• "What that?" came a childish voice from behind me.
    "That's a police station, honey. It's where you go if you find something that's lost, or if you've done something very bad."
    "What do they do?"
    "Well, if what you've done is bad enough, you'll go to jail, and stay there for a long time."
    "Oh," came a voice.
    There was a tap on my shoulder, and the little girl I picked up asked tentatively "that?" pointing at the police station.
    As I trudged up the steps, my black leather boots clapping down on the pavement, I replied, "that's exactly where we're going."
    "Going! Going, going, going!!"
    The cop on the inside greeted me cheerfully. "Hello, Alice! Nice to see you again!" Everyone looked at me, giving me wary glances, and side-stepping me at every chance.
    "You're making me look bad, Nick!" I said, karate-chopping his head teasingly.
    "Oh, yeah, sorry. So, any more restraining orders?"
    "Nope, I've got a missing person," I replied. I turned around, and Nick smiled. "Well, hello, what's your name?"
    "Going!" she replied. "Better cry gah!"
    "What's wrong with her?" Nick asked.
    "She can't talk. She just repeats the last word of all my sentences. I'm thinking of copy-writing them, so then I get paid. Right now, I'd already have made about 500 dollars."
    "See, that's what I like about you. Always making jokes."
    "Oh, yeah. Hil-frickin'-arious."
    "Well, I can just run up a missing person list for you right now."
    "Stop it! Stop, stop it, stop!"
    ""600 dollars," I mumbled, following Nick.