My Kind of Town
Coming together
>> Queen's Medical Center
Quinn Ah Sun was disappointed that the ER docs and nurses who'd worked on him weren't in yet. They worked the night shift, would be in later.
"I'll be back," he told ER supervisor LuAnne D'Oro.
And then turning to off-duty nurse Nina Ramones he said conspiratorially: "Can you get me outside into some sunshine and fresh air?"
>> Arizona Memorial
Maybe it was because he was trailing a suspected Muslim terrorist from the Philippines, but Navy intelligence officer Chuck Ryan thought post-9/11 security at the Visitor Center was way too lax. Rangers checked purses and fanny packs, but everybody else -- including Ryan --just sailed right through. He noticed an elderly couple, the man wearing a VFW hat and carrying a bouquet of flowers, get waved through with a nod and a smile. No doubt the same guy waved Muhammed Resurreccion and his flowers through too.
It sent a shiver up his back.
Maybe he was just worrying too much. But he couldn't help it. Worrying was part of his job description. Sure, he understood where the policy was coming from -- this was just a National Park. But it was located at the heart of arguably America's most important Navy base.
Still, Ryan was grateful for the security, such as it was. It allowed him to scoot past a busload of tourists, each of whom seemed to have a small bag that required checking.
Scanning the Visitor Center for Muhammed and his three females, Ryan stood in line, received a yellow ticket. There they were, exiting the snack shop with bottles of water and ice cream bars. Rosalita Resurreccion carried the flowers. Ryan started working on a plan to get them out of her hands.
>> Punchbowl Street
Fighting panic, Lily Ah Sun glanced in her rearview mirror. The taxi was still inches from her bumper, the big Samoan cabbie still shaking his fist, his face turning redder and redder. He'd been there since she got on the H-1 at Kalihi Street and followed all the way to the Punchbowl exit.
All over one little Finger.
OK, it had been a rather emphatic Finger, but still ... Didn't he have a rider to pick up somewhere? This was getting ridiculous. And Lily was starting to get scared.
>> Queen's Medical Center
HPD Detective Sherlock Gomes' excuse for stopping by Queen's instead of heading back to headquarters to do paperwork was checking on Serena Kawainui. She'd crashed Sen. Donovan-Matsuda-Yee-Dela Cruz-Bishop-Kamaka's car off the Keeaumoku Overpass, got a faceful of glass. Gomes had promised to help her start a new life. But there was another reason for this visit. He couldn't wait until dinner to see Dr. Laurie Tang.
Don Chapman is editor of MidWeek.
His serialized novel runs daily in the Star-Bulletin
with weekly summaries on Sunday.
He can be emailed at dchapman@midweek.com