Detective Happy Sunshine
The glass pipe left his lips, sweet smoke filling his mouth and lungs, numbing him from the inside out. He let the air escape, eyes closed as he felt the quick, short term effects take hold. He leaned back in his chair, giving a deep, contented sigh as his body and mind reached sweet, merciful euphoria.
There was a tap on the door, jolting the man back into reality. Quickly he opened his desk drawer, throwing the small, burnt glass in and slamming the desk closed. He coughed, clearing his throat, words escaping for a moment, as he stood, straightening his clothes. His tie was loose and skewed, so he quickly tightened it, pushing it back into place, though barely succeeding. His glasses were resting on top of his head, so he quickly tipped them back down to his nose as he walked towards the door.
Through the frosted glass he could see the shadow of a petite woman, hair bundled on top of her head. He straightened his tie again, brushed his long black hair out of his face, and opened the door. The woman on the other side was even smaller than he originally appraised.
"Detective?" the tiny woman ventured. Her hair was fire red framing her mousy features and large green eyes.
"Miss?" the detective responded. He stepped out of the way, letting the woman in.
"Not Miss." She responded, practically floating across the floor. "I'm married. Mrs. Smith."
"Of course." the detective said. "Mrs. Smith. How may I help you?"
"I..." Mrs. Smith started, but quickly veered off, perhaps lost in her own thoughts. "Detective, I love my husband very dearly." She finally offered as she reached into her purse to pull out a tissue. "But, surely you know how even the deepest of love doesn't always mean the most faithful."
The detective gave a knowing nod. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. He tapped the pack on the back of his hand, popping two up. He grabbed one, slipping it between his lips, and lit it. Then, he offered the pack to the woman, the second cigarette there for her. She nodded and grabbed it, quickly putting it in her mouth and leaning forward for him to light it for her.
"Detective, I fear I'm being blackmailed." she took a long, worried drag, staring down at his desk. The smell of burning tobacco began to fill the room. "Alright. What would you like from me?" he responded, focused on the woman's beautifully tragic face.
"Please, give me proof I'm being blackmailed so I may deal with this. I can't have my husband find out. He'd be ruined." The detective nodded once more, taking a long drag and sighing out the smoke.
"Alright. Then, I need to know what I'm looking for."
To this, Mrs. Smith perked up. She reached into her small purse and pulled out an envelope and handed it to the detective. He held it for a moment before opening, looking for any telling marks. Nothing.
He slipped his hand into the envelope and tugged out a piece of paper. Several cutouts of letters, hokey and cheesy looking, as if the 70's were in full swing, were glued to a piece of paper. They formed the words, "I KNOW." The detective scoffed as he stared at the paper. "Why didn't you take this to the police?"
Mrs. Smith perked up, looking around the room very uncomfortably, then back to the detective. "Sir," she commanded with a solemn tone, "Discretion is key. If I were to go to the police, then everyone I know would also know. As I said, it would simply ruin.... Everything." The beautiful woman trailed off, her eyes drifting away.
The detective nodded, as he stared sardonically at the paper. A case was a case and he needed the money. But this? This was ridiculous. He grabbed a pen and started making notes. "Mrs. Smith, what is your first name? And, how will you being paying?"
Mrs. Smith reached into her purse and pulled out a large wad of cash, setting it down on the desk. "My name is Lorelei. And, I do hope this is enough. I've been saving every penny.. I don't know if this is enough." the tiny woman looked up at the very surprised detective, her eyes large and doey.
"Mrs. Smith, I'm.... Yes, I'm sure this will be enough." regardless of how silly he felt the case was, this woman was taking it very seriously. He reached over to grab the money, pushing it in his desk drawer to count later.
By now the cigarette was more ash than stick. He threw the butt in the ashtray on his desk as he stood, walking towards his customer. "Ma'am, I need to know what it is they claim to know."
"Detective, if I knew that, I wouldn't need your help."
"Huh." The detective coughed, amused by the logic. "Alright, when did you get this letter?"
"Three days ago. I found it next to the door while I was bringing in groceries one day."
"And how do you know it's addressed to you and not your husband?"
"Detective... I was only at the store for twenty minutes. Someone left it there very precisely for me to find. They knew when I left and they knew I'd be back before him. They knew. Someone is out to get me."
"And you're sure you haven't any possible idea what this could be about?"
"Sir, I may be a lady, but I am a lady with a past. It could be about anything. I've worked much to hard to reach this point to let it all be marred by some jealous child. Please help me keep my good family name. It's all I really have."
Pushing loose hair from his face, the dark man walked towards the small woman, offering his hand to her. Her delicate, cool fingers slipped into his large palm as she lifted herself up. He placed a hand on her back, politely guiding her to the door.
"Oh, detective?" Mrs. Smith halted suddenly as she was escorted out the door.
"Yes, ma'am?" The detective looked down at the small woman, very aware of how much bigger than her he was.
"What is your actual name?" Her large eyes looked inquisitively at the gentleman next to her.
"Sunshine. My name is Happy Sunshine."
