The Claire Thatcher Series: Blood in California

Chapter Seven

My apartment was silent, and the sound of the absent fan in the corner blew left and right. Along with the ceiling fan making silent croaks ever so often from its age. I opened the file to Mark Tallimen and saw how thin it was. Granted, we have his body, and we know how he was murdered and moved. But we haven't gotten anything else but that silly, old jewelry chest. I set the file aside, feeling anxious, knowing the killer was still out there.

This killer is intelligent and no doubt knows how to work around the police. Eventually, my mind reverts to Mark having an empty bank account. Then I remembered that his parents were relatively wealthy and just openly had a jewelry chest with hard cash in it—easy for anyone to grab and take with them.

I ponder this until my phone goes off. I look at the screen and see Dotty's contact information. I pick it up and answer, "Hey Dot, what's up?"

"Hey, Ben... you okay?" She asks, her voice quiet over the phone. I sigh as I lean back onto the couch.

"Yeah, did you manage to find anything online about Mark?"

"Just his socials. Everything seems pretty normal. His calling records are clean, too."

"We are stumped," I reply as I rub my forehead, and it aches.

"Was Claire at all helpful today?"

"Yes, just a bit pushy about interrogating Alex Tallimen."

"Well, this is the infamous Claire Thatcher. She wants nothing but answers as soon as possible." She huffs, seeming to find Claire's persistence annoying.

"I can understand her, though. Not finding answers or the killer makes you anxious." I admit, "Well, get some rest, Dotty. I'll see you and the team tomorrow."

"Alright, goodnight Benedict. Hey, don't stress it too much. We will find the culprit." She softens, her tone reassuring as I smile softly.

"Thank you, goodnight," I replied before hanging up the call. I toss my phone to my side as I try to close my eyes and sleep.

My head is blank, and my heart slowly starts to calm down. Today was chaotic, and who knew I would end it with an unsuccessful investigation? Typically, I would have gained eight clues max, but I am left with zero. Was it cause Claire was with me? Is she opening a new form of investigating? Or does she suck?...No. The fuck? I groan as I get up from my couch to sleep in bed.

Just as I go to sit down, my phone rings again. I sit there, letting it ring. Do I really want to answer? Yeah. I pick up my phone and see Claire Thatcher. I furrow my brows. Why would she call me? There must be a good reason.

"Hello?" I answer the phone, my voice tired and a croak.

"Hey, so you know that animal center down by Clay Street?" She has a lively voice and seems to be typing on her computer.

"Why in the world are you calling about the Animal Care Center?"

"Because they posted a recent celebration about a wealthy donation, but the donater is anonymous." She continues, and I assume she's pulling it up. Because my phone buzzed, I put her on speaker-phone to open her email: the picture showing the post and the amount donated in big red letters.

"Wow...$800,000...why are you calling about this?" I rub the bridge of my nose.

"I reached out and got them to tell me the exact amount. You won't guess it, but it was $862,590. That's the exact amount taken from Mark's bank account." She reads, her voice laced with excitement.

"That has to be a coincidence, or they just lied to you cause people just don't share exact amounts." My voice is a low mumble.

"I said I would donate to them if they told me, and it was for investigation purposes. My email tag even reads I'm an FBI detective." Her voice was rather snappy.