The Warning

by Michelle E Lowe

  Rivera might have been dead on, but it was Sakura’s interview with one of the real hostages that gave him the idea that not only had the suspects escaped another way, but the hostages left in the building had been accomplices.

  “Crafty,” Rivera said. “Looks like they got away with some cash after all.”

  Knox shook his head. “I don’t think they were after money.” At Rivera’s confused look, he went on. “I believe what happened here and the death of the mayor’s daughter are connected. I need you to get up to Lloyd’s office to see if there’s anything there.”

  “What am I looking for?”

  “Anything that wouldn’t burn in a fire, like a fireproof box or safe. If you find it, give me a call. Then go to Howard and tell him everything.”

  “Can’t I just call him?”

  “No. This is something that he needs to hear in person. Go to him directly and speak to him in private. And afterwards, stop by Nelson’s place and tell him his daughter is alive.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to the precinct where Crowe was taken, and then I’ll head over to the morgue to examine Sho’s body. Don’t ask me how I know this, but I believe Crowe may be innocent.”

  “Innocent? Aw Knox, come on, you have to tell me what’s going on.”

  “I can’t,” he whispered. “Not right now. You just have to trust me on this.” He started out of the closet but stopped. “Remember, speak to the chief only. No one else.”

  “All right, I’ll do it, even though I’m so lost in the dark it’ll take me years to find the light switch.”

  Knox headed down the hollow volcanic hallway. He hated keeping his partner at an arm’s length, but he was dancing on a thin enough wire as it was. “It’ll be okay. We just need to keep digging.”

  Chapter 11

  Hiroshi Sho’s eyes were glassy and his chest felt tight when he stepped out of the apartment building with his wife clutching his arm. They came into the bright light of cameras and howling reporters.

  “Mr. Mayor,” one called, “how do you feel about your daughter’s killer being on the loose?”

  “Mr. Mayor, tell us what your plans are for catching him.”

  Sho and his wife stopped outside the front doors, surrounded by their bodyguards. Kay Revell was also with them.

  “One question at a time,” she ordered. “The mayor will answer your questions in an orderly fashion, but if you don’t keep your inquires respectful, I’ll call an end to this meeting.”

  A hush fell over the press as they waited like obedient children for the mayor’s words. Kay turned to Sho and his wife. “Your Honor,” she said softly, stepping back.

  “Thank you, Kay.”

  He looked into the cameras and spoke ardently. “I just wanted to say that my wife and I are extremely distressed over what happened to our daughter. Jade was the light of my life and the reason for my living. We are also—” He broke off. As a strong man, he hid his pain from the public. He swallowed his grief and replaced it with anger when he said, “We are very disappointed that her killer is on the loose.” His wife buried herself against his arm and cried. He patted her on the shoulder before continuing. “You asked me what my plans are for capturing the person who did this. There is a reward offered for any information about the whereabouts of Nikolai Crowe, a mere fifty thousand dollars.” His accent grew deeper and darker as he spoke. “This bounty, in my opinion, isn’t enough to get people to look, so I’m offering four million dollars for the actual capture of this boy.”

  A gasp spread among the media.

  “Mr. Mayor,” Sakura interrupted, “who will pay for that?”

  He looked in her direction. “I’ll pay it out of my own salary. The reward will go to either civilians or officers. I want this Crowe in custody tonight, and I don’t care how he’s brought in.”

  “Your Honor,” Sakura went on, “are you suggesting dead or alive?”

  Sho and his weeping wife retreated into the building. Reporters called after them, firing off questions with no response.

  “Hiroshi,” Claudia said as they entered the apartment. “I don’t want to see her. I’m not ready.”

  “We have to go sometime.”

  “I’m not ready right now,” she blurted angrily.

  He was too tired to argue. If he pressed her, she would only have one of her anxiety attacks. In his own state he just couldn’t handle that. “All right. We’ll wait for now.”

  He left for his study, where he closed the doors and approached the bar. He made himself a scotch and soda. As he took his first sip, Kay entered and slid the doors shut.

  “That was a good move,” she said, approaching him. “Upping the reward. Are you sure you want people to think you want Crowe dead? Wouldn’t it be more gratifying to have him tried and sentenced to death?”

  “I’m a grieving father. I don’t care if Crowe is killed or not. I only hope that if someone does kill him, they make him suffer.”

  Ebenezer climbed the old fire escape behind Jade’s apartment building and snuck in through an unlocked window. He waved down to Nikolai, waiting in the alley.

  Nikolai made his way up to the fifth floor. “The alarm didn’t go off?” he asked as he climbed through the open window.

  “It wasn’t on.”

  He looked at the alarm system embedded in the wall. “That’s strange. She usually has it locked. Even on nice days, she refused to open the windows.”

  He scanned the well-lit place. A flood of memories struck him as he stepped farther into the apartment. Nothing spared him a spark of recollection. The recliner brought him to the nights when he held her while they watched horror movies. A vision of them fooling around on the sofa warmed him. They used to stay up some nights, talking, until the sunlight crept through the windows. He could taste her horrible cooking on the rare occasions she’d made dinner for him. The phantom smell of something burning touched his nostrils.

  The pleasant memories suddenly vanished when he reached the middle of the living room. His heart chilled when he reached the pool of blood. The sight nearly knocked him to the floor. Ebenezer stepped beside him.

  “This must be where she died,” Ebenezer said flatly.

  Jesus. That’s her blood.

  Nausea swept over him, making him lightheaded and weak. He ran into the bedroom heading straight to the bathroom. He waved his hand over the sensor of the faucet and cupped his hands, splashing water over his face. Ebenezer came to the doorway as he spit water into the sink.

  “Fuck,” he said, smoothing his hair back.

  “Are you all right?”

  He pressed his forehead against the mirror. “I can’t believe this is happening. I wasn’t ready for this. I hadn’t prepared myself for what might be here.”

  “Even if you had, do you think you would have reacted differently?”

  He rotated his head toward him, the sound of his wet skin squeaking against the glass. He gave Ebenezer a miserable look. “I don’t know.”

  “Why were you ill just now? Have you never seen blood before?”

  “What?”

  “Was it the smell? Are you one of those people who faint at the sight of blood? I’ve seen much blood in the war and never thought much of it.”

  “Look,” he said, rising, “it’s not about the fucking blood, all right? It’s who it belonged to. Don’t you get it? The love of my life was murdered. I’ll never see her again. Never hear her laughter. Never feel her body against mine. Never … y’know, forget it. Just leave me alone for awhile.”

  Ebenezer stayed in place. “I didn’t mean to sound obtuse. I only want to understand your feelings and why you feel the emotions you do.”

  “Go away.”

  When Ebenezer left, Nikolai gripped his damp hair and gazed wearily at himself in the mirror. “Take it easy,” he told himself. “Hold it together. You’re here for a reason.”

  He was right. He hadn’t been prepared to enter this place. The entir
e apartment was full of memories he couldn’t bring himself to remember without the sight of blood overshadowing them.

  He exited the bathroom. When he saw the bed, he tried desperately not to think of the times he and Jade had made love, or the nights when he watched her sleep. She must have felt so safe with him. Most nights she’d practically begged him to stay; and he had, every time she’d asked. He’d never wanted to deny her anything. He would have done anything for her.

  But there’d been an incident the last time they’d made love that concerned him. Six nights ago as they engaged in sexual bliss, he’d heard her sobbing. He was about to lift himself off her when she pulled him back.

  “No, don’t stop,” she whispered. “Please, don’t stop.”

  “What’s wrong?” he whispered back.

  She gave him a passionate kiss and said, “I have to feel you right now, so please, keep going.”

  He’d continued, and when they’d both climaxed and the heat of passion had cooled, he asked her again what the matter was. She only snuggled up against him and said to hold her tight. He kissed her until her trembling body became tranquil only after she’d fallen asleep. She never gave a reason for crying. Now he wondered if she might’ve known it was going to be the last time they would share such an intimate experience together.

  As he approached the bed, his heartbeat slowed when the thought of her believing he’d hurt her, resurfaced. The betrayal she must have felt to think the man—who she’d felt so safe with before—had attacked her so brutally. Tears welled in his eyes, but he wiped them away before they had a chance to fall.

  I have a secret in my bedroom closet.

  He went to the closet, not knowing what he was looking for, but hoping he’d find it. He stood by the open bi-fold doors, staring at the clothes hanging on coat hangers.

  No. Don’t do this to yourself. You have to stay focused.

  He pushed his fragile emotions aside and turned on the closet light. He raised his chin up at the shelf and brought down a shoebox. Opening it, he found nothing more than a few ticket stubs, a pair of spare shoelaces, and an antique pocket watch which had belonged to her great-grandfather.

  She’d never spoken about her family and had refused to answer questions about them—especially her father. He’d respected her reticence to avoid an argument. Since the beginning, he’d known she was the mayor’s daughter, but rarely did he think about it.

  He placed the shoebox back on the shelf and found nothing else but old folded blankets and quilts.

  What were you trying to tell me? You wanted me here. What is it you want me to find?

  He kneeled next to three pairs of shoes lined up on the floor and bumped into one of the doors. Something fell behind it. He reached into the space between the folded doors and felt around before he found what had fallen. It was a photograph taped behind the door.

  The picture was of Jade and him. He even remembered the day it had been taken. They’d gone to Central Park and she had insisted on taking a picture of them standing near the Greywacke Arch. He held her close while she shot the picture. The bridge was mostly in the shot, as well as half of him. Jade appeared only from the chin up, smiling. He stared at her and his heart melted. It was the worst picture they’d ever taken, but it filled him with such warmth.

  “Nikolai,” Ebenezer called from behind.

  He jumped and wiped the tears away. “What is it?”

  “You need to see this.”

  He pocketed the photo and followed him into the living room. On the television was a live broadcast of the mayor making a statement in front of his apartment building.

  “This bounty, in my opinion, isn’t enough to get people to look, so I’m offering four million dollars for the actual capture of this boy.”

  Nikolai grabbed his chest and took a step back to keep from falling over.

  “I told you the reward would go up,” Ebenezer said.

  The price on his head would increase the longer he remained at large, but he never believed it would skyrocket.

  “I’ll pay it out of my own salary. The reward will go to either civilians or officers. I want this Crowe in custody tonight, and I don’t care how he’s brought in.”

  “What the hell does he mean by that? Is he trying to get me killed?”

  “We should go,” Ebenezer advised. “Someone is coming.”

  His attention moved to the front door. He didn’t detect any noise, yet he trusted Ebenezer’s superior hearing.

  He followed the Replica out and closed the window just as the door unlocked and Mason peeked in. Nikolai watched him scan the place as if he’d heard something from the hallway. He hated that the cop was in Jade’s apartment, moving around as if it were his. If it was another cop—one not in on her murder—he wouldn’t have minded as much, but it being Mason only added another clap of thunder to the shit storm.

  He followed Ebenezer down the fire escape and let go of the last rung of the ladder, dropping to the alley below.

  “Did you find what you were looking for?” Ebenezer asked.

  He raised the hood over his head. “No,” he said despairingly. “I don’t know what else to do.”

  “We shouldn’t be out here. Let’s go back to the prison. At least, we’ll be safe there.”

  He shrugged. “Might as well. No one will look for me there; and believe me, everyone is gonna be on the lookout now.”

  “Jesus, it’s all here,” Kip said, glancing over the hardcopy file stolen from the bank. “All their names are listed right here. We have ’em by the balls, man!”

  “We don’t have shit,” Marko seethed, snatching the file from him. “Without the video we have nothing but lists that no one will believe are real.” He threw the file on the table. The others moved from his path as he headed for the kitchen. When he burst through the swinging double doors, he kicked a plastic trashcan across the room.

  “Reliving some old high school football days?” Ari asked, walking in behind him.

  “I’m not in the mood,” Marko said, placing his hands on the dusty countertop.

  She put a sympathetic hand on his shoulder. “It’s going to be all right. Don’t worry so much.”

  “No, it won’t be all right,” he said, his dark brown skin flushed with anger, his stomach turning with worry. “If we don’t get the video then everything we just did was for nothing.”

  “We’ll find a way to get the truth out. If anything, we’ll use what we have and hope for the best.”

  “We can hope all we want, but we have nothing without the video. Without it, there’s no proof about what’s gonna happen.” His expression hardened. “Jade should have sent it to me before this shit went down.”

  * * * * *

  Rivera climbed the burnt and fragile staircase with caution. Below, a few firefighters stood by, watching him make his way up.

  “Baby steps,” one advised flippantly.

  “Y’know,” Rivera said, holding the railing with both hands, “I really don’t need an audience for this.”

  He finally reached the top and let out a deep sigh of relief. The firefighters applauded and he gave them a bow.

  “Encore!” one of them yelled while clapping.

  “It’ll be one when I come down.”

  As the firefighters returned to their work, Rivera entered the office through the broken door. Nothing inside was salvageable. The desk had all but burned away. Metal frames of three office chairs remained after the upholstery had incinerated. One file cabinet lay melted on the floor. He stepped through black puddles and crouched next to one.

  Is this what Knox sent me up here to find? What the hell am I doing here?

  He was about to roll the file cabinet over; hoping perhaps something had survived in the drawers, when a hole caught his eye. He rose to his full height, shined his light up, and found a deep hole inside the wall.

  Knox, you clever sonofabitch!

  He got on his cell.

  Knox answered his phone as he sto
od inside the evidence room of the Twenty-third Precinct.

  “You were right,” Rivera said. “There’s a hole in the wall of Lloyd’s office. It looks like a safe. Whatever was inside, I bet it’s what the suspects were after.”

  Knox couldn’t hold back a smile. He just loved being right. “Good job, Alfonso. Tell the chief—and remember what I said.”

  “No problem. Call you later.”

  He pressed END and focused on the clear evidence bag in his hand. Inside was a red velvet wallet with the words No One Here Gets Out Alive sewn in black thread. He remembered his brief interview with Mason.

  How’d you know where the victim lived?

  Her driver’s license, Mason had answered. The wallet was on the body.

  “Why would Sho have her wallet on her, instead of in her purse,” he muttered to himself, reaching into the plastic bag. He remembered seeing the victim’s purse beside her bed. Most women usually carried their identification in a handbag.

  He could’ve looked her information up on the computer, but he wanted to actually see the wallet for himself. When he opened it, he discovered Mason had lied. She’d never changed her license when she’d moved back to New York. She still had her California license.

  Chapter 12

  Nikolai and Ebenezer journeyed to the prison the same way they’d reached Jade’s apartment from the hospital. Nikolai was actually relieved when they finally returned to the empty, dismal place. Here it was safe, and he had time to think things through and figure out where to go next.

  “What did you put in your pocket?” Ebenezer asked, walking next to him as they entered the mess hall. “In the young woman’s apartment, you put something in your pocket when I came to fetch you.”

  “Oh, yeah,” he said, suddenly remembering. His mind had been elsewhere the past hour. “It’s nothing; just a picture Jade took of us in the park.”

  Ebenezer stopped. “Where in the park?”

  His gaze moved up where Ebenezer’s face appeared in the beam of his flashlight. “Why?”