been working his tenure here.”
Connor gave a low whistle. “I think we might have stumbled into the Museum of Television and Radio by mistake.”
I knew Professor Redfield had left the Fraternal Order of Goodness to return to his love of film and teaching, but there was more of an overabundance of film-related memorabilia mixed throughout the academic trappings than I had expected.
“Notice anything strange?” Connor asked.
I looked around the darkened office, trying to look for anything out of place.
“It’s very tidy,” I said.
Connor nodded, leaning over to run his hands along the smooth surface of the professor’s desk. “A little too, wouldn’t you say?” Outside of a few neat piles of paper on it, the desk was relatively clear. Compared to mine back at the Department of Extraordinary Affairs, it was practically empty.
Looking around, I noticed it was true. “For a guy who was murdered so suddenly, this place looks like it was taken care of beforehand. Either he was knew he was going to die, or he was a neat freak, or someone cleaned this place up after killing him.”
“I’ve never known a professor who kept a tidy office,” Connor said. He leaned farther over on the top of the desk, his face practically touching it. He inhaled deeply. “The smell of polish is relatively fresh.”
I stepped to the display case along the wall behind the late professor’s desk and pulled on my gloves. It was covered in an array of figurines that all looked like they were monsters or characters from ancient Greece. I grabbed one of the figures off the shelf behind the desk. The thing looked something like a cross between the classic Godzilla and a Tyrannosaurus rex. “Well, they’re not Zuni fetish dolls or anything, but some of these pug uglies sure look evil enough, not that the professor was supposed to be dabbling in arcana these days. Check this out.” I threw the figurine over to Connor. He caught it and turned it over. His eyes went wide after marveling at it for a moment.
“What is it?”
“Careful,” he said, holding the figurine up gently. “This is an original Harryhausen.”
My blank stare was enough to garner a disappointed look from Connor. He shook his head at me. “You’re in my territory now, kid. Movie paraphernalia.” He held the mechanical beastie up, almost like a ventriloquist dummy. “This little ugly guy here is from The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms . Ray Harryhausen was the special-effects wizard who created all the old-school stop-motion monsters. The man did King Kong , for goodness’ sake.”
“I thought Hepburn and Bogie were your thing,” I said, looking over the other figures on the shelf. Now that Connor had pointed it out, some of the creatures looked vaguely familiar from movies I had seen, but I felt a little bit ashamed I hadn’t figured it out for myself. That was what I got for relying so heavily on my psychometry over the years—instant expertise without becoming an expert on anything.
“Sure,” he continued. “I have my favorites, but these are a classic of a different kind. I bet these are worth a mint.”
Connor held the figure out to me, but I didn’t take it, instead moving away from the display.
“You put it away,” I said.
Connor gave me a suspicious look, but did as I said and put the figure back on the shelf. “You okay, kid?”
“It’s probably best not to give the priceless shiny to the ex-thief psychometrist who still needs to make his hefty SoHo maintenance fees this month.”
“Can’t understand why you went for a fringe government job,” he said. “No way you’re going to be able to finance that apartment forever.”
“Either way,” I said, “no need to tempt me. I’ll find a way.”
“You could sell the place,” Connor said, turning to look over the professor’s desk.
A small ball of panic bunched up in my chest. “No way,” I said, defensive. “It was my last hurrah when I gave up my old life. My past crimes
Connor gave a low whistle. “I think we might have stumbled into the Museum of Television and Radio by mistake.”
I knew Professor Redfield had left the Fraternal Order of Goodness to return to his love of film and teaching, but there was more of an overabundance of film-related memorabilia mixed throughout the academic trappings than I had expected.
“Notice anything strange?” Connor asked.
I looked around the darkened office, trying to look for anything out of place.
“It’s very tidy,” I said.
Connor nodded, leaning over to run his hands along the smooth surface of the professor’s desk. “A little too, wouldn’t you say?” Outside of a few neat piles of paper on it, the desk was relatively clear. Compared to mine back at the Department of Extraordinary Affairs, it was practically empty.
Looking around, I noticed it was true. “For a guy who was murdered so suddenly, this place looks like it was taken care of beforehand. Either he was knew he was going to die, or he was a neat freak, or someone cleaned this place up after killing him.”
“I’ve never known a professor who kept a tidy office,” Connor said. He leaned farther over on the top of the desk, his face practically touching it. He inhaled deeply. “The smell of polish is relatively fresh.”
I stepped to the display case along the wall behind the late professor’s desk and pulled on my gloves. It was covered in an array of figurines that all looked like they were monsters or characters from ancient Greece. I grabbed one of the figures off the shelf behind the desk. The thing looked something like a cross between the classic Godzilla and a Tyrannosaurus rex. “Well, they’re not Zuni fetish dolls or anything, but some of these pug uglies sure look evil enough, not that the professor was supposed to be dabbling in arcana these days. Check this out.” I threw the figurine over to Connor. He caught it and turned it over. His eyes went wide after marveling at it for a moment.
“What is it?”
“Careful,” he said, holding the figurine up gently. “This is an original Harryhausen.”
My blank stare was enough to garner a disappointed look from Connor. He shook his head at me. “You’re in my territory now, kid. Movie paraphernalia.” He held the mechanical beastie up, almost like a ventriloquist dummy. “This little ugly guy here is from The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms . Ray Harryhausen was the special-effects wizard who created all the old-school stop-motion monsters. The man did King Kong , for goodness’ sake.”
“I thought Hepburn and Bogie were your thing,” I said, looking over the other figures on the shelf. Now that Connor had pointed it out, some of the creatures looked vaguely familiar from movies I had seen, but I felt a little bit ashamed I hadn’t figured it out for myself. That was what I got for relying so heavily on my psychometry over the years—instant expertise without becoming an expert on anything.
“Sure,” he continued. “I have my favorites, but these are a classic of a different kind. I bet these are worth a mint.”
Connor held the figure out to me, but I didn’t take it, instead moving away from the display.
“You put it away,” I said.
Connor gave me a suspicious look, but did as I said and put the figure back on the shelf. “You okay, kid?”
“It’s probably best not to give the priceless shiny to the ex-thief psychometrist who still needs to make his hefty SoHo maintenance fees this month.”
“Can’t understand why you went for a fringe government job,” he said. “No way you’re going to be able to finance that apartment forever.”
“Either way,” I said, “no need to tempt me. I’ll find a way.”
“You could sell the place,” Connor said, turning to look over the professor’s desk.
A small ball of panic bunched up in my chest. “No way,” I said, defensive. “It was my last hurrah when I gave up my old life. My past crimes
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