Retiree, page 19
“Yes, Inspector. Yes, indeed. Not only did you get almost everything you wanted from Superintendent Ruiz, I also beat him by two strokes.”
“Ah. Golf.”
“It’s not too late for you to learn to play, Inspector. It might fast-track your career.”
Alana flashed back to the news shows from Sunday morning, “Current demographic trends would seem to contradict that theory.”
“Regardless, Ruiz accepted the evidence I gave him and promised to take it to the district court today. I’m expecting him to call—”
The Chief’s desk began beeping. Bennett finished his sentence, “—right about now.”
Bennett transferred Superintendent Ruiz’s call on his wall monitor. Alana had seen him before, but had never worked with him directly because he was promoted upward from a different station house. Like all of Alana’s superiors, he had less seniority than she did, yet still achieved higher office. She was thinking that the Sunday morning talking heads should have interviewed her for their story about cyber discrimination in the workplace.
Ruiz nodded, “Good afternoon, Chief Bennett, Inspector Graves.”
Alana wasted no time, “Superintendent, do you remember getting a phone call on March 10th from Security Division asking you to investigate a terror threat against Councilwoman Chambers?”
Bennett allowed Alana to finish her sentence before barking, “Graves! You’re out of order!”
Ruiz waved his hand dismissively, “It’s all right. I understand your subordinate’s zeal in bringing her detective’s killers to justice. And the answer to her question is, ‘yes.’”
Alana pressed, “Who specifically did you speak with and what exactly did they tell you?”
Ruiz seemed slightly amused by Alana’s candor. “It was a computerized message sent by an unidentified Vira. The call was placed from within the SD network, but I have no way to tie it to a specific individual. I thought it was unusual, but it looked authentic.”
Alana asked, “What did the message say.”
Ruiz pushed a button on his own desktop, “Let me just play it for you.”
A standard, feminine Vira spoke from the Superintendent’s end of the line, “Superintendent Ruiz. Security Division has received credible evidence of an assassination plot against at least one National Council member, and we are requesting the assistance of your police division in monitoring the situation. Councilwoman Margaret Chambers will be visiting East Los Angeles tomorrow morning, in what is your Region 4. We would like you to assign an investigative unit to provide local security. If you agree to do this, then reply to 101-345-375-194 as soon as possible. Thank you.”
Ruiz continued, “Since it is police policy to cooperate with Security Division, I called Chief Bennett and assigned it to your area, Region Four. What do you make of it, Inspector?”
Alana never took her eyes off Ruiz. She was looking for any signs of cracks in the Superintendent’s poker face, but she did not see any. She replied, “I’m of the opinion that someone in SD deliberately rigged things to ensure that I was put on the case. Chambers’ trip to LA was a security blind, a honey pot.”
Ruiz raised an eyebrow, “Why involve us in a sting operation?”
A new theory immediately began to solidify in Alana’s mind. If they suspected that Aaron Stone was involved in a conspiracy of some sort, which he clearly was, they might have been using Alana as bait to draw him out. But that seemed far-fetched, even on quick reflection. However, if they actually suspected Alana of being involved, maybe because of her old connections to Colonel Stone, they might have done it to flush her out. If that was the case, then when she sent Rhys into the factory to spy, she walked straight into their sting. But why on Earth would SD make a connection like that in the first place? She had not seen or heard from Aaron since the armistice was signed.
Alana finally answered, “I don’t know yet,” as she activated her virtual desktop and reviewed her working timeline. “But! They placed that call to you before Chambers’ flight plan to LAX was filed.”
Ruiz rubbed his chin, “That might have been deliberately delayed. For security purposes.”
Bennett added his voice to the discussion, “Have you heard back yet about Rhys’ case? Has SD dropped the charges?”
Ruiz said, “I’m still waiting. I submitted the evidence to the district court late yesterday, and they are very busy.”
Alana asked, “Did Chief Bennett forward my request to interview Councilwoman Chambers under oath?”
That caused both of Ruiz eyebrows to jump, “To what end?”
“It would confirm whether she was on the plane to Rome during the Rhys incident.”
“Inspector, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“How about her chief of staff? He, or maybe just a robot copy of him, was with her in LA. Can I depose him?”
Ruiz stared at his desktop, but he was clearly just focusing his vision on the nearest object while he pondered Alana’s question, “No. Not yet. But if you uncover any evidence that justifies it, I may reconsider in the future. Was there anything else?”
It was Alana’s turn to stare into space. She did not reply.
Chief Bennett eventually said, “Thanks for calling in, Superintendent.”
“Glad to help. Even though I never met him, Rhys was my employee too.”
Alana fought back the urge to thank Ruiz for his glibness in the matter as the Superintendent pushed a button on his desk and the monitor reverted to off-white.
Bennett said, “The Rhys case is on hold pending the court’s reply. How is your investigation into your own murder coming along?”
Alana shook her head, “Nothing since I sent you the report. I’ve been following up on getting Rhys acquitted.”
“Keep on it and let me know if you get any breaks, or if it goes cold like it did on MacGruder. I’ll let you know when word comes down about Rhys. Dismissed.”
Alana returned to her office to find Brett still researching Aaron. “Anything unusual turn up?”
Brett was compiling a dossier on one side of his desktop and using the other to research his subject. He used the opportunity to take a break. “He’s an interesting character, to say the least. And the least is all I’m able to say at this point. I started with his police dossier and merged it with his public records. Now, I’m searching the Internet for anything related to him.”
“Let me know.”
Alana sat down behind her desk, plugged her interface cable in, and said, “Vira, call the public office of Councilwoman Chambers in Washington, DC.”
Brett added his eyebrow to the list of those that Alana had provoked into action today.
A half-hour passed before her Vira was able to connect to a live person. Alana identified herself and asked to speak to Chambers’ chief-of-staff. The chain of staff personnel she then climbed eventually led her to her destination, an hour later.
A woman’s voice answered, impatiently, “Yes, can I help you?”
“Good afternoon. My name is Chief Inspector Graves, and I’m calling in relation to a trip the Councilwoman took on March 10th of this year. Can you answer a couple of quick questions?”
The woman was firm, “Do you have a warrant?”
“I just want to ask a couple of off-the-record questions about her itinerary for that day. It does not involve any criminal investigations regarding the Councilwoman.”
“All right. Ask first, I can decline to answer once I know the question.”
“Did the Councilwoman visit Los Angeles, California on March 10th, 2090?”
“Let me check... No.”
“Did the Councilwoman visit Rome, Italy on that same day?”
“Yes. She was taking a well-deserved vacation. Is there anything else?”
“Actually, no. Thank you for your time. Goodbye.”
Alana leaned back in her chair, contemplating the answers she had received. Her assistant was straightforward, as if she had nothing to hide, despite her resistance to answering open questions.
Brett did not look up from his work when he said, “That won’t be admissible in court.”
“I know. My bosses would not let me depose her, so it was the best I could do. It confirms a theory, so it was worth the effort.”
“What theory is that, Ma’am?”
“The ‘Theory of I was used as a pawn by Security Division.’ The only question I have now is, ‘Why?’”
Chapter 26
When Alana checked in at her office Tuesday morning, she had a priority message from Chief Bennett. It read, simply, “My office. ASAP.”
Unlike the previous day, when Alana opened the door, the Chief was pacing behind his desk, fuming. Guessing what was to come next did not require a detective.
Bennett growled, “They aren’t releasing Rhys from Limbo.”
Alana tried to remain calm, but failed. The entire room shuddered as her fists landed on the Chief’s desk, “What!?! What’s their fucking problem?”
“They said that he is now being held on suspicion of espionage for a terrorist organization.”
Alana closed her eyes and held her tongue. Her worst-case scenario seemed to be turning out to be the truth. They had been set-up, and Alana had naively sent a likewise unsuspecting Rhys into the trap.
“The only bright side is that they were forced to drop the charge of attempted murder.”
“Is there going to be an investigation into the faked video?”
The Chief shook his head, “I don’t know yet. That’s going to be up to someone higher in the chain of command. SD will probably do an internal inquiry.”
“So, the fox gets to sniff his own ass?”
Bennett said, “Not the words I would have chosen, but you didn’t have to explain what you meant.”
“What can I do now?”
“That’s, ‘What can WE do,’ Inspector. And I’m damned well at a loss.”
Alana got decisive, grabbing the doorknob, “I’m going to search Rhys’ place for more evidence.”
“NO!” screamed Chief Bennett. “SD did not rescind their quarantine!”
Alana spun back around to face the Chief so forcefully that she pulled the doorknob out of its socket. Flustered, she crushed it in her hand, “Goddamn it!”
Bennett lowered his own voice to a normal tone, “Calm down, Inspector. We need to think this through rationally. I don’t want another window repair bill. Sit!”
Alana flopped down in a chair and dropped the warped chunk of brass on the desk. “Chief—”
Bennett shushed Alana. “I want at least a full minute of silence while you rein in your emotions. If we’re going to fix this, we’re going to have to use our brains.”
“Fists would be more—”
Bennett shushed Alana once again, “One minute!”
The Chief used the virtual clock on his desk to time it out. It was without question the longest minute of Alana’s life. It just would not end. She kept imagining herself clicking the detonator on a demolition charge at the Zumpco factory. No, at the Council Chambers. No, at both. And at Security Division HQ at Langley, Virginia. The timer ran out before Alana ran out of either mental ammunition or targets.
“All right,” he finally said, “Now you can talk.”
“I think I said everything I needed to when I destroyed your doorknob.”
A few minutes later, after the Chief had called someone to come by and open the door for her, Alana departed the office and headed for hers. She stormed in on Brett, catching him mid-nap with one foot propped on his desk. When she slammed the door, his foot slipped off and dropped to the floor astride his other. He awoke with a start.
Alana said, “I take it you finished the report on Aaron Stone?”
Still slightly groggy, Brett answered, “Uh, yes. I mailed it to you.”
Alana did not stop to sit. She grabbed her interface cable and plugged it into her desktop. She found the file Brett had sent and loaded it into her internal file storage. She ordered, “Get ready to move out.”
“I’m ready any time you are, Ma’am. Where do you want to go?”
Alana paused, taking another moment to try to dissuade herself from her next course of action. She failed. “I’ll tell you when we get there.”
Brett stood, “Yes, Ma’am.”
When they had gotten in their vehicle, Alana commanded, “Car!”
The vehicle’s computer asked politely, “Where would you like to go today?”
“Drive East until I say otherwise.”
Brett asked, “Does this mean we’re heading to Las Vegas?”
Alana ignored Brett’s question, instead concentrating on a virtual road map she had put on her virtual interface. She had to find something innocuous within walking distance of her destination. She eventually settled upon an Out-and-About Burger chain restaurant at the corner. It was only a kilometer away, a distance Alana could cover in about ten minutes without having to jog. She gave the address to the car.
“Destination accepted. Your estimated time of arrival is twenty minutes.”
Brett observed as they passed, “There’s one of those burger joints right there, Ma’am. We don’t have to go that far.”
Alana continued to ignore Brett, who just sat back and closed his eyes, which had become fatigued from staring at his desktop all morning while writing the report on Aaron Stone. “Then just wake me when we get there, Ma’am.”
A short time later, Brett awoke to the sound of a car door opening. Alana stepped out of the vehicle, saying, “Wait here in case I need you. Get yourself some lunch. I’ll be back in an hour or two.”
Brett could see that they were in the parking lot of the restaurant. He just rolled over onto his side and tried to get a little more sleep.
Alana crossed the street and walked down a perpendicular side road into the residential development where Rhys lived. The sidewalk was cracked and split, possibly not having been renovated since before the war. The palm trees that lined the roadway were so uniform that they could have passed for old-time utility poles, before the cables were either run underground or converted to wireless technology. Vehicles sat in driveways, or parked along the street, but they were few in number, with most being either hidden from the scorching midday sun within garages or in distant parking lots, having conveyed their owners to jobs, errands, or leisure. Thrice, Alana was challenged by barking dogs that were legally restrained either behind fences or on leashes. One house had a stately, robotic guard dog sitting on its front porch, its robotic brain likely programmed to call the police if anyone violated its owner’s personal space while they were away. It watched Alana silently as she passed, remaining unconnected to the chain barking she had provoked from the biological dogs in the neighborhood.
Ten minutes into her trek, she had covered half the distance to Rhys’ house. Alana paused at the corner of a secondary road that led deeper into the residential subdivision and nearer to her destination. She switched her vision to zoom mode and scanned the horizon for shadowers. Of course, surveillance technology was very good, and a camera could be hidden within the tiniest of objects. Police stakeouts often used robotic wildlife to secret spying eyes and ears within the local surroundings. On a clear day, like today, with the brilliant sun bathing the roadway, high-altitude drones or even satellites could pick out a single target, if they had a warrant, and Security Division often did not need warrants. But she did not see any hovering camera drones or black-clad, robot motorcycle ninjas, which were the things she was mostly worried about. Without her transponders broadcasting her position, she might have eluded any that were still following her.
About nine minutes later, Alana turned left into the cul-de-sac where Rhys once lived. She had been here on many occasions, usually when she was picking up or dropping off her detective in the line of work. But there were many social visits as well. Less than a minute later, she was standing at the foot of his driveway, looking past the red-tape boundary marker that had been posted around the parched yard’s perimeter.
The house was typical for the Los Angeles area, with a Black solar-panel roof and walls with faux-adobe outer-face insulation. The house number was written in the same color as the walls on a faux-mahogany plaque beside the faux-mahogany front door. The beige, single-car garage door was down.
For weeks, Alana had fought with Chief Bennett for permission to come here, only to be denied at every turn. Even with all the evidence of a frame-up being presented, Rhys was still being held in Limbo. Alana once again allowed her thoughts to reach her mouth, “One more step and I’ll be in violation of the SD quarantine.”
She raised the tape and ducked underneath. Her front door key still worked, SD having obviously not changed the locks.
After stepping inside the door and pulling it closed behind her, Alana glanced up into a motion-activated surveillance camera. A small, red light was active. While there was always a chance that no one was monitoring the alarm, Alana could not take the risk. She had just been made by whoever installed the device, probably Security Division, and she was going to have to act quickly before any potential enemies could arrive.
She made her way toward Rhys’ kitchen. On the way, she passed an electronic picture frame that was cycling still and motion images. One that caught her eye was a younger detective Rhys and DCI Graves at a party. He had his arm around her shoulder even then, before he had been assigned as her assistant.
When finally in the kitchen, Alana began searching through all of the cabinets, drawers, and other compartments. Alana then began looking behind hanging pictures and other furnishings that adorned Rhys’ walls. When she circled back to the electronic frame near the entrance, she found Rhys’ spare car key taped to the back of the picture frame. Alana had often nagged him about getting a keyless entry system for his car, but he insisted on having a physical key, despite the fact that it cost extra. His excuse was that the first car he had ever owned was hacked and used in a robbery, and that he didn’t want that to happen again. She pocketed the key.
