Prologue
The call came, but Chris pondered before answering. He stared at the black phone as it rang a second time. Then he picked it up. “Yes?” he said into the speaker
“Boss, you’re gonna want to come down here.” It was Rick Stowe.
“What is it?” said Chris a bit agitated. He had been drinking a nice cup of coffee from his favourite coffee shop when the call rang in his office.
“They’ve done it again.”
“Done what, officer?” said Chris. He hated guessing games.
“Smuggled marijuana into Honolulu.”
“What did you find?” Chris asked nonplussed.
“You just better come down here, sir.”
Christopher Heller hung up the phone.
“What?” asked Corporal Christopher Heller as he walked into the alleyway on Alapai Street. He was dressed in the regular police garb: blue jacket, blue pants, and black shoes.
“Glad you could make it, Corporal Heller,” said Officer Rick Stowe who was wearing the same attire. He immediately saluted Chris as soon as he saw him. Chris saluted back just in good faith. He was in his 50s and losing patience with his officer. He had wished Rick hadn’t been so mysterious and had just informed him of what exactly he had found.
“Well?” said Chris as his impatience rose.
“Officer Burton has arrested four teenagers so far,” Rick started saying. “If you like, I can lead you to where she is.” But Rick stopped talking the moment he saw Chris’s facial expression. He had seen that look in his boss before: the look of explosion.
“Tiffany Burton is on this case?” said Chris trying to cool his already rising temperature.
“Yes, Boss,” said Rick. “We wouldn’t have been able to arrest the teenagers if it had just been me.”
“Rick, you could have chosen any other officer to help you with the arresting of some teenagers so explain to me why you then chose Tiffany out of all those people.”
“Well,” said Rick a bit hesitant. The six foot four man never liked interrogation especially from his boss. he scratched his full head of brown hair before answering. “All officers have to start somewhere.”
Chris nodded. As much as he hated inexperienced officers working for him, Tiffany did have to start somewhere. Besides, arresting a bunch of teenagers wasn’t exactly hard work. So Chris nodded towards Rick and acknowledged approval of his decision. “Fine work, Officer. Ms. Burton must start somewhere and this is good training for her.”
When Chris approached the teenagers who were all in handcuffs and resting against the red brick wall, he nodded towards Officer Burton. “Good work,” he told her.
Tiffany gave him a a small smile. She was a petite woman with golden brown hair and a dazzling smile which she didn’t hesitate to shine in Chris’s face. “Thanks, Corporal Heller.”
“Please,” said Chris as he stuck up his right hand because he was a bit taken aback by the smile. “Chris is just fine. No need for such formalities.”
“Of course, Chris.” She then stuck out her hand.
Chris awkwardly shook it and tried not to stare at Tiffany for too long even though to him she was a dazzling woman. “Welcome to the team,” he let out the moment he dropped her hand.
“Thank you, Sir,” said Tiffany forgetting the no formality rule. But Chris just ignored it.
“So, what do we have here?” asked Chris as he stared at a black haired boy with low-riding black jeans and an olive green Etnies sweatshirt. The boy was carrying a silver box which Chris found to be very suspicious. “Drugs no doubt?” said Chris as he yanked the silver box from the boy’s hands.
“You’re not allowed to touch that!” shouted the boy as Chris threw the lid aside.
“Not allowed?” said Chris mockingly. “I am the police. Of course, I’m allowed.” Then Chris chuckled which did not suit him.
The boy just stared him down and spat in Chris’s face before saying, “Prick.”
Chris wiped the phlegm off of his face with back of the left side of the police jacket. He was no longer smiling. “Tiffany,” he said turning towards her. “Take this little runt to the car.”
And without a word, Tiffany grabbed the black haired boy and dragged him to the police cruiser she and Rick had come in.
Once she was gone, Chris said to the other three, “If anyone else wishes to speak out of turn, be my guest. But note that you will then be joining your friend over there.” No one spoke so Chris finally looked into the box that seemed to have caused the trouble. Inside was a crumpled piece of paper. Chris, once noticing nothing else important was in the box, threw the box to the ground and, with the crumpled piece of paper in his left hand, began to unfold it.
But once Chris had read the little note, he frowned.
Thank you for buying drugs here, Ross
-M.&R.
Then Chris looked over his shoulder and noticed the symbol on the top of the lid of the silver box.
“Shit.”
