《The Little Girl on The Bike- Mystery Contest Short Story WINNER》 The Little Girl on The Bike- Chapter 1- Secrets New York Post Headline "Riverdale Lawyer Killed in Mugging- Prominent Bronx attorney, David Golden was killed near his Riverdale home last night in what police believe was a mugging gone wrong...¡± ¡°Mugging gone wrong? That¡¯s bullshit! No one gets mugged in Riverdale!¡± Oscar blurted while riding his road racer bicycle through Van Cortlandt park. Still, his mind went back to the article he read in the park¡¯s cafeteria...shot point blank... Oscar knew the victim David Golden. They had a meeting a week ago and now someone killed him. This was no mugging. Lost in the crime Oscar failed to see the red blur rolling up fast behind him, until. Crash! ¡°Hey, what the hell?¡± he yelled at the red blur that smashed into his racer. ¡°The hell nothin! You slowed down too fast, man!¡± the crashing female offender yelled back. When Oscar faced the crasher he saw that everything about her was wrong. First, she was a little girl, maybe eleven, and she rode a beautiful red Low Rider bicycle, L.A. Chicano style. Second, she was dressed wrong in a too short black school skirt, boots and a white top. Not clothes for outdoor bike riding or for a pre-teen girl. Then Oscar remembered he¡¯d seen this girl before. In the park cafeteria earlier where she¡¯d spilled a whole tray of food on some dude! What a ditz! He let her know. ¡°You¡¯re that clumsy girl that made a scene in the cafeteria earlier!" ¡°Huh? You saw that? So you know it¡¯s been a rough morning for me! Could be rough for you too, Oscar Delgado!¡± she said his full name. ¡°Excuse me? How do you know my name?" ¡°Eh? The same reason I chased you up this hill!¡± she showed a black leather wallet, ¡°Because you left your wallet in the cafeteria!¡± ¡°I did?¡± ¡°Sure you did!" she pulled his license, "Oscar Delgado, born 1992-" Surprised, he took the wallet from her with a, ¡°Thank you, I appreciate you fin-¡± ¡°No problem, that¡¯s a cool bike you got there, what is it? A twenty speed?¡± she asked. ¡°Twenty seven speed,¡± he answered. ¡°Oh, excuse me! I ride a fixed gear, see!¡± showing her hip bike. Oscar admired the girl¡¯s Low Rider. He''d never seen one before. But it wasn¡¯t just the bike, it was her. The pre-teen was distractingly pretty. A slim Chicana, with a budding figure and long black hair that she whipped backward while speaking to him. He knew she''d be a knockout by seventeen, and still be jailbait. He kept the conversation civil. ¡°That¡¯s a cool Low Rider you got! But, um, you should buy riding gear for-¡± ¡°Why? You don''t like my look?" She cut him off, pigeon toed her feet and posed her legs for him. Oscar gulped and evaded her. ¡°You look fine, but either way I have to go. Thank you for finding my wallet, and nice meeting you!¡± Oscar rode away from the girl. She chased after him. ¡°Hey wait! You didn¡¯t meet me, you didn¡¯t even ask my name, hey slow down!¡± He didn¡¯t slow down, and he didn¡¯t want to know her name, but she persisted. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!¡°You can go faster than me, but I know you¡¯re going to that secret bike trail, so you may as well show it to me because I want to see the view and my name is Kira! So now you know me! Hee!¡± ¡°What a strange girl!¡± he laughed to himself. A girl like this out here, was she lonely or just weird? Whatever. Oscar switched gears and took off, leaving the girl a mile behind and out of sight. Secrets and Silence Oscar rode to the secret bike trail the girl mentioned and surveyed all of New York City from the hilltop. A beautiful view. He chuckled at how he ditched the little girl but then his mind locked on David Golden''s murder. ''Stop being paranoid!'' he chided himself. Then, from the path. ¡°Hey! You thought you lost me? Well you didn¡¯t! I said you could go faster, but I¡¯d find you, heh!¡± The little girl? How''d she find him? He was sure he lost her, but somehow she tracked him to the viewpoint. Impressed, he smiled and helped her up the trail. ¡°You¡¯re a tough kid, how did you find me? I left you at-" ¡°Wow! So beautiful!¡± she scanned the city skyline. ¡°Oh! Yes it is, but you should see it at night, the whole city lights up!¡± he added. ¡°Really?" she faced him, "Would you bring me here at night?¡± ¡°Uhh...well...you don¡¯t have to come with me, you know the route now. But don¡¯t tell everyone about this place!¡± he evaded. ¡°Why? Because it¡¯s our secret?¡± Oscar, caught off guard answered cautiously, ¡°No, not a secret, we just don¡¯t want everyone up here ruining the spot. The rarity makes it special.¡± ¡°Hunh...I hear you, don¡¯t worry biker-boy, I won¡¯t tell anyone if you don¡¯t!¡± Kira smiled, cleared her raven black hair from her eyes and viewed the skyline. Oscar glanced at Kira¡¯s lean tanned legs and slim body and again noted how pretty she was. And how much she carried herself like a woman. ¡°Is your mom ok with you coming out here like this?¡± he asked. ¡°You mean out here with creepy old men? Heh heh, nah don¡¯t worry about her, she¡¯s a libertine. I do what I want, or what I¡¯m told, depends on my mood!¡± Oscar forgot about David Golden and all thoughts of death. For now the enigmatic Kira distracted him. A pre-teen he couldn¡¯t figure out. And she demanded things. ¡°Pinkberry! There¡¯s one at the next park exit, and I know you have sixty dollars in your wallet. I know cause I looked!¡± she extorted. ¡°What a mean little girl you are! I suppose I don¡¯t have a choice do I?¡± ¡°Not true. If you choose to take me to Pinkberry it¡¯s because you want to, and I know you want to!¡± she smiled. ¡°How do you know what I want?¡± ¡°Cuz you look like a blueberry man, yum! Come on Oscar Delgado let¡¯s go already!¡± She grabbed his arm and bullied him into frozen yogurt. Oscar didn¡¯t mind, but as an adult he felt he shouldn¡¯t enjoy Kira¡¯s company too much. But he did enjoy it, a lot. And he did want to take her. No, bad choice of words. Rather, he wanted to buy frozen yogurt for Kira at Pinkberry. There, a better choice of words for his non-creepy psyche. The little Girl on The Bike- Chapter 2- Baby Doll Hello ¡°Dude, what¡¯s wrong with you?¡± Oscar moaned while riding to his apartment. He just took an eleven year old girl out for frozen yogurt and totally enjoyed her company. Now he kept thinking about her, and that pissed him off, until he opened his apartment door. Slam! Oscar jumped hearing his bedroom door slam in the back of the apartment. Either the wind knocked the door closed or someone was in the room. Oscar crept to the back turning on every light he could. He opened his bedroom door and his heartbeat skipped when he saw...no one. His window was cracked, it was just the wind. ¡°Stop being paranoid, nobody cares about you!¡± he told himself and shut the window. Shaking, he searched his apartment for anything missing. His laptop, flat screen and microwave were all still there. ¡°Dude, calm down, you¡¯re overthinking this." The truth was if someone were to pay a visit to Oscar, David Golden was the man Oscar called. But David was dead, and Oscar couldn''t talk to the police. Who could he call now? He scrolled through his phone numbers trying to think when. Brrrng! ¡°Jesus!¡± he yelled at his ringing phone and didn¡¯t recognize the number. A 307 area code. ¡°Wyoming?¡± he blurted before answering with a tepid, ¡°Hello?¡± and silence. ¡°Hey biker-boy, it¡¯s me Kira! What are you doing right now?¡± ¡°Kira? I didn¡¯t give you my phone number.¡± ¡°Oh no? Check your wallet. You have a stack of business cards with your work and mobile number on em, Mr. I.T. and development specialist!¡± Oscar didn¡¯t argue the nuance of her stealing the business card from his wallet, he just answered her. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± He didn¡¯t mean that but she was ready. ¡°You can get dressed and meet me at the Met Museum at 1pm. Remember I told you I have independent study classes? One is a museum project.¡± ¡°Right, you told me that but, Kira, I don¡¯t think I should be going with you to places like that!¡± ¡°Places like what? It¡¯s a public museum!¡± ¡°And you¡¯re a little kid! Your parents need to take you there, not me. Now, it was nice meeting you today. If I see you at the park I¡¯ll say hello to you, ok?¡± Kira didn¡¯t respond. Oscar had to ask her, ¡°Are you still there?¡± ¡°I¡¯m still here¡­but I won¡¯t go to the museum because I don¡¯t have anyone to go with and you said you were off today, and I know it¡¯s my fault for calling you last minute and all but I thought you were cooler than that, so nevermind goodbye!¡± Click! She hung up on him, ¡°Hello? Kira, tch! Child!¡± Oscar felt heartsick. A beautiful Saturday and he was lonely with no plans and rattled by David''s death more than he cared to admit. Oscar thought about Kira and after a hesitation he called her back. She answered on the first ring. ¡°Hello? Don''t call me back because you feel bad! I don¡¯t need your pity!¡± she pouted. ¡°(Sigh) I will be on the museum steps by 1 pm. If you¡¯re there, you¡¯re there, if you¡¯re not-¡± ¡°Yay! I¡¯ll be there biker-boy, you have to help me with my assignment! And don¡¯t worry about anyone bothering us, I¡¯ll protect you!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Click!¡± Kira hung up. Oscar knew Kira was trouble, but he figured, ''Better the devil you know,'' than sit in this apartment all day and freak out. The Met Oscar arrived at the large staircase at the Metropolitan Museum of Art before 1pm. He wore designer jeans and a blazer, handsome fella. His date arrived earlier and waited for him on the steps. When Oscar saw Kira he confirmed that he was an idiot, and that she was pure trouble. ¡°Hi Oscar Delgado! I just got here!¡± ¡°Hi, I thought you said this was a school assignment?¡± ¡°Eh? It is, sort of, why?¡± ¡°Kira, that baby doll dress you''re wearing-" "It''s so cute, right?" she spun around showing the dress. "Cute? It''s barely there!" he whispered, "I can see your panties!" Kira didn''t care, ¡°Oh stop, like you don''t want to see my panties, you perv! heh heh! Now if you''re done crying let''s go!¡± If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Kira grabbed Oscar¡¯s arm like she was his girlfriend. He politely asked her not to do that. She flat out ignored him, and walked into the museum on his arm. Glare After some time in the Met Kira stopped clinging to Oscar and enjoyed the exhibits, photographing her favorites. Oscar, relieved, let her be and turned away from her to view a sculpture. That¡¯s when he saw the bald bearded man. The man moved behind a corner and out of Oscar¡¯s eyesight so fast there was no way anyone would¡¯ve recognized him. But Oscar recognized him because Oscar was paranoid. This man was part of a crew that did business with David Golden, the dead attorney. Oscar was in on this business since he designed transfer software for David. That software, no doubt, now in the hands of the bald bearded man Oscar just saw. ''Why is he here? Is he following me?'' Oscar¡¯s mind raced. He thought he should go to the police, but if he did he¡¯d incriminate himself and...this was bad. Worse, Oscar put Kira in danger. ¡°Kira?¡± he half yelled and spun around. She wasn¡¯t in the exhibit room,¡°Oh no!¡± Oscar hurried to where he last saw her and panicked, not there. He searched the whole floor for Kira, but couldn¡¯t yell her name, or ask a guard about her, that''d be weird. Out of options he walked down one floor and into a dim lit wing with Qin dynasty vases. And there he was again. The bald bearded man. Oscar and the man''s eyes met and the man hurried out of the exhibit. He walked fast wearing his jacket tight as if hiding something in his waist. Something he didn¡¯t want falling out. Oscar wanted to chase the man, grab him and ask him why he was here, and if he wanted Oscar dead. But when Oscar stepped forward he saw a small spot on the white tile floor. Blood. ¡°He just killed someone!¡± Oscar blurted. ¡°Who killed someone?¡± asked Kira, drying her hands with a paper towel. ¡°Kira? Where were you, I couldn¡¯t-¡± ¡°You couldn¡¯t find me? So were you looking for me cause you missed me? Heh heh!¡± Relieved, Oscar gave her grief, ¡°No, I mean you shouldn¡¯t run off like that, I was worried!¡± ¡°Aww, I¡¯m sorry, I had to go to the little girl¡¯s room! Ha, see what I did there? You always calling me a little girl!¡± ¡°You are a little girl, and um, is it alright if I leave you here? I really have to go.¡± Oscar didn¡¯t want to leave Kira but he knew he put her in danger. She didn''t buy it. ¡°Eh? But we just got here?¡± she asked. ¡°I know, but...it¡¯s complicated,¡± he responded. ¡°Complicated? That¡¯s what guys with girlfriends say. Are you going to meet another girl?¡± ¡°What? No! Nothing like that, and even if I was that¡¯s none of your business?¡± ¡°Oh, none of my business? Well you¡¯re rude, and I¡¯m sure she would want know you¡¯re out here with me, hmph!¡± The absurdity of Kira¡¯s outburst was not lost on Oscar. But playing along was easier than explaining. ¡°Kira, you¡¯re totally making a scene. Be cool and hear me out.¡± ¡°Save it, I¡¯m leaving! Go be with your girlfriend!¡± Kira pouted and stormed off like a proper adolescent. Oscar half chased her, ¡°Kira..Kira wait!¡± But the pre-teen hurried down the stairs and out of sight. Oscar felt heartbroken seeing her leave, but he gave up his chase knowing he looked ridiculous. Then he did the only thing he could, he laughed. ¡°Ha ha, I mean, seriously. Everything happening to me I deserve and I know it, heh heh!¡± It hurt when he laughed. Red and Blue Leaving via the staircase Oscar found another spot of blood on the floor. Then another spot after that. ¡°Kira walked down these steps,¡± he said scanning around, but he didn¡¯t see her. When Oscar left the museum he walked two blocks into a commotion of onlookers and police everywhere. Expecting a pedestrian accident, he hurried to rubberneck. But when he walked closer to the crowd he saw the truth. ¡°You¡¯re shitting me!¡± There he was, the bald bearded man laying sideways on the street corner. His shirt soaked in blood, eyes half open, dead. Onlookers said he collapsed on the sidewalk and when someone tried to help him he bled out from three, very deep, stab wounds near his heart and gut. Oscar stared at the soulless body of the man he once feared then fled the scene. He certainly didn''t want to talk to the cops, or be on the five o¡¯clock news. The Little Girl on The Bike- Chapter 3- Sundown The Note ¡°Breaking news tonight as police say the man stabbed just blocks from the Met was Henry Meclaz. Meclaz was wanted for questioning in the death of businessman Walter Stacco. Stacco was under indictment for..." Henry? The bald bearded man¡¯s name was Henry? Oscar watched the news in his kitchen. This man Henry Meclaz was dead, but his partner..his partner..Oscar didn¡¯t remember his name. ¡°Police are searching for Meclaz¡¯s associate Gavril Boyen, also wanted in connection..¡± Gavril. That was his name. The man who threatened David that day after David gave Oscar.. Brring! Oscar¡¯s phone rang. 732 area code, New Jersey. Oscar didn¡¯t recognize the number, Brring! ¡°Hello?¡± Silence on the line, Click! The caller hung up. Bad omen. Oscar knew he was still in trouble, as long as.. Shuffle! Shuffle! Oscar peaked out the kitchen and saw a restaurant menu slide under his apartment door. No, there was a typed note on the menu. Sundown viewpoint bring the money i have girl no tricks Oscar only read, ''I have girl,'' and the fear he felt mixed with rage. ¡°Shit!¡± he yelled, knowing this was the bald man¡¯s partner, Gavril. Oscar kicked himself for being so stupid then dialed Kira''s number. ¡°...The person you are trying to reach-¡± Click! It kept going to voicemail. Oscar steeled himself. He''d always said if something went wrong he''d just give up the money. Especially since he never wanted any part of David¡¯s scam with these men in the first place, and now David was dead. ''Be cool, the cops are looking for this Gavril guy. He won¡¯t kill Kira or me. He just wants the money so he can skip town.'' he reasoned. Oscar opened a floor vent in his bedroom and pulled out a duffel bag filled with half a million dollars. Half of that money belonged to the late David Golden. Oscar was just holding it. He zipped the bag with confidence believing Kira would be safe and all of this would go away if he just gave Gavril this money. And for added peace of mind Oscar dug out a black starter pistol used for road racing. In his hand the pistol gleamed like a .38 snub nose. But the starter pistol only fired blank rounds. If anything Oscar would use it to threaten. He hoped. Brring! His phone rang again. Again it was the 732 number. ¡°Hello?¡± Silence, before,¡°Oscar? Oscar! He-¡± Click! ¡°Kira? Kira! Fuck!¡± That was Kira, she was in trouble. Oscar¡¯s rage took over his reason. He didn¡¯t care about the money, he had to help Kira. He grabbed the duffle bag and took off. There was still sunlight, he had time. The Drop Off Six pm, Oscar rode hard past the closed cafeteria in the park and up the main trail. Most of the bikers were gone for the day. By the time he reached the secret trail he hadn''t seen a soul in a mile. ''Gavril could kill the both of us out here and no one would know!'' Oscar feared and gripped the blank gun in his pocket. A move from anyone and he''d pull it out. He reached the top of the secret trail and found no one there. When he glanced at the city skyline, he heard it. Click! Clack! Oscar swung to his left with his pistol out, and froze. Someone faced him wearing all black military fatigues, head to toe, and a black scarf covering their mouth. In their hand, a long black rifle with a blade at the end of the barrel. A bayonet. And Oscar recognized this person. ¡°Kira?¡± Oscar couldn¡¯t see her face behind the mask, but it was her. She raised the rifle in her hand and aimed it at Oscar, and laughed an evil laugh as she spoke. ¡°Hee hee, I knew you''d come here!¡± Oscar stumbled backward pleading, ¡°Kira!¡± Fwap! She fired the rifle at Oscar. The loud shot forced Oscar to drop down and shoot his starter pistol, Bang! When Oscar hit the ground he heard a scream behind him, a man. Kira shot a man, not Oscar. Stunned, Oscar watched Kira run toward the man shouting obscenities at him. ¡°Oh buddy you fucked up!¡± The man Kira shot dropped a large handgun and bled from his left hand. With his right hand he pulled a long curved blade from his belt and sliced at the oncoming Kira who evaded his attack, and laughed at him, "Ha! Are you serious?" When the man swung the blade again, Oscar recognized his face. It was Gavril Boyen, the man who threatened David that day. And right now Gavril appeared outmatched. Kira swung her rifle barrel down like a baseball bat, slicing Gavril¡¯s knife hand with her bayonet. Gavril screamed, but full of adrenaline he held on to his knife and swung at her again. Kira sidestepped his swing and struck him on his chin with a hard rifle butt knocking him to the ground. Gavril gaped at his attacker, and so did Oscar as Oscar could clearly see that Kira was a killer from the way she moved, her precision, and her brutality. ¡°Please!¡± Gavril cried for mercy. The assailant showed none. With blitz speed Kira thrust her rifle bayonet into Gavril¡¯s chest. He gurgled in pain, and Kira spoke. ¡°You pissed off a lot of people you fucking dead man!¡± She pulled the bayonet out of Gavril''s body and thrust it into his neck. His dying eyes stared at Kira as his mouth coughed blood. Oscar witnessed all of this and knew, she¡¯s done this before! Oscar¡¯s mind told his body to, ''Run! Just run and get away from here.'' But not fast enough. Kira swung her body and rifle around three hundred sixty degrees and sliced her bayonet blade down across Gavril¡¯s face. Cutting him open from temple to chin, on purpose. She then turned to Oscar, and smiled under her mask. ¡°Heh!¡± Oscar, seeing murder in Kira¡¯s eyes, jumped from the forest floor and ran for his bicycle, his sanity and his life. The child assailant saw him run and let out a half hearted, ¡°Hey!¡± but Oscar took off. He straddled his bike and rode as fast as he could toward the main road. He left everything behind, the money, the starter pistol and the murdered man. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Dream Oscar never looked back and rode straight to his apartment. Once inside he cut off all the lights, closed his blinds and remembered what he saw. She sliced him like an animal. Oscar¡¯s stomach jittered when he remembered the rifle blade thrust into Gavril¡¯s neck. Nausea and dizziness swept over him and he couldn¡¯t hold it back. With his hand over his mouth he ran to the toilet and let it go! ¡°Huaaagh! Ughh!...Oh god!¡± his stomach empty. ¡°Gross, you finished?¡± said her voice. Oscar backed up on his butt and saw Kira standing in his bathroom doorway. ¡°How the hell did you get in here?¡± he yelled and she answered, ¡°You should flush the toilet.¡± She walked from the bathroom to his living room. Oscar cleaned himself off, flushed the toilet, and chased after her. ¡°Kira?¡± She stood holding his duffle bag and starter pistol. ¡°You dropped all of this in the woods, figured you wanted it back,¡± she said. He glanced at the bag and focused on her. A million questions popped in his head. What is really going on? What happened today? Who killed the bearded man? And most important. ¡°Are you here to kill me?¡± Oscar whispered the question. Kira smiled and answered. ¡°Oscar, what you did with that dead lawyer to get the money in that bag...your money...I advise you never do anything like that again,¡± she said and continued. ¡°I know you have questions. But I won¡¯t answer them. So whatever theory or idea you come up with for what you think happened today¡­will be your answer. But it won¡¯t matter if it¡¯s right or wrong because nothing happened today. And no one will believe you if you say different.¡± Oscar had no intention of defying her, but he pointed out, ¡°Yeah? So who¡¯s going to explain that dead man you killed in the park?¡± ¡°Dead man in the park? I didn¡¯t kill anyone in the park. And if someone did die I''d think there''d be a body. I didn¡¯t see one. The only thing I saw was your bag of money, and your toy gun.¡± She dropped the bag and pistol at his feet and added. ¡°But then again, I¡¯m just a figment of your imagination anyway, haha!¡± she laughed. Oscar, out of his league, dropped all reason and logic and asked from the heart. ¡°Kira...today...with me...was I just..?¡± She knew what he wanted to ask, but he wouldn¡¯t say out loud, but she did. ¡°Oi, biker-boy, thinking about me like that could get you life in prison you creepy pedo, heh, heh! But to answer your question.¡± She tip-toed up to his face and whispered, ¡°I told you I¡¯d protect you.¡± Lost in her eyes he wanted to touch her, and he did, her face. A gesture to see if he was dreaming. He wasn¡¯t. Kira removed his hand and turned to leave. Oscar asked her a last question. ¡°Kira?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Who are you...really?¡± Kira smiled with her back toward him, turned her head sideways, and answered. ¡°One day you¡¯ll figure it out!¡± She giggled a little girl giggle and gave a final, ¡°Goodbye, biker-boy!¡± and left, slamming his apartment door shut behind her. Oscar sat on his couch staring at the door in silence. He wished he could sit there forever, not moving, not doing anything till the end of days. But no man is safe from the march of time. The hours went by in Oscar¡¯s apartment. That Saturday passed and turned to Sunday, and soon the following days would turn to weeks, then years. In those years Oscar grew as a person, and invested that money wisely. But he never forgot what happened the day he met the little girl on the bike. And he still wanted a straight answer for his last question. ¡°Who are you?¡± And to see her again. Just once. Just for a moment. That was all he wanted. Then he remembered her last words... ¡°...One day you¡¯ll figure it out..¡± And he laughed knowing what she really meant when she said those words. And whatever it was that she meant, he kept it to himself. As for what happened next to the little girl on the red bike...who knows. Because after that day... he never saw her again... -