God Save The Queen Ch. 01

"Couldn't Todd and his fellow Trustees have stopped it?" Tanya asked.

"No." Teresa said. "The Trustees are an oversight board acting on behalf of the Governor of the State. It's the Faculty Board that approves things like this Climate Change Center. It was presented to the Governor and the Trustees as a fait accompli, and Dr. Moore and Carmela said the School was committed because they'd already taken the Federal money."

"That's unfortunate." muttered Police Chief Sean Moynahan. Then he said more loudly: "In the meeeeen-timmmme, we have work to do. Mis-ter Crowbar, I'm looking forrr-wrrrrd to interviewing that City De-teck-tivvvve today..."

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

After watching the KFXU broadcast and having the Angels Meeting, Cindy and Tanya went about their business while Teresa remained in my office, drinking more coffee. I wanted to spike my coffee with some of the whiskey in my desk drawer, but thought better of it.

Teresa said "I didn't say this in front of the others, but Todd and Seth Warner had a meeting with Dr. Moore. Todd tried to explain that the Biology School was on the verge of breaking out before the CCC crap started up, and Seth said the CCC thing may hurt the Hospital and the research work being done to save the Kids. Dr. Moore said that the School needed the money, that his wife Celeste was a strong supporter of Climate Justice and very influential in the decision to transform the Biology School, and that it was bringing the School a lot of positive publicity."

Teresa: "Todd tries not to admit it, but he has a certain Michaux family trait, which we call 'the Vibe'. He said he could sense as well as observe that Dr. Moore was not happy about the whole CCC thing, but had been flat run over by his wife and Carmela. And when the Boosters were mentioned, Dr. Moore actually winced. He knows he fucked up, but he's apparently too gutless to reverse the decision and give the Feds their money back."

I said "Laura told me that the decision was not all that widely supported with the Faculty. She's been meeting with other Faculty members about the situation, and she thinks things are going to get worse."

"How much worse?" Teresa asked.

*KNOCK!* *KNOCK!* *KNOCK!*

The door opened, and Chief Moynahan's head appeared. "She's heeeere. Get ready for the interviews..."

Part 4 - Interview

Her name was Kerri Ambrose. She was a Detective with the City Police's Vice Division. She was wearing a well-fitting civilian light gray jacket and pants, and a dark pink blouse. She was black, medium height, a bit on the slender side, and that was because she was fit, in good physical condition. She had excellent posture, standing up straight as she walked down the hallway with Detective Lisa Monroe.

"You'll be talking to Lieutenant Rudistan and Captain Michaels first." said Lisa. "Rudistan is quirky, but he grew up on the Streets, and he's really sharp. Captain Michaels was here before, then went to the LAPD before coming back here, so she knows big-city Police Departments."

Kerri Ambrose was brought to the little meeting room in the Captain's offices suite. Waiting for her inside were Captain of Detectives Claire Michaels and Vice Lieutenant Micah Rudistan. Rudistan showed good chivalry by standing up as Kerri was brought in, and after shaking hands with her, he indicated a chair at the table for her to sit down. Claire did not stand nor even offer to shake hands, so Kerri sat down...

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

"Claire is being tough on her." Teresa said as she and I watched the interview on Police Internal Channel 2 on the television monitor in my office. Yes, we were sneaking a peek, as were the Chief and Tanya in the Chief's Conference Room.

"And she's stepping all over Rudistan." I said. "We should have had them interview her separately."

The interview had started off with Rudistan asking about some of Kerri's experiences in City Vice and the New Orleans Police before that, some of the operations she'd been on, how City Vice generally worked on cases. Good stuff to know. And then Claire Michaels asks "Why do you want to leave the City Police?"

That question put Kerri Ambrose in discomfort. She said "I got the opportunity to interview with the TCPD, which is a dream job to have."

Claire peered hard at Kerri as she said "So you don't want to leave the City Police? You're not going to look nor interview anywhere else?"

And Kerri finally got right (in my eyes) and said "A lot has gone on in the City Police since the case involving Captain Masters and the dirty cops at the top. A lot of good Officers have left or are planning to leave or retire. So when I got a call to be interviewed here, I took it."

"But nowhere else?" Captain Michaels persisted. "You sent no résumés anywhere else?"

"Yes, I did." replied Detective Ambrose. "But I've had no other interviews."

Claire said "The City Police and the New Orleans Police are large Police Forces, and a lot is going on. By way of contrast, the TCPD is smaller, and doesn't face many of the... challenges... that the City P.D. does. Are you going to be happy here?"

"Ma'am," Kerri Ambrose replied, "I've been in a lot of places doing a lot of jobs, from being an Army MP to the civilian Police Forces and several jobs within them. I've done each one well, and I'll do well for you here." Good answer, I thought to myself.

"That's what I like to hear." Rudistan said jovially. Claire gave him a brief glare.

"Let's talk about some of those jobs you've had." said Rudistan jovially, trying to move away from Claire Michaels's line of questioning. "Did you do undercover work at any of them?"

"Yes." replied Kerri...

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

Kerri Ambrose's next gauntlet was a collection of Lieutenants: Mary Milton, Christopher Purvis, Joanne Warner, Theo Washington, and Teddy Parker. Micah Rudistan brought her into the Main Conference Room. Mary Milton was sitting at the near end of the table, where the Chief normally sits, but the other four were in a row on the far side of the table. They had Kerri sit on the near side, with a space between her and Mary, which Rudistan filled.

"Darn it." I said as Teresa and I watched in my office. "I wanted this to be a casual discussion, but the way they're sitting, it's like facing a Board of Inquest or something. I should've had them do this in the MCD Room or in Classroom 'J', and sit in chairs in a circle." Teresa nodded in understanding.

But it did not go too badly. Mary explained that they were in Intel and MCD, and it was just a 'get to know you' conversation. Mary also explained that she had been the Vice Lieutenant like Rudistan now was, and that Purvis had been in Vice. The other Lieutenants asked good questions, and in the manner of just having a casual discussion.

"She's not nervous." Teresa noted. "Then again, they're not being hostile, like Claire Michaels was."

"They're asking pretty thorough questions, though." I said. "And yes, she's confident..."

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

And then came the big test... Rudistan brought Detective Ambrose to the anteroom of my office. Helena did it all formal, buzzing me, then getting up and opening the door to my office to admit her, then closing the door behind her.

I had gotten up and gone around my desk. As I shook hands with her, I said "I'm Commander Don Troy, and this is Lieutenant Commander Teresa Croyle." As Teresa stood and shook hands with Kerri, I went back around my desk and sat down in my comfortable 'Command Chair'.

As we settled in, I looked at the folder in front of me and said "First of all, I see you were in the 82d MP Company of the 82d Airborne Division, and the 503d Military Police Battalion in Afghanistan. I want to thank you for your service."

"Thank you as well, sir." Kerri said. "I see your Wings and the other Wings, there." She had glanced over and seen my framed U.S. and Israeli Airborne Wings on the wall to my right. "Israeli?"

"Yes." I said. "I was in a Reserve Airborne MP unit, but I wasn't deployed to the combat theaters. It's too bad you weren't here in May; we had an Airborne Jump Day."

"If I may ask, sir," asked Kerri, "how did you make that happen?"

I said "Our EMS Chief is a retired Navy Admiral, who had a combat jump in Viet Nam. He served with Commander Croyle's father in Viet Nam, as well. And he and some of us around here know the Army Chief of Staff, General McFarland. They arranged it for us."

I could see that Detective Ambrose was becoming very impressed with what she was hearing. I also noticed that she was trying hard to not look around my office, a temptation that many new visitors feel. So I said "Go ahead. Take a look around the room, then tell me what you observe and deduce."

Kerri smiled, the kind of smile that said 'Oops, I've been caught snooping'. She said "For all I've heard about the Iron Crowbar, you're pretty modest, sir. But... I have to say, sir, that I don't understand that statue with the Bear Bryant hat on it."

Teresa failed to stifle a chuckle as I turned and saw the 'I Beat Slender Man' statue behind me. "Ah, yes." I said. "That was a gift. The Bear Bryant hat was added by an Alabama fan after Alabama beat my Wildcats in the Natty a while back."

"But you're right about the Commander's modesty." Teresa said. "How did you know?"

"I see the plaques on the wall with the crowbars, and the child drawings." said Kerri. "But there are not very many commendations on the wall, and I know you've earned a lot more, sir." Teresa failed to hide a grin for that, too.

"That's good." I said. "Okay, let's discuss your experiences in Vice, and I apologize in advance if I ask questions you've already been asked. Commander, do you have a question?"

"Before I ask, sir," Teresa said, "I see that Detective Ambrose worked for the New Orleans Police after being honorably discharged from the Army. Are you from Louisiana, Detective?"

"I'm grew up in Lafayette." said Kerri. "That's about halfway between Baton Rouge and Lake Charles."

"I have family in the Lake Charles area." Teresa said. A fluttering of parakeets ensued...

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

Forty-five minutes later, I escorted Detective Ambrose to the Chief's Conference Room, where the Chief, Sheriff Griswold, and Chief Deputy Cindy Ross were waiting. I did not join them, but gathered the Lieutenants, Captain Michaels, and Teresa into the Main Conference Room.

"Okay, what do y'all think?" I asked.

"It's a dunnnn deal." said Rudistan. "A dunnnnn deal. Airborne Paratrooper, Military Police? Anyone else in here that can claim that?" He was referring to Your Iron Crowbar, of course.

"Definitely points in her favor." I replied with a smile. "And she deployed to Afghanistan, which is more than I ever did. But beyond that, what do you all think?"

"She's very professional." said straight-laced Lt. Christopher Purvis. "She's going to have to loosen up if she's going to work with Rudistan, here." Everyone broke out laughing at that. Except Claire Michaels. I looked over at her.

"She is very professional, sir." said Claire. "But she was hesitant, seemingly evasive, when I asked her why she wanted to leave the City Police. I'm just wondering if there is a problem there, that we don't know about."

"Yeah, there's a problem!" Teresa exclaimed, though not too loudly. "And it's with the City Police! Their Narcotics Bureau Chief and their First Deputy Commissioner got busted for running a drug operation a few months ago, thanks to the Iron Crowbar here." (Author's note: 'Who Watches The Watchers'.)

"Then why didn't she just say that, ma'am?" Claire asked. "And I also asked if she would be happy moving from large Police Forces like The City and New Orleans to here, and she seemed uncomfortable with that question, too. This would be the smallest Police Force that Detective Ambrose has worked at. I'd hate for her to get here, and then be bored."

"Bored? Here?" Lt. Teddy Parker replied. Everyone but Claire broke out laughing again.

I said "Wellll, she didn't want to come in badmouthing her previous employers. That wouldn't be a good look in an interview. By the way, Captain, are you bored here? After coming here from a larger Police Force, the LAPD?"

"I'm fine, sir." Claire replied. "But I was here before, and came back here knowing exactly what I was walking back into. It's just something I thought about while I was interviewing her."

"Okay, that's fair." I said. "Anyone else? Speak freely and loudly, or forever hold your peace."

"Don't let her leave without an offer, sir." said Rudistan jovially. "I think she'll be great, here. Especially with the personnel changes we're about to have."

"What?!" came a chorus. Yep, Rudistan had let the proverbial cat out of the bag.

"Oh, sorry." Rudistan said, but maintaining full joviality. "Forget I said that. I need a rewind/erase button for my life."

"And a volume control." Teresa immediately replied. The room erupted in laughter, and order was not restored for a long minute.

After I stopped laughing, which took time and effort, I said "Actually, you did me a favor, Rudistan. Yes, I need to tell you all what's about to happen..."

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

"Another Airborne Paratrooper." Cindy Ross said. Kerri Ambrose blinked in surprise at that.

"What's wrong with that?" asked (Paratrooper) Chief Moynahan.

"Nothing, Chief." Cindy said. Then sensing Kerri Ambrose's internal discomfort, she turned to her and said "And don't get me wrong, Ms. Ambrose. I appreciate your military service very much. But in the service of this Police Department, Commander Troy has broken his back twice. And in spite of my efforts to stop him, he keeps finding ways to jump out of perfectly good aircraft while in flight. So it's kind of a running repartée, and I apologize for subjecting you to it."

"No problem, ma'am." Kerri said. "I can already tell this Police Department has a tight-knit closeness to it that many Police Forces and even military units don't have."

"And how do you think you'll fit into that?" growled Sheriff Griswold, seizing the opportunity to ask that kind of question.

"I'll just have to earn my keep, and show everyone what I've got and can contribute." Kerri replied. The Sheriff's twitching mustaches showed his approval with that answer...

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

All of the Detectives in MCD and Vice, and Corporal Penny Scott and Auxiliary Detective Terry Halston from Intel sat in a circle of chairs away from the table in Classroom 'E' with Kerri Ambrose.

"Oh yeah, it's a done deal." Detective Sergeant Julia Rodriguez said, just as Rudistan had. "A dunnn deal. You're in."

"If you're in this circle with us now, it means they're gonna hire you." said Detective George Newman. "As long as you don't beat Halston up." Everyone laughed.

"And she's a Paratrooper, too." said (Paratrooper) Julia Rodriguez happily. "Served in Afghanistan. 503d MPs, 82d MPs. Can't have too many Airborne-qualified Detectives."

"Rub it in, rub it in." said Joan Laurer, to Julia.

"You were in Afghanistan?" said Halston to Kerri. "I was, too. 75th Rangers. What areas were you in?"

"Kandahar, mostly." Kerri said. "Then Kabul before I was rotated back to the States." Another fluttering of parakeets ensued, as those with military backgrounds got to talking...

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

"Leave it to Michaels to find something wrong about her." Teresa said to me as we sat in my office. "Think she doesn't like Detective Ambrose because Ambrose is black?"

I said "I was wondering about that, but then I thought about it from Claire's point of view. Her questions are legitimate, especially about the relative sizes of the Police Forces. And she might well have asked those questions if Kerri were as lily-white as I am."

"True." Teresa said. After a pause, she said "You know, Don, not all that many people are like you... willing to look at something from another perspective. Most people would just say 'racism' and be done with it. I admit, I may have just been guilty of it myself. But after what happened with Jerome Davis... there starts to be patterns that can be looked at in more than one way."

I said "True. And it doesn't help that so many blacks are looking to be offended, just looking for racism in anything and everything. But maybe my willingness to look at the entire picture, and different angles, and not jump to assign blame or offense... is why I've solved a few cases in a way that stuns others?"

Teresa nodded vigorously in agreement, then said: "I'll tell you something else that Claire may not be seeing. The Lieutenants were totally stunned by Jerome transferring to 1st Precinct. And some of them think Claire forced it. And I'm not sure how they're going to accept these personnel changes. By the way... who are you going to name the next MCD leader? And don't even try to tell me that you're going to leave it to Claire."

"Okay, I won't try to tell you." I said. Seeing the Iron Wolf's 'look' at me, I said "Seriously, ye shall know the truth... if and when Kerri Ambrose accepts the job."

"So you think the Chief will offer it to her?" Teresa asked.

"It's a done deal." I said. "A dunnnn deal..."

Part 5 - The Constant of Change

2:00pm, Tuesday, September 7th. Lisa Monroe and Joan Laurer took Kerri Ambrose to lunch at the Cop Bar after the marathon interview session. As expected, Chief Moynahan offered her a position in TCPD Vice, conditional to passing background checks and drug testing, and she had accepted on the spot. Yes, we'd already run background checks, but the boilerplate was just a way to back out if we needed to.

"The Lieutenants seemed pretty stunned by what you told them earlier." Teresa said as she, me, the Sheriff, the Chief, and Captain Michaels sat in the Chief's Conference Room.

Claire said "And Rudistan had to go run his potty mouth. I'll be having a word with him for that."

I said "Don't be too harsh, though. They already knew something was going on, and he did that to get me to spill the beans... which I did, at least partially."

"So!" said Chief Moynahan, "are we in agreement on these structural and personnel moves?" Everyone said they were, except Claire Michaels, who said nothing. "Captain?" the Chief said, not letting her off the hook. "The time is now to speak up."

Claire Michaels replied "It's what Commander Troy wants, so of course I'll do what he says."

Sheriff Griswold growled "Normally I'd accept that, but not today. Speak freely, Captain, and tell me what you think, honestly and candidly."

Claire said "Thank you, Sheriff. I will. First of all, I had no input into these changes to my Divisions. And second, I believe we should have a formal and declared MCD leader, and I should have considerable input on who it is, if not be the one to name that leader myself."

Sheriff Griswold said "Crowbar, what do you think of that?"

I replied "By not naming any of the Lieutenants the formal MCD leader, I'm essentially saying Captain Michaels is that leader directly. And she's going to have her hands full as we ramp up Vice, too."

"If I may say something, Sheriff?" Teresa said. The Sheriff nodded and Teresa said "We all know that the de facto direct leader of MCD has always been Commander Troy, and will continue to be. He's just eliminating the middlemen. And I agree that Captain Michaels will find that Vice is going to be plenty for her to handle, along with her more direct control of MCD..."

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

3:00pm, Tuesday, September 7th. Captain Damien Thompson, the TCPD Public Relations Officer, called and asked if he could come to my office. I agreed, and a minute later he was seated in front of me.