Mr. Monk and the Red Herring

Chapter Two

Mr. Henry hailed from a small pet store in the Noe Valley area of San Francisco, not very far from where Natalie lived. It was rarely crowded, and today the only occupant amongst the maze of animal cages was a young man at the far end of the room. 

A plethora of animal sounds filled the air, from bird chirps to dog barks. Many smells were present too, unfortunately for the most sensitive of the group that had just entered the shop.

Natalie had suggested the three of them — her, Monk, and Sharona — visit the store to find out more about the fish. While the two women were perfectly comfortable in this environment, Monk looked to be regretting his choices already.

"Ugh-ohh," he groaned, reaching up to cover his mouth and nose with his sleeve as they walked through the store. "You smell that? What is that?"

"It's a pet store," Natalie told him. She held Mr. Henry in a plastic bag and was leading Monk and Sharona over to where the young worker stood. "Haven't you ever been in a pet store?"

"No," Monk said truthfully. "What a good run I had."

"What have you been doing?"

"He's been avoiding pet stores," Sharona quipped.

"Ha, ha. How often do you come here?" Monk gagged.

"I mean, not that often. Just when I need to pick stuff up for Mr. Henry."

"How can you stand  it?"

"Adrian, quiet," Sharona said. "It's just a pet store."

"But the smell," Monk complained. "The smell, and the noise —"

"Okay, it's gonna be fine," Natalie told him. "Just breathe though your mouth."

"Yeah, and grow up," Sharona suggested.

"Cool it," Natalie muttered to her. They'd reached the pet store employee, and her tone changed abruptly. "Hey, Carl."

"Hello, Mrs. Teeger!" Carl said cheerfully. "What can I do you for?"

"We wanna ask you a few questions about this fish," Sharona ventured. "Is there anything, like, special about him?"

"Anything unusual I should know?" Natalie added.

"Like what, is he sick? Little guy looks okay to me." Carl leaned over to smile at the fish in the bag.

For a change, Monk was distracted from his work. No, that wasn't true — Monk was always distracted by something. But this time it wasn't a problem, rather something interesting. While Sharona and Natalie talked about the case, he wandered over the a bird cage that had caught his eye. It housed a lone yellow parrot that perched on a branch, quietly eating.

"No, no, I mean, is he valuable?" Natalie continued.

"He's just a marble fish, Mrs. Teeger," Carl shrugged. "We sell 'em for 99 cents. Got about a thousand of them. If you'd like your money back —"

Sharona glanced around to find Monk. He remained at the birdcage, watching the parrot intensely and sorrowfully. She opened her mouth as if to say something, paused, and then closed it, turning back to Carl.

"We're not returning him," she cut in. "Is there any reason why someone might want this particular fish?"

"I mean, really, really want him?" Natalie added.

"Uh, well, he's sorta pretty," Carl suggested, grinning. The two rolled their eyes. "And he's got a thin, black stripe on his dorsal fin..."

"Mr. Monk, what do you think?" Natalie said loudly, drowning out Carl. Monk, still fixated on the bird, didn't respond.