Circle of Crime

“You awake?”

“Yeah…can’t sleep. I keep thinking about the man on the bench.”

“Me too. Should we tell someone?”

“Tell who? And what would we tell them? They wouldn’t believe we had nothin’ to do with it.”

“But we didn’t.”

“I know we didn’t but somehow it would be our fault. I don’t want to rot in jail because you opened your big mouth. You better not tell anyone about last night. They wouldn’t believe you anyway and we’d spend the rest of our lives in jail.”

“We could make an anonymous call to the police…”

“They trace those stupid. Just keep your mouth shut…wait...what was that?”

“Ww-what?”

“Quiet. I heard a noise downstairs.”

“I didn’t hear anything. What kind of noise?”

“Shut up already…someone’s down there. C’mon, and keep quiet.”

“I don’t want to go down there. Let’s just wait. They’ll leave when they see we don’t have anything.”

“Do you think it’s a coincidence they're here tonight? After what we saw?”

“But we didn’t see anything, just the man on the bench.”

“They have to be sure. No witnesses. We’re loose ends. They’re here to tie them up. Get behind me and keep quiet. The third stair down creaks so skip it and stay to the right, the holes are all on the left.”

“It’s too dark with the windows boarded up. I can’t see anything. Should I bring the flashlight?”

“No asshole! Why don’t you just run down and tell them we’re here? Save them the trouble of searching for us. I swear our mother must have screwed a moron to conceive you.”

“But Billy, we didn’t see anything. If we tell them, they’ll go away.”

“Damn it John, shut up! You’re going to get us killed. This isn’t one of your stupid games.”

“Billy?”

“What?!”

“I left the bag downstairs in the kitchen.”

“What bag? Oh shit….you mean the bag we took off the guy? What an idiot! They’ll take it and kill us….get down behind the table, I’ve got to get the bag. Where‘d you leave it?”

“I’m s-sorry Billy. It’s on the counter next to the sink. I was thirsty and forgot it after I got a drink. Don’t let them kill us…..”

“Hush, they’re still in the back. I think I can get it before they come up here. Hold the gun."

“No. I don’t want the gun - you keep it.”

“John, listen to me. Put the gun on the floor. You don’t have to touch it unless I don’t come back. I have to go or they’ll beat me to the bag. Stay down and keep quiet.”

“Billy? Is that you? ……. Billy? Where are you?”

“…”

“Billy are you in here? I couldn’t stay there; I was scared. I want to stay with you.”

“John? What the hell are you doing in here? I told you to stay in the other room. Get off me, what are you doing?”

“I fell. I couldn’t see you. You’re hurting my arm, let go.”

“Crap they heard us, get back upstairs!”

“Owww, Billy my foot’s stuck in the hole. Help me!”

“Shit, it’s stuck good. I told you where the holes were; give me the gun. We’re gonna have to fight it out.”

“I stayed to the right like you said…Oh God, I left the gun downstairs. I’m sorry Billy.”

“I told you to stay to the right going downstairs not up! Forget it…I’m going down there, it’s our only chance.”

“Please don’t leave me.”

“I have to. Stop crying and keep quiet, they’ll think we both went down. I’ll come back as soon as I can. Remember John, no matter what, you stay quiet. Understand?”

“Ok, Billy. Just hurry.”

“Shit...I’ve got a gun. Get the hell out of here!”

“Where’d you put the bag?”

“Who the hell are you? Get out of here, I found this place first. I don’t know what you’re talking about, I don’t have any bag.”

“Look kid, tell me where the bag is and you won’t get hurt. We saw you and that other kid run off with it so we know you have it.”

“Okay, we had it but it didn’t have any food in it so we left it in the alley by the warehouse.”

“You looked in the bag?”

“Yeah…like I said, no food so we dumped it.”

“Just shoot him Larry, the bags gotta be here. I’m getting tired of listenin’ to his lies.”

“Shit. You should have used the silencer. We better get out of here before someone calls the cops.”

“What about the bag?”

“You heard the kid, they dumped it. Besides they’re just a couple of runaways no one would listen to them anyway. Let’s roll.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Police! Is anyone in here? Come out with your hands up.”

“There’s no response. Think we should go in?”

“Wait for backup. Whoever’s in there’s probably dead but I don’t want to find out I’m wrong the hard way.”

“You’re the boss, Jeff.”

“Jamie, you and Bob go to the right. Stan and I’ll take the left. Ready?”

“Go!”

“Jeff! We found something. Kid's dead. Shot straight through the eye, never had a chance.”

“Keep searching. There may be others. Stan and I’ll check upstairs.”

“Huh, what’s this? Hey son, it’s ok. We’re the police; we won’t hurt you. Looks like you’re stuck. Stan, call for an ambulance. His leg looks pretty bad.”

“Right away.”

“Can you tell us your name?”

“The rest of the place is clear, it's just the two kids here. Has he given you any information about what happened yet?”

“No. Hasn’t said a word. I think he’s in shock. He can’t be more than ten. Are the paramedics on the way?”

“Yeah, they should pull up anytime. Should we try to get him out?”

“No, I don’t want to move him until they get here. Tell Jamie and Bob they can take off, we can handle it from here.”

“What’s he sitting on?”

“Looks like a grocery bag. Could be his stuff. He looks pretty ragged. I’d guess he’s been living on the street for a couple of weeks at least. We’ll check it out after they move him. Son, did you know the boy downstairs?”

“At least we know he can hear us, even if he won’t speak he’s listening. Sounds like the paramedics are here.”

“Thanks Stan, go ahead and send them in.”

“Did they get him out?”

“Yeah, he’s in the ambulance. Still hasn’t said a word. Started crying when they took him past the other kid's body. They said he’s malnourished and his leg is scratched up pretty bad but not broken. They’re taking him over to County.”

“What about the other kid?”

“We’re sending him to the morgue. Hope they get a quick ID. Now let’s see what’s in this bag.”

“Oh, shit that smells nasty. What the hell is the kid doing with this?”

“Don’t know. We better get over to the hospital, that kid has a lot of explaining to do. Have the guys pack this up and take it to the morgue. As if the coroner doesn’t have enough to do with identifying the boy, now this.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hi, I’m Dr. Jackson. I just finished examining the boy you sent over. We patched up his leg, it should heal nicely.”

“Has he said anything yet doc?”

“No, he’s in a state of shock. You can go in but be gentle with him; we don’t want him to withdraw completely. I’ve ordered a psych consult just in case. Someone should be down soon to do an evaluation.”

“Wait out here Stan. I don’t want to overwhelm him.”

“I’ll call the morgue while you’re in there, see if they’ve got any leads on the boy.”

“Sounds good. Hello son. It sure would be nice if I knew your name. No? Ok, how about this, I’ll ask you questions and you nod…no talking needed. Sound good? A nod, now we’re making progress. Did you know the other boy in the house? Yes, ok…was he your brother? Yes, good….do you know who hurt him? No, ok that’s all right; we’ll find them. Sorry, I know this is hard. Hang in there, a couple more questions and then you can rest. The bag you were sitting on, was it yours? No, ok…was it your brother’s? No, hmmm, do you know whom it belongs to? No answer for that one, well you’re looking tired. Get some rest. I’ll be back later with more questions.”

“How’d it go? Did he tell you anything?”

“Not much. The other boy was his brother and the bag wasn’t theirs.”

“That’s all? You were in there for quite a while. What did you talk about?”

“We didn’t actually talk. He still isn’t saying anything. I got him to nod in response to yes or no questions. It’s like pulling teeth but at least we’re getting somewhere. Did you get anything from the morgue?”

“Yeah, not much but it’s a lead. The hand in the bag belongs to Al Riziano. He’s been on the missing persons list for the last two weeks.”

“Who is he? Do they have any leads on his disappearance?”

“He’s the CEO of a small Internet based shipping company. He was last seen catching a cab to the airport. His wife reported him missing when he didn’t check into his hotel in Atlanta. He never made the flight. They don’t have any further leads on his current whereabouts and no idea why he disappeared. He’s a successful businessman with a wife, and two small kids. His business is doing well and they couldn’t find any evidence of an affair.”

“Well, maybe this will jumpstart their investigation although I’d hate to be the one to tell the wife. Any word on the other boy?”

“Yeah, we got lucky with that one. The parents registered his prints through one of the local campaigns. You know, the ones that take photos and fingerprints in case of abduction.”

“His prints came up in the database?”

“His name was Bill Stuart. He was eleven. His parents, Robert and Sandra Stuart died in a car wreck three months ago. Billy and his younger brother John ran away from their foster home a month after they were placed.”

“They’ve been on the streets for the last two months? Resourceful kids. I’m amazed they weren’t picked up before now. How did an eleven year old and - how old is John?”

“He’s nine.”

“Wow, nine…how did they manage to survive?”

“No idea. The foster family paid them a weekly allowance but the most they could have saved is eighty dollars. That doesn’t go very far in this city.”

“I guess we better get Social Services involved. Do you mind giving them a call? I’m going to go back in and try again.”

“Sure Jeff. I’ll call Tanya Butler; she’s helped me out on a couple of cases. She’s really good with kids suffering a loss, and this kid’s had more than his fair share.”

“Sounds good. I’ll try to get him to say something before she gets here.”

“John? It’s me again. I’m not sure why you won’t talk to us. You aren’t in trouble. I need you to tell me where you got the bag. I want to find the people who hurt Billy.”

“He’s not hurt. He’s dead. I saw him.”

“Yes, he’s dead. I’m sorry John. Maybe if you tell me where you found the bag we can find the people who killed him.”

“Will you kill them too? Billy said they killed the man on the bench and now they killed Billy.”

“Who was the man on the bench?”

“I don’t know. He was in the park by the running path. We used to run there with our dad.”

“Do you know which part of the park? The running path goes all the way through, is there anything else over there?”

“A bunch of big buildings. I like the big gray one with the monsters on it.”

“Monsters? On the building? What do the monsters look like?”

“They aren’t real monsters. They are on the top of the building by the flags. They look kind of like lions but they have wings.”

“Oh, the gargoyles on the bank by the park. I know those monsters, they’re pretty scary aren’t they?”

“They don’t scare me. They used to when I was little but not anymore.”

“So the guy was on the bench. Where was the bag?”

“The bag was on the bench too. He was yelling then he fell over on top of it.”

“What was he yelling? Do you remember?”

“Not really. He yelled something to some men by the trees. Then he fell over on the bag.”

“Why did you take the bag?”

“We were hungry and Billy said it might have some food in it. I didn’t want to take it but I was hungry and Billy said the man didn’t need it anymore cause he was dead.”

“So you took the bag. Then what?”

“We grabbed it and ran straight to the house.”

“Did you look in the bag?”

“No. I was thirsty so I got a drink and then we went to bed. I forgot the bag downstairs.”

“Why were the people in the house?”

“Billy said they came to kill us because we saw something. We didn’t though but I guess they didn’t know that.”

“Did you see them?”

“No, Billy went down to get the gun and he left me on the stairs. I wasn’t supposed to talk. Do you think it’s ok for me to talk now?”

“Yeah, it sounds like Billy was trying to keep you safe. You’re safe now. You said Billy was going downstairs to get the gun. Where did you get the gun?”

“It was on the bench by the man. Billy took it. He said he’d shoot anyone who came into the house. People are always coming in looking for food and stuff. We just hide ‘til they go away."

“You’ve helped a lot John. I’m going to see about finding the people from the house. Get some sleep.”

“Will you come back later?”

“Yes, I’ll come back. A lady named Tanya will be coming to see you too. She’s going to find somewhere for you to stay when you get out of the hospital.”

“Am I going back to live with Sarah and her family?”

“Who is Sarah?”

“She lived in the house with me and Billy after Mom and Dad died. She liked to play with dolls but she was ok.”

“I don’t know if you will live there again. Would you like that?”

“I guess.”

“I’ll tell Tanya. We’ll see what we can do.”

“Stan, were you able to reach Tanya?”

“Yes, she’s on her way. She was going to pick up his case file and read through it before she talks to John. She’s concerned something happened to make them run away from the foster home.”

“It doesn’t sound like there was a problem with the foster family. John asked if he could go live with them again. I’m not sure why they ran away, I’ll leave that end to Tanya.”

“Sounds like you had a real conversation this time. What’d he have to say?”

“He said the gun belonged to a man on a bench in the park. Sounds like the guy was shot, they took his bag and the gun and whoever shot him found them and killed Billy. Run the gun for prints and lets see if a body was recovered from a park bench last night.”

“I’m on it. Why don’t you run downstairs to the cafeteria and get something to eat. I’ll meet you down there; I could use some coffee.”

“I got you some coffee, two sugars. I don’t know how you can drink that stuff. Anything from the park?”

“Thanks, I need the caffeine. A body was picked up at 2 am. Nobody saw or heard anything. His prints aren’t on file and no ID was found on the body.”

“So no leads…”

“I didn’t say that. We don’t know who he was but we know where he’s been. He had a business card in his pocket belonging to Mr. Riziano with a phone number written on the back. He was wearing an expensive suit and recently had a manicure. This was no park bench bum.”

“How did he die?”

“One shot to the chest. Dead center. Whoever did it knew what he was doing. They found shell casings in the trees diagonal from the bench.”

“John said he was yelling at men by the trees. So the same people who did this went after the boys. I don’t understand why they would leave John alive and not take the bag.”

“Maybe they didn’t know the boys had the bag.”

“Maybe.”

“They’re running the gun for prints. I should hear back sometime tonight.”

“OK, let’s get back to the office and write this all up. I don’t see the connection yet but there’s got to be one.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Jeff, I just got a call from Tanya. There was a problem at the hospital.”

“Is John OK?”

“He’s fine but scared. He’s asking for you.”

“What happened?”

“Two guys came into the room while Tanya was interviewing John. She was sitting by the wall behind the door when they burst in. They must not have seen her. John screamed and Tanya slammed the door on them. It was pure instinct. She didn’t know they had guns until it was over. She told John to push the call button for the nurse and ran after them.”

“That’s one tough cookie. Did she get a good look at either of them?”

“She did one better. She tackled one in the hall. Held him down until hospital security arrived. They have him cuffed and waiting in the Security office. Tanya is sitting with John until we can get up there. She thinks he saw the other guy’s face.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Stan, take him out to the patrol unit. This isn’t getting us anywhere. We’ll try again after they book him. I’m going up to check on Tanya and John.”

“I’ll meet you up there after I take out the trash.”

“Funny. Call in another unit to guard John’s room. If we had a guard on it to begin with this wouldn’t have happened.”

“Take it easy Jeff, you can’t think of everything.”

“I should have thought of this! How many nightmares can one kid handle? This could have been prevented.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hey Stan. Any word from the station?”

“No, he isn’t speaking.”

“Sounds familiar.”

“Yeah, was the kid able to give a description of the other guy?”

“The sketch artist is working with him. Between him and Tanya, they have a pretty good picture.”

“How’s he holding up?”

“Kids are amazing. I don’t think this even fazed him. I get the feeling that it doesn’t seem real to him, more like a game.”

“I can see that. If he’s anything like my kids, he’s been playing military and police video games since he was five. This probably just seems like another game to him.”

“That could be a blessing. He may need a break from reality right now. He can deal with his brother’s death later.”

“Speaking of kids, you better get home to yours. Beth will kill me if you miss dinner again.”

“She understands but I will take off. I told the station to call me if the creep decides to talk. What about you? Feel like coming over for some home cooking?”

“Nah, I’m going to grab something on the way back to the station. I want to finish the report and follow up on the fingerprints. See you in the morning.”

“Later Jeff. Don’t work all night.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You look like crap. Have you been here all night?”

“No, I fell asleep at the hospital. I woke up a couple of hours ago and came into the office to finish the report. I’m going to run home and grab a shower in a couple of minutes.”

“Before you do, let me give you the scoop on the fingerprints. They called me last night while you were at the hospital.”

“Why didn’t they page me?!”

“They did. They called me at home when they couldn’t reach you. The bottom line is they got a match. They picked up the guy this morning. He matches the description of the second hospital visitor from last night. He's in Interrogation Room 1.”

“What are we waiting for? Let’s go see him.”

“I’ll go in, you go grab a shower. If this is our guy, he’s not going anywhere.”

“You’re right. I’ll be back in an hour. Call me on my cell if anything comes up.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Jeff? Good news, we have our guy. His name is Phillip Smith.”

“He confessed? Why?”

“The DA offered him a deal in return for testimony against the other guy, Mark Drindle. Turns out he was just along for the ride. Mark did the shooting in both cases.”

“What about the hand in the bag?”

“According to Phillip, the guy on the bench was using it to threaten Riziano’s second in command, Roy Turner. Roy hired him to eliminate his boss thinking he could take over the business. He didn’t pay for the hit. The guy on the bench was there to deliver a message, pay or else. The threat backfired. He scared Turner so bad he hired Mark and Phillip to take him out.”

“That’s twisted. Any ID on the dead guy on the bench?”

“No, he’s still a mystery. Drindle and Smith were told where to find him and given a description but no name. We’re hoping Mr. Turner can shed some light on his identity. I sent a patrol unit over to pick him up at the office.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Did he put up a fight?”

“Nah, started bawling the minute we walked into his office.”

“Put him into Interrogation 1. Tell Stan, I’ll be there in a minute. Tanya, are you still at the hospital? Good. We got the guy who shot John's brother. I’ll be by later to see him but thought he should know.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“That was….interesting.”

“I’ve never seen a man cry so much. Wouldn't guess he’d have the balls to take out his boss.”

“Yeah, I guess you never know. I’m glad this one is over. You heading to the hospital?”

“Yep, I want to say goodbye to John. He’s going home tomorrow; to his foster home that is. Tanya managed to get him placed with the same family so it won’t be too difficult to adjust.”

“This one turned out all right. Turn your pager on, I'll page you if a call comes in."

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