The Light on Halsey Street by Vanessa Miller

Author:Vanessa Miller
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Published: 2023-09-05T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 22

Lisa had reached out to the officer assigned to her case at least once a week since she reported the crime. Early on, he assured her he was chasing down a lead, but since then, she’d left him message after message with no response. So today, as she walked the blocks passing out flyers encouraging constituents to vote for her in the special election that was now twenty-eight days away, she made her way up Tompkins Avenue.

Lisa walked eight blocks, bumping into residents and shaking hands.

“Hey, Mr. Walker. How has Mrs. Lois been doing?” she asked as he stepped out of the bodega.

He took the cigarette out of his mouth. Let it swing in his left hand. “She’s still mean as a rattlesnake. Don’t get too close or she’ll bite you.”

“Not funny. Your wife is the sweetest woman in Brooklyn.”

“Yeah.” He coughed. “Sweet enough to put up with me for thirty years.”

“Tell her I’m running for city council and I would appreciate your votes.”

As she continued down the street, passing out flyers and listening to the concerns of neighbors, Lisa made her way to her destination—the 79th Precinct. She entered the building, asked to speak with Officer Roberts, and then waited to be escorted to his desk. Officer Roberts was a little taller than Lisa—she guessed he was about five feet seven. His hair was in that awkward stage—bald on the top but hair on the sides and the back of his head. Lisa wondered why men didn’t shave the whole head when it was like this. But it wasn’t her business, so she let the thought drift away.

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Coleman. Please have a seat.”

“Thank you, I will.” She sat down in the chair next to his desk.

“I have received all your messages, and I am working on your case,” he told her.

“Officer Roberts, I’m sure you have a ton of work on your plate and my issue might not seem like a big deal to you, but it is to me.”

He lifted a hand. “We don’t operate in that manner at this precinct. Identity theft is a crime just as if the criminal broke into your house and stole your television.”

“How can we get some resolution?”

“I don’t have any news to share with you yet, but I think we’re going to find this person.”

“Good, this has brought great hardship on me and my family. I lost a very prestigious position with Liberty Advocates. I lost out on the ability to buy my father’s brownstone, and he now has to delay his dream of moving to Florida.”

“I get it. Someone misused your credit, but—”

“I’m working temp assignments. My new job retracted their employment offer after learning about my credit history and my old job had already hired my replacement.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. “Imagine how you would feel if you had worked hard all your life to pay your bills and earn a good name only to discover someone had snatched it away from you.

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