Chapter 11 - Planning

   It became a sort of game, if even a somber one. We had to sort of fake being happy and making merry. JG's idea seemed solid. We should all sneak out the back way again, and all come in the normal fashion. No hiding, out in the the open. Yelling up to the open windows, hey we're here. Oh, come on up. Lets get the weekend started. Like that.

   We did order pizza. Elise got to sit out on the front stoop and wait for the delivery. It gave her a chance to see if her magic gut radar was still registering a hit. She said it was. We all played our part. We paired off. One pair went for soft drinks and a bottle of something cheerful. The other pair? Went for food and snacks.

   We took turns sitting on the front stoop. Lightning waved to someone occasionally. She lives here, she has neighbors and people she recognizes. Me and Panic got off to the side of things and talked to Mike. We had to fill him in on what was now going on, as best we had figured out so far.

   JG set up a careful watch of the grid cameras covering things here where we were. Him and Panic took turns, but in any case he had the data feeds routed to get recorded on his laptop, those cameras he was interested in. He could choose to view any street cam's image? But those in what he now called "his" grid, he could redirect them. Move left and right, up and down, and more importantly zoom in and pan back out for that wider take on things.

   Panic and JG decided that if they were going to do this, where would they set up. They both liked the alley that was slightly off of straight ahead from the front stoop of the building. It was a typical old fashioned alley. A little wide and long. It had old building docks and access doors. Great place to hide electrical and water and phone and cable connections and all the boxes buildings need for stuff like that. Nice to have dumpsters and garbage cans off of main street and out of quick sight.

   Looking down it? The streets were long here. Which meant wide, long blocks. Which translated directly into really long alleys as well. Networks of fire escapes and landings and building access doors off of them all. There were a million places to watch something from. They resisted the urge to check the alley out. That would just be too obvious.

   When the "party" wound down a little while after dark, Panic and Junior stayed up late, watching and drinking energy drinks. Reheating slices of cold pizza. I guess JG was the one to first spot something he thought was suspicious. It didn't look like anything to anyone else? But really, he made a living off of surveillance, and going over footage with a fine tooth comb. He called it a "shadow blob".

   Once he played it back in slow motion? You could see what he meant. When someone wants to watch from around a corner or doorway? You can pick up on a slight shadow darkening as they ooze out carefully, then ooze back into their recess. This went on at the mouth to the alley. Whoever had set off Elise's magic gut? Was enjoying the late night, and the party quieting down. They didn't have to hide nearly as much as before.

   Panic and JG later described it like two kids playing a video game, and each taking turns recounting the blow by blow playback. It matters more to the two telling the story, than to listeners. The listeners? Want the punch line. JG with something to observe in a concrete location? Found what he picked out as the best camera location. He moved and zoomed in. It had an angle and wasn't that far down the street. It caught that inside mouth of the alley the "shadow blob" lived in.

   Watching that video clip he played back? Really not that awe inspiring, until he pointed as if something was about to happen. He had switched the camera over from color to night time black and white, night vision mode. Zooming in, he had a not too horrible figure. As it periodically appeared and reappeared? One of them provided a decent still image he had gone through frame by frame and picked out.

   It was certainly no line up ID, but… the resemblance to the various former dirty cops JG had brought out from Mike's most recent care package? You had to admit. It was uncanny for one of them. Panic followed up this little triumph, with his own. It put a face to the "buddy" of the state prison parolee he was on.

   I mean, would you positively sway a woozy jury member with this? Maybe, maybe not. But taken all together? What were the odds. JG could get height later on, based off of the video as well. The parolee was meeting a "buddy" and it was drawing attention to Panic noticing something was up. Now a face strongly resembling that buddy face turning up, was suddenly in the alley across the street? It quickly begins to stretch your incredulity.

   You try to come up with any possible explanation that puts one of them here, across from Little Lightning's apartment. And you really can't. At least not one that didn't involve… what we tried not to mention around Light herself. Because it was too obvious. Mike didn't like getting confirmation, not one little bit. He just got quiet. Wasn't long after that? That JG got a text then a call. From Mike. When he hung up? He related. Mike made his schedule, and his new temporary assignment? Stay on this. Keep it quiet… for now. Document everything, but… don't file a thing. Yet.

   I read Mike's personal code like plain text. He was on it, but keeping all of his differing options open. A phrase out of the former MP's mouths back in the day drifted easily back into my head. We might make a file, then again? We might not. See how it goes.

   The next weekend night? JG was even more ready. He was now waiting. He had a generalized location. He panned, tilted and zoomed any camera in the area to where he thought it best fit him getting what he now wanted. He had a target, but it was a big one. Long, wide alley with lots of stuff in it. He specifically wanted to know what direction the guy approached his alley from. Then, where in the alley was his daytime position. He emerged late at night in a more carefree manner. His quarry? Was primarily nocturnal, though technically diurnal.

   Given a rough target, JG had more to work with quick. He approached, then retreated out the back of the alley. Which joined up with another identical alley intersecting it at 90 degrees. The big city block? Was broken up into 4 smaller sub-blocks by this alley cross-hairs. We had another little "party" for Saturday night.

   Sunday, armed with information growing outwards? JG was getting a rough schedule going, and though premature it was something. He caught which direction he came up that cross alley from. The boys started putting dots on a digital city map, to document and track things.

   Monday? Elise's gut gave the all clear. They quickly got the height by matching a mark in the corner of the mouth of the alley, and measuring it in real life. It was no real surprise that it matched the height of the "buddy" to a well formed capital T. One more bit of data that made it impossible to ignore or to pass it off as random errata.

   We left JG and Elise here, and dropped off JG's cruiser after cleaning out the box of leftover "toys" in the trunk. We passed it off to Mike, and drove back JG's personal vehicle after setting the cats up for an extended stay. Now while he was visibly "here"? He could park normally, and walk around like normal. Elise had "left" Sunday, and simply came back in the back way to stay.

   Elise was critical. For all the technology of the day available? It was her magic gut that alerted everyone to the problem even existing.

   Unless things changed, this was a weekend phenomenon. Elise's magic gut tickled, and like clockwork? JG could get "blobs" in the night. JG caught the guy coming in the cross alley, the back alley entrance again. This time though? He had a couple other cameras ready, to know how he approached that alley. More dots on the digital city map.

   More information from Mike. The Buddy's plate, make of vehicle, and a more in depth breakdown of bio data. Mike confided in me and Panic, that he was holding off of getting a full scale warrant on the buddy. But the recent parolee? Well, parolees sign off a number of rights happily to get released from prison. Among them, the right to be an anonymous citizen. A simple call to the parole officer? Quickly got Mike the okay to get anything he wanted from the direction of the parolee's cell phone.

   Mike's slick. Getting the parolee's call logs and texts? Gives him any other incoming texts to the parolee's phone. Which is tantamount to outgoing texts from the buddy's cell, but only to that one recipient. The parolee's suspicious car changes and leaving/returning to the local motel? Well, his phone locations confirmed he was meeting the "buddy" at his hometown. JG and Panic went and GPS tagged the buddy's car, so they could watch him coming and going, and everyone could breathe easier. If he didn't ever switch cars? Breathing room.

   By the third weekend, it became apparent to me. This guy shared something with me. He? Knew what ritual was. Probably nervous at first, he now had a routine. He had ritual. He used the same alley. He used the same path in and the same path out, every time. Panic and JG were waiting on him the third weekend, and located where he parked his car and walked several blocks.

   JG came up with the idea while once again scanning the target alley during the week when it was safe? Why not wire this alley. So, they put up two small remote cameras to get a better idea where he was laying up in this alley. This got them close, though not as close as they liked. From either end, the long alley devolved visually into a series of interconnected stuff. Dumpsters, doorways, fire escapes. They moved their remote cameras, and the next weekend paid off.

   There was a wooden box, fairly big. It blended right in. It looked for all the world? Like a handyman fashioned a "garbage bin" to keep raccoon's out of the garbage. It wasn't though. It kept out of view an old half sunken basement "window" from the old days. Long since barred then covered over with bricks for security. It was still a nice little hiding hole. Bigger than you at first noticed, the old sunken basement window was just big enough you could sit inside it. Most of you hidden once sitting. And with the big wooden bin in front of you? Too perfect.

   You could get in there in the daylight if you wanted, and wait. You could creep up a little if you were careful, and see out the mouth of the alley. After dark? It was perfect. Anyone coming near and you could retreat back to the hide, and come back out when noise danger had passed.

   JG and Panic left their "friend" a couple of glass bottles of soft drinks. Where he couldn't help but notice them, once they studied exactly how to get in and out of the hide. He'd notice them near another legitimate garbage bin, then become too tempting a treat left.

   They went back and found them shoved down the side of a garbage bin nearby. Just in case? Possible prints, and even possible DNA.

   Everyone was constantly having little round robin sessions, discussing how to really open the game up and finish it. Me and Panic knew how we would prefer to handle it. With JG involved, we kept that to ourselves. Elise's idea? Pretty straightforward. Simply hide in that hole, you know when he's coming. You're watching his GPS dots on the way in. You can "see" him digitally parking. You can watch him on the grid cameras approaching. You would know you had the right guy, it wasn't just some random bum coming behind the wooden bin. Just grease him. Then? Pull your hoodie down low and walk off calmly. She added. Its not like you don't know why he's here. Its not like you're taking out a door to door bible salesman.

   In Elise's world, its understandable she's that glib and straightforward. She basically hunts murdering rapists for a living for years. You take the bait? She does her thing. She dumps her magazine. They told her that was "plan B", if they needed it.

   Elise and her magic guts. She was inadvertently, all but a prophet. We were all out while she was there, in the apartment with Lightning. It was just temporary. Elise hadn't come in publicly. To the outside world and anyone keeping tabs? Little Lightning was home alone.

   We came back home "publicly" from having gone out for a bite to eat, and found Elise sitting stone faced in a kitchen chair, but drawn up to near the door. She had her big automatic in her lap. Lightning was quiet sitting on the sofa.

   "You motherfuckers taking ideas out the community suggestion box? Here's the latest one. Do something."

   We all looked at each other, and back to her.

   "Congratulations. He was here. And if that wasn't him, about a half hour ago, right here at the door? I'm a monkey's uncle. Ask Lightning, you don't believe me."

   Panic started quizzing her, and we all were at rapt attention.

   "Knock at the door. Cause you know. She's here alone."

   "You answer it…"

   "Fuck no. You think I'm completely retarded?"

   "Well. Who was it. What did they want."

   "Real sweet. Kept knocking. I wouldn't let her crack the door. Male voice. Looking for some apartment number? He can't find it. She whispered in my ear. There's no such apartment number. I pulled this chair up, and lined right up on that door. She kept telling him, there's no such apartment number. Well… can you just show me? Are you sure? I'm pretty sure its here. Can you help me figure out what floor its on? If you could just crack the door… this shit show went on for a minute or two."

   "You didn't spook him?"

   "I don't think so. She kept her cool. I mean, I'm sitting here aiming a gun right at the door from two yards away, so… she explained he got her out the shower, and she doesn't feel good. Sorry, but please try another apartment."

   "What did he…"

   "Oh, I'm so sorry, ma'am. Sorry to bother you."

   "And you think…"

   She gave him a look, and pointed to her gut.

   "That? Was him. We're waiting too long. He's gotten too comfortable, coming and going. He's starting to make little field trips into the building now."

   "As long as we all stay on point? We're okay for now. We're coming up with a plan, and---"

   "You're trying to come up with a plan. You in fact? Don't have one yet. You're… like a jet airplane? You don't have a runway, and the tower keeps telling you to circle around again. You don't want him spooked? Don't worry… he's real comfortable. He's prancing around the building, when he thinks she's all alone in here. What's next. Flower delivery? Two dozen roses, but I just need a signature. How about the old pizza delivery trick."

   "Okay, Elise. We got the idea."

   "Hey. You didn't like my plan B? I got a plan C now. Curious?"

   "Sure…"

   "We know where he lives. Lets go visit… him. I know, you're playing a chess game. You ever consider kicking the chess board over? He never was, ever… playing by the rules. He was a dirty cop? Now he's a dirty felon. You guys wanna know something about rapists? And predator style criminals in general. I just happen to know something about the subject."

   "Educate me."

   "There's two kinds. You got your impulse predator? And you got your… other kind. Impulse predator. Hey. There's a victim I like. Bang. Its an impulse. But the other kind? They watch. They follow. They move closer, seeing if anything spooks them. He? Is comfortable. He's moving closer."

   Lightning pointed out its a security building. JG answered.

   "Aw. I hate to burst anyone's happy bubble, but… you can get into just about any security building, pretty easy. You punch enough buttons, with a decent sounding voice, all polite? Someone will buzz you in. I live in 2C, I forgot my key. I gotta get my wallet, please, I'm gonna miss the bus to work! I don't wanna get fired! My boss is an asshole! Or? You just wait and time your walk up to the front door. Oldest trick in the book. You catch the door before it closes, and smile and wave if they look back."

   Elise shoveled her hand at him, then to the rest of us.

   "There you go. Can you guarantee those fire escape doors on every floor, are shut all the way? People prop them open when it gets hot out. If you don't yank them shut, they don't always catch. You make it onto any floor? The elevators don't need a key, the stairwells don't need a key, either."

   "I hear your frustration, Elise."

   "Look. I realize, you want the guy comfortable. That part's working perfect. He's comfortable as hell right now. He's only going to get more comfortable, on these little field trips."

   "Okay."

   JG shook his head.

   "She's right. There's sure fire tricks, if he can figure one out. You beat on the door, and yell police, its an emergency? You can about get a cop to open the door up. Another good one? Just yank the fire alarm. There have been guys that just put a police uniform on? The manager will give them the key. I have to agree with Elise here. If our plan needed the guy comfortable? That part worked perfect."

   Panic softly cut it all off.

   "Okay. Everyone's right. We wanted him comfy? He's comfy. Elise? Is right, he's way too comfortable now. He's getting like he about owns the place. My suggestion? No more arguing. No more accusations. Everyone, just… try to come up with a good plan. And, as a backup? We do have… Elise's… plan B and plan C."

   JG and Panic went about seeing how he had probably made entry, if indeed once again Elise's magic gut hadn't tickled her in error what was on the other side of that door.

   They sheepishly reported back, that he had walked right in through the front door. Later in the evening, Lightning wondered out loud. How did two felons, not even cops anymore and with most likely no access to cops and their computer's abilities to run plates and everything? Locate her states away years later.

   JG quietly showed her his laptop. He had her just type in her first name. Szarabjorna is a highly unique first name in America. Little tidbits about her popped up right and left, and she hadn't even typed in her last name yet. By the time she added her last name, Sturmer? It was looking like she was the only Szarabjorna Sturmer in the whole damn country.

   JG made a sour face, and pointed down at one of many entries responding to the easy search bar query.

   "Click here for a free sample of all the information you can get on this Szarabjorna Sturmer person. First search free. 19.95 for one year's access to as many searches as you like. Check out your boyfriends, check out your girlfriends, check out your boss, check out your employees. Find out who lives next door to you and your children and what you don't know about them."

   JG showed her his own similar website he had, and typed her name in. He had her address, unlisted cell phone number, make and model of her car, the bank the loan was with, monthly expected payments. Her car insurance company. It was a cinch her address and where she had worked before her business went up and operational was there. Her former addresses and cell numbers. Her social media pages. Within minutes, a soccer picture of her popped up from her college sports star days. The longer they sat waiting, the more and further back things popped up. Her address from our shared townhouse as starting athletes finally showed. Eventually her hometown and address registered, along with an old high school yearbook picture.

   She just nodded and wandered off, to go get a bath.

   I was closer to that end of the apartment as she plodded past me to get to her bathroom. I was the one that could most clearly hear her muttering under her breath.

   "Great. Any psychos out there? Hey. For twenty bucks, we'll give you all the information you need on your next victim. I miss the old days. Back when you had to show a little gumption to be a stalker, and do your own leg work. Fucking internet…"

   After things had calmed down, and sleeping schedules had been arranged for watches. I had my chance to finally get my quiet bath with Panic. I don't get much ritual staying here, but I can't complain. Lightning has it worse. The tub is a lot smaller than what we're used to. Its a tight squeeze to try to get into our ritual position we expect. Me sitting back, him between my legs. My legs over his and down in, my feet between his legs.

   I'm going to need a chiropractor if I tried to actually enjoy this, and my legs are down the edge of the tub. Still, five minutes of ritual? Is far better than no ritual. I've got to have my little bath talk, if only the tiny bit of it.

   "You know? At first, I felt like a selfish spoiled bitch. The guy that killed him, got killed. I can't be happy, I just want it all, and get the rest of the assholes that cheered that guy on. I feel guilty."

   "Guilt? The hell did you even do."

   "If I hadn't of been so selfish… Lightning wouldn't have to live like this."

   "That's silly, and I'll give you reasons why."

   "Please."

   "Number one. They started it. I know, it sounds like a little kid's rule, but… they started it. They killed him."

   "Great. I'm childish as well as selfish. You're on a roll."

   "Number two. You let the universe put you where it wants you. Where it needs you. That's good karma. The universe did this. The universe? Wanted you to be pissed. All you did, was follow where it led."

   "You? Are doing better. Keep it up."

   "Number three. Be logical. Regardless of what we were actually up to? Those guys don't know any of that. All I know is this. If you hadn't of… gotten pissed. Been selfish. Without you doing this? Those guys were still out there. That asshole outside right now? Is still there. Thing is though. We wouldn't be here. Lightning would be in even more danger than she is right now. Right at this moment, I know she's afraid. But… we traded in a lot of that danger, for fear."

   "Not a bad finish, dear. Your third try? Was a charm."

   "If we weren't here right now? Elise wouldn't have been here. Lightning would have probably opened that door right up, and Elise wouldn't have been here to put a stop to it. No. The universe? Knew what it was doing. Anytime you start feeling bad about yourself? You just think about what would have happened if she opened that door."

   "Yeah. Question?"

   "Sure."

   "What are we going to do now. Where are we at in the chess game."

   "Both sides had their opening moves, and set their sides up. We were white. We were looking to wait for our moment to attack. The other side? Well. Turns out they were looking to attack, too. Touche. It led to the mid game."

   "We're in the mid game?"

   "Late in the mid game? Things start to open up. One side or the other, has to do something. We went from looking to attack, to this defensive posture. Elise sees it. We're a little too defensive right now. The other side? Is starting to send out feelers. Move a piece in, move it back out. They're… probing."

   "How does the mid game go now."

   "Little Robbie is whispering in my ear. Nice defense. But? Where's your offense. Show me some offense."

   "And…"

   He sighed.

   "Elise knows it. Rob would say it, and talk shit if he were here. We're reacting. We're not acting. We need to start acting."

   "We have our moment of Teed already?"

   "Yes. We saw it. It doesn't bear fruit, until… we act. If we act correctly."

   "Which is?"

   "Remember the gambit? We need… a gambit."

   "Example of a gambit here."

   "If we left the front door wide open, and the guy walked into an ambush? That's a childish gambit, but its still an example. We leave an opening. He sees it, he likes it. He tries it? But it turns out it was a mistake. He loses the exchange. When you see an opening, is it a trap? Or is it a smart move. I've lost chess games before, because I was afraid to take the opening, thought it was a gambit I'd pay for. Cost me the game. I can't afford to lose this game."

   "We need a good gambit."

   "Yeah. We still have a little bit of the upper hand."

   "What's that."

   "They don't know we're even playing back. They think, they just wait until they see an opening. They take it. Boom. Objective? Completed."

   "We make it look like we made a big mistake."

   "We do something on accident. Something they can use."

   "Bait."

   "A gambit? Is always bait. We need them to take the bait. We might only get one chance at this."

   "What do we do."

   "If we knew what to do? We'd be doing it. To me, the correct question to ask, is this. Pretend we're them. Get in your opponent's mind. What is that thing, that they wish they had. That they don't have yet. You give them that? That's bait they can't resist."

   "Wiz always did say. When you use the right bait? No human can resist it."

   "Lightning? Is the bait, obviously. I… am not comfortable, throwing her out there, like a worm on a fishing hook. She's not Elise."

   "Hmm. The universe? Obviously sent us JG. Without him? I don't like to think about how this would be going."

   "Very true. Without JG? We'd be going Elise style plans. Of course? While JG takes that away, so to speak. He brings a lot to the table. Look at most of the intelligence we have. Its mostly from him."

   "I think. Uncle Mikey? Is going to be very happy with the reports I file on JG's contributions."

   "JG's good in the field. He's no… office agent, the way his last senior agent used to run him."

   "Can I make a suggestion?"

   "Of course."

   "The universe sent JG. He's doing great. He just doesn't think like you do. Put this… gambit? To him. See what he comes up with."

   "Hmm. I ask him, to put himself in their mindset, what would he want. And that? Could end up the thing we dangle. The gambit, the bait they'll take."

   "Just trying to help."