Mr. Monk and the Red Herring

Chapter One

It was truly a dark and stormy night.

Gray, shadowy clouds shrouded what might've been a star-speckled sky, save for the glow of the streetlights and office buildings across San Francisco.

Lightning skipped across the clouds every now and then, followed suddenly by a clap of thunder. The windows of the Teeger household flashed bright colors from the storm as rain beat against them.

The house was very quiet after dark, when all the downstairs was pitch-black and empty with the exception of the small fish swimming peacefully in a tank in the corner. The water bubbled quietly, a sound barely audible over the raging storm. Two of the Teeger family slept soundly upstairs, a young woman and her tween daughter.

The lower floor of the house, while unoccupied at the moment, still had unmistakably been lived in. It felt very much like a home. Framed family pictures and childhood scribbles in crayon lined the walls, and piles of books and craft paper covered the coffee table in their living room. Even the lone fish tank had a few friendly stickers pasted on its glass walls and an open pack of fish food tucked underneath it.

However, the eerie tranquility of the dimly lit space was shattered in a matter of seconds when a dark figure forced open the living room window.

The clouds lit up with lightning as he slipped over the windowsill, briefly illuminating the room and casting oddly shaped shadows.

The intruder was unarmed and unmasked, showing his confidence in the success of his mission. He didn't have time to waste for closing the window behind him, letting stray homework papers of the younger Teeger flutter in the rainy wind. The man approached the fish tank that sat at the other end of the room. Behind the toy treasure chest submerged in the water hid a small, orange and white patterned fish watching curiously.

The man reached an arm around the side of the tank, flicking a switch that turned the lights of the aquarium on. Startled, the fish darted to the far side of its enclosure. 

He pried open the lid of the aquarium without hesitation, and without looking, for he didn't notice a cup that had been resting atop it. It clattered loudly to the floor, startling him.

"Shit" — the intruder cursed under his breath. The clack! of the plastic cup on the hardwood was certainly loud enough to be heard across the house.

Sure enough, the young woman, Natalie, woke with a start upstairs. Noises in the night were never a good sign, and a particular worry of Natalie Teeger's — she was a single mother of one, and her first priority was to keep her daughter Julie out of harm's reach at all times. 

Lucky for Natalie, this uneasiness meant she came prepared.

Hidden underneath her bed was a baseball bat, Natalie's go-to quick and easy weapon. It was also something that could fit in spaces that 11-year-old girls wouldn't be looking. As far as Natalie was concerned, her daughter should feel safe in her own house, and not like she needed protecting.

Which she very much did.

Natalie crept down the hallway, ignoring how her hands shook as they clutched the bat firmly. She cast a quick glance into Julie's room as she passed it. Julie was still safe and sleeping quietly, thank God, wrapped in her blankets and holding onto a purple Care Bear. Natalie let a sigh of relief escape her lips as she watched Julie breathe, and relaxed her hands as she moved on. 

The stairs creaked softly as she made her way down them. At their foot was a beaded curtain marking the entrance to the lower level of the house, separating Natalie from the dark and cluttered living room. Natalie pushed it aside, taking in her surroundings.