Chapter 19

His caller paused, as if waiting to be congratulated on the politesse of her terminology.

Mark soldiered on. “About how old?”

“Probably high school age. Seventeen, eighteen.”

“And is that about the son’s age? Meaning, the right age for his friend?”

“I guess so.”

“About how tall is he? Thin, medium, heavy build? What’s he wearing?” Mark entered the answers to these questions into his call screen.

“He have any weapons on him?”

“Oh my God, I never even thought of that. Probably.”

“Did you see any weapons?”

“No.”

“Did he mention any weapons or threaten you with one?”

“No, nothing like that. He just said, Hi, like I’m supposed to know him.”

“Is he carrying a bag? Any unusual bulges, like under his T-shirt or in his waistband? What makes you say ‘probably’?”

“Well, you know…”

“What exactly?”

“They a lot of times carry weapons. What do you want me to do, ask him?”

“No, ma’am. Just trying to get a sense of what you did or didn’t observe so my officers know what to expect.”