Lost and Found: Eric Hunter Detective

Lost and Found

Lost and Found

an

Eric Hunter Detective

By

Gerald Goble

Lost and Found

an

Eric Hunter Detective

By

Gerald Goble

Lost and Found

an

Eric Hunter Detective

By

Gerald Goble

Copyright © 2016 Gerald Goble

ISBN: 9781370605804

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including, photocopying, recording, taping by or by an information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author with the exception of brief quotations. This is a work of fiction.

For Joan my friend my love

Chapter 1: Getting the Ex to Court

Eric Hunter is a Private Eye. He does not have a large income from his trade to augment income from other sources. So to keep his expenses down, he lives in a trailer instead of a second-story office over some store. Nor does he have the Girl Friday clearing clients before they enter. He has Gracy Baker the owner of the trailer park who wants the mostly older people in the trailer park to have a quiet, dignified home-like environment.

Eric’s trailer is a vintage metal trailer with a kitchen, dining, and living room area in the front. A restroom with shower is in the middle and a bedroom is in the rear. The outside is painted light blue on the bottom, tan in the middle and white on the top. There are large window on both side and the front for the kitchen and living room area. Three wooden steps lead from the ground up to the entrance of the trailer.

It is seven at night, and almost dark and Eric is sitting in the kitchen-dining room of the trailer in his shorts watching a small TV with his feet up on another chair when the phone rings.

Eric answers, Eric Hunter.

Gracy says, Eric are you dressed? There is a woman coming to your trailer.

Eric said, Oh, thanks. He quickly went in the back of the trailer and pulled on a pair of pants. He looked at his bare feet and shrugged. He got back to the kitchen-dining room and office just in time to hear the knock on his door. He walked to the door looked out the small vertical window then opened it.

The woman asked, Are you Eric Hunter the detective?

Eric said, Yes. He stepped back opening the door all the way and motioned her in and to a seat at the table. As he turned to the TV remote and turned the TV off, he asked, How can I help you? The woman was thirty something, blonde, about three inches shorter than Eric, a little over weight wearing a pair of tight brown slacks and a light yellow sweater that clung to her body.

The woman said, I’m Geraldine Jeffers. I was told about you by Wanda Barting.

Eric smiled and said, She’s better than a TV commercial.

Geraldine smiled and said, I got a husband that I want to take to court and the court process servers can’t corner him to give him the summons. I’ve had to reschedule the hearing three times.

Eric reached to the shelf next to the TV and pulled two three-by-five cards from a stack of cards and a small lined pad placing them on the table with his business card. He said, Fill out the cards with your name address and contact information. On the back of the business card are my rates for various services. On the pad write down where your Ex-husband hangs out. What his failings are like drinking, gambling, other women whatever you know. And anything unique or different than the common man his age. He paused for a moment, and I will have to have the summons you want him to get or where I can get it. I take it; you have a lawyer. I will need his name. He went to the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of beer then said, It’s after sundown would you like a beer or soda while you write everything down?"

Geraldine said, I would love a beer. This whole business is ugly. I don’t know why he just doesn’t give up and let it happen.

They were just finishing the beer when she handed Eric the card and the lined pad with three written pages of descriptions of her Ex-husband Pete’s failings and different things about him. There was a sad expression on her face as he read the pad. Eric said, Are you sure you want to do this?

Geraldine smiled and said, He had so much ... What do they say, potential. It’s just too bad he was such a horses ass, not faithful, self-involved, and liked to use me as a punching bag. Eric smiled then began reading the notes. Geraldine was looking at the certificates on the wall. She said, "I see you have worked as an investigator for a long time and for several different agencies in the Federal Government as well as State Governments.

Eric said, Yes, first for the Post Office then other organizations. The experience is something I will need if I am to serve your Ex with a summons. First, I will have to become an Officer of the Court. There will be a fee to do so, which as I remember the fee is twenty-five dollars. I will have to be an Officer of the Court so when I get his signature on the receipt, if he doesn’t appear in court, then he will be in contempt of court and subject to the penalties for non-compliance. If he does not appear, the police will be sent to arrest him. Who is your lawyer?

Geraldine said, My lawyer is John Bowman. I know we have to get tough with him, but I don’t want him to end up in jail.

Eric said, Usually, the threat is usually enough to get him to change his ways. So do you want me to do this? She nodded and Eric said, Let me get started then, and I’ll call with reports as I go. He got up and led her to the door.

She said, Thank you for helping me. Then she turned and walked down the steps and toward the gate.

Eric watched and his gaze drifted to the vibration, he saw her hips made displayed by the spandex slacks she was wearing. He looked up to see Gracy watching him and shaking her head. He mumbled to himself, A guy can look can’t he?

Back inside he sat at his table and re-read her notes. The phone rang and he answered, Hunter Investigations.

On the other end, Eric this is Joslin at Grey Investments. How ya been? She paused only briefly then said, We got a couple of new people, and Henry wants you to give them the once over.

Eric said, OK I’ll stop by and pick up copies of their paperwork. Is there a deadline?

Joslin said, Not officially, but you know Henry. He wants stuff as quick as possible. One is straight out of college and there probably isn’t much background work. Henry probably wants to know if he has any bad habits and some kind of work ethic. She paused, and Eric could hear her moving papers on her desk, The other is from out of state and worked at another Investment firm, and Henry probably wants to know if he has any under-the-table relationships with firms we might consider investment worthy.

Eric said, That sounds like Henry. I’ll come over and get the paper work and get on it. I only have one other active client at the present. It is a good time for this. See you in an hour or so.

The offices of Grey Investments were in a glass and steel two-story building. Eric entered the plushly furnished lobby waving at the receptionist. He pulled a badge from his pocket and fastened it to the lapel pocket of his suit coat jacket. He turned to the right and headed to the door marked Personnel, Procurement and Support. Inside he went to Joslin’s desk. Joslin was a thin brunette a little over five feet wearing a skirt of a blue suit with the jacket thrown over the rolling desk chair she was sitting on. Her white blouse was tied at the neck with a black bow almost shaped like a bow tie. She said, Eric, Oh good you’re here. She picked up two manila folders and handed them to him.

Eric took the folders and sat at a table next to her desk, removed a small loose-leaf notebook from the inside pocket of his jacket. He opened the two folders, quickly scanning the forms inside. He made notes in the small notebook. As he was finishing, he heard a sound behind him and turned around. The head of the P, P and S unit Henry Grasse a short broad overweight man in a dark-brown suit stood there looking at him. Eric looked up at him and asked, Well Henry what about these two concerns you? Generally, your experience with personnel can smell out a problem before anyone knows about it.

The statement caused Henry to suck in a breath and then smile briefly then he said, "When I mentioned our list of major clients to Mr. Pero and I came to Münze Holding there was a flicker in his eye