The Doc Justice Files - Mystic Mayhem part 2
by Direwolf

Chapter 2 - Hocus Pocus!

".... And I tell you they were gone, all of them, just like that." Alex snapped her fingers.

Justin Collins sat behind his desk in his office on the top floor of the granite-faced office building at Number One Post Street. His fingers were steepled in front of his face as he listened to her. Alex suspected it was also to hide his smile. She couldn't help but feel that he wasn't taking it all seriously enough.

"I say, was there a bright flash of light or a burst of colored smoke, maybe a few white doves fluttering about?" Go-on asked. He was seated on a chair by the picture window that faced east, providing a breathtaking view of the San Francisco night skyline as well as the lights of the Oakland waterfront out across the bay. Go-on's feet were propped up on the corner of Justin's desk, showing off his elegant, mirror polished shoes.

Britt stood near her brother, sipping a cup of steaming tea that Fu Lee had provided.

Alex graced him with a withering look that could have frozen water at a dozen yards. "No, they simply weren't there when we rounded the corner."

Justin looked up. "I assume they didn't climb a wall, go through a door or escape through some sort of tunnel?"

"No, there wasn't time for them all to climb a wall, the police confirmed that all the doors were locked from the inside and no one had come through them. And there weren't any manholes or apertures in the ground, just bare cement."

Justin nodded as if he'd assumed as much. "Tell me about this Randu."

"I've already described him as best I can."

Justin took a pad of paper and a box of pencils from his desk. In his years of traveling and taking notes, Justin had developed quite a talent as a sketch artist. He used his skill for artistic renderings of projects his company bid on. Now, he used Alex's description, augmented by Britt's observations, to produce a quite accurate picture of the self-styled Amazing Randu, complete with gem-decked turban.

"So, how does this look?" Justin asked, showing the ladies his creation.

"Amazingly accurate," Alex admitted.

"It looks quite life like, "Britt said brightly, "but you should erase the beard and mustache."

"Why's that?" Justin's pencil hovered over the picture.

"Because they are fake."

"How do you know?" Alex asked.

Britt smiled. "When he put the rose behind my ear, and, well, you know. I smelled spirit gum and could see the seam where they were glued on. It's stage make up, you know."

Alex was amazed. She'd never considered that Britt might have been looking for clues while she flirted with Randu. But this seemed like a major piece of information.

"Can I see the rose?" Justin asked.

Britt passed it over. By now the blossom was somewhat wilted. Justin examined the long stemmed rose.

"It's from a florist, you can tell since the thorns have been trimmed away and the end is cut with a knife at an angle. That color of red is known as an American Beauty." Britt giggled. "I have had some experience with receiving flowers, you know."

Justin offered no comment, simply arched an eyebrow and set the rose aside. He took another pad of a paper and jotted a set of notes. Alex quietly fumed but she sensed that Justin was actually taking the situation seriously. But she wanted to go out and do something to find the Heart of the Romanoffs now.

"So the crooks came in right before four in the afternoon. They were well organized and this Randu used stage magic to distract the guard, displayed slight-of-hand tricks, and seemed to know when the police were on the way. Did you get any sense that they were looking for your gemstone, Alex?"

She shook her head. "No. It really felt as if it was just a matter of bad timing. He saw it, liked it, and took it."

"All right," Justin said. "We actually have a lot to start with. But we can't start tonight. Yes, I know Alex, you want to start now but I think we can safely assume that Randu isn't going to sell your stone...."

"But it's priceless!" Alex protested.

"Yes, but I think it's a trophy. He dumped the fake stone from his turban to take your gem. He'll keep that as a symbol of his success and to remind himself that he's smarter then anyone who tries to catches him. And even if he tried to sell it, a stone that distinctive would be very hard to fence."

Alex grudgingly nodded. What Justin said made sense.

"But what about the way he knew the police were coming! That had to be magic," Britt insisted.

"I suspect we will have a chance to find out," Justin answered. "We will start investigating in the morning, when we can all give it a fresh start. I'll clear my calendar, this is too interesting to give up."

"Right-oh, then let's find some supper. I'm famished," Go-on said. "It's been quite a day. I had a grueling meeting with my tailors on the quality of the shirts they have been providing as well as the minor matter of some outstanding bills. That brother of mine has been quite lackadaisical about paying on time. What do you all say to Sarduchi's? Their new chef is reputed to be a wizard himself with a fresh capon and a bottle of olive oil!"

Alex smiled in spite of herself. It was hard to stay angry when Go-on was in the room. But there were still some things that needed to be said.

"You two go ahead," Alex insisted. "Go-on and I have a matter to discuss."

"Really?" Go-on asked as his feet thumped on the carpeted floor.

Justin looked suddenly stricken as if facing a hungry tiger. Alex felt a measure of sympathy for the young industrialist. It was no secret that Britt had decided that she was going to marry Doctor Justin Collins some day, no matter what he might think about the subject. And Justin seemed unwilling to propose to the hedonistic Englishwoman, even though she was his best friend's sister. Normally, Justin made sure he was never alone with Britt. But Alex knew this was the only way she was going to get a chance to really talk with Lord Gawaine.

Britt showed no resistance to Alex's proposal. She swooped down on Justin with a brilliant smile, nearly dragging him from his chair and towards the door. Fu Lee was right outside the door as Britt pulled it open without letting go of Justin's arm. With practiced ease, the Chinese butler slipped Justin's shoulder holster onto him before making sure his tailored gray jacket and overcoat were properly aligned, then set a dark gray fedora atop his head.

Justin managed one last pleading look to Go-on before Britt hustled him out of the office and towards the elevator. Fu Lee shut the office door without comment. Go-on's smile faded. Alex realized that he had just figured out this wasn't something Alex had done to give Britt some time alone with Justin in an effort to play matchmaker. This was about him.

His smile returned almost as quickly as it had left. But she knew from experience that this was just an act.

"Now, tell me what is going on," Alex said. She stood by the door and carefully avoided looking directly at him.

"You know more about this mysterious robbery than I do."

She shook her head. "That won't work with me, you know. After everything we have done together, everything we faced, and the words we have shared, you should know by now how well I can read you. Something is wrong, Gawaine, something has been wrong since you and Justin came back from India. Tell me what it is."

Gawaine was silent for a while, seeming to be captivated by the city lights sparkling below them. This time, she allowed him the silence.

"I shot someone, killed him in fact," he said at last, watching the city rather then looking at her.

"It's not like that has never happened before. Not that something like that should ever be easy, not for someone like you. But what was it about this time? You need to tell someone or it will consume you from within. I can see that."

Go-on rolled back his head and sighed, an expression of a deep weariness. "You can be quite insufferable, you know? Must be one of the reasons I'm so fond of you. It's who I shot; he was an old school friend and even though I know now as I knew then that I had to do it, I still can't make myself forget."

"And you shouldn't. That would be callous and deny the gravity of your act. But I am sure it was what had to be done. So, now share your burden with me. You know you can trust me and it's not like you haven't done the same for me."

"I can't bloody well argue with that. So, here is the full story of what happened out there, at least what I know..."

Go-on spoke without looking at her, his voice soft yet full of pain. And she listened without comment as the tears wet her cheeks. ***

"This is his way of paying me back for last night, isn't it!" Alex snapped as she paced the floor of Justin's office. The Chief Executive Officer of Collins Enterprises was notable by his absence. Go-on was back in his familiar chair and Britt sat nearby, reading over the society pages of the local papers. Fu Lee, his long black hair loose over his sea green silk tunic, paused in setting out tea and coffee.

"I do not believe so. Mr. Collins returned somewhat late yesterday night...."

Britt giggled and kept reading.

Fu Lee regarded the young woman with his brilliant, cat-green eyes. His disapproval was evident.

".... But was up early, as is his routine. He left with Mr. Jefferson and indicated that he intended to talk to members of the police force with regards to the bank robbery yesterday. He didn't indicate when he expected to return, madam."

Alex simply scowled. Go-on laughed. To her, he sounded much more like his old self. They had ended up talking long into the night, leaving Justin to fend for himself against Britt's attention. She gathered that once again Justin had resisted Britt's advances though she had dragged him from restaurant to bar to nightclubs last night.

When she pulled Britt down to Justin's office at what Britt insisted was an ‘ungodly hour', they found Justin long gone and Go-on, still in his dressing gown, lingering over a sumptuous breakfast provided by the multi-talented Fu Lee. The ladies had joined Go-on for breakfast. That had been more than an hour ago.

Before Alex could vent her ire on someone else, the elevator doors opened and Justin and Lucas walked out. Justin was dressed in a simple gray suit, his hat pulled down low over his roan brown hair. Lucas wore his black suit with a white shirt and leather gloves. Most people simply assumed that Lucas was Justin's driver. Alex knew Lucas was far more, combining the duties of advisor, guard, filing system and friend with the task of driving Justin's cars for him. Lucas and Alex had spent many a congenial hour with their arms buried in engines, assuring the cars were always in top condition. Lately. Lucas had expressed an interest in learning how to fly as well.

"There you are," Alex snapped. "What have you been doing? I thought we were all going to investigate what happened to my stone?"

"And good morning to you, too, Miss Gregory." Justin tossed his hat with a practiced flip as he settled behind his desk. The hat flew straight, landing atop the hat rack by the door. Justin's heavy flyer's coat of chocolate brown leather was already hanging from the rack along with Go-on's polished wood walking stick.

Lucas settled into one of the leather-upholstered chairs by a bookshelf. The chair groaned under his weight as he took a folded newspaper from his coat pocket.

Alex forced down her temper. He was right, she was letting her anger get the better of her and there was no reason for her to snap at someone who was both a friend and trying to help. She took a deep, steadying breath.

"Good morning, Justin. I'm sorry we missed catching up with you last night. Go-on and I got talking and rather lost track of time. Fu Lee said you had gone to talk to the police about the back robbery. Where you able to find out anything useful?"

"I think so. I spoke with Captain Seward over at Police Headquarters and he was quite helpful, so long as I agreed not to talk to the press. You see, the bank you were at was actually the third such robbery, all apparently committed by the same gang in less then two months."

That got everyone's attention.

"Why hasn't the press gotten hold of this one?" Go-on asked.

"The police have convinced the press not to publicize the robberies so the police won't have to deal with public panic that might hinder their investigation, though the captain said he'd be happy for any help we can provide. The federal authorities are also involved but so far, there isn't much to go on."

"What do they know so far?" Alex asked.

Justin took out his notebook and spread a large map of the city out on his desk. Alex, Go-on, Britt and Fu Lee all gathered around as Justin explained. Over the past six weeks, three banks, scattered around the city, had all been robbed by a gang of men led by a fellow in a turban. In all three cases the men ran out shortly before the police arrived then seemed to vanish from a local alleyway.

"Sure sounds like the same gang!" Go-on noted. "Any connection between the banks?"

"I wondered the same thing, but I couldn't find anything obvious. Now look at this." Justin had marked the location of all three of the robbed banks. He took a compass and drew a circle near each of the banks.

"What are those center points?" Alex asked.

"The police stations nearest each of the banks. This are the stations that responded to each of the robberies. In all three cases, the bank is near the ‘edge of the circle, as far from any police station as you can get. And look at this." Justin jotted a time by each of the banks. In all cases, they were within a few minutes of four in the afternoon.

"Why then?" Fu Lee took up a cup of tea as he examined the map.

"I wondered the same thing so I asked Captain Seward. Four o'clock in the afternoon is a shift change for the SF PD. At that time there are the least number of police cars on the street except for the shift changes at twelve at night and eight in the morning when...."

".... None of the banks would be open!" Alex finished.

"Exactly! This was the time that the robbers could be sure that they had the lowest chance of being discovered by a passing patrol car. They could tell roughly how long it would take for police to arrive as well."

"But that doesn't explain how they would know in time. Even if they had some way of knowing when the police left their station, how would they find out in time to get out of the bank and away before they arrived at the bank?" Fu Lee watched Justin through a curtain of steam from his teacup.

"Mind reading?" Britt suggested.

Justin chuckled. "That may be possible, but I suspect something else. I have a theory but it's just that. I'll keep it to myself for now."

"So, what do we do now? That self-styled mystic still has the Heart of the Romanoffs!"

"I think we have some time. The crooks don't strike every day. I think we need to try to collect some more information. I think we should take the clue he gave us, the rose, and see if we can trace where it came from." Justin took out three sheets of paper. One was the original sketch from last night along with two copies he'd made this morning. "We'll split the city into three sections and spread out in pairs and check with as many flower shops as we can find. We are looking for a man who buys one rose at a time, at a minimum of one each day there was a robbery. Fu Lee and I will pair up. Lucas, if you will give Britt a hand, which leaves Go-on and Alex to work together. We'll compare notes this evening."

"A very workable plan." Alex took one of the pictures and carefully stowed it in her purse. "Come along, your lordship, we have quite a bit of territory to cover."

"But, I haven't got on my walking shoes!" Go-on shot Justin an imploring look. This time, Justin simply smiled knowingly and pointed towards the door.

"You will just have to manage. Now come along, we are wasting daylight."

"I liked it much better when she was bossing you around," Go-on muttered to Justin as he grabbed his hat and coat and hurried after Alex.

To be continued...

To be continued...