35) THE REFORMED WATCHMAKER - c.1889 –
Bruno was having a pleasant
time giving Don Quixote another read through in his office at the Society
Detective Agency, while munching on his constant companion; semi sweet
chocolate chunks, when an abrupt knocking sounded at the door. He was about to announce "Enter"
when the door suddenly swung open and an unkempt street urchin about ten years
of age barged in. He held up a business
size envelope, which he dangled from the fingertips of his left hand.
"Excuse me, sir. Are you this Private Detective Clew whose
name is on this envelope?"
Bruno chuckled. "I am Private Detective Bruno
Clew," he responded, reaching his right hand over his desk for the
envelope. He felt a small circular
object inside the envelope. "Are
you familiar with the contents of the envelope?"
"No, a real old man,
someone even older than you, gave it to me with a silver dollar and said I
should bring it here right off."
Bruno gave the lad a wry
glance as he tore the envelope open and a man's silver pocket watch slid out
and onto the green ink blotter on top of his desk. Bruno gently gathered and nestled the
well-worn timepiece in the palm of his right hand, as if holding the egg of a
near extinct bird. As he investigated
the exterior of the pocket watch all the way around he asked the boy, "Describe
the gentleman who gave you the watch."
The lad hesitated as he
shuffled on his feet, "Well...the sun was in my eyes when this all
happened..."
Bruno smiled and nodded,
reaching into his right vest pocket and removed a silver dollar, tossing it to
the lad. "Will this help your vision?"
"He wore a business
suit, but a kind of cheap looking one."
"What does his face look
like?"
"Dark brown eyes,
wrinkles, an old guy like I said."
"Did he have a beard or
moustache?"
"Naw, nothing like
that. His face was clean," the boy
hesitated scratching his head in an obvious contrived confusion.
Bruno reached into his vest
pocket again and removed yet another silver dollar and tossed it to the
lad. "Give me the whole story now,
and that's all the cash you get."
"I was selling newspapers on the corner
of Fourth and
Bruno patiently waited for
the tale to unfold as he further investigated the engraved royal crest pattern
on the face of the pocket watch, which was also repeated on the back of the
silver watch case.
"Describe his clothes in
detail."
"As I said, his wore a
cheap brown suit, and a gray derby, brown boots."
"But he gave you no note to deliver to
me, verbal or otherwise?"
"No, he was just kind of
smiling in a strange way, almost kind of scary like, and walked
away."
Bruno pointed to the
door. "Thank you."
Bruno then anxiously opened
the back of the watch, which was mounted on a hinge, and was delighted to find
a folded piece of paper with the message:
RETURN THEM TO THE
OWNER. THE PAST TWENTY-FIVE YEARS HAVE
BEEN HELL FOR ME! RETURN THEM TO THE
MORGANSTEIN FAMILY.
Bruno then excitedly opened a
second circular door within the watchcase and gazed in total disbelief at a
trio of rather large Marquise shaped diamonds.
"The Morganstein diamond
heist of 1875..." he mumbled in delight.
"It has been almost twenty-five years. I arrested Jimmy "The Gem" Rockwell
on my first night out as a rookie detective.
He went to the state penitentiary for not only the crime I arrested him
for, but also several other robberies along Chicago's gold coast. It was quite a feather in my cap, even though
the Morganstein diamonds were never found.
And I can still hear his vengeful words as he pointed a finger at me,
"I'll be looking you up when I get out, copper. No matter how many years go by."
Bruno then paused in
thought. "So his jail sentence is
over. He is out, but why in the world
did he send the gems to me? That's makes
no sense whatsoever. One would think he
would sell them and move to California, or where ever." Bruno then lined up the three Marquise
diamonds on the green blotter of his desktop.
"They must be worth at least one hundred thousand dollars."
Bruno sat back in his desk
chair with his hands behind his head.
His mind now reveled in near forgotten memories:
Twenty-five years ago... I had just received my detective's badge
after ten years patrolling the streets, and I was proud as Punch. My first case was assisting Sergeant of
Detectives Mike O'Reilly on a jewel robbery at the Morganstein mansion. I was searching the grounds behind the
mansion and heard the noise of a dog snarling not too far away. I advanced slowly and saw a huge guard dog
attacking a man. I fired a shot from my
revolver near the dog, I had no wish to injure him, and he took off
running. I turned the man over and a
pair of mean, dark eyes suddenly opened, and the next thing I remember is he
quickly sat up and punched me square in the jaw and knocked me out. When I awoke Sergeant O'Reilly was gently
slapping my face.
"He's all right,"
he spoke to someone. "We Chicago
coppers are a tough lot."
The head butler of the
mansion leaned over to gaze down at me in a very disapproving manner, as if I
were littering the finely manicured lawn.
"But the thief disappeared into the night," he said,
exasperated.
I was able to arise, and
cleared my head with a few deep breaths of fresh air wafting off Lake
Michigan.
"You all right to go on,
Bruno?" Sergeant O'Reilly asked.
I shook my head
affirmatively. "Yeah, let’s get the rat!" I shouted, now totally
caught up in the hunt.
I moved in the direction the
thief had moved into, and held my revolver at the ready, actually now anxious
to use it on the thug. My aching jaw
placed me in an uncommonly revengeful mood.
About five minutes later I again heard a snarling dog and ran towards
the noise, shouting at the top of my lungs, "Back, boy! Back away!" The dog took off running to the neighboring
mansion at a full trot. I then saw the
very same man who had knocked me out, and he was knocked out himself. It appeared as if the dog tore at his
clothing and the man then fell in the struggle and hit his head against a tree
or some near by half buried stones. Then
suddenly, as a demon rising from Hell, his dark ominous eyes snapped open as
they had before, and he quickly jumped to his feet and was ready to take a
swing at me, but I pointed my revolver at his chest.
"One more quick move out
of you and I'll fill your heart with lead!"
He then backed up and raised
his arms in surrender. Just then
Sergeant O'Reily appeared and he handcuffed the violent offender. We searched both the thief and the immediate
area for the diamonds, but were profoundly sorry not to find a trace of
them. The thief held a constant smug
smile at our futile movements. We could
only reason that sometime between being attacked by the guard dog, on two
occasions no less and in a few minutes time, he somehow found a hiding place
for the gems. That was the sum total of
the case, until now. Here I am... Staring at the three Marquise diamonds stolen
twenty-five years ago.
Bruno then ran his hands
through the remainder hair on his near baldhead and mulled the crime and
criminal over further. The passage of
the twenty-five years had blurred the past.
"If that was Jimmy "The Gem" Rockwell out there that gave
the lad the watch to deliver to me...why?
I now have over a hundred thousand dollars worth of diamonds in my
possession."
Just then Bruno's office door
swung open and he sat stunned. There he
was; a now much older, somewhat bent over, but undeniably, Jimmy "The
Gem" Rockwell in person. He looked
totally wore out.
"My delivery lad said
you looked like an all right person."
He paused reaching for the bag of Bruno's semi sweet chocolate
junks. "I haven't eaten all day,"
he commented, stuffing his cheeks and savoring the luscious chocolate now
streaming down his chin.
Bruno gazed at him with some
apprehension and slowly opened his center desk drawer and glanced down at his
Derringer pistol.
"I assume your jail
sentence is over?" Bruno questioned, his voice just a bit shaky.
The dark ominous eyes Bruno
remembered from that night long ago were now two gentle, but somewhat anxious
orbs. The ghost from the past started to
pace back and forth. "I am not here
to cause any harm, Detective Clew. I
require your services, and it is all legal."
"You do recall that I am
the Detective that arrested you that night a quarter of a century ago?"
"Indeed, but I never
felt any revenge towards you. I was a
crook, I was apprehended by you, and you were just doing your job."
"You did threaten me
when you were sentenced."
"All crooks do
that," he stated, as he stuffed another piece of chocolate into his
mouth. "As of late your reputation
as a Private Detective to the wealthy has even reached us in state
prison."
"I'm flattered,"
Bruno responded, with a chuckle. "I
didn't realize my fame spread quite that far." Bruno paused, still remaining leery about
Jimmy's visit. "Why on earth did
you send me the diamonds by messenger?
Why not just bring them in?"
"Detective Clew I am
nervous about being out of prison. It
has been a long time. I have to get used
to living out here again."
Bruno was pleased to hear him
speaking in a confessional tone.
"Quite frankly it almost floored me when I saw the diamonds
sequestered in the watch. Where did you
hide them after the robbery?"
"I managed to bury the
diamonds under some pertruding roots of the old elm tree where I had been
attacked by that elephant of a watch dog on the first occasion he attacked
me. I then took off running, and was
once again knocked down by the hundred pound beast. I must have bumped my head against another
tree or rock for it knocked me senseless."
Bruno quickly reached for a
chunk of the semi sweet chocolate before Jimmy would empty the entire bag. "I simply do not understand why you are
here now. You have served your time;
somehow you have recovered the diamonds.
Why not just take off for points unknown?"
Jimmy finally stopped pacing
and sat in the chair in front of Bruno's desk.
"Well, I took a chance that even after all this time the diamonds
would still be hidden under the roots of the tree where I had been attacked the
first time by that horse of a dog. As it
turned out, the full-grown tree was gone, but a stump remained. I dressed as a gardener, carrying a shovel
and a saw, and pretended to work on removing the stump, and surprisingly no one
bothered me, and after about an hour I almost passed out as I found the three
loose diamonds encased in the roots of the tree stump." He then lowered his head and took a deep
breath. "Detective Clew, I was
hoping you could help me return them. In
prison I learned the watch making trade from another prisoner. The warden was good enough to provide us with
tools and we took care of the clocks in the prison, and the watches belonging
to the guards." He paused, again
lowering his head, but now in a defeated gesture. "I am an old man, Detective Clew. I no longer want the tainted diamonds. Please return them to the owner. I just want peace and quiet. I wish to settle my account of my criminal
past by returning the gems. Maybe able
to live my last years in some peace and tranquility." He then looked up and grinned almost shyly at
Bruno. "I would like to open a
watch making store, and take my cell mate Bobby, who taught me the trade, in
with me as a partner."
Bruno now felt genuine
compassion for his one time adversary.
"One should think there would be a reward for the diamonds."
Jimmy's eyes lit with
hope. "I must admit I thought of
that. If you help me I will be pleased
to share any reward with you."
Bruno sat perplexed and
stared into Jimmy's anxious expression.
"And you wish me to be your intermediary," Bruno spoke as he
arose from his chair and extended his right hand over the desktop. "I'll pay the owner of the stolen gems a
visit right off. I understand he is
about eighty years old now. He more than
likely should be in his mansion."
Jimmy smiled broadly, with some perspiration moistening his forehead as
he shook Bruno's hand. "Stop by
about five this afternoon. Hopefully
I'll have some good news for you."
Jimmy nodded his head in
agreement, and waived his left hand in thank you as he quickly departed Bruno's
office.
Bruno then freshened up and
began his stroll to the Morganstein mansion, which was about a mile away,
bordering the bluff overlooking Lake Michigan.
The houseman coldly greeted Bruno as he asked to see Mr. Morganstein
regarding three diamonds stolen from the property some twenty-five years
ago. The houseman’s expression became
confused and doubtful, and then he invited Bruno inside and to wait in the
parlor. Within ten minutes a tall, thin,
elderly statesman appearing gentleman hobbled into the parlor, leaning heavily
onto a wooden staff.
He scrutinized Bruno's
appearance and then sat on the chair of a small writing table near the parlor
French doors, which were ablaze with sunlight.
"Detective Bruno Clew of
the Society Detective Agency," he spoke.
"I have heard the name in a favorable tone before, and from very
reliable sources."
Bruno placed his fedora on
top of his silver bear head walking cane, now aware the houseman had no intention
of taking it or his overcoat and hanging them in the closet. "Yes, I have a somewhat curious
assignment. A new client of mine has
just been released from prison after serving a twenty-five year term for
stealing three diamonds from your estate, plus multiple other burglaries around
the city."
Mr. Morganstein's aged eyes
now lit with surprise, although he immediately attempted to suppress the
emotion. "Three diamonds? I don't remember the theft."
With utter delight Bruno
removed a handkerchief from his pocket, which contained a slight bulge. He placed the handkerchief on the desktop and
gleefully unwrapped the handkerchief to expose the three Marquise cut
diamonds. Mr. Morgantstein calmly
gathered one of the diamonds up between his fingertips. He held the diamond up to the sunlight,
glanced somewhat curiously at Bruno, and then shook his head negatively.
"Sir, I do not know what
your intent is with this display, but these diamonds do not belong to me."
"But they were robbed from
your estate some twenty-five years ago, but never recovered until
now."
Mr. Morganstein again shook
his head in a negative fashion. "I
vaguely remember the theft, however, the diamonds stolen from us were oval cut
and much larger than this display, and our insurance covered the
theft." He then grinned ever so
slightly. "I do sincerely
appreciate your efforts on our family’s behalf." He moved the diamonds about with his
fingertips. "It is an interesting
display. If you are representing the owner,
might he be interested in selling them?"
Bruno almost fell off his
chair, but managed to calmly respond, "I'll certainly be pleased to ask
him."
The aged Mr. Morganstein
grinned, feeling the joy of dealing.
"What say I give you $10,000 cash now as payment in full for the
diamonds. No questions asked? But I require an immediate answer, sir."
"I am authorized to make
the sale, however, $25,000 cash here and now would seal the deal,” Bruno
stated, acting as sophisticated as he could in the unchartered waters he found
himself in.
“I have $15,000 in cash in my
vault. Take it or leave it.”
“I agree to your terms,”
Bruno immediately responded.
A half hour later Bruno sat
back in his office, after stopping by the confectionary store for a fresh
supply of semi sweet chocolate chunks.
He eased back in his chair, serenely sighed, and once again entered the
world of Don Quixote. At exactly five
p.m. a light tap sounded at his office door.
The door slowly opened, and Jimmy poked his head around the edge of the
door. "Are you busy?"
"Do come in. Be seated," Bruno calmly stated,
reaching into his center desk drawer. He
nonchalantly removed an envelope filled with cash and handed it to Jimmy. "There was a ‘reward’ of $15,000. I hope it is satisfactory?" he smiled.
Jimmy collapsed on the chair
in front of his desk and anxiously scooped the bundle of cash out of the
envelope. "I think I am going to
die!"
"Please not here,
Jimmy. It is bad for business."
"How did it all go? What did he say?"
"It was all really quite
straightforward. He was amazed to get
them back at all. It has been
twenty-five years, and he is now in his eighties. His surprise at seeing them again almost
brought tears to his eyes, and he offered the $15,000 reward because the
diamonds had a certain sentimental value to them."
"I am speechless,"
Jimmy replied. His hand trembled a bit
as he began to count out the cash.
"They are all mostly one hundred dollar bills!"
Bruno's forehead wrinkled a
bit. "I assure you the cash is all
there..."
Jimmy shook his head in
embarrassment. "I am counting out
your fee, Detective Clew. Will $1,000 be
fair?"
Bruno grinned. "That will be just fine,
Jimmy." He then paused. "Now you can open your own watch making
business."
Jimmy handed Bruno a stack of
cash as he arose, placing the remaining cash in his suit coat pockets. He then stood staring solemnly at Bruno. "You didn't have to do any of this for
me. I am an ex convict. People don't care about us."
Bruno shook Jimmy's hand and
grinned. "Will I be able to get a
discount on your pocket watches?"
Jimmy waived his right hand
in acknowledgement, and hurriedly departed.
Bruno returned to Don
Quixote, savoring a piece of his semi sweet delight as the sun was setting in
the Western sky. He lit the oil lamp on
his desk. "Another day at the
office. Another $1,000 earned," he
mumbled in delight. He then gazed at an
etching of Don Quixote in the center of the novel. "He reminds me of somebody..." he
mused.
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