Slow and Speedy Win the Fight

57. Break In

Haresa

I couldn't believe that I had to go do a cop's job and not anything that a trained hero should be doing.

I stood in the middle of the apartment room and I could only think of how terrible it looked. There was a door that led to a small bedroom and the knob and door seemed scratched up while the only other room was a small kitchen. The kitchen didn't even have a stove and only consisted of a small sink, a fridge, and a microwave. There wasn't even a bathroom in sight. A tiny window was open and a cool breeze rolled over the barren space.

"Could you describe what happened, sir?" I asked. "Was it a robbery?"

"It was a break-in." The landlord said. He scratched the back of his balding head and looked at the window with disdain. "I actually had a tenant move out recently. A villain actually."

I nodded my head and ignored the nagging feeling in my head. It was probably just a coincidence. "Did they not pay rent?"

"No, no. Money is fine but I see there's a lot of scratches and whatnot all over my doors and windows. There used to be a lock on that door over there and the window is completely busted now."

I inspected the door handle and the scratches were even worse up close. It looked like someone had gashed into it with a screwdriver and I peered into the room. At first glance, it looked normal but then I heard the faint buzz of electricity. The room had been lined with stilyte, the stuff that the school bracelets are made of. Whoever the villain was, they're really good at securing their space. Anybody with powers wouldn't be able to break in so easily.

"I was wondering if that villain sent someone to destroy the place because of the eviction," the man mumbled.

I glanced at him nervously but I didn't say anything.

"Tell me about the past tenant. Were they the malicious type?" I asked.

I took careful steps into the stilyte room to see if there were more signs of damage. It was mustier in the small room as it seemed to have no signs of ventilation with a small bed pushed o the corner while a desk sat on the opposite side. The only weird thing about the room was there was a safe at the foot of the bed and it was wide open. The contents were empty but I could see that one of the hinges to it had broken and the door hung off the last hinge for dear life.

I crouched down to get a better look at the safe and tapped the door. "What was in the safe?"

"The tenant left it here. He found it from somewhere or another and said he kept valuables in it. I don't know what kind but it wasn't my place to snoop. When he moved out, he gave me the key and said that he didn't need it anymore and it was empty last I checked." He scratched his beard as he thought. "Definitely not broken some time ago."

"Then your villain probably wasn't behind this." I put my hands on my knees before standing up.

"Then who?"

"Was there anyone that the villain could've crossed?" I asked.

The man shrugged.

"Actually, it might be easier if I asked who the villain was and I could track him down myself."

He pinched his nose bridge and I furrowed my eyebrows at the gesture he made. "I can't."

"You can't?" I echoed. "Did you forget his name? Could we go through your legal documents?"

"No, I signed a contract of confidentiality with him," the man said. "The kid was trying to hide from something or someone so he wanted to be absolutely sure that he wouldn't be found. That's why he has the crappiest room in this whole building so that he didn't have to take a legitimate room and go through the legal trouble."

I pressed my lips together. "How about you don't give me a name but a description and I'll figure it out on my own. He can't sue you over this especially since a break-in is involved. You're not revealing his identity just... his appearance."

The landlord stared at me with narrowed eyes as he mulled over my offer. "You think very sneaky. I like that."

"I have to if I'm working with villains," I shrug.

"Okay, so it was a guy. I think he was around your age. Short black hair, wears glasses all the time, grumpy, and around your height. Honestly, you two could be siblings or something."

"Is he also Asian?"

"Yeah," he waved a finger at me. "Very much so."

I took a deep breath. "Does he attend school?"

"Hey, we were sticking to appearances. Nothing about personal life."

"Right, sorry." I hated navigating through these types of talks. Nobody could ever give the facts directly. "But if he could go to school, do you think he would have had to?"

"Yeah, probably."

"Well," I feel the life suck right out of me as I gathered the facts. "This is a fantastic lead. Thank you so much, sir."

"Pleasure. If you ever find that idiot that wrecked my stuff, let them know that I got a bill with their name on it."

On the bright side, I didn't have to look very far. On the downside, it was without a doubt Sheldon who used to live here.