Sunday, August 2, 2009

Koala Killer Third Installment

The reception area is pleasant, done in beige and turquoise, with artful close-ups of some of Pueblo Valley's animals and birds framed in bamboo.
Jeannie, the Director's secretary, looked up, saying, "Go on in Marigold. He was looking for you. The detective is with him."
Jeannie always called Mari by her full name, just like her mother used to. She kept it formal. Maybe she thought that was how private secretaries should be. Mari smiled at her as she opened the door.
Attempting to be friendly, Mari answered, "Thanks Jeannie. I like your hair."
A slight movement of her head was the only acknowledgement. Mari continues into Jorge Johnson's office where she could hear someone speaking.
Jorge looked up and interrupted the speaker, saying, "Mari, here you are. Are you allright my dear? Sit down, sit down. Lieutenant Wilson, this is Mari Nuclett."
Jorge is portly and taller than his roundness makes him seem. He's strong and tanned from his hands-on supervision. His influence and policies had brought their little zoo into it's own.
Mari thought he looked understandably nervous today.
The detective stood up as she entered the room. He takes a step towards her. He's tall and rugged looking, like the actor who played Paladin in the old TV show Have Gun, Will Travel.
"We'll make this as easy and brief as we can. I need to ask you about the incident last night. I know you've already spoken to the officers who came when it happened, but I will head the investigation and need to ask you a few questions."
"First, may I ask a question, please? How is Stan?"
"He is doing as well as can be expected, as they say. I know that's not very comforting, but as I told Mr. Johnson here, we'll have to get more from the doctors on that score."
Mari nods, disappointed. She makes a mental note to go over to the hospital to see Stan herself and get in the doctor's face, if necessary, to find out.
"I understand you found Mr. ..., " he looked at his notes, "or is that Dr. Reed? The report says that was about 9:50 last evening. Would you just tell me the sequence of events as you remember them please?"
"I was heading back to the kitchen with my charges' pans to clean them, when I noticed a light on in the animal's infirmary, so I went to investigate. Before going in, I set the pans down, made a clatter of it, I'm afraid. Then I heard the Lar Gibbon making a racket. I could tell he was upset. I hurried into the room looking up for the gibbon and saw him crouched in the highest branches in a display of sheer terror. Then I heard Stan, uh, Dr. Reed, moaning. That's when I saw him rolling back and forth on the floor. His hands were clutching something on his face. I went to him and tried to soothe him, telling him it's all right, which it obviously wasn't, of course. That's when I saw the tranq dart sticking out of his eye." She cringed at the memory, "That's what he'd been clutching. He was in a lot of pain. Then suddenly he went slack, passed out, I guess. I didn't know what to do for him. I resisted the urge to take the dart out because I didn't know what would be worse for him, so I laid him back down and went to call 911 for an ambulance."
"What's a trank dart?"
"Tranquilizer dart, used for sedating the animals when we need to give them first aid and the like," Jorge answered for her.
"You said you 'laid him back down?" Had he gotten up?"
"No, I had put my arm behind his shoulder while I knelt beside him. Once he knew I was there he strained as if to sit up just before he passed out, so his head was off the floor a few inches."
Lt. Wilson checked his note pad. "What is a Lar Gibbon?"
"The smallest of the ape family. They have long arms, no tail, live in trees. Actually, they're ..."
"Fine. Thanks. Please go on."
"Not much to tell really. I knew I had to go to the gatehouse to call, well, Joseph, the guard, he actually called. Then I went back to the infirmary to be with Stan. Nothing seemed changed. I tried to calm myself and called to the gibbon who was still very upset. I remembered that the gibbon was due to be shipped out in the next day or so. I thought about calling his keeper, Manny. I started to wonder how this'd happened. I looked around for a tranq, uh, tranquilizer gun, but I didn't see one. I told 911 it was an accident, but if the gun wasn't there, maybe someone shot Stan. Is that what happened Detective?"
She'd been wondering about that since last night but didn't want to believe that violence had invaded her beloved Zoo.
"That's what we're trying to find out. Now, did you see anyone else, either when you entered the room or while waiting for the ambulance?"
"Oh, yes, I discovered the koala. The gibbon was making so much noise I didn't notice the koala was there at all, at first."
Jorge interrupted, "What koala, Mari? We don't have a koala."
"I didn't think so. But I saw him Jorge. Did they put him up somewhere after all the commotion last night?"
"It's the first I've heard of a koala, Mari. We'll check into it."

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