It was as if some bond had snapped between them. They continued their investigation together, but gone was the camaraderie replaced by a dull absence. Anna felt as though her heart wasn’t in it anymore. She no longer cared about the toaster oven, the office had a new one anyway and there had been no further incidents. They no longer looked each other in the eyes, Anna risked only sideways glances at him and Sean’s eyes always seemed to be directed at something else. She noticed that Sean and Connie left together; he had ruled her out of the investigation based on the fingerprints found on the oven. In fact, they had ruled out almost everyone in the office. Everyone’s fingerprints were on the toaster and there was no conclusive way of determining which hand had perpetrated the mysterious crimes. Their investigation gradually ground to a halt with them meeting less and less frequently.
Anna found herself seeking out a new friend in Steve. Despite his imposing figure he radiated a calm and reassuring presence, they began having lunches together, then dinners, and finally breakfasts. Anna could never have imagined an outcome like her dating Steve, but he had an absurd fascination with her. She ordered him around imperiously and he complied like a docile lamb, a grateful lamb at that. She was unsure if she was actually happy, but hadn’t her life always been like that? Her silent dinners with Steve, he rarely spoke unless to answer some question of hers, left her at peace. She almost forgot what staring into Sean’s eyes felt like.
However, Steve’s calm demeanor could not completely quench the fire of the toaster mystery. Since Sean seemed uninterested she continued her investigations alone. She once thought about including Steve, but the idea was abhorrent to her. She couldn’t say why. She would plan surprise stakeouts of the kitchen, telling Steve she had to work late to try and surprise the criminal. She came into the kitchen at odd times during the day trying to catch someone at something, anything. Her obsession with the mystery deepened and grew until she barely noticed her surroundings. She didn’t notice that Mary and Sheila had grown cool to her, though always so talkative they no longer spoke to her. She stopped noticing that her boss Jerry was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with her work, especially since the matter of Mr.Brisnell was as yet unresolved. For a time she even stopped noticing Sean and Connie. She stopped noticing that he was almost always at her desk. She stopped noticing that they ate lunch together, that they couldn’t stand not to be around each other. She stopped noticing Steve too, which may have been why events began to spiral out of her control, if she had ever been controlling anything in the first place.
It was a normal day at the office for Anna. She pretended to work at her desk, when really she was listening for even the tiniest sound from the kitchen. She planned to go in at quarter past as part of her random searches. The smell of toast had almost faded from the office, and on this particular day after weeks of waiting Anna began to lose hope. She began to think this mystery would never be solved. As she turned to her computer to actually do some real work she smelled it. Burning toast. She practically overturned her desk to get to the kitchen. She wasn’t prepared for the sight that greeted her. The toaster oven wasn’t exactly broken, but it was overturned on the floor. It wobbled slightly from a large dent in its side. The body of Sheila Tompkins lay at an angle facing toward it. Her head pointed in its direction as if to accuse it. Blood flowed toward Anna, two pieces of toast floating toward her. She stared down at her shoes, the two slices bounced against her toes and then moved backward as if carried by some unknown current.
Anna screamed.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Chapter IV
The party. Anna hated the noise of the music and loud conversation. She hated the banality of the topics Sheila and Mary insisted on talking to her about.
“And ohmygod Jerry was, like, we can’t host the union party at the pool this summer! And I was like, whatever Jerry it’s, like, a good fundraising opportunity. Then he was like fundraising isn’t your job, you should be trying to recruit new members or something like, but ohmygod here he comes…Hi Jerry! How are you? We were just talking about what a great boss you are…”
As Mary turned to greet him Anna made her escape. How could the woman drone on like that? She glanced at Sheila, she wore that same grin on her face all the time, but she never spoke. The thought made Anna stop and recall their conversations. She had always assumed that Sheila spoke sometimes, but now she realized it was always only Mary talking, with Sheila grinning like an idiot at her side. Anna was perplexed, she resolved to tell Sean about it. She went to find him, but found him engrossed in conversation with their receptionist Connie. To say that Connie was pretty would perhaps be an understatement; she part-time modeled during her days off. Anna could never understand why she worked at the union. She noticed all the signs of flirting in Connie, touching his chest, flipping her hair, and suddenly her mind went blank. She retreated to the kitchen where she found Steve lurking by the stove; he glanced up quickly when she came in. Anna sank into a kitchen chair with a sigh. She was uncertain why she was so downcast, but she supposed it must be because they had no leads in their investigation. Hopefully this party would turn up something. She felt eyes on her back and turned around. Steve was staring at her intently, one of their fancy glasses in his upraised hand. She sighed again.
“What do you want, Steve?” she asked, not really caring about the answer. Steve ducked his head, almost in a bowing motion. His eyes slowly moved to the glass.
“Is it okay if I use this? I don’t want to break it. They’re pretty fancy.” He lowered his arm to examine the glass, turning it over in his hand.
“Yes, it’s fine Steve. We bought them specifically for the party.” Anna rubbed her temples; she hated dealing with this imbecile’s inane questions. Steve glanced up sharply. He crossed the room to Anna and stood behind her chair. Anna was unaware of his presence until she removed her hand from her eyes. His tall figure cast a shadow over her. She looked up, startled, into his broad, dull face. His brows had contracted and he stared at her almost angrily.
“Who’s we?” He demanded. Anna had never heard this tone from Steve before. She glanced frightened at the open doorway of her kitchen, calculating its distance. A figure appeared there and Anna broke into a grateful smile. Sean strolled over to Steve and whispered something in his ear. In a flash the docile expression was back on his face and he loped out of the kitchen, with one final glance at Anna. Anna looked up at Sean; he was still looking after Steve.
“What did you tell him?” She asked. Sean finally looked at her. Anna forgot the question she had asked as she stared into his beautiful brown eyes. He looked away again and so did she.
“I just told him the pizza’s here.” He said, and walked out of the kitchen.
“And ohmygod Jerry was, like, we can’t host the union party at the pool this summer! And I was like, whatever Jerry it’s, like, a good fundraising opportunity. Then he was like fundraising isn’t your job, you should be trying to recruit new members or something like, but ohmygod here he comes…Hi Jerry! How are you? We were just talking about what a great boss you are…”
As Mary turned to greet him Anna made her escape. How could the woman drone on like that? She glanced at Sheila, she wore that same grin on her face all the time, but she never spoke. The thought made Anna stop and recall their conversations. She had always assumed that Sheila spoke sometimes, but now she realized it was always only Mary talking, with Sheila grinning like an idiot at her side. Anna was perplexed, she resolved to tell Sean about it. She went to find him, but found him engrossed in conversation with their receptionist Connie. To say that Connie was pretty would perhaps be an understatement; she part-time modeled during her days off. Anna could never understand why she worked at the union. She noticed all the signs of flirting in Connie, touching his chest, flipping her hair, and suddenly her mind went blank. She retreated to the kitchen where she found Steve lurking by the stove; he glanced up quickly when she came in. Anna sank into a kitchen chair with a sigh. She was uncertain why she was so downcast, but she supposed it must be because they had no leads in their investigation. Hopefully this party would turn up something. She felt eyes on her back and turned around. Steve was staring at her intently, one of their fancy glasses in his upraised hand. She sighed again.
“What do you want, Steve?” she asked, not really caring about the answer. Steve ducked his head, almost in a bowing motion. His eyes slowly moved to the glass.
“Is it okay if I use this? I don’t want to break it. They’re pretty fancy.” He lowered his arm to examine the glass, turning it over in his hand.
“Yes, it’s fine Steve. We bought them specifically for the party.” Anna rubbed her temples; she hated dealing with this imbecile’s inane questions. Steve glanced up sharply. He crossed the room to Anna and stood behind her chair. Anna was unaware of his presence until she removed her hand from her eyes. His tall figure cast a shadow over her. She looked up, startled, into his broad, dull face. His brows had contracted and he stared at her almost angrily.
“Who’s we?” He demanded. Anna had never heard this tone from Steve before. She glanced frightened at the open doorway of her kitchen, calculating its distance. A figure appeared there and Anna broke into a grateful smile. Sean strolled over to Steve and whispered something in his ear. In a flash the docile expression was back on his face and he loped out of the kitchen, with one final glance at Anna. Anna looked up at Sean; he was still looking after Steve.
“What did you tell him?” She asked. Sean finally looked at her. Anna forgot the question she had asked as she stared into his beautiful brown eyes. He looked away again and so did she.
“I just told him the pizza’s here.” He said, and walked out of the kitchen.
Chapter III
Sean and Anna dived quickly into the case. The perpetrator had not been so neat in his most recent crime. Clues abounded, fingerprints, breadcrumbs, even a discarded bread bag was found in the trash. The two spent late nights poring over this scant, but intriguing evidence. Sean would often play the skeptic to Anna’s over bounding enthusiasm. Anna’s imagination would often get the better of her. She favored over-arching conspiracies culminating in the death of either her or Sean. He, on the other hand was more levelheaded. He thought the crimes merely the work of some miscreant, perhaps a disgruntled employee. They balanced each other, poking and prodding the evidence until every last clue could be gleaned. They quickly hatched a plan to procure the fingerprints of all those in the office and compare it to the prints they had found in the toaster. Sean had a fingerprinting kit at home, but he was evasive about where he had obtained it and for what purpose. Sensing a new mystery, Anna probed Sean for details, and sensing her curiosity Sean became more and more vague about the details of his life and habits. Each built up a healthy mistrust for the other, one pushed while the other pulled. In this way their investigation wore on.
They both concluded that the easiest way to obtain prints was to hold a party, by coincidence Sean’s birthday was in a few days. He was well liked in the office and they were sure everyone would attend. In order to be thorough they also invited a few of the bricklayer’s themselves since they all had access to the kitchen. However, neither Sean nor Anna truly believed a bricklayer had done it. They were rarely seen at the union offices and almost never ate toasted bread. So a party was planned, invitations sent out, and food and beverages bought. Anna began to enjoy spending time with Sean apart from the case. She fooled herself into believing it was because of the mysterious aura surrounding him, but in her heart of hearts she found herself liking him. She shook off these feelings as unprofessional, but every so often there would be a look or touch and a bond was beginning to forge that neither of them had planned on. The day of the party was set and Sean had bought special drinking glasses that would hold prints better. He was a little worried that one of their coworkers might take it upon themselves to wash these glasses when the party wound down; they looked quite expensive and were of a fine cut glass. But Anna assured him that none of their co-workers had showed a propensity for cleaning up even their own messes let alone someone else’s. Anna bought a new dress for the occasion, telling herself that she wore it to seem less formal, around the office she wore a severe vest and blouse combo that made her appear stern and unapproachable. Which was of course just how she wanted it. But the dress was a light yellow color and for once she seemed like a real girl in her mid-twenties. She hoped this look might soften her co-workers, make them more willing to talk. She also wondered if Sean would notice.
In the days before the party Sean and Anna kept a vigilant watch over the new toaster oven, which Jerry had begrudgingly agreed to buy. However, there was no disaster. The toaster oven remained in its pristine condition and soon the day of the party came. All of their co-workers had confirmed attendance and everything was in readiness. Anna wondered why she felt nervous pulling on her yellow dress. Sean wondered if anything would actually come of this party. And Steve wondered, well no one really ever cared what Steve wondered, did they?
They both concluded that the easiest way to obtain prints was to hold a party, by coincidence Sean’s birthday was in a few days. He was well liked in the office and they were sure everyone would attend. In order to be thorough they also invited a few of the bricklayer’s themselves since they all had access to the kitchen. However, neither Sean nor Anna truly believed a bricklayer had done it. They were rarely seen at the union offices and almost never ate toasted bread. So a party was planned, invitations sent out, and food and beverages bought. Anna began to enjoy spending time with Sean apart from the case. She fooled herself into believing it was because of the mysterious aura surrounding him, but in her heart of hearts she found herself liking him. She shook off these feelings as unprofessional, but every so often there would be a look or touch and a bond was beginning to forge that neither of them had planned on. The day of the party was set and Sean had bought special drinking glasses that would hold prints better. He was a little worried that one of their coworkers might take it upon themselves to wash these glasses when the party wound down; they looked quite expensive and were of a fine cut glass. But Anna assured him that none of their co-workers had showed a propensity for cleaning up even their own messes let alone someone else’s. Anna bought a new dress for the occasion, telling herself that she wore it to seem less formal, around the office she wore a severe vest and blouse combo that made her appear stern and unapproachable. Which was of course just how she wanted it. But the dress was a light yellow color and for once she seemed like a real girl in her mid-twenties. She hoped this look might soften her co-workers, make them more willing to talk. She also wondered if Sean would notice.
In the days before the party Sean and Anna kept a vigilant watch over the new toaster oven, which Jerry had begrudgingly agreed to buy. However, there was no disaster. The toaster oven remained in its pristine condition and soon the day of the party came. All of their co-workers had confirmed attendance and everything was in readiness. Anna wondered why she felt nervous pulling on her yellow dress. Sean wondered if anything would actually come of this party. And Steve wondered, well no one really ever cared what Steve wondered, did they?
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Chapter II
As the weeks wore Anna became increasingly dissatisfied. Mr.Brisnell refused to go quietly and Anna’s days were occupied in meetings with her boss and Mr.Brisnell himself. Sean and Steve had not been able to get through to him and he had threatened legal action. The situation was quickly spiraling out of Anna’s control. To make matters worse the toaster oven was still being used in the most inappropriate manner. Anna had come to the conclusion that only a nefarious mastermind could orchestrate such a perfect, and annoying, crime. Over the weeks this matter had not had Anna’s full attention. With the absence of clues in the first days and no ideas on how to pinpoint the subject, her interest waned. The smell had become almost a part of the office now; her nose now acclimated to the burnt odor. The business with Mr.Brisnell had not helped matters either.
The breaking point came one Thursday afternoon. Anna had gone to the kitchen to prepare her midday sandwich, toasted bread with watercress and freshly sliced turkey, when she confronted by the smell again. She checked her watch, it was only noon, much too early for such a strong odor. She pushed open the door and a terrible sight greeted her. The toaster oven was beyond repair. It’s top was completely blackened; there were char stains on the floor as well. Again a single slice of toast had been left behind as if to mock her. This could not be tolerated. Her wholesome lunch could not be made now. Watercress and turkey on untoasted bread? The idea was laughable. She bellowed for Steve. He quickly came running in, clumsily knocking over the napkin dispenser in his haste. He was a tall, hulking brute. His fair hair parted on the side, he stood nearly three heads above Anna. He could easily crush her in one of his ham-handed fists, but he cowered in fear before her, quaking a little as he looked down at her little figure. Anna pointed imperiously at the toaster.
“Do you know anything about this?” she bellowed again. Steve jumped and moved his slow eyes to the oven. He shook his head slowly from side to side, he wasn’t a big talker. Anna sighed and brought a hand to her temples.
“Get Sean in here for me.” Steve nodded hastily glad to be away from Anna’s fierce gaze. If Steve was the brawn of the team Sean was definitely the brains. He was a specialist in the martial arts and a meticulous planner. His figure was slight, but he was quite tall. He had ebony skin, creamy brown eyes and curly black hair, he was the literal embodiment of the phrase tall, dark, and handsome. Sean had a cautious respect for Anna, as the two had similar tastes and similar brain fortitude. Sean sauntered in with Steve trailing in his week. Steve stood back near the door, his eyes never leaving Anna’s face. His head bobbed to an inaudible rhythm and his presence was quickly forgotten by the other two. Sean had already taken in the scene and was almost as disgusted as Anna. He enjoyed toasted bread as much as the next man and this travesty upset more than he liked to admit. When he saw her open her mouth to speak, he stopped her with an upraised hand. Anna closed her mouth and folded her arms on her chest. Sean approached the toaster, his hands clasped behind his back. He inspected the inside and knelt down to examine the char marks on the floor, he swept a finger across it and rubbed his fingers together. He looked up at Anna.
“This isn’t right,” he said simply and returned his gaze to the floor. She was surprised by his speech. Anna always felt Sean held a slight contempt for all them, but she couldn’t help respecting him for his attention to detail. She looked at his bowed black head and thought that perhaps she didn’t have to solve this case alone. Steve nodded slowly in the background.
The breaking point came one Thursday afternoon. Anna had gone to the kitchen to prepare her midday sandwich, toasted bread with watercress and freshly sliced turkey, when she confronted by the smell again. She checked her watch, it was only noon, much too early for such a strong odor. She pushed open the door and a terrible sight greeted her. The toaster oven was beyond repair. It’s top was completely blackened; there were char stains on the floor as well. Again a single slice of toast had been left behind as if to mock her. This could not be tolerated. Her wholesome lunch could not be made now. Watercress and turkey on untoasted bread? The idea was laughable. She bellowed for Steve. He quickly came running in, clumsily knocking over the napkin dispenser in his haste. He was a tall, hulking brute. His fair hair parted on the side, he stood nearly three heads above Anna. He could easily crush her in one of his ham-handed fists, but he cowered in fear before her, quaking a little as he looked down at her little figure. Anna pointed imperiously at the toaster.
“Do you know anything about this?” she bellowed again. Steve jumped and moved his slow eyes to the oven. He shook his head slowly from side to side, he wasn’t a big talker. Anna sighed and brought a hand to her temples.
“Get Sean in here for me.” Steve nodded hastily glad to be away from Anna’s fierce gaze. If Steve was the brawn of the team Sean was definitely the brains. He was a specialist in the martial arts and a meticulous planner. His figure was slight, but he was quite tall. He had ebony skin, creamy brown eyes and curly black hair, he was the literal embodiment of the phrase tall, dark, and handsome. Sean had a cautious respect for Anna, as the two had similar tastes and similar brain fortitude. Sean sauntered in with Steve trailing in his week. Steve stood back near the door, his eyes never leaving Anna’s face. His head bobbed to an inaudible rhythm and his presence was quickly forgotten by the other two. Sean had already taken in the scene and was almost as disgusted as Anna. He enjoyed toasted bread as much as the next man and this travesty upset more than he liked to admit. When he saw her open her mouth to speak, he stopped her with an upraised hand. Anna closed her mouth and folded her arms on her chest. Sean approached the toaster, his hands clasped behind his back. He inspected the inside and knelt down to examine the char marks on the floor, he swept a finger across it and rubbed his fingers together. He looked up at Anna.
“This isn’t right,” he said simply and returned his gaze to the floor. She was surprised by his speech. Anna always felt Sean held a slight contempt for all them, but she couldn’t help respecting him for his attention to detail. She looked at his bowed black head and thought that perhaps she didn’t have to solve this case alone. Steve nodded slowly in the background.
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