Miss Edna Dinckle

Edna Dinckle was an unmarried, retired school teacher living in a two flat she owned. She lived on the first floor apartment and she rented the upstairs one to a young, single teacher named Larry. She was pretty old and didn’t get out much. She depended on Larry to bring her any food she needed. One time after he carried in her groceries, he sat to talk with her for awhile. The conversation was mostly about the school system in Chicago. Edna enjoyed telling Larry about her days as a teacher and how it has changed so much. While they’re talking mice are scampering all about. Larry sat uncomfortably in the kitchen chair concerned that one might run up his leg. As their conversation was winding down, Larry hands Edna an envelope with cash in it.

“Before I forget, here’s this month’s rent Miss Dinckle.”

“Oh thank you Larry.” she says as she pulls some money out of the envelope and hands it to him. “Is this enough to cover my grocery bill?”

“Plenty” he said after standing and brushing himself off. “If you need anything else just call me. I am right upstairs.”

“Thank you dear, I do appreciate you Larry.”

After Larry leaves, Edna struggles to her feet still holding the cash filled envelope then hobbles to the living room shooing away mice with her cane “Shoo, shoo!”

She plops herself into the easy chair and reaches to open a cabinet next to her not seeing the mouse sitting there staring at her. She deposits the envelope inside then closes it. Exhausted and wanting to rest, she closes her eyes only to never open them again.

Sometime later I’m standing on Edna’s front porch ringing the upstairs doorbell. Larry comes down to greet me.

“Hi, I’m Phil from the Public Administrator’s Office. Are you Larry?”

“Hi Phil, thanks for coming out. I’ve asked around like you suggested and nobody knows of any family, although she did mention a brother in St. Louis. A few times when I’d bring in her mail, I noticed a letter from there. Maybe it’s still in there someplace. She never threw anything out.”

“Wonderful” I sarcastically say, anticipating what’ll be in store for me.

Larry opens Edna’s apartment door saying “She’s a retired teacher so since I teach too, I checked with the pension office and they have nothing of family listed either. She named her estate as the beneficiary on her life insurance policy.”

I ask “How much is the policy worth?”

“Probably not much. That generation seemed to take out only enough to cover burial expenses.”

After seeing the condition of the apartment, I said “She certainly did save everything! And look at all of these mice! You live upstairs? Do you have mice in your apartment too?”

“No” he responded. “I have several cats.”

“You knew she lived like this and would come and visit with her in these conditions?!”

He said “Yes I know but what was I supposed to do? She charged me cheap rent, my school is close and besides I’m not a relative.”

As I’m poking through the stacks of filthy papers with a wooden spoon I say how nice it would be to find where the current papers were kept.

“Everything is chewed up by these mice!” I say. “They’re making nests in everything!”

I open a drawer and notice mouse nests made out of shredded currency.

“You kidding me? It’s everywhere! Where are they getting it from?” I ask.

As I continue opening drawers and cabinets, I stop at the one Edna last used. “Here we go.” I say as I pull out envelopes filled with cash, some intact and some chewed on.

From my briefcase I remove rubber gloves to put on.

“I rarely use these but this is an exception.” I tell Larry. “I don’t know how much of this is redeemable due to the condition but I’ll take it in anyhow. We’ll count the intact currency before I leave.”

Once I find a letter from possible family in St. Louis, I stop the investigation telling Larry I don’t want to put too much time and effort into this case just to have family remove us. I tell Larry if family doesn’t want to handle then I’ll come back and we could finish going through everything then.

The next morning I’m sitting at my desk sorting the papers and currency when Malika enters.

“What’s that stink?” she asks.

“Cash drenched in mouse urine.” I respond.

“So you have to bring that nasty stuff in here? I was going to have my breakfast now!”

“Sorry” I say. “I’ll take it to the conference room and sort it there.”

“Never mind, I’ll go there.” she said before turning and leaving.

At this point Mr. C walks past our office without saying good morning or acknowledging anyone. Ben finishes what he’s doing and leaves to talk to Mr. C into his office.

I found a phone number for Edna’s brother in St. Louis. I mentioned to Vic that I really hope he’s still alive and wants to come in town to handle. I picked up the phone and called the number. Someone answered.

“Hi, my name is Phil and I’m calling from the Public Administrator’s Office of Cook County. I’m trying to reach a Mr. Henry Dinckle please. …Hi Mr. Dinckle, I’m calling regarding a Miss Edna Dinckle. Do you know the lady? …Are you aware that she passed away recently? …Yes she did. …Sorry to have to break the news to you like this but she died in her home and nobody knew how to get a hold of you. …Her body is at the county morgue. …Well you can make any arrangements you like. …You are a blood brother? …OK, will you be coming in town to handle your sister’s affairs?” I look to Vic holding up my crossed fingers. He smiles and does the same.

I continue, “No problem. …OK Mr. Dinckle, …That’s not a problem. …Get back to me please as soon as you make a decision. …Of course I understand. …No problem. …Thank you and again I’m sorry for having to break the news to you this way.” I hang up with Dinckle and look to Vic.

He says “Dinckle? For real? That’s his name? What’s he going to do?”

“He said he’ll get back to me. He’s pretty old himself and difficult for him to get around but he’ll see if his son could drive him up here.”

Vic sighs and says “Let’s hope so. You don’t want to be going back in there and I wouldn’t blame you.”

“It wasn’t that bad in there. Believe me, we’ve both been in much worse.”

“Oh yes we have” Vic says. “Much, much worse.”

Ben returns and mentions that Mr. C believes the US Treasury will replace any damaged currency as long as two-thirds of it is still intact. Ben asks if I got a hold of any family. I told him I’m waiting for the brother to decide.

I say “I did not let on to the condition of the premises otherwise he may decide not to handle. How many times have we seen that before?”

Ben says “True, they let us do all the dirty work then knock us out of the process when just about everything is done.”

Later that day the brother called back and said he talked to the upstairs tenant Larry and arranged for him to meet the family at the apartment tomorrow. I told him I’d meet them there also to turn over the papers and cash I removed.

The next day when I pulled in front of Edna’s building, I saw several people waiting with their feet and legs inside large plastic bags. I approached them and we all made our introductions. After I turned over the envelope to Mr. Dinckle, I had to ask what the purpose of wearing the bags? Mr. Dinckle raises his cane (also wrapped in a bag) and said it’s to prevent the mice from running up your legs. I told him I never heard of that before. I wish them all luck and to contact me if they have any further questions. I leave them to their miserable task.

In all the mice infested premises I’ve been in over the years I’ve never had a mouse run on me. One time however I was in a particularly dark, gloomy, dirty place that had cobwebs hanging everywhere. The windows were so filthy that very little sunlight came through. The window shades were torn and deteriorating. Not knowing what to expect, I entered the living room when all of a sudden the TV came on. The decedent’s neighbor who was with me at the time freaked out thinking the house was haunted. She started to head for the door to leave. I explained to her that it was probably a mouse that ran over the TV remote control that was lying on the floor. At least that’s what I wanted to believe.

One time Vic and I were doing an investigation together in a rather filthy home. When he was in a closet doing his patting down of the clothes, all of a sudden he screamed and barged out of the closet, ripping the sliding doors off their tracks in the process. He stopped swearing in Greek long enough to tell me he felt something in a pocket and when he reached in to grab it, it moved. Apparently it was a nest of mice he was grabbing. I joked about never seeing him move so fast before.

On another investigation we were on, Vic opened the closet door to begin his pat down ritual when he partially saw somebody standing in the back of the closet. Vic grabbed the crowbar from our briefcase and ordered the person in the closet to come out. When the person didn’t move, Vic went in. It turned out to be a prosthetic leg propped up in the back corner. It did look real with the shoe on it however.