Jaci

"Alchemy of Love"
by Belle Book

Part Three

Salem, Massachusetts, 6:30 PM EDT

	After arriving in Salem via the
C-5, the detectives had lunch and dinner
before obtaining directions to the near-
est costume shop.  They did so because
the party wasn't until after 6:00.
	Now they were inside the store,
waiting for the manager to see them.
	Jaci noticed that Chase seemed
to be lost in thought, so she touched
his shoulder.
	Chase turned to Jaci and asked,
"Yes, what is it?"
	"What's troubling you?" she ask-
ed him.
	"Am I that obvious?" he replied,
then said, "Never mind, I guess I am ve-
ry obvious, at least to you.  What is ac-
tually troubling me isn't so much what
Carmen did as what she didn't do."
	Jaci frowned.  What Carmen didn't
do was troubling Chase more than what she
did do?  What did he mean?  Then suddenly,
she frowned as she realized that Carmen
had stolen the Tale of Genji, Wagner's
score for "Tristan und Isolde", and the
First Folio, but not --
	"Rembrandt's painting, 'Man with
a Magnifying Glass'!  That's it!" she 
cried.  "It was one of Rembrandt's last 
works, done in 1668, the year before he 
died!  Carmen stole that painting the 
one time that we chased her!"
	"And she didn't steal it this
time," Chase said.  "Why didn't she?  
I mean, if she only wanted the master-
pieces that she'd stolen before, she'd 
steal the Rembrandt painting as well -- 
and do so before stealing the First 
Folio again!  But she didn't do so!  
So, what's her plan?"
	Before Jaci could think of a
good answer, the manager came toward
the detectives, saying, "Hello there.
Why have you come to my store?"
	Chase stepped forward and said,
"We're here to rent costumes.  Someone
sent us an invitation to a Costume Ball
in Salem."
	"Can you give me your names?"
asked the manager.  "Your first names
will do."
	"I'm Chase, and this is Jaci,"
Chase said, pointing to Jaci.  Turning
to Globie, he said, "He goes by the
name of Globie, this girl is named Ivy,
this boy is Zack, and this girl is na-
med Jasmine."  Globie, Ivy, Zack, and
Jasmine all nodded when they were in-
troduced.
	The manager looked at Jasmine,
then said, "I have the perfect costume
for you, Jasmine."  He then turned to
an assistant and had him take Jasmine
off somewhere.  But before the assist-
ant left with Jasmine, the detectives
agreed to meet together after receiv-
ing their costumes before trying them
on.
	Then turning to the others, he
said, "You know, about a week ago, a
woman came to me with a request.  She
wanted to know if there were any Bat-
man and Catwoman costumes around for
a man who was about 6'3" and weighed
about 150 lbs., and for a young woman
who was around 5'8" and weighed about
125 lbs.  She said that both the peo-
ple in question had auburn hair and
brown eyes.  Fortunately, I had cos-
tumes in those sizes available."
	Jaci said in surprise, "Chase
and I fit the descriptions."
	Well, then I'll show you two
the costumes, while my other assist-
ants get costumes for your friends."
	And with that, the manager 
took Chase and Jaci to show them the 
costumes, while the other detectives 
were led off by two assistants to ob-
tain costumes of their own.

***************************************************************************

Fifteen minutes later, in the dressing room area for
the women --

	Jasmine emerged from one of the
dressing rooms and looked at her costume.
	She wore a white cap, a pinkish
dress with tan sleeves, and a tan apron,
the general costume worn by Charlayne
Woodard when she played Tituba in the
1996 movie "The Crucible".  No dobut
because Jasmine herself was black and
because "The Crucible" took place in
Salem, that was why she got this par-
ticular costume.
	Jasmine stepped out the dress-
ing room entrance and waited for the
others to join her.  The guys had ag-
reed to meet the girls outside the la-
dies' dressing room after putting on
their costumes.
	She then saw Globie coming to-
ward her.  Or at least, she assumed it
to be Globie, dressed as Indiana Jones.
	"That you, Globie?" she asked.
	"Sure is," said Globie.  "Where
are the others?  I mean, the other wo-
men?  Zack and Chase are still getting
into their costumes."
	"Ivy and Jaci are also getting
into their costumes," said Jasmine, who
turned to face the entrance -- and saw
Catwoman emerge!  She stood with one
hand on the door leading to the ladies'
dressing room, the other hand on her
hip.  The woman was a bit too tall to
be Ivy, so Jasmine knew it must be Ja-
ci.
	"Wow!" said Globie.  "You look
great, Jaci!"
	"Thanks!" said Jaci, dropping
her dramatic pose immediately and join-
ing the others.  "Ivy's still getting
in her Miss Marple costume, I presume.
Where's Chase and Zack?  Getting into
their costumes, I take it?"
	Globie turned in the direction
of the men's dressing room and said,
"Yes, I think -- no, I stand corrected.
Chase and Zack are coming."
	And indeed, Jasmine could see
a tall man approaching, disguised as
Batman, and a considerably shorter
guy beside him, dressed as Sam Spade.

**************************************************************************

	Zack heard Chase say, "Globie!
That you dressed as Indiana Jones?"
	"That's me," said Globie.  He
then said, "You recognize Jasmine."
	Zack then saw Jasmine, dress-
ed in a pinkish dress with tan sleeves
and a tan apron, and wearing a white cap
on her head, come forward.  The outfit
appeared to resemble a late seventeenth-
century dress.
	"Let me guess, Tituba, right?"
asked Chase.
	"Right, Chase," said Jasmine.
But she didn't say anymore, as a young
woman dressed in a medium-gray catsuit
with black gloves and boots, wearing a
yellow belt, and a mask that made her
look like a cat, emerged from behind
Jasmine, and stood there, staring at
the two with one hand on her hip, the
other hand resting against her head,
and a faint smile on her face.
	Zack was fairly certain this
was Jaci disguised as Catwoman, since
Ivy was going as Miss Marple.  However,
this was definitely a different Jaci.
He'd never seen her look so stunning.
	Zack managed to say, "That you,
Jaci?  You look great!"
	Jaci turned to Zack, and then
dropped her pose long enough to say,
"Yes, that's me, Zack.  And thanks for
saying I look great.  And you look neat
as Sam Spade."
	"Thanks," said Zack.  Then he
saw Jaci turn toward Chase, returning
to her dramatic pose.
	Looking at Chase, Zack could
see that the older detective seemed
to be completely frozen in his tracks,
unable to speak or move!
	Jaci dropped her dramatic pose;
walked forward, her attention focused 
on Chase; and stopped in front of him, 
her eyes holding his.
	"Why, is this any way to greet
an old friend?" she asked, smiling at
the spellbound man.  "Not even a 'Hel-
lo, how are you'?"
	"Hel-hello," Chase managed to
say in reply.  "You look great!"
	"Thanks," said Jaci, smiling
warmly at him.  "And you look purr-
fect!  In fact, in that costume, you
have the eyes of a lion!"
	"Thanks," said Chase, stepping
forward until he was standing very
close to Jaci.
	"You're welcome," Jaci almost
purred, stepping even closer to Chase!
	Then Jaci unleashed claws from
her glove, whispering, "Who's the man
behind the bat?"  She reached up to
stroke Chase's cheek lightly as she
added, "Maybe he can help me find the
woman behind the cat."
	Chase touched Jaci's wrist ve-
ry lightly as he softly said, "Indeed.
Maybe he can help you."
	It was clear to Zack that Jaci
was flirting with Chase, and it was eq-
ually clear to him that the older de-
tective was responding to her!
	But before anything more could
happen, a new but very familiar voice
asked, "Sorry I was late, but I had a
hard time getting this dress on."
	Chase and Jaci started, while
Zack turned -- to see Ivy dressed as
Miss Marple!
	"That's all right, Ivy," said
Globie.
	"You look great, sis!" cried
Zack.
	"I look like an old woman," I-
vy said, shaking her head.  Then she
asked, "Did I interrupt anything?"
	Chase looked like he was try-
ing to regain his focus.  Jaci sighed
and said, "Nothing very important, I-
vy.  I guess we'd better go, right,
Chase?"
	"Yes, Jaci, we'd better go,"
Chase said somewhat distractedly.
	So they went to the manager
and said that they were going to re-
turn the costumes to him as soon as
they were done with them.
	"All right," said the mana-
ger.  "Oh, I forgot to mention this
to you, but the woman who wanted me
to have those specific costumes rea-
dy just earlier today came in to ob-
tain a costume herself.  Apparently
it was for a Costume Ball.  Also, two 
people came in with her and got cos-
tumes as well."
	Jaci asked, "What did the wo-
man look like?"
	"She wore a brown jacket, a
tan shirt, and tan pants.  Her hair
was black and her eyes were green."
	Zack frowned.  That didn't
sound like Carmen at all.
	"The woman got an Esmeralda
costume, and the two people with her
got Renaissance costumes.  I think
they were those of Romeo and Juliet,"
the manager added.
	"Thanks," said Chase, look-
ing as if he'd been lost in thought
again.  Then he shook himself, and
paid for the costumes they'd rented.
	Once that was done, they all
went outside to contact the Chief.

**************************************************************************

Outside --

	The detectives were ready to con-
tact the Chief and have him C-5 them o-
ver to the House of the Seven Gables.  
Apparently, someone had obtained permis-
sion to throw a Costume Ball after 6:00 
pm, with a promise to clean up before 
tourists came in the next day.  And it 
was very likely that that someone was 
Carmen.
	But that wasn't what Chase was
thinking about the most.  What was on
his mind at this moment was the des-
cription of the woman who had gotten
the Esmeralda costume.  It was the wo-
man who yesterday had approached him
and gotten him to confide in Jaci a-
bout his past love affair with Amel-
ia!
	Carmen may have come to suspect
that his relationship with Jaci had en-
tered a different phase.  Had she asked 
a henchwoman to find out if this was 
true?  Or had it been Carmen herself in 
disguise who had conversed with him?  
And did this have anything to do with 
the thefts that Carmen had done?  If so, 
what was she up to?
	'But enough of this!' he told him-
self.  It was time to get to business.
	So, with an effort, Chase shook
his head to clear it, contacted the Chief 
and said, "Chief, we're ready to crash 
the Costume Ball."
	The Chief appeared, took a good
look at the detectives and said, "Wow!
That looks like Miss Marple!"
	"You're right," said Ivy.
	"So you're Ivy, huh?" said the
Chief.  "You look mah-velous, Ivy!"
	"Thanks," said Ivy dryly.
	"And judging from the fact that
this is the smallest guy here, I'd say
that you're Zack," said the Chief, turn-
ing to Zack.  "Let me guess, Sam Spade?"
	"Yes," said Zack.
	"I'm Indiana Jones, or should I
say, Indiana Globie," said Globie.
	"And you look quite dashing too,
Globie," said the Chief.  "And Jasmine,
judging from your costume, I'd say you
are supposed to be Tituba?"
	"Yes," said Jasmine.  "Tituba
wore this costume in the movie."
	"Chief, while it's widely assu-
med that Tituba was a Negro, she really
wasn't, was she?" asked Zack.
	"No," said the Chief.  "In fact,
recent evidence indicates she was a Na-
tive American, perhaps of Arawak descent.
In any case, she was always referred to
as an Indian woman -- 'Tituba Indian'."
	"Very interesting," Chase heard
Jaci say.  "While I never knew that, I
did know that there never was any danc-
ing in the woods.  The girls had tried
to use a kind of crystal ball to divine
the occupations of any future husbands."

(Author's notes:  I got much of this in-
formation from a website called "Arthur
Miller's 'The Crucible':  Fact and Fic-
tion".  You can find it by searching Ya-
hoo!.)

	"Exactamundo, Jaci," the Chief
exclaimed.  "So, you and Chase are Cat-
woman and Batman, huh?"
	"That's right," said Chase.
	"You two look like a real cute
couple," said the Chief.
	"Hopefully, we'll be a purr-fect
couple," said Jaci, smiling.
	Chase punched her shoulder light-
ly and said, "You're really playing the
part.  And that is a compliment."
	"Well, I'll just fire up the C-5,
and send you to the House of the Seven
Gables," said the Chief.
	The C-5 corridor opened, and in
minutes, all six of the detectives dis-
appeared inside it.

**************************************************************************

Outside the House of the Seven Gables --

	The C-5 corridor opened -- in
the air!  Chase, Jaci, and Globie man-
age to land on their feet, but Ivy and
Jasmine (who are hindered by their cos-
tumes) fall to their knees, while Zack
(who's really clumsy) lands on his be-
hind on the sidewalk!
	Ivy cried out as she managed to
scramble to her feet, "I thought Josha
repaired the C-5!"
	Chase said, "He did.  Unfortu-
nately, I'm afraid the landing part's
malfunctioning.  You all right, Jaci?"
	"I'm purr-fectly fine," Jaci
said, smiling at Chase.  He smiled back
at her.
	Globie remembered Jaci's flirt-
ing with Chase earlier, and began to a-
gree with Zack that there was something
going on between those two.
	Jasmine, who had also managed to
get to her feet, said, "I'm fine, too."
	"As am I," said Zack, rubbing
his behind. 
	Globie said, "Well, let's find
the stuff she stole, and then arrest
her!"
	So Chase knocked on the door.
After a few minutes, a man dressed as
a butler opened the door.
	Globie heard Zack whisper, "I
know this guy!  That's Touriste Classe!"
	Touriste said, "Yes, what do
you guys want?"
	"We're here to attend the Cos-
tume Ball," said Chase.  "We got an in-
vitation."
	With that, he placed the invi-
tation in Touriste's hands.
	That's when Esmeralda came to
the door!  Or to be more specific, Car-
men Sandiego, dressed as Esmeralda, came
to the door.  It was obvious now that the
woman who had ordered the Batman and Cat-
woman costumes was in fact Carmen.  Which
meant that the people who had gotten the
Romeo and Juliet costumes must've been
henchmen of Carmen.
	"Some newcomers have come to the
party, Jeeves?" she asked. Globie real-
ized Touriste must be playing Jeeves, the
butler for Bernie Wooster, when he heard
Carmen call Touriste "Jeeves".
	"Yes," said Touriste.  "But I ne-
ver got to learn who they are."
	As Carmen turned to them, Globie
glanced over at his fellow detectives,
and saw Chase shaking himself as if he
had been lost in thought again.  Some-
thing was obviously bothering him a lot
for him to lose his focus like that.	
	Chase then stepped forward, say-
ing, "We're guests that were invited to
this Costume Ball.  I'm Batman.  This 
young woman with me is Catwoman, that's 
Indiana Jones over there, this young wo-
man's Tituba, that's Sam Spade, and fi-
nally, that's Miss Jane Marple." All the 
detectives nodded as Chase introduced 
them.
	Carmen took the introduction that
Chase gave Touriste, looked at it, and
said, "Well, well.  I do remember giving
introductions to these people.  Let them
in, Jeeves."
	"Well, welcome," said Touriste.
"Follow me."
	And with that, they followed Car-
men and Touriste inside.

(Author's notes:  Jaci's first question
to Chase after getting into her Catwoman
costume and her "purr-fect" remarks were 
taken from the live-action Batman series. 
Her stroking Chase's cheek and her ques-
tion about finding the man behind the bat 
and the woman behind the cat came from the 
film "Batman Returns", while her costume 
and her remark about Chase's eyes being 
like a lion came from the Batman animated 
series.)

To be continued