Chapter 6: Game Night

“Do not take less than thirty for this, twenty for that,” Pamela pointed out, moving down one side of the table set up in her garage. “Phineas, are you getting all of this? You don’t seem to be paying attention.”

“I’m listening,” the 18-year-old insisted, looking as bored as he felt.

“You need to know how much I’m willing to go under the price I have listed. People expect to haggle at these sales,” the rummage sale veteran insisted.

“They won’t with me,” her antisocial son mumbled before raising his voice. “Don’t worry, Mom. Corky’s writing down everything you say.”

Their 12-year-old neighbor nodded as he flipped to another page in the spiral notebook. It was Sunday morning, and Phinn had tossed and turned all last night in frustration over where to begin investigating the old photograph. His family would leave soon for their rushed vacation, and the teen wished they’d already left.

“That’s what worries me. You’re not going to make Cormac do all the work. Is that understood?” Pamela challenged.

“No, problem, Mrs. Farris,” Corky replied first. “Mom already told me that I have a strict time limit over here, and that I’m not to pick up any of Phinn’s bad habits.”

“I’m sure you won’t, dear,” the frazzled mother stated. “And did you hear that, Phineas? Bonnie thinks you’re a bad influence on her son.”

“That’s nothing new,” Phinn muttered. However, his mother’s stern look caused him to elaborate. “Oh, come on! Mrs. King mostly dislikes me because Pug bullies Corky.”

“That’s not the main reason,” Corky added, moving down the table in preparation for the next list of prices.

“What? Does Putnam bully you, Cormac?” Pamela questioned.

“Don’t worry, ma’am. I tend to outsmart him.”

“See? And where do you think Corky learned that from?” Phinn asked.

His mother groaned in frustration, glancing over at their house. Most people couldn’t believe that Putnam could be even more of a problem than Phineas to raise, but it proved true most days.

“I considered leaving Putty behind to keep you close to the house, but that boy…Perhaps he’ll pick up some manners around your father’s family,” Pamela said, sighing.

Alarmed over the surprising suggestion of leaving his trouble-making younger brother behind, Phinn worked to quickly reassure his mother that he, along with Corky and Jake, could handle the rummage sale on their end.

“Now, I’ve already scheduled a few of my friends to help out during the week, but you’re the primary person, Phinny. If you can’t handle it, I’ll move our items over to a different home, and you’ll need to come with us on the trip,” Pamela warned. “That’s the preferable option, as I worry about leaving you alone in the house.”

“Whoa, whoa, don’t worry, Mom. I’ll be perfectly safe. The plan is to set up the booby traps right away after you leave,” Phinn joked, although his mother couldn’t tell if the comment was real or not. “They’re mostly non-lethal…mostly.”

“Phineas,” Pamela growled.

“I’m kidding! I’m not setting up any booby traps.”

“You’re not? But I thought you warned me–” Corky began to argue until a glare from the older teen shut him up.

“Perhaps we can make a detour to drop you off at my parents' or my sister’s place,” Pamela pondered aloud.

While nearly certain his mother wasn’t serious, Phinn couldn’t take that risk. He swiftly reminded her that Jake and others would spend each night in their home with him. Pam countered by asking if Jake would stay tonight.

“He can’t. Prior obligations,” Phinn declared. “Ethan and Galen are coming over. That’s if we have anything to eat.”

“If? I stocked up the kitchen this morning and gave you money to eat out,” Pamela noted indignantly.

“For me to eat. What about the cost of entertaining my guests? You’re the one who insisted I invite them all over,” Phinn argued. His ruse worked as he managed to extract additional money from his mother to order pizzas for tonight. “For only one night?”

“Don’t test me, young man,” his mother growled.

“Fine, fine. I’ll use the rest of the cash to pay for other nights. Geez, stop freaking out. I did promise not to have any girls over while you’re gone,” Phinn added, causing Corky to grin.

“Oh, no! You have my full permission to have any girl over while we're gone for as long as you’d like,” Pamela shot back, wishing Phinn would get in trouble that way for once. Sneaking girls into his bedroom or slipping out to meet them was far more preferable than what he did now. “Have two or three stay the night.”

Corky’s grin morphed into a dropped jaw from the shocking comment his neighbor’s mother made.

“Sure. You just want the Rieses to call the cops on me for lewd conduct,” Phinn shot back about their next-door neighbors.

Pamela spent another hour listing the minimum prices and suggesting sales pitches for each item. Phinn only turned crabby toward the end, when she started testing her son by asking him to repeat the prices without Corky’s help. Eventually, his father finished packing the car with Putnam’s help, and they were off for at least a week, probably a week and a half. His thirteen-year-old brother predicted it would be the shorter end of the time period, as the police would call about Phineas.

Phinn spent the next several hours repeatedly going over their case options, while occasionally doubting whether they had a case at all. He also spent some time doing a chore in his bedroom, completing it to his satisfaction earlier than expected. The teen had moved out onto his front porch by the time that Jake returned in the early afternoon.

“About time you showed up.”

“I have a life sometimes, you know,” Jake defended himself.

“And it turns into football in less than a month,” Phinn complained. He hated when football practice started in early August. “Did you behave on their boat this time? No orgy to make the news?”

“Yeah, yeah, we went out with Luke’s family on their bigger boat,” Jake reported. “You know, I should’ve brought Corky with. Lori, Luke’s little sister, brought along a few friends.”

“You’re going to play matchmaker for Corky? Go right ahead if it stops you from trying to set me up on a date,” Phinn suggested, wholeheartedly approving the idea. “However, I needed him here for today.”

“Yeah, I felt bad for the kid. Is he still alive?”

“Mom made sure he left without being corrupted.”

“Good. Now that I’m free from the thankless task of finding you a date, I can take care of my little buddy.” Jake paused as Phinn snorted. “Hey, I’m only free since your mom enlisted Johanna’s help. How’s that going? Did they set up something while your family is gone?”

Although usually not shocked by anything, the brainy detective suddenly became alarmed at the possibility. Crap! That sounds like something Mom would do. Oh, it better not be that girl Johanna tried to introduce me to the other night: Crystal’s cousin or whatever.

“They better not have concocted a plan. I’d prefer dealing with Angelo Manfredi or that burglar showing up again,” Phinn proclaimed. Then, he attempted to move the conversation away from his lack of romance. “Did you see a fishman or other mysterious sea monster?”

“That’s not funny. You know Monster Manfredi can dress up as a sea creature to get ****,” Jake warned, hinting that he hadn’t entirely dismissed the ludicrous idea while out on the Ridleys’ boat. “Uh, so any luck with our first step?”

“No.”

“Yeah, finding an old person who won’t freak out over the picture is tough,” Jake admitted. “You know, we could try Grammy Harp? She wouldn’t judge us.”

“She’s still out of town,” Phinn said, dismissing the suggestion. “Are you coming over tonight?”

“Why wouldn’t I? Say, did you want Bandit over yet?”

“No, not yet. He can stay over if Katie spends a night.”

“Ah, yes, the little guy would be a good distraction from her prying into your lack of a love life,” Jake snickered about the young, attractive professor.

“I wouldn’t joke. My mom threatened to get her or Lance to stay over for the whole time. As if I need a babysitter,” Phinn relayed his mother’s departing threat. “No, tonight is Ethan and Galen’s night. I figured scheduling their appearance right away would reduce my mom’s stress.”

“Oh, they’re staying over tonight?” Jake double-checked. Although he didn’t dislike Phinn’s other friends, the sports star felt uncomfortable around guys who might be called geeks or nerds. Their conversations never made sense to him. It’s bad enough that he’d dealt with Phinn and Dusty doing the same for years.

“I negotiated pizza money for their stay.”

“Poppa’s Pies or Tommaso’s?”

“Where do you think?” Phinn replied, causing Jake to nod and say he’d be around.

---

“My mom wasn’t thrilled about my staying over until I reassured her that you had Jake and some of the football team over too,” Ethan Eldred revealed, taking a bite out of his pepperoni pizza from Tommaso’s.

“My parents never heard about the break-in,” Galen Nowicki said, gesturing for Jake to hand over a piece of sausage pizza.

“Well, you’re not technically lying. Jake is here for now,” Phinn pointed out, grabbing his best friend’s favorite soda to placate him.

Phinn had run into Ethan and Galen during his grade school and early junior high days of comic book collecting with Dusty. Dusty had been the first to strike up a conversation with the same boys that they often saw at Villainville, the local comic book shop, and several small, regional comic conventions. The grandson of Novel Nebula’s owner, Ethan, became a rare good friend of Phinn’s once they started attending Timlin Junior High together. He also slotted into the role of the antisocial teen’s number two friend after Dusty moved away.

On the other hand, Galen lived on the south side and attended South High School. But as an employee of Villainville for the past three years, he could usually be found there, making him easy for Phinn to track down. And despite no longer having the time or patience for his old hobby, Phinn managed to stay friends with the geeky duo.

“I heard you ran into Quinn at Durand’s the other week during your meet-and-greet,” Galen recalled about the South High cosplayer. “She thinks Villainville should do the same once that costume is finished for Waterfest.”

“Wait, what?” Ethan questioned, pausing his eating.

“You know, the day that you almost fainted when Leighton Ledford walked into your life again,” Galen cracked.

“No, I think he meant about the costume,” Phinn clarified, opting not to tease Ethan over his crush on Quinn. “Somehow, someway, Jake’s going to play a fictional version of the Phantom Diver during a skit at Waterfest.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, it’s Corky’s idea. He’s going to play Phinn, while two other kids will play Dusty and me. Quinn and Violet Tipton are supposed to create the costumes,” Jake revealed, happy to have something he knew about to discuss.

“But Dusty wasn’t around last month for that case,” Ethan pointed out.

“They’re taking creative liberties,” Phinn revealed, sarcastically using hand quotes while rolling his eyes. “Jake needs to milk his moment.”

“Hey! It should be fun. Maybe you should try having some for once,” Jake shot back.

“I had fun on that case,” Phinn stated, unsure why Jake didn’t realize that.

“Yeah, Phinn enjoyed shooting Burke Kuhn,” Galen chuckled. “My dad sounded impressed with that part the most. He’d heard about Kuhn’s stickups for years.”

“Speaking of cases, what’s with your new one? Everyone was talking about it down at Wedison Park,” Ethan revealed, causing Phinn to frown.

“Don’t think I don’t know that you gossiped about the picture, Eldred. I heard you blabbed about it to Willow Almond. Trying to impress Miss Straight A’s?” Phinn challenged.

“Maybe you should try doing so,” Jake muttered.

“Willow heard Wally telling me about it!” Ethan protested.

“Is that why somebody broke in here?” Galen inquired.

“We don’t know,” Jake admitted, watching as his partner brought up the old potential **** photo on his phone.

“Whoa, she’s pretty!” Ethan exclaimed, checking out the naked, but covered woman.

“Any luck figuring out her identity?” Galen asked, gesturing for Jake to hand over another piece of pizza.

Phinn explained the difficulties they faced, with Jake occasionally adding a comment. The two boys agreed that the lengthy time gap and picture content might be obstacles hard to overcome.

“I’d almost suggest asking Grandpa, since he knows most people in town,” Ethan began.

“But it sounds like he’s still upset about your last couple of cases that involved him,” Galen finished, causing Ethan to reluctantly admit their friend was correct.

“What did you do? I don’t remember anything with Mr. Eldred,” Jake said, struggling to recall how the bookstore owner might be upset with them.

“Why do you think I’m to blame?” Phinn questioned.

“Because you are,” the other three teens replied simultaneously.

After their laughter died down, Ethan suggested they needed to find someone old enough to recall the time period of the picture, and also someone who was a gossip, in case they recognized the woman.

Suddenly, Jake slapped his forehead.

“Duh! We just ran into the perfect person at Dad’s beer tent.”

“We did…Oh! Gabby,” Phinn stated, feeling embarrassed that he didn’t think of the bar owner and well-known gossip. He tried to rationalize his misstep. “Of course, he’s not a regular contributor for us, since he practically lives at his bar and we’re underage.”

“Still, I bet he’ll talk to me if he knows the woman. It’s a football thing,” Jake insisted about the past North High state champion.

“It’s probably best to approach him shortly after he opens tomorrow morning,” Phinn speculated. A time with limited customers would be preferable, as somebody might tip off the police about their presence inside a bar.

“I’ll have to go alone,” Jake noted, causing Phinn to ask why. “You have to run your mom’s portion of the rummage sale. Remember?”

Ethan and Galen couldn’t believe that their prickly friend had been left in charge of selling items to bargain hunters. Both made a point that they wanted to stop by later in the week to see Phinn in action.

“Trust me. You’re not prepared to deal with scheming customers,” Ethan teased.

“I deal with scheming crooks every day of my life,” Phinn defended his experience.

“Dude, you should see some of the collectors who try to bait and switch us down at the shop,” Galen warned. “The perceived need for an item causes people to get crazy.”

“His mom is going to have her friends help,” Jake added.

Speculation over the possible ways for Phinn to ruin the rummage sale lasted for several more minutes before the rest of the meal saw Jake and Phinn rehashing what happened down in Lumlow on that previous case. The two geeks rattled off numerous questions about the actress who played Dream Lass, in particular. Neither Phinn nor Jake revealed that the latter had sex with Adora Rose, since that's the type of information that almost always spreads, no matter who you're friends with, and would likely end up on a gossip site.

“Speaking of Power Prep, anybody in the mood for a campaign? I’ve been working on one,” Galen revealed.

“What? I thought we were playing D&D tonight. I brought that stuff,” Ethan pointed out.

“No, we talked about playing that old Marvel RPG from TSR. The one my uncle showed us,” Galen reminded.

“Wait, what’s going on? Isn’t that Dungeons & Dragons?” Jake asked, already turning his nose up.

“It is,” Ethan replied. “Did you want to try playing finally, or did you want to just watch for now?”

Phinn smirked as Jake suddenly looked green from food poisoning. Surely, the pizza wasn’t bad. Usually **** to deal with Jake’s jock buddies and their talk, Phinn stayed silent as Galen and Ethan bantered back and forth over ideas about who or what Jake should play or do. Although Phinn didn’t care for role-playing games, he’d learned to compromise by playing once every few months with his two friends. He might be antisocial most of the time, but he didn’t want to be completely lonely.

“Definitely a bruiser type. Using powers might be too complicated for Magnum,” Galen stated.

“Yeah, punching is probably a simple move for him. But we'll have to create a character that has increased endurance or hardened skin,” Ethan noted, jotting down his ideas.

“Whoa! I’m not doing that!” Jake shouted before remembering his manners. “I mean, I can’t do that. I think I should go see if Gabby recognizes that woman tonight. Time might be crucial.”

“But that picture was from like fifty years ago,” Ethan pointed out.

“Yeah, Jake. You should stay and play with us,” Phinn said, finally speaking again. “I thought that was the plan.”

“No, I should go by tonight. The blackmailer might have been the burglar, and we could be busy tomorrow,” Jake insisted, glaring at his best friend for trying to trap him with nerd night.

Not willing to budge from his point, Jake downed the rest of his soda before fleeing the house. Phinn yelled that he should probably take a larger device than his phone to use with the older man.

“Take Libby’s tablet.”

“Are you crazy?” Jake shot back from the rear door.

“She’s probably out anyway. You can put it back before she notices,” Phinn suggested, causing Jake to mumble about his sister murdering him.

“Damn, I almost thought he’d play this time,” Ethan remarked, sounding disappointed.

“Ah, it’s fine. Teaching Magnum how to play would’ve slowed us down,” Galen replied.

However, Phinn had other business in mind rather than immediately playing a game he didn’t like. Watching out the kitchen window, Phinn waited until Jake got into his car and drove away.

“Okay, Jake took the bait,” Phinn stated, looking around the dining room. “Now it’s time to get down to matters at hand. We need to search the common areas on the first floor for any more bugs.”

“What?”

“Wait, what?”

“I found Mr. Pym in my bedroom this morning. Now, let’s see if there is a matching Miss Van Dyne in the house,” Phinn explained.

“Wait, you found an ant in your bedroom and want to look for a wasp?” Galen asked.

“No, he’s talking about listening devices,” Ethan corrected before lowering his voice to a whisper. “You really found a bug in your bedroom?”

“Yes. I suspected the possibility and had to wait until my family left,” Phinn revealed. “The other night was no ordinary burglary.”

“What did you do with it?” Galen asked, sitting up straighter.

“Moved it to Pug’s room and turned on the TV,” Phinn recounted with a smirk. “Now, do you want to help search for Miss Van Dyne?”

“Couldn’t we call it Mr. Palmer?” Ethan asked, earning dubious looks from his friends. “You know I’m more of a DC fan.”

"The Atom isn't an insect," Phinn pointed out.

"Oh, right. What about Mr. Kord?"

“Dude, Blue Beetle doesn’t have size-changing powers!” Galen nearly screamed.

Okay, maybe dealing with Jake’s jock friends isn’t the worst help in the world, Phinn thought before leading his friends in the search for a second listening device in his home.

---

Jake parked his sedan across the street from Gabby’s Corner Tap. Located on the northeast side of Edgewater in a small one-block cluster of shops and offices, the corner tap was only three blocks away from North High School. Very familiar with the nearby residential neighborhood surrounding the quiet bar, Jake looked over at the sandwich shop to see if any classmates were around.

Not spotting anyone to procrastinate with, Jake approached the quaint two-story building. Noticing that the second-floor living quarters were dark, Jake knew that Gabby should still be working. The windows, framed by dark green shutters, were slightly ajar, allowing the scent of popcorn and the faint sound of laughter mixed with soft music to escape into the night. A couple of benches flanked the entrance, worn smooth by the bottoms of countless patrons, and a bike leaned against the sturdy railing that surrounded the small patch of greenery that served as the tavern's tiny flower bed.

Stepping on the cracked cement before the entrance, Jake peeked through the open door before walking inside. The interior of Gabby's was a delightful mix of rustic charm and modern comfort from the 1990s. The floor was a checkered pattern of aged oak boards, scuffed and shone by years of shoe soles and hard heels. The walls were adorned with a splash of sports memorabilia, framed newspaper clippings, and a series of photographs that all focused on the history of North High Puffer sports.

Gabby immediately spotted the underage sports star from behind the polished mahogany bar, which stretched along the left side of the room, complete with gleaming brass fixtures and aging, spinning stools. The right side featured a cozy seating area with plush leather booths and a small standing or dancing area. In the rear center sat an old-fashioned jukebox, along with a similarly aged popcorn machine. Between a pair of pool tables in the rear, right corner was a short hallway that led to the restrooms.

“Jake, is everything alright?” Gabby asked, worried about what would bring the eighteen-year-old into his bar.

Before replying, Jake surveyed the tavern briefly. As the son of a bar owner, the teen knew the signs of who was a regular and who wasn’t. A pair of regulars sat at the far end of the bar, nearest the hanging television. While Jake didn’t recognize them, he could tell that they were working-class men. Several empty stools down the bar, a drowsy-looking man led Jake to assume he was the corner tap’s resident drunk. A middle-aged couple shared a quiet drink in a front corner booth, while a slightly younger trio of young professionals bragged about their exploits from the night before.

“We need a favor, Mr. Gibson,” Jake said, speaking softly after he approached the bar. “I know that I’m not allowed to be in here, but could I have a couple of minutes with you in your office?”

“Is this for one of your cases? Oh, boy! I might have another story to tell someday, fellas,” Gabby said, speaking to the two regulars. “Stan and Earl are going to get sick of hearing how I was at Deke’s place the night you found that body.”

“Get sick? We’re already sick of it,” one of the two men proclaimed, earning a dismissive hand wave from the tavern owner.

“Watch the bar, Buck, and these two yahoos,” Gabby told the drunk before gesturing for Jake to follow him to a door past the end of the long bar.

Opening the door, Gabby flicked on the light before sitting down at a desk. Leaving the door open to watch his establishment, he motioned for Jake to sit on a nearby chair. With a curious yet excited expression, the late-sixtyish man asked what the teen detective needed.

“Well, you see, we, um, found this old photograph. I thought it looked like it was from the ‘80s, but Phinn said it’s from the 1970s,” Jake began, afraid to discuss the potentially scandalous picture. “It’s, uh, well, it’s a photo that might have been used for ****.”

“****?” Gabby repeated, whistling.

Suddenly, a chime sounded softly. Holding up a finger toward the teen, Gabby leaned over to look through the doorway. Standing up, he moved over toward the opening.

“I’ll be out in a minute, Wix. Grab a beer from the fridge if you like, and I’ll start a tab,” Gabby told the new arrival.

“Lucky?” Jake inquired.

“Right, I’m sure you know him,” Gabby chuckled, sitting back down.

Of course, Jake knew Lucky Wix, the local degenerate gambler and bookie. He frequently stopped by Magnum’s Sports Bar, where Marvin often reminded him that he wasn’t allowed to run his bookmaking inside the bar.

“Yep. So, we’ve been unsure who to ask about this picture because of the content and age. But I thought since you know seemingly everyone that–”

“Ah, thanks, kid, I appreciate the compliment. Now, let's see what you got,” Gabby said.

Another louder and longer whistle came from the older man’s lips as he looked at the beautiful woman in her twenties lying on a bed with her legs spread eagle as a man screwed her in the missionary position.

"While she's not showing her privates, this could most certainly have been used to **** a woman back in those days," Gabby commented, squinting at the photo for a second look.

“Do you recognize her?” Jake asked hopefully, thinking that the older man’s expression showed recognition.

“Might,” Gabby said, leaning in for a closer third inspection.

Jake instructed him to scroll over to the following image.

“That was written on the back of the photo,” the teen revealed.

“Pay up or pay the consequences. Deadline: Friday,” Gabby read aloud.

Suddenly, the gossipmonger jumped to his feet. With a gesture for Jake to follow, he left the office. However, instead of returning to his usual location behind the bar, Gabby led Jake down the front of the bar until he stopped next to Buck.

“Recognize her?”

Drunk Buck nearly fell off his stool when Gabby held the phone in front of him. Shaking his head, he recovered his wits to give the photo a long look.

“Looks like Veronica Strecker,” Buck said, causing Jake’s heart to skip a beat.

“I thought so too, but it’s hard to tell with the angle,” Gabby agreed.

“Who’s she?” Jake asked, itching to hear everything.

“A local beauty from back in the 1970s. A bit before my time, but not Buck’s,” Gabby recounted, sitting down on the stool next to his regular drunk. “But even in my early teens, I thought she looked beautiful whenever she appeared in the Dispatch.”

“She was in the newspaper often?” Jake queried. “What did she do?”

“Not her. Her husband, the smooth-talking bastard,” Buck grumbled.

“Dell Strecker,” Gabby supplied the name. “You probably never heard of him…well, your friend might have. But he was kind of a big deal in the ‘60s and early '70s around here. Big-time land developer. Built several of the largest neighborhoods during the housing boom. Veronica must have been at least fifteen years younger than him, but she was a looker; won the Miss Paddle beauty pageant one year.”

“Also shady as hell,” Buck added. “Swindled a bunch of people in the late ‘70s when his business suffered.”

“It was a big, short scandal in the early ‘80s. He went up to Mug Jug for a few years before dying behind bars,” Gabby recounted. “Veronica left town for almost a decade.”

“But she returned? Is she still alive?” Jake rattled off.

“Oh, yeah. Last I heard, she was living in that assisted living complex on Jefferson. Do you know–” Gabby started to ask before Jake cut him off.

“I do! Phinn’s aunt used to live in those apartments,” Jake replied, thrilled to finally have a lead.

A faint chime sounded as more customers entered through the front door. Despite a scowl forming, Jake’s good mood couldn’t be diminished entirely. He listened as Gabby greeted Easton Ingle and Cameron Pine, a pair of former Puffer basketball players. While Easton had gone on to become a fairly prominent college player, Cameron stuck around the area to hold down a bench spot on Bentworth College’s team. Jake didn’t care for either of the soon-to-be college seniors, but he particularly disliked the arrogant Easton.

Suddenly, Jake heard a familiar giggle, which led him to see Zoe Foster enter through the front door. The most unusual part of his sister’s clique, the eccentric twenty-one-year-old, also happened to be the older sister of the equally quirky Zaina Foster, one of Jake’s longest classmates.

Then, Jake's night made another turn as two additional friends of his sister walked through the door. A pair of gorgeous young women with large breasts, Jake knew the one with milk chocolate-colored hair the best. Cheyanne Cudahy worked summers at Magnum's as a waitress. Jake knew the blonde most often from his dreams, for she was Abigail LeClaire, his oldest crush.

“Little Jakey Magnum, what are you doing inside a bar?” Cheyanne questioned.