Deadly Treatment by David McLeod Page A

around the corner doing my thing, and I heard sirens coming my way. I thought it was Five O, so I ditched my markers and got out of there. I ducked down the alley and came out round there.’ He was pointing towards an alleyway behind where the cars had parked.
    ‘Funny thing was, I ran straight into the sirens. Lucky for me it was the LAFD fire trucks that were making all the noise. That warehouse was burnin’ hotter n hell.’ He was nodding towards a burnt and blackened building.
    ‘And where was the bike?’ Erin asked, trying to catch him out as he told the story.
    ‘I told you, it was here, right in front of me. It was just lying there, with no-one around it. I was spooked. I didn’t stop to see if anyone owned it, just grabbed it and rode off.’
    ‘Where was my son? Did you see him?’ she asked.
    ‘Nah lady. As I jammed outta there, I looked back to see if anyone had spotted me taking it, but it was mostly the FD and a couple of onlookers, definitely no kids.’
    ‘So, you’re telling me that Joshua’s bike was here, but he was nowhere to be seen — that’s Bullshit!’
    She moved towards him. ‘Why don’t you tell me what really happened. The cops were after you for spraying your crap on some wall around there, and you went rabbit. You came round here, spotted Joshua on his bike, and stole it from him. You’re just a fucking cowardly vandal that mugged my son for his bike. Now, what did you do to him?’ she yelled as she grabbed him by the hood.
    ‘Get the fuck off me lady! I’m telling you the truth.’ His voice was shaking.
    Malone jumped in and broke her grip on the boy.
    ‘Let’s all just calm down,’ he said as he moved her to one side.
    The detective spoke up. ‘Let me jump on the radio and get some time stamps on when the LAFD got here.’ He turned his attention to the kid; ‘In the meantime, you tell these good folks what time you were here — and for your sake, it had better be the same.’
     

Chapter 15
     

     
    A rriving in San Francisco in the early evening, Daniel took a bus to the city and found a cheap hotel near the city center and only a few blocks away from the Sacred Mary School. Despite it now being a Catholic school, Daniel still called it an orphanage, because to him, that’s what the place represented.
    It had been quite a while since he’d been in the city, so once he’d checked in and dropped off his bag, Daniel decided it was time to take a tour and see some of the sights. ‘What better than grabbing the tram?’ he said to himself as he came out of the hotel.
    The SF trams still filled him with joy and a little wonder. He’d been told the burgundy, red, and golden carriages were powered by cables that continually ran under the ground around the city. The drivers effectively used some form of clamping mechanism to grab hold of the cable and drag the tram up and down the steep hills of the city. Daniel didn’t know if this was true or not, and to be honest didn’t care; all he knew was that the sawdust smell of the wooden brakes burning against the rails and the clanging of the big brass bells always brought a smile to his face.
    His muddled and impromptu tour took him all around the main streets of the city, and as he hung off the carriage at the top of the city, his eyes followed the long straight tram lines down the hill to the wharf and out to the Bay where Alcatraz floated near the backdrop of the Golden Gate bridge, it was an awesome sight. Having eaten at the wharf, he made his way back to the hotel where, with the window open, he went to sleep filled with the sounds and smells of the city.
    The next day, Daniel awoke early and checked out of the hotel. After grabbing a quick breakfast from a small café, he walked the couple of blocks to the orphanage. Standing outside for a moment, he took a deep breath and then pushed open the door to the building.
    Ever since the letter had arrived, his dreams and thoughts had been flooded with his past, and in