WHAT SHE DARED TO FIND

“What I take and giveth to those who lack the power to express their needs is not crime but freedom to set the world straight.” Edwin Case’s Law of Gratuity (A quote By Tamara Kenosi)

Rhyme Taylor sat in her office going through a case report. She had been assigned to take over a case after the Central Mattson Police failed to identify a source that was turning the entire government upside down. The president of Botswana made a special request to the director of Lane Federal Bureau Investigation team to assign Rhyme on the case. She was well known for her determination and a never-failing spirit in finding and dragging criminals to jail. However, this time it was different. An unknown source was revealing secrets which everyone called rumours about the members of the parliament, starting with the president himself, to a mere parliament clerk. A week ago, twenty billion pula had gone missing from the nation’s development account. This had caused a political pandemonium inside the walls of the parliament. The top IT technicians were hired and yet still, the trail led to the centre of the state house. Before the incident of the missing money, a former Private Investigator for the government, Edwin Case had been convicted for the threats he made on revealing the schemes and secrets of the members of the leadership. The president had requested his immediate arrest and his trial ended with Case being sent to jail for over ten years. Rhyme was just a mere FBI agent and Forensic anthropologist. And yet they called her for financial and personal matters. She understood the language of homicide more than anything and for the first time in her career duration, she was going to solve a financial mystery. She thought quietly about all possibilities related to the case when a young man walked in. He wore a blue satin suit with a white shirt. He had no tie on and Rhyme thought it was very unprofessional. However, she did not like to comment on other people personal matters.

“You are working very hard.” He said. Adam Franklin. He was the director of Lane Federal Bureau Investigation Team. The man was well known for his investigative skills but yet he knew Rhyme could live up to his ability. He adored her the most and she looked up to him as her role model. The only thing that was off about this man was his dislike for his ties. Otherwise, he was every woman’s dream man. Rhyme closed the file and pushed it aside as Franklin occupied the seat opposite her.

“I am still trying to figure out why someone would steal so much from the government.” She sighed and leaned back.

“There are plenty daredevils out there. This is why people like us are here to balance the world with justice.” Franklin smiled warmly at her.

“I am going to meet the minister of Trade and Industry later at three. The internet is in an uproar. There is a rumor spreading about him smuggling diamonds.” Rhyme told him.

“I saw the article online. We are dealing with a crazy lunatic.” Franklin said.

“The most frustrating thing is no matter how much we try to track that devil; we just can’t find him…or her.” Rhyme was very upset. She and Franklin talked about a few things regarding the case before he left. Rhyme went back to studying the case. Half an hour later, she drove to the ministry of trade in her Audi Q4 e-Tron.

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The entire nation was in chaos when the people heard about the missing billion pula and the minister of Trade’s dirty laundry. The press wouldn’t stop camping at the doors of the Ministry with an attempt to meet and fire questions at him. Unfortunately, he was guarded at all times and he stayed confined behind the walls. He knew very well that the public would resort to mob justice and murder him at the blink of an eye. The youth specifically were not going to spare him. They had already started a strike against the government. As he sat in the office waiting for his guest, he went through the social media platform. Everyone was slandering him and calling him a hypocrite who hid behind fake charity. Yes, he had been well known for his heart of giving. All around the country he travelled donating to the poor. But this time around, he was not getting praise. They wanted to burn him alive. Rhyme was escorted to the office of the minister by his personal assistant. He was very delighted to see her. Rhyme sat comfortably on a black leather couch. The minister sat on the other side. The PA brought some refreshments and gave the two some privacy to discuss a bigger matter at hand.

“My team and I are trying so hard to identify the source of such rumors.” Rhyme told him. This was not new to the ears of the minister. Everyone was trying but they were failing.

“Tell me something different.” The minister leaned back on the couch looking very displeased. He did not need assurance. He needed answers. Rhyme briefed him on their mission to try and find the source. She left the office an hour later exhausted to the core. The next thing she was driving down the road to the FBI buildings. She requested with the jail matron to allow her to meet Edwin Case. Come to think of it, he had started the threat. What if he had been working with someone? They had missed that point and she was very sure. Franklin had told her the man had denied having an accomplice, but Rhyme knew it was too good to be true. She did not trust criminals. The visit was scheduled for the next day morning. She could not wait to meet the man. As she drove to her apartment in Parklane estate, she tuned the radio to the news channel. A body of a young woman had been found near a river. Other news were politics related and she was not interested in any of that stuff. She played some music and drove slowly to her domicile.

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Rhyme drove into the parking lot of Mattson prison the next morning. She wore a grey cotton dress that reached her knees. Underneath she wore a pair of black pantyhose with a black coat around her shoulders. The weather turned out to be cloudy and it was very frigid.

“This way please. “A guard led her to the waiting room. Rhyme sat and waited. A man walked in chained from his hands down to his feet. He depicted the sight of a true criminal in an orange uniform. She felt disgusted by the sight. If there was one thing she hated the most, was having to see a criminal. She thought they deserved to be locked in darkness never to see a glimpse of nature ever again. Edwin Case sat opposite her and pulled her away from her thoughts by coughing slightly.

“I am not here for a friendly chat.” She warned him. Edwin smiled lightly and dug the desk with his elbows.

“Let me guess. You are here to interrogate me about an accomplice. No?”

Did he read her mind? Did he have some telepathic ability? No! He just guessed. She kicked the embarrassing thought away.

“I know you have someone working for you.” She said quietly enough for him to hear.

“Why is everyone implying I have some minions working for me? If I had them I wouldn’t have taken the fall myself. It looks like those idiots have a lot of enemies than I anticipated.” Case laughed. Rhyme raised an eyebrow.

“I am going to prove to the nation how trashy you are.” Rhyme was annoyed. Case leaned forward.

“You will not find anything.” He said and laughed. Rhyme felt the blood in her veins boiling. She was very irate. Before she did something she would regret she stood up.

“I will see you soon. This time around with a bunch of your minions. I will give you a crime reunion.” She promised him and left. Rhyme drove back to her office. She inserted a piece of a USB drive in her phone.

“Let’s see you reveal all your secrets you son of a bitch.” She smiled slyly as the USB piece finished loading and merging with the recorder in her phone. She sat in the office and five hours passed. There was noting useful from jail. She had bugged Case secretly earlier when se had gone to meet him. It was a very tiny waterproof recorder that was almost invisible to the eye. Even if he tried, Case would never realize he was bugged.

She was going through some files when she heard her phone beep. Case was on a call with someone.

“How are things going?” Case’s voice reverberated.

“We are releasing the videos on the internet later.” A male voice echoed.

“Make sure you leave no traces. You have done a good job so far.” Case said.

“Thank you sir. I will make sure everything goes well. But, what about the money?”

“Just do as we planned. It is for the developmental projects on rural areas. Have Freya stage as a private business baron. That way no one will get suspicious. She should propose developments on rural areas and offer some funds. The donation program should begin too.” Said Case.

“An FBI agent visited me today. You might wanna be careful. She is smart.” He added.

What on Earth were they talking about? Rhyme recorded the conversation and listened to it over and over again. Her questions were answered in the evening when a live video of the Minister of Trade was uploaded on the internet. He was in a meeting with Russian Mafia bosses and Consiglieres exchanging money and diamonds. This came as a shock to the entire nation, and he was arrested with immediate effect. Rhyme was still failing to connect the pieces of the puzzle. Was Edwin Case somehow a good Samaritan who just wanted to punish the evil with evil? As if things were not getting more complicated for her, a woman named Freya Dion gave a proposal to the government and offered to fund some rural projects. It was then when Rhyme realized something about Case. He was punishing the wrong doers. She paid him another visit the next morning.

“You bugged me?” He was shocked by her confession.

“We did all we could and yet we couldn’t catch the criminal who was stealing from the government. I had no choice.” She told him.

“What did you gain from this? A baseless conversation?”

“Freya Dion. This is not a coincidence.” She said. Case sighed.

“You are smarter than I thought.” He said.

“Why are you doing this?” Rhyme asked.

“I am just balancing the world.” He smiled warmly.

“You are crazy.” She shook her head slowly.

“I know you are trying to do good, but you stole from the government. There are legal ways to do good, you know.” She added. Case scoffed.

“Give me one.”

Rhyme blinked blankly.

“If you want to punish evil, you have to stoop low to their level and drag them through their own mess. If you try to do it the legal way, you will just get a bullet through your head.” He winked and left her without a goodbye. Rhyme drove home reflecting on what he had said. He had a point, but she had her principles too. No matter how hard things could be, she was not going to resort to illegal means.

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The following day, there were videos and articles trending on the web and all social media platforms were set ablaze by the horrific news. The secrets of corruption, bribes, fraud, and embezzlement by the leadership were hung out in public. The justice department had a duty to arrest all the criminals starting with the father of the nation. Another shocking news hit the internet and news platforms. Edwin Case was found dead in his cell. He had slit his own throat. Rhyme knew he was murdered. Someone besides her knew about his mission to fix the world and unfortunately, he was killed for it. People gathered and protested under his name. For the first time in her life, Rhyme joined forces with the side of a criminal. He was not a criminal but a free convict who just wanted to set the world straight. She sat in her office one afternoon holding a diary. Edwin Case had given it to her himself the last time she went to visit him.

“What I take unlawfully and giveth to those who lack the power to express their needs is not crime but freedom to set the world straight.” Rhyme read quietly and wrote the quote as Edwin Case’ Law of Gratuity. She noted the quote in her novel and concluded it as a mystery for another day. She had not only learnt a legend about this man, but she had also discovered he was not alone. She had been chasing an entire organization of perfect crooks all placed in every sector of the government. He had spies everywhere and though he was living beyond the grave, Edwin Case still lived in the hearts of many. Rhyme made sure he was remembered by writing a novel about the mystery behind Edwin’s belief in freedom. This is what you have just read…

                                      ***THE END***