Page 4 of M for Murder

As though guessing her thoughts, he called out to her, ‘You ready to call it a day yet?’

Never a quitter, Rebecca turned and started to tell him no.

Vic lurched forward, interrupting her mid-sentence. ‘Angell! Move!’

Rebecca turned as the kid ran at her from behind the third dumpster, a large wooden club raised above his head. Raising her baton to protect herself, she had it knocked from her grip as he brought the club down hard.

She raised her hands, expecting a second blow. It didn’t come, as the kid dropped the wood and made a mad dash past a reeling Vic towards the fence he had originally assailed.

Back on her feet, Rebecca again gave chase, this time just seconds behind him as she jumped down from the fence. The end of the alleyway was littered with shopping carts and the kid paused long enough to push one in her path.

Triumphant that he had made his escape, he waved the bag he had snatched in the air. ‘Catch me if you can.’ He grinned.

Rebecca growled angrily, scooting around the cart. ‘You little shit.’

He disappeared into the busy street; reaching the end of the alleyway and she paused for a moment to catch her breath, wondering how the hell she was going to get him now.

Vic arrived beside her.

‘You okay?’ he asked.

She glanced at him, a little surprised that he cared. ‘Yeah, I’m fine. Looks like we’ve lost him, though.’

Vic scanned the street. ‘No we haven’t. Quick, there he is.’

Following the line of his finger, she saw first the red purse then the kid. He had managed to weave his way through the lanes of traffic and had just reached the sidewalk.

‘Come on!’ Vic yelled, this time taking the lead.

Rebecca followed him across the road, ignoring the beeping cars that screeched to a halt to avoid hitting them. One guy started yelling a blue streak out of his window.

Hearing the commotion, the kid turned around.

As he did, a manhole cover opened and he walked headlong into it, losing his balance. A head appeared from the hole, male, maybe mid-fifties, wearing a hard hat.

‘Game over, son,’ Vic told the kid, grabbing him by his collar.

‘I didn’t do anything.’

‘Sure you didn’t.’

Rebecca glanced at the man clambering from the hole in the road and noticed he was completely drained of colour. ‘Sir, are you okay?’

He shook his head and she saw he was trembling.

‘He’s down there.’ He was struggling to get his breath. ‘He’s down there in the sewer.’

‘Who is?’

He pointed back to the manhole. ‘I tell you, he’s down there. I saw him. I walked right into him.’

Rebecca glanced at Vic who was still struggling with the now cuffed kid. She’d assumed the guy was a sewer worker, but maybe he was just some crazy.

Vic grinned. ‘Let me guess. “He” is a thirty-foot alligator, right?’

The man didn’t find his joke amusing. ‘This isn’t funny. I don’t know what the hell happened, but he’s dead all right. He was all cold and stiff and he smelt of death.’

Vic’s face hardened. ‘Sir, have you been smoking an illegal substance?’