The phone buzzed over the counter vibrating throughout the unit. My kid picks it up, “Tekmat Investigations… One sec.” they put them on hold, “Yo ‘Ren! It’s a customer!” I hurry over from the other room, “Didn’t I say you not ready for the business yet?” They cheekily stick their tongue out before walking away, “You’re welcome. I’m off to school. Love you.” I kiss them goodbye and answered the call, “Sorry about that, how can I help.”
“Hi. Yes. I saw your advert and was referred from a friend that recently won a case because of you guys. So naturally, I thought I would give you a try. I don’t know where to start… Sorry.”
“That’s okay. Which services were you inquiring about?”
She took a deep sigh, “Well, I’m not sure what this falls under but I guess, missing persons?”
“Sure. Can you tell me a little bit about the person that went missing? Let’s start with their relationship to you and go from there.”
She began to sob, “Gloria was my friend. My only friend in our complex when I first moved here back in January 6 months ago. She was kind to everyone and defended me from another neighbour who lives down the hall from us. He moved out way before she went missing though. She was funny and everyone loved her. Every Sunday we would do some ‘Wake and Bake’ as she called it where we get baked and bake treats. We never missed a week.”
“You two sound like you’re joined at the hip, huh.”
“Of course. We loved each other.” I could sense her smile though the memory of her and sniffed through the pain of loosing her companion.
“Do you know if she had any enemies since you two were close?”
“She was on and off with her ex-boyfriend/ husband? Not sure what they were but he used to go around telling everyone that she was his wife, but she told me ex-boyfriend. So, I took her word for it. She was definitely in an abusive relationship with him. Verbal and emotional in nature. Though, I never seen him actually put his hands on her.”
“Well abuse is abuse, no matter how to cut it.”
“Right. That’s what I told her, but she didn’t see it that way. Plus, she would say that she gave her a place here so she can’t just turn her back on him now.”
“Gave her a place? How so? Like they live together?”
“No, he’s the superintendent of the building so he gave her a vacant unit and drafted a cheap lease for her to cover her rent.”
I paused over this new information, “Is the landlord of the building aware of this arrangement?”
“Not sure. But I know a lawyer in the building that has his direct line whenever she wants to make complaints or requests.”
“Okay. Can you provide me any phone numbers and details of all the parties involved including anyone you think might know her or her whereabouts?”
“Absolutely. Does this mean you will take the case?”
“Well, this seems to have legs. Why didn’t you go to the police?”
“I did and waited for 48 hours like they said to but after I got back to them about this, they disregarded me and said I don’t know her long and that she probably just moved to another address. They were no help at all.”
“Okay, can you include any documents that gave you, file number and the detective in charge of your case in my email?”
“No problem.” I got her personal details and address and headed to the complex.
The complex towered over the greenscape below bustling with activity. The corndog vendor tossing a variation of vegetables and meats on the grill with skill and vigor. Steaming its savoury essence into the air, filling the streets. Two buskers played a sax while the other sang in an alto-esque melody as by standing pedestrians dropped change in their case. I move through the walking crowd and enter the building and buzzed the client. “I see you. Come on up.” I looked behind to find a CCTV camera facing the entrance. The second door buzzed open as I forcefully pulled the weighted door. I tap the window on it as it let out a deep thud. Bulletproof. I headed to the client’s unit and was greeted by an elderly woman at the elevator on the 7th floor, “Thanks for coming on short notice.”
“You are Wonda?”
“Yes dear, who were you expecting?”
“No expectations. You sound as young as you look.” I shot her a smile.
“Oh stop. You ain’t slick.” She chuckled. I’m old enough to be your grandma.” We both laughed.
We walked down the hallway as she pointed to all the resident’s door that knew Gloria until we arrived at her friend’s unit. There was a thick silence that filled the space. “This is her place. She had given me a key.” She proceeded to open the door to reveal tossed furniture and broken dishes like someone put up a fight. I noticed a photo broken near the entrance and picked it up. Wonda and Gloria at a Pride festival. “She took this at Pride. It was her first one and asked me to take her.”
“Were you two…?”
“Oh gosh no. She called me her rainbow-mother because her parents made her homeless for being Bi. I looked after her and she took care of me even though I never ask. She knows I have arthritis and watched over me after my cataracts surgery.”
“Oh, that’s sweet.” I looked around some more. An odd-looking fridge in the kitchen made of plastic resembling a cooler but with a door. I point to the fridge, “What in the fuc- sorry — is this?”
“It’s okay. I told Robert the same thing. The cheap bastard. He gave us a notice saying all the fridges in the building where outdated and needed to be replaced.”
“This looks retrofitted to the wall.” I try to move the fridge, but it doesn’t move. Do you know the name of this thing they said they’re replacing? I should say on the notice.”
“Wait here. I’ll go get the notice.” She hurried to her unit and started shuffling through paper in the background, “Damn it. Where I put this shit.”
I open the teal brailed fridge and find a lifted caulked square in the rear. I pushed on it, and it revealed some light. I started to remove the spoiled contents and the wired hardware, placing them on the counter and stove beside it. I then held down the fridge light to darken it and punched the square with my palms. There was a moldy mildly lit unit on the other side with stairs leading to a lower level, a rusty chair and a cage. “Found it!” Wonda emerged with the notice, “What the fuck is that?!”
“No idea. Do you know anything about this?”
“If I did, I would have told you. My fridge doesn’t have this.”
“Can I see?” We walked over to her unit, and she showed me her metal standard fridge. “He didn’t change yours?”
“I refused the service. I brought my fridge from Montreal. He even threatened me with a fine if I didn’t take it. I told him to go fuck himself and he left me alone. There’s no law against me having my own appliances. This nigga was trippin’.” I darted a look at her, don’t you think you could have told me this earlier? Could he be targeting you through her?”
“Probably. But I’m not the only one who refused the service. The Lawyer who lives on the 9th floor did too. When he pushed back, she threatened him back with not only a lawsuit but a class action lawsuit if he keeps harassing her and other tenants.” I took pictures of Gloria’s apartment and the hole in the fridge, including the unit behind the fridge. Wonda locked up, “So what do we do?”
“You are going to stay put. If you get a call from Gloria or anyone who knows her, call me immediately. Do not relay to them about this investigation or else it will be difficult to find her. Gather as much information as possible that you think you may have forgotten. Anything helps. I’m going to go speak with the Lawyer and see what she knows. We will have to get the detective involved again.”
“Oh gosh. Do you think she was kidnapped?”
“It… Looks that way… We’re going to get to the bottom of this and get your friend back.”
I make my leave downstairs to speak with the Lawyer on the 5th floor and see her leaving a unit at the end of the hall, “Hey, can we speak?”
“Who’s asking?” Her stoned face glared me down with stoic remiss.
I show her my ID, “I’m Qed Tekmat from Tekmat Investigations. I just wanted to ask you about your relationship with Robert the superintendent.”
“Does this have anything to do with the complaint I sent to Akash a month ago?”
“Can you reiterate the complaint to me, so I have what matches in my files?”
“I told the landlord to have Robert fix the leak in my ceiling. There’s like a reddish brownish like goo staining my ceiling. At first it dripped a maroon like substance now it’s like a brownish green and has dried up. I addressed it with Robert first and he brushed me off and said I was complaining. Then I contacted Akash and he said he would send out an escort guard and a contracted to assist Robert with the repairs and to other effected units for May 7th, but I never received a word back from Akash, Robert or even the security guard that literally only comes once a week for 5 hours and leaves.”
“Can I see the damages?”
She pursed her lips pacing at the elevators, “Okay fine. But let’s hurry, I’m late for work.”
We enter the unit and I notice the metal fridge with the thick soot on the ceiling. She walked me to the bathroom where the hole ceiling was covered in a greyish-brown mold. “Wow.” I uttered.”
“This is nothing. Head one level up to the sixth floor and the smell is pungent of iron or some sort of metallic scent. When I went, there wasn’t a middle unit above from mine. Just one at the end neighbouring it.”
“Hmm… Do you know if Robert has any issues with other tenants? Say on the 7th floor?”
“Yes, the bastard tried to tell us that we had to switch fridges and that ours were outdated. I told him that I will sue him so hard, his future grandchildren will have to foot the bill. He then backed off. Not sure if the other tenants gave in. I know Wonda’s neighbour got one because she told me she tried to talk Gloria out of it.”
“Interesting. What do you know about Gloria?”
“She’s a neighbour and friend of Wonda’s. That’s as much as I know. That and she’s the super’s girlfriend, I think.” She looks down at her watch, “Look, I have to run. Here’s my card. Tell Akash to fix the damn ceiling please, or I’m going to make a complaint to the Tenancy Board.”
“Okay, I — ” She walked off as she bagged her heels and headed down the stairwell. I headed up the stairs to the 6th floor and found the same stain on the ground that seeped out from the plastered wall. She was right. There was no middle unit like the rest of the floors. Also, the wall was slightly bevelled from the plaster. I headed back to the 7th floor to speak with Wonda.
I knocked her door, “Wonda, It’s me.”
She opened the door, “Yes dear, did you manage to find anything?”
“Kind of. Was there any notice on a construction that took place on the 6th floor?”
“Not that I know of. Was there?”
“Can you open Gloria’s unit again?”
“Sure.” Wonda toddled over and grabbed her keys from the wall and opened the door. The same smell leaked through the fridge. I open the cutout hole and Wonda moved closer, peaking over my shoulder. “Oh, that stank.” She said holding her nose. I pressed the floor with the end of my pen into the wet damp carpet as it slowly recoiled back into shape. The gooey coagulated maroon substance dripped from it as it pattered back into the floor. “Get me a bag.” Wonda ran over to her place and got me a sandwich bag from her kitchen. I placed the pen inside and closed the fridge back up. I pull some plastic bags from under the kitchen sink and slipped them over my shoes and headed inside. “Be careful.” Her voice shook with worry. I put on my gloves and turn on the light. I descended the wooden stairs into the cold darkness. A stream of light peaked through what looked like it was badly boarded up with drywall. I heard movement in the corner of the room. The streak of light luminated over the figure as it moved into the shadows. I pry open the drywall, one panel at a time to let in the light. “Qes, did you find anything?” Wonda yelled from the fridge.
“Call the police!” The girls coughed and huddled in a corner of another cage. One of them covered their swollen eye, blue and purple bruises scattered across her jaw and the sides of her face. “Anyone here named Gloria?” She peaked at me. “Can you walk? Can any of you folks walk?” Few got up helping each other up to their feet. I shook and kicked the cage as it wobbled. There laid a steel pipe by the dirty mattress on the floor. “Stand back!” They huddled back into a corner as I bash the lock loose. As it broke open, officers came down the stairs. The people held captive ran and was escorted out of their prison.
