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Chapter two

Please Find My Sister

‘I see,’ I said. ‘Your sister has disappeared. Have you reported her disappearance to the police?’

The blonde girl shook her head. She looked very nervous and was starting to cry.

‘No, I haven’t told the police,’ she said. ‘I don’t want any trouble with the police. I just want you to help find my sister.’ She took a small, pink handkerchief out of her handbag and dried her eyes.

‘All right,’ I said. ‘Tell me all about your sister.’

‘Her name is Elaine Garfield,’ said the girl.

‘And what’s your name’ I interrupted.

‘Helen. Helen Garfield,’ she replied. ‘My sister disappeared a week ago. We had arranged to have dinner together last Monday night, but she didn’t come.’

‘Perhaps your sister didn’t come because she doesn’t like the food you cook,’ I suggested.

‘Don’t try to be funny. I flew all the way from New York to see her last Monday,’ she said angrily.

‘Oh, so you don’t live in Los Angeles, then,’ I said.

‘No,’ she replied quickly, ‘I live in New York. I flew right across America to see my sister, but, when I got here, I discovered that she had disappeared.’

‘How do you know she has disappeared’ I asked. ‘Perhaps your sister just forgot about the dinner.’

The blonde girl took a deep breath.

‘Look,’ she said, ‘Let me finish my story. If you don’t stop asking questions, I’ll find myself another detective.’

‘Right,’ I said, ‘I’m listening.’

‘I waited for my sister last Monday evening, in my hotel,’ said the girl. ‘But she didn’t come. I telephoned her, but there was no answer. So the next morning, I went to the office where she worked.

At her office, they said that she had been to work the day before, on the Monday. They also told me that she’d left suddenly, in the middle of the afternoon, without telling anyone. After that I went round to her flat, but there was no one there.’

The girl stopped for a minute, and then continued.

‘Mr Samuel,’ she said, ‘I’m very worried about my sister. It’s not usual for her to disappear suddenly like this. I’m sure that she’s in danger and I want you to find her.’

‘All right,’ I said. ‘It may be easy or it may be difficult, but I’ll find her. But first, tell me why you’ve waited six days before coming to me.’

‘That’s none of your business,’ the girl said.

‘OK,’ I replied. ‘Your sister’s name is Elaine Garfield. What does she look like?’

‘Oh, that’s easy,’ Helen Garfield replied, ‘she looks like me. We’re twins. Now, Mr Samuel, how much money do you charge?

‘Fifty dollars a day,’ I said.

‘Very well, Mr Samuel,’ said the girl, ‘but fifty dollars a day is a lot of money. I hope that you will work hard for it.’

‘Oh yes,’ I replied, with a smile, ‘I’ll work very hard. Now give me the address of your sister’s flat, and the name of the office where she works. I’ll start work at once.’

The blonde girl wrote the addresses on a piece of paper and gave me the paper.

‘One more thing,’ I said. ‘Can you give me your address, too?’

‘That won’t be necessary,’ she replied, as she picked up her handbag. ‘I’ll come and see you again tomorrow afternoon, at five o’clock. Goodbye, Mr Samuel.’

Without waiting for an answer, the girl turned around and walked out of the office.

As I watched her walk out of my office, I smiled to myself. ‘This is better than cleaning my nails,’ I thought. Then I began my work.