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Once I was off work that evening, I decided to drive by Carpenter's headquarters before meeting Daniel at my apartment. I wanted to know how long the office stayed opened at the end of the day, and then I could set my plan in action.
Lights were on in the back half of the building. Those who worked in the front answering phones and taking care of other matters had left for the night, but the offices in the back still had people in them. I'd have to find a time to return when the whole place was dark. I turned the car around and headed for home.
# # #
Daniel had let himself into my apartment. The aroma of chicken chow mein and noodles greeted me – and so did Thor. But best of all, Daniel looked up and grinned at the sight of me. We met in the middle of the kitchen where he planted a loving kiss on my lips. It was a relief to find things back on track between us.
"Thor's been outside for his playtime," said Daniel. "I told him he'd have to wait until you got here to eat, so you'd better take care of him. His food's already measured out and he's one hungry dog."
While Daniel dished out our chow mein, I gave Thor and Benji their dinners in the corner of the kitchen. Daniel and I had learned to ignore the crunching sounds of my large dog while we ate.
"Okay, Laila, I’m ready to hear you out," Daniel said. "So, tell me: What do you think really happened to Homeless John?"
I gathered my thoughts, and then laid out what I had so far. "Well, do you remember what Councilman Carpenter said in Roasted Love about wanting to clear all of the homeless out of West River?"
"Yeah, sure. I remember."
"Then there's another guy who comes in for coffee – Ronald Larch. He's Carpenter’s campaign manager and he rants about the homeless, too."
"Yes. I know about him, too."
"Okay. Anyway," I continued, "I had dinner last night at the Old York Street Bistro with Anna. And Larch was there with someone I thought I recognized – and it turned out I did recognize him because he's a DEA agent."
Daniel frowned as we both took our plates and sat down. "He was from the Drug Enforcement Agency? How do you know that?"
"I saw him when I went over to talk to Chief Hayes at the precinct house. He was taking a meeting with the chief while I was waiting my turn."
"DEA? Here? What for?"
I shrugged. "I don't know. You'd have to ask the chief."
Daniel paused. "I hate to say it, Laila, but we did just have a man found dead on the street from an overdose – or, at the very least a suspected overdose," he finished, blocking my objection before I could say anything.
I took a bite of the hot chicken chow mein. "I really had no idea West River had people living on the street – at least, other than John."
"They stay invisible for the most part," said Daniel. "At least, they do up in this end of town. Now – it's clear that you suspect Calvin Carpenter might have had something to do with John being dead. What's your evidence?"
I sighed. "I don’t have any tangible evidence. It would be a pretty big risk for him to actually murder someone – not when his campaign and re-election mean everything to him. But I can't forget him saying that he wanted all the homeless to ‘just disappear.’"
"I don't think he'd have much to gain by murdering someone, either. He talks a lot about his feelings about the homeless, but maybe it's just a cause to campaign on and if it wasn't that, it would be something else. So: What about Ronald Larch?"
"Oh, he's Carpenter's campaign manager, so he of course he says whatever Carpenter says. After John was found, I heard Larch say that it was just as well to be rid of one more homeless bum. Something like that.
"But then – somebody – yeah, it was Walt, Walter Schubert – said he thought Larch had known John personally."
"What did Larch say to that?"
I thought for a minute. "Nothing. He said nothing. And now that I think about it, I haven't seen Larch in Roasted Love for the past couple of days."
Daniel nodded. "Interesting. If Larch hadn't known John personally, why not just say so?"
"Good question," I said, turning back to my food. "Good question."
When we finished our meal, we took Thor out for a walk. Stars twinkled in the clear night sky and the air was warm with a slight breeze.
"So, you've got Calvin Carpenter and Ronald Larch on your list of possible suspects," said Daniel. "Anybody else?"
"No. I don't think so. Of course – I guess the drug dealers down in the rough part of town have to be considered. Even though, no, I still don't think John was an addict."
