Odd Things in Odd Places

[Kai NRG]

This is a continuation of the detective's story; you can see the introduction and the previous part.

A nasty slime pit that was once a well is hardly a place most people would choose to get some quiet thinking done; but, as his wife would have gladly told you, Rhys Thomson was not "most people." He was quite well aware that (as his wife always said whenever he was searching for his misplaced monocle) "odd things turn up in odd places!" and, being a detective, he courted said odd places as much as he could, in the hopes of one day stumbling upon an odd thing.

This particular day, Rhys was meditating upon the curiosity of having two murder cases on his hands at the same time, which seemed to involve different people, but which still struck him as being somehow intertwined. Deep in thought, he leaned against the wall of the old pit, ignoring the noxious vapors that rose to the surface.

Suddenly he noticed a little bit of white rag floating in the green slime. He reached forward and jerked it up and was shocked to discover that, beneath it, up popped a head!

"Who are you?!" Rhys Thomson exclaimed.

"Wh-who- who am I?" the poor culprit stuttered. "I- I am a poor man, s-sir, I've not done anything! I - "

"Not done anything! Come now, my fine fellow, don't think you can hide from me," Rhys ejaculated in a commanding tone of scorn. "I know better than that! Tell me now! I seem to remember you, sneaking around, back in..."

"Oh, no! No! It wasn't me, truly sir! I didn't do it!" the man faltered in terror.

The detective smiled grimly to himself. "You may not have done it," he thought, "but you've done something, or you've seen something, and I'll make your talk, or my name isn't Rhys!" Then for a moment he fell to remembering how his wife had often said that he ought to have been named "Slys," as being more appropriate to the tendency he had for getting out of any housework - but, dismissing that subject from his mind, he continued, "Didn't do it, you say? Why, do you think a lie will help your cause now? Ha! You don't know who you're dealing with! Speak up, now, confess it!"

"B-but, truly, I didn't! It was all his fault! I- I was just - just outside, standing there! And then, she went in - but no, no, I didn't do it! I had nothing to do with it!"

"Oh ho! He and she, eh? Now we're getting somewhere!" thought the detective to himself. Out loud he said, "Little goose, not to know that to be silent is to be an accomplice! When he killed her, and you just..."

"Killed her? Oh no, sir, she killed herself - I mean, that is - n-no - or - yes..." The poor man was becoming momentarily more befuddled than ever.

To say truth, Rhys was a little befuddled too. Of course, he had just been making a wild guess, when he said that "he killed her," but this bit about suicide was throwing him off track pretty thoroughly. "Killed herself!" he exclaimed. "Now, really! Are you so sure of that?" For all his inward confusion, Rhys was just the person to pull a good bluff, so he sounded stern and tough and the poor man in the slime pit was thoroughly cowed.

"Y-yes - I mean, n-no. She didn't kill herself, you know, sir, she just faked it, a-and - b-but, I didn't do it! He did it!"

"Good night! Will I never get any names out of this slime?" thought Rhys. Then he resumed, "He did it, you say? Well! Prove it! - or, I will have to think that you are guilty."

"I can! I can! See, see, he pulled out the gun - his own gun - and his bullets are all marked - his own mark - and - and - she can testify that I was standing outside, and I can testify that she was standing outside, and we can both testify that he did it!"

Rhys twisted his mustache. Here was a puzzler. He had done it, and she had faked her death, and she knew it, and he knew it, and between it all, someone or another had clearly died! Rhys tried a bold move, in a guess. "Poor Jamie!" he breathed softly.

The coward in the slime pit didn't contradict the name. "B-by the time I knew wh-what h-happened," he whimpered, "it- it was too late!" He half sobbed. "An-and now - now, we've got to kill Nacho too, an-and - we have to do it, or Don Gonzalo will kill us! just like he killed Jamie! an-an-"

"Nacho! Don Gonzalo!" thought the detective. "Now we're getting somewhere!" Out loud he said, "Filthy scum! Come with me, and speak it out clearly, else, by my wife's beard, you'll spend the night behind bars!" Then Rhys added as an after thought - "Not that my wife has a beard, of course - it's just an expression." And he dragged the miserable man out of the slime pit and marched him along the streets.

...To be continued!

A build mainly to advance the story-line, with the slime being a bit of an after thought; at first it was going to be a nice park, but then, I was tired of blue fountains.

C&C appreciated! Thanks for looking, and for reading if you did so!

[TitusV]

If I had not fallen in love with Ryse's wife, I would with your story! You're making me so curious!

Nice, slimey build!

[soccerkid6]

Another superb Kai NRG story line! I love the overuse of pronouns to add to the confusion and humor of the scene

[Captain Braunsfeld]

It is getting more and more complicated - great!

[Kai NRG]

If I had not fallen in love with Ryse's wife, I would with your story! You're making me so curious!

Nice, slimey build!

Next part should be up soonish... I hope!

Thanks!

Another superb Kai NRG story line! I love the overuse of pronouns to add to the confusion and humor of the scene

Thank you!

It is getting more and more complicated - great!

Thanks! Mystery...