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"You and I are used to dealing with mysteries that live on the page."
"There are no bad guys. There are just complicated people who did bad things."
"I've got enough crime fact in my life. I don't need to read about it."
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When c...
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The police station was buzzing with activity; some officers trading papers, some hauling in criminals, and yet even more just sitting at their desks answering phone calls.
A few of the detectives, including Gil, had started a game of trashketball from their desks. Their ball was a wad of old papers held together by several rubber bands. Alex's cousin took aim at the small trash can by the water cooler, making airplane noises as he shot. But instead of falling into the trash bin like he wanted it to, the ball veered left and smashed directly into the water cooler. It clatters to the ground, water spewing everywhere.
Welp, I guess that's why I'm here.
As the 'players' cleaned up the mess, arguing with Gil about who to blame, I turned and set down the coffees that I had carried inside. Giving Zach and Leah their orders, I sat and waited for Alex and her man to arrive.
They came in soon enough, chuckling together as they strolled towards us. Any day now. After a century or two, they reached earshot. Jerking his thumb back towards the area they had just come from, Tyler ducked his head down towards Alex a little. "He spends the night in jail, he'll wanna talk," he piped, the two of them grinning at each other as if they had just won a million bucks. Tyler began to walk away, calling out that he was going to report 'it' to the captain.
He passed by, and greeted me quickly as I handed him his order. With a surprised expression, he accepted it. "On the house," I winked. Raising the cup in thanks, he walked away. He seemed to be in a hurry.
Sharing an intrigued glance with Leah, I inquired, "Report what?" cheerfully handing her the last coffee.
Alex thanked me, giving me a side hug. She ran a hand through her hair. "He arrested Virgil Cudforth," she proclaimed, raising her eyebrows and waving her hands in a ta-da sort of gesture.
Murmurs of congratulations passed the lips of Zach and I, but Leah looked the most enthralled. "Cudforth confessed?" she exclaimed, setting her work down as she received the news.
With a quick shake of her head, Alex dismissed that idea. "No, not yet, but he thinks he will after a night in a cell. After he does, we'll release Josh."
The squeak of shoes against a wet floor was heard as an officer slipped on the water that the others were cleaning up. In the process, he knocked over a mop bucket. The others shouted out their complaints. Refocusing my attention back to the conversation. With a yawn, I checked my watch. We would be closing the shop soon, and it was my turn to lock up. Bowing out, I let Alex walk me to Gil's desk so that I could grab my coat and purse.
She sipped her coffee, quiet as her whirlwind of a mind pondered her recent feats. I gave her some space. Alex is always puzzling out something in her brain, and she has to be certain about something before it can be revealed to the rest of us.
