Chapter 72
BEFORE I COULD even stand up, the kid started flying down the crowded escalator. I knew I’d never catch him. That’s when I heard the ding of the elevator and saw the door opening.
Somehow I managed to shift my momentum and slide on board the elevator before the doors closed. Still, it felt like the elevator crept down. When the doors opened, I burst out onto the ground floor, but I had little hope that I’d even see the kid who ran away with Alain’s phone.
A quick glance told me he wasn’t anywhere near the main entrance. Then I looked around the corner to where Rich Conklin and I had visited the security office just days ago, searching the video for Nicole Snaff.
I froze in place. Bill Simpkins, the chief of security, was standing next to the teenager.
Simpkins smiled. It made his giant mustache spread out like some sort of party favor. He could tell by the look I gave them that I was thoroughly confused. “I saw the whole thing on video, Sergeant. All I had to do was walk outside and wait. He didn’t give me any trouble.”
I held out my hand. The teenager didn’t hesitate to pull Alain’s phone from his backpack and slap it onto my hand. I gave him a thorough appraisal, then asked the kid, “How old are you?”
He mumbled, “Sixteen.” He told me his name was Jake Hunter. Then he said, “I’m really sorry.”
I thanked Simpkins for his assistance and told Jake to follow me. I wasn’t going to arrest him. I just wanted to see if he’d follow my instructions. If he ran, so be it. But if he followed me all the way back to our table, maybe there was some hope for him.
To his credit, the teenager followed me the whole way back to where Alain was sitting. I motioned to a chair and Jake dropped into it. I introduced him to the Interpol investigator.
Alain looked at me and said, “That was an impressive chase.”
I explained how the security chief had actually nabbed the thief, as I handed the phone back to Alain. Then I turned my attention to young Jake. “You have anything to say for yourself?”
Jake gave a hint of a smile. “That’s exactly what my grandma says to me all the time.”
“Are you saying I’m old enough to be your grandmother?”
“No, ma’am. Not at all. That’s—”
“Relax, Jake. I was just having a little fun.” I appreciated Alain’s chuckle.
Jake said, “I said I was sorry. I mean it. I just could really use a European iPhone.”
“Wait. What?”
“A phone issued inside the European Union.” The young man gave me a look like I’d just fallen off the turnip truck.
Alain said, “How did you know it was not an American iPhone?”
“I heard you speaking French on it while you were in line. I saw how you’re dressed a little differently. You know, funny leather loafers, shirt that’s cut a little different with the flowers on it. The way you keep your reading glasses around your neck with that white strap.”
Alain said, “The flowers are a nod to Van Gogh.”
The kid said, “They look more like something Cézanne might paint.”
Alain and I both gave our guest an appraising look. Interesting observation for a sixteen-year-old petty thief.
I said, “You’re pretty observant, Jake. Please tell me you’re still in school.”
“Yes, ma’am. Honor roll. I do a little tech work on the side. There’s nothing I can’t do to or with an iPhone. Are you going to arrest me?”
“Should I?”
“I broke the law. But I wanted a European iPhone.”
“That’s the second time you’ve said that. What’s so special about European iPhones?”
“They’re, like, a lot less hassle to break into. And I need something I can use to bypass the security glitch at the housing office so my grandma can stay where she is.”
I cut my eyes to him and said, “Is this a load of crap?”
“No, ma’am.”
I believed him. He was clearly very bright.
I looked over at Alain, who gave me a little nod.
Then I looked back at Jake and said, “I’m going to take down your information.
And if I get stuck sometime with a technical issue on an iPhone, you’re going to fix it for me. Does that sound like a fair sentence?”
Jake gave me his phone number and address, then said, “Any time you call me, I’ll do whatever you need.”
Despite how we’d met, I had to admit I really liked this kid.