Cool For The Summer Ch. 01

"Har." growled Sheriff Griswold agreeably.

"Like giving percentages differently for the Silas-Jones races than the other races?" Paulina asked witheringly.

"Exactly." I replied. "Also, I notice he did not mention the Curly Goodwin - Bruce Finneran race for Inspector General."

"Har." growled the Sheriff again. "Goodwin is wiping the floor with Finneran's pedophile ass. No, you won't see KXTC bring that up, if they can possibly help it."

"I'll bet Commander Ross will be pissed that Jeff Hull gave more time and talk on the Wildcats than the Bulldogs." said Teresa with a wicked gleam in her eye.

"Why, what-ever do you mean?" I asked 'innocently'. "He talked more about the superior team, of course."

Just then, Sheriff Griswold's personal iPhone chimed. "It's a text... from Peter Gordon of Clear Call Polling." he said as he read the text. "He says that KXTC didn't show all of the interview with Hoyt Stenson, and KFXU is going to show the rest of it..."

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

"Hello and welcome to Fox University Sunrise!" said Catrina Pierce at 8:00am, from the KFXU Studios. "I'm Catrina Pierce, and with me as always is Meredith Peller. Good morning, Meredith."

"Good morning, Catrina. Good morning, everyone." said Meredith Peller. "Let's go right to our political reporter Priya Ajmani with breaking news. Good morning, Priya!"

'Good morning Meredith and Catrina!" the beautiful Indian reporterette said happily. "Fox Eight News has learned that Democrat candidate for Governor Hoyt Stenson gave a shocking interview, where he railed against the Second Amendment. Our competitors KXTC and the SNN Networks carefully edited that interview, but we have the entire interview. Let's watch!"

Tape rolled, showing Stenson saying "Bingo!" when asked about confiscating guns. Then it showed something that Bettina's broadcast had conveeeeeniently left out: Stenson continued, saying "I am eager to confiscate the guns of those who might use them against Government authorities. Only State and Federal Government authorities should have guns. No one else, and especially not radical Right-Wing Conservatives!"

The tape showed Priya asking: "So you think only Police should have guns? Even though you want to abolish the Police?"

Stenson said, as if reciting a memorized lesson: "Local Police, especially those that used crushing brutality against peaceful protesters, need to be defunded and their guns confiscated. Only State and Federal Agents that obey the commands of their superiors... er, their lawful superiors, should have guns."

Then Keith Madden asked: "So, Mr. Stenson, you want to defund the Police, yet also confiscate guns from law-abiding citizens. So how are they supposed to protect themselves?"

"Uhh...they're not." said Stenson, his voice becoming shaky. "They should rely on the Government to take care of them..." As he stuttered through his answer, his Campaign Manager came up and ended the interview. The KFXU camera showed Stenson being led out of there, looking dazed and confused...

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

"Wowwwww." said Teresa as she, Tanya, Cindy, and the Sheriff watched the broadcast with me prior to the Angels Meeting. "That's going to hurt Stenson's candidacy."

"The gun confiscation part, or the confusion part when he was taken off-script, and had to be led away?" I asked in reply.

"Oh come on." Cindy said acerbically. "He stumbled over a question. They all do it at some point."

"Young lady," Sheriff Griswold said with some strength in his voice, "I watched my wife go through Alzheimer's before she died. And what I am seeing of Stenson is the same thing I watched my wife go through in the early stages of her disease."

"For myself, Teresa," I said, "I really enjoyed watching him try to get past the contradiction of wanting to abolish the Police while at the same time wanting to confiscate the guns of law-abiding citizens."

"That's not a contradiction, sir." said Teresa. "At least not to them. Both defunding or abolishing the Police and confiscating all guns helps them towards their goal to exercise full control over an unwilling Populace." I pointed at her and nodded in acknowledgement.

Cindy was about to get up and leave, but the Sheriff beat her to it. "Stay here, Ms. Ross. I'm no Angel, so I'll leave you all to your meeting."

"You're right, Sheriff." I said wickedly. "And you are definitely not good looking enough to be one of my Angels."

"Har! No doubt about that." growled the Sheriff. "Nevertheless, you ladies need to teach this man better asskissing skills."

"No doubt about that, sir." Cindy said, needling me, as the Sheriff exited the office.

"Okayyyy." I said. "We're not abolished yet, so let's do our jobs and run this Police Department. What's going on today?..."

Part 5 - An East Wind Blowing

Jack Muscone and Karina White invited Teresa and me to lunch at the Cop Bar, and he 'warned' us that it would be a 'working' lunch. We got there at 11:45am, only to find that the Fire Department brass had beaten us to the back 'Command' room. So we were in the regular back room, in the very back of it, and the owner Pops put 'Reserved' signs on the tables around us to give us a bit of privacy if and when more patrons came in.

Jack ordered (what else?) the Double Cheeseburger Plate, and I had the Double Breakfast Burger Plate. Teresa had the (single) Breakfast Burger plate, and Karina wisely went for the Steak Caesar Salad.

"I suppose you're wondering why I called this meeting today." said Jack Muscone.

"To have a Double Cheeseburger." I replied wickedly. "So what's the less important, secondary reason?"

"Does there need to be another reason?" Jack said with a twinkle in his beady black eyes and what was for him a smile. Then he said "Seriously, we've been following up on this Jen Sakai case, and we've come across some more stuff. Teresa, do you know who Weston Windham is?"

"More like 'was'." Teresa replied. "He was married to my cousin Tessa Bessemer Windham, daughter of Edward Bessemer and my mother's sister Dora Clara. Tessa and Weston had two children, Beatrice and Eugenia, and they died in a plane crash some years ago."

"Do you remember exactly how long ago?" Muscone asked.

"Uh, about four years ago, I think my Aunt Clarissa told me?" Teresa said.

"What about Easton Windham?" asked Jack. "Do you know that name?" One could sense the stillness overtake the room.

"Before I answer," replied Teresa, "what's it about?"

"What do you mean?" asked Jack. He got a look from Teresa that verged on her signature 'Teresa Cunt' look.

"I mean, why are you asking about Easton Windham?" Teresa fired, almost angrily. "What brought him to your attention?"

"Just..." Muscone started, then said "Look, just answer the question: what do you know about him?" Teresa did not answer, but stared at Muscone.

"She's not playing the game, Jack." I said, coming to Teresa's defense. "And neither am I. Now what is this about?" He looked at me, to find that my eyes were boring right through him.

"I seem to have touched a live wire, here." he said. After a long pause, he said "Well?" He was met with stony silence.

Karina tried to help. "Guys, what's going on? We're all friends here, right?"

"If we are," I said, my gray eyes still flashing fire (and that was nothing compared to what Teresa's eyes looked like), "then start telling us what this is about?"

"I'll tell you." said Jack Muscone. "But I don't understand the hostility about it."

I looked over at Teresa and nodded. She said "Easton Windham... was my first husband." Jack and Karina looked shocked.

"So!" I said, stopping Teresa from saying any more. "Why don't you tell us what this is about." It was not a request, and the Federal Agents knew it.

Karina White said "Weston Windham, who was married to Teresa's cousin like she said, may have been working with Jen Sakai to smuggle moonshine whisky to the Yakuza in Japan. And that plane crash that killed him and his wife may not have been an accident, but his assassination."

"Okay." said Jack Muscone. "Now you know how this works, guys. I need you, Teresa, to tell me what you can about Easton Windham before I say anything about him. And then I'll tell you what we know."

"Fair enough." I said, again nodding to Teresa.

Teresa said "I'm a little bit older than Don, here, but I graduated almost two years after him. When I went to college I didn't have much money, so I would have to take a quarter off... we were on the quarter system, not the semester system... and I'd work and earn enough to keep going."

Teresa: "I met Easton in school, and we began dating and then got married at the Justice of the Peace's office... mostly so we could live in Married Housing at the School. And for some of that time, a guy named Jack Burke lived with us. Yes, that Jack Burke, Don's college roommate and the father of the boy Todd and I have custody of." (Author's note: 'Case of the Murdered Lovers' among other stories, for more on Jack Burke.)

Teresa: "Jack moved on when he got scared that someone was coming after him. Shortly after he moved out, Easton and I realized that our marriage was not going to work. We'd been married less than a year, so we had the marriage annulled. We graduated from school and went our separate ways. I lost track of him pretty quickly, and I eventually ended up here with the TCPD. And that's really the whole story."

"What was Easton Windham like?" asked Jack Muscone.

"Tall, broad-shouldered, brown curly hair." said Teresa. "Pretty quiet, studious, didn't get into any trouble."

"Did your family tell you anything about Weston Windham?" asked Jack. "Description? Personality?"

"No." said Teresa. "When I heard the name, I mentioned I'd known an Easton Windham, but I didn't tell them in what capacity. No one really reacted to that, that I observed. But we didn't talk much about Weston Windham because his and Tessa's deaths were still pretty fresh and raw to their daughters Beatrice and Eugenia."

Jack and Karina nodded. Jack said "Thank you for telling us that. Here's what's going on on our side: As I said a minute ago, Weston Windham may have been involved with Jen Sakai to smuggle moonshine whiskey to Japan. But we kept coming up with the name 'Easton Windham' as we dug into records. Dwight Stevens of the DEA is speculating they may be the same person using two aliases, while Karina and ATF people she knows think they were related, maybe even brothers. We're working to find paper records to confirm or eliminate that hypothesis."

"Easton never mentioned to me that he had a brother." Teresa said.

"I'd say they're two different people." I said. "Teresa, Easton was your age, wasn't he?"

"A little younger than you and me... and Jack Burke." Teresa said.

"And your cousin Tessa was older than you?" I asked. "In her forties when she died?"

"Yes." Teresa said. "And her younger sister Dora Clara is also older than me, in her forties now."

"And you have no idea where Easton Windham might be?" asked Muscone. Teresa just shook her head.

"Teresa," said Karina White, "would you be willing to talk to your family and get more information on Weston Windham?"

"I guess I could talk to my Aunt Clarissa." Teresa said. "But she's a sharp Belvedere cookie... pun intended. If she has any idea what's going on with her daughter Jen, she'll figure out why I'm calling and asking."

"We can get the information in other ways." said Jack Muscone. "So maybe hold off on that, for now... unless an inroad to bringing it up happens by surprise..."

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

"Wow." said Teresa as she and I sat in my office that afternoon. "The coincidences abound."

"Which ones are you thinking of?" I asked.

"Jack Burke was your college roommate." said Teresa. "He knew Melina, in the Biblical sense. He was my first husband's friend and became our roommate, and I knew him... in the Biblical sense. Shortly after you arrived here, we were investigating his murder... and we found out that Jack Burke had a blood brother... who was coincidentally your nephew, and became my husband. And now I'm the adoptive mother of his child."

I said "I guess he's the focal point that has bound our lives together."

"Both him and you are candidates for that." Teresa replied. "Anyway, now I'm finding a family that I never knew I had, and there's a potential connection with my first husband and them."

"And Dr. Cordell was your father's medic when they were in Viet Nam," I said, "and he appeared right on time to save your life in surgery. And so on and so forth."

"And Takaki Taichi happened to be here in our Town & County," Teresa said, "and his father happens to be the longtime head of Japanese Intelligence, and Taro's sister is Todd's assistant, and so on and so forth... and then we find that my cousin Jen Esterson Sakai has crossed their paths."

"The party never stops in our beloved Town & County." I said. "And I wouldn't have it any other way. And speaking of our Town & County, are you ready for the Council meeting tonight?"

"Yes." said Teresa. "Standard security arrangements. What I don't get is why the Council suddenly found the need to up the Town Assembly's budget deadline."

"That's an Easy Button answer." I said. "Because I suggested it to Edward Steele."

Teresa was getting good, I thought to myself. She almost didn't show her reaction. After a second, she said "Why?"

"That..." I said, "... will become apparent later this year..."

Part 6 - Assembled and Council-ed

7:00pm, Tuesday, August 11th. The public Council Chamber was only about 1/3 full as Sheriff Griswold and I came up to Lt. Commander Croyle on the floor to the audience's left side.

"Not a very large audience tonight." I observed out loud.

"I don't know why," Teresa said, "but I'm not complaining."

"It's going to be boring as hell for most people tonight." growled Griswold. "They're going to be talking about the Assembly and the Budget."

"And that's why I'm surprised by the lack of attendance, Sheriff." Teresa said. "I figured the 'defund the Police crowd would be here in force."

I said "Naah, they're waiting for the Breonna Bryant trial to find something to be agitated about. This in rote internal County Government politics."

At 7:30pm, the Town & County Council Members filed into the public Council Chamber and sat down. The Mayor gaveled the session into order. Routine and Old Business was quickly dealt with.

"New business?" asked the Mayor. "Mr. Steele is recognized."

"I move that the date by which the Town & County Assembly be required to pass the County budget be moved up to midnight, the end of October 31st."

"I second." said John Colby.

"Point of order!" cried out Sheila Sorrells. "As I would expect Charter Commission member Edward Steele to know, the new Charter states that the deadline is Election Day."

"Point of order in reply." said Dagmar Schoen. "The new Charter also states that the due date may be moved up a reasonable amount of time by law, which means this Council passing said law."

"I agree." said Mayor Allgood. "The Point of Order by Ms. Sorrells is denied. The motion is made and seconded. Debate?"

"I would like to ask Mr. Steele why he has made this motion." said Susan Weston. "And by that I mean what problem is he perceiving, and why this is a solution to that problem."

Edward Steele said: "There are a couple of reasons why, one of which I can state publicly now. With the political rancor in both this County and the State at a level I never dreamed possible, much less have ever seen, an earlier deadline will mean the Budget will get done that much sooner, and the Assembly won't face the pressure of Election Day being their deadline."

"The other reason," said Steele, "hasn't officially occurred yet, so I would be remiss to state it out loud, especially since Kelly Carnes will just run to Bettina Wurtzburg to blab it all over the place."

"Point of order!" yelled Kelly Carnes and Reginald B.F. Lewis together.

"Denied!" yelled Mayor Allgood.

"We haven't even said it yet-------"

"I said 'DENIED!'." Allgood yelled loudly. "Shut your mouths while Mr. Steele has the floor!"

"Thank you, Mr. Mayor." said Steele. "As I was saying, the other reason will have to wait to be stated publicly. If it doesn't come to pass, then it's 'no harm, no foul', and the reason I did state is good enough on its own. Also, it's just a few days we're talking, not weeks or months."

Reginald B.F. Lewis raised his hand and was recognized to speak. He said "Do you really think moving up the deadline is going to stop us from defunding the Police?"

"I don't think that's going to happen, anyway." said Edward R. Steele.

"It will if you don't 'Free Breonna'!" Kelly Carnes snarled.

"You are out of order and not recognized to speak, Carnes." said Daniel Allgood assertively. "One more outburst like that, and I will have you arrested and removed from the Chamber."

Carnes was about to say something in reply, but out of the side of her eye she saw Teresa Croyle step towards her while getting handcuffs out of its pouch on Teresa's belt. Carnes made a wise decision, and spoke no further.

"I believe we should get the Town & County Assembly's input on this before forcing an earlier deadline upon them." said Sheila Sorrells. "Therefore I move we lay it on the table."

"I second." said Malinda Adams.

As motions to lay it on the table required a vote with no debate, the vote was held. To everyone's shock, it was defeated 4-6, with Reginald B.F. Lewis joining the majority against. His fellow Democrats looked at him as if he'd told them Jupiter had left orbit.

"I think we should defeat this piece of crap now, not leave it alive." said Lewis.

"I move..." said Susan Weston, "that we send this to a Committee of the Whole to study, discuss, and debate it further. I really would like to have the Assembly's input on this before we proceed with it."

"I second." said Ian McGhillie, somewhat to his fellow Republicans's surprise. The vote was 8-2 to pass, with Kelly Carnes and Sheila Sorrells voting against.

"We're in luck." said Mayor Allgood with a smile. "It just so happens that the Town Assembly is here tonight, and will meet with the Committee of the Whole right now. Is there any other business? Or do I hear a motion to go into a session of the Committee of the Whole?..."

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

When one enters City Hall at the front atrium, the Council Chamber is to the right. To the left is the Town & County Assembly Chamber. What is not widely known is that on the floor below them, which is the first floor from the back of the building but halfway underground from the front, is a chamber with five rows of ten seats for a total of 50, and a raised stage in front. It was meant to be a Press Room, but subsequently became a place where Departments could meet to give presentations or discussions and debates.

It was in this room that the Town & County Council and the Town & County Assembly met. Joining them were Our Sheriff, Your Iron Crowbar as the Charter Commission Chairman, and the Iron Wolf as our security. The Mayor moderated the discussion.

A white Republican male on the Assembly started us off: "I don't think we have a problem with moving up the date by just a few days------"

"Speak for yourself." said a black Democrat woman. "I have a problem with it."

"May I ask why you have a problem with it?" asked Edward Steele.

"Because you're trying to stop us from defunding the Police." said the woman. "And I'm here to tell you that we're going to do that anyway."

"That's presumptuous." said another white Republican male on the Assembly. "We're going to fully fund our Police, and you don't have the votes to stop us." The woman looked at the man with deep hatred in her eyes.