::  Murder In Baltimore  ::

Chapter Twenty One

Victor Galindez lay on his cot contemplating the events of the early morning. While he did so, he allowed his gaze to follow a small spider make its way across the cinder block ceiling of his cell. It was mid-morning, but by his reckoning, not quite time for the next two chapters of Tom Clancy. He had, of course, already completed his morning calisthenics and had even increased each rep to 150. He kept going over in his mind what had happened in the showers just a few hours ago, trying to decide if he should ask to use the phone and let the Admiral know what was going on.

Late last night, he had already been asleep when two more prisoners were brought in. Not unusual for a Saturday night and by the sound of it, they were both ‘homeboys’ from the same gang. In prison garb you really couldn’t tell. They had been noisy at first, but the guards had explained, in the nicest possible way to "shut the fuck up" and quiet had ensued once again and everyone had gone back to sleep.

This morning, the gang-bangers made their presence known as they swaggered into the changing rooms outside the shower. Jimmy made sure that he was the one that had filled the newcomers in on their fellow cellblock mates and Victor knew immediately, by the pointing and gesturing, that the ‘homies’ were getting a real rundown on him. He had showered quickly and was drying off when he felt the first finger jab into his back. He whipped around; keeping the towel wrapped around him as best he could and faced his opponent.

The kid couldn’t have been more than 18 or 19, but his eyes were older than Victor’s would ever be. He had a look that said, "Hell I’m dead anyway, come mess with me." Victor stood his ground and looked the man in the eyes as the gang-banger snarled. "Yo! Tough man! You the guy that killed ‘Tino's’ old lady?" Victor didn’t move or say anything; then, he felt the kid’s companion thump him in the head.

"Hey bastard, my man here is talking to you."

Victor swallowed and was deciding which one to try and take out first when he heard Jake’s deep voice, "Listen up assholes, this is our day up on the roof. And, I am getting mighty anxious to be out of that cell if only for twenty minutes. You fuck it up ‘cause you three can’t get along and you can answer to me. Capeesh?"

The two aggressors turned away muttering veiled threats, but they left him alone. They had gone to the front of the line but kept casting vicious looks back at Victor.

Now he lay thinking about what had happened and why Jake had saved his butt yet again. The reason that Jake had given was certainly valid. If they had gotten into a fight, the guards would have punished the entire block by denying them their ‘exercise time’. He wanted desperately to talk to Jake, but couldn’t figure out an opening. Instead, he lay there planning on how he would protect himself up on the roof.

It was after lunch when the guards came and led all eight men up to the roof. As they came outside, Victor look around and saw that the roof was surrounded by large parapets and those where topped by a sturdy chain link fence, which was in turn topped by razor wire. Victor knew they were over 15 stories high so he thought the precautions were a little much but he shrugged and walked to one high wall and turned to wait for what he knew would come.

The two guards who had escorted them went to stand in a corner out of the cold November wind. The prisoners had been given jackets to wear but they were very thin and not much help as the wind blew out of the east bringing with it the smell of the sea and the city slums. Victor kept his shoulders hunched and his eyes on the two gang-bangers who were busy ignoring him. They walked along the wall across from him, heads bent, talking and laughing.

Victor was so engrossed in watching the two of them that he never saw the shadow until it was too late. He felt the pain shoot through him and as he turned, he grasped his side and pulled back blood. The next thing he heard was the guards shouting and Jake standing over him. The funny thing was that there was no blood anywhere on Jake and the look in his eyes was one of shock, not triumph. Victor passed out thinking, What the hell is going on here?

The pain was gone, but he could not move. He tried very hard to open his eyes but it was just too hard. He moaned and struggled again. Then, he felt a hand on his forehead and heard, "Easy son. I’m here now and nothing more is going to happen." Victor stilled and drifted back off to sleep, but not before he heard AJ Chegwidden growl. "I don’t give a damn, Anderson, I *will* have my people stand guard. How in the hell did somebody get on that roof with a knife?"

::  Chapter 22 ::

AJ woke promptly at 0600 as he always did but this morning for the first time since Galindez had been arrested, he got out of bed and went on his run. In fact, he took a longer route than he normally did and was out for almost an hour and a half. When he returned at 0735, he quickly showered and put on a conformable pair of jeans. He had decided to pull Admiral’s privilege today and have everybody come to his house to discuss the case. He called Rabb, who answered the phone panting slightly. AJ announced himself and advised Rabb of the change in plans. "We can use my computer if we have too. Call Mr. Roberts and ask him to come too." He paused and then asked, "Will you find out if Commander Pike will be able to join us? She was a real asset last night."

Rabb had sensed the hesitance in his commanding officer’s voice and he grinned when he realized the cause. "Sir, no problem. I’ll shower and then call the Commander at her hotel." He could have elaborated but decided not to explain that after they had left, Harm had taken the keys and driven them back into D.C. He had dropped her off at her hotel and then gone home. "Sir, would you like me to get in touch with Colonel MacKenzie?"

"Um... no. Rabb, I know where she is and I'll get in touch with her. Besides, I want to see how Mr. Webb is doing." AJ look toward his kitchen, did a quick inventory in his head, and asked, "Rabb, stop and get bagels or something will you?"

He went into the kitchen and started the coffee maker. Next, he went into his den and booted up the computer. He hadn’t looked at his messages since yesterday morning, but since it was the weekend he wasn’t expecting much. As the computer was booting up, he went back into the bedroom and finished dressing, choosing a warm cable knit sweater. He decided against socks and slipped his feet into his loafers.

After he had grabbed a cup of coffee, he went back into his den to read his e-mail. This time the message stood out like a sore thumb. He ‘clicked’ it open and leaned back into his office chair.

He looked at the clock on the desk and found that it was already 0845. He didn’t want to call him... them, this early but he didn’t know whom else to call. He pulled out his address book and picked up the phone. After only one ring, he heard the receiver on the other end of the line pick up and was relieved to hear Webb say, "Good Morning AJ. What took you so long?"

AJ was incredulous. "Excuse me."

AJ heard a groan. "You’re calling about the phantom message in your inbox this morning aren’t you? I got the call about an hour ago." Webb paused and then continued - the sarcasm apparent even through the pain. "Or, are you calling to inquire about my health? I’m sore. I’ll live. Thank you very much for asking."

"Damn you Webb, how in the hell did you tap my computer?" AJ was livid and already planning his tirade to both the SecNav and the Director of the CIA when Webb continued.

"Calm down, AJ. We only set it up to track unknown senders. I’m not even going to make a crack about the e-mail from Vitamin.com. Look AJ, its more than just you and the damn case okay. It's national security now and there isn’t a whole hell of a lot either of us can do about it, so just calm down." AJ could hear that the speech had tired Webb and decided to cut him a little slack.

"So how bad is it?"

"Me or the e-mail?" Webb sighed.

AJ took a deep breath before he bit off, "You, damn it."

"Oh. Like I said. I’ll live." AJ smiled evilly and asked softly, "Good. May I speak with Colonel MacKenzie?" The straightforward question had the desired effect. There was a long dead silence, but what he finally heard was not what he was expecting.

"Let me have her call you back. She's still asleep. And, before you get any evil ideas, Admiral Chegwidden, she spent the night in a chair. For which, I will have a long talk with her about, but not right now." AJ heard the deep sigh on the other end and it almost seemed that Webb was talking to himself, "I told her to go home but she wouldn’t. I told her to sleep in a bed upstairs but when I woke up an hour ago, there she was, in that stupid sweat suit with her coat pulled around her. I... I’ll... I’ll have her call you, okay?"

Gently, AJ said, "Okay. Webb. Look. If you are up for it, we are meeting here today. If you want, just have her come out here. I need to make sure that she's ready to go to Norfolk tomorrow. If you can’t make it but hear anything, Clay, call me here."

Clayton Webb hung up the phone and was halfway up the stairs to the second floor before he realized that AJ Chegwidden had actually called him by his first name. He continued up to his bedroom. The pain medication was still in his system, but he was beginning to completely wake up and the twinges in his muscles and the pain where the suspender buckle had broken the skin were beginning to bother him. He had slept like the dead until the call of nature had woken him earlier. It was a good thing too. He had come out of the bathroom and went to stand over her, debating whether to wake her up and insist she lay down. As he watched her sleep, he heard the phone ring in the hallway. He did not keep a phone in the guestroom simply because he had never had anybody stay there. He was able to get to the phone hanging on the kitchen wall before it rang a third time and that was when he heard about the second e-mail and its contents. He had also been told to "get his sorry ass into the office for debriefing." He knew he would take some serious kidding about the shooting, but the pragmatic part of him accepted that at least he was alive to receive the ribbing.

Now, he stood in front of his dresser wondering what he was going to wear today and just how he was going to dress himself. He didn’t want Sarah fussing over him though he found that he was getting aroused just thinking about her undressing him last night. He opened his dresser drawer and found that if he took deep relaxing breaths he could stand the pain of raising his arms high enough to pull out his under garments. He also realized that raising his right arm caused him less pain than the left arm did. He made his way to his bathroom and opted for a sponge bath. He even managed a shave. He was able to pull on his briefs and even his socks, but getting a T-shirt was a lost cause and he finally muttered, "to hell with it." He walked back into his bedroom and pulled out a pair of soft woolen gray pants and a blue cotton oxford shirt and threw them on the bed. By putting his left arm in first and then bending his right arm he was able to get the shirt on. He hadn’t been sure if he could stand another performance like the one in the hospital. He reigned his thoughts back in and sat on the bed and managed to get into his pants and surprised himself when he managed to somehow tuck the shirt in and zip himself up. Finally, he found a pair of black slip-ons. Inordinately pleased with himself, he turned in time to see Sarah MacKenzie leaning against the doorjamb silently clapping her hands. He had been so engrossed with his task he hadn’t even noticed her there. Which, when he considered it later, should have scared him to death. But then he could only ask, "How long have you been standing there?"

She smiled. "Long enough." She came up to him and kissed him gently on the mouth, then turned to the door. "I’ve going now. It’s only ten blocks and I’m dressed for a run. Call me later."

Clay barely managed to get out, "Hey, wait a minute." She turned back and raised her eyebrow in question. There was so much he wanted to say to her but the only thing that he allowed himself was "Thanks for helping last night. And the Admiral called this morning." He watched for any sign of distress or embarrassment but she only stood there waiting for him to continue. "There’s been another e-mail. And, he wants everybody out at his place as soon as possible. I told him you would call." Sarah nodded and then turned and proceeded down the steps. Clay shook his head in wonder and then slowly followed her. By the time he made the front door, he knew she was already more than half way home.

Sarah made it home in less than a half an hour. She ran up her steps and into her apartment, glad that she kept a spare set of keys in her purse. After she closed the door she looked down at the table she kept by the door to throw mail on, and saw that the set of keys that she had left with Kate and a note were laying there. She picked up the note and read "Hey Jarhead, I left your car at your garage and ran the keys upstairs. Talk to you later, Harm." She smiled and then went straight to her bathroom to shower so she could get over to the Admiral’s house right away. When she came out of her bedroom in less than ten minutes, her hair was still slightly damp. She realized that Kate must have stopped by with Harm last night because all the files that Kate needed were no longer on the dining room table. Mac picked up the phone and when AJ answered, told him she was on her way and did he need her to pick up anything before she came out. She then hung up and quickly packed up her own papers and hurriedly left the apartment.

When Mac pulled up to the Admiral’s house, she noticed that Harm's SUV was already there but Bud’s Minivan was nowhere in sight. She slapped her forehead realizing she should have offered to pick him up. She ran up the steps and found the door already opened for her by none other than Mr. Roberts dressed in dark blue jeans and denim shirt. "Hi, Colonel."

"How did you get here?" She asked.

"Harriet dropped me off. She and Jay are going to see one of her girlfriends today. I told her that I would let her know when to pick me up." Bud closed the door behind Mac and helped her out of her jacket and then went into the den.

Mac followed him and saw that they were not the only ones who had chosen causal wear as the uniform of the day. Even the Admiral was in blue jeans and a loose sweater. At the moment, he was bent over his chair while Harm was reading something off the computer. She felt Kate come up behind her but when she turned to greet her, Mac found that Kate wasn’t looking at her but at something in the room. She followed her line of sight and found that she was staring at AJ Chegwidden’s butt!

She turned back to her friend who realized what she had been caught doing and heard Kate say just a little too loudly, "Morning Mac, you want a cup of coffee?" Mac nodded and grabbed Kate’s arm and led her into the kitchen.

In a shocked voice, she whispered, "You were NOT just scoping out the Admiral’s butt!"

Kate got a dreamy look on her face before she replied, "You, Colonel, did not see him last night."

Still whispering Mac said, "Why, what was he wearing last night?"

Kate replied with one word. "Black."

Getting seriously concerned now, Mac grabbed her new friend and made Kate’s eyes meet hers and said between clinched teeth, "I don’t care if he was naked." She immediately regretted her choice of words but continued. "You do not stare at the ass of an Admiral of the United States Navy."

Kate merely snorted and replied, "Oh yeah, like you never have."

Mac had the decency to finally giggle. "Yeah, but I never did with other people being able to see me."

The smile left Kate’s face and she said softly, "Maybe it would do him some good to see that the sun didn’t rise and set on that little boy grin of his." Mac let go of Kate’s arm. She knew they were no longer discussing AJ Chegwidden.

She grabbed her cup of coffee and a bagel. "Come on. Let’s see what’s going on in there? As they walked back into the office, Harm had risen from the computer and Bud was taking his place. Mac was relieved to see that AJ was standing and staring out the window, his sweater covering his posterior, thus depriving Kate her view.

Harm walked up to the women. "I made notes of where London was stationed. His record appears to be deceptively clean." At their questioning looks, he added, "Oddly timed transfers, long delays in promotions but no real reasons why. No bad conduct reports though."

Mac looked at the notes. "Parris Island - 1996, Camp Pendelton - 1997, Camp Yuma - 1998. Hey, wait a minute. Bud?" Roberts looked up from the computer and waited. "Can you go into the Marine Corps directory and find out were a Lt. Colonel Michael Edward Curtiss is stationed?"

Bud closed out the window he was working in and opened another. He found the site he needed and typed in the name. Mac stood behind Bud as he performed the search. Finally, several names popped up and Mac reached over and highlighted one, then stood back as the information they needed appeared on the screen. They discovered that the now full bird Colonel was stationed at Camp Lejune. Bud wrote down the main number for her and she went over to sit on the couch to dial the number. When she got through, she wasn’t surprised to discover that the Colonel was not on the base on a Sunday morning. She left her name and told the person on the other end to find the Colonel and to call her at Admiral Chegwidden's residence - that it was most important. Upon hearing his name, AJ turned around to look at her.

"Sir, from the notes that Harm took, it looks like a friend of mine was stationed at Camp Yuma the same time that London was. If London was in any trouble, Mike would know about it. He's with the MPs now and he was then. They’ll have him call here." AJ nodded and turned back to the window. Mac looked questioningly at Harm who shrugged his shoulders. Mac walked up to the Admiral and asked, "Sir, is something wrong?"

At her direct question AJ looked down and lied, "No Colonel, just going over everything in my head for a moment." In truth, he was trying to get only one thing firmly *out* of his head and he wasn’t having a great deal of success.

She nodded and went back to stand behind Bud. "So, what are you looking up now?"

Bud was rapidly typing, then looking at the screen, then scrolling down. He paused to study some hand written notes and looked up at Mac in triumph. He pressed the enter button and said "By George, I think I’ve got it."

At his happy exclamation, AJ came over to stand behind him and was quickly followed by Harm and Kate who stood next to him, behind Bud. It was Kate who finally begged the question. "Lieutenant, are you supposed to be able to break into government files that easily?"

Bud looked up wide-eyed. "No ma’am, but I have a friend, who knows..."

AJ clamped his hand on Bud’s shoulder. "That’s okay, Lieutenant. We don’t need to know; just show us what you’ve got."

Being the center of attention and loving it, Bud intoned. "Well, we are in the personnel records for the entire Baltimore Police department. We can see their files and their pictures. Where do you want to go first?"

AJ thought for a moment. "Well, I don’t get any kind of feel from him, but can you pull up Lieutenant Steven Anderson." Bud typed quickly and then hit enter, the screen went blank and then a not very recent picture of Steven R. Anderson came up on the screen. His personnel data was listed first. His college degree in law enforcement was from Baltimore City College. The year of graduation from the academy and the fact that he had taken several courses at the FBI training facility at Quantico were listed as was his promotion history. That part of the file ended with his most recent promotion to lieutenant. His personal information showed his date of birth, social security number, his address in one of the better middle class areas of the city and that he had a wife, Virginia and two young daughters. He had a respectable number of citations and no disciplinary actions on his record since his first year on the force.

AJ swallowed hard and then said, "Look up Detective Bridget O’Brien, please." Something in his voice made Mac look at him quickly, but just as quickly she looked back down at the screen. She couldn’t be sure of the look that momentarily flashed across his face, but it almost looked like pain. She tried to watch him out of the corner of her eye as Kate began to read the information that finally appeared.

"Bridget Margaret O’Brien, transferred in from the Philadelphia police department February 2^nd 1998. Philadelphia records, sealed?" Kate looked up at Harm and said, "Why would they do that?"

Harm shrugged and continued reading, "Worked in robbery for six months, then in the Street Gangs unit. One citation for bravery in October, 1999. Then, in September of this year she was promoted to detective and was assigned to homicide immediately. She was partnered with Grayson from the start and was there a month before Anderson got there." Bud flipped to the personal section and Mac, who was standing right next to her boss, was the only one who heard AJ’s sigh of relief when Harm continued. Has a small apartment in the college district of Seton Hill on Oakton Street. There are no dependents listed." But the thing that caught AJ’s eye was her date of birth. 1964! That makes her 36! No wonder she was so pissed off at me in the car that day!

"Okay, now try Ted Grayson. I don’t know the correct first name." AJ's voice was back to normal but Mac saw that his jaw was clenched.

When no one else said anything, Bud started reading from the screen, "Theodore Andrew Grayson, four years USMC, honorable discharge. Took the police exam and was accepted into the police academy in 1985. He’s been on the force for 15 years but didn’t make detective until just three years ago. He has," Bud whistled softly, "three citations for bravery but seven civilian complaints for excessive use of force and one official reprimand that cost him a drop in grade and 3 months suspension." Bud looked up at AJ and asked, "You want me to get the details?" AJ shook his head and Bud continued. "It looks like he's paying child support directly from his paycheck and one boy is listed as a dependent."

AJ said in a low growl, "Where does he live?" At the sound of his voice, all four pairs of eyes shot glances at him and then quickly looked back at the screen. Bud clicked for the next page of information but before he or anyone else could say anything, AJ read, "325 Scott Street the Barre Circle Neighborhood. Oh Mr. Grayson, your ass is mine!" At the look of shock on the four faces, AJ went to his bedroom and brought back the notebook that he had with him the day before, driving through the Barre Circle neighborhood. "Mr. Roberts, when do you think Harriet will be ready to come and pick you up?"

Bud shrugged. "Whenever I call her, but I can stay as late as you need me, sir."

AJ handed him the notebook. "You see that address?" Bud’s eyes grew wide as he read what AJ had written. He glanced quickly at the computer and back at the notebook and then at AJ again. "Galindez says the house Sherilee took him to three weeks before the murder was in the Barre Circle neighborhood. The only things he could remember were that he thought the house was on Scott Street, two or three doors down from the park and it had a gargoyle in the garden. That address is three doors down from the park and has the ugliest damn gargoyle I have ever seen in the garden. I would like you and Harriet to take Jay for a Sunday drive. I want you to go up and down every damn street in the Barre Circle neighborhood. Have Harriet make a note of every house that has a gargoyle in it." Bud nodded and then AJ reached for his wallet and pulled out several bills and said, "Then, Mr. Roberts I want you to take your wife and child to dinner, on me," and handed the startled Bud the bills.

Bud tried to give AJ back the money, "Sir, really it isn’t necessary." The look that AJ gave him stopped his argument and he shoved the bills into his pocket and went to the phone by the couch and proceeded to phone Harriet. Right after he explained that the Admiral had a mission for them they heard him say, "Oops, Harriet I got to go." And he pressed the flash button on the phone and put it back to his ear and said, "Admiral Chegwidden’s residence, Lieutenant Roberts, speaking. Yes, Oh yes, Colonel. She's standing right here." He held out the phone to Mac and said, "Colonel Curtiss, Ma’am."

Mac took the phone and in an excited voice said, "Mike! How are you doing? Great! How’s Jackie? No. Again? How many does that make now? Four! Mike, that is just wonderful. Yes give her my congratulations. What? Oh, yeah. Mike, listen. Do you remember a Staff Sergeant by the name of William London? He was stationed out at Yuma the same time you were. Oh you don’t. What? No it’s just really important that I talk to somebody who remembers him and would have information on him that never made the official record. You know, trouble, but nothing that could be proven or put on his files. Yeah. Really, you can? Thanks. No, don’t do that, take this number down." Mac proceeded to rattle off a number that both AJ and Rabb recognized as her cell phone number. "Call me as soon as you have anything, okay? Thanks Mike, kiss those babies for me." She smiled as she put down the phone and looked back up at the four people watching her. "Mike doesn’t remember London, but he was fairly occupied that year with one case. He said that he keeps in touch with the Major down there in charge of the MPs and he'll call me back if and when he gets anything."

Just then the phone rang again and since she was standing right there, Mac picked up the phone and started to repeat Bud’s earlier greeting. "Admiral Cheg..." Her voice dropped and she softly continued, "Oh! Hi. How are you feeling?" She listened for a moment and then once again got brisk and said, "Yes he's right here." She handed the phone to AJ and said clearly, "Mr. Webb, Admiral."

For a brief moment, AJ thought to tease her a little bit but decided against it and just grabbed the phone and said, "What have you got for me, Webb?" He listened for a very long time and then said, "I don’t believe this," and hung up the phone. He looked around the room and sighed, "The message came from a cyber café on M Street in Georgetown. Period. End of story. The address is a dead end.

They stood staring at one another. It was Bud who broke the silence. "Sir, I don’t understand something. I mean the messages. Who would be sending them and why in such a cryptic way? Why not just tell us what we need to know?"

AJ shook his head, crossed his arms and then buried his chin in his chest. He thought for a long moment then brought his head back up. "The only thing I can think of is that the person wants us to figure certain things out immediately. The clues have led us to pretty obvious stuff but maybe the person is afraid that we will figure it out too late for some reason. This person must be so close to some aspect of the case that if he out and out told us information that he wanted us to know, then we would know who he is."

Mac and Kate said in unison in the same arched tone, "He?"

AJ let his gaze drift to the window and sighed wistfully, "Or she." He dropped his arms to his side and looked at Bud and said, "Mr. Roberts, your ride just pulled up. Call me as soon as you are done. I want to know where every gargoyle in Barre Circle resides."

Bud had already started out of the room. "Yes, sir. Is there anything else we should look at while we're there?"

AJ shook his head. "Not that I can think of."

AJ watched as Bud walked down the step and up to the car. He opened the driver’s door and explained something to Harriet who got out of the car and walked around to the passenger side door. She glanced over to the house and saw AJ standing at the window and she waved to him. He nodded back, and as the van was pulling away from the house, turned back to face his three officers. He glanced at his watch and saw that it was already 1300 hours. He put his hands on his hips and rotated his head trying to work out the kinks. Then he looked at Pike. "How are you doing on your case load, Commander?"

Kate gave his question a moment of consideration and then replied, "I’m ready on Filmore, sir. I need to look up a couple of things on Cramer, but I can’t do that until I get into the office tomorrow and check out some sources in the library, but I’m okay. How can I help?"

AJ nodded and then looked at Harm. "I want you to go down to Quantico. Ask around about London. I don’t know whether or not he's there today but he wouldn’t know you, regardless. I’m sorry I didn’t think of it sooner, but I guess you'll have to go back and change. Call me when you hear anything."

Harm nodded and grabbed his coat and called back to Mac, "Don’t get into any trouble down south, Jarhead." He looked at Pike. "I need to get the paperwork together to make sure that Commander Coulter can check out the forensics evidence tomorrow. Can you do that for me?"

Kate smiled. "Piece of cake."

AJ nodded. "Then when you have that, you can have what little is left of the day for your own. I appreciate the help."

"Like I said Admiral, piece of cake." Kate sat at the computer and went to the JAG database and started scrolling through the forms and documents that she would need. She quickly pulled the case file next to her and began scanning for the information she needed.

AJ turned his attention to Mac. "Come into the kitchen, I want another cup of coffee." Mac walked through the living room ahead of him and went to sit at the small breakfast bar and watched him prepare a new pot of coffee. After he was finished, he turned to her. "Are you ready for the meeting in Norfolk?"

Mac nodded and waited patiently.

AJ looked at his coffee cup and cleared his throat before he continued. "Are you going to be okay going to Norfolk overnight?"

She sighed and looked up at him. "He’s a big boy, Admiral. He'll be fine."

"Well, it’s a five-hour drive and with Sunday traffic, even worse. You best get a move on then. If that friend of Colonel Curtiss calls, get the info or have him call me here."

Mac got back up off the barstool and went to the door for her coat. "I’ll call you as soon as I hear anything." AJ followed her to the front door, stood on his porch and watched as she pulled away.

He closed the door and returned to the office. He was exhausted but happy that they had begun to pull the strings together to solidify the case for Galindez. He sat on the sofa and rested his head against the back of the couch - Kate’s steady keystrokes finally lulling him into a light doze. The jarring ring of the telephone by his elbow woke him with a start. "Chegwidden," he growled into the phone. He sat straight up and listened intently, fear overcoming the anger he so wanted to express.

His silence alerted Kate to the fact that something must be amiss and she turned to look at him. At his expression, she got out of the chair and came to stand by the couch. He spoke in a very controlled voice. "I’ll be there in an hour. What protection have you got set up? Not good enough, Anderson." His tone turned weary and Kate got very frightened. AJ hung up and sat there for several seconds.

"Sir?" Kate asked hesitantly. The only times she had ever seen this man, he was in complete control and exuding a power that overcast anyone else around him. Now he looked almost defeated. "Sir?" she repeated.

AJ rubbed his hand over his face and then looked at Kate and whispered. "Galindez was knifed on the roof of the City Jail this afternoon. He’s in surgery now. I have to get to the damn hospital again." He finally rose, shaking the stupor off of him like water and strolled into his bedroom. He was already shedding the sweater by the time he shut the door.

Kate, picked up the phone off the coffee table, checked her notes and quickly dialed Harm’s cell phone. It didn’t work. She cursed beneath her breath and waited for the Admiral to return. When he entered the living room 10 minutes later, he was in full command mode. His blue uniform and white cover completed the picture that Kate had always associated with this man. He looked at her and said, "Try and get in touch with Commander Rabb. When Lt. Roberts checks in, let him know what happened, too. I’ll need Rabb at the office tomorrow. With this whole mess and Col. MacKenzie down at Norfolk, he'll be in charge. When MacKenzie calls in, tell her what's happened, but tell her to make the meeting and then get back here as quickly as possible." As he spoke he turned and stomped to the front door and gathered up his overcoat. "Have you got the paperwork done?"

"Yes, sir." She ran back into the office and snatched the forms off of the printer, put them in a folder and brought them back out to him.

He took them and finally stilled long enough to meet her eyes, "Pike, I would appreciate if you stayed here and relayed calls. It will be more comfortable than going back to the office and everyone will be calling here anyway, thinking I’m here. While you're waiting, use that thing in there to do a search on a hooker by the name of Annie Fitzpatrick. She was murdered late Friday night or early Saturday morning. She supposedly was with Galindez the Saturday night before the murder. See what you can find." He opened the door and she followed him out onto the porch. She stood and watched as he pulled away from the house and sped down the narrow drive to the street. Sighing deeply, she hugged her shoulders before she turned and returned to the office.

::  Chapter 23  ::

Harmon Rabb reached Quantico at 1430 that afternoon. He showed his ID to the gate guard and was waved through. On his way down, he had contacted the base and had been connected with the Officer of the Day who said he would meet him at the Commandant’s office. Harm drove through the barren lanes of the base. During the summer months, grass, shrubs and small trees lined the streets through this massive Marine base, now everything had that dead look that winter brought. He came to the Commandant’s office and parked. As he got out, he found Major Jack Turner waiting for him. Turner had his olive green camouflage uniform on and stood at parade rest. Harm had taken 10 minutes at his apartment and thrown on his khakis. He briskly returned Turner’s smart salute and then held out his hand to clasp the other man’s hand. "Jack, it's good to see you again. It’s been a while."

Jack Turner was the same height and build of Harmon Rabb but where Rabb enjoyed a full head of lush brown hair, Jack Turner had long ago given up the battle with male pattern baldness and opted for shaving his head completely bald. He had been pleasantly surprised by the response of the women around him. His muscular build from his Russian father and the soft brown coloring of his Cherokee mother had not hurt his record with the ladies either. He and Harm had worked on a case a few years back and had occasionally double dated through the years. They had an easy camaraderie that Rabb now called upon. "Jack, I need your help, I need everything that you have on MSgt. William London. And Jack, I need to search his quarters. The records show that he has quarters here on the base."

Major Turner raised his eyebrow and then nodded and ushered Rabb in the office. "Well, the name doesn’t ring a bell, but it’s a big place, Rabb. Let’s see what we can find." Twenty minutes later, Turner knew everything that Rabb knew, but they were no closer to knowing MSgt. London than when they had started. Turner motioned Rabb out of the file room and suggested, "Well let's go over to the NCO quarters and you can do your search. You know that by rights you can’t just go in a search, but when you called I checked and he is on duty now. I can have him sent for and he can be present while you search. If he doesn’t want to cooperate, then I can bust his ass back down to private for him and you can search all day long." Turner stomped out ahead of Rabb and went to the passenger side of the car and slid in. Rabb got behind the wheel and drove through the base, taking the turns that Turner indicated and finally pulled in front of the brick building housing the small NCO apartments. London was standing by the door leading into the building and came to attention when the two officers approached him.

Still at attention London said, "Sir, may I ask what’s going on?"

Rabb looked at the man that he knew in his gut had something to do with the mess that the Gunny was in and snapped, "No MSgt. You can not. Kindly show us your quarters."

London broke out into a light sweat. "Sir, you can’t do that."

Before he could continue, Turner stepped into his personal space and said quietly, "No MSgt. But I can. Now show us the way or get out of my way." London gulped and led them up the three steps leading into the building and then up to a door that he opened with his keys. Rabb and Turner pushed past him and began a thorough search of the small neat room. They searched the closet and the footlocker that sat at the end of the bunk and the small desk that was placed under the window. Harm finally lay down and scooted under the bed. Just as he was about to ask Turner for a flashlight, he heard the Major yell "Hey" and then heard a loud crash and a thump. He pulled himself out from under the bed and saw Turner attempting to right himself and heard running feet down the hallway. Harm helped Jack to his feet and then they both ran out to follow London.

When they reached the front door they looked both ways down the street and stopped two Marines walking by who had shrugged that they hadn’t noticed anyone running away. Since it was Sunday afternoon most of the men who were not on duty had left the base. "What the hell does he think he’s doing? Damn it." Jack ran back to the room and picked up the receiver from the wall. He punched in a number and yelled, "This is Turner, MSgt. William London just assaulted me. I want him stopped, call out every MP on base. Notify the back gate and all the supply gates that he is not to be let off base." Turner slammed the phone down and turned back to Rabb. "Now, let's go see what is under his bed that got him so spooked.

This time instead of getting down on his back to look, Rabb had Turner help him tip the bed up on its side. The mattress fell away, leaving only the frame of the bed. There, attached with tape, was a bulky package.

"Hell, Jack. I want another witness, go see who’s around." Turner nodded and went down the hall and was about to exit the building when a burly Gunnery Sergeant arrived, headed toward the second floor. Turner noted the name, Walsh, on his name tag, pulled him into the room and informed him that he was to witness what was found in the package still firmly taped to the underside of the bed frame. When the man nodded, Harm reached and ripped it from the bed frame. He carried it over to the desk and shook the contents out. A dark shaggy wig plopped out, but Harm had heard the rattling inside of it and when he peered inside of the wig he let out a low whistle and gently pulled out one small glass vial, holding it between two fingernails by the cork stopper. "Major Turner, Gunnery Sergeant, kindly note that at," he looked at the small clock on the dresser, "1736, Commander Rabb found," he looked inside the wig again and counted, "seven glass vials that appear to contain rock cocaine." He looked again at the contents on the table and raised his eyebrows at the package of temporary tattoos and a clear plastic bag containing several earrings. "Well, I see we have our ‘Candy man.’ I have to call the Admiral and let him know the waitress was right."

Turner dismissed the Gunnery Sergeant advising him that he would probably be called to testify at the court martial of MSgt. London and to report to his office first thing tomorrow morning to make sure that his rotation did not take him out of the country. Rabb walked over to the phone on the wall and dialed the Admiral’s home phone number. He was not really surprised to hear, "Admiral Chegwidden’s residence, Commander Pike here."

"Kate, it me, let me talk to the Admiral."

Kate’s voice shook with emotion. "Where have you been? I’ve been trying to reach you for over an hour. What is up with you and cell phones? The Admiral isn’t here. Galindez was stabbed up on the roof of the city jail. He's in surgery and the Admiral needs you handle stuff on this end while he's at the hospital. I just heard from him and there isn’t any news yet. You need to call him right away." Kate’s breath finally gave out and she listened for a moment to the breathing on the other end of the line.

"Jeez Kate, I’ll call him right away. I’ve got the goods on London, but he’s on the loose and we don’t know if he is even still on base though everybody is out looking for him." Harm steadied his breathing and continued. "I’ll call the Admiral now on his cell phone. I guess he wants you to stay there until I get back. What has he got you doing?" Kate filled him in on her progress with her search for information on the dead hooker, Annie Fitzpatrick. She let him know that Bud and Harriet had called in and that she had advised them of the attack. She was pretty sure they were going to the hospital to wait with the Admiral.

"I haven’t heard from Mac yet, but she's probably still on the road. Traffic really sucks between here and Norfolk on a Sunday afternoon and with the hills and all, her cell phone is probably as useless as yours." Kate heard Harm sigh.

"Look, I’ll call the Admiral, then I’ll come in and get you. By the time I get there you should have heard from Mac and let her know what's going on. Then I’ll drive you back to your hotel so you can finish your work for tomorrow and I’ll see if the old man wants me to drive up to Baltimore tonight or not. You hear anything from Webb lately?"

"No, but if he calls, I’ll tell him about Galindez. Do you need to talk to him?"

"No, not really; not unless he needs me for something. I’ll call you when I’m closer, okay?"

"Yeah, I’ll hold down the fort here and see what else I can come up with on Annie."

Harm hung up the phone and turned in time to see an MP talking to Turner in a low voice. Turner looked up at Rabb and sighed, "They found where he went through the fence. What do you want to do?"

Rabb thought for an instant and then said, "Right now I just want our people on it. I’ll talk to the Admiral and see who else we are going to let in on this little mess." He left the room and walked out of the building to his car.

Turner followed him. "When I get any information, where should I call?"

Rabb opened the door and got in. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a pad and pen and quickly jotted down several phone numbers. He handed it to Turner. "The first one is to Admiral Chegwidden’s house. Commander Pike will be there for a couple of hours. That’s your best bet. The second number is my cell phone number but it has a reputation for not working well. The last one is the Admiral’s cell phone and that usually works just fine. I think he stole it from a SeAL." This last remark brought the only laugh of the day and Harm finally allowed Turner to close the door and he pulled away.

Chapters 24 - 27

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