New York Chief of Detectives (19 page)

“It makes sense, Chief. How about the dish washer, Marcus Johnson? Do you think he’s dead?”

“He may be dead or running like hell as far away as he can. He was scared to the point of panicking about something.”

Brian gave a big yawn and commented.

“I’m running low on sleep boss.”

“Frank Sinatra told us that this is the city that never sleeps!”

“He was right about that!”

“We’ll let the Crime Scene Unit do their thing, Bryan. Get some sleep and we’ll reconvene on Monday morning, unless we catch a break or something else goes down. Get the same message to the task force. We’ll think more clearly with some rest.”

Brian pulled up in front of Pat’s high rise.

“Thanks for the lift. I know that Dickie appreciated the day off. Get some sleep my friend.”

“I will, Chief, and I’ll call you if something develops.” 

CHAPTER 40

Sunday, April 11- Day 10

Chief of Detectives’ Residence

Borough of Manhattan, New York

0830 Hours

Pat
woke up with his cell phone vibrating across the night stand. He tried to grab it, but it slipped off onto the floor. He looked at the clock, and it was 0830. He swung his legs to the floor and picked up the phone. It was Maggie’s number. He put the coffee pot on and sat down at the counter to return Maggie’s call.

“Hello, Gorgeous, I saw you had called.”

“I’m sorry if I woke you up, Pat.”

“You did, but I slept soundly and feel pretty good.”

“What time did you get in?”

“About 1:00 this morning.”

“You can’t keep putting in these long days. Let the task force do their jobs.”

“I did let them. They worked most of the night, and some of them are probably still working.”

“I know it’s important and talking to you about it won’t change your doing what you want to do anyway.”

“Probably not, but I’m glad you’re concerned about me.”

“The reason I called you was because I saw in the Times this morning that the New York Staff Band was playing at Saint Mark’s Church at 11:00 this morning. I know how much you love that band. I was wondering if there was any chance we could go?”

“Wow! That sounds great! I remember how much we enjoyed the Christmas concert.”

“I’d love to go if nothing breaks loose. I need to jump in the shower.”

“I’ll grab some breakfast for us, and I’ll be there in about forty-five minutes.”

Pat checked his phone and email for messages, but there were none. He was excited about hearing the Staff Band. This band would blow any stereotype of the street corner Salvation Army Bands away. In Pat’s opinion, they were as good as the New York Philharmonic and were all brass in the British tradition. He needed this escape.

Pat dressed quickly, and put on a navy blazer, grey slacks and a crisp white shirt. He selected a regimental striped blue and gold tie that Maggie had brought him from England on a Presidential visit. In just a few minutes, Maggie was at the door with hot bagels and cream cheese.

“You look sporty this morning, Pat. It’s good to see you finally wearing the tie I bought you.”

“Thanks, Gorgeous, you look great as always. I’m glad you found out about this concert.”

Pat and Maggie sat at the counter and began to devour the bagels. Pat was really hungry since he hadn’t had anything to eat after his lunch with Maggie on Saturday. They finished quickly, and headed off to the Saint Mark’s Church in Maggie’s Lexus.

The spacious church was just starting to fill. Pat and Maggie sat about a third of the way back from the pulpit in a place where Pat knew the acoustics would be great. At 11:00 sharp the band
took the stage in their red uniforms and began tuning. The conductor walked out to thunderous applause, and the band played a stirring rendition of “God Bless America.” The group performed with utter perfection, playing hymns and classical numbers. Pat was thoroughly delighted with the concert. After the concert, Pat walked up to the conductor.

“It was a splendid concert, maestro!”

“Patrick O’Connor! It’s good to see you, Chief.”

“Thanks, I really enjoyed the concert.”

“We’d sound even better if we had Pat O’Connor in the cornet section.”

“Believe me, if there was a way, I’d love to be there. Maybe in my retirement, I’ll get one of those red uniforms.”

“I hope so and thank you so much for what you do for this city. We’re both working for the Lord in our own ways. I carry a conductor’s baton and occasionally a horn, while you carry a badge and a gun. We’re both trying to work for the good of the people of this city to the glory of God.”

“It’s nice to be appreciated.”

Pat introduced Maggie, and they left the church, holding hands.

It was nearly 1300 hours, and they walked to a nearby German restaurant for lunch. Pat had wiener schnitzel, while Maggie had a bratwurst with sauerkraut. They enjoyed the international atmosphere. Pat had been to Germany a few times playing at jazz festivals and he told Maggie a few stories from those trips.

Pat and Maggie stopped at a bench outside the restaurant just as Pat’s cell phone buzzed.

“Pat O’Connor.”

“Good afternoon, Chief, this is George McBain.”

“How are you, George? Have you had any sleep?”

“A few winks in the bus, but I’m okay. I called Captain Flannery, and he told me to give you a call and update you. We’ve just finished the crime scene. There is no doubt that something happened in there.”

“What did you find, George?”

“In the back room, or what we call the conference room, we found at least two locations with blood. One was very large and the other one, pretty small. All of the presumptive tests have been positive. We used some chemicals, and it lit up like a neon sign. We actually pulled the carpet off the floor and took it as evidence. We pulled a slug out of the wood floor under the floor. It’s pretty deformed, but the base is well preserved.  I’m pretty sure we have enough to match it up. We also found a carpet shampooer that tested positive for blood and a small steel pry bar that was stuck up in the ceiling tiles. We haven’t tested it, but I am fairly sure there’s blood on it. The experts took their time, and made sure everything was collected properly with extreme care.”

“This sounds great, George. Do you have any idea how long before we get some results?”

“As soon as we get the evidence logged in, we’re all going to crash and hit it fresh on Monday morning.”

“You guys are incredible, you deserve some rest.”

“Thanks, Chief, we also got a truck load of latents. The back room was actually very conducive to prints. That big table had an old, heavy, glass top, and one wall was a solid mirror from ceiling to floor. We got some high-quality prints and took a lot of things out of that room that may have DNA. I’m going to get a latent examiner looking at the prints tonight while we’re sleeping. Maybe we’ll have something by our meeting in the morning.”

“Thanks again, George. You guys have earned your keep.”

“See you in the morning, Chief.”

Pat turned and smiled at Maggie.

“We’re back to reality now. I have enjoyed the break from the case. There is something that seems to sharpen your insight, when you get completely away from a case and then come back to it.”

“But, do you really ever get away from it and not think about these cases?

“Only when I’m with you or when I play my horn.”

“That’s sweet, but probably not entirely true. I’ve seen you too many times with your feet kicked back, while you had your portable radio or a scanner listening to your favorite radio station, the NYPD.”

“Guilty as charged, my dear!”

“I’m not sure just where this case is going, but I suspect this will be the crunch week. If we get some good results from the crime scene, we may get some questions answered that’ll identify Tony’s killer.”

“I hope so. Just be careful, Pat, and remember that you have several thousand detectives working for you. You don’t have to handle it all yourself.”

“I know, but this case is a big part of my responsibilities and I’m ultimately responsible. It’s like if one of your agents kills a perp tonight and it’s not a righteous kill, you’ll be held accountable, although you had nothing to do with it. If you think about it too much it’ll screw with your nerves.”

“It already does.”

CHAPTER 41

Monday, April 12-Day 11

Chief of Detectives’ Office- One Police Plaza

Borough of Manhattan, New York

0700 Hours

Pat
had asked Dickie to pick him up at 0630 hours on Monday morning. They stopped to get some coffee and a bagel, and Pat was at his desk shortly after 0700. It was obvious that Angie Wilson had put some time in over the weekend. His tray was once again full. She had neatly attached her colored sticky notes to many of the documents, telling Pat exactly what was needed to save him time. Most of them were similar. “Review and initial.” “Transfer request.” “Citizen letter with response attached.” It was amazing how many items of correspondence came through the office of Chief of Detectives. Angie Wilson handled many of them. If they were routine letters inquiring about cases or procedures, she usually researched the issue and prepared a response for Pat to sign. She was well aware of the hectic pace at which Pat O’Connor conducted his business.

After handling much of the paper work, Pat flipped through his business cards and found the card of an old friend, Randy Brooks. Randy had been a Detective First Grade¸ but had retired and gone to work for the New York Bar Association as an investigator. He investigates complaints on attorneys. Pat dialed his number.

“Hello, this is Randy.”

“Good morning, this is Pat O’Connor. I hope it’s not too early to call.”

“Let me stand at attention, it’s not often that I get to talk to the honorable Chief of D’s. How are you, Pat?”

“I’m great, Randy. How’s the job going?”

“Not bad when you add my pension. How are you, my friend?”

“I’m doing well, but I need some help.”

“Damn! I thought we were just getting all cozy because you liked me.”

“Oh, I do like you, Randy. You’re a sweetheart.”

“What can I do for you, Chief?”

“We locked up an attorney on Saturday, by the name of Edward Romano. He is a cocky little prick. We’re working a homicide investigation of an OCCB Detective named Tony Rodriguez. We located what we believe to be the crime scene and were waiting on a search warrant, when this little rocket scientist showed up and threatened to sue us all. This is a tiny, Hispanic joint and I was shocked by how quickly there was an attorney on scene. He let his mouth overload his ass, and we arrested him and charged him with obstruction. He was also packing a .25 automatic, and we charged him with felony possession of a handgun. The manager of this place barely speaks English, and he clearly doesn’t have the horsepower to get this kind of talking head out there.”

“I don’t recognize the name, but I’ll sniff around and see what I can find out. Also fax me a copy of the arrest report, and we’ll go ahead and open a complaint case.”

“I see you’re still playing the numbers game.”

“But of course. I have to justify my position. It’s been good to talk to you, Pat. I’ll call you as soon as I have some information.”

“Thanks, Randy. Stay safe!”

“I have to wash my hands with anti-bacterial soap twenty times a day, just to keep the stench off. Don’t forget I’m working with lawyers.”

Pat gave Randy Brooks his cell phone and office numbers. He and Randy had worked a lot of cases together when Pat was a young detective.

Brian Flannery stuck his head in the door.

“Good Morning, Chief.  George McBain is up front and says he needs to talk to us immediately. He is upset about something.”

“Send him back, Bryan.”

Sergeant George McBain walked into Pat’s office with a small briefcase. He appeared to be nervous and was perspiring. Bryan closed the door and they both had a seat in front of Pat’s desk.”

“What’s up, George? You seem concerned about something. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, Chief, but this case is quickly going to get real interesting.  As you know, I asked the latent fingerprint technicians to examine the latent prints and see if we could get any of the prints identified. They found several AFIS-Quality prints from the conference room, and we’ve been successful at getting them identified. We have prints from a gang-banger named Salvatore Cortez. He’s a validated gang member from El Salvador who has strong ties to the 9-24 Gang. He has a lengthy rap sheet. We also have recovered prints from someone I think you’ll know, Joey DeCarlo.”