Murder One; Deep Heat Chapter Thirteen

13.

“Sidney needs to see me. He needs to come clean. I got enough dirt to put Nigel Selby away.” I told Shawn when we met at the café. The other looked at his cup of coffee. He had taken my call after my attempts. He finally agreed to meet when I told him I can stop the war.

“Why should I trust you?” That was the first time Shawn had thrown an accusation at me.

“Because I am his …. Son.” I replied.

“I will speak to him,” Shawn replied and then got up. He looked out towards the glass window to the outside. He then rushed at me to pull me down. The shots came through the window and hit the serving counter and some tables. Some innocent patrons were injured by it but I was saved by the veteran of the war. We rolled under the table and then heard the screams. I pushed the man off me. It was intrusive on my personal self.

“Stay down!” Shawn had a gun in his left hand. He was crouched up and looking to the outside. There I was the Police Officer and a Senior one being protected by a civilian. I rolled off to the side and crouched up. I assisted the nearest wounded. It was a fatal wound and I can’t hear the sirens yet.

“Get emergency services!” I shouted. I remembered I have a phone. It was on speed dial the Station number. I could barely press the number. My fingers were numb to the touch. I finally did it and the phone rang. That was what it did. No one picked my call. I tossed the phone away. I looked for Shawn but he had left.

I was told to take leave after they took my statement. I was told them I was having coffee with a new acquaintance named Shawn. Three persons died that day and another one in the intensive care unit. I was lucky.

A new Senior officer replaced me in my Section. His name was Stephen Mitchell. I do not know him but he took command fast. He had Ian on the task of the shooting and Tabitha on research while Grant was to collect more evidence.

I called Shawn.

He did not pick my call.

I called Sidney.

He won’t pick up.

I decided then to pick up the pieces.

The call came through by the burner.

“Inspector, your gun is in your unit.” I went back and searched. It was there in the drawer along with panties left by my bitch. I picked up the panties and called Tabitha.

“I am coming in with evidence. Please have them checked. And I want it fast.”

“Which case should I logged in, Ma’am?” Tabitha was careful with her works.

“The Dumpster Case. The new one.”

“Ma’am…. “I had hung up. And turned off the phone. The phone signal was a mole in our life. It transmitted our location to its master=. I needed to off the grid. I have few to trust in.

“I trust you would pick up the line.” I stood in the park at dusk looking at the people leaving it. It was an ideal place within the hour when the park regained itself with the silent trees and the bushes not kicked at, or the brick paths are not stomped on, and even the birds returned to roost. It was the safe two hours before the muggers appeared and await the innocent passer-by or the disguised copper. They may be convicted at the Night Court or packed off with a caution.

“And thanks for the return of the gun. Did you photograph it with the prints?” I looked at the man who gave me the gun some years back. I saved his ass from some goons and he rewarded me with it.

“I trust you have a reason to call me, Inspector. I am a busy man.” I looked at the man dressed in the expensive jogging suit trying to blend in. The man held expensive taste and was his style not to be underdressed.

“Between the closing hours and dinner time, I would believe your work out are at the gym and not here. I had to bring you here to unnerve you. You are a confident man, Mr Selby. Or shall I call you Nigel.”

“You are irritating me, Inspector. I owed you my life…” Nigel replied,

“Life, Nigel. I saved your ass. They were going to sodomize you.” I brought up the incident. “The Selby that was going to be fucked. That won’t do it well for your reputation.”

Nigel cringed on being place into that incident. He was kidnapped from the gym with his guards bundled into the storage room. He was blindfolded and shipped to the dark park. He was bound with tapes on his limbs. He was struggling when they pulled his pants down. He fought hard and they laughed. It was then I happened to do my part of as the copper in disguise on patrol. I saw the two men holding the blindfolded man down. Another was naked waist down and held a camera. I sounded my identity and rushed at them. They took off and left me with the blindfolded man. The camera was found. It was a Polaroid. I released the blindfolded man and offered him assistance. He was brought into the Station but the report was never found. I find later was the package with the gun and the thank you note. The note was signed ‘The Man’.

“So, what do you want?” Nigel asked me.

“The murders? Who’s the one?” Nigel shook his head.

“It was not …. I meant to say I did not sanction it. I have done many bad things but never to the younger girls. It was not my style. I killed adults but I left the young ones.”

“Like yours? Your parents were killed when all three of you were young. The moved all three of you to foster and among the three, you were the smartest. You went to college and then the upgoing career. You left because of your brothers.”

“Henry was a brat who became a monster. He rode with bikers and then done many nasty kinds of stuff. He was banished from the club. You knew of that and defended him in court. You won, and then took him into your care. That firm was soon to be named Cohen, Adam, and Associates. On Fifth Street from Cohen & Selby.”

“Your wife, Alice Adam Cohen is the Senior Partner there too. Her picture was hardly seen. She maintained a low profile. I could have bumped into her and wouldn’t know she is Alice Cohen but she is a rare breed. A royal one in terms of wealth and power.”

“Your wife was the daughter of Daniel Cohen of the Hangman Group. The Group consists of Judges, Enforcement and Politicians.” I knew all this from Madge’s folders. I saw Alice’s younger photo and she looked like a Princess. Madge had the reports copied by the photocopier before they were sealed. She kept them in the basement sealed with oilskin covers. She was meticulous in her works too. Tabitha was taught by me from her teachings.

“Yes, I did. But Henry was unable to change. I covered the cases when I could until the Dumpster case. It was blown up by the Press with the assistance of my enemies. I tried to block the investigation. You were brought for one reason. You are Sidney’s son.”

“Sidney?” I was thrown off my track.

“Yes, Sidney and his new son, Shawn. They knew of the murders. The second was their lady. He pimped them young nowadays. I brought in Maud to watch you but she was turned. She was working for Sidney. Guess where she got the guns. She was fed by Shawn and was fragging her.”

“I don’t believe you. You are trying to frame me on Sidney’s involvement.”

“Well, I could be but would I have told Maud to leave the evidence in your unit. The panties were the victims. One of them was Sidney’s girl.” Nigel smiled. “I am a lawyer by profession. I know how evidence can be placed. The twins were Sidney’s idea of a bad joke on my club, Gemini.”

“Was Maud assisting the murder?” I was referring to my night encounter.

“Not all the time. Sometimes it was Stella. They were all in love with Henry. He doesn’t fuck them but kept them with him like harpies to Dracula. They do his command and even partake in the sex acts but not the killings. It was all Henry’s work. He hated our mother. He used to break the Barbie dolls and shaft the pencil into their bodies when he was done with them. I thought he was over it but he grew into it. He was missing for a while and where he was, he has done the same but maybe the bodies were never found.”

“Or never collated?” I replied. I read the reports collected by Madge. It went back several years and into some remote places.

“Yes, he traveled with his bike with Maud and Stella. They were never long in one place.”

“Why killed Maud?” I changed the subject matter. “And Stella?”

“I did not kill her. Your officers did it and were not my call. It was Sidney’s. Stella was killed by Sidney too. He planned the crash to blame it on me.”

“Why Steve assaulted me?”

“Steve did it because you made Henry’ a vegetable. It was understood but you should be appreciative. I restraint them several times. It was a scene of opportunity when he saw you there at the club. Thanks to Ian, I saved you. He called and in turn, I called the goons off but your hero arrived to save you.”

“Very much a coincidence,” I replied.

“It was but you can check with my goon. His name is Smith Becknell. His phone record had my number on that night, not answered.”

“The other girls? The younger ones? Connie Layton?”