Missing Boy

by Rick Polad

  “I know. But this is one rock that needs turning over.”

  He stood up. “My advice is to stay away from there. You can fix a broken window, but other things aren’t so easy. Let us take care of it.”

  “Understood. But unless you find something to justify a warrant there’s nothing for you to take care of. And Walters hasn’t left a trail of bread crumbs. I don’t need a warrant.”

  He shook his head. “Don’t do anything dumb.”

  I had been wondering whether to tell him about Harvey. I was glad I didn’t—he wouldn’t have let me out of the office.

  Chapter 30

  I rang Sadie’s bell at seven-thirty. After a quiet lunch with Samantha, I had walked across the street and spent an hour with Carol, who wanted to know what was going on at Riverview and if anyone had called because of the posters. They hadn’t. She told me Billy was still talking about the Cubs game, and I told her we’d go again before the season was over. She said Billy was sure they were going to win the pennant. I told her that many had said the same thing over the last seventy-six years. She laughed… improving my day.

  I rang the bell again before someone came to the door and opened it, pulling the chain tight.

  “Yes?”

  “Are you Sadie?”

  “Yes,” she said hesitantly.

  “My name is Spencer Manning. I spent most of yesterday with Barbara Reid. I’m looking into what’s going on at the park, and she suggested I have a chat with you.”

  “Do you have identification?”

  I showed her my license.

  “Okay, but I’m just getting my mother settled for the evening. If you’ll give me five minutes, I’ll come out.”

  “Sure.”

  I was apprehensive. After what had happened to her, I’d been partly expecting her to tell me to get lost.

  The sun had dropped behind the houses when Sadie came back with two glasses on a tray. She wasn’t as big as the caretaker. Except for a limp, though, she looked sturdy and strong.

  “Would you like some lemonade, Mr. Manning?”

  “Sure, thanks.” I felt a little guilty taking something from someone who had to steal food to eat. She placed the tray on the table between the chairs and sat down.

  I told her about Martin and asked if she knew him.

  “No, I’m sorry. It’s a big place. There are lots of kids working there and the faces change pretty frequently.”

  “Do you know about the missing kids?”

  “Only what Walters told us. Before that I wasn’t aware of the problem.” She took a drink and held the glass in both hands. Looking out over the street, she said, “But I did know Benny.”

  “How well did you know him?”

  “Nothing serious… just had lunch when we were both off at the same time. I don’t think his death was an accident.”

  “Why do you think that?”

  “Benny wasn’t careless. He worked on the coasters… you know, fixing them and doing maintenance. And he had no reason to be in the Tunnel of Love.”

  “Well, you’re correct. The blow to his head wasn’t made by a boat.”

  She nodded. “Not surprised. I hope they catch whoever did it.”

  “They’re trying.”

  She set the glass down and turned toward me. “So why are you sitting on my porch?”

  I smiled. I liked Sadie. “I need some help. Barbara suggested you.”

  She looked surprised. “Me? How can I help?”

  “I’d like to get into the tunnels.”

  “I can’t imagine why. Would you like more lemonade?”

  “No thanks. I don’t know why myself. But there’s something going on and when I found out about the tunnels it sparked my curiosity. You’ve been down there?”

  “Yes. Quite often.”

  “What for?”

  “I work the concessions. We move food and supplies through the tunnels when the park is open so the guests don’t see.”

  The sun had disappeared behind the houses and a cool breeze blew from the north. I wished I had brought my jacket. Sadie had on a sweater and didn’t seem to be bothered by the breeze.

  “Sadie, would you tell me about what happened with Walters?”

  Her eyes followed the cars that passed the house. As a beat-up Chevy went by, she said, “I called Barbara when I got home—she didn’t answer.”

  I let that hang there until she turned and looked at me.

  “If she was home sick she would have answered,” she added.

  I didn’t want anyone knowing where Barbara was but thought it best to be honest with her. “She was concerned about being watched. I moved her to a safe place.”

  “And I’m just supposed to take your word that she’s okay?”

  I reached into my pocket and pulled out the ring and handed it to her. “Barbara said to give you this and to tell you she wore it on the wrong finger.”

  Sadie laughed. “Okay, only Barbara could have told you that.” She watched another car. “This is all so bizarre. You asked about Walters. He asked me to stay after work… said he would pay me overtime to take inventory down in the tunnel’s storage rooms. I could really use the money. I was walking ahead of him in one of the tunnels when he hit me in the back of the legs with a baseball bat. As I curled up on the dirt floor he told me he knew I had stolen some food and he needed to teach me a lesson.”

  I let out a deep breath.

  “He told me to get up but I couldn’t. My legs weren’t working and the pain was horrible. He ordered me again to stand up and then hit me in the side and asked if I was done stealing. I said I was. He smiled and said he was glad because he really didn’t like this part of his job and he wanted to report to Mrs. Meyers that the problem was taken care of.” Her eyes no longer followed the cars. She just stared out at the street.

  “Why didn’t he just fire you?”

  “He told me he could have me arrested and then I wouldn’t be able to get another job. He said he could fire me, but he thought we could work something out.”

  “What?”

  “I don’t know. He just said he’d forget about what happened if I’d help him when he asked. He said he owned me.”

  When I didn’t respond, she said, “He hasn’t asked.”

  Sadie was another person Walters had something on. He was running a prison camp.

  “I’m so sorry, Sadie. If it helps any, I don’t know what’s going on yet, but I’m going to get him.”

  She nodded slowly. “I’d like to be there when you do.”

  “I bet. I’ll figure out how to get in the tunnels some other way. You’ve had enough trouble.”

  Her eyes narrowed and her hands shook a bit on her knees. “I want to help. I need some revenge. And I’d feel safe with you there.”

  “I won’t always be there. And revenge isn’t always a good thing.”

  She thought for a minute. “Have you ever wanted to kill someone?”

  “Yes.”

  “And did you?”

  “Yes.”

  “And was that a good thing?”

  I saw her point, but it wasn’t that simple. I took a deep breath. “The world is better off with some people not on it. But I don’t take pleasure in pulling the trigger.”

  “Well, Mr. Manning, you got your revenge. I want mine.” She turned to face me. “Charles Dickens said in one of his books, ‘He would make a lovely corpse’.”

  I tried not to show my surprise at her literary knowledge, but she laughed as she watched me.

  “What book was that? Who was he referring to?” I asked.

  “Oh, I don’t remember the book, but I’m thinking Walters fits nicely.”

  There was a lot of hate in her voice. I didn’t blame her. “I’ll buy that.”

  “Excuse me for a minute,” she said. She went back inside and a few seconds later the porch light came on.

  “So, are the tunnels the only thing you need help with?” she asked as she sat back down.

&
nbsp; “At the moment, yes. You have anything else in mind?”

  She raised her jaw and said, “If you’re planning on killing him, I’d like to help.”

  I expected her to smile but she didn’t. I didn’t either.

  “Well, just for the record, planning to kill people is illegal. Sometimes killing them without planning is illegal too.”

  “I know. But also for the record, I wouldn’t mind seeing him dead.”

  “I don’t blame you, Sadie. But behind bars is pretty good too.”

  “Sometimes pretty good just doesn’t do it, Mr. Manning.”

  I couldn’t argue with that. As I started to ask her about the tunnels, the dog on the porch next door started to bark, seemingly at nothing.

  Sadie laughed when she saw my perplexed look. “That dog’s not too bright—probably a squirrel.”

  I nodded. “So are you willing to help with the tunnels?”

  “Sure, but I’ll have to give it some thought. I assume you don’t want to be seen, and I’d rather not be seen with you.”

  I agreed. “Tell me about the police force.”

  “What do you want to know?”

  “How many are there?”

  “Well, you know about Walters. He and Meyers are there Tuesday through Saturday but their hours are sporadic. They show up late or leave early. Then there are two that have the title of sergeant—Mooney and Phelps. All but Meyers have guns. Mooney and Phelps cover all the shifts. Then there are six officers. Do you want their names?”

  “Maybe later. I’ve met Mooney.”

  “Lucky you. He’s a clown.”

  “But a clown with a gun. So maybe the best time would be on Sunday when Walters and Meyers aren’t there. I’m assuming we can’t do this after hours.”

  She shook her head. “Don’t see how. The place is closed and locked. There’s a night watchman and you never know where he is… probably sleeping somewhere. I’ll think about it.”

  I sat up in the chair. “Well, please call me when you figure it out. And if Walters contacts you, call me. The phone at my office forwards to my house at night, and I have an answering machine. If there’s no answer, call my pager and put in 777 and your number and I’ll call you right back.”

  She said she’d call for sure and looked like she had something else to say. I waited.

  Looking back out at the street, she asked, “Barbara’s really okay?”

  “Yes. She’s scared, but she couldn’t be in better hands.”

  She turned to me with a look that was powerful and steady. “Good. There are lots of scared people there Mr. Manning.” She sighed. “It used to be a fun place to work.”

  “So I’ve heard. But you don’t seem scared, Sadie.”

  “I’m not afraid of bullies.”

  “Good for you. But you should be afraid enough to be wary. These are dangerous people. You are proof of that.”

  She was quiet.

  “And there’s Benny.”

  She didn’t respond.

  I didn’t want to tell Barbara about Harold, but I thought Sadie should know. “And Harold.”

  That got her attention.

  “Harold?”

  “Harold Dejan ran one of the trains. Did you know him?”

  “I did. Why are we talking in the past tense?”

  “I found him dead in his room Wednesday.”

  She dropped her head and closed her eyes. “And you think it’s connected?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  She took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay, I’ll be more… wary.”

  “If you want to forget about the tunnels, I understand.”

  “Nope. You just keep giving me more reasons to get the bastard.” Her determined look was back.

  “I’ll listen to whatever plan you come up with, but if it doesn’t sound safe I won’t do it. I’m not putting you in jeopardy. And Walters may not be the only one to watch out for.”

  She nodded. “If you mean Meyers, I already know.”

  Sadie was pretty smart. She wanted revenge, but she wasn’t just acting on emotions. She was thinking pretty clearly.

  “Of course you’ll have to take a pill,” she said with a sly smile.

  “Pardon?”

  Her smile turned into a laugh. “Marcel, the barker at the castle, is from Louisiana. He has everyone convinced that the tunnels are full of evil spirits and you need protection to go down there.”

  I gave her my best skeptical look. “What kind of protection?”

  “Well, he just happens to sell voodoo pills that he guarantees will do the trick.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Of course he does. What do you mean by everyone?”

  “Well, maybe not everyone, but close to it.”

  “Including you?”

  She was still smiling. “Including me. I’m from New Orleans. My mama used to see a voodoo priestess, and I’ve seen some things I just can’t explain logically. I know Marcel is just working a scam, but a part of me says it can’t hurt.”

  I shook my head with a smile. “And I was just thinking how sensible you sounded.”

  “Covering all your bases sounds pretty sensible to me.”

  “Okay, but don’t be offended if I decline.”

  “Hey, it’s your soul.”

  I knew she was mostly playing with me, but there was some childhood indoctrination there too.

  “I’ll wait for your call.” As I straightened and grabbed the arms of the chair to get up, I told her I had one last question.

  “What?”

  “Feel free not to answer. I’m wondering what you stole that resulted in that attack.”

  She smiled. “A package of hot dogs.”

  I had no words.

  When I didn’t respond, she continued. “I knew it was wrong, but I was out of money and out of food and it was three days till payday. I was going to replace them.”

  “How did he find out?”

  She slowly shook her head. “I have no idea.”

  “A package of hot dogs isn’t going to get you in much trouble, Sadie.”

  “No, but he said there were other things missing, and he said he wouldn’t be surprised if I stole them too.”

  “Nice guy.”

  “Yeah, a real prince.”

  I got her phone number, we shook hands, and I got halfway down the steps before I turned back. “Do you need some money, Sadie?”

  “We’re okay. I just got a little behind last month. My mother… But thanks for the offer. I appreciate it.” She held out the ring.

  “Why don’t you keep it. You can give it back to Barbara.”

  “Okay. It can be a good luck charm.”

  I nodded and headed for the car. After a couple of blocks I turned on the heater and wished for warmer weather.

  ***

  I was close to the lake so I drove back to the beach where Rosie and I had sat on the rock a week ago. It seemed like years. A light breeze was blowing offshore and the lake was flat and peaceful. Behind me was a city that was majestic but not very peaceful. The lake wasn’t always either, but I knew how to deal with it. You could survive a storm with the right skills. I knew how to deal with people who were willing to kidnap kids too. It was a different skill set, but first I had to find them and I wasn’t having much luck so far. I found it ironic that the darkness out over the lake was far safer than the brightly lit city behind me. I watched running lights twinkling on the lake for an hour before heading home.

  Chapter 31

  Martin ate the food on the tray—meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and peas—but he wondered how the food had made it into his mouth now that his thumbs were twice their normal size. As he walked back to the bed, he heard a knock on the wall. He climbed onto the bed and listened. He had no idea how long it was before he heard it again. He reached out and knocked back, and it was only seconds before he heard the knock again. That continued for what seemed like hours. Martin thought it was fun but had no idea why the wall was knocking at him.

&n
bsp; Chapter 32

  Saturday promised to be a beautiful day… temperature in the seventies and clear skies. The Cubs were in St. Louis for an afternoon game and the only plans I had for the day were to have breakfast with Harvey and watch the game with Stosh.

  Harvey was back in our old booth reading the paper.

  I sat down and he asked with a grin when he was going to be arrested.

  I laughed. “Not everyone seems so happy about the prospect.”

  “Not everyone gets a paid vacation out of it.”

  As I sat, the waitress brought coffee. I had thought about his relationship to Meyers and decided to be less trusting. “Well, hate to spoil your vacation, but I talked to my contact in the department and he didn’t go for it.” That seemed like a good white lie.

  He looked disappointed as he folded the paper. “Oh well, back to my boring life.”

  “Sorry. If you want to get arrested you’re on your own.”

  “I think I’ll pass.”

  Breakfast went by quickly. He asked when our next breakfast would be. I told him I’d call him.

  ***

  I was taking care of chores when the phone rang at about eleven. It was Sadie.

  “Hello, Spencer. I only have a minute. I’m at a pay phone at the park. I’m thinking tomorrow about four would be a good time. The park closes at six so everything is winding down for the day by then and the tunnels should be empty.”

  “Nobody will be moving anything?”

  “No, they stock up after lunch and then before the park opens in the morning. And Walters and Meyers won’t be here.”

  “Do you know which sergeant will be there?”

  “I don’t, but we can hope for Phelps.”

  “How do I find you?”

  Suddenly all I heard were screams from people on the roller coaster. When they stopped, she said, “Come to the hot dog stand by the Parachute Drop. I’ll be there and we’ll play it by ear. I may not be able to get you in, but I’ll try.”

  “All I can ask. Thanks, Sadie.”

  “Sure. Bye.”

  She hung up before I could respond.

  I had no idea if a walk through the tunnels would help, but I was excited to have the chance. Most big cities had tunnels, including ancient Rome. They had figured out even back then that it was easier to move all sorts of things without having to deal with the people on the surface. I knew Chicago had tunnels beneath the downtown section for utilities and moving supplies. There was an element of danger in our exploration, but Walters and Meyers wouldn’t be there and I was carrying a gun so I felt pretty confident.