Young Love -- Finale

A Time For Young Love

Finale

        Or

What’s Love Gotta Do With It?

By

B.D. Adams ©2016

   Lucy’s graduating high school class had over 600 students and she was in the top 100. She graduated with very excellent grades, however, she didn’t graduate Summa Cum Laude. Her scores on the SAT were impressive, though.

   She was glad, but it really didn’t matter to her. She didn’t have her Roger.

   With Roger out of the way (of course, Lucy didn’t know about that), her mother had everything mapped out for Lucy. She planned to have her enrolled in TCU and spoke with the Tri-delta Sorority. This was her dream for her daughter.

   However, Lucy had other plans (her mother had no idea). Plans that did not include TCU, a sorority or Ft. Worth.

   For Spring Break in 1968 -- she wanted to go to Galveston, Texas. To visit Dobby, her paternal grandmother. Her grandmother had had that nickname since she was in college and Lucy called her that. A spry older woman in her 60s with snow white hair. She could pass for younger.

   Lucy was allowed to go to Galveston in her mother’s ’65 Ford Galaxy Coupe. Of course, Lucy had to swear she would be careful. Her mother couldn’t afford to buy another car. Plus, she had to swear she wasn’t really going to sneak a visit with Roger. (That puzzled Lucy.)

   Lucy swore to both.

   It had been a while since she’d visited south. She and Roger had planned to go there in his car, in order to introduce him to Dobby. Of course, that didn’t happen.

   Lucy loved this grandmother and going to the Gulf of Mexico beaches on Galveston Island. Great beaches and waves!

   Dobby and Papa lived, since their marriage in 1915, in a wooden clapboard, two-story Victorian house. Unfortunately, Papa’s untimely death in 1955 was more than sad. Lucy knew her grandfather, but only for a short while. Lucy knew he was in charge of their home.

   The house was in a cream color with accent, trim colors that subtly highlighted the house. The house always looked freshly painted. That always amazed Lucy.

   There were many properties like Dobby’s. Some of those houses in Galveston would rival the houses in New Orleans. The old Galveston streets were tree-lined with Oak Trees, Magnolia Trees, and Palms. And, like many of these houses, the inside was cozy – not sprawling large.

   With all the two story houses, there were porches downstairs and upstairs. Her grandmother’s downstairs porch went three-quarters around the house. The porch-less side had tall evergreen bushes.

   Lucy loved to sit on the back porch to eat Dobby’s waffles and drink freshly squeezed orange juice in the mornings. Her back garden was so soothing, so lovely. In the spring and summer, the fragrance of flowers, like honeysuckle, jasmine, and roses, filled the air.

   Lucy was elated to make this visit! Dobby. She always listened to her granddaughter, never berated her.

   Soon, Lucy pulled into Dobby’s narrow driveway. It was March, but warm for this early season.

   After several hugs and kisses, Lucy and Dobby sat with their filled ice tea glasses on the back porch to relax. For Lucy, to relax after the long trip.

   Lucy managed to confide to Dobby about her mother. She thought her mother was the reason Roger was so heartless to break-up with her -- the way he did.

   In her wisdom, Dobby played down the anger Lucy had for her mother. However, she understood this part of her former daughter-in-law’s personality.

   Lucy explained what her mother wanted for her and, on the flip side, what she wanted for herself. She told Dobby that she wanted to go to the University of Houston. Would she help out?

   Of course, she’d help her granddaughter. Then they could visit more often. Big smiles all around.

   They both did their parts to get the forms via long distance. Dobby signed the papers and paid for the first year’s tuition. That’s what Lucy had hoped for from her grandmother. Not expected, but hoped.

   When informed of her daughter’s alterations, Lucy’s mother and maternal grandmother were infuriated, to say the least. A lot of tears and yelling and screaming for two days. After the verbal mayhem, though, things calmed.

   Quite innocently, just before she trekked southward, Darcy was told by the girl who had introduced them that Roger had gone to North Texas, as he wanted.

   She was glad for him, however, she still felt sad. However, with the idea of change for her, she was more hopeful for her future.

   It was September 1968. Lucy took the train to Galveston, so Dobby to pick her up at the station. Then get her into her dorm room. Dobby’s car was a ’47 Chevrolet Sedan. Her jalopy she

teased, more to herself.

   Lucy was finally happy, not overly happy, but not as miserable as in the past months. She had always enjoyed time with Dobby!

   And she was away from her mother.

====

   Roger had stayed away from Lucy as promised. Oh, but he wanted to see her, accidently run into her. However, he knew that would be a disaster if Mrs. Coleridge or Mr. Edson learned about that.

   He might get another visit from him. He was a distinguished man but had the look of Al Capone when not happy – like when he and Mrs. Coleridge paid him that visit.

   Never again!

   From the girl who had introduced them, he learned that Lucy went to the University of Houston. Actually, that made him happy. A good school and not what her mother wanted.

   Good for you, Lucy, Roger silently praised at one time.

   Now, it was February in 1969 and Roger was knee deep in college himself at the University of North Texas. He enjoyed the curriculum, the campus, and his solitude. No one knew him – he was incognito. Just a handful of students from high school, but not any he really knew.

   He wasn’t employed in a hamburger place here but in a campus bookstore. Able to read any book he wanted.

   One afternoon, Roger got a chicken sandwich at the Dining Hall and went to sit on a bench outside near the Business School to eat in the nice winter afternoon. His canvas book satchel was rather heavy, so he rested it on the ground by the bench.

   It was cool, but the sun was warm. No heavy coat, however, he wore blue jeans, sneakers and a warm wool, bulky, pullover sweater with a scarf around his neck.

   It would be warmer in a month or so. Trees had no leaf buds yet, but the sky was cloudless. The sun felt inviting.

   There were people scurrying around and others who just sat on the other sporadically placed benches or lay on the grass. Sunning on the dead winter grass, but who cared. There were a few couples who talked, smiled and kissed.

   How he wished Lucy was there. He took a bite of the sandwich, chewed and closed his eyes to the bright sunlight. Took another bite.

   After a moment, a shadow came across Roger’s face – opened his eyes. He was quite astonished to see the face that looked down to his.

   “Hello, Roger.” A man in a corduroy zip-up jacket, blue jeans, and work boots stood in front of him.

   He swallowed his bite of sandwich and then steadily said, “Mr. Edson. What are you doing here?” Actually, he wanted to go screaming away from this hateful apparition. However, he remained seated and stared at the man.

   “Roger, do you know about Lucy?” the older man asked.

   “Is she all right? Has she been hurt?” Roger asked quite concerned. He sat more forward on the bench.

   “Do you know where she’s going to school?” Mr. Edson blandly asked.

   “Last I’ve heard was the University of Houston. Did she change?” Then he realized his question was ignored, “Is she hurt?”

   The man gave a cynical smile and said, “She’s fine.”

   Roger gave an audible sigh of relief.

   “How did you know that’s where she went to school? Are you in contact with her?” Mr. Edson’s face had that look of cold suspicion.

   “Mr. Edson, we have many mutual friends. One told me. That’s all.” Roger was now irritated that he was being interrogated by this man. He had done what he and Mrs. Coleridge wanted. Painfully, he had done the deed!

   Roger stood, gathered his book satchel, then stuffed his unfinished sandwich in the bag and said, “If there is nothing more – good-bye.” He had begun to turn away.

   “Roger, this is for you,” Mr. Edson said. “I’m confident you have truthfully stayed away from Lucy. So, this is for you.” No smile, but no frown either. He handed Roger an oversized letter envelope.

   Roger mindlessly, robotically took the envelope and asked, “What’s this?”

   “Oh, nothing important. This is from me. Mrs. Coleridge doesn’t know about this. Enjoy your schooling here. It’s a good school.” He gave Roger a confirming pat on his shoulder, then turned and walked determinedly away, quickly went around a building.

   Roger sat on the bench again. He felt rather numb – wasn’t sure if he should look into the envelope or just throw it away.

   Nonetheless, he opened the envelope.

   Money! A lot of money inside! Fifties and hundreds!

   Roger put his hand to his mouth – amazed, startled, wide-eyed! Why? Why would this man do this? Mr. Edson didn’t even like him, for crying out loud!

   Then it hit him like a sack of bricks. He and Lucy had made jokes that Mr. Edson could be a gangster. After all, he was in construction – built houses and commercial buildings. They had teased that Mr. Edson had shifty eyes -- like a gangster.

   What Roger held in his hand was his “pay off,” for breaking up with his love. Now … Roger was infuriated!

====

   It was now February of 1969. Lucy had a dorm room on campus, and thankfully, she had no roommate. She stayed there only to study. Otherwise, she was with Dobby.

   Lucy’s birthday had passed in December, now 18-years-old – a woman. She had become a good collegiate student. All the subjects now were basic; English, history, math, etc. Her major was journalistic photography, but no major classes yet. Just a few humanities classes in photography.

   Of course, her mother had wanted something totally different for her. Just something to make her appealing to an important man --until she married an important man her mother approved of and then became pregnant.

   Lucy just continued to follow her heart.

   With the money she had saved – back when she was planning a wedding – she was able to buy a used Volkswagen Beetle for $500. Rather old but in decent condition and ran great. She would go to Dobby’s place as often as she wanted.

   She was able to get a job at the Houston Post – the same kind of work she had had in Ft. Worth in the teletype room. Just three days a week.

   At one time, she wanted to drive her car to Denton – to perhaps see Roger. Dobby suggested that would not be a good idea. Especially if her mother found out.

   That idea quickly dissolved.

   There was a boy she began to see at school. His name was Daniel and was a couple of years older than she and nice looking; black hair, blue eyes, and a slender physique. His major was commercial art/graphic design.

   She hadn’t introduced him to her grandmother in Galveston yet. Lucy wasn’t sure if he would help her forget Roger. Silly thought.

   This particular day was Sunday. Lucy and Dobby had been out walking and talking in the city. It was a brisk, winter day, but not biting. Beautifully sunny, hinted of an early spring. They had just arrived back at Dobby’s home and the phone was heard ringing, as they entered.

   “Hello?” Dobby happily answered. “Just a moment.” She handed the old black phone to Lucy. Her tone was now not happy.

   Nothing needed to be said. Lucy knew it was her mother.

   “Hello Mother,” Lucy answered the way she always did to her mother.

   “Are you ever in your room?” her mother asked snippily.

   “Of course, I am. We spoke last week.” Dobby made a hand gesture that Lucy should go easier. Lucy understood and then asked, “What’s going on? You sound … aggravated.”

   Dobby gave a roll of her eyes like that was the wrong thing to say. Lucy nodded with a small frown that she knew that.

   “Well, not that it matters to you, but … but Mr. Edson is dead,” she said. There was a hint of tears in her voice.

   “Dead? Mom … I liked Mr. Edson. What happened? Did he have a heart attack?” Obviously stunned, Lucy sat on the chair by the phone.

   “Not a heart attack – everyone is perplexed,” she said. Then she took a deep breath and continued, “He was drinking and smoking. He must have fallen asleep – the sofa where he was lying caught

fire. He burned to death!”

   “Oh, Mother! Burned? That’s horrible!” Lucy was truly affected. But she had to ask, “When did this happen? Did the police say it was an accident?” What she really wanted to say was to correct the wordage from ‘fallen asleep’ to being ‘passed out.’

   Calmly, sadly her mother said, “Three days ago. I didn’t find out until yesterday – I thought he was out of town. They want to talk to that boy you used to date – the one who wanted to marry you.”

   “Roger? Why on earth would they want to talk to him?” Lucy asked shocked. “Do the police think Mr. Edson was murdered? Roger would have no reason to murder Mr. Edson!” Lucy offered on Roger’s behalf. She couldn’t understand why she was sticking up for Roger – the guy who had sex with a hooker!

   “I don’t know why. I told them the same thing that Roger would have no reason to harm Mr. Edson.” Her tone sounded unconvinced – like she might know something. She sniffled and blew her nose, then queried, “Have you seen Roger?”

   “Mother, I haven’t seen him since we broke up over a year ago.”

   “Talked to him?”

   “No, Mother. I haven’t seen him or talked to him!” Now, Lucy felt grilled and had no idea of why. “Look … I am so sorry to hear about Mr. Edson, but I don’t … don’t need your attitude.”

   “I’m sorry, Lucy. I’m just so upset and confused about my friend’s death. You can understand that, can’t you?”

   “Yes … I can.” Lucy was softer to her mother.

   “Can you come home, Lucy? Please?” her mother pleaded.

   “I can’t. Prelims are coming up. The mid-term exams are soon. This is the only day I haven’t study -- needed a break.” She felt bad for her mother, but there was nothing she could do. And, she was being honest. She suggested, “Call some of your girlfriends. That will help you.”

   “Yes, that will. I’ll do that. Thanks, sweetheart.”

   That ended this call.

   Lucy remained on the chair by the phone and just looked dumbly at that apparatus. For some reason, she felt at a loss, bummed-out.

   Dobby had been in the kitchen to brew up some hot chocolate to drink once the phone call was ended. She had a thermos filled with the hot liquid and it was on a tray with the mugs and a plate of graham crackers. The tray was put on the coffee table in front of the sofa.

   “Want some soul food?” Dobby smiled softly.

   “Got anything stiffer than hot chocolate?” Lucy asked. She looked to her grandmother now. She didn’t want to get drunk, but, after this trauma, she wanted to mellow somewhat more.

   Dobby pointed to the tray and there was her decanter of bourbon. That was exactly what Lucy wanted. She calmly changed from the stiff chair to the more comfy sofa.

   Her grandmother put not quite a jigger of the bourbon in a mug and poured in the chocolate. Her intention was to ease her granddaughter. She handed the mug to Lucy, who took it.

   Dobby poured a full jigger into her mug. Her former daughter-in-law had the way to irritate even vicariously.

   Lucy blew onto the hot mixture, then took a large gulp of her drink. She just sat back and took another gulp.

   “Mother’s boyfriend died recently. Unexpectedly. He had passed out while smoking. Burnt to death. He’s a drinker and smoker like my mother.”

   “My word,” Dobby said. “I wasn’t sure if I heard correctly.” She was definitely surprised about this. She took a large gulp of her mug.

   “For some reason, Mother wanted to know if I’d had contact with Roger since we broke up. She said the police wanted to talk to him.” Lucy got quiet, sipped her drink now. Then she said, “It is a mystery why they think Roger would know anything about Mr. Edson’s death. He’s going to school in Denton.”

   Again, Lucy seemed to become more in thought.

   “Lucy. What are you thinking?” Dobby asked.

   Lucy set her mug on the coffee table, turned to look to Dobby and wondered, “How much do we really know about someone? I mean, I never thought my parents would divorce. We never thought Papa would die. I still can’t believe Roger went to bed with a hooker.” Now Lucy screwed up her face and analogized, “Life is never what we think. But I really doubt … doubt that Roger would know anything about Mr. Edson’s death.” She shook her head and added, “I’m never going to tell my mother anything about Daniel, or any other boy.”

   Lucy and Dobby just continued silently with their toddies.

****

   Three days ago, a story came on the teletype in the Houston Post about a man’s burning death in Ft. Worth:

AP – UPI: Ft. Worth Star-Telegram --   On Thursday, February 20, 1969, Mr. Alfonso Edson was found burnt to death in his home in an affluent neighborhood in Ft. Worth. He was 61-years-old, had attended Arlington Heights High School, then attended Texas Christian University. He was a family man with two older children, however, divorced for 5 years.

     His construction business has been involved in the building of many downtown projects and suburban developments in the Ft. Worth and Dallas areas.

     The Ft. Worth Police are treating the death as suspicious. There was an oversized envelope with a large sum of partially burnt paper money near the body. They are still questioning neighbors, especially about a Chevrolet Corvair parked in the area with a University of North Texas parking sticker on the windshield.

     Anyone with information should call the Ft. Worth Police Department.

*** With any mystery, a lot of the speculations can be what’s in the mind. My all-time favorite scary movie is “Rebecca,” a black and white movie by Alfred Hitchcock. No scary hobgoblins, no vampires, werewolves or zombies. To me, the mind can conjure things scarier than what can be shown in a movie. ***

Happy Halloween

Red Painted Lips - Finale

The Case of the Red Painted Lips

Finale

by

B.D. Adams
© 2015

           Detective Neal Scarpetti with the Manhattan 5^th Precinct got a phone call from the doctor at Belleview. The bum had died. The heroin should have killed him, but the brain tumor that was found, is what did him in. The drug merely catalyzed that condition. The bum would be just another statistic to this serial killer’s tally.

          With what Neal had learned today, several items had been brought to light within a few hours.
          A man, Marvin Stevens, had become a person-of-interest in this case. It had been discovered that Stevens was a deliveryman, who delivered breads and mushrooms to different facilities; mostly in Manhattan. The Medical Examiners had found minute traces of those items in each of the murdered women’s hair. Plus, Stevens kind of fit their early profile of the killer.
           Earlier, Neal had gone to the delivery company -- Moonlight Deliveries, Inc. -- where Stevens was known to work. With some verbal, police muscling, he was able to get his address without a warrant.
           As it turned out, the address was the same for a building where an elderly German fellow, Günther Jäger, also lived. He and his one great-granddaughter, Heike Rozen (she interpreted), had been to see Neal this afternoon to tell him what Güther was sure he smelled in the building. An odor the old man remembered from WW2; nasty, unforgettable odor. He was convinced the smell was burnt flesh. As a teenager, he lived near to Dachau, a Concentration Camp -- a death camp in Germany. On top of that realization, the gentleman truly believed he “smelled” another one of his great-granddaughters in connection to the bad odor. The great-granddaughter the old man thought he smelled was Sara Wallace, who was one of the serial killer’s victims.
           Much to Neal’s dismay, he had to tell Güther and Heike that their loved-one was deceased. They viewed the body in Brooklyn and confirmed the identity.
           Frank Mallory, Neal’s partner, had gotten hold of Lyn Martin and Sid Roselli, detectives in Brooklyn, who were on this brutal, serial case with the Manhattan detectives. They had two of the murdered women in their district and were on their way to meet at the Manhattan Precinct. Things were in the works to get search warrants for Stevens’ apartment and the furnace in the building’s basement.         
           So much was rattling around and Neal wanted to call Maria, his year-long girlfriend, to tell her to be careful, that he would come to take her back to his place when the bar closed. He knew that Stevens was a deliveryman to O’Luigi’s Pub, where Maria worked. He couldn’t divulge anything right now, but he felt the need to tell her to be careful. He had a moment, so he called the Pub. He knew she wouldn’t have her cell with her at work.
           “O’Luigi’s!” was answered loudly by a male voice. The Pub sounded like it jumped!
           “Hi. Can you hear me?” Neal queried.
           “Yeah! I have 20/20 hearing. What d’you want?” was a chuckled answer.
           “This is Detective Scarpetti. Is Maria Bertiani nearby?” Neal said with a chuckle himself. The bar had decided to sponsor an 8-ball Pool Tournament for the neighborhood – not advertised city-wide. That’s what all the noise was about, Neal believed.
            “Oh, sorry, Detective. She’s here, but I don’t know where. If you hold a minute ….”
           “No. That’s all right. Just tell her I’ll pick her up after hours.” There was a louder whooping heard over the phone, so Neal asked, “How’s the tournament going?”
            “Tournament doesn’t start for an hour. People are practicing is all.”
           “Expecting a big turn-out?”
           “Oh, yeah. We’ll probably do this again sometime. I’ll give Maria your message. I gotta get busy here.”
            “I understand. Thanks.” The call was ended.
            This pool tournament was another of Maria’s ideas to boost clientele to the Pub. He was a little concerned that he wasn’t able to talk to her. That shouldn’t bother him, though. She knew how to take care of herself. Besides the bartending classes, she had taken Karate classes. Was he being paranoid in his old age, he wondered? All he did was smile at this thought.
             Frank got back in a timely manner with the search warrants. Lyn and Sid arrived pretty quickly, despite the evening traffic.

 …*******†

             Frank and Sid went to the building’s basement with a few Uniforms –- vests and helmets -- and a couple of CSU Officers (Crime Scene Unit) while Neal and Lyn headed to Marvin’s apartment with as many other associates. His apartment was on the 5^th floor. The building was a six floor-walk up.
             The German Superintendent, who spoke English very well, reluctantly unlocked Marvin’s home. “What’s he done? Huh? He’s a good tenant. What’s he done?” the Super babbled in his German accent. He wanted to go in before the Police, but a Uniform blocked him.
           “Sir. We aren’t sure he’s done anything,” was explained. “Let us do our job. Okay?” The Officer ushered the Super down the hall.
            Before the apartment door was opened, there was a definite odor of organic decay. Like an overflowed garbage can, but more pungent, putrid. All the policemen put a hand to their face to block the odor. Ellen, the one female CSU Officer, took out a small tissue packet and began handing the men a sheet.
           Once the main door opened, there was a small manmade foyer, with another door that obscured seeing down the hall. No light was on, either. All guns were drawn, as one Officer burst through the flimsy second door!
          There were voices that called out “Clear!” when the few rooms were perused. Now inside the apartment, the odor was worse. A window was opened, even though it was very cold outside. More lights were switched on, along with their bright flashlights.
            The CSU Team began their photographing in each room.
            Neal told another Uniform to go get the Super. He was brought quickly. The Super, on seeing the second door, said that was not regular. The tenant must have made it.
            “Has anyone in the building complained about this odor?” Neal asked.
            “Detective, there’re a lot of Orientals here that cook their food. Stevens might like that food. What am I gonna do? Knock on their doors and tell them they can’t cook their food?” The Super added, “Only an old German guy and a few other Germans think they smell Auschwitz.”
            “Don’t you mean Dachau?” Neal asked impatiently.
            “You say tomato,” he quipped nastily. “I pay him no mind.”
            Neal sent him back with the Uniform. The team thinned out. Only a couple Officers remained. Neal went to the kitchen to see if that was where the stink originated. There was an odor, but not the one in question.
           “Hey, Neal. Look at this,” Lyn, the profiler, called out. He was at some bookshelves by the antiquated, disabled gas fireplace. When Neal was by his side, Lyn pointed out, “Look at these books. Can I call it or can I call it.” The books were crime stories -- mostly murders. Serial
murders. Just how Lyn profiled.
            After a moment, CSU Ellen came to Neal. “Come with me,” she said. Neal had Lyn come along.
           She took them to the bathroom. She and her co-tech had sprayed Luminol, a chemical to detect blood, and gave the detectives the orange glasses to see what the chemical could show. “A strong detergent was used, but as you will see ….”
           And, there was blood -- a lot of it! On the walls, floor, in the bathtub and the sink. Lyn commented, “Now, it’s a blue-blood room.”
          “Detective? Sir, this is for … you,” an Officer spoke hesitantly to Neal. “This was under a pillow on his bed.” He held in his gloved hand a sheet of lined paper with writing like what was sent to the small newspaper’s reporter. It was in a plastic page protector. Evidence.
          Neal took it and began to feel queasy. What would be next? He read:

 Det. Scarpetti --- It was nice meeting you today. If you are reading this letter, you are in my apartment. I knew you were a smart Cop and now you have proved me right.  I found out that old nosy Kraut saw you and told you his theories about what he smelled. Too bad his memory was so good from when he was a kid.

           Now you have to ask yourself, what are you going to do? I have Maria. If you don’t believe me, go to the bar. Tell her she should stop smoking. It could kill her.
           Take care, Neal.
Marvin

           Neal’s knees nearly buckled, but now he was very angry! He tried to call Maria on her cell, but it just went to voice-mail. If this asshole did, indeed, have his Maria, Neal would be like all the other men whose wives or girlfriends had been senselessly stolen. He would throw his badge down and hunt that bastard as any man would. However, he knew he wouldn’t do that.

           He needed to go to the Pub and start his search there.
           Frank radioed Neal. There was human residue – blood traces – in the large open, easy accessed furnace. Neal told him about the new letter and he and Lyn were headed to where Maria worked. Frank said he and Sid would stay at the apartment to look for any clues where Marvin Stevens could have taken Maria. Frank assured his partner, his friend, she would be found, if she wasn’t at work.

…*******†

           Neal and Lyn drove to the few blocks to O’Luigi’s Pub. They parked right on the corner.

           It was nearly 9 o’clock. A lot of whooping and hollering escaped from the pub’s opened
door. The pool tournament was going strong. Only three tables, so the place was packed.
            Neal and Lyn went to the bar, where they flashed their badges to the bartender.
           “Where is Maria Bertiani?” Neal asked firmly. He didn’t know all the bartenders.
            The bartender looked around to see her, but she was nowhere in sight. George, the assistant manager, when he saw the Detectives came to them. They all stood close to talk because of the noise.
           “You’re looking for Maria?” George asked.
            “Is she here now, George?” Neal had known this man since he knew Maria. He was married and was a good compliment to Maria. They were a good team.
            “Neal, I can’t say I’ve seen her for a while. She went out to smoke, but … come to think of it … I never saw her come back in.” George began to survey the crowd for her.
           “When did she go out?” He was a bit perturbed. She had made a pact with him to stop.
           “Hank! When did Maria go outside?” George asked another bartender.
           Hank handed two Bloody Marys to a waitress, turned to them – thought a moment -- and then answered, “About an hour ago. The games hadn’t begun yet. I gave her your message, Detective,” Hank said, then added, “That one delivery-guy was with her.” He had to move away to make some exotic drinks.
           “What delivery-guy?” Neal yelled to Hank, as he moved closer to him.
           “That weird guy with the light blue eyes. He has a thing for her,” Hank said.
           “With Moonlight Deliveries?” Neal now felt sick.
           “Yeah. That’s the guy. The Deli called to complain that he parked his van in their delivery space, out back.”
           Lyn took Neal by his shoulders to get him out of the noisy bar. They hustled to the Deli next door.
            Neal’s mind was pushed into high gear, as he asked the one Deli worker, “Where’s the manager?” Lyn and Neal showed their badges.
           “That’s me, Officer,” the fellow answered. He was in the process of slicing roast beef for a customer.
           “Someone’s parked in back?”
         “No. Not now.”
           “Did you see the driver? Was anyone with him?” Neal asked frenetically.
           “Didn’t see anyone. I called O’Luigi’s because I knew it was one of their delivery companies.” The manager finished with the slicer and wrapped the meat and smiled to his customer.
           “Can we go out this way?” Neal pointed to the door that showed “Employees Only.”
           The manager motioned to go on. He had another customer of which to take care.
           Neal and Lyn went stealthily to the back door. Another worker was there to smoke. Now, there was no white delivery van with blue and green lettering in the alley.
           “Were you here when the van was parked?” Neal queried.
           The guy crushed out his smoke and answered, “Yeah. I told Max about it. We were expecting a delivery.”
            “Did you see the driver? Did you know him?” Neal all but yelled.
          “Yeah to both. He’s the regular. I saw when he got in and drove down the alley.”
          “Was anyone with him?”
           The guy shook his head and said, “No, didn’t see no one, but ….” he hesitated, and then said, “I heard a sound in the van. Like a kitten, maybe. Kinda strange.”
            That was all Neal needed to hear! He and Lyn went quickly back to their car.
           Once there, Neal took out a piece of paper from an inside suit jacket pocket. He sat in the car and took the radio to demand, “All points! All points! Looking for a white Ford, delivery van with Moonlight Deliveries printed in green and blue on each side.” He read off the license number from the piece of paper for a New York vehicle. “Last seen at O’Luigi’s Pub, in the alley. Driver is Martin Stevens – 5’8,” 150 pounds, curly, dark brown hair, light blue eyes. Last seen with Maria Bertiani, a hostage! Approach with extreme caution!” The Deli worker wouldn’t have thought he heard a woman, but Neal knew that sound could mean a woman was trying to yell.
           Dispatcher typed the alert to all cars’ notebooks.

 …*******†

             Frank called Neal to let him know what the odor was. In the bathroom, under a
removable floor board in the linen closet, there was a small corrugated box with a few sets of
women’s breasts. There must be more unknown victims. In the bedroom closet, a wooden box with surgical scalpels was found. Very sharp with blood residue on them. One scalpel was missing from the kit; a long one. They now knew this was their Perp!
             Because Maria was abducted by a serial killer, the wait-time for a run-a-way was waived. Now, this was a massive AMBER Alert for an adult!     Neal was nearly frantic, but his professional demeanor kept him focused. Find Maria, no matter how!
             Frank said the CSU team still scoped and tagged evidence. The Super divulged that Stevens had no personal vehicle, just the delivery van. He now didn’t sound as nice about his tenant.
           Another Precinct became involved. Neal and Lyn went to the 1st Precinct on Beach Street to brief Detective Joe Barton, who Neal had seen at lunch. One victim was in his district, but Joe gladly let Neal and Frank take that case. Joe’s partner was Detective Judy Jardin, a very savvy black, woman. She came from Louisiana; Cajun Country. She told some outrageous yarns about the bayou cases in her Loozee-ana accent and was proficient in French. She married a fellow, an accountant, with a CPA firm in NYC. That’s what brought her north.
           With a hostage situation, especially with a woman, it was good to have a woman detective on board. Plus, Judy and Maria were friendly. Joe wasn’t privy to this.
           Neal introduced Lyn to the 1^st Precinct’s team. This was all business – no jokes or light-hearted banter about police work. Neal got his phone on speaker so everyone could hear.
           “We’ve scoured this apartment thoroughly,” Frank admitted. “The women were definitely killed here – raped here. CSU found a lot of … body fluids …. “ He trailed off.
          “Don’t worry, Frank. I’ve heard this talk many times,” Judy affirmed with a small smile to the men beside her.
          “I know, Judy. I’m trying to be more politically correct these days,” Frank confessed and added, “There was residue from the use of condoms, which we knew about. He mustn’t change the bed sheets that often.”
          Then, Sid jumped in, “We found rolls of unopened duct tape and a couple opened rolls.” He took a moment to talk to one of the CSU Officers, and continued, “There are some unused lengths of thin, nylon rope that he used to bind the victims. One piece under the bed, near the head, tested positive for human blood. Maybe from a wrist. Plus, we have what broke their legs.”
          Sid seemed to be affected and couldn’t complete his thought, so Frank said, “A very heavy sledge hammer. An 8 pound sledge. What movie¹ was that from?”
          That made everyone rather quiet. Then, Frank was heard to say, “What? Say it again?” The other voice was muffled, as Frank said louder, “Hold on, guys.”
          The sound of rustling and other movements was heard. After a moment, Frank was heard, “Let me write that down.”
          “Com’on, Frank. What’s going on?” Neal said edgily.
          “Okay. We caught a break.” He spoke quietly to someone, again, and then to the waiting others, “It seems Marvin has a storage unit in Harlem and it looks like he’s paid recently.”

 …*******†

The time approached 11:00pm. Very cold with snow flurries. Neal ached to get Maria away from this danger – to hold her and soothe her. God, how he loved her!

           The paid receipt for the storage unit had been hidden in a paperback book on the bookshelf. The book had a gruesome cover of bloody, split lips, like a woman’s, complete with very red lipstick. Lyn quipped the guy was a loser.
           The storage address was on Broadway in Harlem, between 131^st and 132^nd Streets. Frank had gotten an open warrant just for this purpose. He got hold of the owner of that business to find out which was Stevens’ unit. The owner would meet them at the large, one-time factory building. Thankfully, an assumed name was not used. This killer was not as smart as he thought.
           Judy called the 26^th Precinct in Harlem to give them some of the collar. Never hurts to spread the wealth around.
          When all the other detectives arrived, they were met by Detective Victor Taylor from the 26^th Precinct. Taylor was about 6’, with broad shoulders and a shaved head. He was in this precinct because good black detectives were welcomed in Harlem. He shook hands with everyone and then began his evaluation, “We’re looking at ten floors here. The SWAT Team is ready for instructions.
            “The owner, who’s not here now, said we can do what we need. He has good insurance, but he wants someone to bring the warrant to his condo in mid-town.” The warrant was given.
            “He brought the building’s layouts (spread out on the hood of a Cruiser). He gave me the keys and said the unit in question is on the third floor.” Taylor gave the warrant to a Uniform to deal with, then said to everyone, “Stevens’ white van is parked in an obscured spot behind the building. I have three Uniforms there. There is a parking place near the entrance, near the elevators, but I figured he parked in back because he’d need more time than the allowed thirty minutes. Wouldn’t want a parking ticket,” he gave a wry smile and went on, “There’s public parking under the El² – not a safe place or easy to load or unload anything in this area, daytime or night.”
           “Has anyone seen Stevens?” Neal asked as calmly as possibly.
           “One of the local junkies said he helped a guy – a skinny white guy -- carry a long duffle bag to a unit. Supposedly tools. He said they went in the building by the propped open, mega-locked backdoor, where the van is parked.”
           “Did the junkie get paid?” Lyn asked.
            Taylor smiled with a nod and said, “Yes. A syringe of ‘good stuff.’” Taylor motioned to one of his Uniforms, who showed an evidence bag with a full syringe. Probably with pure heroin. “We made the bum happy. I gave him a fifty spot and told him to get clean.” The other detectives were so glad that their warning had gotten to Harlem. Neal handed the bag to one of his CSU Officers.
           “As far as we know, he’s still in there,” Taylor said with certainty.
            “OK,” Frank said as he pulled and cocked his semi-automatic, “Let’s do this!”
           All players were vested-up, handguns and assault weapons at the ready! The remaining junkies were shooed away. The elevator was disabled to eliminate that escape. The lead SWAT Team – quietly, stealthily – ran up the stairs.
           When they were at the storage unit, the access door suddenly flew opened! Marvin Stevens stood there with a look of astonished surprise! Almost as soon as he saw the Police, he tried to slam the door. He dashed behind a couple large red metal, standing tool chests halfway to the back of the unit. The heavy lock was cut and the large garage door squeaked loudly as it was shoved open. All the Police took positions near the opened door.
           A gunshot pealed from behind the tool chests. Stevens had a gun.
           “Police!! Don’t move! Throw down your weapon,” was yelled by a Policeman. Other demands rang out, as well.
           “Fuck you!” Stevens yelled back. “Have a woman here. Have a knife. I’ll cut her!!”
           “Do you really want to do that, Marvin?” Neal called out firmly -- he was in control.
           “Is this Detective Scarpetti? Her other lover?”
          “Her ONLY lover, Marvin.”
           “Hate to tell ya but she’s mine now. She loves me and proved it tonight. She is so hot – hot for me, Neal!” He made a male noise of pleasure.
            There was a different squeaking sound from behind the chests – like a woman trying to scream with a taped mouth.
            “Let her tell me that, Marvin,” Neal said. He was in torment.
           After a moment, there was a sound like something heavy was moved and then a knocking sound, like one of the tool chests was kicked a few times.
           “Maria?” Neal called to her. Another noise was heard; a desperate noise.
            Some of the SWAT moved quietly, but quickly, closer to where Stevens hid. Neal and Judy were behind them. A small mirror on a thin, metal arm was used to peer behind the chests. There was only Maria, whose wrists were duct-taped and rope-tied above her head to a metal pole attached to the wall. Her ankles were duct-taped, also. Her legs were not broken.
           “Clear!” called out one of the Team. Now, there was more scurrying in other areas. The tool chests were hurriedly rolled out of the way.
           Then, Neal rushed to Maria and untied her wrists and removed the tape over her mouth. Judy cut the tape that bound her ankles. Her clothes were mostly off with her panties down to her bare feet. Judy covered Maria with a blanket; she was conscious, but groggy – and beat up.
           “We need Paramedics here!” Judy yelled.
           “They’re on their way up,” someone answered.
           Neal couldn’t say anything. He sat on the dirty concrete floor while he tenderly held Maria in his strong, protective arms. Kissed her eyes – one was swollen. She tried to see Neal and smile, but Marvin had really beat her.
           In a hesitant whisper, Maria explained, “I wouldn’t … I wouldn’t say I … loved him. That pissed … pissed ….” She began to weep softly.
          “Shhhh … shhhh,” Neal consoled. He wrapped her more with the blanket.
          “Excuse me, Detective. You need to look at this,” a Uniform had one of the layouts.
          “Go on, Neal,” Judy assured with a big smile. “I’ll take care of her.” Maria nodded to Neal that she felt safe now. The Paramedics had arrived and they got her on the gurney. He kissed her forehead and fingers, before he did his work. She was whisked away.
           Neal went to the Officer, who stood farther to the back with spread out paper, then said, “There’s a floor/horizontal chase³ behind the units, divides the units – for wiring, gas and water pipes. Small but big enough for a man to walk through.”
          Neal saw tall metal shelves against the wall and hustled to move one. And, lo and behold, there was a 2’x3’ cut out on the wall – just big enough for someone to crawl through. He squeezed through and asked the Officer for his flashlight.
          Then the Officer said, “Looks like there is a vertical chase – ladder rungs to climb or descend. There might be access to the roof.”
          “Son-uva bitch,” Neal murmured. Then there was a strong cold draft that came from the vertical chase. Out loud, he said to the Officer, “Tell the SWAT about this.”
          When Neal emerged from the chase, he radioed Frank, Sid and Victor to put extra troops at the exits, especially where the van was parked. He called over to the one SWAT Sargent to make perimeters at the chase on all floors.  
           There was no way to know how many weapons Stevens had.
           Neal’s instincts were screaming that Stevens was on the roof. He wouldn’t make this easy for them. He obviously hated Neal and women. Stevens was waiting -- waiting to attack!
           Lyn was with Neal, as they went up the stairs (the elevator had been disabled earlier). As the two detectives made one floor after another, they heard on the radio the “Clear!” they wanted to hear by the pursuing troops. Over the radio, someone confirmed one of the chase roof-covers was off. This confirmed Neal’s hunch about the roof.
           They made it to the narrow stair-access to the roof. Via the radio, they learned the other groups at the chase roof openings were in place. Taylor radioed that the fire-escapes were covered – no one seen. Several of the SWAT troops swarmed out onto the roof and hid behind various protection; a couple of air-condition units, large exhaust pipes, an old water tower.
           The snow began to swirl heavier now. Not a white out, but more than before. Definitely, a cold January night. Because of the lack of insulation under the roof, it wasn’t icy, slippery. Any heat there was in the building escaped through the roof.
          Neal guardedly peeked around one corner. Then, it sounded like there was singing. Neal frowned to Lyn, who had a curious expression, also. It sounded like the song “Let It Snow.” Then, Neal saw Stevens on top of one elevator bunker, made him higher than the concealed Police. He used his semi-automatic gun like a symphony conductor’s baton.
          “No shooting! No shooting!” Neal loudly whispered into his radio. “Take him alive!” After seeing Maria, however, he wanted to be the one to kill him.
          No direct light, but enough ambient light to discern Stevens’ actions. Neal stepped from his protection, in full view, and laid his gun on the tar-papered roof. Raised his hands in a submissive manner.
          “Let it …,” he stopped singing when he saw Neal. “Ahhh, Neal. That’s a good boy,” Stevens said as he saw the detective. “She told you? She told you how good I made her feel?” He pumped his hips and laughed a sardonic laugh.
          “She’s at the hospital because of what you did to her, Marvin. That’s all.” Neal kept his demeanor. “What are you gonna do now, Marvin? What do you want?” He knew the sharp-shooters had a shot – he heard Lyn’s faint radio transmission.
          “What do I want?” Marvin asked as he flailed his arms, waving the gun. “In the last few months, I’ve laid more bitches than in my whole life. Too bad, it was by force. They were difficult. Even Maria. I really thought she liked me.” He gave out one of his nasty laughs, as he said, “Instead, she threatened me! Said she was gonna tell you – you’d fix me.”
           “Did you think you’d get away with what you’ve done? No hostage now, Marvin. Why don’t you put down the gun? Let’s get outta the cold.” Neal’s tone was less “nice” after this last rattle from Stevens.
           This was not part of what Marvin wanted, to be confronted by any man. His laugh became louder and more demonic. “I would have given one of them everything she would want! I just wanted one of them to love me. Was that asking too much?” he began to cry tears. He sobbed with his shoulders, then he regained his self-control. “Top of the world, Ma⁴!” He yelled as he raised his gun to Neal, “Top of the worl ….”
            A single rifle shot rang out. The bullet hit Marvin Stevens in his head. He was dead as he fell from top of the elevator bunker to the tar-papered roof.

 …*******†

            In the hospital, Maria was cleaned up, bandages on her cuts. Not much could be done for her lips – just some antibiotic salve. Her upper body was at a raised angle.
            Neal’s overcoat, suit jacket and tie was on a chair in her room. He sat in another chair beside her bed. He had unbuttoned the shirt at his neck and rolled up his long sleeves. His head rested on his arms and wished she would wake soon.
            Presently, her eyes fluttered slightly. Then, she blinked wake. Turned her head to see Neal and smiled as sweetly as she could.
          “How do you feel?” he asked quietly.
           “Right now, not too bad,” Maria replied softly honest. “Is he ….” she hesitated.
            “He’s dead,” Neal assured.
            She sighed relieved, then said, “He didn’t rape me, Neal. He wanted you to think he did. All he did was undress me and fondle my breasts – rub between my legs. While he did this, he wanted me to say I loved him. I wouldn’t. He hit me each time I wouldn’t.”
            She pointed to the plastic glass on the cabinet. He poured some water from the small pitcher and handed the glass to her. She sipped, then continued, “I know now my karate training doesn’t work all the time. He really surprised me. Knocked me out as soon as we were outside.”
            “Are you going to stop smoking now?” Neal asked playfully serious.
            She embarrassedly nodded her head and went on, “It didn’t bother him what he’s done. He followed me to the Bartending Class – saw all the girls; planned all of this. He actually thought we – the women -- needed discipline. Needed pain.” She took a good gulp of the water before continuing, “His mother was his reason. She was cruel to him. Never married – she might have been raped. I didn’t ask. She dominated; didn’t let him date in high school; jealous of any girl he even mentioned. She died when he was 23 from some cancer. A pathetic man. He hated you.” Maria closed her eyes which began to tear, then opened them again to look at him and spoke softly, “Neal, I love you.” Her eyes lovingly searched his.
           Neal grinned to her, sat on the bed beside her, took her hand without the heart sensor and said, “I love you, too. Very much,” he said warmly, but then, with a small frown, he asked, “Maria … will you marry me?”
           She sat up to wrap her arms around him. He lovingly held her head to his chest. She nodded with a yes motion against his chest.
           “I guess that’s a ‘yes.’” He said with a teary smile.
           Now, they had more of a future, which made Neal happier than he’d been all day.

The End

 

¹ – “Misery” 1990 – Directed & Produced by Rob Reiner

² – Elevated Train
³ – Building access areas/tunnels for various utilities
⁴ – Said by James Cagney in movie, “White Heat” circa 1949