Chapter Four

 It was Detective Ramon, casually eyeing the tattered packet in his hands and frowning. He opened it, scanned at the sheets of paper and his frown deepend. Then, with complete insouciance, he slipped the packet in his coat pocket.

Adira just stared at him, stupefied and feeling her hands turn numb. It took her a second to recover from her imaginings of almost being murdered.

He was turning around and leaving before she felt her sense jump into action.

“You followed me!” Her accusation was blurted out.

He barely turned to address her. “As you did.” Then when he was outside the door, smiled. “Exactly as I had planned.”

Adira couldn’t understand any of what was going on. She had been duped, but how, she still couldn’t grasp. When he disappeared from her view, she followed him down the passage.

“You lied to me. You purposely made me follow you...” She swallowed, her mind working at an inscrutable pace. “You left the door open. You made me come here...but why?”

He paused and she thought he was finally going to explain, instead, he started walking to the door and she felt like she had just been insulted in the most demeaning manner.

She caught his elbow and tugged, but he was quick. Before she could apply pressure, he had caught her wrist.

“This wasn’t a ruse. I wanted your assistance in my investigation so I used what you knew,” He explained. “You did turn out to be useful after all.”

“I don’t understand,” she replied honestly.

He let go of her wrist, but Adira was still holding it upright, staring at him, trying to comprehend the situation before her. Suddenly, she felt afraid.

“You don’t need to.” He adjusted his glasses and then she saw him hesitate, as if he were relenting. “You may not have known what your sister was up to for the past ten years, but they do say old habits die hard. Sibyl disappeared, but I deduced she must have done something to hide a clue that was related to her habits. You’re her sister. You would know. Although, I didn’t have much high hopes, but it was a last desperate attempt to find what she had been hiding.”

“You could have just asked me for help,” she said, finally putting her hand down.

“No, I wanted you to be in that stressful situation so that your mind would desperately seek a clue. And it worked.” He smiled, looking pleased with himself. “That is why I left her laptop open. So that you could see the pictures that had been sent of you.”

“Who did that?”

He shrugged. “I assume Sibyl must have hired a private investigator.”

Adira looked all around her. “So, her room. It was messed up on purpose?”

He shook his head. “No, it was found in that state.”

Before she could say another word, he was turning to leave again and she started to get agitated.

“Look, Detective...”

“Call me, Ramon.” He opened the front door, but she quickly put a hand on it so that he wouldn’t be able to open it fully.

“What was in that packet. I need to know what has happened to my sister. It is my right!” She glared at him and he in turn, snarled.

“I suggest you keep out of my way.” His tone was menacing, and Adira felt a sudden chill.

She swallowed, desperately wanting answers, but also frightened that she was getting mixed up in something that seemed dangerous.

“I’ll do no such thing,” she said so quietly and so unconvincingly that she expected him to laugh at her. Then she brought forward all her vigor and stuck her chin up. “Sibyl was my sister. She may have abandoned me but I would never do that to her.”

Ramon looked away, staring at the door and for a moment, she was certain that he was going to reveal something that he was obviously hiding.

It was an immense mistake because the second she had let go of the door, he had pulled it open and walked out toward the elevators.

Adira had to catch her breath and then scream at herself.

Run after him! Go get your answers!

He was pushing on the buttons when she reached him. One hand in his pocket, he frowned but wouldn’t look at her.

She stood there, trying to measure him up and find a way that would get him talking to her.

“You’re not getting any answers from me,” He told her, as they waited for the elevator.

“I didn’t say a thing.”

Good, be annoying. Stare at him with doe -eyes until he takes pity on you. It worked on that grocer last week who finally couldn’t stand you staring at him and gave you that fresh loaf of bread he had been hoarding for himself.

The elevator pinged and he got in. Adira wasted no time in following him as he urgently pushed on the buttons. She kept staring up at him, figuring he must be at least six inches taller than her. She could see that he didn’t have a single crease on his plain white shirt, or a wrinkle on his blue suit.

His nails looked clean and well taken care of and he had on a gold watch.

She stared back up at him and saw his lips pressed together. It apparently looked like he was having a tough time ignoring her.

When they reached the lobby, he walked at a brisk pace and she followed him, deciding to be persistently annoying until he would succumb.

They were walking out when he turned around suddenly. “Get in,” he told her.

She blinked, nervous and wondering if she had infuriated him to the extent that he was going to humiliate her in front of the security guards who were watching them.

“What?”

“You gave all your money to that cab driver didn’t you? He told me.” He looked like he wanted to point and laugh at her. “I’ll drop you back to college.”

No, you’re not getting in a stranger’s car. Say no and run.

“Okay.” She followed him around his car and then sat inside. “This looks pretty expensive,” she remarked impulsively as she buckled up while he got in.

“Hm.”

She eyed the bulge in his coat pocket and wished she dared enough to grab it. The car started to move and she tapped her knee.

“What was in that packet?” she asked when they stopped at a red light.

“Something you don’t need to know.” His response was curt.

“I can help, you know. I need to find my sister.”

He let out a breath and started  to drive once again. “You are of no use to me. Today was a gamble. I was stuck and decided to go another way around it. Sibyl didn’t have many close friends. None, that could reveal her behavior. She was hiding something. And that was what got her into trouble. I wanted to find it and thought that her sister may have some insight into Sibyl’s behavioral patterns.”

“Why was she having me followed?” Adira rested her elbow on the arm rest and turned to him.

He shrugged. “You’ll have to ask her.”

“Whatever is in that packet, is that about me?”

Ramon didn’t answer. He stopped the car and peered out the window. “We’re here.”

Adira frowned and looked at her college building that looked dull and grey against the white backdrop of the sky. Then suddenly, a few drops of rain fell on the windshield.

She sat up straight, not moving. “What did you find at the office?”

He wouldn’t look at her. “Her colleagues think that she was working on a secret project. No one knows what it was. One of them believes that she must have walked into the wolves’ den and gotten herself killed.”

Adira felt like she had been hit back. She stared at him, feeling a dull crunch in her chest. Tears, pricked her eyes as she wondered what it would feel like to know that she didn’t have a sister anymore.

Ramon pressed his lips together. “I am sure she’s fine.”

Adira unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door, no longer being able to compose herself in this situation anymore. She could deal with her sister being missing, not with her being dead.

Before she could close the door, he called her. “Here, take this.”

Adira bent her head and saw that he was handing her a white business card with blue lettering on it. She saw his name written on it, along with his mobile number.

“In case you remember anything,” he said.

“In case you decide to tell me what you found and what was in that packet, you have my number, don’t you?” She asked sweetly and sarcastically.

“Not very likely.” He gestured for her to close the door and the second she had, he drove off, leaving her standing there, staring down the road in the drizzle that was slowly turning into rain.

*****

Adira was having another sleepless night. One hand was on her mouse, the other twirling the business card Ramon had given her. She stared at the screen, staring at her sister’s face on her business page.

Sighing, she picked up her phone to check the time and saw that it was close to three in the morning. Beneath the large numbers, she saw a notification for seven missed calls and thirteen texts.

Unlocking her phone, she saw they were all from Neil, asking her why she hadn’t met him to discuss the project topic. She switched off the phone and put her hand in her head.

Academics was the last thing on her mind. Suddenly, she felt overwhelmed. It was all too much. New environment, new house, a break-up that had broken through her fantasy world and given her some clarity and to top it all, she had been told her estranged sister was missing.

Adira let go of the mouse and picked up her mug to drink the now tepid coffee. Her fingers continued to twirl the card in her hands.

Putting down the mug, she swallowed the coffee with a grimace.

Why did he even give me his number if he never intended to tell me anything? He hasn’t told me anything at all.

“How am I going to find her?” She said out loud, then finally dropped the card.

There had to be a way.

If he won’t tell me anything...someone else could.

She searched for the contact number for Sibyl’s office, found a number and then  frowned when she saw the timings she could call. Clearly, no one was going to pick up at three in the morning.

Who else? Ramon couldn’t be working alone could he? In TV shows, don’t they show that detectives work in teams? If not him, maybe his partner might be more forthcoming.

Excited by this new possibility to find information on her sister, she dialed the number for the police station and rehearsed what she was going to tell whoever was going to pick up.

“Hello?”

“Hi, is this the police station?” Adira rubbed her eyes. She had never called the police before, never thought she would have to.

“Can I help you?” It was a woman. “Is there an emergency?”

Adira smiled. No matter what, the police station was not going to be closed at whatever hour. She felt her excitement build. “Yes, I wanted to talk to the officer in charge of my sister’s case.” Then she realized she was supposed to give a name. Of course, she wouldn’t know who she was talking about.

“Your sister’s case?” The woman asked, still kindly.

“Sibyl Ravenson,” Adira said. “She disappeared a week ago and I wanted to know if there has been a development in the case.”

“Just a minute,” The woman said and Adira heard clicking sounds, as if something was being typed.

“Could you spell the name, please?”

Adira spelled it, and waited the next minute in anxious anticipation.

“I’m sorry, there is no case registered for that name,” The woman replied.

Adira sat up straight. “She’s an investigative reporter. A week ago, she was taken from her apartment.”

“Can I ask who registered a missing person’s report?”

Adira felt her heart sink. It was a question she should have asked herself. Someone would have had to report her missing for the Detective to contact her.

Did he tell me who had filed a report?

“I-I’m not sure,” Adira said, almost on the verge of tears. “I was told she was missing. I haven’t spoken to her in ten years.”

“Would you like to file a missing person’s report?” The woman sounded patient.

Adira sat back on her seat, feeling her chest tighten. “Are you absolutely certain there isn’t any case filed?”

“I am sure, Ma’am.”

“Could I speak to Detective Ramon? He’s handling the case I think. Or his partner?”

 

There was a small pause and this time the woman didn’t sound too patient. “Ma’am are you certain you’ve called the right number? Perhaps you mean to call another state?”

Adira shook her head. “My sister went missing in this city. The case should have been registered here, right?”

“We don’t have a detective by that name.” There were more clicking sounds heard.

“Is there another police station? I’m not sure who I’m supposed to be calling.” Adira felt her eyes hurt from staring at the bright screen of the laptop in the dark room.

“Ma’am we don’t have any of those names in our system. We are connected to all the stations in this state.”

“Oh.”

“So, would you like to register a case?”

Adira took the phone from her ear and chewed on the inside of her lip. She should. If there was no one from the police looking for Sibyl, then someone should.

But then, who is Ramon? Was he really even a detective?

She picked up his card again. Saw no title written beneath his name, except for a mobile number.

“I’ll have to call you later. I’m sorry.” Adira cut the call and put her phone face down.

She brought the card nearer and then picked up her phone again, dialing the number.

It took three tries, before a very drowsy voice answered.

“Yeah?”

Adira took a pause, trying to decide whether to straight away accuse him or make him confess.

“Adira?” He asked.

Her name, spoken in his tone, made her heart skip a beat. “Where exactly did you find my number?”

“I found it in Sibyl’s diary.” He sounded alert all of a sudden.

“How did you get a hold of it, Detective?”

“At her apartment.” There was no hesitance when he spoke again. “You can call me Ramon. There is no need to be formal.”

“Of course, considering you’re not really a detective, are you?” She scoffed aloud,  making sure he heard the derision in her voice.

“I never said I was.”

“You alluded to it,” she accused. “You called yourself Detective.”

“I am.”

“I just called the police, asking for you. They never heard of you.”

There was a big pause and when he spoke again, his voice was controlled and calm. “You called the police?”

“Of course, I did. Now are you going to tell me what is going on?” She asked, clenching her free hand.

“What did you tell them?” He asked, sounding apathetic.

“About my sister. They had no idea. There’s no file on her. She’s been missing and no one approached the police?” She felt almost light-headed as she spoke vehemently.

“I can explain what is going on.” He seemed untroubled by her obvious frantic words.

“Tell me.”

“I’m traveling out of the city tomorrow...”

“You’re meeting me tomorrow. You either tell me what is going on or I’m going to the police.” She sat up, her back rigid.

“Fine. Meet me at Eastfield Park at ten-thirty.”

“The park where no one ever goes and has no main roads leading to it?” Adira gritted her teeth. “Of course not. I’m not meeting you at a secluded place. We are meeting at a cafe. And we have to meet at nine. I have class at ten-fifteen.”

That’s it. Show him you’re not scared of him.

“Okay.” Ramon didn’t sound too happy. “But you have to promise you won’t talk to the police until then.”

Before Adira could ask why, he spoke again, “Sibyl’s life may depend on that.”