He sat on the bar stool throwing the Chex mix on the floor as he pounded his fourth beer, grimacing after each swallow. He hated Chex mix and he wasn't afraid to say so. He longed for the days when bars served peanuts and beer flavored beer instead of cat food like snacks and lagers that sounded more like feminine sprays than barley and hops. The old taprooms were converted into micro brewerys who insisted on pushing their fruity concoctions on the trendy crowd who just minutes ago were shopping in Ikea or picking their kid up from karate. Jackie Whispers was followed no trend, unless the fad involved murder.

Why did he stay here in this God forsaken city. It seemed as though he would spend half of the year wiping sweat from his forehead with the same handkerchief that he would blow his nose into for the remaining months. He should have taken the job offer in Miami two years ago instead of trying to make a difference in this decaying city that had been raped by the corrupt politicians and their " urban renewal" bullshit. He had had enough of this cold, the kind of chill that makes you shiver when you pee and causes you to urinate in the trashcan and sometimes on your own shoes. He had had enough of the citizen watchdog groups that would stick up for every ex-con, gang banger and lowlife as if they should be given a smiley face sticker and a lollipop for being the bile of society. He was even tiring of being the best, of being the " go to guy " within the department that everyone would come to when they hit a wall in their investigation.

Jackie wished one of these crimes would show some originality, some creativity, some ingenuity. Solving murders was like a jig saw puzzle only sometimes a few of the pieces were missing. After you've put together the same puzzle hundreds of times, a few pieces don't really matter. It was the same with murder except that the pieces missing were different each time but the whole picture never changed. Jacki learned a long time ago not to look for the crime, but to look for the cover up.

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He could tell by the thinning crowd that it was getting late. He finished his beer and tossed a crumpled up five dollar bill on the bar. He wasn't sure how much the bar charged for the disgusting drink but was absolutely certain he wasn't going to pay more than five dollars. He would much rather go sit in the old coffee shop a few blocks over and wait for a call. It was Saturday night and never did a weekend night pass without an incident. Jackie didn't bother to go home on these nights knowing that within a few hours his services would be requested. He made it halfway down the block when the phone rang.

"What do you got Nelson ?" 

"What do I got ?" the guttural voice answered. " I got a taxi double parked on Taylor street, where are you?"

" I am in a porno theater with my pants around my ankles" Jackie quipped, knowing that he wouldn't be called for such a mundane infraction.

"Well get the guy off your lap , pull up your pants and wash your hands, the taxi is double parked on top of a stripper or rather on parts of a stripper." Capitan Nelson knew Jackie was going to try to avoid this assignment and he waited for the expected excuse.

Jackie paused for a few moments and tried to find a way out. " Cap, I really was hoping for an early night why don't give this one to Bedford, he can use the pratice."

"How about you borrow some balls on your way out of the theater and get over to Taylor" Nelson suggested. " You're going to have to face her someday"

Jackie knew he had to take this case just as he knew his old friend was right about tying up loose ends. He assured his boss that he was headed to the scene. He was confident that the girl under the taxi wasn't Mandy or Nelson wouldn't have called him knowing their past.  When he got to his unmarked car he checked his reflection in the glass before he crumpled up the parking ticket that had been placed under the wiper blade. 

"I wish it was a meter maid under that taxi" he mumbled to himself as he started the car and headed towards the south side.

Jackie reluctantly turned onto Taylor Street and could see the yellow tape stretched from corner to corner across the next block. He started to feel warm and uneasy as his car crept along while he took in the buildings from both sides. He had successfully avoided this part of town for the last three years. It hadn't changed at all, which didn't do much to force Jackie to think about the present situation rather than to rehash the past. He was brought back to the present by a flashlight in his eyes.

"Hey Jackie" the patrolman said while holding up the tape, allowing Jackie to pass through.

His car pulled up next to the medical examiners van and Jackie turned off the engine. He took a moment to absorb the sounds and lights bouncing off the building facades before slowly opening up his door. He was quickly swarmed by several uniformed policemen offering information he did not ask for and at a pace he did not appreciate.

"Everybody" he announced to the crowd, "fuck off."

"You" he commanded as he pointed a finger at one of the frantic patrolman, " Come with me and the rest of you ....the rest of you just stay out of the way."

Jackie and the patrolman started walking towards the taxi which had run up over the curb and rested it's front tires on what was left of a hot dog cart.

"So what do we know so far?" Jackie asked the officer.

"Well not much, the cab was driven by an illegal who doesn't seem to understand much English. He is over there." The young lawman pointed to a man pacing the opposite sidewalk as other detectives attempt to calm him. He was rambling in some foreign language and throwing his hands in the air and then quickly bringing them down with a horrific squeal.

"Any witnesses?" Jackie inquired while straightening out a bend cigrette he had fished out of his coat pocket.

"A couple, but they aren't much help yet." The officer answered with a hesitant tone.

"Yet?" Jackie said as they neared the rear bumper of the disabled cab.

"They don't speak English sir"

"Well Columbo, what the fuck do they speak ?" Jackie asked as he examined the pavement leading up to the taxi.

The nervous cop looked confused. "They are Oriental, I am not sure if they are Japanese or Korean or Chinese"

"We are a block away from Chinatown, do you think the odds are that they are Chinese, or maybe they are Mongolian?". Jackie was starting to get annoyed with the young cop. "Go find me a Chinaman so we can question the witnesses"

The patrolman froze for a second before heading down the street. Jackie observed the the short, dark skid marks leading up to the cabs tires. He stepped up on the sidewalk and over a red high heeled shoe as he made his way to the front of the car. As he rounded the left fender he was greeted by a grizzly scene. Blood was covering the street and has splashed up on the curb and hot dog cart. Jackie's flashlight followed the trail of the blood in what seemed like every direction. Red splatter marks were found from the sidewalk, across to the middle of the street and back to where Jackie had first noticed the skid marks.

Having made his way completely around the cab but not having seen the victim yet, Jackie leaned back against a patrol car and fished another cigarette out of his pocket and lit it up. He motioned for the driver of the police car to turn his lights on commanded him to back the vehicle up. The fresh light revealed even more blood in the street and Jackie knew right away that this woman under the car wasn't killed by the taxi, she was dead from the fall.