I See U

The stone man picked up a discarded McDonald’s soda cup with the hand held aluminum litter snatcher. He placed the cup in the black plastic garbage bag that was attached to his waist. It settled into the bag with the few other pieces of litter that he had picked up on the third floor of the parking garage. Disguised as a maintenance worker, the stone man looked at his watch. He noted the time, twelve thirty-five. He walked between two parked cars and looked over the ledge of the partially covered parking deck. He observed the traffic on Sumter Street below. He could also see directly across the street at all the yuppies working out on the third floor of the YMCA. The long bank of windows in the athletic club offered a perfect view into the large room containing all the modern exercise equipment. The members were using the exercise machines as if they were getting ready for a PE exam. He looked back down again at the garage entrance below and knew the sleek blue foreign car would be pulling in at any moment. Just like it did two weeks ago on a Thursday afternoon, the blue car turned into the first floor entrance of the garage off Sumter Street. The stone man smiled to himself. He walked to the end of the third floor parking deck and waited by the door leading to the stairwell. From that vantage point he could observe the car without being seen. He was certain that the blue car would park on this level. The third floor level is where the overhead covered walkway to the Marriott Downtown is located. There were plenty of empty parking spaces on this level because the overnight guests had checked out and the new travelers had not yet arrived. The stone man picked up another piece of litter as he waited. The sleek blue foreign car pulled up the ramp and onto the third floor level. The car parked a few spaces down from the elevators located at the entrance of the walkway. The vanity license plate was easy to spot with the blue letters spelling out, I See U, on the white background of the South Carolina personalized tag. The driver exited the car and paid little attention to the white Honda Accord that pulled in next to him. He made his way to the glass-enclosed walkway and with an air of confidence he strolled towards the hotel. The pretty young woman in the Honda made no effort to get out of her car. She was busy adjusting her makeup with the aid of her rearview mirror. The stone man made his way towards the Honda knowing that the woman would remain inside her car for at least ten minutes. He picked up another piece of litter as he approached the white Honda. A car passed by him heading down the exit ramp. There was very little activity on the third floor level at this time of day. The stone man walked up to the driver’s side window of the Honda and tapped gently on it. The woman sitting in the car was indeed very pretty. He guessed she was in her late twenties. The blonde woman gave the maintenance man a smile and lowered the window. The stone man thought to himself how trusting she was. She was about to say something when she noticed the black pistol with the large cylinder attached to it. Her eyes came together slightly and a few wrinkles appeared on her forehead. That pistol was her last view of life. The first shot tore her jaw and upper lip clear off, blood and debris splattered the inside dashboard and windshield. The second shot exploded into her head and she jerked back violently then slumped forward. The stone man lowered the pistol to his side and stood motionless for a second or two. He casually looked around. There was no one in sight. He was sure the two low-pitched sounds made by the silencer were not heard by anyone but himself. The dead woman in the car probably did not hear them either. He placed the pistol under his belt where it was hidden by the black plastic litterbag. He turned around and headed for the third floor exit door leading to the stairwell. He made sure to pick up another piece of litter on the way. He opened the heavy metal door and stepped into the stairwell. He quickly removed the green baseball cap and matching long sleeve work shirt. He reached into the tall orange garbage can located on the stairwell landing, and pulled out the backpack he had hidden there. He removed a garnet-colored University of South Carolina baseball cap. He placed the work cap and shirt he just removed into the backpack. He dismantled the litter snatcher and placed that in the backpack as well. He was just about to put the pistol with the silencer in the backpack when he sensed someone behind him. “Sir, what you are doing?” the voice said with authority. The stone man slowly turned around to face the man who was questioning him. He was a rent-a-cop, a private for hire security officer. He was young and he was big. Where the heck did he come from? In all his practice runs at the parking garage he never once saw a security officer. Without a hint of hesitation he fired two shots into the chest of the rent-a-cop. The man fell on the landing with a thud. He checked for vital signs but there were none. In all probability the big fellow was dead before he hit the concrete floor. The stone man stood up and listened. He heard nothing. He quickly placed the pistol in the backpack. He then removed the sheer colored latex gloves he had on and placed them in the backpack along with everything else. The stairwell wound around and eventually made its way to the side exit of the parking garage. The stone man went down the stairs quickly but he did not panic or rush. He pushed open the heavy exit door and took a left on Taylor Street. He was headed for his car parked two streets away next to the large, glass-enclosed Richland County Public Library. He walked slowly and was just another pedestrian making his way along the city street. He was not breathing heavily, and in fact, he was as calm as the people he passed along the way. He arrived at his car and was pleased to see he still had ten minutes of parking time remaining. He opened the trunk and placed the backpack and its contents under an old gray army blanket. He closed the trunk and inserted two more quarters into the meter. He walked into the main entrance of the library. The library system in Richland County has 10 other locations that see more than 5,000 people in any given day. The main branch of the Richland County Public Library services 3,000 people on an average day. He was just going to be one of the 3,000 this day. He noticed a security guard talking with one of the ladies working the book checkout desk. They were so engrossed in their own conversation that they barely noticed him. The stone man smiled to himself and wondered if the guard knew the big fellow he had just dispatched to the Never Land. The stone man went directly to the reference room and picked up today’s issue of The New York Times. The killing of the rent-a-cop was one complication he had not anticipated. He was not in the least bit worried about being caught. He was confident he had not been seen. His casual walk to the library could not have caused anybody to take notice. The killing of the big fellow was a complication nevertheless. This was now a double homicide, and as such would warrant much more of an investigation. The police would soon tie the two murders together. They would reconstruct the sequence of events that took place and establish a time line for each shooting. Still it would be a daunting, time-consuming process. He turned to the crossword puzzle and got lost in the adventure of solving the riddle.