Painted On My Heart

“You haven’t seen him at all?” one of the officers asked. “This is his last known address.”

“No, sir, not really. I got a call a few nights ago and I picked him up, brought him back here, but he took off the next morning. I’ve had some stuff stolen since then. The neighbor said she saw John carrying things out. But I called that in,” Kellus informed the officers, crossing his arms over his chest.

“And where were you called to pick him up?”

Kellus had a moment of indecision. Old habits were hard to break and answering something like that implicated a whole lot of people. All bad people. All the same ones John needed in order to continue his current lifestyle, but there would be a shit ton of drama to fall down on Kellus if they ever learned who’d reported them.

“John’s got some problems. He’s not doing well. The call came from a place over on Harris Street,” he answered, hoping that would be enough to look like he’d cooperated and help move the questioning along.

The uniformed officers exchanged a look before the taller of the two men turned back to him. “Was it the Raul Avino residence?”

“Yes, I believe so. At least that’s who I believe called. What’s going on?”

“Can we come in?” Wanda asked politely, except it wasn’t truly a question. He took a step to the side, opening the door wider as they came inside.

“I guess. If you’ll tell me what’s going on,” he replied, shutting the door behind them. They moved as a pack, only entering as far as the entryway. One of the officers took a step away from the others and quickly scanned the inside of his home. Their presence seemed to shrink his house.

“Mr. Avino was arrested this morning. We just need to ask John a few questions,” the uniformed officer explained.

Wanda shook her head and exhaled heavily. “We’re here for different reasons, and both are very important. It seems John has a lot to answer for. Our records indicate he hasn’t shown for his last few appointments. Do you know if he’s taken his medication?” she asked directly.

“I’m not sure. Everything that I know he’d been prescribed was untouched and here in my home until a few days ago. I’m assuming he’s the one who stole my phone. The medication was gone along with my van’s radio and battery. It happened in the middle of the night,” Kellus answered honestly. Worry began to outweigh anything else.

“Are you aware of his lifestyle?” one of the uniformed officers asked, pulling out a small notebook and jotting down some notes.

“Only enough to know he’s an addict.” There, he’d said it. A small amount of weight lifted from his chest. He’d covered for John for too long.

A heavy silence hung in the air until the officer completed his notes and tucked the spiral back inside his front pocket.

“If you see him, please tell him I need to speak with him. It’s urgent,” Wanda said, reaching in the front pocket of her neatly tailored suit coat and pulling out a business card. The officer who’d taken the notes did the same. Kellus took both cards, his gaze dropping down to the dark embossed lettering, but his thoughts were stuck on wondering what the hell John had done now. It was one thing to sell himself for drugs, that only hurt him… His course of thought changed. The bigger picture started to become apparent.

Fuck.

Clearly, this woman must have some proof John was infecting others. That had to be it. This wasn’t a visit implicating John in the robberies as much as a possible public health issue that had John in the dead center. Shit.

“I will. I doubt I’ll see him for a while. There’s nothing left for him to take from me, but I’ll call if I hear from him,” Kellus promised. The John of his youth, the one he’d loved so deeply, would never have hurt another. A sobering, painful thought hit him like a ton of bricks.

But he did it to you.

“Did you report that robbery?” the second officer asked, placing his thumbs on his belt as he spoke.

“I reported the first one this week. Not the one that happened the night before last. I’ve been busy with work,” he said, his head spinning from the callousness of John’s actions. God, John could be destroying more lives than just his and Kellus’s.

“I can’t stress to you how important this is. We’re actively searching for him. We’ll find him, but please notify us immediately if he turns up here again,” the officer stated firmly.

“I understand. Can you tell me more specifically what’s going on?” he probed, hoping for more answers.

“No, we can’t. It’s an open investigation. Just call us if you see him.” Since they hadn’t made it any farther into the house than the foyer, they could leave rather quickly without a backward glance as he stared at the cards in his hand.