Ethical Dilemmas Ch. 03

"Do you really think for a minute that we'll do that?" snarled Bettina. "It'd open us up to legal action. Not to mention I completely disagree with your premises about it.

"I'll go you one further." said Captain Thompson, who was black. "If you want Commander Troy to even think about not going outright nuclear on all of you again, you're going to have to fire Lester Holder. If I had said what he said about Tasha Troy-Patterson, I'd have been fired...and probably had the shit beat out of me. If any white person had said that, if Lester Holder were white and had said that, he'd have been fired. So why is KXTC not only employing that bastard, but protecting him?"

"Because he's black." said West, in a random act of a journalist actually telling the truth.

"What?!" gasped Cindy, her voice full of scorn.

"Captain Thompson," said Bettina, "you know what I'm saying, and know it to be true. If we fired Holder, he'd sue us for racism against him. Blacks use the 'N'-word all the time, about each other, and nothing is said. But if a white person uses the word, even in a literary story, he or she is accused of being a racist, is sued, is verbally and even physically attacked for it. It's a double standard, but we're as trapped by it as anyone else."

"And you think Commander Troy is going to accept that?" Cindy asked. "If you do, then allow me to redirect your suppositions."

"Honestly," said Burt West, "if the day Holder had said that about Tasha, Commander Troy had come off that podium and beaten Holder until he was nearly dead, it'd have been accepted as the father of that child taking up for his daughter... and we all would've been better off."

"That's what you want, isn't it?" Cindy accused, completely not fooled. "You're trying to bait Don into physically attacking one of you. Amber Harris tried to get him to retaliate against her during the domestic dispute---"

"No! and that's why I asked for this meeting!" said Burt West. "I don't want either side getting physical, getting violent. And that's another thing: yeah, Hardwood and Cook tried to murder his daughter. That doesn't make all us journalists bad, it doesn't make all of the Town Council bad. Just like it doesn't make you bad that TCPD Officer Angela Harlan murdered reporter Tim Dawdle."

Cindy sat back, her eyes showing understanding, and scorn. "So that's it, your next line of attack. You're going to start chanting about Harlan for murdering Dawdle. Will you also mention that she also murdered a Police Officer?"

"No." Bettina said. "And we're going to do what we have to do. We're tired of being called the bad guys---"

"Commander Troy is tired of being called a racist, too." said Captain Thompson. "So are Sheriff Allgood and Governor Jared, I'm sure. That hasn't stopped you Press people from saying it over and over and over and over..."

"Jared IS a racist!" yelled Bettina. "And neither I nor my colleagues will ever stop saying that! The Press is not the enemy, Jared IS!!"

"Then I have nothing further to say to you." said Thompson.

"Ditto that for me." said Cindy, her eyes boring into Bettina.

"I'll add one thing to this." said Chief Moynahan. "The fact that Commander Troy did not wax Holder for that racial attack, and the fact that he did not retaliate against Amber Harris by destroying her when she assaulted him, shows me that he is a much, much better man than you Press jerks are. You people have absolutely no integrity, no ethics, and no sense of humility. I think this meeting is con-cluuu-ded."

"Wait." said West. "Let's start over..."

"No, Mr. West," said the Chief, getting up, "at this point I'd rather wait until the results of the Court case. I don't think you're ever going to meet us halfway on any of our issues, even those beyond the scope of the Iron Crowbar..."

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

"Well, Commander Ross," said the Chief as they sat in his office, "what are your thoughts about that meee-ting?"

"Burt West is scared of something." Cindy said. "But what surprised me the most is how hostile and militant Bettina has become. At first, she was trying to reason with Captain Thompson. But as soon as Governor Jared was mentioned, the mask fell off. I do not understand the hatred for that man... but they hate him with every fiber of their beings."

"And what is West scared of?" asked the Chief, seeing his Deputy Chief going into a reverie. A trait that must run in her family, he thought to himself.

"Oh, of course." said Cindy. "Bettina is the answer. As hostile as she is, Amber and Holder are much worse. They, and the others, must be getting far more aggressive, and West can't handle it, nor control them anymore..."

Part 18 - Hierarchies, Redux

"So how are you liking school, Carole?" asked Cindy as we all sat at the dinner table at The Cabin on the night of Friday, August 31st. My Angels and their families had come, as well as Molly and the boys.

"It's o-kay." said Carole. "I liked the Music class, but Reading is boring."

"That's because you already know how to read." said Teresa.

"How are the school lunches?" Cindy asked.

"O-kay." said Carole. "But not as good as Grandma's cooking." My mom Phyllis smiled at that. I thought Chief Griswold would be proud of Carole's asskissing skills.

"Daddy," said Jim, "you should call the school and tell them to make Carole eat stringbeans for lunch."

"You better HUSH!" retorted Carole. "Don't listen to him, Daddy!"

Daddy was trying hard to not laugh, and I was failing. And it didn't help that my Angels were laughing along with me...

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

I was sitting with my Angels on the back deck; the fire in the pot keeping bugs away. We could hear the faint sounds of a high school band playing at a football game. The headlight of a train sparkled as it came out of the western horizon towards the River, and Town.

"I'm banned, too." said Teresa. "The Chief said to join his coffee klatch or yours, Don... but not MCD's any more."

"He told me he wouldn't stop me if I went in there," said Tanya, "but he 'suggested' I make it a rare thing, like Fridays only."

"So what's it about?" asked Cindy. "Did he tell you why, Don?"

"He didn't tell me," I replied, "but I think I know. Part of it is what he said to us, about a separation of hierarchies. And he's right. I've thought from time to time that things get pretty informal in there, but my thoughts were more in line that the Detectives use me as a crutch in their cases."

"I also suspect," I continued, "that the Chief wants to limit some of the information that's passed along. This morning we talked about the Press a lot, and I noticed he left the room at that time. He probably sees that it's not a good thing that we've been griping about the Press as well as the politicians in front of the Detectives, and he's right. And that's on me; I should've seen that and curtailed it."

"Yes, the political stuff does start to get heated at times." said Teresa, remembering her spat with Joanne Warner.

"And one more thing about it." I said. "Do not go blaming the Chief if and when they ask why we're not in there anymore, and don't be heard bitching about it. We have our orders, and we will follow those orders as the professionals we are. If and when they ask, just say we want them to talk amongst themselves and grow stronger esprit de corps with each other, without our influences."

"Funny," said Cindy, "Chief Quinlin was asking what our secret was, why the Police Force had such good esprit de corps. And those coffee klatches were a big part of it."

"I'll go in there some of the time." said Tanya. "It's part of the evaluation process for me."

"Speaking of that," said Teresa, "did Joanne say any more about her military... opportunities?"

"Yes." I said. "I talked to her. Never say never, but I think she's going to go to NCO School, which will be a month of weekends, then remain in her current MP unit..."

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

Indeed, I'd talked to Joanne earlier that day.

"Come in," I said as she was announced over the phone by Helena. "Have a seat."

"Thank you, sir." Joanne said as she sat down. "I wanted to get your feedback on my decision about getting an Army commission."

"Yes." I said, facing her and looking her squarely in the eye. "Before I give my two cents worth, I do want you to know that you are not dealing with an Agency of the Weak Minded. You are considering Military Intelligence, not the MPs. If you go for it, you'll be full-time in the Army, you'll also go to Langley, whereupon you will be a CIA Officer as well as an Army Officer."

"How?..." Joanne asked, then said "Your wife told you. Or Melina."

"Not at all." I said. "My wife does not discuss Company business with me, and Melina is certainly not going to discuss much of anything with me. And I did not need to be told. What has really been bothering you is that you know as well as I do that if you go the Army and CIA route, you'll never return to the TCPD at all."

"Yes sir." said Joanne, her voice becoming quiet. "And that's... that's hard to think about."

"How long do you have to decide?" I asked.

"I'll have to give my Captain an answer during our October weekend." said Joanne, meaning her Reserve weekend. "I was thinking that the Press issues with you would be resolved. If you leave, I'm taking the OCS shot. If not... I'm staying here, sir."

"I understand." I said. "But let me say one thing about that: don't base your decisions on what I do. Do what you want to do, in this and in all things. Only your husband should have any influence on your decision. Certainly not me."

"Yes sir, I understand." said Joanne. "But that's why I'm thinking about all this in the first place. A TCPD without the Iron Crowbar..."

"... will still be an excellent Police Force." I replied. "Because of good Officers like you. And I'll tell you a secret, just between you and me." I leaned over the desk as she leaned forward, and I whispered:

"There will always be an Iron Crowbar with the Town & County Police Force. Always."

Part 19 - Epilogue

"Oh, Commmannderrrrr..."

"What is it, Angela?" I asked, hearing her voice filling my head.

"Oh, my dear Commander." whispered Angela. I opened my eyes, and saw that I was in the master bedroom of The Cabin. Laura was asleep next to me. The room was drained of color; only the light of the moon filtered through the curtains, as if Count Dracula would come in on the moonbeams. Apparently Count Angela had done so... and now she was straddling me, her face just above mine.

"You think it's all about you, don't you, my beloved Commander..." the Black Widow whispered. "What if it's... not?"

I blinked... well, I thought I blinked. When I opened my eyes, I was seeing in color again. The moonlight was coming in at a different angle. I sat up in bed, then looked over at Laura, who was peacefully sleeping.

Laura...

That's it! I thought to myself. The attack on Laura's medical license. We thought someone was trying to get at me through attacking her. But, as Angela was saying, what if it wasn't about me? What if someone had gone after Laura... to go after her?

But why? And more importantly, who?

That question plagued me through the night, as I did not return to sleep...

Finis.

Hang on, dear readers... the 'season ending' trilogy is coming next!