Witness for the Prosecution Ch. 02

It is possible that I got into some trouble with the Iron Wolf... when I suggested that either Alabama or Auburn would be no more than cannon fodder for the UGA Dawgs, so sorry. I somewhat mollified her with the bribe of one of the bottles of Tokay wine that the Sheriff had brought Laura and me... well, Laura, anyway, and my wife would just have to understand my need to confiscate that one bottle.

Cindy, Callie, Maggie, and Tim Jenkins arrived with Betsy Ross and Baby Ben Jenkins. Jack Muscone and Tanya brought Pete, Tiffany, and Jennifer. Melina Allgood brought little Dan and Patricia. Pete and Dan went to the attic room with the other boys, while Tiffany and Jennifer participated in the Baby Ben lovefest with all the other girls... except Betsy Ross. Little Betsy may have been feeling left out, so she waddled over to me. I had noooo problem holding her while I talked with the others.

Dinner was hamburgers, hot dogs, various trimmings such as baked beans and potato chips, salads for Laura and some of the others, Coca-Cola Zero and Cherry Coca-Cola Zero, and unsweetened iced tea (and 'fake sugar' packets for those who wanted sweetened tea). I had to go to the extra stash of Cherry Coke Zero; it was very popular with the kids and an increasing number of adults. Sheriff Griswold compensated by bringing Buffalo Trace bourbon, and he, Todd, Tim Jenkins, Chief Moynahan, and Edward Steele used the Coke Zero as a mixer.

In addition to the Usual Suspects, we had two additional guests: Captain Claire Michaels... and District Attorney Miriam Walters. Paulina and I had invited her to hear the solution to the case, and I had something else I needed to discuss with her. Chief Moynahan had stopped by to pick her up and bring her to The Cabin.

When she'd arrived, Miriam said "So this is where the Brain Trust is located."

"Yes ma'am. On the back deck, anyway." Carole replied, earning a rebuke from Laura for speaking when not spoken too, and being heard as well as seen. I showed Miriam around the house, and last but not least took her out onto that back deck. "Oh my, what a view!" she said as she looked out over the Town.

"And Carole's right." I said. "I like to spend time out here, and contemplate things. We'll light the fire pot out here later tonight, and have some conversations along with the Tokay wine the Sheriff brought..."

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

Dessert was caramel cake and ice cream. With Marie's help, Carole acquired and consumed three pieces of cake. Meanwhile, Betsy had managed to get extra helpings of ice cream. Girl loves ice cream, I thought to myself as I participated in her getting the extra helpings.

*ding* *ding* *ding* *ding* *ding* *ding* *ding* *ding*

No sooner was the dessert finished off than the Impatient One, the Green Crowbar, was tapping spoon-to-glass. "I definitely want to hear about this magic trick. Making a jewel appear and then disappear, and solving what turned out to be a wicked case of pure Federal corruption. Don, the floor is yours." Jack Muscone didn't even blink an eyelash at Cindy's shot at the Feds.

"The whole house is mine." I said, and Jim and Ross made a point to groan loudly. "Okay, sorry for the lame joke. Seriously, if ever there was a Team effort, this was it. I wasn't even in Town when the Hispanic Team was arrested, nor when the Smith-Morra Jewelry Store was hit the first time and the Black Team busted. And a lot of people gathered a lot of data that helped us a lot."

"Modesty is a human trait, Crowbar." growled the Sheriff. "I will not excuse it. It was you waiting inside Smith-Morra for Earnest and Stubbs. It was you that figured out what they were after. It was you that figured out the four dead people in Donnan County were the White Team... and that they were the perps in Apple Grove. And the only reason I'm stopping the examples is so the Green Crowbar doesn't beat me down silly for interrupting your narrative." A green crowbar had been waving in his general direction.

"Yes sir, but I'm not being modest when I say it was truly a Team effort, and some of it can't be discussed here." I said. "But let's start at the beginning. The Toyota Gang cases began months ago. And at the time, there was total confusion about them and what they were doing. The Feds were saying drugs were involved, but I believe that was a red herring and always was a red herring---"

"But we found bricks of drugs when we raided the warehouse!" protested Jack Muscone.

"Yes, you did." I said. "And to quote the Church Lady on Saturday Night Live: 'how conveeeeeenient!'. I don't think you personally had anything to do with it, Jack, but I do sincerely believe those drugs were planted at the scene, to give the Feds grounds to Federalize the cases and take the perps into Federal custody."

"Which they did anyway." Miriam Walters said witheringly.

"Yezzz." I said. "But let's circle back to that later. I will also note that we had Swamp Frogs involved in this case for months. They rented office space from a building they own, and were conducting their own surveillance of the Toyota Gang in this County, in Midtown, and in Southport." (Author's note: 'God Save The Queen', Ch. 01 among other places.)

Me: "So I went to my high school reunion in Apple Grove---"

"Where your high school jersey number was retired." stated Jack Muscone. Got me back, he did. Everyone who didn't know made exclamations, and everyone applauded me.

"Thanks. It was a shock to me, fer sure." I said. "Anyhoo, we ran into a very interesting case up there, and it turned out that four most very suspicious characters were not only involved in that industrial espionage case up there, they turned out to be part of the Toyota Gang. Chalk one up to coincidences."

"No." Cindy said. "The Agatha Christie rule applies."

"What's that?" asked Carole. Cindy looked at me.

I said "Dame Agatha Christie wrote Detective stories. Kind of like the one you wrote to fool me, and the one you're writing now to fool me." (Author's note: 'Christmas Mystery Theater Redux'.) Carole's eyes cut towards me as she realized I knew she had started a second story designed to fool me.

Me: "Agatha Christie wrote that you can always have one coincidence, but you can never have two. And she was dead right about that."

"What's a 'co-in-ci-dence'?" Marie asked.

"I'll look it up on the In-ter-net." Carole said, and proceeded to do so on her iPad. Geez, what kids have today that we didn't when we were growing up. How did we survive?

I continued: "I guess you're right, Cindy. And without 'Apple Grove', 'Donnan County' might still not make any sense today. But, thank goodness for my 20th high school reunion... twenty years... yay... I think..."

"Beats the alternative, Crowbar." mused Sheriff Griswold. Everyone chuckled.

"True, sir." I said. "Anyhoo, Team TCPD busted one set of the Toyota Gang, the Hispanic Team, and we began getting real data on them and understanding them. But even in that, there were red herrings that helped the Feds's cause, such as Miguel Carlena's ties to the Cartels, and Carlos Rojas's ties to the Mob as well as Central and South American gangs."

"Those weren't red herrings." Laura said.

"No," I said, "but for the purposes of our cases, it was a distraction, and potential for us to be led down the wrong set of tracks. But then came the Donnan County murders, to get me out of Town. Didn't do 'em a damn bit of good, as Team TCPD got the Black Team, which is a great credit to Captain Michaels and her Detective Teams."

Everyone applauded Claire, who just said "Like you said, sir, it was a Team effort. Intel Branch did outstanding work."

"So did the Detectives." Teresa said. "They got good info from C.I.s for Intel to act on... that's not taking away from Intel nor you, Claire."

"Team Effort, Sheriff." I said, needling Our Sheriff just a little bit. "At the time, I did not really put together in my head the importance of the Black Team's mission. It was a big hit for a lot of money and valuables, but no Toyota Gang group had hit other big targets, like banks... and if they had hit a bank, they would've wandered into Federal jurisdiction, which they were seeking to avoid."

I said "So we started getting more data on the Toyota Gangs, discovering the methods of communications, their tactic, and ultimately that they were doing some sort of competition... an Olympics of Crime, as conceived by the late Raymond Kyle Westboro, the Consultant of Crime."

Me: "Okay, well and good... until someone blew up a train car in my County, and as a distraction to murder Amelia Sedgwick. And that was an important clue... for the first time, it connected the Toyota Gang to the Swamp Frogs! Amelia Sedgwick had been the front woman and ultimately the patsy for the Hospital ransomware virus, which we know was the work of former DNI Brendan Chapel." (Author's note: 'Beethoven Virus')

Me: "So now we have three groups of the Toyota Gang, and one dead crew. And that might've been the end of it... except that the Feds were always grasping to get the perps away from our local jurisdiction. The DEA's Dwight Stevens wanted them, and lied to my face when he pretended to agree to let us try them for the local robbery, burglary, and murder charges."

"And then, as you all know," I said, "Maribel Isadora turned. She was given local immunity but not Federal immunity, and the moment her testimony came out of her mouth, there were the Feds, taking the Hispanic Gang right out of the Courtroom and their trial, and the others right out of County Jail. On that, fool me once... but I'll circle back to that in a minute."

Me: "And seemingly paradoxically, that is what cracked the case for me. I asked myself: 'Why did the Feds grab the perps before they were convicted of the local charges? Why did Dwight Stevens lie to me and not let us convict them in our Courts first?'. And the answer is?..." I waved my hand to the group, to see if anyone could answer.

"Leverage." Paulina said. "Once they're convicted of local charges, the Feds couldn't offer them Immunity in exchange for what they knew about anything, be it the Cartels, the Red Chinese, or what turned out to be a really huge jewelry heist."

"That's it. Hold this." I said, handing Paulina the red crowbar. She and Tasha examined it as I continued: "Again, I'm going to contradict my wife and risk sleeping on the couch with Bowser by saying that as far as the Swamp Frogs were concerned, it had nothing to do with the Cartels nor the Red Chinese. Maybe other Feds were interested in that, but it's tangential at best to what was really going on."

Me: "The real issue, goal, and prize was the Tokay Emerald, and if Roger Earnest and Dee Stubbs went to State Prison, the Swamp Frogs would have no leverage on them to get them to turn the emerald over. They also had to get them out of our hands if they needed to force the Black Team to physically get the emerald, which is what they ended up having to do."

Me: "When the kidnapping... because that is what it was... of the perps occurred, it set me to thinking. I got it that they needed to get the perps into Fed custody before we convicted them, and why, but I wasn't seeing their true goal and intentions. Amelia Sedgwick was burned to a crisp. I wasn't buying the drug issues. And then it hit me... the 1933 Double Eagles."

Me: "Several coin shops had been hit, and the 1933 Double Eagles and the 1795 coins appeared in our midst. Except for the few Double Eagles that we know of, like King Farouk's, and the descendants of the Mint worker that purloined a few, any existing 1933 Double Eagles are supposed to be in the gold depository at Fort Knox, Kentucky."

Me: "And what else was or is in the vaults at Fort Knox? Crown Jewels, and other international valuables. And then... I caught sight of Laura's necklace that Paulina gave her for her birthday. It had been made from emerald chips from Smith-Morra cutting the stones the Black Team had tried to purloin in their big raid. And it all eventually came together in my mind."

Me: "What happened was that Roger Earnest had found the Tokay Emerald in its box inside the store; it was near where the cash had been found and taken. He also had an inkling that the Police were onto them, so he hid the emerald. He thought he could come back for it, or if they were caught then it would be leverage for the Swamp Frogs to work to get him out of jail. He was half right... but he had not calculated how truly evil those people are, and the depths of Brendan Chapel's avarice. He almost signed his and his sister's death warrants."

Me: "And I knew that Brendan Chapel, when he was DNI, had the means to get those coins and the emerald out of Fort Knox. I don't know if he used former Westboro 'employees' or if he'd cultivated his own set, but like the L-sugar drugs, someone obtained the coins and the Tokay emerald, and matriculated them to places around here so that the Toyota Gang could get them for him." (Author's note: 'Sugar and Spice' for the L-sugar drugs.)

"Soooo," I said, "It just all came together for me. I spoke to some of you about my fears that Dwayne Heywood would come over all dead, and I realized to myself that when he was found dead, that would signal that they were going to attempt to get emerald. And when that did happen, the Green Crowbar drove the Black Beauty down to Southport with my (air quotes) 'stunt double'."

Me: "Thinking the coast was clear, the dirtiest of the dirty Swamp Frogs, Lindsey Black and Karl Coleman, forced Roger Earnest at the point of their Government Guns to go get the emerald. And to their stunned surprise, I was in there waiting for them, along with an Iron Wolf with a very bad attitude." Teresa nodded vigorously in agreement.

Laura said "And you found what was possibly the only solution to getting the Tokay Emerald back to its homeland. By the way, it has arrived safely and has been turned over to its rightful owners."

"Good." I replied. "So! Any questions?" As usual, that generated laughter.

"Actually, yes." Miriam Walters said. "Any chance of us getting the other Toyota Gang members back?"

Claire Michaels said "That's what I was going to ask. What about the other perps? Is Fred Spencer alive? And the Asian Team?"

Laura said "Michael Carlena was going to be shipped back to South America, but he asked for political asylum, fearing he'll be killed if he's returned to his grandfather. He'll get that asylum, and witness protection, if he cooperates with us. Peter Segui may get something similar. I have nothing on Carl Rojas."

"Neither do I." Jack Muscone said.

"And you likely never will." I said. "I would not be surprised to learn that Rojas was either a C.I. or a deep undercover DEA or FBI Agent---"

"Okay, okay, you've proved nothing gets past you!" Laura admonished me. "You don't have to 'mansplain' everything."

"Point taken." I said. Yep, couch time with Bowser was in my future, I thought to myself.

Jack Muscone said: "As to Fred Spencer of the Black Team, no one knows where he is. Maybe Dee or Roger can give your guys some info on where they were taken, but I fear that he is dead like Heywood is. As to the Asian Team, they're in a Federal facility in Washington State."

I said "I dunno about that, but I'm pretty sure we won't be getting them back. And that may be for the best." I was thinking of the Amelia Sedgwick deception.

Teresa asked "Were the perps's defense lawyers in on it, on getting them out of our custody and into Federal custody?"

I said "I can't prove it, but I think they were. As to Savannah Fineman and Dwight Stevens, they may have been unknowing, or may have been duped, but they will have to live with the fact that at least two of the Toyota Gang are dead and more might come over all dead before all is said and done."

I saw Miriam Walters's beady black eyes flash at me when I said that about Fineman, so I said "Okay, help yourselves to food, dessert, coffee, and wine and bourbon..."

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

Auburn defeated the Texas Aggies, setting up the SEC West showdown with Alabama the next week. Teresa's vacation had been approved; she and her (in the Japanese sense) 'hostage' Todd would be going to the game.

Miriam Walters had spent most of the evening on the back deck with the Sheriff, Chief, and Paulina. At 10:30pm, I went out and asked her to join me in my office for a few moments.

Going inside the office, Miriam looked around. "So this is where your 'I love me' wall is." She was observing my two swords on the rack on the wall, encased in a secure bulletproof glass case; the tea caddy and tea cups from the night I defeated the Consultant of Crime in the same cabinet/safe of bulletproof glass, my citations on the wall... the Hero of the Russian Federation, in Russian; my appointment as a samurai and personal advisor to the Emperor, in Japanese... also securely displayed.

(Author's note: 'Dream Weaver', Ch. 04 for the swords; 'A Tiny Slip', Ch. 03 for the tea caddy and tea cups; 'Teresa's Christmas Finale', Ch. 03 for the Japanese citation; 'We'll Always Have Paris', Ch. 03 for the Russian citation.)

She looked at the large Town & County map hanging over my desk, and the framed tiny slip of paper next to it. "Deer me, Mr. Holmes, deer me." she read. "What is that?"

I said "It is what began the downfall of the Consultant of Crime, the late Pastor Raymond Kyle Westboro." (Author's note: 'Seriously Inconvenienced', Ch. 04) "Have a seat." Miriam did so in the chair I'd brought in, and I sat in the chair that went with the desk. I picked up the manila envelope Eddy the Bounty Hunter had left in the Black Beauty, and handed it to her.

"Oh my God." she said as she looked at the materials. The photographs were of Savannah Fineman and Chip Blake in flagrante delicto, and the other papers denoting times and places of their sexual liaisons.

"You were having Savannah followed?" Miriam asked disbelievingly.

I said "No, it came from the same sources that clued me in to the first Smith-Morra jewelry heist, which I in turn informed my Intel Branch about. And we will not discuss that any further."

It was a clever mixture of truth and fiction: I had received the intel on the jewelry heist, and told Intel Branch before allowing myself to be distracted and go to Donnan County. But it was a lie that the same sources gave me the info on Savannah and Chip; that had been entirely my own doing. And it had paid off.

Miriam said "So what is your point in showing me this?" she asked.

I said "I have too much respect for your intelligence to not realize that you know exactly what this is about. I am absolutely sure that Fineman and Chip Blake colluded to help the Feds take custody of the Toyota Gang perps. I can't prove it, but I believe Fineman intentionally failed to secure the Federal immunity for Maribel Isadora, knowing that the Feds would use it to go in and snatch the perps right out of the Courtroom."

I did not say that Cindy's vibes and my own sense of things were more than enough 'proof' to me that I was right. Miriam's beady black eyes looked into my gray peepers for a good long time, then she finally said "What are you going to do with this?"

"Nothing." I said. "Like I said, there's nothing I can do, legally, unless someone gets incredibly stupid and talks in front of others, who subsequently come to me. And as you can see, I'm not holding it for blackmail or coercion, I don't play those games. I'm giving that stuff to you, and what you do with it is up to you, and you alone."

Miriam put the photos back into the envelope, and we both stood up. She said "Thank you for showing this to me, Commander. And thank you for a fun evening here at your lovely home."