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A Mask and Oil
Author: Random    Date: 09/30/2008 22:38:31

Cause I was bored, I'm posting the story I submitted to my creative writing class.



A Mask and Oil




I fall into the steel and leather chair, my head throbbing slightly. I take out a small bottle and pop off the top. The glass in front of me was usually meant for suspects, I take it to wash down the aspirin. I groan as I push myself to a straighter position to sit in the chair.

The door opens and a young woman, Chryystal Nua, in her mid twenties, short blonde hair enters. She stands at the other side of the table, looking down at me, holding onto the folder.

“Long night?” she asks.

My first response is to groan before forming an actual sentence. “Spent the night waiting for the coroner’s report. No one telling me the coroner had knocked off early…”

“About that…” she says, holding out the folder. “He finished it shortly before noon.”

I push it back towards her. “I don’t have the higher brain functions to be reading. Just give me the gist.”

She nods and flips open the folder. “Name…Roy Albacar…age…34…” she mutters, reading through the folder. I’m not sure if she even realizes it. “Cause of death…anaphylactic shock,” she looks up. “He was allergic to peanuts.”

“Well, that explains it,” I mutter. Peanut oil coated the inside of the mask Albacar was wearing. I figured it was the cause, but it is safer to wait for a coroner’s opinion.

“So the guy puts on the mask before the scene, ugly looking thing, like an insect’s head, large eyes, pincers,” she shudders. “Anyway, he collapses mid-shoot. Director runs over and pulls off the mask. He yells to a stagehand to go to Albacar’s trailer, to get a shot.”

“I know…” I mutter. I’d read the report, I knew this. But somehow I didn’t think that would stop her.

“Stagehand couldn’t find the shot in his trailer, unfortunately, probably have been to late, Albacar died pretty quick.”

I sigh and shake my head. “Anything else?”

“You seen this guy’s filmography?” Chryystal says, flipping through more pages. “He’s been in almost everything. Wonder why I don’t recognize him.” She continues flipping. “I heard about this movie. The guy they got staring was busted for possession about three weeks ago. And they hired some teen popstar to star along side him. She had to drop out last month because she got knocked up.”

I groan shaking my head, grabbing some more aspirin, swallowing them dry this time. I push the bottle into my pocket. “I don’t care, please stop talking about it.”

“Who’s out there?” I ask, wanting to change the subject, badly.

“Hmmm?” she looks up, barely paying attention to me. “Oh, the director, Fredric Karrs, producer, Jacob Tallenly, and costume designer, Olivia Detra.”

I sigh, looking to the door. “Bring Karrs first, okay.”

She nods and puts the folder down before leaving the room.

A couple of minutes passed and a man, in his mid fifties entered the room. He was balding, leaving only a ring of dyed black hair. Fredric Karrs wore jeans and a white shirt, both a size too small. I close my eyes for a moment, increasingly glad that Chryystal hadn’t entered the room along with him.

Karrs sits across from me, giving me, what I’m sure he thought was, the stink-eye. I knew instantly that Karrs did not like me, or being in a police station. I placed an analog tape recorder, my own stubborn attempt to fight off the changing times.

“I am Detective Gustav McPhearson, You understand that this conversation is being recorded?” I ask, my voice flat and already annoyed with this man.

“I’ve got work to do.”

“Do you understand that this conversation is being recorded?” I ask, using the same dull voice.

“Yes I damn well understand, I saw you put the damn thing down.”

I sigh. “Just a formality. Please state your name and occupation.”

He sneers but thankfully doesn’t put up a fight. “Fredric Karrs. I’m a director. I’m working on a very important movie, it needs to be out by the summer.”

“Right,” I say, disinterested. “And your relationship with the victim, Roy Albacar?”

“He was an actor, I am a director, what do you think our relationship was?” He stops and glares at me. “He’s an actor, playing the lead ‘monster’ in the movie. People say he’s one of the best.” His last sentence dripping in sarcasm.

“You don’t agree?” I ask.

“If you ask me, he was full of himself. Sure the guy could act, but only with a mask over his head, and even then, his lines are always dubbed by another actor. But every day it was something, trailer too hot, trailer too cold, not enough food, too much food.” Karrs put his finger into his mouth, imitating a gag reflex. “Pain in the ass.”

“Was he delaying the shoot?”

Karrs rubs the bridge of his nose. “You’re delaying the shoot,” he growls. I sit in silence watching him. “No, but he was about to. He’s been bitching to Tallenly about his pay, saying his contract stipulated more. Total B.S. if you ask me.”

I decide not to. “I take it you’ve never worked with him before.”

“Thankfully no.” He laughed softly. “And I won’t have to work with him again. Talk about silver linings.”

“A man has died.” I say, stressing the word ‘died.’

“Yeah, yeah, bleeding heart and all that crap.” Karrs waves his hand dismissively.

“He’s dead, doesn’t mean I can’t see an upside.”

I pick up the folder, flipping through the pages. Several minutes pass, I continue to read, every now and then looking up to Karrs, watching him.

“Is there anything else?” he asks.

I pull out a sheet of paper putting it onto the table.

“This is the deceased phone records.” I point to a highlighted number. “Does this number mean anything to you?”

Karrs looks from me to the number and back again. “It’s my home phone number.”

“What was Mr. Albacar calling you about?”

“It wasn’t me he was calling.” He points to the times. “They’re all about one to two in the afternoon. I’d be on the set about that time.”

I look from him to the paper, the calls had only been going on for a few weeks prior to Albacar’s death, but Karrs was right, most were in the middle of the afternoon, very unlikely they were to him. But, I already had an inkling of that.

“So he was talking with your wife.” I say this calmly, watching him, looking for his reaction.

His jaw clenches, if his hands weren’t beneath the table, I’m sure they’d be clenched as well. “Maybe he was…” is Karrs’ only response.

I pick up the paper and slid it back into the folder. I close the folder and look at the director. “That’s all for now. Detective Nua will see that you’re comfortable.”

“I can’t leave?”

I shake my head. “Not yet, I may have further questions after I talk to Tallenly and Detra.”

Karrs scoffs and stands. “Fine.”

“Oh, one last thing. Did you know Albacar was allergic to peanuts?”

He pauses for a moment. “Yeah, a few weeks ago, there was a problem with them.
Tallenly told me about it. Albacar apparently almost died.”

I nod. “Thank you.”

He narrows his eyes, but thankfully I was spared a response by Chryystal opening the door.

“Bring Tallenly please.” I say as Karrs makes his way to the exit.

I sit back in the chair, groaning as my head pounds even more. Karrs hadn’t made my life any easier, but then, they never did. Time slips past and the door opens.

Tallenly was almost the polar opposite of Karrs. He stood well over six foot tall and thin frame. His glasses rest at the tip of his nose. In his hand is a 10x13 envelope. I sigh, seeing it, knowing the Nua should not have let him in with it.

“What’s in the envelope?” I ask.

He opens it quickly and removes it’s contents, tossing them onto the table. They were a collection of photographs.

“Well, this is interesting, but why bring them to me? They look pretty good, couldn’t find a newspaper to publish them.”

He gives me a look that makes me sit up in my chair. “They’re photo’s of Albacar with Karrs’ wife,” Tallenly says.

I look back down at them, recognizing the deceased in the photos, many of them of him locked in many different embraces with a woman.

“They are interesting, but why are you showing them to me.”

Tallenly frowns. “Why? Isn’t it obvious? Karrs gets pissed and kills Albacar.”

I nod slightly picking up one of the photos. “That almost looks painful,” I mutter to myself, looking at the photo. I put it down. “Where’s your proof that Karrs knew about his wife’s affair.”

“I’m thinking my proof is the corpse, but…you know?”

I narrowed my eyes, Tallenly just became very annoying. “Well, that’s not proof of much besides a dead body.” I shift my body in the chair. “Anything else?”
Tallenly doesn’t say anything.

“Fine, then lets get to the questions.” I shake my head, motioning to the seat across from me. “Now am I to understand that Albacar came to you, complaining about his paycheck.”

Tallenly scowled. “The asshole kept calling me, saying he should be getting more money. I’d read his contract front to back, several times.”

“Why did you do that?”

“Bout a week ago, apparently one of the craft services people bring him a sandwich that has had some sort of contact with peanuts, or some such crap. He claims he almost died, and screamed to high water about it to me, saying it was all outlined in his contract.”

“And was it?” I lean forward.

Tallenly grimaces. “It was, unfortunately, and I had to pay him a lot of money to keep him on the project. And keep the thing hush-hush from everyone else.”

“Did the director know about this?” I ask.

“No, thankfully.” He sighs. “Albacar was a pain in the ass, if nothing else.”

I decide to turn the questioning away from the peanuts. “You were one set that day?”

“Yeah, I was. I was curious how the money was being spent. I wasn’t happy.”

I nod. He didn’t seem the type that was ever happy.

I look to the photos. “Albacar was a playboy?”

Tallenly laughs. “To put it mildly. He’s slept around with a lot of people.” He gestures to the photographs. “She wasn’t the only one that was photographed.”

“Who else?”

“Well, Detra for one.” He smiles, almost pleased with himself.

“Ah.” My mind went blank so I picked up one of the photographs. “Who took these?” I ask, desperately trying to find something to ask.

“A private investigator. Albacar had been disappearing from the set. I wanted to know where my money was going.”

I look up from the photo. Tallenly was the type that seemed to keep track of every dollar spent, and what was being done with it.

“Fine.” I say, laying the photo down. “Detective Nua will make sure you’re comfortable.”

He stands and doesn’t argue. Thank god for small favors. Chryystal opens the door and leads him out.

I stand and pace the room, my headache now rolling strong. I sigh, grab the glass and drink down the rest. I look out the small window onto the street beyond.

The door opens and I turn to see an attractive brunette enter the room. I smile and bow my head out of habit. “Please, have a seat, I am Detective McPhearson.” I gesture to the chair that Tallenly and Karrs had previously occupied.

“Thank you,” she says softly and sits. I see the photos and gather them up quickly pushing them into the folder.

“You’re the costume designer?” I ask.

“And half the time I’m putting them on the actors.” She smiles. I feel a part of me melt.
I laugh softly. “Well, I don’t envy your job.” I sit across from her. “What is your relationship with Mr. Albacar.”

She doesn’t say anything for a moment. “Not much of one. We only met a few times.”

I look at her. “I would suggest you don’t lie Miss Detra.” My voice calm.

She looks quickly around and sighs. “Alright, so we…knew…each other. Had some dinners, late night rendezvous, those kind of things. Nothing-”

I extend my hand. “I don’t really want to hear it.” I sigh. “Did you know that Albacar was seeing other women.”

A slight pause. “Yes.” Is all she says.

I sit in silence, taken aback by the bluntness of the answer. “You did?”

Her voice now was cold. “Yes, we had an agreement.”

Something in me said that wasn’t the case. “Do you know who he was seeing?”

She sighed, looking down at the table. “Not really, I didn’t ask. I was just happy for the time we spent together.”

I nod slightly and decide against showing her the pictures of Albacar and Mrs. Karrs.
Silence fell over the two of us as I sat thinking of my best approach to my next question. “Miss Detra, did you know about Albacar’s allergy?”

“Allergy?” she looks at me. “You mean the peanuts? Yeah. I put them into a salad and he freaked.”

“When was this?” I ask.

“I don’t know, couple weeks maybe, not too long ago…”

I sit for a moment. “Alright, Detective Nua will take care of you.”

Detra nods and stands. The door opens again and Detra leaves with Chryystal.

I let my forehead fall onto the table, the pain inside it throbbing more. “Damn…” he sighs, trying to put together pieces, his brain fried.

The door opens again and Chryystal enters. “Wow…bunch of crazies.” She says.

I groan in response.

“The director did it.” She says, certain of herself.

“No, he’s an idiot. He doesn’t know about the peanuts. Tallenly kept it quiet from him. And he doesn’t have the brains for that kind of stunt. Also his motive would be the wife, which he didn’t find out until about an hour ago.”

I push myself to my feet and sigh. “I’m going to have a quick chat with Karrs.” I walk to the door. “Oh, I’d suggest calling Mrs. Karrs, and tell her that her husband knows about her.”

I walk through the halls and see the short pudgy man pacing the room. “Karrs…” I motion to him and walk to the doorway away from the others. Karrs follows me.
“Before, what did you mean about Albacar asking about more was B.S.”

Karrs sighs and looks around the room. “Look, Albacar may have been an asshole, but he was smart. He knows what’s in his contract.”

“Than why was he asking for money?”

“That’s what Tallenly said, never heard Albacar talking about it.”

I look at Tallenly and look back at Karrs. “Fine, I’m done with you, you can go.”

“Thank you.” He says and pushes past me to the exit.

I stand looking at Tallenly and Detra. “Which one…”

I smile and step forward. “Miss Detra, May I speak with you in my office?” I walk passed her, not waiting for a response. I open the door to my office, I look behind me, seeing her following me. I gesture for her to enter.

As I follow her inside I close the door shut. I pull the bottle of aspirin and toss it onto my desk. “Miss Detra. You can understand why I would suspect you. You had the easiest access to the mask. And frankly, I doubt that you knew he was seeing other women, or that you agreed to it.”

“We did agree!” she says, stubbornly. But I can see the lie in her eyes.

“No, you didn’t. When did you find out?”
She stares at me before putting her face into her hands. “Alright.” She cries into her palms. “I found out the day before he died. I saw him leaving some whore in a motel room. We got into an argument, he left.”

“So the next day you put peanut oil in his mask, a little revenge?”

“NO!” she said looking up, her make-up smeared under her eyes. “I loved him, I couldn’t…”

“Love’s a strange thing. Make you do stranger things.” I say simply.

“No…” tears formed more on her face. “I couldn’t have. The mask went missing the next morning.”

“Missing? But he was wearing it.”

“I know!” she starts to run her fingers through her hair. “All I know is that it wasn’t there when he came for it in the morning, but he had it for his rehearsal.”
I look at her. “Alright, I believe you.”

She looks up at me.

“You can go, just one thing, what can you tell me about Tallenly?”
For the first time I saw her angry. “Tallenly is a shark. He came to me, a month before Roy died. He showed me pictures of me and Roy, and tried to blackmail me. I didn’t have anything of it, told him I wouldn’t bend to his will, I had nothing to fear of him and those pictures.”

I nod slightly and open the door, watching her leave.

The pieces were falling into place for me.

I leave my office and find Tallenly alone. “Can we talk some more?” I ask.

“Yeah? Why am I the only one still here? I just saw the ditzy bitch of a costume designer leave.”

“Getting angry won’t get this over any faster.”

He growls and waves his hand dismissively. “Fine, ask me questions.”

“Did you show the pictures you had taken with anyone else?”

“Why?” he asks.

“Detra said you tried to blackmail her.”

Tallenly clenched his teeth. “What of it?”

“Well, blackmail is a crime, so that alone will get you a nice stay in a cell, but I’m after bigger fish.”

“Yeah? Should I get a lawyer?”

I put a hand forward. “Well, you could, but I think you should listen to what I have to say first.”

Tallenly stays silent.

“I had a lot of time last night to catch up on my reading. And I did a lot on you. You used to be pretty big, could get any movie made with a single call. Now you’re lucky if the Chinese restaurant takes your calls.

“So you sink everything you have into this movie. Hire one of the best creature actors. Hire a very popular leading man and woman. But what happens the man’s busted for dope charges and the woman drops out.”

I stop for a moment, watching him. “This movie’s bleeding money, and fast. So what do you do? You decide to get some dirt one a few remaining cast and crew. You get a few pics of Albacar and Detra together and decide to blackmail Detra, it doesn’t work. Not like she has that much money any how.”

“That’s enough.” Tallenly finally says. “I want a lawyer.”
He tries to step away and I put my hand onto the wall, blocking his path. “But I’m not done.” I smile. “Then, what do you find, but a golden egg. Albacar is screwin’ the director’s wife. So you decide to black mail him instead.

“Things don’t go so well. He laughs at you, he brushes you off. After all. What does he have to fear. He make have a lot of work, but he’s no name, no public image to destroy. If anything, it’d make a public image, hell, maybe make a name. So you had nothing on him.”

I lean closer to Tallenly. “And that made you angry. You couldn’t stand that smug bastard just shrugging you off. Detra sure, some ditzy bimbo, I’m sure you’re used to that all the time. And you probably knew it would fall through anyway, right? Not much for her to worry about. But Albacar…These were the kind of pictures that would destroy a career. And here didn’t care.”

Tallenly growls. “I want a lawyer.”

“Almost done, don’t get impatient. You remember the big dispute, of the peanuts and a plan forms in your mind. You steal the mask from the costume truck, and apply a thin coat of the oil along the inside of the mask. Maybe spray it with something to hide the smell. You give it to Albacar before rehearsal starts, saying you found it. He thanks you. Half hour later, he’s cold on the set.”

“You have no proof.”

“Maybe not…” I smile. “But I know what to look for now. And…” I look down the hall.

“Detective Nua.” I motion for her.

“Yes, sir?” she asks, walking towards me.

“Take him to a holding cell.”

“What!” Tallenly cries. “On what charges!”

I blink for a moment and smiles. “Oh? Right. Blackmail. See, you tried to blackmail Detra, that much I do have proof on. And I can hold you for that. It can certainly keep you here while I look around your office, or home, or…wherever.”

He growls as Chryystal pulls his hands behind his back forcefully and cuff them together. “Let go of me,” he cries.

I smile slightly and watch him as he’s walked down the hall. Something was bugging me, something that didn’t quite make sense. A minute passed and Chryystal returned.

“Pretty easy, huh.” She smiles at me. “Course, never would have though him. Looked to cowardly to me.”

“Yeah…” I say my mind elsewhere.

“What’s wrong?” Chryystal asks.

I look up at her. “What happened, after Albacar collapsed?”

“Uh…” she stood for a moment. “Director runs over, tears off the mask and calls for a stagehand to go to Albacar’s trailer, to get a syringe…”

“So, Karrs knew about Albacar’s allergy. Knew enough to know that he had medicine to counteract anaphylactic shock…” I slap my forehead. “Fuck!” I spin on my heel walking to the exit. “Come on, you’re driving.”

I hear her footsteps run to catch up. “Where to?”

I almost stop to look at her. “I have to spell it out? Karrs place.”

Chryystal nodded and ran out a head of me. I quicken my pace, keeping a few steps behind her.

The drive went by quickly. I’m not sure if it was because of my worry, quilt, or Chryystal’s suicidal speed…

Karrs house is not what I expected it to be. Instead of a mansion, I see a single floor two bedroom home that looks squeezed in by it’s neighbors. The door is still open and I get from the car, my hand at my sidearm, ready to defend myself.

I reach the door, slowly pulling it from my holster. Chryystal slides along the other side, looking serious. She jerks her head to the opening. I nod and slowly step inside.
I move slowly, my eyes sweeping the area, looking for anything and everything. I can hear voices coming from behind a door a bit further into the home. I start to move faster.

The door is open slightly and I see a woman standing on a stool, her head level with a noose.

I step through the doorway, letting my guard down slightly. This is something I regret. Something slams into the back of my skull and I fall forward onto the ground. The 9mm in my hand slides away from me. I flip onto my back, seeing Karrs standing over me with a revolver.

“Stand.” He says.

I do so. I can finally get a good look at the room. In the corner is a desk, empty except for a piece of paper and a syringe sitting a top of it. My eyes found their way back to Karrs. I can see Chryystal sneaking up behind him. I make a small gesture with my hand for her to stop. She nods slightly.

“Not bad…” smiles softly. “Frame your wife for murder, who then kills herself over the grief.” I laugh softly. “Jealousy, maybe not the most inventive motive, but it does the trick.”

“What do you know?”

I’m pretty that isn’t literal, but I answer anyway. “Well, that you stole the mask and syringe, the medicine that would save Albacar. You coat the mask in peanut oil…” I stop for a moment. “Déjà vu.” I shake my head. “So you give the mask to him. He dies, you tell a stagehand to get the syringe. Which of course you stole.”

“Sounds like conjecture.”

“Well, if I were to completely ignore the evidence around me, holding me at gunpoint, wife obviously not wanting to be hung, and syringe on the desk…” I pause for a moment. “Tallenly wanted to keep Albacar’s dispute under wraps, so he never told you about the peanut incident. So how did you know? Not that it matters, but Albacar seems to complain a lot. Maybe you over heard him complain about that incident.”

“All of that makes perfect sense…if I had reason to kill him.”

I sigh. “Why are you playing hard to get. Honestly. I know you did it, YOU know you did it. I’m sure you’re wife’s pretty convinced right now.” I look to her. She almost seems like a statue, not moving, the only sign of life is a slight rise and fall of her chest as she breaths. “Look, you’re a control freak, I go that much. So you find out about Albacar and your wife. Kind of destroys the control you have. And you take back control, while teaching those two a lesson.”

“So you think you have all the cards now?” he asks.

“Not really…but I think I have enough.” I smile and do a quick nod.
Karrs cocks the revolver, but before he can have a chance to fire, Chryystal slams the butt of her gun into the back of his head. “Ha!” she smiles, watching him fall to the floor, out cold.

I move to the wife and gently have her step down. “It’ll be okay.” I reassure her. Chryystal walks up beside me. “Take her to the car and radio back up.”

“Alright.” She takes the wife’s hand. She leads the wife out of the room.

I walk over and pick up my own weapon and slide it into my holster. With a quick kick I knock Karrs’ revolver across the room. I sit on the stool sighing. Almost instantly the banging in my head came back and I groaned, wishing I had kept the aspirin with me.

 

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