Page 20 of Bazooka
“I wish I could tell you more, but I didn’t see what happened,” Ruby, the waitress at Pete’s, told me. “Last night was more crowded than usual because it was karaoke night. Honestly, when I heard what happened to Luz, I was shocked. Poor guy. And it was his birthday of all days. Horrible.”
“Can you describe the foursome who threatened him?”
She made a face. “Oh, you know, the usual jocks. Big, bulky, and loud. They drank a lot, and I noticed they were fixated on Luz and his friends. After they used a few homophobic slurs, which I won’t repeat, I threatened to call the police. It never occurred to me that they would do such a thing.”
“Do you think they were locals?” I asked her.
“I can’t say for sure. I heard them talking about rugby games, but they didn’t mention any particular team or place. Truth be told, I’m not a sports fan, so it all sounded like gibberish to me.”
“Any strange accents?”
“No.”
“Did you see them leave?”
“Unfortunately, no.”
I looked around the bar. “Do you have any cameras installed here?”
“There’s one outside, but someone broke it a few nights ago, so we ordered a new one. Honestly, we don’t have much trouble here because the police station is so close by.”
I nodded and gave her my card.
“Thank you for your help. If you remember anything else or if you see them again, please call me immediately.”
“You bet I will. Those guys deserve to rot in prison for what they did. Will Luz be alright?”
“In time.”
After I left the bar, I made a circle around the block. A quick survey told me Luz’s attackers probably fled through the park because it was a dimly lit, secluded area. Behind the park was a busy intersection, which led to four different parts of town. I made a mental note to check if that road had CCTV, although Smitsville was famous for being allergic to cameras.
It was late in the afternoon when I finally headed home, just as my phone rang.
“John Smith,” I answered. “Thank you for calling back.”
“No problem. I would have called sooner, but I had to give expert testimony at the trial.”
“I understand. What do you have for me?”
“Actually, I just left your apartment. I checked up on Luz, and he seems better, physically at least. Mentally, I’m not sure. He seems too calm to me.”
“Yeah, it’s to be expected,” I said grimly. “Is he in pain?”
“You bet he is, but I gave him something for it, so all he needs now is rest.”
“What about the STD test? Anything to be concerned about?”
“Not on paper,” John Smith replied. “He’s clean, but it doesn’t mean that nothing happened.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“He needs professional help, Bazooka. Someone to talk to him, someone to listen to him. But knowing Luz, he will refuse.”
“I know that too. Thank you, John.”
“No problem. See you tomorrow.”
After he hung up, I stopped by the nearest store. I figured Luz had to be hungry since it was almost evening and he had luncharound noon. I bought a bunch of random stuff because I didn’t have any food at home, and my fridge was empty. When I finally parked in front of my building, the darkness was settling over the city. I couldn’t see any lights turned on in my apartment, and it got me worried, so I hurried inside.
