An Unattended Death, Part 6

      I stared at the man behind the huge black mustache. The mustache was new, but the face wasn't.
      "C.J.?" I asked.
      "Be quiet!" he snapped. "What are you doing here?"
      "I ... come here all the--"
      "Try again," he commanded.
      "I--"
      "Never mind," he said. "I want you to leave right now. Go outside. Get in your car. I'll be there in a few minutes. Don't try to run off. You're going to answer my questions here or at jail. I don’t care which."
      I rose and walked outside. I passed by Marlene. She never looked up. So much for questioning her.
      As I sat in my car, I began to wonder what the penalty was for interfering in an investigation. Great, I was probably going to be arrested. Apparently curiosity not only kills cats, but it puts people in jail, too.
      C.J. jerked open the car door, startling me out of a year's worth of hair growth.
      "Okay, let’s hear it," he commanded.
      "I like the look," I said. "Sort of a Village People. And the mustache looks real. Did you put it on with spirit gum?"
      "I'm in no mood for a smart ass," he snapped. "How would you like a ride to jail?"
      "Sorry."
      He shook his head impatiently.
      I took a deep breath. "I was here to talk to Marlene."
      "About what?"
      "I wanted to ask her about Aaron."
      "Why are you so interested in him?" he asked. "What is it to you?"
      "I don't know," I said. "I just think there's something more to it."
      "Why?" he asked. "What are you holding back?"
      "Nothing," I said. "I don't know anything more than what you told me, but I keep feeling like there's something more, something I should ask you, but I can't figure out what that is."
      He looked at me a long time and then said, "Okay, I can buy you being nosy, but you're out of this. There are things going on here that can get you killed. We don't need some amateur mucking things up. You're out, understand? If I catch you nosing around this again, you'’re in trouble. Trouble with a capital T."
      I wanted to say, "Right here in River City," but I doubted he'd appreciate the quote from The Music Man.
      "Okay," I said, "but I wanted to tell you that I saw Marlene taking money in there and giving them little packages. I figure it's drugs."
      He sighed. "Figure that out yourself, did you? Besides me, there's at least four other officers in there, not counting a couple from the OSBI. Somehow we've figured it out without your help."
      "So you’re going to arrest Marlene," I said.
      "She your girlfriend?" he asked. "Otherwise why is it any of your business?"
      "Look, you were the one that told me you thought Aaron's death had more to it," I said.
      "Yeah, and I'm sorry I did," he said. “Keep your mouth shut about this. Marlene worked a deal. She’s narcing on the others. She knows she's being watched. We going to let it run for another day, and then we're going to gather them all in."
      "What about Aaron?" I asked.
      "What about him?" he echoed. "Look, he was a junkie. He died. People do that when they take drugs. Let it go." He got out of the my car. "Just go home. Go home."
      So I went home.
      Later that night as I got ready for bed, it finally occurred to me what I should have asked, the question that had been sitting on the tip of my tongue for the past few days. It might not mean anything, but if it did, it cast Aaron Brody's death in a whole new light. It would also mean someone lied.
(To be concluded)
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