Pink Lemonade Ch. 01

"You heard the man, Sergeant McCombs." said the third person. McCombs's eyes widened as he realized who it was... a Police Officer that outranked him. The person said "Go. Get moving. Go back to Headquarters, and don't let us see you on this street again tonight."

"We have no choice, Sergeant." said Hendricks quietly. "Let's go." McCombs realized Hendricks was right. He started up the car and drove off.

"Did you text Sharples?" asked McCombs.

"Doing that right now." said Hendricks, who was typing on his cellphone...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The musical-quality chime on Sharples's cellphone alerted him to the text. Pulling out the phone, he saw that it was from a familiar burner, and only one letter was transmitted: "X". He realized what it meant.

"All right, what the hell is going on around here?" Sharples demanded as he stood up, putting the phone up, realizing he was in danger and strong bluff was needed. "I'm a God-damned Police Detective, and who the hell are you to tell me what I can and can't investigate?"

*CRACK!*

The sound of the bullwhip cracking startled all of them. Whirling around, Sharples saw Karen Warner Harlan, dressed in all leather, the bullwhip in her gloved hand.

"You'll do exactly as Mr. Ward directs you, Sergeant Sharples." Karen ordered. "Or else it will get very ugly for you, very quickly." She flicked the bullwhip again, catching Sharples on the leg. He screamed out in pain.

"What the fuck!?" he gasped, going for his gun.

"Don't do it, Sharples." warned Cook. "She's faster than you are."

Realizing Cook was right, Sharples relented. He also realized he was helpless: the 'X' on the cellphone was a warning that his protectors McCombs and Hendricks had been interdicted by enemy agents.

"All right, what the hell do you want?" the fat detective said, his voice a mixture of weariness and sarcasm...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

3:30am, the same Wednesday morning. I'd been a fairly light sleeper for years, and after the night of the fire at the (Old) Cabin I became an even lighter sleeper. So my cellphone going off on my bedside table woke me immediately.

"Sir," said the voice of Myron Milton in the phone, "I'm sorry to wake you, but you know that program I have running that alerts me if Sharples sends or receives an 'X' or 'O' on his cellphone? It went off. It was an 'X'."

"Uhhh, oh, wow." I said, waking on up, and fast. "At what time?"

"About thirty minutes ago." said Myron. "And McCombs and Hendricks pulled into Headquarters and entered the building with their ID cards about 20 minutes ago."

"Okay." I said. "Keep monitoring. Thanks for calling." After the call disconnected, I tried to get back to sleep, but it eluded me. Getting up, I began walking around the house, checking up on everything. The door and window alarm was set. The street light illuminating the front porch and yard of the house was on, and nothing was going on outside as I looked out into the darkness. Ditto that for the back patio and yard. It was quiet.

I went into the children's room. Carole and Jim were asleep in their cribs. Bowser was in his basket under Carole's crib, but he was awake and I could tell he was agitated.

"What's the matter, boy?" I asked, kneeling down. "Everything okay, Bowser?" Bowser looked up at me as I petted him, but his tail was not wagging. I carefully lifted him out of the basket and carried him downstairs to the den.

"What's the matter, Bowser?" I said soothingly as I petted him. He was half-lying on my lap, but his eyes were scanning towards the front door all the time, and I could feel the tension and nervousness in his canine body as I petted him.

A number of long minutes had passed and Bowser was finally relaxing when Laura came down the stairs. "Everything okay?" she asked sleepily.

"Yeah, I think so." I said. "But Bowser is agitated. Did anyone come up to the house today?"

"No, not that I know of." Laura said. She came over and petted Bowser. "Did you have a bad dream, Bowser?" Bowser looked up at my wife with appreciation in his eyes for the attention and the pettings.

"Okay, Bowser," I said, "why don't we take you back up to bed?" I put him on the floor and he bounded up the stairs to his self-assigned post as guardian of my daughter and son. I petted him again as he settled into his bed while Laura looked in on the kids.

"Why don't you come to bed, too, darling?" Laura asked me. "Maybe a nice blowjob will cure your agitation."

I was not going to argue with that. Time to take my 'medicine'...

Part 3 - State Case

Thursday, August 6th. At 10:00am Chief Bennett called me into the small conference room by his office. Upon entering, I saw the Chief at the head of the table. On the far side of the table were two other men.

One of the two men was SBI Deputy Director Robert Gaston. He was in his early fifties, neatly combed gray, almost white hair, slender, fit, almost six feet tall. He would look perfect as a company CEO or a politician such as a Governor. He certainly had his own designs for upward political mobility, which for now made him definitely a 'yes-man' for Director Jack Lewis.

He'd long been a criminal investigator in the SBI, but mostly in financial and digital crimes. Now he was the Deputy Director for what the SBI called 'Violent Crimes', which included homicides, serial killers and serial rapists, and dealing with perps who were mentally unstable and dangerous to Society. He was out of his depths in those categories, but after all, he was an administrator.

With him was SBI Agent Carter Fischer, the youngish man I'd met on previous occasions, and for whom I'd developed a lack of respect.

"Have a seat, Commander." said the Chief. I sat down in the chair to the Chief's right, across from Deputy Director Gaston, as Chief Bennett said "Director Gaston has a request of us."

I looked at Chief Bennett, making some observations. Since our agreement forged over Scotch at The Cabin, he had given me leeway and let me run my Divisions while he took care of administrative and Police Chief stuff, such as dealing with the Sheriff, the Council, and disciplining Officers when needed. He had also spent a good amount of time working with Precinct Captain Susan Weston to get Precinct 3 into better shape.

He also had made himself less and less available to me or anyone else, to the point where it might be a problem. I had been making a point to go to his office at least every other day and fill him in on what the Detectives were working on. He always listened, sometimes asked questions, but on any occasion where I attempted to have more personal or informal discussions, he would generally end the meetings fairly quickly.

And now as I observed him, I could see that he looked tired. Normally a healthy hunter, he looked drained of energy. Maybe the upcoming Fall hunting season would restore some of his vitality, I thought to myself. But I did not have time to contemplate as Deputy Director Gaston spoke.

"Commander," Gaston said, "I am here to ask your Chief to loan you to us, and to ask you to take the lead in investigating the death of Henry R. Wargrave."

"I've told them you have my approval to work on that case," said Chief Bennett, "but only working around your duties here in this Town & County."

"Director Gaston," I said, "do you and Director Lewis realize I'm biased and consider the Wargrave case to be a suicide? And do you realize that I am not an independent person in all of this, that I was at the scene not long after it happened?"

"Yes, we know." said Gaston. "We also think you've shown yourself to be a Police Officer of high integrity, that you want to know the truth as much as anyone else, and that whatever you find will be accepted by all sides... the 'sides' being those who say it was suicide, and those who say it was murder."

"What about Captain Ross?" I asked. "Is she called up, too?"

"No." said Chief Bennett. "She'll be handling your duties, particularly over the Detectives, at any times you're away. She also needs to be available as an SBI Reservist in the area if called upon."

"You're not being called up as a Reservist, Commander." said Gaston. "This won't count against your Reservist time, nor budgeted to the Reserve. You'll be considered a full and active SBI Agent while on this case, with your SBI Lieutenant rank, of course."

"I'll need someone to work in partnership with me." I said. "And if Ross isn't available, and with Molly Evans from Midtown pregnant, who can I get... present company excluded?" Carter Fischer did not like that remark, knowing I was very intentionally excluding him from being assigned to me. However, Gaston did not miss a beat.

"Detective Robin Ventura of the City Police is an SBI Reservist," said Gaston, "and she has agreed to work the case, but only with you. The City Police has likewise accepted letting her work the case for the State, but again only if you take the case."

Interesting, I thought to myself. "Well," I said, "I think you and Director Lewis are going to be extremely disappointed if and when I find it to be a suicide, but tell him I'll look into it. Also tell him that if anything comes up in my home County here, that it will be my priority over any SBI case."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

After the SBI Agents had left, with Gaston having given me an SBI badge that did not say "Reservist" on it, I went to the Chief's office.

"Okay, Chief, spill it. What's up?" I asked.

"What do you mean?" he replied, peering at me.

"I mean that as Commander I am responsible for every Officer on this Force... including the one guy above me." I said. "I can tell something's bothering you, and for your own good and the Force's good I need to know what that is." Well, I thought, that was technically true, but there was no telling how the Chief would react.

"Not much gets by you." said Chief Bennett drily. "I've been avoiding you because I know you see too much." He thought for a moment, then said "Okay, I'll tell you some things, but it stays in this room. Don't tell your 'Angels' or any other subordinates." I agreed.

Bennett's voice was almost too quiet for me to hear as he said "I thought I could handle this job, I really did. But I had no idea of the political pressure that would be exerted on me from above. Sheriff Allgood has been a lot more calm than he was a few months ago, but he still is on pins and needles about this KSTD sex tapes thing. I've come to the conclusion that his wife must be on one of the tapes for him to be so agitated about them."

He was peering at me, and I used the opportunity to work to keep my face in total passivity and not give anything away. Seeing the Chief's eyes, I think I succeeded.

"Anyway, the Council has been under duress." said the Chief. "They're working to settle the claims against the Parole Office, which includes determining which claims are legit and which aren't. They also are getting flak from the Police Union about you keeping Sharples on restricted duty over the Ricky Morris shooting. The Council gives me flak about that, and I stand up to them and the Union. But it's stressful."

"I appreciate you standing firm on that." I said.

"That's only come up in the last week or so, though." said Bennett.

"And that is not the worst of it, though." I said. "What's really eating you up?"

Bennett looked at me and said "Okay, okay. The Sheriff did not want me to tell you this." said Bennett. "He is afraid that you will do something a bit too... active."

His voice got quieter as he said "Something's come out. Certain Council members have been told some things. I checked out what they told me, and I was told privately by people I know that the State Supreme Court is working out a deal with politicians in the Legislature and the Governor's office. They'll rule in our favor... but only if we give the SBI the tapes."

"What?!" I gasped. Struggling to keep my voice down, I said "They're supposed to be impartial jurists. What the hell is this shit about making deals?"

"I don't know." said Bennett. "In fairness, it's not the actual Justices, it's never them, it's not the politicos either. Just aides in the background scurrying around like cockroaches in the dark of night."

"That makes no sense." I said. And then it hit me. "Chief, someone's bluffing. I don't think the State Supreme Court, not all of them, would do that. This is a trick."

Chief Bennett looked stunned. "You... you think so?"

"I'd bet my badge on it." I said. "Tell the Sheriff, the D.A., and the Council to hold fast... unless you want me to tell them."

"O... okay. But don't you say anything. I'll tell them." said Bennett. Then he peered at me, a skeptical look on his face. "How do you know it's a bluff? And what if it's not? What information do you have that makes you so sure?"

I just smiled. "If something like that was going on, Chief, we wouldn't be going through these legal charades right now. So just rest easy, tell the Sheriff and Council to stand firm, and you'll see that I'm right. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to go investigate Henry Wargrave's suicide. Oh, is that drawing a conclusion in advance?"

I went into my own office, asking Helena as I went by to call Cindy to come to my office. As I sat down behind my desk, I thought about the conversation with the Chief. What information did I have that makes me so sure? The Shadow Man's identity, I thought to myself.

Yes, I know who the Shadow Man is, I silently said to the matchstick Trojan Horse and the painting of the Fall of Troy beside me. And that is how I can be so sure.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Hello, Detective Ventura." I said as I met her in the lobby of the Cannon Building in the City. "Do you know FBI Special Agent in Charge Jack Muscone?"

"Oh, is the FBI working with us on this?" Robin asked as she shook hands with Muscone.

"More in a way of observation." said Muscone. "We're still working the case of his arms smuggling empire."

We were escorted by the building's Security to the elevator. One security man rode with us to the top floor. Walking up the man entrance hallway, the security man cut the tape that was across the doors to Wargrave's office.

Entering the office, I felt a staleness from lack of use, but also something else... an emptiness of the energy that had once filled this room. With Wargrave gone, the room was like his mortal remains... an empty shell with no purpose.

The shattered window had been replaced by a plain glass window that was not bulletproof. It looked brighter, as the light coming through it was less filtered than the thicker panes of bulletproof glass. The furniture remained in the room, but it had been stripped of all papers, computers and anything else that the FBI had determined might be useful to their investigation.

"This room has been all but scrubbed." I said. "We're not going to find much here."

"Did you get the email with all the forensic findings?" asked Robin.

"Yes, yes I did." I replied. "I was thinking that maybe Wargrave replaced the pane of glass himself so that it would shatter if and when he decided to jump..."

"But the shattered glass fragments were the same bulletproof glass that is in these other windows." Robin replied.

"Well," I said as I examined the replacement window behind the desk, "he found a way to weaken the window. And that is what you two want to know, of course."

"What do you mean?" asked Jack Muscone, unable to make his voice sound innocent enough.

"Ah, my friend," I said, "the FBI, the City Police, and the SBI all want to know how a bulletproof glass window was so utterly destroyed. You all are hoping I can find out how that was done, and will then tell you. And that's why the City Police had Detective Ventura here agree to work on this, and why your boss, Jack, had you come work with me on this. And of course its why the SBI Leadership wants me on the case, too."

"Miss Ventura," Jack said to Robin, "400 years ago, the Salem Witch Trials would have just loved having this man to make an example of. And maybe he was, in a past life." Robin laughed. I smiled inwardly, knowing that Jack Muscone would soon change the subject and begin flirting with the attractive young Detective...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I was staying overnight in the City, so I took the opportunity to ask the lovely SBI Inspector Britt Maxwell to dinner. Of course we talked "shop" as we ate.

"How are things in the SBI lately?" I asked.

"After the unfortunate suicide of Henry R. Wargrave," Britt said, "things have been surprisingly quiet. Dick Ferrell of the Narcotics Task Force acts like he's leaderless, and Director Jack Lewis lost what he thought would be a financial resource in his run for Governor next year."

"Interesting." I said. "So Wargrave dies, and the SBI suddenly has nothing to do?"

"Well, I didn't say that." Britt said, her eyes twinkling. "Lewis needs a big, splashy bust for the publicity, so for the most part they're concentrating on Southport and hoping to interdict some illegal shipping down there. They'd just love to come into your County and re-open the Jonas Oldeeds assassination, and that reporter Priya Ajmani has been really trying to get them up there to do that, but they seem to be scared of someone in that County."

"Yes, they should be scared of Captain Ross." I replied adroitly.

"As good as she is," said Britt, grinning, "I don't think she's the one they're truly scared of. By the way, there's some scuttlebutt that the Republican Party in this State wants you to run against Lewis. Any truth to that?"

"They sent feelers." I said. "My first question to them was 'Why did you throw John Cummings to the dogs and not only let but help Katherine Woodburn cheat him out of his rightful win?' They wanted no part of me bringing that up, and the conversation concluded pretty quickly after that. The Republicans are not Conservatives: they want to make Conservatives outcasts from the Party."

"That incident still bothers you?" Britt asked.

"Like you wouldn't believe." I said. "The corruption in both parties is incredible. They collude to fuck over the American People, lie to our faces, and this is both parties working together, not just one. They make me sick."

"Changing the subject," Britt said, seeing my unhappiness at talking politics, "the SBI brass also are wondering about you investigating some crime ring up there, led by someone who stays in the shadows. What's going on with that?"

I took the opportunity to take a drink of water. Something had just popped into my head, like a mysterious Voice, and it was saying to not talk to Britt Maxwell about this, even if I did trust her. I heeded that message.

"Nothing, really." I said. "You probably heard that we busted a ring of thieves related to dirty parole officers. I've been following up on that to see if there are other smuggling rings connected to it, maybe a Wargrave connection. But there's not a lot there, just a local ring. Maybe I'm seeing things that aren't there."

"Doesn't hurt to look." Britt said.

"True." I said. "How is the SBI's version of Internal Affairs doing?"

"Not bad." said Britt. "I can't, and won't, say too much about it, but I can say this: Lewis keeps trying to steer it into having us investigate local and county LEO units, but of course the mission is to investigate the SBI internally. I'm putting together a few threads of webbing here and there, but nothing actionable so far. I also am finding traces of organization within various State agencies as part of the investigation of the State Prison System after the scandal at The Asylum."

"I'd love to look into that and help you with it when I have time." I said. "Right now, my plate's pretty full. You mentioned Priya Ajmani... she's stirring up a much bigger hornet's nest for us than I think she realizes."