No Way Out Ch. 01

"No." said Tanya. "But he's been kind of quiet this week. He's taking some vacation days after today, too... and with our wedding coming up at the end of March, he needs those vacation days for before and after that weekend. So something must be going on."

"Interesting." I said, my voice almost a whisper as I nodded thoughtfully. Then I looked up and let my eyes bore into Tanya's as I said "Tanya, I have absolute faith in your ability to handle the Captain of Detectives job, and handle it well, even in my absence. And that may be about to happen."

"Why? What's going on?" Tanya asked.

"The Enemy believes I've made a critical mistake, and the time for their attack has come." I replied. "They are about to come down on me with everything they have... and if I make the slightest mistake, they will not only succeed, but it is highly likely I won't survive it... and by that I mean I won't live to tell about it."

"What can be that bad?" Tanya asked, frowning as she peered at me.

*BRING!* *BRING!* *BRING!* *BRING!*

It was my landline phone. I pressed the button and my assistant Helena's sweet voice came over the intercom: "Sir, FBI Agent Martin Nash has been trying to reach you on your cellphone, but it's going to voicemail."

"Okay, thanks." I said. "Tell him I'll call him back in just one second." After disconnecting, I took out my Police iPhone, then put my finger over my lips in a 'hush' sign, and Tanya nodded. Then I turned off the bug-killer, which was the reason my iPhone was going to voicemail, and dialed Nash's number.

"Commander," Nash said immediately, "can you come over to the Federal Building?"

"What's it about?" I asked in reply.

"We need to ask you about some things." said Nash. "Can you come over? Now, if possible?"

"Not possible." I said, looking at Tanya as I spoke. "Why don't you come over here to Police Headquarters?"

"Uh, we really need you to come over here." said Nash.

"What's it about, Nash?" I said, my voice a bit harsher.

"Just some thinks we need to discuss with you, Commander." said Nash, and I could tell his normally level voice was getting a bit frustrated.

"Well," I said, "if it's important, come on over here, like you FBI Agents usually do."

"It really would be better if you came over here." Nash said. I rolled my eyes, and Tanya's stunned look became even more shocked.

"Stop playing games with me, Nash." I said harshly. "Now what is this about?"

"We'll explain it all when you get over here." said Nash. "Now if you'll just come over------"

"Look, Agent Nash." I said. "I'm not just some Citizen on the street. I don't know what games you're trying to play with me, but I'm not playing them with you. If you want to talk to me, come over here. I am not going over to the Federal Building."

After a pause, Nash said, "Okay, we'll be over there in a few minutes." The call disconnected 'abruptly'.

"What the hell..." Tanya gasped.

"We'll talk later." I said, as I began typing texts on my phone. "I've got to get moving before they get here. If you'll call Jack Muscone and tell him in confidence what you just heard, I'd appreciate it..."

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

(Author's special note: Readers may wish to read (or re-read) 'Film Noir' at this time, to refresh your fertile memories of those 'seminal' events.)

FBI Special Agent Martin Nash and another Agent came into the front lobby of Police Headquarters and asked to see Commander Troy. They were escorted to the Main Conference Room, where I was waiting with Lt. Commander Teresa Croyle. We did not bother to get up and shake hands with them.

"Commander... Commander." said Nash quietly and levelly, standing behind the near side of the table, with Teresa and I sitting on the far side, the window at our backs. "Congratulations on your promotion."

"Thank you." said Teresa, with no inflection of emotion in her voice.

"Do you remember Special Agent Lindsey Black?" asked Nash.

"Oh yes, how could I forget?" I said, remembering the ATF Agent who was Curtis Halsey's sycophant during the Hospital disaster. (Author's note: 'Only Time'.) "Agent Black." I said coldly in greeting, with the barest minimum of courtesy.

"Commander Troy." Black said to me, not acknowledging Teresa at all.

"What brings an ATF Agent to my Headquarters?" I asked. "Are you finally going to give us a long, long overdue briefing on what happened at University Hospital?"

Martin Nash stepped in and said "No, that's not what this is about. Special Agent Black has been attached to the FBI as part of a special OPR investigation. Will you excuse us, Commander Croyle?"

"No she will not." I said. "She's here as my witness to this... conversation."

"Why do you think you need a witness?" asked Lindsey Black.

"Oh, I dunno." I said, perhaps a bit sarcastically. "The FBI was trying to lure me into the Federal Building but refused to tell me what it was about. You then come over here and, again, won't say what's going on with someone else in the room... but Nash DID just tell me that you're here as part of an OPR investigation. Sounds ominous, like Internal Affairs."

I went on: "And Agent Black, you and I were by no means on friendly terms nor the same side when I last saw you. Indeed, this whole situation makes me wonder if I need a lawyer here with me."

"You're entitled to one." said Martin Nash. That made Teresa's eyes widen in shock, not only at the implications of what Nash had said, but at the overall enormity of the situation. Lindsey Black's glanced at Martin Nash with a hint of anger in her eyes.

I speed-dialed Mike G. Todd and said "Hey, are you close by?... Yeah, come on in." Fifteen seconds later, Mike Todd came in, trying but failing to hide a grin. Lindsey Black was realizing that I'd had Mike Todd here already. Martin Nash had no change of expression on his passionless face.

Mike sat down at the end of the table, to my right. Nash said "We might as well sit down." and he did so, to Mike's right, opposite me, leaving Lindsey Black to sit to Nash's right. Nash said "Commander Croyle, again, will you excuse us?"

I nodded to Teresa, and she got up to go, patting me on the shoulder as she passed by. I knew she'd be going straight to the Chief's Conference Room, to watch on the monitor with the Chief and Sheriff.

"Let me do the talking, here." said Mike G. Todd. Turning to the Federal Agents, he said "What is the reason you want to talk to my client?"

"We want to ask him some questions about a previous case in which he was involved." said Martin Nash. "We have re-opened a Federal investigation involving it, and failure to cooperate could lead to charges of Interfering with a Federal Investigation."

"Stop with that crap." I said. "It's pure intimidation. It might work on some poor Citizen who fears threats of audits by the Federal Government, but that ain't me...and you know it. So stop with the bullshit games." So much for me letting Mike do the talking, but he didn't try to stop me.

"So you'll help us in our investigation?" Lindsey Black said. "You'll answer our questions?"

"That's a trap question." said Mike G. Todd. To me he said "They're trying to lay the groundwork that if you don't answer the questions, you're breaking the law. But it is not against the law to insist upon your Constitutional rights being honored."

"No one is violating anyone's Constitutional rights." said Nash, the merest hint of exasperation creeping into his voice. "Let's just start with the questions. Commander Troy, did you take custody of a person named Betty Morelli, to transport her to Federal Court in the City in early April, nearly three years ago?"

"She was never in my custody." I said. "We escorted her to------"

"Just answer the question!" demanded Lindsey Black.

"You are violating my rights!" I yelled, leaning forward right at her. "You are trying to entrap me!" Once I had her thoroughly shocked, I said more calmly. "Betty Morelli was never in my custody. She was a witness that we were escorting to a Grand Jury appearance, but she was never under arrest, at least not while with me, and therefore she was not in custody."

"Isn't it the same thing?" Martin Nash asked. "If you're escorting her to a Grand Jury appearance, isn't that her being in your custody?"

"No." I said. "It's not the same thing, and you damn well know that."

Lindsey Black said "Did you sign documentation taking custody of Betty Morelli?"

"No, I never signed anything to that effect. I never signed anything at all." I said. "And once again, I never 'took custody' (air quotes) of her. We escorted her to the City; she was not under arrest."

Black said to Nash: "Mirandize him, and do it."

Nash took out the card and read me my rights. Halfway through, I said "I know the rights." Nash stopped talking, and opened his briefcase and pulled out a document in a folder.

"Are you denying this is your signature?" asked Nash.

"Don't answer." said Mike G. Todd. He took the folder and perused the document, then showed it to me. It was a standard FBI form that stated that custody of Betty Morelli was being transferred to me, and at the bottom was signed 'James D. Troy'.

"No, I will answer." I replied. "I never signed anything. There was never any document like that presented to me. Furthermore, that is not my signature."

"Where's my copy of this?" Mike G. Todd asked.

"There's two copies in there." said Nash. "Take the bottom one." Mike did so.

"You are denying that's your signature?" Lindsey Black said levelly. "I remind you that lying to a Federal Agent is a Federal felony offense."

"And that is intimidation on your part, and once again a violation of my rights." I replied. "And I'm not lying. That is not my signature." Lindsey Black looked at Nash and nodded.

Nash asked: "Commander Donald Troy, did you have sexual intercourse with Betty Morelli at any time while you were escorting her to the City on April 2nd or April 3d, nearly three years ago?"

"Don't answer that." said Mike Todd.

"You have to answer." said Lindsey Black. "Or I absolutely WILL charge you with Interfering with a Federal Investigation, and Lying to Federal Agents."

I looked squarely at Agent Black and said "On the advice of counsel, and pursuant to my Rights under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, I refuse to answer any more questions regarding this issue."

"You're taking the Fifth?" Lindsey Black said, her voice a mixture of surprise... and glee. "You're refusing to answer our questions, and obstructing our investigation?

"He just did take the Fifth." Mike G. Todd said. "And once again, exercising his Constitutional rights is not obstructing your investigation. This 'conversation' is ovah."

No sooner had he said that than Commander Teresa Croyle was opening the door, with four armed and armored Uniformed Officers with her. "Escort these Federal Agents out of this Headquarters." Teresa ordered. As Nash and Black got up to go, she all but fronted Nash. "And don't come back. Ever."

It was far more than just a clash with a Federal Agent. It was personal, and they both knew it...

Part 4 - Piling On

"Well," said Chief Moynahan, "now we know what it's about."

He, Sheriff Griswold, and Captain Perlman were in the Chief's Conference Room, having watched with Captain Croyle what had proceeded in the Main Conference Room.

"I called Jack." Tanya said. "He said he'll be here in a few minutes."

"Is that a good idea?" asked Sheriff Griswold. "Call me paranoid, but those bastards may be watching the building, and will see him come in."

"What, Sheriff," said Tanya, "a man can't visit his fiancée at her place of work?" Everyone nodded, then Tanya said "I did think of that, and Jack says he doesn't care."

"Where's Commander Ross?" asked the Chief.

"In a meeting with Captain Thompson and Lieutenant Wausau, sir." said Tanya. "And Commander Troy is in his office with his lawyer."

A moment later, Teresa came back into the room, and Mike Todd was with her. "Well, they left without a fuss." she said. "I really thought they might try to arrest Don and take him with them, but they didn't."

"No," said Mike G. Todd. "they weren't going to, and for a couple of reasons. I think their first objective was to get him to plead the Fifth, and they succeeded in doing that."

"And that's a big, big deal." said Sheriff Griswold. "As you know, taking the Fifth is not an admission of guilt, but many people will take it as one. And you damn well better believe the God-damned Press will be shouting over and over again that Don is hiding something."

"And for a Police Officer to be taking the Fifth..." said the Chief. "The optics on that are absolutely horrible."

"Exactly, Sheriff, Chief." said Mike Todd. "And as to why he didn't just deny it: we don't know what else the Feds have. I can hardly believe they'd come in to question Don showing their full hand, and without having something else up their sleeve. Agent Black was repeatedly trying to goad him into something that they could use to accuse him of lying to them, but he never would bite. And Don was smart, and by doing this we can force them to show their hand."

"Also," continued Mike, "and another reason they didn't arrest him: Don is not some laborer off the street that doesn't know what's going on. He's a Police Officer, and knows the law very well. He knows the Feds can't just arrest him on suspicion without something backing up their suspicions, so they have to get a warrant. And to get that arrest warrant, they're going to have to show more than they did to this point... which is this."

He displayed the copy of the document Nash had given him. Everyone looked at the document as it was passed around.

Mike continued: "And there's a slew of charges they could bring. Sex with a person in his custody is treated like statutory rape: even if she consented, it's considered sexual assault. And there's the old 'transporting a woman across State Lines for illicit purposes' Federal law on the books; they could apply that here, too."

Tanya said "Ah, so that's why Don wouldn't go over to the Federal Building. If he had, they might have kept him there, pretty much under arrest. But by staying here, he made it nearly impossible for them to detain him without a warrant." Mike nodded vigorously in agreement.

"And by staying here, they couldn't keep his lawyer out of the room." said Teresa. "In the Federal Building, they could've denied him contact with anyone for days."

"But doesn't that imply that he knewwwww what was coming?" drawled the Chief.

"No." said a voice from the doorway. It was Jack Muscone's, and he'd just opened the door and walked in. "Sorry to just barge in. And to your question, I was the one that told Don not to wander onto Federal property for any reason."

"What did you know, and when did you know it?" asked the Chief, causing Teresa to glare at him. "I was jo-king, Ms. Croyle." the Chief said, noticing her look.

"With respect, Chief," Teresa fired back, "it didn't sound like a joke, and it wasn't funny." The tension in the room increased that much more.

"It's okay." Jack said as he sat down. As Mike left the room, Jack said "Let me tell you what I do know. The FBI's Office of Professional Responsibility, called the OPR, convened a Special Task Force. They bypassed Nate Grimes, the SSA for this Region."

Muscone: "On this task force are ATF SAC Curtis Halsey, ATF Special Agents Lindsey Black and Karl Coleman, FBI SAC Bob Rovers and his BAU team, and Special Agent Martin Nash. And though she's not listed as officially part of it, I've learned that EAD Dr. Robin Isley is overseeing it for the Director of National Intelligence himself, Brandon Chapel."

Muscone: "I'm officially on vacation, as is SSA Melina Allgood. They attempted to assign both of us to a case in Seattle, Washington, but we'd put in for the vacation the day before, so we told them we weren't going to Seattle."

Muscone: "The Rovers BAU team came to the City over the weekend. They last were at the Federal Prison where Jerry Morelli and his people are currently incarcerated after we and the Red and Green Crowbars arrested them. The Rovers BAU team extensively interviewed Morelli and his cohorts."

Muscone: "Meanwhile, a number of FBI Special Agents have come into this County, though they've not shown their faces at the Federal Building... until today. And today they made their first move. Martin Nash and Lindsey Black came to Town, and attempted to get Don to come to the Federal Building. Thank goodness he didn't, or he literally might never have been seen again. There was a plane at County Airport, that belongs to the DNI, and it's still there."

Muscone: "U.S. Attorney Richard Baldwin, who tried to get Peter Blassingame out of your County Jail at the point of Federal Government guns, also came in to The City, and then went to Midtown. Federal Judge Ruth B. Taney is down there, and it is believed they have talked. Baldwin will be taking the lead of this investigation in his capacity of U.S. Attorney if it continues to develop."

"Looks like it's developed, and then some." said Chief Moynahan.

Mike G. Todd said: "I just called Judge K.M. Landis and notified him of what happened, and said they might go judge-shopping instead of going to him like they should. He's ready for that, and I'm getting my fellow lawyers arrayed to fight this. But make no mistake about it... it's serious."

*BRING!* *BRING!* *BRING!* *BRING!*

It was the speaker-phone on the table. The Chief answered, then said "Hold on." He pressed a couple of buttons, and the monitor on the wall at the far end, the one we usually watched the Bettina broadcasts on, lit up.

"Hello, everyone." said SBI Inspector Brittany M. Maxwell. "I've got Norm Chow with me, even though you can't see him. Have you heard what's happened?"

"If you mean about Don and Betty Morelli, yes." Tanya said.

"How far has it gone, there?" Britt asked.

Tanya said "Martin Nash of the FBI tried to get Don to go to the Federal Building, then came over here an interrogated him. Don ultimately took the Fifth to shut it down, and the Feds left the building."

Britt said "Wow, he took the Fifth?"

"Yep." said Jack Muscone. "And pretty damn smart of him to, if you ask me."

"What's going on on your end, Inspector?" asked the Chief.

Britt said "Here's what I know, and what's happened: FBI Special Agent Karl Coleman visited the SBI-BFE's Lieutenant Bob Bohrmann. Bohrmann is one of the SBI 'old guard', which means he's a dirty Jack Lewis sycophant, but we haven't been able to get rid of him yet. Coleman tried to get Bohrmann to open an investigation of Don, but I got wind of it and called Bohrmann right in the middle of their meeting."

"So Bohrmann brought Coleman to see me and Norm." said Britt. "Coleman laid out what the FBI had. They have a document purportedly signed by Don, but it looks as fake as a three dollar bill. I asked for a copy, and got one, and I'm sending that to the FBI's crypto Special Agent in Charge in the City, Ashton Cardigan."

"Good." said Jack Muscone. "We've got a copy for him, too. Did they give you anything else?"

"No." Britt said. "Coleman said the document should be enough to start a State investigation, and they'd give us more once we started it. I told him that if the Feds had more, they need to share it with me now and not string me along, and that I very likely would not start an investigation without more proof from the Feds first. Coleman said he'd have to talk to his superiors and get back to me, and we ended the meeting on that note."

"So they didn't want to show you what they have, eh?" Teresa Croyle said.

"No. But here's the bad news." Britt said. "Federal and this State's laws on custody are slightly different. If you can show the document is fake, and if they don't have other proof, then the Federal case might fall apart. But the State case is more muddled, and a case can be made that Morelli was in Don and Cindy's custody while being transported to The City."