Shortly after midnight Officer Dan Black set the Book aside, and headed to bed. No sooner did his head hit the pillow, the phone rang. You gotta be kidding! They can just -- could be Nancy. Who else? Dan reached for the phone. “Hello! Bright-eyes.” “Mr. Black, They’re chasing me! I’m scarred!” “Where are you Gina? Who’s chasing you?” Dan recognizing her voice. She and her sister Peg were teenage neighbors who looked after Dan’s pet ferret, Trouble. “I don’t know. I’m lost. I ran from the restaurant. A man was on the floor –he looked dead! Another man chased us. Peg’s gone. I ran through a cemetery. Fell in someone’s pool. This might be a park. Phone booth’s near a parking lot. Hurry Mr. Black! I’m scared!” “Are they still chasing you?” “No.” “Sure?” “Uh, I don’t know -- maybe!” “Listen careful, Gina. Hang up. Dial the operator. She’ll know where the phone is. Have her notify the police.” “Okay.” “WAIT! Is there someplace to hide where you can watch for the cruiser?” “Yes, there are bushes here.” “Hide in their shadows, but tell the operator where you’ll be.” CLICK. “Gina. GINA!” Did she hang up, or…? Dan hurriedly dialed the city dispatcher. On the third ring, a clear voice said, “Dispatch, Officer Glover.” “Hey, Glover. It’s Black, from Five—” “I know who you are—” “Right. My teenage neighbor called me. Thinks she’s being chased. Name’s Gina. She’s lost. I told her to call the operator and get a patrol sent.” “And—” “And! When the call comes, I wanna know where.” “We’ve got two teenagers at the Blue Ribbon Restaurant. Got separated from their friends after the football game. 306’s on the scene. Came in fifteen minutes ago.” “Naw, this’d be an operator assisted call.” Over muffled background noises Dan heard Glover’s voice, “Anyone got a lost teen in a phone booth?” The subdued clamor pulsed in the background, and then Glover announced, “Dispatcher’s waving a card. Let me unplug. I’ll get it.” Dan wedged the phone between shoulder and neck, pulled socks on and slipping into a pair of jeans. Grover’s voice broke in over the bustle of ongoing citywide dispatches. “It’s Rapid Run Park— “I’m on my way. Advise Three I’ll meet ’em in the Station, ETA 30.” “What about her parents? You notifying?” “Think they’re out of town.” Grabbing a polo shirt, Dan slung on his shoulder holster containing the snub nose S&W, then covered it with a denim jacket. After sliding a pair of cuffs over his belt, he grabbed his keys, then hurried through the garage to the neighbor’s house. He knocked, but no one responded. Within minutes of the call, his Corvette was speeding toward District Three station. Parking in the rear of the station, Dan rushed to the side officer’s entry, coded the pass lock and entered. Three paces from the main desk, Dan noticed Sergeant Phil Perkins’ questioning look. “Sarge, my neighbor’s been assaulted or somethin’. One of your cars has the run.” “That the girl from the park? A Jenny somebody?” Perkins asked the desk officer. “Yes, sir, I have it as a Gina Gibson. Telford’s bringing her in.” “Sergeant Badden covered it,” Perkins said watching the front door open. “Speaking of which, there they are.” Gina, accompanied by two uniformed officers, came into the lobby. Seeing Dan, she ran to him. “Mister Black, it was horrible! I think he killed him. There was blood.” “You’re safe now—” “They got Peg! What about—” “Let’s sort this out in the back.” Badden suggested. “Telford, get me a Coke and get in touch with her parents.” Dan ushered Gina along behind Sergeant Badden. Telford followed going to the back of the squad room and picked up a phone. Pulling a chair from the table at the end of the ramp, Badden said, “This one’ll do.” Sitting, he took the lead. “Okay, let’s go over this one more time -- in every detail. Start where you left the football game.” “Well, Peg and me went to the football game at West High. It was close, but after the Trojans kicked a field goal -- two seconds to go -- SO COOL -- we beat the Mustangs!” Her gleeful squeal died quickly. “So, after the game we joined up with Brenda and Catlin, but Frisch’s was jammed. The ride-throughs were like two blocks. Catlin told us about a place down the street. Sounded ‘rad’, so we split. The ‘coneys’ were BLAH! It was such a bummer. We hung for a while -- talking stuff. Peg and I went to the restroom ’cause we were gonna split. She opened this door and I was trippin’ out! There was a man on the floor! Blood on his shirt! A tall weird guy with a pointy face just stood there with this big ol’ knife. It was way too heavy for us. Peg screamed. We ditched out the back. At the end of the alley, I realized Peg wasn’t with me. I turned round. They had Peg—” “They?” “Yeah, when we ran into the alley there was another man there. Peg almost knocked him down. I kept running.” “What’d this other man look like?” “Just a man. I didn’t see him good. At the corner, when I realized Peg wasn’t with me anymore, I stopped and looked back. He was shoving her in a van, and the creep was coming after me. So, I ran until I couldn’t run anymore. Then I hid in some woods.”
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