by Andrew Grey
“It’s an old toy,” James said, shrugging his shoulders. “Like one of those Fisher-Price figures. I’ll get a bag.” He doubted it was meaningful, but he bagged the item and returned to the car, ready to go, but didn’t see Mattias. He was back on the porch, kneeling down, talking to the little girl, who held her mom’s hand but seemed to be answering. Then Mattias stood, ruffled Alice’s hair, and hurried back over to the car. “You can give her the toy if it’s hers.”
Mattias slid into the passenger seat. “It isn’t. Alice saw the van. She was interested in it because there was a kid. She saw him playing there. Alice said she wanted to give the boy the toy back in case it was his favorite.” He buckled up.
“Wait….” James started the engine and stopped. “Do you think the thieves brought a kid with them?”
“It’s possible. They pull up, go about their business, a kid playing nearby in the grass. The thieves get what they want, pack up, hustle the little boy into the van, and drive away, leaving the toy behind. Now granted, that toy could have been there for months, but it looks fairly fresh and isn’t encrusted with dirt.” Mattias held up the bag, looking at the red figure.
“Could it be that it fell out of the back?” James offered.
“Except Alice saw the boy. She wanted to go play with him and went to ask her mom, but they were gone when she came back. At least that’s what I think she was trying to tell me. She said he dropped his toy. I know she’s a four-year-old, but what if she did see our thieves, and what if this is their toy? Thieves have kids too,” Mattias said.
James nodded. “I’m more than aware of that.” He pulled away, gripping the wheel once more. “Bringing a kid to a crime.” It was hard for him to get over, but then, he’d also seen some of the things parents did to their children, so why in the hell did this surprise him so damned much?
“I knew a woman who used her child as a distraction so she could steal jewelry.” Mattias sighed and shook his head. “There’s no such thing as a victimless crime.” He sat quietly in his seat as James drove, contemplating the possibilities of what they had found.
“Do you think this is a family business?” James asked. The thought made his stomach roil, and he swallowed hard.
“I don’t know. It’s way too soon to tell, but at least we have a few more questions we can ask.” Mattias grew quiet, and James was fine with that. The next witness was only a few minutes away, and he needed to get his head back in the game. They could worry about possibilities once they got back to the station. For now they needed to gather any information that they could.
UNFORTUNATELY, THE next witness had only seen much the same. A van, white, parked down the street in front of the victim’s house. James asked about seeing people or children, but the older man shook his head. It might have been the same van, but that was about the only thing they were able to substantiate.
James and Mattias returned to the car and headed back to the station. The others hadn’t returned his calls. James couldn’t get over the idea of a kid being brought to a robbery. It unsettled him no end.
“Why would someone bring a kid to a crime?”
Mattias shrugged. “Look, I don’t know. I would never do it. Aside from it being despicable, kids are unpredictable, and I always tried to control as many variables as I could.” He shook his head. “But it looks like it’s a possibility….”
“What are you thinking?” James asked as they rode along through the country between the towns, passing fields and occasional farmhouses.
“I don’t know. It’s probably nothing.” Mattias shifted in his seat. “I keep thinking about what Alice saw. These thieves are pretty bold and confident if they are willing to bring kids to a job. Though I guess we don’t know for sure that what Alice saw was one of the thieves. It was hard for me to get any more details from her. She’s too young. Maybe it was a different van or a different day. It could have been a legitimate workman who was there for a short period and didn’t have childcare.” He sighed.
James nodded. All of that was possible. “What does your gut tell you? That doesn’t hold up in court, but sometimes it’s all we have to go on, at least to begin with.” He sped up as the road stretched out in front of them. James wanted to get back to the station to check with the guys to see if they had had any better luck.
“It’s telling me that Alice saw the thieves and a kid was with them,” Mattias said. “I wish I knew the hell why, but I believe her. She wanted to go play with him, but Mommy had the door locked, and she could only watch through the window.”
“Smart mama.” Given what could have happened, a lucky mama as well. James would hate to be investigating the disappearance of that cute little girl, and that could have been possible if she’d interrupted something like a break-in. Sometimes James’s mind went a little wild with possibilities, and he needed to rein it in. Otherwise, he knew he could go in circles and get nowhere.
His phone rang, and he answered it through the car. “Detective Levinson.”
“Yes. I’m Clarence Fisher, and I received a message that you wanted to speak with me. The police were already here, but I will be home for the next hour.”
“Thank you. We’ll be there in—” James pulled over and looked through the notes he’d made. “—ten minutes tops. We’re heading your way. Thank you for agreeing to meet with us.” He ended the call and pulled back onto the road, heading to the west side of Carlisle, where expensive homes had been built where the old hospital had been torn down. He pulled up in front of the brick colonial, the lawn beautifully kept and bushes immaculately trimmed. Mattias and he traversed the slab bluestone walk and rang the bell.
“I’m over here,” a man in his early fifties said, stepping off a small side porch. “Just follow on around.”
“This is beautiful,” Mattias said as they approached where the man sat in a faux-wicker chair.
“Thank you. I’m Clarence Fisher.” He stood, and they took the seats he offered after James made introductions. “I’ve been trying to get the beds settled, but with all this rain, I haven’t had a chance to get out here most days.” He sat back and placed his hands on the arms of the chair. “What can I do for you fellows?”
“We understand that you might have seen the thieves who robbed your neighbors,” James said. “I know you talked to the police already, but we’re working across the county to try to catch these people.”
“Well, yeah, I think I did see them. They were bold, I have to give you that. The Felders live right over there. I had taken the day off from work because it was sunny and I had to get something done. I was working over here when this van pulled up in front of the house. It was dark green, and two people got out in coveralls. They marched on up to the front door like they belonged. I didn’t think much of it and continued working. After a little while, the van pulled around the back. That was when I lost sight of it. I figured they were having work done, but I should have known. Those houses are very new and shouldn’t need a lot of work.”
“Can you describe the people you saw in any detail?” James asked.
“They weren’t very big. At first I thought they were women, but no. It was men. They walked like men, and from what I heard, they must have filled the van out of the back and then left. Most people are gone during the day, so they had plenty of time. Whoever did this really cased the place. They knew the Felders had a number of valuable items, and they cleaned them out. These weren’t TV kind of thieves—they took the good stuff. Mrs. Felder is French, and she had a number of small, intricate antique pieces that were all taken.”
Mattias leaned closer. “We understand that and are trying to use the descriptions to hunt down their property.” James shot him a stern look, but Mattias came even nearer. “Were you here the entire time?”
“Yes. I should have gone over and taken a look. I could have called the police. Instead….” Clarence lowered his head.
“This wasn’t your fault,” Mattias told him gently. “This was the people wh
o committed the crime, nothing more. I know you think you might have helped, but putting yourself in danger wasn’t going to do you or them any good.” He paused. “Are you sure about the color of the van?”
“Yes. It sat right over there. They aren’t supposed to park on that side of the street, but they did anyway. I bet that’s partly why they moved. But I remember it clearly because they were parked where they shouldn’t be.”
“Can you show us exactly where they parked?” Mattias asked.
Clarence stood and walked around the corner of the house. “Right beside that tree there.” He pointed, and James nodded.
“Thank you for everything.” He wished Mr. Fisher had more information for them, but he’d been helpful nonetheless.
Mattias was already on his way over to where Mr. Fisher had indicated. James followed him. “Anything interesting?”
“If I remember the files we went through, this robbery was a week ago. I know there isn’t much chance that anything remains of their presence, but I thought it might be worth a look.”
James rolled his eyes. “Carlisle PD has been over this with a fine-tooth comb.”
“I bet they have.” Mattias knelt down and ran his hands over the grass. “I’m not questioning that.” He stood, looking at the house. “This place is a thief’s paradise. They parked the van right here, largely blocking the view of the front door and porch. That gave them time to pick the lock and get in. Once they’re inside, they have the run of the place. No alarm, and it’s during the day.” James stepped back, looking up and down the street. “It’s probably easier to hit homes in this neighborhood during the day than at night. Everyone is home then.”
“You’re so sure about that?”
“Yeah. They were inside the house for probably half an hour, gathering what they could easily take and putting it by the back door.” Mattias stepped around to the side of the house and then came out in back on the alley. “I bet they parked here, with the side door open to the yard, the van blocking the view again. They loaded up, closed the door, got in, and were gone, just like that.” He wandered around, running his fingers over some rocks.
“What?”
“The van is leaking oil,” Mattias said.
“How do you know? It could be one of the owners’ cars.” James was ready to go and get back so he could follow up on what the other guys were looking into. This was turning out to be a fool’s errand that had yielded almost nothing.
“Look at the spatters. We’ve had rain, so they aren’t as clear, but the drips go across the drive instead of into the garage. I bet they pulled up slowly to stop and left this trail of oil. Then the van dripped here for a while before they left.” Mattias stood. “I bet they didn’t get very far. It was a pretty bad leak.”
“So….” James huffed.
“Check the garages and repair shops in town. Someone towed it, and my guess is they are sitting on a van that they will never see the owner of again.” Mattias smiled. “Maybe if we can find it, the van will tell us something.” He turned and strode back to the car as though he had just made a pronouncement of epic proportions. “Are you ready to go?”
James rolled his eyes. This guy was annoying on top of frustrating. “You’re a real pain in the ass, you know that?” he hissed when he caught up. “There’s no need to be a know-it-all.”
“I have to prove that my insight is worth something,” Mattias explained, then stopped by the car. “I know you don’t think very highly of my skills, but I’m trying to be helpful to the investigation.”
“Then drop the attitude.” James pulled open his door.
“I will if you will,” Mattias countered with a wicked grin, and damn it all, James found it difficult to be angry with the guy. “We could both drop the attitude and just try to work together.”
James had to get over this fascination with Mattias. Yeah, he was covering up his attraction with sarcasm and impatience. Instead, he needed to be part of the team, if only for Solly’s sake.
As they rode back to the station, James made a few calls. “Did you find anything by talking with the victims?” James asked Pierre.
“Not much. They all seemed to know how they got in, and they all felt as though they were targeted and probably staked out for what they had.”
“Do they have anything in common?” Mattias asked. “Our thieves may be stalking neighborhoods, but that seems too random to me.”
James hummed and nodded. That sounded logical.
“What sort of things?” Pierre inquired.
“I don’t know. But you met with some of them—did they go to the same club or play golf? Maybe they have the same interests. Do they all… I don’t know… use the same gym? There must be something that is helping the thieves.” Mattias grew quiet, and James took over.
“Take everything you have and plug it into the spreadsheet Mattias shared with us. Don’t speculate, but fill in as much information as you can, and have Clay do the same when he gets back. We’re on our way in now, and we can review things before calling it a day.” James ended the call and meandered through town with its myriad of lights until he managed to get through and then out to the station.
“Do you have any ideas?” Mattias asked.
“Not yet. But I think you’re right. We’re going to have to put together everything we possibly can in order to come up with a solution.”
Mattias’s phone rang. “Yes.”
James didn’t want to eavesdrop as he parked and then opened his door.
“You have to be kidding me.” Mattias got out, huffing and looking upward. “A cow. Fine, cancel my stay and I’ll call around and see if I can find another place….” Mattias listened and then rolled his eyes. “Of course they are. Well, I’ll have to figure something out. Thank you.” Mattias hung up and jabbed his phone into his pocket.
“Anything wrong?”
“When I was contracted here, the only hotel I could get was one outside of town by the turnpike—everything else was booked. That side of town doesn’t have power right now. A farmer buried a cow and cut the major trunk line for that area. And apparently the hotels are all full because of a huge auto show at the fairgrounds, so I have to try to find a place.” They headed inside the station. “I’ll figure something out.”
Chapter 3
MATTIAS FOUND an old sofa in the changing area, and after retrieving his things from the hotel and making use of the available rudimentary facilities, he turned off most of the lights and lay down, pulling a light jacket over his shoulders. It was late, and there were no hotel rooms available, between the car show and the power outage, which extended across the east side of town. Not that it mattered, really. He had slept on worse, and it was only for one night. Tomorrow, hopefully, his hotel would have power back and he could return to his room. He closed his eyes and let fatigue wash over him. At least he tried, but ended up rolling over again and again as he tried to find a position that was comfortable.
After a few minutes of lying on his side, a position that seemed okay, an unpleasant scent from the sofa lightly tickled his nose and only grew stronger. He sat up with a groan and shook his head.
“Are you still here?” James asked as he came in. “I figured you had left a while ago.”
“I thought the same about you.” Mattias stood, stretching his back. “If you want suspects to talk, just give them this thing to sleep on. They’ll spill national secrets.” He rubbed his lower back and snatched up his jacket.
“No hotel?” James asked. “I understand one of the main electric lines is out.”
“Yeah. I got my things in case it doesn’t come on, but every room for miles is booked up. We had work to do, so I put it off, and now… it looks like Old Stinky and I are going to make a night of it.” He wasn’t looking forward to it.
“Come on. I had some paperwork I needed to finish for my captain. It’s done and he has it, so why don’t you head out with me? I have a guest room, and you can stay there until you can get a hotel roo
m.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Mattias said. He wasn’t looking for pity. Mattias had learned how to take care of himself a long time ago.
“Solly said we were to be a team, and if that’s true, then we need to help each other.” James grabbed Mattias’s bag off the floor. “Besides, I think after a night on that thing, you’d be in no shape to help anyone.” He pulled open the changing area door.
Mattias was desperate enough that he followed quietly behind. His back eased in utter relief, and his nose was eternally grateful to be away from that smell.
It was nearly dark as they stepped outside. “Do you want me to follow you?”
“No need. Ride with me. We’re coming to the same place in the morning,” James said, and Mattias was too tired to argue or snark at him. He just got into the car and buckled himself in, relieved he was going to have a bed for the evening. James put his bag in the trunk.
“Thanks for doing this,” Mattias said as James got in the car.
“The ride is going to take a little while. I live close to the first witness that we spoke to.” He pulled out and made the turn, heading to the main road.
Mattias wasn’t familiar with the area and had used GPS to get to the station, so he sat back and let James do the driving. Silence lingered between them, and Mattias tried to think of something to bring up, anything to fill the quiet in the car. Normally he was a huge fan of quiet, but being with James only made him wonder what he was thinking.
“Have you been to this area before?”
“Once, some time ago,” Mattias said.
James looked over at him, his eyes flashing with reflected light. Mattias could almost feel his curiosity bubbling up. “Was this in your previous profession?”
Mattias should have expected that. “No. I was a kid, and my grandparents brought me up here one week. We went camping at Kings Gap. Poppy and Nana rented an RV, and we spent the week. I went swimming, and I remember nothing but happiness. Those were the good times before the foster homes and such.” Mattias kept the welling sadness out of his voice.
