The Investigators, Inc. The Mystery of Helene’s Murder. Chapter 2. Funeral.

Well, our night wasn’t too bad even with 4 of us in my small office. However, it didn’t work to have 4 people in that bed, so, I chose sleeping in the chair. It wasn’t comfortable, but at least I was by myself. Half way through the night Sky woke up and couldn’t find me, then she remembered something, Steffie’s hiding spot. “That sneak,” she thought, “he’s in there enjoying that new air mattress he bought for Steffie and Roxie!” She couldn’t remember how to open the door though, so she woke up Misty to show her. Misty was glad to help this time.

Soon they were crawling inside the little room and found me sleeping peacefully so they both pounced onto the mattress beside me and were asleep quickly. That’s when I left and got into my own bed with Angel and three cats who were still asleep. The next morning Dawn came up and unlocked the door for us so we could come down for breakfast. After breakfast was over I went to the library for some peace and quiet. That breakfast was amazingly noisy today, probably because this is the day we will bury Helene. Nearly everyone will be there except for the Black Wolves since they can’t be seen with us.

Carine and Aari will be there, but invisible. Some of our team members will be guarding the area during the funeral proceedings. I don’t like planning funerals, they get me very discouraged and even depressed. So, Kat and Jennifer have made all the plans, including for a huge meal afterwards. I don’t understand that part, I don’t normally feel that hungry after a funeral, I usually just feel sad, especially when it’s one of our own. Sigh. Guess I’m just different. We will have some people at home too, just in case, never know what might happen at a time like this.

I imagine we will have some criminals present too, just to make sure she is dead and getting buried. It always happens when it’s a criminal we are burying. The morning went by slowly but finally it was time to head out to the cemetery. At the end of the funeral, a man came and joined me at the front next to the grave and asked to take one last look at Helene. Apparently he was a good friend of hers so I said it would be okay and I had Kat open it. He looked at Helene and gently touched her cheek and throat. He was checking to make sure she was truly dead. Finally he said thank you.

“And what makes you think I will let you go, Bobby Frank?” I asked. “Simply because you don’t want a bunch of your precious women getting killed,” he answered, “my men have good weapons and they could easily kill 20 or 30 of your women before you have a chance to kill them. So, the choice is yours.” “I will give you some advice Frank,” I said, “don’t stay here in Europe or your life will be short. Go back home, though one day you and I will meet again and it will be on my terms next time.” “Very good,” he said, “my work is finished anyway so we will be heading home.” He then left with about a dozen men that had been standing at the back with their assault rifles.

We could have taken them, but he was right, we would have lost too many of our girls and I wasn’t going to do that. We will find him and sooner than he thinks. Once back at the chateau we had a meeting so I could explain why I let Frank get away from us. Everyone understood even though the ghosts figured they could handle the dozen men easily. “What if there were more than we could see?” I asked, “Better to let him go this time, but next time we will have the advantage.”

“And what do you mean by ‘we’?” asked Jennifer, “You are not going anywhere! Your place is right here in your office where you can guide us with your excellent advice and knowledge gained over the years.” Misty entered the library at that moment. “Who are you talking about?” she asked innocently. “Who would you think?” Jennifer asked in return. “Um, you and Kat?” she responded. “No, try again.” said Jennifer. “You mean we have a new leader now?” Misty asked in shock. “Misty, who is Steve?” asked Jennifer. “He’s your husband, Leader Jennifer,” she said, smiling. Jennifer sighed. “No Misty, Steve is our Leader,” she said calmly.

“Oh, yeah, I know that,” said Misty, “he’s right on top of the leaders all the way. But you mentioned having excellent advice and knowledge, so I thought you were talking about someone else. So, when do we leave and capture this rotten criminal and bring him back to toss him in prison for the rest of his rotten existence?” “You don’t leave,” said Jennifer, “you get to stay home to help guard Steve and spend two hours a day playing with Steffie and Roxie.” “But this was my turn to go,” said Misty quietly.

“Yes, you and Dawn were supposed to go,” said Jennifer, “but I decided that the Bad Girls and Wildcats would be better for this case. Plus having the Black Wolves around to help out if necessary. Oh, and since Angel is giggling behind me, she will be staying home to help you play with the girls each day.” “Yes!” said Misty. There was just a big sigh from Angel. “We will take Kristina with us instead,” said Kat, “that way you will have 3 ghosts with you here.”

“Um, shouldn’t we have 4 ghosts?” I asked, “Since you will have 5 with you, maybe we should split them evenly.” “Hmm, maybe Steve is right,” said Kat, “we can leave Sky here unless we need her, then we can call her.” “Wait, wouldn’t it be better the other way around?” asked Sky. Kat and Jennifer looked at her. “Right, it’s better the way you said it,” agreed Sky. Soon the teams were flying over the ocean once again, this time to look for Helene’s murderer. Hopefully they will find him quickly…

To Be Continued. ©2026 Steve McLeod.