Chapter 6 Chapter Six

Sheriff Lieutenant Sam Black's job in the Cupertino County Sheriff's Office was hard-won: He married the sheriff's sister, Serena Dowling, a shrew with a tongue sharp enough to destroy an Oregon fort.Sam Black was the only man Serena had met who could handle her.He was a small, gentle, mild-mannered man with the patience of a saint.No matter how outrageous Serena's behavior was, he would wait until she calmed down and then have a calm conversation with her. Blake joined the Sheriff's Department because Sheriff Matt Dowling was his best friend.They went to school and grew up together.Blake loves police work and is very good at it.He possesses a sharp, probing intellect and the tenacity to never give up until he reaches his goals.The combination of both qualities makes him the best detective on the force.

※※※ Earlier in the day, Sam Black had coffee with Sheriff Dorian. Sheriff Dowling said, "I heard my sister had a fight with you last night. We got calls from six neighbors complaining about the noise. Serena is a screamer, yes." Sam shrugged. "I finally calmed her down, Mat." "Thank goodness she doesn't live with me anymore, Sam. I don't know what's wrong with her. Her temper..." Their conversation was interrupted. "Sheriff, we just received a 911 call about a murder on Sun Valley Avenue." Sheriff Dorian looked at Sam Black. Blake nodded. "I'm in charge."

※※※ Fifteen minutes later, Adjutant Blake was walking into Dennis Tibble's apartment.In the living room a patrolman is questioning the building's janitor. "Where's the body?" Black asked. The patrolman nodded toward the bedroom. "There, sir." He looked pale. Blake made his way to the bedroom, stopping in shock.A naked male body sprawled on the bed, and Blake's first impression was that the entire room was soaked in blood.As he got closer to the bed, he could see where the blood was coming from, the jagged rim of a broken glass bottle that had stabbed the victim again and again in the back, the remains of which remained on his body. There is glass ballast.The victim's testicles were cut off.

Watching this scene, Blake felt a pain in his groin. "How could a man do something like that?" he said aloud.No trace of the murder weapon, but they will do a thorough search. Sheriff Blake went back to the living room to question the building janitor. "Did you know the dead man?" "Yes, sir. This is his apartment." "What's his name?" "Tibble. Dennis Tibble." Sheriff Blake took notes, "How long has he lived here?" "Almost three years." "Can you tell me anything about him?" "Not much, sir. Tibbel doesn't hang out with people much, and always pays the rent on time. Every now and then he'll bring a woman. Most of them are whores, I reckon."

"Do you know where he works?" "Oh, yes. Universal Computer Graphics. He's a computer idiot over there." Adjutant Blake made another note. "Who found the body?" "A maid. Maria. Yesterday was a holiday, so she didn't come until this morning..." "I want to talk to her." "Yes, sir. I'll fetch her." Maria, a dark-skinned Brazilian woman in her forties, looked nervous and terrified. "The body you found, Maria?" "I didn't do it. I swear to you." She was on the verge of hysteria. "Do I need a lawyer?"

"No. You don't need a lawyer. Just tell me what happened." "Nothing happened. I mean... I walked in here this morning to clean it, just like always. I... I thought he was gone. He always leaves here at seven in the morning. I tidied up the living room ,Then……" Damn it! "Maria, do you remember what this room looked like before you tidied it up?" "What do you mean?" "Did you move anything? Did you take anything out of this room?" "Uh, yes. There's a broken wine bottle on the floor. It's all slimy. I..." "What did you do with it?" he asked excitedly.

"I put it in a trash compactor and crushed it." "What else did you do?" "Uh, I emptied the ashtray and..." "Are there any cigarette butts in there?" She stopped and thought for a moment. "One. I put it in the kitchen bin." "Let's go and see." He followed her into the kitchen, and she pointed to a waste basket.Inside was a cigarette butt with lipstick printed on it.Sheriff Blake carefully dug it out with a coin holder. He led her back to the living room. "Maria, do you know what's missing from the apartment? Is there something of value missing?"

She looks around. "I don't think so. Mr. Tibble, he likes to collect those figurines. He spends a lot of money on them. . . It looks like they're all there." So the motive was not robbery.poison?revenge?Broken romance? "What did you do after you got this in order, Maria?" "As usual, I vacuumed here. Then..." Her voice was shaking. "I went into the bedroom and . . . I saw him." She looked at Sheriff Blake. "I swear I didn't do it." The coroner and his assistants arrived in the coroner's van with a body bag. ※※※ Three hours later, Deputy Sheriff Sam Black returned to the sheriff's office.

"Any catch, Sam?" "Not much." Adjutant Blake sat down opposite Sheriff Dowling. "Dennis Tibble works for Universal Computer Graphics. He's obviously some kind of genius." "But he's not talented enough to save his own life." "He wasn't just killed, Mat. He was slaughtered. You should see what someone did to his body. Some madman must have done it." "Nothing else?" "We're not yet sure what the murder weapon was, we're waiting for the post mortem, but it could have been a broken wine bottle. The maid threw it in a compactor. I've asked neighbors, it's no use, no one saw anyone coming in or out of him apartment, no unusual sounds. Apparently, Tibbel doesn't socialize much, he's not the type to hang out with neighbors. For one thing, Tibbel had sex before his death. We found vaginal discharge, pubic hair , other traces and a cigarette butt with lipstick on it. We will test for DNA."

"The papers are going to make a big fuss about this case. Sam, I can see the headline right now—lunatics attack Silicon Valley." Sheriff Dowling sighed. "Let's solve this case as soon as possible." "I'm going to Universal Computer Graphics now." It took Ashley an hour to decide whether she should go to the office.She was worried.One look at me like this, and everyone will know what's wrong.But if I don't show up, they'll wonder why.The police will likely be there to ask questions.If they ask me, I will have to tell them the truth.They won't believe me.They would accuse me of killing Dennis Tibble, and if they believed me and I told them my father knew what he did to me, they would accuse him.

She thought of the murder of Jim Cleary.She could hear Florence's voice: "Jim's parents came home and found his body, he was stabbed to death and castrated." Ashley closed her eyes tightly.My God, what is going on?What's going on? ※※※ Lieutenant of the Peace Sam Black walked up to the work floor, where serious-looking employees stood in small groups, talking in low tones.Blake could imagine what the subject of the conversation was.Ashley watched him worriedly as he walked toward Shane Miller's office. Shane stood up to meet him. "Adjutant Black?" "Yes." The two shook hands. "Please take a seat, Adjutant of Peace." Sam Black sat down. "I know Dennis Tibble was an employee here?" "Yes. One of the best. What a terrible tragedy." "He worked here for about three years?" "Yes. He's our genius. He can do anything with computers." "Can you tell me anything about his social life?" Shane Miller shook his head. "Not many, I'm afraid. Tibbel is a loner, so to speak." "Do you know if he does drugs?" "Dennis? Hell, no. He's a healthy guy." "Does he gamble? Does he owe somebody a fortune?" "No. He makes a pretty good salary, but I think he's pretty stingy with money." "What about women? Does he have a girlfriend?" "Women aren't very attracted to Tibbar." He thought for a moment, "However, he's been telling people around lately that there's someone he wants to marry." "Did he mention her name?" Miller shook his head. "No. Not to me, anyway." "Do you mind if I talk to a few of your employees?" "Not at all. Go ahead. I gotta tell you, they're all pretty shaken." They would be even more shocked if they could see his body, Black thought. The two walked out of the office and came to the working floor. Shane Miller raised his voice. "Attention, please? This is Adjutant Blake. He wants to ask some questions." Employees stopped what they were doing and listened. Magistrate Blake said: "I'm sure you've all heard what happened to Mr Tibble. We need your help in order to find the killer. Does any of you know that he had any enemies? Someone who hates him so much that he wants to kill him?" There was silence.Blake went on: "There's a woman he's interested in marrying. Has he ever talked to any of you about her?" Ashley found it difficult to breathe.Now is the time to speak up.Now was the time to tell Sheriff Tibble what he had done to her.But Ashley remembered the look on his father's face when she told her about it.They would charge him with murder. Her father would never kill anyone. He is a doctor. He is a surgeon. Dennis Tiber was castrated. Sheriff Blake was saying, "...and haven't any of you seen him since he left here on Friday?" Toni Prescott thought: Speak.Tell him, Miss Prudence.Tell him you went to his apartment why didn't you say it? Sheriff Blake stood there for a moment, trying to hide his disappointment. "Well, if any of you remember anything that might be useful, I'd be very grateful for a call. Mr. Miller has my number. Thank you all." Everyone watched as he walked toward the exit with Shane. Ashley felt relieved and felt like she was going to pass out. Sheriff Blake turned to Shane. "Is there anyone here who he's particularly close to?" "No, not really close," Shane said. "I don't think Dennis is close to anyone. He's very enamored of one of our computer operators here, but he hasn't won her any favors." Sheriff Blake paused. "Is she here now?" "Yes, but..." "I want to talk to her." "Well, you can use my office." They walked back into the room, and Ashley saw them coming.They made a beeline for her cubicle, and she could feel her face flush. "Ashley, Adjutant Blake would like to speak to you." So he knows!He's going to ask her about her going to Tibble's apartment.I've got to be careful, Ashley thought. The aide-de-camp was looking at her: "Do you mind, Miss Paterson?" She heard a voice on the door: "No, not at all." She followed him into Shane Miller's office. "Please sit down." They both sat on the chairs. "I know Dennis Tibble has a crush on you?" "I...I think..." Be careful, "Yes." "Have you ever dated him?" Going to his apartment is not the same as going on a date with him. "No." "Has he ever talked to you about this woman he wants to marry?" She got deeper and deeper.Is he recording these words?Maybe he already knew that she had been to Tibble's apartment?They may have found her fingerprints.Now was the time to tell Sheriff Tibble what he had done to her.But if I did, Ashley thought desperately, it would lead to my father, and they would connect it to the Jim Cleary murder.Did they know about the case too?However, the Bedford Police Department had no reason to notify the Cupertino Police Department.Will they? Sheriff Blake was watching her, waiting for her answer. "Miss Paterson?" "What? Oh, I'm sorry. This has made me so uneasy..." "I understand. Did Tibbel mention this woman he wanted to marry?" "Yes . . . but he never told me her name." That, at least, was true. "Have you ever been to Tibble's apartment?" Ashley took a deep breath.If she says no, the inquiry is likely to end there.But Jiaguo and the others have already found her fingerprints... "I have been there." "Have you been to his apartment?" "yes." Now he was looking at her more closely. "You just said you never dated him." Ashley's mind was racing fast now. "That's right. Not a date, no. I brought him some papers he left behind." "when did it happen?" She felt caught in a trap. "That was... that was about a week ago." "That's the only time you went to him?" "yes." Now even if they had her fingerprints, she would be innocent.She wanted to tell him the truth.Some thief might have broken in and killed him--the same thief who had killed Jim Cleary three thousand miles away ten years before.If you believe in coincidence.If you believe in Santa Claus.If you believe in fairy tales. Damn you, father. "This is a horrific murder. There doesn't seem to be any motive. But you know, in all my years as a police officer, I've never seen a murder without a motive," said Magistrate Blake. No response. "Did you know Dennis Tiber took drugs?" "I'm sure he doesn't smoke." "So what do we have? It's not drugs. He wasn't robbed. He didn't owe anyone money. Then there's just the romance. Is there someone who's jealous of him?" Or a father who wants to protect his daughter. "I'm as puzzled as you are, Adjutant of Peace." He stared at her for a moment, his eyes seeming to say, "I don't believe you, ma'am." Adjutant Black rose to his feet.He pulled out a business card and handed it to Ashley. "If you think of anything, give me a call, I'd appreciate it." "I'd be happy to do that." "goodbye." She watches him go.it's over.Father is no longer suspected. ※※※ When Ashley got back to her apartment that night, there was a message on the answering machine: "You turned me on last night, honey. I'm talking about getting aroused by you and then not getting it. But You will serve me tonight, just as you promised. Old time, old place." Ashley stood there, listening in disbelief.I'm going crazy, she thought.This matter has nothing to do with my father, there must be someone else hiding behind the scenes.But who?And why? ※※※ Five days later, Ashley received a bill from her credit card company.Three charges caught her attention: A bill for four hundred and fifty dollars from Maud's Clothing Store. A three-hundred-dollar bill from the "Circus Nightclub." A bill for two hundred and fifty dollars from Louie's. She had never heard of these clothing stores, nightclubs or restaurants.