The Switch...

So much of this story begins at early morning....Once Again...It's 3:45 am....A Hot Hazy Summer morning...The Man known as Neal is driving his 1966 Bonneville down the highway....


His radio is blasting an old Partridge Family song from 1970....I think I love You...He's bobbing his head to the music and singing along maniacally...


In the trunk of his car...A man is bound and gagged ..His hands are tied and so are his feet...He is kicking furiously trying to get out of the trunk....but that's not going to happen...He is Drug Kingpin, Jimmy Newlin...


Neal left his lover, Nike Johnson's bed and immediately found Jimmy Newlin leaving an after hours joint he'd been known to frequent...


He kidnapped him at gunpoint and pistol whipped him ....Then blindfolded him and bound and gagged him and tossed him into the trunk of his car...

He had loved watching the Partridge Family as a child...Maybe a little too much...It had been then that he discovered he was gay...He was attracted to David Cassidy just a little too much...


As the song played...he bobbed his head...He was annoyed at the racket Jimmy Newlin was making in the trunk...


"Hey Pipe down in there...I can hardly hear my song.." said Neal..

Finally the song was over and Neal brought the car to a halt...He was where he wanted to be...


He got out of the car and opened the trunk...He poured gasoline on Jimmy Newlin ,who began to squirm more...and was now terrified...


"I loved that song..Didn't you?" asked Neal , who lit a match and dropped it in the trunk...


Jimmy Newlin screamed as the entire car was soon engulfed in flames and exploded!!


Neal stood to the side and smiled...He liked fires...


"Wow...That was radical....Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...Ummmmmmm.."he moaned...He didn't realize it..but he had ejaculated and some of it had run down the side of his pants and on to the ground....


He walked to another car that was parked nearby and got in and drove off....


"Bye Bye Jimmy.." he said and laughed and got in his car and pulled off...

II-

A little after seven o'clock in the morning....

The charred car still had fresh smoke seething from it!

"Damn...As long as I've been a cop...It's the burned victims that get me the most..." said Detective James Barlow as he stood back...The car was still smoking.

My wife Detective Carlotta Rodriguez was coughing as she popped the trunk and her, Tyriq and Hazel observed the charred remains of the body....

"Aye Mios Dios...He's burned to a crisp..."said Carlotta...

"Oh My God..."said Detective Tyriq Pile...a grizzled Detective who had seen much...but nothing like this..

Hazel observed the body and grimaced....


"He was still alive when this car was torched...and I estimate ..this happened little more than three hours ago..." she said...

"Tarantula strikes again..Damn it.. we gotta get this guy." exclaimed Detective Edwin "Duke." Baylor..

"This is what he plans to do to my father.." said a visibly shaken Sissy..

"No Siss..We are gonna get him...Him and anybody that is standing with him." said Angie..

"This is just like the other scene guys.. No cameras of any kind nearby..."said Sirena..

"These shoe prints they stop here....They're smaller than our guy from the other night." observed Carlotta...

"Whoever it was had a car waiting here...They scoped it out and they got in it and left after they drove up here and took off in it.." said Duke..

"It's a gooey liquid over here..." said Hop...

"Oh My God...It's semen!" said Hazel...

"You think our guy had a woman out here?" asked Tyriq..

"No...there is no sign of anyone else being here.." said Hazel...

"Means we are dealing with a real sicko...He likes fires..."said Sirena....

"I found a drivers license in the front seat..It's not too badly burned.." said Carlotta..

"It says Jimmy Newlin"said Angie...

"Jimmy Newlin...So that's who this is...The man who more than likely killed Mikey Lester." said Jimmy...

"We don't know that Jimmy..." I said.

"Something about this looks too neat...Something just isn't right...I don't like this." said Sissy..


"Release the body...We still have work to do..." said Sissy..


The CSI boys and photographers had finished processing the scene...

The ten of us watched as yet another body was being hauled away...Another cruel death...What in the world was going on here?


III-

In every case we've ever had...No matter how mysterious, no matter how much of a dead end it seemed at first, there was always a point in which things turned in our favor...

When we arrived back at ''Copland.." Things were about to turn...In our favor..Well sort of!

Deputy FBI Special Agent In Charge ,Sharon Hopkins met us and we filled her in on everything....The murder of Jimmy Newlin and our resolve to increase our hunt for the man known only as Tarantula..

"I may be able to help you with that.. "said Sharon...

''You know who this guy is?" asked Tyriq..

"I might...I asked some of my friends in Washington D.C. in the intelligence community, NSA, CIA, Homeland security about certain now former associates and I sent them the grainy photo we had of the perp in your murder and this name came up....Here is a better photo of him.."said Sharon , who showed us his photo on the monitor..

"He looks better in our photo...We can't see his face.."said Jimmy...

Carlotta laughed and playfully punched her partner...

 Sissy laughed and playfully punched Angie on the shoulder...

"I know girl...I'm married to him.." laughed Angie...

"His name is Edward Terrance...He's an Attorney...At one time a very high powered D.C. Attorney and Lobbyist...And off the records..an Analyst for the CIA....In Afghanistan....I did some more digging...In Afghanistan..He made some good friends...Tribal Warlords...Whose main crop was the poppy....Opiates...Heroin....."said Sharon...

"That's the guy I tried to interview the other day who was never in and who wouldn't take my calls.." said Duke.

"He's a top aide and confidant of our own Mayor...Who if I know right has no idea about this guy's past...And Sirena if I may borrow your saying." said Sharon...

"Go right ahead darlin..."laughed Sirena..

"This is where it gets cute...He had a half-brother...Micheal Lester...Mikey Lester....Same father...different moms...Both mothers are deceased as is their father....This is just a theory, but we know Mikey Lester was the man on the streets...selling Heroin to a lot of the independent drug organizations around town...Undercutting Nike Johnson and Jimmy Newlin...What if former CIA Analyst, Edward Terrance, with his Afghan Connections is in actuallity Tarantula...The man bringing the heroin in...The boss man...but a silent partner...Little Brother Mikey Lester is his face on the street, his proxy...?/" asked Sharon..

''Was his proxy..He's dead...And so is his competition...Jimmy Newlin..You think Jimmy Newlin killed Mikey Lester...?" I asked.

"No....Not that he couldn't have it done...but I think Tarantula thinks so..."said Carlotta...

''So if he did and he's been killed...My Father is in the clear...He's no longer needed to ID Tarantula's brother's killer.."said Sissy...

"Or someone wants him to think that! Where ever he is...I hope he doesn't go for the okey doke..He's not really safe until we bring in all the players." said Jimmy...

"Duke, Angie...go pick up Nike Johnson...stop by HQ...Take as many guys as you need...Get Kevlar and Trauma plates.." said Sissy..

''We are on it Boss Lady..." said Duke..

"We'll see you in a few..." said Angie...

Shortly after they left...Hazel walked in the room....

"Hey guys...I got something..The dead man is definitely Jimmy Newlin....I IDed him by  his dental records. He was kidnapped outside of a club last night...before he died...He scribbled on the side of the wall of that car trunk....N E A L...It's the weirdest thing...And that semen left at the scene...It's in the database....It belongs to a Neal Adams...Neal Adams  is an ex- Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent...All government employees DNA and fingerprints are on file...His name is Neal  Adams...He was born in Omaha ,Nebraska...Graduated from the University of Nebraska...BA in Criminal Justice...Entered the Naval Academy and wound up in NCIS...Medals and commodations up the ying yang...He met Edward Terrance in Afghanistan....and moved here to Philadelphia...He has a P.I. license..."said Hazel.

"Damn good work Hazel....Looks like Jimmy Newlin IDed his killer and his killer left a DNA clue behind..."said Sissy...

''Boss Lady...We got something." said Carlotta...

In the monitor room... Tyriq,Jimmy and Hop showed us something...

"I knew Jimmy Newlin....I busted  him once...He liked to hang out in this After Hours joint...Top and I hacked into their camera system and look...There is Newlin at closing time...and there is our boy Neal Adams pulling a gun on him and pistol whipping him in the parking lot.."said Tyriq.

"He got sloppy...That's him tying him up and putting him in the back of that car, a 1966 Bonneville." said Jimmy...

"I ran a check...That car was a classic, reported stolen last week.......And yet here he is on traffic cam driving to a 7/11."said Hop...

"He bought lighter fluid.....I checked his credit cards...."said Sirena...

"We lose him after that....But...there he is...coming out of the lot in that Maxima...We ran the tire treads through Auto and the IDed the car as a 2016 Nissan Maxima..."said Carlotta..

"The traffic cam shows a partial plate...I ran it down.. That car is his...Neal Adams.."said Jimmy...

"Oh My God...We got him!!!...We got him for this murder...We got him cold...Film footage and DNA..."said Sissy.."GREAT WORK GUYS!" said Sissy...

"You think he killed this Newlin guy on Tarrantula's orders?" I asked..

"Of course..They couldn't find Boss Lady's father...So they just decided to take out Newlin and Johnson...Figuring one of them did it or both...Their problem is solved ..Your Dad is off the hook."said Carlotta..

"That takes a load off my mind...I can't wait to see him."said Selma..

''Kevin plans to take me to him tomorrow." said Sissy.

"I'll go with you all."said Eddie C.

A few hours passed by and Duke and Angie Returned...

"Hey ,you got Nike Johnson?" I asked..

"Yes sir...We took 10 guys...."said Duke..

''We took him coming out of his favorite Bodega..You know...He's a big guy ,about six four, muscles on top of muscles...Nice Looking...But I swear...I think he's gay..." said Angie...

"Aye Yi Yiiii Nike Johnson....Nike Johnson?? The Big Kahuna of Drug Kingpins.....Not hardly.."said Carlotta.

"Where is he Duke?" asked Sissy..

"Cooling his heels in Federal Lock Up ,Where the bad guys can't get to him.."said Duke...

"I'll get a warrant out on this Neal Adams person...Murder one...We flip him and we nab Tarantula..Hot damn, we are going to win this thing yet..."I said Laughing..

"Ouuu..I love to see my honey bunny so happy..."laughed Carlotta.

IV-

Night came and left and a new morning was upon us...Like I said...There is always a part where the tide turns...but as usual..It was never going to be easy...Not for us...

One of Sissy's Cell phones rang...

"Funny...Who is calling me at this number?" asked Sissy...

"SISELIA...HOW NICE THAT WE FINALLY MEET! " came an electronically altered voice..

''Who is this?" asked Sissy..

"I HAVE SOMEONE WHO IS INTERESTED IN TALKING TO YOU." came the voice..

"Siss...They have me....I came out of the cold too soon....I thought when they hit Newlin ,it was over...but they have me...This is a trap...Don't do anything they say...Take care of Selma and my baby...ughhhh."said Dutch...

"Dad..Dad...DADDY!" screamed Sissy....

"HERE IS HOW IT IS GOING TO GO...I AM GOING TO GIVE YOU INSTRUCTIONS...YOU ARE GOING TO RELEASE NIKE JOHNSON...WE ARE GOING TO DO A SWITCH.....NIKE FOR YOUR DAD....COME ALONE....IF I SEE A COP CAR...YOUR FATHER IS TOAST....THIS IS NOT UP FOR NEGOTIATIONS...YOU GOT THREE HOURS...THE CLOCK IS TICKING BABY.''

 "Boss Lady, who was that?" asked Carlotta..

"Either Tarantula or Neal....They have my father...He thought the coast was clear after he heard that Jimmy Newlin was dead and he came out of hiding..They want to swap Nike Johnson for my dad...I have three hours...They told me to come to this address alone..Just me and Nike Johnson..."said Sissy..

"Siss, this is a trap...You can't do this alone.."said Duke..

"Duke's Right...Let us help you.."said Tyriq...

Sissy looked at the faces..Angie,Sirena,Sharon and Carlotta....She then scanned the room...

Me, Hop, Jimmy and her own husband...

''You guys are not going to let me do this alone are you.?..Alright..I have a plan....Duke...Go get Nike Johnson out of lock up...get body armour for him...Hazel...You stay with Selma...If by chance..We don't make it back....You take her some place she'll be safe.."said Sissy, hugging Hazel..

"I will Boss Lady."said Hazel...I could tell she was afraid...So was Selma..

''Sissy you've been nothing but nice to me..Please come back and bring Dutch back.." she pleaded..

"I'm going to do the best I can..."said Sissy..  "Okay....Let's tool up...Kevlar...Trauma Plates..Shotguns..."she said..

"On it Boss Lady!" we all said in unison....

Sissy Smiled..

It was on !

(CONCLUSION NEXT)