2021-08-08 17:24:47Marisol and Leisia were out doing their early evening walk with their daughters, Mayra and Reyna. It was a nightly occurrence in late spring and all throughout summer.
It stopped when the weather got cold in the fall. This would be their last evening walk into downtown. The two women were talking quietly to each other. Dressed identically in flare blue jeans and sweaters with tennis shoes, the two carried diaper bags and purses. Each had an infant asleep in a stroller. Marisol said, "Thank God Mayra finally dozed off."
Leisia laughed, "Reyna too. I think they are on the same timetable. I told Nikki that. You know what she said, 'In seven months-time that be me'. "
Marisol smirked," I told you she was preggers, but did you listen…No!"
"Well," I said, "it's ten times harder now school, work, and a baby. Nikki said I know but I can handle it. I told her I hope so."
"Leisia, you worry too much."
Then, they walked in silence as they passed two restaurants filled to capacity. So much so that the restaurants had people waiting outside in groups. Shaking her head, Marisol said, "They must be using reservations now. This way they may turn away fewer people and maximize their profit." Leisia laughed, "Restaurant school?" "No," Marisol answered, "business school management concentration but in the restaurant business." "Good luck with that."
They continued to walk in silence passing two busy pars and a bookstore. Leisia thought to herself, it was a strange place to have a bookstore. But the owner made good money year-round.
Both Mayra and Reyna started to fuss and cry. Marisol and Leisia said "Jinx!" They stopped their strollers close to the buildings and bent to check on the girls.
Both had spit out their pacifiers. Pacifier resettled with Reyna and then in Mayra's mouth, they began to walk. "Hey Leisia, I got to pump. You want to stop at our usual place?"
"Sure." As they walked closer to the curb nearing the corner a man stumbled out of the alleyway, all bloody, and fell to the ground. Marisol let out a scream and Leisia said to her," I'm going to call Steve." Steve was her boyfriend and Reyna's father. He was also a cop.
"He would know what to do."
As the police arrived, Marisol and Leisia were told to wait by the side until Steve got there. He would question them once he got there. Leisia said, "Hurry, we got a breastfeeding Mom here."
As the two women waited for the police to come, the babies started to fuss some more. Mayra was hungry and Marisol needed to nurse her.
She asked the restaurant behind her if she could nurse her daughter in their bathroom. The hostess agreed and escorted her to the back of the restaurant.
Leisia said Steve will be mad."
"Hey, Li he will have to be."
***
MARISOL
As she walked back to the bathroom, she noted a nice candlelit restaurant with intimate table settings. Most tables were set for two patrons, but some were set for more. There were a couple of sizes of tables both round and square. Some were pushed together and those that were pushed together were mostly the square kind. Every table was full. No one was waiting to be seated though. She passed by the kitchen and entered the lounge. Thanking the hostess, she quickly glanced around until she saw the chair. Wasting no time, she sat down and fed Mayra. After burping Mayra, she walked back out with her to talk to Leisia and Steve if he was there.
***
LEISIA
As Marisol and Mayra went into the restaurant Reyna settled down with her bottle. Leisia left her in the stroller and finagled a chair to sit down on as she fed her daughter from the restaurant behind her. The cops and Steve arrived. The ends of the street were blocked off in both directions with dividers and yellow tape blocked off the alley entrance. As she watched the activity Leisia heard her daughter let out a mighty burp after she pulled the bottle out of her mouth. And then she grinned at her Mommy. Distracted by her daughter she almost missed what happened next. A man peeked around the yellow taped alley entrance. She figured the cops talked to him and dismissed him, turning her attention back to Reyna, who was now babbling nonsense. When she glanced up again the man was gone.
Steve walked over to her. He was a homicide detective. "Hey baby," Steve says as he leans in and kisses her.
Leaning into the stroller he kissed his daughter's nose as she burbles and reached up for him. He grabbed her flailing arms and legs to quiet her. She stopped and looked at him. Then she starts again so he let her go and popped her pacifier back into her mouth. She started to suck like she was starving. So, he left her to it.
Looking around Steve sighed. "You mind telling me why it was you two who stumbled onto this murder or alleged murder scene?" She gave him a disgruntled look. "It is not my fault. We were out walking with…" interrupting her, Steve asked, "We?", "Yes, she says, "we- Marisol and I."
Steve sighed again. "So, what happened, and where is Marisol?" "She is breastfeeding Mayra in the restaurant behind us." Says Leisia. He finally noticed where she was in front of. She smiled and said, "Good food here." As soon as the words came out of his mouth Marisol with Mayra in her arms walked out of the restaurant. She was pushing the stroller. She smiled when she saw the two of them. "Hi, Steve. Look Mayra it's Steve. Wave hi to Uncle Steve." Mayra pushed her head into Marisol's shoulder. "Shy moment" So Steve said to both now, looking very stern, "Can you two tell me what you saw?"
The two women looked at each other. "Not much," said Marisol. "We were talking to each other and about to cross the street to walk to our favorite restaurant. You know I can breastfeed in public and get a free meal. Suddenly right before we were about to step off the curb, I caught something out of the corner of my eye. When I turned, Leisia turned and we saw that man, pointing towards the alley entrance, stumbling back towards the street. He was bloody from what we could see down here. Or I assumed it was blood because he staggered before he fell." Steve nodded as he listened quietly. Looking at Marisol, "Why not drunk?" She shrugged, "5 p.m., too early unless you started at 8 a.m., and go to college. No one over 30 does that in this neighborhood."
Steven nodded.
Leisia asked him, "Anything you can tell us?" He said, "Well,” pointing towards the alley, "you were right. It appears he was murdered. Gunshot wound. No alcohol was apparently involved. Nothing appears to be stolen. Wallet is intact with money, credit cards, and driver's license. We did find an expensive coat little ways down the alley. Funny, the cellular phone is in the coat pocket.”
“Robbery wasn't the apparent motive.”
Marisol suggested, "Interrupted?"
"No", said Steve, “we spoke to the only other occupant-a homeless man.” “Oh, was he the guy in the brown trench coat?” asked Leisia. "No," said Steve, "he didn't have a coat." "Oh well, honey you missed someone. I saw a man in a brown leather trench coat leave.” Steve cursed. "I will be back,” he said, as he jogged to the other officers. He asked the crime scene photographer if he had remembered seeing a guy in a brown trench coat. She didn't remember but she does remember someone fitting that description just not in the alley. She promised as soon as the film was developed, and she found it she would give it to him. He thanked her.
Jogging back to Leisia and Marisol, he'd asked them if anything else came to mind. They thought and both said "No". He said "Okay, we are going to need your statement, but I can't take you back to the station right now. I can have someone take you or you can wait for me. Both said they'd wait. Marisol had to call Abdul anyway. So, Steve said, “we’ll go to your favorite restaurant and wait there with Marisol. Leisia, I'll drive you to the precinct myself.”
Marisol makes sure Abdul gets you there today. Sure, thing Capitaine.
***
Half an hour later, Marisol and Leisia were seated at Martin's House of Soul Food, staring at the food in front of them. Marisol had called Abdul's cellular phone as they walked to the restaurant and asked him to pick her up and explained what happened. Not happy to be back at the station but he would get her there. As soon as the two began to eat after making sure their daughters were sleepy who would pop by but James. Staying to chat for a while the two filled him in. The cops stopped by again to talk and after a while, both James and the others left. Then Abdul walked in with Steve. All four left for the station to give the girls statement.
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Chapter Twenty-Nine: Closing In
Finally, they got the killer of the Lodger. It was in the evidence and in the footage surrounding the convenience store. No one could find a reason for the murder. No robbery, no fight and no immediate phone call that caused him to do something rash before the murder. His wife stated that he was gone on business a lot. So, nothing stood out.Steve found it after Leisia showed him a receipt. It was the day of the murder. But not at the usual place. He actually had just bought food at the restaurant that Marisol breastfed her baby on the date the body was found in the alley. It was enough for two. He had planned to go to his wife.So, Steven and another officer went back to the restaurant to speak to the owner. He said they had an employee let go that day. He was let go for stealing guests’ personal and banking information. He had apparently been running a scam using their credit cards that he got from when they paid their bill. But as far as he knew the guy hadn&r
Chapter Twenty-Seven Mind-bending Run Down
Only one person stood out besides Noorhan, the owner of the Shell/7Eleven Gas Convenience store stop. Only one not Indian owned, The Lodger always went to that Shell for gas, food and to stock up on junk food. None of the other stores had seen him. All his receipts were from that store. The owner never knew where he came from either. Just that one time he came in and was distracted, upset. But he didn’t remember what the cause was. However, he was kind enough to let them look through the old footage of security for the week of the murder. The police also had that and now Leisia and Steve were looking through it. Since the two weren’t at the police station, Steve was more relaxed both in dress and in manner. Laughing to himself, he couldn’t believe what they thought of him at the station, considering he was the more relaxed of the two. At least he thought so. When needed he would wear a tie, but it was not his idea of comfortability. Not only could he wear sweatpants and swea
Chapter Twenty-Six Clue 4 Me
Leisia said “notice everything is set in fours. Four days on three days off. Four days on the computer, phones, running down any lead. Three days outside surveillance.” She shows receipts for the corresponding dates. Leisia gets a paper and records down the date and time on the paper. She says to Steve, “Hey look. If we follow those, trace his steps then maybe we find the killer.”Steve laughs and said, “I knew I dated you for a reason. You see what we have been looking at for weeks. We had thought the same thing, but our captain told us to look at it from a different angle until we had to. Without robbery or a motive, he was going to rule it a murder that was an opportunity. And then put it in the unsolved box.” Stopping he indicated the box of reports and investigations they were also going through.“Don’t let him, Steve. There is an answer here. I feel it.” Says Leisia. The two continued looking but t
Chapter Twenty-five: Helping Her Man
Rushing into the exam room she caught her daughter who upon seeing her mother forgot she was trying to get down off the table. She caught her just in time. Scolding her now happy and teary daughter she said to her in soft tones that mommy was right there. And why did she feel the need to get off the table? Does not she know bot mommy and daddy would be devastated if something happened to her? Her daughter just smiled a watery smile and settled into her mom’s arms. Turning around the doctor started to laugh. “I didn’t hear her this time. I think she caught on to the fact I was listening to her get off the table.” He spoke. “Now, let us all get to the exam. Please fill out this questionnaire for me. I will wait.” And he left the room to allow her time to do so. When he returned both were sitting quietly waiting. Reyna put her pacifier in her mouth. Reading it over he said good. Pulling up his computer screen he asked her a few more questions and then explained to
Chapter Twenty-Four- Another Dead End
Talking to the family was his least favorite part of being a cop. He would much rather do something other than talk to the family. But it is his job.Sitting at the office will not help. So, he went to talk to Leisia about the case and he fed Reyna. He took his file home with him. At midnight he had to go back to the precinct. He had a night shift. Leisia got asked by Steve, “Are you going to the precinct?”She responded, “Not really planning on it. Unless you want me to?”Steve said, “No. Well, come then with coffee at seven in the morning. Oh, and breakfast. I can eat with you and Reyna.”“No Steve. I have plans with Reyna. We are doing a doctor’s visit, aren’t we?” Reyna passed gas and smiled. A toothless grin. “So, I say goodbye until later.” After Steve left, Reyna got fussy. So, she laid her down to sleep and knocked out herself right after.Leisia starts to dream a
Chapter Twenty-Three Baby why don’t you sleep?
Abdul and Marisol were watching television when the telephone call came. Ring, ring went the telephone. After several rings, Marisol got to the telephone and answered,“Hello. Who is this?”The unknown voice on the telephone said, “Is this the residence of Marisol?”Hesitating because the caller didn’t say her last night, she finally responded realizing he wasn’t going to give her the last name by saying, “Yes this is she. May I ask who is calling?”The unknown caller responded, “Who it is doesn’t matter. What I say does matter. Do not go looking too deep into the death by the restaurant downtown. You will be hurt and so will your friends and loved ones. Do not go looking any further.” Then the phone hung up.Looking shaken she walked back to where Abdul was. Sitting down rubbing her arms, she then wrapped them around him and held very tight.
