a/n: I still wanna ask you something Vicki and Teazer, will you beta read for me? pleeeeeeeeeeeease?!. I think I desperately need it for my stories.
Chapter 15
"The Start of a Plan"
Vallejo leads Tehama over to her desk where Anza was working. Vallejo hadn't told Tehama exactly what her big important job was yet, and Tehama was getting a little bit impatient. She really needed to get on the job so she could go back to investigating the stuff on her desk.
Although there were a lot of other things going on, Tehama was anxious to go back to checking that stuff on her desk out. The evidence was very interesting in her opinion.
Vallejo taps Anza on his shoulder, making him look up in surprise. Anza hadn't even heard them come up to him. He was concentrating so much on this evidence! It actually had become very interesting and he wanted to continue looking over it.
"Is it clear?" Anza asked standing up.
Vallejo nods. "Yes. He's being kept busy, at least for now," Vallejo said.
Tehama looked confused. Obviously something strange was going on around here that she didn't know about. She figured that she'd better not say anything because she'd probably find out if she just listened into the conversation.
Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and paid attention to Vallejo. Vallejo cleared his throat and spoke in a loud tone. "As you all know Fillmore's 18th birthday's coming up in a few weeks," Vallejo yelled.
Fillmore's birthday's coming up? How come I am only finding about this right now? Tehama thinks. She thought that some one would surely tell her about this by now. She wondered if maybe she was just too busy and no one wanted to bother her.
She leaned forward with interest. This was definitely something that she wanted to be in on, especially if it was a surprise for him.
"What present are we going to get him," some one yelled.
"Yeah!" "Yeah" Everyone else in the room asked. Everyone seemed to be interested in the present for Fillmore they were all going to chip in to get him.
A smile suddenly spread across Vallejo's face. "I have a great idea for Fillmore's birthday," Vallejo said.
"Great!" Anza said sitting on top of his own desk. "What is it? We're all anxious to know Vallejo," Anza finished.
"Yeah. Don't leave us in the dark Vallejo. Tell us!" some one else said.
"Yeah Vallejo!" A third person said.
Vallejo shakes his hands at the crowd. "Okay! Okay! I'll tell everyone but, remember it's a secret. Fillmore must not find out!" Vallejo said.
Everyone in the room leaned forward sounding very interesting in the matter.
"Before I can tell you I have something else to do," Vallejo said turning towards Tehama and Anza.
Everyone in the room looked confused. What the heck was Vallejo going to do?
"Tehama! Anza! You two are assigned to keep Fillmore busy. You're second job is to make sure that he doesn't find out what we're going to do for him," Vallejo
Tehama and Anza nod. Then Vallejo moves on.
While Tehama and I are working together, this might be a great chance to ask her. Lets just hope that I don't screw it up this time. Anza thinks.
He starts sweating and pulling at his collar. He looks down at his hands and realizes that he's shaking uncontrollably. This is definitely going to be a difficult task. Would he be able to do this? Or would he make an even bigger fool of himself in front of Tehama?
MEANWHILE AT CLEMENTINA'S HOUSE:
Fillmore and Roberts walk down the side-walk towards Clementina's house. It wouldn't be too hard to find Clementina's house because Fillmore had been there a million times before.
"Fillmore can you tell me about Clementina?" Roberts asked.
Fillmore nods. "Clementina was one of the criminals we use to deal with all the time back in middle school. My partner Ingrid and I had many run-ins with him," Fillmore said.
He gazes over to Roberts to see that he seems very interested. "What was he always in for," Roberts asked as they got even closer to Clementina's house.
"Multiple crimes actually. It seemed like we had to go after him about every week," Fillmore said as they turned a corner. Fillmore remembered Clementina too well and he had a feeling that Clementina wouldn't be very happy to see him either.
"Think Clementina's going to remember you Fillmore," Roberts asked.
Fillmore laughs. "I think he will. He won't be delighted to see my face again however," Fillmore replied.
I wonder if Clementina's still eating those pretzel-rods he use to love so much back in middle school. That would just be strange if he did,Fillmore thinks as they finally get to Clementina's front yard.
They walk up the driveway. "This is his house? It's very decorative!" Roberts said.
Fillmore nods. "Yes, it's been this way since we knew him in middle school," Fillmore replies as they reach his front door. Fillmore rings the doorbell and they heard footsteps heading for the door.
Clementina opens the door while holding a bag of pretzel rods in his hands. The smile quickly disappears from his face when he sees Fillmore standing there. Clementina sighs and then takes a bite of a pretzel rod.
"Hetay afteysay atrolpay?" Clementina asked.
Roberts and Fillmore looked confused.
"Is he even saying anything," Roberts asked glancing at Fillmore.
Fillmore nods. "He's speaking pig latin," Fillmore replied.
Roberts looks confused. "Pig latin?" He asked.
"I hope you understand it, because I sure don't," Roberts said.
Fillmore nods. Of course he understood it. When he was a delinquent back in seventh grade, he and his partners would use it all the time to communicate with one another. They would leave some of the teachers unable to follow them.
"hatway oday ouyay antway?" Clementina asked.
Roberts turns back to Fillmore. "What did he say?".
"Clementina's asking "What do you want," Fillmore said.
"We need to bring you in for questioning," Roberts said.
"istenlay eetmay emay niay ymay ackyardbay niay wotay inutesmay," Clementina said.
"ightray," Fillmore replies.
Clementina closes the door and they start walking down the driveway.
"Fillmore what did he say and how did you answer," Roberts asked. It really bothered Roberts that he didn't know exactly what Clementina was saying or what Fillmore said.
"He said meet me in my backyard in two minutes" and I replied by saying "Right," Fillmore said, as they walked up to the gate of his backyard.
Fillmore pushed the gate open to see that it, just like his front yard, hadn't changed that much since middle school either.
"Fillmore will you teach me how to speak pig latin one day," Roberts asked.
They walked into the middle of the yard, "Sure, why not. It's not that hard actually," Fillmore asked looking for Clementina.
"Really? show me then" Roberts said.
Fillmore wanted to teach him, but this really wasn't the time to do it. I mean they were right in the middle of a case and they needed to keep as focused as they could. "How about I show you when we get back to HQ," Fillmore said.
Later in the day they would have to return to school and explain to the Principle if they had or hadn't found anything. Then if they hadn't found anything then they would get chewed out, the way Principal Folsom use to.
He didn't know why, but everything lately was reminding him of his middle school days. He never really realized how special they were to him. I mean, now that he only had another year until he got out of school and into the real world.
He was starting to realize that he had it good back then. I mean, now he had more responsibilities now than he'd ever had back in middle school. The teachers were stricter, the school was bigger.
Everything just seemed to be changing around him. He really wished that he could go back to his good 'ol middle school days, if only for a few minutes. Yes, it would be good to see Principal Folsom and Vice Principal RayCliff.
He wouldn't even mind getting chewed out by Folsom and RayCliff. He also wouldn't mind going back and visiting his teachers. He really missed the teachers he'd left behind. However there was something he missed more than everything else.
It was still bothering him now. He'd lost her in middle school. His old partner, Ingrid Third. He still missed his good friend and old partner from X middle school. Everyone was saying that he and Ingrid were about the perfect team in history.
too bad it didn't last, Fillmore thinks.
He really wished that their partnership had lasted through until now. It would have been nice if they were still partners to this day. Although the were states apart, Ingrid usually did write him letters and he answered them.
that was about the only time he got to hear how great things were going for her. The letters use to come about every month, then every two months, three months six months and then they would just surprise him with not pattern.
Come to think of it, it has been awhile since I received a letter from Ingrid, Fillmore thinks.
Abruptly Clementina appears and walks back up to them with his arms folded. His frown still is across his face.
"Hey Clementina what's with the pig latin?" Fillmore asked.
Clementina sighs. "I'm in the Pig Latin Club. I need to practice and I usually do it around my parents because they can't translate what I'm saying. However that's beside the point, what do you Safety Patrollers want?" Clementina asks sounding agitated.
Fillmore holds up the t-shirt that was found. "This shirt was found--" Fillmore started.
Clementina snatches the t-shirt up from Fillmore. "My mint condition, one of a kind t-shirt. How did you get your dirty hands on it?" Clemetina yelled.
"It was found at the crime scene we're currently investigating," Roberts replied.
"Clementina do you know anything about an attack on the schools cheerleaders? or about the cheerleaders uniforms disappearing mysteriously," Fillmore asked.
"What are you talking about?" Clementina asks. He acts confused.
"Where were you about noon today," Roberts asks getting in Clementina's face. Roberts wasn't joking around and he wanted to make sure that Clementina knew that.
Clementina scoffs. "At noon I was at one of the Pig Latin club meetings, which went until 3:00 in the afternoon. I don't know anythin' about this crime and I'm not dirty," he replies.
Clementina folds his arms. He really didn't like where this conversation was going and he wanted these two to leave immediately.
"Did you see anything," Fillmore asked.
He was begining to loose his patients with Fillmore and his new partner. "Look, I don't have time for this, I have better things to do than stand around here all day and answer your questions," Clementina yells.
Roberts suddenly notices something coming out of the shed. He walks over to it, kneels down and realizes that whatever it is, it's the exact same color as the Cheerleaders uniforms. He thinks that he's found something.
Roberts is about to pick it up but Clementina's voice stops him. "What do you think your doing," Clementina asks.
"What's in the shed, Clementina," Roberts asks.
Clementina pauses "N..nothing." He replies.
Fillmore joins Roberts in front of the shed. "We need to see inside, Clementina. Come on, let us see," Fillmore says.
Clementina reluctantly walks over to the shed, uses a key to unlock the door and opens the door for them to see.
Fillmore and Roberts gasp when they see the cheerleading uniforms hanging on a cloths line inside the shed. They were all over the place.
"Clementina your going to have to come with us," Fillmore says as he and Robers put his hands behind his back.
To Be Continued