Page 48 of Killer Clone

Not for the first time, Stella was impressed by the speed and effectiveness of Mac’s skill set. After only a couple of hours, Mac had secured them a meeting with trippinballz12, aka Jake Tripp. Stella and Stacy were to pose as buyers for a new item Tripp had posted to his Craigslist account, a Microsoft Surface Laptop, only a couple years old.

They submitted a search warrant affidavit for the laptop and received it quickly. This request was bolstered when they’d confirmed with Marrion’s mother over the phone that the laptop on Tripp’s account was the same make as the one she’d bought for Marrion. She’d kept the receipt.

After they parked at Central Tennessee State University, Stacy pushed open the door of the Ford Residential Complex and waited for Stella. Though Stella was eager to confront this Tripp person, she needed to keep her cool and wait until he displayed the stolen goods before they let him know their real reason for being there.

The dorms were almost empty in the middle of the morning. A group of young women stood by the bank of mailboxes, talking, their books hugged to their chests. A couple of studentssat by the wall, headphones on their ears, their laptops perched on their knees. The stickers on the backs of their covers bounced as they typed.

Stacy had a steely look in her eye. “I can’t imagine some teenage thief isn’t going to crack when we start interrogating him. He’ll break like a porcelain egg.”

Stella smiled, then tried hard not to. Threats didn’t suit Stacy. Stella had seen her calm and unruffled in even the most dangerous situations, lost in a cave and undercover with a killer. Anger wasn’t her thing.

“That is, if he’s just a thief. He might be much worse.”

For this undercover operation, they were dressed as college students.

Stacy had wound her long hair into a messy bun, which she fixed with a clip on top of her head. She wore jeans and a CTSU sweatshirt. For the final touch, she’d stuck a coin in a vending machine from which she bought a packet of gum. Chewing with her mouth open and her head cocked to one side, she lost about a decade.

For a moment, Stella was back at college. Her freshman year. Eager to grab the world and find out what it contained but also uncertain and full of doubts. It wasn’t a place she wanted to return.

The elevator doors slid closed behind them.

“Just remember that you’re Nicky and I’m Abigail.”

Stacy popped her gum. “I feel like a Nicky.”

“You look like a Nicky, Nicky.”

“Not sure I like being a Nicky though. Let’s get this over with.”

They emerged in front of what had once been Patrick Marrion’s room. The sign above the fire exit glowed at the end of the corridor. A heavy bass thumped from one of the rooms.

Stella knocked.

The voice that answered was deep and loud. “Yo. Come through.”

Stacy rolled her eyes. She looked even more like a Nicky now.

Stella pushed open the door.

Jake Tripp lay on his bed. His legs were crossed. One sock had a big hole in the heel. A friend sprawled on what had once been Patrick Marrion’s bed, and the floor was covered in unwashed clothes, snack wrappers, and empty cans of coke.

A fog of marijuana smoke hung in the air, and the top of a bottle of vodka poked out from under the bed. The heating vent hummed as it blew warm air into the room despite the open window.

“Ladies. Sick.” Tripp pushed himself up in bed. He tossed an empty can at his friend. “Hey, Kev, you order a couple of girls online? Man, you can get anything delivered these days.”

Kev sniggered. He picked a blunt from the edge of a glass ash tray and took a long drag, held it for a second, then blew in the direction of the window. The wind pushed the smoke back into the room.

Stacy leaned against the doorpost. She made a small bubble with her gum and let it pop loudly. “Hear you boys got a laptop for sale.”

Tripp licked his lips. “You’re the ones I’m supposed to meet, huh? I bet we can work something out. Maybe I can cut a few bucks off the price. If you and your friend help out me and my friend.” He made a show of scanning their bodies. “If you know what I mean.”

It’d been a while since anyone had spoken to Stella like that. She got an urge to push past Stacy, grab Tripp by the front of his dirty t-shirt, and throw his face against the wall while she applied cuffs.

Stacy didn’t react. “Nicky. That’s Abigail. We’re upstairs.”

“Uh-huh. Nice to meet you. Might even say,” he bobbed his eyebrows, “very nice.”

Stella barely held back a groan. Did girls actually fall for this?

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