//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 "Red Hearts, Red Wine" // Story: Equestria Noir Case 21 "Blood is Thicker than Wine" // by Jacoboby1 //------------------------------// Chapter 3 “Red Wine, Red Hearts” “Right, thank you,” Twilight said as she hung up the phone for the hundredth time today. She sighed and informed me, “I’ve checked all of Storm’s and Grapes’ usual dating spots, according to just about everypony I called, they weren’t there.” “I think I’ve found some luck on the bottles,” I said, setting down the sale’s records. “Turns out that Maribell and Tree Binder both bought the wine before hoof.” “Any luck on contacting their families about this whole blackmail business?” Twilight said, writing down some of the information. “I called Tree Binder’s family,” I said. “Got an answer from a rather careless mother. Turns out he was living in her basement ever since he left high school. She got him the job to get him out.” I shook my head. “Remind me to keep Spike from setting anything up in the basement then,” Twilight said. “What about Maribell?” “Her parents are some rich earth ponies from Bronoto,” I explained. “They cried and yelled for hours about their ‘little pretty princess’ getting killed. After they finally calmed down they explained that Maribell was hired on for public relations reasons.” “So that they could show their family is actually contributing to society?” Twilight asked. “I’d like to see Blueblood get down in the dirt for PR reasons.” It’s amazing what nobles will do to preserve their reputation. I went on, “I called Parsley's family last, now that was very interesting. According to his sister, his only surviving relative, he’d been keeping in touch with both Tree Binder, and Maribell. She didn’t overhear anything about Grapes’ apparent blackmail, though.” “Neither did the other two families?” Twilight asked, looking at me. “Nope,” I said, shaking my head. “Apparently they all agreed that they came home angry about being reprimanded. Maribell even threatened to sue Grapes for misconduct or some other bullshit, but the case never got off the ground.” “So where does that leave us?” Twilight asked. “We know that Maribell and Tree Binder bought the wine bottles. You think it was for celebration?” “They were obviously doing something devious,” I said, looking at the chemical bottle. “The question is, what was Parsley doing with this? Might explain why he was airborne?” “Private, maybe somepony killed them to cover up the sabotage,” Twilight suggested. “They could’ve used the two wine bottles to knock out the victims and then Parsley could’ve left in the struggle. Then he got killed by the murderer pulling him down onto the weather vane.” “That would make sense,” I said, “but these syringes still bug me. Forceps said this was most likely how they died, but what was heart medicine doing in the trash by the bunkhouse?” “Our killer probably used it to kill the first two victims,” Twilight deduced. “Maybe if we can figure out what kind of heart condition they're used for, then maybe we can narrow our list down to just everypony who’s a unicorn, hates Grapes, and has a bad heart.” “That makes it what, about, several hundred, any luck on getting Pave Diamond on the phone?” I asked. “No, that secretary wouldn’t even let me say my name unless it had some title attached to it. I had to call myself, the illustrious student of Princess Celestia,” Twilight replied, imitating an upper crust accent. I chuckled a little at Twilight’s impression and then asked, “So, did she let you talk to her?” “Nope, she said that ‘Miss Diamond is too busy to deal with some royal brat.’ Who in the hay does she think she is?” Twilight huffed. “I don’t know how Celestia puts up with this nonsense.” Riing! I picked up the phone on my desk and answered it, “Private Eye Detective Agency…” “Aren’t ya gonna say it, sonny?” I heard Forceps’ voice on the other end. “No.” “Come on! Say it!” I sighed and said, “Solving crimes in the blink of an eye…” I heard cheering in the background along with some groans. Apparently I earned somepony money. At least this was better than Forceps calling me in the middle of his “examinations” with Granny Smith. I still shudder at that memory. “Anyway,” Forceps went on, “we examined the bodies and turns out the cause of death was in fact, an overdose of Calcium Channel Blockers.” “Somepony can die of heart medication overdose?” I asked. “Anything that can heal can kill in the right doses, sonny. One guy I know died from downing a whole bunch of cough syrup.” “So the cause of death was with Tree Binder and Maribell, what about Parsley?” “Again, this guy is interesting. Turns out, he died two hours after the other two.” “That doesn’t make any sense,” I said shaking my head. “Unless somepony else killed them. Did forensics find anything?” “Nada,” Forceps answered. “However we did find out that the wine bottles were opened before they were used as blunt instruments. Turns out that somepony was trying to put a bunch of nasty gunk into them. Destroying the taste and making the wine become basically grape flavored water.” So this was definitely a sabotage run. Twilight’s theory may not be too far off. The question is though, why was Parsley killed two hours later? Would the killer really stick around for two hours expecting Parsley to show up? It doesn’t make sense for the killer to stick around that long. “Alright,” I said, “Keep uniforms combing the area, I’m going to look into who could’ve gotten a hold of the syringes.” I hung up and explained everything to Twilight. Twilight put a hoof on her chin and said, “I’d hate to go behind Grapes’ back like this, but if we don’t iron out her alibi then the courts will have a field day with her.” “Where should we start?” I asked, crossing my forelegs in thought. “She couldn’t have just disappeared last night.” “If the murderer used the syringes, then we should probably look into that. I do have a friend who works at the hospital who may be able to help us,” Twilight said, putting a hoof on her chin. __________________________________________________________ Ponyville’s hospital was rather small compared to some of the others I’ve been too. It was only one building with a rather small staff. I guess that was all a small town really needed. We entered the waiting room to find it was largely deserted. Twilight tapped the bell at the front desk and the caramel colored unicorn that treated me entered. He gave us a smile and said, “Ah, Twilight and Private, it’s good to see you both. I hope you’re keeping up with your medications, Private.” Back during the whole Cardinal case I got caught in a fire and almost died by inhaling smoke. Twilight saved me and I had to spend weeks in the hospital in recovery. Once I was out the doc had me take some pills to help me breathe better. Luckily, I hadn't gotten caught in any fires since then. I gave him a nod and replied, “I’m fine, Doc, no jumping into burning buildings since we last met.” He gave a slight nod and wrote something down on his clipboard. “I’ll still need you to come in for your check up pretty soon. Just to make sure there is no long term damage.” I sighed at the prospect of coming back here. Twilight just smiled slightly and asked, “Is Redheart in? I’d like to speak to her about something.” “She’s just finishing up with another patient,” he answered, “I’ll go get her.” We sat in the waiting room and I felt the need to ask “Why Redheart? Couldn’t we have just asked the doctor himself?” “I just think Redheart will be easier to convince to help,” Twilight said, reading an issue of Ponies magazine. “She always had a strong sense of responsibility. If she helped a murderer then I’m thinking she would be willing to help us.” I started sifting through my own issue of Ponies magazine. I raised an eyebrow at one article. Adamus Eye, C.E.O. of Eye Enterprises has recently come under fire as his health has been brought into question. Numerous workers have noticed that Adamus has been distant, acting agitated and short tempered to his fellow business ponies. Adamus himself refused to comment on the exact nature of his health. However, he did tell us that the rumors were quote “unfounded” and “ridiculous.” Numerous sources in the business world have stated that investments in Eye Enterprises have gone down significantly over the past ten years. One anonymous source has stated that this may be the cause of the health concerns. Adamus’ doctors declined from giving a comment themselves. Adamus is the father of three sons Irenius, Lazarus and Slantus Eye. Our reporters were unable to locate Slantus for a comment. Lazarus, having recently been jailed for business fraud had this to say: “My father is the most capable stallion I know, if his health was truly a concern, I would know about it.” Irenius, famous for being the father of detective Private Eye, was unable to comment on the concerns. He has stated recently however, that if Adamus was truly in danger. He would do everything in his power to aid in whatever is troubling him. Adamus’ wife Idrena is currently traveling the world. She too wouldn’t comment on the status of his health. Her current whereabouts are unknown at the time of this article’s publishing. Details on what Adamus could be suffering from are- I stopped reading it after a bit. I moved on to look at an ad for some new movie coming out. Was Adamus really having health problems? This could hurt his business if articles like this become common. For all my hatred for Adamus he was still my grandfather. I still felt a twinge of worry that he may be in trouble. I guess I don’t hold as much hatred as I used to. The door opened and a white earth pony walked in. She was rather plain looking with a pink mane tied in a bun and out of the way. A cutie mark of a red cross was on her flank as well as the Nurse’s cap she had on her head. She walked to us with a small smile on her face and said, “Twilight, it’s good to see again.” “Good to see you too, Redheart,” she said as we both walked to her. For some reason I couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at Red Heart. Her blue eyes looked at me and she raised her own pink eyebrow and asked, “And you are?” I shook my head and snapped out of it. “Sorry, I’m Detective Private Eye, we’re investigating a few murders that happened over at Grapevine Hills.” “Murders?” Red Heart gasped, shaking her head. “Unbelievable how this keeps happening. Here I thought Ponyville would be a peaceful town to spend my career in.” “We were hoping you could tell us who would need these,” Twilight said as she held out the syringes in her magic. Red Heart gave us both a look and replied, “You know this breaches Doctor-patient confidentiality.” “Red Heart,” Twilight said, her look earnest, “this could help us find the murderer. I know it’s a sacred trust you hold with you patients. However, if one of them is a murderer then we need to know.” Red Heart closed her eyes, I could tell she was pondering it for a minute. After about two minutes she sighed and said, “Alright, I’ll look at the records and see what I can find. I don’t want anypony to think that I had a hoof in murdering somepony.” “Thanks, Red Heart,” Twilight said with a smile. “This could really help us.” Red Heart took the syringes and then her eyebrows raised. “Where did you get these?” she asked. “They were the murder weapons,” I explained. “The killer murdered the victims by overdosing them with the drugs.” “This is medicine used to combat Rooster Crow syndrome,” she said, looking at the labels. “It’s a disease that effects the heart, happens when somepony overworks and the heart can’t handle it. It happens a lot with earth pony and unicorn hybrids.” “Why’s that?” Twilight asked. “It’s genetic,” Red Heart explained. “A unicorn’s body is meant for channeling magic as well as blood. As a result it needs a clearer path and that’s why unicorns aren’t as physically strong as earth ponies. They don’t have as many muscles obstructing the path. There are exceptions obviously, but most of the time the adrenaline of working as an earth pony causes the unicorn heart to not be able to handle the work load.” “So these help get the blood flowing?” I asked, looking at the syringe. “Exactly,” Red Heart said. “It’s rare but this disease usually occurs in farming unicorns. Their parents are usually earth ponies.” “Wait a minute,” Twilight said. “Of course! Red Heart, did Sour Grapes come in here yesterday?” Red Heart tapped her chin in thought and then said “Brown unicorn, violet eyes and glasses?” “That’s her,” Twilight said with a nod. Red Heart nodded and replied, “Yes she did come in here with her coltfriend. She was suffering from an irregular heartbeat that woke her up in the middle of the night. That’s one of the side effects of the drug. She was very stubborn and refused to seek treatment until her coltfriend made her. She came in here kicking and screaming.” She gestured to a spot on the wall and continued, “That is the result of one of her magic bolts going off during the struggle to get her stable.” Grapes was here! That explains why she was so guarded. She didn’t want anypony to find out she was having health problems. I looked to Red Heart and said, “Thanks for the help; we’ll take it from here.” “I leave her to you two then,” she said with a small smile, and then she gave me a look. “You remind me of somepony, I can’t quite put it where though.” She seemed familiar as well. Just who does she remind me of? That doesn’t matter though, right now, we had to find Grapes. _______________________________________________________ We walked the path back to the vineyard just as Celestia’s sun was heading towards the horizon. I noticed that Twilight was quiet, I could tell she was still thinking about Grapes’ involvement in all this. As we reached the top of a hill path away from the main town I decided I couldn’t stand moping Twilight anymore. I fell into pace beside her and said, “Twi, we should stop for a minute.” She gave me a look and then stopped. Sighing, she said, “I’m sorry, Private. I just haven’t had a personal friend get caught up in something like this. Not since Shining was accused.” I have nothing but sour memories of that case. I knew dwelling on that wasn’t going to help her. So, I reached up a hoof and gently started stroking the back of her ear. Twilight’s eyes immediately became half lidded and she leaned into my stroking. If there was one way to calm Twilight down it was this. She let out a sigh as my gentle hoof stroked her favorite spot. “Ooh Private,” she said with a smile as her eyes closed. “Just when I think it’s all hopeless, you pull something like this to calm me down.” “Hey,” I said, laying a kiss on her nose, “I gotta have learned something in all my time with you.” “I do feel a little better,” she said, a small smile coming to her face. “Well, I do know how to make you smile more,” I said with an evil smirk. I discovered about two dates ago that Twilight had a very particular spot that was always ticklish. I found it out when she accidentally tripped while going down a hill one night. As I was helping her up my hoof touched her belly and… “Private don’t you dare!” She glared as suddenly I gripped her hooves with my magic and she landed on her back on a nearby bench. Before she could get up I ran my hoof along the soft fur of her belly. She started giggling and laughing as I tickled her. “Private! Hehehe! No fair! Hehe Stop!!” I smiled down at her as her smile widened and tears came up from my relentless tickling. Finally I let up and she breathed a little as she smiled at me. I laid a kiss on her soft belly, a soft giggling escaping Twilight. I looked at her and my expression softened. “Twi, you’re constantly helping me feel better when a case gets personal. I figured, I should return the favor,” I said. Twilight got up off the bench and laid a kiss on my cheek. “Thanks Private, I needed to laugh a little,” she replied. I smiled and watched as Twilight’s tail caressed my side as she walked on. I followed her. Twi, I don’t think I’d ever get tired of moments like this. I could spend a lifetime with this mare… ______________________________________________________________ Twilight and I had just walked into the Vineyard proper. There we saw Sour Grapes trotting about, checking the baskets, so they wouldn't be too heavy to carry, making sure that everypony had plenty of water, or took a break when they needed. "Good work, everypony," she said, as she helped Earshot carry the basket to the scales. "I'm sorry for the extra work, but for some reason, these vines felt extra productive, this season." As she ordered her crew I couldn’t help but notice how tired the chocolate colored unicorn was. Sweat was pouring down her head and clinging to her coat. She was breathing a little shallower. Red Heart’s idea of the heart condition looked spot on. I noticed Sirocco pass by as she was doing some calculations. I walked to her and gestured to Grapes. “Has she been working all day?” I asked. Sirocco looked at Grapes with a small smile on her face. She replied, "Grapes works every day. Some ponies do not like her supervising, but she does it because she cares. She makes sure we have plenty of water, and take breaks so we will not overwork. We make sure she does the same." "However, it is still a lot of work, this season," the tall mare said thoughtfully. "We have all been working a lot of hours, because of this particularly fruitful crop." Twilight gave a frown to Grapes and we both walked to her. Twilight spoke up first "Grapes, do you have two minutes?" "Yeah. Let me get some lemonade, first, okay?" Grapes said before she turned to the rest of the crew. "Great job, everypony. Let's wrap up for the night." There were tired-sounding murmurs of agreement, and they started bringing up their baskets. Grapes went inside, and came out with tray with a pitcher of lemonade and three glasses. She poured three glasses of the cool yellow liquid, and quickly drank half of her own glass. She sighed, wiping her brow with a foreleg. "All right... What's up, you two? Any news?" she asked tiredly. Twilight closed her eyes and then said, "Grapes, we know where you went last night." "You do, do you?" Grapes asked, raising an eyebrow. I could tell we were treading on dangerous ground. “Red Heart said you came last night with Storm," I said for Twilight. "We can easily look up any medical records to prove it, unless you wanna come clean." Grapes’ face slowly turned to one of pure rage. "Really? Come clean about what? Why do you need to go into my private business, anyway? Oh, right, I'm a murder suspect," Grapes said with sharper than usual sarcasm. "Even though you could probably go to any number of ponies that have worked for me in the past, and have then tell you that I wouldn't do such a thing. Tartarus, even that Fritter colt went on to become a well-known food critic, and credits me with his success." Sour," Twilight said, trying to sound firm "We know all about it! We know you went to the hospital last night because you had a heart condition!" "You know? What'd you do? Go to every place in Ponyville, and ask them if I'd been there?" Grapes asked, sounding irate. "Red Heart told us she treated you last night!" Twilight shouted loudly, finally fed up. "Do you want me to get Storm here to ask him if that's the truth?" That seemed to do it. Grapes took a small sip of her lemonade and met Twilight’s eyes. My marefriend’s expression softened at the look. "All right, all right," Grapes uttered sounding frustrated. "Yes, I went to the hospital, last night. I had a reaction to my medication, and it scared both Stormy and myself..." Twilight's face softened and she said, "How long have you been fighting it?" "It's been going on for a while," Grapes said. "I've had it under control. Just had a bit of a build-up." Twilight's face showed a bit of guilt and she said, "I'm sorry; I just wanted to clear your alibi. This was the best way I could think of to do it." I reached over and put a hoof on her back, gently rubbing it to keep her from getting overwhelmed. Twilight was calmed down and took a bit of the lemonade. Grapes sighed. "I hate to let anypony know... It seems that they just use it as an excuse to tell me what I can and can't do," she said, rubbing a hoof against her forehead. I gave her a smile and said "There's no shame in admitting you can't do something to your friends. I'm sure if anypony here found out they would never think less of you." "She's never been one to be overdon', lad," Squall said. We all looked up and saw that Sirocco, Firestormer, Ice Storm, Squall and Storm were all there. From their expressions, I guess they heard the whole thing. However, they didn’t seem to think any less of her. True, we'll worry," Queenie said with a smile. "but you're our friend. We would not have thought less of you, and your burden would have been shared." "Yea even though you had Stormy, you've got us, too," Firestormer said. "You've helped us all, a lot. We should have the chance to return the favor." "I find myself in agreement. You are as much a part of the Storm Riders as we are your employees," Sirocco asserted. Grapes blushed, and said sheepishly, "Sorry, guys. I should have trusted you all. Then again, you don't like being coddled, either." Finally Stormfront walked from the crowd and to her. The massive pegasus gave a warm smile. "I'm always here for you, Grapes," he said, nuzzling her. "but t you already knew that." Just as I was getting caught up in the moment I heard a yell come from the direction of the Everfree forest. Everypony's eyes went wide. Grapes leapt to her hooves, and everypony there turned. "That was Earshot!" she yelped. I nodded springing into action "You guys get the police, Twilight and I will head towards Everfree and see what's happening!" With that Twilight and I broke into a gallop as Grapes began ordering her crew. "Firestormer, get the police,” she ordered. “Stormy, scout the area, where in Tartarus is Dusty?" "Destemming shed," Queenie supplied. "Okay, grab him, and bring him along. We're not letting them barrel head-first into this, especially in the Everfree," Grapes added. "Should not somepony stay here?" Sirocco asked. "All right,” Grapes relented, “I'll go on ahead. Stormy's gone to scout around, and I'll join Twilight and Private. Keep an eye on things here, and send the Police, once they arrive," Grapes said, galloping off. Grapes caught up with us as we ran towards Everfree. I gave her a look and said, "You should let us handle this, Grapes" Twilight gave a smirk and said, "Don't try and deter her, that's like telling Applejack to wear a frilly dress." "Earshot is in danger," Grapes inserted firmly, galloping along. "No way you're going to keep me from helping." I nodded and led the way. The three of us galloped towards the screaming and crossed into Everfree. I could see Stormfront flying overhead. With any luck, this should help us get the drop on them. I only hope that Earshot is okay… _________________________________________________________ The sun had just set by the time the screaming stopped. Everfree forest was as cold and eerie as ever. Twilight stood close to me as we trekked through it. I always felt unnerved whenever we came here. This place just... wasn't natural... Stormfront came in for a landing. "I found him. Earshot's being held by this masked pony in a clearing, up ahead," he said. I nodded and quietly crept into the bushes. I heard shouting and saw a pony clad entirely in black clothing with a ski mask covering his face. I noticed Earshot was knocked out, his legs and wings tied up. The masked pony was a unicorn judging by the horn, and he was talking to another pony in the bushes. It was so dark I couldn't make who it was out... The masked pony growled, "You said it would be an easy job! Now I'm stuck with this squealing brat." “It was supposed to be an easy job, you complete and utter twit. I should have hired somepony competent to handle this. Instead I get you," other one uttered, in a high-class Canterlotian accent. "Why did you have me come here, anyway? If the true rulers of Equestria were in charge, this horrid forest would have been razed." I looked over at Storm and gestured for him to get up in the trees as the conversation went on. Stormfront nodded, and he flapped those huge wings silently and ascended. "How was I supposed to know that they would turn their backs on the deal?" the masked pony snarled "A twit hires more twits. I told you not to use anypony but unicorns, you idiot," the voice uttered, dripping in contempt. "They would not feel solidarity with their fellow lesser beings." "Whoever's doing the talking sounds awfully familiar," Grapes whispered. The masked pony went on, “All I asked for is that you help restore my family's reputation! You realize what could happen to it if somepony connects me to you?” "Blame your slut of a Mother, but you've done no wrong, until now," the other voice said contemptuously. “You think yourself so grand?" he spat. "Your line is hardly so pure itself..." I decided that I had enough, I shouted, "STORM, NOW!!!" The massive pegasus dropped on the masked pony like a dead weight. The two struggled as the masked one kicked at Stormfront. His size kept him down, however. I then saw the other unicorn running off into the forest. I yelled at Twilight, "Take care of Earshot! Grapes, you're with me!" We took off after the mysterious pony. "Right behind you, Private," Grapes cried, galloping after the fleeing figure. Luna's moon managed to provide just enough light for us to see our way forward. However, it wasn’t enough that I could see the figure. I followed the figure's outlined form and could just make out that it was a unicorn. "Argh... You should have Twilight come with you," Grapes panted, as we ran after the fleeing figure. "She could teleport and end this chase." "I wasn't thinking that far ahead to be honest," I panted back as we continued our pursuit. Suddenly the figure turned around and her its horn glowed a bright white. The horn fired a magical bolt that hit me square in the chest, Grapes was so distracted by my crumpling to the ground that she soon got hit as well. I looked up as I landed on the ground with a thud. Just as the unicorn's horn flashed again I caught a glimpse of smug looking feminine blue eyes. "Ow... ow ow ow owow..." Grapes panted, then took a deep breath, and let it out. "Gotta calm down, don't want..." I slowly got up and walked over to Grapes. "You alright?" I asked, gently touching a hoof to the spot I got hit in. It didn't cause any physical damage but it sure stung like hell. "Got hit by a magical bolt," Grapes said, starting to sound better. "Sort of got my heart to skipping beats." I helped her to her hooves and I spoke gently, "You take it easy and head back to Storm and Twilight. I'm going to take a look around to see if she dropped anything." "All right, got to see if Earshot's okay too," she said, as she headed back toward the clearing. I looked around the path and saw something glinting off a nearby tree branch. I gave it a quizzical look. It was an elaborate diamond brooch with what looked like a family crest on it. It had your typical heraldic shield, with diamonds in all four quadrants, and a ribbon or scroll at the bottom with a motto in what looked like old Equestrian. "Looks like our suspect is nobility of some sort. Better ask Twilight about it when we get back to the office," I muttered to myself, pocketing the brooch and walking back to the clearing. There I found Storm and Grapes untying Earshot. Twilight looked up from the bushes and her head was a little bowed. "He got away, he dropped a flash bomb and I couldn't see, he must've teleported away," she said dejectedly. I put a hoof on her shoulder and said, "It's alright Twilight, we still got our lead." Earshot was slowly regaining consciousness. Grapes looked at him with a worried expression. "Are you okay, Earshot?" she asked. "Yeah, I'm fine, now," the Night-Pony replied. “We're glad to hear that," I said, walking to the colt with Twilight "Good thinking using that voice of yours to let ponies know what was going on." "Well, I wanted get help, and that was the quickest way to do it," Earshot said with a smile on his face. I then watched as Storm and Grapes simply hugged the colt. Any other pony would think they were a family themselves. I gained a newfound respect for Grapes right then. Grapes gave the Night Pony another smile and said, “Let’s go home.” I watched the three of them leave. Earshot was riding on Stormfront’s back laughing a little at being with his family. I felt deeply compelled to protect this, this picture of unadulterated love and care. Whoever thought they would destroy it with their selfish greed, Was going to answer to me….