Broken People

Chapter 2

I handcuff the man after I tackle him to the ground. I read the bastard his Miranda rights with a smile and pull him to his feet to bring him back to the van. It's a great feeling catching a villain. The idea of justice is very peaceful: an eye for an eye. It was only my first month on the job, but so far so good.

My partner holds out his fist and I bump it. He pats me on my shoulder and announces that drinks will be on him tonight, which is an offer I cannot refuse.

I push the man into the van and watch the doors close and drive away. The night was as brisk as it was peaceful. The street lamps cut through the fog that layered the street and illuminated the damp pavement.

We hop in the patrol car and begin our trek to the bar. Whether it would be an all night affair or just a quick in and out was yet to be determined. I stare out the window to the nightlife and stay silent.

The man that was just apprehended is the top suspect in a murder case that was just reopened from about 10 years back. The FBI reopened the case when new Intel of a possible lead in the case was confirmed.

The idea of a man killing another has always been an interesting concept to me. All of the serial killers and mass murderers and regular murders bewilder my very existence. How anyone could willingly kill another by random chance or even unprovoked has always been a concept I am not able to grasp.

My father was a victim; or at least I suspect he was. When I was a little boy, he vanished and never returned. The scene was covered in his blood. I remember returning home from school to see the house a wreck and the carpets stained with blood, but a body is one thing no one could find.

I have struggled my entire life to understand why or how he could just disappear without a trace and it has consumed my life. It caused me to investigate other similar cases with similar victims. So many people disappear and even years after their disappearance they aren't found and there isn't a reason.

My dad is a perfect example. My mother told me he picked my name: Adrick, because it sounded strong. She told me this before she spiraled into a deep depression and ended up getting taken away from me and my younger sister when we were just teenagers.

My partner Damien snapped me out of spacing out by turning the radio to max volume, followed by a quick "sing a long, pussy," before we were both jamming to rap that we shouldn't have been jamming to.

The song ends and Damien returns the volume to a tolerable level and tells me to text Alyssa to meet us at the bar and to bring her friend. Alyssa is my girlfriend and her friend is, well, hot. Damien of course always tags along in hopes of scoring but is forever friend zoned which I love to point out to him.

I text Alyssa and she quickly responds saying she'll only bring Daisy if Damien isn't creepy. I propose the notion to Damien who responds with, "It's not creepy it should be flattering," in reference to his relentless flirting and hint dropping. I tell Alyssa he promises to be a gentleman and she says they'll meet us in fifteen.

Daisy is her best friend and Damien is mine, so it would be more efficient if they were to date but Daisy is a hard customer with high standards. Damien meets none of which but you can't hate his optimistic hope.

We arrive at the bar and take two seats next to the dartboard where Damien and I exchange bull's-eyes before ordering shots.

"Since I'm paying I get to pick our poison," Damien says. "Two rounds of Fireball for me and the boy, bartender."

He does this out of spite, as he knows I'm a vodka guy but this is how he shows his affection so I forgive and go bottoms up.

Alyssa and Daisy arrive just in time for round two. I pull Alyssa outside to give Dipshit a chance to talk to his crush.

"What are we doing?" she asks before following my smirk towards Damien nervously trying to impress Daisy with bar tricks. "This is painful to watch Adrick," she says as she laughs. We decide to walk down the street and take in the moist, night air. I grab Alyssa's hand and we follow street lamps and fluorescent signs to the end of Main Street before turning around down the other side.

"So I saw your mother today with your sister," Alyssa says shyly. She uses the silence as her opportunity to give more detail. "She seems to be doing better Adrick. She asked about you. She says they've been giving her less and less medicine and she feels more like herself."

"Did she say anything about me?" I ask inquisitively.

"She said she misses you and wishes you would visit. Maybe you can come next week when we see her?" Alyssa says with a look on her face that is hard to resist. I haven't seen my mother in years. I can't stand to see her the way she is. Her face is so empty and lifeless. She was once so vibrant and loving but it all changed when they loaded her up with drugs and sleeping medication.

We continue to walk and talk about my mother before my dad disappeared. Alyssa and I have known each other since we were kids and she's been through all the highs and lows with me. She and my mom were really close and Alyssa is too afraid to let that slip away so she visits her on occasion.

As we head back into our basecamp bar I start to laugh and I nudge Alyssa. Damien seems to be having mild success with Daisy and is making her laugh which is the most positive reaction either of us had seen. We approach the two and Damien orders more drinks and I hold my fist out to him in admiration. He hits it and winks and whispers, "I think it's going well tonight."

The night is beginning to come alive as the music is louder and the bar is busier. It isn't until I feel my phone vibrating in my pocket that I go back into the cold night. I look at the caller ID and groan: it's our boss. I put on my happy face and answer.

"Hello Sir, how are you doing tonight?" I say as politely as I can.

"Adrick, we have a positive ID on a girl that was involved in a church bombing. She matches the identity of a girl who went missing a couple months ago. We need you and Damien to come in now," he says as sternly as he can

I hang the phone up after our conversation ends and tell Alyssa what's up. I kiss her goodbye and peel a reluctant Damien away from Daisy and we call a cab to the agency. When we reach the elevator Damien goes into great detail about his night.

"I'm telling you bro, I wasn't even that nervous tonight. It was going great. You have to ask Alyssa if she says anything about me," he urgently says. The elevator door opens as I shake my head in disappointment at a desperate Damien. The agents are all hard at work on their various computers and we make our way over to our boss's desk.

"Gentlemen," he begins, "there was a church bombing at a night mass in NYC. One of the identified bodies belongs to Chastity Williams." He holds up the picture of a young girl who I recognize from a missing children's report filed a few months ago.

"So she was killed in a church bombing and identified, but how does that explain where she's been this whole time?" I ask.

"That's the thing," my boss continues, "Survivors of the blast

have identified her as the person who attacked the church."