B.E.C.K.Y.: Am I A Superhero?

Yep, They Started Wondering!

"Who was this witness?"

She seemed discomfited now, not happy with what she had to say.

"An anonymous phone call. They refused to identify themselves, and only said they were calling out of concern for public safety."

I felt a weight off my shoulders and relaxed a bit.

"So, Detective, you came down here to chat with me because of an anonymous phone tip?"

Her smile was cool as she shook her head.

"No. We had a police car come by here last night, around 3 a.m. Would you like to know what they found?"

Weight back on shoulders and heavier than before!

I still tried to remain calm, taking a sip of coffee to cover my suddenly shaking nerves.

"Sure. What did they find?"

"An empty house, a sign of a struggle, and one of your boats missing from the dock."

*What shall we do now?!* Becky's sarcastic yell resounded in my head, almost making me wince from the volume.

Shut up and let me think.

*Yes, that has worked great up to now!*

I snapped my fingers as if remembering something. 

"Oh, right! I went out fishing for redfish last night! That is why my boat was out; I was on it and fishing."

She raised an elegant eyebrow in clear doubt of my statement.

"Really? And how was the catch?"

Thankfully, I actually had caught several redfish just a few days earlier, so I could say the truth.

Kind of.

"Redfish fishing has been very good lately. Would you like to see my catch? I have fillets in the freezer."

She was not to be put off.

"And the men?"

I pretended thoughtful ignorance.

"I guess that explains why some of the sheets in my bedroom looked out of place; they came in looking for things they could steal." I shrugged, "Crime is so low around here, I don't have an alarm system on my house. I should probably fix that."

"So, Mr. Shane, you are asking me to believe that you went out fishing at 2 a.m. last night and, while you were out, six men broke into your house, wandered around it, but took nothing, when you clearly have expensive electronics sitting here in your living room?"

Did she believe me?

Let's just say the doubt in her voice was thick enough to cut with a knife. 

But I continued to play the story, shrugging my shoulders as if as surprised as she was.

"Maybe they wanted jewelry or smaller items of higher value? Those I keep in a safe under my bed, which they may have been looking for. That would explain the sheets being in disarray, right?"

She took one last sip of her coffee, then stood and made her way to the door. 

"Thank you for your time, Mr. Shane." She paused before stepping out the door, looking at me closely.

"It may interest you to know that shortly after your house was broken into, another house was attacked about 10 miles from here. The attackers were in the same cars as the ones that were in your driveway, and one of them was a felon from the bank robbery that was foiled several weeks ago."

I listened, trying to look like I was curious as to why she was saying all of this. 

"Maybe the ones who came here were looking for that guy, and realized they had the wrong house?"

She smirked at me as though she could read my mind.

"Yes, that is a possibility and a convenient one at that. But there are two major differences between that house and yours; the man who owns that one is of mixed African-American, and Asian descent, an easily understood target for a bunch of Aryan thugs."

"And the second reason?"

Her eyes locked on mine, questing, searching. 

"The same silver-gray person who stopped the bank robbery appeared just in time to not only stop the Aryan gang, but knock every one of them out, then leave just as the police showed up."

I tried to look stunned by this news.

"Really? Wow! That is amazing!"

Detective Jaurez was irritated and it showed. There was a slight flush to her cheeks, and her breathing was just the smallest bit more shallow; clear signs of frustration and anger rising up in someone. But, she kept herself in check.

"Yes. But what's even more amazing is that the man we believe to have been the target of the intended attack woke up and recorded almost the entire thing on his phone. And, you know what is really interesting?"

Oh boy.....

"What is that, Detective?"

"When the silver guy left the scene, he did so in this direction, in the direction of your house, Mr. Shane."

Not good...!!

"Well, there are several houses along the beach this way, Detective," I said, trying to breathe normally.

She nodded in agreement.

"That is true. But, you have to admit, it is interesting that both times this guy, whoever he is, makes an appearance, when he leaves the scene, he is seen, in both cases, heading in the direction of your house."

I felt my stomach plummet to the basement. 

Jaurez shrugged her shoulders, pretending to be dismissive of it, but her eyes held mine as she spoke.

"I just think that that's an interesting coincidence, don't you?"

I nodded, not trusting my voice to speak.

She handed me her card.

"If you think of anything, Mr. Shane, please call me."

Then she was out the door, closing it firmly behind her.