“So, we’re back to State Street.”
“Your dad’s cab pickups and drop-offs, the sightings, and the Uber drop-off are all within a four-block area and all on State Street. Ground zero is the intersection of East State and South Broad. I have the map up on my screen. It’s strange. He keeps coming back to this area, but he seems to camp out in other unoccupied spaces like his rental apartment and his victims’ homes.”
“Maybe he feels safer moving around.”
“In the beginning of the week you saw Oswald leaving an office building on State Street. We never circled back to that building,” Diesel said. “We should check it out.”
I poured my coffee into a to-go mug, grabbed a frozen waffle, and hung my messenger bag on my shoulder.
“It’s fifty degrees and drizzling,” Diesel said.
I snagged a sweatshirt from the hooks by the door. “I’m ready.”
We got to the parking lot and the only transportation option was the borrowed Buick. Diesel drove so I could enjoy my breakfast.
“I’ve driven tanks that cornered better than this car,” Diesel said.
“Where did you drive tanks?”
“Afghanistan.”
“I didn’t know you were military.”
“I’m not… exactly. Don’t ask.”
“Mercenary?”
“No. That would be a big cut in my pay grade, and I wouldn’t have an Ana.”
“Do you by any chance know someone named Gabriela Rose?”
“No. Should I?”
“It was just a thought that crossed my mind. There seemed to be similarities in your lifestyles, with the exception of fashion.”
Diesel came to the intersection of South Broad and East State Street.
“Turn right on State and take any parking place,” I said. “The building is on the first block, across the street.”
“Easier said than done,” Diesel said, struggling to parallel park. “This car is a beast.”
We got out of the car and Diesel looked at me. “If we leave the key in the ignition, someone might steal it.”
“No doubt,” I said. “It’s a classic in primo condition. And no, we aren’t going to leave the key in the ignition. Big Blue belongs to Grandma.”
“Does she drive it?”
“She doesn’t drive anything. She had her license taken away. Permanently.”
“Vehicular homicide?”
“She likes to go fast, and she demolished a police car. Fortunately, no one was in it.” We crossed the street and I stopped in front of the building. “This is it.”
Many of the buildings in this part of town were multiple use. Retail businesses on the ground floor and condos or professional offices on the upper floors. This particular building was all offices. We went into the lobby and looked at the directory on the wall. Four floors. The first floor was dedicated to a dentist and an insurance company. All other floors were occupied by a variety of businesses.
We started canvassing on the second floor. We’d open the door and look inside. If someone was in there we’d step in, show them the photo of Oswald, and ask if they’d seen him. If the door was locked, Diesel would open it. We did the top three floors and got a big zero.
We’d saved the dentist office on the first floor for last because neither of us wanted to go into the dentist office. The receptionist immediately recognized Oswald.
“He was here a couple days ago,” she said. “He was a new client. He lost a filling, and we were able to squeeze him in.”
“Did he give you an address? A phone number?” I asked.
She checked back through her appointments. “Here he is,” she said. “Oliver Welk. He lives on Dugan Street.” She wrote the address and phone number on a sticky note and handed it to me. “I’m a big fan of the police,” she said. “They rescued my cat from a storm sewer last year.”
I gave her a thumbs-up and Diesel and I left the building.
“Does anyone ever question your badge?” Diesel asked.
“Almost never. A lot of people who have no experience with bail bonds assume it’s part of the sheriff’s office.”
Diesel dialed the number on the sticky note. He smiled and hung up. “That was the number for the DMV.”
“Oswald came out of the building and turned left before we started to chase him,” I said.
We walked left and covered two blocks with no success at spotting Oswald. The drizzle had stopped but the sky was overcast and there was a chill in the air.