Nathan March Investigations - Book Three: The Take Down - episode five
episode one
episode two
episode three
episode four
Episode Five
Elegantly dressed in a red pantsuit but still very thin, when Sandra Frost looked into the spa’s mirror for the last time, she realized that after ten weeks she was unrecognizable. The frump who’d left the family home for a sabbatical after facing off with her mob-connected sister who ordered her to divorce her husband and leave Houston if she wanted to survive, did just that telling no one where she was going.
Her newly colored blonde hair was now worn straight and down passed her shoulders with platinum highlights. Bolstering her thin face, her new makeup framed it so that her gray eyes free from glasses thanks to Lasik surgery, her new aquiline nose thanks to Rhinoplasty, her perfect smile thanks to a full mouth of porcelain veneers, and ample lips thanks to collagen shots, when taken in all together, made her now appear as one very stunning young woman.
Her very difficult son and daughter had been left in the care of their grandparents by their father, and the much older Frosts while very tough disciplinarians, were kind enough to maintain the children’s school and social schedule, while living in their son’s home. Montgomery Frost need not have worried about his parents cramping his lifestyle, as their main interest was in their grandchildren, so that he came and went like a single man, during their stay.
Nina and Theodore Frost, upon visiting their daughter-in-law in Nevada had Sandra’s son Monty age 11, and daughter Isabelle, age 14, behaving like normal human beings to their mother’s amazement.
At the restaurant where they held their reunion however, once their grandparents went in search of the restrooms, Sandra’s foul-mouthed daughter and spastic son behaved the way she’d always described to her husband, who hadn’t spent enough time at home to witness their behavior for himself.
It was easy for the grandparents to get them back under control but each time they were out of earshot, her children continued threatening Sandra with all they’d do to her for leaving them with their grandparents. This time however, Sandra smiled and presented the older Frosts with the documents she’s signed in a Nevada court surrendering her parental rights permanently to their father.
“Well dear I should tell you that Monty Sr. had already discussed the possibility of divorce with us and feels his schedule is so cumbersome that he’d feel better if we were given guardianship of the children. I suppose that Isabelle will eventually get used to permanently residing with us in our well-appointed home until she’s of age. We’ve already discussed with Monty Sr., a fine Military Academy for Monty Jr. to attend starting in September, until he’s of age. I do know that their father will be delighted to have full custody, knowing that they’ll have stability and discipline as long as we’re around. Tell me Sandra, does this mean you’ll be divorcing my son soon,” asked Mrs. Frost.
“Nina, your son and I are already divorced. I obtained a divorce yesterday in Las Vegas after establishing the required residency. Next I’m returning to Houston, so please advise Monty Sr. that he will have to find another place to live. I’m sure by now he’s aware of the fact that I cleaned out both safe deposit boxes and our joint bank accounts, and I will be hiring very experienced security to protect my assets.
“If he still feels resentful, please tell him to use the bank account he hid from me with all sorts of huge deposits in it. Then remind him that I could have gone to the press with the fact that he’s not only a major tax dodger, but an adulterer whose been sleeping with my sister for a very long time. Tell him won’t you that I have proof of both accusations. I don’t think the new White House administration will still want him as their U.S. Attorney General once that news gets out.
“This envelope contains color photos for both you and Mr. Frost to examine at your leisure. Feel free to share them with your son as well,” said Sandra handing the envelope to Nina Frost. Later inside her car driving away she nearly collapsed in laughter as both the adult Frosts looked like the air had been let out of them.
With all of her cosmetic procedures completed and a wardrobe obtained on a shopping spree in New York and later in Dallas, to say nothing of the enormous bank accounts in her name only, the newly divorced Sandra Frost returned to Houston, to learn of the goings on that had occurred while she was obtaining a physical overhaul and a spiritual renewal of her very own.
Resettled in her Houston home, she’d hired a six-person permanent personal staff including a very capable female bodyguard. Once vilified because of her husband’s romantic antics, now Sandra turned heads wherever she went and although he wanted to hate her, Montgomery Frost admired the courage and fortitude she now displayed, neither of which she appeared to possess during their marriage.
To complete her rise from the ashes of degradation, fear and humiliation, Sandra’s used her excellent writing skills to write four chapters of a proposed book, which she submitted to a well-known publisher. That leap of faith rewarded her with an unusually large advance, seldom obtained for a first book or any work of fiction.
After seeing his ex-wife from a comfortable distance, the county D.A. now living in a gated community on the other side of town, realized immediately that Gillian could no longer hold a candle to her younger sister.
When the press reported that Sandra had sold the rights to a work of fiction she was writing, both Monty and Gillian held their breath feeling certain that one or both of them would figure largely in the content of the yet incomplete novel. Monty refused Gillian’s request that he try to uncover details about the book from his ex-wife, telling Gillian that these days Sandra was hardly the pushover they’d known in the past.
Perhaps because the corpses found at the condemned church building were not immediately identifiable due to the fact that the teeth and fingers were missing from each of the corpses, news accounts of the ten very brutal causes of death never quite caught the interest or the sympathy of Houston’s general public. The F.B.I. was now the lead agency handling the investigation permanently and none too happy, because this mob drop site like others found in the past, yielded evidence too contaminated to be of any help in solving this convoluted case.
HPD’s Homicide Division was now free to look into the brutal murders of Albert and Tameka Merrick, the homicide by auto of John McArdle, Abby Carter and Timothy Hart a teenager at the time of his death, as well as the kidnap and assault on Mickey Stone and the attempted murder of celebrity P.I. Nathan March.
According to DNA tests performed on the cigarette butts left on the cement floor of the church where Mickey was held and beaten, his assailants were Carmine Ortega and Victor Scanlon. Both men had served time in prison and were suspected in two other assaults. However, again in both those cases, the victims lost their memories right before trial began.
Although evidence did seem to disappear quite regularly from the evidence locker, the casing found at the Merrick fire with a thumb print, was finally processed and bingo Mr. Carmine Ortega now was wanted in connection with the Merrick deaths, as well.
Nathan’s discharge from the hospital finally made it possible for Dede to fulfill her husband Jack’s final wish as Jack McArdle’s boat easily navigated Houston Lake, where he fished striped bass and catfish successfully for years with his son. Now his son Jack, Jr., a college sophomore, captained the boat to a perfectly clear spot. His sister Doreen, a junior scattered her portion of his cremains stating out loud to her Dad that she had dedicated the rest of her college program to him and would be sure to finish with a perfect 4.0 in order to honor him.
Jack Jr. spoke of the fact that he didn’t know any of his friends who had as many memories of time spent alone with their Dad as he had. Next his mother along with Nathan scattered the rest of Jack’s cremains with a simple goodbye, keeping other thoughts to themselves.
After hearing how difficult life was for the young accident victim’s large family, Mickey called on the Harts in person, expressing his sincerest sympathy and presenting them with a check signed by Nathan March to cover their son Tim’s funeral costs, with the balance left over large enough to help the family out of their financial troubles. His high school received a $10.000 scholarship toward college for two needy students, one male and one female, annually renewable for five years. That anonymous act done in the name of Timothy Hart, assured that he would not be forgotten.
Gillian Solomon had enough matters lying heavily on her mind already, when the phone rang and her HPD connection told her the news that he needed to step away from his normal duties for her, or risk being caught. Earlier, the forensic pathologist on her payroll also told her about Carmine Ortega and Victor Scanlon both being identified as connected to Mickey Stone’s kidnapping through the cigarette butts, and Carmine’s print being identified on a casing found at the Merrick fire. Gillian knew that a warrant was already in the works and a lethal injection for two was a dead bang, leaving both men the option of making a deal with authorities involving witness protection.
“We found them Gillian they were just parking in the Federal Building’s parking lot,” said Tony Carpetti, ignoring the terror on both men’s faces as a garrote was being fashioned to be used on one, while the other watched.
“Our friend at HPD is also cutting ties, so maybe you could wait until you find him, and then you can finish him off with the others for screwing up the easiest hit I’ve ever assigned him. Don’t forget Tony, your life depends on none of them ever being seen again,” said Gillian.
On his way home near midnight, Lt. Stan Abbott couldn’t shake the feeling his was being followed. To test his intuition he flew through a red light at an intersection. That maneuver had only forced a second car, two lights down, to take over the chase with Tony Carpetti driving that car. The chase was over in three minutes when Abbott’s car was forced into a chain linked fence and two cars, one in front and one in back blocked his escape.
The addition of another execution altered the mode of death for all three and while their executioner took ownership of three wooden chairs from a local funeral home, and procured yards and yards of heavy weight chains, lots of duct tape, and gassed up Gillian’s speed boat, Tony Carpetti took in the fact that the three condemned men cried like hired mourners at a funeral.
It wasn’t hard for Tony to remember being at the abandoned church property downtown with Gillian while listening to Carmine and Victor recall in detail getting Lt. Abbott’s call about Jack McArdle’s exact whereabouts and then describing how they used a stolen car to force another car into the Captain’s sedan, killing everyone in both cars. It had them all laughing together as Nathan March’s assistant laid close to death on the church basement’s cement floor. Now neither Carmine Ortega, nor Victor Scanlon, or Stan Abbott had a reason to celebrate anything.
At dusk, seven males boarded a powerful speed boat on Lake Houston. Although it was travelling heavy in the water at the time, once one folding chair went over the side with a living man occupying it, followed by two more occupied chairs, all weighted down with cement blocks and yards of heavy metal chains, on its return trip the boat skipped along effortlessly.
When Tony Carpetti slid off Gillian’s body, he could hardly catch his breath.
“Let’s shower, shall we?” said Tony.
“You go ahead I’m just going to enjoy the afterglow, a while longer,” said Gillian as Tony placed a kiss on her mouth, and then headed to the shower in his own room.
Tony opened the connecting door to his quarters to find a large tarp spread out over the carpeting in front of him. The sight of Luke Spano who he’d just taken a boat ride with, now holding a .38 with a silencer was the last sight he would ever see. The gun aimed at his head and then his heart released its contents too fast for him to react.
Luke Spano was hardly pleased with Gillian’s orders to end Carpetti’s life. He was the Godson of a “made” man, and that meant his body had better never be found if Spano himself wanted to go on living. The big man admitted to himself that Carpetti was always good to him and never would have turned state’s evidence, but Gillian’s orders were Gillian’s orders and the pay was better than great.
The mob-connected Boyle Funeral Home, the same local undertakers who provided Luke with the three wooden folding chairs he needed earlier, placed Tony’s body in the same casket as that of a very sweet old lady brought in from a very posh convalescent home.
Margaret Riley was ninety-six and the last of the family line scheduled to be entombed in the Riley family mausoleum, at St. Vincent’s Catholic Cemetery. With no family living in the area and the law firm handling the arrangements that were without provisions for religious services, the rather expensive casket would be sealed permanently and then reside with all the Riley family’s previously deceased, in their resting place.
“You’ve certainly made yourself a small fortune tonight Luke,” said Gillian dressed in a white caftan as she handed the very large man a thick envelope before sharing a very late dinner with her newest conquest.
The sit down being held elsewhere, should have had Gillian’s ears ringing as she was the reason this emergency meeting was called.
Angelo Tesla knew that Hank was right Gillian had brought the feds into their business in a huge way, by disobeying orders. However balanced up against the cash she sent their way weekly, he couldn’t punish her for not doing the housekeeping she was ordered to do. Besides they were one step ahead of the feds because there were ten corpses with no teeth to compare dental records to, and no fingers to get prints from. Besides according to Gillian she was only a short time away from acquiring one of the feds for her very own, to keep her apprised of the investigation, at all times.
“You can’t cut her anymore slack Angelo. The bimbo was told to set fire to that church building, with those losers all buried in it months ago, just in case the feds came up with some new methods of identification we don’t know about,” said Hank Arnold, a distinguished New Orleans attorney.
“Arnie she’s still earning and paying her fair share. I’ve got to recommend that we give her a while longer to reel in her fed. I’ll make sure she doesn’t bring any more heat on us,” said Angelo.
“Angelo, you realize that if we all vote to extend more time to her and she messes up, that you too will pay the price along with her,” said Carlo Thomasina, a man no one wanted as an enemy.
“I promise you any hint of another screw up on her part and I’ll have her hit that same day,” said Angelo knowing that Gillian needed a great incentive as a constant reminder of how badly she screwed up this time.
Luca Spano’s orders brought him back to Gillian’s home, within days of his last visit. Her plumb olive-skinned bottom tied high over a chair was sliced over and over again with the shot studded whip he used as she screamed in agony, despite her mouth being taped shut.
“The only reason I tore up your bottom and spared the rest of you was so that while you healed, your fed would still find you attractive. But don’t kid yourself Gillian because this could have been the end of you. You know this is nothing personal, but if you disobey the boys in New Orleans again it will mean I come back and you stop breathing,” said Luke Spano as he continued to whip her bottom until she could cry out no more.
Dr. Edelstien, a prominent plastic surgeon from Dallas that Friday evening boarded the train for Houston with his wife’s insults ringing in his ears, because he’d left a family Seder, to attend to a patient. Gillian Solomon under the influence of heavy pain medication, wouldn’t take NO for an answer, as she awaited his arrival at a private clinic she supported in Houston, where she needed his talent to be put to use to restore one of her best assets.
Montgomery Frost shook like a leaf in the wind on returning home from Gillian’s room at the private clinic where a plastic surgeon worked on her for four hours. Those areas he could stitch he stitched and then Dr. Edelstein gently taped smaller gashes closed with vitamin E soaked non-adhesive strips and then applied a soothing compress to the entire area, as Gillian now heavily-medicated, slept through the whole procedure.
County D.A. Frost had seen the bodies of those ten men in the company of the F.B.I. and nearly disgraced himself as he became too sick to talk. Now seeing Gillian he realized he didn’t want any more to do with these people, who only protected him along with Gillian, in order to have a friend in the Justice Department, in the not too distant future.
Well, he was certain now that he wouldn’t be the successful candidate even if it was offered to him. Now all he had to do was get a doctor to swear to his inability to continue to handle the County position he now held, and with his nerves this shot to hell, that wouldn’t be a stretch at all.
The way Mike Dempsey fit in with everyone at the Liberty Street address that Nathan March and all his people now shared, was remarkable considering how short a time had passed since he was an active duty Marine in Afghanistan, carrying wounds that no one could see, except Fr. Jeff Quinlan.
Nathan thought that perhaps the young man’s stint in the Marine Corps had filled a vital purpose that got him passed burying his grandfather and more recently his father, both in little more than a year.
The attempt on Nathan’s life made his trip to see Leslie seem far more meaningful to him than ever in the past. She noted the difference too, enjoying being in his arms all night for two nights, talking about what’s really important in life and what only seems important. Now his kisses were longer and he studied her with a reverence she’d never sensed before, as he was so grateful for the patience and understanding he once took so much for granted.
Not only had he not lost his edge after such a siege with Saran poisoning, he had gained new insight and an even greater appreciation for everyone around him, as he extended his meditation time. He also felt led to document the impressions he received while dwelling in the sacred space where he felt his life force travelled, during his spiritual ponderings.
After reviewing all the documents Sam Weiss had produced for the team in his absence which was three inches thick, Nathan felt he was up to date. The most valuable endeavor for the entire team to accomplish was to spend time together using each other’s energies to submit the name of someone who would have something to gain from David Solomon’s murder, years ago.
David Solomon’s birth family consisted of his father Jacob now deceased, his mother Gillian, and his two sisters, Karen now deceased and Ann. It was Ann Solomon-Duncan married to Texas Ranger Phillip Duncan, who at thirty-nine years old hopefully could provide some background into the entire matter, to direct their future efforts in exonerating Claude Dempsey.
The call he placed to Amarillo, Texas to the Duncan home had Phil Duncan answer Nathan’s call with a threat to the caller. “Listen, you bastard, you leave my wife alone. Don’t call here, don’t leave notes on her car windshield, and don’t pin notes to my five year’s jacket threatening to kill his mother,” said Phil.
“Hold up Phil, my name’s Nathan March and I’m calling from Houston. I’m reinvestigating a murder at the request of the son of the man who was executed for the murder of David Solomon. We’ve got reason to believe that someone got away with murder, while an innocent man got a lethal injection.
“No one in my camp is threatening Ann. We need her too much to help us, to wish her anything but blessings on her family and her health,” said Nathan.
“You really are the private detective Nathan March?” asked Phil.
“I am sir,” said Nathan.
“Forgive my outburst please. We get a lot of crackpot calls and even some threats. However I know that my wife would very much like to talk to you, sir,” said Phil handing her his cell phone after telling her the caller’s identity.
“Hello Mr. March, I’ve been hoping to hear from you,” said Ann.
“Mrs. Duncan, I don’t quite understand,” said Nathan.
“Well it’s been a while but weeks ago I heard from a young woman named Abby Carter and although I wasn’t very forthcoming she told me about her boss, you Mr. March and she said that at the appropriate time, she’d have you contact me,” said Ann.
“I see,” said Nathan as a heaviness filled him.
“I have managed to utilize all the therapy I received to deal with family issues, and after speaking with my therapist he suggested that speaking to you about my brother and his death, might be the closure needed to put me firmly in the twenty-first century as a married woman with children, instead of feeling forever cursed by her family name,” said Ann.
“Ann so much has gone on here in Houston regarding your Brother David’s case, and I’m afraid I’m hesitant to discuss it with you, without first speaking with your husband,” said Nathan.
“Here’s Phil now,” said Ann.
“Mr. March,” said Phil.
“Phil I don’t want to damage the good work done by her therapist, by discussing the case we’re working on with Ann. First of all the young woman who called her did work for me, but she’s dead Phil. Abby Carter was killed in a homicide by auto, along with a HPD Captain, who was a close friend of mine. Their homicide is still under investigation,” said Nathan.
“Tell her Mr. March, and ask your questions, it’s damn time everything was exposed to the light, and I can protect her and I will,” said Phil.
“Thanks Phil,” said Nathan, utilizing a small voice recorder to record any answers Ann would be comfortable with giving him.
Perhaps it was because Ann was so ready to clear out the pain held deep in her soul for so long, that she was so forthright in her answers to Nathan’s questions. If Gillian Solomon had been the mother most women are thought Nathan, she’d have treasured her friendship with her eldest daughter and had that daughter’s respect and admiration for a lifetime.
Ann cried off and on as she relayed any details she could recall that would impact Nathan’s investigation. There was no anger in her, nor was their shame. Her lengthy separation from her mother had helped her grow and form her own set of ethics which meant that she valued God, friends and family for the strength they’d imparted to her.
When the conversation was over Nathan was deeply moved and filled with gratitude for Ann’s time and the information that was not just valuable, but would turn this twisted case around in Claude Dempsey’s favor. It took courage and honesty in huge quantities for Ann Duncan to admit the road she travelled on at sixteen when she became a street person used and abused while she continued her search for love.
It took Phil Duncan, a Texas Ranger, to turn her around and help Ann get back what should have always been hers, namely integrity and dignity. His reward was watching a young girl grow into a warm intelligent woman who stood beside him, raised their son and three-year old daughter with him while going from a high school dropout, to a teacher with her Master’s degree now working in the Amarillo School System.
“God Bless and protect you Mr. March and show you the truth. In my soul I just know that HE is very happy with you sir,” said Ann as she disconnected the call.
Nathan sat for a very long time allowing the information on the voice recorder and on his heart, to sink in and assist him to keep his people safe and expose all that needed to be revealed for the good of a great many people.
Captain Taylor Davis was certain his wife was going to question his dishpan hands, as he washed so many dishes after consuming so many fine lunches, as he had today, with the rest of the residents at Liberty Street. Eyebrows were all ways raised when those six very big young men dressed in suits and wearing expensive sunglasses, visited him at headquarters. He had to admit to feeling very proud to be in their circle of friends, although they did make him feel older and not too physically fit.
Today they all joined Nathan who’d spent two days receiving his meals and typing notes on his laptop. The big dining room that accommodated the whole crew at meal time now became their meeting place.
While Nathan sat at the head of the dining table, Dede sat at the other. John, George, Sam, Mickey, Ken, Mike, Farley and Taylor, sat along the two sides of the long oak table. As he was about to begin, Dr. Fletcher Adams and Ronnie Perry joined them.
“Who’s minding the store, may I ask?” said Nathan smiling at the pair.
“I think my cousin is trying to boot me out,” said Fletch.
“Really,” said Dede as Ronnie and Fletch took seats at the table.
“Eric’s just been divorced at fifty-one, and although he’s well past being idealistic after twenty-five years in medicine, he loves the work at the clinic and my patients love him. He sold his Boston practice to give his ex-wife a flat settlement, and I think maybe he’s a perfect fit here in Houston,” said Fletch.
“It sure gives us more time together and Georgia Lewis loves being Eric’s nurse,” said Ronnie.
“Now if he finds a place to stay for a while, I won’t feel so cramped in my one-bedroom apartment, that’s why I’m here so much,” said Fletch.
“You’re here my young doctor, because Ronnie’s here,” said Nathan.
“You can’t blame me for that Nathan,” said Fletch as Ronnie’s light brown skin went crimson.
“Well I hate to end all the frivolity but I think everyone here has a stake in what I’m about to disclose, so I’m going to let you know what I know,” said Nathan.
“Ann Solomon-Duncan is the thirty-nine year old daughter of Gillian Solomon. Her husband Phil is a twenty year veteran of the Texas Rangers and I can tell you as a human being, they don’t come any better. Phil discovered Ann on the street when she was seventeen, over the years until she was twenty-three he pulled her out of one scrape after another and when the two realized they were in love, he married her. While she went back to school, he continued to protect her from the family that nearly ruined her life.
“While going through therapy, she obtained her GED and graduated College with a teaching degree. A few years later a threat to her life had Phil pack them up and move to the country to start all over again.
“Ann teaches in a junior high school, and now has a son who’s six and a daughter who’s three years old. Phil’s life outside of the Rangers is devoted to his wife and children and he’s the one who insisted I question Ann and fill her in on everything going on in this investigation. So I did.
“What she gave me in return was her story of growing up in the Solomon household and her Brother David’s sick influence over his godless mother. She started by telling me that her mother had Ann’s father killed and then paid off a host of HPD’s detectives to see to it that his shooting death was written up by the M.E.’s office as a “misadventure”.
“All that information came from her Aunt Sandra, who was married to the County D.A. Montgomery Frost when both attended her father’s funeral and insisted Ann spend some time with her aunt. With her uncle gone most of the next two days, Aunt Sandra told Ann that she felt that Gillian had crossed the line when she had her own husband Jacob killed, and although Monty knew it was a homicide, he was too frightened to mess with Gillian because of her very powerful friends from New Orleans.
“Monty had told her aunt in more happy days, that the feds knew that Gillian’s friends in New Orleans were men like Angelo Testa and Carlo Thomasina, who kept the Mafia princess on a pedestal as long as she sent them their tributes in thousand dollar bills, each and every week.
“Sandra kept Ann apprised by telephone for years about Gillian and her Brother David’s activities. It seems Gillian became a lot smarter about wiretaps and bugs and hired technical help to constantly inspect her home and her vehicles against intrusion by the feds. Meanwhile her New Orleans bosses never interfered in her life unless she or those close to her, were a threat to them or when she could do them a service that for one reason or another they couldn’t do for themselves.
Ann believes that these bosses from New Orleans were not happy because David boldly threatened to do bodily harm to his CPA clients whenever they questioned his accounting practices that kept bringing many of them before the IRS. Once he learned from his partner Claude Dempsey that Claude had explained to the IRS about mistakes and then paid fines for David’s clients while resubmitting accurate Tax Reports which the IRS found acceptable, he went ballistic. Under the influence of booze and drugs, which by the way he provided for his own mother as well, David threw around the names of Angelo Tesla and Carlo Thomasina, portraying them as his all-powerful and personal friends frightening even the most fearless law enforcement officials.
“Monty was exceptionally nervous around the time of David’s death, and spent a great deal of time on the telephone at home and at his office, enough so that Sandra, who desperately loved her successful husband, began paying close attention to his comings and goings.
“The name Luke Spano was written on a piece of scrap paper on Monty’s desk in his home office and when his wife Sandra asked him who the man was, he told her to forget she ever read the name. He put the fear of God into her about ever entering his home office again and for the first time in their five-year marriage he beat her to make sure she never intruded on his privacy ever again.
“Ann offered to come back to Houston to help her aunt, but Sandra wouldn’t allow that and told Ann that neither would she be able to call her any longer as she couldn’t be sure Monty wasn’t able to tap her cell and listen in on their calls.
“David was murdered six weeks later at his office and then Claude Dempsey was arrested because Gillian with the help of Monty Frost, and several Detectives at the HPD, bribed and threatened and manipulated the evidence presented against Dempsey and provided witnesses to testify against him.
“She even got to Claude Dempsey’s lawyer as we all learned when we read the files so well kept by Albert Merrick who served Claude Dempsey up to Gillian in order to receive access to the rich and powerful clients she’d send his way. While the community believed her interference with the police was out of rage for her son’s death, nothing was further from the truth. She needed to pin David’s murder on Claude Dempsey, a murder she had planned and had paid for herself to satisfy her New Orleans bosses. Those are the same bosses I believe who ordered those ten men killed, whose corpses were located in that abandoned church building downtown,” said Nathan.
“Nathan then it’s possible that those are the people who ordered Mickey and you murdered as well,” said Dede.
“It’s possible, but I think it was Gillian who sought and got their permission to have us both killed,” said Nathan.
“That makes perfect sense boss,” said Mickey.
“Sir the only good thing about that is they missed their chance and another attempt on either or both of you would be too obvious for any law enforcement officials to ignore,” said Mike Dempsey.
“Works for me,” said Nathan smiling at Mickey.
“With all that we know Nathan, why can’t we get this witch?” said Ronnie Perry visibly shaken by all she’d heard.
“Honey, that witch is powerful enough to buy her way out of just about anything, except……” said Fletch looking as if an answer fell into his mind.
“Don’t stop there Fletch spit it out,” said John.
“What if she did something that put her at odds with the men in New Orleans? Something that brought such heat on them that they let her know her days were numbered,” said Fletch.
“You’ve been doctoring the street people too long my friend. You’re starting to think like one of them,” said Mickey happily.
“I was thinking the same thing as Fletch and so was John,” said Nathan.
“Yes sir. When I was a kid I watched the re-runs of “Mission Impossible” but back then I never thought I’d find myself a part of one of those capers and enjoying it so much,” said John.
“Nathan, Gillian’s been haunting me to take lunch with her, and now that she knows that I’m here amongst you all, she’ll want to hear everything about the direction of your investigation. I could do what I’ve always done, I could feed her misinformation and bait her for information that could help us,” said Dede.
“Dede if Jack were here he’d give your idea a thumbs down, not because you couldn’t accomplish it, but because Gillian’s like a wounded bear right now and if she ever caught on she’d find a way to kill you and tell God you died, the way she always has done to others in the past.
“We need you right here, while we all figure a way to come at her from a whole new direction so we can clear Claude Dempsey and put Gillian where she belongs. I believe we’ve established the method, now together let’s talk about the means,” said Nathan.
Keeping the front entrance of the Carney Street Clinic in pristine condition fell to Marcus Dees, a formerly homeless black man in his early seventies. He took out the trash, swept the Clinic’s front stairs and picked up any discarded debris and brought it all to the dumpster in the alley. For his work Marcus lived for free at the clinic with meals served to him in a clean room in the basement, next door to the boiler room.
He had a working TV, he kept the bathroom sink and toilet clean and took the medicine Dr. Adams gave him to keep the pain to where he could tolerate it. His cancer was terminal but as the doctor told him no one had the date or the time he’d be meeting Jesus, so he just plainly didn’t worry about it.
Marcus was slow today and taking a lot more time to gather the trash and place it in the refuse bin which had wheels on it. He knew he was dragging but he did have a good reason, he didn’t sleep too well last night. First it was Nettie Larson who came around looking for the Doc to tell him something and when she couldn’t find Fletch, she told Marcus that she had information that was very important for Fletch to know right away. Noting the panic in her voice, Marcus told her he didn’t know when Fletch would be back.
Nettie did her regular thing, she used Marcus’ bathroom to freshen up, drank a can of his soda, and when it was getting late, she left saying she’d be back early in the morning because she had something important to tell Fletch, but not the other doctor working with him.
Climbing into bed just a few minutes later, Marcus fell fast asleep. When he woke up it was because he heard loud voices. All he could see were feet from his cellar window but he could hear real good and it sounded like a horrible fight was going on. In a little while things quieted down but then the sound of the dumpster door slamming woke him up again. It was them damn cats who he threw buckets of water at more than once, to discourage them from coming back. Once it got quiet again he fell back to sleep.
When he awoke again the street lights were out and the sun was just breaking through the brown sky. Soon he realized he was hearing pounding against metal and muffled cries then just as he was about to get up, it stopped. He slept again for another little bit and then he knew it was time to get up and get to work.
Satisfied with his sweeping of the stairs and collecting all the trash, he set his trash bin with wheels in the direction of the alley just a few yards away.
The alley way between the clinic and the A-Z Mart with its urine soaked ground, was littered with discarded bandages, prescription bottles and other loose refuse as well as several cats trying to find a way into the large blue dumpster that held a wonderful odor only they could appreciate.
Every day he promised himself as he wheeled his trash bin in front of the dumpster, that he would not sweep the alley way, nor would he pick up the trash there and put it in his trash bin and then dump everything into the dumpster, but just about every day, if he wasn’t hurting too bad, he did just that.
This morning as he lifted the plastic trash bin from its container to empty its contents into the dumpster, he threw the dumpster door open and saw a sight that broke his heart immediately. It was Nettie Larson, whose knuckles were bloody from rapping them against the closed dumpster door that was too heavy for her to push open with her body, once it was closed on top of her. He didn’t see the slashes on her body as he dropped the dumpster door, nor did he see Doctor Fletcher Adams and his nurse Ronnie Perry before he nearly knocked her down.
“Marcus what’s the hurry,” asked Fletch.
When Marcus lifted his head his tears alarmed Fletch immediately and both he and Ronnie followed Marcus as he requested.
Sam Weiss seemed to glow as he bragged on his wife’s latest accomplishment during the weekly meeting with John and George, his partners. All of them had made their phone calls to home for the day and none of them had anything to be concerned about.
John’s live in girlfriend Miranda Lopez was busy adjusting to her new teaching assignment and learning to love her new students. Naomi Lopez, George’s wife, was totally emerged in motherhood and managing her intelligence gathering agency from home. The former Rebecca Miller, a talented graphic designer now the new Mrs. Weiss, was busy earning her kudos for a job well done in getting her clients signature on two big contracts because of the fabulous new logo she’d come up with for them.
“Out with it amigo, I can always tell when your heavy in thought, you wear this screwy smile and shake your head a lot,” said George to his friend John Barry.
“He’s right John, I noticed how toned down your enthusiasm is,” said George as upbeat as ever.
“I just have something to discuss with Nathan and then I’ll let you know about it okay?” said John.
“Sure buddy,” said George realizing if John was going to Nathan it was something important.
“Go ahead,” said Sam wearing the same worried look as George.
After knocking, John entered the home office Nathan had set up for himself. “Boss do you have a few minutes, I really need to talk,” said John.
“For you always John,” said Nathan with that knowing look on his face that made John realize he had a long way to go, before he’d surprise Nathan with any news.
“Nathan, I’m not sure I want to do this work anymore and I don’t know how to tell Sam and George that I want out after this case is over,” said John.
“From what I’ve observed of the relationship between you three for some years now, I believe there’s nothing that will ever permanently separate you. I would like to know what’s behind your change of heart,” Nathan added.
“I want to get married, I mean Nathan I’m desperately in love with Miranda and I hate being away from her. I’ll tell you something else, I’ve seen her with her students and something inside me says I’d be good at teaching myself. Not the little ones necessarily, but may be junior high school. I love history and geography, say I’ll bet I sound nuts to you right now,” said John.
“Are you kidding, I couldn’t be happier about everything you’ve said. John obviously it’s time to pack it in for you. Your heart’s with the woman in your life and this kind of work isn’t for you anymore. Something else I’d like you to know is that if I had a son or daughter, I’d be thrilled to know you were his or her teacher and so will the parents of the students you teach in your future,” said Nathan.
“There it is again, that “Nathan Effect” we all talk about. Each of us with our pulses racing and our minds trying to sort out a problem, come to you and you share that peace you project, next logic and reason start to take hold of us, and the sense that we have the answers to our own dilemmas, washes over us. That’s the “Nathan Effect” and in the best sense of the word, I love you for it Nathan,” said John sincerely.
“Ditto John, and I know that in the time left to us both on this case, we will resolve lots of issues still coming together in our hearts, and recognize that you coming into my life and my coming into yours, was ordained for the benefit of us both. Just as George and Sam will recognize the same thing, once you tell them your plans. Tell them today John, so that we can put everything into this investigation and make your last case as the PTA, the most memorable of them all,” said Nathan with a smile that made John smile too.
“Okay dude, out with it,” said George the minute John stepped inside his room.
“Let’s find Sam and go for a walk,” said John.
From the window in his makeshift office, Nathan could see the three large bodies heading for the trees out back. A feeling of pride and joy for having known such wonderful and talented men began taking hold inside him and Nathan knew that everything was going to be alright for the three of them because what brought them together only grew with time.
Dede’s rap on the door and her entrance into his office with a cup of mid-morning tea for them both, made Nathan smile up into her lovely face, as she fixed his tea the way he liked it. Next she fixed her own, and then sat down in front of his desk.
“Nathan, I was wondering if I could ask a favor,” said Dede.
“It’s yours lady, so ask away,” said Nathan as he sipped his tea.
“Well I feel kind of foolish Nathan, I mean I’m fifty years old, but I can’t stop hoping life isn’t quiet through with me yet. I tried to discuss my feelings with the kids, but they are just kids and they can’t seem to fit me into their sphere of interest any more. Oh hell Nathan, I’m hoping you’ll be one of my references, I’m going to apply to law school and I’m pretty sure, NO I’m absolutely sure, that I’ll make a great lawyer. Especially after knowing what a corrupt lawyer did to Claude Dempsey and to his whole family by forgetting why he became a lawyer in the first place. So, now I want your opinion and a reference,” said Dede all flushed and looking ten years younger than when she sat down.
“If I didn’t have a lady of my own right now, you Dede would be in very big trouble,” said Nathan.
“Oh Nathan, Jack always teased me about you saying I blushed solid red whenever you were around, and you know he was right,” said Dede relaxing and sipping her own tea.
“Law school is the perfect place for your talents Dede, and I’d be happy to say so in a reference. Wait and see how maturity helps you study without getting tired, as you can see I haven’t slowed down a bit,” said Nathan.
A quick rap on the door and in came the PTA. “Are we interrupting?” asked George.
“Not as far I’m concerned, I was just getting a letter of reference from Nathan so I can send it with my application to Law School,” said Dede smiling.
“HO RAH, what a great decision” said John.
“Fantastic Dede,” said George.
“That wonderful Dede,” said Sam hugging the lady who’d made his day every day since they came to Liberty Street.
“Did you three have a good discussion?” asked Nathan.
“We did and my two amigos and I discovered that we three were all ready to pack it in after we finish this case,” said John.
“Yeah, my lady needs me to help her with her Intelligence Agency and I’m really looking forward to it especially now that my amigos have plans of their own,” said George.
“My father-in-law sat me down to tell me he wants to produce and market some of my gadgets in a company he’s named “Weiss Choice”. As you know the man turns everything he touches into gold, so when I get home I’ll be starting over in the world of communications,” said Sam.
“I’m really glad for you all,” said Nathan as Mickey, Ken and Farley came through the open door looking white as a sheet.
“God Nathan, we think they may have Mike Dempsey,” said Mickey.
“What the heck gave you that idea?” said Mike Dempsey coming through the door minutes behind them.
“I couldn’t find you anywhere,” said Mickey sternly.
“I was at the Carney Street Clinic with Detective Davis. He and I were having breakfast when he got a call that a body was found in the dumpster there, so he took me with him,” said Mike.
“What did Fletch have to say about it,” said Nathan.
“The body was identified as Nettie Larson and what’s weird is that last night she told Marcus Dees, the sweet old guy who lives at the clinic that she had important news for Fletch and she’d be back in the morning.
“How’d she die?” asked Ken Hernandez.
“She was slashed several times and thrown into the dumpster alive. Captain Davis said that the poor thing must have tried desperately to get out of that dumpster, before she bled out completely,” said Mike.
“Sam please let me know all that you can learn about Dr. Eric Adams,” said Nathan.
“On it Nathan,” said Sam and out the door he went.
“John check with Ronnie to see if any drugs are missing from the clinic, ask her to do a quick inventory if she can. Make sure she knows to be careful not to be observed,” asked Nathan.
“Will do,” said John.
“George, talk to Peter Lynch for me and ask if he’s heard anything more on the Merrick fire,” said Nathan.
“Absolutely boss,” said George.
“Mickey I need you to contact a Mrs. Sandra Frost and ask her very politely, if she’d have a moment to speak with me someday soon. Tell her we’ll send a car for her,” said Nathan.
“Consider it done,” said Mickey, leaving for some place quiet to call her.
“Tell me Ken do either you or Farley here have any feds that are friends of yours who you’d feel comfortable to question about the investigation into all the bodies discovered in the abandoned church, last month?” asked Nathan.
Both men smiled and looking at each other and they spoke the name “Cassie Dunlap,” at the same time.
“She’s a good friend I hope,” said Nathan.
“She’s a perfect ten with two Master’s degrees,” said Ken.
“But she and Ken aren’t on speaking terms anymore,” said Farley.
“So Ken, no chance you could start over for our sake?” asked Nathan.
“No can do Nathan. I chose to cancel our third date with her, in favor of a very foxy lady I couldn’t ignore, and later found out it was her sister,” said Ken as Dede howled and Nathan could only laugh and shake his head.
“Dede what say you and I take a walk ourselves, because very shortly my office is going to be very crowded and we are not going to have a minute of peace,” said Nathan.