FanStory.com - Spirited Justice chap 8by Begin Again

Background
"Beauty, Brawn, or Brains" was a global platform showcasing women's diverse talents, yet murders, accidents, and deceit haunted the pageant worldwide. Was there a common link or merely coincidence?

"Naomi." The name slipped from Angelo's lips as he drifted in and out of his dreams. He was back on the beach with her. He felt the warmth of her body, the gentle rise and fall of her breathing as she slept in his arms. His heart throbbed with the memory of that moment, the tenderness, the unspoken longing he'd felt, but she never knew.

His dream blurred, shifting into something more muddled and surreal. He was no longer on the beach but in his bed. The sour taste of last night's liquor still lingered in his mouth, a bitter reminder of the excess he sought to drown his confusion. But no amount of alcohol could erase what he saw — or thought he saw.

With a groan, his eyes fluttered open, and his head throbbed as he blinked against the morning light. As his vision cleared, he froze, and his heart skipped a beat.

Eleanor stood at the foot of his bed. Angelo's eyes widened, and for a split second, panic seized him.

"Oh no," he muttered, sitting up too quickly, his head spinning with the movement. "I didn't — we didn't?"

Eleanor's eyebrow arched, and a hint of amusement danced in her eyes. "What? I'm not your type?" she teased, crossing her arms and giving him a playful smirk, her eyes twinkling with mischief.

Angelo's face flushed with embarrassment, his hand going to his head as he tried to shake off the absurdity of his half-awake thoughts. "No, no! I mean, I didn't — I wouldn't — You're a — You're not even —!" He stammered, his mind still tangled in the confusion of sleep, unable to find the right words.

Eleanor chuckled, shaking her head. "Relax, Angelo. You didn't bring me home last night, and we certainly didn't — well, you know." She winked, her tone light, teasing him just enough to keep him off balance. "But seriously, I have a question. Those men last night — why did they draw your attention? Do you know them?"

Angelo expelled his breath that he didn't realize he'd been holding and ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "Jose is the son of a client. I was surprised to see him since I'd just left his father in Mexico, and no mention was made of Jose coming to the States. As for the others, I have no clue except their demeanor led me to believe something bad was going down."

"And you have no clue who any of them are?"

"The younger one was wearing a university jacket, so he probably studied in Germany. The two suits were businessmen, probably CEOs if I was to judge them by the threads they were wearing. And the thug, well, he just didn't fit with the others, so my guess is he's hired muscle."

"Hmm, that's an interesting group. We need to talk more, but something is happening at the art museum that warrants my attention. I need to talk to Donatelli. And you need some coffee."

"I don't need the detective sticking his nose into my business. I can take care of Jose."

Eleanor emptied the whiskey bottle and tossed it in the trash can. "Not if you keep drinking like this."

"Hey, cut me some slack. It's not every day I meet a ghost." Angelo stared at her, his eyes wide with disbelief. "That's what you are, right? I didn't imagine it, did I?"

"No, I'm an honest-to-goodness ghost. I'm not sure what I will tell our detective, but I promise to talk to you first. Will that suffice?"

"Yeah, that's good. I don't remember too much about last night after you disappeared. Do you do that to people often?"

"Only when necessary. It gets me what I want and saves on warrants, too." Eleanor smiled. "Did you have a better plan to hear what they were talking about?"

"Uh, not really."

Eleanor snapped her finger, and a large cup of steaming black coffee appeared in her hand. She gave it to Angelo. "Drink. Get cleaned up. I'll be back."

Angelo stared at the coffee cup. "Wow! That's awesome. Can you get me an order of steak and eggs with some hash browns on the side?"

"Don't push your luck, my friend," Eleanor smirked.

Angelo tossed her a sheepish grin. "Can't blame a man for trying."

Eleanor smiled. "And I'm not your mother. I'll be back."

Angelo looked around the room. She was gone, but the aroma of breakfast filled the air. A basket of freshly baked biscuits sat on the table, along with a platter of bacon, a large, medium-rare steak, two eggs over easy, and crispy hash browns.

Angelo stumbled to his feet and smiled. "I love you, Eleanor."
*****
A chill whispered through Jenna's office as Eleanor materialized again, her ghostly form solidifying into a more human appearance. She leaned heavily against her daughter's desk, feeling fatigued. With a wry smile, she muttered, "No one told me that being a ghost would come with jetlag — and no jet."

The morning's events had taken their toll — flitting from the art museum with Donatelli to finding Sophia and Hilda, then darting to Angelo and back again. All this back-and-forth, even in spirit form, was wearing on her. She wasn't used to such constant movement, and it was beginning to show.

"Pull yourself together, girl. You need to find Jenna or Donatelli for an update and then check on Sophia and Hilda. I don't trust their new friend."

As Eleanor turned toward the door, it swung open, and Jenna's assistant, Emily walked in. Her eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Eleanor.

"Oh, Mrs. Bennett, I didn't see you come in." She looked back at her office, then at Eleanor. "How did you get here? Was I at my desk?"

Eleanor's mind raced, searching for an explanation. She knew she had to tread carefully because Emily was sharp, and the last thing she needed was to raise suspicions about herself.

"Um," Eleanor began with a warm smile. "I'm sorry if I startled you. When I came in, you were busy on the phone, searching for something in the file cabinet. I was rushing to find Jenna, so I whizzed by without you noticing."

Emily blinked, still puzzled. "But I didn't hear or see you."

"You were just so involved in your work, honey." Eleanor sensed Emily's disbelief. "I'm sure it was just one of those things where you were so focused on your work that you missed me zipping by."

Emily opened her mouth to say something, but at that moment, Jenna walked through the door.

"Mom!" Jenna exclaimed. She crossed the room and hugged Eleanor. "I didn't see you after the ambulance took the injured man to the hospital, but Sophia told me something about a problem in the storage area. She wasn't very clear about what happened except to say you were there."

"I'm glad you saw Sophia. I had to leave for a while and hoped everything was okay. Did Donatelli determine it was a tragic accident?"

"Actually —" Jenna glanced at Emily, who was still looking bewildered. "Emily, could you give my Mom and me a few minutes? I'll catch up with you about those files they were calling about in a second."

Emily hesitated, her gaze flickering between Eleanor and Jenna. "Of course, I'll be at my desk if you need anything.' With one last puzzling glance, she nodded and left the office, closing the door behind her.

Jenna turned to her mother as soon as they were alone, concern creeping into her expression. "Mom, what's going on? You look — I don't know, a little rattled."

"Charles warned me about traveling across from England, but I wanted a short visit. I hadn't expected everything else that's been happening. It's taken a bit out of me, which is something I hate to admit. And if you repeat that to anyone, especially Danni or Donatelli, I will never forgive you."

"Donatelli has no room to talk lately, and Danni, well, she's not had the opportunity to experience the travel and transition yet."

"I know her disappointment concerning that, but her time will come. She needs to control herself a little more discreetly."

"She's great at what she does, though. I imagine she'd even be more help to Matthew if she could work like you do."

"I'll put in a good word for her when I get back. Now tell me about the accident."

"Donatelli says it wasn't an accident even though the man claims it was. Danni found some great clues and asked Matthew to call in forensics before they disappeared. It looks like someone pushed the guy off and loosened the light to make it appear like he fell."

"Good one for Danni." Eleanor sighed, still feeling tired. "And Sophia and Hilda were okay?"

"Well, I can't really speak about Hilda. Something about her and a family friend went to breakfast, but Sophia and Max stayed behind."

"A family friend? Did her brother go with them?"

"No, Klaus was still waiting for Donatelli to interview him when all this happened. He had to get back to his office before the young man started screaming for a lawyer."

"I've got to speak to Sophia. I have reason to believe this family friend isn't on the up and up. You get with Emily — and I am sorry about surprising her like that. I'm going to go find Sophia and Max just to satisfy my own thoughts."

"Okay, but if you are that tired, Mom, taking a little rest isn't against the rules."

"I know, but this is important. I'll be fine." Eleanor blew Jenna a kiss, waved a quick goodbye to Emily, and hurried out the door in search of Sophia and Max.
*****
Eleanor tapped softly on the storage room door. "Sophia, it's Eleanor. May I come in?"

She could hear Max whimpering on the other side of the door, but Sophia didn't answer.
"Sophia, are you alright? Please let me come in. I just want to check on you."

The young girl's voice was trembling. "Are you alone? I don't want to talk to the detective."

"I'm alone. Detective Donatelli had to go back to the precinct. It's just me."

After a pause, Sophia responded, "Okay. Max, come here, boy."

Eleanor opened the door and was greeted by Max's soft whimpering as he pressed his body against Sophia's leg. She recognized Sophia's anxiety and quickly moved to her side.
"I want to help, dear. I can see how stressed you are at the moment. Sometimes, talking helps. Can you tell me what's bothering you?" She patted Sophia's hand. "Let's start with what happened this morning."

"It happened so fast, Eleanor," Sophia began. Her fingers traced the worn fabric on the couch. "Hilda was here with me when we thought we heard yelling. We hurried out into the art museum, and I guess Hilda closed the door on Max. I wanted to go back, but she insisted someone might need our help. She grabbed my arm and led me toward the stage. Others were arriving at the same time, and I could hear people screaming that someone had fallen from the scaffolding."

"What happened next?"

"That's where it gets confusing. Someone grabbed my arm, and a man's voice told us to move away from the injured man. There must have been two of them because Hilda was being moved as well. Instead of heading into the museum, I realized we were being led toward the storage area. I tried to yell, but —" Sophia pulled her knees close to her chest, burying her face. "If only I could have seen them or if I'd have gone back for Max,"

"It's okay, Sophia. Take your time." Eleanor reached over and gently touched her arm. "Just think. Use your senses."

Sophia took a deep breath and exhaled. "They shoved something in our mouths, a rag of some kind. I remember thinking it smelled like tacos. I spit it out, and I think Hilda did, too."

"Anything else?"

"Yes, someone started shouting. It might have been Johan because later, after we were rescued, I thought his voice sounded deep, like the one yelling. And I know Johan was wearing the same cologne I smelled as we were dragged off the stage."

"Awesome, Sophia. See how much you remember about what happened." Eleanor's voice was calm and reassuring. "Do you remember what they were shouting?"

"I'm not sure. By then, Hilda and I were crying and begging them to leave us alone. One voice said something like I got this. Then I heard a thud. It might have been a punch, followed by groaning."

Sophia clenched her hands into fists, the memory still vivid in her mind. "I might have blacked out for a second. I'm not sure, but the next thing I remember is Johan telling us they were gone and he would protect us. He sounded so convincing, so in control, but —"

"But what? Trust your feelings, Sophia. What was wrong?"

"I heard footsteps running toward the back door. I think that's about the time I heard you, too."

"I think you are right. I arrived as a man with a hooded jacket ran out the back door. Johan was holding Hilda, and she was sobbing. I didn't see anyone else."

"He kept saying he was there to protect us, but the tone in his voice sent a chill down my spine. I didn't feel safe, Eleanor, not until I heard your voice."

"What was it about his voice? Was he angry? Or scared?"

"No, it sounded cold."

"Can Hilda recognize the men? She must have been able to see them."

"She says she was so terrified that she can't remember anything except they wore black and had masks on their faces."

"So why did Hilda and Johan leave? I am sure they would have been safer here with the police."

"Johan told Hilda she wasn't safe, and he wanted to get her away from the museum. I could hear they were moving toward the backdoor. I felt the air on my face." Sophia shivered at the memory. "I think Hilda was too shocked to question him. She just went with him. He kept saying it was what her parents expected of him."

"I don't know if I believe that story or not. Did he offer any proof? Or did Hilda believe him?"

"He mentioned that he was going to get Klaus out of jail, which sealed the deal for Hilda. Everything else is a blur. I was so scared for both of us and now that she's gone with Johan, I'm still scared."

"You did the right thing by telling me. I will have Jenna send someone to stay with you unless you'd rather go to her office."

Sophia's voice trembled, "Can't you stay?"

"I would like nothing better, but I need to speak with Detective Donatelli and tell him about what happened. We need to track down Johan and Hilda. We need to make sure she's truly safe."

Sophia nodded and ruffled Max's head. "I'll never leave you behind again." Max put his front paws on her lap as if he fully understood.