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  Lazy Magnolia

  Mongo Case Files #2

  T S Paul

  Great God Pan Publishing

  Copyright © 2019 by T S Paul

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  The Federal Witch Universe and Mongo Case Files (and what happens within/characters/situations/worlds) are Copyright (c) 2016-2019 by T S Paul and Great God Pan Publishing

  Special thanks to my wife Heather who keeps me grounded and to Merlin the Cat. We are his minions.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Author Notes

  Pick up a Mongo Sticker!

  Also By T S Paul

  Chapter 1

  “It was a dark and stormy night.” I said channeling Snoopy. I stared out the front window of my dad’s tiny restaurant, Bare Naked Ribs. The best barbeque this side of Mississippi. This was not how I pictured my life at all. My choices were limited, but I was a Thalar. We make our future. We don’t just let it happen. Dad was someone to look up to that way. Unfortunately, my lot in life was the restaurant and I had tables to clean.

  “If you don’t finish that floor we will never get home in time for your mom’s dinner. Work faster Mongo!”

  Looking up, I could see dad behind the counter. He did have a point. Mom was making dinner tonight that wasn’t barbecue. That was one of the downsides to working in a BBQ restaurant. The smell of cooking meat gets everywhere and makes you not want to eat any of it ever again. I couldn’t imagine having that happen to me with pizza or chicken wings. It would kill me.

  Just the mention of regular food normally makes my stomach growl. Trust me when I say withholding food from hungry polar bears is never a good idea. Ever.

  The tinkle of the door opening made me first glance at the clock. Eight-fifty-two! Who buys food at this hour? Looking at the door, I froze. The most beautiful woman I had ever seen stood before me. Nice figure, blonde hair, and a super tight dress. I was in love. Like a cartoon I felt my jaw drop open and my tongue roll right on out.

  “Excuse me? Is this where I find Mongo Thalar?” The goddess in the door held up what looked like one of my business cards. I had just put those up in the coffee shops and libraries around town yesterday. It was super hard building a client base when you were just starting out. Especially as a private investigator.

  “Did you need barbecue or any sort of food product, miss?” Dad, ever the salesman, leaned over the counter. He wasn’t as slack-jawed as I was, but all his attention was on the woman.

  “No thank you. I just need help finding something that was taken from me. Is Mongo... Thalar here? Am I pronouncing that right?” She brushed the hair back from her face making my heart beat that much faster.

  “He’s over there.” Dad pointed straight at me.

  All I could think about was my red sauce stained overalls and the potato salad stains on my shirt from a disaster in the walk-in earlier.

  “Thank you.” She turned to look at me.

  My heart resumed its marathon run inside my chest. It should be illegal for women to look so hot!

  Trying very hard to not stumble over words, I replied. “I’m Mongo Thalar. Something I can do for you?”

  Her face lit up with a big smile as she turned to look at me. All the blood rushed from my head to parts lower and it took all my concentration to prevent an even more embarrassing situation from happening. Trying to look casual, I slid the tray in my hand around to my front.

  “Your card says you are a private investigator. I need help,” the living goddess explained.

  A case!

  All sexual thoughts forgotten, I laid the tray down on the table next to me and guided her to the booth over in the corner.

  Dad made a grunting noise that might be interpreted as either his approval or his disapproval. With Werebears it could be both at the same time. Grunting and chuffing in our other forms was considered to be an art form. “Ten minutes Mongo, you’ve got tables to clean and a dinner to get to.”

  Acknowledging his words but ignoring him all the same, I waved at my father. The woman in front of me was way more interesting. “Please, have a seat and tell me what I can do to help you.”

  I could barely smell her perfume as soon as she approached me. Werebears like our cousins, real polar bears, have enhanced senses. Mine however, were screwed all to hell normally due to some mild experimentation when I was younger. It was really strange to smell anything at all. Especially from a woman like this!

  Who was this woman that was setting off all my triggers like this?

  “I found your card at my favorite coffee shop today. Are you really a private investigator?” She gestured to the restaurant and its barbecue glory. “Are you in disguise here?”

  Feeling my face heat up, I tried to smile. “For the moment it pays the bills. I used to work for the FBI, investigative branch. But it wasn’t all that exciting, so I left. When I’m not on a case, I help Dad out here. It gives me time to relax and make a bit of gas money.”

  Pausing, I cocked my head to the left. Dad was chuffing or coughing. Even I couldn’t tell. I sent a silent prayer to the Gods of Were that he kept his mouth shut and didn’t give my lies away.

  “As I was saying. I came home. My skills are just going to waste around here so I started my own detective business. It’s the best way to use all my skills.”

  The blonde smiled at me making me happy. I was sitting in the booth as all the blood in my body rushed away from my brain downward, yet again.

  “I’m surprised you didn’t go into local law enforcement with a background like that,” she said.

  This close I could see her sea-green eyes. If I wasn’t careful, they might suck me right down into oblivion.

  Sure that my face was flaming red, I tried to smile. “I’ve had my share of law enforcement and it just wasn’t for me. This way is better. I can solve mysteries I choose and let the locals do their jobs without me. What can I do for you?”

  With the faintest tears in her eyes, the blonde explained. “My boyfriend, now ex-boyfriend, and I broke up a couple of weeks ago. I just noticed today that he still has my laptop. I moved all my stuff out of his apartment, but the computer wasn’t in the box I was so sure I put it in. It’s vital to my business. I have to have it! Is there any way you can find it for me? I called him and he claims it’s not in his house. I know better than that! He’s a manipulative asshole that likes to hold things over people. I just know he’ll try to use it against me or force me to get back together with him. It has all my financial information and other stuff on it so I can’t just forget about it. Can you get it back for me? I really don’t want to call the police on him.”

  My brain was still processing the part about breaking up with her boyfriend, so I only heard bits and pieces of what she actually said but I heard enough.

  “At the moment it’s a ‘he said she said’ situation. I can’t do anything illegal. If I do find the device and it’s in his possession, what do you want done? Possession is nine tenths of the law, but if you can prove it’s yours… The Madison police department is pretty good.”

  “Just find it first. If he’s got it at the apartment, I can get it myself. I still have keys. I just have to be sure he has it. Can you do that for me?” She batted her eyes at me and smiled.

  “Uh, sure.” I shook my head to clear it. My hormones were raging and there was a tent in my pants, again. “I do need some informatio
n from you. What is your name, address, and phone number? Email is good as well. There are tons of computers out there so I’m gonna need a really good description with any identifying features. And the boyfriend, I’ll need his name, address, etc. Plus, whatever you think I should know about him. Is he violent? Are there guns or other weapons in the house? Stuff like that.”

  The blonde woman sighed and reached into her purse. Pulling out a couple of index cards, she held out her left hand. “I didn’t introduce myself, did I? Elisha Dubb.”

  Elisha. That was a beautiful name. Her last name rang a tiny bell in my subconscious, but I ignored it. Inner thoughts have not been my friends lately.

  Taking her hand, I spoke, trying not to let my voice crack. “Hello, Elisha. That is a very pretty name.”

  She pulled her hand back and handed me the cards. “It’s from the bible. My parents were big time believers.”

  Taking the cards, I nodded. Elisha had listed her ex’s information clearly. His name was Blaise Pascal. According to her notes, he lived in an upscale condominium complex called the Lazy Magnolia over in nearby Huntsville. That made me wince a small bit. While the Madison police force was pretty lenient of my private eye activities, the Huntsville ones were not. They constantly checked my identification and licensees even though they’d seen me before. For some weird reason they didn’t trust me.

  On more than one occasion I’d inquired of my former FBI bosses, but they swore to me that the reason for my leaving the FBI wasn’t public or even private knowledge. Only my direct supervisor knew everything. I just figured someone in Huntsville didn’t like me. I would have to try to keep a low profile for this case.

  “Do you have a phone number and address I can reach you at?” I grabbed one of the menus off the table. We printed them up in the back so there were more. Dad would have to deal with my ruining one of them.

  “Of course. Didn’t I put that on there? I’m so forgetful.” She blinked at me a few times then gave me her address and phone number.

  Her address wasn’t actually in Madison, but over near the Redstone base if I was reading it right. Area code 831 was a mystery to me, but that’s what the internet was for.

  “Thanks. Let me go get you one of my contracts so we can keep this legal. My rates are fifty dollars an hour, plus expenses. That amount might include bail for me if I get arrested during the course of the investigation. I will keep all of your information in complete confidence, of course.” I started to slide out of the booth.

  “Contract?” Elisha’s voice was almost shrill.

  “Yes. Contract. If I don’t have one, I could lose my PI license. Legally in the state of Alabama, I must have documentation before I start any private investigation work. This is for your safety as well as mine. It’s treated as a confidential document that requires a warrant to open, so don’t worry about exposure.”

  If I was paying closer attention, I might have noticed Elisha wasn’t smiling anymore.

  Dad allowed me to have a small corner of the dry storage area for my file box and backup weapons. The safe and its contents were all I had of my previous life. Lucky for me the FBI didn’t get very many Werebears in service or I’d have left the pistol belt with them.

  “Contract, contract, contract.” I muttered to myself.

  This could be a big case! Especially if I had to stake out someone. Time equals money in this business. And I needed money. My file box was under a couple of bags of flour and what looked like red pepper flakes.

  Dang it, Dad!

  Shifting the supplies onto a nearby shelf, I dug into the box. Contract copies were some of the first things I made after getting my license. For once I took my friend Chuck’s advice and set out to do everything on the up and up. No shortcuts or buddy-hook-ups this time. One major life-changing mistake was enough for this Polar Bear.

  Yanking the contracts out, I turned to leave but stopped. Looking down at my hand, I double-checked. My discharge paperwork from the FBI was right on top. Quickly I shoved that back in the box. Not something I wished to share with anyone right now. Too many bad memories.

  Elisha was still in the booth when I came back. She smiled sweetly at me again, making my hormones do a little flip-flop backflip.

  “Let me explain how this works,” I said as I slid back into the booth.

  “Do we really need a contract?” She asked again.

  “Sorry, legally I have to have one. Now let me explain what it says.” I slid a copy in front of her going over the legal bits to her. Insurance, confidentiality, and the fee schedule were the main points.

  “Usually I charge a deposit, but for you I’ll waive it. My rate is the best in town, fifty dollars an hour. That covers any surveillance I need to do as well as parking fees and whatever. Does your ex travel a lot?”

  “Not that I am aware of. He works at the Huntsville business park over on Watson drive. If he’s not at home, he’s there. Like all the time.” Elisha appeared to read the contract, tracing down the page with her finger. Her nails were long and brightly colored.

  “Good. That makes it cheaper for you. No major travel expenses. Does this contract meet all your expectations?”

  “I don’t see anything on here about you getting my stuff back.” She pointed to the action part of the contract.

  I looked down at the paper and grimaced. “There won’t be. I’m not a crook. Everything I do is through legal means only. If I have to break into someone's property, I must involve the local police to do so. My license can only carry me so far. Is that something you want me to do if he has it? Let me warn you that it gets tricky dealing with lawyers and judges. I would have to surrender the computer to them first. You might not get it for years.” I looked expectantly at the beautiful woman.

  “NO! Sorry, no. I would rather just keep this between me and uh, Blaise. And you of course, Mongo. Do I just sign here?” Elisha pulled out a fancy fountain pen from her purse.

  “Yes. I’ll need the first payment up front to keep it legal and we are in business. I will try to get you daily reports. Is email ok? How soon do you need this item located?” Her perfume was making me all giddy, so I needed to wrap this up quick. I still needed to finish cleaning so we could go home for the night.

  Sliding a fifty toward me Elisha then signed the contract. “Is the end of the week possible? I really need some of the information on the hard drive. Thank you for doing this Mongo.”

  I looked at the money on the table. I guess I should have said it would be at least three hundred to start, but I’m dumb that way. Taking the money, I answered her. “If he carries it everywhere, finding it shouldn’t be hard. I’ll try to have the results by Sunday.”

  We both slid out of the booth. I reached out to shake her hand but found her suddenly embracing me. Looking down at the top of her head, I suddenly didn’t know what to do! My body started reacting to her as her warmth reached my pea sized brain. “Uh, Elisha?”

  Pulling back from me, she looked up into my eyes. Her startling green eyes caught mine. She motioned to me with her finger to get closer. Not wanting her to leave, I bent down.

  Smack! She kissed me. Looking me up and down, she smiled even as she stepped away. “See you later big boy. I’ll be expecting my update tomorrow.”

  Chapter 2

  Elisha left the restaurant in a swirl of perfume and color.

  I stood frozen in the middle of the dining room for only a moment. I could hear Dad’s grunts from behind the counter. “That sow is going to get you into trouble again, Mongo. You listen to my words here.”

  “Dad! Must you call every woman that comes into this place a sow? It’s so demeaning.” I walked around the counter into the kitchen carrying the tray I’d abandoned on the table.

  “I just call it like it is. Your mother was once the finest sow in our entire village. Just the barest scent of her would turn all the boars into cubs. I was a hero among men for landing her like I did.” Wiping down the equipment one last time, he gave me a curiou
s look. “You should use the mother tongue more often Mongo. It’s like your other form, it’s who you truly are.”

  “You told me yourself that I was born in Japan. That old village was never my home. Didn’t they try to burn you and mom out? Why do you insist upon keeping traditions alive from people who hated you?”

  Looking down at my coveralls, I groaned. I looked like I’d been digging in the trash. My clothing was filthy. I was surprised Elisha didn’t walk out in disgust the moment she saw me.

  “It is your heritage son. The Chukchi are a shamanic people. They pay very little attention to the world at hand. Finding a community of shifters living among them was too much of a shock for them to take.” I watched as Dad locked the coolers, pocketing the keys.

  “They tried to kill you all!” I shouted.

  “True. But they were our friends and our neighbors first. I know you have seen the letters your mother receives each month from home.” He grabbed me by my elbow and pulled me outside as he set the alarm.

  “I thought those were from Aunts and Uncles?”

  “They are. Human ones. Our friends were very sorry. The shaman at the time was new and he told them many lies about our people. Something you must remember when dealing with humans, Mongo. They are easily swayed by those with power over them. Always watch your back. I know how gullible you can be.” Dad held the car door open for me.

  Grunting, I climbed into the back seat squeezing my large form through the tiny gap. “I’m not gullible. That was just a mistake in judgment.”

  “Of course it was. Just like all the other times.”

  I slid over to the passenger side of the car as dad slid his seat back and climbed in. The door on the right didn’t open. A tiny mistake I made the first time I ever drove it. Who knew that car doors weren’t made with bears in mind? Flimsy things that they were. Climbing in and out of his car was a royal pain, but it saved on gas for my beater.