Valentina's Lost Days Read online

Lazarus understands that probably the crook has entered another time zone different from the one selected: 02:00 - 03:00.

  Maybe he would have jumped over the fence later, or he might have done it earlier, or he might not have been captured by camera three but by any of the other four. Or maybe Marta is not right and the sound she heard last night was simply, as she initially believed, the garbage truck. And even Lazarus begins to think that Valentina's bedroom window may be broken for several days. After all, that Marta found it broken this morning is no reason to believe that the incident must have occurred during the early morning.

  What would have happened if during the night, she had not heard that sound, in his opinion, suspicious? For sure, right now they would not be there. The window would continue broken, and she would not have noticed.

  Also, Lazarus is quite convinced that Marta does not regularly attend her daughter's room.

  - "For God's sake," -he thinks, remembering, - "but if I even had Valentina's backpack on the desk chair."

  Lazarus recalls another detail: Marta, at no time, dared to flank the entrance frame. It was obvious that the simple act of opening the door was painful.

  Lazarus, bored and exasperated to see the sheets of the malus tree, is about to ask Marta to provide him with a USB to export the recordings and analyze them at home carefully. He knows that it is a task that can take many hou ...

  - "There! There!" -Marta stamps her index finger against the computer screen. - "There it is!"

  Lazarus hardly gives credit to what he sees: a shadow climbs the fence of the garden. Marta and the former Chief Inspector exchanged a look of amazement and, without saying a word, approached the monitor.

  -15-

  The criminal climbs the fence of the garden with feline agility and jumps inside the property. Lazarus is surprised by the way the subject rolls down the lawn when he falls, in what seems to be an attempt to cushion the impact.

  Marta, at her side, lights her third cigarette. She is nervous. Lazarus listens to her breathing agitated.

  Refocus on the recording.

  The intruder goes straight to the malus tree and climbs up it. Lazarus, as he feared, checks that his face is covered. The subject takes hold on the first branch of the tree and opens his backpack. From inside, he extracts a small object (without a doubt, the stone he has already examined) and throws it against the glass of Valentina's room.

  After that, he just disappears as it has come: close the backpack, descend from the tree and go quietly to the fence of the property. Climb through the fence and eventually disappear from the field of vision of camera number three.

  - "Incredible" - the former Chief Inspector stops the recording and turns to Marta. The woman smokes like a road.

  - "Is him!" -she says. - "It's him, Inspector ... We have it! We've caught him!"

  Lazarus tightens his lips. He knows that what he is about to communicate will not like her.

  - "Marta, have you seen that the subject had his face covered with a balaclava?"

  The woman nods. Pensive, she takes a puff.

  - "We cannot tell that we caught him, but I can extract valuable information."

  Marta looks at him, hopeful. Grab the ashtray that rests next to the computer keyboard and twists the butt with viciousness.

  - "What can you say, Lazarus?" -she asks impatiently. -

  "What information can you get?"

  - "Right now, there are only conjectures; I need to analyze in more detail all the material of the security cameras ... I am sure that the other cameras have captured something that can be revealing."

  - "What can you tell me now?" -she insists. - "What does your instinct tell you?"

  - "As I said, are just hypotheses, but I am quite convinced that it is about someone young... Because the easy way of how he has jumped the fence and climbed the tree, I would say that he is not more than thirty-five-years-old.

  Marta, when she hears it, smiles. Her skin folds with difficulty as if she had lost the habit.

  - "Probably a man ... Although, I cannot be sure." -Lazarus swallows. - "What I am sure is that this person knew your property, he knew your daughter and, for sure, he knows you."

  The woman changes the weight of her body from one foot to another. She looks uncomfortable.

  - "Have you noticed how he has walked to the tree?"

  - "I do not understand what you're referring to."

  Lazarus places the mouse pointer at 7'36 '', just when the previous image of the player captures the intruder.

  - "Look carefully" - -he asks, pressing the space bar to start the video.

  For the second time, they see how the figure of the stranger climbs the fence and goes to the malus tree.

  - "Do you see it now?" -Lazarus is like a fish in water. The adrenaline begins to travel the body as in the old days.

  - "I see nothing."

  - "Marta, what is it that this individual has done as soon as he crosses the fence?"

  - "Well ... going to climb my tree?"

  - "Exactly!" -Lazarus snaps his fingers. - "At no time, he looks to one side or the other to make sure that no one is watching, at no time seems to doubt where to go. That indicates that he had everything studied ... Marta, I'll be sincere, okay? -Lazarus must prevent her. It's the least he can do for such a salary. - "I think this person, whoever he is, has been hanging around your cottage for some time. He's been studying you for days ... maybe weeks."

  Marta puts her hand to her chest and lets out a little scream. His face pales.

  - "It may even you have crossed with him on the street."

  - "Oh God!"

  - "Have you seen someone in the neighborhood lately that, in some way, has caught your attention?"

  Marta taps her forehead, hesitantly.

  - "I don't know..."

  - "Probably someone who goes unnoticed," -Lazarus tells her, to give her more clues. - "Maybe drive by car or maybe by bicycle."

  - "And walking?" -Marta seems to have something in mind.

  - "A person walking alone repeatedly around your chalet would be suspicious, unless he has an excuse to be alone, such as ..."

  - "A dog! Oh, God, Lazarus! I know who it was!"

  The former Chief Inspector remains cautious.

  - "It's that weird neighbor ... The one who lives a couple of blocks below ... Every day he walks his dog around here."

  Lazarus repentant is not having any notepad. Neither he does want to ask Marta for a folio because that, according to his judgment, would give an awful professional image. Once again, trust your good memory.

  - "How old is that neighbor of yours?"

  Marta begins to bite her nails. The idea that the possible murderer of her daughter lives so close to her disgusts her to the core.

  - "Maybe about forty."

  - "And that neighbor, did he know your daughter?"

  - "Not that I know of."

  Lazarus reserves his opinion. That does not make sense. The pixelated silhouette captured by the surveillance cameras belongs to someone who, in some way, had and still has a strong connection with Valentina. Someone without previous contact with the deceased girl would not take so much trouble to stone her window.

  - "I'll investigate him" -says for an answer. -"I will ask the other neighbors in your neighborhood. Maybe someone has seen something."

  Marta, in an effusive show of affection that Lazarus did not see coming, plants a kiss on his forehead.

  - "You are an angel, Inspector."

  -16-

  Ishmael burns with desire to have GOTI-K on his face. That little girl is going to take the biggest surprise of her miserable life. With just thinking ...

  But his acts of the last days persecute him continuously like a greyish shadow. In room 2-18 of the student residence, Ishmael lies on the bed. That helps him think.

  - "They cannot end up with me," -he thinks. – “It is impossible.”

  He had taken precautions. Damn! he did! The security cameras would not reveal
a shit, only to an individual of medium height, as the population, roughly speaking. That and nothing was the same. On the other hand, the stone used is the most common in the area. They would not find footprints in it. Nor would they discover any hair of his. He had thoroughly shaved his whole body (including the tiny hairs on his fingers) and used a hairnet and a latex swimming pool cap under his balaclava.

  - "Although it was very risky. He puts his face on the cushion. - "The risk was not worth it."

  He hesitated not to, but he knew he had no choice. He had not received any recognition for his actions. Nothing. Not even a miserable mention in the fucking local newspaper.

  - "With everything I worked on," -he laments.

  He knows that his performance was impeccable and professional as the most and that only increases his frustration. He feels that his merit and effort have been stolen.

  - "But tomorrow will be better” -comforted himself. -

  "When I do it, my work will come up with the fucking news ... Everyone will see what he is capable of.”

  -17-

  Marta takes Lazarus back home. The imposing Audi S5 goes all the way. Lazarus takes work material. In addition to a few DVDs with the recordings of the video surveillance system, he has managed to convince Marta to put into boxes many Valentina's belongings. The woman was opposed at first sharply because the bedroom of her daughter continued as it had left it the girl. Everything was intact, so that what he requested constituted, in his eyes, an attack at the memory of her little girl.

  But soon she came to her senses. She understood that to advance in the investigation, it was necessary to deepen the intimacy of her daughter, to know her thoroughly to the point of recreating her last days. That could reveal, so far, hidden information.

  Now it is Marta who helps Lazarus to introduce the boxes in his modest duplex. The lady does not comment about the smell that permeates the house. In fact, she even ignores the way that black cat licks the can of food on the table.

  - "Let me know when you know something!" -she says, after depositing the last box in the entrance hall.

  - "Don't worry."

  - "Inspector ... About my neighbor ... To the one that I told you that is so weird ..."

  - "Do not worry about anything, Marta." -Lazarus gives her a friendly smile. - "I'll take care of everything. You make your life normal, do not fear. I have your phone number, as soon as I know something, I'll call you immediately."

  - "What will you do now?"

  Lazarus does not like to give explanations regarding his method of work, but since he no longer belongs to the squad and that is a personal investigation, he sees no reason for so much occultism.

  - "For the moment, I will begin to review all this material. I'll start tonight."

  Marta plants another kiss, this time, on his cheek.

  - "Thank you for everything you are doing. I really appreciate it."

  The woman turns around and, tapping her heels on the asphalt, goes to her vehicle. Lazarus listens to the purr of the engine and, shortly after, how it disappears down the street.

  Close the door and look at Bucephalus. He shows him the envelope with all the money he has made.

  - "I can buy you I think!" -And start laughing.

  Suddenly, he falls on the account. Without knowing how he has lost the fear of OUT THERE. All his conspiratorial ideas, all his thoughts about the accusing glances behind his back and about the comments that would make about him when they saw him on the street, now, they just seem ridiculous.

  Remember the coffee waitress and the way she had looked at him that morning.

  - "She did not recognize me," -he thinks, believing that this happened an eternity ago. -"She did not recognize me."

  Fifteen years are many years. Also. he has changed. The prison gym has given him broader backs and, no doubt, a fiercer appearance. His new penitentiary tattoo at breast height (and slightly protruding from his neck) is a distracting element that hides his authentic identity.

  Lazarus open the window. The afternoon light invaded his home.

  Even Bucephalus seems surprised to see the beams of light.

  - 'I have to clean this pigsty" - be honest with the feline

  - "But first, I have to do something."

  -18-

  Lazarus has lied to Marta. He told the woman that he would spend the evening investigating Valentina's belongings, but he has no intention of losing a second in that. At least not yet.

  Lazarus goes to the garage of his duplex. Bucephalus follows him, rubbing himself from time to time against the calves of his owner.

  - "Here you are." -Lazarus takes the feline in his arms and begins to caress him. - "Look, this is my car."

  The cat begins to purr. He has been living with him for a short time, but Lazarus has discovered that he has a special weakness for the area behind his ears.

  - "I used to drive it every day ... I hope it starts."

  The vehicle is a Volkswagen Corrado, a three-door hatchback coupe with a beautiful red body. At the time, it was one of the best in the market, but now it looks old-fashioned and outdated.

  Lazarus releases Bucephalus and opens the driver's door. The cat watches him while he licks his ears, just where he has caressed him so effusively. Lazarus sits down, grabs the wheel and closes his eyes, invaded by countless memories.

  Step on the clutch pedal put the neutral point and turn the contact keys. The engine does not respond. It emits a panting sound as if it had asthma, but it does not start. Lazarus steps on the accelerator.

  - "Come on, Corri," -he says, using the name with which his old girlfriend baptized it, - "do not let me down ... Start!"

  Corri obeys. The sound of the engine resembles the buzzing of Bucephalus in a version of 1140 kilos.

  - "Have you seen? -Bucephalus looks at him and blinks with parsimony. He seems much calmer than Lazarus. -

  - "I've got it! Corri has come back to life!"

  -19-

  It is nine o'clock at night, and the university students leave the libraries and study rooms to return to their homes. Ishmael observes everything from his window. The number of cars parked in the waste ground - parking lot is decreasing. Ishmael sees his vehicle: a silver Seat Ibiza. It is parked on the east side of this improvise parking lot. Technically it is not his car, but his father's, but over time he has made it his own. Ishmael sees it as an advance payment. It's the least that bastard can do for him, especially considering everything he's done ...

  Ishmael turns the thought away from his mind. He does not want to turn the matter around. He has enough worries to drag down his childhood traumas.

  He knows he must rest. To carry out the work of tomorrow in optimal conditions, it must be as fresh as a rose. But it's too early to go to sleep. Many students are having dinner in the dining room or the bars near the residence. There is too much racket.

  - "It gives me time ... Just a swift return ..."

  -20-

  Lazarus heads with his Volkswagen Corrado to the rich neighborhood on the outskirts where Marta resides.

  There is something he did not tell the lady. Something that was reserved for itself:

  - "It is quite probable that the crook goes around the area."

  From experience, Lazarus knows that there are criminals who, after committing an illegality, do not step on the crime scene again for a long time. But Lazarus also knows that there are other delinquents (a group of people, usually, much more dangerous than the first) who feel the uncontrollable impulse to return again and again to the place of their actions.

  If he is right, the bastard captured by the security cameras belongs to the second group.

  Lazarus steps on the clutch and puts in third. The sound of the engine quiets down, and the speedometer shows 50 km / h. He remembers the way the subject came down from the malus tree and went to the fence after breaking the glass.

  - "With complete tranquility ... Walking as if nothing had happened."

  He cannot establi
sh a binding relationship, but that makes him think that the person is cold enough to fall back down there.

  - "In addition, he will want to check the repercussion of his wrongdoing. He will want to know if it has caused the expected effect."

  If in fact that person harassed and led Valentina to suicide, just as her mother maintained, it can be said that the villain is spiteful. Undoubtedly, he would expect some echo of his actions, but he got nothing.

  - "A simple suicide. No indication of suspicion."

  If all that were true, that subject would burst into desires to check if the stone against the window has caused any impact or if, as on the previous occasion, it has been ignored.

  - "He will not be able to resist ... He'll drop by here ... I'm sure."

  Lazarus parks Corri at a safe distance from Marta's cottage. Check his watch (this time he has left home provided with a mini-pad, a pen and his mobile). It is 21.24 h.

  He is heading towards the house. Everything seems in order. He meets a couple of women who jog and an octogenarian who walks his German shepherd. The old man looks at him with some reluctance. Lazarus is convinced that the tattoo that goes up his neck does not help to create a good impression of himself. However, the man ends by greeting him with a slight nod. Lazarus returns the greeting. On the other side of the road, a girl comes home carrying a backpack. She Is young. Probably, the same age as Valentina. Lazarus watches her go to the one he supposes; it is her house. He reaches into his shirt pocket and pulls out his notepad. Write down the address of the house and, below:

  FRIEND OF VALENTINA?

  At no time did Marta tell him anything about her daughter's friendships. She was very reserved about it.

  The former Chief Inspector contemplates Marta's cottage on the other side of the road. It is a luxurious home, but the rest of the properties in the area have nothing to envy. It is an opulent and quiet neighborhood.

  A car. Lazarus turns and watches. He goes up the street. It may be a neighbor who has finished his workday and returned home. Lazarus notices that it does not have the headlights on. The penumbra still makes it possible, and for a few minutes, to drive without the lights on.

  Lazarus stands on the sidewalk opposite Marta's house and, with nothing better to focus on, he looks at the car. It's a Silver Seat Ibiza. One of the most popular cars among young people. It does not surprise him that the driver is a young man. He is thin and dark skin. It goes well combed. It is seen that it is of good family. The young man drives with the window down, and when he reaches the height of Marta's cottage, he diminishes the speed imperceptibly. Lazarus frowns. Is that boy looking at Marta's house? If he does, it is only for a second, as he quickly turns his gaze towards Lazarus.