Harry Dresden (i_wizard) wrote in we_coexist, @ 2011-03-07 15:07:00 |
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Entry tags: | harry dresden |
The Wizard Takes A Case [Narrative]
Harry met with Mort Calvin at his office the next morning. He brought Mouse along. Calvin was waiting outside the office door, chewing nervously at his fingernails. He seemed surprised by Mouse, but too distracted to be sufficiently frightened. Mouse merely wagged his tail at the man, got a few absent-minded pats on the head, and then settled into the corner of sunlight on the floor and went to sleep.
Dresden put on the coffee and let Calvin pick a seat in the office's small sitting area. The couches were like the ones n his apartment - mismatched, but comfortable. He milled around his desk, looking busy, until the coffee was ready. Waiting for Calvin to get either calmer, or more nervous. It was a trick Harry had learned a long time ago.
Harry brought over two mugs of coffee, set them on the table, and, just before he could sit down, Calvin blurted out, "Thank you for seeing me, Mister Dresden. You probably think I'm crazy, god knows I've thought it a few times, but I know that Janice is missing. She didn't leave me, I know she didn't. We're in love, Mister Dresden."
Dresden nodded, sitting down on the sofa and taking a long sip of coffee as the man went on. "Alright, Mr. Calvin--"
"Mort, please."
"Mort. Why don't you tell me what happened. As much as you can."
It took almost an hour. Calvin was clearly distraught, worried and confused. But Dresden could see the flashes of guilt throughout his retelling.
Mort Calvin was the youngest member of an advertising firm. He'd just received a big promotion, and he and Janice White, his girlfriend, had gone out to celebrate. He'd planned on proposing, but a colleague of Janice spotted them at the restaurant and interrupted, telling Janice about the dinner party she'd been invited to. Apparently there was a monthly circle of up-and-comings who got together for dinner once a month, and it was a big deal to be invited. Calvin didn't know much about it, but Janice was excited about it. The friend - Rebecca Crist - gloated a bit more, and then left them alone. After dinner, back home, Calvin went through with his proposal, which Janice accepted. She asked to keep it quiet for now, since her mother was going to be visiting in a few weeks, and she wanted to tell her mom in person. Calvin had agreed, happy enough that she'd said 'yes'.
A few days later, they got an invitation to this dinner party. Janice went nuts, talking about how it was the greatest thing ever, and they were going to be together and start moving up in things, and wasn't it just wonderful? Calvin wasn't so sure, but Janice wanted to go and talked about how good it would be for his career, so he went along.
The party was at a restaurant called The Velvet Palace. The name gave Dresden a bit of a chill, but he didn't remark on it. The place was owned by the Torres family, and they closed it down for these monthly soirees. Calvin remembered the dinner party only vaguely. He remembered getting ready. He remembered wanting Janice to wear her ring, and the compromise they made that she would wear it on her right hand instead of her left to keep the engagement secret. He remembered arriving, and the look of surprise on Rebecca Crist's face when she saw them there.
"And that's it," Mort finished. "Everything after that is just... a haze. Then I woke up, and Janice was gone. Her drawers were cleared out, the closet, even her towel from the bathroom. Just gone."
Dresden frowned. "What aren't you telling me, Mort? Why the guilt?"
Mort's face flushed, and the guilt he'd been trying to hide turned to agony. "I... I woke up in a cheap hotel room... with a woman. I don't remember how she ended up there, or how I ended up in the hotel. It was paid for with my credit card, but I don't even remember how I got there. I didn't cheat on her, Mister Dresden. I wouldn't. I love Janice. She didn't leave me." Mort started to look into Harry's eyes, but Dresden looked away, into his coffee. "Mister Dresden... she left some things behind. Janice's father died when she was a kid. She had his watch, kept it in her jewelery box. Even kept it running, changing the battery every couple of years. She always said she wanted to give it to her own kids, but she left that watch on my dresser. And she didn't leave her engagement ring."
Harry looked at the man, brow furrowed. "She had it on the wrong hand," he said.
Calvin nodded. "We were the only ones who knew what it was. Anyone else, it was just a pretty ring. But if someone..."
The man trailed off, but Dresden continued. "If someone wanted it to look like she'd left you, they would have left the ring behind. As if she was calling off the engagement. And she wouldn't have left that watch behind."
With visible relief, Calvin let out a breath. "You believe me."
Harry nodded. "I believe you, Mort. Let's head to your house, and then you tell me where to find that hotel. I've got some things to look for."