by Regan Black
What was Lara’s reason for leaving a relatively safe campus for the street? Why withdraw from school and cut off contact with a brother who clearly loved her?
Not that Leo was hard to love...
“Officer Aubrey!” She and Calvin turned toward the voice and spotted Mary-Tea huddled in the shadows of the alley.
“What are you doing out here?” Calvin asked. “Let’s get you back to the shelter.”
She shook her head and scuttled out of his reach. “They cleaned out the folks near Thirty-third Street. Posted a guard.”
Calvin’s eyebrows shot up. “We can take a look and sort it out,” he said.
“No one is driving anyone away,” Aubrey added. This was the battle they fought every time the cops tried to relocate people for their own safety. The worry was always that they wouldn’t be allowed to return. Volunteers would be working overtime until the weather cleared, trying to get as many as possible into better situations. “We just didn’t want anyone getting sick.”
Mary-Tea’s chin came up. “There’s a guard chasing ’em off,” she insisted. “That sweet Lara girl has pictures but she’s no match for the guards. You have to help her.”
“Have you spoken with Lara?” Aubrey asked, her voice remarkably calm, while inside hope exploded with a fireworks display better suited to the Fourth of July.
“This morning.”
“She’s well?”
“I just said so.” Mary-Tea pointed a finger at Aubrey. Instead of the dingy wool gloves she normally wore, she had a nice clean pair made of leather. “She’s no match for that guard. Go on now.”
“We will.” Calvin reached for his radio.
“I need to speak with Rosie first,” Aubrey said. That was why they were here.
Mary-Tea huffed impatiently. “If we lose that girl...” She flapped her hands and shuffled away. “You’re wasting time!”
As mad as Mary-Tea was at the moment, Leo would be worse if they lost Lara. She had to get down there, but she also had an obligation to Rosie and the people she took an oath to support and protect. She could always text Grant. Though the thought rankled, it was the option with the best chance of successfully supporting Lara.
She used her teeth to pull off her glove and sent the message before she could come to her senses. Shoving her phone back in her coat, she stalked into the soup kitchen to get a report from Rosie.
The manager was all smiles, reporting they’d been full to capacity—which meant she’d gone over the legal capacity limit—but the power had held and they still had plenty of food for today’s meals.
“Your deliveries should be able to get through by the end of the day,” Calvin said.
“Even if they can’t make it, we have canned goods to work with,” Rosie replied.
“Great,” Aubrey said. “Any sign of Lara or her brother?”
“No.” Rosie shook her head. “I’d tell you, I swear.”
“I believe you,” Aubrey said. “Mary-Tea says she’s out there right now, trying to help the folks who camp near Thirty-third.” Rosie’s lips flattened into a thin line. “You know anything about it?”
“No, I heard people grumbling about being shoved out, but no one mentioned Lara. Not to me.” Rosie shoved her hands into her apron pockets.
“Can you shed any light on why she’s out there advocating and keeping everyone who loves her in the dark?”
Rosie bit her lip. “As I said, she’s trying to help by living it firsthand.”
“Help how? Who’s backing her? I’m told her bank accounts haven’t been touched.”
“She can’t carry money or use a card,” Rosie said with a snort. “You know she’d be robbed or worse if she did that.”
Aubrey glanced into the main dining room where Calvin was talking with a few folks distressed by the trouble. “This is the place she knows,” Aubrey said, thinking aloud. “Why wouldn’t she come here? As far as we can tell she didn’t come in out of the weather last night.”
Rosie cringed. “Her brother knows this place, too. She’s avoiding me and this spot for that reason alone. You know the grapevine. She knows by now that he’s looking for her.”
“Then she should find a way to let him know she’s all right.”
“If she comes in, I’ll make sure she does,” Rosie promised. “From what I hear, she is making friends, winning people over.”
Aubrey glared at her. “What kind of friends?”
“You must believe me, Officer Aubrey. Everyone she meets is happy to have her help. She is working on behalf of those who need her most.”
That wouldn’t be enough consolation for Leo. What was the catalyst that made Lara take on a complex, citywide challenge right now?
“She’s getting folks in here to eat that don’t normally bother. Are you sure putting a stop to her efforts is the right thing?” Rosie asked under her breath.
Aubrey swallowed the string of curses. “You know I don’t have any problem accepting good help for the community, but she owes her loved ones an explanation.”
Rosie dropped her gaze to her hands. “I heard some chatter last night,” she said. “Lara might be staying in a car near the tracks.”
If it was true, it put Lara right between her former campus and the camp on Thirty-third. “That’s a big help, Rosie.”
“I swear I didn’t know until last night. Mary-Tea is worried about her.”
“Several people are worried about Lara,” Aubrey said none too gently. “Calvin and I will do what we can. I expect you to call if you see her.”
Rosie nodded. “Check that diner the men’s church club runs,” she said under her breath.
Aubrey hadn’t thought to check the diner. They didn’t specifically call themselves a shelter or soup kitchen, but it was known that they fed anyone who walked in. “More chatter?”
The manager only pursed her lips and turned away, calling out orders to her kitchen volunteers.
Aubrey and Calvin compared notes as they walked down toward the tracks to check on the status of the known homeless camp as well as look for signs of the car Lara might be living in. Calvin notified the precinct of their intention. This might actually be the only day that Lara would be officially at the top of her priority list, and she intended to make the most of it. For the case, not just for Leo.
“I was told time and again,” Calvin said, “that Lara’s brother is a nuisance.”
“First impressions leave a mark,” she muttered. “That has to be as much gossip grist as truth. If Leo was raising hell, we’d be answering those calls.”
“True.”
She checked her phone, just in case Leo or Grant had something helpful to report, but nothing had come through. With any luck, Leo had listened to her and was safely in his hotel room, avoiding frostbite. She understood his determination but he needed to understand his limits. She’d been scared to find him so cold last night. It had taken everything she had to stay calm, keep her head.
And that was before she’d spent the night in his bed. His arms. It seemed knowing he was temporary didn’t change that she wanted to enjoy every available minute.
They walked the street along the tracks first, just a pair of cops on a beat. Although they didn’t find Lara, several cars were good candidates for further investigation, and she and Calvin had a list of license plates to look up when they got back to the precinct.
Their next stop, the Thirty-third Street camp, was exactly how Mary-Tea described it. Snowed over like everything else in the city, but definitely under guard. Two men in hip-length black coats and snow pants and boots were standing around. Not obviously patrolling, but periodically hauling away the inadequate housing items left behind in the lot. A black sedan was at the curb and a panel truck was backed up into the lot, the cab not quite out of the flow of traffic. Thanks to the weather, no one was driving on this
street to get irritated.
“What the hell?” Aubrey whispered.
“They could be shooting a mafia movie,” Calvin said as they passed the corner.
“Mary-Tea was right. They’re definitely cleaning out the camp,” she said.
“On whose authority? They don’t look like sanitation to me.”
They kept their distance as they walked the area. Aubrey used her cell phone to take several pictures of the men and the vehicles before they approached.
The two men saw them coming and strode forward. “Officers. Tough day for walking a beat.”
Calvin looked from one man to the other. “I’d say it’s a tough day to stand outside doing...”
He gestured, encouraging one of the men to finish his sentence. They didn’t. “What is going on here?”
“We’re just taking an opportunity to clean up while everyone’s elsewhere.” The man with a bit of gray at his temples stuck out a hand. “I’m Jim. This is Max.”
Aubrey took in the whole scene while Calvin asked for identification and kept the men talking. She snapped a picture of the plates on the panel truck but she wasn’t fast enough to get a glimpse inside before the men called her over.
“They have a permit to clear the lot,” Calvin said.
“And a tough new boss down in Florida,” Max said. “Doesn’t understand snow days.”
“I see.” Aubrey smiled, following Calvin’s affable example. “Well, be sure to take breaks and stay warm.”
“You betcha.” Jim leaned in to read her badge. “Officer Rawlins.”
She and Calvin walked a couple of blocks before Aubrey felt calm enough to speak. “They made my skin crawl.”
“It wasn’t just you, but the paperwork looks legit.”
“Let’s get back and see what pops,” she said, picking up her pace.
Calvin matched her stride and whatever he might’ve said was swallowed by the call over the radio. The dispatcher reported a public disturbance in an alley practically around the corner. Aubrey and Calvin paused, listening to the dispatcher. She was surprised she couldn’t hear raised voices bouncing off the snow and buildings. Calvin jogged ahead and she called that they were on the way to the scene.
The sounds of the fight escalated as they approached. She stopped at the mouth of the alley, looking around Calvin to take stock. Two men were facing off, circling. One bigger and clean, his dark jacket looked new. The second man was stout and grimy, clearly less fortunate. Neither man was Leo, she thought, grateful for life’s small favors. The men were shouting at each other and the larger man held something in his hands. A plastic grocery bag, she saw as he turned again. The stout man was focused on the item as he shouted.
“Mine, fair and square.”
Aubrey wanted to roll her eyes.
“Nicky,” Calvin said in a put-upon tone.
Nicky, the stout man, was a regular on the street and often a troublemaker. He liked his space, his freedom. She was sure that so many people trying to save him from the weather yesterday had put him on edge. “Gentlemen!” she called out, pitching her voice over their loud argument.
The bigger guy turned and a sly grin flashed across his face. His dark hair was slicked back and he shot her a cunning glare. The face clicked. This was the guy who’d been asking about Lara at the pub. Was he still armed?
With her hands open, she marched forward around Calvin with measured, deliberate steps. They’d learned the hard way she could often defuse a fight faster. “What’s the trouble, guys?”
“He has my food!” Nicky shouted, lunging for the bag.
The other man pivoted, keeping the bag and himself out of reach. “You had your chance. I found it.”
“You stole it!”
Nicky shoved a hand in and out of his pocket. The sunlight glinted off the blade of a knife. “It’s mine!” Nicky threw himself at his opponent, missing by a mile as the man sidestepped out of the way.
Aubrey shouted for him to drop the weapon. Behind her, Calvin did the same. She didn’t want to fire on Nicky, or anyone else, but she couldn’t let him stab anyone. Not even a man going out of his way to cause a scene.
Nicky attacked again. This time the first man tossed the bag in Nicky’s face. A moment later he and his slick hair and perfect coat were gone, up and over the fence, while Nicky shuffled after him, screaming obscenities and impossible threats.
“On it.” Calvin raced after the other man.
“Nicky?”
He spun around, his eyes glassy, lips tinged blue. In his shaking grip, the bag rattled in one hand, the knife in the other. His hands were bare.
“Where are your gloves?” She’d seen him with a decent pair of wool gloves on his hands the last time he’d been in the soup kitchen.
“Go away!” The screech, ricocheting between the frozen brick and iced-over steel garbage bins, hurt her ears.
“Take it easy, Nicky,” she said. “Tell me what happened.”
“It is my food,” Nicky insisted.
“That’s fine.” It was too soon to ask for the knife. “Come on now.” Aubrey spoke quietly. This wasn’t her first time talking Nicky down after a dustup.
“Gone!” He shook the knife at the fence, started back that way. “No take backs.”
“No take backs,” Aubrey agreed, guiding him toward the exit of the alley again. As far as Aubrey could tell, Nicky’s emotional development had stalled out around the level of a first grader. Whether he’d always been that way or he’d regressed due to a drug habit or mental illness wasn’t clear. Didn’t matter.
“I bet you’re hungry,” she said. “Let’s get you some soup.”
“I got food.” He clutched the bag to his chest. “Got food here.”
“Okay.” He must have pulled something from the Dumpster. Except the bag looked clean. “Can you put the knife away?” She’d prefer to seize it, but it was too soon for that.
He frowned at his hand as if he didn’t recognize the weapon.
“What kind of food?” she asked.
“Roast beef sandwich. Fresh.”
“Good.” She looked back toward the fence. “Did that other man give you the food?”
“No! No. No. New Girl did.”
He said it like a name. Talking with Nicky was never easy, but this was weird even for him. He didn’t like new people. “When did you see her?”
“New Girl?” He gestured with the knife. “She was over by the deli.” He shook the bag again. “It’s closed for the storm.”
If only that narrowed things down. The bag didn’t have any logos on it. And it raised the question, how did New Girl get food from a closed deli? Aubrey desperately wanted control of that knife, but Nicky wasn’t in the mood to share weapons any more than he was willing to share his food. “One second.” She put herself between Nicky and the street and showed him the picture of Lara on her phone. “Is this New Girl?”
He squinted, leaned in. “Uh-huh. New Girl.” He rattled the deli sack. “She’s nice. She gives things without taking them back.”
“That is nice.” Aubrey glanced around, wishing Calvin would get back here. Who was giving things to Nicky and then taking them back? Though it was completely possible that any slights were in Nicky’s imagination, her instincts were humming.
“Have you seen New Girl anywhere other than the deli lately?” Delis were prevalent around the campus and any clues would narrow the search.
Nicky scowled, his head tipped back to the sky. “Dunno.” His knife arm relaxed a bit. “We had soup once.”
Again, that could have happened almost anywhere. Frustration built in her throat, but screaming wouldn’t help anyone. Screaming in Nicky’s vicinity was particularly unwise, especially while he was armed. “Where’d you find the knife?”
His baffled gaze locked on her face and he blinked owlis
hly. “Officer Aubrey?”
She gave him a small smile. “That’s right.” A noise behind her on the sidewalk drew her attention. And Nicky’s. Nicky leaned around her for a better view, the bag in his hand rustling as he tried to hide it from the newcomer.
It was Leo, relief stamped on his face when he recognized her and walked closer. “Hi. Rosie told me you and Calvin were out this way. I thought I’d...” His gaze narrowed when he spotted the knife in Nicky’s hand. “You okay here?”
“I’m great.” He was bundled up today. She didn’t need to ask what he was doing. He was searching for his sister. “Was about to call.”
“Really? I—”
Whatever Leo meant to say was cut short. It happened so fast, in a blur of motion and raised voices as Nicky rushed by her, knife outstretched. She shouted for him to stop, but he’d clearly had enough of strangers today. She grabbed his coat and held on for dear life, leaning away with all her weight to keep him off Leo.
“Drop the knife!” She yanked on Nicky’s coat but made little progress. “I can handle him,” she said to Leo. “Get out of here!” she yelled.
“Not a chance.” Leo stepped closer, placing himself in Nicky’s path so the man couldn’t make it to the street. “I’m not leaving you alone.”
Nicky’s outrage apparently overwhelmed him and she stumbled back as he spun around, aiming all that rage at her.
Could a shift get any worse? This couldn’t be happening. “Drop the knife, Nicky.”
“No take backs!” he screamed.
He raised the weapon overhead and brought it down in a swinging blow. She blocked the move, ducked under his arm and spun away. She would not shoot a confused, unwell man because someone else had riled him up.
Aubrey had every intention of disarming Nicky as gently as possible. Nicky’s only intention seemed to be drawing blood.
“Nicky, it’s me.” She spoke quietly, raising empty hands. “It’s Officer Aubrey.” She needed to get him warm, get some food in him, let him rest. Only then did she stand a chance of learning about the man who had upset him.
“No, no, no.” Nicky advanced again. “Leave me alone!”
