The Phyllis Files Ch. 04

"If you mean the Asylum," Tammi said, sipping her tea, "don't worry. I'm over all that. Dr. Fredricson really helped me a lot, and I stayed with Dr. Eckhart at his place for a few months. They're really good people down there, and they helped me put the painful things away."

"That's good." said Phyllis. "So Tammi, what have you been doing the last few months, since you got out of the Asylum?"

"Just working." Tammi said. "Mostly at Target, and some extra work over the Holidays at the mall."

"Where do you live?" Phyllis asked.

"I've been staying at an apartment near the campus, with a couple of other girls who are college students." said Tammi. "They call themselves the 'Flamingo Sisters' because they have a pink flamingo hanging in the window." She gave the address, which Phyllis and Cindy noted was near where the incident with the van had taken place.

"Can you tell us what happened four years ago, when you were found on campus apparently very intoxicated?"

"I don't know." Tammi said. "I was living in an attic room at the SAE House. In exchange for room and board, the guys would come up and fuck me whenever they needed sex. There were a couple of other girls there, too."

"And you never used drugs or drank while you were there?" Cindy asked.

"Oh no, I never got into that stuff." Tammi said. "Maybe a drink or two, or a beer from time to time, but I never got wasted or anything."

"Tammi, did you associate with black men while living in the SAE House?" Phyllis asked. Cindy could not hide the shocked look on her face at that question.

"Not then, there were no black fraternity members." Tammi said. "But before then, when I was trying to get work in the Tenderloin District, I had sex with a lot of black men."

"Did any of them ever talk about race wars in your presence?" Phyllis asked. Cindy's eyes were about to pop out at this line of questioning.

"No, not really." Tammi said. "There was always talk about 'The Man' and cops arresting blacks, but I never heard anything in an organized way.

"Did you ever have sex with any politicians or people who were well-known publicly?" Phyllis asked.

"If I did, I'm not aware of it." Tammi replied.

"So what happened that got you arrested? That night at the Fraternity house, or on Campus near it?" Phyllis asked.

"I don't remember." Tammi said, her face looking forlorn. "There was a party one night, I had sex with three different guys in my bedroom, and the next thing I remember was waking up in the Asylum. Didn't even know where I was for months." Cindy shook her head, unable to believe something like that could be going on so close to where she lived.

"Let me ask this." Phyllis said. "The young man who broke you out of the Asylum, did you know him or who he was?"

"No ma'am." Tammi said. "He was an orderly there. His name was Kyle. He would come in and rape me once every month or so. One night while he was on top of me, raping me, he asked me in a whisper if I wanted him to help me escape. Of course I said 'yes', and a couple of days later he had me get in a van with two other women. We drove out of there and up here, and I was let go with one of the other women. I think her name was Gloria. Her boyfriend, a black guy who worked for that rapper, had me taken to the hospital."

"Did you know those other women? At the Asylum, or before?" Phyllis asked.

"No, that was the first time I ever saw either of them. I almost never left my room while I was in the Asylum." Tammi replied.

"Tammi, about the other night: do you know of any reason why someone would try to kidnap you?" Phyllis asked.

"Uh, no." Tammi said. Phyllis noted the look of fear on the woman's face... the fear of knowing something and concealing it.

"Are you sure, dear?" Phyllis said. "Let me explain: someone went to great trouble to have you sent to the Asylum and then erase all traces of you being there. And then someone had this Kyle get you out of the Asylum, for either good or bad reasons, we don't know which. Now someone has tried to kidnap you again, and I really fear for your safety. Is there nothing you can tell us that will help us protect you?"

"I really don't understand any of it." Tammi said.

"Tammi," Phyllis said, "If there is something, it would be better, and make you safer, if you tell us what it could be. Once it's out and we know, the person wanting to harm you would have no more reason to harm you. I want you to think, really hard. I want you to try to remember if you ever saw something, saw a crime or saw someone doing something out of the ordinary, something that might cause someone to want to harm you."

"I... I've thought a lot about a lot of things like that." Tammi said. "Dr. Eckhart tried to help me remember, also. But I just don't know what I saw or did that got anyone's attention." Phyllis noted that the same look of concern was still on Tammi's face. She knew something, or had some idea of something. But it was apparently so frightening that she would not speak of it.

"Tammi," Phyllis said, "Kyle, the man who helped you escape, he has passed away and can no longer have any influence on your life. If there is someone else who is a threat to you and you know it, please do tell us."

"Tammi," said Cindy Ross, her voice cutting through the air of the room, "did you know a Senator Nathan Allen?"

"No ma'am." Tammi replied.

"What about a Dean Allen." Cindy said.

"No, not that I know of."

Cindy looked over at Phyllis, her eyes silently asking "What do we do now?" Phyllis just nodded.

"Tammi," Phyllis said after a moment's thought. "I believe there is only one way to keep you safe from the grave danger you are in." Phyllis told Tammi her plan. Tammi agreed to it.

"You'll need to say goodbye to your parents." Phyllis said. "Then I'll escort you to your apartment to pack your things. Lt. Ross, would you be kind enough to come with us?"

"Of course." Cindy said. "And I'll have a Police SWAT unit with us to protect her, as well."

Part 4 - Hoops of Steel and Stone

The two vans pulled up to the front of 'The Vision' World Headquarters in Coltrane County. From the first van exited Phyllis Troy and Cindy Ross, both wearing civilian clothes. The driver of that van as well as all occupants of the second van did not open the doors nor exit their vehicles.

Walking inside, they were met by a young man. "Ah, Lieutenant Ross! How nice to see you again."

"And you, Tommy." Cindy said. "How are you and Candy doing?" They remembered each other from the case of the Murdered Football Player.

"Wonderfully well." Tommy said. "We're married now, and Candy is expecting." After another moment of chit-chat, Tommy asked "How may I help you?"

"We need to speak with Dr. Eckhart." said Phyllis.

"Er, I'm sorry, but Dr. Eckhart is in meditative study, and he is not seeing anyone at the moment."

"He will see me." Phyllis said severely, handing the young man her card. "Please ask him." Tommy took the card, his face looking stunned, and went to the elevator that Cindy knew led straight up to Eckhart's office. Cindy strolled around the lobby, her eyes glancing everywhere, while Phyllis stood stock-still and watched the elevator.

A moment later, the elevator door opened and out popped Dr. P. Harvey Eckhart, founder and great leader of 'The Vision'.

"Phyllis Troy, as I live and breathe..." said Eckhart, his voice jovial but his facial expression anything but. "I must say that I am utterly... stunned, yes, stunned!... to see you here."

"I feel the same way, Dr. Eckhart," Phyllis said, her voice in the tone of a tough business negotiation, "but I have an urgent matter upon which I need your assistance. Do you know my friend, Lt. Cindy Ross?" she asked as Cindy came up.

Phyllis observed how Eckhart's eyes lit up upon seeing Cindy. "Ah, Miss Ross, it is so wonderful to see you again." he said.

"It's good to see you, too, Dr. Eckhart." said Cindy. She came up and gave the older man a warm hug, which he returned.

"Ah, let me look at you, child." he said, taking Cindy's hands in his and examining her. "Ah, fully recovered from those grievous wounds, and... ah, yes... hopelessly in love if I don't miss my guess." His voice was playful, and Cindy could not help but smile brightly at the thought of Jenna.

"Yes, sir. She's a wonderful woman." Cindy replied.

"I would love to meet her, since the effect she has on you is so wonderfully positive." Eckhart said. "Ah yes, Mrs. Troy has business to discuss. Let's step in here, shall we?"

Eckhart led them to the curved wall to the left of the elevator. It looked like a solidly paneled wall, but Eckhart deftly reached for a concealed indention and pulled the wall to the right: it was a concealed sliding door. Behind it was a small room with sofas and chairs, well appointed, looking like a sitting room.

"Tommy, if you'll be good enough to bring us some tea." said Eckhart. Tommy rushed off as the women entered the room. Eckhart closed the door behind them and asked them to be seated, sitting down himself in one of the chairs.

"So, ladies," Eckhart said, his jovial hosting voice a mere front, "how may I be of service today?" Cindy looked at Phyllis; therefore, so did Eckhart.

"Doctor," said Phyllis, "do you remember a woman named Tammi Edmonds?"

"Tammi... Edmonds." Eckhart said, pretending to think. "Ah, yes. The woman that managed to escape from that hideous Asylum down the road. Yes, she was here for some months after your daughter-in-law worked with her. My people were able to help her come to terms with her ordeal, and she was a much happier person when she left."

"The fact is, Dr. Eckhart," Phyllis said, "that Tammi's life is in grave danger. We're not sure why, we're not sure what caused someone to have her put into the Asylum and then tried to have her kidnapped the other day. But she is in danger, and the one place she will be safe is here with you again. Would you be willing to take her in again?"

"Oh, but of course! Of course!" Dr. Eckhart said. "We'll be delighted to have her back. Oh, thank you Tommy." The young man had brought in tea, and Eckhart poured three cups. Tommy handed one to Cindy and one to Phyllis. Cindy sipped hers, while Phyllis adroitly placed hers down on the table untasted. Eckhart also sipped his and then said "Tommy, have someone prepare a room for a female guest in Dorm A. Tammi Edmonds is her name, and if her old room is available, she may have it again if she likes."

"Yes sir." Tommy said, then withdrew from the room, closing the sliding door behind him.

"Thank you very much, Dr. Eckhart." Phyllis said. "I only hope she can... and will... tell us her secret so that we can help her."

"Ah," said Eckhart, "I tried to learn that secret myself when she was here last time. I began to understand that she does not realize whatever it was that she saw or learned. But we shall keep her very safe here, and I will let you or your son know immediately if I learn anything new. Now... tell me about those wonderful grandchildren of yours."

"Ah, I'd be here all day if I did." said Phyllis, not falling for the bait. "If you'll excuse us, we'll bring Tammi inside."

They made their way out front, and Phyllis opened the side door of the second van. Tammi came out, and everyone could see the four heavily armed men inside. They did not get out, as eight of Eckhart's acolytes had Tammi protectively surrounded as they led her inside.

"Thank you for your help!" Tammi called out to Phyllis and Cindy.

"Good luck!" Phyllis said. Under her breath she said to Cindy "Let's get the hell out of this place." They returned to the first van, Cindy driving, and began the drive back home.

Part 5 - Solution, Such As It Is

Sunday, January 25th. Getting a break from my work with Jack Muscone, I had a wonderful lunch with my family at the Mountain Nest. Cindy Ross was also there, to my daughter Carole's great delight.

After lunch, we sat in the den and talked about the Tammi Edmonds case. My mother Phyllis filled in the missing pieces.

"If we look at Ms. Edmond's horrific adventures over the past several years," Phyllis said, "it was obvious that someone wanted Tammi Edmonds to disappear. What I am not sure I understand yet is why she was incarcerated in that awful Asylum rather than simply be murdered."

"I might venture to guess," I said, "that it was Nathan Allen's doing. It was his modus operandi with Phil Kearnes and others. Having another person in the Asylum brings more State money into his district, which means he gets more skimming off the top. Maybe a 'finders fee' bonus, as well."

"That is a strong possibility." Phyllis replied. "And Nathan Allen was the type of man who would enjoy having an enemy put in the Asylum and raped every night instead of merely killing her. He's obviously had something to do with it."

"Something to do with his son?" Cindy asked. "And why did you ask Tammi about blacks and race wars?"

"Ah," said Phyllis, "because black and white issues are the undercurrent to some political things going on even now. Captain Malone was very much involved in those issues, and this rapper 'T-Square' is heavily involved on the other side. I was hoping Tammi would remember hearing something that implicated someone in something, but no luck there."

"Was Nathan Allen really powerful enough to make all the records of Tammi Edmonds disappear?" Cindy asked skeptically.

"No, he wasn't." I said. "And that means he had help... someone who was powerful enough or had contacts enough to make that happen. And as Mom said, someone possibly involved in the higher level stuff that's going on."

"Yes." said Phyllis, smiling in her knowing way as she saw that I understood. "And what I also noticed was that after Tammi was broken out of the Asylum, she remained safe until just a few days ago. The reason why became evident when I learned that she was at 'The Vision' compound for several months. Whoever wanted to harm Tammi apparently fears Dr. Eckhart, as Dr. Eckhart has the means to protect his people from this wicked person. One of the very few people, I might add. That's why I asked him to protect her again, as distasteful as doing so was."

Cindy changed the subject by asking "So why did Ned break her out of the Asylum? So that whoever hired him could get to her and attack her?"

"Probably not." I said. "In fact... oh!... wait a minute..." I went into a reverie. It lasted a while, and the ladies were chatting during that time.

"I think my son is right." Phyllis said. "Whoever paid my wicked nephew to extricate Tammi did so to help her."

"Indeed." I said, my voice almost a whisper.

"Okay, Crowbar 1, time to spill it." Cindy said.

"Sure." I said. "I just realized that Nathan Allen was working with... or more likely for... someone, and that someone very likely had access to Tammi at the Asylum. So he did not need to get her out of the Asylum; he could've murdered her inside that place if he wanted to. But even if he got away with that, killing her would draw attention to himself, and that is what he abhors over all things."

"Who?" Cindy asked.

"Our 'Moriarty', of course." I said. "And let me say... oh, yeah, that's why Ned did it!" Another reverie, and Cindy was getting impatient.

"Tell us, son." Phyllis said as I came back into the world.

"I just realized it." I said. "Ned was being hunted by a lot of people, both in the criminal world and law enforcement. The Corrigan Cell wanted him very badly for his drug compounding, and I think they wanted to make a 'meth lab slave' out of him, which of course he did not care for one bit. We also know that Wargrave and 'Moriarty' had connections to the Corrigan Cell. Therefore it stands to reason that someone saw Tammi... and whatever knowledge she possesses... as a hedge against 'Moriarty'."

"I see what you're getting at." Laura said. "If Ned is captured, Tammi exposes who the real 'Moriarty' is."

"You mean Tammi knows who this person is, and we just let her go?" Cindy asked, almost getting up out of her chair.

"No, no." I said. "Tammi is not aware of who 'Moriarty' is, but I think she may have seen Nathan Allen and 'Moriarty' together, not realizing his real identity nor that he is the Spider in the center of the Web. 'Moriarty' may also have thought Tammi overheard something said between the two. So he has Allen take care of Tammi, which Allen did by having a college kid spike her drink, having her arrested and putting her in the Asylum, then 'Moriarty' had her files erased."

"Ned had an idea of this," I said, putting the thoughts together in my head as fast as they came to me, "though he likely did not know who 'Moriarty' was, either. But it was enough. Ned was not paid to get Tammi out... he broke her out himself for his own purposes."

"Yet he let her go when he let Gloria go." Cindy said.

"Exactly." I said. "I think Ned just wanted to release Tammi to let 'Moriarty' know not to fuck with him, with Ned. Just by letting her out, Ned showed that he was a force for 'Moriarty' to reckon with. Man! what a mental battle that would've been, the two of them!..." My mind drifted off again.

"Why am I glad we didn't have to bear the brunt of that?" Laura said sardonically.

"No doubt about that." I replied.

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

"Ah, this is extraordinarily fine sherry, sir." said Henry R. Wargrave. He and his guest were in the study of his (Wargrave's) home in Town. Wargrave's wife was in the City and the staff had been given the night off provided they leave the premises; the two men had the house to themselves. Wargrave's guest had brought the sherry, a rare and expensive bottle, as a gift to the billionaire magnate.

"Yes, I've always had a fondness for it." said the guest.

"Hits the spot on a cold winter night like this." Wargrave said, savoring the smell and the taste of the sherry.

"Ah, indeed." said the guest. "I just hope... that this does not become our winter of discontent."

"What do you mean?" asked Wargrave. Just then, the doorbell rang.

"I believe you're about to find out." said the guest. "That will be your associate, Mr. Murphy. Bring him in here and I'll become the man behind the curtain, literally, and listen in."

A moment later, Wargrave escorted Austin L. Murphy into the room. "I'm sorry to bother you tonight, Hank." Murphy said. "But I've got several important news items for you."

"I trust your judgement." said Wargrave. "So, what do you have?"

"First," said Murphy, "as you know, Robert Brownlee will be appointed Deputy Chief, and take the job February 2nd."

"Yes, I know." said Wargrave.

"Second," said Murphy, "you might remember a girl named Tammi Edmonds. She was one of three women the Iron Crowbar's nephew helped escape from the Asylum, the other two being Gloria Cagle and Eleanor Burke."

"I have some vague recollection of that." Wargrave said.

"Someone tried to kidnap Ms. Edmonds the other night." said Murphy. "The police extracted her from the hospital before our man could get her away from them. And now they've taken her to Eckhart's compound in Coltrane County."

"I see." said Wargrave. "So she's essentially out of reach now. This was the Iron Crowbar's doing?"

"Uh, no sir. It was his mother."

"Oh really?" Wargrave said, surprised by that news.

Murphy said. "Yes sir. She's an Auxiliary Detective, and Lieutenant Ross worked with her and took Edmonds down to 'The Vision'. Anyway: third, we have information that the Iron Crowbar and FBI Agent Jack Muscone are going down to Atlanta. We think they may go over to Alabama, where Harold Malone was murdered."

"It would be a very good idea if they never return from there." said Wargrave. "Alert the locals to be on the lookout for them, and to give them a very warm reception if and when they show up."