Joanna Thompson, of all people, moving into Foundry Cove, of all places. What's going on? Thought Action.
"Don't make no sense" he muttered to himself. Joanna was once a scrappy teenager with a short fuse who hit the streets and now she was here in suburbia. Don't make no sense...
He had to find answers. This little street was not just where his home was; it was a community. For a lone wolf like Action he appreciated his neighbours and had their backs. Besides, there was a little matter of the Landgraab's desire to own this street, the tree and the mysterious glade it led to...
And now Joanna was part of this community. Why? The best way to get answers was from her so after his breakfast and morning run he holstered his .38 service revolver, put on his jacket and headed across the road to Streamlet Single to speak with her.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
"Yeah, who is it?" came the voice from inside.
"Action" he replied.
"It's open, come on in"
He walked into the house. It was still a lot of bare walls, packing crates here and there but Joanna had, at least, installed a sofa, TV, a dining table and chairs. She was sitting on the couch, still in her night wear.
"Is it a bit too early for you?" said Action "Maybe I can come back later when you're dressed?"
"You've seen me in a lot less than this" she replied.
"True"
"Come on in...It's always nice to see an old friend." she said.
"Do I count as one? I've cautioned you over your....activities...in the past." he said, sitting next to her on the sofa.
"You're doing your job, and I was doing mine" she said with a shrug.
"But are you serious about not doing that job anymore?" he asked her in all seriousness.
"I've never been more serious about anything in my life. You gotta believe me, Action" she replied, sternly.
"Why the change of heart and where did you get the money for this place?"
"Typical cop...always suspicious. If you must know...read this." she reached for her great-uncle's letter that was lying on the coffee table and handed it to Action.
He took a few minutes to read it in detail, even holding it up to the light at one point to see if there was anything suspicious about the paper it was written on. Then he let out a sigh and handed it over to Joanna.
"Too bad Mikey's not around to share your good fortune. I take it back what I said about you; you're really on the level." he said.
"Thanks for the belated vote of confidence" she said, acidly.
"So what are you gonna do now...now that you've moved in here?"
"I reckon I'm gonna go to college and get a better education" she said, with a hint of pride in her voice. Action nodded.
"Smart move."
"Yeah...you joined the army..."
"Marines"
"Whatever. That was your way of getting out of the ghetto; this is my way" she said with a hint of pride in her voice.
"Hey, I'm all for what you're doing!" said Action, sincerely.
Joanna paused for a moment and then said. "Say, do you mean what you said about wanting to help me?"
"Sure"
"How about helping me shift those boxes?"
Action smiled. "You got it", he said.
He lugged the empty packing crates outside to where the trash can was and on his way back he paused to have a look at all the textbooks Joanna had lying around on her desk.
"You thought of where you'd like to study?" he asked her.
"I'm thinking of Foxbury...more technical and work related courses there. I don't want to waste time studying poetry or archaeology or fluff like that." she replied.
Action just nodded. Joanna, however, had a question for him. "Say, Action, are you any good with a hammer and nails?"
"I've been known to dabble" he replied, nonchalantly.
"I've got a bookcase to put up on the wall, over there" she said with a mischievous grin.
Action knew when he'd been outmanoeuvred so he stood up, shrugged his shoulders and asked where the toolbox was. After an hour there was a nice, neat little bookshelf on the wall. Joanna was very grateful and made him a coffee.
"I'd better gulp this down because I have to scoot" he said, picking up the coffee mug.
"Work?"
"Pleasure"
"Ooh, is it a woman?" Joanna asked, coquettishly.
"It is. My woman." Action replied.
"What's she like this woman who has even the great John Action at her beck and call?"
"She's classy" came his calm reply.
"Out of your league then?"
"I've gone up a division"
"Upwards and upwards, eh?"
"Something like that. And you can do it to. You've made a start already. If you want anything else mounted on a wall you just let me know" he said, handing her the empty coffee mug.
"I must dust off that head of a tiger then" she replied. "Have fun with your lady friend"
PUPPERSTONE PARK: 1pm
That is precisely what Action intended to do: An afternoon and evening spent with his girlfriend, Katherine. He made his way over, Southwards, to the coastal suburb of Brindleton Bay; an area he had only a brief experience of visiting. Meeting there was her idea and he liked the thought of being with her in a part of town he wouldn't be recognised easily in.
Normally she liked to be fashionably late for a meeting but today Action was surprised that she had arrived at the rendezvous ahead of him. That was Katherine in a nutshell: Always full of surprises.
"Am I late?" he said on greeting her.
"No, I'm early for a change. How's your morning?"
"Busier than I expected. We have a new neighbour who's just moved in an I had to help them put up a bookcase and shift some empty packing crates."
"So what's she like, this new neighbour?" asked Katherine.
"I never said it was a 'her'" he replied, somewhat defensively.
"I guessed from the fact that you put up a bookshelf for them: Normally a man wouldn't ask for that help."
"Hey, I'm meant to be the detective here!" he said, surprised at her sleuthing skills.
"You must be rubbing off on me" she said with an easy smile.
"Evidently. Anyway it turns out I knew her already from my old stomping ground but she's not my type."
"Redhead?"
"Compromised" replied Action.
Action changed the subject. "So, why did you pick here to meet up?" he asked.
"This is my stomping ground. I was born and raised near here and I still live around these parts. I wanted to show you my home town." she said.
"I can see why you like the sea and the river...you've grown up around it all your life" he nodded.
"I love the sea. Have you ever been yachting?" she asked.
"The only ships I ever got on were Navy vessels. Hardly luxury." he replied.
"I must take you out on the water sometime. Hey, let me show you around..." She said, standing up and grabbing him by the hand. He eagerly followed and in a moment they were off around the park lands.
They ended up on a small wooden bridge in a secluded part of the park. The grounds went way beyond the neat little fenced off area where people took their dogs for a play and runaround and into a more natural, wilder area that had a small creek running through it. Katherine stopped on the bridge and turned to face Action.
"Now this bridge has fond memories for me..." she said. "When we were kids, my sister and I would come down here and play Pooh Sticks"
"What the heck is 'pooh sticks'?" Action replied.
"Have you not read Winnie the Pooh?"
"Do I look like a guy who's read Winnie the Pooh?"
"Come on! Everyone's read Winnie the Pooh! OK, maybe not you...anyway Pooh Sticks is a game..."
"Don't tell me; invented by this Winnie the Pooh character?"
"That's right. Anyway, you play it like this: You and your friends select a small stick, then you lean over a bridge, count to three and after that you drop your sticks into the water all at the same time, run over to the other side of the bridge and see which ones emerges first. Look..." Katherine picked up a twig from the ground and showed Action how the game worked.
"Sounds like you could place bets and make some money if you picked the right kind of stick" he said, nodding.
"Now we just played it for fun, not to gamble on" said Katherine.
"The betting would make it more fun." replied Action. "So this is your childhood haunt. It's nice; I can see why you like it here."
"I thought I'd show you my neck of the woods, for a change" she replied. There was a hush in the conversation and Action looked all around him; his internal radar ever tuned.
"Do you hear that?" he eventually said.
"Hear what? What's up?" Katherine replied, anxiously.
"Nothing. You can't hear anything other than the creek running. No people, no critters. Just quiet."
"Does that bother you?" she asked.
"No...but it does allow us to enjoy an unguarded moment..." he said, gently grabbing her and pulling her body towards his. Katherine didn't resist at all, in fact she wanted this to happen...wanted the peace and tranquillity of Brindleton Bay to work their magic charm on Action. Once embraced, they let themselves go and kissed each other.
"Mmmm, that was good" said Action. "Is this the local romantic spot?"
"One of them" replied Katherine, with a knowing wink.
"I look forward to you showing me them all"
They walked around the park, sometimes holding hands and sometimes with Action's arm around her shoulders. Then, at one point, Katherine broke away from his touch and turned to face him.
"It's great to be back together again" she said.
"That's what I was thinking. Great minds think alike." he replied.
"You're not going to put me on hold again, are you?"
Action paused and looked at her quizzically. "I thought we'd talked about that: No more me being overprotective about us."
"I know, but your life gets chaotic. Sure, we're fine today but another big case you have to deal with, another crisis, some kind of escaped killer on the run and you put me as far from you as you can."
"I only do it to protect you" he said, touching her arm in comfort.
"I know that's what you think you're doing..." she replied, looking off into the distance for a moment before looking back at him. "...but isn't it about protecting yourself?"
"What? No! I can look after myself!" he protested.
"Physically...but emotionally? You pushed me away when things got tough; you never gave me a chance to prove I could stand my ground as well."
Action didn't have a reply to that. "It's a tough world out there and..." he began.
"You don't think I'm tough, do you? I'm a pampered rich girl who's had it easy, is that it? Well, I'll let you know if things get too tough...don't make that decision for me."
"So....this means? Aww, shoot, here's the one thing I didn't want to have happen today actually going to happen!" he said, looking past Katherine's shoulder.
""What's up?" said Katherine, suddenly concerned.
"We've been spotted by one of my colleagues...OK, time for some small talk..." he said, resignedly.
"I didn't know you frequented Brindleton Bay as well, Prisha" said Action to the woman.
"I get around and about" she said, mysteriously. "And I didn't know this was one of your haunts either" she added.
"Well, I'm getting a guided tour from Katherine here. Kat, this is Officer Prisha Datta; she's a colleague from the 13th Precinct. Prish, this is Katherine...my girlfriend" he said, making the introductions. Just calling Katherine his "girlfriend" sounded lame when it came out of his mouth. Made him sound like a high schooler. Katherine was more than just a girlfriend...but he wasn't ready to upgrade her to fiancée or soulmate yet.
"So you're the mysterious woman in Action's life, eh?" said Prisha to Katherine.
"Actually, Action is the mystery man in my life." said Katherine, looking at Action in a knowing way.
"He's a bit of a mystery down at the precinct as well" said Prisha.
"I can imagine" replied Katherine. Action said nothing but sat down next to his girlfriend and let the gossip float over his head.
Before Prisha could either relate some story about working with Action or Katherine could share an anecdote about how sweet, soppy and tender Action could be in private he decided to put the emphasis back on his work colleague.
"So, Prisha, are you still seeing that accountant? What's his name? Herbert?" he said, stretching out the two syllables of 'Herbert'.
"Yes, as a matter of fact I'm going to meet up with him very soon. It's going well." Prisha replied.
"Give my regards to Herr-Bert, will you?" he said.
"I will. Well, have fun you two...nice to meet you, Katherine. Make sure he doesn't get you into trouble."
"I've got him on a short leash, nice to meet you too" Katherine replied.
When Prisha had left Action put his arm around Katherine's shoulders "Yeah, right, as if I can be kept on a leash!" he snorted, derisively. Katherine merely smiled and raised an eyebrow.
"Now I'm not a complete stranger to Brindleton Bay" Action continued to say. "I know a very nice place just up the road from here. Let's get a drink..."
Action took Katherine down to the nearby Club Calico; an uptown yachting club which Action knew about when he made an arrest there not so long ago. He was impressed by the luxurious decor, the crystal-clear swimming pool, fantastic views over the bay and that they served excellent cocktails.
"Club Calico...you've got good taste, Action" said Katheine nodding in approval at the choice of destination.
"Know it well?" he replied.
"It's where the beautiful and wealthy all congregate in Brindleton Bay."
"Then you know it very well indeed...shall we?" he said, ushering her towards the club.
"Is that...Katherine? Katherine Bowie? It is! I didn't recognise you with that hair-do. Well how are you? I haven't seen you since your graduation." she said.
"I'm well, thank you. Oh, let me introduce you to John..." she said, indicating Action sitting next to her.
The woman peered over her sunglasses and looked Action up and down. "Pleased to meet you, John" she said, coolly. "And how do you know Katherine?"
Before Action could say anything Katherine said "oh, Action and I are dating".
The woman nearly choked on her drink when Katherine said that and could only mutter "I hope you have a pleasant evening" Before turning away from them.
"So much for Civil Rights" muttered Action.
"The civility is thin on the ground at times." Katherine replied.
"So I notice" said Action, raising his glass to Katherine before taking a drink. He smiled ruefully when another black man sat on the other side of the lady and she squirmed in her seat.
"An acquaintance of my parents. Never mind her...what cases are you up to at the moment?"
"A real puzzler with the Goths. I can't go into details but...say...do you know anything about her disappearance?" asked Action.
"Now that was the talk of the town a few years ago. Rumour was that she had an affair and got pregnant so she had to 'disappear' for a while so she could get an abortion." replied Katherine.
"That makes more sense than some of the other theories I've been hearing...something mystical, unearthly or..."
"...alien? Some people actually think she was abducted by aliens. Ha!" laughed Katherine.
"Hello Detective" came a voice from behind them. A deep, husky voice that sounded vaguely familiar to Action. He turned around to see a plump, garishly dressed woman with a big bouffant hairstyle.
"Have we met?" asked Action.
"You don't recognise me like this, do you? That's OK. I remember you very well." said the woman.
"The voice rings a bell..." said Action.
"It should. It's me: Damian. Damian Blount. You've taken down my....particulars...a couple of times." they said, smirking at their innuendo laden comment.
The penny dropped. Damian Blount: The "artiste" thief with a penchant for stealing ladies' shoes and wearing them. Well, Damian had obviously gone a lot further than just shoes this time.
"Damian? Well, that new look of yours...." said Action.
"I know! I'm finally living as me! I'm fabulous!"
"That's one word to describe it"
"I won't disturb you with your....lady friend. I look forward to our next 'encounter', big boy"
"Just keep your nose clean, Damian. I hope you didn't steal that outfit from anyone"
"Oh Detective! What a suspicious mind you have! Right, I'm off to watch the house pianist over there. He certainly can tinkle the ivories! Bye bye" said Damian, giving Action a little flirtatious wave before sauntering off.
"You meet some interesting people, Action" said Katherine, looking at Damian walking over to the piano. "I'm not sure about that colour combination though..."
"Just as long as he's staying on the right side of the law...anyway, that's interesting what you said about the Goths. Do you know them well?" asked Action.
"Only at large social gatherings. Nice enough people but there are so many rumours and stories about them. Goodness knows what is true and what isn't but I'll tell you one thing...Mortimer Goth knows where all the skeletons are. Not his...but everyone else's. But he never says anything about them. It's like he's...." and at that point Katherine looked off into the distance as if she was trying to remember something.
"What?" said Action, now on the edge of his bar stool and fascinated by what Katherine was going to say.
"...it's like he's...frightened of something." she said.
"I can't help but feel this is just one part of a larger story" said Action. "The Goths, Bella's disappearance, the Landgraabs, Fengs and Villareals. Something binds all of them."
"Well, I'm connected with all of them, socially. I could do some digging around" said Katherine.
"Yeah, that might help but..."
"...be careful. I get it, Action, but don't wrap me in cotton wool or, worse, push me away again."
"I won't. But promise me you'll not be reckless. I'm telling you it's the thing that binds them that is also the same group who messed with my mind and has tried to kill people."
"I promise" she said, finishing off the last of her wine. Action looked her with a mixture of admiration and desire.
"My place?" he asked. She nodded.
They headed off for Willow Creek as the daytime turned to dusk and the last light of the day was fading. Standing outside of his house he paused before reaching for the door keys. Turning to Katherine he said "I hope you had a good day"
"It was more than good" she replied. "It was 'fun' meeting your friends as well"
"A work colleague and a flamboyant thief...some friends." he replied.
"Let's go inside before I get cold!" she said.
The inside of the Action household was warm and cozy with his exotic taste in decor prominent throughout. His time in Vietnam heavily influenced how his home was decorated.
"I'm hungry...I'll make us something" he said.
"Hmmm, sounds good: I'm famished"
"You make yourself at home" he said, heading to the kitchen. But instead of sitting on the couch and kicking back, Katherine instead followed him into the kitchen.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"What you said...making myself at home and you've still got a pile of your breakfast dishes left lying around. Now at home I'd make sure this would all be cleared up."
"Don't you get your butler or someone to do it for you?"
Katherine picked up a dish cloth and smacked him with it. "I'm not useless! Now, pass me those plates and you concentrate on the food!"
"Yes, ma'am...I don't have to tell you to make yourself at home: You already have."
"And do you have a problem with that?" she asked with a hint of flirtatiousness in her voice.
"I don't have a problem with that at all..." said Action, thinking that maybe he should clear some space in his closet for her things as well.
