A knock came from the door. Byrdswain opened it and a uniformed officer entered the doorway. He addressed Delores, “We’re ready for you.”
“Thank you, officer,” she replied as she pulled her handcuffs from behind her belt. She turned back to Dixon. ”We’ve got a surprise for you outside, but first you’re under arrest for the murder of Lupe Barbados, and for serial rape by deception of Inez Quintana, Francisca Diaz, and Yolanda Vigil. Now turn around. I’ve got a set of bracelets that are just your size.”
Dixon hung his head.
Delores turned to the officer. “Apparently this sick-o has taken unauthorized videos of his victims. Would you find them and secure them so they don’t cause any additional troubles?”
“Gladly.”
Detective Sanchez led Dixon outside where a small crowd of noisy people, including Francisca, Yolanda, Inez and Juanita heckled him. “Some of your friends wanted to see this for themselves,” Delores said, grinning.
Francisca stepped forward and spat on him. Inez kicked his shin.
“Assault,” Dixon screamed in the direction of Sergeant Byrdswain. “That’s assault.”
Byrdswain motioned at one of the uniformed officers. “You’d better restrain these big bad women.”
Delores got right in Dixon’s face. “By the way, I’m twenty-six, you perv.”
Chapter Seventy-Nine
While Stump’s classmates were anxiously counting down the last days of the school year, Stump was taking a final of his own making. He had to get into the last City Council meeting and to do so, he relied upon something Myles taught him: To get what he wanted he had to give them what they wanted.
As agreed, James came by at seven-fifteen, when the City Council meeting was underway and Myles was with his AA pals. Stump dropped a note on the table telling Myles where he and Grandma Pauline would be.
Some minutes later, when Stump, Grandma Pauline and James arrived at the meeting place, the parking lot contained quite a few cars and a small van belonging to KLAC TV. One thing Stump had learned about the media types was they were always looking for a fresh story.
“Looks like a good turnout,” James said.
Stump nodded. “Last meeting of the year. They have to pack a lot in. That’s one of the reasons they shut me out.”
“Assemblies are fun,” Grandma Pauline said.
Although many of Grandma Pauline’s comments were off the wall, Stump was glad she was there. As before, she reminded him of how important his own mother was and why he was doing all of this.
When the trio opened the meeting room doors, a cameraman was in the middle aisle filming the goings-on. Heads turned as Stump led Grandma Pauline down the outer aisle toward the back where TV reporter Irv Wedlock was seated. Stump urged James and Grandma Pauline to scoot into one of the back rows, leaving the aisle seat for him. He waited as the leaders worked through the schedule.
Finally, at a quarter after eight, Mayor Curtis pointed at the clock. “Looks like we’re a little late, but there being nothing else on the agenda for this year, I wish to thank—”
“Excuse me Mr. Mayor,” Stump said as he and James bolted to their feet and James began to video Stump with a cell phone. “There is one last thing before you close down for the season.” Eyes rolled and the cameraman pivoted toward Stump as he stepped up the side aisle toward the front of the room. Mr. Barella, Stump’s councilman, folded his arms.
The mayor leaned into his mic. “I’m sorry. We know who you are and you’re not—”
“That’s right,” Stump said as he reached the lectern. “I’m Neal Joseph Randolph.” He pointed to the TV correspondent. ”Two months ago Mr. Wedlock invited me to keep him posted regarding my progress with this City Council. Therefore, I am the one who invited him to join us tonight.”
Mr. Wedlock nodded.
“Great,” the mayor muttered.
Just then Myles came in, scanned the room and took Stump’s vacant seat next to Grandma Pauline.
Stump turned back toward the council members. “I promised Mr. Wedlock that I would give him two good stories tonight. I told him that even though you have a full docket, and even though I let you down once before, you are the kind of people who will always put the citizens of the community before your own interests. I said that you would gladly be late to your end-of-term party if you could help the residents.” Stump pointed to his own councilman. “Mr. Barella has always said that very thing, haven’t you, Mr. Barella?”
The cameraman pivoted to catch Barella’s reply. Barella sat up and nervously straightened his tie. “Er. Yes. That’s exactly what we’ve talked about. Neal and I go way back. I think we should let him speak.”
“Alright, alright,” the Mayor grumbled. “But make it quick. These good people want to go home.”
“Thank you, Mr. Mayor,” Stump said, “and everybody else too. Many of you may know that there was a murder in our town a few days ago. The victim was Mr. Kraft, my boss at the Cal-Vista apartments. At this very moment, the police are at that building and arresting the man who some believe committed the murder. His name is Dixon Browne.”
The end-of-meeting buzz that dominated the room minutes earlier had calmed to low whispers as the cameraman, James and most of the attendees focused on Stump.
“Interestingly,” Stump said, “I can prove that Mr. Browne is both innocent of the killing and guilty of a rape.” The buzz picked up as Stump pulled out his cell. I’m going to call the detective in charge right now and you can listen to her make the arrest.” Stump turned to Mr. Wedlock. “My girlfriend is taking video of it all so you can put the story on TV.” Mr. Wedlock nodded.
Pleased with himself, Stump set his phone on speaker and held it to the microphone at the lectern. “But the most important part,” he said, “will come at the end when I reveal something that the detectives don’t even know—who the real killer is.”
Heads bobbed enthusiastically and a hush settled on the crowd.
Stump tapped his auto dial and everybody waited through the first couple rings, then, “Hi, Stump.”
“Hello, Detective. I’m at my meeting, like we discussed. I’ve told everybody about Dixon Browne’s crimes. Are you ready to make the arrest?”
“I’m sorry, Stump, but things didn’t work out quite like we discussed.”
Oh, no. Stump’s stomach tightened as nervous mumbles of doubt replaced the precious silence of mere seconds ago. Embarrassed, he shifted his feet. “Er. Why not? I thought you believed me. Dixon didn’t do it.”
“Relax, Stump. I’m just down the hall from you right now. I came to see you all in person. Okay. I think I’ve got the right room.” Just then the outer doors opened and Detective Sanchez walked in. She looked around and then joined Stump by the lectern and faced the council. “Good evening, everybody,” she said as she put away her cell. “I’m Detective Delores Sanchez. I came here tonight because I owe Stump here a big thank you. I can assure you all that Stump was correct about the key points he made. As he said, Mr. Browne did not kill Mr. Kraft as previously thought; but something else came up so my boss thought we needed to act quickly.”
Whew! Stump secretly blew out a deep breath while Detective Sanchez continued.
“In addition to the charges Stump suggested, we also charged Mr. Browne with murder in a very old case. Stump’s girlfriend was able to get that part on video for the TV people.”
Wow! This was working out okay. Now was Stump’s chance to impress the hell out of everybody. “That’s very interesting, Detective Sanchez, but I have a news flash for you too. Do you have two sets of handcuffs?”
The cameraman swirled to catch Detective Sanchez’s reply. “Of course. Why?”
“I told you earlier that I could prove that Dixon Browne didn’t kill Mr. Kraft, but now I can tell you who actually did. It was Manuel Alvarado. The maintenance man.”
“What?” Detective Sanchez said with her eyes wide. “Are you certain? What makes you think so?”
r /> “I’m not only certain. I’ve got proof. Maria and I heard Mr. Kraft and Dixon Browne arguing around 7:30. Then we saw Manuel come home and dump a chicken box on the opposite side of the complex from where his apartment is. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but after that Maria and I went for a walk and when we got back, Mr. Kraft was already dead.”
“Oh my goodness,” Detective Sanchez said with her hand to her mouth.
“Then today at school, James finished a piece of chicken and threw the bone in the closest trashcan just as anybody else would do, but it was radically different from what Manuel did. But this time when I thought about Manuel’s actions I knew the time of Mr. Kraft’s death and it all fit. Between statements by Maria and me, plus the receipt in the chicken box and Manuel’s fingerprints on the box we know that Manuel was there just minutes before Mr. Kraft died. That’s why James and I went back to the complex and got the chicken box.
“Oh, my God,” Detective Sanchez said, both hands to her face. “I wish you would have called me.”
“There’s more. I also saw a big mark on a fence that I’d just painted and we looked in the neighbor’s dumpster where we found a board that was clearly the murder weapon and all of this proves that Manuel had both the means and opportunity to kill Mr. Kraft.”
“But evidence shouldn’t be removed and it has to be handled carefully.”
“Don’t worry. The board and the chicken box are both in James’s trunk. We didn’t get our own fingerprints on them.”
Detective Sanchez grimaced. “At least that’s one good thing.” She moved toward the door. “I’ve gotta get back there.”
Stump stepped forward. “Don’t you want to know the motive?”
She stopped in her tracks and raised her head. “Well, yes. What is it?”
Stump looked at Myles, who was grinning and shaking his head. “Two reasons. It was a combination mercy killing, and a chance to frame Dixon Browne.”
Detective Sanchez grabbed at her hair as if she wanted to pull it out. “Well, you’ve been correct about things like this before. I’ll have to go talk with him right now.” She turned to Myles. “Can you secure that evidence for me?”
“Will do,” Myles said, still shaking his head as she ran out of the room.
Stump proudly faced the Mayor and a healthy smattering of applause blended with a few cheers, James being the loudest.
“Quiet down, everybody,” the mayor said into his microphone. “Quiet, please. Quiet.” Finally the noise eased and the mayor addressed Stump. “That was all pretty interesting, Neal, but it’s not our department. Now, we can finally—”
“Wait a minute, Mr. Mayor,” Irv Wedlock said from the side of the room. “Neal here said he had two stories for me. After that show, I’m sure everybody here wants to hear what else he has for us.”
“Yes. I understand that, Mr. Wedlock,” the Mayor said, “but we’re running very late and these good people—”
“These good people, as you say, are here because they care about their community and I’m sure you want our story to illustrate that the Palmdale City Council is a first-class example of what all city councils should be like. I’d like to say you’re always interested in doing what’s right for the citizens, no matter how unorthodox or inconvenient.”
The Mayor sighed and turned back to Stump. “Alright, Neal, did you have something else you wanted to say?”
Finally. “Yes, sir. I definitely do.” Stump took a deep breath, reached in his pocket and grabbed a small piece of paper containing his notes.
Chapter Eighty
With the full attention of the City Council and the TV camera, Stump began his story. “As many of you know, three years ago, my mom died in a house fire in the oldest part of town. She got trapped in a room with bars on the windows, bars that had no safety latches. Later, I found out that there are lots of unsafe homes in that area, mostly because they were built before there were good building codes like there are today. It didn’t seem fair to me that poor people have to live in unsafe homes.
“So I came to a previous meeting to try to help my mom’s neighbors upgrade their unsafe properties. Unfortunately, I had an accident and missed the follow-up meeting, and for that I’m sorry. Afterwards, I found out that some of the citizens simply didn’t have the money to do the things we were talking about.”
Stump looked directly into the camera. “Things like removing asbestos insulation, unsafe wiring, lead-based paint, fixing leaky roofs and plumbing—and of course, windows that don’t allow for safe passage in emergencies.” He turned back toward the council members.
“Since that day, I’ve continued to do research.” He pointed to Grandma Pauline. “And thanks to that very special lady back there, I’ve discovered some brand-new information that all of you should know about.”
“Alright. Get on with it,” the Mayor said.
Stump nodded. ”To help me, I’ve asked Mr. Clyde Connors, a very successful local businessman who specializes in housing matters, to explain it to you.” Stump turned and nodded at Mr. Connors.
Mr. Connors approached the microphone. “Hello, everybody. I own the apartment building next door to where Stump works. I came here tonight to share with you two programs, which I have personally investigated. Earlier today, I spoke with representatives from both agencies, so the information I am about to share with you is very fresh. These organizations were established precisely for the type of things Stump here is talking about. Roofs, furnaces, windows. All of it. But the remarkable truth is that there is no cost to the residents to upgrade their homes. I repeat. All of these repairs are free to homeowners who qualify.” Stump glanced around. Silent people seemed stunned.
“Are you certain about this?” the Mayor asked of Mr. Connors.
“As I said. I checked it out today. Any of you can look it up on the internet right now. It’s called Rebuilding Together. They get their money from federal grants and have funds as we speak.”
Several people began tapping at their phones.
“I have some of the application forms here so you can see just how simple they are,” Mr. Connors added.
“I found it,” somebody said.
Another guy held his cell in the air. “Me too!”
Councilwoman Torrez showed the Mayor the read-out on her cell phone.
“I’ll be damned,” said a different voice.
Others mumbled in amazement while Mr. Connors plopped the applications on the side table and returned to his seat.
“Well, Neal,” the mayor said. “I have to admit this is very interesting. Exactly what were you expecting from this committee?”
“Thank you, Mr. Mayor. If we do this right, we won’t have to pass a new law and force people to do things they don’t want to do, but we can help everybody who wants it. The key is we need to get the word out to make it more official. That’s where the Council can help. You guys have much more credibility than a sixteen-year-old like me.”
The Mayor snickered. “I wouldn’t say that after what we’ve seen here today, but we don’t have a lot of manpower.”
“I thought about that, but if we work together we can do it. The first thing we have to do is inform the residents of the programs. We just need some brochures to deliver door to door.” Stump pointed toward his councilman. “Mr. Barella is a nice man. He helped us before. I’m sure he’d provide these brochures too, in the name of the City Council, and help me and my friend, James, deliver them.”
James jumped up. “I’m in.”
The cameraman bounced back to Michael Barella. “Err. Ahh. Yes. I can do that,” Barella said, while adjusting his collar.
Stump grinned. “We could have two meetings that will explain it all. One at night, after dinner, and one on a Saturday. That way everybody should have a chance to come to one or the other.” He pointed toward the side of the room. “That’s my attorney over there. Ms. Delgado. I’ve asked her to oversee all the details so you’ll know that somebody resp
onsible is in charge of all the legalities.”
Danielle Delgado rose. “Not only that. If councilman Barella and the City Planner will help me, I’ll chair a committee that will look into getting funds from the county and some merchants to improve Main Street. We’ll see if we can put in a nice island and some foliage so people will be glad to live here, and visitors will think of our town as a nice place to spend their money.” She looked at Barella. The camera zoomed in again.
“Why, yes,” Councilman Barella said with a half-smile. “Why not?”
The cameraman spun to the side table where Mrs. Crumpler beamed at Stump for several long seconds before nodding in approval. “You can count on my department.”
James raised his clenched fist high into the air. “Yes.”
“I hope they’ll also put in safer sidewalks for bicycles and the elderly,” Stump added.
The Mayor nodded. “God knows we could use the jobs. Where would you hold these meetings?”
Stump shuffled his feet, “Well, to tell you the truth, I haven’t exactly—”
“Excuse me.” Stump knew the voice. “My name is Myles Cooper, Mr. Mayor. I’m Neal’s dad and I know several local law enforcement officers who I can call upon to help out with the meetings. We can provide an interpreter and maybe get some refreshments. The detective who was here earlier has a contact at the grade school. I’m positive we can use the cafeteria.”
Mr. Connors rose. “I’ll donate five hundred dollars to cover the refreshments and miscellaneous costs.”
Grandma Pauline clapped her hands. “This is a good play.”
Myles held her hand.
A giant smile stretched across Stump’s face as he addressed the Mayor. “I rest my case.”
“This isn’t a court, Mr. Randolph,” the mayor said. He paused for a moment before he banged his gavel. “I’m going to call a quick recess to have a conversation with the panel. We’ll reconvene in five minutes.”
After the council members went out in the hall, Stump joined Myles in the aisle next to Grandma Pauline. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you what I was up to, Myles, but I was afraid you’d stop me.”
“We’ll talk about that later, but for now we’re all working for your mother. Now get back up to the front of the room where you belong.”