A Fitzpatrick/Rosario Police Thriller
Wind Chime Bandit — Part 2
Dealing with a global threat
The meeting hall at the city building was packed with residents of the South Side. It seemed that everyone wanted to know more about the wind chime crime wave that was washing over their neighborhood.
Sitting at the long table on the stage were Steubenville’s mayor Langley Leudenfelt, police captain Jake Trapper, and Detectives Dan Fitzpatrick and Maria Rosario. What could not be noticed were the two tiny video cameras mounted from the ceiling pointing towards the audience.
The crowd fell silent as Mayor Leudenfelt stood, “Good evening everyone. Thank you for coming to this emergency meeting. As you know, the South Side neighborhood is in the grips of an intense crime epidemic. Throughout the neighborhood wind chimes are being stolen from people’s property at an alarming rate. I assure you that the city is doing everything we can to put an end to this but we need your help. I ask that all South Side residents remain super vigilant and report any suspicious behavior immediately to the police department. Here is police chief Jake Trapper…”
The mayor sat down as Jake Trapper stood up, “Good evening. I’d like to thank everyone for coming out and spending a little bit of your time to help us solve this mystery. If we all work together I’m sure we can put all this behind us quickly.”
“Now I know that some people really hate wind chimes and some people really love them. Personally, I don’t care either way. The thing is that wind chimes are not illegal. But stealing them is! It is a crime that comes with serious penalties.”
“I have ordered a doubling of police car patrols in the neighborhood throughout the day and night. But we really need the help of neighborhood eyeballs. As you walk the neighborhood look all around you for anything suspicious. Make a habit of looking out your windows on a regular basis. Keep an eye on all your neighbors and especially anyone walking the neighborhood that you’ve never seen before. Walk out to the alleyways behind your homes several times a day to look for suspicious activity. And please don’t hesitate to call 911 if you see anything out of the ordinary.”
Jeffrey Henworthy stood up from his seat in the audience, “I move that we make wind chimes illegal. They are just downright annoying and they impinge on people’s rights to have peace and quiet.”
The mayor spoke up, “This is not a city council meeting. We cannot make motions to make or change laws and rules.”
Detective Dan Fitzpatrick leaned toward Detective Maria Rosario and shielded his mouth with his hand while whispering, “I think we have our suspect.”
Maria rolled her eyes.
Police chief Trapper spoke, “Like I said this meeting is not about whether wind chimes are good or bad. It’s about the crime of theft.”
Sheila Dawn Toddleganger stood up, “I bought a wind chime from Mrs. Waltersdorf and I loved it. It sounded so pretty. But then I noticed that the birds were no longer coming to my bird feeders. Then the wind chime was stolen — and I reported it — and the next thing I know the birds were all coming back to my bird feeders.”
“Is Winnie Waltersdorf in the audience?”
Winnie stood up.
“Could you tell us about the wind chimes you’ve been selling?”
“Yes. As I tell all my customers, these wind chimes are made from top quality materials and they are tuned to a certain frequency that makes people happy. A neighborhood full of these wind chimes uplifts everyone. They are very soothing. And they are endorsed by the Will and Belinda Grates Foundation so we can all rest assured that they are perfectly safe, perfectly healthy, and that there are no hidden agendas.”
“Balderdash!” Helena Housemaiden stood up waving a stack of papers. “I think that everyone here needs to know that these wind chimes are not safe. There have been over two thousand scientific tests conducted on the environmental impact of these wind chimes. Go to windchimemenace.org and all the tests are there for everyone to read. It has been proven that these wind chimes are not only detrimental to birds and plant life but also bees. The frequency these wind chimes generate messes with the navigation of bees and they get lost and can’t find their way back to the hive. These wind chimes are killing bees all over the world.”
She continued, “And they also affect humans. The frequency these wind chimes generate puts humans in a hypnotic state that leaves them prone to mind control. It’s a global plot to control the human population. There is also evidence that the sound these wind chimes generate affects the hemoglobin in human blood which can lead to cancer, autism, tuberculosis, heart problems, and restless leg syndrome.”
A loud murmur spread through the crowd.
Dan whispered to Maria, “Oh, we definitely have our suspect now.”
Maria rolled her eyes.
Police Chief Trapper silenced the crowd, “Everyone. Please. Now, I… uh… I’ve never heard of any of this. It sounds like a conspiracy theory to me. But…”
“Read the evidence!” yelled Helena Housemaiden.
“Now. Now. This isn’t a meeting to discuss the pros and cons of wind chimes. We’re here to work together to solve the crimes of wind chime theft…”
Lula Lindenhauffer stood up, “You know, ever since I got my wind chime my cat has been acting really funny.”
Another murmur spread through the crowd.
Police Chief Trapper called on Gabrielle Gundenstern, “Gabrielle, as the town librarian, do you know anything about this conspiracy theory? Or anything about the thefts?”
Gabrielle remained in her seat, “I… I don’t know a thing about any of this. I’ve never seen any book about it. I can’t imagine who would resort to thievery over silly wind chimes.”
“Ray Soddenberry, I see that you are here. You do lawn maintenence in the neighborhood. Have you noticed anything suspicious?”
“No, not concernin’ people no how. I have noticed that all the needles of all the pine trees are turnin’ yella, though. And none of the morning glories are bloomin’ and the leaves on all the rose bushes are turnin’ black. Somethin’s up.”
Another murmur spread through the crowd and very soon everyone was standing and yelling at each other, arguing about wind chimes.
Exasperated, mayor Leudenfelt adjourned the meeting although it was now so loud in the meeting hall that no one heard him.
Read the conclusion in Part 3 here
Copyright by White Feather. All Rights Reserved. This is a work of fiction.
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