The Path Not Taken (2/8)
Previous Parts: Part One
Part Two
19th November 2012
The victim was in his early fifties and looked almost peaceful, in a way. Patrick Jane doubted whether the actual death was actually that calm, but then again, unless somebody passed away in their sleep, it very rarely was. Considering the mode of death, there had probably been an intense level of confusion, maybe some frothing at the mouth, something akin to a seizure before the man had finally collapsed and died.
However, compared to most murder victims, the body wasn’t a state and that was probably what made it look calmer than usual.
Jane took the time to scrutinize the man properly. The suit was a tacky knock-off, probably from Taiwan or India, and the aftershave was just as cheap. Even the watch was a fake. This man was trying to appear to be something he wasn’t, probably to make himself feel better about the situation he was in. It didn’t take long for Jane to conclude that the wife was the one with the money; this man was used to scrimping and saving. He had probably felt like he’d never really felt like he fitted in with his wife and her posh friends.
He made a mental note to ask Rigsby or Van Pelt later. They were both currently consoling the victim’s wife, offering her tea and sympathy. Well, probably not tea, but one could always hope.
Straightening up, Jane started to take into account the room where the victim had died. The bar of this country club had been emptied of people soon after the police had arrived on the scene. It didn’t take much imagination to be able to picture the mayhem as the victim dropped to his death. No doubt some people had tried to take a closer look at the victim, out of morbid curiosity, but security had done a good job at cordoning the area off.
Probably not a good enough job for the coroner’s or Lisbon’s liking, however. Both of them were most likely lamenting about the fact that so much evidence had been lost due to the relatively high level of footfall in a place like this. However, to look at the situation marginally more positively, the sheer number of people present at the time of death gave them a large number of witnesses. That was something that would probably keep them busy for days. Jane already knew just how much Rigsby and Van Pelt were dreading the copious number of interviews that they would have to carry out come morning.
Jane soon became acutely aware of Lisbon standing beside him as he scrutinized a photograph of the mayor and the bar owner on the wall. He smiled slightly as he turned to face her.
“The victim’s name was Gregory Mitchells. Aged 53,” she informed him quietly. “Originally from Louisiana, but moved here ten years ago to marry his wife.”
He nodded as he tried to work out how this man could have met his wife. The name was vaguely familiar and it took him about a minute to place it. Mitchells had worked as a singer on cruise ships; he’d treated his wife to a trip on one a couple of years before Charlotte’s birth. She’d been quite entranced by Mitchells’ voice, whereas Jane could easily see why he hadn’t gotten out of the luxury liner entertainment business.
“Probably how he met his wife,” Jane vocalized carefully.
“How?” Lisbon asked, acutely aware that he had forgotten to tell her half the story.
Swiftly, Jane summarized his theory for her. How Mrs. Mitchells had probably gone on a cruise with some of her girlfriends. She’d been hypnotized by his voice, and sought out more information about him. Fraternization with the punters was most likely strictly against the rules, but that hadn’t stopped Mitchells and they’d swiftly had a whirlwind romance. This, in turn, had promptly caused him to lose his job. She’d supported him ever since, but naturally, being a man, he had tried dabbling in other businesses right up until his death.
“And how can you tell that?” she queried, clearly skeptical. “From the way he gels his hair? Or is it the way he did his tie?”
“Oh, I saw him on a cruise ship once. His voice was very sub-par.”
“Oh really?”
“Yes, really.”
“I guess I’ll just have to take your word for it,” she said before yawning.
Jane reached out and gently touched her on the arm. When she pulled away, he was disappointed, but not surprised. He could tell that she was acutely aware that they had company and she wasn’t ready to reveal how their relationship had developed. He couldn’t blame her for that; at work, she lived underneath her veil of professionalism and only very rarely acted in such a way that compromised it. This was what made her such a good cop and he was proud of her for it. However, it didn’t stop him from privately celebrating whenever she took the time out to look at the bigger picture. After all, sometimes the law didn’t have all of the answers.
“You’re still tired,” he stated.
“No kidding.”
“Are we done here yet?”
“I think so. Pat’s going to forward any useful information and we can’t interview people til morning…” she answered back, stifling yet another yawn.
“Let’s get you home,” he murmured and she nodded in assent. “I’m driving.”
“No you’re not,” she retorted.
“If you want to get back home in one piece and actually be able to conduct this investigation, then yes, I am,” Jane persisted.
Lisbon folded her arms and pouted in response, but however cute Jane found her whenever she acted in such a way, it wasn’t enough to sway her decision. He was used to living and working on a perpetual lack of sleep, whereas she actually needed to get a fairly decent amount to be able to operate properly. Holding out a hand, she eventually realized he wasn’t going to drop the matter and handed over her keys.
It wasn’t until they were well on their way back to her place that Lisbon piped up again.
“Patrick?”
“Yes, Teresa?”
“Are you okay?” she asked quietly.
“What do you mean?”
“This has to remind you of…”
She trailed off, clearly unwilling to vocalize the rest of her thoughts. However, she’d said enough. Of course it reminded him of Angela; after all, that was how he’d first come across the victim. In spite of that, the memories hadn’t been quite as painful as they had been in the past. It was almost wistful to think about it, a time long gone by. Jane partially put it down to finally beginning to put old demons to rest and actually move on. That was something he couldn’t have done without her in his life.
Then again, he wasn’t the only one with past loves on his mind. Just last month they’d investigated a case involving an old employee of one Greg Marshall. Since they’d close the case, he hadn’t heard her say one word about her ex-fiancé, never mind the fact that he was in the vicinity. And since then, it had been bugging him.
Jane took a furtive glance at her; she was nearly asleep. Instead he made a mental note to ask her about it later. It wasn’t that he needed to know; he just wanted to. Besides, finding out more about Lisbon’s old flame would provide him with a welcome relief of thinking about his own past. Just because it felt okay to do so right now, it didn’t mean he’d feel that way after a couple of days of working the case.
xxx
14th July 1986
Her parents had changed the date for their scheduled trip to the carnival to the Monday, much to Teresa’s irritation. James’ enthusiasm for the carnival had rubbed off on both Tommy and Joseph and they had persistently asked her when they would finally be going. Just when they had come to the conclusion that the yearly trip might not actually happen, their parents had promised that they would be going.
And at that point, Tommy had decided he didn’t want to go anymore, he wanted to stay home instead and play with his toys. The only thing that had managed to make him change his mind was the promise that his best friend, Zachary, could come with them. Teresa knew that in reality, her parents were simply babysitting Tommy’s friend, but they had phrased it as if it were a treat especially for him. Her dad, especially, was cunning like that, especially when it came to the boys.
Teresa sat in silence in the back of the car, sick to death of hearing four boys squabbling over nothing in particular. She knew that it was just hyperactive energy and that they would calm down a little once they actually got to the carnival. However, by the time they were heading back home, they would be pumped up on sugar and carbohydrates once more. She sighed. It was no wonder that their parents had been reluctant to take them. Even she felt like this was too much effort for too little reward. Teresa just hoped that Daniel would still be there. Then, it would make it all worthwhile for her. In truth, he was the only reason she was coming at all. Otherwise, she would have leapt at the opportunity to have a quiet day at home and focus on her homework. There was a reason that people said she had a wise head on young shoulders.
Almost the moment the car was parked, the boys attempted to scatter. Teresa somehow managed to grab hold of Tommy's hand while her parents managed the other three. She couldn't help but think her parents were insane to agree to bring Zachary with them. As far as she was concerned, the boy was noisy and twice as energetic as any one of her brothers. Thankfully, he was also notoriously shy around her father and that had settled him down considerably. Even so, she still held her breath as to whether or not he would remain as such for the rest of the trip. Zachary was a good kid; he just had too much energy and she doubted whether or not it had been a good idea to combine his stay with their yearly carnival trip.
Still, at least it was actually happening and her brothers wouldn’t be disappointed anymore.
As usual, the carnival was an explosion of color. People shrieked with excitement on various rides; the queue to the new tilt-a-whirl being especially long. When she caught sight of a familiar trailer, next to the Ferris wheel, Teresa breathed a sigh of relief. The Jane family was still associated with the carnival. That was the main thing.
She timed it to perfection. While the boys were stuffing their faces with corn dogs and cotton candy, she sidled up to her father. Teresa wasn't interested in unhealthy snacks, but there was something that had always intrigued her.
"Dad, can we see Patrick, the boy psychic please?" she asked as politely as she could.
Her father smiled and rested a hand gently on her shoulders. Teresa stared back pleadingly; there wasn't much she wanted. It was her brothers who made all of the outrageous demands.
"There's no such thing as psychics, Reese."
"Then why does he claim to be one?"
It was a valid question, but her father brushed it aside. The boy was clearly a liar and a cheat and God didn't like either of those. Therefore, he wasn't willing to line the pockets of that man when there were good honest souls selling their wares at this carnival alongside him. Teresa had to wonder just how ‘good’ and ‘honest’ the other carnie folk were, but she knew that Daniel, at least, was a good kid, even if he pointedly refused to talk about his twin brother. And her dad trusted him, despite the fact he was a Jane.
She didn’t actually see Daniel himself until they were heading towards Pete’s House of Mirrors. James was eagerly taking the lead, giving her mom no choice but to follow. When he tapped her on the shoulder, Teresa almost jumped a mile. Then, she wrapped him up in a fierce hug. Daniel had grown since she’d last seen him, but immediately, her slightly older eyes decided that it suited him. He looked more ruggedly handsome than ever before. Her dad looked reluctant until the boy appeared beside her, proffering a hand which he eventually shook. Soon after, he brushed Daniel away, with the intent to talk privately to her. Teresa was equally disappointed and relieved. On one hand, she would have liked to see them make the effort to get to know one another. However, it also saved him from any potentially embarrassing questions.
“Two hours, no later,” he informed her quickly, after Daniel had gone to linger by the cotton candy machine nearby. “Meet us by the Ferris wheel.”
She grinned. Two hours was better than nothing at all.
To Part Three
Part Two
19th November 2012
The victim was in his early fifties and looked almost peaceful, in a way. Patrick Jane doubted whether the actual death was actually that calm, but then again, unless somebody passed away in their sleep, it very rarely was. Considering the mode of death, there had probably been an intense level of confusion, maybe some frothing at the mouth, something akin to a seizure before the man had finally collapsed and died.
However, compared to most murder victims, the body wasn’t a state and that was probably what made it look calmer than usual.
Jane took the time to scrutinize the man properly. The suit was a tacky knock-off, probably from Taiwan or India, and the aftershave was just as cheap. Even the watch was a fake. This man was trying to appear to be something he wasn’t, probably to make himself feel better about the situation he was in. It didn’t take long for Jane to conclude that the wife was the one with the money; this man was used to scrimping and saving. He had probably felt like he’d never really felt like he fitted in with his wife and her posh friends.
He made a mental note to ask Rigsby or Van Pelt later. They were both currently consoling the victim’s wife, offering her tea and sympathy. Well, probably not tea, but one could always hope.
Straightening up, Jane started to take into account the room where the victim had died. The bar of this country club had been emptied of people soon after the police had arrived on the scene. It didn’t take much imagination to be able to picture the mayhem as the victim dropped to his death. No doubt some people had tried to take a closer look at the victim, out of morbid curiosity, but security had done a good job at cordoning the area off.
Probably not a good enough job for the coroner’s or Lisbon’s liking, however. Both of them were most likely lamenting about the fact that so much evidence had been lost due to the relatively high level of footfall in a place like this. However, to look at the situation marginally more positively, the sheer number of people present at the time of death gave them a large number of witnesses. That was something that would probably keep them busy for days. Jane already knew just how much Rigsby and Van Pelt were dreading the copious number of interviews that they would have to carry out come morning.
Jane soon became acutely aware of Lisbon standing beside him as he scrutinized a photograph of the mayor and the bar owner on the wall. He smiled slightly as he turned to face her.
“The victim’s name was Gregory Mitchells. Aged 53,” she informed him quietly. “Originally from Louisiana, but moved here ten years ago to marry his wife.”
He nodded as he tried to work out how this man could have met his wife. The name was vaguely familiar and it took him about a minute to place it. Mitchells had worked as a singer on cruise ships; he’d treated his wife to a trip on one a couple of years before Charlotte’s birth. She’d been quite entranced by Mitchells’ voice, whereas Jane could easily see why he hadn’t gotten out of the luxury liner entertainment business.
“Probably how he met his wife,” Jane vocalized carefully.
“How?” Lisbon asked, acutely aware that he had forgotten to tell her half the story.
Swiftly, Jane summarized his theory for her. How Mrs. Mitchells had probably gone on a cruise with some of her girlfriends. She’d been hypnotized by his voice, and sought out more information about him. Fraternization with the punters was most likely strictly against the rules, but that hadn’t stopped Mitchells and they’d swiftly had a whirlwind romance. This, in turn, had promptly caused him to lose his job. She’d supported him ever since, but naturally, being a man, he had tried dabbling in other businesses right up until his death.
“And how can you tell that?” she queried, clearly skeptical. “From the way he gels his hair? Or is it the way he did his tie?”
“Oh, I saw him on a cruise ship once. His voice was very sub-par.”
“Oh really?”
“Yes, really.”
“I guess I’ll just have to take your word for it,” she said before yawning.
Jane reached out and gently touched her on the arm. When she pulled away, he was disappointed, but not surprised. He could tell that she was acutely aware that they had company and she wasn’t ready to reveal how their relationship had developed. He couldn’t blame her for that; at work, she lived underneath her veil of professionalism and only very rarely acted in such a way that compromised it. This was what made her such a good cop and he was proud of her for it. However, it didn’t stop him from privately celebrating whenever she took the time out to look at the bigger picture. After all, sometimes the law didn’t have all of the answers.
“You’re still tired,” he stated.
“No kidding.”
“Are we done here yet?”
“I think so. Pat’s going to forward any useful information and we can’t interview people til morning…” she answered back, stifling yet another yawn.
“Let’s get you home,” he murmured and she nodded in assent. “I’m driving.”
“No you’re not,” she retorted.
“If you want to get back home in one piece and actually be able to conduct this investigation, then yes, I am,” Jane persisted.
Lisbon folded her arms and pouted in response, but however cute Jane found her whenever she acted in such a way, it wasn’t enough to sway her decision. He was used to living and working on a perpetual lack of sleep, whereas she actually needed to get a fairly decent amount to be able to operate properly. Holding out a hand, she eventually realized he wasn’t going to drop the matter and handed over her keys.
It wasn’t until they were well on their way back to her place that Lisbon piped up again.
“Patrick?”
“Yes, Teresa?”
“Are you okay?” she asked quietly.
“What do you mean?”
“This has to remind you of…”
She trailed off, clearly unwilling to vocalize the rest of her thoughts. However, she’d said enough. Of course it reminded him of Angela; after all, that was how he’d first come across the victim. In spite of that, the memories hadn’t been quite as painful as they had been in the past. It was almost wistful to think about it, a time long gone by. Jane partially put it down to finally beginning to put old demons to rest and actually move on. That was something he couldn’t have done without her in his life.
Then again, he wasn’t the only one with past loves on his mind. Just last month they’d investigated a case involving an old employee of one Greg Marshall. Since they’d close the case, he hadn’t heard her say one word about her ex-fiancé, never mind the fact that he was in the vicinity. And since then, it had been bugging him.
Jane took a furtive glance at her; she was nearly asleep. Instead he made a mental note to ask her about it later. It wasn’t that he needed to know; he just wanted to. Besides, finding out more about Lisbon’s old flame would provide him with a welcome relief of thinking about his own past. Just because it felt okay to do so right now, it didn’t mean he’d feel that way after a couple of days of working the case.
xxx
14th July 1986
Her parents had changed the date for their scheduled trip to the carnival to the Monday, much to Teresa’s irritation. James’ enthusiasm for the carnival had rubbed off on both Tommy and Joseph and they had persistently asked her when they would finally be going. Just when they had come to the conclusion that the yearly trip might not actually happen, their parents had promised that they would be going.
And at that point, Tommy had decided he didn’t want to go anymore, he wanted to stay home instead and play with his toys. The only thing that had managed to make him change his mind was the promise that his best friend, Zachary, could come with them. Teresa knew that in reality, her parents were simply babysitting Tommy’s friend, but they had phrased it as if it were a treat especially for him. Her dad, especially, was cunning like that, especially when it came to the boys.
Teresa sat in silence in the back of the car, sick to death of hearing four boys squabbling over nothing in particular. She knew that it was just hyperactive energy and that they would calm down a little once they actually got to the carnival. However, by the time they were heading back home, they would be pumped up on sugar and carbohydrates once more. She sighed. It was no wonder that their parents had been reluctant to take them. Even she felt like this was too much effort for too little reward. Teresa just hoped that Daniel would still be there. Then, it would make it all worthwhile for her. In truth, he was the only reason she was coming at all. Otherwise, she would have leapt at the opportunity to have a quiet day at home and focus on her homework. There was a reason that people said she had a wise head on young shoulders.
Almost the moment the car was parked, the boys attempted to scatter. Teresa somehow managed to grab hold of Tommy's hand while her parents managed the other three. She couldn't help but think her parents were insane to agree to bring Zachary with them. As far as she was concerned, the boy was noisy and twice as energetic as any one of her brothers. Thankfully, he was also notoriously shy around her father and that had settled him down considerably. Even so, she still held her breath as to whether or not he would remain as such for the rest of the trip. Zachary was a good kid; he just had too much energy and she doubted whether or not it had been a good idea to combine his stay with their yearly carnival trip.
Still, at least it was actually happening and her brothers wouldn’t be disappointed anymore.
As usual, the carnival was an explosion of color. People shrieked with excitement on various rides; the queue to the new tilt-a-whirl being especially long. When she caught sight of a familiar trailer, next to the Ferris wheel, Teresa breathed a sigh of relief. The Jane family was still associated with the carnival. That was the main thing.
She timed it to perfection. While the boys were stuffing their faces with corn dogs and cotton candy, she sidled up to her father. Teresa wasn't interested in unhealthy snacks, but there was something that had always intrigued her.
"Dad, can we see Patrick, the boy psychic please?" she asked as politely as she could.
Her father smiled and rested a hand gently on her shoulders. Teresa stared back pleadingly; there wasn't much she wanted. It was her brothers who made all of the outrageous demands.
"There's no such thing as psychics, Reese."
"Then why does he claim to be one?"
It was a valid question, but her father brushed it aside. The boy was clearly a liar and a cheat and God didn't like either of those. Therefore, he wasn't willing to line the pockets of that man when there were good honest souls selling their wares at this carnival alongside him. Teresa had to wonder just how ‘good’ and ‘honest’ the other carnie folk were, but she knew that Daniel, at least, was a good kid, even if he pointedly refused to talk about his twin brother. And her dad trusted him, despite the fact he was a Jane.
She didn’t actually see Daniel himself until they were heading towards Pete’s House of Mirrors. James was eagerly taking the lead, giving her mom no choice but to follow. When he tapped her on the shoulder, Teresa almost jumped a mile. Then, she wrapped him up in a fierce hug. Daniel had grown since she’d last seen him, but immediately, her slightly older eyes decided that it suited him. He looked more ruggedly handsome than ever before. Her dad looked reluctant until the boy appeared beside her, proffering a hand which he eventually shook. Soon after, he brushed Daniel away, with the intent to talk privately to her. Teresa was equally disappointed and relieved. On one hand, she would have liked to see them make the effort to get to know one another. However, it also saved him from any potentially embarrassing questions.
“Two hours, no later,” he informed her quickly, after Daniel had gone to linger by the cotton candy machine nearby. “Meet us by the Ferris wheel.”
She grinned. Two hours was better than nothing at all.
To Part Three