Everybody's Happy

So Once again...Ennis Deadwyler sat in the "Fishbowl" the nickname the detectives gave their interrogation room...Only he was enjoying a cup of coffee and eating a pulled pork sandwich with horse raddish and French fries with gravy poured over them...

Olivia, Beverly and I entered central booking to find both Lt. Tragg and ADA Nina Rios in the room with him...Neither looked like they were asking him questions..

 "You're right on time Olivia." said ADA Rios..

"I told you she would be." said Lt. Tragg.

Olivia sighed.. "Must we do this dance yet again?"

"Wait a minute Livy...This is not what you think." said Nina.

"I took him off the street to protect him..."said Lt. Tragg..."He's not being charged with the murder of Strassen...I'm his alibi...I checked into what your husband told me yesterday and everything was on the money...The neck was broken before he was tied up and hung from the ceiling fan....Doc Gibbons placed the time of death at a little after midnight....Deadwyler was here being grilled by me.." said Lt. Tragg..

''And you know that our client is not the father of that baby." said Beverly...

"Sure do...Strassen was the father...100 percent DNA match....I picked Deadwyler up to make our killer think that he or whoever is in the clear...It would be better if we keep him here in our custody for awhile, for his own safety." said Lt. Tragg.

"That okay with you Ennis?" asked Olivia..


Ennis nodded...


"Yeah Liv...It makes sense for now...At least I've been partially cleared..." he said..


"Okay...let's go guys...Call me if you need me Ennis." said Olivia..

So Lt. Tragg wasn't a complete asshole after all...There was a trace of good police in him I mused...

"Well what do you know...Lt. Tragg actually has a good idea for a change." said Beverly...

''Either he did or ADA Nina Rios did." I said, smiling..

"I like the idea of Nina having the good idea and him going along with it." whispered Olivia with a giggle.


II-

We were back at the office for about an hour when Olivia got a call...

She looked at me...


"It's for you...It's a woman!" she said.

I shrugged my shoulders and took the phone...


"Hello." I said.


"Mr. Alexander...look for an envelope in your door...it is the key to a Post Office Box...It should be of interest for your wife and her client." (Click!)

Josie walked into our office with an envelope addressed to me..


"A car just pulled off.." she said.

Olivia and Beverly watched me as I opened the envelope...

There was a key and directions to the post office box..

''Whoever called me said that this key was forthcoming and that it would be of great interest to your client Livy.."

"This is becoming more murky and cloak and dagger by the minute." said Olivia.

"Well girls, let's not just sit here.. Let's go see what was left for us." I said.


III-

We had no problem at all finding the post office box....It was the contents that was surprising...A Plastic bag with a garrotte in it for starters....A time dated street cam photo of Ginger Deadwyler and Joseph Mccoullough in his car near Penns Landing..

"This was taken the last day she was seen alive..." said Beverly...

"Yes, amazing someone would have this photo...isn't it?" I said..

"I'm supposing this was the murder weapon...used to choke her out...This is too good." said Olivia...holding the garrote!

"Well, we can't stand on ceremony ladies...We should turn this over to Lt. Tragg!" I said.

''Well ,looks like this time...He'll get the right man..."said Olivia..

"Yeah, this time! At any rate...This let's Ennis off the hook." said Beverly..."

"Yeah....Look what else is in here...Bank statements...and look at the dates...2007...Joey McCoullough received a lump sum payment for something...I recognize this account number...The routing account.. It's now closed.. How about that? and an address..."I said.

"Somebody is going to an awful amount of trouble to point us in the direction of Joey McCoullough." said Olivia...

"Yes, exactly what I was thinking." said Lt. Tragg..

"I'm guessing you got an anonymous tip that we'd be here didn't you?" I said.

"Yeah some broad called me ,told me you guys had something for me.." said Lt. Tragg..

Olivia passed him the key, the bank statements of both Joey McCoullough and Jack Strassen and the photo of Ginger Deadwyler with Joey McCoullough  from ten years ago and the garrote in the plastic bag.

"Nice and neat hmmm...CSI guys found fingerprints and DNA belonging to Joey Mac in Strassen's apartment yesterday.. We have an APB out on him....for both murders...Ginger Deadwyler and Jack Strassen...Looks like your boy Ennis is free and clear." said Lt. Tragg.

"Nice.. We avoided a trial.." said Beverly...

"For once..." I said, smiling..

IV-

In Joey Mccoullough's apartment there was no sign of him, but about 200 old body bags, neatly packed in boxes....All from the 2007 Medical Examiner's robbery....That left a little under 300 bags unaccounted for!
More bank statements showing payments made to underworld operatives to the now late Jack Strassen.

Lt. Tragg put a CSI team on the apartment... They didn't find too much that they weren't expecting....Joseph Mccoullough was formerly charged with both the murder of Ginger Deadwyler, probably to shut her up about the knowledge of the robbery and for being pregnant by Jack Strassen, a then married Attorney ,who acted as a go between in the deal and later the murder of Jack Strassen, to keep his mouth shut..He was getting nervous about the discovery of the body and what it might reveal..



"We've done all we can do here boys...Put a Bolo out on Joey Mac....Two counts.. Homicide!" said Lt. Tragg..

A WEEK LATER-

Olivia and I , Beverly and Nelson were joined by ADA Nina Rios at the tony little Bistro we had discovered near where our friend, Zoey used to live...

"Ummmmm,Olivia, you weren't lying..This food is absolutely delicious...They really know how to make a pasta salad." said Nina..

as she gobbled more morsels of her food..

"I told you....My husband here discovered this place.. I can't take credit for it." said Olivia, smiling and rubbing my back..

I looked at her lovingly and smiled..

''So all is right in your world huh Nina?...Both your murders down huh?" asked Beverly ,who was sitting in Nelson's lap , feeding him pasta salad..

Nelson smiled gingerly....

I have to say...the salad was good... Nina smiled knowingly....

"I have to admit...When I heard that Lieutenant Tragg was the case detective on this case...I cringed.. but he brought the case home...I was surprised...We found Joey Mccoullough a few days ago...." She said.

"Oh?" asked Olivia.

"Yeah....."sighed ADA Nina Rios.....

"Sitting in the back of a parked car...with a nice neat hole in his temple....Dead for close to 12 hours...and a typewritten suicide note on the dashboard.." said Nina..

"All nice and neat right??...Joey Mac killed Ginger years ago for Jack Strassen because she was pregnant with his baby and he didn't want his best friend to know as well as his new wife... and killed Jack Strassen recently and apparently , he and Strassen masterminded the ten year old Medical School Robbery...Nice and neat.. Come on Nina...you know there is more to this than that...There is somebody else behind the scenes who lead you to all of the playas to keep you off his trail don't you? Joey Mac was in court the day that Ginger vanished....While he may have murdered Strassen...I'm doubting he killed Ginger...I think A.J. Miller the attorney is your killer." I said.

"If you're talking about the Attorney, A.J. Miller...of course we suspect him of that murder and another one.....but we don't have one thing...not one bit of evidence, forensic or other to tie him to this and I wouldn't trust Lt. Tragg to go after him...Please....I'm just glad we closed these two murders without being embarrassed. Every now and then, we like to duck a few punches." said Nina..

"Girlfriend, I hear you.." said Beverly...

"I'm glad my friend Ennis is finally off the hook...He finally knows the truth about his wife and we didn't have to have a long and drawn out trial..." said Olivia..

"What about A.J. Miller?" asked Nelson..

"He's free and clear for now...but he'll slip up eventually.....People like him always do." I said..

"My husband, the cop! Dogged pursuer of justice..." said Olivia ,smiling...

I whispered in her ear...."That's not all I doggedly pursue...." softly rubbing her legs...and running them up her dress...She smiled and discreetly removed my hands...

"I knowwwww..." she cooed softly...Smiling at me!


EPILOUGE:

Attorney A.J. Miller was enjoying a domestic beer in his favorite watering hole when I invited myself to his table...


He smiled...


"Mister Alexander.....That is your name isn't it?" He said...

"I figured you find out who I was sooner or later.." I said.


"What are you drinking?" he asked.


"I'm not staying....I just came to congratulate you..."I said.


"Congratulate me?" he said ,smiling...


"Yeah...Nicely done counselor...You gave the cops Joey Mac, Murderer of Ginger Deadwyler and more than likely murderer of Jack Strassen, your partner..."I said.


"And also, Your wife's client was cleared and she was spared a lengthy trial...And by the way....I should be congratulating you Mr. Alexander....I know your wife and her niece...I've known them both over the years...

"Both of them are incredibly talented Attorneys.. and both of them are sexy as hell...You left the  police force in New Orleans to work for and eventually marry Olivia....I can't blame you....I imagine she pays well both in the office and in the bedroom eh?" he laughed.

I laughed....


He smiled..


"You don't have to tell me....I know....You want to believe that there was another player in the game...a Mastermind...Except you don't have a spec, not one spec of evidence that points you to anyone....Your sense of balance in the universe is offended.. off setted if you will.. But look at it this way...Your side won....Cops closed two murders, a ten year old one and a recent one...And they solved a ten year old robbery....Olivia and Beverly's client is finally, after all these years cleared of any wrong doing...They were spared a costly and lengthy trial... And she's probably waiting for you at home right now to make sweet love to her...Everybody's Happy Mr. Donnie Ray....Everybody's Happy!" he said..


I smiled..


"For now anyway....Nicely done Counselor....I'll see ya around ." I said and stood up and walked out of the bar...


He laughed heartedly.....

I went home....He was right...Olivia was lying across the bed in her panties...checking her phone messages...

"Hey baby...We have a few days off...We should take a short holiday somewhere.." she said.

"That sounds great.." I said.

"Nelson and Beverly went to Ocean City, Maryland...for the weekend.. They left a few hours ago.." said Olivia...

I smiled and stared at Olivia, lying across the bed..

"Got something on your mind Donnie Ray?" she asked..

"What do I always have on my mind?" I asked..

"Me?" she said...

"Of course!" I said...

"Good to know." she laughed...

Within minutes, Olivia and I were kissing passionately, like kissing was going out of style....

I was slipping her panties down and entering her warm moist center..

''Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu Mister Alexander....Ohhhhhhhhhhhh my goodness.." she moaned...

"Ummmmmmmmmmmph.." I moaned as the bed began to squeak lightly.....

Yes...Now ,everybody was truly happy!