(A continuation of the last Blog.)

“Remember the party I went to for Jackie?”

“Of course, I do, it was just two days ago. Keep going, this is getting interesting.”

“I went into her walk-in closet to get some chairs and saw her shoe rack. She had about 20 pairs, all neatly on the rack, but the one’s I had liked, weren’t there. She wasn’t wearing them and I wondered where they were.

Then I remembered what Paul had said, the killer had stepped in the blood and left a foot print that showed he had walked away, instead of running as you might expect. It was interesting, but that’s all.

While you were gone I had coffee with Jackie. I found out that she broke her arm the same night Smout was killed. I went to where she works, and walked towards her house where the party was. Ron, she had to walk right by the place where Smout was killed! I think he tried to rape her and she broke her arm in a fight with him. She isn’t one to submit to anyone without a fight.”

“Sally, if she had a broken arm how could she have fought him off? How could she have killed him anyway? With what?”

“Well it’s not obvious, but it’s an easy answer. She is outstanding in our class for being the most flexible of all of us. Remember when I first told you about her, you said she belongs with the Rockettes in the chorus line with all the high kickers. You were right, and that’s how she killed him, with a kick to the neck with the shoes I liked so much. Ron, it was Thursday, she would have been waring those shoes I told you about, that’s why they weren’t in the shoe rack in her closet. One of them would have been covered in blood, she had to get rid of them.

The heels on those were about four-inch spike heels, a high frontal kick, like she learned in her Savate class years ago, to the throat, would have easily torn the flesh and caused a wound like Smout had. With a broken arm, she would have walked away – she couldn’t run, the pain would have been too intense. And Paul said there was blood on only one foot, as indicated from the foot print on the cement. Ron, I’m sure that’s what happened.”

“Sally, I love you. What you just told me is incredible, not only that it happened, but the way you put it together.  I think you’re right. Now I understand your comments earlier, about legal justice and poetic or street justice, and the tears. If we tell Paul, he will have to arrest her for murder, just like we would’ve done when we were cops. She will be exonerated, of course, citing self-defense. Jackie will be a hero, but her life will be changed forever, because she’ll be on the news and the front page of the newspapers for weeks.”

“Ron, I really, really about her. I don’t want this to destroy her life.”

“Nor do I. We have a week left before we go home. Paul is a good friend, and has been a cop a long time. I’m sure he has encountered, during his time in law enforcement, where a situation needs to be bent a little to arrive at true justice. Let me chat with him, off the record, and feel him out.”

They finished their meal which was cold now, because they forgot to eat when Sally was telling her story, but it was still good.

---

The day came when they had to board the bus for the airport in Marseilles. Paul was out of town again and they said goodbye to him two days earlier. Sally asked Ron if he talked to him about Jackie. Ron said he did.

“What did he say he was going to do?”

“He didn’t. He just said, he would ‘ponder’ it.”

“What does that mean?”

“I have no idea, but he was spellbound as I told him what you did, and how you put it all together. He said they needed more women on their police force.”

As they were leaving the hotel with their luggage, to walk to the bus station, Jackie entered the lobby.

“I’m glad I caught you. I wanted to say goodbye, and thank you.”

They gave her a hug, and Sally asked, “Thank us for what?”

“I’m not really sure. I got the nicest letter from a man named Paul. He didn’t sign his last name. It thanked me for making his job easier, and not to worry about the recent un-pleasantries. He said the arm will heal and the memory will fade. Then he said that you were truly good friends, and I should thank you. Do you know what he meant?”

“Yes, we do, and I think you do too. We love you.”

They left to catch their bus, with big smiles on their faces.

 

 

 (A continuation from the last Blog.)

In the morning, Ron caught the tour headed off to Saint-Tropez and Sally slept in till 9 a.m. After she got up and had her coffee and baguette for breakfast, she took out a pencil and paper, and just stared at it for minute, then shook her head and started writing.

When Ron returned, he was tired and hungry. He took Sally by the hand and said, “Come on sweetheart, let’s go to the place we went to, the day we got here. It is good and close.”

They sat down and Ron asked, “What did you do today? Did you have a good day?” Sally just looked at him and tears came to her eyes. “My God! What happened?”

“Well, you picked up on the fact I was bothered about something a couple of days ago. I made a list of some things that were bothering me, and tried to see if they could be related. I spent my day checking it all out, and wish I hadn’t, but you know me, an unsolved puzzle drives me crazy.”

“What on earth could you have gotten involved with that would make you cry? You never cry. You always said, coroners can’t get involved with their clients, and we don’t even have a case.”

“This is different. It’s not part of one of our cases, and in the past, most of my clients were dead, and I didn’t know them. I have discovered information that could destroy the life of someone that I really care for, and I’m torn on what I should do about it. You know the talks we’ve had with each other, when we left the police department and became private investigators, about legal justice and poetic justice.”

“I sure do. There are many times a big gap between the two exists, but what does that have to do with your puzzle?”

“Everything! The case Paul was working on about the man who was murdered in the ally.”

“That’s old news, they’ve it figured out. The cartel took him out because of his debt. They probably will never find out who did it ,even if they are good detectives. It was more than likely some out-of-town professional.”

“No, it wasn’t Ron.”

“What do you know that they don’t, Sal?”

“I know who killed him, and it wasn’t Big Louie from Detroit. I know why they killed him, and it had nothing to do with money. And I know what the weapon was. Is that enough?”

“Sal, I know you well enough to know you’re not kidding, but I don’t understand what you’re saying. It doesn’t make any sense. You weren’t even that interested when I was telling you about it. How could you possibly have all that information?”

“Do you doubt me?” She asked with tears in her eyes.

“I know better than to do that. We’ve worked together too long. When you put a case together you’re almost never wrong, but this one you’ve got to really educate me on before we go to Paul.”

“Ron, that’s my dilemma. I don’t want to tell Paul, and I know I should.”

“Why, if you’ve solved his case, wouldn’t you want to tell him?”

“Not this time. Because I don’t want the person caught that did it.”

“Now you’re not making any sense at all, Sally.”

“Yes, I am. You’ll understand, when I tell you, but I don’t know what you’ll think we should do, and that scares me. I don’t even want to tell you, but we’re not just partners, we’re married, and in this, I feel I need your counsel. It’s a decision I don’t want to make on my own.”

“Well tell me. I’m totally confused right now.  I have no idea what to think.”

“Sit back, I’ll tell you as we eat.” Their food came and Ron settled in to hear her story.

“When we first arrived here Paul said they were working on a serial rapist that killed his victims. That caught my attention, like it would any woman in a strange environment. Then you came back from your day with Paul and told me about the man that had his neck torn open. That caught my attention because they didn’t have a weapon. Just two unrelated facts.

When I joined the yoga group, the first day, I didn’t workout because I was just new and signing up, but I talked to some of the ladies that spoke English and asked a lot of questions as they were getting dressed after their workout session. There was one that stood out from the others because she was just perfect. I especially was entranced by her shoes. They were fantastic,  and you know, I have a shoe fetish; I had never seen shoes quite like hers before.

She told me where she bought them, and that they were her favorite shoes. She said she wore them every Thursday to work because they made her feel good. I know you don’t understand that but it’s a girl thing. We love our shoes. One more unrelated fact.

Then Paul told us that this Smout victim was the serial rapist. So what! Paul even said he would send a letter of thanks to whoever killed Smout, but I couldn’t forget the unknown weapon. It would have driven me crazy when I was an active coroner.”

 

(A continuation of the last blog.)

Sally had the address of where the party was being held but had no idea where it was. The streets were so convoluted and unfamiliar to her, she took a cab. It took her to a door in a tall wall. She saw a button to push. She pushed it and heard the door latch snap; she opened the door and entered a splendidly decorated courtyard. It was the home of Jackie, the friend with the broken arm. Some of the other women from yoga were there and were setting up chairs and card tables for the group in the courtyard.

Sally jumped right in and asked where the folding chairs were. They told her there were a couple in the closet in the bedroom. She went in and was fascinated with how organized Jackie was. The closet was a large walk-in. She saw the chairs and picked up two and started to carry them out when she froze. She stood there for a minute, looked puzzled, then shrugged her shoulders, and took the chairs out to the courtyard. More people arrived and a good time was had by all.

---

The next morning Sally and Ron went out for breakfast. They ordered coffee, baguettes, and orange juice. “How was the party, Sal?” Ron asked, while they were waiting for their food.

“It was fun. We sat around and laughed at each other, just the way we do at our morning yoga. Some of us are not limber enough to get into the poses and we look silly being half- way there. Jackie has been doing yoga for over 20 years and just slips from one to another effortlessly. She can sit on the floor, spread her legs apart, bend at the waist and touch her nose to the floor; can you believe that?”

“She belongs in the follies with all the high kicking Rockettes.” Ron joked.

Sally got serious and said, “Tell me more about the case Paul is working on, the one that they don’t have a weapon for.”

“I told you most of what I know. They think the motive to kill him must do with the money he was stealing from the company. Paul didn’t think the company was in on the killing, but maybe he wasn’t stealing enough to pay his gambling debt, and someone hired ‘Big Louie from Detroit’ to knock him off.”

“Ron, I’m serious.”

“Well so am I. France must have a ‘Big Louie’ or two, and if you don’t pay up, you’re put down. It’s the same all over in the gambling culture.” They finished their meal and took a stroll to look at all the merchants in their stalls along the street.

---

Paul called to invite them to dinner and got Sally on the phone. He said he wanted to take them to his favorite restaurant to make sure they had some real French cuisine. She was excited again and accepted for the next night. Before they hung up, Paul said, “Tell Ron there has been a huge break in the murder case we worked on the other day, when he was with me.”

Sally said, “You found the weapon, what was it?”

“No, we don’t have the weapon yet, but it’s not important to us anymore. This is much bigger than that. The routine DNA test we did on our Mr. Smout came back and matched the DNA of our serial rapist and murderer we’ve been after for six months. It looks like he got in trouble with the big boys and they took him out for us. If I knew who killed him, I’d write him a thank you note.”

---

When Ron came back from the bakery, he was carrying two baguettes.  “I found the best place to get them. I asked a man on the street that had one in a bag, and he pointed to a store called Jacobs and said his were the best”

“Ron, I have news.”

“What, you look upset.”

“Paul called, and invited us to dinner tomorrow night, and I accepted.”

“That’s great. I guess I just misread your expression.”

“No, you didn’t. I have a problem.”

“What is it Sal, can I help?”

“Not right now. I may need your advice later. This is something I have to do some checking on before we talk about it.”

“OK Sal, but don’t tune me out if I can help.”

“It has to do with my yoga group.”

“You’re right, that’s a social problem, I’m not qualified in that area. Good luck.”

“Paul had some big news about the murdered man that had his throat messed up. It seems that his DNA matches the DNA of their serial killer.”

“That’s great!  What a break that is. It changes everything.”

Sally said, “Yes, it does change everything.”

---

The next day, at the yoga class, Sally asked Jackie to coffee after class. They talked about their lives, what they did for hobbies, how much they liked their work.  A lot of other subjects came up like, just when Jackie broke her arm, and where she worked. Sally told her that the reason she enjoyed being a private investigator was she always had a puzzle to solve and that was her strong area. She loved to work on puzzles of all kinds. She said, “You seem to really like the yoga class, Jackie, you’re so flexible.”

“Yes, I do love yoga. I started it years ago when I was in college, it was one of the PE classes. I have always liked being physical and took a different physical education class each quarter to search for a lifelong exercise I could keep up after school. I took volley- ball, tennis, Savate classes, and even a basketball class. The one I enjoyed the most was the yoga, so I never stopped.”

“It’s too bad everyone doesn’t do that, find something that they love doing, and then keep using that to keep them healthy and in good shape. I admire you for coming to yoga, even with a broken arm.”

“It doesn’t hurt unless I bump the cast, and I can still do most of the stretches.”

They talked a while longer and parted, cheek to cheek. Sally was enjoying being in France and trying to learn the customs.

---

At dinner that night with Paul, Sally asked him, “What is Savate? I was talking with a friend and she said she took a Savate PE class in college. I was embarrassed to ask her what that was.”

“It’s one of our martial arts. We normally call it kick boxing. They combine kicking with boxing, and it is quite popular. They do it in the states too but it is combined with all the other martial arts and you folks call it cage fighting. It’s too brutal for most people to watch; we stick with Kick Boxing here; it’s a little more civilized.” They all laughed.

The dinner at the Hotel de Caumont was as good as it gets. One of the best meals Ron and Sally had ever experienced. Paul said he was going to be out of town for the next couple of days on another case, but he would be back before they left, and they would get together again.

---

Ron wanted to take the tour to “the little Saint-Tropez of Provence”.  It was a place he had heard about from a friend at home, in Seattle. “It’s more beautiful than the San Juan Islands in Washington.” Ron wanted to take an all-day tour, but Sally said she would rather stay in Aix and walk the city some more and go to the outdoor flower market. She loved flowers, and the open-air markets were special to her. There seemed to be one for everything. She knew Ron hated wandering around shopping. It was decided. They each were going to do their own thing tomorrow. Today, they would go back to the Hotel de Caumont and go through the museum; the current special exhibition was about Marilyn Monroe. They decided to take the day to tour the museum and a few art galleries, and have coffee on the street, like the French do. They were on vacation.