Rod, again - Chapter 7, Rico the ninja

Ninja time. Rico smiled as he looked at himself in the full-length mirror. I am a ninja, he thought proudly. He practiced tip-toeing across his bedroom in his black Puma sneakers. A flash of white between his shoes and the bottom of his black Levis caught his eye. Rico froze and slowly took another step. Another flash. He groaned and pulled up his pant leg, revealing a bright white sweat sock. Rico rummage through his bureau until he found a black pair. Just to be safe, he grabbed a pair of black underwear as well. It was hard work, being a ninja.

Rico was pleased with the outfit he had assembled. He’d already owned most of the items - his biggest expense was a long sleeve black t-shirt. The most difficult item to find was a suitable covering for his head. He’d looked for days for a black ski mask stocking cap. Unfortunately, stocking caps of any color seemed to be in short supply in Phoenix. After much searching, he happened upon a navy blue one at a second-hand store. Technically, it was a sized for a child but Rico felt the snug fit actually looked a bit more ninja-ish.

Rico had been watching Rod’s apartment for a few days and had learned a few things. He learned that dressing entirely in black and sitting for hours in the Arizona sun put one at risk for heat stroke. He learned that the ski mask should only be donned after dark and then only if you are hiding in the shadows. In any other situation, it actually draws unwanted attention. Regrettably, Rico accepted that he may not be able to use the cap much for this ‘mission’.

Rico found that his best surveillance was obtained by sitting on a bench in the inner courtyard of the apartment complex. The complex was built like a horseshoe and all units had patio doors opening onto the courtyard. The courtyard itself was mostly stone inlaid in a pattern mildly reminiscent of an Aztec depiction of the sun. Benches lined pathways that led to the center of the courtyard. At the center of the courtyard there was a plain, circular, concrete slab approximately five feet in diameter. The original plans had included a fountain in this space, but the owner had decided to cut this expense until after the complex started generating revenue. Later, the owner realized that residents rarely used the courtyard and no one was clamoring for a fountain so the idea was shelved.

Rico’s favorite bench was near the center slab. Sitting there, he faced Rod’s patio window. The courtyard was poorly lit and large enough that Rico felt it was unlikely Rod would notice him after dark. There were, however, a few residents who occasionally peeked out and glanced his way. Because of this, Rico kept the cap in his pocket and pretended to be a fellow resident, enjoying the outdoors. He carried a small notebook for recording his observations. To the casual observer he might have been confused with an eccentric poet or novelist. On the off chance that Rod might recognize him from the shop, Rico had disguised himself with a ‘Magnum P.I.’ fake moustache purchased from a local novelty store. Rico like the moustache and wished he could grow a real one so thick - his many attempts always left him disappointed.

Along with the notebook, Rico carried a tiny pair of binoculars. When he noticed Rod moving about the apartment, he would slip the binoculars into his hand and casually sneak a peek while pretending to wipe his brow. Occasionally, he would catch Rod and his girlfriend eating but it was difficult to identify the food. They seemed to cook all their meals from scratch - Rico had yet to witness a prepackaged item or take-out container. It was still hard for Rico to believe that this was the same guy who had stunk up the drive-through buying Nina’s frybread for years.

Thus far, Rico had not learned a great deal about what Rod ate. The man consumed a lot of carrots, but that was already known. Celery was also eaten regularly along with grapes and apples. Rico dutifully noted every item along with the date, time and approximate quantity. Just to be safe (and because it made him feel like a secret agent) he wrote everything in code. It was a simple code, substituting  numbers for letters; 1 for A, 2 for B and so forth. The process was tedious but Rico stuck to it. When Rico recorded the quantities, he just wrote the number, never realizing that it was impossible to distinguish it from an encoded letter. It didn’t matter. Rod’s diet was so limited that Rico had it memorized and never referred to his notes when reporting to Nina and Chet.