The Case of the Manila Envelope-Chapter 13
by HA
"How long are they going to be there?" Stink grumbled as he kept his head up as best as he could.
"There's the waiter with the check," Alicia pointed out.
At the table, the waiter presented the check to Blake. "Ah," he said as he looked it over. Without any hesitation, he took out his credit card and handed it over to the waiter.
"You have a credit card," Molly said as the waiter left.
"It's for emergencies," Blake said. "I prefer to pay for stuff in cash, to be honest."
"You'd rather pay for everything in cash?" Molly stared incredulously at Blake.
"At least that way I know I'm getting something back." Blake grinned. "Besides, I don't have to worry about paying any interest."
"Ah," Molly said. "We'd better get going."
"Get going?" Blake gave Molly a stunned look. "You mean that's it?"
Molly gave Blake him a suspicious look. "What are you getting at?"
"You don't want to do anything else?" Blake asked.
"What's there to do?" Molly said. "I just wanted to eat out and go back to the dorms."
"I see," Blake said. As the waiter brought back his credit card, he pondered the current situation. He knew what Molly had intended to do once she was back in her dorm room, and he was very thankful for her following the oath they took earlier.
"Well, you seem to have a good idea of what we can do to finish this date," Molly said as Blake took back his credit card and thanked the waiter for his service.
"As a matter of fact, I do," Blake said.
Molly arched an eyebrow at him. "Enlighten me."
"For one thing, we don't have to leave the area," Blake revealed.
"Really," Molly said.
"For another, it's right across the street," Blake continued.
Molly froze. "You mean...?"
Blake nodded. "Uh-huh."
Molly frowned. "I'm holding you to your oath."
Blake laughed good-naturedly. "And I'll hold you to yours."
Stink and Alicia watched as Blake and Molly rose from their table.
"Yes," Stink muttered to himself.
The maitre d appeared at Alicia's side. "Miss Gianelli, I believe
there's now an opening for you and your friend."
"What?" Stink exclaimed, staring at the maitre d. "We're not..."
Laughing nervously, Alicia clapped her hand on Stink's mouth. "That's great news." She leaned towards Stink's ear. "Don't be rude," she whispered. "To refuse to step into the dining room after waiting to be seated here is a great insult to the restaurant."
"But..." Stink began to whisper back as Alicia removed her hand.
"We have no choice," Alicia said, narrowing her eyes at him. "You don't want to offend these good people, do you?"
"Um..."
"Stink, Alicia."
Both saw Blake and Molly before them. "What are you guys doing here?" Blake continued.
Stink and Alicia stared at each other, and then at Blake and Molly.
"Um, uh, er..." both said, searching for something to say other than "We were just seeing how you two were doing." At least, that was what Alicia was trying to avoid saying. Stink was fighting the urge to yell "How could you?" at Molly and "You!" at Blake before jumping him and causing a row.
Frowning at her two schoolmates, Molly grabbed Blake's hand. "Let's get this over with, okay?" she told her date, and she yanked him toward the door.
"See you guys later," Blake called out to them as Molly dragged him out of the restaurant.
Stink watched helplessly as Molly and Blake continued on their way. Keeping an eye on them, he slowly moved his foot toward the door.
"Sir?"
Stink froze upon hearing the voice of the maitre d. "Uh, coming," he said, chuckling nervously while still glancing outside.
As he joined Alicia, she whispered to him angrily, "For the record, this is all your fault."
As Alicia and Stink were ushered into the dining room while arguing in low tones over whose fault the whole situation was, Molly and Blake stood next to their bikes. "Tell me again why we're going over there," Molly inquired as she looked straight ahead.
Blake shrugged as his smile widened. "I dunno. It's something I've never done before."
"Neither have I, and I have a good reason," Molly said, looking at the sign over the wide glass window on the building across the seat.
"'Sal's Pizza and Karaoke Bar'?" she commented after reading the red and green lettering. "Sounds tacky."
"Sounds interesting," Blake said, studying the place carefully. "I've heard a lot about this place. Some of the local kids come here to try out their vocal cords when they're not too busy stuffing themselves with pizza."
"Great," Molly said, wincing. "Tell me why I should go over there with you."
"Well..." Blake looked across the street. "For one thing, you won't be alone."
"That's nice. We can suffer together," Molly said dryly.
"Exactly," Blake said, flashing her an impish grin. "Come on!" he beckoned her before dashing across the empty street.
Rolling her eyes back and letting a frustrated groan pass through her lips, Molly stood her ground. When Blake called her name as he waved her over, she considered mounting her bike and riding back to Sussex. However, for some odd reason, she found herself heeding his voice, and she ran as fast as she could to join him.
"If I recall, it's still your turn," Tomie told Shirley as she checked her own hand.
The young detective looked at the Field. "Elven Mage, attack."
Bo quickly noticed the facedown card in Tomie's Magic/Trap Zone. "Shirley, wait!"
The Elven Mage eyed the emptiness before him and aimed his staff at Tomie. Everyone bore witness as he unleashed a powerful blast at the Gamer of the Dark.
"Should've listened to your friend," Tomie said with a snicker. "I activate my Trap now!"
The card flipped over, and a magnet on a spring shot out. It attached itself to the Mole Defender and dragged it over to Tomie's side as the Mage's blast streaked towards its target. Just as the blast reached its target, it hit the Mole Defender's shield.
"Thanks to my Magical Magnet, Shirley, you lose 100 Life Points!" Tomie declared.
Magical Magnet
Permanent Trap
Seize control of one of your opponent's Monsters permanently. Pay 500 Life Points at your Standby Phase to keep this card on the Field.
Shirley's Life Points dropped to 6600. "Well, at least it isn't that bad," Sara said.
Shirley looked at her repossessed Mole Defender, noticed that the Mole Defender card was missing from her podium, and then checked her hand. "I'll end my turn."
"Excellent." Tomie grinned as she drew her card. "Perfect."
Bo frowned as he looked at the Gamer of the Dark. "I don't like the looks of this."
"First, I'll pay for the Magical Magnet so I can keep your Mole Defender under my control," Tomie said, and her Life Points fell to 8000. "Then, I'll activate The Snatching Claw," she said, placing a card in her Magic/Trap Zone. A large green claw shot out of the corresponding space on the Field and seized the Elven Mage in its tight grasp.
The Snatching Claw
Normal Magic
Take control of one of your opponent's Monsters regardless of its position until the end of the turn.
"I don't like the looks of this," Bo said.
The claw dragged the Mage to Tomie's side of the Field and placed it next to the Mole Defender. Holding his staff at his side, the Mage glared at his former master. Shirley saw that the Elven Mage card was gone from her podium, and she watched as her Forest Light Fairy vanished, leaving her Field wide open.
"Well, look on the bright side," Sara said. "At least there won't be much damage to Shirley's Life Points when Tomie attacks."
"Unless she's going to do what I think she's going to do," Rika said solemnly.
Tomie grinned. "Rika, you know me too well." She pulled a card from her hand. "I'll Sacrifice these two to bring out my favorite Monster!" she declared as she sent the two Monsters on her side to the card Graveyard and replaced them with the card she selected.
Shirley watched as her two former Monsters vanished from the Field. Soon, a larger mass replaced them, and it roared loudly as it took shape. The young detective's blue eyes took in a dark reptile with eight heads and eight tails. Its eight pairs of red eyes stared down at Shirley, and its eight mouths hung open to reveal long, sharp fangs.
Yamata no Orochi
Level: 8
Element: Dark
Type: Dragon
ATK: 3000
DEF: 2800
"Okay, now I really don't like the looks of this," Bo said as his own eyes beheld the eight-headed dragon glaring at his best friend.
Tomie grinned widely and waved her hand grandly at Shirley. "Yamata no Orochi, attack her Life Points directly!"
The eight-headed dragon roared and unleashed a barrage of fireballs at the amateur sleuth. Bo and the others could only watch as Shirley was engulfed by the firestorm, and when the flames had cleared, they found her on her back, but fortunately, they saw her get up and shake off the attack.
"Looks like you're toughening up," Tomie remarked as Shirley recovered her cards.
Shirley organized her hand. "I'm getting used to it."
"Too bad you won't last long," Tomie remarked with a grin, shifting her gaze to the current scores. "Specifically, you're dead on my next turn."
Shirley followed suit, and Bo looked at the Life Points of both girls and noticed that it was 3600 to 8000 in favor of the Gamer of the Dark. "Great, just great," he muttered.
Shirley checked her hand. "Are you done yet?"
Tomie snickered wickedly. "I am now, and soon, so will you."
Shirley reached for her deck and drew her card. Holding it in front of her face, she examined it closely before adding it into her hand.
"I can't believe I'm actually inside this place," Molly grumbled as she and Blake stood inside Sal's.
The pizza parlor had the standard trappings: tables with chairs and booths, drink dispenser, counter with stools, and cash register. Various awards and articles that contained positive reviews of the place adorned the walls, which exhibited a few cracks here and there. What made it unique was the set-up in one corner of the place, a small platform with microphone stands, karaoke machine complete with teleprompters, and speakers.
When Molly and Blake had come in, someone had just stepped off the karaoke stage among a loud round of applause. Watching from the counter, the owner, a generously portly fellow in a flannel shirt and apron, clapped his padded hands as hard as he could while wearing a large smile underneath his mustache.
"Bravo, bravo, Kenny!" he exclaimed as the singer returned to the booth where his friends were almost finished with a large bacon mushroom cheeseburger pizza. "Well, everyone, we have time for one more song before we have to wrap things up. Any volunteers?"
Molly's eyes scanned the seating area. Noticing this, Blake asked, "What's wrong?"
"Just checking if anyone we know is here," Molly said, still looking around.
"I doubt it," Blake said. "Don't worry about it."
"Easy for you to say," Molly said, frowning at what appeared to be a stain on the white wall. "Why exactly are we here?"
"Well..." A mischievous grin crossed Blake's face as he pointed towards the karaoke stage.
Molly's eyes widened with horror. "Oh no, oh no, we're not..."
"Come now." The owner's voice boomed around the room. "Anyone here want to show off their beautiful voice?"
"Come on." Still wearing his grin, Blake took Molly's hand and walked her towards the stage. "Over here!" he yelled as he waved his free hand while Molly protested loudly.
"And here we go!" the owner announced as Blake dragged Molly to the stage while waving cheerfully to the customers.
As Blake stood Molly in front of a microphone stand, the people stopped eating and focused their attention on the stage. While Blake took his microphone, Molly shot him a sideways glare. "What the heck are we doing?" she hissed.
"Why, singing, of course," Blake said as he studied his microphone.
"Are you out of your mind?" Molly eyed the microphone in front of her and the awaiting audience. "Can you even sing?"
"Well...I'm not that great, but with a little practice, I could get better," Blake said. "I consider this a great time to do so." He looked at Molly. "And you?"
"Not so bad, but still..." Molly frowned, and then she clenched her teeth. "You are aware that you're setting yourself for humiliation as well as me, correct?"
Blake shrugged. "Just trying out new things, remember?"
The owner appeared next to the two teens. "I've never seen you two around here before," he said cheerfully as he looked over them. "Care to introduce yourselves to the audience?" he asked as he gestured towards his customers.
Molly stiffened. If word ever got out that she actually sang at a place like this...
"I'm Blake," Blake said with the microphone on, and he gestured towards Molly, "and this is..."
Molly's hands hung at her sides as they bunched up into fists. As soon as she was back in her dorm, she was definitely going to take what
she stole from Blake and...
"Courtney." Blake cleared his throat.
Puzzled, Molly stared incredulously at Blake, who smiled at her. Catching on, she quickly addressed the crowd. "Yes, that's me, Courtney."
The owner beamed at them. "Welcome to Sal's, Blake and Courtney. I hope you'll provide us all with some entertainment." He cleared his throat. "All right then, do you wish to sing individually or do a duet?"
"Duet," Blake answered before Molly could.
"Any song you have in mind?" the owner inquired, gesturing towards the karaoke machine. "We have a variety of songs."
"Nothing that comes to mind at the moment," Blake admitted, grinning sheepishly.
"Ah." The owner turned to the audience. "Will someone get me the bowl?"
A girl stepped out of the kitchen and ducked beneath the counter. A second later, she rose with a large fishbowl filled with paper in her arms.
"Denise, would you be so kind as to pick a tune for our lovely couple?" the owner said.
The girl reached into the fishbowl and moved her hand back and forth within the mass of loose paper. Without looking, she pulled out a folded slip of paper.
"Well, Denise, what will they be singing tonight?"
The girl opened the slip of paper and skimmed over its contents. After a minute of silence, she declared in a clear voice, "'I Got You, Babe' by Sonny and Cher."
Molly turned to Blake and shot him a look of contempt. He just shrugged and grinned. "The bowl has spoken," he remarked, and he turned to his teleprompter.
The owner walked up to the karaoke machine and made the selection. "Ladies and gentlemen, for your pleasure, Blake and Courtney will sing 'I Got You Babe.'"
The audience clapped enthusiastically as the music began. No one noticed how shocked Molly looked, but once the song lyrics began to appear on her teleprompter, she had no choice but to sing.
"They say we're young and we don't know," she began, and amazingly, the line came out without a break in her voice. "We won't find out until we grow."
"Well I don't know if all that's true," Blake joined in, and Molly had to admit silently that he didn't really sound bad; however, she couldn't help but let out a small laugh at the lyrics. "'Cause you got me, and baby I got you," he continued while moving with the music. "Babe."
Following their cues, they sang the next lines together while trying not to crack up. "I got you babe, I got you babe."
Overall, the audience reacted positively to them, and the owner applauded the effort. Meanwhile, no one noticed the pair of red eyes watching Molly and Blake from afar.
END OF CHAPTER 13