DISCLAIMER: Did I mention that I don't own Charlie's Angels or any of
the characters associated with said show? They belong to lots of other people,
including Aaron Spelling - and Charlie. I'm also not making any profit from this
in any way, shape or form. Disclaimer finished.
SUMMARY:
The Angels go undercover at a flower shop to investigate a
rash of murders.
"Good morning, Angels," came the voice from the speaker box, "Bosley."
"Morning, Charlie."
"We've got a real killer this time, Angels."
Jill, Kelly and Sabrina focused on the far wall as the view screen came into place. Bosley inserted the appropriate slides as Charlie began his narrative.
"Angels, this is Mary Whitaker." A slide of a gorgeous brunette clad in a skimpy bikini appeared on the screen. "And Elizabeth Roper." Another brunette with long hair and a nurse's uniform appeared next. "And, lastly, Sherry Underwood." A slide of another brunette, wearing a stewardess outfit materialized. "All three were recently found murdered in their homes. The only common thread linking the three of them together is that they recently received roses from this place," Bosley clicked the remote, bringing up a slide of a floral shop, "Cupid's Flowers. Unfortunately, the police were unable to obtain enough evidence to constitute a search warrant. And, although they're positive someone at Cupid's is responsible, they've hit a brick wall."
"That's where we come in, right, Charlie?" asked Sabrina.
"Correct, Angel. You'll be going undercover as a temporary employee hired to help with the Valentine's Day rush. This man," A slide of a handsome blonde man with a large shirt collar and even larger gold necklace covering his hairy chest smiled back at the Angels. "Is your boss, Beau Cupid."
"Beau Cupid?" Sabrina's voice cracked. "You've got to be kidding me, right?"
"I'm afraid not, Angel; That's his real name. As far as he's concerned, you were hired through the temporary service he does business with."
"What's my role, Charlie?" asked Jill, batting her eyes at the speaker box.
"You, my dear, are going undercover as a flower connoisseur. Beau Cupid grows his own roses, and you and Bosley are interested buyers, looking to take his business to an international level."
"And, you Kelly - "
" - Let me guess," she interrupted. "All of the murdered women seem to have one thing in common."
"Nothing gets past you, Kelly."
"They're all dead?" guessed Jill.
"And, all brunettes, Jill. That's why Kelly is going in as a customer looking for a gift for her new boyfriend." A slight pause. "Good luck, Angels. I'm counting on you."
"We're on it, Charlie!" reassured the Angels, grabbing their purses, already heading for the door.
"It's been a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Cupid." Bosley firmly shook the hand of the man they'd seen on the slides earlier. "We'll be in touch as soon as we've reviewed the prospectus."
"Thank you, Mr. Bosworth. Mrs. Bosworth." Beau Cupid bent low, kissing Jill's hand. "I look forward to - " He paused, looking Jill directly in the eye. " - going international with you."
Jill tittered appropriately, flashed her dazzling smile at him before leaving the office, strolling through the shop. She paused at the counter, speaking with the brunette wearing a green apron. A large mound of roses lay on the counter in front of her. She was using a set of shears to cut the stem of each rose at a right angle, taking a moment between each cut to push her oversized glasses farther up her nose.
"You're doing a remarkable job at that," Jill said, leaning against the counter. "Have you been at it long?"
"About three hours now," Sabrina grunted, through gritted teeth.
"Ms. Duncan is helping us out with the Valentine's rush." A smallish man with a receding hairline and bifocals came up beside the two women speaking at the counter. "If she does a good job, we may keep her on at the end of the season. Cupid is looking to expand, you know." He looked pointedly at Sabrina.
She made a showing of bowing her head, pretending to look embarrassed at the chastisement. "Yes, Mr. Rogers."
Convinced that he had averted a potential slacker-situation, Mr. Rogers moved away from the counter. "I'm going to the storeroom to get more supplies," he said over his shoulder. "Make sure you keep after those roses. We've got twenty more bushels to go before quitting time."
"Yes, Mr. Rogers."
Out of the corner of her eye, Sabrina watched the diminutive man leave. She let out a deep sigh, leaned against the counter. Jill mustered up a sympathetic look for her fellow angel. The bell above the door rang, signaling another customer's presence inside the shop. Both women glanced up to see Kelly enter the building. Another employee, a young man with long, red hippie hair approached her. Both sleuths watched discreetly as he interacted with their partner.
"Ready to go?" Bosley asked, joining Jill at the counter.
"Definitely." Jill stepped away just as the storeroom door opened again. Mr. Rogers approached, carrying another bundle of roses in his arms. "Good luck," she mouthed to Sabrina, before rushing to catch up with Bosley.
"Progress report, Angels," came Charlie's distinctive voice from the speaker box.
Bosley sat in his customary chair behind his desk, sipping at a bourbon. Jill was lounged on the sofa, bare feet curled beneath her, a fashion magazine on her lap.
"Bosley and I made contact with Beau Cupid, Charlie. And, quite frankly, I just can't see him as the sending-roses-then-strangling-my-love-interests type."
"Did you reach that conclusion based on his bright white smile, Jill?" Bosley asked, "Or, because the two of you use the same hair dye?"
"Bosley, Jill," Charlie broke in. "Who do you both like on our suspect list?"
"Glad you asked, Charlie. I sent over a file this morning." Bosley snickered as he heard a folder being opened, papers shuffling. "We've narrowed it to Beau Cupid, owner of Cupid's Flowers. Stan Rogers, manager of the shop. And, Ted Wilder, part-time stocker and delivery driver."
"We've eliminated the rest of the staff as possible suspects, based on schedules, opportunity and access."
"Good work, Angel." A slight pause. "What's your take, Sabrina? Kelly?"
"Sabrina's still at the flower shop, Charlie," Bosley answered. "Seems there's a lot of overtime work during the Valentine holiday."
"I hope she's being careful," the speaker box crackled. "Somebody there is definitely a dangerous character."
"Don't worry, Charlie." Jill glanced up from her magazine long enough to reassure the boss. "She's wearing her ugly glasses disguise and checking in every couple of hours."
"And Kelly?" prompted Charlie.
"Is right here, Charlie." Kelly sauntered in the office, carefully closing the door behind her. She crossed the room, settling down on the couch beside Jill. She flipped her hair to one side, brushing fingers through luxurious brunette locks. "And, it looks like I've stirred up some attention."
"You've gotten a bite?" asked Bosley, excitedly.
"Two, actually," Kelly confirmed. At the questioning looks, Kelly expanded. "I received not one, but two, deliveries from Cupid's Flowers this morning. Neither one of them had cards."
"Two?" Jill looked concerned. "All the other crime scenes had only one dozen roses."
"She's right, Angel." Charlie confirmed from his speaker box. "According to the police reports, the attacks all took place within twenty-four hours of receiving the delivery."
"Meaning, our guy will strike tonight," concluded Bosley.
"Great." Kelly gathered up her purse, "Guess it's time for this victim to go home and get dolled up for a strangler." She gave a rueful smile, grabbed her keys off the coffee table. Flashing a smile, she headed towards the door.
It was dark by the time a crowbar was inserted into the frame around the window. It jiggled a bit, loosening the lock. With a small creak, the crowbar was used to pry the window the rest of the way open.
Two gloved hands appeared on the windowsill. With a quick grunt, the intruder hoisted himself into through the window, landing in the hallway with a soft thud. Crouching low, he crept along the hall, edging towards the bedroom. He reached out, slowly turning the knob, opening the door just a crack.
He peered inside. It was dark, the only light to be seen was from the moon, its beams streaming in through the cracks in the blind. She was there. Laying on her side, sleeping peacefully, the shallow rise and fall of her chest convincing him that she was lost in her dreams. Adjusting the fingertips of his gloves, he crept closer. Pausing at the edge of the bed, he stood there, watching her.
A lovely brunette. Hair falling softly about her shoulders, caressing her flesh, the strap of her silk nightgown. He reached out, fingers reverently touching the strands. As his fingers made contact, his eyes flickered closed, he exhaled loudly. Both hands moved, fingers grazing along the tender flesh of her lean neck.
"Hold it!"
The room was suddenly awash in light. He blinked, momentarily blinded, covering both eyes with his hands. When he was able to see again, he looked up, seeing the brunette with short hair - the one from the shop - casually sitting in a nearby rocker, revolver pointed at him. Behind him, he heard another gun being cocked. The reflection in the bedside mirror revealed it to be a blonde, also recently seen at the shop. He reached up, adjusting his thick bifocals. Then, a sadistic smile on his face, he lowered his hands, reaching for the brunette's throat again.
"Don't even think it." Came the soft voice. The brunette lay in the bed, fully awake now. She held a gun in her hand, confidently leveled at his crotch.
Rolling his eyes, he raised both hands in surrender.
"Mr. Rogers. I would have bet it was the delivery driver," Bosley said. "I never did trust those long-haired hippie types."
"Oh, Bosley!" Jill laughed, walking out of Kelly's house with Bosley in tow. They were going to ride to the station with the police officers to see about processing Stanley Rogers through the system.
Sabrina lingered behind, waiting until the last officer was done taking Kelly's statement. She closed the door behind him as he left, handed Kelly a mug of coffee. Wordlessly, Kelly sat down in a nearby chair, pulling her robe closed as she sipped from her mug.
"Hey, you okay?" Sabrina leaned against the door, arms folded over her chest as she smacked her chewing gum.
"Huh?" Kelly asked, looking up, focusing on Sabrina. "Oh, yeah. I'll be fine. I'm just trying to sort it all out in my mind, you know?"
Sabrina nodded, taking it all in. She stayed silent, leaning against the doorframe for long moments. Then, finally, straightening up, she nervously adjusted her turtleneck. "Yeah, well - " A smack of her gum, a gesture towards the door. " - I'm going to get going, then."
She waited for Kelly's response. When there wasn't one, she shrugged, turned the knob. She was halfway out the door when she felt Kelly's hand on her arm, stopping her. Sabrina turned back around, eyeing her expectantly.
"I know I'm still kind of out of it and all," she began.
"That's okay, Kel. You'll be fine come Monday morning."
"I've been thinking. Stanley only sent one set of roses to each of his other victims."
Sabrina shrugged. "Maybe he thought you were cuter than the rest."
"I did some sleuthing on my own this afternoon. While you were out to lunch." She forced a little half-smile as she watched for Sabrina's reaction. "I checked the receipt log for the shop. You sent the other dozen, didn't you?"
Sabrina's face visibly paled. "I - uh, I can explain." She stammered while she tried to buy some time. "I - I was trying to draw out the real strangler. You know, make him jealous by sending you some roses." She let loose an awkward giggle. "Guess my plan worked, huh?"
"Oh, pity." Kelly reached past Sabrina, turning the knob, holding the door open. "I was sort of hoping that maybe you were interested." Sabrina's mouth dropped open, her gum threatening to fall out. Kelly glanced at her coyly. "You know, what with us having the entire weekend off and all." She shoved Sabrina towards the door. "See you on Monday."
Kelly turned around, slowly sauntering towards the bedroom, swinging her hips from side to side as she walked. She was certain she felt a set of eyes on her backside. She slipped her robe off her shoulders, allowing it to fall to the floor as she edged her way down the hall. Behind her, she heard the door close, the chain being latched into place. A broad smile spread over her face as she heard the sound of footsteps rushing to catch up with her.
THE END