The Mystery Of A Fallen Star (Work title)

The Details

•••

Leo seemed really surprised when he heard the name.
- Yvonne... Stamper? - he repeated, staring at the detective.
Thomas nodded.
- Yes. Have you heard of her?
- Of course I have! - Leo exclaimed, but quickly calmed down - She's... Well, was, an alternative musician. I knew her, we met a few times... Is... she really... y'know, dead?
Telephone nodded again.
- She was murdered two days ago.
The rockstar's face became even more sad, but he just lowered his gaze and stared at the ground without saying a word. They sat like that for a few moments. The detective stared at Leo and when the silence was too much for him to bare, he decided to say something. He sighed before continuing his explanation.
- I was hired to solve the mystery surrounding her death. They said they would pay me well, so after thinking it through, I agreed to take up the case. I wanted to gather some more information about her musical career, but not just info found on the internet, so I thought I could use some help. That's why I called you.

Leo lifted his head up and looked Telephone in the eyes.
- But why me? It's not like I could help you much. I'm not a detective, I was never into that kind of stuff.
Thomas sighed again.
- Listen. I could really use some help from someone who knew Yvonne, but wasn't close enough to her to react too emotionally when hearing about that topic. You'll get maybe even half the money if you agree to help me with this case.
This time Leo let out a quiet sigh.
- I need to think it through. Not that I only care about the money, but Yvonne and I were friends and I would like to know what happened to her. Whoever did this to her needs to face the consequences - his voice became more decisive and a bit angry as he said the last sentence.
- That's the spirit! - Thomas said with a smile, but he realised he shouldn't be smiling and his face went back to serious - Thank you for taking this into consideration. I will appreciate any kind of help, even if you decide you don't want to be my partner on this case.
- So... Can I leave now? - Leo asked while slowly getting up from the chair.
- Ah, just one more thing! - Telephone reached into his pocket and took out a small piece of paper. He handed it to Leo. - in case you lost my phone number. Call me when you make the choice.
Leo looked at the paper. It had the detective's name written on it, as well as the address of his current location and phone number. He put it in the pocket of his jacket and walked up to the door. He let out a sloppy "Goodbye", then left the office. The strong wind from the outside closed the door behind him.

Detective Telephone stared at the door for a couple minutes and then started spinning on his chair. His mind was far, far away. He tried to analyse every single detail of the conversation, but his train of thought obviously went to different topics after time. Because of how deep in thought he was, he didn't even realise how fast the time flew.
The thing that distracted him was the sound of his red telephone ringing. He picked up the handset and tried to sound as serious as possible:
- Good evening, detective Telephone speaking. How can I help you?
He was surprised by the voice of the person calling him. He knew the voice.
- Good evening, detective. I'm sorry for calling you so late, but I've decided I want to help you with this case.
It was Leo calling.