Knowledge+Power=Death

Chapter Seven: If They Cant Help, Who Can?

"What is this? What does this mean?" Coby asked himself in shock.

He stared at the note in speechlessness. He didn't know if it was real, or if it was a prank. He wasn't thinking straight at that moment at all. He felt the same way as he did when he got that unexpected phone call that informed him about his wife's death. He wanted to- RING, RING! His phone started ringing. He didn't even look at who was calling him. He just picked up the phone.

   "Hello, this is Coby speaking. Sorry, but this isn't a great time for me to talk right now. Call me back later." Coby said in a rush.

   He was seconds away from hanging up the phone when someone screamed into the speaker, "NO! PLEASE DON'T HANG UP! I NEED YOUR HELP!"

   He didn't even know who was calling him. He didn't recognize the number, but he did recognize the name, "Emma, is that you? Are you ok?" Coby asked.

   "Oh! Thank goodness you didn't hang up! Sorry, I think I called a wrong number. I meant to call my brother. I can hang up now if you want." Emma replied.

   "Oh no! It's fine! Are you ok?"

   "Ugh, I'm fine. I meant to call my older brother because when I got out and locked my car, I realized that I left my wallet in my car. My brother is a locksmith." Emma said with a smile, "He can fix almost anything!"

   "That's pretty cool. Ya, I'm not very good at that kind of stuff. Wish I was. So yeah, call him, and if he is not available and you need help, call me and I can try to help you out."

   "Okay, thanks. That's good to know. Alrighty then, I'm kinda in a rush right now, so I'll talk to you later, okay?"

   "Sure! Look forward to that. See ya."

   With that, she hung up. Then, he immediately remembered what had just happened to him. He looked down at the blue Post-It Note that was in his hand. He was still in shock. At that point, he didn't care about visiting Kaitlin's Lab, he only cared about what this note meant. He picked up his phone again and dialed 911. He had decided to call the cops.

   "911, what is your emergency?" And woman on the other end of he phone asked him.

   "Umm, hello. I am at the Science Lab of California right now, and I have just found something that is very suspicious. I don't know if this is fake or what, but I am about to freak out right now because this is very suspicious." Coby replied running his left hand through his hair in worry.

   "Okay, can I ask who you are?"

   "Yes, my name is Coby Smith."

   "Okay, thank you. So this is your situation, correct me if I'm wrong. Your name is Coby Smith, and you are at the Science Lab of California right now. And your emergency is that you think you have found something that is very suspicious. Is that correct?"

   "Yes, every bit of that is correct."

   "Okay, can I ask what the item is that is so suspicious?"

   "The item is a blue Post-It Note that says in big bold letters: Kaitlin Keen's Death Was Not An Accident."

"Okay, who is Kaitlin Keen?"

"She was my wife, until she died."

"How did she die?"

To him, the person on the other end of the phone was starting to sound like a little four year old who asks tons of questions. With a sigh, he responded,"About a year ago, I got a call from her work, the Science Lab of California, saying that she died from a "scientific accident". But,now that I found this note, I'm starting to believe that's not so true."

   "Okay listen, I am sending two police men to the Science Lab of California to come to you and help you, okay?"

   "Okay,"

   "All they are going to do is ask you some simple questions, like I did. I'm telling you this so that you will now what to expect. Are you okay with all of this?"

"Yes. Please send them as quickly as possible."

"I will do my best. Thank you for calling 911. The cops will be arriving shortly."

Then, the lady hung up. After that phone call, he decided that he was not going to go to work that day. He hated taking the day off, but he had to make an exception for that day. About 10 minutes later, the cops arrived. At first, they couldn't find Coby and were about to leave. But seconds before they left, Coby ran out of Kaitlin's Lab and to the two cops.

"Wait! Don't leave! I'm Coby Smith!" Coby shouted.

"There you are, is everything alright?" One of the cops asked calmly.

"Umm... no. Here is the note I found in my wife's Lab." He handed one of the cops note he had found.

The cops examined the note for a few seconds the said, "Yep, this sure is a note on a Blue-Post It Note."

There was an awkward silence for about ten seconds before Coby said, "And your point is?"

"Well son, after we have examined this note, we both well know that this is fake. Either it was a prank that someone wrote, or you wrote it to try to be funny."

Coby could not believe what the cop had just said, "You think I would joke about my wife's death? We both know that death is not a laughing matter, sir."

"Oh believe me son, I darn well know that this is not a laughing matter. If that was my wife, I wouldn't even grin about her death."

"Same here, sir. But what I do not agree with is that you do not think this is serious, because I can tell you right now that this is real," Coby said with his anger level rising by the minute, "I mean, if you don't think this is real, and I say this with all due respect, why are you here right now?"

The cop was speechless. Then he replied, "Excuse me? Son, this may be real, but I know for a fact that this is fake."

"Oh really? You know what I think is fake? Your reasoning."

Coby could see the policeman's face start to turn red. Then the cop started shouting, "WHAT DO YOU THINK I AM? YOUR YOUNGER BROTHER OR SOMETHING? BECAUSE I CAN TELL YOU SOMETHING RIGHT NOW, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SPEAK TO A POLICE OFFICER LIKE THAT!"

Coby said nothing for a few seconds. Then he replied, "I'm sorry, but you have to understand, I said that out of anger. I'm sorry. I'm just under a lot of pressure right now. But please, explain your reasons for why you think this note is a fake."

The cop sighed, "Listen son, I think this note is fake because why would a criminal leave a note saying the truth of a crime in the scene of the crime. Please, tell me why you think a criminal would do that."

Coby said nothing, he didn't know what to say.

"Come on, amuse me son. What's your rebuttal? What's your reasoning?"

Coby still was speechless. After a few seconds, he replied, "Because, you have to trust me. I know this is fake. I didn't put it there. When I got a call from this building telling me that my wife was killed in a "scientific accident", the person who was calling me said almost nothing about how she died. All they said was that she died in an accident, then they ended the call. I didn't ask about more details about her death because I was in shock, as anyone would have been. Tell me that isn't suspicious at all. Tell me please."

The cop replied with one of the only things that Coby did not want to hear, "I don't believe you because of this reason, and this reason only. In the cop world, we don't rely on trust, we only rely on proof."

And with that, the two cops turned around, and left the building. Coby was, once again, in shock. He stared at the door, as if he was waiting for the cops to change their minds and come back. But they never did. Coby felt as if he had lost all of his hope. Then, all of he sudden, he fainted. If the cops couldn't help, who could?