It took a bit of public relations but thankfully her classmates had begun to accept Sabine again.
Gloria had started with those who had been closest to the plump girl - Billy, Reese and a few of the other girls. She had explained the situation and told them how sorry Sabine had been. If Gloria, who had directly suffered, would still be her friend, certainly they could do the same.
Gradually, things returned to normal. The rest of the semester promised to be filled with studies, friends and fun.
It was after dinner, after a blissfully ordinary day in school. Gloria was drying the dishes that Marie had washed. When the doorbell rang, Marie gestured with her soapy hands for her to answer.
Gloria opened the door to find the two good detectives. She gave them a smile. "Is this about my things? Can I get them back now?" she asked.
"Yes," Detective Larioza replied. She gripped an envelope under her handbag. "You can collect them at the station. But we're here about another matter. May we come in?"
The little girl showed them to the living room. At Detective Larioza's request, she gathered her family members together.
What could the detectives be there for? It sounded serious. Was her ordinary life about to be shaken again?
Second Sis and Marie were easy to fetch. Father was away on a business trip so he was unavailable. Mother, was a challenge. She was taking a shower, in a locked bathroom, in a locked bedroom. She might as well have shut herself in a bunker.
Fortunately, Mother always had her handphone handy.
"Mother will take a while," Gloria announced when she returned to the living room.
"We'll wait," Detective Larioza decided.
Gloria saw that Marie had served their guests drinks. Detectives Larioza and Gomez each sat on a comfort chair. Marie took one of the other two left. So Gloria sat beside Carrie on the sofa.
"You look very tired," Gloria remarked to the older woman.
"It's the job," Detective Larioza said, "Crime just doesn't follow a nine-to-five schedule. I'm going to need a good summer vacation."
It was a good wait before Mother was finally down. She had thrown on some sweats and her hair was still damp. She took the remaining seat.
"Do you know Mark Zamback?" Detective Larioza began.
Gloria pursed her lips for a moment. "He's the cab driver, right? The one who kidnapped me?"
"Yes." Detective Larioza nodded. "He's escaped custody."
"What?" Mother exclaimed, "He's loose?"
"Unfortunately," uttered Detective Larioza.
"How could something like this happen?" Mother demanded.
"We're still investigating that," Detective Larioza replied diplomatically. She turned her attention to the youngest sister. "It's unlikely that he'll come for you, Ms Billings, but just to be safe, don't go anywhere alone."
"What are you doing about this?" Marie demanded.
"Police all over the state are keeping an eye out for him," Detective Larioza replied, "We'll have him soon."
"What does he look like?" Second Sis asked.
Detective Larioza opened the envelope she had with her and pulled out a sheet of paper. "This is his wanted poster." She passed it to Carrie, who was the closest.
The wavy-haired sister studied the poster. Gloria slid next to her for a look.
The person portrayed in the colorless image was a young man with smoothly combed hair. The angle of his jaw made him appear daring and the slight narrowing of an eye made it look like he was winking. He looked like a charming man and... goodness, was Gloria attracted to that creep!?
Gloria sat back. She definitely did not want to gaze at his lovely features any longer. Carrie then passed the poster to Mother.
"If you see him, call the police," Detective Larioza advised, "Don't go after him."
"We'll do as you say," promised Gloria. Though from the look of Mother's narrowed eyes behind her spectacles, the little daughter thought that her parent might attempt something reckless. To change the subject, Gloria asked again about her belongings.
After Detective Larioza had answered a few questions about claiming Gloria's possessions, she departed with her partner. The wanted poster was left behind for the family's reference.
That creep was out there. If Detective Larioza thought that he would not come after her then Gloria should not have anything to worry about. Rather, her only concern was her homework.
Still, this was the man who did all those things to her and saw firsthand her humiliation. The police had better arrest that creep soon and lock him up tight.
***
No comments:
Post a Comment