Click on logo to return to Series Page

Issue Three

"Angel and the Ape -- Part Three: The Plot Thickens..."

By Travis Hiltz

"You're getting to be quite the regular customer, O' Day," Lt. Foglio said, as he strode into the room.

"Now my day is complete," She muttered. " I don't suppose there is any chance that I could talk to a rational person, who will actually listen to me? Do you have one of those on your staff?"

This argument was occurring in one of the conference rooms at Techno-Babel, where Angel had gone from chief investigator to prime suspect in a matter of minutes.

"Look, O' Day, we got witnesses that can place you here, shots are heard and we got a dead guy, single bullet to the pump. How many bullets missing from your gun?"

"One, but that was...!"

"Yeah, yeah, from this mystery guy that really shot Island..."

"Osland," Mr. Nilli corrected.

"...then shoots at you. You return fire, but the bad guy's got a magic gun, because all anybody hears is two shots. You're the detective, O'Day," Foglio said, leaning in, "what do you think?"

"I think you missed a bit of something last time you flossed, Lt. Look, I'm smart enough to know how bad this looks. I'm also smart enough to see it's all a bit too convenient. I forget, what's my motive? Why'd I kill a guy I knew less then 12 hours? If he was shot at close range, why is there a bullet hole in the doorframe on the other side of the room from Osland's body?"

"Well, we..." Foglio started.

"Don't do it, Lt." Angel interrupted. " we both know how feeble it'll sound. You're grasping at straws."

"We got you on the security monitor standing over the body with a gun in your hand." "Convenient that the camera was shut off till right in time to catch me looking suspicious. I want this solved as much as you do, Foglio, but you are looking at the wrong girl. So, either let me go or book me, so I can call my lawyer. He and I could both use the laugh." The two locked gazes for a moment.

Mr. Nilli stepped back nervously.

"Okay, O'Day, tell me what you got." Foglio muttered, leaning back and crossing his arms. "I got a call from Osland to meet me here. Whoever shot him, heard that call monkeyed with the security camera and waited."

"Speaking of monkeying around," Foglio said. "Where's your partner?"

"I'm sorry," Mr. Nilli said, before Angel could answer. "But, if you were being 'set up' for Osland's murder, then why shoot at you. I'm confused."

"My guess is that dead, I couldn't sit here and try to prove my innocence. The whole thing would be set up to look like some kind of shoot-out between me and Osland."

"And is it still an...inside job?"

"Fraid so, Mr. Nilli," Angel said. "Rigging the cameras definitely proves that. It's also, how they pulled off the robbery. One thing still bothers me about this..."

"Just one?" Foglio asked, scratching his head.

"What was so important in that folder Osland was holding? You might do a check, Mr. Nilli. See if anything is missing."

"Oh dear, not again."

"Now, can I go home?" Angel asked. "You guys rushing in probably scared Sam off, I'd like to reassure him that he doesn't need to take my name off the door."

"Yeah, yeah, but be where I can find you, O'Day," Foglio growled.

"I get all tingly when you say that, Lt. "Angel said on her way out. She hooked her arm through Mr. Nilli's and steered him along. "What? Thanks, I would appreciate you walking me down."

"What? I..." Nilli said, looking more confused then usual.

"You need to find out what was in that folder and who was in the building when Osland was shot," Angel explained quietly as they walked. "Also, find out if the camera was fixed in the lab or from the security desk. Talk to Osker in Security. Call me at my office as soon as you know anything."

"But...I...?"

"Mr. Nilli, whoever is behind all this is either panicking or trying to tie up loose ends," Angel explained as they stepped into the elevator. "Either way, we have to move fast. The police are going to concentrate on the murder and may miss things that connect it to the robbery."

"So, we...you are coming at the problem from the other direction?"

"Right, and hopefully, between us, catch whoever is behind this. Good night."

"Yes, and good luck, Miss O' Day."

Angel buttoned up her coat as she walked out of the building. She stopped by the cop at the door.

"Did you guys see a big guy out here when you arrived? Broad shoulders, little on the hairy side, probably had either a coffee cup or a banana with him?"

"Uh...no. Should I?"

"Thanks anyway. He probably got messed up in traffic. If he does show up, just tell him Angel O' Day has gone home and I'll see him in the morning."

"I'll keep an eye out. You having any more luck with this case then us, Miss O'Day?"

"Somebody thinks I am," she replied, hailing a cab. "Good night."

The next morning found Angel at the office bright and early, for her, and set to get to work.

No sign of Sam.

"Weird, I never beat Sam to the office. Must have been a line at Java Gulag."

Angel sorted mail.

"Bill, ad flyer, bill, ad flyer, rejection letter from Chaos comics, ad flyer, death threat from lame second rate supervillain, ad flyer and...another bill."

Angel slumped in her chair and glanced around the office.

"Well, the exciting life of a private investigator. Phooey. I'm going to be forced to clean if...? Hmmm."

She leaned over to check the answering machine.

"No blinks," She muttered. "Just the steady red light of loneliness."

She flinched when it rang.

"Uh...O'Day and Simeon Investigations."

"Yeah, hi. Can I talk to Angel O'Day?"

"You are."

"This is Hartin..."

"Russell's friend from the paper. Great, this is Angel O' Day, what have you got for me?"

"I checked on the Techno guys and you guessed right. Phillips' gambling has gotten him into some trouble before. Left two jobs, quietly, after some funny business with the books and turned states evidence on a bookie in Boston that was about five minutes away from breaking bothPhillip's legs."

"Interesting. So, what about the other stuff?"

"Is there anything at Techno worth stealing? They're one of a bunch of little companies bought up by Dayton Industries. Could be, but this early in the merger..."

"Okay. Thanks."

"No prob, just tell the big faker to hurry back to work. It's too quiet around here." Hartin said.

"I will, bye." Angel hung up, then leaned back in her chair, flipping through the notes Sam had given her on the case.

"Hmmm, I hadn't thought of that. That can't be...I wonder...?" She muttered as she read. Angel picked up the phone and dialed Sam's number.

"No answer, he must have gone straight to his story conference. Great, that means I get to sit around, waiting for the phone to ring. Reminds me of Junior high."

Three offers to switch phone companies, two credit cards, and a wrong number later... "I gotta hire a new receptionist," Angel muttered, as the phone rang yet again. "Hello, O'Day and Simeon Investigations...."

"Yeah, yeah, put Simeon on."

"I'm sorry, but Mr. Simeon is at a writing conference and won't be back till..."

"Well, I'm at the writing conference, babe and there is a distinct lack of Mr. Simeon here. So, you tell that banana muching..."

"I'm sorry, what?" Angel interrupted. "He's not there?"

"We been waiting for him for forty five minutes. So, you tell..."

"Okay, I will bye."

"Huh? But, I..."

Angel hung up the phone absently and peered into space for a moment.

"Something's going on here." She muttered, reaching for the phone. It took a couple minutes to reach Mr. Nilli.

"Miss O'Day, any news?"

"I was hoping you had some for me," She replied. "Anything down there? Any news?"

"Security has found that the camera in the lab had been tinkered with. It is believed to have happened during the switch, between the night and day shifts."

"Then they could cue in some stock footage of the empty lab. Can they trace it to a specific computer?"

"No, they haven't been able to yet. We are having trouble with our systems. Some kind of power surge."

"Funny coincidence. I don't suppose Mr. Simeon has spoken to you or stopped by this morning?"

"Um..no, I haven't seen or heard him since the other day."

"Oh well, just a thought. I seem to have misplaced him. We've just gotten our wires crossed. Okay, thank you, I'll check back in with you later."

"Yes, all right. I will contact you if I learn anything else. Good-bye."

"Bye," Angel said, absently. She hung up the phone, kicked off her shoes and began to pace. "Okay, Osland is off the suspect list. Whatever was in the folder was important enough to kill him over. Unless, the thief was someone who goes into a murderous rage at the sight of a manila folder? Okay, Angel, you are now officially babbling, nobody kills somebody else for an empty folder," She stopped in mid-pace. "Or do they...?"

The phone rang.

"We gotta get a new receptionist," She muttered. "Hello?"

"Hiya, it's Russell, just wanted to check in..."

"The folder was already empty," Angel blurted out.

"What?"

"That was what Osland was trying to show me," Angel explained, only half aware that there was a second person involved in the conversation. "The folder was already empty!"

"You already said that, and it didn't make any sense the first time?"

"Why steal that useless stuff? To cover the real robbery! It wasn't machine parts the thief took, but some file. Osland, probably already suspicious, got tipped off when he found the empty folder."

"Yeah, but..."

"So, that explains the robbery, and the camera's getting tinkered with explains how they got in and out. He, whoever he is, went to all that trouble so he could just walk out with the file, except he left the folder."

"What is this?" Russell interrupted. "Some form of Terets Syndrome that only detectives get? I feel like I walked into the last chapter of an Agatha Christie novel."

"Sorry, you just called same time as my epiphany happened. It is finally all coming together."

"So, who's the thief and what was in the folder?"

"Except for one or two little details," Angel replied.

"Well, thank goodness it's just minor things. What does Sam think of all this? I myself always get turned on around smart women."

"Save it till you're off the medication. I haven't talked to Sam this morning. That's the other problem, I think he's up to something. He missed his conference with the comic guys this morning."

"You worried?"

"If I had five minutes to stop and think, I might be. We've been running around so much, I don't know. I did get some info from Hartin, thanks on that one."

"I'll just add it to the 'you owe me' list. I just called to see how you're doing. You know where I am if you need me."

"Yeah, bye."

Angel hung up the phone and began rummaging through a stack of papers.

"If we can figure out what they stole, then it'll narrow down who. Where'd I leave Sam's notes? He had the ..."

The phone rang.

"This is worse then when I try and take a shower. Hello?"

"Yes, is Sam Simeon in?" The voice sounded familiar.

"No, can I take a message?"

"Well, when he gets back..."

"Look, if this is important you can talk to me." Angel snapped.

"Miss O'Day?"

"Yes, who is this?"

"Director Bobo of the B.A.A."

"Detective Chimp? Really? Wait a second, I've met Bobo before, he can't speak English! What's your game, buddy?"

"Actually, we had all the phones at the office equipped with translators. They can translate over 16 animal dialects into english. It is very helpful when we need to go dog face in the banana patch."

"What?"

"Just kidding. Anyway, Sam asked me to check out some leads for him concerning possible ape activity in a case..."

"Yeah, he told me, but then thought it was just jumping to conclusions."

"He was, but they were the right conclusions. When Techno-Babel was bought out by Dayton Industries, it was shortly after they had purchased the holdings of Drowden Electronics."

"And what does that have to do with monkeys?" Angel asked.

"Drew Drowden is a false identity used by Grodd," Bobo explained.

"Not again! Why can't he just stop by for dinner or play 'pull my finger' games with Sam, like any normal grandparent?" Angel ranted. "Damnit! So, in sorting through their new cooperate holdings, somebody at Techno stumbled upon some of Grandpa Grodd's numerous death rays and assorted world conquering gadget diagrams?"

"That would be a safe guess," Bobo replied.

"So, this case has now been kicked up to 'fate of the world hangs in the balance'?" Angel muttered. "And if Sam made the Drowden connection, his not showing up today...?"

"Have you spoken to Sam at all today?" Bobo asked.

"No and he missed a story conference this morning," Angel replied. "Oh, damn."

"Look," Bobo said. "I can have some of my people at Techno in..."

"No, no, let me handle this."

"You aren't going all homo-sapian on me are you?" Bobo asked.

"This is not a pride thing," Angel told him. "At least not entirely. For the moment, they don't know how much Sam and I figured out, and letting them think we are still stumbling around in the dark is going to help me."

"They?" Bobo asked. " When did we go from 'he' to 'they'?"

"If somebody grabbed Sam, it had to happen as he was leaving for Techno, last night. At the same time somebody was killing Osland."

"Makes sense. I'll keep digging into the Techno/Drowden connection, see what we can find. I'd also like to send an operative over, to keep an eye on the office for you. Free you up, to look for Sam."

"Okay, but no monkeys." Angel snapped. "I've had enough monkeys for one day."

"Are you going to be okay?" Bobo asked quietly.

"Probably not. This case has gone overnight from robbery to murder to potential world conquering conspiracy, and...and...Sam's gone. I don't know..."

"You're a detective, Angel," Bobo told her. "A good one, and how hard can it be to find a gorilla in the middle of New York? I'll keep in touch."

"Yeah, thanks. Now, where do you hide a gorilla in the middle of NY?"

Angel scooped it up, then froze as something caught her eye. A picture in yesterday's Times.

"That's just crazy enough to be right," She muttered, reading the article that went with the picture. "Now, all I need is someone to help me check it out..."

For a pleasant change, the phone didn't ring.

Instead there was a knock at the office door.

"Miss O'Day?" A voice said in the inner reception area.

Angel slide her gun out of her purse and held it discreetly out of sight as she sat at her desk.

"In here," She replied.

A petite young brunette leaned in the doorway.

"Oh, Janet... Hi." Angel said.

"Um...hi. I just came to get the last of my stuff out of my desk. I'll just be a minute."

"Sure, that's...Janet, come in here a second." Angel tucked her gun in a desk drawer. "Look, how'd you... like your job back?"

Janet stood, peering at Angel in disbelief for several seconds.

"What is wrong with you?!" She finally asked. "Is this some sick game you play with secretaries? I worked for you five months and you fired me four times!"

"I can be a little moody sometimes..." Angel began.

"A little? Look, Miss O' Day, not to be too disrespectful, on the off chance I want to use you and/ or Mister Simeon as a reference, but I could go back to working at the topless doughnut shop and keep more of my self-respect. What could you possibly say that would make me...?"

"A month's salary," Angel interrupted, reaching into her purse. "I'm going to right you a check for a month's salary to help me with a case today. I don't care if you stay the whole month or quit tomorrow."

"Wha...? I...?" Janet said, looking from the check to her employer. "What is going on here?"

"We took a case which has very quickly gotten out of control," Angel explained. "Sam is missing. I think I know where the final clue to this case is, but if somebody recognizes me, it screws any chance I have to fix this mess. I need you to scout around for me. I wouldn't do this if things weren't desperate."

"So, you want me to...case the joint?" Janet asked.

"Something like that," Angel replied.

"Good, because I think my talents were wasted just answering the phones. This could be my chance to show that I'd make a better operative. Then..."

"Janet, don't make me fire you before we even get started."

"Hey!"

"Joke. Private eyes are known for their quick wit," Angel said. "Now, I'll get you one of our cameras and when you get there..."

"Um...Miss O' Day? Where am I going? I should probably figure out what to wear, so I blend in."

Angel slid the paper across the desk and tapped at the picture.

"The zoo?" Janet muttered. "I don't even want to ask."

"Good, don't. Just dress touristy and take lots of pictures. Especially when you get to monkey house. Now, get going."

Angel handed her the check.

"Yeah, okay," Janet muttered, glancing anxiously over her shoulder as she headed out. Angel got back on the phone.

"Techno-Babel. How may I help you?"

"I need to speak with Mr. Nilli. Tell him it's Angel O' Day calling."

"Please hold."

She was on hold so long that she'd actually started humming along with the Muzak.

"Um...yes, hello?"

"Mr. Nilli, hi, sorry to bother you, but I..."

"Miss O' Day, I don't mean to be rude. but could I call you back?" Mr. Nilli said. "We are having some difficulties."

"What? What kind of difficulties?"

"Our operating system has crashed. We think it may be due to a computer virus and as 90% of the building is automated..."

"Virus? When did this happen? Can you tell...?"

"Sometime this morning," Mr. Nilli interrupted. "Looks like it was in some of our new software from the merger. It got activated during a run-through test. I'll talk to you later. I'm sorry, but..."

"Yes, I understand. Thanks..." Angel said, but Nilli had already hung up.

"New merger software," She muttered. "Like from Drowden Electronics. Somebody is moving fast. Guess it's time I did too." She reached for the phone. "I hope Sam's okay."

Sam wasn't.

In fact, Sam felt like somebody had played a drum solo on his head then walked around inside his mouth wearing muddy boots.

"Ugh," He muttered, opening his eyes.

The room was dark and he was lying on a concrete floor. It was kind of chilly and there was an unpleasant, yet familiar odor in the air.

"Ah, you're awake." A voice said.

Sam struggled to sit up and focus his bleary eyes on where the voice came from.

A figure stepped out of the shadows. He was short , dark haired, broad shouldered and his knuckles dragged on the ground.

"Uh..." Sam said.

"I know," The other ape said. "It's always surprising when you bump into an old schoolmate."

Now, what Sam meant to say next was "Ah-hah! I was right about gorillas being behind the Techno-Babel robbery!"

"Ook, ook! Grmmpphh, ook, ack," was what came out instead.

"You always did have a way with words, Sam."

"Ook," Sam muttered in confusion, peering around the room in rising panic.

Light was coming in through a glass wall. The room was decorated with straw scattered about the floor, a tire swing and a large trough of water.

Squinting at the glass wall, he could make out figures in t-shirts, baggy shorts and baseball caps waving at him.

"Oop, ack," Sam muttered, darkly.

"Kind of like hiding an apple in an orchard, isn't it?" the other ape smirked. "Ah, here come the others."

A chubby silver back and a brown ape ambled through an entranceway, into the glass walled room.

"Just in time for a bit of conquest," the first ape said.