By Jillian

Chapter Eleven

Tanya was roused by the sound of the telephone ringing. She slowly became conscious enough to reach over to her bedside table and answer it, “Hello?”

“Why are you still asleep, bitch?” Cynthia’s sarcastic yet far too cheery voice berated her friend.

Grinning to herself, Tanya answered, “Well I did work last night.”

“Yeah? Well you were supposed to meet me at my place for breakfast, or had you forgotten?”

“Sorry,” She apologetically replied. Then glancing at the clock radio she muttered, “Crap! I really am sorry. Maybe you could come over tonight? I’ll make us a nice dinner.”

Following a brief pause during which Tanya began to worry that she’d hurt her friend’s feelings more than she’d at first realized, Cynthia said, “Okay, I’ll let you off the hook this time...but you’ve got to go shopping with me tomorrow.”

Giggling, Tanya responded, “It’s a date! See ya this evening.” As soon as she was off the phone with Cynthia, Tanya took a moment to find her ‘Tommy’ voice before calling Bobby.

On the second ring he answered, “Detective Taylor.”

Nervously she said, “Bobby, it’s me.”

“Hey little bro,” responded her brother. “Usual place about noon?”

As some of her nervousness abated she managed to answer, “Sure, I’ll see ya then.”

“Okay,” Bobby replied. Continuing, he added, “Later. I have some work I need to get through first.”

Hopefully she asked, “Do you want to reschedule?”

He responded dismissively, “Nah, I’ll be needing a break by then.”

“Noon it is then,” she said, bringing the conversation to a close. “Later.”

Once off the phone, Tanya said to herself, “I have a little over an hour to bring back Tommy for lunch with big brother.” She headed for the bathroom, removing her nightgown along the way.

Chapter Twelve

Bob climbed out of his car and quickly made his way into the police station. Reaching his desk he noticed the medical examiner’s report waiting for his perusal. After thumbing through the documents, he picked up the receiver on his desk phone and dialed the medical examiner’s office.

After two rings someone answered, “Medical Examiner’s office.”

“Yeah, is Doc Andrews available?” he asked.

“One moment please,” the voice on the other end replied.

After sitting on hold for a couple of minutes a click announced he doctor even before he said, “Detective?”

Bob replied, “Yeah, it’s me Doc. Got anything for me yet?”

“I’m afraid not. Whoever this guy is, he sure knows how to leave a clean crime scene.”

Barely containing his frustration, Bob commented, “Why couldn’t he slip up just once and leave us a little something?” Then in a more calm, professional voice he added, “Thanks Doc. If by some stretch you happen upon anything, give me a call asap.”

“Will do.”

Once the doctor had hung up the phone, Bob slowly returned his handset to its cradle. Looking at his watch, he said to no one in particular, “I’d best head out. I’m supposed to meet Tommy in a few.”

Grabbing his suit jacket, the detective left the station en route to his prearranged lunch with his little brother.

Chapter Thirteen

Once parked, Tommy checked his reflection in the vanity mirror as he always did to make sure he hadn’t missed any makeup, feeling silly as he realized he hadn’t put any on that morning. Satisfied, he got out of his car and headed toward the restaurant for his lunch meeting with his brother.

As he entered, he scanned the room and spotted Bobby sitting at a booth toward the back. Making his way in that direction, he saw his brother wave. Tommy smiled and returned the gesture as he crossed the last few yards, joining him in the booth.

He’d barely sat down when a waitress came up and asked, “Can I get you anything to drink?”

Looking up at her he replied, “Just a diet coke, thanks.”

“And what about you? Need a refill yet?” she turned toward Bobby and asked.

“I'm good for now.”

“Be right back with that,” she said before leaving them alone.

Turning his attention to his older brother, Tommy asked, “So how’s things?”

“Busy,” Bobby responded. “I don’t suppose you’ve heard about this serial murder case?”

Briefly looking concerned he replied, “Even I don’t live deep enough in a cave to have missed that. How’s that going?”

Frowning, Bobby answered, “Not great. Unless we get real lucky, it’s going to take a while.” Then changing subjects he asked, “How’s everything with you? I know you’ve been working quite a bit.”

“Yeah,” he replied in as close an approximation of a masculine chuckle as he could manage. “Actually, tonight’s my first free one in about three weeks. After this, I have another two weeks before a night off. ‘Course, I’m not complaining. There are a lot worse ways to make a living.”

“Got that right,” his brother agreed. After a brief pause he asked halfheartedly, “I take it then that you haven’t been seeing anyone?”

Tommy looked at his brother for a moment unsure if he really wanted to breach the subject before finally deciding to deflect the question. “Not really,” he responded uncomfortably. Further conversation was interrupted by the return of the waitress.

“Here are your drinks. Are you ready to order?”

Bobby answered first, “Sirloin steak for me, medium rare, with baked potato and side salad.”

Turning her attention to Tommy she asked, “And you sir?”

“Grilled chicken Caesar salad.”

“I’ll have those for you in just a few minutes,” she said as she left the brothers alone.

“How do you survive on that?” Bobby asked his brother.

Indignantly, Tommy replied, “Hey, there’s meat on it! Besides, you ordered a salad too.”

Smiling because he knew that he’d pushed his brother’s buttons sufficiently Bobby added, “Yeah, but you never seem to eat anything else!”

Not wanting the subject to continue, Tommy said dismissively, “I don’t want to pudge up like you, big brother!” To lighten his comment, he quietly chuckled.

They continued talking about little if anything through the remainder of their meal, until they were preparing to leave when Bobby reminded his brother, “Don’t forget to call Mom this weekend. Her birthday is…”

Cutting off his brother, Tommy said, “Sunday, I know. Don’t worry so much, okay? I’m a lot more responsible than you seem to want to give me credit for sometimes.”

“Yeah, I know,” he replied. Sensing that he’d pushed the ‘big brother’ thing beyond the accepted threshold, Bobby said his goodbyes and they parted company.

It wasn't until Tommy was safely back in his car that he allowed himself to take a deep cleansing breath before saying, “We now return to our regularly scheduled life,” followed by a light giggle.

Tommy spent the entire drive home listening intently to Sheryl Crow's “Detours” CD. Always a huge fan of her work, he found this one to be her least accessible recording from a pop perspective, despite what he thought were several outstanding songs. That being said, “Gasoline” from this disc was one of his all time favorite songs of hers.

Arriving back home, he began the process of transforming back into Tanya. Unable to stop thinking about her just completed visit with her brother, she asked herself in frustration, “When am I going to tell him? Life would be so much easier if I didn’t have to do this back and forth thing all the time.” Without an answer to her question, she returned her attention to the task at hand.

Once she was ready she then went to the kitchen and got some salmon out of the freezer to thaw for dinner with her best friend Cynthia. After putting together a quick marinade for the fish, she put it all into a Ziploc bag to let it, as Emeril said on tv, get happy before making up another for the new potatoes. With all that done, she settled in with her book for some much needed relaxation…

Chapter Fourteen

Detective Taylor was seated at his desk going over the M.E.’s report on the latest victim in the vain hope that something would jump out at him that might lead to solving the case. Louder than he intended, he said to no one in particular, “We don’t even know where he’s finding his victims. All we know is that none of them have any priors.”

Continuing his musings as he went and refilled his coffee mug, he noticed a copy of the local ‘alternative’ newspaper lying on the counter. “I wonder…” he muttered as he picked up the paper and started to flip through to the personals section.

Taking it back to his desk, he began scanning the ads until he found several ‘girls’ looking for ‘friends’. He then found the phone number for the publisher and placed a call.

On the second ring someone answered, “'Open Magazine'. How may I direct your call?”

“This is Detective Robert Taylor. I need to speak to someone in classifieds.”

“One moment please…” he then heard a click followed by several seconds of silence.

Eventually there was another click on the line followed by, “James Humphrey. What can I do for you detective?”

Clearing his throat, Bob stated, “I was needing some information about some of the ads in your personals section.”

Pausing for the briefest of moments, James finally said, “Sure. What can I tell you?”

Knowing the information he wanted was going to be difficult to acquire, Bob pressed on getting straight to the matter at hand, “I need names and contact information for the people who’ve placed some ads.”

A longer silence preceded the response this time, “I’ll need to check with my boss before…”

Cutting him off, Bob said, “Then transfer me to your boss, please. This is in reference to an active murder investigation.”

“One moment please…” he was then placed back on hold. While waiting, Bob made note of all the ads he wanted information on.

When the line was picked up Bob heard, “Stanley Grant. How can I help you detective?”

Bluntly, Bob stated, “I need names and contact information for several of the 'personals' in connection with a murder investigation.”

Rattled, Mr. Grant tried to stall, “We don’t generally give out that sort of…”

Again interrupting, Bob said, “I’m well aware of that, but I have a serial killer on the loose and I’m trying to figure out how he’s finding his victims. If any of them have been running ads in your paper…”

Mr. Grant slowly responded, “Understood. Can you fax me the page, circling the ads in question? I’ll pull the info you need and fax it back in a couple of hours.”

With a satisfied grin, Bob said, “That’ll work. What’s the fax number?”

After making note of the number, Bob circled the ads he wanted the information on and then faxed the pages. “Now, we wait,” he said to himself.

Chapter Fifteen

As Cynthia approached the apartment door she wondered whether she should simply let herself in or ring the doorbell like a guest normally would. After all, she’d been given a key to the apartment long ago so she could take care of the plants when Tanya was on the road working.

In the end she decided to ring the doorbell, but after waiting a couple of minutes she came to the conclusion that the hostess must still be getting ready. She then reached into her purse, coming out with the door key, which she used to let herself in.

Before the front door had even closed, Tanya came around the corner to let her guest in only to find that she had let herself in. “Ya know, most guests just wait for their hostess.”

“Why should I do that when I have a key?” asked Cynthia giggling.

Tanya tried to work up a little indignation before responding, “Common courtesy?”

“We both know I’m a rude bitch, so why should I pretend otherwise?”

“Fair enough,” Tanya said humorously, all but defeated. Changing the subject she said, “Dinner’s almost ready. Shall we?”

Cynthia helped Tanya serve the dinner before taking a seat while her friend opened a bottle of wine and poured glasses for them both. As they ate the conversation turned to their plans for later in the evening.

Cynthia first broached the subject saying, “I heard things are supposed to really be hoppin’ at the club tonight.”

“I don’t know if I want to go out tonight,” Tanya unenthusiastically responded. I mean, I’ve been working every night lately and I don’t know that I want to spend my night off at the same kind of place I’ve been working.”

“But this is different. It’ll be fun, you’ll see,” Cynthia practically begged.

After a moment Tanya replied, “Let me think about it for a few, okay?”

Chapter Sixteen

Bob had spent the last half hour going over the information he’d received from the paper, finding that three of the five victims had in fact been running ads looking for dates.

“Okay, but what about the other two?” he asked himself.

Remembering the transgendered club downtown, he thought his next step should probably be to stake it out to see if they might find anything. He called over to Sergeant Parker. “Hey Sarge, wanna pick up some overtime tonight?”

Rubbing at the 5 o'clock shadow on his chin, Parker asked, “What ya got in mind?”

Handing him a camera, Bob replied, “A stakeout.”

“Oh, joy,” Parker chuckled. “You get to call my wife and tell her, ‘cuz I ain’t doin’ it.”

Smirking, Bob countered, “Ah, come on Sarge. We both know she won’t complain about you not being under foot this evening.”

Laughing, the Sergeant conceded, “Fair enough.”

Pausing long enough for the laughter to die down, Bob asked, “So you in?”

“Sure,” answered Parker. “Where and when?”

After arranging the particulars, Bob decided that the next step might be to place a decoy ad in the paper. Picking up the phone, he again called the publisher. When the receptionist answered, he asked for Stanley Grant.

After a moment on hold, the publisher answered, “Stanley Grant. What can I do for you?”

“Detective Taylor here. Turns out that information has been a big help. Thanks again.”

“No problem, detective,” he said, the relief evident in his voice. “You didn’t call just to tell me that, did you?”

“No, I had an idea I wanted to bounce off you,” Bob began tentatively.

With just a trace of uneasiness in his voice, the publisher said, “Fire away.”

Noticing Mr. Grant's discomfort Bob began, “Nothing bad, I promise you. It seems that three of the five victims did indeed have ads running in your paper, so I was thinking we could try placing a decoy ad in next week’s edition to see if we get a bite.”

As the relief washed over him, Mr. Grant responded, “Absolutely. Anything we can do to help. Just fax me the copy for the ad and I’ll make sure it’s in there.”

“Great,” Bob replied. “Thanks for your cooperation.”

After ending the call, Bob put together the copy for the ad and took it to the fax machine. He was then on his way back to his desk when he heard his name being called.

“Detective Taylor?” called the Captain from behind his desk as he saw the officer walk by his door.

Sticking his head in his superior’s office, Bob said, “Yeah Skip, you need me?”

“You got any leads?”

Entering the office Bob replied, “Maybe. Three of the victims were running personals ads in that alternative rag, so I contacted them about placing a decoy ad. I’m not sure what to do if we get a bite, but that seems to be our best bet. I also thought we might stake out that tranny bar downtown and take pictures of everyone going in and out. Who knows, we might get something.”

“Sounds like you made a little progress today then. When you doing the stakeout?”

Bob replied, “Tonight. Sergeant Parker will be going with me. We’ll need one of the unmarked cars.”

“You got it.”

Turning to leave the office, Bob added, “Seems like the closest thing we have to a lead, ya know?”

“Yeah,” the Captain replied. “What time you planning on setting up?”

“I checked out the location earlier and found a spot where we’ll have clear vision of the entrance to the club as well as a fair amount of the surrounding area. I thought I’d have the car parked there before things get busy down there. The Sarge is about the best photographer we’ve got, plus I figured an extra set of eyes couldn’t hurt.”

Looking at the mountain of paperwork on his desk, the Captain said, “Good. Well, I won’t keep you from it then. I expect a full report in the morning.”

“Yes sir,” Bob replied before leaving the Captain’s door.

On his way to his desk he bumped into Sergeant Parker again, saying, “You ready for an exciting night of perv watching, Sarge?”

“I guess so. Hope it’s more interesting than Janet’s pot roast that I’ll be missing,” he replied.

“I hope you aren’t disappointed,” Bob continued. “I’m having a car placed within the hour, then we’ll be dropped off a couple of blocks away by a patrol in a couple of hours. Why don’t you bring the donuts and I’ll get the thermos of coffee?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

Chapter Seventeen

It took some doing, but eventually Cynthia convinced Tanya that her night off would be better spent out having fun, as opposed to lounging around the apartment reading and going to bed early. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that Tanya realized her friend wasn't about to take no for an answer, so she agreed to accompany her if for no other reason than to avoid an argument she knew she had no chance of winning.

As they strolled down the street on their way to a club that catered to ‘special’ girls like themselves, Tanya grumbled all the while, “How do I let you talk me into things? I was just going to relax at home tonight and the next thing I know, you’re dragging me out…” she eventually let the thought go unfinished.

Cynthia replied, “You’ll have fun and you know it.” Seeing the beginnings of a scoff on Tanya’s face she continued, “Besides, maybe one of us will get lucky tonight,” she grinned suggestively.

“Yeah well, have fun with that,” Tanya said in response.

“Spoilsport,” Cynthia said, sticking her tongue out at her friend.

They reached the entrance to the club as their exchange wound down. After waiting in line for a couple of minutes, both girls were promptly ushered into the throbbing mass of humanity that was at that moment frequenting the establishment.

Chapter Eighteen

“Nothin’ so far,” sighed the sergeant as he put down the binoculars.

Raising a camera with a large zoom lens to his eye, Bob commented, “Yeah, but the night is young.” He continued to look through the lens as he took pictures of every person they saw entering the club. After a couple of minutes, he lowered the camera and sat there in stunned silence.

“Something wrong?” asked the Sarge.

Bob turned to look at his companion but couldn’t seem to find his voice to respond. After a moment, he finally said to himself, “Wasn’t expecting that.”

“What?”

Regaining his composure, Bob answered, “Nothing. Really.”

“Sure,” said the Sarge. “I believe that.”

Bob looked at his partner for a moment, trying to decide if he wanted to try convincing the man he was wrong but knowing all along he had hit the nail on the proverbial head. Deciding withdrawal was the more prudent action, he silently returned his attention to the mass of humanity that was descending on 'Slipper'.

Despite his attempts to do otherwise, he couldn't take his mind off of the earlier sight. As soon as he saw her, he knew without a doubt he'd just watched his brother enter the club in drag.

He'd known that Tommy had experimented with cross dressing when they were kids, but had assumed that it was just a phase that he had grown out of. Now he knew for certain that his previous thoughts on the subject were wrong, so he absentmindedly watched the scene across the street while he tried to figure out what he would say to his brother when next they met.

Chapter Nineteen

Tanya was sitting at the bar nursing a glass of wine when Cynthia came bouncing up and asked, “Would you mind going solo for the rest of the night?”

“Found a gentleman friend have you?”

“Yes indeed-y,” Cynthia bubbled.

“Go,” Tanya replied. “Have fun.” After giving her friend a kiss on the cheek, Cynthia floated off toward her new friend, disappearing into the mass of patrons leaving Tanya alone.

Watching her friend wander off with that stranger, Tanya couldn’t shake the feeling something bad was going to happen. Trying to ignore that thought, she looked at the glass of wine in front of her and took another sip. Nursing her drink for several minutes, her thoughts were broken by the sound of a man sitting down next to her.

“Hi,” he said as she turned her attention to him. “Are you alone tonight?”

Smirking at him, she replied, “It would appear so.”

“You know you don’t have to be,” he offered playfully.

Looking back at her glass, she replied, “I don’t think I’d be very good company tonight. Sorry.”

He smiled sadly and said, “Oh well, nothing ventured…”

“Thanks anyway,” she said as she lifted her glass and took a drink. She then watched him get up dejectedly and walk away, in search of someone else.

After finishing her drink, Tanya grabbed her handbag and found her way back outside. Without looking back at the party raging inside the nightclub, she began her trek home.

Chapter Twenty

Still sitting in the car with binoculars trained on the entrance to the club, Bob watched as Tanya exited the building and turned toward home. Bob felt his stomach twist into knots as he followed his ‘brother’s’ progress until ‘he’ could no longer be seen through the darkness of the night.

His attention was returned to the job at hand as his companion said, “Here comes another one, only it’s not alone.”

Catching sight of the couple as they made their way toward a car parked not far from the door, the detective raised his camera to his eye just in time to snap a few pictures of the couple as the gentleman opened the car door for his companion and helped her take a seat. As the man made his way around the car to the driver’s side door, Bob managed to take a couple more pictures of him before the man climbed behind the wheel and drove off.

To Be Continued...