CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Zeke, Trak, and Wilson stared at the burnt ashes that were once the church of Reverend Sizemore. There was nothing left. He must have used an accelerant to ensure that everything was lost.

“I think we stay together,” said Zeke. “Slow jog around the radius of the area we’re looking.”

“ Hey, guys, the reverend’s sister showed up with her husband and gave us some good information. The reverend isn’t a jogger. He’s a runner. Full-blown, hardcore, marathon guy. He’s won a few races. So, his slow jog routine is all a front.”

“Thanks, Sly,” said Zeke. “I guess we get warmed up. This could turn into our own marathon.”

It was still cold, but at least the sun was shining. People were trading out holiday decorations for New Year’s decorations, some even swapping it all out for Mardi Gras already. Passing one of the small homes, the men noticed three women seated on the front porch shucking beans.

“Good morning,” said Wilson, jogging up the sidewalk.

“Mornin’,” grinned one of the old ladies. “Whatever you’re sellin’, I can’t afford it, but I’ll darn sure listen to you talk.” Wilson laughed, the other two men giving smiles to the women.

“You’ll have to forgive her. I’m Mildred, and these are my sisters, Maddie and Margaret. We live here together.”

“Nice to meet you, ladies,” said Zeke. “We’re trying to find Reverend Sizemore and wondered if you’d seen him run by in the last twenty-four hours.”

“No,” said Margaret with a clucking of her tongue. “Makes me so angry that a man of God, a supposed man of God, made fools of us all. We trusted him, and he’s killin’ folks behind our back, right in our neighborhood.”

“Yes, ma’am. You need to be sure and lock your doors and don’t let him in under any circumstances,” said Wilson.

“Oh, we know,” nodded Maddie. “Don’t you worry. We got a shotgun right next to our beds. Each of us. And we know how to use it.” Trak smirked at the women, nodding.

“Is there anyone in the neighborhood that you haven’t seen in a while?” The women stared at Zeke, confused by the question. “I guess what we’re asking is has there been anyone that you normally see on a regular basis that you haven’t seen? We suspect that the reverend is still finding his victims.”

“My, my, my,” said Margaret, shaking her head. “Some folks just can’t get their heads straight, can they? Let me think now. Have we seen old Joe?”

“Old Joe?” asked Zeke.

“Yep, he’s the daddy of young Joe,” she smirked.

“Of course,” laughed Zeke.

“Old Joe, he don’t get around much anymore, but he used to own a little topless joint down on Bourbon.” All three of the men stiffened. That would be exactly the type of man that he would go after.

“Ain’t seen him in a while,” said Maddie. “A few others. That pretty girl that was rentin’ the room above the garage down the street. She was a dancer, I think.”

“Alecia,” said Maddie. “She was pretty. Had them real firm boobs that men like nowadays.” Wilson coughed behind his hand, trying to control the laughter bubbling to the surface.

“Not all men like that, ma’am.”

“Well, that ain’t what I see. But she was a pretty girl, worked hard tryin’ to help her folks out back in Florida. She was a sweetie too. She’d go to church at least once a week.”

“And where does she live?” asked Trak.

“Blue house down on the corner. She rents the room above the garage.”

“Thank you, ladies,” said Wilson.

“Any time y’all wanna come back by here and show me them pretty legs, I’m all for it,” said Maddie. The men continued to jog down the street, seeing the pretty blue house the ladies spoke of. It was blue, and it was little, but there wasn’t a lot that was pretty about it.

The paint was chipping, the shutters were hanging by a thread, and the front porch had seen better days. Trak stepped up and knocked on the door. An old man looked through the glass and hollered at them.

“What do you want? I ain’t buyin’ nothin’.”

“We’re not selling anything,” said Trak. “We’d like to ask you about your tenant, Alecia.”

The old man nodded, and he heard several locks being disengaged. Opening the door, he waved them inside.

“Let’s go. It ain’t gettin’ any warmer, and I can’t heat the outside.”

“Yes, sir,” said the three men in unison.

“What do you want to know about Alecia? She was a good girl.”

“When was the last time you saw her?” asked Trak.

“Well, now. I guess about six days ago. She paid her rent for January early. Said she got a big bonus from a heavy tipper and wanted to pay everything through next month. She was like that. Often paid me early.”

“Was she a good tenant?” asked Wilson.

“Best I’ve ever had. I lowered her rent so she’d stay. She would pick up groceries for me, help me with the yard when she could, even bought the stuff to help me fix up the shutters and paint the outside.”

“Was it unusual for her to disappear for several days?” asked Zeke.

“I guess so. It never happened before, and I’ve known her almost two years now. She and I would walk to church together every Sunday. Made me feel like her grandpa or somethin’.”

“That’s nice,” smiled Zeke.

“Yeah,” he nodded with a sad look. “I hope she’s okay. I heard what that reverend did, and it makes me sick. She wasn’t very big, so he coulda’ hurt her.”

“Did you see the reverend run by the house often?” asked Wilson.

“Almost every day the last month or so. Before that it would only be once in a while. Since Thanksgivin’, I’d say it was every day.”

“He was stalking her,” said Zeke. The other men nodded. “Sir, we want you to be very careful about who you let into your home. If the reverend comes by here, even if he just jogs by, call the police immediately.”

“I’m old, not stupid,” he snapped.

“No, sir, you definitely are not stupid,” laughed Wilson. “We didn’t mean to imply that. Do you have any other suggestions of someone we should speak with?”

“Oh, definitely. Over on Pauline Street there are four yellow houses all in a row. They got four or five people livin’ in each one. They all work in the Quarter at the bars and restaurants, but they all attended church just like me and Alecia. Hard workin’ kids mostly, young folks, you know the type. They ain’t never hurt anyone and watch out for each other. That says something in my book.”

“That’s helpful, sir. We’ll be sure to check on them. Thank you.” Zeke opened the door, and the men started to file out.

“Hey, you fellas find that man and punish him for what he did to them folks. No one deserves that.”

“No, sir. They definitely do not deserve that.”