Free Blue Steele - Box Set - Captures 1-6 by Donald Wells Page B

his girlfriend, she confirms it, but then, she’s his girlfriend and six months pregnant. I’d think she’d say anything to keep him out of prison.”
    “What do you think; does he look good for it?”
    “He looks like a scared kid to me. He’s only twenty, got out of jail a year ago and has been working a straight job ever since, elevator repairman, same job his brother had before he started doing robberies.”
    “Elevator repairman to armed robber, that’s some career change.”
    “Chalk it up to drugs, the kid says his brother got hooked on meth and screwed up so much at work that they fired him, and then turned to crime to support his habit.”
    “That’s messed up Deke, but let me know if you learn anything from the brother.”
    “I will, and oh yeah, there’s a five thousand dollar reward being offered now. It seems one of the pieces of jewelry, a necklace, was worth big money. If we don’t locate it all soon, these fellers are gonna walk out of here with smiles on their faces.”
    I hung up with Deke and finished having breakfast with Gary. When we were done eating, we were going to the mall. My old laptop had died and I was thinking about switching to a tablet. I’m not much of a shopper, but I love gadgets.
    As he paid the check, Gary told me that he had to stop in at his office because he had left some papers behind that he needed to work on over the weekend. As we stood in the lobby of his office building, waiting to ride up, I had an epiphany, and I suddenly realized where the robbers had stashed the loot.
    ***
    D eke, along with two police department tech guys, met us at the scene of the crime.
    It was the first time that Deke and Gary had met, and Deke grilled Gary as if he were my father. After my daddy went missing years ago, Deke looked out for me, my mama and my sister as if we were his own flesh and blood.
    For his part, Gary took the interrogation well and apparently passed muster, because Deke gave him a friendly slap on the back when they finished talking.
    Yellow tape still stretched across the ballroom’s doorway, warning all not to enter. We had no intention of entering, what we wanted was in the hallway, or so I hoped.
    Deke pointed to the bank of elevators and told the lab boys to have at it.
    In less than five minutes, they had found not only the jewels and wallets, but also the two numbered T-shirts and the guns, hidden in a false control panel box on the roof of the car. All of it was atop the elevator car marked number three.
    Deke turned and smiled at me.
    “Your daddy would have been impressed Blue, I know I am.”
    “Thanks, but it only made sense once you told me about his former profession. An elevator repairman would think of an elevator as an elevator car, and I remembered reading somewhere that they had brakes, and so it was worth a look.”
    “The kids off the hook and you’re five grand richer.”
    I smiled as I reached over and took Gary’s hand.
    “Now we can go shopping.”
    When we left, we took the stairs.

BLUE STEELE – CAPTURE #5
    I was seated across from Ron Tenney, my boss, and owner of the AAAAAAAAAA Bail Bonds Company.
    Ron was in his fifties, had a full head of white hair and a ready smile. The smile was quite a contrast to most people in this business. Dealing with criminals tended to make you sour on humanity, and a frown often came easier than a grin.
    Yet, Ron seemed to always be in a good mood. I suspected it was because of his wife, but having never met the woman, it was only a guess.
    The AAAAAAAAAA Bail Bonds Company, or Ten A, as most people called it, was in a storefront on Lanchaster Avenue in Fort Worth. The building was old when Ron was born and the office was crowded with filing cabinets and desks.
    Ron handed me a flyer.
    “That’s Joe Harmody, a bank robber; he’s worth four grand if you catch him.”
    The man in the photo was handsome and beefy looking. If I hadn’t known he was a bank robber, I might have guessed pro wrestler