The Investigators, Inc. The Case of Jazzy’s House. Chapter 11. Pressure.

Posted on February 12, 2026 by

246 Comments

Something totally unexpected happened this time and even though Jennifer had warned me of danger, I still didn’t think something like this could happen. A plan like this had to be done well in advance and Koffman just didn’t seem like he could think like this, however, it might have been Schultz that came up with the idea and Koffman carried it out. Whatever, or whoever, thought of it, the plan was well executed and could have killed our whole team on this case, which would have been devastating.

Jazzy and all the girls just stood outside looking at the pile of rubble that was once a huge stone house. Koffman’s men had their van parked on the next street and ran over there after contacting Koffman. Kristina stood there looking, hoping to see some movement, or see Sky come out with me, but there was…nothing. She then communicated with Kat and Jennifer at the same time so that Kat could help Jennifer. In retrospect she wished that she had only contacted Kat and let her tell Jennifer.

Jennifer was in the library with 10 of the girls when she got the message. “NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!” she screamed. It was so loud that it was heard throughout the chateau and even in the pool area. When the girls at the pool heard it they grabbed guns thinking the chateau was being attacked and headed back into the chateau but stopped when arriving at the library. Jennifer was on her knees with her head on the floor, her long blond hair scattered about her head, and she was sobbing uncontrollably.

“What happened?” Misty whispered to Cristy. “No idea,” she whispered back, “but it must concern Steve.” “Then it must be super bad news,” whispered Misty again. Then she went over and helped Kat get Jennifer back on the couch again. Then Kat called Dawn. “Yes Kat, we are ready,” said Dawn. “I want Koffman, alive,” said Kat firmly, “do whatever you need to do, start to put some real pressure on him. You know the ‘customers’ that are with him, do whatever you want with them. Take any women that want to leave, take his money and whatever else he has on hand including gems, jewelry, drugs. In other words, you don’t need to be nice about this.”

Dawn knew that meant something went wrong with us at Jazzy’s so she asked about me. Kat told her it was most likely I was dead after a huge explosion destroying Jazzy’s house. Dawn broke down crying at the news but she told Kat they would do their part. Dawn had the remainder of her team, plus the Wildcats, with her. Also Rock, Bear, Oskar, Thomas, Cartier, John and Yves which were most of the big members of the Black Wolves, although right now they are wearing the name of Dawn’s team.

She finally has a name for her team, the Night Owls, silent, swift and deadly. They are all in position and ready to move in on Koffman and that’s exactly what they did. Dawn went in first, followed by Rock who kept everyone away from her, then the other men and lastly the girls came in. It was nice that Koffman was sitting at his usual table, that made him easy to find. The door guards tried to stop Dawn but she kept walking and Rock punched each of the guards once and they were knocked out.

The rest of the guys had their automatic weapons out and ready which kept Koffman’s men from doing anything. Koffman had some “customers” at the table with him but that didn’t stop Dawn from breaking up the party. They quickly disarmed the customers, then Dawn spoke firmly to Koffman. “If you want to live, as well as your friends,” she began, “then bring out all of the women who are here right now.” “Hey, I already kept my end of the deal with Steve,” he said defiantly, “he wanted 3 and I gave him the ones he wanted.” That’s when Rock put his big arm around the neck of one of the ‘customers’.

“Now, no more arguing, just do what I said,” she told him, “it certainly wouldn’t look good for you to have one of your ‘customers’ killed right in front of you.” “Kurt,” said Koffman, “bring out all the women.” He did so right away. “Oh, by the way Koffman,” said Dawn, “if any of your men called the police, you’re a dead man, and I do mean that.” “That would be murder young lady,” he said. “I’m willing to take that chance after what you did,” she said, “are you willing to take that chance?”

“No, I’m not,” he said, “but you can’t pin anything on me.” “You have great faith in your men Koffman,” she said, “but the ones you sent to kill Steve decided it was in their best interest to talk.” Kurt returned with 8 women. “Hey,” said one of Koffman’s ‘customers’, “I was going to buy 5 of those gals to take back home with me, so you only get 3.” Dawn just hit the man on the forehead with the back of her fist almost knocking him backwards off his chair, but Rock was in the way so it didn’t happen.

“You get none this time Mr. Rizzo,” said Dawn, “maybe you’ll do better next time.” Then she got a text saying that a certain shipment heading for Koffman’s had been intercepted by the Black Wolves. “Too bad Koffman,” said Dawn, “but it seems your next shipment of girls, drugs and guns has been intercepted. Guess you’ll have to wait a little longer Mr. Rizzo. By the way, where are your waitresses, I said all the women.” Koffman just looked at her.

Dawn nodded to Rock who went to the other side of the table and hit a man on the back of the head with his elbow causing him to bend over groaning and holding his head. “Well Mr. Moretti,” said Dawn, “you’ll have to wait for your drug shipment too. If I were you it would be wise to get a new supplier, Mr. Koffman here won’t likely be able to fulfill your orders for a long time.” Kurt then brought out the waitresses from the other room.

Then Dawn picked 3 of the guys and several of the girls to go into the next room and take up a collection for our orphan fund. They did the same in the main restaurant. Catalina and some others went downstairs to see what was in the safe. They came up after about 20 minutes with a lot of cash and some jewelry. “I have a feeling you will be visiting me more frequently from now on,” said Koffman. “Yes, we will be around from now on,” she said, “killing Steve didn’t solve your problems, it just made things a lot worse for you.

I always figured you for a much smarter man, but guess I was wrong.” “Who is in charge now?” he asked. “That would be Kat and Jennifer,” replied Dawn. “If I came to talk with them,” he said, “would my safety be guaranteed?” “That might depend on what you want to talk about,” she said, “but I will personally guarantee your safety.” “Are you in a position to do that?” he asked. “As one of the leaders of our organization, yes, I am,” she replied.

“Good enough for me,” he said. “But I would suggest waiting a day or two before calling,” she said, “and when you call, ask for Kat.” She then gave him our card which has our phone number on it. Meanwhile, back at Jazzy’s house, the team was still waiting for some movement. Emergency crews were still there as well, trying to figure out what to do. The police were keeping everyone away from where the house once stood in case there was a second explosion…

To Be Continued. Ā©2026 Steve McLeod.

Category: Adventure, Danger, Fiction, Mystery, Story, Strange Happenings, Suspense, UncategorizedTags: , , , , , , , , , ,

246 Comments on “The Investigators, Inc. The Case of Jazzy’s House. Chapter 11. Pressure.”

    • Good morning Dusty! It has been a day! Cold this morning at -29F, though it has warmed up to 7F. It has started to snow again too and we might get 4 inches out of this one.šŸ„¶ā„ļø

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    • I did go shopping, just a short trip though so I didn’t get it all done. My back is terrible, the painkillers are doing nothing. Well, I suppose they are helping or it might be even worse. This morning it actually felt quite a bit better, but I think I should have stayed home anyway.

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  5. Hmmm…. that’s good i guess. No drama is good drama. I fixed one of my Styrofoam planes that I crashed a few months ago today. I don’t know why I waited so long. I thought it was in worse shape than it was. I think it will fly again. āœˆļø šŸ›© šŸ›¬ šŸ’ŗ šŸ›«

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    • Hey, sounds good! I need to get myself a new hobby since I’m not able to do much photography anymore. Just not really too many choices now, though I guess I could concentrate more on writing which is something that I do enjoy.

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    • Yeah, but starting from the beginning until the present. I just have to rewrite parts to make it flow better between cases and also write in a bit more detail which people want when reading a book, but not when reading it on here. This is sort of a condensed version, especially at the beginning couple of years. But Muffin and Mr. Cat were prominent back then, the first year was mostly Muffin and I so that made it harder for now. That’s just the way I am, takes me time to get over things.

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  8. It’s understandable. Plus trying to remember your train of thought at the time and why you chose to write it as you did can affect how it sounds when rewriting it. But you woukd understand that better than me. You have more experience with it.
    But knowing you a little bit tells me you’ll get it right ( or write?) before you finish it.šŸ˜‰

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    • Yeah, I might change things even more now, not sure yet though. We shall see.
      Well, must sign off again, I’m worn out, but i will be back on the morrow! Have a good night Dusty! šŸ˜ƒšŸ˜“šŸ˜“

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    • Hi Dusty, I’m late tonight! My nurse just left, she was late tonight too. Sigh. That’s why I’m late. Anyway, that’s okay, things happen. I hope you’re here tonight for a bit!šŸ˜ƒ

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  12. Oooo… I’ll bet that got walkers moving!!šŸ¤­ No, just kidding… it’s good that they have them. Especially in that cold part of the country, one coukd break out at any time.
    I’m still battling that pain in my neck and shoulder. It’s getting a bit weary šŸ˜©

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    • Yeah, it’s necessary, but that thing sure is loud, a high pitched whistle, flashing lights in the apartment and clanging of bells in the hall. Then 20 minutes later it starts all over again. Then 20 minutes later there is a brief whistle to tell us it’s over.

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    • Yep, all my plants are doing great right now, even growing a lot, which is odd for so early in the season. I don’t mind though.
      Hey, just thought of something, maybe you need a new pillow to help your neck.

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  14. It’s possible. I think there might be something else going on though. I’ve been having a few other things that have been unusual. I might need to go see a neurologist. But it seems kind of silly at my age to go have anymore work done on my neck.

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    • What has age got to do with it? If there’s a problem, get it checked out. However, getting a new pillow might help and save a trip to the neurologist. Just a thought.
      We got some more snow again overnight, just a couple inches.

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  15. I know, you’re right. I’ll give it a bit longer and then try the pillow.
    Hey, March is right around the corner! 2 more days! Our time will change and then we’ll have more evening light. When is the time change for you?

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    • Time change is March 8 here. Yep, longer evenings but darker in the morning for a while, that will change quickly though. March and April are supposed to be much cooler than normal for us, which means a late spring. Precipitation is supposed to be normal to a bit above normal.

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  16. That’s interesting. I thought it was the first weekend in March for you as well.šŸ¤” See? My neural network is beginning to breakdown. šŸ¤Ŗ
    Maybe I should go to Fibre optic?šŸ˜‚

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    • Yep, it works better to move them around now and then since they can’t all be up close to the window at the same time. Some have to stay put since they don’t like to be moved.

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  19. You need to know a lot to be successful growing plants.
    Well, I need to sign off for tonight. I need to shower and then get to bed to see if I can get to sleep. Here’s hoping my neck settles down.
    Nighty night šŸŒ™ šŸ˜“ āœØļø

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  20. Yep, I’m home finally. Flying went well. Had a hard landing so I have a little work to do on the main gear, but it was fun. I got sun šŸŒž šŸ”„ on my face. But I’ll survive.

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    • The sun was shining here too, for half an hour. Strong wind today, 50 to 65mph. Not quite as strong now though, just 20 to 30mph. It blew the snow around a little too. Gotta watch that sunshine!

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    • My nurse just left. Well, not relax, but it did help reduce the pain quite a bit. Unfortunately, it was back by lunch, but I did get some relief for a while anyway. Got another massage just now too, feels good again.

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    • Hehehehehe! This just came through, or at least the notification did anyway. Sigh. We had a big fireworks display a few minutes ago, lasted about 12 minutes, not bad for winter. Our winter carnival started tonight.

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    • Yep, winter carnivals are big in this country. In the cities the carnivals have ice mazes, ice and snow sculptures, ice restaurants and even ice hotels where people spend big bucks to spend a night in rooms of ice even sleeping on a bed made of ice!šŸ„¶šŸ˜µā€šŸ’«šŸ˜±šŸ¤Æ

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  25. I think ya’ll been not wearing your stocking hats outside and froze a few brain cells in the process!šŸ˜‚
    Hey, guess what time I woke up this morning…šŸ¤”

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    • This will really cause you to laugh, but the majority of people staying at those ice hotels are Americans!
      I would say sometime after midnight. Am I right?šŸ˜ƒ
      My laptop suddenly went black on me again and shut down, just when your comment came through. It’s been giving me some trouble lately. Sigh.šŸ™„

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  26. You need to keep running those updates and anti-virus software thingy stuff things to keep it tip top! You’re right, it was after midnight… but not much after. I woke up at 3 am!! I laid there tossing back and forth and finally said “Enough!” At 4 am and got up for the day! If this keeps up you’ll have to start calling me Steve!šŸ¤ŖšŸ˜‚

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  27. Good planning! And no! Not good for me!šŸ˜  I like to sleep when it’s dark and wake when it’s light šŸŒž ā˜€ļø that’s how it’s supposed to work. But it hasn’t been lately šŸ˜• I don’t have much that I can do around here at 4 am!šŸ˜  Oh well… maybe I’ll sleep tonight?šŸ¤” Huh! Who am I kidding??

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    • Hmm, you have a point, not much to do at that early hour except watch the stars maybe, unless there’s too much light around. Oh well, it’s the same here, though lately I have been sleeping until around 5:30, which is nice.šŸ™ƒšŸ™ƒ

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    • That’s what happens when you retire, you get more tired because you’re busier with new things which wears you out so you can’t sleep so you get more tired which makes you too tired to sleep until you finally get into a new routine and everything is fine. That’s what I’ve been told anyway.
      Well, time to sign off and get some sleepy time! Have a good night Dusty, I’ll be back tomorrow.šŸ˜“šŸ˜“

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  30. Hi, sorry I missed you last night. I went to field yesterday, but I didn’t do any flying. I just socialized for a few hours then stopped by my friend’s place to see his plane that just got back from having the artwork finished on it, so that was another few hours then I had to stop and eat and by the time I got home I was so tired I basically fell asleep. Anyway, that all said I was up at 5:30 this morning and have been out working on another plane.

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    • Wow, long day, glad it was a good one though!
      There was fireworks here at 5am today, so that woke me up and I have been awake since then. It was cold again this morning, -31F with a light wind but supposed to warm up this week and maybe get some more snow. Maybe. Likely won’t, that seems to be the pattern this winter.

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    • Around here a dry winter is nearly always followed by a dry spring and that’s not a good thing. I got a real nice massage again this evening. This girl is really good.

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    • They shouldn’t have to worry about fires in the eastern part of the country though, they have had way more snow than normal. But western Canada, which includes us, has been dry.šŸ˜Ÿ

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    • It was good, though a number of people were missing due to flu. A couple of the kids had colds and they were coughing, sneezing, blowing their nose constantly. Sigh.

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  35. That was a good idea. I heard this year’s flu strain has been pretty nasty. Make sure you keep washing your hands!
    So, shopping again tomorrow? What’s on the list? Anything yummy šŸ˜‹?

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    • Yeah, it has been a bad flu strain for sure. I know several people that had it and they were sick for a long time.
      Yep, shopping again and yep, food! That’s always yummy! hehehe!šŸ˜ƒ

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    • Twice, they ended up in the garbage both times. Not sure what I did wrong, I have made them quite literally hundreds of times, but they tasted terrible and came out hard and dry. Sigh.

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    • I haven’t baked cookies in two years! That might be harder. I’m going to pick up some fresh eggs and fresh flour tomorrow and see if that makes a difference.
      Well, I was up too early this morning and it’s another early morning tomorrow, so I must sign off and get to bed. Have a good night and I’ll be back tomorrow!šŸ˜ƒšŸ˜“šŸ˜“

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    • Hi Dusty! šŸ˜ƒ How went the day? Working on your plane? Lying on the beach? Enjoying the sun? My nurse just left, this one is one of my favorites! šŸ˜ƒ

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  39. Are you allowed to have a favorite nurse?šŸ¤” šŸ¤­
    My day went good. I spent most of it working on my new one. It was warm here today and sunny. It gets a little sticky even with my fan running when I’m working. But, it’s still better than 40 degrees or less!šŸ˜‚

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    • Yep, I would agree, heat is better than -30 like it was yesterday. However, today it was 32 and tomorrow should be 36. A nice way to start the month. Except next week it gets cold again, but not that brain numbing cold of yesterday. Do you paint your plane too or does it come pre painted?

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  40. The one I’m working on has a covering that’s already painted and applied. It’s a heat activated covering. The next one I’m building will be all painted. That one could take up to a year to complete, maybe longer… I need to learn how to do a lot things I’ve not done before. But, I’m looking forward to it.

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    • Wow, long term projects! I doubt I could work on something like that if it takes so long. Nice to see someone with such dedication and determination! You should send me pics along the way.

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  41. Sure I will. Yeah, it’s stretching for me. But I need something like this to keep me occupied. It may go quicker, I’ll see how detailed I want to get. Some people take as many as 2 to 3 years to build them, but they are build from scratch with just a set of planes/prints to work from.

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    • I had an uncle that used to build planes from scratch, he made several, all based on WWII planes. Yep, it’s a great hobby! If I had the space I would like to build a train set.

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  42. That’s a great one also. My issue with those is first where do you put them, second how do you ever move them if needed and when get larger how do you maintain and work on them. But, I guess the same can be said about planes also. šŸ¤”

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    • It does require space, like a big yard. A guy in town here had one but when he got too old to look after it he donated it to our museum since none of his children wanted it. The museum didn’t really want it either so they put it in storage and it’s been there for over 30 years now. I tried to buy it, but they wouldn’t sell, which is odd considering they sell overstock all the time.

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  43. Some of the older train cars and engines are worth thousands of dollars. Along with the figures and scenery objects. That’s how one of the guys in club finances his building planes. He has a collection of cars and engines that he sells from time to time.

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    • It was 20 years ago when I tried to buy it. It was made of wood, except for the wheels, undercarriage and such and of course the the engine inside the locomotive. He did a great job though. He worked for one of our railroads and did this as a hobby. Just unfortunate it sits in storage where no one can see it. Our museum actually has more in storage than it has on display, about triple the curator said.

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  44. That’s sad. Those things deserve to be displayed for others to see. That man put countless hours into something he loved to do. The craftsmanship is something that can be lost if others don’t see it or learn how to do it.

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    • I know it, but the curator said it wasn’t an important item for the area. I explained that railroad history was very important for this area and this would be a great way to show that. He disagreed. Oh well. That’s the way the trains wreck, as they say in the old country.

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    • It was a good day, though my right leg has been bothering me more than usual. Nothing serious though. My right elbow is sore tonight too, kind of odd. Maybe the weather.
      Well, time to sign off, evenings go by so fast. Have a good night Dusty and I’ll chatter more tomorrow!šŸ˜ƒšŸ˜“šŸ˜“

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  47. This just came through now, for some reason. I literally just checked my phone 5 minutes ago and there was nothing.šŸ˜ Oh well… I’m everywhere it seems today.

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  48. A little. I had to go have a friend from the club help me with the throttle linkage setup. Other than that pretty quiet. I am k8nda tired today. I think it’s from working in the heat the past few days. That’s why I didn’t do much today.

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    • Good to take some time off now and then to just relax, after all, you are retired now. I’m not quite sure what that means exactly, but that’s what people tell me too. I’m super tired today too, but for me it’s lack of sleep last night. On another note, I was hoping to get a picture of the lunar eclipse this morning at 5:30, that’s when it would be total, but clouds moved in after midnight and blocked the whole thing. Sigh. (Steve bangs head against wall)šŸ™„šŸ˜ŸšŸ“·

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  49. Well you can’t control the weather. But a picture of a lunar eclipse would be very cool šŸ˜Ž. Maybe next time?šŸ¤” Will there be a next time for one of those eclipses there?

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    • A bit cooler today, only 25 degrees. For some reason all that milder weather we were supposed to get this week disappeared on us. It might warm up a bit by the weekend.

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