“Uh…even so, I really thought the carjacker had left the back seat of the car to come and help me. I shook his sweaty hand and he assisted me in changing the tire, though I could have managed on my own. I thanked him and said I had no cash to pay him, but I really appreciated his help.
“Then he pulled a gun out of the back of his pants. He told me that was okay about the money. All he wanted was the car. He gave me a cold, calculated smile, and I was afraid he was going to kill me. I quickly told him he could have the car and handed him my car keys. It wasn’t worth dying over it. But he struck me with the butt of his gun, a 9mm, I think. I fell to the ground and then I saw him get into my car and he drove it off. The car behind mine took off after him. I don’t remember anything after that except telling some people who came later to help me that my car had been stolen. Then I guess I passed out before I was brought here in an ambulance. I had no idea the guy would pull out a gun and strike me with it, then leave me for dead and steal my car.”
“Okay, you’re doing great, Mr. Kinney,” Sierra said. “You said his hair was shaggy?”
“Yeah, he looked like a hoodlum. He had tattoos on his neck and arms. I can’t say what they were. I just noticed all the ink as he approached. I had felt a little uneasy, but what was I supposed to do? I was already working on changing the tire. I didn’t want to run and lock myself in the car. I didn’t know he was armed, but he could have shot me through the window anyway.”
She hadn’t seen any visible tattoos on the carjacker at all. He was wearing a hoodie with long sleeves. She hadn’t seen any tattoos on his hands or neck or face, the only skin exposed. Unless he wasn’t wearing the hoodie when he confronted Mr. Kinney.
“What was he wearing?”
“Jeans, a T-shirt. I wasn’t paying that much attention to his clothes.”
“A T-shirt? Was anything written on it?” Sierra asked.
“Oh, uh, yeah, skull and crossbones. I should have remembered that.”
“What color was the T-shirt?” Adam asked.
“Black. White skull and crossbones.”
“Were there any words on the shirt?” Sierra asked.
“Maybe. I don’t recall.”
“You could have called roadside assistance,” Adam said, sounding like a man with a badge who was thinking of safe tips to offer victims.
Sierra was sure Mr. Kinney had figured that out by now.
“But I didn’t need assistance to change out the tire, and I figured it would have taken a lot longer to get back on the road if I had to wait for someone to show up to help.”
“I understand,” Adam said. “What about the other two men?”
“I couldn’t really make them out. They were too far away to give a good description.”
“Okay, so did you smell anything about the guy who hit you?” Sierra asked.
“Beer. His face had a couple of days’ growth of beard. Thin lips. Bushy eyebrows.”
“Good, really good. When the driver got out of the car, was his hair short? Or was there a breeze whipping it about, indicating it was longer?” she asked, even though Mr. Kinney had said he hadn’t seen the other men clearly. She found if she just questioned a witness further, often important details they had missed would come back to them.
“A breeze, yeah. His hair was longer, blonder. And he was about the same height as the man who hit me.”
She showed him the sketch she was doing based on his version of his assailant.
“His eyes were smaller. Beadier.”
She erased the eyes and drew them smaller, then showed it to him. “Like this?”
“Yeah, that’s him.”
She had him endorse the back of the sketch since it was his recollection, even though it wasn’t what she thought carjacker looked like, and then she finished drawing the sketch of the driver, but Mr. Kinney didn’t have as many details on him. Once she had him sign that sketch, Adam began questioning Mr. Kinney.
“Did either of the men mention any names?” Adam asked.
“Uh, come to think of it, the other guy, the driver did. When the guy hit me the first time, the driver got out of his car and swore at him and called him Hawk. I thought it was odd, but then I wondered if his name was Hawk. I couldn’t remember that before now. Oh, and Hawk told the driver, ‘He knows me.’ I assumed he said that because he wasn’t wearing a mask. And then on top of that, his partner had identified him by name or nickname. So I was certain he was going to kill me.”
“You don’t remember having seen him from somewhere else at some other time?” Adam asked.
“No. Sorry. I work at a bank as a loan officer, and unless he came into the bank to get a loan, I wouldn’t have met him. I have a regular lawn service through a company, and we haven’t called anyone for repairs on the house or anything for over a year.”
“You haven’t had any threats to you or your family’s lives, have you?” Adam asked.
“No. I really believe his stealing the car was just a case of opportunity, me on the side of the road trying to change a tire, and it had been late so there wasn’t much traffic. You probably won’t catch those bastards, will you?”
“I’m afraid we’ve located your car and the driver had totaled it,” Adam said. “The driver of your vehicle, the one who hit you, died in the crash.”
Mr. Kinney’s jaw dropped, and his skin lost all its color. He touched his head as if it was suddenly hurting.
“Are you in pain?” Sierra asked, getting ready to call the nurse.
“Uh, a mild headache. Thanks, I’m fine.” Mr. Kinney frowned at her. “Since the guy who stole the car is dead, why did you need a description of him?” Now Mr. Kinney sounded angry, as if Sierra had tricked him into describing his attacker when they already very well knew what he looked like.
She hadn’t mentioned it because she felt it was Adam’s job. Adam was frowning at the victim.
“He was badly injured,” Sierra explained. “I wanted to make sure I had the best description I could get for your assailant. Hopefully, we can identify him and catch up to the men who were also party to the crime now that we know about them.”
Mr. Kinney let out his breath. “Well, at least the one who hit me won’t be attempting to kill anyone or doing any more carjacking in the future.”
“Yeah, exactly. We just need to catch the other guys who were involved in it. We’ll get out of your hair, but you let me know if you think of anything more that can help nail these guys.” Adam gave him his business card.