Chapter 3 of EZ Street - Copyright 2018 c. k. thomas

Here's a bonus monthly installment of the murder mystery I'm drafting. I hope you enjoy the latest adventures of EZ and Sam. Check April's post and a post around May 12 for Chapters 1 and 2.

Chapter Three

Present Day

Sam was in the shower getting ready for work, and she could hear her cell phone music playing Pharrell’s Be Happy, while vibrating itself off the edge of the bathroom sink and hitting the floor with a sickening crack.

“Damn, if my phone’s busted, I’m going to kill whoever just called!” she told herself as she turned off the shower and stepped out.

Happily she found the phone still safely on the sink and her detective badge upside down on the bathroom tile.

“You’re damn lucky this morning, EZ.”

“What? I haven’t even said a word.”

“Don’t need to. You almost busted my phone. It was a near miss.”

EZ could tell by the tone of her voice she was in a good mood. Now would be the best time to let her in on the case they just caught.

“Since I’m already in the dog house, let me tell you about last night. We caught a case.”

“Hmm, what happened to keeping me in the loop? We talked about this, EZ.”

“I know, I know. I don’t have an excuse better than I just plain got wrapped up at the scene and forgot to call until Al mentioned your name. Then, it was too late to call anyway, so I took a chance and waited until now.”

“Okay, but you owe me lunch for forgetting.”

“Not a problem. How about breakfast, too? I know I don’t deserve forgiveness, but maybe I can buy my way back into your good will. Meet me at First Watch on Thomas in say half an hour?”

“Deal. See you there.”

EZ tossed his comb aside in disgust after trying to tame his curly hair into some sort of submission. He knew if he didn’t blow it dry it would end up scrambled like this. He felt like a Shirley Temple doll, but it was too late now to wet his golden locks down and start over.

He took his unmarked to the fifty-one south to Thomas from his house in the Dreamy Draw and got to the restaurant before Sam. That was the beauty of his little 50s style house located in north-central Phoenix. He could hop on route 51 and be anywhere in the metro area in a little less than a jiffy. North he could hook up with the 101 across town east or west and south took him to the heart of downtown or all the way to Tucson. 

“Ordered you coffee, a wheat bagel and cinnamon-maple cream cheese. Anything else?”

“Perfect. Thanks. So tell me about last night. Wha’d I miss?”

EZ told her the particulars and suggested they stop off at the scene on their way downtown since they were so close. Once they finished eating they headed for the crime scene. Sam parked at the curb across from the all-night grocery and EZ pulled into the alley.

“Might as well check to see if the gun store at the other end of the alley has any video while we’re here.”

“That’s a big gamble,” Sam said, looking down the alley at the derelict-looking storefront.

“I’ll hike down there while you get a feel for the scene. Our witness tripped over the vic’s body just across from that dumpster.”

Sam knelt down next to the outline of the body and pictured the scene in her mind. What’s the point of shooting someone in an alley when the vic wasn’t even carrying a handbag? A headshot looks like an assassination, so maybe the woman walking her dog will turn out to be more mysterious than she appeared. Without her identity, finding the motive for the murder will be next to impossible.

EZ had said no cell phone was found and nothing suspicious turned up in the dumpster. Sam climbed up on a couple pallets next to the dumpster to take a look. At only 5’ 3” she often had to either hoist herself up and over obstacles or find something to give her more height. She knew forensics had already been all over the dumpster, and she could see nothing interesting except for a glint off something her flashlight caught in the near corner.

“Oh hell, now I’m going to have to climb in,” she groaned. “Well, here goes.”

When EZ returned he found her still inside the container studying something obviously wedged in the corner.

“What’d ya find?”

“I’m not sure. It looks like some sort of plaything a kid might have. It sort of glows in the dark,” Sam said as she tugged on the thing to get it loose. “It’s caught in a crack where the side seams come together or more like, don’t. Got it! Finally! It’s one of those dog tug toys.”

“Toss it here,” EZ said.

As he caught the toy, he squeezed it in his grip and it gave out a loud squeek.

“Gotcha!”

Next thing he knew he was flat on his back with a big black dog playing a serious game of tugs with him and his new toy.

“Hey there, boy. Where’d you come from?”

“He came from behind the dumpster. Give me hand out of here once you get finished playing with your new best friend.”

“This must be the dog our vic was walking last night. He’s got blood stains on his coat.”

“What’s his name?”

“I don’t know, but I can call forensics to see if they’ve traced his tags yet.”

After a quick call, EZ found out the dog’s name was Blackie, and the tags listed his owner as Sharon Lester at 30 East Thomas, #2010, which is just around the corner.

“Maybe our victim made a wild throw with the toy and then came into the alley looking for it when the dog didn’t bring it back,” Sam guessed.

“Maybe, but the dog was on a leash, so I doubt they were playing catch.”

“Let’s swing by the apartment and see if Ms Lester has a roommate.”

“What about the dog?”

“We’ll take him along. Come on, boy. Let’s go,” EZ called.

He tossed the toy into the backseat and the big dog easily jumped in after it.

“Maybe there’s a roommate or husband who can take Blackie here off our hands.”

“What kind of dog is that?” Sam asked as they drove along Thomas looking for the address.

“Darned if I know. Maybe a Labrador or a Doberman?”

“Can’t be a Doberman, can it? Don’t people have the ears on those kind clipped into points? Sure is friendly, isn’t he. I hope there’s someone to take care of him. Look at that, he just hunkered down on the backseat. What a good puppy,” Sam crooned as EZ rolled his eyes and tried to ignore her mothering instincts.

Sam didn’t seem like the mothering type to EZ. She kept her hair cut in a boyish, but cute style kinda like Ellen on TV. She lived in a tiny studio apartment with a pull-out in the living area and a postage stamp bathroom at the end of a long hall. The kitchen had a microwave, an apartment-sized refrigerator and a one-sided sink. None of the appliances had ever been used. Even the microwave looked untouched and forlorn.

EZ had seen her pull a beer out of the fridge on occasion, but when he went looking for a glass one time, he discovered all the cabinets were completely empty. When he asked her about her living arrangement, she just shrugged and told him she liked to keep things simple. Eating out was a way of life for her and if you wanted to find a good restaurant in Phoenix, you didn’t check the Internet, you called Sam.

When they arrived at Sharon Lester’s ground-floor apartment, Blackie ran straight to the door and jumped up to put his giant paws against it. Surprisingly, the door swung open and the dog bounded inside. He went immediately to his water bowl in the kitchen and began lapping water like he hadn’t had a drink in a couple days.

“Oh, poor thing,” Sam said. “He’s been on his own ever since the murder. No wonder he’s thirsty.”

EZ announced their presence inside the apartment, but there was no sign of a Mr. Lester or the appearance that another person might share the space.

“Looks like we’re going to have to drop Blackie off at the shelter,” EZ said.

“Oh, come on EZ, you don’t want to leave him there. Why don’t you keep him for awhile and see if anyone turns up to claim him. She must have family somewhere.”

“I know nothing about dogs, Sam.”

“What’s to know? You feed him and walk him. That’s about it. Besides, he’s already claimed the backseat of your unmarked.”

“Well, maybe,” EZ said as he flipped through a pile of mail on the hall table. “Here’s a letter that reads like it might be from her mother. Nope, wait a minute. It’s signed Janice, so maybe it’s just a friend or a sister.”

“Too bad we don’t have her cell phone. Hey, look at this,” Sam said as she reached under a tall stool in the kitchen. It’s another one of those tug toys like I pulled out of the dumpster. He must really like these things.”

“There’s a Verizon bill here. We can probably get phone records and a person to notify from them. Wait a minute, there’s a bank statement from Arizona Bank. They probably know all about Ms Lester. We can stop by there after we talk with our witness.”

After calling forensics to go over the apartment, they drove back to the alley where Sam left her car.

“Oh, hey, did you get any video from the gun store?” 

“It’s closed on Mondays, so I’ll need to chase down the owner by phone, but I don’t hold out any hope. The camera over the door looks ancient.”

“Tell you what, I’ll go finish interviewing our witness while you take Blackie to the station to check on the video forensics got from the convenience store. Oh, we should probably get the film from the Circle K where the witness stopped on the way home, too.”

“Okay, I’ll call Al and make sure he and Kelly are going to finish the canvass of the neighborhood. Most of the stores and offices were closed last night. Maybe they can check with Verizon and the bank, too.”

“Abby said she’d get to the autopsy around 10 this morning, so I better get a move on.”

“You can’t take Blackie into the morgue, and you can’t leave him in the car. You better run by your house and drop him off in the backyard. You have that nice high block wall, so he’ll be fine there. Oh and don’t forget to leave water out for him and find him a shady place to lie. Better yet, you’re gonna need a doggie door.”

“I thought you said walk him and feed him. I should know better than to take advice from an apartment dweller. Did you ever even own a dog?”

“No, but how hard can it be,” Sam said as she slid into her car. “Pick me up at the station around one, and we’ll compare notes over lunch. Hey, did you see pictures of Kelly’s baby, yet?”

“Nope, but I have a suspicion she’ll have plenty with her today.”