Sweet Deception

Untitled Part 1

Chapter 1

Cooper was at the free throw line with 15 seconds left in the game. The crowd was completely silent. His team, the Stone Creek Knights, was down by 1 and it was the biggest game the team had played in 35 years. The city of Stone Creek was big on sports, but they hadn't won a basketball championship in years, so this was a big moment for everyone in the town. As the first free throw went in the air, Cooper glanced to the right and looked at his best friend, Luke. Luke was whispering crazy things in a defender's ear who was lined up next to him on the free throw line. He also saw his mother and younger brother, Mark, biting their nails nervously. He then saw the most beautiful face in Stone Creek smiling at him as the ball hit the side of the rim and bounced into Luke's arm for his 4th offensive rebound of the game. Luke quickly passed it to Cooper, on top of the three-point line. There were 5 seconds left. He could see his mother yelling, "Shoot it! Shoot it!!" as the clock ran down.

"Beeeeep! Beeeep!! Beeeep!!" The sounds of an alarm went off in a now thirty-two-year-old Cooper's bedroom. Waking up beside restless Cooper was a beautiful naked woman.

"Cooper!" said the women while pushing against him, "I got to go."

Cooper sat up with a smile. "You don't have to go! I was going to cook us breakfast."

"It's okay," the woman said. "I have a short morning, and I'm going home to get ready for tonight. Plus, you, mister, have papers to grades. You do remember about tonight, don't you?" she asked as she backed her head away from his face.

"Of course," said Coop.

Getting out of bed, the woman said, "You know, I never thought we would last this long with everything we been through. You were tossing and turning around again last night. You know that right? Were you dreaming about home again?"

"I slept peacefully last night; what are you talking about?" replied Cooper.

Sliding on her blue jeans and grabbing a detective badge on the dresser, the woman said, "Don't forget, I'm better at this job than you!" with a smirk.

Hopping out of bed, Cooper rushed to her and picked her up. "I'm sorry; you know what I've been through," said Cooper.

"You can come to my office and tell me anything," said the woman. "I would go to the moon and back for you."

"I know you would, Mrs. Amelia Jacobson," replied Cooper. The two kissed and Amelia was on her way out the door. ''Don't be late tonight!!" she screamed while the door closed.

Cooper went back into his bedroom and stared at the bed. He was thinking to himself about how, 15 years later, he still remembers what happened in his dream as if it happened yesterday. He went to his drawer and thought about dinner tonight with Amelia. In his drawer under his shirts was a box with an engagement ring in it. Cooper's plan for tonight was going to be a big one.

Cooper was the youngest teacher at community college in his new home, New York City, teaching creative writing because he has always been passionate about putting thoughts on paper. He was also a hotshot detective who has solved a lot of crimes over the last 15 years. His most recent success was when he settled a 30-year-old cold case about a man name Mr. Montgomery. He was popular locally back-in-the-day for his investments in the communities, but his deeds were cut short when he was found murdered in his suburban home, shot in the head. It seemed the man had an affair with one of his young-adult mentees who were staying with him and his wife at the time. His wife found out and killed him. She was questioned, but made it look like a robbery. Cooper did more investigating then any detective had previously done on the case before closing it. He found out that Jamie, the former mentee of the Late Mr. Montgomery, was sent away to live her life in Florida with a big bank account shortly after the investigation ended. Knowing the young women who were involved, they couldn't possibly have had that kind of money, since Montgomery's program was for low-income families. He found Jamie and confronted her about what really happened. Along with subpoena bank records showing deposits of money coming from someone back in New York. The former Mentee didn't last long with being questioned by Cooper and she told him everything. All the pieces to started to fall together and for Mrs. Montgomery was punished for her crimes. Mrs. Montgomery not only killed her husband, and kept evidence away from the police so she could retain her husband's estate and become one of the wealthiest people living in New York City. Cooper was kind of an anti-hero for tearing down the legacy Mr. Montgomery had built. He was praised by some and hated by many. But in his department, he was the man for tackling cases nobody would ever touch.