The Deadly Sins

A cold wind passed over Dogwood Lane that Tuesday night, softly stirring the leaves that had shaken from the endlessly green trees of Riverview. It felt abnormally chilly, Meredith thought... She tucked her hands into her elbows, letting her camera hang loosely on her wrist as her eyes were drawn skywards.

The cloud shielded the stars, and the moon still hung brightly on the horizon, deceivingly large against the rolling fields surrounding the town. Noises still flowed in from all across the nearby streets, but the most predominant was the sound of video games in the living room. "Will that boy ever go to bed on time," she murmured to herself, an eye peeking into the window to see Travis's head still bobbing in front of the television. As she turned to head inside, something else caught her ear: the phone began to ring.

---

"Meredith, you don't have to forgive me... Just please, can you at least stop walking away from me when I try to talk to you?"


Jebidiah grabbed his wife by the shoulders, and tilted her head to face his. "I'll get this straightened out, just wait, okay?"

"I'm going out, taking some produce to the market before the midday rush," she responded loosely, turning to head towards the shower. "I'll see you before you head off to work. Stop badgering me about this, alright?"

He grimaced angrily as she walked away, climbing back into bed for a few more hours of sleep to help him get through the night. Meredith sighed as she dried off and pulled on a sweater, looking through the glass door into the bedroom with a weary look. "Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on him," she thought, but then instantly shook her head. "Nah. He deserves it."

As she pulled into the grocery parking lot, a familiar face caught her eye -- and she only barely made it out of the car unscathed, she got out so fast... even forgetting the fruit in the backseat.



"You think you can mooch on my husband and get away with it?" Meredith approached Tameka calmly, the words slithering out at the younger woman with disdain. Tameka merely blinked, completely shocked at the accusation that seemingly came from nowhere. Still, Meredith remained deceivingly collected.

"Well, I have only one thing to say to you..."



She pulled in close, grinning devilishly at her husband's latest love affair. "I'll let it go this time, but if you ever touch my husband ever again..."

Tameka, however, was distracted -- her eyes kept tracing to the right, watching the old man passing by them with a wide-eyed expression. "Carl Strummer..." she muttered under her breath.

For the rest of the afternoon, Meredith felt surprisingly upbeat -- the first time since she found out about her husband's treachery, she felt... okay. Perhaps seeing Tameka in the flesh and confronting the woman to her face had done some good. "See Farah, I can play grownup if I want," she whispered cutely to her dinner plate after shoving the last forkful into her mouth; Jebidiah, having only just woke up, was rather confused, but... Didn't ask. Good Jebidiah. Goooood boy.

Jeb waited until Travis ran off to work on his homework before turning to watch Meredith finish washing the dishes. "I'm... I'm heading off," he shrugged, eyes still on his wife.

"Alright, have a good--"
"Walk me to the door?"



Meredith was confused, but she did anyways; there, he stopped, and pulled her into his arms. "I don't know when I'll get back," he said, reaching to touch her cheek. "But I needed... To tell you, before I left..."

"Yes?"

"...You're so beautiful, Mere."

"Just go to work already, you dork."

---

The radio silence was eating Jebidiah's nerves, but he knew that he couldn't stir any of the neighbor's attention. The last thing he'd heard was "The lines are cut. Go." and then, the show was his. It felt abnormally simple, tiptoeing across the lawn...



"Second story window, above the door -- are the lights supposed to be on? Oh, right, automatic when the security is disabled... Right."

He prepared his gear, volleying the ropes onto a secure roofpoint before crawling up to the window. When he heard his lockpick open the window with a 'click', he carefully slid the plated glass away, and drew out a pinchful of powder. He blew it across the window entrance: "No beams... So far, so good."

He ducked inside the window frame, and unhooked himself from his rope just in time to see his reflection in the most beautiful jewel he had ever seen.



"My plumbbob," he accidently gasped aloud. He'd seen photos, but actually seeing the thing in person... It was magnificent. Not that it didn't need to be -- it was worth everything he owned... times five or six. Or seven.



"Alright, precious," he chuckled menacingly to himself. "It's time to get you a new home."




Even without another puff of powder, he could tell that the security cage around the gem was disabled. The weight trigger on the pedestal was another thing, but he had the replacement hooked to his belt. All he had to do was grab the jewel... grab the jewel...

"Hold it right there."



Jebidiah reacted immediately and carelessly -- he grabbed the gem and swung around, instantly flailing at the sight of someone else in the room.

Carl Strummer.
What the heck -- what was he doing here?!

"Jebidiah Kane, you're under arrest for--"

*** CRASH!!! ***



Jebidiah leaped onto Carl, instantly tackling the old man to the ground... sort of. Carl put up a good fight for a man of his age, and Jeb had to wrench him into a headlock in order to get him subdued. "Gotta get outta here, gotta get outta here!" He was frantic, now, but there was nothing he could do until he's successfully beat Carl and wouldn't be pursued.

Finally, Jebidiah triumphed -- the man began to wheezing, going limp in his arms... But something was wrong -- he began to fall, clutching his stomach. "What... what have you done to me..."




 Jebidiah backed away, watching as the old man collapsed to the floor. "Kane... What have you done..."

For a moment, nothing else mattered -- Jeb forgot the gem, and the fact that he'd triggered the safety alarm on the pedestal, that the cops were likely on their way... No, nothing else captivated his attention like watching Carl Strummer tumble to the ground, as he clutched his stomach... Moaned...




... And died.

Jebidiah let out a yell -- wordless, but conveying his agony all the same.
What just happened?!



He suddenly realized, though, that he had no time to think -- he needed to get out of that house as quickly as possible. Without even bothering with his escape plan, he bolted out the front door, nearly tripping down the steps as he fled.

But he was too late.




"I didn't do it... I didn't do it!" he gasped as he continued to try to flee, as if it would somehow make a difference.



"Didn't do what? You can't lie to me, Jebidiah."

"Mimi, he's dead... He's dead... but I didn't -- Wait." Jebidiah stopped. He blinked. Mimi.



"It was you! You all along!" With unbridled rage, Jebidiah jumped the woman he had known first as his boss... then his collegue... His friend.

But now he knew the truth. Furiously, they fought in a duel to be remembered -- but as Jebidiah heard the sound of more approaching sirens, he kicked Mimi out from under her feet, and threw her into the surrounding bushes.

"You always were a terrible boxer," he spat in her direction, before turning to flee.



He had no idea where to go. Mimi was supposed to be the getaway driver -- and some driver she was... A ride to the police station! And now, it gave him time to think... About the betrayal... The Strummer's presence... About why Carl died.

Jebidiah was aimless, but he though that of all places, going the most populated would be the best; he ran into the public library, hoping to hide out amongst the crowd of teens working on homework.

But it was not his most brilliant plan.




"Jebidiah Kane, you are under arrest for the theft of the Pink Spire Diamond, and the murder of Agent Carl M. Strummer. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you..."

---

... As she turned to head inside, something else caught her ear: the phone began to ring.

Meredith walked through the front door and picked up the phone. "Kane residence," she responded, her eyes still on her son.

"Is this Mrs. Meredith Kane?"

"Yes... who is this?"




"Mrs. Kane, I'm afraid I have some bad news... You may want to sit down."

---

A cold wind passed over the town of Riverview that Tuesday night, softly stirring the leaves that had shaken from the endlessly green trees.  It felt abnormally chilly, for a wind in this small town... Abnormally loud. It was a whisper, on the wind...

"Deceit..."      "Betrayal..."      "Murder."

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