Crestwood Investigation

Chapter 6: A Walk In The Park

A week after the robbery.

Joshua and Michael sat talking in his car as Joshua drove to the station.

Michael said "Hey today's the last day we have to cover Tarrant Street and the last time we have to do overtime for a while, it's been a crazy week."

Joshua agreed
"Yeah reconnecting with Hannah was something else, and that convenience store robbery last night with those kids was an event for sure, I just hope the chief is happy enough with our work to give us a bit of a break after this all."

Michael laughed
"Why wouldn't he be happy with the best crime stoppers in the state?" He said with a smile.

Joshua nodded with a grin "True, but you never know with Chief James he's got high standards, remember that time he went off on Gregory when he forgot to take out the station trash and made him work Kelper Ave."

Michael laughed
"Oh yeah, I felt so bad for poor Gregory."

As they continued driving Michael leaned back in his seat reflecting on the past week's events. "Honestly it's been a rollercoaster catching those robbers while reconnecting with Hannah, and just dealing with the new chaos that's Tarrant Street these days, but it's what we signed up for right?"

Joshua chuckled
"Absolutely, It's part of the job, you could argue James signed us up for this one though, but I wouldn't have it any other way honestly, I mean I miss being home more but it's been nice hanging out together and making this neighborhood great again, besides, it's not every day you get to play the hero and catch criminals."

Michael smirked
"Yeah, especially the part where you took that bullet for me last week, that was some move, man, even though I still think it was dumb."

Joshua rubbed his chest mimicking a proud gesture with a laugh
"Well I gotta keep it interesting right? Keeps everyone on their toes."

The car pulled into the police station parking lot and they both sighed realizing their eventful week on Tarrant Street was coming to an end.

Michael turned to Joshua
"You think Chief James will assign us to another hotspot after this?"

Joshua shrugged
"Who knows? We'll find out soon enough, Maybe a quiet week is coming our way."

They exited the car, making their way into the police station, as they approached Chief James office the two couldn't help but feel a mix of anticipation and curiosity about what would come next in their policing adventures.

Joshua pushed the door open and Chief James looked up from his desk a stern expression on his face.

"Sit down boys." he said his tone giving nothing away.

Joshua and Michael exchanged a quick glance before taking their seats.
The chief leaned forward
"You two have been through a lot this week and I've been keeping an eye on your work, Tarrant Street is a tough assignment, but you handled it well, and crime has definitely decreased in the area and seems back to a normal amount."

Michael exchanged a relieved look with Joshua who nodded appreciatively.

Chief James continued
"I'm pleased with your performance and I've got another assignment lined up for you, it seems like Crestwood is keeping you busy."

Joshua sighed with a smile
"Busy is an understatement Chief."

Michael added
"But we're up for whatever you throw at us you know that."

The chief handed them a file
"There's been an uptick in vandalism over at Maplewood Park, I need you two to patrol the area and keep an eye out, we can't have our parks turned into a canvas for graffiti."

Joshua and Michael both nodded ready for the next challenge. As they left the chief's office,
Joshua turned to Michael
"Maplewood Park huh? It should be a walk in the park you could say."

Michael laughed "Yeah I guess you could say that, are you ready for some park patrolling though?"

Joshua chuckled
"Always Bro Let's keep Crestwood safe for everyone here."

As they patrolled through the park the afternoon sky casting a soft glow on the surroundings Joshua broke the silence.
"You know Pete's birthday party is this Sunday and it's going to be awesome, The big 4!"

Michael smiled genuinely interested
"That's great! What's the theme?"

Joshua beamed
"Fishes and sea creatures, Pete is obsessed with marine life lately so we thought it would be perfect, he is really wanting a pet fish too but we don't know if he's ready for that responsibility yet" he said with a chuckle.

Michael nodded
"That's cool, he's growing up fast, feels like yesterday he was a tadpole and now he's a frog ready to leap out of the pond."

"Yeah" Joshua agreed "it's crazy how fast time can really go by, makes you wonder a lot about life."

The conversation shifted and Joshua continued
"Hannah is going to be showing up with Lindsey to the party too, they want to meet Pete and Hannah wants to catch up with Isabelle, It's been years since they've talked, we also mentioned getting a hold of some of the others from back in the day to try and reconnect more."

Michael chuckled
"Talk about unexpected reunions though, I didn't ever expect to hear from Hannah again after the last few years, Life sure takes interesting turns, I should try to hit up Tyler, I haven't seen him since right after your wedding."

Their patrol took them deeper into the park and just as they were discussing the dynamics of their friend group over the years a surprising and unpleasant sight interrupted their conversation.

Michael's eyes widened in shock "Woah! Put the hose away you idiot! There are kids at this park!"

a homeless man next to the park fountain with his pants pulled down in a drunken stupor fumbled to gather himself and started running away. His pants forgotten in the urgency trailed behind him and he stumbled to the ground face-planting into the grass.

Joshua reacting swiftly chased after him and managed to handcuff the disheveled man.
"You couldn't find a dark alley or something? You really got to use our park fountain?"

Michael facepalming in disbelief sighed
"I'm never surprised sometimes but this is ridiculous."