Thirteen Authors With New Takes on Sherlock Holmes by Michael A. Ventrella

Author:Michael A. Ventrella [Ventrella, Michael A. & Maberry, Jonathan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781626818385
Publisher: Diversion Books
Published: 2017-01-24T16:00:00+00:00

Delta Phi

BY

Heidi McLaughlin

The knock on my door startles me. I sit anxiously, waiting to see if it happens again. It’s not often that people come to visit me and I’d rather not get excited by the prospect only to find out that it’s a student bumping their way down the hall, inadvertently hitting my door. I focus my attention instead on the crime scene report I downloaded from the local police server. I’ve been hacking into their system since I arrived in Burlington, Vermont, and quickly started offering them subtle clues to solve their petty crime cases. As morbid as it is, I’m waiting for a murder to occur so I can hone my craft in the field of investigation. Of course, being a college student, my work is never credited.

Ron Smith is the local police chief. He considers me a thorn in his side. He’s not a fan of me, especially when my eighteen-year-old self discovers inconsistencies in his police work. More accurately, when my dorm was pranked as part of the Delta Phi fraternity initiation, his responding officer couldn’t find the offenders, stating that the evidence was inconclusive. The fact that Delta Phi was pasted to the outside wall by way of wet toilet paper apparently wasn’t a big enough clue. I bested the police department when I showed them the handprints left behind matched those of one Roger Stallworth, the center for our basketball team, who has the largest hands on campus.

The knock sounds again, but this time it’s louder and more defined against the metal door. Closing my laptop and sliding the investigation report into my file cabinet, away from the prying eyes of whoever lurks outside, I open the door with luster, acting calm and collected as if I have visitors every day. The person on the other side of the concrete box that I reside in doesn’t need to know otherwise.

“Lock Holmes?” she questions. I nod, but stand still against the doorjamb, preventing her from entering. My name is Sherlock, but I go by Lock. It’s more hip and easier to play off with my hippie parents. My mother, in all her peace-loving ways, couldn’t decide on a name for me, and ended up combining my grandmother’s name, Sheryl, with the nickname of Lock for the tiny tuft of hair I was born with. Sadly, my father never disagreed and forever branded me with the eccentric name that throughout childhood labeled me as an outsider.

The lady in front of me, dressed in a pinstriped suit, is nervous even though she’s trying to maintain a professional look. She forgot her watch this morning when she dressed. The tan line indicates that she wore it all summer, not caring about sunblock or the odd white block of skin she’d leave showing if she were to forget it, like today. The imprint left on her skin says she wears a women’s Timex—cheap and easily found in every discount store in America.

“I’m Professor MacAfee. Chief Smith suggested I come to you for some help.

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