there it was playing loudly in her mind again. Rae looked at Detective Platt hoping she had heard the music as well.
“Whoa… shhhhhhh,” she warned Detective Platt, “Do you hear that?” Rae asked her as she jumped off the chair.
“What are you talking about?” asked Detective Platt, “I don’t hear anything.”
“That music,” whispered Rae walking around the room trying to determine where it was coming from, “It’s starting to fade away now,” Rae said breathlessly as she looked out the window then listened by the doorway of the den.
“I’m sorry Ms. Hines, but I don’t hear anything.”
Platt said again as she looked at Rae strangely.“Are
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you o.k.?” Platt asked quite worried.
Rae turned and looked at the detective with disbelief; then rudely said to her, “I just heard music come out of nowhere and you did not hear it?”
“No, I didn’t,” Platt rebutted back rather bluntly.
“Unbelievable!” Rae shouted throwing her hands up. She just stood there for a few minutes shaking her head.
Rae did not know what to think afterwards. One thing she did know was that she was not losing her mind. She had heard that music and Rae was convinced that Detective Platt had heard it too. She had to.They stood there; each one summing the other up.
“Ok, ok,” Rae interjected with an amour propre attempt at diverting the situation and getting back to the detectives statement,“What else happened?” she asked, as she sat back down in the chair.
She had already decided that for the sake of the success of this case, she had to let Detective Platt finish her perspective of how her partner had come to meet his untimely demise.
“When she is done,” Rae thought, “I will excuse myself. I will tell the detective that it has been a long day and maybe we should pick up again tomorrow or whenever it would be convenient for her.”
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Rae did just that. She was relieved when Detective Platt agreed it had been a long day indeed.They parted ways, with undo conflict, agreeing to meet again preferably at Platt’s office.
Rae was finally on her way home; but knowing this did nothing to stop the thoughts lingering in her mind over the meeting she just had with Detective Platt. She was appalled the detective claimed she did not hear the music playing. It was loud and clear...so loud that Rae almost took flight from her chair when she heard it.
“I’m hoping this isn’t a resurgence of an old nightmare for me,” Rae thought as she felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up.
Rae shivered at a flashback of the night that had changed her life drastically.
“Maybe I’ve taken on something again that is way beyond what I am capable of handling,” she said solemnly.
Rae continued to summarize the information she had gathered during her meeting with Detective Platt. So many variables were at hand. Detective Platt had seemed almost certain the murderer was a former gang member from Heyworth’s past—then she had quickly flipped the script mentioning Blaine’s concerns about Detective Bergman; or DeWayne, as she had intimately called him.
“I wonder how safe I’d be in speculating that the
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three of them, Platt; Ross and Heyworth; may have been involved in a love triangle,” chuckled Rae.
If what Rae speculated became the truth, this case would definitely take a different direction. Rae was glad to be headed home.What a day this had been!
Rae had decided, as she made her way into her house, she needed to do some research of her own.
“I’m very interested in this other character, Lieutenant Ross,” she said, “What is her role in all of this?”
She could not help but to wonder how all of the deceit was taking place right under the nose of the precinct’s Captain!
“There are too many variables.” Rae thought again, “I need to sort through some of these facts.”
However, once inside, Rae threw her purse and briefcase along with her keys onto the sofa. She then sank into her recliner telling herself she just needed to relax, but quickly fell asleep.
