Smoke on the Water Ch. 03

I nodded. "Yeah. And if Ranger Halston tells a story, I listen with great interest. But I never ask him about anything, I just let him tell me. On account of his PTSD and all. I don't want to bring up anything bad for him."

"Ditto that for Admiral Cordell." Teresa said...

Part 20 - Thanksgiving Weekend

Thursday, November 26th. Thanksgiving Day.

Much to my surprise, Laura had said she was 'not enthusiastic' about hosting a big family Thanksgiving. My mother Phyllis said she was spending Thanksgiving in Apple Grove with her fellow 'inmates' of the retirement home there, as well as members of her church.

"I suggested to your mother that she might not want to come down until nearer Christmas." Laura had said to me. "Things are still really dicey with Carmela, and he's still trying to agitate violence to get Dr. Wellman removed as University President."

Teresa and Todd had accepted an invitation to join Father Romano and his cousins Cal and Drusilla Romano for a big lunch. Admiral Cordell and Todd's friend Teddy Franklin had also been invited to that gathering, and had accepted.

Paulina and Tasha were joining Franklin and Theo Washington and their families, and watching Jamaal Washington play for the Cowboys. To Tasha's happiness, legendary rapper T-Square also accepted the invitation to join them, though he left relatively early after lunch.

Cindy and Callie always went to Thanksgiving dinner with her father Dr. P. Harvey Eckhart, founder and great leader of 'The Vision', and his acolytes that lived at The Vision's compound in Coltrane County. Cindy's mother Maggie and daughter Betsy were joining them, and they invited us to go down there and spend the day with them.

Soooo, over the hills and through the woods to Uncle Harvey's house we go. Molly, her boys, and Sheriff Griswold joined me, Laura, Carole, and Jim in a small convoy.

We first gathered in Dr. Eckhart's office, whereupon the boys started running around chasing each other a lot. Laura also spent a few moments talking to Dr. Eckhart alone. When Cindy asked me what I knew about that, I said I didn't know what was going on. When I asked her what her vibe about it was, she said she wasn't getting anything at all.

After a while, we went to the big dining hall that was part of the dorms. The dinner was traditional turkey and ham and all the trimmings, and there was a lot of food for everyone... even the boys with hollow legs.

As usual, all the happy acolytes in their red and blue shirts stood up and said something for which they were grateful and said thanks. Many of them said they were thankful for each other and Dr. Eckhart, who were their only family.

Then Cindy stood up and said she was grateful for Callie, Betsy, and the baby on the way, and Callie said that Cindy was stealing her lines, making everyone laugh. Laura said she was grateful for her family, and for friends that had supported her in times of crisis. I said I was grateful for my family, my Police Force, and for my extended family... including Sheriff Griswold, Dr. Eckhart and all his friends and acolytes.

Jim said he was grateful for America and the U.S. Army. Ross said he was grateful for America, but also for Canada and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, which raised some blonde Canadian eyebrows in the room (Cindy, Molly, and Maggie). Ian said he was grateful for everything.

Then came Carole's turn. "I'm grate-ful for Mommy and Daddy, my brothers and sis-ters, Grandma, Marie, Bud-dy and Bow-ser... and Grandpa Grizz, too!" She then hugged Sheriff Griswold, who was still sitting in his seat. And now it was his turn to speak.

Griswold's mustaches were twitching with emotion as he got up and said "I'm grateful to Dr. Eckhart and all you young whippersnappers, and it's so good to see you doing good things with your lives. And I'm grateful to Laura and Molly, for sharing their family with me, and letting me be a grandpa to these wonderful kids."

Then his voice cracked as he said: "And words can't express how grateful I am for Don. He's more than Police family or blood family. Don... is the son I need but do not deserve."

Yeah, that one went to my heart and soul. And everyone applauded as I got up and exchanged a long, emotional hug with Grandpa Grizz, the second father I'd needed but did not deserve...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I wish I could say the entire weekend was good, but there were some... disappointments. Alabama beat Auburn in the Iron Bowl on several blatantly horrible officiating calls that had taken Auburn points off the board. Mississippi State beat Ole Miss by one point in the Egg Bowl after the Ole Miss kicker missed the extra point... which was 15 yards longer than normal because an Ole Miss player decided to pee like a dog in the endzone after scoring what should've been the game-tying touchdown.

And then, the disaster. The visiting Wildcats were solidly beaten by our archrival School, the Purple Hawks of State U, 41-24. They were the better team and had only one loss, and because they'd beaten both the Bulldogs and Wildcats, they were going to the Conference Championship game against the Tigers.

"Boo, State U!" Carole had said. "Go Tigers!"

So on Monday, November 30th, Teresa Croyle, Teddy Parker, Theo Washington, and myself were unhappy campers. Joanne Warner most very wisely decided not to say anything about her Crimson Tide winning over Auburn, as the Iron Wolf was on the Iron Warpath.

Teresa and Todd had gone to the game, and we'd kept their kids at The Cabin. Doug and Mike had worked on Lego City and the mighty Troy Transcontinental Railroad with Jim, Ross, and Ian. Little Jack Burke had discovered that Sheriff Griswold was an elected official, and had asked a lot of amazing questions about running for public office.

And Police Dog Bowser was not happy about the disappearance of a lot of ice cream, and barked at little Jack when he (Jack) was caught in the act of raiding the freezer for extra helpings. I didn't help things when I showed Jack how to make root beer floats, adding to his sugar rush.

"He says he's going to run for President one day." Teresa said as I relayed the story at the Angels + Claire Meeting.

"Speaking of elections," said Tanya, "should Dora help Helena with the Orange Order ballots?"

Dora Nunn was Tanya's new assistant, who'd started the Monday before. She was a paraplegic, and had been most of her life after a childhood disease ravaged her body. She was also slightly autistic... which manifested itself in tremendous organizational and mathematical abilities that made her ideal for helping Tanya with the Budget.

After I vetted Dora, Tanya quickly hired her. It had been easy to add a plastic floor plate behind her desk for Dora's wheelchair. Helena had had to do very little in the way of training, as Dora picked things up very quickly. Dora (and Tanya next to her) got the 'talking to' from the Police Commander in my office on not talking about any Police information she learned, and especially not to the Press.

"Uhhh..." I said in live time, "yeah, she can help with the Ballot Box in the office. But I'm not expecting her to go to the Precincts and collect ballot boxes there."

"They're fully ADA compliant." Tanya said. "She could pick them up."

"I'm not saying she's not physically capable of doing so." I replied. "But she's almost as bad as you at exceeding speed limits and running over Police Officers." That earned me a 'look' from Tanya and an outright laugh from Teresa despite the Iron Wolf's mood.

Teresa said "I heard that there was a (air quotes) 'meaningful moment' between you and the Sheriff at the dinner at The Vision compound."

"Yeah." I said nostalgically. "Our Sheriff was behaving more like an old softie than the Klingon Warrior he normally is." To change the subject, I said "So what did you do for Thanksgiving, Tanya?"

Tanya replied "Jack and I invited Karina White and Tracy Stone over for Thanksgiving Day lunch with our family. Tracy has no family, and Karina's family is a long way away and she's going to see them at Christmas. We invited Tim Jenkins, too, but he declined, so we thought he was going to be at The Vision with you guys."

"No, he was invited but he didn't attend." I said. "I do understand he'll be more involved with Christmas with Cindy and Callie and Betsy."

"So, Don,"' said Teresa, "who's going to be our Orange Order inductees? I've heard several possible names."

"So have I." I said. "And I'm not going to leave a ballot lying around for people to see who I'm voting for. It's theoretically wide open, but I have some 'edumacated' guesses who will win..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

9:00am. Paulina Patterson came to my office.

"Thanksgiving was good." she said after I poured her some coffee and had her sit down. "We missed you guys, but my brother enjoyed spending the time with Tasha, and I talked a lot with Franklin and Theo. And that's why I'm here, to share that scuttlebutt with you."

I nodded and Paulina said "Nance is not helping Franklin with the transition at all, but Watts and Folsom are helping him a lot. Folsom also told Franklin that with his, Franklin's, experience in drug-related matters, he'll get a lot of those cases. Our only question is if it will be me or Savannah on those cases."

"Your subordinates, if I don't miss my guess." I said.

"True," said Paulina, "but that's still in the future. We have to put the structure in place, hire people, get them up to speed and going and all that, so at first it'll still be me and Savannah doing most of it. And we still don't know who is going to be MCD and who is going to be Vice's ADA."

"She's really drawing that out, isn't she?" I asked, referring to D.A. Miriam Walters. "Is she just keeping her cards close to the vest? Or is she genuinely conflicted and doesn't know which way she wants to go?"

Paulina: "I think she knows, but she's just not announcing it until she has to. We are already getting applications for DDAs. Miriam's plan was to get a list of candidates, and then we'll alternate picks on who we hire. Savannah gets to go first, then me second, her third, and so on. But I'm getting the feeling that Miriam is going to make sure Savannah gets the best ones."

"Who gets Jenna Stiles?" I asked.

Paulina smiled and said "I won't even ask how you know that. Yes, Jenna's already sent in a résumé, and I told Miriam I'll take Jenna... which probably means Miriam won't hire Jenna."

"Don't be too sure." I replied. "So! Any other scoop from the Washingtons?"

Paulina said "Theo said the Detectives are getting more comfortable with Claire Michaels, and she with them. He also said that Roark Coleman is beginning to irritate some people. He doesn't really want to do the assignments that everyone calls 'the grind'. He likes to investigate cases from the crime scene to getting the data to making arrests and solving the cases, but he didn't really like following up on the Walter Walton situation, even though that turned out to be big."

Paulina: "And Franklin said he was a bit surprised at the reactions of some of the people at the Courthouse over Judge Nance. A lot of people hate that man, but a lot of people within the Courthouse were and are big fans of him and his activist political approach to his judicial rulings and cases."

"Yep." I said. "There are still a lot of people in First Baptist Church that think Westboro did no wrong, and blame me for his death and the church being blown to smithereens." (Author's note: 'A Tiny Slip'.)

"I can safely say I am not a Nance fan." Paulina said. "And I can't wait to bring trials before Judge Franklin Washington's Bench..."

Part 21 - Orange Is The Most Honorable Color

"This is Bettina Wurtzburg, KXTC Channel Two News!' shouted the redheaded MILF reporterette at 7:00am, Thursday, December 3rd, from the anchor desk at KXTC studios. "University students are furious after lawsuits demanding swift ethics hearings for University President Sidney P. Wellman are dismissed!"

After the hard-charging music intro, Bettina began: "Superior Court Judge Patrick R. Folsom dismissed with prejudice several lawsuits filed by tenured professors and Ethics Board members, who were attempting to force the full Ethics Board to fast-track complaints against University President Wellman. Judge Folsom cited a lack of standing in dismissing some of the complaints, and summarily ruled that it is not the responsibility of the Courts to set a reasonable timetable for the Ethics Board to do its job."

Bettina: "Students took to the streets in protest marches through Campus and also along University Avenue. Town & County Police immediately moved to interdict and arrest students that crossed onto the west side of University Avenue, but the Campus Police made no moves to stop the protests on Campus, which were peaceful. And now let's go to Carl Lemay, with an important story on the Police Orange Order march. Carl!"

"That's right, Bettina!" said the black reporter in his well fitting suit, reporting from the roof of the building at Riverside and College, with Police Headquarters in the distant background. "The Town & County Police will be holding their annual Orange Order ceremonial patrol Friday night. The Orange Order is an honorary group, and its members are elected into it by the entire Police Force."

Lemay: "The Orange Order walk, which they call the 'Patrol of Honor', is a tradition remembering the first citizen groups in Holland that went on patrols to stop crime over 400 years ago. These group carried lanterns with green glass, which ultimately became a symbol of the Police in Europe, and New York City precinct buildings are marked by green lamps to this day."

Lemay: "Controversy was created over the last few years when the Police changed their traditional route to exclude predominately Black areas of the County. Asked if the Police would avoid certain areas this year, Captain Damien Thompson said that the Police do not exclude any areas based upon race, though they may plan or change a route based upon security needs. He refused to say what the route would be this Friday night."

Lemay: "And in other news involving the Public Safety Department, Sheriff Antonio Griswold named Assistant Public Health Officer Rohit Gupta as acting Public Health Officer. Beth Paige was forced to resign in lieu of being fired for cause, and sources tell Channel Two News that she is strongly considering filing a lawsuit against Sheriff Griswold, Police Commander Donald Troy, and the Public Safety Department for harassment and wrongful dismissal. Sheriff Griswold also stated that he will not formally name a Public Health Officer until after the New Year. Back to you, Bettina."

"Thank you, Carl!" Bettina said. "And now let's go to trusted reporter Amber Harris, for a follow-up to a previous story. Amber!"

"That's right, Bettina!" said the athletic blonde from the same rooftop, but with the Federal Building in the background. "Channel Two News broke the story of the DEA Agent who was found dead at the Farmer's Market Restaurant several weeks ago. Channel Two News has learned that the deceased DEA Agent, Elena Von Telsing, was a relative of Betty Von Telsing Morelli."

Amber: "Betty Von Telsing Morelli was the wife of mobster Jerry Morelli, and is believed to have had a sexual relationship with Town & County Police Commander Donald Troy while in his custody, being transported to testify against her husband. She was murdered in prison, in a case that was never solved."

Amber: "Mrs. Morelli had a baby while in prison, and Courts have denied releasing the adoption documents of that child, denying you the information you have a right to know. It is not known if the Von Telsing family in New York will attempt to find that baby and make a legal claim to take custody of it. Back to you, Bettina."

"Thank you, Amber!" said Bettina as the feed cut back to her. "That's Amber Harris with breaking news about an important story you have the right to know about. And now let's go to Jeff Hull for more news on the Purple Hawks - Tigers Conference Championship game..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"You know, maybe they shouldn't be delaying the Ethics Board hearing for Dr. Wellman." said Lt. Commander Teresa Croyle as she, the Sheriff, myself, Chief Moynahan, and Commander Tanya Muscone drank coffee in the Chief's Conference Room.

"Why is that?" I asked casually... a little too casually.

"Todd is a University Trustee and on the Ethics Board." Teresa said. "And I know you'll keep this in confidence when I tell you that he told me that the cloud of suspicion hanging over Dr. Wellman's head is beginning to hurt the University. Wealthy donors will often make tax-deductible donations during the Holiday season, but they're already seeing a decline in gifts."

"Is that affecting the Hospital?" I asked.

"No, not that we can tell." said Hospital Board Member Teresa. "The Cancer Center is getting record donations, and that does not include my gift to them earlier this year."

"Are they going to have a concert this year?" asked Tanya. "I'm hearing that Dr. Carmela is already threatening to sue if you try."

"You betcha we're having that concert, and at the Hospital." Teresa said with some emphasis. "And Carmela can shove his lawsuit up his one-eyed ass."

After we stopped laughing at that, the Sheriff said "What's going on with those protesters? I didn't hear anything about that."

"I apologize for not telling you the minute you walked in the door, Sheriff." I said. "It was really much ado about nothing. There were about a hundred student protesters yesterday afternoon. I guess that's all George Schwartz and Lionel Carmela were willing to pay for. They marched around Campus and along University Avenue, but didn't cause any real trouble nor damage any property."

I continued: "But about twelve of them decided to cross University Avenue, and they started harassing people at the restaurants and bars on the west side of the street, demanding the restaurant patrons join the cause and pledge out loud their support for 'social justice'. The Police moved in quickly and and announced their support for legal Justice by making arrests, which deterred more protesters from crossing the street."

"I'm more worried about that report on our Orange Orderrrr walk." said Chief Moynahan. "It looks like KXTC is trying harrrrd to create trouble over it."

"And setting a trap for us." I replied. "If we avoid MLK Jr. Avenue, KXTC is going to call us racists for doing so. If we do walk down MLK Jr. Avenue, dollars-to-doughnuts that there will be protesters there, ginned up by Carmela and by KXTC... and they will have no intentions of being peaceful."

Teresa added. "And if we have a show of sufficient force to protect the walkers, there's no telling what KXTC will make of it."

"Nor what will be said if violence does break out." said the Sheriff. "So what do you want to do, Crowbar? Change the route like you did last year, when it became obvious KXTC was setting up an ambush for us?"

"No, Sheriff." I said. "We are going to walk right down MLK Jr. Avenue. We'll do it early, but we'll do it."

"Sir, are you sure?" said a very surprised Teresa Croyle.

"You betcha." I aid. "And on the security issues, let not your hearts be troubled, ladies and gentlemen. Despite what Commander Croyle says, I have not been sitting around twiddling my thumbs on this..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Those who vote decide nothing. Those who count the vote decide everything."
--- attributed to Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. Definitely applicable to the 2020 Presidential Election.

3:00pm, Thursday, December 3rd. Teresa and I gave Helena and Dora bouquets of roses and carnations for their work in collecting the Orange Order ballots, and we took possession of the ballots. We took them under two-man control to the Civic Center, and to the ballroom where we would have the Policeman's Ball on Saturday.