Sunday, February 22,
9:00 a.m.
It was too cold for many people to be out, but Abe could hear the rhythmic pounding of basketballs and knew some-one in the neighborhood stirred. Hopefully they’d have more success finding the kid who’d dropped the Skinner box on Kristen’s doorstep today than they had yesterday. If anybody knew this kid, nobody was telling. They might have to wait until tomorrow when school was open and ask the faculty if they knew the kid in their picture.
Mia was leaning up against her car, concentrating on tearing the tab off the plastic lid of her coffee cup. She gestured to a second steaming cup sitting on her hood. „Yours.“
Abe took the coffee, grunting his thanks.
Mia shot him a deadpan look. „My, aren’t we chipper this morning?“
„I didn’t sleep well last night.“
„Why not?“
Abe grimaced. Because every time I closed my eyes I dreamed of kissing Kristen until she couldn’t remember her own name, until whatever was done to hurt her was forced out of her mind, until she begged me for more. The dreams had left him hard and aching and lonely. „Just this case catching up with me, I guess. Let’s get started. I want to find this kid soon. I have dinner at my mother’s tonight“
Mia brightened. „Will you save me some leftovers?“
Abe chuckled. „Let’s go, Mia.“
They followed the sound of the bouncing balls to the court across the street from King High School, the name that was clearly seen on the jacket the kid wore in the picture. Five young boys were on the blacktop. All five stopped when they saw them coming.
„Cops,“ Abe heard one of them hiss.
„Snoopin’ around here yesterday,“ another muttered.
Abe held out his badge. „I’m Detective Reagan and this is Detective Mitchell. We’re looking for a kid who goes to King High. Any of you kids go to King?“
The five looked at one another. They all looked to be about sixteen. Not too much younger than the punk that shot Debra. „I asked you a question,“ Abe said, his voice going harder. „Do you go to King?“
They all nodded unwillingly.
Mia drew the picture from her pocket. „We’re looking for this kid. If we don’t find him today, we’ll find him tomorrow when school’s open. If you say today you don’t know him and we find out later you did…“ She let the thought trail off suggestively. „It’ll be better for you guys if you help us out.“
As a group they scowled at each other, and more mutters filled the air. But they looked at the picture, then again at each other.
„You know him,“ Mia said.
One of the boys nodded. „Yeah, we seen him around.“
Abe looked down at the young boy who cradled a basketball under one arm. The young boy stared back, defiantly. „He didn’t do nothing wrong.“
„We didn’t say he did,“ Mia said quietly. „Now, where can we find him?“
The boys looked down at their feet. „Don’t know.“
Abe sighed. „Okay, boys, everybody against the fence. We’re going to call in a couple of cruisers to take you downtown.“
The boy with the ball stomped. „We didn’t do nothin’. Why we gotta go downtown?“
Mia shrugged, her cell phone in her hand. „You’re material witnesses in a murder investigation. Don’t you guys watch Cops?“
„Damn,“ one of the others whined. „My momma’s gonna kill me if I go downtown again.“
Abe kept his voice stern. „Then tell us where to find this guy and we’ll go away.“
The boy with the ball scowled. „His name’s Aaron Jenkins. Doesn’t even go to King anymore. Lives three blocks up.“ He pointed a skinny finger. „That way.“
„There’s a lot of buildings three blocks up ‘that way.’“ Mia pointed in the same direction the boy had. „A little more information would be right friendly-like,“ she added, her expression sarcastic and dry.
The boy’s scowl deepened. „It’s the only building on that block with a green stoop. Old lady sits there all damn day, spyin’ on us.“
„Wears a poky-dotted cap, can’t miss her,“ another added, rolling his eyes. „She’s got the evil eye, y’know?“
Mia’s mouth quirked up. „Thanks,“ she said, then held out her hand to the boy with the ball. „Can I?“
Clearly he didn’t believe she could make it. He pushed her the ball and she caught it with one hand. Then from well into three-point range, she closed one eye and sent the ball sailing right through the hoop. The boys stood open-mouthed and Mia just grinned. „Stay outta trouble, boys, okay? I’d hate to take you downtown for real.“
Abe could hear their exclamations as they walked away. „Where did you learn to play?“
„My dad.“ Mia shrugged. „He wanted sons and all he got was daughters.“
Abe thought that was pretty sad, but let it go. They walked in the direction the boys had indicated, Abe remembering the cold look in Kristen’s eyes the night before when she’d revealed her father was still alive and thought the trouble between Kristen and her father was a lot more complicated than a father who really wanted a son.
„Green stoop, old lady with the evil eye…“ Mia muttered as they came up to the building, where sure enough an old lady with a polka-dotted cap sat eyeing them suspiciously. Even Mia’s best smile did nothing to sweeten the old lady’s grimace.
„This looks like the place,“ Abe agreed. „Let’s cross our fingers Aaron Jenkins is home.“
They found the Jenkins apartment and knocked. A woman holding a toddler on one hip opened the door and her eyes widened at the sight of them. „What is it?“
„We’re looking for a young man named Aaron Jenkins, ma’am,“ Mia said politely.
The woman shifted the baby on her hip. „He’s my son. Why? Is Aaron in trouble?“
Mia shook her head. „We just want to talk to him.“
She looked over her shoulder uncertainly. „My husband is at work.“
„This will only take a few minutes,“ Abe reassured her. „Then we’ll be on our way.“
„Aaron!“ she called and the young man in the photo appeared from one of the bedrooms. He took one look at them and started to move backward.
„We only want to talk to you,“ Mia said and he paused.
„I didn’t do nothin’.“
„Aaron,“ his mother snapped. „Get over here.“ Feet dragging, he complied.
„You delivered a package Friday afternoon,“ Abe said.
Aaron frowned. „So what? I didn’t do nothin’ illegal.“
„We didn’t say you did. Where’d you get the package, Aaron?“ Mia asked.
„From some white guy. He gave me a hundred bucks to deliver the box.“
„What did he look like?“ Abe asked.
Aaron shrugged. „I don’ know. He had a jacket with a hood, so I couldn’t see his face.“
„Was he old? Young?“ Mia pressed.
Aaron huffed impatiently. „I said he was wearin’ a hood. I couldn’t see his face.“
„Was he in a car?“ Abe asked.
„Nope, a van. A white one. Had a sign on the side. Had a little plug on it“
Abe frowned. „A plug?“
„Yeah, like you plug in the wall. Had a cute little happy face on it. The sign said… Banner Electronics.“ Aaron nodded, pleased with himself. „That’s all I know.“
Abe frowned harder. It wasn’t the same van. Mia looked up at Abe, troubled. Then she turned her attention back to Aaron. „How did you know where to deliver the box?“
Aaron shrugged. „He gave me the address, then told me to tear it up, so I did. Listen, that’s all I know.“ He looked at his mother. „Can I go now?“
Mrs. Jenkins jiggled the baby on her hip. „Can he?“
Mia nodded. „Yeah, sure.“ She was quiet until they’d reached the street. „That equipment that sandblasts stone? It can also make rubber signs.“
„Magnetized to stick on a van.“ Abe blew a bream up his forehead. „Dammit.“