Jupiter Rising Ch. 02

"Do we know who inherits his estate?" asked Captain Perlman.

"No ma'am, not yet." said Mary. "His assistant said that he does have a will, and she thought either the University or his attorney would be the Executor of the will. We'll have to wait for it to be probated to find out what its terms are."

"Any video footage?" Tanya asked.

"None inside the building; there are no cameras in the hallways." Mary replied. "There's footage from a camera on a light post in the parking lot that covers the front door, and footage from the mechanical arm that allows people in and out of the parking lot that shows the side door nearest Dr. Steele's office. It's still being evaluated."

"Any enemies you've come up with yet?" Tanya asked. "Detective Stone, feel free to jump in if you have anything."

"Not yet, Captain." said Tracy Stone. "We're going to interview his students, other students, and other professors beginning tomorrow morning."

"Speaking of that," said Mary Milton, "Dr. Stoddard has.... er, had... only two grad students." She named names.

"Is that a lot or a little?" asked Julia Rodriguez.

"To provide contrast and context," Mary said, "Dr. Stephanie Steele has six, and Dr. Laura Fredricson also has six Psychology students, as well as two Residents in gynecology in the Medical School. But Heads of Departments often don't have as many students, and Dr. Stoddard may have been winding that part of his job down. Something to look into."

"Hint hint." Julia replied. "I'll check into that, unless Agent Johnson and Detective Stone want to as part of their interviews with all the students."

"We may cross paths," said Terence Johnson, "but sometimes redundancy can be a good thing. So yes, why don't you check on that, and we'll compare notes."

"Okay, our first suspect right now is Dr. Stephanie Steele." said Tanya. She went through what had been found at the scene. "We also have this testimony from one of our Auxiliary Detectives. As Bettina says, 'Roll tape!'."

Tape rolled, or Mary's video did. Everyone watched Carole's testimony, then her and Marie's testimony later on, some of which I listened to very carefully:

"So after you took charge of the crime scene and wouldn't let anyone touch anything," Julia Rodriguez said, "what happened? Who came in?"

Carole: "Two Campus Po-leece Officers came in very fast after we found the body. Then the State CSIs came in. They made Dr. Steele and Marie leave the room, but I wouldn't leave because I had to talk to Daddy. So Christina, who is Aunt Tanya's friend, said I could stay and she'd watch over me, and she told me to sit in the chair and just watch. So I did."

Tanya told the watching group: "That's my friend Dr. Christina Cho, the Chief Chemist of the Crime Labs, that Carole is talking about."

The video then showed Carole saying: "The blonde Detective came in a minute later, looked around, then said she was going to talk to Dr. Steele. Then Daddy came in just a minute later."

"Her dad is Commander Troy." Tanya said. "As you can see, Carole Troy very accurately described Dr. Steele's office before and after Dr. Steele's 3:30pm class. She also observed Dr. Steele's purse, and is sure it was black."

"She's a six-year-old child." said Tracy Stone.

Julia Rodriguez came in hard: "She has three citations from two Police Departments for her observations that led to solving three crimes... one of which was a $400 million drug bust. The State Legislature cited her for that one, too. How many citations do you have, Detective Stone?"

"All right, all right, it's not a competition here." said Terence Johnson in the sudden silence that had enveloped the room, as Tracy Stone looked daggers at Julia Rodriguez, but barely matching Julia's look at her. "Suffice it to say that Miss Troy is proven, and her observations and testimony cannot be discounted due to her age. Having said that, we don't have a black purse, we have a blue one, with Dr. Steele's belongings and a firearm in it. So can someone tell us about her?"

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

As they had talked and I watched, it came to me: How was it that the TCPD Crime Lab team and TCPD and Campus Police Officers had arrived so quickly? Carole had called me immediately upon finding the body, and I'd scooted right up there with Julia and Teddy. Yet others had arrived and were working on the scene when I got there.

I made a quick phone call to Campus Police Headquarters. Their Duty Desk told me they logged a call at 4:15pm that there was a body in an office in the Physics Building.

Unknown to everyone else, Tanya was wearing an earbud, and I could speak to her through the headset I was wearing. I also could write texts that would appear on her laptop. I texted 'Who called it in?'. I then texted Lt. Mary Milton, and asked her to check the number I was texting her...

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

"Before you discuss Dr. Steele," Captain Perlman said, "we need to ask the first question Commander Troy always asks: who called it in? Detective Stone, when did the Campus Police Duty Desk get the call?"

"I'm not sure." said Tracy Stone, her voice sounding evasive. "I'll have to check with the Duty Desk."

"When were you notified?" Julia Rodriguez asked sharply.

"I don't remember exactly." said Stone.

Captain Perlman said "Okay, how were you notified?"

"My cellphone." said Tracy.

"Ah!" said Tanya, with Rudistan-ish joviality. "So check your cellphone now, and see when the text or call came in."

Tracy Stone rolled her eyes, but she pulled out her cellphone and fiddled with it. Finally she said "Looks like about 4:20pm."

Terence Johnson said "I checked with the Campus Police Duty Desk, and they got the call at 4:15pm. They immediately notified me and the State Crime Lab."

"And I'll tell you a secret now." said Captain Perlman. "Christina Cho, Chief Chemist of the State Crime Labs, very often calls me when they get a call. I got that call at 4:22pm, and sent a couple of our CSIs and some of our Officers to support the State Crime Lab's people."

"Is it normal for them to just go out of their jurisdiction like that?" Tracy Stone asked, her voice almost a snarl.

"We've been raising the legal question of our jurisdiction on Campus for some time." Tanya Perlman replied. "Certainly the Chief Chemist of the State Crime Labs can call our CSIs to assist her with her inquiries. And the Sheriff absolutely has jurisdiction over every inch of this County, including the University. That's been legally established."

"And Commander Troy is also the SBI Reserve Inspector." said Terence Johnson. "Within this State, he could not care less about politically drawn lines."

"And you don't care that that could destroy our legal case against the suspect?" Stone asked angrily.

"It hasn't yet, Detective Stone." said Teddy Parker. "And I'm willing to bet it won't be a problem here."

"Alright, let's get back to the case." said Terence Johnson. "Tell us about Dr. Stephanie Steele, please."

Lt. Mary Milton said: "Dr. Steele holds the Professor Stephen Hawking Chair of Astronomy at the University. She has been married to Town & County Councilman Edward Steele for over 20 years. They have one daughter, Selena, who we at the TCPD know is Edward's blood daughter and adopted by Stephanie, and they adopted Marie Saint about three years ago." (Author's note: 'The Other World', Ch. 02.)

Mary: "Dr. Steele has published eight papers, the last three being considered of major importance. The last one, published just late last year, has garnered a lot of interest and may get her nominated for a Nobel Prize. She has become a world leader of a group that supports theories of objects moving faster than the speed of light, and the ramifications of that. She has six students, which may expand to eight, and a large number of applications. Among her grants are two by the Department of Defense, as some of her theories have military applications."

Mary: "The Steele's finances are good. Edward is a developer, and has semi-retired. He also gets a salary as a Town & County Council Member, which is less than our Police salaries. Stephanie makes in the low six-figures. Like Dr. Stoddard, they've invested well."

Mary: "And what I know will be of interest to some here, Edward Steele owns one firearm, a Beretta 92FS in 9mmP caliber. Both he and Stephanie acquired concealed carry permits after they adopted Marie, when there were some potential threats to their family."

"What threats are those?" asked Detective Stone.

"I'll send you the files." said Mary Milton. "It's heavy but good reading about some of Commander Troy's biggest cases. Also, last year there was an attempt to kidnap Carole Troy while Marie was with her."

*CHIME!*

"That's my laptop." said Mary.

"Mine, too." said Tanya. "Martha has finished her autopsy. Here's the gist of it. Robert Stoddard died between 3:20 and 4:20pm, that's as near as she'll state it. He was shot twice, by either .355 or .357 caliber rounds. As you know, .355 is 9mmP, and .357 is .38 Special or .357 Magnum. Martha states that the bullets were really deformed, and notes that her experience of the past suggests the rounds were fired through a silencer, and she's turning the rounds over to Ballistics for further analysis."

"Makes sense." said Terence Johnson. "Nobody heard a shot, so a silencer explains that."

"True." said Tanya. "Anyway, she says the rounds were fired from about three feet away, and appear to be a double-tap, i.e. fired in quick succession. They struck------"

"Sorry to interrupt," said Tracy Stone, "but how can she tell that?"

Tanya replied "Wound channels and spacing. But why don't you visit her tomorrow and ask? If you ask nicely, she'll explain everything, and you can get to know her better. Anyhoo, the one of the shots destroyed the right side of his heart, and the other slammed into his spinal cord after severing several major arteries. In other words, he was dead before he hit the floor."

*CHIME!*

"When it rains, it pours." Tanya said. "The State Crime Lab sent the ballistics report. First, there were no prints on the gun nor the shell casings found in the blue purse. They are saying that that .38 Special revolver is likely the gun that shot Dr. Stoddard, but the tests are not conclusive because their test fires were without a silencer attached. That revolver was a snub-nose, but some illegal after-market silencers could possibly fit onto it, and markings on the firearm suggest that there may indeed have been a silencer attached."

"Any information on who that firearm is registered to?" asked Tracy Stone.

"Yes." said Mary Milton. "It was purchased by Selena Steele in Dallas, Texas, eight years ago."

"When Angela Harlan was going after her." said Teddy Parker. Tanya nodded. (Author's note: 'Case of the Black Widow'.)

"So it was Dr. Steele's daughter's gun?" asked Tracy Stone. "What other guns does Selena Steele own?"

"A .380 ACP Beretta, a .380 ACP Kel-tec, and a 9mmP Kel-tec." said Mary Milton.

"Agent Johnson, I'm getting a warrant, to search Selena's home... and to arrest her, as well." She got up, effectively ending the meeting...

Part 8 - Legal Machinations

Judge Watts refused to give an arrest warrant after I told him that Selena was in Charlotte, NC all week, but he did issue a warrant to search Selena's home. Teresa Croyle was with me in my Police SUV, and she took a cell phone call as I drove.

"That was Cindy." she said. "She just got word from Jenna Stiles that Judge Harry Nance came in for Dr. Lionel Carmela's hearing. Jenna was the prosecutor, since the SBI arrested Carmela. Nance asked one question: if you, Don Troy were at the scene at all. Jenna had to admit you were, and Nance dropped all charges with prejudice, saying that Commander Troy's abusive Police tactics would not be tolerated in Nance's Court. Jenna says we can appeal it, but Leahy will likely let it stand. So Carmela walked."

"Damn." I muttered. "Nance is nuts."

"His nuts are in his head instead of his balls." Teresa replied. I chuckled briefly, and I think Teresa picked up on the tension inside me.

We arrived at a nice townhouse in a subdivision near the Heritage Cloisters north of Town. I'd come along with Teresa behind the others.

"The door is cracked open. Looks like it was forced." said SBI Agent Johnson as they went up the stairs and onto the porch.

"Teresa, let's clear it." I said, seeing that Teresa and I had armor on, as we almost always did. "Julia, Teddy, go around back."

"Roger that." Teresa said as Rodriguez and Parker went around to the back, to make sure no one exited undetected. Teresa asked: "'No knock'? Exigent circumstances?"

"Yes, and on my authority." I replied, knowing we had a warrant. "Ready? Go!"

I pushed the door open and Teresa rushed through, with me following. TCPD Officers Hicks and Burrell, who'd come to serve the warrant, followed us.

"Clear!" Teresa yelled as she cleared the den room.

"Clear!" I yelled as I cleared the kitchen. I then got behind Teresa, my right hand on her shoulder as we took the stairs to the next level. The wall was to our right, so my gun was in my left hand. Teresa's was pointing forward and up.

"Clear!" Teresa said, clearing the first guest bedroom, then the second.

"Clear!" I said, clearing the master bedroom suite. And so it went until the whole house was cleared.

In the master bedroom, a safe on the floor inside the closet had been forced open. "It's empty, except for one box of .380 ACP ammo." I said. Tracy Stone came up and looked, as if she didn't believe me. No other firearms were found in the house.

"That .38 revolver isn't here." said Stone. "She could've given it to her mother, or her mother came and got it."

"Or someone else stole it." Julia Rodriguez said. "I've called a CSI team to come in."

"We need to find any other guns she has, and confiscate them." said Tracy Stone.

"Does your warrant allow that?" I replied. "Does it allow you to confiscate any weapon, or just that .38?"

"Considering that she's the daughter of a woman under suspicion of murder," Stone replied, "we should confiscate any weapon we find. But your point is noted, Commander. I'll get another warrant."

"And you'll lose when I oppose the warrant in Court." I said.

"You're doing it again, Commander." Stone snarled. "This is MY case!"

"And it's MY Constitution!" I thundered. "Selena Steele is not a suspect, and she has the Right to Keep and Bear Arms! You have no basis to deny her her Constitutional rights, nor to confiscate her firearms!"

"The Second Amendment is not an individual right!" Stone almost screamed. "It only applies to State Militias! I think I have every right and reason to confiscate any weapon I find here!"

"And I'll stop you if you try." I fired back (pun intended). "I'll arrest you. And if you resist arrest, I'll shoot you. The Second Amendment has been confirmed by the Courts to be an Individual Right, and I'm telling you now I'll protect Ms. Steele's rights Second Amendment rights... and I'll do whatever it takes to do so!"

Tracy Stone looked at me in disbelief. "You would shoot me over that?"

"If I don't shoot you first." said Julia Rodriguez. Stone glared at her, then turned and left the room...

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

11:00pm, Wednesday, February 5th. I came into The Cabin, very tired from the exertions and the tensions of the day. Laura was sitting on the sofa in the greatroom, reading the latest edition of that renowned periodical 'Sexual Psychology'.

"Finally, you're home." Laura said. "Come sit down. I've been waiting all day to hear what's going on... what's really going on."

I sat down beside her. "It's a mess." I said. I recounted what had gone on, then said "Campus Detective Stone seems agenda-driven, and she's trying to twist facts to suit her theories. She's also ignoring strong evidence in Stephanie's favor, that being the eyewitness testimony that Carole gave us on video."

"Hmm." Laura said. "Just to play Devil's Advocate, we've seen what Carole does, but not everyone has."

"You think Carole's lying?" I asked sharply, my eyes cutting over to peer into Laura's.

"No," my wife replied, "that's not what I'm trying to say. But you were there when Carole made those observations in those cases, and you trust her word. So does Sheriff Griswold, for that matter, but I digress. I'm just suggesting to look at it from Detective Stone's point of view."

"And that's a point in itself." I said. "She's ignoring other things, as well. No one heard a shot, the death occurred while Dr. Steele had eight people in the same room with her------"

We were interrupted by the arrival of two outstanding dogs at the back door. "Oh, you guys need to go out?" I asked, standing up. And then I saw Marie come up behind them, wearing her coat over her pajamas.

"Marie, why are you up?" Laura asked.

"I couldn't sleep." Marie said, her voice sounding shaking. "Can I go with you to take the dogs out?"

"Sure." I said before Laura could object. I grabbed a shawl from the other sofa, and we went outside. Bowser and Buddy scampered around the side of the house, and Marie and I sat down on the metal mesh loveseat. I wrapped the shawl around Marie, and also had her sit so that my trenchcoat enveloped her.

"Is my mommy in trouble?" Marie asked.

"Yes." I said. " She didn't do anything wrong, at least I don't think so, but we have some problems to work out for her."

"Mis-ter Crow-bar, is my mommy going to come home? Are they going to take her away?" Marie asked, her voice breaking.

I realized what was wrong. When Bowser had led us to Marie in that ditch (Author's note: 'The Other World', Ch. 01-02.), she had never returned home. And her parents had been arrested and she'd never seen them again. And now the same thing was happening to her adoptive mother.

"Yes, she's out on bail, and you can see her tomorrow." I said.

"Will you help my mommy, Mis-ter Crow-bar?" Marie asked.

"I already am helping her." I said. "And I'm going to keep on helping her, and we'll never give up."

"What if something happens to my mommy, and my daddy?" Marie asked, and I could sense that she was terrified of being left alone again, like she was left outside in freezing weather one horrible night...

"Marie," I said, "it'll be all right. But if something did happen, your sister Selena would take care of you. And if something happens to her, Laura and I will take care of you. And then Aunt Teresa and Todd, and then Cindy and Callie, and then Pete's mom Tanya. And, of course..." I said as Bowser trotted up, "... Bowser is right here to protect you, too. Isn't that right, Bowser?"

Bowser whimpered slightly, and I patted my thighs. He jumped up into my lap and lay down so that his head was in front of Marie, and looked at her with pure love in his canine eyes. Marie petted Bowser, and I swear I heard my dog sigh as she began rubbing his right cheek like he loved.

Bowser would've given Marie two hours to stop, but I was more susceptible to the cold, and I saw Marie yawn hard, finally getting sleepy. So I guided Marie and the dogs back inside. Laura was not there; she'd gone upstairs to bed. I got Marie settled into bed in the third bedroom, with Carole asleep in the other bed and Bowser on guard duty. Buddy had gone downstairs, where Molly and her boys were, and taken up his station in the boys's room.

I went to the master bedroom. Laura was in bed, but had not gone to sleep yet. "How's Marie?" she asked.

"Scared." I said. "Scared for her mom..."

Part 8 - Continuing Investigation

"This is Bettina Wurtzburg, KXTC Channel Two News!" shouted the redheaded MILF reporterette at 7:00am, Friday, February 7th, from the rooftop of the building at Riverside and College, with the State Office Building in the background. "Negotiations to have Commander Donald Troy testify at the Impeachment trial of deeply unpopular Governor Val Jared have broken down!"