Accessory to the Crime

The image in the mirror wasn't all that impressive. The hair was a mousy brown in color, although keeping it cut short gave the impression of a soft chestnut. The short hair was an asset, fitting well with her occupation.

Her face was a bit rounder than she would have liked but, with the slightly upturned nose, it was acceptable. The one other feature of note was just above that nose, just below the hair; her eyes.

She was proud of those eyes, an almost golden brown. She'd been told they were called hazel. She didn't know what that meant but it was alright by her. It was a bit strange at times when she thought she saw just a fleck of green in them.

All-in-all, it wasn't bad. Some of the guys she worked with even said she was cute. She wasn't sure she liked that. At twenty-seven, she had hoped she was beyond cute.

Her fingers came up to adjust the ascot that served to replace a tie, letting her wear her shirt with open collars. Where the dark blue lapels had once boasted silver 'RPD' pins, she now saw the letters sewn onto a dark blue tape which was in turn sewn onto the collars. The letters were black. So was the sewn-on shield that now replaced the once conspicuous silver badge over the left breast of the shirt. Even her name tag was a tape with the letters embroidered in black. The silver accessories were now dress uniform only. That was fine by her.

Her parents had been proud to see 'Harrison' on her uniform when she had graduated from the Academy. They'd been a bit uncertain about her choice of profession but were nonetheless supportive. That had been five years ago. Since then, she had proudly patrolled the streets of the suburb just northwest of Memphis, Tennessee. Raleigh was a good-sized town in its own right, and she was enjoying the work and the growing experience.

Giving her hair one last quick combing, she left the bath and returned to her bedroom. There, she inventoried the equipment on her duty belt and fastened it on. Sidearm, taser, two pairs of cuffs, asp. She'd get her radio at the precinct.

Locking up her apartment, Officer Anne Harrison headed for her car and work.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The shift briefing was just that, brief. There wasn't a lot going on in the precinct at the moment. Besides, morning watch tended to be slow in this zone and the cooling temperatures of early October would make it even slower. It was Memphis weather; warm, sometimes hot days, cool nights sometimes approaching cold. The crew could expect some very quiet shifts, likely leaning on boring. That wasn't always a good thing.

As she started for her squad, Anne heard the watch commander call her name.

"Harrison, would you come in here for a couple of minutes?"

Reacting to the Lieutenant's summons, she reversed directions and walked into his office.

"Coffee, Anne?" Lieutenant Gillespie asked. He maintained a completely professional yet cordial relationship with his officers. They were his responsibility, and he took that responsibility seriously. He was known as a demanding but even-handed supervisor, and his officers were loyal to him to an extreme.

"No, thanks, sir," she replied, sitting down in the chair that he pointed to. "What's up?"

Taking a sip of his own coffee, the shift supervisor asked, "You've been riding solo for quite a while, haven't you?"

"Maybe a year now, I think. Since late last August."

"Well, we've got another officer transferring in tonight. He was assigned to the South Zone coming out of the Academy. Then he was sent back to the Academy as an instructor. He's just coming off a two-year stint there. You mind going back to riding with a partner?"

The woman shrugged. Her response was the obvious. "Depends on the partner, sir. A lot of guys don't like riding with a female. Is he going to be junior or senior to me?"

"I don't think either of you is junior or senior," Gillespie revealed, "I believe you went to the academy together."

Her eyes widened, her curiosity piqued. "Really? What's his name?"

Crossing to his office door, the Lieutenant pulled it open. "Parker, you wanna come in here now?"

"Parker?" the woman repeated. "Lee Parker?"

She came to her feet as an athletic looking officer just over six feet tall walked into the office. He looked athletic because he was an athlete. He'd played football in both high school and junior college and still meddled with basketball. Dark hair and dark eyes gave him an almost evil look. If he'd wanted to be an actor, he probably could have been a vampire.

Nodding to the Lieutenant, the transferee smiled at the woman. "Hiya, Peanut! Long time, little lady!"

"Lee!" she grinned, extending her hand. "How ya doin', Stud Muffin?"

Gillespie's eyes narrowed, a curious grimace crossing his features. "Stud Muffin? Peanut? Something going on here I should know about?"

Parker chuckled, shaking his head. He followed Harrison to the chairs the Lieutenant pointed to as he retook his own. "No, sir," he explained. "We were training partners at the Academy. She helped me with academics and marksmanship, I helped her with PT and martial arts. We kind of lost touch when we graduated."

"She helped you with marksmanship?"

"Yes, sir. I had a lot of bad habits I had to break. Grew up thinking I was Dirty Harry or Wild Bill Hickok or something like that. Even back then, she was a crack shot."

"Lessons must've been pretty good, considering your range scores."

Harrison smiled. "He's a good student, sir. He didn't argue, just listened and did what he was told."

"Well," the commander chuckled, "that's different. Most of the officers I know would be embarrassed to be instructed by a female. Kudos to both of you." Redirecting his attention to the male, he asked, "You're a martial artist?"

Parker shrugged. "Nothing great, sir. I hold a brown belt in Aikido. Haven't had the time to try for a black."

"And you taught this stuff to her?"

"Just the hand-to-hand. No weapons training. She's pretty good. Quick study. She's in good shape, so she learned most of the moves fast. She practiced hard, too. Pretty impressive, really."

Nodding, the senior officer bit at his lower lip. He'd often wondered why so many of the male officers liked having Harrison as a back-up, and why some of the department's handful of females seemed somehow jealous of her.

"You need that stuff very often?" he asked the woman.

"No, sir. Comes in more handy when I'm dating."

"Sheesh. Only you, Harrison. I take it there aren't any problems with the two of you riding together?"

Anne and Lee looked at each other, trying not to grin openly. They shook their heads. "Nope," they answered in unison.

"Okay. We've got a full shift tonight. I'll tell Tracey that I want the two of you in 3155. Shouldn't be much call for a second center car. Harrison, you drive. Give Parker the grand tour. Respond if you need to, but try to stay in service. Let's treat this as an indoc shift. You two okay with that?"

Both officers nodded. The new arrival was again welcomed to the zone and the pair headed for the key locker.

- - - - - - - - -

"Not really. The North Zone is like three different areas," Harrison explained as they drove through the very early morning hours. "The eastern half is the Mall, a bunch of smaller strip malls, the main business district, restaurant row and the auto dealerships. They run along Frazier Boulevard all the way into Frazier itself. That can be a little misleading, because the back wing of the mall loops around to the north of some of the easternmost subdivisions.

"The western half is like two different zones. The northern part is high-end subdivisions for the blue noses, the southern section is less expensive housing for the rest of us. Still pretty good stuff, but nothing like the north."

"So, do we patrol the entire zone or just our beats?"

Stopping at a light, she glanced at her partner. He was watching and listening attentively. "We patrol our own beat and our partner's beat normally. But, if we're in a center car, like we are tonight, we patrol the entire zone. The north zone has 11, 12, 13 and 14 beats. The south has 15, 16, 17 and 18. If there's only one center car, 10 beat, it roams the entire city. If there are two, like tonight, 10 stays south and 55 stays north. The north end of the zone bumps into Millington. The west goes into Shelby County and the SO takes over."

"So we don't have much of any highway traffic?"

"No interstates, no. US 51 runs up the west side and that can get interesting. It's not really ours, but sometimes Memphis or the County asks for help. Since they finally finished turning Raleigh-Millington into a four-lane, some people seem to think its an interstate. We keep an eye on it, but its not usually a big problem. It's the County's jurisdiction. Our main focus on that end is the businesses. Frazier Boulevard can cause some traffic problems, but that's about it."

Nodding, Parker asked a slightly different question. "Where did they put that new campus for Shelby Technical College?"

"That's on Lassiter, just west of the entryway into the Mall. There's a couple of churches over there, too. Causes some parking problems and makes rush hour a zoo."

"Seems like eight beats is a lot for a city of Raleigh's size."

"Yeah," she agreed, "but it's not just the area that it covers. It's the population and a lot of overflow crime out of Memphis. Raleigh's grown a lot in the past couple of years. Plus, the Naval Air Training Command gives us a lot more people, especially on payday Fridays. They all pour out of Millington and come this way. The restaurant district gets dicey on evening and morning watch those nights."

"I take it we have a lot of bars?"

"Depends on your definition of a lot. We're got enough. It's eight beats, but they're pretty small in area. Just heavy in population and activity, especially the south zone"

"It wasn't bad when I was there, at least I don't remember it being too bad."

"Things have changed, Lee. South Zone is big city policing."

"Did we ever get those pursuit cars the City was talking about?"

"Yeah, year before last, I think. We got two of those five liter Mustangs, one in each zone. I'm not qualified to drive one yet. Not really interested."

"Why not? I'd think driving one of those monsters would be a blast."

Harrison sighed. "Probably, for you big, bad, macho supercops. Not me. I like patrol work. The Mustangs are traffic only."

"Okay. I see your point."

Moving slowly into the north residential district, they came to a four-way stop. As they eased to a full stop, a vehicle from their right rolled through the intersection without slowing down. Harrison sighed.

Parker watched the vehicle's taillights slowly retreat down the street. He turned a curious look on his companion. "You're not gonna pull them?" he asked.

"No. I'll show you why."

She drove straight across the intersection, then circled the block. As they neared the corner they had just been at, she turned on her flood lights. They illuminated the entire intersection and three of the four stop signs.

"Oh," he sighed. "Can't see anything but that hedge."

The flood lights went out. "We've sent at least six work requests to Roads this summer, but they haven't gotten to it yet. Can't blame the drivers if they can't see it. If we did write one, the Judge would just throw it out of court."

Parker shook his head and they continued their patrol.

Several minutes later, they were moving into one of the subdivisions when the radio caught their attention.

"Radio, 3112. I'm out with a Signal 54 auto, Reynolds and Paige. Georgia Bravo Zulu Bravo Five Three Six. Blue Toyota Camry. No occupants visible."

"3112 Clear. 0305."

Robinson glanced at her partner. "That's only about three blocks from here. Let's swing by." Parker nodded, shifting slightly in his seat. He reached for the radio mike but held up as the radio again spoke.

"Radio, 3111. I'm out with 12."

"Clear, 3111. 0306."

It took less than two minutes before the third car pulled up. "I'm not gonna call us out," the female said. "Lieutenant told us to stay in service."

"Yeah," the male grinned, "but that don't mean we gotta stay in the car. Let's go."

Stepping out of their vehicle, the new arrivals walked up to the first two officers. They were checking over the car with their flashlights. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until the radio dispatcher called.

"3112, Georgia Bravo Zulu Bravo Five Three Six, a 2011 Mazda 626, green. No wants."

Now the officers looked at each other. Several eyebrows lifted.

"Radio, 3112. This is a 2021 Toyota Camry, blue. Send us a supervisor."

"Clear, 3112."

Four patrolmen now started a careful external exam of the vehicle, then did the best they could to check the inside. With the wrong plate on the car, they wouldn't need a warrant to search it, but they would need a supervisor to authorize a wrecker driver to open the vehicle.

"Radio, 3103. Code 8."

"Clear, 3103."

One of the first two officers on scene spoke up. "Doesn't look like there's any serious damage to it. Couple of scratches near the front passenger wheel well, but that's all I see."

Harrison took a long, careful look at the interior through the windows. She couldn't see anything on the seats or on the floorboards. There was a box of facial tissues on the back window deck and an empty soda bottle in the center console rack. Nothing looked out of the ordinary.

"Radio, you have an owner and address on the plate?"

"Affirmative. Martin R. Krausse, 2797 Reynolds, Raleigh."

The second officer turned his stream light on the nearest porch, seeing the numbers on the door. "2797," he announced. He then walked to the little name plate on the retaining wall that greeted visitors. "Krausse."

"Let's wait for the sarge before we wake them up. Probably just bought this car and DMV hasn't caught up with it yet."

"Why does it have Georgia plates if he lives here?"

"Might be a business vehicle. Could be driving back and forth. That Ford might be the personal vehicle."

Parker walked up to the F-150 parked in front of the Camry, requesting a registration check on that vehicle, carrying a Tennessee plate. As they suspected, it came back to the same person at the same address. It was also clean. About that time the supervisor pulled in.

After explaining what they had seen and what they suspected, the driver of 3112 accompanied the sergeant to the porch and rang the bell. It took several minutes for a drowsy man in a bath robe to appear at the door. The supervisor apologized for the inconvenience and explained what they were checking on.

As they had suspected, the owner confirmed that the Ford pickup was his personal vehicle and the Toyota was a corporate car. He wasn't aware that the plate was still registered to the Mazda, which they had just traded in. He invited the sergeant in while he retrieved his slacks and car keys.

Opening both vehicles, Mr Krausse retrieved the registration papers from the glove boxes. The sales invoice for the Camry listed the Georgia plate, showing that it belonged to Minotaur Protective Services, Dalton, Georgia, in Mr Krausse's name.

The officers again apologized for the early morning wake-up call. The resident smiled and waved. He went back into his house while the officers went back in service.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

An hour later, Parker and Harrison were seated in the local Denny's restaurant, awaiting their breakfast. They sipped at cups of coffee as they caught up on what they had been doing professionally for the past few years. Eventually, the conversation became more informal and shifted to their personal lives.

"Whaddya mean, you're not dating? There must be a ton of women out there who would be dazzled by your charms!"

Chuckling, the male reached for his cup and took a long sip. "That's quite true. Problem is that I've yet to find a woman worthy of my awesomeness. Can't see any reason to just waste my time."

"That's what I love about you, Lee," his companion smiled. "You're so humble."

"Yep," he agreed, "that's me; handsome, hot and humble. Probably take a while to find someone who can handle that."

"Uh huh. Well, if you get too lonely, you can always date yourself."

Parker smiled warmly. His fond expression caused the woman to blush. "How about you? How's your love life?"

"What's a love life? Nah, it's okay. I'm still dating Neal. Don't know that it's really going anywhere. He's not very happy with me, I don't think."

Lee nodded, looking up as their food arrived. He thanked the server, then picked up a fork. "What makes you think that? You two've been dating for a while, haven't you?"

Reaching for her own fork, Anne nodded. "Yeah. We started dating casually right out of the Academy. Dated on and off since then. I think that's the problem. He thinks we've been together long enough to graduate to the next level. I don't."

"The next level?"

"Sleeping together," she answered sourly.

"Oh. Oh boy."

Breakfast proceeded quietly. The pair returned to the road, completing their patrol at 0730. Returning to the precinct, they completed the few reports they'd accumulated during the shift, then met with Lieutenant Gillespie again. They didn't enter his office, just stood outside the door. "How'd it go?" he asked.

"Fine, sir," Harrison replied. "No problems."

"You two okay with staying partners?"

The pair glanced at each other, shrugging. "Sure," Parker answered.

"Okay. We've got the next two days off. Evening watch starts Wednesday. See you at 1430." He turned and walked into his office.

"Meet me in the parking lot after we get out of these unis," Anne requested.

Her companion just nodded and headed for the locker room.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

They met next to Anne's car, an aging Ford Escort. Lee looked at it in uncertainty.

"This thing still run okay?"

She shrugged. "It's got a lot of miles on it, but it's still reliable. Starting to nickel and dime me a little though."

The male nodded, noting the encroachment of small rust spots along the wheel wells and some of the body seams. The little sedan was starting to show its age. "You looking for a new car?"

"A new used car, yeah. But I'm in no hurry."

"Hmmm. Okay, I'll keep an eye open for you."

Smiling at her friend, the woman asked, "You got any plans for the day?"

"Nah, not really. Probably just play on the PC until I get tired enough to go to sleep."

"I've got two lifetime passes to the zoo. You wanna go wander around behind the little animals?"

Lee laughed. "That sounds expensive. How did you manage that?"

"Didn't cost me anything," she admitted. "One of the curators just gave them to me. Kind of a thank you."

"For what? That's a hell of a thank you."

"Eh, I helped him out a bit when he had that lousy flu last year. He was too sick to drive, so I pulled him over and took him home."

"Too sick to drive? Why did you pull him?"

She looked down, smiling. "He was driving too slow for the area and weaving a bit. I think he might have had a drink or two on the way."

"That's more like it," Parker laughed. "Hey, speaking of the zoo, did you really catch a cobra last year?"

Now Harrison laughed. "No. Me and two DNR rangers watched the zoo people catch a cobra. I ran you past there last night. Up on Greenbriar Circle."

"Hmmm. Okay. Well, let's give the Escort a break. We'll take my Subaru."

They reached the zoo shortly after ten, having to deal with the last of the morning rush hour. The woman at the ticket gate recognized Anne and waved her in. "Hi, Officer Harrison. Good to see you again. Who's this good lookin' fella?"

"This is Lee, my new partner," Anne smiled. "Can he come in on the second pass?"