Moth(13)

I no sooner find a hotel to work out of when I get a call from my director. I see his name on the screen of my phone and wince before answering. “Agent Douglas.”

“I’ve been looking over the crime scene photos. What new information do you have for me so far?”

“I just arrived near the campus. I’m getting settled into a room and then heading back out.”

“Can I make a suggestion without you going all batshit crazy on me?”

I shrug, though I know he can’t see me. “Sure.”

“Blend in, Moth. You’re dealing with young people who are going to assume you’re trouble. You can’t walk around looking like Tarzan. Cut the hair. Shave the face. Look the part of a college student.”

“I’m not going to be here that long.” I say.

“Actually, we’d like you to stick around for a while. I’m considering sending House and Renner your way in the next week. We can get you set up somewhere nearby so you can work. I want to know how they’re transporting, where it’s coming from, and who the distributor answers to.”

“So I’m being demoted?”

“Let’s just say it’s a time out. No one is blaming anyone or cutting your pay. We’re just giving you a change of scenery. If this pans out to be nothing, you’ll know before the other guys make the trip. I’m giving you free reign to find out who did this to your brother, Moth. If anything, that should make you want to stay.”

“Yeah, I guess. Who’s running Guatemala?”

“Renard. He wasn’t thrilled about it either.”

I laugh. Renard is getting old. He’s gotten comfortable running things from his desk. To be sent out into the field is probably hell for him. “Wow, who did he piss off?”

“Who doesn’t he piss off? The guy is a dick. I wish he’d retire.”

“I want my old post back, John.” Saying his first name makes it more personal. “I need to know that once I’m done with this I’ll be able to return to Guatemala.”

“Keep me in the loop on what you find. I want daily updates, even if it’s an email. You got me?”

“Yeah, I hear you loud and clear.”

When we hang up I’m seriously annoyed. I’m being punished and it pisses me off. Since there’s nothing I can do about it, I decide to focus on what I can change. I need to solve my brother’s murder, and in order to do that I’m going to have to dive right in.



Windy Lewis works at Apple Pharmaceuticals. She’s got a bachelor’s degree in Science, but I’m not sure exactly what she does for a living. At night she takes more courses to earn her graduates degree. Her bank statement is clean of any kind of criminal activity. She has damn near perfect credit. Her car is a hunk of junk, and she’s up to her eyeballs in student loan debt. Her apartment is on a poverty stricken side of town, and according to her spending habits, she’s hard up for cash.

This is not the type of person involved in a billion dollar heroin business, but just to be sure I still decide it’s best to follow her.

I learn the hours of operation at the company she works for. I go through her car once she’s in the building. Like every female I’ve ever met, her vehicle is filled with unnecessary items, including bags of trash, old water bottles, and a few changes of clothes. I do find a few receipts where she paid for more food than she could ever eat herself. I wonder if the other person dining with her could have been Jamie, so I cross reference his bank statement to see if maybe he went to the same places.

Sure enough I find a few matches, but campus life is predictable. Most kids hang out at common spots. This doesn’t mean they were involved sexually. I need to dig deeper, but I’m at a loss as to how to do it.

After finally getting some much needed sleep, I wake up the next morning with a fresh head. I know what I need to do to make this work, and it’s going to take some time in the bathroom, and a whole lot of flashing my badge around the campus for it happen.

Stepping into a salon seems like a new experience to me. I’m convinced this is a terrible idea, but necessary if I want to get anywhere with this younger crowd of people. Before this happened I assumed I was still pretty damn cool. I’m only in my thirties, I take care of my body, and I’m determined I can solve any problem there is to face.

Two women are standing at their booths when they spot me entering. Both give me a once over, probably because I look like a bum. I offer a wave of surrender. “I’m looking to get a haircut.”

They both burst into laughter before the furthest one away, the blonde with the fakest set of tits I’ve ever laid eyes on walks in my direction. Her co-worker, an African American woman with shiny bone straight hair shakes her head. “Have at that one. You couldn’t pay me to deal with that nap.”

The blonde offers a friendly smile. “Don’t listen to Lucy. She’s, well she’s just too loose.” She’s now snickering as we pass by her friend.

“Room to talk, hooker.”

“Anyway, what can I do for you today?” She motions for me to sit in her chair and spins me around so I’m facing the mirror and she’s behind me. “I’m assuming you haven’t been trimmed in a while. Were you in jail?”

Far from it. “No. I’ve been out of the country for a while. I’m looking to take it all off. High and tight on the top, and you can shave off all my facial hair.”