Saving Lucas

Chapter 28

Julian Jimenez booked himself in a hotel. He paid in cash and went straight to his room, hauling his bag with him. He was exhausted.

He turned on the lights and dropped to the bed. His mind wandered. 

The kids had escaped. He replayed the events over and over in his head. What was he thinking? Of course. It was the classic throw-a-rock diversion. He shouldn't have fallen for that one. He was too old for that, he thought as he sighed. Indeed, he was losing his touch. 

It was too late to go after them. The lead was too far. Even if he and David managed to get to their car on time, the kids would've been a few miles ahead of them by then. He and David had spent pitiful time looking for the toppled over rubbish bin, while those darn kids were already hot-wiring a stolen car. Cute. 

He ordered coffee from the hotel cafe and sat in his room, the CCTV tape in his hand. He turned the player on, while sipping the hot macchiatto. It was bland. 

He replayed the video over and over for almost an hour, hoping that maybe something would click. Nothing.

He sighed and switched the CCTV off. He was about to recline on the bed when he remembered the files. He grabbed his bag and went through it. Eventually, he found them.

He shuffled through the contents and went through them one by one. After he finished, he frowned. There was something off about the files. He couldn't tell what. He ran through them again. And again. And again. When he was about to flip the pages for the last time, it struck him. 

Julian grabbed his coat and went for the door. It was time to ask Riviera.

****

Julian went to the station, but Riviera wasn't there. Probably went home, he thought. Riviera was pissed as hell when the kids slipped. He was probably letting off steam. He asked the other officers present at the station if they knew David's address. A worn out cop scribbled the address on a loose paper on the floor. Julian took it and caught a cab. 

He arrived a few minutes later. The cab stopped in front of a small apartment--it looked more like a house than an apartment--with a sign that flatly said 'apartment B.' All the lights were out. He told the cab driver to wait for him as he got out and walked to the front door. He knocked three times and called out for David. No answer. He knocked again. Still no answer. 

He walked around the back of the house and found a back door. He tried the knob. It was locked. He tried the windows. They were closed too. He went back inside the cab and tapped the driver's back.

"We have to wait here," Julian said.

"How long?" the driver asked, glancing at the cab meter.

"I don't know... Like, fifteen, twenty minutes."

"Whoa. Can't. I need to look for other passengers," the driver said. "Come on, you know how it is. Family to feed and all that stuff..."

Julian reached for his wallet in his back pocket and fished out a crisp bill of one thousand pesos.

"Here," Julian said. "That's yours. We wait for twenty minutes. If he still doesn't show up, then off we go."

The driver looked at him skeptically. "But the bill is still mine, no? Even if he doesn't show up?"

"Yes."

The driver shrugged and leaned against his seat, preparing for the long wait. "Up to you, pal," he said.

Julian looked out the window again, just to make sure. Then he leaned against the cushion of the seat, and waited for Riviera to arrive.