Crime Writer Margot Kinberg

‘I think a storage unit would be the best idea,’ Ray proposed. ‘Then we won’t have to worry.’
‘Not bad,’ Cal responded. His brother usually did have good ideas. ‘I’ll make some phone calls and check out a place or two.’
‘Makes sense to me.’

Steve took a good look at the guy who stood at the desk. Faded jeans, boots, a Padres cap and a T-shirt with the name of some band Steve had never heard of. He had a  good instinct for people after working for Storage Solutions for ten years, and he was afraid this was the kind of guy who’d skip out.  ‘So,’ he finally said. ‘What size unit?’
‘I saw you have some 5 x 5 units. Any of them available?’
‘Not right now. But one of them is almost ready. The customer’s lease is up, and I just need a day or two to clean it. That work for you?’
The young man – he’d said his name was Cal – nodded. ‘That’ll be OK. What’s the price?’
‘Eighty bucks a month, plus first month for deposit. In cash,’ Steve added, to protect himself. This guy Cal did not look dependable.
‘Alright,’ Cal said to Steve’s surprise. ‘Let’s do this.’

With a few clicks on his keyboard, Steve printed out the contract details. Cal read everything over – a little too quickly for Steve’s taste – and signed. Then, he pulled out his wallet and paid the security deposit. ‘When can I get in the unit?’ Steve wanted to know.
‘Thursday?’
‘Works for me.’
Steve watched Cal leave. He wondered why Cal was in such a hurry to rent a unit. Oh, well, it was none of his business.

Two days later, Cal and Ray went back to Storage Solutions. When they saw Steve, Cal introduced Ray, and then asked, ‘Is the unit ready for us?’
‘Sure is. It’s all cleaned and good to go. Here’s the code.’
Cal and Ray thanked Steve and went to the unit they’d rented. Cal entered the code number into the touchpad to the right of the unit door, and it opened. The two men looked in.
‘Looks pretty clean,’ Ray noted.
‘Yeah, it does.’ Cal leaned in for a closer inspection. ‘Yeah, I think we can go ahead.’ Ray nodded, and the two men went outside to Ray’s van.
Cal and Ray moved what needed to be moved into the storage unit. When they were done, Ray gave the unit one more look. ‘Something wrong?’ Cal asked.
‘Just making sure everything’s good,’ Ray told him.
‘Let’s get a beer and some pizza,’ Cal suggested. ‘We deserve it. We can finish up a little later. The place doesn’t close until eight.’
‘Excellent!’

An hour later, Ray and Cal drove back to Storage Solutions. They got out of the van and opened up the back. Just then, a voice behind them barked. “Stay where you are, please! Hands up where we can see them!’ Both men did as they were told and then turned around slowly to see four police officers surrounding them.
Ray spoke first. ‘What’s going on?’
‘We’d like to inspect your van, please.’ Without waiting for an answer, two of the cops pulled open the doors of the van and examined what was inside. The other two guarded Ray and Cal. After about ten minutes, one of the cops called out, ‘It’s clean.’  The van doors were banged shut and all four cops turned towards Ray and Cal.
‘What’s going on?’ Cal practically stammered.
‘We have reason to believe you’ve been transporting a body.’
‘A what? No! Why would we have a body?’
‘That’s what we’d like to know,’ the officer answered. ‘Let’s have a look at your storage unit, please.’

No-one spoke as they walked towards the unit. Cal heard twigs and leaves crunching under his boots, and the measured, disciplined steps of the police officers. He glanced over. Ray was taking this hard, barely keeping it together. The group went into the building, past Steve, who watched the little parade go by.

After what seemed like hours, but was really about a minute, they reached the right unit. ‘Open it, please,’ one of the officers ordered. Almost without thinking, Cal punched in the code, and the door opened. Inside, there was a pile of rolled-up blankets and other bedding. Sticking out of the blankets was a female arm and hand. Cal’s face paled and he had to swallow a couple of times. Two of the police officers held their service weapons on Cal and Ray, while the other two went over to examine the body.

‘Any ID?’ asked the officer who seemed to be in charge.
‘No, nothing.’
‘OK, let’s get these two processed, and we’ll figure everything out.’
‘Wait!’ Cal insisted. ‘We didn’t do anything. We don’t even know who the – who she – is.’
‘You were seen entering this unit earlier today carrying a rolled set of bedding. That bedding is now here, and there’s a body in it.’
Ray shook his head. ‘It wasn’t us. I have no idea how she got here! We’re selling our condo, and we need to store this stuff until we move!’
‘Oh, so these are your blankets. OK. Let’s go.’
One of the cops stayed behind to guard the storage unit while the other three put Ray and Carl in handcuffs and led them outside.

Steve stood at the office window, watching as the two young men were taken away. He almost allowed himself to smile at how well things had worked out. At first, he’d thought Cal would flake out and run before he took possession of the unit. But those two guys were perfect pawns. All he’d had to do was move Lanie’s body from one unit to another, and then put it back when those boneheads moved in. And by the time the cops figured out who she was, Steve would be halfway to the border. She should have known not to try and steal from him.