Garbage Gold
Garbage Gold
Clyde Quintos is a computer hacker who once tried ‘Identification theft’ and stole more than 5000$ from his effort. Then he heard that someone named Rolly Valero was trying to sell ‘contacts’—names of people and their credit account numbers.
Most people are careless with what they throw as trash. And most people throw mails and receipts from banks and companies in the garbage—not burn or shred them. And that’s how Rolly ‘RV’ Valero collects his ‘contacts’ or ‘hit list’—through garbage!
CQ will buy RV’s ‘hit list’ tonight.
But Rolly was having a fierce quarrel with his girl (milking cow is more precise).
‘I’m paying for all our expenses and now you’ll even put me into debt!’ Sally screamed. Rolly made a blunder by showing his ‘hit list’ as proof of his labor. Sally grabbed it and said, ’I don’t trust you no more! I can sell this myself.’
‘Hey! You don’t have to do that! I’ve got someone buying that tonight all ready!’ Rolly shouted back.
But Sally was already outside slamming the door.
Sally bakes and sells home-made cookies and pastries and Sam Maceda is her number one customer. Sam is 75 and was beginning to have amnesia. He was driving when he decided to stop by Sally’s favorite hang-out—the Sunshine Café.
After Sally left the apartment, Rolly was roughed-up by two thugs from whom he owed gambling debts.
‘I’ve got a hit list someone’s buying from me at nine tonight. If I could just get it from my girl, I’ll give it to you. Worth at least 20 grands.’ Rolly explained to the two.
‘Orright,’ Al Garcia growled. ‘Show us the girl with the list.’ He turned to his partner. ‘That okay?’
‘Beats waiting.’ Benny ‘BA’ Amante said with a shrug.
They saw Sally walking towards Sunshine and followed her.
But she went inside the big mall that the Sunshine cafe occupies and they lost her.
‘My buyer’s waiting for me in a nearby restaurant. You should let me talk to him before he leaves.’ Rolly told the thugs.
‘Go with him and watch them,’ Al said to his partner. ‘I’ll stay here and maybe spot Sally.’
Clyde saw Rolly arguing with the guard outside the door. He stood up and walked toward them.
‘Something wrong?’ He asked.
‘This man is insisting to go inside sir.’ The guard said.
‘I’ts okay. I know him. You can leave us pal.’ Clyde told him. The guard left.
‘My girl ran off with the list.’ RV said. ‘I have to get it from her. But I have to find her first.’
‘So find her.’
‘Ahh…you see it got complicated. That guy out there—Sally owes him a lot of money’ He lied. ‘ He’s the one who bruised my face and now he wants the list for himself.’
‘Does he have a piece?’
‘A 38. That’s the big dude in a dark jacket.’
‘Wait here. When the guard takes him away, go and find your girl.’
‘Sure.’
Clyde walked toward a guard and talked to him for a few seconds. Then the guard approached Benny. They talked for a while than the guard patted BA down, took BA’s gun, then handcuffed him and took him away.
Sam Maceda was trying to look for Sally outside the mall. He was on the big parking area of the mall now when he saw a guard coming.
‘Looking for something sir?’ The guard asked.
‘Yes. I’m just hoping a friend of mine might be around here. She frequents Sunshine at this time a lot.’
The guard was thinking. The name on his badge said Figuerra.
‘Well, I hope you see her sir.’ The guard walked away.
Sam decided to look around a minute more then went back for his car. He was on a deserted area of the parking lot when he tripped over something. He looked down and saw it was Sally.
‘Sally! What happened?!’ He said aloud.
No answer.
‘Sally?’ Then he saw the blood on her chest. He reached and felt for her pulse. No beating. He saw a piece of paper beside her and picked it up and pocketed it. It might be important to her relatives. Then he heard someone shouting.
‘Hey! What happened?!’ He was a young employee at the mall.
Sam just kept staring at Sally. Then he said,’Get the police.’
An officer of the Las Palmas PD arrived and told the crowd to keep away from the crime scene. A mall guard went near the cop and asked him,’Need help?’
‘Not really. Do I know you?’
‘Mel Figuerra. Moonlighting here. I’m with the LP traffic department.’
‘Then you can help secure the area. Thanks.’
Mr. Maceda was taken to the LPPD station for questioning. Detective Joe Picasso interviewed him for about twenty minutes. Then he was allowed to go. Sam forgot to show him the piece of paper he took near the body of Sally.
Back home, Sam was