Capitol Conspiracy

"When we went to tow it for the police, the rear tires were slashed. It was some good tires too. It looked like they were only a month old. The tread was just beginning to get some wear."

The mechanic walked away and the three looked at each other.

"Rosalyn is that in the report?"

"No, it doesn’t say anything about flat tires."

"So that is why he walked to the store. But why didn’t he ask the man or call for assistance?"

They stood for a couple of minutes. Mark stared at the poster board sat outside the junkyard marketing their services. It read ‘Did you remember to check your oil? Free oil change with tune-up!’ Somehow that sparked Mark’s adrenaline.

"Let’s go," Mark requested.

Why?"

"Because I have a feeling I know exactly what happened?"

As he drove to the next destination, which was the pharmacy, he was harassed by the other two.

"What are you going on, Mark," Mel asked.

"Well I have a feeling that everything wasn’t told. Honestly, I thought about them walking to the store and back and possibly being kidnapped. It just sounds funny. What I think happened is that someone slashed the tires while they were walking to the store. That is why they didn’t call for assistance. Now if they made it to the car and notice the car tires, then that makes sense. Or, maybe they never made it back to the car. You know how long it will take someone hobbling to walk two blocks and back.

"But Mark, what are you saying. I, or we, don’t get it?"

The report said that the manager saw the blue Mercedes the reverend drove parked about two blocks away from the store right?"

"Yeah" Ms. Martinez said as they got out of the car at the same spot the car was parked that night.

"Now look at the pharmacy. That is a long ways for someone to spot out a blue car, especially at night."

"Well maybe he spotted two people, and one was hobbling down the street?"

"Yeah, but check this out. He said he saw the car after he closed the store. So he must have driven that way to leave to wherever he had to go. Closing a store doesn’t take minutes, so when he was on his way, say maybe an hour or so. Wouldn’t he have thought it was strange that the car was still there?

Mel thought about that.

"And hold up, Ms. Martinez, who is the person suffering from a medical condition that works in that store?"

"It’s him, Mr. Jones. The diabetes is affecting his eyesight."

"There is no way he saw this car from there. I can barely see the store. Let’s go."

When they got to the pharmacy, Mr. Jones was in the back. Mr. Jones was a long time friend and member of the same church as Mark. The old man is widely known around his part of the city, opening the first corner store this part of town has ever known. When he came out, he saw the three, and they had a look of steel. They were very serious.

‘Hey Mark. What can I do for you?"

"Tell us why you are lying," Mark said bluntly.

"What are you talking about Mark? I need the police around this neighborhood. Why would I steer you in the wrong way?"

"I know you didn’t see that car when Mr. Miles was murdered up the street."

"The blue one, yes I did. I saw it when I left. I told the policeman that came and asked me."

"When did you see it?

"As I left the store. I locked up and glanced up the street, and I saw his car."

"Okay, Mr. Jones, that’s all I needed to know."

Mark had a plan up his sleeve and walked around the store. He wanted something to drink. Mel and Ms. Martinez purchased something.

Mark was the last to be rung up. He put his bottle of soda on the countertop. Mr. Jones was now the only one in the store front.

"Mr. Jones, I thought you had a sale on this soda? The sign said eighty-nine cents. Why are you ringing me up for ninety-nine cents?"

Mr. Jones looked back at the sign.

"Oh I am sorry, that sign should say ninety-nine cents. Mike, come out here and change that sign back there."

Mike went back and asked from the back to what price.

"To ninety-nine cents. It says eighty-nine cents."

Mike had a puzzled look and came back up front.

"Mr. Jones, the sign already said ninety-nine cents."

Mark flashed a smile in Mr. Jones direction. Mr. Jones saw what Mark did and started to talk.

"I never saw them get in their car. But I was threatened."

Mark instantly had flashbacks of his California trip, when all witnesses were murdered after revealing such information. He didn’t need any repeat performance. He and Mr. Jones went to the back of his store. Mel and Ms. Martinez stayed in the store and shopped as to seem like everything was normal.

Mr. Jones was shaking now and Mark could feel his nervousness. He definitely knew something.

"I had helped the reverend to the door of the store. He told me that his keys were locked in the car. As I went to go back in, I hear this van stop. It was a screeching halt. Their timing was perfect. It was like they knew the times the police run their routes around here. Also, they picked a good night to be sneaky. There was barely a soul out. I run to the door to check on the reverend. All I saw was two men in black masks, one of them was a big man, and they ordered the men into the van. I am positive that no one else was out. The one man saw me and pointed his shotgun in my direction. I froze and he walked over to me. He asked me did I own this store and I said ‘yeah’. He warned me that if I said anything about this, me and everyone in this store would die. He said even if I didn’t say anything but someone says something close to what I saw, it would be the same result. I couldn’t say what I saw. I came up beside the car because as my wife drove home, we passed the car. It looked ok. I saw the glass, and feared the worse. I didn’t know what to do. I believed that man."

"Did you notice the tires?"

"No, the tires were fine. I mean the two that was on the outside in the street were fine. I don’t know about the ones near the curb."

"What do you mean by perfect timing?"

"I know that the police do their run in front of my store every five minutes. The moment the car turned the corner, the van came on to the street.

"What do you mean? How did you know the police just passed?"

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