Something In Common

I felt sorry for Sissy...As A Lieutenant ,she had to report her progress to COMSTAT...A monthly meeting of Lieutenants and Sgt's in which they had to give progress reports to the Deputy of Operations , sometimes The Commisioner and Captains...The brass...

She and her C.I.D. unit had cleared 50 plus murders this past summer, highest in the department...Not to mention they had cracked several cases and broke the backs of major crime syndicates... One was only as good as their last big case...

The Deputy Of Operations was on vacation and Captain Eddie Cantrell, who hated going to those meetings himself was out of town...So that left who else???..Lt. Arthur Tragg to head the meetings..

Practically all of the Lieutenants and Sargeants despised Lt. Tragg...They considered him a joke, a T.V. hound...And considering the cases he had botched himself...They personally wondered how he still had a job...

He asked Sissy...

"So where are you Lt. Van Buren...on these mass killings of gay men?" he asked..

"Right now...My detectives have interviewed all five men's relatives, classmates, business associates and close friends....and we have determined that none of these men knew each other, none of their paths ever crossed...We checked their bank accounts and credit cards....Well rather we are checking to see if these men shopped the same place or paths crossed at anytime...and we are working with the FBI to see if anybody has been ordering the lethal cocktail that killed these men...All were killed by an injection behind the neck of chemicals that relaxed their muscles, incapacitated them and stopped their hearts.." she said.

"But you don't have a suspect?" he asked....

"It's been a day since the last body has been found...These investigations take time.."said Sissy...

"ANSWER THE QUESTION  LIEUTENANT!!!!YOU DON'T HAVE A SUSPECT!!!" he said louder for all to hear...He was putting on a show now..

"Detective Pile and Detective Barlow discovered the first two bodies a week ago....Detective Rodriguez-Wallace discovered a body two days ago and Detectives Pile and Hopkins discovered a body that same day....That's a double....and Duke Baylor and Angie Belton -Barlow discovered a body last night...So it's been more than just a day....I'LL ASK YOU AGAIN LIEUTENANT!!!!DO YOU HAVE A SUSPECT??" he asked.

"Considering my detectives have been working around the clock ,I think we are making great progress....Investigations of Serial Killers is never easy...because they kill randomly a lot of times..Nothing to tie a motive to." said Sissy...

"You have  a motive...The killer hates Gay men.....DO YOU HAVE A SUSPECT??" asked Lt. Tragg..

Many of the Captains and Lieutenants hated the way Lt. Tragg was grilling Sissy...They had all been in her situation at these meetings and none relished it...Most of them thought that somebody should be grilling Lt. Tragg... He had had more screw ups of cases than any of them combined they realized.

"No I don't....and I don't like the fact that you have gone behind my detectives interviewing, no practically terrorizing people we've already talked to , to the point that some of them no longer want to talk to us or any police period!..." said Sissy...

''While you guys are chasing paper..credit card records, bank accounts....trying to find out who ordered off the black market...I have a suspect!!!!" he said.

Now he had my attention...Had one of the people we interviewed told him something they hadn't told us?

"I don't suppose you're going to share that information with me are you? This being my investigation and all!!" asked Sissy...

"You'll find out after an arrest is made..." he said..

Sissy sighed...

"Knock yourself out.." she said..

"What was that Lieutenant?" he asked..

"Nothing Lt. Tragg....I hope you get whoever is doing this off the street..." she said..

As much as she would hate being one upped by Lt. Tragg, she would be able to give her detectives another much deserved vacation...she thought..

II-

As we drove back to headquarters and switched cars....Tragg wasn't above placing a GPS unit on our vehicle so he could track us...I said to Sissy...

"You really think he has a suspect?" I said.

"No...Don't be ridiculous...Either he's bluffing or he's going to wind up arresting the wrong person like he always does.." said Sissy...

Back at "copland..." everyone was busy at work.....

Carlotta ,Tyriq and Jimmy were busy cross checking and referencing...statements the people they interviewed made and credit card and debit card records as well as checks drawn on all of the men's bank accounts....

Sirena ,Hop and Sharon were still checking into purchases of Black market chemicals of a lethal variety...

While Angie and Duke were looking at where the men were found...Two in Rittenhouse Square..

No cameras in the park, but Street Cams and Business Cams in the surrounding blocks..They had two teams on the cameras...

They had officers doing a house to house search and interviews in the immediate area and beyond...

Then there was Queen Village, blocks away...Where three of the men had been found..

Street Cams all around...So how come so far nothing...Not even the victims? They thought...

Carlotta,Tyriq,Jimmy ,Sirena and Hop had put teams on all of the Street and Business Cams in the immediate areas and several officers were doing house to house searches and interviews..They all complained about Lt. Tragg's interference...

but there was nothing Sissy, who was in charge could do to stop him...She told them to just bare with him and co-operate with him as much as possible..

 They all liked "Lieutenant Foxy" as they called Sissy behind her back....They all despised Lt. Tragg..

III-

 At the end of the day we finally found something in common.....

"Boss Lady...We found one common denominator..." said Carlotta.

"That's great....best news I've heard all day.."said Sissy...

''What is it?" I asked..

 ''A guy we've been looking at for a long time....Steve September...has been buying these murderous drugs off the Black market...In addition to Heroin and Opiates...He's been ordering these...And he just started ordering these drugs about three months ago....He has a customer..."said Sharon..

''We've had our eyes on him for awhile.."said Duke...

"He's not our killer...but I'm certain he can lead us to our killer.."said Sirena..

"I know where he hangs out....He likes me....Now is as good a time as ever to get him..."said Carlotta.

"We get him cold on this...We have him and our killer...Two in one.." said Angie..

"It would get the COMSTAT people off your back Siss." said Tyriq.

"Yeah and we'd one up old Lt. Tragg." said Sissy...

"You'd like that Boss Lady.."said Hop...

"He claims he has a suspect already.....Anyway...This is a long shot, but it's all we got.....Put a team together...Keith get a warrant and we'll take him tomorrow."said Sissy..

IV-

 Reverend Giles Carson was the city's leading Anti -LGBT activist....The man was against sex period it seemed ,unless it was between a married couple and solely for the purpose of procreation...

The Man himself was not married...

He and his parishoners often counter protested Gay Rights events. They also picketed City Hall anytime a Pro-LGBT bill was brought before City Council...

He did a Podcast that was as hateful as it could be and had once been a radio show co-host....His views were so extreme..He was asked to leave the show...

Tonight he was speaking at a rally in Queens Village...

"I'm calling for the ban of all sex toys ..They are the tools of immorality I tell you...They foster masturbation...
There is no substantive-due-process right to stimulate one’s genitals for non-medical purposes unrelated to procreation or outside of an interpersonal relationship." he declared..

" The use of sex toys is like Hiring a willing prostitute or engaging in consensual bigamy.” he continued.



A crowd across the street from him burst into laughter....They were bigger than the crowd that he was speaking in front of...

Just then Lt. Tragg burst into the crowd..

"Can it Reverend, you're under arrest.." said Lt. Tragg..

"WHAT? I have a right to freedom of speech...I have a permit to speak here..You can't arrest me...." he said..

"You're under arrest for murder...Five Counts..." said Lt. Cotton...

"Murder?? You're out of your mind...." said Reverend Carson...

"Read him his rights boys." said Lt. Tragg..

As usual, reporters from all of the news stations were there ,snapping photos...

"This is the man who's been killing the young gay men in the city.."Lt. Tragg declared....as he was photographed with an Angry Reverend Carson..

"You're a damned fool...I've seen you on Television..Always preening for the cameras...Like a damned sissy boy....Didn't you botch up a few cases the past few weeks?" asked Reverend Carson..

Lt. Tragg grimaced...

"I didn't botch this one...You're under arrest..."said Lt. Tragg...

"When my lawyer gets done with you..You're not going to have a pair of trousers to wear.."said Reverend Carson...

"Tell it to the judge Mack." said Lt. Tragg...

We were watching the entire thing on television....back at "copland..."

"Oh My God...Is that his suspect?"asked Sissy ,who was beside herself with laughter...

''He is such a blowhard....I despise that man." said Carlotta.

''Which One Top, Tragg or Carson?" said Tyriq, laughing hysterically..

"Didn't we interview him?" asked Jimmy...

''I don't know about you three...but my partner and I interviewed him...He was drinking coffee near where our victim was found.." said Sirena..

''Yeah, but he wasn't in the area on any of the days your guy was found Rico or yours Jimmy." said Hop.

''He had a rally in Rittenhouse Square the day Angie and I found our victim..."said Duke.

"But he arrived a great deal after we found the body, He was over on the other side of town..Hours before..Duke and I checked..."said Angie..

''Oh Lord...Then Lt. Tragg has next to nothing except a co-incidence in two cases..." said Hazel.

''Siss, we know as abominable as Reverend Carson is...He's not the killer..." I said..

''She knows that...but she's going to enjoy Lt. Tragg being wrong again...Like when he arrested that Author a month ago who was sexually assaulted and the murderer was  the girl across the hallway..A drunk....Or when he arrested that guy, uh the husband of his boss's daughter and charged him with three murders and Missing Persons actually caught the real killer..The Wife.." said Eddie C.

''Wow you really keep up with our cases.." I said laughing...

''Those weren't yours...but look at your cases that he's botched up...You guys wind up having to rescue him half the time.."laughed Eddie C.

''Well he's going to have to rescue himself from this mess..He's all over the news...He has the entire city thinking the serial killer has been caught." said Sissy...

"Your killer could lay low or he could kill again, feeling safe..."said Sharon.....

''I don't relish any scenario...Let's get some sleep..We've got a big case to make tomorrow."said Sissy...

I whispered in Carlotta's ear...

"I didn't plan to sleep tonight baby..."

"You are so Horny papi....Sooo Horny....Can I take a rain check tonight? I want to be fresh for tomorrow...besides..we may very well wrap this thing up.." said Carlotta...

We didn't know it...but we were very wrong...This case had a ways to go.

(TO BE CONTINUED)