Difficult Run Read Online Free PDF Page B

other thing.   I run every morning.   I’ve been running at Hains Point, but I’d like to start running here so I can see who comes and goes in the park.   Is that a problem?” she asked.
    “Not at all,” he replied.   “There are lots of runners here every day.   The park opens at seven in the morning, but I’ll give you a key for the gate so you can come earlier if you want.   We’ve got locker rooms in this building and you can shower and change there.”
    “Sounds great, Dodd.   By the way, what’s the homeless guy’s name?” she asked.
    “His last name is Wonders.   I don’t know his first name.   We just call him Doc.   His dog’s name is Lola,” he replied.

    M.J. stood and they shook hands.   “Thanks for the tour,” she said.   “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

CHAPTER SIX
     
    M .J. STOPPED ON THE WAY to her apartment and purchased several extra-large T-shirts, big enough to hide her gun belt.   It had occurred to her that she might encounter the murderer while she was running in the park and she didn’t want that to happen while she was unarmed.   When she ran at Hains Point, she didn’t wear her gun belt and her rough calculation was that it—together with the gun, extra magazines, handcuffs, and pepper spray canister—would weigh about six pounds.   She spent some time rearranging the items on the belt to balance the weight for running, then put it on and ran in place to try it out.   Not perfect, she thought, but she could handle it.
    The next morning, she went to Anacostia Station.   The message light on her phone was flashing.   It was Zerk asking her to come by the lab, which she did after downing a cup of coffee and checking the duty roster.
    Zerk was sitting in front of a computer monitor when she entered the lab.   He motioned her over to a table where the two bicycles ridden by the boys were lying on their sides along with their two helmets, all marked with evidence tags.
    “There weren’t any usable prints on the helmets, just smudges,” he said, “but I think I’ve got something else that might be helpful.”
    He pointed to the front wheel of one of the bikes.   “If you look carefully, you’ll notice that the spokes are depressed in this area,” he said, moving his finger in an arc over the wheel.   “I think the killer may have stepped on it going after the other boy.   Come over here and take a look at this.”
    She followed him to the computer where he had been working.   He typed in some information and a picture of the wheel appeared.
    “This is the wheel with the depressed area,” he said, typing on the keyboard, “and this is a picture of the wheel that I took using a lens with a very short focal length to enhance the image of the depression.” M.J. looked at the picture, which clearly showed an impression about the size of a foot.   “It’s not really usable as a footprint because there’s no detail,” he said, “but I was able to do some experiments that may give you some information.”
    Zerk got up from the computer and walked back to the table where the bikes had been placed.   He pointed to a wheel lying by itself on the corner of the table.
    “I was able to measure the depth of the depression using some instruments I have here in the lab.   I bought the exact same wheel at a bicycle shop and then started placing weights on the spokes until they reached the same depth.   Based on that, I’d say the murderer weighed between 180 and 200 pounds and, based on the rough size of the depression, I’d say he wore a size 12 or 13 shoe,” he explained.
    “Zerk, that’s amazing,” M.J. said, noting the look of accomplishment on his face.
    “Actually, I can give you one more piece of information,” he quickly added.   “There is a rough correlation between a person’s shoe size and their height.   That size shoe probably belongs to someone who is around six feet tall, give or take an inch.”
    “That narrows things down,”