Shield Of Refuge. Carol Steward
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shone a flashlight both directions along the ground. “You sure this is where it happened?”
“Yes, I’m sure. I parked in the 15-minute zone because I wasn’t staying much longer than to assemble a two-tier anniversary cake. This space was the only one available, because I thought it was too bad I couldn’t have had the closer spot, so I wouldn’t have to go around the van carrying the heavy cake. When I came out, the spot I wanted,” she pointed to it, “was open. Then next to it was a red Mustang.”
“I thought you told Officer Matthews you don’t know cars,” he said, interrupting her thought process.
“I always wanted a Mustang, so I noticed it, candy-apple red. That’s when I heard the man telling her to get out of her truck. I was putting my cake kit into the van and rearranged it a little because I didn’t want the cake to be damaged, since it didn’t fit into a covered box. I thought of asking him to move, but I don’t…I didn’t have a good feeling about him.”
Amber continued to explain, feeling as if she was repeating herself for nothing, while the officers both took notes and asked more questions.
Lieutenant Chavez put his flashlight back into his belt. “Did they see or hear you?”
Amber shrugged, tired of going through all of this. “Not that I’m aware of. Once I realized this wasn’t really a cop, I got in the van and started looking for my phone. I was so scared. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I keep thinking I should have honked the horn or something. I couldn’t think.” She felt her heart sink and tears stung her eyes. “I didn’t know what to do.
Then all of a sudden, she went limp, and he forced her into the backseat of the car. And I just panicked. I couldn’t believe what I’d just seen. I didn’t know what to do.”
“You did exactly what you should have done,” the lieutenant said gently. He paused to let her compose herself before continuing the questioning. “And you have no idea if he stabbed her, or what caused her to go limp?”
“I couldn’t see that well. There were shadows from the trees. It was getting dark. The guy was in the way.” Amber closed her eyes and focused. “She jerked, like someone in pain. Maybe he did stab her?”
“There’s no sign of a scuffle, no blood, no evidence that I can see.” The female officer raised an eyebrow. “What made you think it was a police car in the first place?”
“It had one of those little bubble lights on top, like on cop shows, where they stick it up on the roof from out their window.”
“We don’t use any of those, even on unmarked cars,” the lieutenant explained.
“I’ve only seen them on television, but I’m convinced that he was an imposter. I recognize the piping on the costume. I bought some of them for my shop.”
“We’ll need to see them, and who has rented them. And if anyone returns one, don’t launder it until we’ve run some tests on it.”
“No problem, but I haven’t seen this guy in my store. The costume could have been ordered online,” Amber said as the officers scoured the street for any sign of a struggle.
The lieutenant approached while the female officer continued searching for any sign of a scuffle. “I’m going to need a physical description of each of them.”
Amber thought a minute or two before confessing, “I’m not sure how much I saw. The sun was going down, and the shadows…”
After coming up with nothing, Officer Taylor said, “Stand where you were this evening.” The officers both moved next to the yellow vehicle. “Is this about how tall the guy was?”
Amber compared their height to the yellow vehicle. “I think the guy was shorter than you, Lieutenant Chavez, about Officer Taylor’s height, I’d guess, and the girl was about the same.”
“Good,” the woman said. “What else do you remember?”
“He was stocky, but not fat, a long buzz cut, and probably Hispanic. She was Caucasian, long brown or dark reddish hair maybe, for some reason, red sticks in my mind, tall, but not too thin.”
“Any tattoos or jewelry on either of them?” Officer Taylor asked.
Amber shrugged, closed her eyes and tried to see the image again. “I couldn’t see them that clearly.”
“Any indication he might have had gang affiliations?”
She shook her head, trying to understand how someone wearing a cop uniform could also look like a gang member. “No. He was wearing a police uniform. My first impression was it was legit.”
“And her?” the lieutenant asked.
“I can’t be sure. She was wearing a blue tight-fitting top with a hood, but she looked like the athletes that come into my shop for their sugar fix.”
“I don’t see anything here. It’s almost unheard of for a victim not to drop something during an abduction. I thought maybe she’d left her purse or backpack in the vehicle, but I can’t be sure without getting inside. We can’t do that without a warrant. Did the suspect stop for any length of time after he closed her in the police car?” Officer Taylor asked.
“It all seemed to happen so fast at the time,” Amber said as she closed her eyes and walked herself through the incident again, step by step, whispering to herself.
The lieutenant took a slow walk around the area again, shaking his head.
“This doesn’t seem like a sexual assault, and it definitely doesn’t fit the MO of the guy we got,” Officer Taylor said as she returned to Amber’s side. The radio interrupted their conversation, and Samantha focused on it. “Looks like the vehicle is registered to a twenty-five-year-old male, Marcus Smith. I can check on him later.”
Amber struggled to recall what the suspect looked like, relieved that Officer Taylor seemed to believe her. “Wait a minute. It’s possible she had something hanging from her shoulder. She broke away once when they were almost to the car, she swung at him, and he threw her against the side of the trunk. She could have dropped something there. After he got the second cuff on her and stuffed her in the car, he stumbled when he was going around the car, but maybe he didn’t stumble, maybe he stooped to pick something up.”
“Are you sure about that?” the lieutenant asked.
Amber shrugged. “Pretty sure.” She just realized something she hadn’t noticed before. “It was a Rocky Mountain University top. I saw it as she was being pushed into the car.”
“You’re sure?” he said again.
She leveled a glare at the lieutenant. She hadn’t realized how comfortable she’d been answering Officer Matthews’s questions. She was quickly realizing he wasn’t like other cops. “I’m not making this up as I go along. I simply didn’t remember every little detail before.”
The female officer held out her hand. “It’s normal to remember additional facts as the adrenaline wears off. Just keep writing everything down as you remember it. Someone from FCPD will be in touch if we need more information.”
The lieutenant moved toward the squad car and directed them to do the same.
She was taken to the police station, where they asked her to write out her report of the incident leading up to the accident, then gave her information about contacting the towing company to schedule her transport to the repair shop. She added it to the careless driving and speeding ticket in her bag.
“Have you heard how Officer Matthews is doing?”
“No, we can’t give out that information.” The records clerk took the report form and turned away.
When Amber was released she assured the officer that she’d reached a friend to give her a ride. She left the station, tears stinging her eyes. She walked to the nearest bus stop, and got off at the hospital she’d