blue jay | janiel

two

Daniel

I woke up the next morning feeling confused, wondering where I was.
This place wasn't my two bedroom apartment which I shared with my friend, Hope. Then I remembered why I was here, and I fell back in bed, groaning as my spine hit the rock hard mattress.

A ringing sound suddenly chimed in my ears and I looked over to see my iPhone vibrating. I lazily picked it up, the bright screen burning my still sleepy eyes. It was my boss Clark calling me. Clark was a cocky,
big shot officer, specializing in petty crime and theft. He was in his early 50's, with balding brown hair and a sparse moustache. If I had it my way, I wouldn't have answered the phone, but I had no choice,

D: Hello Sir

I said, my voice thick and heavy from a lack of sleep.

C: Well hello to you too, Mr. Preda. The police station got a call where reports of a robbery at Linda's Diner took place last night, just 20 minutes away from the motel you've been assigned to

I got out of bed and walked around the room, rubbing my eyes to wake myself
up.

D: Was anyone injured?

C: There was a waitress, but she's just a little shaken up. I've taken her statement and have received the following details of the suspect which you need to pay close attention to

I grabbed my notepad off the nightstand, ready to jot information down.

C: The witness identified the suspect as a young Caucasian male...about 5'8

Was that it?

D: That's really not much to go by

C: Well he was wearing a black ski mask and matching dark clothing as well

D: Alright, I'll do my best in finding him althou-

C: Look, Daniel. I know this is your first undercover assignment and you're probably nervous, but I know you are prepared. You're the best candidate for this assignment; you're young and no one would suspect you're undercover. The police department have faith in you

D: Thank you sir

C: Let's go over the plan one more time. The ultimate goal is to catch the person or people who have been robbing and shooting this part of town for the past 5 months. You've been stationed at Motel Plaza because it's in a rough area and that's where most of the crimes are being committed

D: And how long do I have to work on this assignment for?

C: Until you find him or when you're dead

I frowned into the phone as my heart lurched. Clark chuckled lightly.

C: I'm just kidding kid

Some joke. I rolled my eyes and refrained myself from making a comment.

C: Anyway, you'll have to speak to the residents of the motel as well as your fellow New Yorkers, whether it's on the streets or in a grocery store. Your sole purpose is to try to get information out of people and see who knows who the robbers are. Surely someone has seen something or knows something; this town isn't that big. Those robbers aren't as clever as they think they are

D: So basically I'm talking to people and grilling them to snitch

Clark laughed.

C: Exactly. But be very careful, Mr. Press. As you know when you accepted this assignment, it is dangerous. Be wary of your surroundings and keep your cover at all times. Your new name is Derek Bolton and you're not a cop, you're a high school drop out with no ambition in life and no particular intentions. Just stay out of the radar and try to form loose relationships with people, gain their trust. We're bound to find clues that'll lead us to our guy