Page 33 of Soros
“What type of help did he need?”
“He was hungry.”
The two detectives exchanged a quick glance. “What is his name?”
The widow crossed her arms and looked down.
“You can tell us, Mrs. Davis.”
“If you insist. I call him Jared.”
“Is Jared his real name?”
“How would I know? I didn’t ask to see his identification. I didn’t even catch all your names or understand why there are so many of you.” Mrs. Davis glanced over at Nerix, Lios, and me.
Rocking back on his heels. Lee pulled out his badge again. “My name is Detective Lee and this is my colleague Detective Sanchez. These three gentlemen are from Europe. They are here to locate a fugitive who is quite tall, which matches the description your neighbors gave us of the man living with you.
“Argh.” Mrs. Davis made a dismissive hand gesture. “There used to be a time when people respected your privacy. I bet it’s Viola Harris from across the street. She was always too curious for her own good, but I’m telling you that I’m not in any sort of trouble. I’m just helping a young man who needed a place to stay and someone to care for him. The nature of our relationship is between us.”
Nerix was losing his temper next to me. “Why are they asking her so many questions? They know he’s the one we’re interested in so why don’t they just call him down here already? She’s probably scared, or mind clouded, which would explain why she’s covering for him.”
“I’m not so sure,”I said.“She’s very protective of her house guest, which could be a sign of affection. Maybe she hasn’t felt like anyone needed her for a long time and it feels good to give.”
“It’s not affection. It’s mind clouding,” Nerix argued telepathically.
“Would you mind introducing us to your friend?” Lee finally asked and looked up as footsteps sounded again.
Mrs. Davis sighed. “If I must.” With a displeased expression on her wrinkled face, Mrs. Davis brushed back her gray hair and walked out of the room to the staircase. Leaning her head back, she called upstairs, “Jared, dear, would you come down for a moment? The police are here, and they wish to talk to you.”
“He’s nervous,” Lios communicated to us. “I can feel his energy. There’s fear and a sense of feeling trapped.”
“Is it Ko’roz?” I asked Lios, who as the only Ugon was superior at mind work compared to Nerix and me.
“I don’t know yet,” Lios replied and kept looking up the staircase.
A small movement in my peripheral vision made me turn my body and look out the window to the back patio. “There.” I pointed through the formal dining room to the backyard alerting the others, and despite Lios’ strict instructions, Nerix took off right away.
With Sanchez and Lios on his tail, Nerix ran to the patio door and was quickly outside and gone from my sight.
Lee went in the other direction when he ran out of the main entrance while talking on his radio. I stayed with Mrs. Davis, who had her hands to her face and her thin eyebrows downturned.
“I don’t understand why he would make a run for it. Jared is a good man. He’s always kind to me. He makes me laugh and feel beautiful again.”
“Really?” That didn’t sound like Ko’roz.
“Yes.” Two sharp vertical lines formed between her eyebrows, as Mrs. Davis confessed in a distraught tone, “And I don’t know why I said that we met at the park. I picked up his number on the community board in the supermarket. Jared offered handyman services, you see. I’ve known him since before last Christmas. I always make him coffee and homemade cookies when he’s been working for me. And then he told me he was so pressed for money that he had started working as a gigolo to pay rent. That’s why I offered he could stay here until he gets back on his feet.” She bit her lip.
Unsure what a gigolo was, I paid attention to another detail. “You said that you’ve known him for a while.”
“Yes. Maybe a year. But lately he’s been going through a rough time financially and rental prices in New York are so expensive. I have all this empty space and enjoy his company. The thought that someone I know needs to prostitute themselves to pay rent is just heartbreaking.”
I felt deep disappointment as I called out to Nerix and Lios, telepathically. “It’s not Ko’roz. She’s known the man for months.”
It didn’t take long before a tall, muscular man was brought back in handcuffs. He had gray strands in his hair and puffy bags under eyes that had a panicked look in them. “Why are you cuffing me, man? I didn’t do nothing. This is bullshit.”
“Wanna tell us why you tried to run away instead of answering our questions?” Sanchez asked him. “People who have nothing to hide don’t run.”
“This isn’t the man we’re looking for,” Lios informed the detectives.
