Shipping and Handling Ch. 02

"Hell, I'll fly the chopper down there myself." said Chief Moynahan.

"Air Cavalry Officer." I said with a grin. "He flies a chopper every chance he gets."

"And you don't?" the Chief asked, giving it right back to me. Everyone was chuckling or snickering at that.

I turned to Tanya and said "Do not lead the witnesses in any way. Just show them the furniture and let them identify it as theirs, or they'll say it's not theirs. That will clear up a few questions I have."

"What are the others?" asked Cindy (of course).

I replied: "We'll want to ask them why they moved, who recommended SMS, ask about the truck that arrived and the people who loaded the truck. If possible, see what they have in their new house, if anything. Tanya, who do you want to send to do that?"

"Joanne Warner." said Tanya. "Maybe Roy McGhillie with her?"

"Not Roy." I said. "Becca is a potential target of George Aurus, and Roy's head is not in the Game right now. He can hold down the fort here, for now."

"Mr. Geiger, then?" asked Tanya.

"I was thinking more in the line of Mr. Hannum, if you wouldn't mind, Eric?" I said. Hannum nodded enthusiastically. "Tanya, you can meet them under the big tent and observe and ask questions." Tanya nodded.

"I need two more teams." I said. "One will go to SMS, to inquire about the missing truck. They already know we may have found it, but just ask to see paperwork of the several incidents, and look for anomalies. They may ask for a warrant, but just say you want to see the papers, not take them. The other team will go to SPS, to inquire about their recently deceased employee. I was thinking of Mr. Geiger and Mr. Purvis going to SMS. And Rodriguez and Parker to SPS."

"I can go to SMS with them." said Nell Bell. "I've already talked to the guy there, so he may talk to me."

"I already had you penciled in." said Tanya. "You can also tell by his voice who the person you talked to was."

"Excellent idea." I said. "Washington can stay here and work with McGhillie if anything comes up while we're all away. Lieutenant Milton, stop the Bitcoin mining on the computers and melt the wires getting every bit of data on all of these cases, including all the victims of the previous thefts of their home furnishings. Captain Croyle, you'll be 'Acting Commander' while I'm gone, and if you catch Aurus and Tolson before we get back, I won't complain.

Then I grinned as I said "And I'm sure Chief Moynahan will be discussing the Midtown-Town & County Joint Task Force with Chief Soltis."

"In the spirit of harmonious cooperation and edumacational oppor-TOOO-ni-teeeees, of course." drawled the Chief. We all broke out laughing.

"And Commander Ross," I said, "if you would like to get out of that cozy chair of yours and do some real Detective work for a change, I have a mission for you and me."

"If it involves getting in some practice for the Police Boxing Matches, I'm all in." Cindy said as she waved a green crowbar in my general direction...

Part 7 - Investigations

Cindy was driving the Black Beauty at 'Kato speeds', i.e. very fast, down the University-City Highway, which we called the Nextdoor County Highway. We were both in civilian attire, and had logged in as SBI Reservists.

"So we're going by the Farris's old home first?" Cindy asked.

"Yes." I said. "And then we'll swing by SPS. I don't want to get there at the same time as Rodriguez and Parker; that might set off alarm bells. After they've inquired about Rupert Saidy, we'll be in the Upper Management offices, asking to see Mr. Dick Granger."

"Wasn't his office already searched under Federal warrants after the nuke incident?" Cindy asked.

"Yes, and nothing showed up." I said. "But I'm not interested in his papers. I'm looking for the man himself."

"So you never answered the Chief's question." Cindy said, "You just started giving us assignments. What do you think is going on with all of this?"

"Just questions, so far." I said. "Once we get those questions resolved, we'll be a long way to solving this."

"And what are those questions?" Cindy persisted.

"You know, you ask a lot of questions." I said jokingly.

"You are truly headed for a crowbar beatdown, brother." Cindy said. I chuckled.

"Well, we need to resolve the status of that truck." I said. "We need to resolve if the furniture is the Farris family's, not just trusting the fingerprint data, and see if their stuff was shipped in only one truck. We need to resolve who Rupert Saidy is, and why someone wanted to kill him. And we really need to resolve how someone put a valid CDL in the system with his photograph on it..."

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

Geiger was driving the unmarked TCPD sedan along the Nextdoor County Highway, and Christopher Purvis was riding shotgun. Nell Bell was in the backseat, working on her MPD tablet. She had thought with some humor that Purvis used shoe polish on both ends of him; his hair was artificially very black, and she wasn't sure what she was seeing was his real hair.

She also noticed some tension between the TCPD Detectives. They did not speak to each other as they were driving along; no discussion of the cases, no banter that the other Detectives and Senior Officers of the TCPD engaged in, and frequently.

They did not know that she was pulling up the files of Teresa's rescue of Carole, of the Harper drug bust, and the 'Delivery In the Rear' case, reading with fascination how these TCPD Detectives, especially the Iron Crowbar, had solved them.

"How long have you guys been with the TCPD?" Nell asked.

"Since before the Iron Crowbar got here, what, six and a half years ago?" said Purvis. Geiger just nodded. "I was a Patrol Officer, then was promoted to Vice Detective."

"What about you, Detective Geiger?" Nell asked, as Geiger had not volunteered any information.

"I was in Vice long before that." said Geiger simply. "Back when Captain Malone was in charge of the place."

"Those were... interesting times." said Purvis. "And then Commander Troy was brought in... he was the I.T. Supervisor then... and he took a crowbar to a Russian or maybe Chechnyan drug lord, and started cleaning up the messes."

"So you worked with Captain Croyle?" Nell said. "She must be awesome to work for."

"She is now." said Purvis. "Back then, though... she was one of the messes. The Iron Crowbar saved her, though. Geiger knows more about all that than I do."

"We'll talk about it some other time." said Geiger, trying very hard to shut down that particular conversation. Nell Bell got the hint, and also saw the slight smile on Purvis's face...

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

The TCPD Bell 206 helicopter landed in Rocktown's public park. On the other side of the creek bordering the park and running through the town was the town square.

Detectives Joanne Warner and Eric Hannum were both in plainclothes, and Joanne dressed much more nicely than Hannum. They walked towards the bridge that went over the wide, shallow creek, where they were met by a man in a brown LEO uniform.

"I'm Sheriff Ormond." said Sheriff Ormond. "I got a call from Midtown Police Chief, asking me to help you guys out."

"And we appreciate your help, Sheriff." Joanne said with a bright smile as she shook his hand.

"Chief Soltis said you wanted to meet the Farrises." said the Sheriff, who Joanne knew had been the Deputy Sheriff during the 'Whistleblower' case investigating Larry Wheeler's murder. "I don't know them myself; they just moved down here..."

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

Arriving at the SPS facility near the City Railyards, Detectives Julia Rodriguez and Teddy Parker asked to see Rupert Saidy's boss. They were taken to the Distribution warehouse. The Director of Distribution, who had replaced Dick Granger's replacement after Granger's sentencing, was a man named Cowell. No, not Simon, but Bert Cowell. Bert was tall, slender, his sparse hair forming a ring around his head with a shiny bald spot on top.

"You're a long way from your jurisdiction, aren't you?" Cowell asked when the TCPD Detectives identified themselves.

"Sometimes a crime in our County takes us to other places." said Julia Rodriguez. "We'd like to ask you some questions about your employee, Rupert Saidy."

"Oh, him." said Cowell. "Is he in trouble?"

"Is he a good employee?" Julia asked, careful to use the present tense.

"For the most part." said Cowell. "He didn't come in this morning, though. Is that because he is under arrest?"

"Er, no." said Julia. "What does he do here?"

"He loads packages onto the trucks, for the most part." said Cowell. "Sometimes he makes van deliveries into the business district just north of us."

"He doesn't drive a truck on a route?" asked Teddy Parker.

"No." said Cowell. "We've been having our truck drivers get CDLs. Saidy is an okay guy, but he had a record before he came here. He was hired as part of Mr. Blassingame's parolee rehabilitation program, giving ex-cons a chance to clean up and get right."

"Sounds like a good program." Julia said. "And Saidy did well in that program?"

"Well enough." said Cowell. "No arrests since he started working here, until now, I guess."

"Did he have any problems with anyone?" asked Parker. "Any fights?"

"No, he got along with people okay." said Cowell, peering at the Detectives.

"Anyone want to do him harm?" asked Parker. "Was he messing with someone's wife or anything like that?"

"No, not that I ever heard." said Cowell. "C'mon guys... what's this about?"

"When is the last you heard of or from Mr. Saidy?" Rodriguez asked, her eyes peering hard at Cowell.

"Yesterday afternoon, when he finished his shift." said Cowell.

"And he wasn't assigned to a truck?" asked Parker.

"No. Just a van." said Cowell. "Perfectly legal."

"Do you have a truck No. 164 in service?" Julia asked.

"Uh, yeah." said Cowell. "It goes over to your County and the University."

"Did it go out this morning?" asked Parker.

"No, the driver called yesterday, said it broke down at the County Line, near the AGC Trucking facility in Nextdoor County." said Cowell. "We've got a contract with 'em; they fix our trucks for us if we have a breakdown in that part of the State."

"Who's the assigned driver of Truck 164?" Parker asked.

Cowell notably paused for a long moment, then finally said "That's employee personnel information, and confidential. Guys, if you want to keep asking questions, you at least are going to have to tell me why you're asking 'em."

Julia said "We found Rupert Saidy's body this morning, shot to death. In our County, in Truck 164."

"Oh my God!" Cowell said, looking truly horrified. "What about Lessing?"

"Who's he?" asked Parker.

"Andy Lessing... he's the assigned driver of Truck 164." said Cowell...

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

"Mrs. Jones is a lady on Hudson Street.
She sent her dog to bark at my brother and me.
We gave her dog a big fat bone,
And now he barks at Mrs. Jones.
She's a lady who lives on Hudson Street."

--- Schoolhouse Rock, 'A Noun Is A Person, Place, Or Thing'.

Cindy and I came up to the modest California-style house in the southwestern suburbs of the City. We came to the front door and knocked. There was no answer. The blinds were drawn; I couldn't see much inside.

"Looks like we're going to have to pick the lock." I said. I took a small leather billfold out of my jacket pocket. It had tools for picking locks; I thought I might be needing this kit today. Cindy stood behind me and looked over the neighborhood as I turned the tumblers and then opened the door a crack...

"What are you doing?"

The voice had come from well behind us. We looked around to see an elderly woman on the sidewalk where the walkway to the house began. Sitting next to her on a leash was a mid-size dog, mutt breed, who seemed docile enough but was peering at us with extreme skepticism.

"I got this." I whispered to Cindy.

"There's others watching from down the street and on front porches." Cindy whispered.

"Police, ma'am." I said loudly, walking towards the old lady, holding out my badge holder with my SBI badge attached. I then flipped it over to show the picture ID. Cindy did the same as I said "I'm Inspector Troy with the SBI. And you are?"

"I'm Mrs. Jones, the neighbor next door." said the woman. "And you have a warrant to be entering this home? May I see it?"

"Yes ma'am." I said. "They're all digital now. Let me bring it up on my phone." I brought up a document on my Police iPhone. The lettering was tiny and the woman squinted hard to see it. I did not assist her to see it better by enlarging the photo on the screen.

"Ma'am, can you tell us about the family that lived here?" I asked.

"That would be Dr. Farris." said Mrs. Jones. "Nice man. Sweet kids, they love my dog. His wife isn't all that friendly, though. Keeps to herself for the most part."

"Well, we're investigating some thefts, and we fear that this home was broken into." I said. "Did you see anything suspicious in the last few days?"

"The movers came yesterday, loaded up the truck." said Mrs. Jones. "But Mrs. Farris was right there, watching the whole thing, so it couldn't have been a robbery."

"How big was the truck?" asked Cindy. "And did it have any logos on the sides?"

"It was one of the bigger moving trucks." said Mrs. Jones. "State Moving Services truck."

"And just the one truck?" I asked. "No other trucks in the days prior to the moving truck? Or afterwards?"

"No, just the one truck." Mrs. Jones said.

"What did the movers look like?" Cindy asked.

"One man was white, dark hair, kind of greasy." said Mrs. Jones. "He seemed out of shape. The other man was black, curly black hair, trimmed fairly short. Not fat but big. He looked like he was very used to moving furniture."

"Thank you, ma'am." I said. "We're going to have to look inside the home. If you and your nice dog will excuse us..." With that, Cindy and I went back to the door. Having picked the lock already, I entered slowly and carefully, peeking my head in, then going on in. Cindy came in behind me. Once inside, we drew our guns and cleared the house, then put on latex gloves and began looking around, into closets and cabinets. Cindy examined the fireplace, as well.

"Empty." I said. "Totally empty. No washer and dryer, no refrigerator, not a single piece of furniture nor article of clothing left behind."

"Yeah." said Cindy. "Walls are bare. No wall safes that I can see. I didn't look up the chimney, but there are no marks to show anyone crawled around in there."

"The attic is empty, too." I said, having looked.

"What do you make of it?" Cindy asked.

"Are we at the right address?" I asked.

"Yep." Cindy said, checking her Police iPhone. "31 Hudson Street."

"Well... it answers questions by process of elimination." I said.

"Do you really have a warrant to search the house?" Cindy asked, her voice sounding simply curious.

"No." I said with a grin. "What I showed Mrs. Jones was a draft copy of my Immunity Agreement with the State House Judiciary Committee, that Mike Todd sent me."

Cindy burst out laughing. Then she said "Well, they have a good Neighborhood Watch here, I'll give 'em that much."

"True." I said. "Okay, let's go to----"

*WOOP WHOOP!*

We looked out the door. A City Police vehicle had pulled up. Cindy and I went outside with our hands halfway up and stretched out, and holding our SBI badges. I also might have been exhibiting a red crowbar.

"I'm Commander Don Troy, TCPD, here as an SBI Reserve Inspector." I said. "This is Captain Cindy Ross."

"The Iron Crowbar. I've heard of you." said one of the Uniformed Officers, seeing my real ID, the red crowbar. "I'm Sergeant Franklin and this is Officer Covey. We got a call about two suspicious people with fake badges breaking into this house."

"How about that, Captain Ross?" I said. "We're suspicious kind of people."

"Didn't need City PD to tell us that." Cindy said sardonically. The City PD Officers grinned.

"What's it about, Commander?" asked Sergeant Franklin.

"People that lived here had a moving truck pick up their stuff." I said. "The truck didn't show up at the destination. We're just checking to see if anything was left behind, but the house is totally empty."

"That's terrible." said Sergeant Franklin. "If you'll send us a copy of your Police report, we'll be on the lookout for other perps like that." I thanked the Officers. As we went to our car, I heard the City PD Officers telling Mrs. Jones that it was okay, and we were legit...

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

"Hello Dr. Farris, Mrs. Farris." said Joanne Warner as the door opened. "We're Police Detectives assigned to the case of your missing furniture. And this is Sheriff Ormond of Polk County."

"Oh, of course." said Dr. Farris. "Come on in." Joanne and Eric came in and looked around as Sheriff Ormond shook hands with the Farrises and said he was sorry their move to his county had begun so inauspiciously.

"If I may ask a couple of questions" Joanne said, her voice connoting friendliness, "was the truck that has disappeared the only one that picked up your belongings?"

"Yes." said Mrs. Farris. "And we received a call from the movers that our belongings were recovered?"

"That's why we're here, ma'am." said Joanne sweetly. "We're going to have to ask you to come up to my home County and identify the furniture."

"That would take hours. Do you have photos?" asked Mrs. Farris. "I'm sure I could identify our furniture from photos."

"No ma'am, I don't." said Joanne. "And we're really going to have to ask you to come up and fill out some paperwork and stuff like that. There's really no getting out of that, but as soon as it's done, we should be able to get your furniture back to you. We have a helicopter that can get you there and return you very quickly."

"Looks like you're not taking no for an answer." said Dr. Farris, trying to sound humorous. When Joanne and Eric said nothing, he realized they weren't joking. At all.

"We can't both go." said Mrs. Farris, also knowing that the Officers were serious. "Someone has to stay with the kids. Nate, you stay, and I'll go up and take care of this mess."

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

"Mr. Walsh?" said Nell Bell as she, Geiger and Purvis were shown to an office at the back of a large number of desks in an open room. "I'm Detective Bell, and this is Detective Geiger and Detective Purvis. We've talked on the phone several times?"

"Hello." said the SMS manager. "I'm Frank Walsh. Come on in." As Nell sat down, and the other Detectives remained standing, Walsh said "Is this about the moving van theft this morning?"

"Yes sir, it is." said Nell. "We'd also like to talk about the other disappearances, and see if we can get some leads on who might be stealing your customers's furniture."

"That'd be great." said Walsh. "I have a problem, though. I've been directed to require a warrant for any information I give you. And I've been told not to give anyone any information on the crimes that our insurance has already settled with. The insurance company is afraid that the information might be subpoenaed by those customers who may then sue us."

"I understand." said Nell Bell. "We don't want to take any papers from you, and if we did we'd certainly get a warrant. If I could just take a look at them?..."

"Look, I want to help." said Walsh. "But you gotta understand. I've been written up over this. Everyone in this department has been written up, even the ones that had nothing to do with any of the thefts. If I give you that information, I'll be telling my wife and kids tonight that I'm out of a job."

"Mr. Walsh," said Nell, "it really appears that someone is getting inside information on the moving van orders, and is using that to steal people's belongings while making you look bad in the process. Do you have any idea how someone might be doing that? Any new hires recently? Any strange access to your computers, or hacking?"