A Flicker of Doubt - Tim Myers [23]
I’ll grab one for you, I’m thirsty myself. So what happened, is your friend out of town?”
Markum shrugged. “That’s as good a euphemism as any. He’s in jail.”
“You know the most interesting people.” I grabbed two Cokes and handed him one.
“You don’t know the half of it. It looks like we’re on our own with the tape. I should have taken her answering machine, too; I don’t have anything that will play that size tape.”
“I’ve got a handheld tape recorder around here somewhere. Don’t they take the same size tapes as those old machines?”
Markum said, “I never thought of that. Get your tape player and I’ll go get the tape.”
After we met back in the living room, I held out my hand. “Let me try it.”
“It won’t work,” he said as he handed me the tape.
I didn’t even have to try it; he was clearly, right about the tape’s size. That wasn’t our only problem, though. The tape was heavier than it should have been. I held it up to my nose and sniffed, then realized that it had gotten wet.
Markum looked disgusted. “I had it with me when I went after Becka’s purse. It was a stupid mistake, Harrison. I’m sorry. I don’t even know if it’s still any good.”
“Don’t be so hard on yourself. It wasn’t a mistake, it was an accident. There still might be something we can hear.”
“So what do we do?”
“We go out and get a machine that will play it”
He took a deep breath, then said, “Do you really think there’s hope for it?”
The only way we’ll know is if we try.”
I saw Markum smile, so I quickly added, “I’m not breaking back into Becka’s, even if we do have a key.”
“Do you honestly think the Community Watch is working this late at night? If Morton even bothered with a stakeout, his deputies are probably long gone. Come on, we can be in and out in five minutes.”
“Are you serious?”
“What did you have in mind, going to Hickory to Best Buy and listening to it on one of their machines? That’s just a wee bit suspicious, wouldn’t you say?”
“And breaking back into Becka’s isn’t?”
I grabbed my coat and he asked, “So where are you going?”
“If we’re going to do this, let’s get it over with before I change my mind.”
“That’s the spirit, Harrison. I’ll make a salvage man out of you yet”
“Thanks, but no thanks. After this, I’m sticking to candlemaking.”
Markum said, “I suspect that’s the wisest thing you can do, but just think about the fun you’re missing.”
Driving through the darkened streets of Micah’s Ridge with just the lights from the dash illuminating us, I felt like a spy on a dangerous mission.
Markum must have sensed my mood. “There’s nothing like it, is there?” he asked.
“Do you do this a lot?”
There was a pause, then he said, “Harrison, I get as much joy out of the hunt as I do actually achieving my objectives. How many people get to do something they love these days?”
“I do,” I said. “I never knew what I was missing until Belle left me the candleshop.”
“Don’t you ever wish your life was a little more exciting?”
I turned into Becka’s complex. “Honestly? Lately I’ve been getting more adventure than I care to.”
“Paik over there,” he said, pointing to the general parking lot away from the housing units. I did as he said, then asked, “So we’re actually trying to be stealthy this timer
“It’s an entirely different proposition breaking into someplace at night I’d rather do it in broad daylight but I’m afraid what we might find if we wait until morning. Follow my lead and try to make as little noise as possible.”
I followed him around the gated pool, past the tennis courts and up to Becka’s sliding patio door in back. He studied the interior through the glass while I kept watch all around us. There were a thousand noises in the night and I had the creepy feeling that every one of them was after us. After what seemed like hours, Markum tapped my shoulder and motioned me to follow him.
We crept around the building and he hit the knocker’s slide to retrieve the key. I’d only shown him once, but he had no problem finding it in the distant lights of the complex’s parking area.
After a minute, he hissed,