Walking a Fine Line: Day 14

Word Count: 84,029

Summary of Events:

To Joseph's disappointment, he found no money and no jewellery that suggested Mr. Varley to be guilty, only the photos that attested to Mr. Varley's being Charlie McElligott, just as he'd claimed, and likely to be innocent, although the fact that Joseph had found one of the stolen jewellery pieces in Chicago still had him suspicious, so he decided to go through the pawnshops again and see if he could find some more. When he reached the shop where he'd found the piece he had, Joseph was shocked to find it was boarded up and that nearby businesses reported the broker had been wounded by an angry customer and was in hospital, prompting Joseph to go visit him, wondering if the attacker was the man who'd pawned the stolen piece…

Excerpt of the Day:

As Joseph approached, however, Mr. Sowards stirred and turned his head. His left eye opened wide and even his right eye opened a bit at the sight of Joseph.

“Well I’ll be!” Mr. Sowards exclaimed. “You’re the last person I expected to see here!”

“I hope you’re not displeased,” Joseph said.

“No, no,” Mr. Sowards replied. “Not at all.”

“I had just wanted to ask you if you’d seen the man who’d pawned the stolen bracelet since I came,” Joseph said.

“I did,” Mr. Sowards replied, gesturing over his body with one of his bandaged hands.

“He did this to you?” Joseph asked, shocked.

“He did,” Mr. Sowards replied with a subtle nod.

“What happened?” Joseph asked, stepping closer.

“Well, it was at least a week since he’d last been there, maybe a bit more than that,” Mr. Sowards replied. “And he came in with another piece of jewellery, gold with rubies in it like the last one that I gave you, and he wanted to pawn it off, so I looked it over, but then I told him I wouldn’t take it. Now, he wasn’t grateful for that bit of news, but I told him I wasn’t going to be a fence for thieves. He was especially displeased about that and told me that he hadn’t stolen it, said he was pawning off a family heirloom to feed his hungry family, but I held my ground and told him I had reason to believe otherwise. Well, then he got rightly angry and attacked me. I’ve never got such a pummelling in all my life, and he finished by throwing me through the front window.”

Joseph shook his head. He didn’t really know what to say, but he did feel badly that Mr. Sowards had gotten so injured.

“I don’t really remember what happened after that,” Mr. Sowards went on. “I recall hearing a whistle, and the police told me later that if there hadn’t been an officer on patrol who’d heard the shouting and the breaking glass, I might’ve died, as the officer saw the man come out of the store with a knife in his hand, but he ran off when the officer blew his whistle.”

“I’m sorry,” Joseph said.

“Sorry?” Mr. Sowards asked. “For what?”

“For causing you all of this by telling you that piece was stolen,” Joseph replied.

“Well, now this isn’t anything to be sorry about,” Mr. Sowards replied. “I’d rather be beat up by a crook for refusing to do business with him than get chucked in jail for having dealt in stolen goods without realising it.”

“If you’re sure,” Joseph said doubtfully.

“I am sure,” Mr. Sowards replied. “When I woke up here I told the police the whole story. It would’ve been helpful to have your name, but I was able to tell the story without it, and I promised I’d send you their way if I saw you again.”