NIP 30

I reread the message. ‘I could use a twirl’. ‘Twirl.” What is she saying? Why am I not getting this? We talk code all the time. We are sisters for crying out loud. What is wrong with me! I cant give up. I lower my head and fix my eyes on the ground. Focus. Focus.

My eyes lock on the album dated 1983. Lizi would have been an infant in 1983. The same year my mother and who I thought was my father were killed…or rather murdered. Something inside me convinces me to randomly flip the album open. A picture of me and my sisters seems to be glowing. I press my lips together and fight back tears. We were just girls…happy little girls.

“Sari!” Brad startles me back to earth. “Oh shit on a shingle! Check it the fuck out!”

I follow Brad’s indignant index finger to a photo on the next page. The pictures shows the smiling faces of us girls, my mother, my father figure Evan, my aunt Clara, Detective Hughes and…oh my god. Dan Staley, Marks’ stepfather and retired public defender.

“That’s…” The wind has been knocked out of me.

“It’s Dan.” Brad whispers in revelation. “They’re dirty.”

“You mean…my mother…”

“I mean… Hughes is a dirtbag cop and Dan was a dirty lawyer. They are in this together. They took down Ed Hayes.” As Brad’s words hit the air they turn into truths.

“But why?” I stutter. “Why kill my mom and dad? And Ainslie, and Aunt Clara, and Marcy and whoever the hell else!”

“Exactly…why?” Brad taps his finger on the photo. “They framed Ed but why. And more importantly why did Ed let them?”

“The zoo!” I shout. “Oh my god. We gotta go.”

I spin in a frantic storm trying to gather the pertinent info of our search. I madly stuff photo after photo in my bag. I have been taken over by my epiphany. No time to talk we have to GO.

Brad kneels down to help. Without saying a word he follows my lead.

“Albums. Grab all the albums. Let’s go!” I hear myself and I sound hysterical like I am on the verge of hyperventilating. “Run!”

We make a mad dash out of the house. I do not even bother to stop running to lock Aunt Clara’s door. My hands are full. We are weighed down with all of our evidence. As we scurry through the front yard a couple of photos slip out of my bag and sail onto the grass. I stop to bend down and retrieve them. I gesture for Brad to keep running. Do not stop. We have 3 blocks to go and I want the car moving pronto.

Sweat gathers on my upper lip. My armpits are soaked. My hair line is dripping. This full body cool down is not because of our rapid pace but rather my spot on intuition. I know where Lizi is!

The peeling out of the tires alerts me that Brad is driving full speed towards me. I glance up and in one Dukes of Hazard motion I leap in the car. He puts the petal to the metal and it feels like we are flying.

“The zoo?” He knowingly asks.

“Yes. The zoo.” I steadily inhale and exhale. I am so revved up and on edge I wish we were driving a Flintstone car so I could put all of my energy into this ride. How am I ever going to survive sitting here idle the whole way downtown! “The twirl is the carousel. It’s a shared place we go to when we hit a snag in our lives. The good memories always seem to put it all in perspective. God, what a piece of shit. He is trying taking everything from us! Everything!”

“My guess is this…either Hughes or Dan is behind this. They are meeting her there.” Brad never takes eyes of the road. It is almost as if he is in a trance and thinking out loud. “We are going to catch this bastard red handed!”

“I think you’re right. I don’t get it but you have to be right. That photo…the one were looking at with both of them in it. It was taken at the zoo.” My voice is unshaken but my insides are a hot mess.

“I’m calling it in.” Brad instantly reaches for his police radio.

“No!” I uncharacteristically slap the radio out of his hand. “We cannot trust them.”

“Right, you’re right about that but we can trust the police.” My eyes illustrate I am not following. Sounds like six of one and half a dozen of the other. “Hughes is scum not the entire force.”

“But he is going to hear the tip come through.” I am whining. I have no other recourse at this point.

“Exactly.” Brad smirks. “If Lizi is in danger my money is on Hughes being behind it. This call will deter him.”

“Oh. My. God.” The tension escapes my body with an exhale. My shoulders drop and my head shakes in disbelief. “You are genius. So this is why they pay you the big bucks.”

“Oh yeah…big bucks.” He wears sarcasm well. Quite sexily…actually.

I listen as Brad makes the call. He voices fades into the background as the A-Team soundtrack slips into my mind. I feel superhero powers flood my veins. I calmly sit in the passenger’s seat as the speedometer vibrates at 120mph, the single siren on the dashboard swivels a red blinking light with a screeching alarm. We are coming to get you!

My breathing is even. I cannot believe I am rational enough to know I am totally turned on by Brad right now. I feel like I could jump his bones this minute and save my sister the next. Wonder Woman. I have finally morphed into my childhood idol. I never felt thin enough to dress up as her for Halloween. Although now it seems my need to emulate her must have been a telltale sign of my future. Her I sit in possession of the poise needed to lasso this fucker.

“Ever shot a gun?” Nonchalantly asks Brad.

“No.” I furrow my brow. God no, never.

“Looks like it will be trial by fire.” Brad shrugs with a half grin. “No pun.”

“Not funny.” Okay, so maybe not as confident as I thought. A lasso is one thing a gun is a completely different animal.

“Okay, okay jokes aside you need to be protected. We have no idea what or who we are walking into. “ Brad turns his detective voice back on. He hands me a weapon. A small but deadly weapon.

“Shit.” My hands shake as I cradle the revolver. “I don’t think I can.”

“You can and if you need to you will.” Brad sounds so sure. “I wouldn’t give it to you otherwise. You have proved you will do whatever it takes to crack this case.”

“Oh. Thanks, I guess. It’s just, I am not a fan of guns.” My lower lip stretches into a straight line exhibiting my anxiety and my overbite. The gun in my lap is making nervous. My heart races as I remember the soaring bullet at the Marcy’s house. One shot can kill. Crap.

“Sari, this man violently murdered your sister and aunt. He is a monster. All you need to do is hold this gun straight out…hold it straight with all of your strength and then pull the trigger. After you pull the trigger do not drop your position. Keeping holding the weapon tight in your grip. You can do this.” Brad speaks with such conviction.

“Okay. Thank you. You believe in me. And because of that I have faith in myself. I can do this.” I nod my head repeatedly. I am almost convinced.

“Good because we are here.” Brad stops the car.

What do I do? Do I run like a crazy person through the zoo shouting and screaming for Lizi? Do I wait in the car? Do I…

“You stay behind me.” Brad soberly forces my eye contact. I hold it. My breathing is deafening. Inhale, exhale. Oh god. “We are going to creep our way to the carousel. We have to sneak up on this guy. No matter what...you remain calm and do not rush past me. Got it?”

“Got it.” I whisper. Oh god.

We climb out of the car. Brad’s demeanor is determined. Mine is a little more apprehensive.

“Gun.” He points to my seat.

“Right.” I lift the gun off of my seat. I grip it tightly. I am a superhero. I am a superhero with a gun. Here we come Lizi. Here we come.

I cautiously trail Brad through the off limits grounds of the zoo. My bones rattle with every step. It is pitch black and freezing cold. I can hardly see a thing and I have no idea what is crackling under feet, slapping my head and scratching my legs.

An eerie breeze knocks the wind out of me. Visions of Ainslie’s mutilated body flicker in my mind. I violently shake my head, Out! I need to focus on Lizi. I must save Lizi. I couldn’t save you Ainslie. I am so sorry. Please Ainslie, please protect Lizi until we find her.

“Ready.” Brad exhales.

I nod. I firm up my grip on my weapon. A rush of confidence and sheer will surge through me. “Ready.”

Without hesitation Brad dashes through the darkness. I stomp loudly behind him. We hurdle over the bushes surrounding the carousel. We plant out feet and point our guns.

Where are you Lizi?

No immediate danger. The carousel is still. No one is here.

“LIZI!!!!!” A blood hurling scream escapes my vocal cords.

“Shhhh.” Brad whispers with scolding eyes.

“Ahhhh. Ahhhhh.” Hums in the air.

“Did you hear that!?!” I eagerly tug on Brad’s shirt.

“Ahhhh. Sar…. Ahhh.” In the ripple of the wind of the hum crescendos.

“Yes!” Brad darts in the direction of the hum. My legs take hold of me and guide me in the same direction.

To my surprise, I keep up with Brad. I jump onto the carousel, thrust my body over a horse and leap through a carriage. Adrenaline.

“Ahhh…Ahhhh.” The purr we are chasing is getting closer.

“Lizi!” A tear trickles down my cheek as I watch Brad drop to his knees. Lizi’s eyes are filled with utter fear. She is tied to the center of the carousel. She is shivering. She is naked.

“Do not be afraid Lizi. We are here. You are safe.” Brad’s voice is calm and encouraging. In one motion he rips the duck tape off of her mouth. “Is your attacker still here?”

Ugh. My stomach bottoms out. Is he still here? I squeeze my gun. I hope so.

“No.” Lizi whimpers. “No.”

Brad cuts the ropes and frees her. The rope burns on her body are so deep and thick they glow through the darkness. Lizi must be in so much pain. Although, I know the burns will not last as long as the emotion scars.

I sprint to her. I fall on top of her. I scoop her up in my arms. I sob. She sobs. “I’m here.”

“Sari…oh my god.” Lizi cries. Her fear and sadness melt into me. I want to harbor all of her pain. God, I wish I could.

I crawl out of my sweater and slide it over her head as I have done so many times before when we were little girls.

“Come on. We have to get out here.” Brad helps Lizi up…compassionately. Whatever the term is for bedside manner when it comes to cops…Brad has it. In spades. I seem to always have one eye on him. “Are you hurt?”

“No. No.” Lizi quietly responses.

“Okay. Can you run?” Asks Brad.

“I can.” I recognize her voice…it’s the voice of her 4 year old self. With this simple response Brad takes off.

Lizi and I frantically hurry to stay in Brad’s wake. We dunk, dive and thrash our abrupt get away out of the zoo. Unseen.

I slow down for just a second to help Lizi comfortably into the backseat. I flinch startled at the sound of scores of sirens racing by. My eyes shift to locate the whereabouts of this alarming sound. Swiveling lights are no where to be seen.

“Get in Sari! We gotta go.” Orders Brad without explanation.

I leap in the front. With the slam of my door Brad peels out onto a dark and desolate road.

“Shouldn’t we tell the police Lizi is okay?” I ask trying to make sense of everything.

“No. I have a plan.” Casually announces Brad.

“Me too.” I begin dialing my phone. “Sam…”

”No!” Brad snatches my phone out of my hand and disconnects the call.

“I’m putting this on the air and flushing out Hughes!” I blurt.

“Hughes?” Lizi murmurs. “You mean Hayes?”

“Lizi, it is so much worse then we thought.” I hang my head devastated to shed this light on Lizi. “It seems Detective Hughes and Dan Staley are involved in this.”

“Mark’s stepfather?” Lizi inquisitively interrupts.

“Yeah.” I sigh. “Ed Hayes innocent.”

NIP 29

“Sari.” Brad uneasily murmurs. “This is Hughes.” His dilated pupils swallow up his hazel irises. My stunned reflection is staring back at me.

“Did you say Hughes?” I stutter. Neither of us blink.

“Yes. Detective Hughes.” Brad’s straight face is as smooth as a 10 year old boy.

‘Glamourous. G.L.A.M…” Fergie is announcing a text from Lizi. Without hesitation I snatch my phone out of my back pocket.

Message 1
FROM: Lizi

Sounds great sis. I could use a twirl. C U soon.

“Wha…” My mouth agape. “See you soon. What is….why? What?” My forehead crinkles in utter confusion.

“Did you text her?” Brad harmonizes my perplexity. “Is she coming here?”

“No.” The panic launches in the tips of my toes. “I didn’t. Who is she responding to? Who is she meeting?”

The air thickens. My mouth dries up like a desert. I force myself to swallow….raw.

“What do I do???” My chest rises and lowers at a million miles per hour. My mind is racing. My emotions roll up in a ball. My phone feels like hot coal in my hand. “Should I text back? I should text back. I’m going to text back.”

“Wait.” Brad grabs my wrist. “If she is danger then texting could speed up his plans. We have to think this through. We have to consider all possibilities…”

“But..” I cut Brad, the detective, off. The sister in me needs to reach out to her right now. “She is texting me. She has her phone. She thinks we are meeting. She is on her way there. Or is she already there?” I think myself in circles. “Is she alone? What does this mean!!”

“You are onto something. Chances are she is not yet compromised.” Brad rubs his forehead. It crinkles up so tightly it looks painful. “Does her text mean anything to you?”

I reread the message. ‘I could use a twirl’. ‘Twirl.” What is she saying? Why am I not getting this? We talk code all the time. We are sisters for crying out loud. What is wrong with me! I cant give up. I lower my head and fix my eyes on the ground. Focus. Focus.

My eyes lock on the album dated 1983. Lizi would have been an infant in 1983. The same year my mother and who I thought was my father were killed…or rather murdered. Something inside me convinces me to randomly flip the album open. A picture of me and my sisters seems to be glowing. I press my lips together and fight back tears. We were just girls…happy little girls.

“Sari!” Brad startles me back to earth. “Oh shit on a shingle! Check it the fuck out!”

I follow Brad’s indignant index finger to a photo on the next page. The pictures shows the smiling faces of us girls, my mother, my father figure Evan, my aunt Clara, Detective Hughes and…oh my god. Dan Staley, Marks’ stepfather and retired public defender.

“That’s…” The wind has been knocked out of me.

“It’s Dan.” Brad whispers in revelation. “They’re dirty.”

“You mean…my mother…”

“I mean… Hughes is a dirtbag cop and Dan was a dirty lawyer. They are in this together. They took down Ed Hayes.” As Brad’s words hit the air they turn into truths.

“But why?” I stutter. “Why kill my mom and dad? And Ainslie, and Aunt Clara, and Marcy and whoever the hell else!”

“Exactly…why?” Brad taps his finger on the photo. “They framed Ed but why. And more importantly why did Ed let them?”

“The zoo!” I shout. “Oh my god. We gotta go.”

I spin in a frantic storm trying to gather the pertinent info of our search. I madly stuff photo after photo in my bag. I have been taken over by my epiphany. No time to talk we have to GO.

Brad kneels down to help. Without saying a word he follows my lead.

“Albums. Grab all the albums. Let’s go!” I hear myself and I sound hysterical like I am on the verge of hyperventilating. “Run!”

We make a mad dash out of the house. I do not even bother to stop running to lock Aunt Clara’s door. We are weighed down with all of our evidence. As we scurry through the front yard a couple of photos slip out of my bag and sail onto the grass. I stop to bend down and retrieve them. I gesture for Brad to keep running. We have 3 blocks to go and I want the car moving pronto.

Sweat gathers on my upper lip. My armpits are soaked. My hair line is dripping. This full body cool down is not because of our rapid pace but rather my spot on intuition.

The peeling out of the tires alerts me that Brad is driving right up to me. I glance up and in one Dukes of Hazard motion I leap in the car. He puts the petal to the metal and it feels like we are flying.

“The zoo?” He knowingly asks.

“Yes. The zoo.” I steadily inhale and exhale. I am so revved up and on edge I wish we were driving a Flintstone car so I could put all of my energy into this ride. “The twirl is the carousel. It’s a shared place we go to when we hit a snag in our lives. The good memories always seem to put it all in perspective.”

“My guess is this…either Hughes or Dan is behind this. They are meeting her there.” Brad never takes eyes of the road. It is almost as if he is in a trance. “We are going to catch this bastard red handed!”

“I think you are right. That photo…the one were looking at with them in it. It was taken at the zoo.” My voice is unshaken but my insides are a hot mess.