“That sounds like a plan,” Trent said. “We’ll start tonight and . . . shhhh.”
Jerry came through the door with a large tray. He placed the plate of sea scallops and vegetables in front of Trent, and a smaller one of the potatoes to his left. Then, he took a large soup bowl from the tray and placed it on the ground in front of Genghis. “There yah go, big fella.” He straightened up and asked Trent, “Will there be anything else?”
“No thank you, this will be cool.”
“If you need anything, please give me a call.” And with that Jerry left and joined his friends at the maitre d' station.
Trent took his fork and started to probe the scallops. He selected a small piece, brought it to his nose and sniffed, then slowly placed it into his mouth. “Oh, my, this is good.” He selected a larger piece and quickly ate it.
“Jeff?”
“Yes?” Trent said, not looking up from his plate.
“Jeff?”
“Yes? . . . Oh!” He looked at his partner. “How’s yours?”
“Jeff, Jerry put my food on the ground.”
Trent looked down at the bowl. “Ah, yes he did.”
“No, no, no, Jerry put it on the ground, Jeff.”
“Yes, but it’s in a bowl!”
“Yes, it is in a bowl . . . on the ground.”
“Well yes, but maybe that’s how canines eat.”
Genghis was quiet for a second. “But it’s on the ground.”
“Oh, very well.” Trent bent down, retrieved the bowl and placed it on the table. Then he pushed the chair out for Genghis. The wrought iron chairs were without armrests so Genghis was able to slide up onto it like he was sitting in the co-pilot's chair of the cruiser and started to eat.
The entire staff, including the manager on duty, were all huddled around the small maitre d’ station, astonished.
“That dog sat up there like he’s done it before!” one said.
“Will you look at that shit!” another replied.
“This guy likes his dog way too much.”
“Wait! Wait! What’s he doing now?”
They all watched in silence as the customer at table thirty took the tip of his fork and pierced a small piece of scallop, said something to his dog, and moved the fork toward him. The dog's head emerged from behind the palm fond and sniffed the scallop, then using just his front teeth gently took it off his fork and ate it.
“WHOAAA!,” the employees erupted. One server handed over a five dollar bill to the other. “Oh! That’s disgusting,” one of the waitresses replied. A couple of them started laughing and clapping. Just then they all saw the man at table thirty and his dog look toward the window.
They scattered in all directions.
All Jeff Trent and Genghis Khan could see in the early afternoon sun was their own reflection in the window staring back at them. “What the hell was that?” Genghis asked.
“Who knows! Maybe someone dropped something.”
They both finished their lunch and coffee. Jerry came back out, collected the empty plates and asked if he would like dessert. Trent, not being too sure what a dessert was, politely declined. Jerry left the tab in a small leather covered binder. Jeff took out his wallet and paid the bill. They both exited the outdoor dining area through a small entrance way in the four foot wall that led to Third Avenue. They turned left and proceeded back to the cruiser.
Jerry came back out to table thirty with a new table cloth. He picked up the binder and quickly counted. The exact amount, no tip. “Why do I always get the crazies?”
Chapter Twenty
They drove back to the Riverside Mall and parked in a far out-of-the way corner. They managed to get below decks without being seen. Genghis was able to get several maps of buildings that were either abandoned or under renovation. The majority of these buildings were in an area known as Compton Square. So named for the large rundown apartment complex which took up the entire block, from 10th St. to Compton Road.
They studied the maps for about an hour and came up with three likely candidates. Neither one of the buildings was slated for construction anytime soon, but they were good targets for Colus Valda. Large, out of the way, and secluded. Genghis hacked into the police department's computers and found that the investigators had constructed a timeline for when all the arson fires were possibly set. Between one and three in the morning. The police had also increased patrols in the area. So, Trent and Genghis would have to be careful not to draw attention to themselves.
They decided to set out after ten pm that night. With a lot of time on their hands, they stayed below. Genghis retrieved more maps of the area and picked a good location to park the cruiser for the stakeout. Trent, in the meanwhile, went into the galley and gathered up IPF-issued pre-packaged food for their long night. Then, the two of them went to the science lab and set up equipment for the night's stakeout. Just after ten, they emerged from below deck. The mall closed at nine and no one was in the parking lot. They lowered the top and pulled out of the Riverside Mall parking lot and traveled west. They were able to stop at Dave’s, just before they closed, for some coffee.
They drove into the Compton Square district of Old Town, passing the large Compton Apartments. There were nine long rectangle buildings, three stories tall, all crammed into a one block section. Each building was in need of work. Gutters were hanging, paint was peeling, and the roofs needed replacing on all the buildings. There were kids hanging out in the parking lot, leaning against abandoned cars. Laundry was hanging from balconies, windows open, TV’s blaring.
They traveled on further into Compton Square. The deeper they drove, the less people they saw. Genghis called up his holographic computer screen and gave Trent directions. They turned up Anderson Road and found the three
