Previously:Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Case 28 - Starting Over Part 4


    Keiko walked into the security office at the bus terminal like she owned it.  Her demeanor would delay any questions from the two security guards working there until she was well on her way from finding the camera recordings from earlier in the day.  She had to find out what direction the kidnappers went and what vehicle they drove.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Excuse me--”  one of the guards began.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Not now,”  Keiko snapped at him.  “I’m working on a case and I don’t have time.”

    The guard seemed bewildered by her response as she sat at a terminal and looked through the date stamped files.  “You don’t work here,”  he grumbled.  “Are you a cop?  Let’s see some I.D.”  He stood slowly.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I’m a detective,”  she replied quickly, trying to sound as authoritative as she could.  “And I told you, I don’t have time.  A little girl’s life is at stake.”

    That last part seemed to make the security guard reluctant to stop her.  Keiko did manage to note the photos of his family on his desk when she came in.  “Was a girl kidnapped?”  he asked.  “In this station?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“No, earlier,”  she replied.  “I made the exchange of cash in this station.  The girl has since been recovered.”

    The guard sighed with relief.  But then it dawned on him that she had no reason to be checking the recordings.  “Then why are you here?”

    Keiko looked up from the computer monitor.  She had almost found the recording she needed but it was encrypted.  “Because as long as the kidnappers are free they could take her again.  Or perhaps your children are next.”

    He shuddered at the sound of those words.  Then he bit his lip and quietly contemplated the right thing to do.  He leaned over the computer station where Keiko was working.  “I could lose my job for this but...what do you need to see?”

    Keiko told him.


---


    A cool wind was blowing when Keiko arrived at the police station.  After the first wave of rain, an autumn cold front was coming in.  She watched all the huddled pedestrians as she drove up the the building and into the underground garage.  The attendant recognized her...a little too well.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Y’know, Keiko,”  the attendant said, “You aren’t supposed to park in here just as a visitor.”  His voice sounded as if he were trying to apologize while trying to avoid referring to her being suspended.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I’m a private detective now,”  she told him.  “I’m stopping by because I need some information.”  She smiled and added, “I won’t be long, I promise.”

    The attendant sighed.  He dug into a drawer below the desk in his small booth, looking around warily before passing her a small plastic tag.  “New rules,”  he said.  “You need a guest ID.  Just...don’t tell anyone where you got it, and make sure to give it back when you leave.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Thanks Aaron,”  she replied as his name finally came up from her memory.  “I owe you lunch sometime.”  She waved as she drove into the garage and parked, not too close to the elevators in case someone came down and recognized her car.

    Having a guest ID was somewhat liberating.  That meant she could simply head upstairs directly, without having to stop at the front desk and wait for someone to come down.  The guest ID’s activated the elevator as well as the employee ones did.  

    She arrived at Sean’s office in about half the time as it used to take her to sneak in.  She knocked on the door to his office gingerly, half afraid that he either wasn’t there or was...busy...with someone.  She stopped holding her breath out of nervousness when he opened the door.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Keiko,”  he greeted her, first with a smile and then with a hug.

    As she hugged him in return, she laughed and said, “I feel a little bad now that I came here on business.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Really?”  Sean asked as he let go of her.  “It’s good to hear you’re doing something interesting.  You know, they assigned me a new partner.  He hasn’t arrived yet so I’m sorry, you can’t meet him.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Maybe later then.”  Keiko shrugged.  She handed him a piece of paper with a license plate number written on it.  “I need to find out who owns this car.”

    Sean looked around and then took Keiko’s hand gently and led her into his office.  He offered her a seat in his chair, and leaned over her to access his computer.  “I kind of miss you, with you being gone all day working.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I miss you too,”  Keiko whispered with a slight smile.  “But I suppose we have to get used to this.  At least for now.”  She looked up, and could see a sadness in Sean’s eyes that broke her heart.  She reached up and put one arm around him reassuringly.

    Sean warmed quickly to her motivation, and quickly looked up the license number.  “That’s the address,”  he said.  “But it could be a stolen car, so...you know, don’t go kicking in doors just yet.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You want to come with me?”  Keiko asked hopefully.  “This is your jurisdiction now.  It is a kidnapping case.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“That’s right, it is.”  Sean nodded.  “I guess if I get out of here quickly enough, before the new partner shows up...”

    Keiko stood again and smiled as she looked at Sean.  She always found it amusing how backwards things were when she was with him.  She was much shorter and smaller, and far more of a threat.  Sean was tall and strong and very gentle.  “Let’s get this over with,”  she said.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You know, Keiko--”  Sean said as he followed her out of his office.  “I think you’re becoming a really good detective.  You really know how to use the resources around you.”

    She laughed.  “It was easy.  Turns out that I’ve done most of it before.”  She stopped and quickly grabbed Sean’s arm as she saw Matt Kreeger talking to someone across the room.  She quickly pulled him into the stairway.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“We’re not taking the elevator?”  he asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Only if you want Matt to see me here,”  Keiko replied.  “We’ll go down two floors and then catch the elevator there.”

    
    Sean followed her advice, and within minutes found himself in the parking garage with Keiko.  Apparently she had a lot of practice sneaking in and out of the police station.  “My car or yours?”  he asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Mine,”  Keiko replied.  “I can’t leave it here, it’ll be recognized.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Oh right.”  Sean climbed into the passenger seat of Keiko’s car just as she unlocked the doors.

    She then drove out of the garage, stopping to return her guest pass and thank Aaron on the way out.  Sean was amused watching this former loner assassin become so well connected in Garden City.



TO BE CONTINUED



-- Story written and copyrighted (C) 2007 by Jason Froikin, and may not be 
--    reprinted without permission.  
-- World Class and all characters therein are property of 
--    Strike Two and Jason Froikin.